Voice of British Muslim Women

Sameea Jonnud, Hampshire 

It’s October 2024 and I sit down one morning with a cup of coffee; the Al-Jazeera news channel is on the television and I leave it running. The segment happens to be about the US election but I don’t hear what is being said as my eyes follow the ticker tape at the bottom which informs me that America has told Israel to be quick in its fight with Hezbollah. My mind wanders to musing over why America hasn’t told Israel to stop bombing another country, to stop killing the innocent civilians of that country, all the while knowing that of course America won’t rein in its ally. On the screen now is the journalist Hani Mahmoud telling us about another Israeli strike on Deir El Balah; the picture cuts to scenes of destruction and blurred shots of dead children carried in the arms of adults. A year ago, we viewed scenes like this with horror and prayed for it to end quickly. It is sad to think that our every breakfast time is now filled with sorrow, death and destruction and worse that this has been continuing for over a year.  

Israel has bombarded Gaza in the past, the death toll in 2014, for example, mounting as we prayed for an end, and the bombing did end after 2,500 deaths, over 500 of whom were children. This was so shocking at the time but who would have imagined that we would see an even worse situation which left tens of thousands dead, including over 17,000 children? Bombings of hospitals, homes and refugee camps full of innocent people – something which has become so common place that we hear about it daily.  

It’s not difficult to find out these facts; a quick Google or scroll on social media will show us what is happening; my X feed is full of like-minded people shocked by the inhumanity rained down on Gaza. It is also not difficult to understand the political machinations by which the Western countries allow Israel to continue its war on Gaza and now Lebanon. What is difficult is trying to understand why so many ordinary people around the world are not so horrified that they have to speak out. I don’t mean everyone should only be talking about Gaza, because our lives can’t come to a standstill; rather that there should be some visible awareness of what’s going on, some empathy for the suffering of the people in Palestine. 

Of course, there are demonstrations of support for Palestine taking place regularly around the world, with tens of thousands of people joining them, and many social media posts calling out the actions of Israel and the West. But sometimes I wonder whether I’m only seeing what’s in my bubble as a deeper search of social media will reveal the opposite; I guess it’s a matter of perspective, which version one fervently believes in. Joining a local peaceful demonstration in support of Gaza in the summer I was struck by the number of passers-by who shook their heads or muttered the word ‘Hamas’ or complained that a demonstration was even taking place. I put it down to misinformation and lack of education on the subject and hoped that at the very least, a little interest in finding out more would be sparked. Many months have passed and I no longer feel that way. 

When even the main news channels and national papers are showing atrocities carried out by Israel, albeit in a lesser way than it deserves, it should provoke people into wanting to learn more and to understand that what is happening is not ‘the right to self-defence’ as the Western leaders keep claiming, and is in fact a full-blown attack on the people of Gaza. Video evidence, testimonies of witnesses, UN reports, all point to the truth of what is happening and the massive death toll backs this up; in an age of technology do they really need to bomb whole buildings, whole communities, to smithereens when drones are capable of precision targeting? Do they really need to bomb hospitals, destroy schools or kill babies in horrific numbers as a means of self-defence? And yet, one year on, this is still the reason being given by leaders and widely reported on by mainstream media and being accepted by so many members of the public.  

On an ordinary day I might go out for a walk or do some shopping, passing many neighbours and fellow shoppers going about their day with a nod of greeting. Then a quick scroll on social media shows me what friends and family are doing and is a link with them on one of our group chats. And the weightiest thought going through my mind is, other than my family or fellow Ahmadiyya Muslim Community members, how are the majority of people going about their lives without referring to Gaza? I hear conversations about One Direction or Manchester City, comments about work and the weather, reports of the US election and speculation about the UK economy, but too little about what Israel is doing in Gaza or the wider region. Do people genuinely not know or do they just not care? I don’t like making comparisons but can’t help thinking about the number of Ukrainian flags visible in the months after the Russian invasion and the number of statements or comments of support by ordinary people, the result of numerous sympathetic reports on all of our news channels and over social media. People were horrified and empathetic then so where has their empathy gone now? Why are the silent not speaking out?

Those that stood up for peace and justice a year ago are still the ones speaking out now. Politician Jeremy Corbyn, for example or journalists like Owen Jones have not stopped calling for peace and the numbers at demonstrations show they are not alone. The #voicesforpeace campaign of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community continues across the world on social media and His Holiness Mirza Masroor Ahmad, may Allah be his Helper, worldwide head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, regularly reminds us in his weekly Friday Sermons to pray for the people of Gaza and for a third world war to be averted, just as he has been doing constantly for the past year. After 12 months of unimaginable death and destruction, this is what we have left to hold on to.  

As October turns to November, the leaves become yellow and the thoughts of the country turn to Christmas festivities. I can only pray that God softens hearts to allow change so the perpetrators of atrocities and their supporters realise they cannot continue with their injustices and peace finally is allowed to prevail.