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Theorising the Holocaust Published by The Post on 30 January 2008

Muhammad Nadeem Akhtar

The remembrance of the Holocaust is mostly referred to the killing of Jews by Nazis Germany which prompted the mass migration of Jews from all over of the world to Palestine. However, long before the Holocaust, Richard Belfour publically announced the official policy of Britain to settle Jews in the Palestine mandate in 1917. It was based on the partition of the land into two parts; one being dwelled by Muslims (Arabs) and the other by Jews which later failed due to faults of the partition plans first by the British government and then by the UN in 1947. The Holocaust could be defined in two ways: a situation in which many things are destroyed and many people are killed, particularly because of war or a fire; and the killing of millions of Jews by the Nazis in the 1930s and 1940s. These two definitions are adopted by Oxford Advanced Genie. The occurrence of Holocaust is not limited and has not been obsolete. Is it not interesting to note that the killing of millions of Jews during the Nazis period, which also be considered controversial, has been given the title of Holocaust, but the killing of millions of Palestinians has been largely ignored. The killing of innocent Palestinians by Israel is more life damaging and could be described as mass killing in order to eradicate the Palestinians and their resistance elements. The Holocaust for Jews occurred for once, but for the Palestinians it occurs indefinitely. The international community has not voices support to innocent Palestinians. The recent clashes between Israel and Palestinians have created a horrified situation in Gaza Strip. This area has historical orientation. The US, being a major stakeholder in the Middle East politics, promotes indifference throughout its presidential terms and at the end every president announces his last year as a mediator, which provides an analytic interpretation for the next president to monopolise US politics in more effective way. The initial Holocaust for Palestinians was started by Britain by destroying the right of statism for Palestinians, the right to govern politically within the area due to indigenously nativity. The end of the British mandate in Palestine was aimed at to get rid of a dispute in which the British were not able to undertake efforts to heal out the political mistake of Jews settlement. There was also a war between Jews and Great Britain army. Beginning in 1936, several Jewish groups such as Etzel (Irgun) and Lehi (Stern Gang) conducted violence against the British military and Arab targets. This prompted the British government to label them as terrorist organisations. Through political uprising in the US, Jews continue to contain the Palestinians, voice for independence jurisdiction. On the other hand, the war on Palestinians is not limited to occupied areas of Palestine, but has spread across borders. As Hisham Sharabi in 1982 said that Israel's action against the Palestinians in Lebanon was part of a larger pattern, which included Palestinians under Israeli occupation. In Gaza and West Bank, the Palestinians had been subjected to systematic persecution and suppression. From 1982 todate, the vicinity got more vulnerable to political and military maneuvering of Israel which should be competed by investing Muslim world stakes in the Middle East collectively and at the same rate and cost as the West has invested already. This debate by Professor Sharabi deliberately led to the patterns of 'genocide' of Palestinians. The international legal definition of the crime of 'genocide' can be found in Articles II and III of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide. Article II describes two elements of the crime of genocide: the mental element, meaning the "intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such"; and the physical element which includes five acts described in sections A, B, C, D and E. A crime must include both elements to be called 'genocide'. Article III described five punishable forms of the crime of genocide: genocide; conspiracy, incitement, attempt and complicity. These five terms are apparent in political outrage of Israel over Palestinians. Statistics for the Palestinians who were forced to migrate and were killed is huge. Although the international community knows the exact situation, power monopoly at the real political level sees Israel as the only backup force to serve the interests of the US. Al-Fateh and Hamas have different orientations. The funding problems are more associated with the political plight of the representatives of Palestinians, which have created a competition between the two political factions of Palestinian representation. The Muslim world does not have limited resources, but matters like differences in policies and political uplifting in the region have undermined the situation of compromise and establishment of common hierarchy. On January 18, 2008, a press release by the UN rapporteur on recent Israeli war crimes in Gaza has brought to the fore Israeli violation of human rights. The UN special rapporteur said that killing of 40 Palestinians in Gaza Strip had strong negative implications for Israel's respect for the international law and its commitment to the peace process. The rapporteur further explained, "Those responsible for such cowardly action are guilty of serious war crimes and should be prosecuted and punished for their crimes." The Israeli antagonistic actions are not limited and are not responsive to such criticism under patron of the US and its allies. Israel considers all this as political rhetoric to calm the situation. This has developed a regime in which some criticism comes but fails to stop Israel's repression against the Palestinians. The Holocaust for Palestinians will continue till they are given their indigenous right to govern themselves politically with all conditions of a state fulfilled. Muslim states must clearly know that knocking at doors of the US will make them more vulnerable. The Middle East is the only region in which the US's outreach strategies are strongly associated with strong Israel. The Nations Security Council is an example of the worst use of so-called liberalised institutionalisation. Till the amendments in the UNSC will come, the organisation will continue to play a secondary role to the US and to its policies in the Middle East.. The writer is associated with the development sector Also available at: http://thepost.com.pk/Previuos.aspx?dtlid=141743&src=Muhammad%20Nadeem%20Akhtar&date=30/01/2008