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"And no one will be happier with that outcome than the state of Israel." Well, yes and no. Because if the ICJ does not rule that it's genocide, it destroys its own credibility completely. The world doesn't actually need the ICJ - it can judge very well for itself what is happening, and that includes many people in the UK and the US - and Israel itself -who will never forget. All over the world sympathy for the Palestinians will flood out of every people that has suffered from US / UK violence over the last 300 years. Including a great many Jews who are already feeling horrified and betrayed by Zionism. Israel is digging itself into a very deep hole and taking the UK and US with it. I cannot see how Israel can survive this for long. The US is heading for chaos itself. And all those western leaders must be looking very nervous indeed, whatever the verdict.

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"...Food was similarly in short supply. Back in 2012, Israeli human rights groups managed to make public a secret document showing that the army had been tightly controlling food going into Gaza from 2008 onwards. As a result, two-thirds of the population was food insecure, and every 10th child was stunted by malnutrition. The aim was to induce long-term food poverty, effectively putting the population on a starvation diet..."

Starvation diet started long ago.

Remember infamous Dov Weisglass, long-time advisor to the Israeli government?

He was quoted stating that,

“The idea is to put the Palestinians on a diet, but not to make them die of hunger.”

(‘Hamas readies for government, Israel prepares sanctions’, Agence France Presse, February 16, 2006)

He later denied it, of course, as the current Israeli war criminals are now denying their incitement to genocide against the Palestinians.

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@ Christopher Milne

"...They'd happily see me dead."

Well, your indifference already killed you, no need to waste a bullet on a dead soul.

"stay out of it".

He won't. He has to put on display his selfish indifference and his tunnel vision politics,

"My politics are very clear: I support whatever's best for myself, my family, my community and my country I consider "allies" to be countries and nations which would support mine in turn."

Typical Euronazistan/US middle to upper middle class, OK income, 9 to 5 job or VC, TV and a beer after work, no need to think, question, or understand his surroundings. His, ahem, "moral equivalence" is typical of Israeli supporters, who commonly make a display of historical ignorance, have no idea about colonialism, and usually pair up Israel and Palestine as "equals," with no insights whatsoever about the abysmal gap between a people who have been dispossessed, oppressed, humiliated, imprisoned, maimed, and killed for almost a century, and land carrier Israel, the Cerberus of the interests of the Collective West in the ME.

In other words, another hasbara on substack.

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Thank you. I don't use social media, but probably should for outreach and gathering information.

My specialty has been to say as much as possible in a few words. When I used to contribute to Home Power Magazine, I was taught to condense, as they didn't want to waste much ink on what I had to say. Now I write for a local listserv where I'm lucky to get people to read the title and skim a few paragraphs. I try to insert information in ways that will register in a glance.

I hope you don't mind if I do that with your work. Credit and links will always be given. I would likely put some of these on my Substack.

Drake Chamberlin

Media & Communication Action Project

https://m-cap.org/

https://drakechamberlin.substack.com/

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I've read that the same five UN Security Council members with veto power there, also have veto power over ICC decisions. Is this true?

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As Matt Ehret points out 'The Greater Israel Scheme and its Global power play: A Delusional recipe for Armageddon'... 'The role Israel is expected to play in an anti BRI (Belt Road Initiative) agenda is meant to take the form of three major projects. 1. The US led India-Middle East European Economic Corridor (IMEEC) 2. The revival of the Ben Gurion Canal and 3. The exploitation of vast offshore oil and natural gas deposits that have been discovered off the coast of Gaza between 1999-presenet, which renders Israel a primary oil hub of the world on the scale of the top OPEC nations. This 3rd project is the most viable says Matt Ehret.

I say this because as you have mentioned Mr Cook, Israel is far too important for the Western empire and its interest in the oil. Tragically, for the Palestinians, it is very hard to see the ICJ/ICC having the courage to enforce just punishment according to relevant Genocide Convention consequences.

The DOUBLE STANDARDS intrinsic to the West with Myanamar speak very loudly. According to Emanuel Pasteich a candidate for the US presidency 111 Journalists have been killed in 3 months so far which is unprecedented in history. This is 11 January, 2024, how many more will be killed.

What the US/UK have done to Assange says it all. Investigative Independent Journalists are the most courageous truthtellers of our time and truthtellers the world over surely grieve the loss of one of the greatest ever...John Pilger.

Palestine is a LABORATORY. The killing of so many journalists is an experiment in ending all reporting, ending all journalism, on a blatantly criminal operation guaranteeing via facial recognition software that anyone who tells the truth, will be murdered' (Emanuel Pasteich)

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"...Palestine is a LABORATORY..."

You can call it that, it would be more accurate to call it a "R&D" experimental ground, where Israel is using the latest AI technology to finetune the targets they consider a threat to their domination, be journalists, UN workers, schools, mosques, etc. Unfortunately journalists have to communicate their reports, putting themselves on the crosshairs of "The Gospel," as the Israelis baptized their AI technology in the cloud, provided by Google and Amazon.

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I would be praying there's finally some justice, whilst knowing the UK, US and allies will protect Israel to the last and murder justice.

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Anyone else noticing the not so subtle change as the ICJ begins?

Gazans suddenly being told they can return 'home' to the rubble in the north is so revealing of how desperate Israel is to appear 'non genocidal'.

Thankfully there is copious indisputable evidence direct from their own evil mouths that their one intent was / is genocide.

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Dutch national broadcaster NOS talked about this with genocide legislation expert Larissa van den Herik (Leiden University).

She appears to hold the view that the inflicted damage in itself is insufficient evidence for the genocide claim as it would require showing that Israel is inflicting this damage for the specific purpose of eradicating all Palestinians, which is hard to do.

However, incitement to genocide is easier to prove, she added, on the basis of statements by politicians and other prominent figures that South Africa interprets as such. Example 1: Netanyahu referred to the fate of the Amalekites, wiped out by the people of Israel, as mentioned in the Bible. Example 2: Others have talked about wiping out, cleaning up or eradicating Gaza.

Van den Herik also said that the right to defend one's own nation is not without limitations.

While Israel may well choose to ignore the Court's decisions, if it were to rule against Israel, that would obviously be a big blow.

https://nos.nl/artikel/2504461-reputatie-israel-staat-op-het-spel-bij-genocideaanklacht-in-den-haag

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South Africa has shown it's high moral ground. Every counytry that aspires for fulfilling humanitarian considerations must likewise sign the Petition filed by South Africa.

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I admit, I didn't even read your entire post. I read a few sentences, saw the photo of the little girl being brutalized by the IDF. And I remembered my own Zionist dad (though the title "dad" gives him too much credit) putting deep bruises into my arm for what he considered too much dish soap to be used while cleaning the dinner dishes for the family. While he stared with deep psychotic hatred into my eyes.

For using a few extra drops of dish soap, which I thought as a 12 year old would be helpful for the cleaning of dishes.

Even justice, if it ever comes...it will not be enough. And I just had bruises put on me as a child. Imagine if I had my legs blown off like some of these kids, or worse.

God is dead, and we all allowed him to be killed.

Only the good die young.

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God is much alive and here and his justice will be evidenced. We need to keep him close through our faith . He often acts through the actions and behaviors of those

he chooses as his agents.

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Now, where will the terrorists who raped and tortured Israeli women and kidnapped old, frail grandmothers be held responsible? Why should a terrorist group run free, murdering and torturing hundreds of innocent people?

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Repeating these long disproven accusations against Palestinians is inexcusable in the current era of the www.

You are choosing to believe lies, why?

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I am sure the “Middle East Eye” is happy with this one-sided pro-rapist propaganda masquerading as “journalism”. Laughable.

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No evidence for rapes; and genocide is never, ever, EVER justified. Period, case closed.

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Thank you Jonathan for this great explainer. I have two worries I was wondering if you could please give your opinions on as they would be invaluable to know:

1). Having watched Norman Finkelstein's own explanation of the ICJ, it seems that the politics behind the ICJ is going to involve a whole load of mental acrobatics to justify allowing genocide. To be honest, the whole thing sounds like the way the Eurovision Song Contest is run - you know, how you know Greece and Cyprus will give each other 12 points every year without fail however bad the song is. Is this your impression of the court?

2). The more important point is this - if the ICJ rules they do not believe a genocide is taking place - even though it is an 'injunction' case and not full determination (i.e. just because they may rule against SA now, does not mean the very next day it cannot become a genocide) - is it possible that Western states can use the ruling to subjugate and oppress the right to freedom of speech further? Their justification will be that the ICJ has ruled no genocide, therefore saying it is can be outlawed - in the UK potentialy libellous, defamatory - in all states twisted and construed to mean incitement towards hate towards Israel who has been found innocent of genocide. Looked at this way, it seems that SA has taken an enormous risk by taking on the Western Empire in its midst of such extrordinary civil crackdown. (This is no critcism of SA who is the bravest state so far in taking on these war criminals. It is just a query about how much a loss can be utilised by Israel and the West to oppress further). Do you have any thoughts on this?

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Jonathan Cook, did you ever imagine that this situation would turn into what it is. You are a powerful voice that only enlightens truth of what this Genocidal Jewish State can and is doing to other Humans. I would never wish this terror campaign on anyone unless they were like Evil Nazi's, this meaning one thing to me? This one thing is clear to me, transparent clear to me that Israel with their Banks, and family members and Billionaire Warmongers, just care about 0% of what people or Nations Against Zionist Israel think. = NAZI Jewish State. What is the big NWO Plan here? Personally I believe Ben Nutty Yahoo will resign from Government within 6 Months. So that this Genocidal State can try and convince the World that they are not all Evil and Genocidal towards others. You have to almost admire the filth of this Jewish State with it's audacity to not give a Fuck about atrocities and treating Genocide like a walk in the PK.. What is the answer? From their point, people will just forget and move on, just like the Nakba. This Jewish Semite Zionist is one step beyond the Gentiles, what can they do? Really what can people really do? There is only one thing to do > Be a part of Nations Against Zionist Israel = NAZI Jewish State of Israel...... Use the Word NAZI with it's true connection to Jews and its past Holocaust as a present day truth, fact and honesty that GAZA and PALESTINE have only ever known. Nations Against Zionist Israel is the only way to offend Semite Zionist Jews. Every Human Gentile in this World should be a Anti Zionist Semite against Israel. Jesus Christ! Total respect to your work in all that you write see and say Jonathan Cook. Unfortunately not enough people have the time to care, or wish to watch Child Slaughter every day I guess? Unlike the Children and people of Palestine and Gaza that are preparing for their total annihilation which is certainly a closer possibility everyday. Jesus Christ is there any hope? ''No'' I don't think much? We need the NAZI voice of more people like Jonathan Cook. = Nations Against Zionist Israel of this self declared Semite Zionist Jewish State. (Fact) Just to add I am a pure Semite of Christ. meaning I cannot be Semitised by any trash Anti Jew propaganda. My my God Bless the land of Bethlehem and let the Nations Against Zionist Israel be heard? Gracias a todo...

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In our modern times a country that engages in such blatant apartheid, genocide and ethnic cleansing will be destroyed through a combination of both external and internal forces. It will destroy itself!

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