The World Watches Israel Breach UN Charter Another 22 Times

The World Watches Israel Breach The UN Charter Another 22 Times

by Julie Webb-Pullman
18 July 2012

Israeli continues unabashed its land-grabs and attacks on Gaza.

Overnight, Israeli gunboats opened fire on fishermen towards the west of Deir Al Balah, and at 8am this morning multiple Israeli tanks and bulldozers accompanied by heavy shooting began leveling land 200 meters away from Khuzza, east of Khan Younis.

Each and every attack on fishermen, who are well within their legal 20 mile limit let alone the Israeli-imposed unlawful 3 mile limit, is a breach of Gaza sovereignty.

Each and every attack on fishermen is an attack on civilians going about their lawful work, and prevents them putting food on the tables of the Gaza population entrapped by the illegal Israeli siege. Between January 2011 and the end of April 2012, the Euro-Mid Observer for Human Rights documented approximately 150 incidents in which the Israeli Navy prevented Gazan fishermen from plying their trade – including 60 arrests at sea, 12 injuries and 20 cases of sabotage or confiscation of boats and fishing gear.

Each and every leveling operation, of which there have been 22 in the last two months, is a blatant breach of the sovereignty of the Gaza Strip. The international community - particularly the United Nations - has not condemned even ONE of these 22 examples of gross breaches of the UN Charter.

Each and every leveling operation destroys agricultural land, also severely impacting on Gaza's ability to produce the food necessary to support its population.

Each and every leveling operation creates terror in the citizenry - if they are not actually killed or injured, which so many are.

Each and every leveling operation, each and every attack on fishermen, and on the citizenry, is one more nail in the coffin of UN credibility, which continues to hand out food packages rather than ensure the security conditions for Gaza that would enable them to produce their own - all the while appeasing Israel's claims to security, while ignoring the equal right of Gazan - and Palestinian - citizens to the same.

The solution to Israel's security problems lies in its own hands - withdraw to behind the internationally-recognised and internationally-accepted borders of 1967, and stay there. If Israel wants buffer zones, create them on their own side of these borders, in accordance with international law.

The endless lip-service paid to Israeli rights by international fora more closely resembles kissing ass than it does any genuine intent to apply international law "without fear or favour."

If the UN wants credibility, it must enforce its endless resolutions condemning Israeli breaches of the UN Charter, and the numerous other UN and international conventions it scorns every day.

As yet another Israeli F-16 flies over on its way to wreak chaos and suffering on yet another Gazan family I wonder, will the international community cease its hypocrisy, and do something THIS time?

ENDS

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