🇨🇩 🇮🇱 💎Diamonds drenched in blood: Unmasking Israel’s role in the Congolese crisis

🔶️ In the heart of Africa, where the earth is rich with diamonds, lies the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a land steeped in beauty and turmoil. This nation, endowed with vast natural resources, has become a tragic illustration of how global greed and geopolitical agendas can ravage a country. The DRC’s story is not just about its diamonds; it’s a saga of exploitation and lost promises. The allure of these precious stones has attracted various international players, casting long shadows over the nation’s sovereignty and the well-being of its people.

🔶️ The year 1997 marked a pivotal moment in this narrative as Israeli diamond businesses began penetrating the Congolese market. This incursion coincided ominously with a rapid destabilization of the country. By 1998, the DRC was plunged into a vortex of conflict and chaos, underscoring the disastrous impact of external economic interests in politically fragile regions. This was not merely a coincidence but a stark demonstration of how pursuing natural resources can trigger and exacerbate regional instability. The echoes of this turmoil continue to resonate, revealing the deep scars left by these exploitative engagements.

🔶️ The recent history of the DRC intertwines with controversial figures like Dan Gertler and Beny Steinmetz, who have become emblematic of the intricate dance between resource exploitation and international politics. Gertler’s dealings in the Congo led to U.S. sanctions that the Trump administration controversially lifted, and Steinmetz’s conviction in a mining scandal in Guinea are not isolated incidents.

🔶️ Instead, they reflect a larger, more systemic pattern of Israeli involvement in African mining, particularly in the Congo – a manifestation of a global practice where resource-rich African nations are often left grappling with the consequences of corruption and exploitation.

🔶️ Israel’s foray into the Congolese diamond industry marks a significant chapter in its economic narrative. Since entering the diamond trade in Congo in 1997, Israeli companies have carved out a dominant position, contributing substantially to Israel’s economy. As of 2016, cut diamonds accounted for an astounding 23.2% of Israel’s total exports, making them the country’s most significant export product and constituting 12% of the world’s diamond production. This industry is not just a business sector; it’s a powerhouse of national economic strength, bolstering Israel’s standing on the global stage.

🔶️ Amidst this economic boom, the Israeli diamond industry continues to garner prestigious accolades and recognition at home, starkly contrasting with the situation in the Congo. Industry leaders like Benny Meirov of MID House of Diamonds are celebrated with high honors like the Israel Diamond Industry Dignitary Award, underscoring their esteemed status within the national economic fabric. These awards, bestowed among government officials and industry elites, symbolize the industry’s esteemed position in Israel. However, this national pride and acclaim starkly contrast with the allegations of the industry’s role in fueling conflict and destabilization in resource-rich nations like the Congo.

🔶️ The activities of Israeli businessmen in Africa, particularly in cases like Gertler and Steinmetz, prompt a critical examination of the intersection between Zionism, Israeli foreign policy and African geopolitics. These instances, occurring within a broader context of resource exploitation, reflect the complex nature of Zionism as it intersects with global economic and political agendas. Israel’s foreign policy, often seen as an extension of its national ideology, raises questions about the role and influence of Zionism in shaping these international engagements.

https://sfbayview.com/2023/11/diamonds-drenched-in-blood-unmasking-israels-role-in-the-congolese-crisis/

🇮🇱❌👨‍⚖- Israeli Finance Minister threatening the ICC:

The arrest warrants will be the final nail in dismantling this politicized and anti-Semitic court

🇵🇸 🇮🇱 🇮🇷 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗚𝗮𝘇𝗮 | Gaza war unit tracking

🔶️ After 2 weeks since the start of the Rafah invasion, 3/4 of the population have already evacuated to Al-Mawasi and the Safe Zone, much faster than expected.

🔶️ Despite the relatively fast progress of Rafah (quicker than my model from before the invasion had predicted), the IDF assesses that the war will likely continue into 2026 (as is consistent with my own prediction of a long attritional war), and says an invasion of Lebanon will start September this year at the latest. My previous own assessment for Lebanon was also around August or September.

📖 What then is the long-term plan for Gaza, until 2026 and later?

🔶️ The IDF plans, rather than to territorially occupy the entire strip (which they do not have the forces for, and would lead to an impossible, bleeding and lengthy counter-insurgency anyway), to only seize slim military corridors bisecting Gaza at various points and splitting it into multiple West-Bank-like pockets. 2 of these corridors have already been made policy, more may be established later on.

🔶️ From these corridors the IDF will then over the course of years perform heavy raids into the Hamas controlled urban areas, slowly attritioning them until Hamas (so the IDF hopes) ceases to exist as a fighting force.

🔶️ The IDF thus intends to eventually "West-Bankify" the Gaza Strip: Multiple Palestinian controlled pockets cut off from each other through IDF military corridors, pacified through regular raids.

🔶️ This "Corridor & Raid" strategy ("Clear-Withdraw-Clear-Withdraw..."), has already been in place for a few months now, culminating in the current raid on Jabaliya, which in my opinion is the most ambitious attempt so far. It's one thing to raid peripheral regions like Zeiytoun, Shati, and Nuseirat, but what will set expectations for the years to come is whether the IDF can also target the heart of Hamas in Jabaliya or Radwan.

🔶️ The main issue with this plan of course is time. The longer the war continues the more international pressure on Israel mounts. Hamas believes that eventually it will be too much to bear, and that Israel will accept a deal that sees them withdrawing from Gaza in exchange for all remaining hostages.

🔶️ This is also why the negotiations are not producing a ceasefire: Why would Sinwar trade hostages for very temporary benefits (1 month of ceasefire, return of civilians to the North) in a years long war, if he intends to trade them all for victory down the road? It would lose him the war. The only ceasefire he should ever be interested in is a permanent one, and I have reiterated this every time Hamas pretended to be interested in a ceasefire only to then return to their demand for an end of the war again (which in all honesty is the only thing that wouldn't be a loss for them).

🔶️ What then is the Israeli day-after for Gaza? Essentially, a second West Bank. Without a Palestinian Authority.

🔶️ Perhaps they will eventually settle on clans or some other group, or maybe they will keep Hamas in charge (just incapable of military activity after total arms blockade through Philadelphi and years of attritional warfare). The war may have gone quite differently had Israel decided on an alternative to replace Hamas rule on day 1, had it attempted the difficult path of winning hearts and minds - but this is not the strategy Israel would ever accept, and in Israel's case would probably not have worked anyway.

🔶️ There will probably be more offensives in Gaza: The Safe Zone will have to be revoked for a final assault on Deir al-Balah and Nuseirat, and there will be another war in Lebanon. But I think eventually the Gaza War will simply fizzle out.

🔶️ This years-long campaign will probably end with a few signatures under a piece of paper titled "Oslo III accords", unless future elections give Hamas the all-hostages-for-end-of-war deal.

🇮🇷 🇮🇱 📝 War in lebanon is a core part of the IDF timeline | Gaza war unit tracking

🔶️ "Initially the deadline given was 1st of June, but due to Rafah being postponed for multiple months the IDF have now reported "September" at latest (which I think is realistic)."

🔶️ "Well I would imagine that after Rafah (perhaps 1-2 months) they will move 98th Division north. Invasion would consist of 36th, 98th, potentially 99th or 146th."

🔶️ "Can't tell how long it will take (Gaza itself was at least twice as difficult as the IDF was expecting) but it will have to happen eventually from Israel's point of view."

📎 Gaza war unit tracking

🇵🇸 🇮🇱 🇮🇷 IDF estimates: Intensive combat in Gaza to continue until October 2024; war with Hezbollah to erupt by September at the latest.

⛺️ Approximately 1 million Palestinians removed from Rafah and relocated to internally displaced camps throughout Central & Southern Gaza. Roughly 300,000 remain in the area of Rafah.

🔶️ "The continuation of the war
According to IDF estimates, the fighting in the Gaza Strip will continue for another four months, during which time it will be possible to achieve most of the fighting's goals. Among the goals: reducing the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas, the return of the abducted, and the return of the residents to the settlements of the Western Negev in security and prosperity. The challenging phase will be the maneuvering the ground units throughout Rafah and locating the tunnels in the Philadelphia axis. Since the beginning of the war, dozens of special operations were carried out on the basis of intelligence gathered in the ground maneuver."

https://news.walla.co.il/item/3665238

https://www.inn.co.il/flashes/993555

🌐⚖️❌🇮🇱❗️ — Via its social media, on today May 20, 2024 AD, the International Criminal Court (ICC) seated in The Hague, Kingdom of Netherlands — and its prosecutor Karim A. A. Khan, announced applications for arrest warrants against the Prime-Minister of the State of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant in the context of the situation in the State of Palestine (i.e. the War in Gaza and West Bank)

On the Sentence, the International Criminal Court's Prosecutor says:

➡️ On the basis of evidence collected and examined by my Office, I have reasonable grounds to believe that Benjamin NETANYAHU, the Prime Minister of Israel, and Yoav GALLANT, the Minister of Defence of Israel, bear criminal responsibility for the following war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the territory of the State of Palestine (in the Gaza strip) from at least 8 October 2023:

🔴 Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(b)(xxv) of the Statute;
🔴 Wilfully causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or health contrary to article 8(2)(a)(iii), or cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);
🔴 Wilful killing contrary to article 8(2)(a)(i), or Murder as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);
🔴 Intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population as a war crime contrary to articles 8(2)(b)(i), or 8(2)(e)(i);
🔴 Extermination and/or murder contrary to articles 7(1)(b) and 7(1)(a), including in the context of deaths caused by starvation, as a crime against humanity;
🔴 Persecution as a crime against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(h);
🔴 Other inhumane acts as crimes against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(k).

🔗 Link
🔗 Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt)