Imagine this scenario: A 6-year-old Israeli is cornered by Hamas, trapped in a vehicle. Her aunt, uncle, and three cousins who were in the vehicle with her have been killed by Hamas gunfire. She survived, but is gravely afraid. It’s cold and dark out. She wets herself. She grabs one of the mobile phones in the vehicle and calls emergency services for help, begging to be rescued and stating that she’s the only survivor. The dispatcher stays on the phone with the little girl for three excruciating hours while an ambulance is dispatched.
The ambulance with two rescue workers aboard finally locate her, but then, radio silence. Communication has been lost. Due to continued violence by Hamas, no one can reach the site. For days, people wonder -- clinging onto hope -- where she is and if she is still alive. Then, 12 days later, her remaining family members finally locate her. They find her murdered inside the vehicle along with her relatives. Not only that, they discover that the two rescue workers have been shot dead by Hamas, and that their ambulance was even shelled for good measure.
What would be the response? World leaders would be outraged. News outlets would be sharing this story on repeat with various commentators brought on as guests. Hamas would be derided as barbaric, perhaps even called “Nazis”. Condolences would pour in. A GoFundMe account would be created for the girl’s mother. Military aid would be sent to Israel to get revenge on Hamas for murdering an innocent little girl, a girl with dreams of becoming a doctor and helping others.
This is no fictional scenario. This exact thing happened to 6-year-old
Hind Rajab. It was a nightmare scenario. Yet not a peep from world leaders. Barely a mention in US media, and at best the headlines stated that Hind was simply “found dead” while obscuring the cause. No outrage. No consequences.
Why was this acceptable to happen to a Palestinian girl, but not the other way around? Are not all children -- regardless of race, nationality, or religion -- equally innocent and precious? From the looks of it, apparently not.
"When the sun is put out, and when the stars fall down, and when the mountains are blown away, and when pregnant camels are left untended, and when wild beasts are gathered together, and when the seas are set on fire, and when the souls ˹and their bodies˺ are paired ˹once more˺, and when baby girls, buried alive, are asked for what crime they were put to death, and when the records ˹of deeds˺ are laid open, and when the sky is stripped away, and when the Hellfire is fiercely flared up, and when Paradise is brought near — ˹on that Day˺ each soul will know what ˹deeds˺ it has brought along." Quran 81:1-14
Remember these words from Hind’s mother: "I will ask you in front of God on the day of judgement about my daughter."
Humanity has failed.
Originally posted on https://maximumintifada.wordpress.com/