First published on Internationalist Standpoint Website, November 5th 2023

“Bourgeois society stands at the crossroads, either transition to socialism or regression into barbarism.” Rosa Luxemburg, “The Junius Pamphlet” (also known as “The Crisis in German Social Democracy”), 1915.

On October 7^th, 2500 Hamas fighters streamed across gaps in the fence separating the Gaza Strip from Israel and headed in the direction of military installations, kibbutz, villages, and small towns. Within hours, over 1400 Israelis had been killed. How many of the dead were soldiers in uniform and how many civilians is unclear. Claim and counterclaim have swirled in the media and on social media. It is alleged that whole families were wiped out, that gruesome methods were used to kill babies and children, and that women were raped. The Israeli state has reasons to exaggerate events, and Hamas reasons to diminish, but whatever the exact numbers,it’s beyond doubt that there was deliberate targeting of civilians, and that some were killed by extremely brutal methods. Also, beyond doubt is that of the over 240people taken back to Gaza as captives most are non-combatants.