My letter to the Washington Post RE End the Gaza blockade to achieve peace By Keith Ellison

Displaced Palestinian children rest at the Abu Hussien United Nations school in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip after the area was hit earlier in the morning by Israeli shelling on July 30, 2014  UN says Israeli shelling of Gaza 'disgraces the world'

RE End the Gaza blockade to achieve peace By Keith Ellison
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/keith-ellison-end-the-gaza-blockade-to-achieve-peace/2014/07/29/e5e707c4-16a1-11e4-85b6-c1451e622637_story.html

Dear Editor,

Keith Ellison is right: "Ultimately, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must be resolved with a final status agreement, and ending the violence and the blockade is a first step toward a permanent solution."

Queen Rania of Jordan's excellent op-ed Gaza: The Makings of a Modern Day Dystopia published by the Huffington Post also has some very good advice: "First, there must be a ceasefire. But, that is not the only solution. We cannot allow a return to the hellish status quo: a daily battle for survival. There must quickly follow a dedicated global effort to return life to the shadows of Gaza. Crossings, open. Rights, recognized. Freedom, granted. Infrastructure, repaired. Trade links, restored. Schools, equipped. Hospitals, renovated. Scars must heal. Hope must blossom.  But it won't happen without the collective efforts of the global community. They must insist on a life of dignity for the people of Gaza. Each one of us can do something. Advocate. Raise awareness. Reject violence. Donate to UNRWA."

Every day that Israel's strangle hold continues not only on Gaza, but also all through out the West Bank, the worse the Israel-Palestine conflict becomes, with dire consequences for countless men, women and children throughout the region.

Israel and Islamists are both in the wrong for generating poisonous propaganda and policies crafted to exasperate religious bigotry and the very real plight of the Palestinians.

I think it is crucial to REJECT ALL VIOLENCE: Religion and 'resistance' should not be armed with lethal weaponry, hate mongering rhetoric, and rage stoking memes:  A fully secular two state solution based on full respect for international law and universal basic human rights to once and for all end the conflict is the only way to actually end the Israel-Palestine conflict and all its many very negative ramifications.

Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES
If a problem ever seems too big, too insurmountable, remember Nelson Mandela's words: "It always seems impossible until it's done."

One Sorrow ... a poem

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The Solution to Middle East Chaos ... American Task Force on Palestine: Categorically and unequivocally condemning all violence against civilians, no matter the cause and who the victims or perpetrators may be

Palestinians in Gaza

UNITED NATIONS: International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People 2014 

Palestinian Refugees (1948-NOW) refused their right to return... and their right to live in peace free from religious bigotry and injustice.

 STAY CONNECTED... 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

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ATFP Panel on Israeli-Palestinian War in a New Regional Landscape... & a firm call for an immediate ceasefire

"The only way to honor our tragic histories is to create a future for our children free of man-made tragedy. This means making peace fully, completely and without reservation, between Israel and Palestine." American Task Force on Palestine's born in Jerusalem Dr. Ziad Asali: To honor a tragic history, we must work for peace

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The Arab Peace Initiative

Emanating from the conviction of the Arab countries that a military solution to the conflict will not achieve peace or provide security for the parties, the council:

1. Requests Israel to reconsider its policies and declare that a just peace is its strategic option as well.

2. Further calls upon Israel to affirm:

I- Full Israeli withdrawal from all the territories occupied since 1967, including the Syrian Golan Heights, to the June 4, 1967 lines as well as the remaining occupied Lebanese territories in the south of Lebanon.

II- Achievement of a just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem to be agreed upon in accordance with U.N. General Assembly Resolution 194.

III- The acceptance of the establishment of a sovereign independent Palestinian state on the Palestinian territories occupied since June 4, 1967 in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

3. Consequently, the Arab countries affirm the following:

I- Consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended, and enter into a peace agreement with Israel, and provide security for all the states of the region.

II- Establish normal relations with Israel in the context of this comprehensive peace.

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"I have yet to meet a refugee who wanted to be a refugee and even less so, who wished to remain a refugee. Palestine refugees are no different. Their call for a just and lasting solution to their plight must be heard." UNWRA's Pierre Krähenbühl on World Refugee Day

America/Israel/Palestine 1776

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

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