I MUST commend Mike Small on his excellent article in last weekend’s Sunday National (It’s time for people to stand up in defence of democracy, decency, humanity). He touches on many issues that I and many similar-minded free-thinking people perceive regarding British society/politics and control of the narrative covering the Israel-Palestine conflict.
I am generally cautious about debating this particular issue as it has become abundantly clear in recent years that a pro-Israel narrative has been gradually foisted on certain Western countries and their media.
READ MORE: Scottish pro-Palestine protests absent from BBC coverage
In some cases it has become clearly evident that critics who come out with the wrong narrative/opinion have lost their jobs, with others under threat of losing their jobs. This is scary stuff that is relative to the worst forms of autocratic governance/bullying; it should be outlawed in a proper free-thinking democratic society.
Bullish attacks on free-thinking critics of extreme actions/revenge rather than peace mediation and a strong will to proceed to a proper two-nation solution are totally unacceptable.
It is no wonder that many folk are frightened to respond or even protest because of this type of political skulduggery and suppression of a counter-narrative that is in conflict with the political pro-Israel line being preached to all and sundry. Effectively favouring an aggressor that is fully armed to the back teeth by the US and other Western governments and even has a nuclear bomb capability?!
READ MORE: George Kerevan: The potential consequences of Middle East conflict on the wider world
Parts of the region appear to be totally lawless, with Israeli settlers and soldiers randomly killing unarmed people with no recourse or accountability! Demolishing targeted Palestinian buildings, stealing communal water supplies, intimidating people for land gain – lawless activities totally ignored in a lawless society!
Also the carnage goes back decades and decades throughout my lifetime and the Western political agenda is the same in setting a firm anti-Palestine/anti-terrorism narrative that “begs to deceive”.
This agenda has never been fully explained. Why has it been negatively set in this manner to give all power and armaments to the Israeli government?
READ MORE: Craig Murray 'facing potential criminal probe on terror charges'
And this extreme, uncompromising position will never change unless world opinion and political pressure from world leaders and the UN finally forces a total rethink as suggested by Mike Small.
Otherwise the carnage/killing will just continue with impunity and any massive outrage/protest will be ignored as usual – much like the huge worldwide demonstrations that preceded the bogus pre-war UK-US orchestrations against Saddam Hussain and Iraq and the needless carnage that followed.
Bernie Japs
Edinburgh
AND so it’s that time of year again when a section of the British public will be wearing a poppy to demonstrate, in the words of the British Legion, “a show of support for the armed forces community”, and to “honour those who serve to defend our democratic freedoms and way of life”.
However, following the UK Prime Minister’s recent deployment of Royal Navy vessels, surveillance aircraft and a detachment of Royal Marines “to deliver practical support to Israel and partners in the region,” will the wearing of a poppy be deemed a criminal offence, due to its demonstration of support for those currently assisting the perpetrators of an ongoing genocide in Gaza?
After all, in light of Suella Braverman’s latest warnings against the “glorification of terrorism on the streets of Britain”, it would appear wearing a poppy would doubtlessly constitute such an act.
Roddy Keenan
Worcestershire, England
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