THE Gaza conflict has exposed the ugly truth of Western democracies and the advocates of the free world, Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today.

The former prime minister, a strong critic of Israel’s occupation of Palestine, said the conflict showed up the hypocrisy, double standards and self-serving diplomacy of countries in the West.

“Peace, freedom and justice – the regular mantra of the international community and the superpowers in their pursuits to affect regime change sounds really hollow where Palestine is concerned,” the Langkawi MP said at the virtual launch of Justice for Palestine Action Front (JustPalestine).

“We cannot just sit back and let it persist.

“As human beings, we are duty bound to stand up and express our disgust for these crimes against humanity that are being committed by the Israelis with such impunity and for a long, long time.

“We have to actively support the movement for Justice for Palestine.”

He said Palestinians should have the right to return to their land after having already suffered for 73 years.

He noted that six million Palestinians were displaced and forced to live in refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, for generations without hope of going home.

He compared the Israeli occupation to apartheid in South Africa, adding that both were the result of colonialism and its legacy of putting the migrant minority in power to displace and discriminate against the local population.

“And apartheid in Palestine is as much a crime committed by Israel as that of the powerful nations that support the illegal regime.

“From the very start, attempts to hide the crimes of Israel and its backers were committed through misinformation, especially by influential media that support the powerful nations.

“While the advent of the information revolution and subsequently the proliferation of the new media had managed to debunk old propaganda deceitful myths and misinformation, the perpetrators are equally adept in utilising the new media to disseminate disinformation and turn around their aggression and belligerence as acts of self-defence and retaliation to Palestinian provocation.”

“It doesn’t take a genius to see through this as the disproportionate attacks, weapons and deployment of destructive ordnances by the Israelis on Palestine show who the aggressor is.”

He said the Palestinians who were killed were mostly non-combatants.

Dr Mahathir, who is adviser to the JustPalestine movement, said facts and figures were effective tools to combat misinformation.

“I was informed that a chair on Justice for Palestine is going to be established at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia soon to support the work of JustPalestine. It should open up available research facilities in the university for its work,” he said.

JustPalestine is a collaboration between the Malaysian Research & Education Foundation and the Allied Coordinating Council of Islamic NGOs. – July 18, 2021.