Turning Anger into Action: Activism for Lebanon and Palestine

Beirut street art — photo by the author.

* Thanks to Rebecca O’Keeffe for working her magic and turning thoughts into coherence. And thanks to Kit Nicholson and Olivia Hooper for creating an action list well worth actioning. It takes a village of activists — and this village is awe-inspiringly active!

Feeling helpless? Yeah, me too. We’ve been watching a genocide unfold in front of our eyes for 55 weeks in Palestine, and now also in Lebanon. I keep asking myself over and over what I can actually do to help? How can I make a difference?

If you’re asking these questions too, this blog will help. Here are some concrete actions to take and places to support that are making a difference. And they could do a lot more with our help.

Let’s start with the context — in case anyone doesn’t know.

According to the UN, over 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and over 720 in the West Bank by the Israeli military. The figure is likely much, much higher. The Lancet estimated up to 186,000 Palestinian deaths could be attributable to the genocide — and that report was from July. We’re now at the end of October.

In Gaza, more than 10,000 are reported missing under the rubble or presumed dead, nearly 98,000 are injured, and 1.9 million are displaced. Women and children are the most affected. Oxfam analysis found more women and children have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli military than in any other recent conflict in a single year. Read that line again — it’s serious.

And the brutality doesn’t end there.

In the last week alone, Israel burned Palestinians alive in their tents in refugee camps — the image of Sha’ban al-Dalou’s outstretched hand in the inferno still attached to an IV drip will forever haunt us. Jabalia, North Gaza is currently being obliterated in what Palestinians on the ground have described as the most intense and terrifying bombardment yet. We’ve all seen images of Israeli soldiers rounding up and blindfolding Palestinians in “death queues” to execute them — not even hiding their war crimes, the unchecked evils of Zionism on full display. And, Israel has been deliberately blocking humanitarian aid from entering Gaza since last October, forcibly starving an already starved population.

In the West Bank, settler violence continues unabated, resulting in discrimination, displacement, and even death. These attacks are an escalation of the near-daily raids that Israel has been carrying out since June 2021 on the occupied region. Since October 7, 2023, at least 747 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, and over 6,200 others have been wounded. This violence shows no sign of abating.

This is 55 weeks — plus 76 years — of total impunity, flagrant disregard for international law, total complicity from Western leaders, and a colonial occupation getting away with murder. Literally.

And if that wasn’t enough, Israel has escalated their war crimes regionally into Yemen, Syria, and Lebanon, with strikes on Iran becoming an increasing likelihood — all with the backing, support, funding, and blessing of the US.

In Lebanon, more than 2,400 people have been killed by Israel since last October according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. Israel is carrying out terrorist attacks, resorting to making pagers a weapon of mass destruction, by planting explosives into the batteries of 5,000 pagers. Over 3,000 people were injured by the pager attacks, with more 30 people killed. And they didn’t stop there, carpet bombing civilian areas with white phosphorus, and striking Lebanon regularly. Even UN peacekeepers are not immune.

Since October 2023, 2,483 Lebanese have been killed and more than 1 million are now displaced — in a population of 5.5 million. As I write, Israel continues bombing entire neighborhoods and residential areas. In September, these indiscriminate and large-scale attacks killed more than 600 people, including at least 90 women and 50 children, and injured over 1,800. There is a severe risk of starvation and rapid spread of disease, coupled with an acute need for shelter, food, water, hygiene supplies and medical attention.

In short, help is needed. Urgently.

We need to double down on civil action — governments are not doing enough, and some are actively enabling this genocide. [America and Germany, we’re looking at you.] We need people-pressure more than ever. Sure, it’s frustrating. It takes ages and shows too few results. But it’s working. And it’s worth it. Besides, inaction in the face of inhumanity is not an option.

Israel and its allies are doing their best to paint a false picture, to retro-fit absurd “justifications” behind their incessant violent attacks. There’s no justification for such brutality. Our job is to relentlessly amplify what is happening, share the voices of those on the frontlines of these brutalities, and show those on the outside what they can do to help.

Firstly — financial support. Every dollar counts. Basic goods are in short supply. Below is a list of organizations providing food, water, clothes, diapers, and all other basic amenities in Palestine and Lebanon.

Palestine:

• Palestine Red Cross works on the frontlines: https://www.palestinercs.org/en
• Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF) provides free medical care for children: https://www.pcrf.net/
• The Ghassan Abu Sittah Children’s Fund provides physical and psychological medical attention under the guidance of Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah: https://gascf.org
• World Central Kitchen (WCK) makes healthy meals for people in times of crisis: https://wck.org/donate
• American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA) helps refugees and vulnerable communities with aid in Lebanon and Palestine: https://www.anera.org/
• Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) provides medical aid for Palestinians and Lebanese: https://www.map.org.uk/
• UNRWA works to support Palestinians: https://donate.unrwa.org/-landing-page/en_EN
• Women for Women International supports women in need in Palestine: https://www.womenforwomen.org/palestine
• Save the Children delivers essential supplies and provides health care: https://www.savethechildren.org/us/where-we-work/west-bank-gaza
• Connecting Humanity provide eSIMs to journalists, medical professionals, aid workers, families, people documenting the genocide and others: https://connecting-humanity.org/
• Due to the obstruction of aid, many people have desperately had to resort to setting up individual GoFundMe accounts. Josh Paul maintains a list for those who prefer this route.

Lebanon:

• Lebanese Red Cross works on the frontlines: https://www.redcross.org.lb/
• Lebanese American University cares for its students, and anyone in need of healthcare and support: https://www.lau.edu.lb/emergency-lebanon/
• International Network for Aid, Relief and Assistance (INARA) supports Lebanese and Palestinian children: https://inara.org/
• Circle of Wellbeing for women in Bekaa, Lebanon distributing health, food and water aid: https://www.circleofwellbeing.net/
• ABAAD — Resource Center for Gender Equality provides gender-based violence lifesaving support in Lebanon: https://www.abaadmena.org/
• Free Shop Lebanon donates supplies to vulnerable families: https://www.thefreeshoplb.org/
• Barzakh Bookshop and Mezyan Restaurant distribute meals and vital supplies to schools, homes, camps: https://www.instagram.com/p/DAapgsJs-2x/?hl=en&img_index=1

If you are not in a position to donate, there are lots of other ways to help.

• Keep attending protests and rallies — to show you stand against Israel, illegal occupation, and genocide. To show that you stand with humanity.
• Share information and organizations on social media — to help the right groups reach a wider audience and generate greater donations. You can share news and updates from credible sources such as Al Jazeera, Wafa News Agency in Palestine, the Middle East Eye and Naharnet News Agency in Lebanon. For the most accurate and up to date figures on casualties, refer to the data released by the Ministry of Health in Palestine and Lebanon.
• Sign petitions and open letters — to add your name to the call for action.
• Support Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) — a movement to end international support for Israel.
• Email/phone your political representative — to ask to enact sanctions against Israel, call for arms embargo, cut trading links, adhere to BDS, cut diplomatic ties, recognize Palestinian statehood. Especially with elections coming up this is a great way to pressure the candidates.
• Amplify indigenous voices — to share the voices of extraordinary Palestinians and Lebanese doing incredible work both on the ground and in the diaspora.

All this stuff is even more critical today, right now, in the wake of a US election. If you haven’t figured out already, no matter who wins, humanity will LOSE.

Americans, the US is funding this genocide and actively enabling Israel to continue its crimes with OUR tax dollars.

Some might say the upcoming US presidential election presents a dilemma. Do we vote for our principles, ticking the box for a Third Party candidate that we know won’t win? Do we risk another Trump presidency? Do we settle for Harris and the Democrats, who have enabled this genocide in the first place, and — worse, still — have vowed to continue their unwavering support for Israel?

The lesser of two evils is still evil.

Harris reiterates the AIPAC party line — “Israel’s right to defend itself” — but in the same breath she goes on to say “I support Palestinians’ right to have dignity, self-determination, and security.” Curious, given that she’s already received $5,395,227 from AIPAC.

What she — and Israel — call “defending itself” is in fact a stripping of Palestinian “dignity, self-determination, and security.” A stripping of their right to exist, in fact. Harris also parrots the need for a hostage and ceasefire deal but has not made any concrete actions. And by “hostages,” she conveniently does not include the thousands of Palestinian hostages in Israel — some of whom are children. Harris continues to see the two-state solution as the sole pathway to peace. But this is no “solution” — it’s been in circulation for decades with no signs of progress. And it fails to consider the latest plot twist: Israel’s genocide of Palestinians.

And on the other side, there’s Trump. He hypothesizes that if he had been President the October 7 attacks “would have never happened.” Instead of addressing how — or if — he would end the genocide, Trump puts the spotlight on Harris, saying if she were to become president “terrorist armies will wage an unceasing war to drive Jews out of their holy land.” Although he fails to make his plan of action clear, his position is abundantly clear: Israel is his priority. He grotesquely articulated to Netanyahu to “get your victory,” further asserting that Netanyahu “knows what he’s doing.”

Meanwhile, Biden continues to issue carte blanche to Israel in his final days in office. The Democrat stance has alienated many. With more than 700,000 uncommitted in the Primaries, it seems that genocide is a red line for voters. At the same time, Palestine is not a singular issue. It cuts across all issues that should concern us: human rights, gender equality, climate change, land rights, and more.

Can a third party or uncommitted vote leverage enough to change the landscape? It remains to be seen. This countdown is on — and it’s terrifying.

Even if you’re not American, this election concerns you. This genocide concerns you. None of this stuff stays neatly confined within its borders. And with the risk of wider war quite literally at our doorstep, we have no choice but to act.

This blog is a start — take action!

*For more action and inspiration, sign up for my newsletter: www.LinaAbiRafeh.com — to light your feminist activist fires!