Palmer Events Center
Israeli Attack Inexcusable
RECEIVED Tue., Jan. 6, 2009
Dear Editor,
The Israeli attack on Gaza is inexcusable. As of this writing, Tuesday, Jan. 6, more than 500 Palestinians have been killed. Three of those, all civilians, died during an air strike on a U.N. school. "There's nowhere safe in Gaza. Everyone here is terrorized and traumatized," said John Ging, the top U.N. official in Gaza. 2,500 have suffered injuries according to Palestinian medical sources, but that number can’t be verified since Israel has blocked journalists and aid-workers entry into Gaza.
Israel has a right to defend itself, but that’s not what’s going on here. All accounts in the mainstream media cite Hamas’ uptick in rocket attacks at the expiration of a six-month cease-fire as the rationale for Israel’s assault. But actually, the cease-fire was broken by Israel after “Israeli forces entered Gaza to destroy a tunnel that could have been used in a cross-border raid,” cites an AP article published in the Voice of San Diego. And according to Diana Buttu, a Canadian lawyer and former member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, who spoke on Democracy Now, “six Palestinians were killed and six kidnapped,” during the same raid. In addition to breaking the cease-fire, Israel has continued to blockade the border, cutting off food and critical supplies for survival. All of this is illegal, and all of it is happening under the auspices of the U.S., including Barack Obama, whose silence amounts to an endorsement, conveniently claiming there’s only “one president,” despite having commented on the Mumbai bombing in India last November.
Last but not least, it must be remembered that Israel has illegally occupied the Gaza Strip and West Bank since 1967. It’s considered anti-Semitic to state this in the media, but it’s the truth. I don’t condone Hamas firing rockets into Israel, but in a conflict in which one side is the occupier and the other the occupied, the burden of responsibility falls on the occupier. Just ask any Iraqi or Palestinian.
The Israeli attack on Gaza is inexcusable. As of this writing, Tuesday, Jan. 6, more than 500 Palestinians have been killed. Three of those, all civilians, died during an air strike on a U.N. school. "There's nowhere safe in Gaza. Everyone here is terrorized and traumatized," said John Ging, the top U.N. official in Gaza. 2,500 have suffered injuries according to Palestinian medical sources, but that number can’t be verified since Israel has blocked journalists and aid-workers entry into Gaza.
Israel has a right to defend itself, but that’s not what’s going on here. All accounts in the mainstream media cite Hamas’ uptick in rocket attacks at the expiration of a six-month cease-fire as the rationale for Israel’s assault. But actually, the cease-fire was broken by Israel after “Israeli forces entered Gaza to destroy a tunnel that could have been used in a cross-border raid,” cites an AP article published in the Voice of San Diego. And according to Diana Buttu, a Canadian lawyer and former member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, who spoke on Democracy Now, “six Palestinians were killed and six kidnapped,” during the same raid. In addition to breaking the cease-fire, Israel has continued to blockade the border, cutting off food and critical supplies for survival. All of this is illegal, and all of it is happening under the auspices of the U.S., including Barack Obama, whose silence amounts to an endorsement, conveniently claiming there’s only “one president,” despite having commented on the Mumbai bombing in India last November.
Last but not least, it must be remembered that Israel has illegally occupied the Gaza Strip and West Bank since 1967. It’s considered anti-Semitic to state this in the media, but it’s the truth. I don’t condone Hamas firing rockets into Israel, but in a conflict in which one side is the occupier and the other the occupied, the burden of responsibility falls on the occupier. Just ask any Iraqi or Palestinian.
Justin Finney