India green lights the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in Gaza
A brief history of India's record at the UN on the question of Palestine
On October 26, the UN General Assembly voted for a UN resolution that called for a “humanitarian truce” in Gaza.
The resolution, introduced by Jordan, called for a "continuous, sufficient and unhindered" delivery of life-saving aid and services to Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip as the death and destruction continued to mount.
The resolution passed with 120 countries voting in favor, 14 against, and 45 abstaining.
The Indian government chose to join a club of 45 countries who abstained.
Delhi’s decision to steer clear of a non-binding resolution that called for a ceasefire, naturally sparked criticism amongst the wider Left in India, but also prompted a wave of interest internationally over India’s position on Palestine and Israel.
Observers wondered if the abstention represented a break from the past?
Did it signal a new era in diplomatic ties between India and Israel?
Did it mean that Modi’s government finally abandoned the Palestinians?
Here’s what happened
India was among the first countries to condemn Hamas following their attack on Israel on October 7.
Narendra Modi’s comments were so decisive and unambiguous in support of Israel, it forced the Ministry of External Affairs to clarify that it wasn’t suffering from amnesia over its long-held commitment towards the establishment of a Palestinian state (ie. a two state solution).
In the weeks since October 7, India has remained a major hub and source of disinformation about Israel’s operations in Gaza drawing the attention of media around the world.
Some sources on the disinformation campaign emanating out of India
Israel-Palestine war: Why Hindu nationalists are backing Israel against Hamas in Middle East Eye
India’s Digital Footprint on the Israel-Gaza War in The Diplomat
Why India is leading the pro-Israel disinformation campaign online in The New Arab
Misinformation spirals out of control on X amid Israel-Hamas war in The Hindu
The refusal to support a ceasefire on Gaza as thousands of Palestinians continue to be killed in daily massacres, is certainly a new low for Delhi.
S Jaishankar, India’s foreign minister said Delhi had chosen not to support the UN resolution because the text hadn’t included condemnation of Hamas.
He said that given India’s vulnerability to terrorism, Delhi needed to take a strong position on terrorism.
This is an extraordinary position to take when the resolution primarily called for an immediate, “humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities”, a demand “that all parties fully comply with obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law, particularly in regard to the protection of civilians and civilian objects” and “the immediate, continuous, sufficient and unhindered provision of essential goods and services to civilians throughout the Gaza Strip, including but not limited to water, food, medical supplies, fuel and electricity, stressing the imperative, under international humanitarian law, of ensuring that civilians are not deprived of objects indispensable to their survival.”
Instead, Jaishankar said that “a good government and strong governance stand up for its people. Just as good governance is necessary at home, right judgements are necessary abroad. We take a strong position on terrorism because we are big victims of terrorism.”
In other words, by refusing to sign on to the resolution, India offered a ringing endorsement of Israel’s need to exert revenge on Palestinians in Gaza without regard for international law or international humanitarian law. It wanted to show support for Israel to carry out its operation befitting a “strong” and good” government that “stands up for its people”.
Jaishankar’s comments go back to a common refrain used by both India and Israel: we are fighting the same enemy and we need all the backing we can get to protect civilization.
This is no different to the comments made by the American government following the events of September 11, 2001, or by Christian Zionists as they pushed for the US to support Israel suffocate Palestinian uprising between 2000-2005, known as the second intifada (2000-2005).
“We are in a war on terrorism,” Gary Bauer, a Christian Zionist, said back in 2002.
“We are trying to limit and lesson the number of terrorist nations. So under no circumstances should we create a new terrorist nation of Palestine,” Bauer, who was appointed by former US President Donald Trump to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom in 2018, said.
A history of betrayal
This would not be the first time India has abstained from supporting the Palestinians at the UN.
Likewise in 2015, India abstained from supporting a UN resolution endorsing a UN Human Rights Report that found evidence of “alleged war crimes” committed by both Israel and Hamas during Operation Protective Edge. It called for accountability of Israeli officials. As it happened, India voted a year earlier for a UN investigation into the war in Gaza but then chose not to endorse the finding of the report. Multiple news outlets reported that Narendra Modi changed course following a telephone call from Benjamin Netanyahu.
Back then, the Indian government said it was the report’s reference to the International Criminal Court (ICC) that prompted Delhi to abstain because India does not recognize the ICC.
But as The Wire argued in 2016, India has previously voted in favour of resolutions which referred Libya and Mali to the ICC.
Given that the Israeli bombardment of Gaza since October 7 is ongoing and a ceasefire would have put a halt to the daily massacres unfolding in the besieged strip, Delhi’s refusal to sign on to a ceasefire resolution may come across as surprising, but is in fact quite in line with Delhi’s growing disregard for Palestinians as well as a reflection of its own genocidal ambitions in India itself.
Fact checkers in India found that Indian right wing were not just spreading misinformation about Hamas, Palestinian fighters, they were deliberately seeking to link Indian Muslims to Hamas as a means to criminalize and vilify the community.
Several sources have told me that Indian soldiers have been seen flying Israeli flags in Indian-occupied Kashmir as a means to intimidate and humiliate Kashmiris who see Palestine as a reflection of their own reality.
These days it is close to impossible to show dissent or protest in Kashmir and the Indian soldiers know it.
Just as Israeli officials have made no bones of their intent to wipe out Gaza, Hindu nationalists - many of whom are linked to the ruling party - have narrated similar ambitions for Indian Muslims.
These are two settler-colonial and enthonationalist projects in lockstep with each another.
Still, India’s decision to abstain needs to be examined through the lens of its voting record at the UN, it’s burgeoning ties with Israel and the US, as well as it’s own ambitions to be as a strong, militaristic, security-state with the right to exercise violence on its own minorities, or enemies, should it deem necessary.
Here is a quick timeline of some of India’s positions on Palestine and Israel at the UN:
1947: India voted against the UN partition plan of Palestine
1949: India voted against Israel’s admission to the UN
1975: India voted for UNGA Resolution 3379 that categorized Zionism as racism
1991: India voted to repeal UNGA Resolution 3379 that categorized Zionism as racism
2009: India voted in favour of a UN resolution endorsing the Goldstone report that calls for Israel and Palestine to investigate war crimes in the Gaza Strip
2011: India voted for Palestine becoming a full member of the UNESCO
2012: India voted in favour of Palestine to become a ‘non-member Observer state’ at the UN without voting rights.
2014: India abstained from a vote calling on ICC to investigate Israel
2015: India abstained from voting at the United Nations Human Rights Council for a resolution endorsing the findings of a UN report into Operation Protective Edge in Gaza.
2017: India votes against United States' decision recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel
2019: India voted in favor of an Israeli resolution at the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) that objected to granting consultative status to a Palestinian non-governmental organization.
2020: India abstained from voting for a UNGA resolution calling on Israel to cooperate with the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People in implementing its mandate, and deplores the continued lack of cooperation in this regard.
2021: India abstained from voting for a UNGA resolution calling on Israel to provide the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People with all necessary facilities, including those required for its visits to the occupied territories, so that it may investigate the Israeli policies and practices referred to in the present resolution;
2022: India abstained from voting for UNGA resolution calling on the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its view on the legal consequences of the "prolonged occupation" and "annexation" of Palestinian territory by Israel.
2023: India abstained from a vote calling for a humanitarian truce in Israel’s war against Palestinians in Gaza
Events:
More than 9,000 Palestinians, including 3,600 children have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since October 7.
As the situation grows more dire, civic groups are assembling from quarters of life to try and put an end to the madness.
This weekend will see dozens of protests around the world.
Here’s a full list:
If you are in the US, follow Within Our Lifetime, The People’s Forum or Jewish Voice for Peace on Instagram to keep abreast of the events and online actions.
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