Washington hunger strike against Israeli killing of civilians under way
Palestine-Regional, Politics, 10/31/2000

Over the weekend, six Arab Americans began a hunger strike protesting the killing of more than 140 Palestinian, including 19 minors under the age of 17, by the Israeli military during the past month, reported the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC).

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) and the Arab Americans for Justice and Peace lend their full support to the hunger strike.

ADC is the largest Arab-American grassroots organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980 by former Senator James Abourezk.

Twelve more individuals from the Chicago area Arab American community joined the strike Monday. The hunger strike is taking place in Lafayette Park outside the White House, and began on Sat., Oct. 28 and will end on Nov. 3.

The hunger strikers hope that this expression of solidarity will help humanize the plight of the Palestinian people who are being subject to brutal Israeli attacks and occupation of their land. Although consistently misrepresented in the American press, the ongoing Palestinian uprising is a struggle for basic human rights, freedom, and an end to 33 years of occupation and over 50 years of dispossession.

S.M. Budron, of the group Arab Americans for Peace and Justice, organized and planned this event. Budron emphasizes that now is the time for all peace-loving Americans to protest the extreme injustices against the Palestinian people. Over the past four weeks, more than 130 unarmed Palestinian civilians, many of them children, have been shot dead and 3,500 injured by Israeli soldiers, policemen and armed settlers.

That is a massive loss for a Palestinian population of 4 million living under Israeli control. The strikers strongly feel that silence at this critical time is tantamount to tacit approval of such extraordinary attacks on a defenseless population. The international community and human rights groups have strongly condemned Israel's brutal attacks on unarmed Palestinian civilians.

On Oct. 19, the UN Human Rights Commission voted to condemn Israel for "widespread, systematic and gross violations of human rights'' and set up an international inquiry into Israel's brutal suppression of protests against its 33 year occupation. The Commission strongly condemned "the indiscriminate use of force in violation of international humanitarian law by the Israeli occupying power'' during its crackdown in the occupied Palestinian territories. Amnesty International has also condemned the "excessive use of lethal force" by Israel and said that "impunity for those who commit human rights violations and the lack of investigations into so many deaths at the hands of the [Israeli] security forces has led to a breakdown in the rule of law." On October 7, the UN Security Council condemned "acts of violence, especially the excessive use of force against Palestinians, resulting in injury and loss of human life."

Previous Stories:
  Six killed tens wounded by the Israeli fires   (10/30/2000)
  Boycott of Israel needs no high-level directives   (10/28/2000)
  Egypt urges Washington for just proposals to support Palestinian rights   (10/28/2000)
  The world Islamic conference calls for halting relations with Israel   (10/28/2000)
  OIC committee condemns barbarous crimes by Israel against Palestinians   (10/27/2000)
  Palestinian presonalities and Arab unions criticize Cairo summit   (10/26/2000)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search