….Biden could end Israel’s war on Gaza ‘with one phone call’
9 Mar 2024
- US President Joe Biden says it was “looking tough” for a ceasefire agreement in Gaza by the start of Ramadan. He also said he was concerned about violence in East Jerusalem without a ceasefire.
- Three more children die of malnutrition and dehydration at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, Palestinian officials said, bringing the confirmed toll from starvation to 23.
- Five people were killed by airdropped aid boxes because parachutes failed to open, highlighting the problem of getting desperately needed humanitarian relief into Gaza amid Israeli restrictions.
- At least 30,878 Palestinians have been killed and 72,402 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attacks stands at 1,139, and dozens continue to be held captive.
Biden could end Israel’s war on Gaza ‘with one phone call’
New initiatives to get aid into Gaza via airdrops and a maritime corridor are little more than a “Hollywood” show by the US as it simultaneously supplies weapons to Israel, says Saul Takahashi, professor of human rights and peace studies at Osaka Jogakuin University.
“If the Americans or the EU give a hoot about Palestinian lives, they would not pretend like they are Hollywood action heroes airlifting supplies into Berlin, but they would stop the endless flow of weapons to Israel, and stop the political support for Israeli genocide,” Takahashi told Al Jazeera.
“Biden could halt all of this tomorrow with one phone call. The fact that he is not doing so – and thinks voters will be fooled by this – shows that he must think they are stupid.”
“This is not predominately a humanitarian issue. This is not some kind of natural disaster. This is a man-made disaster, this is a genocide,” Takahashi added.
