Quote of the Day

The scale of loss, the tragedy that has befallen the academic, scholarly and intellectual community in Gaza and in Palestine, is unprecedented. Israel is destroying the foundations of society in the Gaza Strip. Israel is systematically destroying our educational system, our cultural institutions. And today we saw footage of the Grand Omari Mosque in Gaza, a structure that dates back to thousands of years, also in ruins. This is a genocidal war of erasure, of uprooting and of mass destruction.

We mourn our teachers, our educators, our doctors, our nurses, our friends, our neighbors. And we also are mourning the loss of a society as we knew it, that no longer exists. And this is all happening while the world is watching, leaving Palestinians in Gaza to endure one of the largest bombardment campaigns in the 21st century. How is this acceptable? How is this allowed to happen?

– Jehad Abusalim
Excerpted from “‘If I Must Die’:
IDF Strike Kills Gaza Scholar Refaat Alareer;
Friend Pays Tribute and Reads His Poem”
Democracy Now!
December 8, 2023

NEXT:
Christmas 2023 – Reflections, Activism,
Art, and Celebrations


Related Off-site Links:
“Huge Loss” as Gaza Luminary Refaat Alareer “Assassinated” by Israel – Brett Wilkins (Common Dreams, December 7, 2023).
The Palestinian Poet Murdered By Israel – Novara Media (December 8, 2023).
Hamas Says Gaza Mosque Destroyed, Urges UNESCO to Save Heritage – Al Jazeera (December 8, 2023).
Outrage After Israel Destroys Gaza’s Largest and Oldest Mosque – The New Arab (December 8, 2023).
Thousands in Guernica, Spain Draw Link Between 1937 Fascist Bombings and Gaza Genocide – David Walsh (World Socialist Web Site, December 8, 2023).
“Disastrous”: US Vetoes Cease-Fire Resolution at UN Security Council – Julia Conley (Common Dreams, December 8, 2023).
Holocaust Survivor Gabor Maté Tells Piers Morgan Why He’s Not A Zionist – Novara Media (December 4, 2023).
This Is What Israel Has Planned for Palestine – Novara Media (December 1, 2023).
“Text-Book Case of Genocide”: Top U.N. Official Craig Mokhiber Resigns, Denounces Israeli Assault on Gaza – Democracy Now! (November 23, 2023).
UN Experts Say Ceasefire Needed as Palestinians at “Grave Risk of Genocide” – Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Emma Farge (Reuters, November 2, 2023).
A Genocide Is Under Way in Palestine – M Muhannad Ayyash (Al Jazeera, November 2, 2023).

UPDATES: In the Shadow of the Holocaust – Masha Gessen (The New Yorker, December 9, 2023).
Israeli Academics Join Call for U.S. to End “Unconditional Support” for Gaza Assault – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, December 11, 2023).
This Is Not a War Against Hamas – Jeremy Scahill (The Intercept, December 11, 2023).
Peter Beinart and Omer Bartov on UPenn President Resignation, Gaza, and the Weaponization of Antisemitism – Democracy Now! (December 11, 2023).
Biden’s Complicity in Gaza Violates International Law – Farrah Hassen (Common Dreams, December 14, 2023).
Jeremy Scahill: Gaza “Scorched-Earth Campaign” Is a “Joint U.S.-Israeli Operation” – Democracy Now! (December 14, 2023).
Israeli Soldiers Mistakenly Killed Three Hostages Held by Hamas in Gaza, Israel Says – Becky Sullivan (NPR News, December 15, 2023).
“This Genocide Must End Now”: Jewish-Led Protests Demand Gaza Cease-Fire – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, December 15, 2023).
It’s Not Just the Killing. Why Must Israel Dehumanize Palestinians? – Daoud Kuttab (The New Republic, December 17, 2023).
100 Days Into Israel’s War on Gaza, UN Leaders Renew Call to Prevent Famine – Jessica Corbett (Common Dreams, January 15, 2024).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Ta-Nehisi Coates: Quote of the Day – November 2, 2023
• Voices of Reason and Compassion on the Crisis in Israel and Gaza
• Prayer of the Week – October 16, 2023
• Something to Think About – October 12, 2023
• Eric Levitz: Quote of the Day – October 11, 2023
• Phyllis Bennis: “If We Are Serious About Ending This Spiraling Violence, We Need to Look at Root Causes”
• In the Midst of the “Great Unraveling,” a Visit to the Prayer Tree
• “Nothing About Today is ‘Unprovoked’”
• “The Mistreatment and Discrimination Against Palestinians Is Not Unprecedented. It’s Baked Into the Foundation of the Political System in Israel”
• Noura Erakat: Quote of the Day – May 15, 2018
• For Some Jews, Israel’s Treatment of Palestinians is Yet Another Jewish Tragedy
• Remembering the Six-Day War and Its Ongoing Aftermath
• David Norris: Quote of the Day – August 12, 2014

Image: The Great Omari Mosque, the largest and oldest in Gaza City, reduced to rubble by Israeli strikes – Friday, December 8, 2023. Reports the Agence France-Presse: “Footage and images posted on social media on Friday appeared to show the Great Omari Mosque, the largest and oldest in Gaza City, reduced to rubble. Only the minaret appeared to be intact, with the surroundings – which have been a Christian or Muslim holy site since at least the fifth century – shattered.” (Photo: Reuters)