The breaching of the Israeli-built wall dividing the Gaza Strip from Egypt brought some critical relief for the population of 1.5 million Palestinians whom Israel had kept locked into a kind of prison since January 2006. That lock-down was tightened in June 2007, and by early last week it had created a rising humanitarian crisis as Israel completely cut off access into and out of a walled-off Gaza, and halted crucial supplies of fuel, food, and already scarce medicines and medical equipment. By targeting the wall, rather than Egyptian border guards, Hamas also kept the focus on the infrastructure of occupation, rather than the personnel. The opening of the wall, and the crossing of the border by hundreds of thousands, served not only to provide food and medicine; they represented collective feats of popular defiance and the reclaiming of human and social rights.
Life in Rafah, Gaza’s southern-most city, has always been difficult. But the period since March 2006 has been the worst in my 25-year life. Israel placed Gaza under a siege after Hamas won the Palestinian elections and tightened the siege after Palestinians captured an Israeli soldier near Rafah in late June 2006. We have had little electricity, fuel, money, food or medicine since.
AN ISRAELI convoy of goods and peace activists will go today to Erez, Israel’s border with Gaza, and many Palestinians will be on the other side waiting. They will not see one another, but Palestinians will know there are Jews who condemn the siege inflicted on the tiny territory by Israel’s military establishment and want to see an end to the 40-year-old occupation.
The Center for Public Integrity has finished it’s study of every statement made by White House officials in the cause for making the case for attacking Iraq in 2003. Looking at statements made by President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld among others, the report found at least 935 false statements between the launch of the attack and Sept. 11, 2001.
At the Center For Public Integrity’s website is now an incredibly easy-to-absorb report that should be required reading or every Congress critter who cut out early to run off to Davos and every American who somehow still thinks there was a credible reason to go to war in Iraq.
— Read the full findings in The War Card at the CPI website
The following email was sent from the Break the Siege movement organizers in Gaza. Right now Gaza faces an incredible onslaught of human rights abuses. Hospitals, food storage facilities, homes and schools are to be left without power. The border is sealed to everyone including those needing out for emergency medical care and those trying to deliver much needed supplies.
Re: Save Us: Death and Darkness in Gaza, People are dying, Help us!
Date: Jan 20, 2008 7:11 PM
Please forward it to all friends and tell them to do so……
Death and Darkness in Gaza, People are dying, Help us!
A humanitarian crisis is underway as the Gaza Strip’s only power plant began to shut down on Sunday, and the tiny coastal territory entered its third full day without shipments of vital food and fuel supplies due to Israel’s punitive sanctions. (more…)
Olympia-Rafah Sister City Project liaison John Harvey is currently visiting Palestine. John has been a longtime ORSCP participant and this is his first trip to the occupied Palestinian territories. In this photo by John, Palestinian kids greet the Jewish organization Birthright Unplugged during one of their stops on a tour of Palestine. — andy
Dear family and friends,
I finished my tour with the Jewish American group “BirthRight Unplugged.” Very excellent tour and naturally we were well taken care of by the Palestinians. We felt completely at ease walking the streets of the refugee camps, etc, and we met so many lovely people. I will post photos as soon as possible, but it is hard to predict internet service. An outline of my itinerary is at the very bottom. (more…)
".... I'm steadfastly pursuing a track that guarantees I'll never get paid more than three Triscuits and some spinach" — Rachel Corrie
This blog pulls it's title from the above quote. It's a group-edited endeavor aimed at the subjects of activism, human rights, Israel-Palestine and a number of other issues relevant to those who either follow, volunteer or scratch out a meager living in grassroots progressive movements. This blog is run by and for human rights activists and volunteers and is hosted by the Rachel Corrie Foundation. As are anyone's, the participants' opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect stances held the Rachel Corrie Foundation.
".... I'm steadfastly pursuing a track that guarantees I'll never get paid more than three Triscuits and some spinach" 
