Questions with no answers

Does UN Secretary General Kofi Annan think that Palestinians have a right to defend themselves against the kinds of violent attacks and destruction Israel is carrying out in Rafah refugee camp? This is a straightforward question, but despite my best efforts, it is impossible to get a straightforward answer. Annan recently termed Israel's massive lethal campaign of house destruction in Gaza "acts of collective punishment" and "grave violations of international law." Israeli tactics included bulldozing homes with their residents inside or fleeing only moments before. It ought to follow that any person or group of people subjected to an illegal, life-threatening attack have an inherent right to self-defence using force if necessary. Every legal system in the world recognizes this, including international law.

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To Drink from the Sea of Gaza
by Uri Avnery

Perhaps Abe Lincoln was right that you can't fool all the people all the time, but a lot of people can surely be fooled for a long, long time. Just look at Ariel Sharon. From the start, the "Disengagement Plan" was an exercise in deceit. But the world is eager to be deceived. The world's statesmen take it seriously, it causes violent storms in Israel, the media have a ball. All this for a plan that has neither hands nor feet. So what is the purpose of all this mayhem? Cynics might say: the mayhem itself. It puts Sharon in center stage where he can continue to play the master of events. Now the commotion has reached a climax. The main aim of the exercise is to satisfy George Bush. The president demanded a plan which will show him doing something for peace. The more he gets sucked into the Iraqi quagmire, the more he needs to prove that he is achieving something in our country.

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  thanks to Aron's Israel Peace Weblog

‘They are my guests – and this is my House’ –
Priest stands up to the Wall

“No! They are my guests – and this is my house!” This admonition, in accented but clear English, is delivered to Israeli soldiers attempting to stop a group of Palestinian women crossing the grounds of a monastery. The messenger is Father Claudio Ghilardi, a Passionist priest from Italy. Father Claudio’s message is clear: At least as far as the monastery grounds are concerned, he will not permit the harassment of Palestinians by soldiers. The soldiers desist in their activities as long as Father Claudio is present. The Palestinians continue on their way, attempting to cross the monastery and reach Jerusalem on the other side. The continuation of their journey depends on whether soldiers are waiting at the exit but at least they were able to get this far, thanks to Father Claudio’s intervention. Father Claudio cuts an elegant figure, in his long black robe and matching black beret. The sign of his maverick nature is present, however, in the jogging pants and tennis shoes that can be seen protruding below his robe. He seems weary on this particular day, however. He relates how he had been chasing Israeli border police off the grounds and dealing with soldiers all morning. The source of his weariness can be seen looming in the distance; it is Israel’s “Separation Wall.” It stands about 30 feet (nine meters) tall, an ugly concrete behemoth of a structure, dwarfing the much smaller but also much more aesthetically pleasing stone monastery walls. The Wall stands poised to invade, as the two gaping holes in the monastery wall attest. For now, work has stopped only a few feet from the monastery grounds, thanks in part to the interventions of both the Italian consul and the Vatican Apostolic Nuncio, but much damage has already been done. And Father Claudio does not think that this stay will last for very long. “This is not a barrier,” he exclaims while pounding the Wall, “this is a border. Why don’t they speak the truth?”

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  thanks to Aron's Israel Peace Weblog