Janelle’s Reviews > Gaza: The Story of a Genocide > Status Update

The expectation that Palestinians must always be resilient is dehumanizing. Narratives of perpetual resilience can gloss over the brutality of colonial oppression and reduce the complexity of the violence that Palestinians endure.

Media blackout: International journalists and investigators are banned, making this genocide largely unseen by the world.

Aid restrictions: Gaza is blockaded by land, sea, and air. The very state responsible for the genocide controls humanitarian aid entry.

Targeting of aid workers: Rescue workers, healthcare providers, and journalists are being killed at unprecedented rates.

Gaza is different than other conflict areas I’ve worked in in several ways. Demographics: The violence indiscriminately targets civilians of all ages and genders.
Entrapment: Unlike in other war zones, Gazans cannot flee. There ’s no safe zone. So-called safe zones where civilians are forcibly transferred have repeatedly been targeted by the Israeli military.
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By the end of June 2024, approximately 83% of all plant life and 70% of farmland had been destroyed in Gaza,

And how does one see video after video without concluding that this cruelty is the point, that there is no bottom to Israel’s campaign of extermination?

This historical context underscores that what is happening in Gaza and Palestine today is not an aberration but a continuation of a settler-colonial project that began over a century ago.

While Western double standards may come as no surprise, the degree to which this genocide has not only been downplayed but also actively facilitated is shocking for many. ……….Yet it feels naive, particularly when considering the context of entwined forces of imperial interests, white supremacy, and settler colonialism—dynamics that have long provided the Israeli regime with sweeping impunity.

This collection of testimonies is intended as a record of the human toll of the genocide—a way to ensure that neither the violence nor its many victims are forgotten. By also chronicling the devastation inflicted on land, animals, infrastructure, education, and the environment, we aim to show how Israel attacked everything that sustains human life in Palestine.