WATCH: Jordan’s Queen Rania condemns west’s ‘silence’ over Israeli bombing of Gaza

As Israel’s continues to pummel Gaza, Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan has called out the “double standard” in the treatment of the Palestinian enclave.

Israel’s heavy air and relentless artillery strikes have killed over 6 500  people in Gaza, according to the enclave’s health ministry, and plunged the Palestinian territory into a dire humanitarian crisis with millions more displaced.

Israel was retaliating to an October 7 attack by Hamas as it prepares for a ground offensive in Gaza that are expected to leave many more people dead.

Watch the interview with Queen Rania al Abdullah

In a world exclusive, @QueenRania of Jordan spoke with me about the ongoing bombing of Gaza, civilian deaths, the massacres of October 7, and what she calls “a glaring double standard” in the west’s reaction to all this. Watch our full conversation. pic.twitter.com/68QUO3Vez9

— Christiane Amanpour (@amanpour) October 24, 2023

Wests double standards

In an interview with Christiane Amanpour on CNN, Queen Rania accused western leaders of a “glaring double standard” for not condemning Israel’s killing of Palestinian civilians in its bombardment of Gaza.

“The people all around the Middle East, including in Jordan, we are just shocked and disappointed by the world’s reaction to this catastrophe that is unfolding. In the last couple of weeks, we have seen a glaring double standard in the world,

“When October 7 happened, the world immediately and unequivocally stood by Israel and its right to defend itself, and condemned the attack. But what we’re seeing in the last couple of weeks, we’re seeing silence in the world,” she said.

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Queen Rania said of the west’s refusal to back a ceasefire that “this is the first time in modern history that there is such human suffering and the world is not even calling for a ceasefire. So the silence is deafening – and to many in our region, it makes the Western world complicit.

“Are we being told that it is wrong to kill a family, an entire family, at gunpoint, but it’s OK to shell them to death? I mean, there is a glaring double standard here,” she said. “It is just shocking to the Arab world.”

Children

Rania said children are innocent.

“As a mom, we’ve seen Palestinian mothers who have to write the names of their children on their hands – because the chances of them being shelled to death, of their bodies turning into corpses are so high,” Queen Rania said.

“I just want to remind the world that Palestinian mothers love their children just as much as any other mother in the world.”

History

Queen Rania also emphasized that the conflict in the Middle East did not begin on October 7 when Hamas attacked Israel.

“This is a 75-year-old story, a story of overwhelming death and displacement to the Palestinian people. It is a story of an occupation under apartheid regime, that occupies lands, that demolishes houses, confiscates lands, military incursions, night raids,” said.

Islam’s teachings

Queen Rania said Jordan condemned the killing of any civilians.

“Jordan has made its position very clear. We condemn the killing of any civilians whether Palestinian or Israeli, that is Jordan’s moral and ethical position.

“And its also the position of Islam. Islam condemns the killing of civilians. As my husband mentioned recently, the pact of Omar (companion of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) which was issued at the gates of Jerusalem 15 centuries ago, that’s one thousand years before the Geneva conventions, orders Muslims not to kill a woman, child or an elderly person, or not destroy a tree or hurt a priest,” Queen Rania said.

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