October 7, 2023, was not just another day in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; it was a seismic rupture, sending shockwaves across the world. As we now mark one year since that catastrophic day, leaders, human rights organisations, and survivors have come forward to commemorate the dead and grapple with the collective grief that persists. From British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to international bodies like the United Nations, the weight of this day has shaped discourse in ways that continue to define our understanding of humanity, violence, and justice.
The Hamas attack, which brutally killed over 1,200 Israeli civilians, followed by the Israeli military’s ferocious bombardment of Gaza, left thousands of Palestinians dead and set off a cycle of violence that is tragically still unfolding. Over 41,800 people have been killed in this conflict since that day, and while the grief cuts across borders, so does the complicity.
A Tragic Symphony of Grief
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in a solemn statement, referred to October 7 as “the darkest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust.” His words reflect a deeply personal understanding of the suffering endured by the Jewish community, but they also echo a broader Western narrative that often reduces complex geopolitics to the binary of good versus evil. Starmer’s firm stance, calling for the return of hostages and condemning the violence inflicted by Hamas, aligns with much of the Western leadership’s response. But it is the selective application of moral outrage that troubles many. In his message, he did not shy away from standing in solidarity with the Jewish community, but what of the Palestinians who have lost homes, loved ones, and entire generations?
French President Emmanuel Macron’s words convey a similar sentiment of shared grief: “The pain is still here, as sharp as it was a year ago. The pain of the Israeli people. Our pain. The pain of wounded humanity.” This rhetoric speaks to the universal anguish of war but notably omits a critical examination of how the violence was perpetuated on both sides. His message was one of solemn remembrance, but also one that could be read as one-sided, failing to acknowledge the equal devastation suffered by Palestinians.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made a statement that went a step further in addressing the broader scope of the conflict: “A year ago, Hamas terrorists murdered over 1,000 Israelis, kidnapped hundreds. They also triggered a catastrophe for the Palestinian people. So much suffering, so many dead.” While Scholz’s language acknowledged the Palestinian suffering, it was a muted recognition in contrast to the strong condemnation of Hamas. There is still much room for the international community to confront the humanitarian toll in Gaza more holistically, recognising that both sides of this conflict have suffered in ways that no diplomatic statement can sufficiently capture.
Human Rights, or a Failure to Act?
Amnesty International, in contrast to political leaders, issued a far more critical and historical analysis of the conflict: “Don’t let anyone tell you this all started on October 7, 2023. 76 years ago, my own family was displaced during the Nakba of 1948 when more than 700,000 Palestinians became refugees.” This reminder is poignant because it insists that the roots of today’s conflict are not just in recent terrorist attacks but in decades of displacement, dispossession, and systemic violence against Palestinians.
Amnesty’s call for an immediate ceasefire, along with an end to arms sales to Israel, exposes a deeper hypocrisy within international policy. The rhetoric of peace is seldom matched by action, especially when it comes to holding Israel accountable for its ongoing occupation, siege, and apartheid against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
The United Nations also reflected on the broader human cost of the violence. In a statement released by their Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, they urged for “an end to the cycle of violence and for accountability,” reiterating that the brutalities inflicted upon both the Israeli and Palestinian people violate international law. However, their words, though powerful, are reminders of the UN’s often-impotent role in resolving such conflicts. Year after year, human rights organisations have issued similar calls, yet the bloodshed continues.
The Price of Complicity
One year on, Israel’s actions in Gaza have drawn sharp condemnation for what many human rights groups are now calling genocide. With over 41,800 Palestinians dead in just one year, the deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure, and the deaths of over 1,400 Palestinian children, the reality is brutal. These are not mere casualties of war; these are the deliberate consequences of a strategy that seeks to eradicate a people under the guise of security.
The Western media has been complicit in shaping a narrative that often reduces Palestinian lives to collateral damage in a justified war of self-defence. The language of “terrorism” has become so tied to Palestinian identity in the West that their deaths are often rationalised as the unavoidable price of Israel’s right to exist. Meanwhile, the Israeli government continues to use the Holocaust as a moral shield to deflect criticism, equating any condemnation of its actions with anti-Semitism, and in doing so, it desecrates the memory of those who perished in Nazi death camps.
The Hannibal Directive, a policy that allows the Israeli military to kill hostages rather than let them be captured by enemies, was revived on October 7, 2023. In doing so, Israeli forces killed many of their own civilians, in a brutal contradiction of the government’s claims of prioritising the safety of its citizens. How does one justify murdering their own in the name of fighting terrorism?
A Future Drenched in Blood?
As global leaders reflect on the events of the past year, it is painfully clear that nothing has changed. In fact, the situation has worsened. The U.S. government, through Secretary Blinken, spoke about the agonising loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives, but as the U.S. continues to supply arms to Israel, their role in perpetuating this cycle of violence is undeniable. Blinken’s call for a ceasefire is undermined by the steady flow of American weapons to Tel Aviv, ensuring that the violence will continue.
The European Union’s President Ursula von der Leyen stood in solidarity with Israel, sharing her experiences of visiting the aftermath of the attacks in Kfar Azza: “Women. Children. Holocaust survivors. For one reason, and one reason only: Hamas terrorists killed or abducted them because they were Jews.” Her remarks were profound, yet they reflected the same blind spot that runs through much of the Western discourse—an inability to equally grieve for Palestinian lives.
World leaders, particularly those in the West, have blindly enabled Israel’s genocidal policies in Gaza, all while invoking the Holocaust as a justification. By offering unwavering political and military support to Tel Aviv, these leaders have not only turned a blind eye to the atrocities being committed but have also participated in shielding Israel from international accountability. The language of self-defence, repeatedly parroted by figures like U.S. President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, is designed to elicit sympathy for Israel’s actions while disregarding the systematic destruction of Palestinian lives and infrastructure. This support emboldens a government that has increasingly embraced fascist tendencies, using historical Jewish suffering as a tool to deflect any criticism, no matter how warranted.
The hypocrisy is glaring. While Western leaders rightly condemn anti-Semitism and honour the memory of Holocaust victims, they simultaneously allow the Israeli government to carry out policies of collective punishment and ethnic cleansing. The Israeli leadership’s manipulation of the Holocaust to justify these atrocities is a grotesque betrayal of the very lessons that this dark chapter in human history was supposed to teach us. Rather than upholding human rights, these world leaders have chosen to offer political cover, military funding, and diplomatic backing, enabling a regime that engages in war crimes while invoking its historical trauma as a moral shield.
In doing so, the West is complicit in propping up a government that perpetuates violence and oppression under the guise of security. This reckless enablement has turned international solidarity with Holocaust survivors into a weapon wielded against Palestinians. The invocation of Holocaust memory to justify genocide against another people is not just morally bankrupt; it is an act of historical revisionism that whitewashes the atrocities unfolding today. Leaders who support such policies, directly or indirectly, have made a mockery of the principles they claim to uphold, allowing Israel’s fascist agenda to proceed unchecked.
Humanity’s Failure
In the past year, the cycle of violence has consumed thousands of lives and left communities on both sides permanently scarred. For every Israeli family grieving the loss of loved ones to terrorism, there is a Palestinian family mourning the death of children buried under the rubble of their homes. The collective punishment inflicted upon Gaza cannot be justified, just as the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7 cannot be excused.
In this moral abyss, the voices of the dead cry out to us, not just from Israel and Palestine, but from the graves of every genocide that humanity has allowed to fester. The words of Amnesty International and the United Nations should haunt us all. Because at the heart of this conflict lies a truth that we refuse to face: that our global systems, our moral compasses, have failed to stop a genocide in the making.
Where Do We Go From Here?
We stand at a precipice. The choices made by world leaders today will either lead to more bloodshed or open a path toward peace. But peace requires courage. It requires an acknowledgment of the crimes committed on all sides, and an unwavering commitment to human rights, not just for Israelis, but for Palestinians too.
Until then, the blood of innocents will continue to stain the earth, and history will remember this as the moment when humanity failed to act.
Vudi Xhymshiti, founder and chief editor of The Frontliner Magazine, brings a wealth of experience in reporting on global armed conflicts and political issues. With a background in Documentary Photography and Photojournalism from the University of the Arts London, and studies in Political Science, International Relations, and Diplomacy, Vudi skilfully merges human rights insights with dedicated journalism. His ethical and thoughtful reporting has graced top publications like The Guardian and The New York Times. At The Frontliner, launched in 2023, he explores the profound effects of conflicts on law, human rights, and freedoms, continuing his commitment to impactful storytelling.
