Greta Thunberg blasts Israel 'genocide' as she claims direct climate change link
Greta Thunberg vows to keep speaking out against Israel as she claims it's directly linked to climate change
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Greta Thunberg has vowed to show solidarity with Palestinians as she continues her protest against climate change.
The 20-year-old activist said that the Israel-Hamas conflict is directly linked to climate change.
Writing in The Guardian, she denied that her protest movement, Fridays for Future Sweden, had "been radicalised."
She criticised the Israeli response to the October 7 attacks, saying that "genocide is not self-defence."
The 20 year old activist said that "silence is complicity"
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An open letter written by Thunberg and other climate activists said: "Despite these horrors, some have chosen to focus the public debate on attempts to delegitimise statements about Gaza made by young people in the climate justice movement.
"Contrary to what many have claimed, Fridays for Future has not 'been radicalised' or 'become political'.
"We have always been political, because we have always been a movement for justice. Standing in solidarity with Palestinians and all affected civilians has never been in question for us.
"Advocating for climate justice fundamentally comes from a place of caring about people and their human rights. That means speaking up when people suffer, are forced to flee their homes or are killed – regardless of the cause."
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She said she has a responsibility to distinguish between Hamas, Muslims and Palestinians; and between the state of Israel, Jewish people and Israelis.
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However, she stressed that the Fridays for Future groups are "autonomous" and the letter represents the views of only the Swedish branch.
The letter added: "Our solidarity with Palestine is no different, and we refuse to let the public focus shift away from the horrifying human suffering that Palestinians are currently facing.
"The horrific murders of Israeli civilians by Hamas cannot in any way legitimise Israel’s ongoing war crimes. Genocide is not self-defence, nor is it in any way a proportionate response.
"It also cannot be ignored that this comes within the broader context of Palestinians having lived under suffocating oppression for decades, in what Amnesty International has defined as an apartheid regime."
The letter also called out antisemitism and islamophobia, saying that: "Everyone speaking out on this crisis has a responsibility to distinguish between Hamas, Muslims and Palestinians; and between the state of Israel, Jewish people and Israelis.
"We grieve the lives lost over the past several weeks and are appalled by the fact that those numbers have been allowed to continue to rise.
"Demanding an end to this inexcusable violence is a question of basic humanity, and we call on everyone who can to do so.
"Silence is complicity. You cannot be neutral in an unfolding genocide."
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