Quote of the Day

Intentionally depriving people of food is clearly a war crime. Israel has announced its intention to destroy the Palestinian people, in whole or in part, simply for being Palestinian. In my view as a U.N. human rights expert, this is now a situation of genocide. This means the state of Israel in its entirety is culpable and should be held accountable. There is no reason to intentionally block the passage of humanitarian aid or intentionally obliterate small-scale fishing vessels, greenhouses, and orchards in Gaza – other than to deny people access to food.

The speed of malnourishment of young children is astounding. The bombing and people being killed directly is brutal, but this starvation – and the wasting and stunting of children – is torturous and vile. It will have a long-term impact on the population physically, cognitively and morally. . . . All things indicate that this has been intentional.

– Michael Fakhri,
U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food
Excerpted from Nina Lakhani’s article,
“Israel Is Deliberately Starving Palestinians,
UN Rights Expert Says”
The Guardian
February 27, 2024

NEXT:
More Voices of Reason and Compassion
on the Crisis in Israel and Gaza


Related Off-site Links:
One Month Later, Israel Has “Simply Ignored” ICJ Ruling and Continued to Starve Gazans – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, February 26, 2024).
As 2-Month-Old Starves to Death in Gaza, Mosab Abu Toha Says His Own Family Is Eating Animal Feed – Democracy Now! (February 26, 2024).
U.N. Chief Says “Rules of War” Being Disregarded From Ukraine to Gaza – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, February 26, 2024).
Two-Thirds of U.S. Voters Across Political Spectrum Support Permanent Gaza Cease-Fire – Julia Conley (Common Dreams, February 27, 2024).
Israeli Military Kills Nearly 100 Gazans in 24 Hours as Biden Claims Cease-Fire Deal “Close” – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, February 27, 2024).
Blinken Calls Israeli Settlements “Inconsistent with International Law.” Critics: So Is Genocide – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, February 23, 2024).
“Moral Failure”: Democrats Rep. Khanna and Michigan State Rep. Aiyash Urge Biden to Change Gaza Policy – Democracy Now! (February 21, 2024).
IDF Chief Tells Commanders Not to Upload “Revenge Videos” – Novara Media (February 21, 2024).
The West Is Complicit in Israel’s Genocide – Novara Media (February 17, 2024).
“I Cannot Be Quietly Complicit”: Biden Official Resigns Over Gaza Assault – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, January 4, 2024).
Democratic Backlash as Biden Bypasses Congress for Second Time to Arm Israel – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, January 2, 2024).
Sen. Bernie Sanders Says No More U.S. Money for “Grossly Disproportionate” Israeli War on Gaza – Jessica Corbett (Common Dreams, January 2, 2024).
As Death Toll in Gaza Rises, Israeli Officials Fear Possible Genocide Charges at the International Court of Justice – Julia Conley (Common Dreams, January 1, 2024).
Saving Israel by Ending Its War in Gaza – Jeffrey D. Sachs (Common Dreams, January 1, 2024).
Israel Uses Starvation as a Weapon of War in Gaza – Jehan Alfarra (Middle East Monitor, December 23, 2023).
Record Low: 34% Approve of Biden’s Job as President; CNN’s Acosta Told to “Get Out of the Bubble” – Rising (December 19, 2023).
Biden Became “Genocide Joe” Thanks to the Israel Lobby – Philip Weiss (Mondoweiss, November 29, 2023).
White House Requests “Unprecedented” Loophole That Would Obscure Arms Sales to Israel – Janet Abou-Elias, et al (In These Times, November 2, 2023).
“Text-Book Case of Genocide”: Top U.N. Official Craig Mokhiber Resigns and Denounces Israeli Assault on Gaza – Democracy Now! (November 1, 2023).

UPDATES: Defunding UNRWA While Arming Israel Makes the U.S. Complicit in Genocide – Phyllis Bennis (OtherWords via Common Dreams, February 29, 2024).
Senator Jeff Merkley: U.S. “Complicit in Starvation and Humanitarian Catastrophe” in Gaza – Democracy Now! (February 29, 2024).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Sabrina Salvati: Quote of the Day – January 2, 2024
• Christmas 2023 – Reflections, Activism, Art, and Celebrations
• 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’”
• Norman Solomon and the Speech That Biden Should Give
• “The Mistreatment and Discrimination Against Palestinians Is Not Unprecedented. It’s Baked Into the Foundation of the Political System in Israel”
• Norman Solomon: Quote of the Day – July 14, 2022
• Biden’s Win: “As Much the Sounding of An Alarm As a Time for Self-Congratulations” (2020)
• Progressive Perspectives on the Biden-Harris Ticket (2020)
• Progressive Perspectives on Joe Biden’s Presidential Run (2019)
• 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: A Palestinian child holds an empty pot as he waits to receive food distributed by volunteers for Palestinian families displaced by Israeli attacks in Rafah, Gaza on December 22, 2023. (Photo: Abed Zagout / Anadolu Agency)