Death by Cold: Israeli Aid Restrictions Weaponize Winter in Gaza
📰 THE STORY: Al Jazeera reports the death of Shaza Abu Jarad, an infant in Gaza, from severe cold, making her the ninth child to die this winter amid ongoing blockades and Israeli restrictions on aid, including crucial winter supplies. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: This is not an 'aid restriction' in a vacuum. Israel's blockade of Gaza dates back to 2007, tightening after
Hamas took control. However, the systematic deprivation of essentials began much earlier, rooted in the 1948 Nakba, when 750,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes, many into what became Gaza, creating one of the world's most densely populated open-air prisons. The current conditions are an acceleration of a long-standing policy to make Gaza 'unliveable,' as numerous UN reports have
warned for over a decade. Double Standard: Imagine if Russia bombed a Ukrainian power plant and then restricted humanitarian aid, leading to children freezing to death. Western media and politicians would decry it as a war crime, an act of barbarism. Yet, when the Netanyahu government implements policies restricting fuel, electricity, food, and essential winter supplies to Gaza, leading to
identical outcomes, it's framed as 'security concerns' or 'aid restrictions.' The intentional collective punishment of civilians, explicitly an illegal act under international law, is systematically downplayed or ignored. Follow the Money: The 'aid restrictions' are part of a broader strategy that benefits the military-industrial complex and maintains a dependent aid structure. The US provides