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Afghanistan and Gaza: Tragedy and Farce

Karl Marx. Photo: public domain.

JNS.orgKeen-eyed readers of this column will know that I am fond of occasionally quoting Karl Marx’s observation that history repeats itself, “the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.” In those lines originally published in 1852, Marx was referring to the coup in France the previous year carried out by Louis Napoleon, nephew of the far better-known Napoleon Bonaparte. But since then, his aphorism has been applied in many contexts where current events echo the past.

Looking at recent developments in Afghanistan, I was again reminded of Marx’s quote. When the Taliban first seized power in that shattered country in 1996, that was undoubtedly a tragedy; first for the Afghan people, yet again denied the opportunity to nurture a democratic polity, and later for the United States and the rest of the world. The terrorist atrocities of Sept. 11, 2001, in the United States—the 23rd anniversary of which was solemnly marked last week—were incubated in Afghanistan after the Taliban provided Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda with a haven there. That terrible atrocity right at the turn of the millennium turned history on a different course, setting up an epic battle between Western liberal democracy, with its emphasis on pluralism and individual rights, and an Islamist form of totalitarianism that sought to crush anything and everything in its path it deemed to be a deviation from its vision.

Wars duly followed, in Afghanistan and then Iraq, and existing and new threats, especially from the Islamic Republic of Iran, deepened at just the time that Western publics grew tired of foreign interventions and foreign wars, setting the stage for a revival of both left-wing anti-imperialism and right-wing isolationism. Finally, in 2021, amid the disastrous American withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Taliban returned to power, in a heartbreaking confirmation that the previous 20 years had been a colossal waste of blood and money.

That, too, was a tragedy—and yet, there are elements of farce here that suggest, at least to my mind, that history can repeat itself as both tragedy and farce simultaneously.

As the 20th century gave way to the 21st, only a few regional specialists and policy wonks grasped the grave threat posed by the Taliban. The rest of us were shaken from our slumber when those passenger planes careened into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania. Twenty years later, with a new generation coming of age, we stopped caring and just wanted out. All that was and is a tragedy, and the restoration of the Taliban is the most tragic aspect of all. But where is the farce?

That can be summarized in one word: Gaza. For all the incompetence and corruption of their leaders, the Palestinians have long been adept at exploiting guilt over colonialism and the long tradition of antisemitism in Western countries, even as large numbers of them thumb their noses at the values our civilizations represent, from the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 massacre, when many danced in the streets and handed out candy in celebration, to the pogrom of Oct. 7 last year, when Hamas and allied terrorist groups murdered, raped and kidnapped their way through southern Israel. The result? As pro-Israel advocates on social media constantly point out, seemingly to no avail, our streets are empty of protesters when blood is shed in Ukraine or Sudan or, indeed, Afghanistan, but as soon as an Israel Defense Forces missile strikes a Hamas command center in Gaza City or Rafah, they pour out like rats from a sewer. Therein lies the farce.

This is why the pro-Hamas movement has to be understood as being about far more than Israelis and Palestinians. The fixation with Palestine is one major reason why Western publics remain largely indifferent to, and even contemptuous of, the suffering of non-Palestinians. And perhaps no current situation illustrates that point better than Afghanistan.

Three weeks before this year’s Sept. 11 commemorations, the Taliban introduced its “Law on the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.” Its primary targets are women, who are forbidden from going to work or to school; who can only use public transport when accompanied by a male chaperone; and who must fully cover their faces and bodies when in public. Most sickeningly of all, Afghan women are now banned—on pain of imprisonment or execution—from speaking in public spaces. To call these measures “medieval” is to do an injustice to the medieval period.

There are no protests of any significance. The millions of people who have attended pro-Hamas demonstrations around the world don’t give a damn. In Western policy circles, the Taliban’s monstrous law is barely discussed; when Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris tussled over the U.S. record in Afghanistan during their presidential debate on Sept. 10, neither thought to mention it. At the U.N. Security Council, all that was mustered was a statement of condemnation—and even that wasn’t unanimous, backed as it was by 12 of the council’s 15 members. It’s no accident that the three countries who opposed the statement—permanent members Russia and China, and non-permanent member Algeria – are all firmly aligned with Iran and its proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas.

And so you wonder in vain whether the “freaking trust fund babies” at Columbia University and other campuses—to cite the unforgettable description of a labor union official whose hard-working members were intimidated and harassed by the keffiyeh mob last semester—will ever speak up for Afghan women (they won’t). You wonder in vain whether the secretary-general of the United Nations, who condemns Israel on a daily basis, will find time to condemn the systemic abuse of the same with similar urgency and frequency. You wonder in vain why a Hamas rapist who gets what he deserves is reinvented as an innocent civilian murdered in a “genocide,” while women in Afghanistan are transformed into chattels and slaves, and the silence around that—like the silence enforced upon them—is deafening. You wonder in vain why we tolerate a world in which morality is skewed so abominably. And then you realize: Wherever tragedy rears its head, farce is not far behind.

The post Afghanistan and Gaza: Tragedy and Farce first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Israel Says Missile Launched by Yemen’s Houthis ‘Most Likely’ Intercepted

Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

The Israeli army said on Saturday that a missile fired from Yemen towards Israeli territory had been “most likely successfully intercepted,” while Yemen’s Houthi forces claimed responsibility for the launch.

Israel has threatened Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement – which has been attacking Israel in what it says is solidarity with Gaza – with a naval and air blockade if its attacks on Israel persist.

The Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group was responsible for Saturday’s attack, adding that it fired a missile towards the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.

Since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023, the Houthis, who control most of Yemen, have been firing at Israel and at shipping in the Red Sea, disrupting global trade.

Most of the dozens of missiles and drones they have launched have been intercepted or fallen short. Israel has carried out a series of retaliatory strikes.

The post Israel Says Missile Launched by Yemen’s Houthis ‘Most Likely’ Intercepted first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Iran Holds Funeral for Commanders and Scientists Killed in War with Israel

People attend the funeral procession of Iranian military commanders, nuclear scientists and others killed in Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 28, 2025. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

Large crowds of mourners dressed in black lined streets in Iran’s capital Tehran as the country held a funeral on Saturday for top military commanders, nuclear scientists and some of the civilians killed during this month’s aerial war with Israel.

At least 16 scientists and 10 senior commanders were among those mourned at the funeral, according to state media, including armed forces chief Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Revolutionary Guards commander General Hossein Salami, and Guards Aerospace Force chief General Amir Ali Hajizadeh.

Their coffins were driven into Tehran’s Azadi Square adorned with their photos and national flags, as crowds waved flags and some reached out to touch the caskets and throw rose petals onto them. State-run Press TV showed an image of ballistic missiles on display.

Mass prayers were later held in the square.

State TV said the funeral, dubbed the “procession of the Martyrs of Power,” was held for a total of 60 people killed in the war, including four women and four children.

In attendance were President Masoud Pezeshkian and other senior figures including Ali Shamkhani, who was seriously wounded during the conflict and is an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as Khamenei’s son Mojtaba.

“Today, Iranians, through heroic resistance against two regimes armed with nuclear weapons, protected their honor and dignity, and look to the future prouder, more dignified, and more resolute than ever,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who also attended the funeral, said in a Telegram post.

There was no immediate statement from Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since the conflict began. In past funerals, he led prayers over the coffins of senior commanders ahead of public ceremonies broadcast on state television.

Israel launched the air war on June 13, attacking Iranian nuclear facilities and killing top military commanders as well as civilians in the worst blow to the Islamic Republic since the 1980s war with Iraq.

Iran retaliated with barrages of missiles on Israeli military sites, infrastructure and cities. The United States entered the war on June 22 with strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

TRUMP THREAT

Israel, the only Middle Eastern country widely believed to have nuclear weapons, said it aimed to prevent Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons.

Iran denies having a nuclear weapons program. The U.N. nuclear watchdog has said it has “no credible indication” of an active, coordinated weapons program in Iran.

Bagheri, Salami and Hajizadeh were killed on June 13, the first day of the war. Bagheri was being buried at the Behesht Zahra cemetery outside Tehran mid-afternoon on Saturday. Salami and Hajizadeh were due to be buried on Sunday.

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would consider bombing Iran again, while Khamenei, who has appeared in two pre-recorded video messages since the start of the war, has said Iran would respond to any future US attack by striking US military bases in the Middle East.

A senior Israeli military official said on Friday that Israel had delivered a “major blow” to Iran’s nuclear project. On Saturday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said in a statement that Israel and the US “failed to achieve their stated objectives” in the war.

According to Iranian health ministry figures, 610 people were killed on the Iranian side in the war before a ceasefire went into effect on Tuesday. More than 4,700 were injured.

Activist news agency HRANA put the number of killed at 974, including 387 civilians.

Israel’s health ministry said 28 were killed in Israel and 3,238 injured.

The post Iran Holds Funeral for Commanders and Scientists Killed in War with Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Pro-Palestinian Rapper Leads ‘Death to the IDF’ Chant at English Music festival

Revellers dance as Avril Lavigne performs on the Other Stage during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm, in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 30, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

i24 NewsChants of “death to the IDF” were heard during the English Glastonbury music festival on Saturday ahead of the appearance of the pro-Palestinian Irish rappers Kneecap.

One half of punk duo based Bob Vylan (who both use aliases to protect their privacy) shouted out during a section of their show “Death to the IDF” – the Israeli military. Videos posted on X (formerly Twitter) show the crowd responding to and repeating the cheer.

This comes after officials had petitioned the music festival to drop the band. The rap duo also expressed support for the following act, Kneecap, who the BCC refused to show live after one of its members, Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh – better known by stage name Mo Chara – was charged with a terror offense.

The post Pro-Palestinian Rapper Leads ‘Death to the IDF’ Chant at English Music festival first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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