Resistance to the war

A good set of pieces on resistance to the war is just up on the blog of Jewish Peace News (JPN).


Among the summaries:

Courage to Refuse statement

We will not take part in the campaign of destruction.

We, officers and soldiers of the IDF,

who hold dearly the security and the future of the State of Israel,

who understand that the attack in Gaza exarcerbates the conflict and will bring many more years of missiles on widening parts of the population, and has laid an unbearable catastrophe upon the people of Israel and the Palestinian people,

we understand that revenge is not security, and that the IDF's operation in Gaza perpetuates the conflict and does not contribute to solving it.

We declare that we will not take part in the campaign for destruction in Gaza.

To sign this declaration, to help in organizing the rally, or to obtain assistance for those who are facing trials, call Noam Livne, David Zonesheine or Arik Diamant (phone numbers attached).

Rally opposite the Ministry of Defense, Thursday 1/7/09 at 6 PM.

A Palestinian man waits to receive food supplies at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) headquarters in Gaza January 8, 2009. (Suhaib Salem/Reuters)


JPN also reminds readers:

Call the Obama transition office number and leave a message. It is easy to do, the number is: 1-202-540-3000; press 2 and you will get a staff member who will take a message from you.

Here are examples of things you can say:

a) Obama’s silence is being seen as condoning Israel's war on Gaza.
b) He should break his silence to call for an immediate ceasefire, even if it is not a "durable one". Scores of people are dying everyday and to not demand a ceasefire is to say that their deaths do not count. Also, ceasefires, even if imperfect, can work to drastically reduce death, injury, fear and trauma.
c) Gazans are in dire need of food and medical supplies. Even if Israel allows trucks in, without a ceasefire, distribution is almost impossible.

Read it all here.

A Palestinian girl, who fled her house with her family during Israel's offensive, looks out of a window at a U.N. school in Jabalya in the northern Gaza Strip January 7, 2009. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)