Another way to put this is to facilitate ethnic cleansing in line with a published plan from the Israeli thank-tanks.
I think people "supporting the Palestinian cause" are primarily concerned with the entity that carried out the ethnic cleansing, the occupation, set up an Apartheid state, and killed some tens of thousands of Palestinians over the years, and the prime diplomatic backer of that country.
Somewhat similarly, it was Germany and not the US that did the Holocaust, even though the US' immigration policies were awful.
You can be primarily concerned with Israel and the actions of the Israeli state and still be of the opinion that other countries have a morale obligation to aid and support the Palestinian people and provide them with refuge, if they choose to accept it. These things in no way at all exclude each other. They can be true at the very same time. The same way I am obviously primarily concerned with Germany's part in the Holocaust and still believe that the international community failed, to provide millions of people with aid and refuge. Two bad things can exist at the same time. A very bad and a not so bad thing can exist at the same time. I can be critically of the actions of Israel and still believe that every country, but especially the neighboring ones, need to provide aid and shelter to the victims of the war. And it doesn't matter what Israeli think tanks want or plan for the point to stand. People under occupation, people living through war, always need to be provided with an opportunity to flee. And it should be their decision, not mine and not yours, to decide if they do so or not. And if someone believes fleeing would just mean doing what Israel wants and they decide to stay, that is their decision and I respect that. Same if they decide to flee. You and others on the other hand are making this decision for them. And there is no scenario in which this will ever even get close to being ok for me. And it is especially baffling if you are calling the actions undertaken by Israel "ethnic cleansing" and therefore think the best way to deal with this (other than making Israel stop, which I would love but don't see happening) is to basically force them to undergo this ethnic cleansing. Or force them to fight it.
So to make this short, I absolutely understand the intentions of Israel. I absolutely understand that they are the reason or at least the very main reason why the Palestinians live under the conditions they do. But this in no way justifies a way of thinking where other countries don't have the very same responsibility they have in every single conflict there is: to provide aid and refuge. And it doesn't change that the only people who are to decide whether it is right or wrong to accept this, are the ones affected by what is happening. So please stop this tiresome repetition of the very same argument multiple people have made before you. I understand it. I still disagree. It is the Palestinians choice. Everyone else merely has the duty to provide them with this choice. That doesn't negate the necessity to work towards an improvement of the situation, to work towards peace and so. But currently we do not have peace. Currently we have war and a humanitarian crisis. So we have to provide aid. Every Palestinian wanting to flee this humanitarian crisis needs to be provided with an opportunity to do so. As easily as possible. Period. I don't care the slightest bit if some Israeli think tank is happy with that decision. I care about the lives that can be saved this way.
I think threat to employment can be a powerful motivator in keeping certain viewpoints out of media discourse. For example,
As part of its charter, Axel Springer maintains five “
essentials.” These include standing up for “freedom, the rule of law, democracy and a united Europe”; supporting “the Jewish people and the right of existence of the State of Israel”; advocating “the transatlantic alliance between the United States of America and Europe”; upholding “the principles of the market economy and its social responsibility”; and rejecting “political and religious extremism and all forms of racism and sexual discrimination.”
On Sept. 1, Germany’s international broadcaster, Deutsche Welle (DW) updated its
Code of Conduct to require all employees, when speaking either on behalf of the organization or in a personal capacity, to “support the right of Israel to exist” or face consequences, such as dismissal.
These mean there can be no discussion on the fundamentals of an apartheid state. And, in practice, we see:
https://theintercept.com/2023/10/26/axel-springer-fires-employee-israel/
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022...palestinian-ex-dw-journalist-sacking-unlawful
https://electronicintifada.net/blog...red-palestinian-journalist-german-court-rules
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/2...eaceful-west-bank-protest-against-occupation/
https://www.972mag.com/dw-code-israel-free-speech/
(Hey, it looks like all of those fired are from minority backgrounds --- nothing to see here!)
I think the threat of deportation can also be a big motivator in reducing public discourse. For example:
https://www.news.com.au/world/europ...s/news-story/362a13b1fb137219be982ea58ad4908f
https://www.972mag.com/abdulnasser-samidoun-germany-palestinian-refugees/
https://www.aljazeera.com/features/...rities-accused-of-anti-palestinian-repression
This is more in line with the broader points I already said I share. The issues exist and I didn't deny their existence. So I don't really get your point here. My point merely was that there is nothing at all prohibiting people from reporting otherwise. It still stands. It is not illegal. That huge parts of German media are biased towards Israel is something I have already agreed with. I am also aware of Axel Springer's policy in this regard. And if you knew me and my personal stands towards the shitshow that is Axel Springer, you wouldn't make this argument. Because you would find that I'm already in agreement.
But, and this is what matters, nothing is stopping you from publishing your own opinions on the matter. And it is happening in German media. And in mainstream media. The headline in the Tagesschau app right now is a story focusing on the struggles of Palestinians in Gaza. About people trying to provide humanitarian aid and being endangered because of this. This is one of the biggest news sources in the country, likely the most trusted one and publicly financed. The dismissals you mentioned are all being reported on. At times from German language publications being led by people with Palestinian roots. So not only are you free to report on these things, there are actually Palestinian publications working from Germany.
To make my point clear. I am mostly in agreement with you. As I have been with the poster I have quoted before. What I am disagreeing with, however, is the notion that it is illegal or prohibited to report on certain things. The statement I took issue with was this "[...] aren’t allowed to say anything even slightly negative about Israel or show any sympathy for the Palestine people". This is factually not true. Especially the latter part. I can just open my Tagesschau app and read the main story there, portraying the struggle of Palestinian people. That's literally a story showing sympathy with Palestinian people.
The thing that irks me about all this is this: I actually believe that German society needs to have a debate about our relationship with Israel, how our past plays into this and about how we portray this conflict. I have been of the opinion (and have so for years) that Palestinians often don't get a fair portrayal in our media. And I believe that there actually is a tendency to let Israel get away with things other nations couldn't.
But I also believe that we of all countries also have an obligation and responsibility towards Jewish people and their struggles. And I believe it is a good thing for our society and its institutions to be sensible and careful in regards to anything related to the matter. And this very difficult situation, that I often feel people on here and in other places don't care to understand, especially when things are as emotional as right now, require for the discourse to be accordingly. Which to me means that the criticism we voice and the points we raise need to be factual and true. That we need to present them in a sensible and fair manner. Because antisemitism also exists and anti-semites love using opportunities like this to amplify their views. So we must ensure that we don't resort to exaggeration and misinformation. Because this makes it easier for those acting with sinister motifs, who actually support genocide, who actually hold racist believes towards muslims and so on and on, to get the upper hand in this debate. The more wrong points are being raised, the easier it gets for them to paint the fair ones as part of the same picture. So when people claim that German news aren't allowed to report certain things, this pisses me of. Because not only is this not true, but it makes it much more difficult to argue valid criticism, like the one you provided. It helps the "other" side. It makes it incredibly easy to portray criticism towards Israel as a bunch of made up nonsense. Which is precisely what is happening right now and has been happening for years. And as long as people don't get this, nothing will ever change.