Aletho News

Israel resorts to nuclear blackmail in Gaza

By Lucas Leiroz | November 7, 2023

In addition to promoting genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza, the Zionist regime is resorting to nuclear blackmail against the Palestinians. In a controversial recent statement, an Israeli top official admitted that using atomic bombs in the Gaza Strip is a “possibility” for Tel Aviv. These words shocked the world and showed the level of unpredictability and irrationality in the Israeli government’s actions.

The statement was made by the Israeli Minister of Heritage, Amichai Eliyahu, during an interview with local Israeli media. Eliyahu stated that a nuclear attack against the Gaza Strip “is one of the possibilities” that Israel could use in its alleged “war on Hamas.” According to the minister, “there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza”, which is why all Palestinian citizens in the region should be punished by the IDF.

Eliyahu, in addition to admitting the nuclear possibility, stated that no humanitarian aid should be given to civilians in Gaza. He compared Gaza’s inhabitants to the German Nazis who killed Jews in WWII and said that the Jewish people “wouldn’t hand the Nazis humanitarian aid.”

The minister’s controversial words led the government to react sharply. Eliyahu was suspended from his post by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In this same sense, his office made a post on social media “denying” his speech, “clarifying” that “Eliyahu’s statements are not based in reality” and adding that Israel’s IDF is “operating in accordance with the highest standards of international law to avoid harming innocents” – which is clearly untrue, as can be seen in the massacre of civilians in Gaza.

Also, Israel’s defense chief, Yoav Gallant, condemned Eliyahu and called his nuclear threat “baseless and irresponsible words.” Expectedly, Netanyahu’s opposition also spoke out on the case, with Yair Lapid calling Eliyahu an “extremist” and hardening his criticism of Netanyahu’s administration team, making the matter a dispute between the different wings of Israeli Zionism.

Internationally, there was also strong pressure as a result of the statement. Arab countries reacted by severely condemning the ministers’ irresponsible statements. For example, UAE spokespersons said in an official report: “These statements constitute a violation of international law, as well as incitement to commit grave violations of International Humanitarian Law, such as war crimes, and raise grave concerns of an intent to commit genocide”.

The Jordanian government did something similar, releasing a statement asserting that Eliyahu’s words are a “call for genocide and a hate crime that cannot be ignored”. In the same sense, Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit declared: “Israel possesses nuclear weapons, which is an open secret (…) [The minister’s comments] confirm the truth of the racist view Israelis hold against Palestinians (…) This is the true face of the occupation government.”

Although Eliyahu has already been “punished” for his remarks, it is impossible for there to be “normality” after such declarations. There is an atmosphere of distrust regarding Israeli actions, with a real fear that Eliyahu is not the only official in Tel Aviv thinking about this type of “possibility” for Gaza. With so many war crimes committed by Israel in recent weeks and the deliberate killing of innocent civilians in a “collective punishment” plan against Gaza, it is very likely that Eliyahu’s mentality is not uncommon among Zionist decision-makers.

It is possible that the real intention behind Eliyahu’s suspension is an attempt to silence him – not for having told a “lie”, but for having said something that should not be said. Instead of simply showing that he does not think like his minister, Netanyahu could simply be responding to the pressure of criticism by suspending him. In other words, there are no real guarantees that the Israelis will not consider the “nuclear possibility” against Gaza.

From a rational and strategic point of view, it makes no sense to talk about nuclear weapons in a regional conflict occurring within such a short territorial limit. Radioactive contamination would not be restricted to the Strip but would also reach the territory occupied by Israel. However, unfortunately, there does not seem to be much rationality in the Zionist regime’s decisions.

The very initiative to launch a brutal offensive that is killing thousands of civilians seems absolutely irrational. Israel is becoming an international pariah and is being seen as a genocidal regime by a large number of countries, in addition to more and more states cutting their relations with Tel Aviv. But none of this seems enough for Netanyahu and his advisers to change their minds regarding the supposed “need” to “invade Gaza to destroy Hamas.”

Clearly, revanchism, anti-Palestinian racism and unlimited expansionism are the true guidelines of Zionist foreign policy. The decision-making process is not based on strategic calculations, which makes the situation very unpredictable and worrying. So, in practice, regardless of whether Israel is already considering using nuclear weapons or not, it is very possible that there will soon be this “demand” on the part of the most radical Zionist militants.

Lucas Leiroz, journalist, researcher at the Center for Geostrategic Studies, geopolitical consultant.

You can follow Lucas on X (former Twitter) and Telegram.

November 7, 2023 - Posted by aletho | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Timeless or most popular, War Crimes | Gaza, Israel, Palestine, Zionism