Public Comment

Ban Ki-moon, the secretary general of the United Nations (UNSG), in an ‘op ed’ in the New York Times, vented his frustration at Israel’s messianic zeal to displace more Palestinians, demolish their homes and build more and more settlements. Palestinians are living in appalling segregated conditions increasingly reminiscent of White apartheid South Africa. 

The UNSG stated “Palestinian frustration and grievances are growing under the weight of nearly a half-century of occupation. No one can deny that the everyday reality of occupation provokes anger and despair.” 

Thumbing their nose at US demands to halt settlement expansion, the Israeli government has approved plans for over 150 new homes in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank Last month, 370 acres in the West Bank were declared “state land,” a status that is typically a precursor for more settlements. Thousands more Palestinian homes are in danger of demolition subject to harsh discriminatory practices. Many young Palestinians are losing hope that Israel’s great benefactor, the United States, has abandoned its values and continues to support their oppressor.