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Thursday, July 17, 2014

My letter to the Washington Post RE Israeli war on Gaza negates Mahmoud Abbas’s peaceful legacy By Daoud Kuttab

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

RE  Israeli war on Gaza negates Mahmoud Abbas’s peaceful legacy By Daoud Kuttab
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/daoud-kuttab-israeli-war-on-gaza-negates-mahmoud-abbass-peaceful-legacy/2014/07/16/e7c00d26-0c5a-11e4-8c9a-923ecc0c7d23_story.html

Dear Editor,

It is not Israeli bombs that are negating the Abbas legacy- it is Islamist rockets... and, much as it pains me to admit this, it is also all who claim to be pro-Palestine who are not "totally committed to the vision of a two-state solution, normalization and peace with our neighbor — Israel.”

Islamists do not object to Israel because Israel has chosen to define citizenship by religion, thereby creating the largest, longest running refugee crisis in the world today... Islamists object to Israel because they want their brand of Islam to be the state sponsored religion benefiting from tax payer funds and "defended" by a formal air force that can pulverize an entire neighboring country in a blink.   Islamists seek solidarity and all the support and sympathy they can get in order to achieve their nefarious goal.

Israel is clearly in the wrong for impoverishing, persecuting, imprisoning and/or pushing the native non-Jewish men, women, and children of historic Palestine into forced exile and despair for the past 66 years. However two wrongs do not make a right: So far Palestinian violence has only convinced Israel to be more punitive towards Palestinians. The right to resist with armed resistance does not mean armed resistance is the right thing to do. 

Ending the Israel-Palestine conflict and all its many negative ramifications with a negotiated, just and lasting peace firmly based on fully respecting international law and universal human rights is the only way to actually end the conflict. Two fully secular sovereign states living side by side in security and dignity is a worthwhile goal for everyone's sake. 

Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES
Normalizing Intelligent Conversations, Diplomatic Support, and Hope for Palestine... ATFP Panel Briefing: Israeli-Palestinian War in a New Regional Landscape... 12:00-2:00 PM, July 17th, 2014, Murrow Room, National Press Club, Washington, DC

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians

July 8, 2014, Washington, DC -- The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) today called on Israel and the Palestinians to de-escalate as quickly as possible from an increasingly explosive situation and a moment of grave peril. Major airstrikes on Gaza have killed numerous Palestinians, reportedly including several children, today while another heavy barrage of rocket fire from Gaza was launched towards southern Israel, and at least one rocket being reportedly shot down over Tel Aviv. Today's violence comes in the context of tit-for-tat killings of, and attacks on, Israeli and Palestinian teenagers in Jerusalem, widespread tensions in the West Bank, and even growing unrest among Palestinian citizens of Israel.

ATFP called on all sides to demonstrate leadership and to take immediate and concrete actions to de-escalate the growing conflict and refrain from inflammatory rhetoric. ATFP urged all parties to consider the negative consequences of similar conflagrations in the past, and recall that they did not benefit either side, militarily or politically, but caused the deaths of countless innocent civilians, enormous destruction of property, and widespread and lasting misery. ATFP urged President Barack Obama and the rest of the international community to use their good offices to ensure that all prospects for resolving the crisis are fully explored.
Balt Sun: Unemployment, poverty at the root of Israeli-Palestinian conflict [Letter] by Roger Lawson

Misdirection

What Israel and Hamas are really trying to accomplish in Gaza... "The sole purpose of this war with Israel is to force Egypt to change its policies"

Palestinians die in the most cynical of all military games

Syrian refugees, sectarian tensions endanger Lebanon

 

Thousands of Palestinians seek safe refuge at U.N. offices in Gaza
  

UN security council calls for Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire: Statement expresses 'serious concern regarding crisis related to Gaza and protection and welfare of civilians'
 

Gaza bloodshed spirals as world powers plead for ceasefire

"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

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

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

Reasonable voices & helpful resources ...America for Palestine MAY 2014

The American Task Force on Palestine supports Palestinian institution-building, good governance, anti-corruption measures, economic development, and improved living standards. ATFP holds that these same values are relevant to the broader Arab world, and that the question of Palestine is inextricably linked to regional realities and developments.

ATFP provides an independent voice for Palestinian-Americans and their supporters and advances human rights and peace. It categorically and unequivocally condemns all violence against civilians, no matter the cause and who the victims or perpetrators may be.


The Arab villages lost since Israel's war of independence - Guardian Interactive: ...Pre 1948 ...March 1948 ... May 1948 ...June 1948 ...Oct 1948 ...July 1949 ...Now


Remembering the Nakba: Israeli group puts 1948 Palestine back on the map Zochrot aims to educate Israeli Jews – through tours and a new phone app – about a history obscured by enmity and denial

Growing Gardens for Palestine: "And it's up to all of us together"... a Spring poem for Palestine & peace

Peace Building ... civic muscle

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

"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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