PISTON denounces Israel’s murderous assault on the people of Palestine, which has escalated to horrifying levels and is characterized by the relentless bombing of Gaza aimed at obliterating the Palestinian people.
In just two weeks, Israel has killed over 4,200 Palestinians, including around 2,500 innocent children, while displacing and starving over a million Palestinian people. The most horrific act among these atrocities was the bombing of a hospital in Gaza by the Israel Defense Forces, resulting in the massacre of 600 Palestinians who had sought shelter and medical treatment.
PISTON also strongly condemns the imperialist US for its unwavering support, defense, and financial backing of the genocidal war being waged by the Israeli government. Israel is the largest recipient of US military aid worldwide, serving as the primary stronghold of the imperialist US in the Middle East and enabling the Israeli state to brazenly occupy Palestinian lands, forcibly evict Palestinian people from their homes and communities, and wage armed offensives with impunity.
For decades, the US has pursued dominance and hegemony in the Middle East to secure access and control over the region’s abundant oil and gas resources. This greed for oil led the US to invade Iraq in 2003, to strangle Iran with economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation, to establish several US military bases in Saudi Arabia and Israel, and to become a major player in the global oil trade.
Since the Philippines relies mainly on oil imports, primarily from the Middle East, oil companies and monopoly capitalists can easily exploit this US-backed Israeli genocide to manipulate oil prices and rake billions in super-profits resulting in PUV drivers and citizens suffering from overpriced fuel and inflation.
The bombing of Gaza follows the same pattern of the US imperialist’s “anti-terrorist” bombings in Afghanistan and Syria. They also employ this “anti-terrorist” pretext to back the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in bombing our countryside to slaughter peasants and indigenous people who only demand land reform and self-determination. Furthermore, US and Israeli military contractors are the ones supplying the AFP with fighter planes, bombs, drones, and other ammunition used to terrorize and subjugate the people under the guise of “counter-insurgency.”
Israel, the US, and even the US-puppet Marcos Jr regime have unjustly branded the Palestinian people’s armed resistance as “terrorism.” However, the undeniable truth is that Israel and the imperialist US stand as the primary perpetrators of terrorism in the world, as evident in their ongoing genocidal aggression against the Palestinian people to further their own economic and political interests.
Meanwhile, the Filipino people grapple with their own state terrorism under the US-Marcos Jr regime. The regime’s armed forces consistently employ violence, ruthlessly targeting unarmed, legal, and democratic activists, organizers, unionists, and ordinary citizens in a deliberate effort to instill fear and suppress the people’s relentless pursuit of their economic and democratic rights.
We stand in solidarity with all the freedom-loving peoples worldwide in denouncing all forms of aggression and attacks against the Palestinian people. The genocide of the Palestinian people by Israel must stop! The occupation of Palestinian lands by the Zionists must stop! The US-backed bombing of Palestinian communities by Israeli forces must stop!
We recognize that Israel’s violent occupation of Palestinan lands has pushed the Palestinian people to fight back and assert their right to self-determination against the brutal occupation and genocide by Israel. The indomitable spirit of the Palestinian people shines as a beacon of resilience, hope, and unwavering determination for every people in the world confronted with similar imperialist aggression.
We stand with them and with the rest of the oppressed peoples of the world in struggling for a genuine and lasting peace that is built on a foundation of social justice, free from impunity, oppression, and exploitation.
We stand with the Palestinian people’s unyielding struggle and aspiration for freedom and dignity! We stand with their resistance and for their right to self-determination! We stand for their invincible longing for a just and lasting peace!
LONG LIVE PALESTINE! FREE PALESTINE!
FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA, PALESTINE WILL BE FREE
FROM PALESTINE TO THE PHILIPPINES, STOP THE US WAR MACHINE!