[WCUSP] Fw: Emergency Letter to Bolton on Lebanon & Gaza -- UPDATE

Sat Jul 22 08:36:47 CDT 2006

Yes, I am gald. As one of the folks who was at the National Mtg of UFPJ
national mtg. I think it has done some fine activating. Hope the intention
is to now get this in the local print media.

marlene

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A final footnote – one to ponder in the quieter moments after the worst of
the suffering is over. Those Israeli Jews fleeing for their lives as they
head south to the quiet – so far at least – of Tel Aviv and beyond offer a
small echo of events nearly six decades ago when 750,000 Palestinians were
forced to leave their homes by the Israeli army.

Israeli Jews have always taken the view – and happily tell any outsiders as
much – that the "Arabs" lost the right to their homes in the war of 1948
because they "fled" (in fact many were forcibly expelled, but let that drop
for the moment). The Israeli government has adopted much the same view, even
refusing to allow the 250,000 of its own Arab citizens who are classified as
internal refugees – their ancestors fled the fighting in 1948 but have
citizenship because they stayed inside what is today Israel – to return to
their original homes and land.

So how exactly should we regard those Israeli Jews now fleeing from Nahariya
and Haifa? Should they lose their homes, their land, and their bank accounts
just as the Palestinians did in 1948? ...by Jonathan Cook www.antiwar.com

  -----Original Message-----
  From: wcusp-bounces at wilpf.org [mailto:wcusp-bounces at wilpf.org]On Behalf Of
Libby or Mort Frank
  Sent: 2006 July 21 Friday 10:49 AM
  To: National Middle East
  Subject: [WCUSP] Fw: Emergency Letter to Bolton on Lebanon & Gaza --
UPDATE

  You'll be glad to know that WILPF signed on this morning.

  Libby

  ----- Original Message -----
  From: UFPJ Action Alerts
  To: lmfrank1 at verizon.net
  Sent: Thursday, July 20, 2006 6:47 PM
  Subject: Emergency Letter to Bolton on Lebanon & Gaza -- UPDATE

        www.unitedforpeace.org | 212-868-5545 | Click to subscribe

        ** Please forward widely**

        Dear all,

        As talk of a full scale Israeli ground invasion of begins, it’s even
more important that we take action to save lives now. At a meeting of the
Security Council today, United Nations General Secretary Kofi Annan called
for an "immediate cessation of hostilities and a far greater and more
credible effort by Israel to protect civilians and infrastructure." He
reported that over 300 Lebanese have been killed and more than 600
wounded -- mainly civilians, about one third of them children.

        Yesterday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki condemned the
Israeli aggression and called on the world to take action. Today, a peace
action was called in Beirut by women's groups and other non-governmental
organizations, while the Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora said his
country has been "torn to shreds."

        Our voices must be raised to end the Bush administration’s
stonewalling at the U.N.!

        We want to thank those who have responded by signing onto the letter
and others who have sent in suggestions for how to strengthen it. Please
review the updated version below. If you or your organization have not
signed on, please do. If you signed on to the draft letter yesterday, please
contact us to confirm your signature.

        The deadline for having your organization’s name on the letter is
Friday, July 21, at 12 Noon EDT. Please email organizing at unitedforpeace.org
to have your organization listed. For more information, call the UFPJ
national office at 212-868-5545.

        Please join United for Peace and Justice and other peace and justice
activists to deliver the letter on Friday, July 21, at 4 PM. We will meet at
the U.S. Mission to the U.N. at 140 East 45th Street (between Third and
Lexington Avenues).

        We call for the Bush administration to:

          a.. Support a Security Council resolution calling for an immediate
 and unconditional cease-fire.

          b.. Urge negotiations now to resolve all disputes, including the
release of prisoners on all sides, with the goal being a comprehensive just
and lasting peace in the region based on the implementation of international
law.

          c.. Put an end to US blocking of UN action to resolve the crisis.

        Take care,

        Leslie Kielson
        UFPJ-NYC

        Judith Le Blanc
        UFPJ National Co-chairperson

------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Dear Ambassador Bolton,

        On behalf of United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ), the largest
antiwar coalition in the United States, we want to express our concern over
the escalating crisis between Israel, Lebanon, and Palestine and urge you to
support a Security Council resolution calling for an immediate and
unconditional ceasefire.

        We are gravely concerned about the loss of life on all sides. We
condemn all attacks on civilians, and call for the release of political
prisoners and POWs held on all sides in this conflict.

        Hezbollah's crossing of the Israeli border to capture two soldiers
may have violated the 1949 Armistice between Israel and Lebanon. But it is
important to note that Hezbollah attacked soldiers, not civilians. In
addition, as the New York Times recognized on July 19, Hezbollah did not
fire rockets into Israeli cities until after the Israeli army began bombing
civilian areas of Lebanon.

        The Israeli government could have chosen to engage in serious
negotiations for a prisoner exchange, as they have so many times before. As
recently as 2004, in a German-orchestrated swap, Hezbollah exchanged a
kidnapped Israeli civilian and the remains of several Israeli soldiers
killed in combat in Lebanon, for over 400 Palestinian, Lebanese, and other
Arab prisoners.

        Instead, the Israeli government chose to escalate what would have
remained one of many common border skirmishes into a war. They have been
deliberately shelling civilian areas and civilian infrastructure in both
Lebanon and Gaza. Israel's attacks were and are clearly disproportionate in
their use of force. They constitute acts of collective punishment against
the Lebanese and Palestinian populations -- extremely serious violations of
international law.

        While the world is crying out for global intervention to stop the
bloodshed, we are outraged by the response of the Bush administration.
Instead of using its influence on Israel to stop the devastating attacks on
the Lebanese and Palestinian populations, Washington has supported and
enabled such attacks through supplying war planes, missiles, jet fuel,
financing, and political support. This, in violation of both international
and domestic law -- specifically, the U.S. Arms Export Control Act. And
instead of rallying the international community to stop further bloodshed,
it has blocked UN efforts to call for an immediate ceasefire.

        We urgently call on the Bush administration to work with
international partners to broker an immediate and unconditional ceasefire
and commence negotiations to peacefully resolve all aspects of the crisis,
with the goal being a comprehensive just and lasting peace in the region
based on the implementation of international law.

        We look forward to hearing your response.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Help us continue to do this critical work: Make a donation to UFPJ
today.

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