Israel increasingly seen as ‘a pariah state’ internationally: Analyst
Rami Khouri, a distinguished fellow at the American University of Beirut, said reports that the latest Israeli air strikes on Lebanon’s capital were an attempt to kill Hezbollah’s Hashem Safieddine – a cousin of the group’s late leader Hassan Nasrallah – can be understood as part of Israel’s long history of assassination.
“This has been going on for about 40 or 50 years. The Israelis and even the pre-state Zionists before that were routinely trying to decapitate the movements of resistance,” Khouri told Al Jazeera.
Such violence has “only given birth to a whole ring of resistance groups around Israel” Khouri said, and made it “a pariah state in the world”.
Israel has been “criminalised in front of the courts of the UN and is being increasingly seen negatively by public opinion. This is happening all over the world and it has made Israel the most dangerous place in the world for a Jewish person,” he added.
Israel is now seen as a “runaway killing machine. A massacring machine. A baby-shredding machine all over the Middle East. Killing medics. Killing university professors. Destroying hospitals. It’s completely run amok with its military might,” he continued.
Palestinian child Hanan is comforted by her aunt at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on September 8, 2024. Hanan’s family home was bombed in an Israeli strike, during which both of her parents were killed. Hanan lost both of her legs. Her sister lost her right foot in the attack.
Abuse of Palestinians – Al Jazeera documents suspected Israeli war crimes
Looting, killing and demolition of entire neighbourhoods are just some of the actions Israeli soldiers carry out in Gaza.
Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit has spent months gathering material that reveals Israeli forces are carrying out a range of illegal activities during the war on Gaza – activities that could amount to war crimes.
Al Jazeera’s Richard Sanders reports:
Israeli administrative detention a ‘theatre of justice’: Human rights lawyer
It only takes an order by an Israeli military commander or official to arrest Palestinians under so-called “administrative detention”, allowing suspects to be held without trial or charge, according to human rights lawyer Muhammad Dahleh.
Dahleh, who is based in occupied East Jerusalem, explained that arrested Palestinians under this system have no access to any evidence that can be presented against them.
“If they want to challenge that, the only way is through Israeli courts and only the judges can see the evidence there, with no access given to the lawyer,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Palestinians can be detained for a long period. It’s usually for six months, but it can be extended and some have been administratively detained for years,” he said, adding that some 3,500 are currently held this way.
Dahleh added that Palestinians can sometimes be imprisoned for something the Israelis perceive they may do in the future. He said a lawyer would have nothing to do in an Israeli court if they take up such a case.
“It’s only theatre, there’s no justice in the process and there’s no due process.”
