The Israeli government, while using propaganda to deny the facts, continues to besiege the Palestinian population though collective punishment for rocket attacks from Gaza. 13 Israelis have been killed by rocket attacks, 3 of whom were civilians.
Noam Chomsky opposes BDS on the ground that it is hypocritical and impractical. Supporting BDS only reinforces hardliners who support Israeli actions. He distinguishes between ‘feelgood’ and ‘do good actions’.
Preamble
The Israeli government, while using propaganda to deny the facts, continues to besiege the Palestinian population though collective punishment for rocket attacks from Gaza. 13 Israelis have been killed by rocket attacks, 3 of whom were civilians.
As a result of Israel’s response, more than 1,300 Palestinians, including 410 children and over 100 women have been killed. More than 400,000 Gazans were left without running water, while 4,000 homes were destroyed or badly damaged during or after Operation Cast Lead.
Preamble
The Israeli government, while using propaganda to deny the facts, continues to besiege the Palestinian population though collective punishment for rocket attacks from Gaza. 13 Israelis have been killed by rocket attacks, 3 of whom were civilians.
As a result of Israel’s response, more than 1,300 Palestinians, including 410 children and over 100 women have been killed. More than 400,000 Gazans were left without running water, while 4,000 homes were destroyed or badly damaged during or after Operation Cast Lead.
Once again, our community ‘elders’ have banned a dissident opinion from speaking on a community platform. There is all sorts of denial going on, but its clear that Danny Lamm, representing the local right-wing Zionist Federation has used or got others to use muscle and other forms of influence to prevent the Union of Progressive Judaism from hosting Naomi Chazan, now President of the New Israel Fund. The excuse has been to use the completely scurrilous campaign being run by young neo-facists and their elder supporters in Israel and the US against the NIF.
There’s been some discussion on the internet on the ‘hypocrisy’ of Israel for sending relief teams to Haiti when it leads aggression against Palestinians. See, for example, http://mondoweiss.net/2010/01/port-au-hasbara.html, or another site on the Zionisation of Disaster Relief. As if no other country sees advantages in news and photo opportunities for humanitarian relief.
But at least some people have the sense to give Israel credit, where credit is due.
The civilian population of Gaza continues to suffer a a year after Operation Cast Lead.
The Israeli government, while using propaganda to deny the facts, continues to besiege the Palestinian population though collective punishment. The current protests against the siege by various international activists, Palestinians, and Israelis, though ignored by Israel, indicate that the problem will not just go away.
The civilian population of Gaza continues to suffer a a year after Operation Cast Lead.
The Israeli government, while using propaganda to deny the facts, continues to besiege the Palestinian population though collective punishment. The current protests against the siege by various international activists, Palestinians, and Israelis, though ignored by Israel, indicate that the problem will not just go away.
Vivienne Porzolt is participating in the international protests against the Gaza blockaded.
Below is an account of her experiences from Gaza
Sent: (from Cairo) on Monday, December 28, 2009 6:21 PM
Middle East News Service Comments: There are many commemorations of the Gaza War (Operation Cast Lead) taking place at the moment in Gaza and its neighbours. The common theme to all is a call to end the siege on that small piece on land. Combatants for Peace (A group of Israeli Palestinians former fighters who have given up the use of arms) held such an commemorative evening on Saturday night 26 December.