Socialist Labour Party Public Rally ======================= Thursday October 19th, 7.30pm Saklatvala Hall, Southall [entrance at rear of 14 Featherstone Rd, opposite Dominion Centre Car Park] Shameless force from Israel; Shameless hypocrisy from the US ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Israel has refused to implement United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, which stipulate the rights of Palestinian people and the withdrawal of Israel from Palestinian territories. That is not new. Israel declares that it is prepared for confrontation with neighbouring countries over its abuse of agreed Palestinian rights, and has launched air attacks into southern Lebanon; that's not new either. Israel's Prime Minister, Ehud Barak, has spoken in terms of 'crushing all resistance', applying powder-keg language to a crisis already heated to conflagration. For Palestinians, a provocative dispute over Jerusalem's holy sites has led to the worst ethnic violence inside Israel's borders - in Galilee, Tel Aviv and Haifa - since that nation was established in all but name by the United States 52 years ago, in order to give the US a commanding purchase on events in the Middle East. Israel's refusal to work - despite the Oslo peace agreement - to UN resolutions (including No.194, which stipulates the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homelands and be compensated for their enforced exile) has seen the collapse of the US-supervised 'peace talks' between Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, while the eruption of Palestinian frustration has been met by Israeli force which in 2 days reportedly saw as many Palestinians wounded and killed as in the first 20 days of the Intifada which began in December 1987. Israel has threatened total abandonment of the tortuous, drawn out Middle East peace process (which Bill Clinton hoped to leave as some testament to his Presidency of the US). One element not reported much before (at least, not in Britain's media) has been the brutality of Israeli forces against Arabs whose families chose citizenship (of a sort) inside Israel rather than dispersal and exile more then 50 years ago. As for the United States, never think it has exhausted its capacity for shameless hypocrisy. While presenting itself to the world as desperate to broker a peaceful resolution to this latest crisis, the US was exposed as the prop upon which Israel bestrides the Middle East when it again abstained in the vote on the UN's most recent motion against Israel's use of excessive force. We in the SLP call upon the British working class to give unstinting support to the just cause of the Palestinian people for self-determination and a state of their own. ==================================================== To Post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, send a blank message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
