Struggles for freedom
Struggles for freedom at home and abroad
Unpublished 5/12/04
There is recent evidence of Israeli mossad agents involved in torture of Iraqi prisoners and training US forces in techniques of violating international law and basic human rights. Israel is in violation of 65 UN resolutions (would have been over 100 had the US not used its veto power to block others). This ranges from attacking and occupying lands of others to ethnic cleansing of native Palestinians. For these atrocities, the US rewards Israel with $5 billion in annual aid and goes against the will of the International community to advance Zionist interests at the expense even of US public interests. The hypocrisy and corruptness of the Zionist-occupied US administration (democrats and republicans alike) generated such a massive distrust and outright hostility around the world.
On Monday Israeli occupation forces assaulted Palestinian civilian neighborhood called Azaytoun (the Olives)
in the largest and most densely populated open-air prison in the world called the Gaza strip. The first units to infiltrate were specially trained units masquerading as local Arabs. Per the Geneva accords it is illegal for such army combatants not to wear identifiable uniforms. As they intensified their efforts, tanks joined them and several armored personnel carriers. The units took positions on rooftops and attacked Palestinians killing 9 people and injuring over 100. Two children were killed and 35 injured. As they were withdrawing under fire from resistance fighters, an improvised explosive detonated under one of the APCs killing 6 Israeli occupation soldiers.
Israeli forces went back into the destitute refugee camp today and vowed to remain until body parts of the Israeli soldiers are returned. In the sporadic fighting that ensued today, five more Israeli occupation soldiers are reported killed and several Palestinian civilians were killed. US made and paid for tanks and Apache helicopters fired at civilian neighborhoods causing massive destructions and lots of deaths. Israeli colonizers also prevented freedom of movement between he towns in the strip (collective punishment).
These events are reminiscent of the occupation of South Lebanon which lasted nearly 20 years. At that time, the Lebanese resistance vastly outnumbered and outgunned by the strongest army in the Middle East resisted Israeli occupation heroically and with persistence and finally succeeded in driving the Israelis out. This is what those fighting in Gaza hope to achieve. The one difference is that in Lebanon, the resistance was not isolated on all sides by the Israeli army. In Gaza, the Israeli army is everywhere especially around the Palestinian “reservation”. Yet, somehow resistance forces are able to get the resources they need (apparently even buying weapons from some Israelis). In the last three and a half years, the cost of resistance to colonization has been high. Over 3200 Palestinians (mostly civilians) were killed including 570 children. Tens of thousands have been injured. There is nearly 70% unemployment as Israel tightens its siege/blockage. The civilian infrastructure has been decimated (schools, businesses, roads, hospitals).
It turns out that the majority of those killed were killed not while exercising violent resistance (however legitimate by international law) but killed while going about their daily (subjugated) lives or in some cases while engaged in non-violent resistance. The non-violent resistance goes on largely unreported in the US media except on rare occasions (e.g. when an Israeli soldier used an American bulldozer to murder American Student Rachel Corrie). In fact, the vast majority of the resistance to colonization and occupation in any setting is non-violent. At a recent talk a Zionist stated that he recognizes all this damage and he hoped the Palestinians would realize how damaging this “Intifada” has been to them. This hubris is so incredible. Since when does anyone expect people t simply accept living in slavery and subjugation? The old saying is give me liberty or give me death rings loud. For now death and destruction rains supreme both in Iraq and Palestine. Liberty will come because history shows than no people succumb to occupation and colonization.
Just look at history of resistance by natives American to European settlers, Algerians to French colonization, Africans to Apartheid, Vietnamese to US occupation, and Iraqis to British occupation in the 1920s and now to Anglo-American occupation. In all these struggles, violent and non-violent resistance was visible (as were occasional atrocities from the natives but far less than the level of atrocities by the colonizers/occupiers). It all stops when people gain their freedoms and inalienable rights are restored. Our duty here in America as taxpayers and voters is to understand and challenge what is being done in our name. We should demand that not in our name will you fund and support ethnic cleansing, colonization and occupation. We should demand than not in our name should our government restrict our freedoms (e.g. by the horrible PATRIOT act and such resolutions in congress as HR 3077). |