A major clash broke out in the occupied West Bank last week that resulted in at least four deaths and 44 wounded at the Jenin Refugee Camp after Israel forces said they faced resistance. 

The Trends Journal has documented the increased tension in the region that has resulted in the deaths of more than 100 Palestinians since the beginning of the year. (See “APARTHEID STATE OF ISRAEL CLAMPING DOWN ON PALESTINIANS,” 26 Apr 2022, “EU’S BORRELL ADMITS KILLING PALESTINIANS DON’T COUNT,” 16 Aug 2022 and “ISRAEL RAIDS AND RANSACKS HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS AND CHURCH” 23 Aug 2022.)

There have been 100 Palestinian deaths since the start of the year and is the largest number in seven years. Authorities in Israel said these raids are a direct response to the attacks against Israelis in the spring, which we documented in an April article titled, “SHOOTING BREAKS OUT IN ISRAEL: REVENGE OR TERRORISM?”

The attacks occurred while Palestinians and Israelis were holding peace talks on ending Israel’s rule over Palestinians and setting up a Palestinian state on occupied lands, The Associated Press noted. 

The recent Israeli raids prompted a violent response from the Palestinians, and reports said attacks on Israeli police are also up this year. It should be noted that the most recent deadly raid occurred in the same area where Shireen Abu Akleh, the 51-year-old Al Jazeera journalist was killed in May while covering these incidents.

Her killing was another flashpoint in the relationship between the two neighbors.

She was in Jenin on an assignment when she was shot during a raid by Israeli forces, according to reports. Israel acknowledged that the deadly bullet was likely fired by one of its security officers, but Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called for the International Criminal Court to intervene in the investigation.

“We rejected, and continue to reject, the joint investigation with the Israeli occupation authorities because they committed the crime and we do not trust them,” Abbas said. “We will go immediately to the International Criminal Court to track down the killers.”

TRENDPOST: It should be noted that the Western media shows its favored side by how it references opposition fighters. The description of the gun battle between Israeli forces and these Palestinians consistently refers to these fighters as “militants,” which comes with a loaded connotation. 

Never will you read that these are freedom fighters in a clash for their own liberties. The mainstream, corporate media saves that designation for the “heroes” in Ukraine who find themselves in a fight for democracy for the world.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the Israeli Knesset on 20 March 2022, and spoke about how Israel and Ukraine both face the same threat. He said they face total destruction of the “people, state, culture. And even of the names: Ukraine, Israel.”

Asad Ghanem, a Palestinian political scientist, called Zelensky’s speech a “disgrace when it comes to global struggles for freedom and liberation, particularly of the Palestinian people.”

The Raid

The Israeli forces said they used deadly force during their attempt to arrest two Palestinians tied to the spring shootings. Drone footage showed a chaotic scene, with explosions and volleys of gunfire. The AP reported that one Palestinian could be seen being shot in the head while pointing his gun at an Israeli soldier. 

Jamal Huweil, a 52-year-old camp resident and official in the ruling Fatah party, told the news outlet that it was the bloodiest fight that he saw this year.

“People are killed, wounded. There’s destruction. Every time (Israeli forces) come into the Jenin camp, our resistance becomes stronger and stronger,” he said. 

The BBC noted that the 100th death this year occurred on Saturday when an 18-year-old was shot dead in East Jerusalem. The U.S. also called for an immediate investigation when a 7-year-old boy died from a heart attack after Israeli troops came to his family’s home after his brothers allegedly threw stones. His father said he was chased by Israeli troops. Israel denied the claim.

TRENDPOST: While the Western media continually chastises Russia for its war against Ukraine and its intent to occupy Ukraine, those who note Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian and Syrian land are denounced as being “anti-Semites.”

In the 1967 six day war, Israel invaded and seized Palestinian territories of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Gaza Strip, the Syrian Golan Heights, expelling some 300,000 Palestinians from their homes, while gaining stolen territory that was three and a half times its original size.

Russia has not been shy in pointing out the international double standard. 

On 3 April, Israel’s prime minister, Yair Lapid, excoriated Russia over the Bucha massacre and said it was morally impossible to remain “indifferent” after seeing the “horrific images” from the killing scene.

“Intentionally harming a civilian population is a war crime and I strongly condemn it,” he said.

The Russian embassy responded, “Compare Yair Lapid’s lies about [Ukraine] in April and attempts to place blame and responsibility on [Russia] for the deaths of people in Bucha brutally murdered by the Nazis with his calls in August for bombing and strikes on [Palestinian] land in the Gaza Strip. Isn’t that double standards, complete disregard and contempt for the lives of Palestinians?”

TRENDPOST: While Israel calls them “settlements,” they are illegal land grabs under international law. They violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 that states, “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.”

The UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice, and the High Contracting Parties to the Convention have all affirmed the Fourth Geneva Convention applies, that this is occupied territory, and Israeli settlements there are illegal.

TRENDPOST: The Jerusalem Post reported yesterday that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged that if he was re-elected, he would support massive housing construction in the West Bank… which means essentially stealing more land from the Palestinians.  

According to the Post, “Netanyahu signed his name, along with 30 members of his Likud Party, and another 26 politicians” from other political parties “to a declaration on intended settlement building by the Sovereignty Movement’s “Moving Eastward” campaign.  

With the cost of housing sharply rising, the Post noted that “the Sovereignty Movement is claiming that the best resolution to rising housing prices in Israel “requires massive construction in the adjacent areas in Judea and Samaria.” 

Again, as we note, Israel keeps stealing Palestinian land and no action is taken against them. And as we mention above, when Palestinians fight for their rights and homeland that continues to be stolen, they are demonized by the Western media as “militants.” 

Moreover, thanks to former U.S. President Barack Obama, American taxpayers will send $38 billion to Israel between 2017-2028… of which $26.8 billion will be in military aid to keep pumping up Israel’s war machine.  

Yet, anyone condemning Israel for their blatant atrocities is condemned as an anti-Semite and blackballed by the media.