Posts Categorized: Uncategorized

In response to the call for escalating actions against Israel’s attacks on Gaza,the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) and the International JewishAnti-Zionist Network are collaborating in the United States.

If you are in the United States and would like toparticipate, contact information is below.

Internationally, IJAN encourages the creation of similarcalls to action.

The U.S.Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) and the International Jewish Anti-ZionistNetwork (IJAN) are calling for joint action.

Israel’shorrifying attacks on Gazacome at the close of the Bush regime and at the onset of the Obamaadministration. Congress has declared the attacks an act of self-defense by Israel. Nothingcan be more untrue as the death toll of Palestinians creeps to 800 and theinjured to more than 3,000.

The need for escalating coordinated action against racistUSpolicies here and abroad coincides with the potential for change that Obama’spresidency represents.

Palestinians and anti-Zionist Jews are calling for jointaction. We are raising our united voices of outrage and grief against 60 yearsof occupation and ethnic cleansing. We are taking collective action insolidarity with and as part of more than 60 years of Palestinian struggle.

We are also co-organizing forums to assert Palestinianand anti-Zionist Jewish narratives and visions of liberation united withgrassroots movements for racial justice and immigrant and indigenous rights.

Joinus in taking another step toward a united front against racism!

1. Organize and participate in Palestinian/Jewish anti-Zionist joint actions with immigrant, indigenous and people of color communities
2. Organize and participate in forums, teach-ins and workshops to assert Palestinian and anti-Zionist Jewish narratives in joint struggle
3. Organize joint flyering at and messaging for protests
4. Organize delegations to local representatives and pass local resolutions
5. Tell us about it: email us at the contact information below

For more information or toparticipate, please contact us:

IJAN email: ijan@ijsn.net

 In response to a divisive representation of the counter demonstration at a rally in support of Israel, the following joint statement was submitted to the London Guardian.

DearLetters’ Editor,

Neither your report (Thousands of Jews rallyagainst Hamas, 12 January) nor the subsequent letters (We Jews cannot be silent bystanders while this terrorgoes on, Letters, 13 January) mention the crucial fact that thecounter-demonstration opposing the pro-Israel rally was called and responded toby Palestinians, Jews, Muslims and other people of conscience.

The police had divided the counter-demonstration by placingMuslim and Jewish people behind separate metal barriers.  United by ouroutrage and grief over the siege on the Palestinian people in Gaza, many of usrefused to be divided; we moved the barriers aside and chanted together:“Judaism Yes, Zionism No”; the Palestinian flag which the Islamic Human RightsCommission had brought was attached to the banner of the International JewishAnti-Zionist Network, and alongside Neturei Karta’s placards.

WhenPalestinians, Jews and Muslims organise together, taking our direction from thePalestinian resistance, we undermine apartheid, ethnic cleansing and thedivisions among us which are used to justify war.  For all of us there isonly one side – the side of justice.

Yours,

Representatives of the

Islamic Human Rights Commission

International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network

Efforts to separate Arab and Jewishcounterdemonstrators from each other were overcome by IJAN organizers in theJewish ‘pen’ and Arab organizers in the Arab ‘pen.’  The police barricades between them wereremoved, the Palestinian flag and IJAN’s banner were attached to one another,and the megaphone and choice of chants were shared.   Despitethe pavement between the barriers to the two counter-demos filling up, theJewish banners and most of the Jewish demonstrators stayed where they were.  Popular chants (with some) were “Judaism,yes; Zionism, no: the state of Israelmust go” and “1 2 3 4, occupation no more, 5 6 7 8, Israel is not a Jewish state”!!

 Some photos from Thursday, 8 January rally in London (written synopsis of IJAN participation in ongoing demonstrations and pickets below):

Demonstrations outside the Israeli Embassy – always noisy anddemonstrative – have ranged from a few hundred to five thousand; the march andrally on Saturday was, the organisers say, 60,000 people, the biggest rally insupport of Palestine that we’ve seen in this country.

On Sunday 28^th – the first of the pickets — therewere at least 2,000 people.  We were behind the barrier on one side of thestreet while the Israeli embassy side was lined with people.  There was ascuffle of some kind on the embassy side (we found out later it was an arrestof a Palestinian), and we all burst out of the barrier, hundreds blocking theroad.

Later, people again claiming to be the organisers calledpeople to march and most went.  When asked to where, we were told, justmarch.  But some of us stayed at the embassy gate, and when the marchcould not go further because they police blocked the road further on, themarchers, mostly young people, came back and again filled the road, blockingthe traffic.  

From Monday 29^th onwards we brought the IJANbanner – we were always very warmly welcomed as Jewish people standingunequivocally with Palestinian people against Zionism.  IJAN was one of the sponsors of the Embassypickets that continued outside the Israeli Embassy all week, except for Fridaywhen we moved to the Egyptian Embassy. 

Saturday’s demonstration was huge, perhaps 60,000 people: aswe passed 10 Downing Street, a thousand shoes were thrown in front of itsgates; the march rallied in to a completely packed Trafalgar Square whereprominent people had their say – Tony Benn,Bianca Jagger, Annie Lennox (singer), Ken Livingstone (formermayor of London) who said that the silence of the British government, and mostWestern governments is “obscene”.

Later that evening 5,000 of uspicketed the Israeli Embassy, which was heavily policed – too many police andpolice helicopters had been at every demonstration.  Roads were closed and police in riot gearused barriers to contain us and keep us away from the embassy itself. 

We will be part of the continuing pickets each evening nextweek, leading up to another national demonstration on Saturday outside theIsraeli Embassy: the demand will be Stop Israel’scrime against humanity.

IJAN UK

A diverse group of Jewish Canadian women are currently occupying the Israeliconsulate at 180Bloor Street West inToronto.This action is in protest against the on-going Israeli assault on the people ofGaza.

The group is carrying out this occupation in solidarity with the 1.5 millionpeople of Gaza and to ensure that Jewish voicesagainst the massacre in Gazaare being heard. They are demanding that Israelend its military assault and lift the 18-month siege on the GazaStrip to allow humanitarian aid into the territory.

Israelhas been carrying out a full-scale military assault on the Gaza Strip sinceDecember 27, 2008. At least 660 people have been killed and 3000 injured in theair strikes and in the ground invasion that began on January 3, 2009. Israel has ignoredinternational calls for a ceasefire and is refusing to allow food, adequatemedical supplies and other necessities of life into the Gaza Strip.

Protesters are outraged at Israel’slatest assault on the Palestinian people and by the Canadian government’srefusal to condemn these massacres. They are deeply concerned that Canadiansare hearing the views of pro-Israel groups who are being represented as theonly voice of Jewish Canadians. The protesters have occupied the consulate to senda clear statement that many Jewish-Canadians do not support Israel’sviolence and apartheid policies. They are joining with people of conscience allacross the world who are demanding an end to Israeli aggression and justice forthe Palestinian people.

The year 2008 is the 60th anniversary of the Nakba, the catastrophe marked by the destruction or depopulation of more than 400 Palestinian villages and the expulsion of 750,000 Palestinian people from theirlands, communities and homes. Since then, Palestinians have lived under occupation, as refugees, and as second class citizens on their own land; Israel’s assault against the indigenous Palestinian communitiescontinues with unremitting brutality. In Gaza, with the support of the US government and its allies, Israel has effectively cut off food, water, electricity,

Madam, – We are people inIreland who are Jewish or of Jewishdescent.

We are appalled by Israel ‘sslaughter in Gaza .We have seen people justifying this on the basis ofIsrael ‘s "securityconcerns" and attacking supporters of peace for being anti-Jewish.

In this climate we feel it important to assert that it is not anti-Semitic oranti-Jewish to oppose Israel ‘saction.

Nor, however, can it be part of any progressive political vision to conflatewhat the Israeli state has done and is doing inGaza as being supported by Jews worldwide.

Throughout the world, Jews have opposed the invasion ofGaza .

In Israel itself, tens of thousands protested this war; they have been attacked by policeand right-wing mobs and many Israelis, predominantly non-Jewish but alsoJewish, have been imprisoned.

We ask people to support these Israelis.

As for Israel ‘ssecurity concerns, two points need to be made. Firstly nothing, but nothing,justifies the massacre of innocent people.

Secondly, peace will only come about through justice for the Palestinian peopleand through negotiations betweenIsrael and elected Palestinianrepresentatives.

One does not need to be Jewish to know this.

We ask people not to claim to speak for us when justifyingIsrael ‘sbarbarity. – Yours, etc,

**If you would like to sign on to this letter, send an email to antizionistjews@gmail.com with your name and city**

Like much of the world, we have spent the last week watching in shockand disgust as Israel continues its assault on the Gaza Strip. With thebody count rising and a new tragedy in full bloom, we feel that it isimportant to speak out as Jewish youth in Canada and to denounce whatIsrael is doing in our name. The Jewish diaspora is diverse and dividedon its positions on the state of Israel’s policies. At this juncture inhistory, as Israel has committed its worst massacre in Gaza since itbegan its illegal occupation in 1967, we feel that it is crucial thatJews speak out and denounce Israel’s actions that amount to no lessthan war crimes committed by an apartheid state.

As Jewish youth, we are diverse, but we are unified in our solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and sisters in Gaza.

Some of us are students. We are outraged by the bombing of the IslamicUniversity in Gaza city, as well as other civilian infrastructure suchas hospitals and mosques.

Some of us are Arab-Jews and people of colour. We stand againstIsrael’s racism, which has been enshrined in Israeli law, andprivileges its Jewish citizens over its non-Jewish ones.This apartheidstate views Palestinians as an expendable people, no more thancollateral damage.

Some of us are queer. We reject Israel’s branding of itself as the onlysafe place for queer people in the Middle-East while it targets gay andlesbian Palestinians and renders life unsafe for millions of others.

Some of us are Israelis living in Canada. We are calling for asolidarity that stretches beyond borders and nationalities. Israel’sviolent actions will only serve to further isolate the state and itscitizens from the rest of the world. By calling itself a Jewish stateand committing war crimes in the name of Jews everywhere, Israel makesthe world even less safe for Jews, leading to an increase in animustowards Jewish people around the world.

Even though there have been approximately 100 Palestinian deaths forevery Israeli killed by rocket fire, we recognize that IsraeliApartheid also leads to Israeli casualties. The blame for these deathslies with Israel – if there were no occupation and no apartheidpolicies, there would be no rocket fire. If Israel, the world’s fourthlargest military power, is concerned about its citizens, it wouldabandon its apartheid policies and seek out justice for the Palestinianpeople.

In 2005, Palestinian civil society put out a clear call forinternational support through a non-violent campaign of Boycott,Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) similar to that carried out against theapartheid regime of South Africa. Now, with the people of Gaza beingcrushed by Israeli bombs, manufactured in the USA and launched withCanada’s blessing, it is more important than ever for Jewishcommunities throughout the world to take up this BDS campaign in orderto end Israel’s apartheid system, which makes life unsafe for millionsof Jews and Palestinians alike.

Let us not be silent bystanders while humanity suffers. Let us raiseour voices, as Jewish youth, and demand a single, democratic state,with equal rights for everyone in Israel/Palestine.

Ours is a generation that is committed to ending Middle-East violenceby opposing all forms of discrimination, calling for a just peacewithin the entire region, and condemning Zionism to the dustbin ofhistory.

Free Gaza, Free Palestine.

KolAcher (A different Voice) from Sderot and the communities around Gazacalls on the Prime Minister and the Defense Minister to act urgently torestore calm in the area.

Theperiod of calm dramatically changed the lives of the inhabitants ofSdrerot, Ashkelon and the communities around Gaza, and enabled us allto re-experience a normal and sane life. Continuing the period of calmis crucial and critical for the inhabitants of the areas from every possible angle: physical, psychological, mental and economic.

Anotherround of escalation could break down our psychological strength,fragile as it is, and bring all of us into another round of selfdestruction and pointless bloodshed. We will not necessarily surviveit, and you should be aware of that, if you really care about theinhabitants of the area. We’ve been in this movie for too many years,and the results speak for themselves – a feeling of no way out,abandonment and a loss of hope for us and our children!!

Onthe other side of the border a million and a half Palestinians live inan unbearable reality, and the majority of them, like us, want quietand a future for themselves and their families.

Wefeel that you wasted the period of calm, instead of using it to promoteunderstandings and the beginning of negotiations, as well as continuingto fortify the houses of the inhabitants, as you promised.

Wecall on the Prime Minister and the Defense Minister not to lend yourears to the voices of incitement, and to do whatever you can to preventanother round of escalation, to promise the continuation of the periodof calm and to work quietly for direct or indirect negotiations withthe Palestinian leadership in Gaza in order to achieve a document oflong term understandings.

Weprefer an option of a cold war in which not a single rocket is fired toa hot war with tens of innocent victims and casualties from both sides.

We ask that you offer us an option of a settlement and political hope, and not an endless cycle of bloodshed!!!  

"KolAcher" – A Different Voice is a group from Sderot and the communitiesaround Gaza, which has been engaged for the past year in conversationswith people from the Gaza Strip that represent "a different voice". Inthe conversations, the suffering and hardship on both sides of theborder come up, as well as the mutual will to break the continuingcycle of violence, and to offer a political option that will givecivilians on both sides of the fence a true hope for a better future.

 translated from

http://www.haokets.org/mail-message.asp?ArticleID=2902

Our pledge in theCharter will be carried out through our commitments to: 1) solidarity with Palestinian self-determination, 2) participation in global movements toend imperialism, and 3) theextrication of Jewish history, politics, community, and culture from the gripof Zionism.

To these ends, in thishistorical moment, IJAN will be a clear anti-Zionist Jewish point of reference to set an ideologicalpole, open space for non-Jewish anti-Zionist voices, and broaden support forPalestinian liberation.

Towards fulfilling thisstrategic role, we are calling anti-Zionist Jews to take up the followingactions in the world: