Afrasianet - The seventh of October 2023 was a memorable day, unlike the days before it, and it split the world in half. Seeing Palestinian resistance fighters topple Israeli occupation soldiers and throw them from the backs of Merkava tanks has shaken the arrogance of the West. That is an insult that has never happened in the history of the Zionist entity. That was a founding shot, where history will be written in both upward and downward

directions, the history of the victim and the history of the murderer. The West will not accept that its military machine in which it was investing is humiliated. For decades, the heirs of the martyrs will not be persuaded to return to less than the dream of liberation.

The leaders of the Western world turned in an instant into a state of solidarity of the League, coming to the state of the entity to support their Zionist allies, with hugs, pattings and expressions of condolences coming out of the edges of the nostrils. In practice, however, the planes and battleships came after them loaded with the machines of hell that would pour over the heads of the Palestinians.

The West has a long history of philosophy of enlightenment, human rights, and the preambles of justice and humanity, a façade that fools people of goodwill or fascination with secularism and Western culture. The conscience of those deceived by the West has been sore in pain: how can the civilized West be satisfied and silent about the massacres carried out by the Israeli occupation army against the Palestinians and then the Lebanese for a year?

Let us look at history to see if Israel represents, in many ways, a microcosm of the Wild West, which carries the slogans of enlightenment, freedom and humanity, but in practice relies on policies of oppression and exploitation. Is Israel a continuation of the Western colonial pattern that has imposed domination and domination over indigenous peoples, while maintaining a façade of human values?

History of violence in Western wars

The history of violent destruction in the wars fought by the West spans centuries, with devastating effects on communities, cities and infrastructure. If we were to talk about the most prominent examples of such destruction, we would start with the Middle Ages and progress towards modern warfare. The Crusades saw massive destruction of towns and villages in Arab and Muslim countries, with European armies attacking Jerusalem and other cities, destroying infrastructure and killing civilians. One of the most prominent examples was the fall of Jerusalem in 1099, where horrific massacres were committed against the Arab and Muslim population, and the Crusader literature itself speaks of the killing of about 70,000 people in Jerusalem alone.

The colonial period saw widespread cultural and social destruction, with Europeans destroying entire civilizations in North and South America, Africa, and India. For example, the destruction of the Aztec Empire in 1521, as well as scorched-earth policies in Africa during periods of British and French imperial expansion.

Understanding the West's attitude toward the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians requires looking at the complexity of the historical, religious, and political factors that influence Western decision-making. Colonialism, religious narratives, geopolitical alliances, and economic interests all play a role in justifying the West's support for Israel despite its destruction. Perhaps the West's wars of extermination in the Americas are an expanded panorama of what Israel is doing against the Palestinians: in the history of Western colonization of Latin America, European powers committed genocide. against

indigenous peoples, with the destruction of their civilizations and their replacement by European immigrant groups. These practices began in the late fifteenth century and lasted for decades, and saw enormous levels of killing and destruction, leading to the extinction of millions of people and the disintegration of ancient civilizations.

As indigenous populations declined sharply due to murder and disease, colonial authorities began bringing in African slaves to make up for the shortage of manpower. Over the centuries, Africa has become a major source of slaves, and they have been replaced on Latin American plantations and mines.

One of the consequences of Western settlement in the Americas was that the indigenous population declined catastrophically during the first two centuries of colonialism. It is estimated that between 80% and 90% of the indigenous population of the Americas died during that period, either from direct killing or disease.

One of the consequences of Western settlement was the loss of the cultural identity of indigenous peoples as entire civilizations including their languages, cultures and religious practices were destroyed. These cultures were replaced by Christian European civilization, and the remaining indigenous people were forced to convert to Christianity and abandon their traditional customs. As a result of these exterminations, the new societies formed in Latin America became a mixture of European settlers and African slaves, as the indigenous population was greatly marginalized in the new social structures.

The civilizational destruction and forced replacement of populations in North and South America is one of the most cruel chapters in the history of colonialism, in which entire peoples were wiped out and prosperous civilizations dismantled.

American Wars

In the East, the situation was no less miserable; in the Philippines and Vietnam, U.S. military and political interventions had profound effects on those countries in terms of destruction, human suffering, and social and political transformations. Both the Philippines and Vietnam have been subjected to major military interventions by the United States, and the consequences of those interventions continue today.

The United States dropped an enormous amount of 7.5 million tons of bombs on Vietnam during the Vietnam War, more than the amount dropped during the entire World War II. The U.S. military has used chemical weapons such as napalm and agent orange, a toxic substance used to clear forests. These weapons caused massive destruction of infrastructure, farmland, and forests, with long-term health effects on the population.

U.S. forces have committed several massacres of Vietnamese civilians, most famously the Mae Lai massacre (1968), in which U.S. soldiers brutally killed more than 500 civilians, mostly women, children and the elderly. The death toll during the Vietnam War is estimated at about 3 million Vietnamese (mostly civilians), in addition to 58,000 U.S. troops. Millions more have been wounded or displaced by the war. Due to heavy shelling and military actions, the Vietnamese suffered a mass exodus and the destruction of entire villages. The

country also experienced a collapse in infrastructure, and millions were forced to live in harsh conditions for decades after the war ended.

Genocides committed by the British and French occupations in the world

For centuries, British and French occupations committed a series of genocides and massacres against various peoples during the colonial period. These exterminations were motivated by imperialist expansion and the desire to control vital resources and regions. British and French colonialism constituted two major forces in the global colonial system, and their policies were not limited to economic exploitation, but also included the mass murder and violent oppression of occupied peoples.

British and French colonialism was responsible for the extermination of millions of people across continents through policies of violent repression, forced displacement, economic exploitation, and the spread of disease. The use of military force to achieve political and economic goals was a common approach in both empires, destroying local civilizations and cultures and imposing unjust social and political structures whose effects persist today.

Conscience, reason and belief

The Western world watches Israel destroy Gaza, southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs and does nothing, but encourages and supplies weapons. How do we understand this intellectually, philosophically and culturally in the Western mind?

To understand the Western position on supporting Israel in this regard, and to analyze this behavior from an intellectual, philosophical, and cultural point of view, several interrelated factors that contribute to shaping this position can be looked at, and they overlap between politics, history, culture, and Western perception of crises in the Middle East. These factors include the following:

1- Colonial legacy and structural racism

· Colonialism: The European colonial legacy has shaped a deep-rooted view of domination and control over the non-European "other", especially the Muslim and Arab worlds. In this view, the lives and rights of colonized peoples are less valuable. Western understanding of conflicts in the Middle East often ignores the historical context of colonialism and its continuing impact on current policies, thus perhaps interpreting indifference to the suffering of Palestinians and Lebanese as the embodiment of the continuity of this thought.

· Structural racism: This view also stems from structural racist concepts that place non-European peoples, especially in the Middle East, inferior. This cultural contempt makes the destruction of the people of the Middle East less condemnable, as Palestinians are treated as "inevitable victims" of a conflict that the West sees as part of the "fight against terrorism" or the "war on extremism."

2- Western religious and historical narratives

· Philosophical and cultural factors: Western societies, especially in the United States, are built on liberal values that

promote individual freedom, democracy, and human rights. However, these values are often applied selectively, with Israel seen as a beacon of democracy in the Middle East, while its actions in the occupied territories are underestimated or justified.

The Western world also has a long history of seeing the Middle East through an orientalist lens, portraying the region as backward, uncivilized and in need of Western guidance. This perspective can lead to a lack of empathy and understanding of the experiences of Arabs and Palestinians.

Western media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has often been a biased narrative, focusing on Israeli security concerns and minimizing Palestinian suffering and rights. This can contribute to a distorted public perception of the conflict.

· Religious influence: Religion plays a large role in shaping the Western view of the conflict. For evangelical Christians in the United States, for example, there is strong ideological support for Israel based on biblical interpretations that view the founding of the State of Israel as a prelude to the end of the world or the return of the Messiah. This contributes to giving a sacred dimension to support for Israel, regardless of the violations or destruction it causes.

· Judeo-Christian historical heritage: The West participates in a historical and cultural narrative in which Judaism is part of its religious and civilizational heritage, and therefore Israel is considered a natural extension of this heritage, while the Arab and Muslim peoples are seen as historical opponents.

3- Strategic relationship and geopolitical interests

· Strategic alliances: Israel is a strong strategic partner of the West, especially the United States. From a strategic perspective, Israel is seen as an important ally in the Middle East to counter Iranian influence and Islamist movements, so supporting Israel regardless of its actions becomes part of a strategy to protect Western interests. Israel has forged strong ties with Western governments, especially the United States, which provide significant military aid and diplomatic support. Pro-Israel lobbyists in Western countries, such as AIPAC in the United States, also greatly influence foreign policy decisions. Arguably, the Israel lobby rules the political mind in the United States, permeating the structures of both the Republican and Democratic parties.

· Arms and trade: In addition, Israel represents one of the largest buyers and users of Western military technology, and the presence of an ongoing conflict means continued demand for weapons and defense systems, boosting Western military industries. These commercial interests may contribute to condoning Israel's destruction of Palestinians and Lebanese. The Middle East is a vital region for global energy security, and Israel's strategic location and military power make it an attractive partner for Western countries seeking to maintain its influence in the Middle East. area.The Israel lobby rules the political mind in the United States, pervading the structures of both the Republican and Democratic parties.

4- Reframe the narrative of the conflict

· "War on Terror" rhetoric: After the attacks of September 11, 2001, the West adopted the rhetoric of the "war on terror," which was used to legitimize many military interventions and repressive behaviors. Israel has succeeded in employing this rhetoric to justify its military operations in Gaza and Lebanon, where Palestinian and Lebanese resistance is portrayed as part of international terrorism. This narrative makes Western audiences more receptive to Israeli actions.

· Demonization of resistance: Culturally, Western media contribute significantly to demonizing Palestinian or Lebanese resistance, portraying it as illegal violent movements, while Israeli violence is justified as a legitimate defense. This media bias fuels the popular perception that Israel is acting in self-defense, despite the scale of destruction and civilian casualties.

5. Secularism and Democracy Marketing: Israel as a "Democratic State"

In Western political culture, Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, and this image reinforces Western support for it as an "oasis of democracy" in a region rife with dictatorships and conflicts. This creates a contradiction between Western principles based on human rights and democracy and their support for Israel's violent policies, but this is explained by a preference for "preserving democracy" even if at the expense of human values.

6- Pragmatic view of power and authority

· The concept of power: Western thought, influenced by philosophers such as Nicola Machiavelli and Thomas

Hobbes, views international relations from a pragmatic and realistic angle based on power and interest. In this view, the primary goal is to maintain the stability of regional power and protect vital interests, without regard to moral considerations. Supporting Israel despite its destructive actions is consistent with this view, as maintaining a strategic alliance with it is seen as a higher priority than moral accountability.

Finally, the relationship between the West and Israel is a complex model that reflects a stark contrast between stated values and actual practices. Israel, as a settler entity, is based on policies of forced replacement of indigenous peoples, reminiscent of the pattern of Western colonialism witnessed in many regions throughout history. Despite Western claims about the values of enlightenment, freedom, and justice, Israel's practices, including military occupation, racial discrimination, and oppressive practices, reflect a continuation of the methodology of brutal Western colonialism. This context highlights a duality Standards in Western politics, where human rights violations in Palestine are obscured under the guise of strategic support for Israel.

This relationship is manifested in the military and economic support provided by Western powers, which are considered complicit in perpetuating this situation. Old colonial ideologies continue to emerge in new contexts, highlighting the need to rethink discourses on human rights and democracy. Ultimately, the relationship between the West and Israel is the embodiment of the legacy of colonialism that transcends geographical boundaries and affects the lives of millions.