Al Jazeera Discovers Empire, Still Calls Genocide a 'Conflict'
The historical critique is sharp: Spain conquered with armies and missionaries, achieving dominion through brutal force veiled in religious zeal. Yet, this incisive historical analysis often evaporates when reporting on contemporary empires. The same network that meticulously details 16th-century atrocities in the Americas, for instance, frequently labels Israel's continuous dispossession and
violence against Palestinians as a mere 'conflict' or 'clashes,' a framing that obscures the ongoing occupation and ethnic cleansing. We are rightly reminded that the Spanish Empire was built on 'faith, force, and gold.' One might charitably ask Al Jazeera how many modern empires employ similar strategies, albeit with rebranded rhetoric and advanced weaponry. The lesson seems to be that historical
conquest is easy to condemn when the protagonists are long dead, but calling out live genocide requires a courage too often reserved for the past. Perhaps a future 'Al Jazeera Untangles' can explain how 'humanitarian aid' and F-35s fuse to create new global dominance.