The Jordanian royal lambasted the violent occupier for its “unthinkable” targeting of Palestinian soft targets – such as its houses of worship.  

At the Middle East’s first-ever Web Summit held in Qatar, Queen Rania of Jordan delivered a special address to conclude day one of the event.

Her address began by highlighting the role new digital technologies play in allowing people to understand the world.

“Every selfie, status update, photo and video we share adds a few more lines to the story that we are constantly writing and rewriting about ourselves,” the Jordanian royal said.

She added that some stories fade into the background of the social media landscape and become forgotten – especially that of the Palestinian cause.

“The story of Palestine, whose people have been pushed out of sight and out of mind.  For too long, Palestinians have been dehumanised and discredited – turned into a people unto whom anything can be done without consequence,” she said.

Since Israel renewed its brutal assault on the Gaza Strip on October 7, the Gaza Health Ministry has reported that over 29,000 Palestinians have been killed by the aggressor’s shelling.

Worse yet, and described by the Jordanian queen as “unthinkable,” Israel has bombarded the enclave’s soft targets. At least 184 mosques in Gaza have been destroyed, as well as at least three churches, the United Nations’ humanitarian office (UN OCHA) reports.

Queen Rania added that this harrowing story goes far beyond October 7. “The Balfour Declaration, the ethnic cleansing of the Nakba and the decades of displacement, dispossession and illegal military occupation that have followed and continue to this day,” she said.

To this end, she insisted that there needs to be a lasting cessation of hostilities to end this brutal cycle.

“The war must end now,” she declared to the Web Summit Qatar audience. She further hoped that international symbols of solidarity with the Palestinian cause, from London to Madrid, don’t fade away into the digital archives as a mere passing trend.

Instead, quoting the late Martin Luther King, Queen Rania said that change can only come through continuous struggle.