While Ads Made By The Israeli Government Aired During The Super Bowl, Palestine Was Attacked
Early Monday morning in Palestine, over 70 Palestinians were killed by Israeli attacks in Rafah.
More than half of Palestine’s population, 1.5 million people, live in Rafah — the overwhelming majority of them displaced by the violence elsewhere in Palestine into the overcrowded city. Israel had previously designated the city of Rafah as a “safe space,” meaning that Palestinians now have nowhere to go to escape the conflict.
At least 600,000 of Rafah's population are children. The death toll of Palestinians is estimated to be over 28,000 since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7.
The US has given Israel over $130 billion in military aid over the years. Most of Israel's weapons imports come from the US.
The attacks occurred at the same time as the Super Bowl in the US, and as images from Rafah hit people’s timelines, the hashtag #SuperBowlMassacre started trending online.
What's more, the Super Bowl featured adverts made by the Israeli government. Given the timing of the events, many have suggested that the two are now historically linked, with others noting the dissonance that came from scrolling through social media during both events.
Facts about the ongoing conflict are extremely hard to verify, but here's an approximate timeline of what transpired:
2:30 p.m. EST/9:30 p.m. Israel
News hits that President Biden told the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that "a military operation in Rafah should not proceed without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the more than 1 million people sheltering there."
6:30 p.m. EST/1:30 a.m. Israel
The Super Bowl begins.
6:49 p.m. EST/1:49 a.m. Israel:
According to the Israeli Defense Forces, this is when Israeli special forces entered a building to rescue two hostages.
6:50 p.m. EST/1:50 a.m. Israel
Again, according to the IDF, this is when "joint attacks by the air force and the southern command" of the IDF began in Rafah. They claim it had been planned for "a long time" and that they waited "for the right conditions." They further called it a "precise fire envelope" that was done "in order to be able to be rescue the hostages and hit Hamas terrorists."
Approximately between 6–8 p.m. EST/1–3 a.m. Israel
An advert made by the Israeli government airs. It urges people to "#BRINGALLDADSBACKHOME," referring to the hostages held by Hamas. It costs around $7 million for the ad to air.
7 p.m. EST/2 a.m. Israel
According to Ziad Obeid, a person who had fled to Rafah, he was woken by explosions that made it seem “as if we were in the middle of the day, not the night.” He further told the New York Times: “It was a horrible night.”
Between 6–8 p.m. EST/1–3 a.m. Israel
Around 9:40 p.m. EST/4:40 a.m. Israel
Reuters reports on the strikes. "I've been collecting my family's body parts since the morning," Ibrahim Hassouna, a man who fled Northern Gaza, told the news wire. He said that his family were two miles away from where the IDF claimed they focussed their attacks. "We have nothing to do with anything. Why did you bomb us?"
10:50 p.m. EST/5:50 a.m. Israel
this is an actual tweet from the actual twitter account of the actual president of the united states. posted during the bombing of the last “safe” space in Gaza—bombing funded by US dollars—while an Israeli propaganda ad was aired to millions of americans watching the superbowl https://t.co/FJUbLUTZHE
— grammy award-winning album this is why (@_lesbiannie_) February 12, 2024
Biden tweets a picture seemingly poking fun at conspiracies suggesting the Super Bowl win was rigged. However, given the timing with the attacks and violent imagery now circulating, some criticized the post — captioned “Just like we drew it up” — as insensitive.
Wild thing to post as Israel is committing a massacre right now
— Revolutionary Blackout Network🥋 (@SocialistMMA) February 12, 2024
Monday: #SuperBowlMassacre trends on X.
i can’t believe we are supposed to be afraid to denounce the country that aired a super bowl ad while bombing the starving people crowded in the tiny “safe zone” they’re occupying.
— sarah hagi (@KindaHagi) February 12, 2024
People criticize the attacks, especially given the timing.
Monday p.m.
Guy Smallman / Getty Images, Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images
In London, New York, and elsewhere, protests are held.
Tuesday a.m.
Biden criticizes Netanyahu while speaking to Democratic donors in Washington. He warns that Israel is “starting to lose support by the indiscriminate bombing that takes place.”
Some have placed the death toll in Rafah to over 100.
We will update this with further information.
