Ink of Bias Spills Blood

Throughout the past few months, The Australian has shown it’s incapable of balanced perspectives when it comes to Israel and the genocide of the Palestinians.

Its narrative has become all too predictable – it is of course Rupert Murdoch’s baby, and why would anyone expect anything less? But the paper’s editorial team today surpassed themselves.  

As much as the paper’s rhetoric is as predictable as it’s inflammatory, casting Hamas as the embodiment of evil, completely dismisses the broader context of the Israeli-Palestinian issue. While the editorial condemns Hamas, it does so in a way that oversimplifies the situation and perpetuates a narrative long been used to justify continued aggression against the Palestinians.

What is important is to recognise Hamas isn’t a terrorist organisation, but a democratically elected government of Gaza, representing a significant portion of the Palestinian people. It’s a crucial fact deliberately overlooked by the Western media, who prefer to frame Hamas as a terrorist organisation rather than acknowledging its role as a political and social movement that has gained support due to decades of occupation, marginalisation, and the failure of diplomatic efforts to secure Palestinian rights.

Furthermore, the editorial mentions the tragic deaths of six Israeli hostages, the narrative fails to account for the broader violence that Palestinians endure daily. The ongoing blockade of Gaza, systemic slaughter of Palestinians, the violent rape by nine IDF soldiers of a Palestinian hostage, the illegal settlements in the West Bank, and the systematic denial of basic human rights to Palestinians are part of a much larger picture that the editorial chooses to ignore.

Balance perspectives and factual honest reporting continues to remain a failing of The Australian. Its selective outrage serves to dehumanise one side of the conflict while ignoring the legitimate grievances and suffering of the Palestinians.

Hamas, as a government, has the responsibility to defend its people against aggression, just as Israel claims it has the right to. Hamas’s actions must be understood within the context of an ongoing struggle for self-determination. The editorial's attempt to equate Hamas with groups like ISIS is not only inaccurate but also deeply misleading. Unlike ISIS, Hamas has a clear political agenda rooted in the struggle for Palestinian statehood and sovereignty. Ignoring this context is to ignore the reality why such movements exist in the first place.

The call for overwhelming force as the only response to Hamas is dangerously shortsighted and proven ineffective time and again. Military solutions haven’t brought peace to Israel or Palestine; they’ve only resulted in more death, destruction, and deepening hatred. It’s abundantly clear, The Australian fails to acknowledge Israel has lost the war politically, militarily, socially, economically and geopolitically.

Israel is now globally isolated. What’s more fascinating is the disregard it shows to the admission by IDF senior general’s Hamas is an ideology and cannot be defeated. How retired IDF general Yitzak Barik in a recent editorial in Haaretz, described Netanyahu, as insane, immoral, a terrorist, having lost his humanity, values and norms, as well as declaring Israel will collapse within a year, if continues its inhumanity.

Add to that the scathing attacks by the chiefs of Mossad and Shin bet on Netanyahu and his insanity, and it paints a vastly different narrative to that of the Australian, showing a rhetoric of ignorance.

Believing crushing Hamas will bring an end to the conflict isn’t only naive but ignores that violence begets violence.

Furthermore, the editorial's use of rhetoric that advocates for "unbearable" consequences for those who resist Israeli policies further entrenches a cycle of violence. Such an approach fuels continuing resentment and strengthens the resolve of future generations who see no other option but to resist. It doesn’t promote peace but serves to perpetuate the conflict, leaving Palestinians trapped in a never-ending spiral of violence.

The ongoing occupation and refusal to engage in meaningful negotiations have only led to more suffering for the Palestinians. Real, lasting security for Israel won’t come from the destruction of Hamas or military might; but from a just peace that recognises the rights and dignity of the Palestinian people.

The challenge isn’t Hamas’s resistance, but the ongoing conflict that’s allowed such movements to gain support. Until the root causes of this conflict – occupation, discrimination, and the denial of basic human rights – are addressed, there’ll be no end to the violence. The Palestinian cause isn’t a victim of Hamas; it’s a victim of the international community’s failure to act justly and humanely in the face of prolonged suffering.

The Australian’s editorial is a demonstration of ignorance. It focusses on a narrative of good versus evil, when the reality is far more complex. It’s time for a new narrative, one that seeks to break the cycle of violence and build a future based on justice, equality, and mutual respect.