Friday, August 31, 2012

My letter to the New York Times RE Report on Iran Nuclear Work Puts Israel in a Box


RE: Report on Iran Nuclear Work Puts Israel in a Box
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/31/world/middleeast/report-on-iran-nuclear-work-puts-israel-in-a-box.html?_r=1&ref=global-home

Dear Editor,

If Israel actually stepped up to abide by international law- dismantling its settlement projects and apartheid policies so that the Israel-Palestine conflict could actually end with a fair and just two state solution based on full respect for universal basic human rights, Iran would be forced to seriously rethink its own trajectory and rhetoric.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon warns about the current state of bellicose rhetoric coming from Israel and Iran, saying "a war of words can quickly spiral into a war of violence."

Ziad Asali founder of the American Task Force on Palestine wisely points out in a recent article that "Over the past 30 years, the rise of religious fanaticism in some parts of Palestinian society, mirroring that in the broader Arab world as well as among Jewish Israelis, has also undermined healthy social, cultural and educational attitudes. However, such fanaticism does not define the Palestinian mainstream or essential national culture. On the contrary, most Palestinians, while devout and socially conservative, remain essentially secular and fundamentally worldly."

Peace and earnest honorable support for a sovereign Palestinian state living in security alongside Israel is a win-win situation for all the people in the region.  Religious extremists, nay sayers and hate mongers on all sides will object but religious extremists, naysayers and hate mongers should not be handed the power to exasperate the very real plight and suffering of the Palestinians.

Sincerely
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES
Bulldozing the Special Relationship: The Rachel Corrie verdict should be a wakeup call to America.

The Truth is Stranger than Fiction in Palestine

Guardian: Nick Hayes on the Rachel Corrie court verdict – cartoon

Rachel Corrie

ALERTNET: Gaza not "liveable" by 2020 barring urgent action - U.N.

CSM: Severe attack on Palestinian teen spotlights conflict's impact on Israeli youths

Breaking the Silence: More than 30 former Israeli soldiers have disclosed their experiences of the treatment of Palestinian children during military operations and arrests, pointing to a pattern of abuse.

Ending the Israel-Palestine conflict: "It is the view of the United Nations that there is a responsibility not only on the parties themselves but on all member states to consider their action and their language in light of the goal,"


We Palestinian are locked in a fierce struggle for our independence....to make the matter straight and simple this is not a clash of religions...

Israel, Iran and the Nuclear Challenge... Since Israel has nuclear weapons, other countries in the region want them, too.

Violent attacks by settlers on Palestinians and their property, mosques and farmland had increased by 150% over the past year.

'Separate and Unequal' is Unacceptable to Palestinians

"If you have to modify it, it isn't really a democracy."




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The Office of International Religious Freedom ( http://www.state.gov/j/drl/irf/Given the U.S. commitment to religious freedom, and to the international covenants that guarantee it as the inalienable right of every human being, the United States seeks to:
Promote freedom of religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental human right and as a source of stability for all countries

Refugees and the Right of Return: "Palestinian refugees must be given the option to exercise their right of return (as well as receive compensation for their losses arising from their dispossession and displacement) though refugees may prefer other options such as: (i) resettlement in third countries, (ii) resettlement in a newly independent Palestine (even though they originate from that part of Palestine which became Israel) or (iii) normalization of their legal status in the host country where they currently reside. What is important is that individual refugees decide for themselves which option they prefer - a decision must not be imposed upon them."

"It is in Israel's vital interest to come to a complete resolution of the conflict between it and the Palestinian people sooner rather than later, relieving the weight of this tragic conflict from both of our peoples' shoulders. We owe it to ourselves. We owe it to the world." Maen Rashid Areikat: The Time for a Palestinian State Is Now

"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home - so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world."Eleanor Roosevelt

The Golden Rule... Do unto others as you would have them do unto you


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