Petition the EU

Louis Michel of the European Union has talked of “the overwhelming responsibility of Hamas” for the massacre in Gaza. This petition calls for him to be sacked, and for an apology to be made to the people of Gaza. I wish the text were stronger – it should mention that Israel, not Hamas, broke the ceasefire, that Gaza has been subjected to a brutal siege, that ethnic cleansing and occupation are the root of the problem, not resistance. Still, it’s worth signing. Here’s the text:

Petition – Protest EU Policy on Gaza

To: European Union

January 26, 2009

Touring some of Gaza’s worst-hit areas of Israel’s 22-day assault which killed about 1,300 Palestinians, including 400 children, Louis Michel, a senior EU official and former Belgian foreign minister, described the situation as “abominable, indescribable”. Continue reading “Petition the EU”

Foiling Another Palestinian “Peace Offensive”

The Israeli regime’s bloodbath wasn’t just about upcoming elections and re-establishing deterrence, Norman G. Finkelstein writes [doc], though it did have much to do with this and was indeed calculated to pander to the worst elements of that society. Beyond this, the main goal of Israeli intransigence and its main goal in the Gaza slaughter was to fend off the latest threat posed by Palestinian moderation: that is, to sabotage credible peace efforts. This is an excellent summary of otherwise already well-established facts and a reminder of Israel’s stoush with Hezbollah:

Early speculation on the motive behind Israel’s slaughter in Gaza that began on 27 December 2008 and continued till 18 January 2009 centered on the upcoming elections in Israel. The jockeying for votes was no doubt a factor in this Sparta-like society consumed by “revenge and the thirst for blood,”[1] where killing Arabs is a sure crowd-pleaser. (Polls during the war showed that 80-90 percent of Israeli Jews supported it.)[2] But as Israeli journalist Gideon Levy pointed out on Democracy Now!, “Israel went through a very similar war…two-and-a-half years ago [in Lebanon], when there were no elections.”[3] Continue reading “Foiling Another Palestinian “Peace Offensive””

Carter says Hamas must be included

‘In the previous 16 years, most of the envoys for the president in the Mid East have been openly and publicly committed to Israel’s side. Some of them have been professional lobbyists for Israel.’

Jimmy Carter, the former US president, has said any future permanent Israeli-Palestinian agreement had to include Hamas, the Palestinian movement that controls Gaza.

Carter also told Al Jazeera’s Riz Khan on Wednesday that US presidents were unable or unwilling to take on Israel’s supporters in the US, but said he had high hopes for George Mitchell, the new US Middle East envoy.

International Writers and Scholars Endorse Academic Boycott of Israel

International support for the academic boycott of Israel. This time in the Progressive magazine.

We stand in support of the indigenous Palestinian people in Gaza, who are fighting for their survival against one of the most brutal uses of state power in both this century and the last.

We condemn Israel’s recent (December 2008/ January 2009) breaches of international law in the Gaza Strip, which include the bombing of densely-populated neighborhoods, illegal deployment of the chemical white phosphorous, and attacks on schools, ambulances, relief agencies, hospitals, universities, and places of worship. We condemn Israel’s restriction of access to media and aid workers.

Continue reading “International Writers and Scholars Endorse Academic Boycott of Israel”

US Liberates More Afghans

Having already wasted more than a dozen innocent Pakistani civilians, Obama draws first blood in Afghanistan. One Afghan government employee threatens to put on a suicide-vest if that is what it would take to drive out the invaders.

US air raid fuels Afghan anger

Continue reading “US Liberates More Afghans”

UN nuclear chief boycotts BBC over Gaza appeal

Mohamed ElBaradei, a Nobel peace prize winner and the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, adds his voice to the growing outrage over the BBC.

The head of the UN”s nuclear watchdog has cancelled planned interviews with the BBC in protest at the corporation’s decision not to air an emergency appeal for Gaza on behalf of the Disasters Emergency Committee.

Continue reading “UN nuclear chief boycotts BBC over Gaza appeal”

Israel delays aid trucks from Egypt to Gaza

Michael Slackman from the International Herald Tribune describes how dozens of trucks carrying humanitarian aid have been blocked from entering Gaza.

In recent days, officials and drivers at the crossing said that the trickle of trucks passing through this month had all but stopped. None went on Thursday. Friday and Saturday are days off, so nothing passed. On Sunday, a few trucks went through, aid workers said. Monday, nothing. Tuesday, nothing.

Continue reading “Israel delays aid trucks from Egypt to Gaza”

Writers pressure Obama over Afghanistan

A ‘new beginning will not be possible as long as we continue to spill the blood of the men, women, and children of Afghanistan,’ warns this message from notable American writers which appears in The Nation and the New York Review of Books.notthistime5.

Ceasefire Broken From Day One

The killing and maiming of Palestinians by Israeli forces continues unabated, despite the ‘cease-fire’ which was put in place almost 10 days ago. As always, Israel’s violations of such agreements are burried deep down Orwell’s memory hole. Here is the report from Eva Bartlett:

At 7.30 am Jan. 22, five days after Israeli authorities declared a ‘ceasefire’ following their 22-day air, land and sea bombardment of the Gaza Strip, Israeli gunboats renewed shelling off the Gaza city coast, injuring at least six, including four children.

Continue reading “Ceasefire Broken From Day One”