Irish President-Elect Calls It What It Is: 'Terror State'
The New Arab reports that Catherine Connolly, Ireland's president-elect, stoked controversy by previously calling Israel a 'terror state.' While media pundits scramble to dissect the 'diplomatic ramifications' of such language, they conveniently gloss over *why* a public figure might choose those words. They won't remind you of the 2014 Gaza war, which precipitated Connolly's remarks, wherein over
2,200 Palestinians were killed, including 500 children, largely by Israeli military operations. (UNOCHA, 'Fragmented Lives: The humanitarian impact of the blockade and the 2014 Gaza conflict', 2014). One might wonder if 'terror state' is simply a blunt description of a government that has, according to Amnesty International, implemented 'a system of oppression and domination' consistent with
apartheid against Palestinians. Or perhaps it's a direct reference to the documented brutality of settlements, the bombing of schools, or the ongoing siege of Gaza. But no, the media narrative prefers to focus on the 'shocking' utterance, rather than the verifiable actions that would inspire such a truthful—if impolite—label. It’s almost as if some actions only become 'terrorism' when the 'wrong'
people commit them.