As Malta marks the anniversary of the Santa Maria convoy’s arrival in Grand Harbour, a pivotal moment in World War II that paved the way for the Allied invasion of Sicily and mainland Italy, President Myriam Spiteri Debono is right to draw a parallel with the plight of the besieged Palestinians in Gaza today.
Yes, we should always commemorate our heroes: the besieged, starving Maltese population that stood fast against the fascists, the allied armed forces, merchant seamen as well as our own artillery units. We should always remember the crucial moments in our history that explain who and what we are today.
But it is hard to ignore the collapse of the international order that was built from the ashes of the most destructive war in history that ended only 80 years ago.
A victory in a just war, as was the war against the Nazis, is never only about victory on the battlefield but the consequences. Defeating the Nazis meant freedom and prosperity for Western Europe, including Malta, under the protective embrace of the imperfect international order that emerged post 1945. The collapse of the USSR 50 years later brought that prosperity and freedom to Eastern Europe too, at least until Russia invaded Ukraine.
This is what we are really celebrating: our own freedom and prosperity only rendered possible, for a tiny country like ours, by peace and the international order that we take for granted.
The Palestinians in Gaza, a territory only 15% bigger than Malta, have no such solace.
In Gaza, the international order has collapsed completely in the face of Israel’s siege that has brought famine to over two million people. It is estimated that since the start of the war triggered by the Hamas massacre of October 7, 2023, Palestinians in Gaza have lost 35 years of their life expectancy as a result of being killed in such large numbers. This is a steeper drop than experienced by Rwandans at the height of the genocide in their country.
Only three things can stop Israel from killing Palestinians with immediate effect. Firstly, the collapse of the rickety and deeply unpopular coalition government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which looks unlikely. Secondly, the full acceptance by what is left of Hamas of the US and Israeli conditions for ending the war, which also looks unlikely. And third, pressure from the US, which would end the war in a day. This also looks unlikely.
It is striking that nowhere is the EU mentioned. The harsh truth is because there is little Europe can do to end the war within a day, which is what is needed when famine stalks Gaza.
The EU still does not wield its most powerful means to pressure Israel, including sanctions and the suspension of the EU-Israel Associate Agreement. Israel can easily withstand such pressure for a long time. Arms exports to Israel from countries such as Germany, which supplied 30% of Israeli arms imports, are only now being restricted to a significant extent.
As we rightly celebrate the Santa Marija convoy that saved us in 1942 and laid the foundations of the safe, independent, imperfect country we are today, spare a thought for Gaza’s people. They are dying. Those who have failed them have but a fast-vanishing window of opportunity to act decisively before it’s too late.
President Spiteri Debono’s decision to use a historical commemoration to remind us of Gaza’s agony was both courageous and necessary.
We all need to find our voice to speak against the untold horror happening right across the Mediterranean.