Angelina Jolie and 250 celebs unite, accuse Israel of war crimes, demand ceasefire
Hollywood A-lister and UN Special Envoy for Refugees, Angelina Jolie accused Israel of war crimes, demanding an immediate ceasefire along with 250 other celebrities.
Jolie’s criticism follows Israel’s major bombing of the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza, which led to a significant loss of life and displacement of over a thousand Palestinians.
Jolie, a highly acclaimed actress and United Nations’ special representative for refugees, publicly condemned apartheid Israel’s bombing in the Gaza Strip, together with 250 other prominent figures. They called for an immediate cessation of hostilities. Jolie added that Palestine was an open prison controlled inhumanely by Israel.
The 48 year old actress posted a statement on Instagram, condemning the intentional bombing of civilians trapped in Palestinian territories, fearing it would become a mass grave. She also accused world leaders of being complicit in these crimes, due to their silence, and demanded a ceasefire based on humanitarian principles.
This movement by Jolie comes after Israel’s massive bombing of the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza, resulting in numerous casualties and causing over 1,000 Palestinians to flee their homes.
Following Israel’s declaration of war in retaliation to the attacks by Hamas, which claimed over 1,400 lives, the Israeli military launched air raids on Hamas in the Gaza Strip for more than three weeks. This took the lives of more than 9,000 Palestinians, of which over 3,000 were children.
Celebrities criticise Israel
Pink Floyd frontman Roger Waters was another celebrity to slam Israel’s barbaric treatment of Palestinians.
”The Israeli government sees me as an existential threat to their settler colonialist racist apartheid regime and they’ve done everything that they can think of to discredit me and try and destroy my career and if possible destroy me and my family.
”This whole story for me didn’t start till 2006 when I went to Palestine. I saw apartheid in action. I saw them and it’s inconsolable the way they treat them [Palestinians] and they kill them; they just openly kill them; they shoot them all the time. Dead! And they bomb them dead, and so I’ve been doing everything that I possibly can to expose that bit and I will continue to do so.”
Other celebrities such as Mark Ruffalo, Bella Hadid, Rihanna, and Vanessa Redgrave have faced varying degrees of backlash for their comments or actions perceived as critical of Israel or supportive of Palestinian causes.
On the same day, the US House of Representatives approved a military aid package worth US$14.3 billion for Israel amidst Tel Aviv’s ongoing siege of the Gaza Strip. However, this bill is unlikely to gain support from the Senate, which is predominantly controlled by the Democratic Party.
In addition to the US$14 billion for Israel, President Joe Biden also requested a new US$61 billion fund for Ukraine, and another US$9 billion to support humanitarian aid projects, including in the Gaza Strip, reported Sanook.
Regarding the progress of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, Israeli tanks have recently advanced towards the southern outskirts of Gaza City amidst continuous gunfire, led by a fierce aerial assault.
In the meantime, Israel’s far-right Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, declared on Twitter he would carry on with the brutal dehumanisation of his enemy.
“We are far beyond the outskirts of Gaza. We are progressing. We will continue to move forward.”
Soldiers from the Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, launched attacks against the invading forces using anti-tank weapons to prevent Israel’s advance.
Medical officials confirmed that communication with a Turkish hospital in the south of Gaza City has been completely cut off. Furthermore, Israeli aircraft have also infiltrated the vicinity of Al-Quds Hospital in the Tal al-Hawa district in the south of Gaza City.
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