URGENT: Condemn Israel’s murderous assault on the aid flotilla

June 1, 2010

Dear warriors….

Only Israel could think it acceptable to justify the slaughter of human rights activists because they resisted being hijacked in a blatant act of piracy.  There are two issues at play here: first, the brutal, illegal, UN-condemned blockade of Gaza and secondly, the military assault in international waters of those whose only crime was to try to bring humanitarian supplies.

It begs the question of just how many times Israel will violate international law, UN resolutions and the norms of civilized societies before it is finally stopped.  

We do not have the power to stop such actions but we have the influence that can eventually make power respond.

Write a letter-to-the editor demanding:

1. An independent, international investigation of the incident and
2. an immediate halt to the unconscionable blockade policy of  keeping the people of Gaza in a permanent state of misery.

FRAMING:  It is important to break through the biggest barrier to criticism of Israel –Israeli exceptionalism, the notion that because the Jewish people went through the horrors of the Holocaust, Israel is effectively exempt from international laws and norms when dealing with those it perceives to be a threat. Israel must he held accountable for its actions as any other nation in similar circumstances would be. It must comply with the UN resolution #1860 calling for an end to its blockade of Gaza’s 1.5 million impoverished Palestinians.

Some facts and arguments you can use – and remember you letters have the best chance of being published if they take a strong point of view, are not too long and have facts to back them up.

[For background on the blockade see the UN report here. Or the Guardian newspaper coverage of the report here.]

• Israel’s commando assault on the flotilla of humanitarian aid ships, and the killing of activists, is totally unacceptable and must be condemned by the Canadian government. Imagine the Canadian government’s reaction if any other government in the world had engaged in such an action.

• Canada must call for a thorough and independent inquiry into this incident but first and immediately it must call on Israel to immediately lift its punitive blockade of this impoverished territory as demanded by the UN Security Council resolution 1860.

• Israel is trying to spin this and blame the dead and wounded victims of its act of piracy – blaming them for resisting. But the blame is all Israel’s – they boarded ships in international waters in complete and unquestioned violation of international law.

• Israel’s defence of its actions rests on the fact that it warned the people on the ships that it would not allow the ships to dock. But this action itself is in blatant violation of the law as established by a UN resolution passed in January 2009 during the Israeli invasion of Gaza.

• The people of Gaza are being punished for exercising their democratic rights and voting in a Hamas government – not because it fired rockets at Israel but because it was not corrupt and it provided genuine services. Since when do we punish countries for being democratic?

• Israel must be condemned for ignoring forty years of UN resolutions regarding its behaviour towards Palestinians including: Recalling all of its relevant resolutions, including resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), 1397 (2002), 1515 (2003) and 1850 (2008),

Some of the facts of the blockade from the Guardian coverage of the UN report:

• On average, it takes 85 days to get shelter kits into Gaza, 68 days to deliver health and paediatric hygiene kits, and 39 days for household items such as bedding and kitchen utensils.

• "The result  [of the blockade]is a gradual process of de-development across all sectors, devastating livelihoods, increasing unemployment and resulting in increased aid dependency amongst the population," says the report from the UN Office of the Humanitarian Co-ordinator.

• 70% of Gazans live on less than a dollar a day, 75% rely on food aid and 60% have no daily access to water.

• Israel argues that many goods are smuggled into Gaza through Egypt – but these are so expensive only a few wealthy Gazans can afford them

• Israel refuses to allow construction materials into Gaza, leaving 20,000 people still displaced and unable to rebuild the homes destroyed in the war in Dec 2008/January 2009.

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