Gaza protest
Posted on Saturday, January 17, 2009 at 4:08pm
4 responses
I’ve just got back from the protest in Swansea city centre. It was really well attended, and a successful demonstration. I spoke at the demo to show support for the campaign to end the Israeli attacks on Gaza. Over 1,000 people have now been killed, and today we hear that two people were killed near a UN-run school. So much for Israel keeping true to their word in not targeting innocent civilians! There is set to be an Israeli cabinet meeting to determine whether or not there will be a unilateral ceasefire. Has Israel achieved its aims by acting in this way? Will it decide to end the military bombardment of Gaza amid mounting statements that their actions amount to war crimes?
I spoke to some Palestinians at the demo today, whose families are living in Gaza.They told me of the awful circumstances there. One relative is working at the hospital, and cannot prioritise treating those who are suffering the most, as they do not have the medical capacity to do so. Aid is not reaching the area, and Save the Children report that the lulls in Israeli attacks are not sufficient for them to mobilise and to assist the wounded because they are not being told when they will take place, and for how long. People were telling me today that children are witnessing, and experiencing the most horrific scenes. I do not see how Israel can justify its actions. Let me be clear, I do not agree with Hamas retaliating with rocket attacks, but Israel’s actions fly in the face of their claims to be acting ‘proportionally’ in relation to Hamas. Their argument is not justifiable in light of the death and destruction that they have caused, and continue to cause, in Gaza.
Plaid’s Jill Evans MEP and Dafydd Iawn were today speaking at the demo in Cardiff, and called on the Welsh Assembly government takes part in European efforts to offer medical treatment to Palestinian children injured in the invasion. The EU initiative was proposed by the Belgian government, with the EU Commission co-ordinating the medical evacuation of badly injured children to hospitals in Brussels. Plaid has also welcomed the halt in trade talks between the EU and Israel in relation to elevating Israel’s trade agreement with Europe in a bid to put pressure on Israel to announce a ceasefire.
I sincerely hope that everyone who is interested in this issue attends the Assembly debate on Wednesday at the National Assembly for Wales- sending a clear sign from Wales that Israel’s actions are unacceptable, and that diplomatic efforts for a lasting peace must be prioritised.
This blinkered view of the problems in the Middle East is shocking. Why aren’t you protesting about the plight of innocent Israeli families living with the glorified state sponsored terrorism of Hamas and their rockets? Why aren’t you calling on Hamjas to stop their rocket attacks? Why didn’t you call on Hamas to stop their rocket attacks months ago?
If Hamas did not fire rockets, Israel would not retaliate.
Proportianallity does not and should not come into this and it is an extremely poor excuse to use.
If Hamas does not stop it’s state sponsored terrorism then Israel has every right to defend its’s self using every resource available to it.
You might like to see some pics of the Gaza Rally in Cardiff yesterday.
http://www.bepj.org.uk/gaza-cardiff
In response to Dan’s view of the situation, I would point him to an enlightening interview with Prof Avi Shlaim on “Democracy Now” (http://tinyurl.com/a7265a)
“Now, let me give you some figures, which I think are the most crucial figures in understanding this conflict. Before the ceasefire came into effect in July of 2008, the monthly number of rockets fired—Kassam rockets, homemade Kassam rockets, fired from the Gaza Strip on Israeli settlements and towns in southern Israel was 179. In the first four months of the ceasefire, the number dropped dramatically to three rockets a month, almost zero. I would like to repeat these figures for the benefit of your listeners. Pre-ceasefire, 179 rockets were fired on Israel; post-ceasefire, three rockets a month. This is point number one, and it’s crucial.
“And my figures are beyond dispute, because they come from the website of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. But after initiating this war, this particular table, neat table, which showed the success of the ceasefire, was withdrawn and replaced with another table of statistics, which is much more obscure and confusing. Israel—the Foreign Ministry withdrew these figures, because it didn’t suit the new story.
“The new story said that Hamas broke the ceasefire. This is a lie. Hamas observed the ceasefire as best as it could and enforced it very effectively. The ceasefire was a stunning success for the first four months. It was broken not by Hamas, but by the IDF. It was broken by the IDF on the 4th of November, when it launched a raid into Gaza and killed six Hamas men.”
When asked what is his definition of a terror, he replied:
“My definition of “terror” is the use of violence against civilians for political purposes. And by this definition, Hamas is a terrorist organization. But by the same token, Israel is practicing state terror, because it is using violence on a massive scale against Palestinian civilians for political purposes. I don’t hold a brief for Hamas. Hamas is not a paragon of virtue. Its leaders are not angels. They harm civilians indiscriminately. Killing civilians is wrong, period. That applies to Hamas, and it applies equally to the state of Israel.”
This conflict will end by negotiation: they always do. Until Israel stops treating the Palestinians in Gaza as prisoners, Hamas will not stop resisting. Until Hamas stops resisting, Israel will not stop its attacks on Gaza.
@dan
“Why aren’t you protesting about the plight of innocent Israeli families living with the glorified state sponsored terrorism of Hamas and their rockets?”
According to the BBC last Wednesday, 1,013 Palestinians have died and only 13 Israelis, and 10 of those were soldiers. So protesting about the plight of the Israelis does seem a bit bizzare.