The View From India newsletter: Isolating Israel, ending the massacre in Gaza

The Hindu

26-05-2025

'Grabbing her daughter's feeble arm, Asmaa al-Arja pulls a shirt over the 2-year-old's protruding ribs and swollen belly. The child lies on a hospital bed, heaving, then wails uncontrollably, throwing her arms around her own shoulders as if to console herself. This isn't the first time Mayar has been in a Gaza hospital battling malnutrition, yet this 17-day stint is the longest,' American news agency Associated Press reported last week.
It took horrific stories like this, and the UN humanitarian chief's warning that 14,000 babies could die in Gaza in if the Israeli aid blockade persists, for some Western countries to be jolted into finally seeing the devastation in Gaza, over one-and-a-half years after Israel's brutal offensive began, and after nearly 54,000 people, including women and children, died.
'We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel's military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable. Yesterday's announcement that Israel will allow a basic quantity of food into Gaza is wholly inadequate. We call on the Israeli Government to stop its military operations in Gaza and immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. This must include engaging with the UN to ensure a return to delivery of aid in line with humanitarian principles. We call on Hamas to release immediately the remaining hostages they have so cruelly held since 7 October 2023,' a joint statement from the United Kingdom, Canada, and France said on May 20, 2025. Notably, the leaders said: 'We will not stand by while the Netanyahu Government pursues these egregious actions. If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response.' Amid growing calls to end the blockade, a few aid trucks entered Gaza following nearly three months of Israel's complete blockade of food, medicine, and other supplies. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — who had announced that Israel seeks to control 'all of Gaza' by the end of the latest offensive — said his decision to resume limited, 'basic' aid to Gaza came after allies said they couldn't support Israel's renewed military offensive if there are 'images of hunger' coming from the Palestinian territory. It indicated that even the belated pressure from some allies had some impact.
'It is time for the international community to speak up so that Mr. Netanyahu does not think he can get away with what international agencies are calling genocide. New Delhi has notably thus far not issued any statement. This silence may be because of its own preoccupation with Pakistan and due to Israel's unequivocal support over Operation Sindoor. There is no link or equivalence between the two situations, however,' The Hindu's editorial said.
However, it is yet to be seen if the Western countries' reactions will be enough to globally isolate the Israeli state, especially when the United States continues to steadfastly back Mr. Netanyahu. 'It's quite simple: you cannot say you oppose Israel's renewed military operation if you keep providing them with the weapons they need to carry it out,' former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told The Hindu's correspondent Sriram Lakshman, pointing to the apparent hypocrisy of the U.K. government. Mr. Corbyn will soon present the 'Gaza (Independent Public Inquiry) Bill', his office said.
Meanwhile, the U.S. capital was rocked by the murder of a young couple who served there as Israeli embassy staff. The assailant, who raised slogans to 'Free Palestine' following his arrest shortly after the violent act, was named by authorities as Elias Rodriguez. Taking the position that violence against Israelis has no place in efforts to highlight Palestinian cause, The Hindu said in its editorial: 'It is important for the international community to be able to criticise Israel's brutal war in Gaza and rein in Mr. Netanyahu without being seen as anti-Semitic or supportive of Hamas. But violence against Israelis has no place in the efforts to highlight the plight of the Palestinians.'
Amid these developments, Gaza continues to bleed. Israeli strikes have killed at least 40 people in the northern Gaza Strip, according to local health officials. Fifteen people from the same family, including five women and two children, were killed in a strike on a home Monday (May 26, 2025), according to Shifa Hospital. Gaza's Health Ministry had earlier said that at least 25 people were killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City.
As one of the starkest humanitarian crises of our times, Gaza has been holding a mirror to the world, be it states or peoples.
Top 5 stories this week:
1. U.S. was neither involved nor informed on truce with Pakistan: Government tells parliamentary panel, Sobhana K. Nair and Suhasini Haidar write
2. Introspecting counter-terrorism after Operation Sindoor: Retired Indian Army colonel Shashank Ranjan contends that the focus on India's foreign policy and military force is blurring aspects that concern the internalisation of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir
3. The air power use discourse and Operation Sindoor: The focus must be on what air power can bring to an integrated battle to force decisive strategic outcomes, writes retired Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam
4. No ceasefire: The Hindu editorial on the Russia-Ukraine war and how Moscow is utilising the deepening chasm among Ukraine's key allies
5. Veda Vaidyanathan writes that it is time for a new India-Africa digital compact.