For months, Gaza has largely disappeared from Western media coverage, even as it becomes an increasingly deadly war zone.
A major factor is that, nearly a year into what the World Court has called a “plausible genocide,” Israel has barred foreign journalists and killed or expelled many Palestinian reporters. International aid groups and the UN have also been driven out, leaving few voices to document the devastation.
We receive glimpses of suffering, but not the full picture. How many Palestinians have died? The number was over 40,000 before the health system collapsed, but the true toll remains uncertain. Is it double or quadruple? No one can say for sure.
Gaza has been gripped by famine for months, as Israel blocks aid, keeping its promise to deprive Palestinians of food, water, and power. The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, seeks arrest warrants for Israeli leaders Netanyahu and Gallant for their role in Gaza’s starvation—an act defined as a crime against humanity.
Yet, the death toll from the famine is hidden from view. We don’t see it on our TVs or in headlines. It mirrors the silence after Western bloodbaths in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya. Politicians and media alike show no interest in uncovering the truth.
Democracy Eroded
The Gaza conflict also exposes another uncomfortable reality: Western governments, while championing democracy, have enabled genocide. Had the Biden administration chosen to, it could have halted the killing. Instead, it pretends to work towards a ceasefire—one it could enforce at any time. Israel’s dependence on U.S. military and financial support is undeniable, with 50,000 tons of weapons delivered by the U.S. since last October.
Western democracies no longer respond to public demands. Massive protests against the Iraq invasion in 2003 were ignored, as are today’s protests against Israel’s actions. Those who stand against the slaughter are marginalized, smeared as antisemites, while the corporate elite profits from endless wars.
Profit from Destruction
It’s not just arms companies benefiting from the Gaza conflict. Israeli airstrikes have turned Gaza into 42 million tons of rubble, enough to fill dump trucks from New York to Singapore. Western corporations, not Gazan ones, will likely profit from the reconstruction, given Gaza’s weakened industrial base after years of blockade. If Gaza is ever rebuilt, it could cater to wealthy Israeli Jews with beachfront properties, and its natural gas reserves off the coast will also attract Western interests.
Corporate Interests over People
Meanwhile, the UK’s new prime minister, Keir Starmer, is managing expectations. Offering no real change, he continues the same policies of austerity at home and arms sales to Israel abroad. Foreign Secretary David Lammy recently reduced arms sales to Israel by 8%, but the other 92% continue, allowing the Israeli military to commit war crimes. The UK government, like others in the West, remains focused on business ties with Israel.
In the U.S., Kamala Harris has been positioned as the Democratic candidate without a single vote cast. The media paints her as a figure of “joy,” but her administration supports the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Protests against her and Biden’s complicity were swept aside, further silencing voices of dissent.
The Antisemitism Shield
Both Starmer and Harris serve a bureaucracy long captured by corporate interests. Israel, the West’s militarized outpost in the Middle East, advances Jewish supremacism under the guise of protecting against antisemitism. Those who question Israel’s actions are branded antisemites, a tactic that has long shielded Israel from accountability for its actions in Palestine.
Opposition to Zionism, the ideology behind Israel’s creation and expansion, is now conflated with antisemitism, stifling debate. This distortion ensures that those who challenge the status quo—like Starmer’s predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn—are smeared into irrelevance.
Genocide by Proxy?
Within Israel, political and military leaders are debating the next steps. Some are ready to strike a deal for the remaining hostages, while others, like Netanyahu’s far-right allies, seek to expand the genocide to the West Bank. Attacks on West Bank cities signal this intent, with plans for future invasions modeled after Gaza’s destruction.
Western governments, unwilling to admit their complicity, will continue to enable this genocide. As they do, the war machine profits, and any effort to hold Israel accountable remains stifled.
