#gaza's culture

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

by Hugh Fitzgerald

Those who wish Israel ill are up in arms about the IDF’s plan to flood the network of tunnels Hamas has built under Gaza. They are angry because they fear the novel plan will work: Hamas operatives will be flushed out, forced to scurry out of the tunnels and appear above ground, where the IDF can pick them off. The water in the tunnels will also weaken the tunnels by soaking their walls, and the soil just above them, so that they will be more susceptible to eventual collapse; Hamas will never again be able to use them as they have been doing. More on the proposed tunnel flooding, and the reasons given by Hamas and its supporters as why it should not take place, can be found here: “Did the UN Human Rights Council just admit Hamas steals civilian aid? Plus, the dumbest argument yet against flooding tunnels,” Elder of Ziyon, December 15, 2023:

The UN Human Rights X account tweeted something spectacularly stupid:

Israel’s flooding of tunnels with saltwater could have severe adverse human rights impacts, some long term. Goods indispensable to civilian survival could also be at risk, as well as widespread, long-term & severe environmental damage. Civilians must be protected.

Hold on: when they say “Goods indispensable to civilian survival could also be at risk,” doesn’t that mean that they are admitting that Hamas tunnels are warehouses for the aid that the world has been sending into Gaza for the past decades?

Yes, there is no other possible interpretation: those “goods indispensable to civilian survival” — humanitarian aid — are apparently being stored in those tunnels, Hamas having seized them from the shipments of aid meant for all the people of Gaza. Hamas has now stored them inside its tunnels for safe-keeping, for the future care and feeding of Hamas operatives alone. The rest of the Gazans will have to make do with whatever ”goods indispensable to civilian survival” Hamas left behind after taking its massive cut.

Critics of the flooding plan, like Eurasia Review,  also say things like “Flooding the tunnels could damage Gaza’s aquifer and soil, if seawater and hazardous substances in the tunnels seep into them.”

“Hazardous substances” means “explosives.” Now, why might there be explosives in the tunnels?… The list of bad things listed in that article that “could” happen if Israel floods the tunnels is almost comical, but the pièce de résistance (so to speak) comes at the end.

Flooding the tunnels could affect the cultural heritage and identity of Gaza, which has a rich and diverse history and culture. The tunnels are part of Gaza’s landscape and memory, and they reflect its character and spirit. Flooding the tunnels could .. affect the cultural expressions and practices of Gaza’s people, such as the art, literature and folklore that are inspired by or related to the tunnels.

Yes, the terror tunnels must be protected because they are an important part of Gaza’s culture!

The tunnels were built by the terror group Hamas to do one thing: help facilitate the terror group’s murderous attacks on Israelis. That is their sole reason for being. The tunnel network has served as a vast underground pedestrian passage, allowing the hiding of weapons, rocket launchers, and Hamas terrorists under most of Gaza, and also allowed the undetected movement underground of weapons and fighters. The tunnels are instruments of murder, not “cultural artifacts” that must be preserved as part of Gaza’s “landscape and memory.” These terror tunnels cost billions of dollars to construct; they likely represent the greatest misallocation of resources in the Middle East since the pyramids were built in the Valley of the Kings.

Do the Gazans really want those ghastly tunnels — which will be left in ruins by the IDF — to be thought of as part of the “cultural heritage and identity of Gaza”? How many Germans like to think of the extermination camps as part of the “cultural heritage and identity” of their country, or aren’t those camps, rather, something of which they are ashamed? The camps are part of their history, but not of their “cultural heritage,” which is a different, and a positive, thing.

How many Russians want to preserve the Soviet labor camps of Vorkuta and Kolyma, as part of their “cultural heritage”? A museum in Moscow, containing testimonies, photographs, and videos, of life in the camps that constituted the Gulag, would be enough to preserve the memory of that hideous aspect of Soviet history.

By all means, the people of Gaza should preserve the memory of the malignant and wasteful tunnels forced on them by Hamas, but they have no need to preserve what remains of those tunnels — 800 of the approximately 1000 that existed have already been destroyed by the IDF —themselves. Must the tunnels really be preserved as part of Gaza’s “landscape and memory,” or are they testimony only to the murderous madness of Hamas, hellbent on murder, and indifferent to the wellbeing of the people of Gaza it has caused? Perhaps one tunnel might be preserved, so that Gazan schoolchildren can visit and see what Hamas wrought in its unhinged unquenchable desire to kill Israelis; that would be more than enough to preserve the memory of the terror group’s madness. Some claim that the tunnels must not be flooded because the resulting damage would affect “the art, literature and folklore that are inspired by or related to the tunnels.” I very much doubt that the “art, literature, and folklore” of Gaza — is there any worth mentioning? — could ever be “inspired” in a good way by those hideous tunnels. Go to it, IDF engineers. Flood those tunnels. Flush the killers out.

[sugas6thtooth]

Haven't posted a Palestinian recipe in a while. I think positivity like this is needed as Palestinians are more than just their genocide and trauma.

These are Ka'ak Al-Quds, Jerusalem Bagels, made by @mxriyum on TikTok. You should give them a try :)

Free Palestine 🇵🇸

[violottie]

"They've been gone for years and I haven't forgotten" 🇵🇸, from Randi, 16/May/2024:

[cbs-scorpion-coffee-shop]

The People of Israel Live, "Finish Them"

A popular sticker calling for a genocide spotted all over occupied Palestine.

Israeli civilians are not innocent

[jaffababe]

Gaza City, Gaza Strip. 20th Apr, 2016. Palestinians in Gaza city celebrate World Heritage Day by wearing traditional Palestinian dress and showing hand-made traditional products.

[baby-girl-aaron-dessner]

I know the new Hunger Games book announcement is exciting. But in what world are we hearing more about a book announcement than we are about the bombing of 40 children in a UN school-turned-refugee shelter? These two events occurred on the same day. Only one is being widely spoken about in the media.

Let’s not forget why Suzanne Collins wrote the series in the first place. One night, she was watching TV, flipping back and forth between coverage of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and a reality-TV show. That's when she had the idea that would ultimately turn into The Hunger Games.

Please don’t let pop culture distract you from a genocide.

[ladychlo]

As you celebrate pride month, I hope your pride extends to queer individuals in Palestine, Sudan, Congo, Haiti, and all queer individuals whose pride is often forgotten while they are facing extermination and genocide, often their identities are preyed upon and erased from the narrative. Celebrate them by demanding the freedom and the liberation of their people.

[valseorcstra]

Archives from the vintage Palestinian magazine Al-Jadeed (The New), a monthly magazine for progressive national thought and culture established in (1951). 🇵🇸🕊️🍉

Source: the Palestinian Museum / the Digital Archive

[no-passaran]

In the weeks since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip have killed more than 15,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, and destroyed thousands of homes in the territory.

And there have also been tremendous losses to the region's ancient and globally significant cultural heritage. The region was a hub for commerce and culture under Egyptian, Greek, Roman and Byzantine rule. It remained influential for centuries thereafter.

A recent survey by the group Heritage for Peace details the damage done so far to more than 100 of these landmarks in Gaza since the start of the present conflict.

The casualties include the Great Omari Mosque, one of the most important and ancient mosques in historical Palestine; the Church of Saint Porphyrius, thought to be the third oldest church in the entire world; a 2,000-year-old Roman cemetery in northern Gaza excavated only last year; and the Rafah Museum, a space in southern Gaza which was dedicated to teaching about the territory's long and multi-layered heritage — until it was hammered by airstrikes early on in the conflict. (...)

"If this heritage be no more in Gaza, it will be a big loss of the identity of the people in Gaza," said Isber Sabrine, president of Heritage for Peace, in an interview with NPR. (...)

"The people in Gaza, they have the right to keep and to save this heritage, to tell the history, the importance of this land," he said.

The 1954 Hague Convention, agreed to by Palestinians and Israelis, is supposed to safeguard landmarks from the ravages of war. But landmarks in Gaza have been destroyed by Israeli strikes in earlier rounds of fighting. Dozens of sites, including the now-obliterated Great Omari Mosque, suffered damage in 2014. A report by UNESCO, the United Nations body that designates and protects World Heritage sites, cites further destruction to cultural and historic sites in Gaza in 2021. (...)

Destruction of historical sites and other cultural sites is part of genocide, it's the destruction of the proof of a people's relationship to the land and a horrible emotional blow at the community. UNESCO must act immediately against Israel's destruction of Palestinian heritage, and every country and international organism must expel Israel and impose sanctions to make the genocide and apartheid end.

[sugas6thtooth]

Support Local Palestinian Businesses!!!

This is Freddy Zebara, the owner of King of Falafel and Shawarma. He is Palestinian. As many of you know, Palestinians outside of Palestine are facing many challenges regarding discrimination and hate crimes.

We must be there for our Palestinian sisters and brothers no matter where they are.

If you live in New York, heck if you like to try good food, please support Freddy at his shop.

The location is 3015 Broadway, Astoria, NY 11106.

[violottie]

"The thobe is the bullet that will scatter into the faces of our enemies.

"Meet Samira, the Palestinians woman wielding her traditional dress as a weapon of strength and defiance." from The Tatreez Circle, 14/Apr/2024:

[thepeopleinpower]

Keep talking about Gaza. Keep talking about Palestine. Keep talking about Palestinian martyrs. Keep talking about Palestinian survivors. Keep talking about Palestinian children. Keep talking about war crimes. Keep talking about genocide. Keep talking about colonialism. Keep talking about forced starvation. Keep talking about forced adoption. Keep talking about Israeli occupation. Keep talking about the Nakba of 1948.

KEEP TALKING ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING TO PALESTINE

Keep boosting Palestinian history. Keep boosting Palestinian graphics. Keep boosting Palestinian poetry. Keep boosting Palestinian fashion. Keep boosting Palestinian textiles. Keep boosting Palestinian art. Keep boosting Palestinian culture. Keep boosting Palestinian values. Keep boosting Palestinian stories. Keep boosting Palestinian voices. Keep boosting Palestinian life. Keep boosting Palestinian loss. Keep boosting Palestinian love. Keep boosting Palestinian grief. Keep boosting Palestinian hope.

KEEP BOOSTING PALESTINIAN HUMANITY

[probablyasocialecologist]

During the first six months of the current war on Gaza, the Israeli military destroyed about 60 percent of the Strip’s cultural heritage sites and monuments. This toll includes the Bronze Age settlement of Tell el-‘Ajjul, the St. Hilarion monastery founded nearly 1,700 years ago, and Pasha’s Palace built in the 13th century and used recently as an archaeological museum. According to many Palestinian and civil rights organizations, this destruction is deliberate. I’m an archaeologist living in the West Bank who has written about cultural heritage destruction and antiquities looting. I serve as the secretary general of the International Council on Monuments and Sites–Palestine and of the Society for Palestinian Archaeology. Over 34 years, I have conducted several research projects and interviewed hundreds of Palestinians involved in illegal looting, trading, and trafficking of ancient objects. The losses unfolding now in Palestine, however, are unprecedented in scale and speed. International agreements enshrine the protection of cultural heritage and recognize its destruction as a war crime. But agencies responsible for policing these agreements have been conspicuously and inexcusably absent from the current conflict. No doubt protecting historical monuments and archaeological sites is challenging amid a war, and humanitarian efforts should prioritize saving lives. Yet UNESCO and other heritage organizations have tools and tactics to deter the destruction of cultural assets in conflict zones. Why, then, are these organizations neglecting to protect cultural heritage in Palestine?

[...]

According to Resolution 242, passed by the United Nations Security Council in 1967, the Palestinian territories, which include the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, are under occupation. As the occupying power, Israel must take necessary measures to safeguard and protect the cultural and natural heritage of the Palestinian territories. During its 2023–2024 assault on Gaza, Israel has been credibly accused of doing the opposite: systematically destroying Gaza’s cultural heritage as part of its broader genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. As of February, Israeli forces have destroyed at least 200 archaeological sites and buildings of cultural and historical significance in the Gaza Strip, according to a report from the Palestinian Ministry of Culture.

6 June 2024

[eziojensenthe3rd]

Senates adjourned until may 7th on a tuesday.

Get to calling through the weekend and monday.

We can clutch this!

[ladychlo]

Since it is Pride Month, keep an eye on Gaza and Palestine, and keep educating yourselves on the intersectional struggle. Queer liberation is a decolonial process. Queer liberation is an essential part of Palestine's liberation!

[ace-hell]

Oh this makes me so fucking mad

So SO fucking mad

You mean israelites, hebrews ffs you mean CANAANITES

THERE WEREN'T PALESTINIANS 3,000 YEARS AGO

THERE WERE JEWISH KINGDOMS

If the tatreez originated 3,000 fucking years ago it makes it jewish, israelite. NOT palestinian

This horrendous cultural and historical erasure of a whole ass ethnic group is absolutely sickening

This accepted activity of rewriting and changing jewish history is so fucking disgusting

This is the kinda shit that makes it so hard for me to feel sympathy and accept the modern palestinian identity

ITS NORMAL FOR NEW IDENTITIES TO EMERGE AND BE BORN, BUT ITS NOT OK TO CHANGE HISTORY SO IT'LL LOOK LIKE YOU HAVE AN ANCIENT AND NATIVE IDENTITY!

I Just fucking hope for the sun to blow us all up soon ffs