The National Interest Foundation Newsletter

Happy New Year to Our Readers and Subscribers!

Issue 267, January 3, 2025

Welcome to our NIF Newsletter. We hope that everyone had a wonderful New Year. In this week’s edition, we examine the condemnation of Israel’s attack on the last functioning hospital in besieged northern Gaza, provide insight regarding Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter’s legacy as a human rights and social justice advocate, and look into some of the latest developments in Syria as a delegation led by the newly-appointed foreign minister traveled to Saudi Arabia for its first official trip abroad since the ousting of Assad.

Editor: Bassam Tarbush

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Condemnation of Israel’s Attack on the Last Functioning Hospital in Besieged Northern Gaza

Condemnation of Israel’s Attack on the Last Functioning Hospital in Besieged Northern Gaza

Israel has recently elicited appropriate condemnation for its attack on the last major functioning health facility in northern Gaza. The World Health Organization (WHO) denounced the raid against Kamal Adwan Hospital, in which Israeli forces stormed the hospital, set it on fire, and forcibly removed patients and staff from the facility. Regrettably, this is all part of a consistent pattern of deadly Israeli attacks on hospitals and medical facilities since the onset of the Gaza War nearly 15 months ago – something that human rights groups have documented and sought to draw attention to. In fact, a newly released report by the UN Human Rights Office has outlined Israel’s systematic targeting of hospitals and other medical facilities in Gaza, stating that these attacks have pushed the enclave’s healthcare system to the brink of total collapse while also raising serious concerns regarding war crimes and crimes against humanity. The report details the pattern in which Israeli forces have besieged hospitals, and documents the hundreds of strikes that have been carried out between October of 2023 and June of 2024 alone.

Medical personnel, hospitals, and patients are meant to be distinctly protected under international humanitarian law. Thus, as human rights organizations have pointed out, intentionally directing attacks against these sites amounts to egregious war crimes. Additionally, the deliberate destruction of medical and healthcare facilities can be deemed a form of collective punishment against the civilian population, which itself equates to a war crime as well. The Israeli attacks on hospitals have also prevented patients with traumatic injuries from receiving the necessary life-saving treatment that they require, resulting in many dying while waiting to be treated. UN humanitarian officials alluded to how the one sanctuary where civilians should feel safe amid Israel’s relentless bombing in Gaza has instead become a death trap, which is abhorrent considering that the protection of hospitals during warfare is paramount and should be respected at all times. As such, Israel’s conduct represents a blatant disregard for the standards of international law.

The recent report about Israel’s attacks against medical facilities in Gaza demonstrates the clear pattern that has existed since the onset of the Gaza War back in October of 2023. As it points out, the latest appalling destruction of Kamal Adwan Hospital and the surrounding area is far from an anomaly and on the contrary, reflects a “pattern of attacks” that started with Israel’s first military operation against the Al-Shifa Medical Complex shortly after the outbreak of the conflict. This and a subsequent later raid of Al-Shifa left it in complete ruin, with humanitarian officials reporting the discovery of mass graves which contained corpses of hospital patients. When it receives condemnation for its attacks against medical and civilian infrastructure, Israel has a track record of claiming that the buildings are used by militants, however, the report states that there is insufficient information to substantiate these accusations and that conversely, it is often even contradicted by information that is publicly available.

As we head into 2025 and the Gaza War approaches its 15-month marker, many civilians continue to suffer from the dire humanitarian toll that the conflict has brought about. Aid agencies have warned that the humanitarian conditions are likely to worsen with the arrival of the colder winter months, as the nearly 2 million people displaced by the war are left with little protection from the harsh elements. Meanwhile, recent water quality surveillance has found alarming rates of contamination in addition to poor sanitation and hygiene conditions among the displacement sites in Gaza. The United Nations has cautioned that humanitarian aid remains severely inadequate, resulting in widespread and dangerous malnutrition levels, particularly for women and children – a deplorable more than 96% of whom cannot meet their basic nutritional needs.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter’s Legacy as a Human Rights and Social Justice Advocate

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter’s Legacy as a Human Rights and Social Justice Advocate

Earlier this week on Sunday, Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter passed away at the age of 100. To most, the 39th president is remembered for far more than his four years in the White House, having created a remarkable post-presidential legacy as a tireless champion of human rights, democracy, peace, and social justice. For decades following his time in the White House, Carter sought to advocate for human rights and draw attention to an array of societal injustices. Shortly after his unsuccessful attempt to win a second term as president, he founded The Carter Center in 1982 with the aim of advancing human rights, peaceful conflict mediation, and democratic institution-building, culminating in Carter receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work to “find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” Through his efforts, The Carter Center became a global authority in election monitoring, and the former president was also recognized for his charitable contributions as well with various philanthropic organizations like Habitat for Humanity. During his time in the White House, one of Former U.S. President Carter’s most notable foreign policy achievements was his brokering of the 1978 Camp David Accords between then-Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and then-Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin – which jointly garnered the two leaders the Nobel Peace Prize that same year.

In his efforts to advocate on behalf of important human rights and social justice-related issues, Former President Carter helped raise awareness regarding Israel’s discriminatory policies towards Palestinians and the harmful role that they play in perpetuating injustice. He published a groundbreaking book titled Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid (2006) in which he argued that Israel’s apartheid policies depriving Palestinians of basic human rights have been the main obstacles to a fair and comprehensive resolution to the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. One of the former president’s major stated aims with the book was to shed light – for the American public and the global public at-large – on the egregious oppression and persecution of the Palestinian people in the hopes that it would prompt substantive debate on the issue. Former President Carter lamented the severe restraints which inhibit free and balanced discussion regarding the facts surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and was critical of the harmful role that the pro-Israel lobby played in suppressing voices which are merely trying to speak out in defense of justice and human rights for Palestinians.

Observers have noted that Carter had quite possibly the most extraordinary post-presidency of any former American president. Through his work with The Carter Center beginning in the 1980s, the ex-president not only successfully tackled diplomatic issues, but he also addressed humanitarian challenges including the fight against deadly diseases. In fact, his organization is credited with helping to almost entirely eradicate human cases of the parasitic infection, Guinea worm disease, and is considered one of the foremost entities in the field of disease eradication. All told, the former president led more than one hundred trips to dozens of countries all over the world during the preceding decades in order to observe the organization’s health and humanitarian projects, and to monitor elections, broker peace agreements, and take part in negotiations.

In the aftermath of Former U.S. President Carter’s passing, Incumbent President Biden directed that January 9th be a National Day of Mourning and announced that all federal government offices would be closed on that day as a show of respect for the 39th president. Biden also bestowed a multi-day state funeral for the deceased president which will begin on Saturday and include a national funeral service on the morning of January 9th. It is expected that Carter’s funeral will be attended by all five living U.S. presidents.

Syrian Delegation Travels to Saudi Arabia for Its First Official Trip Abroad Since the Ousting of Assad

Syrian Delegation Travels to Saudi Arabia for Its First Official Trip Abroad Since the Ousting of Assad

This week, a Syrian delegation led by newly-appointed Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani traveled to Saudi Arabia for its first official visit abroad since the toppling of the Assad regime last month. Al-Shaibani was appointed foreign minister back on December 21st by Syria’s interim government, and the delegation also included Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra. Saudi officials relayed discussing how to best support Syria’s ongoing political transition, while Al-Shaibani himself called for the lifting of all sanctions on Syria and outlined the new administration’s plans for the country’s future. The visit was organized at the invitation of Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, with Al-Shaibani highlighting it as a critical opportunity to establish stronger relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia in various aspects.

Previously, Saudi Arabia had severed ties with the Assad regime early during the Syrian civil war, however, in May of 2023, Riyadh normalized relations and was a key figure in ending Syria’s regional isolation and paving the way for its return to the Arab League under Assad. Now, following the ousting of the Assad regime, it is believed that Syria’s new leadership is eager for Saudi investment in an effort to help rebuild the country’s infrastructure which has been decimated by more than a decade of war. Experts have also pointed to how the swift and surprising toppling of Assad has presented Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations with an opportunity to try and fill the void by developing close ties with the new government in Damascus. Furthermore, Syria’s new administration brings with it potential economic gains for other countries to engage in its post-conflict rebuilding – something that is certainly a factor in Gulf states’ assessments for the benefits of involvement in this process. With Syria’s infrastructure in major need of revamping, Saudi Arabia and others stand to profit from playing a role in its reconstruction efforts and are likely to use it as a means of seeking to hold sway over the country’s future.

In addition to the delegation of Syrian officials’ first diplomatic trip to Saudi Arabia, European ministers have also recently traveled to Syria in an attempt to strengthen ties with the new government. Top diplomats from Germany and France visited Damascus on behalf of the European Union in the latest show of outreach towards the new administration in Syria. Both the French and German foreign ministers met with Syrian officials this week, merely some of the latest efforts from various countries to begin forging ties with the new Syrian leadership. The visiting ministers expressed their support for a peaceful and inclusive transition in Syria, and made a stop at Sednaya Prison – touring the cells and underground dungeons of the facility where Assad regime officials committed atrocities against Syrian dissidents and opponents. Just a couple of weeks ago in late December, U.S. officials also met with their Syrian counterparts in Damascus, which included Syria’s de-facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa. U.S. diplomats came out of the gathering describing it as a “good” and “very productive” meeting with him regarding Syria’s political transition.

So far, the new Syrian administration has appointed officials to oversee the political transition, and has stated its intent to establish a caretaker government in consultation with Syrians of all backgrounds, as well as a committee to draft a new Syrian constitution.