10 Comments

Great perspective re. the Berlinale fiasco. I feel like I'm going insane reading the reactions of German politicians and cultural institutions.

Expand full comment

Even if you are an Israeli, you cannot criticize the Israeli government. The German political establishment is above average!

Expand full comment

Don't worry about the name. We'll get it right back down to 20% really soon now as soon as we get our appointments for our passports through.

Expand full comment

When October 7, rape, beheading of babies, torture, and hostages aren’t mentioned it IS one sided. I think it is only human to show grief over the deaths of the Palestinian civilians, some of whom want nothing to do with this war and just want to live their lives. However, erasing the horrors that brought us to this heartbreaking reality, and not mentioning the fact that if hostages were returned the ceasefire would indeed happen, is an unfair representation of reality.

What would you do if your sister was raped and murdered? Her breast cut off? If your girlfriend was raped and murdered in front of you while you were tied up? If your mother was kidnapped? If your child was beheaded? If your baby was literally put in an oven to cook to death while you were forced to watch? If the last picture you had of your daughter was in the arms of an armed terrorist?

There are 134 hostages still in Gaza including a ONE year old baby. There were two hostages freed by the IDF that were kept in a family home of civilians. The line between civilians and terrorists is blurry, the line between antisemitic and just criticism is blurry, this situation is one of the most complex political problems today, extreme opinions, dehumanisation on either side are not valid.

I would also say that if you don’t live this reality, either as an Israeli or Palestinian, either be a voice for actual productive collaborative discussion or say nothing. I would much rather talk to a Palestinian who wished me dead than a “progressive activist” who has no idea where Israel or Gaza are on a map, let alone the difficulties of each reality, and then calls out “From the river to the sea”, which calls for genocide of the Israeli people.

Expand full comment

actually I didn't see the awards, but everyone I did see at the Berlinale painfully mentioned the entire context including and preceding 7 October. I don't know how you can justify your list without listing the 10,000 horrific ways the other children have been dying. But anyway, the point about war crimes is that there is no context that justifies them, no matter how horrific the past. So now we are waiting to hear the court decide whether these qualify for that term.

Expand full comment

What about before October 7? without hostages, babies (which were fake btw), torture. Palestinian civilians were dying everyday by the IDF. I hope there will be no war tomorrow.

Expand full comment

Be careful of all those TikTok’s you’re watching, you are a victim of misinformation.

If you would like to be more informed, you can take a look here: https://www.hamas-massacre.net/

Expand full comment

I think you are also a victim of misinformation. I won't ask you to go to a website funded and created by the IDF. I'd just ask you to google "IDF massacre" and check what the international court said about the IDF

Expand full comment

I've read the entire ICJ verdict. And while I agree that Israel should do everything in its' power to avoid civilian deaths, and it does, I see again a one-sided narrative here. The South African government has deep ties with Hamas, and the entire ruling focuses on the humanitarian crisis (no mention of the IDF committing massacre), while only 2 sentences were dedicated to the true massacre that occurred on October 7th, the utmost violation of human rights and dignity imaginable.

Expand full comment

Lol

Expand full comment