medics in Palestine as newsworthy as those in Syria
Dear CBC,
I would like to know if during the 2008-2009 Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip’s 1.5 million people you gave the same attention to the plight of Palestinian rescue and medical workers being attacked by the Israeli army as you did in tonight’s news covering Syria and the Western-backed “revolution”.
I suspect not, as I was in Gaza during the 23 days of Israeli bombing and medical workers I was volunteering with were killed by the Israeli army much as those medical workers CBC news described this evening. Except that in Gaza, medical workers were targeted by precision-bombing unmanned aerial vehicles (colloquially known as “drones”), flechette bombs, and shelling on ambulances and buildings in which medical workers were very visibly attempting to rescue the injured and the martyred.
One long-term medic I worked with one night was the morning after ripped apart and killed by the 4000-5000 razor sharp 2 inch metal darts (“flechettes“) which Israeli soldiers fired at his ambulance. His colleague testified eloquently on the murder, yet I saw no follow-up. On January 7, 2009, the day after the Current interviewed me, another medic I was accompanying was targeted by Israeli army snipers during Israeli-imposed “humanitarian cease-fire hours”. Yet another long-time medic, injured and aggressed by Israeli army attacks on various occasions while on duty as a medic, was carrying a corpse with a medical colleague down a flight of stairs from an apartment building when the building–which was surrounded by flashing ambulances and which the Israeli military with their high-technology surveillance equipment could see medics had entered–was shelled by the Israeli army. His colleague was decapitated by the Israeli-fired shell which struck the building the medics descended. The decapitated medic’s skull hit my medic colleagues own head. He has the shrapnel of his colleague in his skull to this day.
16 Palestinian medics were killed by the Israeli army during the 23 days of Israeli bombings, with another 57 injured; 9 Palestinian ambulances were destroyed, among the 16 damagaed. Aside from that, the injured were prevented medical care as Palestinian medics were obstructed by the Israeli army from reaching wounded Palestinians.
Was none of this newsworthy?
Medics are protected under international law. International law applies to Palestinians as well.
I would like to know why CBC did not value the killings of Palestinian medics enough to report on this issue. Certainly, I was writing about it, and when I did speak briefly with CBC during an interview with Anne Marie Tremonti I highlighted this issue. Was it not worthy of follow-up? I would be very pleased to learn that CBC had in fact followed up on the plight of Palestinians medics targeted by Israeli soldiers, who incidentally have been targeted over the years. Since 2000, the Israeli Army has killed at least 56 Palestinian medical rescuers and injured well over 500 more.Since 2000 at least 144 Emergency Medical Team members have been arrested while on duty– including 64 between September 2000 and August 2002. Of these, a total of 49 were beaten, 15 were tortured, six were used as human shields and six required hospitalisation.
For your interest:
I look forward to your honest explanation.
Sincerely,
Eva Bartlett
Toronto Remembers the Nakba and Protests the NATO summit in Chicago
from Toronto Protest Against the NATO summit in Chicago Facebook page:
NATO is holding a summit in Chicago from May 19-21st to decide the future of the war in Afghanistan and the future of military alliance itself. It is expected that the summit will rubber stamp the U.S.- Afghan strategic partnership which will see foreign troops occupy the country until 2024. Stephen Harper and the Conservative government in Canada have already indicated that they may keep Canadian special forces soldiers in the country.
The Canadian Peace Alliance, Afghans For Peace, The Canadian Arab Federation and the Toronto Coalition to Stop the War will be rallying on Saturday May 19th to call for all Canadian soldiers to brought home from Afghanistan now and to oppose any extension of the occupation. Afghanistan is, after a decade of NATO intervention, mired in a violence, bombing, night raids and massive poverty. We will also be calling for an end to all NATO interventions.
A recent Angus Reid poll found 58 per cent of Canadians strongly disagree with keeping troops in Afghanistan beyond 2014. A CBC news live poll found a whopping 95 per cent of Canadians are opposed to the extension.
May 15 is also the anniversary of the Nakba, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forcibly expelled from Palestine. The US is arguing for Israel to attend this NATO summit. The US, the most powerful of the NATO members, is also responsible for the ongoing occupation of Palestine; meanwhile, our own Harper Government has become an unconditional supporter of this unjust occupation. We will also rally to commemorate the day and to call for liberation for the Palestinian people.
NATO is a relic of the cold war yet it continues to try and reinvent itself as a global security guard. It provides and illusion of internationalism while seeking to serve the interests of its primary players, namely the United States. The NATO powers use the alliance to bring military might to their plans for control and pillage of any country deemed to be outside the influence of the west.
There are also fears that western countries will be using the summit to discuss an attack on Iran, long supported by the Harper government and to meddle in the ongoing crisis in Syria. In each case we stand opposed to any western interference which will only bring more ruin and misery. NATO interventions are a disaster for the people living in the invaded countries.
Canadian foreign policy should not be set by the Pentagon or NATO but by the people of this country who are overwhelmingly calling for peace.
see also:
Interactive map of Palestine villages destroyed in Nakba
Lies and Truths–Mazin Qumsiyeh
Edward Said – Reflections on Exile and Other Essays
Video: Toronto protests NATO summit
Riseup Canada’s photos of Toronto rally
Toronto rally on the 64th anniversary of the Nakba
We Are Change‘s links:
- Afghans Against NATO’s Unjustified War Extension AFP MEDIA RELEASE November 26th, 2010 Afghans For Peace is an Afghan-led peace movement currently located in Canada, the U.S. and Afghanistan. As Afghans united for a peaceful Afghanistan, we oppose the NATO occupation of Afghanistan as well as the NATO extension of it’s mission to 2014. …
- Afghans for Peace: “Where is your courage, your compassion?” By Lucid, We Are Change Toronto October 13, 2010 Speaking at Trinity St. Paul’s Church in Toronto, Suraia Sahar, an Afghan war refugee and representative of Afghans for Peace, (http://AfghansForPeace.org) tells her story of the Canadian mission in Afghanistan. Suraia and the Afghans for Peace are calling on Canadians to support …
- Afghanistan MP Malalai Joya Speaks in Toronto About the War Wednesday October 13, 2010 David Weingarten, We Are Change Toronto Malalai Joya has been described as “the bravest woman in Afghanistan.” In April, Joya was named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. A former Afghan MP, Joya has been …
- Canada Pursues U.S.-Style Security and Foreign Policy by Dana Gabriel Be Your Own Leader In the last number of years, there has been a dramatic shift in Canadian security and foreign policy with regards to continental, hemispheric and global issues. While Canada is working with the U.S. on a North American security perimeter deal, there are also …
- Rally April 9, Pan Canadian Day of Action on Afghanistan April 9, 2011 is the PAN-CANADIAN DAY OF ACTION ON AFGHANISTAN to coincide with anti-war demonstrations in both New York and San Francisco. R A L L Y Saturday, April 9, 2011, 12:00 noon Across from U.S. Consulate, 360 University Avenue, Toronto TTC: Osgoode or St. Patrick Marching to CITY HALL to join the MASS COMMUNITY …
- Afghans for Peace and the Toronto Coalition to Stop the War: Rally To End the NATO War of Occupation in Afghanistan By Lucid and The Ugly Truth, We Are Change Toronto April 9, 2011, TORONTO Gathered outside the U.S. General Consulate, peace activists from the Toronto Coalition to Stop the War, Afghans for Peace, We Are Change Toronto and allied groups held a demonstration as part of a nation wide campaign …
Toronto rally on the 64th anniversary of the Nakba
SEE ALSO:
- Top 10 Facts You Probably Didn’t Know About the #Nakba
- Richard Falk: Nakba 2012
- Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center – Nakba Tribute
- Deir Yassin Remembered
- Palestinian Refugees’ Migration Routes During Nakba In 1948
- unending Nakbas
Demonstrators also rejoiced in the news of the recent victory of Palestinian political prisoners, 2000 of whom maintained a month long hunger strike, another 7 of whom maintained hunger strikes of from 54 to 77 days.
While Palestinians have long-used tactics of non-violent resistance, in tandem with legitimate armed resistance to the occupation of Palestinian land, this recent victory brought the issue of Palestinian political prisoners to the news, particularly highlighting the Zionist Israeli military’s illegal and immoral use of “administrative detention” to hold Palestinians for indefinite numbers of months, years, without charging them or giving them fair trial. continue reading
some Palestinian refugees’ stories of exile and longing
One day M, a Palestinian refugee living in Lebanon, told me his story, one of discrimination, humiliation, pride, patience and dignity… and of samoud (steadfastness). M is a very charismatic and intelligent 20-something Palestinian refugee living in Lebanon’s northern city, Tripoli (Trablus). During my brief 2-day stay with his family I was greeted with that hospitality so prevalent in Palestine, Lebanon, and surely other Shams countries I’ve not had the fortune to visit…down to the last kaik, (tasty, doughnut-shaped sesame bread baked in Lebanon, Palestine, …) M wouldn’t allow me to pay for anything. I also glimpsed M’s dedication to justice and humanity, and his love of life: he has travelled in many countries via the choir he has sung with for years; he organized a group that meets every other Sunday to walk and photograph, or clean up litter, or show their pride for their city and their country; he campaigns for all walks of life and against injustices, having travelled to Bahrain to expose the media-silenced atrocities occurring at the hands of the government.
One of his life-stories:
I got the highest marks in my class in high school, so I was awarded a trip to France, a one-month stay with a family in a small town.
When I arrived, I watched as other international students met their host families. Everyone was so happy, I was so happy. Finally, as the numbers dwindled and only my host family remained, I saw their faces change from shining to stony when they realized their guest was an Arab. continue reading
interview with Bruce Katz, co-founder of PAJU (Palestinian and Jewish Unity)
Naot Shoes has a factory outlet store located in the illegal Gush Etzion colony (i.e. “settlement”) block located on occupied Palestinian territory between Jerusalem and Hebron in the West Bank. The Gush Etzion block is a group of 22 colonies with about 70,000 Jewish Israeli colonists.
The Naot Shoes factory outlet store plays a role in strengthening and legitimizing the Gush Etzion colony. The Naot Shoes Outlet provides employment for the colony’s residents, and attracts both international tourists and Israeli customers to the Gush Etzion complex. The Naot Shoes Outlet thereby not only serves to legitimatize the colony and sustain its economic growth, but also enables the colony to absorb new colonists. continue reading
Mleeta: Lebanon’s Resistance Museum
Late afternoon sun highlights the oak trees I stand amidst, the utter quiet broken only by birds’ chirping. It is easy to forget that the southern Lebanese hilltop I’m walking on was once the base of intense resistance against the Israeli occupation forces with their bases on surrounding hilltops and occupying villages below. From 1985 to 2000—when prolonged Hezbollah resistance eventually defeated the IOF causing their retreat from Lebanon—Mleeta was one of the most important sites of the Lebanese resistance. The Mleeta guide and website report that from the Mleeta hilltop, over 7000 resistance waged attacks on surrounding IOF sites.
As our car crawled up the road, ascending into the beginning of the day’s thick fog, M points out the thick mesh of oak trees and rock, reminding me again of the resistance’s tactic of moving slowly uphill under the cover of fog. The blanket of trees was vital, but nonetheless the going would have been tough. “It snows in winter up here, it was an extremely hard life. They carried everything they needed on their backs…including anti-aircraft weapons—they carried them in pieces and re-assembled them at their site,” he notes. continue reading
Ken Stone: Global March to Jerusalem Report Back
Ken Stone reports back from the Canadian delegation to the Global March for Jerusalem.
Ken Stone and Neturei Karta on Jerusalem, Canada, Zionism
(March 29)
A day before the Global March to Jerusalem (GMJ), we hold a press conference, to reiterate the reasons for such a march. continue reading
