By Qamar Bashir
The tide is now unmistakably turning against Israel—not merely because of its confrontations with Iran, nor its airstrikes that nearly ignited World War III—but more so due to the unrelenting and now undeniable genocide in Gaza, live-streamed and broadcasted to the world in real time.
For decades, Israel successfully cast itself as the perpetual victim, defending its sovereignty from existential threats. But today, that narrative is collapsing under the weight of horrifying images of amputated children, starving families, and entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble. What once were whispers of dissent have become roars of condemnation, not just from Arab nations, but from Israel’s staunchest European allies, including Germany, France, and Ireland.
In an extraordinary shift, even mainstream Western commentators have begun to question the moral standing of Israel’s conduct. Among them is British journalist Piers Morgan, who directly confronted an Israeli official in a live interview with the damning question: “Do you even know how many children you’ve killed?” Morgan continued, “You are killing a lot of children on a daily basis—that is indisputable. He exposed Israel’s failure to account for the thousands of civilian deaths, particularly children, in contrast with the military’s confident estimates of Hamas fighters killed. Morgan concluded: “You’re killing a lot of children every day—and that is not propaganda, it’s a fact.”
The media silence is beginning to fracture. The Financial Times, a historically conservative and pro-business British newspaper, published an editorial titled “The West’s Shameful Silence on Gaza.” It outlined how Israel’s escalating offensive has reached a catastrophic point, causing unfathomable suffering to 2.2 million people in Gaza. The editorial concluded that every possible war crime had likely been committed—with many Israeli officials boasting about these actions publicly.
More than 179 journalists have been killed in Gaza since the war began, including 171 Palestinians. Some were targeted deliberately. Hundreds of international reporters have signed open letters condemning the deliberate targeting of media professionals, the obstruction of aid, and the genocide of civilians. Even within major Western outlets like the BBC, journalists are expressing outrage at their management’s failure to humanize Palestinian suffering.
Medical professionals have echoed this horror. A U.S. surgeon speaking at the United Nations described deliberate shootings of children, as well as appalling injuries such as amputations, burns, and traumatic brain damage. British and American doctors who have worked in Gaza recounted treating endless streams of civilians, especially children, maimed by Israeli weapons. Dr. Mads Gilbert, who served in Gaza during previous assaults, called the volume and brutality of the injuries he saw “almost too large to comprehend.”
UN representatives have corroborated these accounts. Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, stated that even though Western media is largely absent from Gaza, Palestinian UN staff have documented genocide in real time. Their reports, replete with evidence, are often sidelined by powerful governments that refuse to act. A former U.S. State Department envoy admitted that his detailed daily dispatches on Gaza’s devastation—including images of dead and dismembered children—were ignored.
And yet, it is not just journalists, doctors, and diplomats who are speaking out. British lawmakers, once steadfast supporters of Israel, are beginning to distance themselves. Conservative MP Mark Pritchard, a twenty-year supporter of Israel, delivered a moving statement in Parliament. He declared, “I got it wrong. I condemn Israel for what it is doing to the Palestinian people in Gaza and in the West Bank.” He added, “The life of a Palestinian child is as precious as the life of a Jewish child.” His speech reflected a seismic shift within the political elite.
Key Israeli leaders have also broken ranks. Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, writing in Haaretz, called the current Israeli campaign in Gaza “a war of devastation: indiscriminate, limitless, cruel and criminal killing of civilians.” He denounced the Israeli government as a “criminal gang” and labeled the onslaught as amounting to war crimes. In separate interviews with The Guardian and the BBC, Olmert warned that Israel is committing crimes that could lead to lasting condemnation from the international community.
Yair Golan, former Deputy Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, stated, “A sane country does not wage war against civilians, does not kill babies as a pastime, and does not engage in mass population displacement.” These internal voices add even more gravity to the international condemnation Israel now faces.
Even German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a longstanding supporter of Israel, condemned certain Israeli actions. While reiterating Germany’s historic solidarity with Israel, he described as “absurd” any notion that Palestinian civilians can be collectively punished. Scholz rebuked Israeli proposals for forced migration of Gazans as “scandalous” and warned that such actions breached international law. His statements represent a growing unease among European powers.
Echoing this, the European Parliament has now pledged to impose sanctions on Israel over what it labeled as “ethnic cleansing” and systemic violations of international law. Citing collective punishment, indiscriminate bombings, and forced displacement, a resolution passed with overwhelming support demands the suspension of preferential trade terms and immediate accountability for crimes against humanity.
The turning tide was also manifested in one of the most highly contested New York City mayoral elections, where Zohran Kwame Mamdani, a South African-born Muslim progressive, ran against a pro-Israel candidate. Mamdani won by a significant margin, signaling the shift in American public opinion. He has been vocal and unapologetic in defending the Palestinian right to exist peacefully. One of his early moves as mayor-elect was to halt city-level charity funds being funneled—often unknowingly by citizens—toward organizations supporting illegal Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank. In a viral interview, Mamdani referred to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a war criminal wanted by the International Criminal Court, pledging that should Netanyahu ever visit New York, “he will be arrested.”
All of these voices—Morgan’s, the Financial Times’, the doctors’, the diplomats’, the MPs’, the Israeli dissenters’, European leaders like Scholz, and now even American voters—form a growing chorus against Israeli impunity. The consistent message is that while Hamas bears responsibility for its own crimes, Israel’s response has gone far beyond self-defense. The destruction of Gaza is not just military retaliation; it is the deliberate dismantling of a people’s future.
What amplifies this horror is the complicity of the United States. Every attempt at the United Nations to condemn Israel’s actions or even call for a ceasefire has been blocked by American vetoes. U.S. financial, military, and diplomatic support gives Israel carte blanche to operate with total impunity. It is for this reason that many critics now blame Washington as much as Jerusalem.
This moment is becoming a defining chapter in modern history. The atrocities are too vast, too documented, too horrific to be buried under propaganda. As one commentator put it: “Every atrocity in history was made possible by the silent.” Silence now is complicity.
The question is no longer whether war crimes have been committed—that is self-evident. The question now is whether the world will summon the courage to hold the perpetrators accountable and give justice to the victims of Gaza. The tide has turned, and history is watching.
By Qamar Bashir
Press Secretary to the President (Rtd)
Former Press Minister, Embassy of Pakistan to France
Former MD, SRBC | Macomb, Michigan, USA
