Author

Jonathan Ofir

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Asaf Ronel of Haaretz said it is “unlikely” that Palestinian medic Razan al-Najjar was deliberately killed last Friday, although he confirms that deliberate targeting of medics with live ammunition occur. Having targeted her is a war-crime in itself, kill or no kill. On top of that, the possibility of a deliberate killing – murder – is completely relevant.

Jonathan Ofir: “The presence of the people across the fence in the Great March of Return is a gigantic mirror, saying not only ‘we are still here,’ but ‘this is who you are.’ And Israel wants to shatter that mirror, so it sends hundreds of snipers to shatter it. All Jews should consider whether they can bear possessing such a mirror for their narcissistic self-image, while it tears apart Palestinian existence and has done for over 70 years.”

“I’m glad it’s over”, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, as Elor Azarya, the soldier-medic who shot the incapacitated Palestinian suspect Abdel Fatah Al Sharif, returned home from his prison term served for ‘manslaughter’, after merely 9 months. Azarya was greeted like a real hero when arriving home, with Israeli flags and signs saying “It’s so good to have you home, the soldier of us all,” and “Welcome home, Elor the hero.”

The residents of the Bedouin town Umm Al-Hiran have signed an agreement with the Israeli government to be relocated under threat of demolition and more violence to make way for the Jewish town of “Hiran”. This “voluntary” response to the government’s “generous offer” tells us a lot about Zionism, and how Israel understands its own history.