[Peace-discuss] 15 min Twitter storm 4 Gaza in half hour; my FCNL ceasefire/blockade letter

[Robert Naiman via Peace-discuss]

Our daily 15 minute twitter storm for Gaza on the hashtag
#EndGazaBlockadeInGaza starts in less than a half hour, at 12pm ET/11AM
central/9AM Pacific. Just Foreign Policy has put up a page of sample
tweets, with auto-magic tweet buttons. If you have a twitter account,
participating in the storm using the JFP page is just three clicks away:

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/end-gaza-blockade-in-cairo

A few days ago, FCNL put out an alert asking for letters to the editor on
ceasefire/blockade. Here's my FCNL ceasefire/blockade letter, published in
the Champaign-Urbana (Illinois) News-Gazette:

http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/letters-editor/2014-08-02/lawmakers-should-back-lasting-cease-fire.html

Lawmakers should back lasting cease-fire
Sat, 08/02/2014 - 7:00am | The News-Gazette

I urge Sen. Dick Durbin and Rep. Rodney Davis to fully support Secretary of
State John Kerry's efforts to bring about a lasting cease-fire between
Israel and Gaza that includes ending the Israeli-Egyptian economic blockade
of 1.8 million Palestinians in Gaza.

Some have attacked Secretary Kerry for his efforts to end the violence. We
should be wary of their motivations. Some on the right do not want to stop
the violence and do not want to end the economic blockade. This is why they
oppose Secretary Kerry's diplomatic efforts.

In a recent statement, President Barack Obama called for "ensuring Israel's
security, protecting civilians, alleviating Gaza's humanitarian crisis and
enacting a sustainable cease-fire that both allows Palestinians in Gaza to
lead normal lives and addresses Gaza's long-term development and economic
needs." That is what Secretary Kerry has been working for.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has called the blockade
collective punishment against a civilian population, a violation of
international humanitarian law. As a practical matter, it is widely
acknowledged that ending the blockade will be necessary to ensure a durable
cease-fire.

In a recent op-ed in the Washington Post calling for ending the Gaza
blockade, Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison noted that United Nations officials
have told him that failing to address the issue of the blockade would
simply reset the clock for another cycle of violence.

I urge Sen. Durbin and Rep. Davis to join Rep. Ellison in fully supporting
administration efforts to end the violence with a durable cease-fire.

ROBERT NAIMAN

Urbana


===

Robert Naiman
Policy Director
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org
naiman at justforeignpolicy.org
(202) 448-2898 x1
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