Amid the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's references to World War II have ignited a fierce debate over the appropriateness of historical analogies and the framing of the current situation.
Netanyahu, defending Israel's campaign against the Gaza Strip, drew parallels to a 1944 British air raid on a school in Copenhagen, claiming it as a legitimate act of war with tragic consequences. Critics argue that such comparisons to World War II serve to justify Israel's actions while overlooking the roots of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Historians and analysts contend that Israel's historical references aim to provide a moral and historical precedent for its actions, emphasizing the tragedies of war to legitimize the large-scale killings in Gaza.
Ilan Pappé, an Israeli historian and activist, sees these efforts as part of an old playbook, pointing to a similar instance in 1982 when then-Prime Minister Menachem Begin compared Yasser Arafat to Hitler during the invasion of Lebanon.
However, not all voices within Israel support such comparisons. Amos Oz, an Israeli novelist, criticized Begin's likening of Arafat to Hitler, stating that using Hitler as a rhetorical vessel is a luxury only poets, not statesmen, can afford.
The use of World War II analogies by Israel and its supporters has drawn scepticism from experts who argue that it oversimplifies and distorts the complexity of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Scott Lucas, a specialist in US and British foreign policy, points out that Israel's rejection of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its attempts to undermine the authority of the United Nations contradict claims of participating in an Allied-like struggle for justice.
Criticism also extends to Israel's handling of the conflict, with concerns raised about potential breaches of international law. Lucas suggests that Israel may be failing to meet the legal requirement of proportionality in its military actions, leading to a higher number of civilian casualties.
As the conflict persists, Israel's supporters maintain that parallels with World War II are valid, citing a perceived existential threat and framing Hamas's actions as barbaric.
However, international human rights groups, UN experts, and numerous nations warn that Israel's actions, including over 20,000 Palestinian deaths and widespread displacement, could amount to modern-day genocide.
In response to these accusations, Israel's projection of World War II onto the conflict is seen as a strategic move to dehumanize Palestinians and diminish global sensitivity towards their suffering.