The Daily Mirror British newspaper on Saturday published an open letter from 12 Holocaust survivors who say they are begging Israel to end the starving Palestinian children after famine was confirmed in Gaza by a body backed by the United Nations.
“As survivors of the Holocaust and Jews who escaped the Nazis we cannot remain silent as hunger and deprivation threaten the lives of civilians in Gaza,” said the signatories to the letter.
The 12 survivors then made an urgent plea to help the stricken enclave’s hungry. In their open letter, they “implore all those responsible to feed the vulnerable and prevent the starvation of Palestinians in Gaza.”
In their letter, they said, “We are not comparing Israel’s action in Gaza to the Nazi gas chambers. The murders of October 7th, when Jews were slaughtered in the land that promised refuge, horrified us and we understand Israel’s grief.”
They added, “We condemn Hamas for its genocidal goals, its taking of hostages, and its contempt for both Palestinian and Jewish lives. But our anger should not lead us to dehumanize those we fear, as we know where that can lead.”
The signatories to the letter noted that every human life - Jewish, Palestinian, or any other - has equal value.
“We support Israel’s right to defend its people. But that defense must not result in the slow death of Palestinian children from hunger. We know too well what it means to feel hunger, watch the young grow thin and weak and to see neighbors waste away,” they said.
The letter added, “We join with the Arab League and many governments in calling on Hamas to release all hostages immediately, to stop using civilians as shields and diverting aid. Only when its tyrannical rule over Gaza ends can Israelis and Palestinians live in safety.”
The 12 signatories also said they understand why trust between Israel and UN agencies in Gaza has been broken.
But they implored all parties not to allow this to stand in the way of finding an urgent solution to feed people.
“Today, the aid that enters Gaza is far too little. It is the weakest - children, the elderly, the disabled - who are most unable to reach help.
We call on everyone with power over the flow of food, water, medicine, and fuel into the Gaza Strip to act immediately and decisively to prevent famine and to protect civilians,” they wrote, also asking donor governments to fully fund the response and support independent monitoring so that aid reaches civilians swiftly.
They also implored all those responsible to feed the vulnerable and prevent the starvation of Palestinians in Gaza. “If you will not feed the hungry for any other reason, do it in our name. It is the lowest standard to which any of us should expect to be held,” the Holocaust survivors wrote.
