[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Fw: [ANSWER]: Protest new Israeli military campaign - April 20 @ White House
- To: "pace peacelink" <pck-pace@peacelink.it>
- Subject: Fw: [ANSWER]: Protest new Israeli military campaign - April 20 @ White House
- From: "Nello Margiotta" <animarg@tin.it>
- Date: Sat, 30 Mar 2002 09:15:44 +0100
International A.N.S.W.E.R.
Act Now to Stop War & End Racism
Web: http://www.internationalanswer.org
PRESS RELEASE
March 29, 2002
SHARON ANSWERS ARAB SUMMIT PROPOSAL WITH ALL-OUT WAR
AGAINST PALESTINIANS
ANTI-WAR COALITION CONDEMNS "U.S.-ISRAELI WAR," CALLS FOR
MASS PROTEST DEMONSTRATION AT WHITE HOUSE IN WASHINGTON &
IN SAN FRANCISCO ON APRIL 20
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon gave his answer to the
Arab League's peace proposal today: a massive assault on
Palestinian cities, towns and refugee camps in the West
Bank and Gaza. The compound of Palestinian Authority
President Yassir Arafat in Ramallah has been invaded and
largely destroyed. Many Palestinians have been killed,
wounded and rounded-up. Israel has called up 20,000
reservists in preparation for even wider attacks.
"This latest assault is part of a clear pattern of
behavior on Sharon's part," said Richard Becker, Western
Region Co-Director of the International Action Center and
a member of the International A.N.S.W.E.R. - Act Now to
Stop War and End Racism national steering committee.
A.N.S.W.E.R. is organizing major anti-war demonstrations
in Washington DC and San Francisco on April 20, 2002.
"These attacks on civilian areas are being carried out
with U.S. weaponry -- F-16s, Apache helicopters, armored
personnel carriers and much more," said Becker. "The U.S.
has supplied more high-tech weaponry to Israel than to any
other country. What we are witnessing today is, from any
objective point of view, a joint U.S-Israeli war against
the Palestinian people," Becker continued.
"While the Bush administration and the big media here
regularly blame the Palestinians for the failure of
negotiations to move forward, the reality is that the
Sharon regime has responded to every initiative with
extremely provocative actions," Becker stated. "Back in
November, Secretary of State Powell's announcement that
Gen. Zinni was being sent as a U.S. envoy to the Middle
East was followed three days later by the assassination of
a top leader of the Hamas organization and the killing of
five young boys from the same family in Gaza.
"In late February, Sharon responded to the Saudi plan put
forward by Crown Prince Abdullah by launching an offensive
unprecedented since the 1967 war on refugee camps and
cities across the West Bank and Gaza. More than 200
Palestinians were killed in a two-week period and
thousands more seriously wounded and made homeless -- the
overwhelming majority of the casualties being civilians,"
said Becker.
"But the corporate media considers Israeli casualties far
more significant that those on the Palestinian side,
despite the fact that the latter has suffered four times
the deaths -- more than 1,300 killed -- and more than six
times the number of wounded as have the Israelis," said
Mara Verheyden-Hilliard of the Partnership for Civil
Justice Legal Defense and Education Fund and the
A.N.S.W.E.R. national steering committee.
"The bottom line is this: Sharon is part of the leadership
grouping in Israel which has resisted, since the
establishment of their state, giving up one square foot of
historic Palestine," stated Verheyden-Hilliard. For 50
years they have worked tirelessly, with the support of
U.S. leaders and media, to make it appear that it is the
Palestinians and Arabs who are responsible for the
on-going hostilities.
"The reality of the situation is that there will be no
peace in the Middle East until there is real justice and
self-determination for the Palestinians,"
Verheyden-Hilliard concluded.
The International A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition is calling on
people from across the country to join our mass anti-war
and anti-racist protests in Washington, DC and San
Francisco on April 20 to demand an end to U.S. support for
Israel's occupation and justice for the Palestinian
people.
International A.N.S.W.E.R.
Act Now to Stop War & End Racism
39 W. 14th St. Room 206 New York, NY 10011
212-633-6646 - fax: 212-633-2889
Email: answer@afgj.org
Web: http://www.internationalanswer.org