The real antisemitism underlying the boycotters

Joshua

Pamela Hardyment writes: "Yet you have in a wonderful Nazi like killing machine (thousands of palestinians have died or are incarcerated in camps, including Gaza and the West Bank) backed by the world's richest jews" Yvonne Roberts writes in the Guardian: "It clears a space in the public arena which, in the UK and the USA, is normally hopelessly biased in favour of Israel - not least because Zionist supporters of Israel in both countries have money and political clout on a scale the Palestinians cannot hope to match."

Michael

Why does Ms Hardyment write 'and no fear'? I was not aware that the Board of Deputies are in the habit of sending the heavies out to deal with known anti-Semites, so what could she be afraid of? Perhaps it is indeed worrying for a poet to lend her voice to the mainstream, to go along with the crowd, to follow the flock. I can only applaud her bravery, her lack of fear, in daring to add her voice to the already deafening clamour of European Hatred for Israel - oh, sorry Pam - 'all Jews' in your case, credit where credit's due! I'm hoping for her sake that her poetry is slightly better than her blundering, blustering, teenage prose. But I'll never know, because as a sane person the least I can do is boycott her poetry as a protest against her vileness and ignorance, and perhaps settle down to read the work of a real poet, while enjoying one of those Jaffa oranges that cause her so much pain. I don't need to offer her any curse in return for her own: for a 'poet' to be riddled with such ignorance, and saddled with such granite moral arrogance, is curse enough. It's enough that we get to watch the slow self-poisoning that her hatred inflicts on her mind.

Alisdair

Pamela Handyment, research has shown that Israeli produce can actually guard against mental health problems, so it is easy to see why you have gone downhill so quickly. Somebody as hate-filled as you is to be pitied more than anything else. The content of your email can be refuted so easily, but why should people waste time on a clearly unhinged individual like you? Like Michael, everybody should boycott her poetry.

Peter Turner

What an example of stupidity from a member of the NUJ and what arrogance - "we in the UK have had enough of Israel". Pamela Hardement most certainly does not represent my opinions. That the UCU appears ready to follow the NUJ in this is, to put it mildly, disappointing and does not say much for the intelligence of the membership. So much hate, so much bigotry.

Abe Bird

As an Israeli I look at these British' events (UCU boycott and Pamela Hardyment bitter hatred) from aside know that the Israeli academy will continue to flourish and contribute to all, even to those in Britain that will not cooperate with their management's inferior decision. I'm sure that the IDF will continue to protect me, my family, my friends and all the Israelis, Arabs as Jews alike, against the non-stop deadly aggressions of the Palestinian Arabs, no matter what this British doctor or that British professor might think of this. Our lives are much more precious that those of whom want to harm us (British UCU) or kill us (The Arab Palestinians/Iranians and so). I'm very sorry to disappoint some Anti Semites' hate mongers but we prefer pity you as we are alive then you to pity us as we dead. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BzffA8LVP8&mode=related&search= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66maIBToYv4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQYXair1Fu8&mode=related&search= Ain't it enough yet? Abe Bird Proud Israeli

Jeremy Jacobs

The word "demented" springs to mind. Stephen, why bother mentioning this vile woman at all? Giving publicity to her is similar to what's been going on with Rachel North recently.

Jack Bauer

Surely we have a typo here. The Jew hating blackshirt is actually Pamela Hardymental. Well at least she hasn't suggested all Jews should wear yellow stars yet. Err, she hasn't has she?

Susan

This proposed boycott of Israeli academics is really a boycott of JEWISH Israeli academics. The population of Gaza and the West Bank is continually growing. This so-called "Nazi killing machine is only her head. There is something so skewed about comparing what is happening in Darfur to what is happening in Gaza, that I wonder at her ability to judge anything at all. She trots out all the classic antisemitic stereotypes. The one thing that Jews are never allowed to be is just humans. It seems to me that the courageous stand in the UK would be to support Israel. Attacking Israel is just going along with the crowd. I have a friend who in the 60s was thrown out of the SWP for being Gay and for being a Zionist. The SWP has not changed much. I don't know how else to explain their support for Hamas and Hezbollah.

Daniel Berke

Sadly, her vile and twisted rhetoric is not that uncommon. It is becoming increasingly trendy to refer to the 'so called holocaust' and query the figure of '6,000,000' amongst far left wing circles as it is on the far right.

..(Rampant JEW hatred) amongst far left wing circles (as much) as it is on the far right.,, Sure -- as if there was ever a big difference in the respective pathologies. Hitler didn't call the Nazi party, National SSOCIALISTSS for nothing

ILLANA

Who the eff is pamela hardyment? My response to the curse she has visited upon Jews is this: may her children, her children's children and all their future issue, fall in love with, marry and procreate a huge dynasty of Jewish academics, professors,oncologists, Nobel prizewinners, scientists and philanthropists. And will one of your readers who possesses a particularly excellent reipce for chicken soup please pass it on to mistress hardyment. Methinks she needs a dose of Jewish penicillin to balm her tortured soul.

chris

i'm curious as to ms. hardyment's background -- she makes two odd claims: first, that her family was among those who suffered during the holocaust (though she prefaces this with the word "so called"), and that mysterious israeli powers "have already taken" her land. does anyone have any more details? my google searches were only able to find a collection of poetry and this: http://www.thesouth.org.uk/debate_write.html

Miranda

Ms Hardyment's letter is undoubtedly highly offensive and racist. But how can Mr Pollard know that Ms Hardiments sentiments are "representative of the underlying views of many boycott supporters"?
As Mr Pollard concedes, there is nothing racist about a call to boycott a state and/or institution which supports a form of apartheid. (By apartheid I am refering here to settler-only roads, the Wall, and the demolition of 18,000 palestinian homes for non-security reasons).

I support the call for an economic boycott and divestment from Israel, and the right for Universities to debate the academic boycot, until International Law is upheld in Israel. I also strongly oppose racism and anti-sematism, and I totally condemn this woman's offensive letter. So Mr Pollard must either condemn me for using words which might be mis-interpreted by anti-semites; or accuse me of saying one thing when I actually mean another. I can think of emotional reasons for wishing to smear all of one's political opponants with a counter-accusation of racism, but not reasoned ones.

JJ Prasch

I am no supporter of Jonathan Pollard, but knowing the plight of religious minorities , women, homosexuals, and others in Islamic countries, I find calls for boycotts on Israel stupid and hypocritical. The human rights violations in evewn moderate moslem countries like Jordan and Egypt (Jordan has over 1,000 Islamic honour killings of women annually) and the Islamo-fascist apartheid of Saudi Arabia and Saudi Arabia speaks for itself. To gang up on Israel, the one country in the region defending the human rights of Christians, women, homosexuals & lesbians etc. is an injustice of ouytragous proportions. Hardyment is a deranged woman who appears to be half psycho in addition to ignorant and bigoted. Isrtael is only resisting the same Islkamo facism responsible for the Rushdie riots, The Bradford riots, the London tube bombings, September 11th, the Pareis riots, the Sydney riots, the Madrid train bombing, the Bombay train bombing, the Beslan massacre of children, the Van Gough murder, and the slaughter of 3.2 million Black ASfrican Christians in Sudan in the last 13 years plus the 300,000 Christians exterminated in East Timor. etc. etc. As a Christian. I thank God for Israel. At lewast one Middle East nation [protects the freedom of Arab Christians. JJ Prasch

miranda

JJ Prasch: Re your comments- not only are your comments offensive in their racism and in their generalised conflations, but they are also ignorant.
Unfortunately Israel doesnt protect the freedom of Arab Christians. That's the point. The Arab Christians in Israel/Palestine are called Palestinians. Israel describes itself as a 'Democratic Jewish' state: all religions and ethnicities are not equally protected under the law. This to many people, is ethnocracy, not democracy. Equality and rights for all is the way forward.

p hardyment

http://www.palsolidarity.org/ inform yourselves ps: just off to see my circumcised jewish lover of 25 years. that's how masochistic I am...

pam hardyment

A blistering rant sure does get some response, which is exactly what was intended when I wrote the letter, and it wasn't sent to Pollard so you see how things get sent around. I use my own name which suggests I have no fear because I have no fear of the truth, others hide behind masks, that is what 'no fear' means. As a poet, I rely on truth, there is no way out of that, boycotting my poetry means nothing,I write it for myself, no poet ever made money out of poetry (unlike the arms trade to Israel). 'All jews' means just that, ALL JEWS should be mindful of what is being done in their name in Israel, they should stand up and not be afraid of denouncing Israel (many do, not enough). We boycotted South African goods for decades, cricket and rugby teams too, that helped bring the downfall of apartheid, me and my jewish friends. 'So much hate, so much bigotry' goes the response. Go down to the Wall, stand with the Israeli soldiers with their contempt for every arab that passes and you will see that hatred and bigotry in spades. And so the arabs hate. And so the cycle of hatred goes around. And yes, sometimes I hate those bigoted orthodox jews down there,(but then there are some orthodox jews who stand against what Israel is doing, its complex)I hate Hamas too at times, 'The one thing that jews are never allowed to be is just human'says somebody. Apart fom some inspirational Israelis and the quiet dignity of a Primo Levi and others like him, I don't see much worldwide protest coming from some of the richest and most influential human beings on this planet, do you? Is there mass protest against the obscene build up of nuclear weapons in Israel, its cosy friendship with American dollars and loony American evangelicals, its justifications for incarcerating a la Guantanamo thousands of Palestinians,its economic blockade,its Wall, its humiliation of arabs, etcetera, etcetera? As for jewish penicillin, I have had that in great measure from friends, lovers, and acquaintances, it is their humanity that attracts me and, now you mention it, yes, they are jewish too. I just never think about that. And they don't call me antisemitic. Anti semitism is too easy a label to put on anybody that protests about the fascism of the State of Israel, it comes from jews alone, nobody else and it is a great putdown without recourse to any rational argument, it is akin to the Nazis stating that all jews are vermin, if you say it enough, people start to believe it. So stop calling me an antisemite, so patently absurd, and address yourselves to the truth of Israel, the Israeli/American axis.

pam hardyment

rather than bore you with what i think i shall inform you regularly of what your wonderful country israel does to flagrantly kill, maim and prevent people on lands they have stolen any human rights so here goes The Israeli branch of Physicians for Human Rights - a non-partisan group - told the Supreme Court that as Israel had re-taken control of most Palestinian areas, it was again responsible for the welfare of their inhabitants

jane arnold

A Walk Through Old Hebron The further you penetrate into the heart of the old part of the city of Hebron, the narrower the lanes become. Broad enough at first for a market stall on either side piled high with brilliantly coloured fruit and vegetables and a bustling crowd passing between, they gradually taper to shady tunnels with cave-like shops cut into the walls on either side.Many of the 15th century lanes in this ancient Palestinian city are covered over but a few right in the centre of the old souk are open to the sky. Or, almost open, for the shopkeepers have fixed up wire netting all along the street between the shop awnings to catch the rubbish and rocks which extremist Jewish settlers regularly chuck down on their heads from above.The netting bulges down in places with the weight of accumulated garbage. I saw whole bricks, stones, bottles, tin cans, peelings, dirty paper, even a broken doll. Jamal, who runs a cosy little shop selling traditionally embroidered dresses, told me that since the netting went up and the settlers could no longer hit Palestinians with their missiles, they sometimes resort to throwing bottles of urine or chemicals.In all of the occupied West Bank there is a problem with settlers. According to recent figures from the United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, ‘in 2007 approximately 450,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, alongside 2.4 million Palestinians’ . The settlers have built homes throughout the region since Israel began its military occupation following the six day war in 1967. According to international law - although not Israeli law - every one of the settlements is completely illegal as no state is allowed to move its own people permanently on to land it is occupying.Hebron is a particular flashpoint as the Palestinians and settlers live right up next to each other and the settlers here are so peculiarly extreme and aggressive that many Israelis are disgusted by their actions. The atmosphere is always tense and oppressive and there are frequent clashes.The city is divided into two parts - H1, a lively, noisy place administered by the Palestinian Authority which is home to around 130,000 Palestinians, and H2 which is under the iron control of the Israeli military. Here a further 35,000 Palestinians live plus about 600 Jewish settlers in three apartment blocks in the old city and a collection of houses and caravans on a slope above, guarded by around 2000 Israeli soldiers.I arrived in Hebron last week with the rest of the EAPPI team who will be working here and we were shown round by the team we are taking over from. When we got to Jamal's shop on a walk through the souk he pointed out the old stone apartments on the first floor above, and the newer apartments on the second floor. These were built by settlers 20 years ago and called the Abraham Avinu neighbourhood. After they moved in, he said, they gradually broke into and took over the former Palestinian apartments on the first floor too.Reaching the end of Jamal's street we rounded a corner and passed through Checkpoint 56 which consists of a Portakabin-style building placed across the road housing a metal detector and a couple of bored soldiers. This was the border between the H1 zone and H2 and suddenly all the hustle and bustle of the city fell silent. No Palestinians are allowed to drive in this area - not even a taxi or an ambulance - all the shops, clinics and businesses have been closed down for "security" reasons and are shuttered and padlocked, few people were walking (the settlers are allowed to drive). It was like a ghost town.We went up the road for 50 yards then turned right, heading for Hashem Al-Azzeh's house on the slope known as Tel Rumeida. Turning right meant leaving the road to scramble up a stony bank then winding along a rough and narrow pathway through scrubland and up another couple of steep slopes. This has been the only way in and out of Hashem's home since the building of the settlement 50 feet behind his house cut off access from the road. A month ago he had to carry his dying father in his arms down this way and along to the checkpoint to meet an ambulance which was allowed to come no nearer.Being on the slope above the old city, Hashem's house has a great view, but it also means that the house behind sits 30 feet above his and looms over it. Here lives Baruch Marzel, a right-wing radical Zionist, born in Brooklyn, New York, and now the founder and leader of the Jewish National Front Party whose avowed aim is to take over the whole area west of the Jordan river for the Israelis. Hashem's family - his two brothers and their families live in houses adjoining his - have suffered 20 years of harassment and attacks by the inhabitants of the Tel Rumeida settlement. Three years ago, Hashem says, a notoriously aggressive woman settler grabbed his ten-year-old nephew, Yusuf, stuffed stones in his mouth and rubbed them up and down, destroying his teeth. Then she screamed at Hashem that next time she would come with men who would rape his wife and kill him.There is an old fridge rusting in Hashem's back garden which was lobbed at his head and a Star of David has been spray painted on his back door. As a result of this sort of treatment plus crippling curfews imposed by the army, the 350 Palestinian families who used to live in the area have been reduced to about 50 but Hashem and his brothers, who have been there for three generations, are determined to stay put.He once tried to talk to Baruch Marzel, he told me. "I said to him: 'I accept you as a neighbour, do you accept me?' He said: 'No. If you want peace, you can go to Jordan or Iran. Your houses and your land were promised by God to us.' I know they don't want peace. In fact, whenever relations improve between our governments, their harassment of us gets worse. But if I did anything to them to protect myself, the soldiers would shoot me."Just a few things make life bearable for Hashem - the support of Israeli friends and peace activists, the protection provided by international observers, and the steadfastness of his family. As we got up to leave, his two sisters and their husbands and children were arriving for a big family gathering over an evening meal. Hashem said:"I invite them to come all the time and to make as much noise as possible to show the settlers that we are here and we are going to stay."

PH

s long as the Palestinians are oppressed I shall keep protesting, here is today's blog, I will never give up and you can call me any kind of name, anti semitic if you like, I will never give up It was 5.30am, the light was pearly grey and an old couple on a donkey cart were on their way to harvest their olives. They had everything ready for the day's work – plastic sheeting to collect the olives they stripped from the trees, bags to carry them in, a packed lunch – and had trotted down the dusty lane leading from their village to their fields.But now they had to wait because between them and their land was a pair of mesh gates topped with razor wire, behind that was a big, heavy, metal gate painted yellow, then another pair of mesh gates set in a 12 foot high wire fence, then a road, then an army checkpoint manned by three soldiers.At 5.45am the old man pointed at his watch, sneered and clicked his fingers in a gesture which spoke volumes of frustration and contempt. At 5.47am – only two minutes late – the soldiers crossed the road and, with a clanging of chains, swung open the three sets of gates and the old pair trotted hastily through.As the sun rose over the horizon they were followed by a steady stream of farmers, some walking, some riding donkeys, some in a pony and trap, a few rattling along in the back of a cart pulled by a tractor, all heading for the land their families had worked for centuries. Land that now lies on the far side of the Israeli security barrier.This was Jayyous, a village on the north west side of the West Bank and the most badly affected – and the best known - of the scores of Palestinian communities which have been cut off from their land and crops by the construction of the wall or fence. The only way through is via two gates – the north gate which is opened three times a day for up to an hour and a half, and the south gate which is opened for just 15 minutes at a time – but only those with a permit from the Israeli authorities can pass.The 60 or so farmers I saw at the north gate were the lucky ones with permits. At the time I was visiting at the height of the olive harvest, the mayor had submitted a list of 419 villagers needing permits but it had been rejected twice and the people had been told they had to apply individually.And those who had permits were not happy. At the gate I met one farmer who originally had a two year permit but when he renewed it had been given one for only 30 days, just to cover the harvest. Waving it at me angrily he said:"Even two years is not enough. It's my land. I want my land back. I want my son to work it after me."On the previous day I had looked down on the Jayyous farmers' land from the balcony of the local town hall on the hill above with Sharif Omar Khaled, better known as Abu Azzam, meaning 'father of Azzam' (Palestinian men are familiarly called after their first born son). Abu Azzam, 65, who travels abroad three or four times a year to talk about his community's plight, is one of the main reasons Jayyous has become a symbol of all the villages whose land has been swallowed by the fence.He pointed out the Mediterranean sea and the beaches and skyscrapers of Tel Aviv 40 kilometres away, though they might as well have been on the moon as they were just as unreachable for the locals.Inland from there were the towns and villages of Israel, built right up to the Green Line (the border drawn in 1967 after Israel won the six day war and began its occupation of the West Bank). And nearest to us I could see a long, wide curve in the security fence, bulging away from the Green Line and biting up to six kilometres into the West Bank to embrace an area full of fruit trees and greenhouses.Within that curve lies 70% of Jayyous's fertile farming land and all six of its water sources. It covers 900 hectares of land, includes 15,000 olive trees, 50,000 citrus trees and 120 greenhouses. Before the fence, this land produced 90% of the area's agricultural income. Now the economy is crippled and the farmers impoverished.The first the farmers knew of the fence was when they found notices fixed to trees in September, 2002, saying it was being constructed for security reasons. In July, 2004, the International Court of Justice declared the route of the barrier – 90% of which is built on Palestinian land – illegal and said it must be demolished and the people it damaged compensated. Nothing happened."The claim that they built it for security is a great deception, or else they could have put it on the Green Line," said Abu Azzam. "The route is actually to allow for the future expansion of Israeli settlements on our land and to take our water."Initially, permits were issued to nearly everyone in Jayyous, including babies and dead people, but excluding anyone who had taken part in acts of protest against the occupation. Gradually, however, more and more people are being refused, and refusal is never either justified or explained.On the day I visited, the EAPPI's team in Jayyous was meeting the mayor, some other farmers and a group of visitors from Sweden who fund various projects. I looked around the table at the farmers as they described their deepening poverty and their profound sense of grievance for what must have been the thousandth time to concerned internationals who listen and sympathise and then go away and change nothing, and I wondered how they coped with their feelings of anger and impotence. They complained that legitimate political protest only brings further punishment, and there is plenty of evidence to support that claim. Abu Azzam, who owns 3,600 trees of olive, citrus, avocado, apricot, almonds and guavas, has built strong links with Israeli peace groups.In February he went to Britain to speak at a debate at Cambridge University. After he got off the plane on his way home he was forced to strip to his underpants and was held for four hours. In June, his permit to pass through the fence was not renewed. "I feel I am being punished because they don't want me to tell the Israeli public or the world what is going on here," he told me.He introduced me to Salah Tahir Qudomy, a 42-year-old father of five who was involved in demonstrations and left wing politics before the fence was built and who has never been given a permit to go to his five greenhouses and 160 olive trees."I feel a lot of pain about this," he told me. " I have a family, I must feed them and pay for their studies. My land is three kilometres away. I can see it with my eyes but I cannot reach it with my feet. "I believe the Israelis want to deprive us of our land and our water so that people will have to emigrate. But I will never emigrate and I don't want my children to. I send them with farmers who have permits so they will build a relationship with our land just as I did when I went there with my father and grandfather."If we Palestinians have bread and olive oil, that is enough for us. We can survive. But I am one of tens of thousands who cannot work our land and if we protest about it, things get worse. "The pressure gets more and more. I think, in the end, this pressure will be so much there must be an explosion. THE POEPLE WILL EXPLODE. (ps: fROM ph - AND NOT JUST THE pALESTINIAN REFUGEES - CAN YOU ALL SEE WHY NOW, i DOUBT IT)

PH

Letter from Hebron Settlers Visit The School Last Sunday morning, the start of a new week at Cordoba School in Hebron, and the first Palestinian children arrive at 7.15am to find the path to the school door covered with big, heavy rocks.Israeli settlers from one of the city's four small enclaves, or maybe from the large settlement of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts where 6,500 of them live, have been for a visit in the night.They must have been young men for the rocks have been torn from the wall bordering the school path and spread deliberately across the way so that small children and teachers in long coats would have difficulty in getting round them, and I found they were far too heavy for me to lift. Maybe it was the young men I often see walking along Shuhada Street next to the school with M16 automatic rifles slung over their backs.Closer to the school door, freshly painted in cheerful orange, the children notice there is soil all over the path and broken plants. Inside the door, the school's new little courtyard garden, finished and planted all of 12 days previously, is a scene of devastation.All the plants have been ripped up and tossed over the wall, leaving yawning holes in the flower beds and earth spread over the new tiles. And on the bit of wall left standing next to the path, the vandals have written a new graffiti in felt tip pen on the new yellow paint, saying in Hebrew: "Death to Arabs."Head teacher Reem Al-shareef and her staff are angry and upset, but not shocked. The settlers have done this kind of thing, and a lot worse, many times before and they expected they would try to take some kind of perverse 'revenge' after the school held a special celebration.Last year, settlers destroyed the school's well by throwing rocks down it. This August, they tried to burn the school down, causing extensive smoke damage, so it was completely refurbished and decorated in bright colours by the Red Cross. In recent months there have been no actual physical attacks on the children, which used to be common, so the atmosphere was relaxed and joyous when Reem invited dignitaries of the town and all the internationals who help to protect the school to the celebration of the refurbishment on November 14.But the school is situated right opposite the settlement of Beit Hadassah in an area of Hebron which the settlers want to take over so, for them, the ceremony was a slap in the face. (Actually, many of the settlers support the aims of the Jewish National Front, whose founder lives near the school, which are to take over the whole of the West Bank and drive the Palestinians out into neighbouring Arab countries: they are just making a start with parts of the city). There is a continually-manned army post some 50 metres from the Cordoba School gate and the school has had a guard sleeping overnight since August. But on Saturday night the guard's grandfather died and he left to be with his family. And the soldiers at the post, well, we are told they say they heard and saw nothing of the scores of rocks being ripped from the wall and dragged across the path and people jumping down into the courtyard garden.I was infuriated by what seemed to me a petty crime against an obscure little school of just 116 pupils but a woman from Machsom Watch who came to see the damage put me right. Machsom Watch is an organisation of Israeli women who make daily tours of checkpoints in the Occupied Territories to try to reduce the harassment and humiliation suffered by Palestinians.Leah Shakdiel is an Orthodox Jew, a member of the Jewish Religious Movement for Peace as well as Machsom Watch, and someone who says it is totally nonsensical for the settlers to claim land in places like Hebron just because the Bible says it was 'promised' to them 4000 years ago."This is not a petty crime, it is deadly serious," she told me. "To the settlers, this is not a garden. It is a hold for the Arabs on the Jewish land of Israel."The settlers are right, of course, the little school is a hold on the land, which is why the Palestinians perfectly understand the message of the broken plants. This is a war of attrition, depressing, destructive and at the moment apparently eternal. I wonder how it can ever be brought to an end. FOR YOUR ZIONIST READERS

ph

REMEMBER THE SIX MILLION!!!!! By: Richard Becker Palestinian right of return still a fundamental demand The struggle in Palestine can be complex and confusing even for theclosest of observers. Like all great struggles, it has had many twists and turns, and willhave many more. But the root cause of the conflict-- the forcibleexpulsion of a people from their homeland--is neither ambiguous norconfusing. Sixty years ago, this is precisely what happened to thePalestinians in "The Catastrophe," known as "Al-Nakba" in Arabic. Al-Nakba, one of the key events in modern Middle Eastern history,began on Nov. 29, 1947. That day, the United Nations General Assemblypassed Resolution 181 to partition the British Mandate (colony) ofPalestine into two states, one Jewish and one Arab. The United Nationsmade this decisive step without consulting the Palestinian Arabs, whoat the time comprised two-thirds of the population. Most of the Jewish population was made up of settlers who had arrivedin the previous three decades, mainly from Europe. More than 100,000were survivors of the Nazi genocide. While the U.S. and British imperialists had done little before orduring World War II to aid the Jewish victims of fascism, they usedthe horrors of Hitler's death camps to rally support for theestablishment of the state of Israel after the war. The Palestinians--who had had nothing to do with European anti-Semitismor genocide--were not consulted before the U.N. vote. There was noplebiscite or vote of the people. If there had been, the outcome wouldnot have been in doubt: One unitary state would have been theoverwhelming choice. The U.N. vote was an illegitimate act and aviolation of the Palestinians' right of self-determination. The two-thirds majority required to pass Resolution 181 was onlyachieved through intense U.S. pressure. The vote ended up 33 to 13with 10 abstentions. The Truman administration leaned heavily on itsneocolonies and client states, particularly the Philippines, Liberia,Haiti and Thailand, all of which initially opposed the resolution. Without those four votes, the resolution would have failed. For narrowand short-term interests, the Soviet Union voted for the resolution.This represented a betrayal of the Arab anti-colonial struggle and onethat did great harm to the socialist cause in the region. Later, theSoviet Union would become a major ally of the Arab national liberationmovement. The forced displacement of a people The U.N. vote led to celebration among the Zionists, the settlermovement working to create an exclusively Jewish state in Palestine.Despite owning just six percent of the land, Resolution 181 awardedthem 56 percent of Palestine. On the Palestinian side, there was angerand rebellion. As all parties knew ahead of time, partition meant war. Fighting broke out immediately. In January 1948, the better-armed Zionist military forces began tocarry out "Plan Dalet." The point of the plan was to terrorize anddrive out the Palestinian population. Before Plan Dalet, Palestinianvillagers left their homes during battles, but typically went only asfar as the next village. On April 9, 1948, a Zionist paramilitary organization, the Irgun,massacred the entire village of Deir Yassin, raising "Plan Dalet" to anew level of brutality. When the dust had cleared, more than 200Palestinian children, women and men lay dead. The massacre was meantas a warning to all Palestinians. While the Jewish Agency formally "condemned" the Deir Yassin massacre,on the same day it incorporated the Irgun paramilitary into theofficial military Joint Command. Twelve days after Deir Yassin, Zionist forces launched a lethal attackon the Palestinian areas of the mixed city of Haifa. They rolledbarrel bombs filled with gasoline and dynamite down narrow alleys inthe heavily populated city while mortar shells pounded the Arabneighborhoods from overhead. Nearly the entire Arab population fled. Within a week, similar tactics led 77,000 of 80,000 Palestinians toflee the port city of Jaffa. By May 15, 1948, when Israel's independence was proclaimed, 300,000Palestinians were living and dying in abominable conditions of exilein Lebanon, Gaza, Syria and the Jordan Valley. By the end of thatyear, the number of dispossessed Palestinians had grown to 750,000. In the 1948 war, Israel, with its superior economic and militaryresources and support from the Western powers, conquered 78 percent ofPalestine. The Israeli military strategy was to not only conquer land,but also to drive out as much of the Palestinian population aspossible from that land. Nearly 80 percent of the Arab population was forcibly "transferred" tomake way for the new Israeli state. Their farms, workplaces and homeswere stolen, forming an indispensable foundation for the new Israelieconomy and state. In the 1967 "Six-Day War," Israel seized the remainder of historicPalestine: the West Bank and Gaza. This created 300,000 more refugees,many of whom were second-time exiles, having already fled the Israelis19 years earlier. None of those driven out in 1948 and 1967, nor their descendants, nownumbering more than six million, have ever been allowed to come backor been compensated for their loss. This injustice remains despiteU.N. Resolution 194, passed in December 1948, stating unequivocallythat all refugees must be allowed to return and have their homes,lands and other property restored to them. The U.S. and Israeligovernments have ignored the U.N. resolution for more than half acentury. While forcibly preventing the return of any exiled Palestinians, thenew Israeli state proclaimed that any person living anywhere in theworld who had proof of one Jewish grandparent, regardless of whetherthey or their family ever stepped foot in the Middle East, had the"right of return" to Israel. Those "returning" would be grantedimmediately citizenship in the new exclusivist state. Right of return remains key demand Six decades after Al-Nakba, the right of return remains a key issuedespite the Israeli and U.S. leaders' constant efforts to dismiss it. It is obvious why the cause remains so vital for Palestinians. If apeople are deprived of their land, their very existence as a people isthreatened. Defending the right of return is a key element in thestruggle to maintain the unity of the Palestinian people between thosewho remain inside historic Palestine and those families that have beenillegally expelled. Israeli opposition to Palestinian return is not really because thereis "no room" for the Palestinians in Palestine, as Zionist ideologuesoften claim. That argument is blatantly racist. Palestiniandemographer Dr. Salman Abu-Sitta has pointed out that most of the morethan 500 demolished Palestinian towns and villages remain unoccupiedtoday. They were destroyed and their residents driven away for mainlypolitical purposes--the creation of an exclusivist state. Nor is this some long-resolved issue buried in the sands of time.Hundreds of thousands of people forcibly exiled in 1948 and 1967 arealive today. Many hold among their dearest possessions the keys totheir homes in Palestine. Some of those houses, particularly in thedemolished villages, were bulldozed into the ground. Many others,however, especially in cities like Haifa, Jaffa, Jerusalem andelsewhere were expropriated and turned over to Israeli settlers, wholive in them to this day. Today, 46 percent of the six million Palestinian refugees resideinside historic Palestine, the 1948 borders of Israel, or the WestBank and Gaza. Another 42 percent live within 100 miles of itsborders, in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria. (Roane Carey, ed., The NewIntifada, Versa, 2001) Put another way, nearly nine out of 10 Palestinian refugees could behome in the time in takes many people in this country to commute towork. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian families live in extreme povertyin 59 refugee camps, with no prospect of a better future. For them,the right of return is not abstract or academic, but an issue thatspeaks to their very survival. The situation is especially dire in thecamps of Lebanon and Gaza, which are home to more than one millionpeople. The return of the exiled Palestinians would not mean, as is commonlyclaimed by the supporters of Israel, that the Jewish population wouldbe forced to leave. But it would mean that Israel could not continue as an apartheid-stylestate, with special rights for one group, serving the interests ofimperialism in a key strategic region of the world. This goes to the heart of why Israeli and U.S. ruling circles soadamantly oppose the Palestinian right of return. It also speaks tothe need for all people who stand for justice and self-determinationto defend the right of return as a fundamental democratic right.

PH

JUST KEEPING YOU ALL INFORMED In the run-up to Annapolis Stuart Littlewood went to Gaza on an unusual mission. He joined a party of priests bringing moral support to the Christian community and to its Muslim citizens, all suffering horribly under Israel's collective punishment and cruel siege. Traffic into Gaza through the elaborate new border 'facility' at Erez is down to a tiny trickle these days since Israel branded the Palestinian seaside enclave a 'hostile entity'. The purpose of our visit was to bring moral support to elderly Fr Manuel, who ministers to his flock, runs an excellent school (for Christians and Muslims) and is revered as a local hero. Should he ever leave Gaza the Israeli authorities will not allow his return, so he has allowed himself to be incarcerated there for 9 years. He'd had no visitors since February and when he heard we were coming, said a colleague, he burst into tears. We also wanted to show solidarity with the whole courageous population, Muslim and Christian, and apologise for the British government's indifference to Israel's military onslaught, the spiteful economic sanctions and the west's meddling in Palestine's democratic affairs. Thanks to our noisy arrival at breakneck speed through Gaza's streets with a police escort and sirens blaring ­ that's VIP treatment here - our small group quickly grew into a media circus. The Rafah crossing into Egypt, now permanently closed, then followed the barrier wall down to the sea and the coast road back to Gaza City. On the way I noted the deserted beaches and the disused fishing boats. Israel has banned fishing off the Gaza coast, ruined the livelihoods of 3000 licensed fishermen and their families, and impoverished the local diet. The military fires on boats that defy the ban. Palestinians are also prevented from developing maritime trade or natural resources within their territorial waters. Gaza is just 365 sq km - 45 km long, up to12 km wide and entirely sealed from the outside world by an Israeli fence guarded by watchtowers, snipers and tanks. Israel controls Gaza's airspace, coastal waters and airwaves. A vast prison with air-strikes, beach shelling, troops, tanks, armoured bulldozers, uncaring of civilian casualties. Whilst much has been blasted into rubble or skeletal remains, this was once an attractive place and many fine buildings survive. So does the defiant community, though wearied by years of humiliation and occupation. Gaza could easily blossom into a coastal paradise; a prosperous, independent trading state. But Israel's hatred of Gaza and its people is terrifying. The economy is strangulated and for 1.5 million souls, life is hell. Fuel and candles are running out. Supplies of basics are exhausted, so even hygiene is fast becoming impossible. Power cuts disrupt hospital treatment and what few drugs there are cannot be kept refrigerated. Many look death in the face as medi-care collapses. Flour to make bread has doubled in price; cement for concrete to repair damaged homes and infrastructure has gone up 1,000 percent! Some schools are having to teach three shifts a day. It is truly a humanitarian crisis, as the UN and various charities have repeatedly warned western governments. A friend emailed: "Today in Gaza ... we have no cement to build graves for those who die." A communiqué received from the Ministry of Health in Gaza reveals the stark reality: Cancer patients: Of 450 patients 35% are children and 25% women. They are forbidden to leave Gaza for medical treatment or surgery. For many, there is no medication because cancer drugs cannot cross the border. Renal Failure patients:400 should undergo dialysis three times a week, but machine break-downs have cut this to twice a week, with serious consequences for patients. Hemodialysis machines: Of 69 machines in 4 hospitals 20 are out of order. Israel blocks supply of spares deeming them not humanitarian items. 3 more have exceeded their design. Cardiac patients:400-450 patients suffer from severe shortage of drugs. No spares can be shipped in for therapeutic and diagnostic equipment that breaks down. Stock levels Zero stock of 85 items of essential medical drugs. * Zero stock of 12 items of essential psychiatric drugs. * 2 weeks' stock of anaesthetics for surgery, after which the theatres will close down. * Zero stock of X-ray bags and sterilization bags.* Near zero stock of stationery: medical files and examination forms. These are re-used several times risking errors in documentation. * Severe shortage of cloth and dressings, barely enough body bags and hospital bed covers. * Zero stocks of patients' food in all hospitals. * 2 weeks' stock of hospital cleaning fluids. * Diesel and gas stocks for under 15 days. * Severe shortages of medical disposables, lab materials and blood bank materials. The total number of people who died as a result of the border closure since June has risen to 44. Prevention of patients from traveling and prevention of entry of food, milk formula and fuel is an organized crime committed by the Israeli occupation to exhaust and destroy the health sector, as part of the Israeli policy to kill and humiliate our people," conclude the Health Ministry. Physicians for Human Rights, have attempted to bring seriously ill residents out of Gaza for proper hospital treatment, but even requests on behalf of advanced cancer cases are invariably refused. So they die in agony. 20 year-old Nail Al Kurdi, succumbed only a week ago, still waiting for permission to cross. For five months PHR submitted request after request to let him through, and even petitioned the High Court of Justice, but each time he was refuse "for security reasons". Two days later an 8 year-old boy also died waiting for medical treatment in Israel. I'm told he had the necessary permit but was repeatedly turned back at the border. It is estimated that a thousand patients ­ advanced cases of kidney disease and cancer and those badly injured by Israeli air-strikes - need immediate transfers. In the meantime (UK) Channel 4 News reports, Israel blackmails chronically sick patients. If they agree to inform on relatives and friends they can cross the border for treatment if not they can "stay in Gaza and die". The International Committee of the Red Cross repeatedly reminds that Israel is obliged under international law to ensure that humanitarian supplies reach Palestinian civilians. Yet I learned that medicinal drugs purchased with money from sales of my book 'Radio Free Palestine', could not be delivered and would have to be smuggled in somehow. On 11th October, the European Parliament passed a resolution calling on the Israeli government to lift the blockade of the Gaza Strip and fulfill its international obligations guaranteeing the flow of humanitarian aid, and assistance and essential services. Luisa Morgantini, Vice President of the European Parliament, said: "I was recently in Gaza and I saw how the Strip is suffocating in a serious humanitarian crisis due to the raids and the closure imposed by the Israeli Army: massive devastation of public facilities and private homes, the disruption of hospitals, clinics and schools, the denial of access to proper drinking water, food and electricity, and the destruction of agricultural land wanted by Israel, create a true catastrophe for civilians. ..." The EU has demanded that the Israeli government fully respects human rights and international law and ends not only the emergency in Gaza but also the military occupation of the West Bank, where Israel continues its theft of Palestinian land with impunity. Instead of complying, Israel has declared Gaza a 'hostile entity' and ratcheted-up the misery,announcing that "additional sanctions will be placed on the Hamas regime. Hamas was democratically elected as the Palestinian government in 2006, thus a legitimate power, while Israel is an illegal armed occupier. As to whether Hamas a 'terrorist organisation' let's first check the definition of terrorism. PHR investigated the effects of ammunition used by the Israeli Defence Force in Gaza and the West Bank. They found that the high-velocity 5.56mm/.223 calibre round fired by the M-16 weapon, widely used by the IDF, "tends to break open on impact causing a 'lead storm' in tissue, even without impacting a bone and large temporary cavities, and extensive damage to muscle, nerves and blood vessels, as well as fracture. The massive tissue destruction produces a frightening clinical presentation which greatly challenges the surgeons. When there are many such injuries, medical resources are stressed to the limit." The majority of victims of these injuries will have permanent damage in the affected leg. Witness reports to PHR team and information to other human rights organizations, suggest those injured in this manner ( were unarmed) and at most throwing stones." As guests in this tight-knit Gaza community we had been invited for coffee at the House of Fatah and the residence of Hamas prime minister, Ismail Haniya. Relations between religious and political factions seem friendly and good humoured and they stand together against a merciless enemy. There is broadly no trouble between Muslims and Christians - a small miracle considering that their tormentor has powerful Christian backing. As the whirlwind visit came to an end taking our leave entailed the wrench of saying goodbye to brave people the west has trampled and written off, then running the gauntlet of Israel's horrendous border security. It was back to Erez and its state-of-the-art de-humanisation, to shuffle through a maze of steel gates, cattle pens and a sinister X-ray machine, on Israeli command, and queue interminably for questioning by the rudest people on earth. Only 50 or 60 people had gone through the crossing that day, so the 3-hour hold-up was entirely down to Israeli bloody-mindedness. Complaining to Her Majesty's Government seems pointless: the responsible British foreign office Minister is a former chairman of Labour Friends of Israel. In spite of all. There is astonishing pride and resilience among the Gazans. However if you kick, murder and starve and commit crimes against humanity often enough, a victory of sorts can be yours. But tell us, Mr Gordon Brown, why is Britain complicit in such a base and cowardly scheme? We hit bottom in Iraq how much lower can we sink? Gaza was formerly under British mandate, surely sufficient reason to feel special responsibility for its wellbeing. Yet it is not even on the government's agenda at Annapolis. For Gazans, the "final status negotiations" was a sick joke. So I urge the British government: "Go see for yourselves the misery, the human tragedy and the devastation you have heaped on these people. Then amaze us. Lift this cruel siege and end 90 years of betrayal that has so shamed Britain." "Land supplies on Gaza's empty beach: Palestinian territorial waters. Suspend all trade association agreements until Israel complies with UN resolutions and International Court of Justice rulings, ends its unlawful occupation and withdraws behind pre-1967 borders. Realise that Israel is no western-style democracy but a ruthless ethnocracy. And when British voters finally discover that half their MPs are signed-up Friends of Israel, they will question how such slavish devotion to this foreign military power can possibly be in the best interest of our Christian and increasingly Muslim-inclusive, nation." To the Bush administration and its admirers: "You may be the most powerful but you are the most hated. Watch out when decent Americans finally understand what their tax dollars have been paying for in the Holy Land." And, lastly, to church leaders in western Christendom: "Are you going to sit there while the Holy Land is stolen from under your noses?" In the run-up to Annapolis Stuart Littlewood went to Gaza on an unusual mission. He joined a party of priests bringing moral support to the Christian community and to its Muslim citizens, all suffering horribly under Israel's collective punishment and cruel siege. Traffic into Gaza through the elaborate new border 'facility' at Erez is down to a tiny trickle these days since Israel branded the Palestinian seaside enclave a 'hostile entity'. The purpose of our visit was to bring moral support to elderly Fr Manuel, who ministers to his flock, runs an excellent school (for Christians and Muslims) and is revered as a local hero. Should he ever leave Gaza the Israeli authorities will not allow his return, so he has allowed himself to be incarcerated there for 9 years. He'd had no visitors since February and when he heard we were coming, said a colleague, he burst into tears. We also wanted to show solidarity with the whole courageous population, Muslim and Christian, and apologise for the British government's indifference to Israel's military onslaught, the spiteful economic sanctions and the west's meddling in Palestine's democratic affairs. Thanks to our noisy arrival at breakneck speed through Gaza's streets with a police escort and sirens blaring ­ that's VIP treatment here - our small group quickly grew into a media circus. The Rafah crossing into Egypt, now permanently closed, then followed the barrier wall down to the sea and the coast road back to Gaza City. On the way I noted the deserted beaches and the disused fishing boats. Israel has banned fishing off the Gaza coast, ruined the livelihoods of 3000 licensed fishermen and their families, and impoverished the local diet. The military fires on boats that defy the ban. Palestinians are also prevented from developing maritime trade or natural resources within their territorial waters. Gaza is just 365 sq km - 45 km long, up to12 km wide and entirely sealed from the outside world by an Israeli fence guarded by watchtowers, snipers and tanks. Israel controls Gaza's airspace, coastal waters and airwaves. A vast prison with air-strikes, beach shelling, troops, tanks, armoured bulldozers, uncaring of civilian casualties. Whilst much has been blasted into rubble or skeletal remains, this was once an attractive place and many fine buildings survive. So does the defiant community, though wearied by years of humiliation and occupation. Gaza could easily blossom into a coastal paradise; a prosperous, independent trading state. But Israel's hatred of Gaza and its people is terrifying. The economy is strangulated and for 1.5 million souls, life is hell. Fuel and candles are running out. Supplies of basics are exhausted, so even hygiene is fast becoming impossible. Power cuts disrupt hospital treatment and what few drugs there are cannot be kept refrigerated. Many look death in the face as medi-care collapses. Flour to make bread has doubled in price; cement for concrete to repair damaged homes and infrastructure has gone up 1,000 percent! Some schools are having to teach three shifts a day. It is truly a humanitarian crisis, as the UN and various charities have repeatedly warned western governments. A friend emailed: "Today in Gaza ... we have no cement to build graves for those who die." A communiqué received from the Ministry of Health in Gaza reveals the stark reality: Cancer patients: Of 450 patients 35% are children and 25% women. They are forbidden to leave Gaza for medical treatment or surgery. For many, there is no medication because cancer drugs cannot cross the border. Renal Failure patients:400 should undergo dialysis three times a week, but machine break-downs have cut this to twice a week, with serious consequences for patients. Hemodialysis machines: Of 69 machines in 4 hospitals 20 are out of order. Israel blocks supply of spares deeming them not humanitarian items. 3 more have exceeded their design. Cardiac patients:400-450 patients suffer from severe shortage of drugs. No spares can be shipped in for therapeutic and diagnostic equipment that breaks down. Stock levels Zero stock of 85 items of essential medical drugs. * Zero stock of 12 items of essential psychiatric drugs. * 2 weeks' stock of anaesthetics for surgery, after which the theatres will close down. * Zero stock of X-ray bags and sterilization bags.* Near zero stock of stationery: medical files and examination forms. These are re-used several times risking errors in documentation. * Severe shortage of cloth and dressings, barely enough body bags and hospital bed covers. * Zero stocks of patients' food in all hospitals. * 2 weeks' stock of hospital cleaning fluids. * Diesel and gas stocks for under 15 days. * Severe shortages of medical disposables, lab materials and blood bank materials. The total number of people who died as a result of the border closure since June has risen to 44. Prevention of patients from traveling and prevention of entry of food, milk formula and fuel is an organized crime committed by the Israeli occupation to exhaust and destroy the health sector, as part of the Israeli policy to kill and humiliate our people," conclude the Health Ministry. Physicians for Human Rights, have attempted to bring seriously ill residents out of Gaza for proper hospital treatment, but even requests on behalf of advanced cancer cases are invariably refused. So they die in agony. 20 year-old Nail Al Kurdi, succumbed only a week ago, still waiting for permission to cross. For five months PHR submitted request after request to let him through, and even petitioned the High Court of Justice, but each time he was refuse "for security reasons". Two days later an 8 year-old boy also died waiting for medical treatment in Israel. I'm told he had the necessary permit but was repeatedly turned back at the border. It is estimated that a thousand patients ­ advanced cases of kidney disease and cancer and those badly injured by Israeli air-strikes - need immediate transfers. In the meantime (UK) Channel 4 News reports, Israel blackmails chronically sick patients. If they agree to inform on relatives and friends they can cross the border for treatment if not they can "stay in Gaza and die". The International Committee of the Red Cross repeatedly reminds that Israel is obliged under international law to ensure that humanitarian supplies reach Palestinian civilians. Yet I learned that medicinal drugs purchased with money from sales of my book 'Radio Free Palestine', could not be delivered and would have to be smuggled in somehow. On 11th October, the European Parliament passed a resolution calling on the Israeli government to lift the blockade of the Gaza Strip and fulfill its international obligations guaranteeing the flow of humanitarian aid, and assistance and essential services. Luisa Morgantini, Vice President of the European Parliament, said: "I was recently in Gaza and I saw how the Strip is suffocating in a serious humanitarian crisis due to the raids and the closure imposed by the Israeli Army: massive devastation of public facilities and private homes, the disruption of hospitals, clinics and schools, the denial of access to proper drinking water, food and electricity, and the destruction of agricultural land wanted by Israel, create a true catastrophe for civilians. ..." The EU has demanded that the Israeli government fully respects human rights and international law and ends not only the emergency in Gaza but also the military occupation of the West Bank, where Israel continues its theft of Palestinian land with impunity. Instead of complying, Israel has declared Gaza a 'hostile entity' and ratcheted-up the misery,announcing that "additional sanctions will be placed on the Hamas regime. Hamas was democratically elected as the Palestinian government in 2006, thus a legitimate power, while Israel is an illegal armed occupier. As to whether Hamas a 'terrorist organisation' let's first check the definition of terrorism. PHR investigated the effects of ammunition used by the Israeli Defence Force in Gaza and the West Bank. They found that the high-velocity 5.56mm/.223 calibre round fired by the M-16 weapon, widely used by the IDF, "tends to break open on impact causing a 'lead storm' in tissue, even without impacting a bone and large temporary cavities, and extensive damage to muscle, nerves and blood vessels, as well as fracture. The massive tissue destruction produces a frightening clinical presentation which greatly challenges the surgeons. When there are many such injuries, medical resources are stressed to the limit." The majority of victims of these injuries will have permanent damage in the affected leg. Witness reports to PHR team and information to other human rights organizations, suggest those injured in this manner ( were unarmed) and at most throwing stones." As guests in this tight-knit Gaza community we had been invited for coffee at the House of Fatah and the residence of Hamas prime minister, Ismail Haniya. Relations between religious and political factions seem friendly and good humoured and they stand together against a merciless enemy. There is broadly no trouble between Muslims and Christians - a small miracle considering that their tormentor has powerful Christian backing. As the whirlwind visit came to an end taking our leave entailed the wrench of saying goodbye to brave people the west has trampled and written off, then running the gauntlet of Israel's horrendous border security. It was back to Erez and its state-of-the-art de-humanisation, to shuffle through a maze of steel gates, cattle pens and a sinister X-ray machine, on Israeli command, and queue interminably for questioning by the rudest people on earth. Only 50 or 60 people had gone through the crossing that day, so the 3-hour hold-up was entirely down to Israeli bloody-mindedness. Complaining to Her Majesty's Government seems pointless: the responsible British foreign office Minister is a former chairman of Labour Friends of Israel. In spite of all. There is astonishing pride and resilience among the Gazans. However if you kick, murder and starve and commit crimes against humanity often enough, a victory of sorts can be yours. But tell us, Mr Gordon Brown, why is Britain complicit in such a base and cowardly scheme? We hit bottom in Iraq how much lower can we sink? Gaza was formerly under British mandate, surely sufficient reason to feel special responsibility for its wellbeing. Yet it is not even on the government's agenda at Annapolis. For Gazans, the "final status negotiations" was a sick joke. So I urge the British government: "Go see for yourselves the misery, the human tragedy and the devastation you have heaped on these people. Then amaze us. Lift this cruel siege and end 90 years of betrayal that has so shamed Britain." "Land supplies on Gaza's empty beach: Palestinian territorial waters. Suspend all trade association agreements until Israel complies with UN resolutions and International Court of Justice rulings, ends its unlawful occupation and withdraws behind pre-1967 borders. Realise that Israel is no western-style democracy but a ruthless ethnocracy. And when British voters finally discover that half their MPs are signed-up Friends of Israel, they will question how such slavish devotion to this foreign military power can possibly be in the best interest of our Christian and increasingly Muslim-inclusive, nation." To the Bush administration and its admirers: "You may be the most powerful but you are the most hated. Watch out when decent Americans finally understand what their tax dollars have been paying for in the Holy Land." And, lastly, to church leaders in western Christendom: "Are you going to sit there while the Holy Land is stolen from under your noses?" In the run-up to Annapolis Stuart Littlewood went to Gaza on an unusual mission. He joined a party of priests bringing moral support to the Christian community and to its Muslim citizens, all suffering horribly under Israel's collective punishment and cruel siege. Traffic into Gaza through the elaborate new border 'facility' at Erez is down to a tiny trickle these days since Israel branded the Palestinian seaside enclave a 'hostile entity'. The purpose of our visit was to bring moral support to elderly Fr Manuel, who ministers to his flock, runs an excellent school (for Christians and Muslims) and is revered as a local hero. Should he ever leave Gaza the Israeli authorities will not allow his return, so he has allowed himself to be incarcerated there for 9 years. He'd had no visitors since February and when he heard we were coming, said a colleague, he burst into tears. We also wanted to show solidarity with the whole courageous population, Muslim and Christian, and apologise for the British government's indifference to Israel's military onslaught, the spiteful economic sanctions and the west's meddling in Palestine's democratic affairs. Thanks to our noisy arrival at breakneck speed through Gaza's streets with a police escort and sirens blaring ­ that's VIP treatment here - our small group quickly grew into a media circus. The Rafah crossing into Egypt, now permanently closed, then followed the barrier wall down to the sea and the coast road back to Gaza City. On the way I noted the deserted beaches and the disused fishing boats. Israel has banned fishing off the Gaza coast, ruined the livelihoods of 3000 licensed fishermen and their families, and impoverished the local diet. The military fires on boats that defy the ban. Palestinians are also prevented from developing maritime trade or natural resources within their territorial waters. Gaza is just 365 sq km - 45 km long, up to12 km wide and entirely sealed from the outside world by an Israeli fence guarded by watchtowers, snipers and tanks. Israel controls Gaza's airspace, coastal waters and airwaves. A vast prison with air-strikes, beach shelling, troops, tanks, armoured bulldozers, uncaring of civilian casualties. Whilst much has been blasted into rubble or skeletal remains, this was once an attractive place and many fine buildings survive. So does the defiant community, though wearied by years of humiliation and occupation. Gaza could easily blossom into a coastal paradise; a prosperous, independent trading state. But Israel's hatred of Gaza and its people is terrifying. The economy is strangulated and for 1.5 million souls, life is hell. Fuel and candles are running out. Supplies of basics are exhausted, so even hygiene is fast becoming impossible. Power cuts disrupt hospital treatment and what few drugs there are cannot be kept refrigerated. Many look death in the face as medi-care collapses. Flour to make bread has doubled in price; cement for concrete to repair damaged homes and infrastructure has gone up 1,000 percent! Some schools are having to teach three shifts a day. It is truly a humanitarian crisis, as the UN and various charities have repeatedly warned western governments. A friend emailed: "Today in Gaza ... we have no cement to build graves for those who die." A communiqué received from the Ministry of Health in Gaza reveals the stark reality: Cancer patients: Of 450 patients 35% are children and 25% women. They are forbidden to leave Gaza for medical treatment or surgery. For many, there is no medication because cancer drugs cannot cross the border. Renal Failure patients:400 should undergo dialysis three times a week, but machine break-downs have cut this to twice a week, with serious consequences for patients. Hemodialysis machines: Of 69 machines in 4 hospitals 20 are out of order. Israel blocks supply of spares deeming them not humanitarian items. 3 more have exceeded their design. Cardiac patients:400-450 patients suffer from severe shortage of drugs. No spares can be shipped in for therapeutic and diagnostic equipment that breaks down. Stock levels Zero stock of 85 items of essential medical drugs. * Zero stock of 12 items of essential psychiatric drugs. * 2 weeks' stock of anaesthetics for surgery, after which the theatres will close down. * Zero stock of X-ray bags and sterilization bags.* Near zero stock of stationery: medical files and examination forms. These are re-used several times risking errors in documentation. * Severe shortage of cloth and dressings, barely enough body bags and hospital bed covers. * Zero stocks of patients' food in all hospitals. * 2 weeks' stock of hospital cleaning fluids. * Diesel and gas stocks for under 15 days. * Severe shortages of medical disposables, lab materials and blood bank materials. The total number of people who died as a result of the border closure since June has risen to 44. Prevention of patients from traveling and prevention of entry of food, milk formula and fuel is an organized crime committed by the Israeli occupation to exhaust and destroy the health sector, as part of the Israeli policy to kill and humiliate our people," conclude the Health Ministry. Physicians for Human Rights, have attempted to bring seriously ill residents out of Gaza for proper hospital treatment, but even requests on behalf of advanced cancer cases are invariably refused. So they die in agony. 20 year-old Nail Al Kurdi, succumbed only a week ago, still waiting for permission to cross. For five months PHR submitted request after request to let him through, and even petitioned the High Court of Justice, but each time he was refuse "for security reasons". Two days later an 8 year-old boy also died waiting for medical treatment in Israel. I'm told he had the necessary permit but was repeatedly turned back at the border. It is estimated that a thousand patients ­ advanced cases of kidney disease and cancer and those badly injured by Israeli air-strikes - need immediate transfers. In the meantime (UK) Channel 4 News reports, Israel blackmails chronically sick patients. If they agree to inform on relatives and friends they can cross the border for treatment if not they can "stay in Gaza and die". The International Committee of the Red Cross repeatedly reminds that Israel is obliged under international law to ensure that humanitarian supplies reach Palestinian civilians. Yet I learned that medicinal drugs purchased with money from sales of my book 'Radio Free Palestine', could not be delivered and would have to be smuggled in somehow. On 11th October, the European Parliament passed a resolution calling on the Israeli government to lift the blockade of the Gaza Strip and fulfill its international obligations guaranteeing the flow of humanitarian aid, and assistance and essential services. Luisa Morgantini, Vice President of the European Parliament, said: "I was recently in Gaza and I saw how the Strip is suffocating in a serious humanitarian crisis due to the raids and the closure imposed by the Israeli Army: massive devastation of public facilities and private homes, the disruption of hospitals, clinics and schools, the denial of access to proper drinking water, food and electricity, and the destruction of agricultural land wanted by Israel, create a true catastrophe for civilians. ..." The EU has demanded that the Israeli government fully respects human rights and international law and ends not only the emergency in Gaza but also the military occupation of the West Bank, where Israel continues its theft of Palestinian land with impunity. Instead of complying, Israel has declared Gaza a 'hostile entity' and ratcheted-up the misery,announcing that "additional sanctions will be placed on the Hamas regime. Hamas was democratically elected as the Palestinian government in 2006, thus a legitimate power, while Israel is an illegal armed occupier. As to whether Hamas a 'terrorist organisation' let's first check the definition of terrorism. PHR investigated the effects of ammunition used by the Israeli Defence Force in Gaza and the West Bank. They found that the high-velocity 5.56mm/.223 calibre round fired by the M-16 weapon, widely used by the IDF, "tends to break open on impact causing a 'lead storm' in tissue, even without impacting a bone and large temporary cavities, and extensive damage to muscle, nerves and blood vessels, as well as fracture. The massive tissue destruction produces a frightening clinical presentation which greatly challenges the surgeons. When there are many such injuries, medical resources are stressed to the limit." The majority of victims of these injuries will have permanent damage in the affected leg. Witness reports to PHR team and information to other human rights organizations, suggest those injured in this manner ( were unarmed) and at most throwing stones." As guests in this tight-knit Gaza community we had been invited for coffee at the House of Fatah and the residence of Hamas prime minister, Ismail Haniya. Relations between religious and political factions seem friendly and good humoured and they stand together against a merciless enemy. There is broadly no trouble between Muslims and Christians - a small miracle considering that their tormentor has powerful Christian backing. As the whirlwind visit came to an end taking our leave entailed the wrench of saying goodbye to brave people the west has trampled and written off, then running the gauntlet of Israel's horrendous border security. It was back to Erez and its state-of-the-art de-humanisation, to shuffle through a maze of steel gates, cattle pens and a sinister X-ray machine, on Israeli command, and queue interminably for questioning by the rudest people on earth. Only 50 or 60 people had gone through the crossing that day, so the 3-hour hold-up was entirely down to Israeli bloody-mindedness. Complaining to Her Majesty's Government seems pointless: the responsible British foreign office Minister is a former chairman of Labour Friends of Israel. In spite of all. There is astonishing pride and resilience among the Gazans. However if you kick, murder and starve and commit crimes against humanity often enough, a victory of sorts can be yours. But tell us, Mr Gordon Brown, why is Britain complicit in such a base and cowardly scheme? We hit bottom in Iraq how much lower can we sink? Gaza was formerly under British mandate, surely sufficient reason to feel special responsibility for its wellbeing. Yet it is not even on the government's agenda at Annapolis. For Gazans, the "final status negotiations" was a sick joke. So I urge the British government: "Go see for yourselves the misery, the human tragedy and the devastation you have heaped on these people. Then amaze us. Lift this cruel siege and end 90 years of betrayal that has so shamed Britain." "Land supplies on Gaza's empty beach: Palestinian territorial waters. Suspend all trade association agreements until Israel complies with UN resolutions and International Court of Justice rulings, ends its unlawful occupation and withdraws behind pre-1967 borders. Realise that Israel is no western-style democracy but a ruthless ethnocracy. And when British voters finally discover that half their MPs are signed-up Friends of Israel, they will question how such slavish devotion to this foreign military power can possibly be in the best interest of our Christian and increasingly Muslim-inclusive, nation." To the Bush administration and its admirers: "You may be the most powerful but you are the most hated. Watch out when decent Americans finally understand what their tax dollars have been paying for in the Holy Land." And, lastly, to church leaders in western Christendom: "Are you going to sit there while the Holy Land is stolen from under your noses?"

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PH

On the morning of Thursday, 6th December, the villagers of Palestinian Susiya discovered that in the valley below their tents, 32 of their olive trees had been cut down in the night, presumably by settlers from a nearby outpost where they had celebrated the lighting of the third Hanukka candle.These olive trees were about 35 years old. They will sprout again from their sawn-off stumps but it will take six or seven years before they will yield a crop. PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST? FORGET IT. THESE THIEVES AND BRIGANDS HAVE THE BACKING OF THE STATE, THE U.S. AND EVERY JEW WHO DOES NOT PROTEST WORLDWIDE. THEN AGAIN, WHY SHOULD THEY. THEY HAVE THEIR LAND, IT BELONGS TO ALL OF THEM.WORLDWIDE. EACH ONE HADS A RIGHT TO THE LAND OF OTHERS.

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Jakester

Hey PH, Nice to see you only focus on Israel, and not on the ruthless, anti-Semitic forces of the Arab world that pine for the destruction of Israel. Sorry, but the Hamas Muslim garbage in Gaza are just realing what they sown. So called Christians like you are puke! The Muslims you embrace so tightly routinely oppress the Christians in their lands while stupid fools like you parrot their Jew hating garbage!

PH

Hello Jakester, you're new, and a Jew I suspect, I am not a Christian, god, who would embrace any religion, certainly not Judaism or even Islam, oh, and I have a great Jew lover, so I don't know what you are on about, I don't know or love any Arabs, so think again big boy - Israel could be any land that has been stolen, it happens to be populated by Jews, if it were populated by Wampums, I would be a big anti-Wampum,

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