Afrasianet - by the English writer Oscar Wilde (died in 1900 AD) A wonderful literary novel called "The Portrait of Dorian Gray". The novel revolves around the life of a young man named Dorian Gray, who enjoys extraordinary beauty and undisguised attractiveness.

The portrait of this young man is painted by an artist named Basil Halward, Dorian became fascinated by his beauty after seeing the picture. Under the influence of Lord Henry Wootton, Basil's hedonistic friend, Dorian wishes to remain young and beautiful forever, while his image ages! Indeed, he had what he wanted, and his wish came true. Dorian indulges in pleasures, lusts and moral decadence; his body is still the body of a young man of lust,

beauty, innocence and purity, but his image tells you another story contrary to the appearance: the body is weak and weak, and morals Corrupt, wrong deeds, and rotting spirit.

Israel portrayed itself as a meek lamb living among wolves, and it is – they claimed – the only "democratic" state in the region, and it is after a state of love and peace.

In pursuit of pleasure and pleasure, Dorian commits many follies, crimes and moral lapses, including the murder of Basil Halward, who told him that his actions were degraded and his morals changed that were reflected in his image. As the years go by, Dorian becomes more crazy and guilty, but he continues to hide the true nature of the image. Eventually, Dorian breaks the painting and inadvertently kills himself, and when his servants find him, they discover an old withered man lying dead in front of a picture of Dorian Gray, a handsome young man.

The brutal aggression and daily massacres committed almost a year ago in Gaza reminded me of this narrative, which I never thought would become a reality, a tangible reality; I saw Israel in the image of Dorian Gray, I saw the Western countries in the character of Basil Hallward, and I saw in Britain the character of Lord Henry Wootton. The establishment of a Zionist entity for the Jews in the land of Palestine is Britain's first sin, and it is the greatest sin that it has been carrying for more than a hundred years, when Balfour issued its fateful promise. In 1917.

Since the proclamation of the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 (the year of the Nakba), the artery of Western political, military, intellectual and moral support has not been interrupted, and at the forefront of the supporting countries comes the United States of America.

With thousands of violations practiced by this occupying state against the Palestinians, from the Nakba until the "Al-Aqsa flood" on October 7, 2023, the Western countries, with their intellectuals, politicians and organizations, spared no effort in providing the necessary support and justifications, and the general Western opinion was either supportive of Israel, sympathetic to it, or at least silent.

For decades, Israel, with Western support, of course, has sought to whitewash its face and polish its image in front of the world.

Israel portrayed itself as a meek lamb living among wolves, and – they claimed – the only "democratic" state in the region, after a state of love and peace. From time to time, it organized free tourist trips for Europeans and Americans to visit Israel, trips in which tourists were brainwashed by the Zionist narrative that calls for Israel's historical right to the Promised Land, a right usurped by the brutal terrorists and Palestinians. The promotion of this narrative remained effective until the "Al-Aqsa flood" and the subsequent barbaric aggression on Gaza came, revealing the hidden, the veil was torn and the morning was opened.

After the Al-Aqsa flood, is there still a free and fair human being who can believe that the countries of the West and America are advocates of human civilization?!

Western regimes turn against the principles and values they have often promoted, such as respect for democracy, advocacy for human rights, and respect for freedom of opinion and expression, to the point of blatant hypocrisy that is no secret to a fair sane.

Since the "Al-Aqsa Flood", Western governments and their media arms have decided to take an absolute bias towards Israel, without

scrutinizing the fabricated news and false narratives propagated by Israeli propaganda, such as allegations of beheading children, beheading and raping Israeli women, in order to present Israel as a victim and have the "right to defend itself" against the terrorist Hamas.

For example, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke about the violations committed by the Russian military in Ukraine and stressed the need to hold those who committed these crimes accountable. After the battle of the "Al-Aqsa flood", the Chancellor visited Israel, affirmed his country's support for it and that it has the right to defend itself, and urged the German security services not to tolerate any demonstration in solidarity with the Palestinian cause. As for Israel's crimes against civilians, the Chancellor did not obey his tongue to condemn them even with a word.

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This bias has led many politicians, intellectuals and social media influencers to highlight this shameful hypocrisy; they have drawn comparisons between what is happening and how the United States and the European Union deal with similar situations, such as the war in Ukraine, as they were quick to accuse Moscow of committing crimes and demanding that it abide by human rights standards and respect international law. In the "Al-Aqsa Flood", you see them turning a blind eye to Israeli violations of these laws and standards.

When student protests against the Israeli aggression on Gaza, which started from American universities and spread to various Western countries, some were not spared repression, abuse and imprisonment.

In the United States, the US administration and university administrations have met protests with violence, arrests, arbitrary dismissal, and accusations such as "anti-Semitism," Hamas advocacy, and others. These protests included students of all groups, ages and ideologies. Perhaps the most serious aspect of the protests is the participation of Jewish students and academics opposed to the crimes of the occupation, which undermines allegations of anti-Semitism and fear of a repeat of the Holocaust.

Hundreds of massacres and thousands of martyrs, mostly women and children, killing the sick and premature infants, stealing the organs of martyrs and skinning their skins, mass graves, field executions, famines, diseases and epidemics, sexual violations against Palestinian prisoners, starving and humiliating them, and using them as human shields, more than 80 thousand tons of explosives were dropped on the Gaza Strip.. and other things that we do not know like in the history of contemporary crime. All these humanitarian disasters are taking place under the eyes of the world, with American and Western weapons.

Surat Al-Tawbah was called scandalous because it exposed the hypocrites and showed the hatred and hostility that their chests entail towards the believers.. and Gaza is also scandalous, because it exposed the crimes of this brutal usurping entity, and revealed to the free people of the world its black hatred and its hateful Nazi practices against an unarmed people, whose only crime is that they want to live on their land freely and with dignity like all the peoples of the earth.. Gaza is scandalous because it exposed the lie of Western democracy, the fragility of human civilization, and the myth of so-called "human rights".

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After the Al-Aqsa flood, is there a free and fair human being who can believe that the countries of the West and America are advocates of human civilization? The nakedness of Western regimes has been exposed to their peoples, and all the illusions of Western civilization have been shattered on the proud rock of Gaza.

As for the situation of most Arab and Islamic regimes, it is enough for you to read the words of the poet:

You make them hear if you call alive. But there is no life to whom you call

Every talk in the countries of the West – after the Al-Aqsa flood – about rights, freedoms, values and virtues is nothing but the legends of the first two.

Returning to the novel "The Portrait of Dorian Gray"; Israel, like Dorian Gray, appeared for what it really was in the mirror of Gaza, where its ugly face and fragile artificial structure were revealed. The promise is rightly coming to an end.

Just as the young Dorian killed the artist who drew him.. Basil Hallward, Israel also killed the Western regimes that support it, when it revealed with its criminality in Gaza the cover of regimes that continue to practice political hypocrisy, trade in morals, and claim leadership in human rights and freedoms.. It is moral killing par excellence!

Every talk in the countries of the West – after the flood of Al-Aqsa – about rights, freedoms, values and virtues, is nothing but the legends of the first, the talk of a myth, O mother of Amr!

And if the people are right in their morals.. then set up a funeral and a family on them.

- Assistant Professor, Department of Foundation and Interdisciplinary Studies, Faculty of Knowledge of Revelation and Humanities, International Islamic University Malaysia