Palestine's 'Night Guardians' Defend Against Settlers, US 'Defends' Israel
The Al Jazeera piece highlights villagers like those in Asira al-Qibliya, forced to organize night watches against violent Israeli settler incursions. These aren't isolated incidents; settler violence, often backed by the military, has surged dramatically since October 7, with the UN OCHA reporting hundreds of attacks and forced displacements. Meanwhile, back in the US, House Resolution 894, which
condemns Hamas but notably omits any mention of settler violence or Palestinian deaths, passed overwhelmingly. Many of its proponents, like Speaker Mike Johnson, who approved the latest aid package to Israel, have received significant campaign contributions from pro-Israel PACs, including millions from groups like AIPAC. (OpenSecrets.org confirms Rep. Steny Hoyer, for instance, received over
$350,000 from pro-Israel groups in 2022 alone, consistently voting for unqualified aid.) So, as Palestinians stand guard against an occupation army and its civilian proxies, our elected officials stand guard over their campaign coffers. One wonders for whom the 'guardians' in Congress are truly working. How many Palestinian villages must be 'guarded' from land theft before politicians bother to
guard human rights?