Palestinian civil society calls for comprehensive military embargo on Israel
· Palestinian civil society calls for comprehensive military embargo on Israel
· Youth movement activists deliver call and proof of military collusion with Israel to UN
· Organizations representing millions around the globe as well as Nobel Peace Prize winners including Desmond Tutu express support for the Palestinian embargo call
The Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee (BNC), the largest Palestinian coalition encompassing all Palestinian political parties, trade unions, NGOs and mass organisations, has called for an immediate and comprehensive military embargo on Israel.
“A comprehensive military embargo on Israel is long overdue. It would form a crucial step towards ending Israel’s unlawful and criminal use of force against the Palestinian people and other peoples and states in the region, and it constitutes an effective, non-violent measure to pressure Israel to comply with its obligations under international law,” reads the BNC embargo call.
Palestinian activists with the Hirak Shababi youth movement are this morning gathering in front of the United Nations office in Ramallah to symbolically deliver the call and evidence of international military collusion with Israel.
The call comes amidst mounting pressure to hold Israel accountable to international law, including from the Freedom Flotilla 2 and the Welcome to Palestine “Fly-in” due to arrive at Tel-Aviv airport this afternoon.
Supporters of the military embargo call include Nobel Peace Prize winners Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Mairead Maguire, and Adolfo Pérez Esquivel. Alternative Nobel Prize winners Walden Bello and Chico Whitaker and best-selling Canadian writer and journalist Naomi Klein have also endorsed the call, as have the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign.
“I endorse this call for an arms embargo because we desire peace and justice for Palestinians and Israelis through non-violent ways,” said Archbishop Tutu. Naomi Klein explained, “This much-deserved military embargo is a crucial step towards ending Israel’s impunity.”
Civil society organizations representing millions of people from all across the globe, including trade union confederations such as the South African COSATU and the Brazilian CUT, anti-arms trade, justice and solidarity campaigns and networks, have announced their support for the military embargo call against Israel and the actions they intend to take to implement the campaign.
The call has been released to commemorate the seventh anniversary of the International Court of Justice ruling confirming the illegality of Israel’s West Bank apartheid Wall and the sixth anniversary of the Palestinian civil society call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel until it complies with international law.
The BNC has today published a detailed legal and political analysis of international military relations with Israel and their impact.