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British Comedian John Oliver Says Israel Committing Genocide, Building ‘Illegal and Immoral’ West Bank Settlements
John Oliver during the July 28, 2024, episode of his HBO show “Last Week Tonight.” Photo: Screenshot
British-American comedian and talk show host John Oliver accused Israel of perpetrating genocide and apartheid against Palestinians in not only Gaza but also the West Bank during Sunday night’s episode of his HBO talk show “Last Week Tonight.”
Roughly 12 minutes into the episode, which was titled “West Bank Settlements,” Oliver said he wanted to start talking about “Israel and Palestine.” He then devoted the rest of the episode to criticizing what he called Israel’s “occupation” of the West Bank and the “illegal” Israeli settlers living there who he claimed kicked Palestinians out of their homes. He supported claims of there being an apartheid regime over the West Bank, talked about “Palestinian displacement by Jewish settlers” and Israelis “building on stolen land,” and featured videos detailing hardships Palestinians face in the West Bank.
He also discussed the phrase “never again,” which was popularized after the Holocaust and has been used by Jews worldwide as a vow to prevent another genocide and not allow themselves to be victimized again like they were by the Nazis. While attempting to explain the phrase, Oliver accused Israel of perpetrating a genocide in the West Bank as well as in the Gaza Strip during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
“A phrase that gets brought up a lot with regard to Israel is ‘never again,’ an anti-genocide slogan often invoked in memory of the Holocaust and it has always been open to two interpretations,” Oliver said. “There’s the one that means this must never again happen to the Jewish people and the one that means this must never again happen to any people anywhere. And in the West Bank, as in Gaza right now, it’s pretty clear which one the Israeli government has favored, and especially as long as [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu is in power, he is clearly going to do what he and the worst people around him wants.”
During his mention of “the worst people” surrounding Netanyahu, an image appeared on the screen next to Oliver that showed Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Oliver went on to berate the United States for supporting Israel’s actions in the West Bank.
“The US doesn’t have to continue to abet that or cover for it,” he said. “We do have levers at our disposal here. We could put conditions on the billions of military aid we sent to Israel, we could stop vetoing UN Security Council resolutions critical of the Israeli government’s actions, which we’ve been doing for decades now, and we can say what is clear for everyone to see: these settlements aren’t just illegitimate or illegal, they’re immoral. And not only should we say that, we should act accordingly.”
Oliver also urged the US government to have the same “moral backbone” shown by the ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s.
In 2021, the Vermont-based ice cream maker announced that it would stop selling its products in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — areas it called “occupied Palestinian territories” — because it was “inconsistent” with the company’s values. Ben & Jerry’s is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the British conglomerate Unilever and in response to the announcement, Unilever sold the Ben & Jerry’s business in Israel to a local licensee, Avi Zinger, who has continued to oversee that the company’s ice cream is being sold in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Sunday night’s episode of “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” will be uploaded to YouTube on Aug. 1. Throughout the episode, Oliver repeatedly criticized Israel’s actions in the West Bank but failed to mention anything about the Palestinian Authority’s so-called “pay for slay program, which makes official payments to Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, the families of “martyrs” killed in attacks on Israelis, and injured Palestinian terrorists.
Oliver has previously supported calls for a ceasefire to end the Israel-Hamas war raging on in the Gaza Strip, which began following the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks in southern Israel.
The post British Comedian John Oliver Says Israel Committing Genocide, Building ‘Illegal and Immoral’ West Bank Settlements first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.