CRIME DOSSIER BY CARTOON

Diarmuid Breatnach

(Reading/ Viewing time: 5 mins. approximately)

This is a partial dossier, documenting only some of the crimes of the Zionist entity. The dossier is largely in the form of cartoons some of which are as recent as the last few days and others a year old or more but sadly, are still valid comment today.

(Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

A great many crimes have been committed here: Ethnic cleansing, theft, murder, racial discrimination, apartheid, repression, bombing of civilians, shooting of civilians, destruction of water wells, tanks and desalination plants, power cutoffs, mass kidnappings, torture.

Bombing of residential blocks, bombing hospitals, bombing schools, bombing universities, bombing mosques and churches, starvation blockade, water cutoffs, assassinations, public humiliation of prisoners, using human shields, rape and other torture of prisoners, detention without trial.

The Israeli Zionists, a European colonial settler project, have had many criminal accomplices, both at the level of states, educational institutions public and private, and of private companies and corporations. The Irish State has permitted the transport of military cargo to Israel through Irish airspace.

(Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

Despite the clearly-expressed desires of the vast majority of the Irish people, the ‘neutral’ Irish State has permitted arms material destined for the Israeli occupier of Palestine to fly through Irish airspace, in addition to permitting the militarisation of Shannon Airport.

As part of the genocide, the Zionist authorities turned off the water supply to Gaza, using water deprivation as a weapon, a war crime of collective punishment.

Shutting off water to the civilians in Gaza is a war crime, even if none of the other genocidal acts of the IOF had been carried out. (Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

But Palestinians have dug wells. And collected seawater in desalination plants. And stored water in rooftop tanks and barrels. So the IOF destroyed the wells, bombed the desalination plants and shot up the water tanks and barrels. Clearly acts of genocide.

(Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

In addition to shutting off the water supply and destroying Palestinian alternative sources, the Zionist authorities have sealed off Gaza from humanitarian aid of food, baby supplements, medicines, etc. The intention, declared in act and words, is to starve the Palestinian people into surrender and leaving.

The Rafah Gate, access Gaza-Egypt, by law operational only by those two agencies and main access of international humanitarian supplies to Gaza, closed by Israeli Occupation Forces tanks. (Cartoon by D.Breatnach)
Israeli Occupation Forces threaten anyone trying to enter. (Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

A major party colluding with the genocider Israeli authorities has been the Mainstream Western Media. They have adopted a mantra that posits the start of everything at the Resistance action on October 7, treat Resistance claims as dubious but those of Israeli, despite its record, as credible.

The western media corporations have taken no action to protect their journalists in Palestine, where 243, mostly Palestinian or from Arab nations, have been assassinated by the IOF. They circulated Zionist atrocity propaganda without proof and, when debunked, did not publish retractions.

(Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

Reading the published 20 points of the recent Trump plan, what is clear is that Trump is demanding that the Palestinian Resistance surrender.

Not because they have been beaten and in fact there is an admission in there that they have not. The reality is that it’s the IOF and the Zionnazi administration that has failed in its declared objectives: to defeat the Resistance and release its captives by force.

NO. What is unspoken but clearly implied here is: ‘Surrender, give up your weapons or we will murder and starve thousands more Palestinian civilians.’

Trump for the USA making another threatening ‘offer’ in true gangster style. (Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

Those who advise the Resistance to agree should ponder what that means, not for Palestine alone but for the world: ‘If you can’t beat a popular resistance, just carry out ethnic cleansing and genocide until they give up. It’s perfectly acceptable and the world powers agree.’

We know about imperialist ‘peace’ plans. They only thing they deliver on is fragmentation of the resistance movement and more years of life for imperialist and colonial power. And elevation for some traitors and opportunists.

Based on history, whatever they decide, the Resistance should neither surrender their weapons or the tunnels. At the worst, there will be another day. The US and western empire is dying and with it will go this dependent zionazi European settler colony

Despite all the crimes of the Zionist entity inflicted upon the Palestinian people and despite the backing of the western powers for ethnic cleansing and genocide, the Palestinian people continue to resist.

Despite all, Gaza resists and resists. (Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

And despite the crimes of the Zionist entity in Western Asia/ Middle East, despite the crimes of its chief backer, US Imperialism – and the rest of western imperialism – their days around the world and at home are numbered. In effect these days they are digging their graves deeper, week by week.

War is the solution that the leaders of the US and Israel seek but that will not save them either.

(Cartoon by D.Breatnach)

Focal Scoir/ Postscript

After a long, long gap, I returned to drawing commentary cartoons a few years ago, increasing production with the current phase of the Zionist and imperialist genocide of Palestinians that began on 8th October 2023, though even so, the output has not been great.

Drawing a cartoon requires first having the idea, then time and head-space to concentrate on its execution. Often I find the latter stage disappointing, though sometimes I am pleased with the result. I’ve also undertaken a little study and practice to improve technique.

Most of the cartoons are published quite close to their actual size, instead of drawn large and then reduced for photographing which I understand to be the professional way. But that would require my carrying a large drawing pad around or putting in a lot more time on drawing at home.

It is a fact that anything in which we invest time and concentration will reduce the availability of those same ingredients for other things. Each of us makes choices and we must manage the options available as best we can. Meanwhile, a genocide is being committed daily by the Zionist entity.

End.

Note: If you found this article of interest, why not register with Rebel Breeze for free, so that you will be notified by email of subsequent articles. You can de-register any time you wish.

THANK YOU, DENIS O’BRIEN!

Diarmuid Breatnach

(Reading time: 4 mins.)

No, I’m not being sarcastic – I am quite serious. Thank you for making it clear that you support the Irish State joining the imperialist alliance of NATO.1 I take it that opinion is at least widespread among your social class.

After all you are among the biggest of the native Irish monopoly capitalists, right? Number eight of the eleven richest people in Ireland.2

From the statements and actions of politicians I had assumed your Gombeen neo-colonial class was of that opinion but I suppose there was always a slim chance that the politicians were out on a limb, going it alone, not representing their bosses … but sure now you’ve confirmed it yourself.

I see you’re concerned about the defence of Ireland. That’s really good – so am I. Hold on, you just mean the Irish state – the 26 Counties? Oh, of course, that’s right, the Six Counties are already in NATO. They didn’t get to vote on that, did they? But we will here, of course.

Wait now, didn’t Mícheál Martin say he didn’t believe it would have to be voted on? And isn’t the Government now trying to get rid of the Triple Lock stopping us sending many soldiers anywhere without approval of the government, a majority vote in Leinster House and a UN mandate?3

The Government and majority vote shouldn’t be a problem for you, should it? You’ve got a comfortable majority in Leinster House on abiding by the Western Imperialist stance. Ah you have, Denis, you have – sure isn’t the Irish State the biggest customer of Israel, next to the USA?

Getting a UN mandate might be a bit trickier, especially these days. After all, a lot of UN members have been at the sharp end of NATO, or that of the USA, or UK, or France – which is all pretty much the same thing. The Security Council would work if Russia or China didn’t veto it.

Anyway, back to defending Ireland. We should really discuss what that means. Defending our physical lives and homes? A lot of our homes belong to the banks and vulture funds so I’m thinking maybe THEY should defend them.

Or maybe defending our natural resources and public infrastructures, i.e the ones that our governments for decades have been giving away to native and foreign monopoly capitalists. I think you’ve benefited from a bit of that yourself, Denis. Ah you have, you know you have.

Many of those foreign monopoly capitalists taking over our industry come from NATO countries too, as it happens.

Cartoon by D.Breatnach.

Defending our physical lives? The thing I find hardest to understand, however, Denis, is how you think we’d be safer within NATO, of which the UK is a major part. I mean, since Britain invaded us in 1169 it has caused wars in Ireland, famines, genocide, linguicide, sectarianism and division.

You could say that’s in the past but it’s not, is it though? And they do say that the best predictor of future behaviour is previous behaviour, after all.

I know you’re concerned about the undersea cables. I’m not just worried about the UK in NATO – the top boss of NATO is the USA. And their record is more of sabotaging undersea pipes than protecting cables! I know, I know … no concrete evidence. But who else had motive, opportunity and capability?

Now, you want to see the Irish armed services expanded. But I can’t see why we have to be a part of NATO to do that. And if, as part of NATO, our armed services go to war, will you be ok with your grandchildren Meghan, Catherine, Denis, Michael, Kevin, and Patrick risking being killed?

Of course, I do know that big capitalists generally ensure that it’s the lower classes they send to the battlefield while they guarantee safe positions for their own family. I think you’d want to emulate John Redmond,4 whose son joined the army of a foreign King and Country but didn’t die for it.

Unlike the 35,000 other Irish who were killed in the British Army in WWI, not to mention the Irish wounded and permanently disabled, for which figures apparently do not exist.

However, I have to say, credit where credit is due: I did think the account of your visit to Venezuela was interesting and how the officer in charge of the President’s Office there was impressed by Ireland’s solidarity with Palestine and other stands, probably in support of underdeveloped countries.5

Thanks for that, it was very interesting – and heart-warming, to be honest. But I wonder, would the Venezuelan diplomat have been as friendly to you, Denis, if the Irish State, your point of origin, had been a member of NATO, practising imperialist wars and supporting genocide?

End.

FOOTNOTES

1https://www.businesspost.ie/uncategorized/denis-obrien-ireland-should-join-nato-and-end-security-complacency/

2https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Irish_billionaires_by_net_worth

3https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/politics/arid-41275612.html

4In 1914 John Redmond was leader of the Irish Parliamentary party, representing the native Irish colonial capitalist class. He not only delivered thousands of Irish to the British Army for WWI but also supported the suppression of the 1916 Rising.

5O’Brien charted his own experience in subsea communications cables, starting with an Esat Telecom funded cable between Land’s End and Wexford in the late 1990s, and several projects in the Carribean, including the $75 million (€64 million) Deep Blue One cable in Trinidad which was completed last year.

O’Brien recalled how – due to a “cock up” – the cable had been designed to run through contested waters between Venezuela and Guyana.

“When the Venezuelan government got wind that our cable laying ship was about to start they sent us a cease and desist letter,” he said. O’Brien explained how he then flew to Venezuela to meet Jorge Elieser Marquez who was in charge of office of the presidency to “fall on his sword” and apologise.

“He graciously accepted my apology but then to my surprise he started to talk about Ireland and how we had supported the Palestinians, like Venezuela, in their quest for a two-state solution in Gaza,” he said.

“For some reason, he knew everything about Ireland and our principled stand over many decades – dating back as far as when Brian Lenihan senior was minister for foreign affairs.

O’Brien credited Ireland’s position on Palestine as part of what eventually led him to strike a deal with the Venezuelan government and complete the cable. https://www.businesspost.ie/uncategorized/denis-obrien-ireland-should-join-nato-and-end-security-complacency/

SOURCES

https://www.businesspost.ie/uncategorized/denis-obrien-ireland-should-join-nato-and-end-security-complacency/

PALESTINE CHILDREN’S DAY

Diarmuid Breatnach

In Ireland, at this time small children will be in playgroups or nursery schools (if their parents can afford them), or in primary schools fearing or looking forward to assessments and turning in homework. In Palestine there are no longer any playgroups, nurseries or functioning schools.

Post-primary students in Ireland will be preparing for the Junior or Leaving Certificates, a high-stress situation for many. Palestinian children in Gaza don’t have to work about any of that, only about whether, their parents, friends, neighbours will survive the Israeli bombings and sniper attacks.

Or get enough to eat every day and dry warmth protection from the weather. There wouldn’t be much point in sitting the final post-primary exams in Gaza anyway, even if there were somewhere safe to hold them. The Israelis have demolished all their universities.

Even before last year, what would the young do with a degree in besieged enclave of Gaza? Yes, some could get out to other countries in the West or in the Arab world but, if they did, they knew there was never any guarantee of being allowed back.

Over all, there is a horrific statistic to add to all the others of Israel’s genocide in the past six months: the zionist state has killed 13,800 Palestinian children in Gaza and injured over 12,000, which is why some people carry bloodstained white bundles or empty nursery chairs on Palestine solidarity marches.

end.

SOURCES

https://www.cso.ie/en/csolatestnews/pressreleases/2023pressreleases/pressstatementcensusofpopulation2022-summaryresultsdublin

https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/news/media-centre/press-releases/one-in-50-of-gaza-s-children-killed-or-injured-in-six-months-of-

PALESTINIANS EVICTED FROM PALESTINIAN SOLIDARITY MEETING

Diarmuid Breatnach

(Reading time main text: 7 mins.)

Videos doing the rounds of social media sites show a brief intervention by Palestinians at a Sinn Féin-organised meeting in Belfast about Palestine followed by the party’s heavies evicting them to applause from many in the audience.

The event at the Europa Hotel on Thursday evening was intended, according to the party’s National Chairperson, “… as an opportunity to demonstrate that Ireland stands with the people of Gaza and the West Bank and to reiterate calls for an immediate ceasefire, and an end to the occupation.”1

Actually Ireland is already – except for the Unionists — well behind the Palestinians as shown by attendance at marches and opinion surveys. What is needed is a) clarity on what we are calling for and b) direct action to put the States and companies under greater pressure.

The video of the intervention I’ve seen began with an apology for interrupting the Palestinian Ambassador, Dr. Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid, as “a mouthpieceof the Palestinian Authority” which, the challenger said, is an undemocratic organisation which has not had an election since 2006.

Boos and cries of objection followed from the audience as the Palestinian asked to be listened to, pointed out that those doing the intervention were all Palestinians but the party’s security men were soon hustling them out and periodically trying to block the phone camera.

When people don’t want to examine the issues or are feeling guilty about them, it’s always tempting to blame the critics, suggest they’re dissidents, trouble-makers, etc. That way the pointing finger is turned around and the actual issues don’t need to be thought about.

Of course this time some SF supporters commented along those lines, accusing their critics of being Loyalists, or as they have in the past outsiders, ultra-leftists, intelligence service agents, dissidents, malcontents, trouble-makers … or just plain Utopians.

MOUTHPIECE OF … AN UNDEMOCRATIC ORGANISATION”

The intervention from the floor was challenging but what of the content? Palestinian Ambassadors are appointed and employed by the Palestinian Authority which, though never intended as a government is acting like one. So “mouthpiece for the PA”? Blunt — but entirely accurate.

Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland of the undemocratic and corrupt Palestinian Authority at a Sinn Féin meeting (note SF President Mary Lou McDonald applauding in the background). (Sourced: Internet)

The PA “has not had an election in 18 years”? Accurate also – though they’re supposed to have one every five years. The last time there were elections in Palestine was 2006 and Hamas won overall throughout Palestine. However Fatah, the losers, refused to give up their seats.

In 2007 in Gaza, Hamas moved against Fatah and after a short struggle, took the seats to which the electorate had voted them. However, they chose not to do that in the West Bank, where the PA’s HQ is and where EU and USA money comes flowing in to Abbas and his unelected cronies.

The reason for not holding elections is that Hamas would almost certainly win again. Meanwhile, “democratic Israel” refused to recognise the Gaza administration or the elected representatives of the Palestinians while the US, EU and UK followed suit and ‘Israel’ blockaded Gaza.

The Palestinian Authority, as well as being undemocratic, deeply corrupt, unrepresentative and repressive2 is also actively colluding with the Zionist state and feeding its masters intelligence on the Palestinian opposition and resistance while it represses their supporters.

That’s what most Palestinians think about the PA and, as is widely known and even tacitly admitted by the USA3, whether in the West Bank or in Gaza, Palestinians have no confidence in the institution.4

Some of the comments on the circulating videos criticised SF’s bad management of the event, opining that the Palestinians should have been allowed to speak and then the meeting could have proceeded as the organisers planned and the challenge would have got little publicity.

True … but SF is used to throttling dissent inside its party or in the communities it controls and managing dissent – rather than crushing it — is just not its style.

In any case, is ‘bad management’ the main issue with regard to SF and Palestine? More important than supporting partition of Palestine, the institutionalisation of a Bantustan “Palestinian State” under the guns of the Zionists – and the PA’s collusion with those same Zionists?

The Provisionals weren’t always pro-Palestinian; though it might shock some people, they originally mirrored Irish society’s position of support for Israel, the perceived ‘underdog’ up to the mid-1960s, Hollocaust survivors (Zionists) who had fought the British police and army.5

THE PROVO LEADERSHIP AND PALESTINE

For a while pieces by a Fred Burns O’Brien apparently based in the USA were featured in the Provos’ newspaper but some time after he revealed himself as a Zionist he was ‘let go’, probably through internal pressure from those who thought the Palestinians were the natural ally.6

One of the problems with taking a political position, physically or ideologically, is that you might get called on it someday. This is why bourgeois politicians try to give themselves wriggle and even retreat room in their statements – lots of good-sounding bites with little content.

The Provisionals owe a debt to some Palestinians but it’s a very bad one. I don’t mean when they got some arms for the struggle7 but rather their following Fatah/PLO down the pacification process, for which Fatah and the ANC sent fraternal delegates to SF’s Ard-Fheiseanna (annual congresses).

Subsequently, Ireland and South Africa were used as promotional examples of the pacification process and their delegates travelled as kinds of sales representatives8 — but Palestine got dropped from 2000 onwards because of the Second Intifada, when Palestinians rejected Fatah’s deal.

You can’t sell a process as ‘working’ when the youth have overwhelmingly rejected it and are fighting the Occupation in the street.

ORGANISE YOUR OWN EVENT”

One prominent member of SF in the British colony told the Palestinian protesters they should have organised “their own event.” Er – was this event not advertised as being for solidarity with Palestine? But ‘Palestinians not welcome’? Or only zionist-collaborating Palestinians?

Imagine if back in the day some political party had been having a meeting about Ireland and were inviting an Irish State or British colonial minister as a speaker, would anyone have been shocked to see and hear SF activists challenging or even heckling the speakers during the meeting?

Would we not be reading statements from SF talking about ‘no right of colonialists to represent the Irish people’ and about ‘censorship of Irish voices’?

Cartoon by DB.

Gerry Adams, former President of the party was quoted as saying the calls are “inconsistent” because they are not making the same call with regard to the UK though “the Brits are up to their neck in this” and what is important for SF in the USA is Irish-America.

But SF long ago accommodated itself to the colonialist “Brits”, including its royalty. Irish politicians don’t flock to London for St. Patrick’s Day. Anyway the primary financial and military supplier – and political backer of the Zionist state in the UN Security Council — is the USA.

Why is the diaspora in the USA so important to Sinn Féin but not the diaspora in Britain or in Australia? It must be because the USA is the “boss of the world” and pathetic Irish gombeen politicians think their diaspora gives them them some kind of weight with the imperialists.

What would really help with the Irish diaspora would be if SF were to address the Irish-Americans and ask them to push their political representatives to call for the USA to stop supporting genocide in Palestine.

But of course there is no chance of them doing that because 1) some Irish Americans oppose imperialism from Britain but support it from the USA; also 2) because Irish gombeens, the political class to which SF aspire, are pro-western imperialism.

INTERNATIONALIST SOLIDARITY AND THE HOME STRUGGLE

I have commented in the past that the level of commitment to internationalist solidarity is one of the indicators as to whether an organisation is going to carry through its own revolution or instead is going to finish up in liberalism and abandon its struggle, ending in actual collusion.

It seems some others have the same idea.

As she was being evicted, the Palestinian woman called out for SF not to attend Washington on St. Patrick’s Day and also shouted, though she may have meant it the other way around: “There will not be a free Palestine without a united Ireland!”

Electronic Intifada co-founder Ali Abunimah put it quite succintly: “If you can’t say NO to the White House in the middle of a genocide, then you’d never be able to stand up, not even for Ireland.”

end.

FOOTNOTES

1https://vote.sinnfein.ie/solidarity-rally-for-palestine-to-take-place-in-belfast/

2“The PA has actively helped Israel to keep tight control over the Palestinian population. Many perceive the body as a tool of the Israeli security apparatus, its US-trained forces not only targeting those suspected of planning attacks on Israelis, but also arresting union figures, journalists and critics on social media.” (Al Jazeera – see Sources)

3Hence the USA’s post-war plan for Gaza, as expressed by Blinken, is to have it run by a “revamped PA”, i.e one that might have some credibility among Palestinians.

4“Today, a staggering 87 percent of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza believe that the PA is corrupt, 78 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_David_Hotel_bombingpercent want Abbas to resign, and 62 percent believe that the PA is a liability.” (Washington Institute — see Sources).

5On 22 July 1946, Zionist militias bombed the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, in which the British Mandate administration had offices including its police intelligence department, killing 91: “49 were second-rank clerks, typists and messengers, junior members of the Secretariat, employees of the hotel and canteen workers; 13 were soldiers; 3 policemen; and 5 were bystanders. By nationality, there were 41 Arabs, 28 British citizens ….” Forty-six were injured. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_David_Hotel_bombing

6The same kind of pressure from the support base that caused the SF leadership recently to reestablish their ‘expel the Israeli Ambassador’ position that Mary Lou had announced they were abandoning.

7In 1977 a consignment of arms allegedly from the PLO bound for Ireland was seized by the authorities at Antwerp.

8To the Basque Country, Kurdish Turkey, Colombia, Sri Lanka, Philippines etc.

SOURCES

https://m.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/politics/palestinian-activists-thrown-out-of-sinn-fein-solidarity-rally-in-belfast-hotel/a1343153914.html

Criticism of the PA’s corruption and unpopularity
a) from a pro-imperialist source: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/how-palestinian-authority-failed-its-people and
b) from Al Jazeera (pro-Palestinian but not pro-Hamas): https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/11/what-is-the-palestinian-authority-and-how-is-it-viewed-by-palestinians

“We made Palestine bloom”

Diarmuid Breatnach

A common Zionist fabrication is that Palestine was uncultivated until they arrived. Whatever cultivation their settlers added was more than compensated by the Palestinian cultivated lands settlers stole and the destruction they have visited upon the Palestinian people.

(Cartoon by D.Breatnach)