Citizens of five countries (excluding the two Palestinian territories) are the victims of an attack on an international organisation attempting to deliver food to the starving people in Gaza.
Five countries, in other words, have lost their own people: Australia, Poland, Britain, the US, and Canada.
Yet, they seem to share Netanyahu’s cynical view that “these things happen in wartime.”
The convoy of three vehicles from the non-governmental organisation World Central Kitchen had just left a warehouse where it had unloaded 100 tons of humanitarian aid when it came under aerial bombardment.
According to the organisation, the vehicles bore its logo and were in an area where it had been agreed with the Israeli army that no fighting would take place.
And yet, the Israeli army, which knows everything and has the most sophisticated systems, did not notice the organisation’s logos.
“Accidentally,” said Netanyahu, the convoy with seven volunteer victims who had gone to help was bombed. But “these things happen in wartime.”
And not only do they happen, but when they do, all aid freezes, and people lose even that faint hope they had that someone would send them a loaf of bread to prevent them from starving, if they survive the bombs.
Netanyahu achieved, “accidentally,” what he wanted: to not hinder the starvation of a people.
World Central Kitchen has suspended its operations in Gaza – they have no more people to sacrifice – and the ships of Amalthea return empty-handed.
There is no morality in war (if we accept that this is war and not genocide).
However, some pretences were once observed: Civilians could feel some sense of safety. Medical facilities would not be lightly bombed.
The United Nations could be considered a neutral body and could provide some assistance.
Even journalists could move in war zones without their deaths being considered collateral damage.
Two decades ago, Slobodan Milosevic was brought to the Hague for war crimes. Because there’s a difference between battlefields and slaughters of innocents.
Now, none of this applies, and we are inclined to accept it.
Even when our own people die, we might say, “what were they doing on a battlefield, thousands of miles away from their country?”
Maybe they were trying to keep hope alive.
Maybe they believed that even in war, there is a line of ethics that no one can cross.
Perhaps they thought that one person cannot cause so much harm and simply say, “these things happen.”
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