Photo courtesy of Common Dreams
When the entire Global North led by a sociopath US president whose cognitive capacity is under media scrutiny, has thrown its unreserved support behind Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s IDF to cleanse Palestine of its native Arabs and wipe out Palestine itself from the world map while haranguing about a two state solution for decades; when the UN and its institutions remain paralysed even to enter Gaza to feed its starving population; and when Palestine’s Arab neighbours, notably Egypt and the Emirates, are reported to be the architects of Gaza’s strangulation while others like Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain are rushing to normalise relations with Israel, it is heartening to hear Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath expressing his government’s “unwavering diplomatic support” to Palestinian rights for a separate and independent Palestine state.
Unlike many countries in Asia, Sri Lanka’s support to Palestine is historically rooted in the country’s millennial connection with the Arab world – an aspect of the island’s history yet remains unexplored. Will the local Muslim community represented by those 30 civil society leaders who met the Foreign Minister at least wake up now to undertake this invaluable task?
What is happening in Gaza now and before engulfing the West Bank is the continuation of the post-First World War imperial design in the form of that infamous 1916 Sykes-Picot agreement by which Britain and its close ally France with Russia’s consent decided to carve out the Ottoman Provinces in the Middle East as their respective zones of influence. After centuries of civilizational subjugation to the power and glory of Islam under successive Muslim dynasties beginning with the Omayyad, the wheel of fortune finally turned in favour of Britian and Europe.
It was that process of remaking Muslim Middle East in the image of Western imperialism which eventually resulted in the implant of the state of Israel in the heart of the Arab world in 1948. To cut the story short, when the imperial baton changed hands after World War II from Britain to the US and when the Cold War between the Communist bloc and its capitalist foe ushered in and when petroleum became the lifeblood of industrialization, Israel was deemed by the US to be its imperial gate keeper in oil rich Middle East. Accordingly, Israel was funded quite generously from the US taxpayer savings and weaponised clandestinely with all varieties of deadly arsenal including nuclear, so that the Middle East would be remade once again but this time in the image of Israel. Accordingly, Palestine and Palestinians need to be wiped out in the interest of Greater Israel. That is why President Donald Trump has given carte blanch to Netanyahu to finish the job quickly.
Palestine’s treacherous Arab neighbours are silent partners to this poisonous intrigue. It was as part of that imperial design that Arab nations were intentionally kept defenceless but dependent on the US for their security. If any leader such as Muammar Ghaddafi of Libya or Sadam Hussain of Iraq tried to build their own defence industry without depending on the West, they were removed from power by either through a war or by promoting enemies from within. But there was one exception to this macabre plan, and that was Shia Iran. So long as Iran remained an American stooge under the Shah it was allowed to build with US support its own defence system, partly to counter any Russian design to enter and dominate Asia and partly to check the rise of any Sunni recalcitrant in the Middle East challenging the US. But after the Islamic revolution when Iran turned anti-American, the need to destroy Iran’s defence structure has become a priority to the US. Iran’s support to the Palestinian struggle has given the US and its gatekeeper Israel the pretext to finish that job. But at what cost is another matter.
However, Hamas’ resistance against the Israeli genocide is remaining strong even after 18 months of Israeli’s indiscriminate bombing and carnage and has won sympathy globally. The Kassam Brigades is inflicting repeated casualties on Israeli soldiers that the Western media do not want to publish. But pro-Palestinian demonstrations and protest gatherings like those pro-Vietnam and anti-US demonstrations of 1960s and 1970s are now a regular occurrence and they have become more organized and have spread to self-funded human rights organizations and Zionist funded university campuses and research institutions. The difference between then and now is the fact that while pro-Vietnam and anti-American protests were officially associated with Marxism and Communism, pro-Palestine protests are tainted with antisemitism – a label originated and gained currency in the West because of Christian hatred towards Jews who were cursed and condemned as Christ killers. (Ironically, when those hated Jews were thrown out of Europe like from Spain in 15th century, it was the Ottoman Empire that opened its gates to accommodate them. Even during the Holocaust, it was Iraq that gave asylum to thousands of Jewish refugees). By pasting the antisemitic label on pro-Palestinian protestors, the West is once again trying to absolve itself from anti-Jewish guilt.
The reality of the daily horror experienced by Palestinians at the hands of Israel’s IDF terror outfit and the West’s shameless sermonising to the world about democracy, freedom and human rights while remaining silent on Israel’s genocide is all utter hypocrisy. Sri Lanka’s unwavering support to Palestinian struggle therefore looms large in the face of this hypocrisy and Arab betrayal of the cause of Palestine. Sri Lanka’s pro-Palestinian stand therefore is more than an expression of sympathy and would certainly earn the ire of Israel and its backers. There lies a danger.
Although Israel has no direct geopolitical interest linked to Sri Lanka, it could play a mischievous role on behalf the US and India and against their common enemy China. As expected, Israel has thrown its weight behind India in the recent Indo-Pakistan confrontation over the Pahalgam incident. Already, Israeli tourists are reported to be overstaying their visas and engaging in shady business deals with the locals and the Chabad House in Colombo is said to be a den of Israeli criminals and spies. Is Sri Lanka going to allow a Zionist colony here in return for Israel’s employment for Sri Lankans there? The 2023 incident in Arugam Bay, populated mostly by Muslims, involving a Jewish community centre there frequented by Israeli tourists sent shock waves abroad and travel warnings were issued by the US, UK, Australia and EU countries advising their tourists to avoid Arugam Bay. Sri Lanka’s economy cannot afford to sacrifice its tourist industry. The NPP government is well advised to be extra vigilant about Israeli tourists and their activities.