By: Gibson Nyikadzino Correspondent

While some Global South countries have moved from theoretical solidarity with Palestine to practically protesting the Israeli genocide in Gaza and the West Bank by recalling their ambassadors from Israel, there is silence from some African countries. In condemnation of the ongoing Israeli genocide, the disrespect of international humanitarian law and the contravention of the law of armed conflict by in Palestine, African countries ought to express their opinion against such inhumane actions. Chad and South Africa have recalled ambassadors to Israel, that is however a strong statement out of the 55 African countries and the others that have relations with Israel. It is now the appropriate time to pay attention to geopolitics and recognise the global contours of the unfolding ideological and civilisational conflicts. 

Resultantly, the global population is now divided into two categories, the awakened and the un-awakened. Alternatively put, the two categories are between those who understand what is happening and those who do not understand or understand partially and incorrectly. Unfortunately, those who are in the latter category are in the majority, hence their understanding of events is limited. Today the western and US globalist leadership understands what is happening quite correctly and seeks to preserve the unipolar world at all costs and this is why the western world is deeply involved in the confrontation with Russia in Ukraine, in their confrontation with China the West supports Taiwan, their support for Israel when dealing with the Palestinian freedom fighters in Gaza, and their involvement in attempting to destabilise efforts to consolidate the BRICS group. As we speak, the US Treasury whose coffers have dried up after senselessly supporting the Ukraine against Russia’s special military operation, is working on using US$34 billion of Libya’s money it froze in its banks, when they killed Muammar Qadafi, to support Israel against Palestine. This is theft. Grant theft. This is very cruel. Libyan people need the money to rebuild their country but US wants to use that money for a war against Palestinian people. What is so special about Israel that it is supported with stolen money? Why use Libyan money to kill Palestinians? This is a clear logic for unipolarity by the West, yet, there are instances in which multipolarity is also emerging where there are clearly awakening populations that are logically supporting Russia against the Nazi regime in Ukraine, they side with China against Taiwan, support Iran against the US and see sense in supporting BRICS against NATO. This is the beginning of multipolarity against unipolarity as an attempt to balance power. Having an idea about what is happening in the world, especially relating to the Palestinian genocide by the Israeli occupying force, should be understood between these two poles, to which those who are awakened and clearly realise what is happening, the great battle of political consciousness and renaissance is unfolding. Those who do not understand the situation will end up being irrelevant.

The situation in Gaza and the West Bank, the heinous crimes being committed by the Israeli government against Palestinians is a reflection of what the US settlers did to the Native Americans. The relationship between the West and Israel today is premised on the cruelty and brutality on other races, characteristic of unipolarism. It is the intention of the West to want the world to be on its side in the Gaza-Israeli military confrontation to maintain its unilateral global dominance, yet the global political environment is proof that the West has put itself in a trap that it is finding itself difficult to come out of. The trap was recently explained by Dominique De Villepin, the former Prime Minister of France who said: “Hamas has set a trap for us, and this trap is one of maximum horror, of maximum cruelty. And so there is a risk of an escalation in militarism, of more military interventions, as if we could with armies solve a problem as serious as the Palestinian question.” Trap of moralism Liberalism, now the most loathed ideology of a unipolar empire, has entirely lost the legitimacy it once had around the world. Today this political system rejects the values, ideas and their conception of the “free” world founded on respect of human rights and the right to free speech, among others.

It explains why France has decided to ban all pro-Palestinian events and Britain now arresting people on suspicion of supporting Hamas freedom fighters in Gaza. In trying to practice the fundamentals of the liberal agenda of free speech and condemnation of the acts of aggression by Israel, people have been termed anti-Semitic, Jews that defend the right of Palestine existence have been labelled self-hating people. A key trap the West finds itself in regarding events obtaining in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank pertains to moralism. The moralism trap is in the double standards which the West has put itself in by comparing what is happening in Ukraine and the Middle East. Comparing how the civilian populations are treated in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the West has denounced Russia of what it termed “Russian aggression” but have remained unfazed and timid in the face of the situation unfolding against Palestinians. The contempt from the Global South on western nations’ decisions and double standards determines that the West is unkind on the application of international law. Where Russia commits an aggression on Ukrainian civilians, it is sanctioned. But when Israel, for 70 years fails to live by the United Nations resolutions and disrespects them, when it is criticised the West plays the anti-Semitism card. It is instructive that this trap of moralism and the application of the double standards by western states is a way to preserve their unipolar view of the world, at a time their dominance is waning and when the world is ready to embrace the multi-polar world. This moral criticism is leading to the hardening of states diplomatically when one is to consider the statements that have been made by the Presidents of Honduras, Colombia, Turkey and the King of Jordan, they are not the same as three months ago. Democracies vs Authoritarians The second major trap the West finds itself in is that of Occidentalism. Occidentalism is the idea that the West and its democracy, which for five centuries managed the world’s affairs, will be able to quietly continue to do so.

Already, along with Israel, the western bloc is being challenged by most of the international community. Western democracy is not the only identity marker of what is right, appropriate and good. Attempts to universalise western liberal democracy and the version of governance from that bloc is now emerging to be unsustainable, unsellable and at times inapplicable to the other parts of the world since the end of the Cold War in 1990. Those that are averse to western democratic version of governance have come up with their models that are working better in their environs. Feelings that the western democratic system in no longer appealing all over have become self-discrediting to the West, such that westerners conclude that those who do not share their beliefs are authoritarian in nature. In the presence of a democratic decline, based on values that the West has failed to uphold itself, other rising alternative models are now working better as China, Russia, Rwanda and Belarus are implementing governance models that work to address their needs. Therefore, the Occidentalism trap is essentially isolating the West even more on the international stage. Western leaders need to open their eyes to the unfolding historical drama for them to find the right answers. Tactical and strategic enemy trap All progress that was made to stabilise the Middle-East is faltering. The situation in the Middle-East is placing the Israeli government and its western backers in two potential traps that are likely to make the region a spectre of escalation. There is a failure to balance the two traps, the tactical and the strategic. To Israel, Hamas is a tactical enemy, while public opinion is a strategic enemy. But there has been failure to balance the two traps. When one goes to war, they do not just wage war to kill, but to produce and establish a new political situation than can enable peace. For now, Israel is not keen on that as its response has failed to exhibit proportionality as the scenario is now too bloody. The right to self-defence should not be the right to indiscriminate vengeance.

This is why public opinion is beginning to throw Iran, Yemen, Syria and Lebanon’s Hezbollah in the matrix as the situation is now unbearable for the Palestinians. On the other hand, shuttle diplomacy by the US in the region is neither working towards de-escalation. Because of the failure to handle these two, tactical and strategic enemies, the West is making the world’s progressive population pick a side, which is the side of humanity. The current global situation is critically important as it significantly highlights the ideological and civilisational disparities that are existing at a time when help has to be given to the Palestinians. The horrors happening have to be responded to crucially. The future cannot be killed because those who make decisions to stop the Palestinian genocide and ethnic cleansing are prescribing wrong answers.