Humanitarian talk, business as usual: Western hypocrisy on Gaza

On Monday, 25 countries—including the UK, France, Italy, Japan, Australia, Canada, Denmark, and New Zealand—issued a joint statement urging an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end to Israeli atrocities.

However, trade data reveals that these same countries, which spoke in their statement of the “unprecedented depth of human suffering” in Gaza, remain some of Israel’s top economic partners.

According to data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), all the signatory countries engaged in extensive trade with Israel over the past year—through both imports and exports. These figures raise serious questions about the political and moral sincerity of these governments in the face of Gaza’s humanitarian catastrophe.

The infographic published by Al Jazeera illustrates the scale of exports and imports between these countries and Israel over the past year.

While these governments speak in international forums of the need for a ceasefire and an end to the violence, their economic ties with Israel have not only continued but, in some cases, even expanded.

From the sale of electronics, pharmaceuticals, and military equipment to the import of advanced technologies and consumer goods, Israel remains a reliable and valued trade partner for many of these states.

It appears that the humanitarian rhetoric and concern for Gaza’s civilian suffering have little weight when set against economic calculations. Such statements seem to serve more as tools for managing public opinion and domestic pressure, rather than reflecting any genuine political will to confront or restrain Israeli actions.