It's not about whether you stand with Israel or Palestine.
I try to stay out of political commentary, but it's important to make one point clear:
There are no winners in war. You might have friends who live in Israel or Palestine, or more likely; are Jewish or Muslim & not know what to say to them.
Send love.
I'm a Jew, feeling extremely concerned, and sending messages of love to both my Arabic and Jewish friends, they are sending back to me - none of us want this to escalate like it will.
It's not all hate, we can all coexist, love is more powerful.
This being said, Hamas is not Palestine. You are not choosing a side by supporting Israel (who just got invaded), you are showing your humanity.
Hamas is a terrorist organisation with a mission to eradicate the Jewish race.
The majority of Palestinians do not support Hamas, & will suffer as a result too.
In their attack, they not only killed more Jews in one day since World War 2, but many Palestinians and Arabs as well.
Would you ever feel uncomfortable sharing your profound sympathy to any other country given this situation?
It's OK to say you stand with Israel in this situation, and not stay silent when a terrorist organisation kills women and children in their street, because of what race they are.
Would you ever stand for that, for any other race, or do Jews not count?
If you find yourself "celebrating" anything that's happening or that's going to happen - be very clear, you are down a dark path.
You're supporting the wrong side.
Never find joy in anyone's suffering.
Support love.
Fight hate.
PS: There are very few actual Middle East experts in the world.
You dont need to have an opinion (especially if you aren't connected to either side of the conflict).
You still can play a role, and support people in private - by sending love to those who might need it.
You may have gone from vaccine expert to Web3 genius to AI guru well, but it's probably best you stay out of this one (especially if you aren't Jewish or Arabic!)
Said with a heavy heart, and a lot of love ❤️
There are no winners in war.
Across Africa, the elderly have traditionally been cared for by their families.
Now, with life expectancy increasing, many Africans are turning to care homes for help...but are the elderly getting the care they need?
#BBCAfricaEye goes undercover to investigate. ⬇️