Common Sense for the Twenty-First Century

Israeli Solidarity

58 Israeli Solidarity October 6, 2002 There seems to be a problem with heads of state. In country after country, the people are just beautiful and the heads of state are truly repulsive. This is certainly true of the unelected disaster in Washington today. And it is also true in England and Israel. Nine Israeli women’s peace groups have told Palestinians that they support their efforts to indict the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, for war crimes. The letter from the Coalition of Women for a Just Peace in Israel speaks of the suffering of the Palestinians and I quote: Our hearts ache to recall the terrible massacre that took place in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps 20 years ago, which Israeli leaders allowed to take place. We condemn the brutal murders of your loved ones and we condemn the leaders who must be held accountable for these war crimes, Ariel Sharon above all. The letter refers to some 1,700 Palestinians who were slaughtered in the massacre by Lebanese Militiamen allied to the Israelis. Israeli troops surrounded the camps as the killing went on but were told by their commanders not to interfere. Mr. Sharon was Israeli Minister of Defense at the time and was forced to resign after the Israeli Kahan commission condemned him and several senior Israeli officers for not preventing the slaughter. The letter also recalls how Palestinians were forced to flee their homes in 1948. At the same time, Professor Avraham Oz at the University of Haifa expresses an urgent warning signed by a host of Israeli and international academics: We, members of Israeli academia, are horrified by the US buildup of aggression towards Iraq and by the Israeli political leadership’s enthu- 59 siastic support for it. We are deeply worried by indications that the “fog of war” could be exploited by the Israeli government to commit further crimes against the Palestinian people, up to full-fledged ethnic cleansing. The Israeli ruling coalition includes parties that promote “transfer” of the Palestinian population as a solution to what they call “the demographic problem.” Politicians are regularly quoted in the media as suggesting forcible expulsion . . . Chief of Staff Moshe Ya’alon described the Palestinians as a “cancerous manifestation” and equated the military actions in the Occupied Territories with “chemotherapy,” suggesting that more radical “treatment” may be necessary. Prime Minister Sharon has backed what he calls this “assessment of reality.” Escalating racist demagoguery concerning the Palestinian citizens of Israel may indicate the scope of the crimes that are possibly being contemplated. We call upon the International Community to pay close attention to events that unfold within Israel and in the Occupied Territories, to make it absolutely clear that crimes against humanity will not be tolerated, and to take concrete measures to prevent such crimes from taking place. It seems that in the United States and in Israel, the population is simply saying to the heads of state: “We are better than that.” After some more relevant music we are privileged to have a guest from Israel, Aliyah Strauss. Bio for Aliyah Strauss: In 1985 she became active in Bridge for Peace and Co-existence, a group of Jews and Arabs who met regularly to discuss issues of common interest. Since 1990, she has been a leader of Women in Black, a women’s peace organization. She is active in numerous women’s and peace organizations, such as the Coalition for Women for Peace and Bat Shalom. In 1997, she was elected as the President of the Israel section of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). She has committed her life to achieving peace in the Middle East. The principles the organizations she belongs to agree on the following: • An end to the occupation • Establishment of a Palestinian state, side by side with the state of Israel, based on the 1967 borders 60 • Recognition of Jerusalem as the shared capital of the two states • Opposition to militarism that permeates Israeli society • Equality, inclusion and justice for Palestinian citizens of Israel • Full involvement of women in negotiations for peace • Social and economic justice for Israel’s citizens and integration of Israel in the Middle East region Thanks so much, Aliyah Strauss. Wishing you much success with your work for peace and justice between Palestine and Israel. ...