Not all Palestinians are celebrating the tenuous ceasefire. Many are still trying to remove tonnage of rubble to recover bodies. Hundreds are mourning & burying their dead. Some are surveying their bombed out fields & thousands are left homeless. All face even more severe food shortages, lack of medical supplies, & power blackouts. It’s all over but the suffering.
And so it must be asked: exactly what was Israel’s purpose in this murderous assault? The Arab uprisings, which are not completed, transform politics in the Middle East & change the narrative peddled for over 60 years about Israeli democracy & Arab terrorism. They threaten the Zionist edifice built on lies & alter power relations in the entire region, previously dominated by Israeli & US military terror. The Boycott, Divestment, & Sanctions (BDS) movement has been growing in strength around the world, challenging the Zionist lies. Palestinians have been heartened by this growing support after being isolated & beleaguered for so long & strengthened by the support expressed in all the Arab uprisings. This siege was not just an escalation of Israeli ethnic cleansing; it was intended to demoralize Palestinian resistance & to terrorize Arab democracy protestors in Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, & elsewhere by a massive show of military aggression. And it was an attempt to discourage Palestinian solidarity by making their cause look hopeless.
Well, we have a purpose too & that is to remain undaunted, to continue to build the BDS movement, to continue to organize speak-outs, forums, rallies, to continue to tell the truth & to support the Palestinian people. Our demands are clear: boycott all Israeli products (barcode beginning 729) & end all US aid to Israel. Our full solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Here people survey the damage in Gaza City. (Photo by Tyler Hicks/NYTimes)
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