We are in direct confrontation with colonialism in all its forms, both old and new. Some of us are aware of this, while others are not, either intentionally or inadvertently. Colonialism does not suffice with just land, resources, and markets. It goes beyond stripping us of all that, but also strips us of what remains of our brotherhood, Arab identity, and humanity.
It strips us of our identity, awareness, minds, conscience, history, present, and all the components of our existence that preserve our survival on our land, as well as preserving our features, facial characteristics, and everything that allows us to know ourselves and be recognized by others on this planet.
Resolving the Issue
The extermination of Palestinian resistance from October 2023 until the writing of these lines in February 2024 is not just a chapter – like previous chapters – in the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is a resolution of the Palestinian issue as a chronic conflict between aggressors and landowners defending their rights and resisting their enemies. This resolution is based on a logic from three angles:
- The majority of the conflict has been resolved by the Arab and Islamic worlds – meaning Arab and Islamic governments – withdrawing from the conflict. This withdrawal, which began with Turkey’s recognition of Israel in 1950, followed by Egypt in 1979, opened the door to gradual recognition. Eventually, there are no longer Arabs and Muslims resisting or objecting. Those who recognize Israel exit the conflict, while those who do not wait for the right time.
Israel was reassured by this collective Arab and Islamic withdrawal from the conflict, as it committed heinous crimes against the Muslim Arab population without much anger from the Arab and Muslim masses, thus taking advantage of this to carry out extermination with the aim of resolution.
-
The Oslo Accords of 1993 granted Israel official Palestinian recognition. Based on this recognition, the Palestinian National Authority was established. From that point onwards, recognition – rather than resistance – became a source of legitimacy for a significant portion of the Palestinian struggle. A struggle marked by realism that settles for national liberation within the confines allowed by the existing power dynamics without a radical confrontation.
-
Not only did the Arab and Islamic world withdraw from the conflict due to the Zionist project directly challenging Arab and Islamic identity, but it also lost its independence. It not only faced direct aggression against Arabism and Islam but also relinquished its independence. Unable to withstand the consequences of national independence – for which previous generations fought against all forms and shapes of Western colonization – it sought refuge under the new colonialism.
The world may not have the same existence before and after colonialism; some nations were non-existent before colonization, serving as entities in a pre-nation state status. This lack of experience in resisting colonialism during its entrance, occupation, and exit phases led to a dependency on agreements of protection, shaping their post-independence relationships with their former colonizers.
US Umbrella
This logic, with its three angles, has resulted in two outcomes. Firstly, a vast free-roaming movement devoid of constraints enjoyed by Israel that exercises utmost violence against Palestinian resistance. Conversely, the Arab-Islamic world finds itself in highly restricted margins constrained by various shackles, including major countries, those with substantial regional influence, and those with declared positions against Israel.
Submission to the new colonialism has stripped these nations of their significance and prestige in their own eyes, as well as in the regional and global arenas. They have become powerless, lacking influence in the bloody winter between the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024. They have not only lost their effectiveness regionally and globally but have also lost their internal vibrancy, the vitality of their people, their organizations, unions, elite, and ideas.
The war of extermination in Gaza has uncovered the realities of the present and renewed colonialism. It has proven that Israel’s actions would not be possible without Europe’s backing, which is meaningless without American protection guaranteeing Israel’s complete security and dominance over all its Arab and Islamic neighbors, far exceeding superiority over Palestinian resistance alone.
Encirclement and Siege
This extermination, whether we are aware of it or oblivious, embodies advanced actions of both old and new colonialism, amalgamating all characteristics and phases of colonialism. After Palestinian resistance, the countries of Latin America and South Africa stood against it, the foremost nations that experienced the bitterness of colonial oppression, resisting various forms of colonialism from the early stages when Europe ventured out of its confines.
This proactive form of colonialism no longer tolerates merely exterminating Palestinian resistance or restricting movement and potential actions of Arab and Islamic nations. It has reached a level where it restricts the abilities of individuals sympathetic to the resistance if they wish to express freely via social media, universities, global press, or international organizations.
The new colonialism, centered on Israel, possesses an expansive network that identifies targets, neutralizes them in place, and disables their efficacy wherever they may be found.
-
In 2010, Dr. Sayed Felfel authored his book “The Social and Economic History of South Africa,” drawing historical parallels between South Africa and Palestine, Nasser and Mandela, emphasizing their struggle against racism and colonialism. These figures remain symbols of resistance, with Latin America and South Africa supporting Palestinian resistance, while the Arab nations lag behind in this regard.
-
In 1964, Dr. Gamal Hamdan published his book “Colonialism and Liberation in the Arab World,” emphasizing that Israel represents the last remnants of colonialism’s reincarnation. It highlights that Israel’s treacherous allegiance aims to maintain the vestiges of old colonialism in a new Zionist guise. The imminent defeat of the old and new colonialism signifies a crucial milestone in the ongoing fight against oppression.
-
Therefore, Israel embodies the culmination and tool of colonialism’s past and future, seeking dominance over the Middle East. Only those with a deep-rooted conscience and a living sense of justice align with Palestinian resistance against this encroaching colonial power.
Colonialism and capitalism are intertwined, evident by major transcontinental corporations aligning with Zionism. In contrast, educated populations empathize with Palestinian resistance, where moral solidarity counterbalances the economic gains of compulsory conformity to colonialist and capitalist agendas.
