A few days ago, someone ordered a military strike on a humanitarian convoy in international waters. It wasn’t Iran. It wasn’t Russia. It wasn’t North Korea. It was Israel. The target was Conscience, a civilian vessel delivering aid to Gaza. The strike happened just 17 nautical miles off Malta. Hours earlier, an Israeli military aircraft had been operating near Maltese airspace.

Before the drones were even in the sky, Malta had already played its part. The government refused to let the vessel dock, citing a conveniently timed deregistration — a move that bore signs of Israeli pressure. The pretext was legal. The reality was political. We were told the ship didn’t exist on paper. But it certainly existed when it was lit up by drones.

This is what we’ve come to. A country that once championed the Palestinian cause now blocks food and medicine from reaching them — not out of caution, but cowardice.

Let’s Talk About October 7th

October 7th was horrifying. But to understand it, we must confront the context that produced it. Decades of blockade, occupation, land grabs and impunity have pushed Palestinians to a point where resistance was no longer a choice, but an inevitability.

None of this means civilian deaths should ever be excused. But neither should we pretend this began in a vacuum. International law recognises the right to resist occupation. Yet we treat any act of defiance — no matter how rooted in desperation — as savagery, while erasing the daily violence that provoked it.

The Real Face of Power

Israel is not defending itself. It is asserting dominance — with F-35s and nukes, surveillance tech and smear campaigns. It is a terrorist state by every meaningful definition. And now: drone strikes in the central Mediterranean.

This isn’t new. Mossad has operated here before. Israel doesn’t just defend its borders — it operates as if it has none. It surveils, stalks, silences and kills — then insists it’s the victim.

Its reach didn’t extend here. It was always here.

Europe: Bought And Paid For

We’ve seen what happens when you even question it. A Dutch Eurovision act was pulled out after an Israeli photographer accused him of misconduct. No charges. No investigation. Just an accusation — and he was gone.

In Germany, Arab protesters are routinely detained. In the Netherlands, pro-Palestine demonstrators are threatened by football hooligans flying Israeli flags. In New York, an Arab woman is verbally abused while police look on. Across the West, you’re cancelled, attacked or vilified simply for showing empathy toward Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israel continues to bomb hospitals, starve children and lie with impunity. Remember Shireen Abu Akleh? Shot in the head. First they denied it. Then blamed crossfire. Then changed their story again. No justice.

Remember the Al-Shifa hospital? First it was Islamic Jihad. Then a misfire. Then they flattened every hospital in Gaza just to make sure. And now: Red Crescent workers — medics — killed in cold blood. As if even the pretence of humanitarian protection no longer matters.

And still we debate.

Malta: From Neutral To Complicit

Malta’s betrayal is particularly pathetic. A country that once stood with the oppressed now hides behind technicalities and pretends it can’t see the smoke on the horizon.

And for what? To look grown-up in Brussels? To avoid being scolded by the ambassador from the Tel Aviv embassy?

We used to be one of the few EU countries with a consistent, unapologetic pro-Palestine position. Now we’ve joined the Germans and the rest of the suits Roberta Metsola likes to clink glasses with — the ones who talk about values while shovelling weapons into genocidal regimes.

She’ll smile on camera, run her little rat race through the corridors of Brussels, and tell us we’re “punching above our weight.” But what are we punching for, exactly? Malta is now known for two things: laundering money and helping war criminals.

Congratulations. We’re not bystanders anymore. We’re collaborators.

We’re being dragged online, rightly, for denying Conscience entry into port. Social media is full of footage, facts, fury — all aimed at us. The country that blocked a civilian aid ship. The country that kept quiet after a drone strike just off its coast. So much for fixing our reputation. We’ve gone from greylisting to red-listing.

When Does It End?

Moviment Graffitti has called for a protest today. And they’re right to. But at this point, we need more than slogans and marches. We need defiance.

They should organise a flotilla. One that leaves from Malta. One that sails in solidarity with those we’ve failed. One that shows this island hasn’t completely forgotten what it means to stand up for something.

Because the truth is this: Hamas isn’t the problem. We are. Us, the international community. Us, the EU. Us, Malta.

We who watch the bombs fall. We who call it complicated. We who say nothing while a ship called Conscience burns off our coast.

History is watching. What does it see?