Your thoughtful and harrowing editorial, “West Bank Under Siege,” dated August 31, poignantly captures the suffering and anguish of the Palestinians. It is chilling to contemplate the plight of unarmed women, children, and youth who are trapped and subjected to unimaginable violence, cruelty, and injustice. These individuals are facing constant aggression—displacement, the destruction of homes, hospitals, schools, and shelters—enduring all forms of brutality.

The world looks on in horror at the scale of this violence, akin to medieval barbarism but with the deadly precision of modern weaponry, supplied by the West, led by the USA, to aid Zionist forces against defenceless civilians. The silence and apathy of Western elites and the Muslim world make them complicit, as they openly support and fund the war machine. To compound the Palestinians’ misery, the US, UK, Germany, and France continue to provide billions in aid and advanced weapons to Israel, enabling the massacre of innocent Palestinian children.

This vast financial and military support strengthens Israel’s unchecked dominance and terror across the Middle East. Any voices raised in opposition to Israel’s expansionist ambitions are systematically silenced. Yesterday it was Colonel Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein; today, it is Iran and Syria, who stand against Israeli oppression, though they are no match for Israel’s Western-backed military power.

The ongoing violence has claimed the lives of over 40,000 Palestinians, the vast majority of whom are civilians, including 17,000 children, whose innocent laughter has been extinguished. Thousands lie buried beneath the rubble in Gaza. The dreams and aspirations of young Palestinians have been destroyed, leaving countless orphans wandering the ruins of Gaza, the West Bank, and Rafah. As Gaza lies in ruins, Israeli forces now turn their wrath to the West Bank, Rafah, and Jenin with increased ferocity. The carnage, ethnic cleansing, and devastation show no signs of abating.

It is a bitter and painful irony that the tragic story of Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian girl who died in a car from shock, fear, and injuries while fleeing with her slain family members, fails to stir the conscience of human rights defenders. Nor do scenes of people being gunned down while queuing for bread in besieged areas prompt outrage from the so-called civilised world. The murder of Zomi Frankcom, a brave Australian woman aiding Palestinians, alongside six WKC workers, which forced the suspension of their operations, should have caused an international outcry. Yet even the sight of blindfolded Palestinians being kicked into mass graves has failed to move global powers to act.

The terrifying images of flames and smoke rising from apartments, schools, hospitals, and shelters in Gaza are met with indifference by Israel’s backers. The suffering of these helpless, persecuted people is undeniable proof of an orchestrated campaign of ethnic cleansing, fully endorsed by the West and tacitly approved by the international community.

Israel’s actions are not limited to combating Hamas or militant groups. They are part of a broader strategy to seize further land in Gaza, Khan Younis, the West Bank, and Rafah. Their aggressive policies dismiss all calls for peace, ceasefires, and international rulings. They seem determined to expel Palestinians and establish Jewish settlements, free from the threat of Palestinian resistance.

History shows that Zionist forces have consistently used violence, repression, and coercion to occupy Palestinian land and resources. Israel’s disregard for international law and disdain for peace initiatives is well-documented. Diplomatic efforts, such as those by James Baker in the 1990s and Antony Blinken’s recent missions to the Middle East, have only resulted in further bloodshed and land grabs, highlighting the futility of diplomacy in curbing Israeli aggression.

While the Holocaust is rightly condemned for the mass murder of European Jews, it also targeted other groups deemed “undesirable” by Hitler. Yet, the atrocities committed by Israel against Palestinian civilians have far exceeded those of the Nazis. Today’s Gaza, an open-air prison deprived of water, food, electricity, and medicine, is more horrifying than Nazi concentration camps like Auschwitz, Hinzert, and Belzec.

The world must act swiftly and decisively to stop the genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Rafah. Independent investigations and trials, similar to the Nuremberg Trials, should be initiated against all perpetrators, facilitators, and financiers of these crimes against humanity. Only urgent action can ensure peace and stability in this volatile region.

The international community should replace IDF forces with UN peacekeepers from neutral nations to safeguard life and property in Palestine until a two-state solution is achieved. The voices of the free people of the world, calling for an immediate ceasefire and the liberation of Palestine, must be heard. The occupied lands and resources must be returned to the Palestinians, allowing them to live with peace, dignity, and honour in their homeland.

QAMER SOOMRO,

Shikarpur.