The Israeli war and violations in the Gaza Strip continue to impose themselves on the

 international arena, as the weeks pass and the death toll of the Israeli brutal bombing on

 the Gaza Strip rises to more than 11 thousand, the tensions and contradictions in Western

 countries are widening, between those calling for an immediate ceasefire and those

 opposed to it.

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Edited by| Hugh Gey

 

Politic section -  CJ journalist

 

World - November,14,2023

 

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The contradictions have led to an increase in voices criticizing Israel and its war on the Gaza

 Strip, and Western governments for their inability to impose a humanitarian truce or

 ceasefire.

As it neared the end of its second month, the Israeli war on Gaza provoked multiple regional

 and international tensions, which were reflected in the speeches and plans of Western

 governments supporting Israel and put them in doubt and held accountable by local political

 and popular forces, accusing them of confiscating the basic rights of their citizens in

 exchange for firm and strict expression of support for Israel in its war on what it called

 "terrorism".

Perhaps the first sign of these tensions and their consequences was the dismissal by British

 prime minister Rishi Sunak of his "beloved and long-defended interior minister on several

 occasions", as part of a cabinet reshuffle, but related to the war, after she accused the

 British police of tolerating pro-Palestinian demonstrations, which she described as "hate

 marches supporting terrorism".

The move highlighted signs of increasing polarization over the repercussions of the war on

 Gaza in Europe, from London to Paris, Berlin, Brussels and Madrid, and the widening gap

 between popular European demands in general and the decisions of political governments.

The streets of European capitals witnessed increasing marches demanding an immediate

 end to the war, which witnessed a partial return of the European Left, which used this

 window to express its solidarity with the Palestinians and to mobilize public opinion against

 the policies pursued by governments not only in the Middle East, but even at the level of

their economic, social and political management of the country.

Europe has always played a rather balanced approach to the Middle East and the Israeli-

Palestinian conflict, due to domestic and political sensitivities and calculations. However, it

 seems that with the recent Gaza test, it turned out that the Old Continent does not have the

 same influence as Washington in this file, as it turned out that, following the position taken

 by the Union on the war, it lost the full confidence of the Palestinians.

It is no secret that the European influence in the Middle East has been continuously

diminishing for decades, as a result of Europe's marginalization of the actors in the region

 from the files of negotiations, for example. But with the outbreak of the recent war, it

 turned out that the continent, despite its political dimension, has become at the center of

 the wider repercussions of the war.

As a direct consequence, the European Left was divided over its attitude to the war, which

 further alienated the continent from its position as an honest broker on a number of fateful

issues in the global south. The contradiction in the European statements on the war on Gaza

 is evident here, as observers accuse European policymakers of" double standards " when

 their positions on the Ukrainian war are compared with those adopted in Gaza.

To demonstrate the confusion in the European position, following the Hamas surprise attack

 on Israel, Oliver varhelyi, the European Commissioner for enlargement and neighborhood

 Affairs, announced the immediate suspension of aid to Palestine.

This statement put the European institution in a very awkward position, as the EU's chief

 diplomat, Josep Borrell, was forced to intervene directly and limit the damage caused by the

 situation, assuring that the aid would not stop.

And this was not the only intervention of Borrell in similar situations, as he announced, after

 an "unscheduled" visit of EU Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen to Israel in the middle of

 last month, which caused a great controversy, during which she provided unprecedented

 support to Israel when she said that "Israel not only has the right to defend itself, but it has

 a duty to protect and defend its citizens", that "the official position of the European Union

 on any issue related to foreign policy is determined, I repeat, by the official guidelines of the

 European Union", and that positions and decisions are taken unanimously by the 27

 members, meaning that von der Leyen "do not speak for the mass".

The division also seeped into the corridors of American politics, as the magazine "Politico"

 published last Monday a leaked memo from the US State Department, criticizing

 Washington's support for Israel, and calling on the US administration and President Joe

 Biden to support the ceasefire in Gaza.

The memo showed the growing anger and growing division in the corridors of the American

 policy-making over the Israeli war. She also noted that the American (pro-Israel) position

 " contributes to regional public perceptions that the United States is a biased and dishonest

 actor, and this at Best does not serve American interests...".

The memo added, according to the American magazine, "we should publicly criticize Israel's

 violations of international standards, such as the failure to limit offensive operations to

 legitimate military targets... When Israel supports settler violence and illegal land grabs or

 uses excessive force against Palestinians, we must publicly declare that this is contrary to

 our American values so that Israel does not act with impunity,"he said.

The American website Axios published a report earlier this month in which it warned that"

 America is starkly divided over itself because of the war between Israel and Hamas", on

 university campuses, workplaces, city streets, inside the Capitol and the White House, and

 the gap is widening.

The website, which specializes in the analysis of international affairs, explained that these

 deep divisions may affect the reshaping of American policy.

Divisions over the war in Gaza have reached "Hollywood", the stronghold of American

 cinema. The New York Times reported that the actors were divided between supporters of

 the Palestinians, rejecting the "war of extermination" carried out by the Israeli army in the

 Gaza Strip, and supporters of Israel collecting donations for it.

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