Take Action to End Israeli Attacks on Gaza

Emergency Alert from the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation:

Israeli Air Force attacks on the occupied Gaza Strip has killed and injured 5000 people, about half of the casualties are women and children. These Israeli attacks come on top of a brutal siege of the Gaza Strip, which has created a humanitarian catastrophe of dire proportions for Gaza's 1.5 million Palestinian residents by restricting the provision of food, fuel, medicine, electricity, and other necessities of life.

While the scope of civilian casualties in today's attacks is not yet clear, it is unmistakable that Israel carried out these attacks with F16 fighter jets and missiles provided by the taxpayers of this country. From 2001-2006, the United States transferred to Israel more than $200 million worth of spare parts to fly its fleet of F16's. In July 2008, the United States gave Israel 186 million gallons of JP-8 aviation jet fuel. Last year, the United States signed a $1.3 billion contract with Raytheon to transfer to Israel thousands of TOW, Hellfire, and "bunker buster" missiles.

In short, Israel's lethal attack today on the Gaza Strip could not have happened without the active military and political support of the United States. Therefore, we need to take action to protest this attack and demand an immediate cease-fire.

Latest information - Institute for Middle East Understanding - http://www.imeu.net

Palestinian Centre for Human Rights - http://www.pchrgaza.org

From the Palestinian Medical Relief Society:

Urgent action is needed now!

Will the world stand by again and watch as large scale killings evolve in front of their eyes in Gaza following Israeli air strikes?

Ramallah, 27/12/08.  This morning, Israel started a massive offensive in the Gaza Strip, leaving behind death, destruction and intense suffering. Medical teams, fire fighters and civilians have been working all day to safe those buried under the rubble of destroyed houses, to transport the injured and death to the hospitals, to extinguish the fires, to protect the children, whilst fearing for the lives of their loved ones in the face of renewed attacks.

At 11.30pm, Israeli military planes reached the Gaza Strip, where they carried out heavy air strikes against the most densely populated area on the planet, already suffering from siege for more than a year and a half.

Israeli planes slammed missiles into over thirty targets in the 360 sq km Strip holding over 1.5 million people.

At least 200 have been reportedly killed and 400 wounded, most of them civilians- including women and children. This number is expected to continue to rise throughout the day as more bodies are uncovered from the rubble – and more casualties succumb to their wounds. We fear this attack is only the first of a bloody series that will aim to destroy the Gaza Strip and its population.

When the ceasefire came to an end last week, indicators for a huge humanitarian disaster and the outbreak of intense violence were evident.

However, the International Community failed to listen to those voices that attempted to warn the world for an eminent crisis and equally failed to listen to those who advocated for preventive measures to be taken to protect the lives of over a million innocent human beings.

In the past, Israel has staged incursions into the Occupied Territories when the attention of the world was elsewhere, thereby avoiding widespread condemnation. And again, at a time when people celebrated their Christmas holidays globally, Israel again used the opportunity to plan and execute an attack when the world's attention was diverted.

If the International Community is truly committed to its International Law and Human Rights Conventions, it has to wake up now, it must gather forces now, and it must take its responsibility to act to protect innocent people facing the imminent threat of death. Although no serious action was taken to prevent the bloodbath, action can be taken to stop the criminal attacks, to provide help to those who suffer, to those who lost their families, and to those who have no sufficient medicines to cure their injured, nor food to give to their children. 

Let's remember the promise of never again following the genocide in Rwanda, let's not again stand by and watch as people are slaughtered in front of our eyes.

Talking points from the The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC):

1)   The Israeli strikes, which started on December 27th, come after several weeks of a tight Israeli blockade which left many of Gaza's 1.5-million inhabitants without sufficient food, water, fuel, or medicine.

2)   As of December 30th, the United Nations indicates that the Israeli air strikes over the past three days have killed 375 people, including 63 civilians, in Gaza and have left over 1,650 more injured, almost 300 of which are in critical condition.  The UN estimates that 5% of those killed are children under the age of 18.

3)   The population of Gaza is 2/3 refugee and more than half are under the age of 16.  The UN has listed Gaza as the most densely populated area in the world with a population density that is higher than that of Manhattan in New York City.

4)   Israel has a responsibility as the occupying force under international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions, and the laws of war to avoid harm of civilians in Gaza.

5)   Israel's actions with the tight blockade on the 1.5-million people in Gaza is a violation of those laws.

6)   Israeli's attacks on Gaza, thus far resulting in the death of over 375 people, including over 62 women and children, and injuries to 1,650 more people, calls for an immediate investigation by the United Nations and objective review by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

7)   The timing of the strikes calls into question Israel's political motivation as this comes in the final days of a lame-duck US Administration and one-month before a hotly-contested Israeli election in which the challenger is attacking the incumbent for being "soft" on security.

8)   It is time for the US to take its proper role as an honest broker in the conflict and to live up to its promise as a champion of freedom, liberty, and justice.

9)   An immediate cessation of hostilities on all sides and a complete end to the blockade is the only way to reinstate a cease-fire agreement that will ensure the security of both Israelis and Palestinians.

10)   The mainstream media in the US has thus far miserably failed in its news coverage of the humanitarian tragedy taking place in Gaza.  Media outlets should recall the disproportion, context of occupation, and siege when mentioning the indiscriminate rocket attacks by Hamas on southern Israel.

Situation before the strikes:

Cease-Fire from June to December: During the cease-fire brokered by Egypt in June 2008, rocket attacks by Hamas extremists had greatly diminished. The blockade of Gaza was relaxed slightly by Israel; however, it never ended completely.

November: Israel escalated the situation in early November by killing 4 Palestinians in Gaza; claiming they were involved in weapons smuggling, in the bloodiest violation of the cease-fire during the Egyptian-brokered agreement.  This resulted in renewed rocket attacks by Hamas thus resulting in the crippling tight blockade by Israel on the 1.5-million people in Gaza.

December: The siege of Gaza continued to suffocate the population with renewed Hamas rocket attacks against southern Israel.

Impact of these strikes on the security of Israel:

The disproportionate nature of the Israeli strikes furthers the humanitarian disaster, and represents a collective punishment of the population of Gaza, which will not likely lead to security for Israelis.  Multiple studies indicate that similar attacks in the past have failed to make Israeli citizens any safer and resulted in increased support of Hamas extremists. 

Final Thought:

Throughout the history of Arab-Israeli peace negotiations only cease-fires and agreements have brought peace and security for both Arabs and Israelis.