When I returned to my hometown near Ramallah on the occupied west coast in January, the tension was tangible. It reminded me of another intifad, to whom I witnessed firsthand as a child. There were fear and anxiety and an increased sense of uncertainty about the constant attacks of Israeli settlers. Roads to and from the city were blocked by checkpoints, which led to a multi -day waiting and humiliation for Palestine trying to enter or leave.
On weeks before I visited, Israeli settlers lit my family land during the olive selection season. A similar attack followed last summer and two more years before, which destroyed property, crops and ancient olives.
My father told me that he was stood powerless, incapable of extinguishing the fire because the armed settlers protected the Israeli forces. Even if the soldiers were not there to prevent any action for the salvation of the property, there would not be enough water available to insert the fire because it was diverted near illegal settlements.
The situation through the occupied West Coast has been deteriorating for years, but violence escalated abruptly after October 7, 2023. Almost half of all Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces or settlers since the records started were killed in For the last two years.
So far, it has been a two-year-old shot at the head by the Israeli sniper in his family home and a 23-year pregnancy killed by the Israeli fire. These are not insulated incidents, but part of a wider pattern in which Palestinians are killed in unprecedented ways, at unprecedented footsteps.
Israeli military attacks on Palestinian homes and arbitrary custody have become a daily occurrence. Of the 10,000 Palestinians who stayed in Israeli prisons, More than 300 are childrenMost of whom do not face the billing and there is no way to know if or when they will see their families again.
The villages were attacked, the houses collapse, and the property is destroyed at rapid footsteps. The architecture of occupation – control points, obstacles and permits – intensified and made a daily life unbearable for Palestine. Nearly 900 new military checkpoints and obstacles have been set up on October 7th. This has led to serious limitations of movement and disorders in basic services, deepening the already severe humanitarian crisis.
What used to be unprecedented was “routine” – and the world seems to be used to it. Our new reality includes Israeli air attacks in refugee camps, hospitals under siege, children who fired in front of their homes. Such incidents of brutal violence have become a regular occurrence, just like in gauze.
Remember the first hospital attack in Gaza? The first target of the school is shelted displaced? The first fire from the Israeli air strike that passed through tents of displaced and burning people alive? Now try to remember the last one. Such violent incidents have become so normalized that they are ultimately accepted as a gloomy reality in far -off land.
The same thing happens on the occupied west coast.
As Saveo Children’s Representative for the United Nations, I see that this dynamics reflect on the international stage. The persistent disadvantage of the significant responsibility of Israeli forces encouraged the culture of impunity – allowing works such as the bombing of schools, burning homes and killing journalists and humanitarian workers to perceive themselves as “normal”.
Even when the reflectors are thrown at Palestine at global events, it doesn’t seem to have any difference. Earlier this month, the Palestinian-Israeli film no other country won an Academy Award for Best Documentary.
Accepting the award, Palestinian filmmaker Basel Adra expressed his hope that his infant would not have to live the same life as he is currently – he is always afraid of the violence of immigrants, the demolition of the house and forced displacement.
Despite the fact that the movie won the highest awards (or perhaps because of it), the attacks of Israeli soldiers and settlers on the Masafer Yatta, the Adra -Oya community, only intensified. There were no meaningful actions from the international community.
People can say goodbye to being flooded in the face of ruthless brutality that take place for over a year and a half. Only man is to feel numb. In addition, so many people were exposed to media reporting that systematically dehumanized Palestine and put aside their voices, separating human connection and empathy.
But governments cannot be forgiven for not taking measures. They have a legal obligation to support international law. His norms are not relative; They are not ready for negotiations.
It is true that shocking violations that take place in Gaza and the west coast are normalized because they are accepted by those who are entrusted with supporting international law.
We need to demand that international bodies and governments take concrete steps to keep the perpetrators responsible for their actions. This includes the suspension of weapons transmission and the supporting mechanisms that cause impunity for those who are fluid of international law.
The global community must act decisively in order to restore the respect of international law. He states that they neglect these laws impair the very basis of a global order based on the rules. While those who violate children’s rights and international law are ultimate responsibility, all Member States of the United Nations have a duty to Geneva Conventions to ensure adherence to these principles.
Weekly massacres are not normal. The population brought to the edge of the hunger created by man is not normal. Air attacks on refugee camps are not normal. The two -layer system of rights on the basis of ethnicity is not normal. Discovering, prison and killing children is not normal.
Pasty time of passive observation has passed. The world must require responsibility, support humanitarian efforts and refuse to accept unacceptable. Each delay costs more life; Each delay weakens the system designed to make people around the world safe. Only through the collective action can we break this cycle of violence and provide a future in which children are in Palestine and Israel, regardless of their ethnicity or religion, protected and appreciated.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s and do not reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeere.
