The future trajectories of the Middle East
The developments in the Middle East after Oct. 7 have led to the emergence of a new insecurity wave in the region. A similar situation had been experienced with the onset of the Arab Spring, which altered the strategic environment of the Middle East significantly. Regional actors attempted to move away from the conflicts caused by the Arab Spring through normalization processes that began in 2020 and aimed at creating a new security environment based on cooperation. Now, they find themselves in a new conflictual setting.
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The Middle East is on fire
The Middle East region emerged after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in the wake of the first imperialist war. The region was largely shaped by the traditional colonial powers, namely the United Kingdom and France. The colonial powers did not allow Sharif Hussein, a prominent Arab leader best known for leading the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I, and his allies to establish a pan-Arabic state, which was promised by the colonial powers in return for Hussein’s support against the Ottoman Empire. Instead of establishing a pan-Arab state, the colonial powers divided the Arab world into many artificial states.
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The United Nations was established by the victorious powers of World War II in 1945 to consolidate the allied powers’ international standing and preserve the status quo they created. According to the U.N. Charter, the main purposes of the U.N. are to maintain international peace and security and to achieve international cooperation in solving global problems. The U.N. Security Council (UNSC) has the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security. Furthermore, all members of the U.N. agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the UNSC.
Kamala Harris’s response to the Palestinian protests at a rally in Detroit last week highlighted the challenges she faces in uniting the Democratic Party behind her. Prior to her speech at the rally, Harris met with protesters who were demanding that the flow of arms to Israel be halted based on human rights conditions.
To show strong solidarity with the just cause of the oppressed Palestinian people, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were invited to speak together at the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye.
The innocent Palestinian people have been suffering from Israeli oppression for the last eight decades. Israel has been expanding its territories at the expense of the Palestinians and occupying Palestinian lands, thereby depriving them of their natural rights. Muslim peoples and states have been reacting to the Israeli policies in Palestine, which were considered until very recently not as a problem but as a cause. The only pan-Islamic international organization, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), was established in response to developments in Palestine. According to the Charter of the OIC, once the city is liberated from Israeli occupation, Al-Quds (Jerusalem) will become the permanent headquarters of the organization.
A period of escalating conflict
Three hundred days have passed since Israel's massacres began. Over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed. When the war started, pessimistic scenarios about Israel's goals and the war's potential escalation have, unfortunately, come true one by one. After a series of assassinations carried out by the genocidal Israeli government in the past week, it is almost universally agreed that we have entered a "period of escalating conflicts."
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Can Washington sway the hawks in Israel and Iran?
These days, the Biden administration is trying to persuade Iran to limit its attacks on Israel. However, it's impossible to overlook the incentivizing role played by the administration's unlimited support for the Netanyahu government thus far.
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Most Western countries have given unconditional support to Israel for its genocidal acts over the last 10 months. Western countries not only support the Israeli government economically and politically but also militarily. On the one hand, Western governments provide weapons to Israel to continue its genocidal attacks against the Palestinian people. In other words, they are directly involved in the asymmetric war in Palestine.
After the Oct. 7 attacks organized by Hamas against Israeli targets and Israel’s harsh reaction and genocidal policies have shown that the Western global powers, who have been intervening in the domestic affairs of other nations in the name of modernism, human rights and democracy for decades, are heavily dependent on the pro-Israeli lobby. Most so-called liberal Western states have abandoned their longtime liberal claims for the sake of Israeli interests. By mobilizing all of their resources, they have been supporting authoritarian regimes in the region, violating basic human rights and committing war crimes.
The comprehensive and effective attack launched by Hamas on October 7, 2023, the al-Aqsa Flood Operation, has become a turning point not only in the Palestinian-Israeli question and the Middle Eastern balance of power but also in modern world history.
It seems that Western governments are determined not to take any action to stop Israel’s persistent attacks against the Palestinian people. People both in the West and non-Western states have continued to question Western governments’ policies for the last several months. Considering that the West had been championing humanitarian values and global norms until very recently, it is an unexpected turn on the side of Western governments, who have begun to fail in protecting liberal values. Neither the United States nor the European Union have raised their voice to stop the attacks against Gaza. The West has largely remained silent against the longtime suffering of the Palestinian people.
This study presents the relevant parts of international law before engaging in a legal assessment of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
