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Monday, November 06, 2006

Ali Abunimah's Letter to Finland on European Inaction While Gaza Burns

"I would like to draw your attention to the following:

"-Israeli leaders indicate that they make no distinction
between civilians and combatant resistance fighters.
According to B'Tselem, the Israeli human rights
organization, Israel's prime minister Ehud Olmert told the
Knesset on October 30 that in the past three months, the
Israeli military has killed 300 "terrorists" in the Gaza
Strip. According to B'Tselem's investigation, Israeli
occupation forces did indeed kill 294 Palestinians in Gaza
between June 26 and October 27. However, over half of
those killed -- 155 people, including 61 children –- did
not participate in the fighting when they were killed.
These figures do NOT include the 49 Palestinians killed by
Israel since November 1.

"-As stated, since November 1 until today, Israeli
occupation forces have killed 49 Palestinians, injured
more than 150, and caused massive destruction to a people
under occupation which under international law, Israel is
bound to protect. Among the victims of these latest
Israeli atrocities are at least seven children, two women,
and two Red Crescent paramedics rendering assistance to
the injured. Can you tell me how many Israelis have been
killed or injured by the "terrorist" activity that you
allege authorizes the Israeli military action in Gaza?

"-While no one can dispute the "right of all states to
defend themselves," Israel is patently not engaged in
self-defence, but in protecting an ever-expanding colonial
infrastructure and occupation in East Jerusalem, the West
Bank and Gaza Strip. As the International Court of Justice
(ICJ) found in July 2004, Israel has the option to defend
itself by withdrawing all of its soldiers and settlers
from the territories occupied in 1967, as required by
international law. Your failure to call on Israel to do
this is tantamount to an endorsement of Israel's illegal
settler-colonies and its use of force to maintain them.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

So firing rockets at and killing Israeli civilians is "justified resistance to occupation." The problem is that a Jewish presence anywhere in "Palestine" is illegal occupation. Nasrallah put it nicely when he reveled at rocket attacks on "settlers" in Haifa. Israel withdrew from Gaza in August 2005 and hoped that this would start a precedent toward peace. What did the Palestinians do? They destroyed the infrastructure Israel left them because it was more important to "uproot Zionism" (including houses and greenhouses) than provide infrastructure for their people. It's ok for Palestinians to send their own children to kill Israeli "occupiers" but God forbid that Palestinian children may be killed by Israeli shelling during military operations.

The real goal her is to de-legitimize the Israeli state as a band of murderers and bloodthirsty people who only want to kill Arabs, so these kinds of incidents more than serve the strategy. The victims are "shahids" because their deaths serve a larger purpose.

No state can be expected to stand by idly when its citizens are subject to daily rocket attacks. Let Ali tell his readers about the "Zionist colonialist occupiers" in Sderot who are the proper targets of "Palestinian resistance." Maybe Tuomioja, with his infamous anti-Israel interview in Suomen Kuvalehti will believe it, but most of his countrymen will not.

LJansen said...

Hello "Anonymous":
Israel did NOT withdraw from Gaza--unless you mean they weren't actively occupying the homes in gaza or smashing them or using them for toilets, as they do the rest of the time. the IDF still controlled the entrances to gaza.

it's hopeless for israel to keep the occupation going. it is degrading its children by forcing them to kill and/or humiliate a whole group of people just to force them to leave their homes.

it's slow motion theft.

end the occupation. (and for me, i say one state, equal rights for all)

LJansen said...

Well, I see Ali Abunimah pushes AIPAC buttons.

That's good. He is doing his job.

Equal rights IS a pipedream if we don't fight for it. Which is what I and the Palestinians are doing.

Imagine.