delegates have seen no armed men in Rafah, something confirmed by TV coverage including that of Channel 4 News and the eyewitness accounts of Chris McGreal of The Guardian.
A sign of how indefensible this onslaught is the fact that, for once, the US did not veto the UN resolution condemning Israeli actions.
They simply abstained and allowed the 14-0 vote to be passed. This vote may be a moral victory, but it means nothing in a material sense. The IDF has now pushed deeper into southern Gaza and the murder and annihilation continues.
With both Bush and John Kerry firmly in the pro-Zionist camp, General Sharon has nothing to worry about. This one resolution has been passed as a token gesture, but the special understanding between the US and Zionism is unaffected.
The continuing devastation of Rafah shows that Israel fears nothing and is uninterested in the UN vote. None of the countries on the UN Security Council has shown any intention of enforcing economic or diplomatic sanctions.
There has been no EU arms embargo and no suspension of the Association Agreement with Israel. Arab governments have proven to be equally impotent.
As ever, if we want to support the Palestinians in their national liberation struggle we must take to the streets and step up the boycott of Israeli goods.
The likes of Michael Moore should also stop patronising the Palestinians by stating thạt they should abandon the armed struggle in favour of peaceful protest. Palestinians know how to conduct their revolutionary war, it is up to us to support them in every way we can.
use of equipment" ince the beginning of the intifauproot and punish civilians? Israeli military has destroyed over
Rachel Corrie. their goods to the Israeli Army.
DEMOLISHING PEACE Caterpillar states in its "code of practice": "As a global company we can use our strength and resources to improve, and in some cases rebuild, the lives of our neighbours around the world." How can they claim to rebuild lives when their products are used to Sales of bulldozers might not ordinarily raise eyebrows. But these are the machines that were responsible for the destruction of Rafah. These are the machines that murdered ISM militant Demonstrator Louise van der Hoeven told to Tyne Tees television evening news: "We came here today to tell homeless" people what people all over the world find unacceptable, that Caterpillar sell Caterpillar knows what they are doing with their products, Caterpillar is free to sell to who it likes, but it is selling bulldozers to the Israeli Army, who are
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••• 20 soclalst resistance Summer 2004 • David Finkel is an editor of Against the Current, published by the U.S. socialist group Solidarity (www.solidarity-us.org).
Bill Clinton survived impeachment even when his party would have hugely benefitted