Video From 2040 Begs This Question of Gaza Genocide in 2024: 'What Did You Do to Stop It?'

To mark this week's anniversary of Israel's yearlong assault on Gaza—which has killed, maimed, displaced, starved, and sickened millions of Palestinians with no end in sight—Palestine defenders shared a video set in the year 2040 in which children around the world ask their elders, "What were you doing during this genocide?"

The video—which is reportedly linked to the Turkish government—was reposted by prominent international figures including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, and U.S. peace activist Medea Benjamin.

The clip shows the world commemorating Gaza in ceremonies, museums, and films, with kids asking their grandparents questions like, "What were you doing during this genocide?" and "Did you just watch it?" as the elders hang their heads in shame at images of slain and suffering Palestinian children.

The video ends with a message that fades from, "The genocide committed by Israel is killing Palestinians" to, "The genocide committed by Israel is killing humanity."

Benjamin called the video "haunting." Husam Zomlot, Palestine's ambassador to the United Kingdom, hailed it as "powerful." British author Jonathan Cook lamented that "yes, we watched hundreds of thousands of children being killed, maimed, and starved—and we just kept watching."

Varoufakis posted: "'Where were you,' they will be asking us, 'when this was happening? What did you do to stop it?'"

Erdoğan included a lengthy message with the video as he shared it on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

"Israel's long-standing policy of genocide, occupation, and invasion must now come to an end," he wrote. "It should not be forgotten that Israel will sooner or later pay the price for this genocide that it has been carrying out for a year and is still continuing."

"Just as [Nazi leader Adolf] Hitler was stopped by the common alliance of humanity, [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and his murder network will be stopped in the same way," Erdoğan continued. "A world in which no account is held for the Gaza genocide will ever find peace."

He added that Turkey "will continue to stand against the Israeli government, no matter what the cost, and call on the world to take this honorable stance."

Turkey has been one of the most vocal critics of Israel's Gaza onslaught. The country officially supports the South Africa-led genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice. In 2024, the Turkish government halted direct trade with Israel over its invasion of Rafah, although commerce continued via third countries including Greece.

However, the Turkish government has also been criticized for not doing enough to support Palestine despite its scathing anti-Israel rhetoric. Some critics also noted the hypocrisy of Turkey vocally condemning Israel's genocide in Gaza while denying the 1915-17 Turkish genocide against Armenians in the disintegrating Ottoman Empire.