Defining 'Justice' In The U.S. And Gaza

Thousands protest on behalf of illegal immigrants in Los Angeles, while the U.S. ignores activists 'kidnapped' from a ship on the Mediterranean Sea carrying food to hungry Palestinians.

Headlines in the U.S. media decry the treatment of illegal immigrants picked up by ICE agents, some as they were leaving Los Angeles courthouses where they faced criminal charges.

This is said to be a gross injustice and a sign of overbearing authoritarianism by GOP Pres. Donald J. Trump.

During the Democratic administration of President Joe Biden, millions of illegal immigrants entered the U.S., and it is estimated that a million settled in Los Angeles, a “sanctuary” city that does not cooperate with federal deportation efforts. After two days of sometimes violent protests in downtown Los Angeles over the arrest of more than 40 illegal immigrants across the city, Trump called in the National Guard and the Marines.

In Israel, another deportation is underway, but it is being ignored in the U.S.

Why should we care? The U.S. is deeply complicit in what most nations consider to be an ongoing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. The U.S. provides financial and military support and diplomatic cover for Israel on the world stage. The U.S. was the only negative vote on a recent United Nations resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

The situation in Gaza is increasingly dire.

On March 2, Israel began refusing to allow any food into Gaza, resulting in famine conditions for some 2.5 million Palestinians. About two weeks ago, Israel and the U.S. rigged a crude, controversial mechanism to provide “minimal” food to Gazans, but Israel has killed scores of hungry Palestinians when they arrived to retrieve food boxes.

This week, Israeli naval forces boarded and seized a charity vessel operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, some 100 miles from Gaza. Israel apprehended a dozen unarmed activists on board, including 22-year-old environmentalist Greta Thunberg of Sweden. The British -flagged yacht, Madleen, carried baby formula, food, and medical supplies.

The activists were terrified when, in the middle of the night, Israeli drones dropped a rainfall of a white substance on the Madleen. It was initially thought to be a chemical weapon, but it now appears to have been white paint. The Madleen activists had good reason to be concerned.

In 2010, Israeli naval commandos intercepted a Gaza-bound charity flotilla in international waters carrying 600 activists from 37 countries. Nine activists were killed. A UN report found that at least six deaths that were consistent with “extra-legal, arbitrary, and summary execution,” noting live ammunition was used from an Israeli helicopter before its soldiers landed. Israel claimed self-defense, but apologized in 2013 and paid $20 million in compensation to victims’ families.

The Madleen was boarded by the Israeli military at around 2 a.m. The activists were apprehended and taken to an Israeli detention facility. An Israeli spokesperson said the activists will be deported in the coming days.

Kidnapped

A few U.S. news organizations wrote perfunctory articles about Israel’s seizure of the Madleen and its occupants on Monday, but it was largely ignored. There was no mention of it on a national television evening newscast. There certainly was no outcry or protest.

Pres. Trump disputed what seems to be undeniable — that the Madleen activists were technically kidnapped.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea grants ships freedom of navigation in international waters, barring special circumstances, such as piracy or security concerns (e.g., a vessel is suspected of carrying weapons). Israel has not claimed the Madleen posed a security threat.

“Israel has enough problems without kidnapping Greta Thunberg,” said Trump, who called Thunberg “a young, angry person… I think she has to go to an anger management class.”

The New York Post tried to tarnish the endeavor with a headline that read: “Alleged ‘Hamas operative’ organized Greta Thunberg’s failed attempt to break Gaza blockade: report.” The story cites unproven accusations and then, incredibly, admits that “no evidence” supports the so-called “report.”

The Press

Considering what happened in 2010, it took courage for Thunberg and the others to take the journey onboard the Madleen. She put her life on the line in an effort to help Palestinians who are literally starving.

It is hard to imagine a worse injustice than that which is being experienced by the Palestinians. Desperate for food, the able-bodied walk miles and wait in humiliating cattle chutes, for meager boxes of prepackaged food that they have no means to prepare. There seems to be no provision for old people.

While the Madleen has been ignored, news media from around the nation have converged in Los Angeles to cover protests on behalf of illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally. Never mind that 75% of the illegal immigrants targeted by the Trump administration have committed crimes in the U.S., such as rape, assault and murder.

Is it an injustice to return a rapist who came to the U.S. illegally to his home country? Is it justice to ignore the plight of the Palestinian people?