Jordanian Queen angered at “double standards” over Gaza attack
In a recent interview, Jordan’s Queen Rania was angered at what she sees as a lack of condemnation of Israeli attacks on Gaza, according to CNN.
The Jordanian Queen is King Abdullah II’s wife and is one of the world’s 100 most powerful women according to American business magazine Forbes.
The queen said in the interview aired on CNN on October 25, “The people all around the Middle East, including in Jordan, we are just shocked and disappointed by the world’s reaction to this catastrophe that is unfolding. In the last couple of weeks, we have seen a glaring double standard in the world.”
Her criticism was particularly aimed at Western leaders who she says have reacted differently to Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel’s massacre in Gaza that have killed over 5,000 Palestinians.
Israel have been ruthless in their retaliation in what are the most brutal scenes to descend on Gaza in over a decade.
The royal, who was born to Palestinian parents in Kuwait, added, “The people all around the Middle East, including in Jordan, we are just shocked and disappointed by the world’s reaction to this catastrophe that is unfolding. In the last couple of weeks, we have seen a glaring double standard in the world.”.
Not only was she disappointed by the reaction to the assault on Gaza, but she also claimed that there is “silence” around the globe regarding it.
The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke of the “epic suffering” in the Palestinian territory and pointed to Israel’s clear breaches of international law.
On October 18, the United States, a strong ally of Israel, vetoed a UN Security Council resolution calling for a pause in the Israel-Gaza conflict, stating that the text did not consider Israel’s right to self defence whilst the UK and Russia abstained.
Queen Rania was challenged by CNN journalist Christiane Amanpour after she said, “This is a 75-year-old story; a story of overwhelming death and displacement to the Palestinian people. It is a story of an occupation under an apartheid regime”, in response, the royal pointed to evidence from human rights organisations who have put Israel under the limelight for their repeated mistreatment of Palestinians.
CNN themselves landed in hot water for their coverage of the ongoing conflict. On October 11, Sara Sidner, a journalist at the broadcaster apologised on X (formerly Twitter) for baselessly claiming that Hamas beheaded babies during the October 7 attack.
A day after Sidner’s remarks, CNN published an article justifying their gaffe.
CNN
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