UPDATES

Palestinians killed in Syria receive little attention

Nov 9, 2012 | Sharyn Mittelman

Australia and the Massacre in Syria
news_item/syria2.jpg

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad once painted himself and his father as the champion of the Palestinian cause. But now the situation appears to have changed, as Assad’s army reportedly fired on the Palestinian refugee camp Yarmouk killing 20 on November 4, raided Hamas offices and there are fears of mass Palestinian deportations from Syria.

Over 400 Palestinians have been killed in the Syrian civil war, with little to no coverage by the Australian media. The self-proclaimed Palestinian advocates have also been all-but silent.

On November 7, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas phoned the UN envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi and asked him to urgently intervene on behalf of Palestinian refugees living in the camps, the official WAFA news agency reported.

Despite Abbas’ plea and reports that over 32,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict, one does not hear calls for boycotts. And where are the mass demonstrations?

Palestinians once on the sidelines of the conflict are increasingly caught up in the Syrian violence. The conflict has also divided Palestinian loyalties with many Sunni Palestinians supporting their fellow Sunnis in the opposition and others backing Assad such as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC).

Pro-Assad Palestinians have also been targeted – this week alone ten pro-Assad Palestinians were killed by opposition rebels, and a well-known Syrian-born Palestinian actor, Mohammed Rafeh, was shot dead in Damascus reportedly punished for his support of the Assad regime.

There are also reports that some rebels have begun arming sympathetic Palestinians to fight the PFLP-GC. A rebel commander from the Suqour al-Golan (Golan Falcons) brigade told Reuters:

“We’ve been arming Palestinians who are willing to fight… We have formed the Liwa al-Asifah (the Storm Brigade) which is made up of Palestinian fighters only… Its task is to be in charge of the Yarmouk camp. We all support it and back it”.

It appears that the shelling of Yarmouk was the Syrian army’s way of supporting the PFLP-GC.

Attacks on Palestinian refugee camps in Syria should cause outrage across the world. But it seems the only time that Palestinian grievances receive significant attention by the media and Palestinian advocates is when the focus is on condemning Israel.

Meanwhile, the death toll in Syria continues to rise, and the world, for the most part, continues to turn a blind eye.

Sharyn Mittelman

Tags:

RELATED ARTICLES


Screenshot from a tiktok video showing Palestinian Islamic Jihad rockets being launched at Israel from amidst civilians in a heavily populated area of Gaza

“Shield and Arrow”: Yet another Gaza conflict

May 12, 2023 | Update
Israelis celebrating Independence Day (Yom  Ha'atzmaut) in Tel Aviv (Photo: Shutterstock, Orlov Sergei)

Reflections on Israel’s 75th Birthday

May 3, 2023 | Update
Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu announces a pause in his Government's judicial reform plans in a televised address on Monday, March 27  (Image: Youtube screenshot)

Israel’s controversial judicial reforms put on hold

Mar 29, 2023 | Update
Image: Shutterstock

The implications of the Iran-Saudi deal

Mar 17, 2023 | Update
A joint air force drill during the Israel-US "Juniper Oak" military exercises in January, which were widely interpreted as sending a signal to Iran (Image: Pentagon)

New diplomatic strategies with Iran for 2023

Mar 10, 2023 | Update
Screenshot from a video showing radical Israeli rioters torching Palestinian homes in the West Bank town of Huwara (Image: Twitter)

West Bank unrest escalates following violent riots by Jewish protesters in Huwara

Mar 1, 2023 | Update

SIGN UP FOR AIJAC EMAILS

RECENT POSTS

Senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders attend a meeting with Iran’s Supreme Leader in Teheran, Iran (Image via Iran’s Supreme Leader’s website)

Essay: A New Multifront Strategy?

Erdogan vs. Kilicdaroglu: The former looks all but guaranteed to win a second round on May 29 (Image: Tolga Ildun/ Shutterstock)

What does Turkey’s election mean for Israel?

Netanyahu (right), with Defence Minister Gallant (top left), IDF Chief of Staff Halevi (bottom left) and other security officials (Image: GPO/ Flickr)

Israeli politics after “Shield and Arrow”

Biblio File: A Bob One Way

A scene from the movie BlacKkKlansman, which recalls an era of Blacks and Jews making common cause

Europa Europa: Antisemitism is its own thing

Senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders attend a meeting with Iran’s Supreme Leader in Teheran, Iran (Image via Iran’s Supreme Leader’s website)

Essay: A New Multifront Strategy?

Erdogan vs. Kilicdaroglu: The former looks all but guaranteed to win a second round on May 29 (Image: Tolga Ildun/ Shutterstock)

What does Turkey’s election mean for Israel?

Netanyahu (right), with Defence Minister Gallant (top left), IDF Chief of Staff Halevi (bottom left) and other security officials (Image: GPO/ Flickr)

Israeli politics after “Shield and Arrow”

Biblio File: A Bob One Way

A scene from the movie BlacKkKlansman, which recalls an era of Blacks and Jews making common cause

Europa Europa: Antisemitism is its own thing

SORT BY TOPICS