My Dear Poet Friends:
On Tuesday, U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese accused Israel of committing acts of genocide. She spoke in Geneva about her major new report, The Anatomy of a Genocide:
Following nearly six months of unrelenting Israeli assault on occupied Gaza, it is my solemn duty to report on the worst of what humanity is capable of and to present my finding, 'The Anatomy of a Genocide.' History teaches us that genocide is a process, not a single act. It starts with the dehumanization of a group as other and the denial of that group’s humanity, and ends with the destruction of the group in all or in part.
The dehumanization of Palestinians as a group is the hallmark of their history of ethnic cleansing, dispossession and apartheid.
In a war situation or where violence and injustice are prevalent, "poetry is called upon to be something more than a thing of beauty."
-- Seamus Heaney, an Irish poet, playwright and translator who received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.
And
Previously, I believed that poetry was a form of combat, but today I don't think that it has an immediate task. Its influence is very slow, cumulative.
-- Poet of Palestinian resistance (1941-2008), Mahmoud Darwish, author of The Butterfly Effect, 2008, who died believing in the power of his poetry to make a difference.
And the last two stanzas of his 1964 poem, "Identity Card:"
Write down!
I am an Arab
You have stolen the orchards of my ancestors
And the land which I cultivated
Along with my children
And you left nothing for us
Except for these rocks ...
So will the State take them
As it has been said?!
Therefore!
Write down on the top of the first page:
I do not hate people
Nor do I encroach
But if I become hungry
The usurper's flesh will be my food
Beware ...
Beware ...
Of my hunger
And my anger!
Share with you my latest entries, XXXVIII: "Israeli strikes" and XXXIX: "illegal settlement," of Against the Drowning Noise of Other Words about what has been happing in Gaza and the West Bank:
Gaza: "Israeli strikes"
dating profile photo:
a smiling twentysomething
with a M4
in front of mushroom clouds
from Israeli strikes in Gaza
FYI: Haaretz, March 24: 'We're Not Only Here to Fuck Hamas': How Israeli Militarism Took Over Online Dating: Why are Israeli soldiers uploading photos of themselves inside Gazan homes or with Palestinian detainees to their dating profiles? Beyond the 'uniform effect' which turned U.S. firefighters into heroes after September 11, some experts say the violent militarism seen on dating apps is leading to disturbing trends in Israeli society – online and off
The American M4 and the Israel Tavor (in various guises) are the primary weapons of the IDF.
Reuters, March 28: Israeli soldiers play with Gaza women's underwear in online posts
In one video, an Israeli soldier sits in an armchair in a room in Gaza grinning, with a gun in one hand and dangling white satin underwear from the other over the open mouth of a comrade lying on a sofa.
"The posting of such images is demeaning to Palestinian women, and all women," said Ravina Shamdasani, U.N. Human Rights Office spokesperson.
Article 27 of the Fourth Geneva Convention says civilians are entitled to respect for their honour, family rights, manners and customs, and must be protected against insults and public curiosity, and that women must be especially protected against any attack on their honour.
And Haaretz, March 28, Day 174: France's foreign ministry announced it can pursue legal action against Israeli soldiers with French citizenship suspected of war crimes in Gaza, saying France's justice system "has jurisdiction over crimes committed by French nationals abroad."
West Bank: "illegal settlement"
silhouetted
against the Ramadan moon
trailer houses
on both side of the pathway
to a new hilltop settlement
FYI: Haaretz, March 6: Israel's Approves Construction of 3,476 Housing Units in West Bank Settlements
2023 was an exception in terms of promoting construction plans in the West Bank. 12,359 housing units were approved or advanced in the planning phase last year. "Peace Now," an Israeli non-governmental organization, estimates that this is the highest number since the signing of the Oslo Accords.
Look forward to reading your haiku and tanka.
The accepted haiku and tanka will be translated into Chinese and posted on NeverEnding Story and Twitter. And you are welcome to follow me on Twitter at @ericcoliu (6 following, 4566 followers). For more details, see submission guidelines for haiku and tanka
Chen-ou
Added: Against the Drowning Noise of Other Words, XL: "Ramadan fasting"
a fasting man's face
stippled with shrapnel scars ...
airdropped aid
FYI: Democarcy Now, March 4: U.S. Airdrops Food to Gaza While Arming Israel to Drop Bombs
And Democracy Now, March 7: Biden Quietly Approves 100+ Arms Sales to Israel While Claiming Concern for Civilians in Gaza
The following is the summary of "The Anatomy of a Genocide," accessed at https://www.un.org/unispal/document/anatomy-of-a-genocide-report-of-the-special-rapporteur-on-the-situation-of-human-rights-in-the-palestinian-territory-occupied-since-1967-to-human-rights-council-advance-unedited-version-a-hrc-55/
ReplyDeleteSummary
After five months of military operations, Israel has destroyed Gaza. Over 30,000 Palestinians have been killed, including more than 13,000 children. Over 12,000 are presumed dead and 71,000 injured, many with life-changing mutilations. Seventy percent of residential areas have been destroyed. Eighty percent of the whole population has been forcibly displaced. Thousands of families have lost loved ones or have been wiped out. Many could not bury and mourn their relatives, forced instead to leave their bodies decomposing in homes, in the street or under the rubble. Thousands have been detained and systematically subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment. The incalculable collective trauma will be experienced for generations to come.
By analysing the patterns of violence and Israel’s policies in its onslaught on Gaza, this report concludes that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold indicating Israel’s commission of genocide is met. One of the key findings is that Israel’s executive and military leadership and soldiers have intentionally distorted jus in bello principles, subverting their protective functions, in an attempt to legitimize genocidal violence against the Palestinian people.