What can be done by the Western allies and Arab leaders to stop Israel? 

“I did that because in the Bible it says that the people of Israel will rise like lions. And that's exactly what our soldiers did. And I'm very proud of them,” Netanyahu. 

Dr. Pamelia Riviere

At least 81 Palestinians, including 30 aid seekers, have been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza since dawn on Wednesday, and three more people have starved to death in the Strip, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry, Al Jazeera reported on August 20^th, 2025. Being a mute spectator and some futile words against the Gaza Genocide fall on deaf ears.  

Oxfam reported on 11th January 2024 that the daily death rate in Gaza is higher than in any other major 21st-century conflict. Israeli military kills 250 Palestinians per day, with many more lives at risk from hunger, disease, and cold. 

In 2025, an average of 100 Palestinians have been killed or injured daily in Gaza, according to the UN.  Palestinian and UN agencies observe Palestine Children's Day with 'harrowing' accounts of the impact of Israel's war on children. Despite Israel's 27 July announcement of daily military pauses in western Gaza “to improve humanitarian responses,” Israeli forces continued killing civilians in Gaza. 

The UN emphasized that intentionally targeting civilians who are not participating in hostilities and deliberately using starvation of civilians as a tactical method of warfare by depriving them of essential resources, including obstructing relief supplies, are considered war crimes. 

"If part of a systematic or widespread attack on the civilian population, these may also constitute crimes against humanity,” OHCHR added, noting the cumulative impact of these incidents and restrictions on humanitarian access. OHCHR pointed out that most of the killings were carried out by the Israeli military. “Each of these killings must be promptly and independently investigated, and those responsible held to account. Urgent measures must be implemented to prevent recurrence,” it stated.

Netanyahu and his IDF are risking serious consequences. They are on a rampage of killing innocent Palestinian children, and they appear unconcerned. At least 19,000 children were killed in the Gaza war as strikes continue. Thousands of children remain under the rubble. A few thousand have had one or both legs and arms amputated, and thousands of children have lost both parents, as Democracy Now! reported. 

Civilians are Killed Mercilessly at the Food Distribution Site Every Day. 

 It has been observed that the food distribution points, which most Palestinians rely on, are not operational. Hot meal kitchens where people receive their daily meals are no longer functioning. Palestinians are risking their lives to visit aid hubs run by the notorious GHF, risking being shot because they want to feed their families. Whatever is entering Gaza is not enough. Most of the trucks coming in are for commercial purposes, and food prices remain high. The reality is devastating – Palestinians have no choice but to watch their children die from malnutrition and starvation.

US military vet and whistleblower Anthony Aguilar explains to The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal how the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's so-called aid hubs serve as the foundation for Israel's ethnic cleansing plans. His comment below is concerning. 

According to Aguilar, GHF's Secure Distribution Site #1 will be portrayed to the outside world as a "transit village," but in reality, it will function as a biometric concentration camp for Palestinian war refugees on their way out of Gaza. "The [GHF] is fully funded to continue to operate at full capacity until December. What is being built? That 'humanitarian assistance transit village,' if you will. Where everybody will be moved to the south and live in an area where this humanitarian transit area will serve that population, not to keep that population there – they are moved out of their current locations, spend some time there, and are processed out of Gaza. Where do they go? I don't know. But that plan isn't just a blueprint. It is underway. That is happening right now." 

The UN reported on August 01, 2025, that “between 30 and 31 July alone, 105 Palestinians were killed and at least 680 more injured along the convoy routes in the Zikim area in North Gaza, southern Khan Younis, and near the GHF sites in Middle Gaza and Rafah, the office (OHCHR) said in a press release issued on Friday.

In total, since 27 May, at least 1,373 Palestinians have been killed while seeking food; 859 near the GHF sites and 514 along the routes of food convoys.” However, until today, August 20th, more people have been killed at the Gaza food distribution site. On average, 30 people are being shot directly with stun guns and other ammunition, including pepper spray attacks. 

The U.N. Human Rights Office says Palestinians have been killed trying to access food since May — mostly near GHF sites. UN reported on August 01, 2025: Nearly 1,400 Palestinians killed while seeking food, as UN warns airdrops are no solution. 

“As more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed seeking aid at militarized aid distribution sites run by the U.S.- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a former GHF security contractor tells Democracy Now! he saw U.S. mercenaries and Israeli forces commit war crimes by indiscriminately shooting at starving Palestinians waiting for aid. “What I witnessed in Gaza, I can only describe as a dystopian, post-apocalyptic wasteland,” says Anthony Aguilar, a retired U.S. soldier who worked as a subcontractor with UG Solutions in the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation aid delivery operation. “We, the United States, are complicit. We are involved, hand in hand, in the atrocities and the genocide that is currently undergoing in Gaza.”” reported by Democracy Now! 

Human Rights Watch mentioned that the US-backed Israeli forces and private contractors have put in place a flawed, militarized aid distribution system that has turned aid distributions into regular bloodbaths.
The dire humanitarian situation is a direct result of Israel’s use of starvation of civilians as a weapon of war—a war crime—as well as Israel’s continued intentional deprivation of aid and basic services, which amounts to the crime against humanity of extermination, and acts of genocide. 

It is Crucial to Recognize Palestine as a State Formally

On July 25, CBC reported that when French President Emmanuel Macron shared his plans to formally recognize Palestinian statehood at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in September, he stated there was "no alternative." "We must build the state of Palestine, ensure its viability, and by accepting its demilitarisation and fully recognising Israel, contribute to the security of all in the Middle East," he wrote in French on Thursday, noting that it is up to the French, along with Israelis, Palestinians, and European and international partners, to demonstrate that peace in the region is achievable. Macron's intention to recognize a Palestinian state would be largely symbolic. However, it is notable that France is the first major Western country to shift its position on this issue since Ireland, Norway, and Spain did so last year.

CNN provided a detailed report on the recognition of the Palestinian state. An increasing number of countries are pledging to recognize a Palestinian state, with over 145 nations now supporting the call for international recognition. Most countries that recognized a State of Palestine did so in 1988, following the Palestine National Council’s (PNC) declaration of the state. Many other non-Western nations followed suit in the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. However, the recognition status of six countries remains pending until September 2025, including France, Australia, Canada, Malta, Portugal, and the UK. 

The United Kingdom has conditionally stated it will recognize a Palestinian state if Israel fails to meet criteria that include agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza. Israel’s Foreign Ministry has “rejected” the European nations’ recent calls for recognition, calling them a “reward to Hamas” that undermines efforts to reach a ceasefire. 

US President Donald Trump criticized the calls for recognition. This comes amid growing condemnation of the starvation crisis in Gaza caused by Israel’s blockade of humanitarian aid, which United Nations agencies and humanitarian groups have widely condemned. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said France’s recognition of Palestine “rewards terrorists.”

A Full Ceasefire: Requires Negotiation Between Western Allies and Arab Leaders

 According to the Times of Israel, “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday he had issued instructions for negotiations to be held for the release of all hostages held in Gaza, even as he moved toward approving plans for a military offensive aimed at conquering Gaza City.”

Hamas earlier indicated it rejects Israel's latest truce proposal and called for a "comprehensive" deal to end the 20-month-long war. Israel refused to agree to a complete ceasefire and to end the conflict as well. Hamas and Israel have accused each other of obstructing an agreement and prolonging the war. Experts say both sides are pursuing maximalist demands because their political survival depends on it. Netanyahu finds himself in a difficult situation. He faces intense pressure from his closest international allies and the families of Israeli hostages to accept a ceasefire deal and avoid a full-scale invasion of Rafah, as well as the need to satisfy hardliners in his fragile coalition who do not want him to stop until Hamas is eliminated. Hamas may also be cautious about its fate if the war concludes without a guarantee of a permanent ceasefire.

Earlier, Hamas had rejected an Israeli proposal for a six-week ceasefire in Gaza, which called for the armed group to give up its weapons. Israel demands the release of all 50 hostages for the war to end, 20 of whom are alive, according to a political source.  Hamas would exchange some hostages for Palestinian prisoners.  Israeli commanders meet to plan capture of Gaza City while Netanyahu weighs offer, Reuters report says.

Most of the Western media have reported that mediators Egypt and Qatar have been pushing proposals to restart indirect talks between the sides on a U.S.-backed ceasefire plan. The proposals include the release of 200 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel and an unspecified number of imprisoned women and minors, in exchange for 10 living and 18 deceased hostages from Gaza, according to a Hamas official. 

Two Egyptian security sources confirmed these details and added that Hamas has also requested the release of hundreds of Gaza detainees. Israel's policy is consistent and has not changed. Israel demands the release of all 50 hostages in accordance with the principles established by the cabinet for ending the war. We are in the final decisive stage of Hamas and will not leave any hostages behind," an Israeli political source said. 

On Friday, Israel will state its demands. However, questions and concerns will persist if, after the ceasefire, Israel continues to kill civilians in Gaza. 

What will be the stance of Hamas and the Arab mediators, including Israel's Western allies and the US? 

To curb the violence, Arab leaders need to travel to Washington, as mentioned in a podcast interview by Marwan Bishara. Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst, Marwan Bishara, argues that Netanyahu is delaying the ceasefire to continue military operations in Gaza. Meanwhile, Arab leaders must coordinate European diplomatic efforts in Washington to help end the ongoing violence and influence US policy. However, Israel is heavily assaulting Gaza while the ceasefire discussion continues. 

About the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza and Iran attack, Benjamin Netanyahu commented on Triggerometry podcast on 20^th August, 2025:  “I believed it, I think that what we had to do was take on ultimately take on Iran itself. And of course, on day two, after you suffered the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust, it may seem, you know, a ridiculous goal, an imaginary goal. No, it wasn't. It was very clear, we'll turn back. Israel will recover very quickly, very quickly and fight back and demolish Hamas and then demolish and then demolish the Assad regime and then hit Iran very strongly in ways that surprised the world. I'm very proud of the people of Israel who stood fast, and I'm very proud of the soldiers of Israel. I call this incredible 12-day war with Iran. I call it the rising lion operation. And I did that because in the Bible it says that the people of Israel will rise like lions. And that's exactly what our soldiers did. And I'm very proud of them.” 

Netanyahu’s above statement would confound any sensible person. He is using religion and the Bible for his political survival against humanity. His comment casts doubt on the world audience about his true intentions. 

Dr. Pamelia Riviere is a freelance writer and analyst.