Right of Return Sharen Abdallah

Tasneem AbdallahRawan Dissi

Crystal GaribayRochelle Rich

Ana RuedaYesica Ruiz

Abelardo Vazquez

Philosophy 107 FFProfessor Kuzniar

May 12, 2009

What is the Palestinian Conflict?

• A Palestinian country stolen from a population of 500,000– 86% Muslims, 10% Christian, 4% Jewish

• An illegal occupation that continues until today due to an establishment of a Jewish state

• Zionism• Biblical ties to the land• Occupied under British rule; easier access

Palestinian Conflict con’t

Palestinians rights are blatantly diminished :– 1947 UN decides to give 55% of Palestine to a population

of 30% Jews– By 1949, 78% of Palestine was taken over– 800,000 civilians displaced, 369 villages destroyed– How?

• Widespread killings and massacres took place throughout Palestine• Bombed highly populated markets• Booby-trapped cars and toys• Increased searches • Imprisonment, rapes, and massacres were also one of the highly

used tactics

Palestine loss of land, 1947-2000

How does the biased media contribute to this conflict?

• “Israel is really fighting a war on two fronts…– The first is a military campaign being waged in the

occupied territories against the Palestinian people…– The second is a PR campaign being waged here in the

U.S. through the American media…”–Professor Robert Jensen , Journalism University

of Texas-Austin• Associated Press 2004: Study done by “If Americans

Knew”– 130.6% of Israeli deaths reported• 108 actual deaths, 141 deaths reported

– 66.1% of Palestinian deaths reported• 821 actual deaths, 543 deaths reported

U.S. Media Misreported Incidents

• Gaza Violence: January 27, 2009– CNN told the public that Palestinians broke the

cease fire on January 27th

– What the media are not telling the public:• In reality Israel had violated the cease fire at least 7

times.• Killing at least 2 civilians• Injuring at least 5 civilians

• For more information: www.ifamericansknew.com

Occupation Continues… Crime Against Humanity

• Gaza - overpopulated strip of land-1.5 million Palestinians reside - 50% children, 75% refugees- fenced in, nowhere to go

What if your rights were taken away?And you were left with no freedom, protection, no escape!

Prior Assault: 2yr siege on GazaLack of: • Electricity• Energy• Heat• Food• Medical/Lab Supplies• DrugsEffects of Siege →

• No protection• No escape• No shelter• No transportation• No communication• No freedom of:

Movement/Speech

the Attack – Dec. 27. 08 – Jan. 19. 09– Lasted 23 days– Planned and deliberate; 1st four minutes, 250 killed

– Targeted: Civilians– Homes– Gov’t buildings– Orphanages– Schools– Hospitals; 47 Health Institutions, 15 ambulances, 38 Injured, 16 staff

killed

Total: 1455 Killed 5300 Injured

Aftermath of Bombing

• Wounded• Killed• Terrorized• Destroyed Homes• More Refugees

How will they move on ? …

Facts

Israel’s Justification

• Well, they saw it coming. Hamas fired 2 rockets into Israel, however …– “Implementation of the current operation had gone 90%

according to plan” – Shimon Peres (Israeli President)– Operation Cast Lead: “A planned attack on the people of

Gaza” - Mads Gilbert, Norwegian doctor– “90% of our bombs have hit the intended target” – IDF – "Israel's aim was to provide a strong blow to the people of

Gaza so that they would lose their appetite for shooting at Israel," Peres said in the Jerusalem Post article.

The Role of the U.S. : What America doesn’t want you to know• Dishonest Broker: Has allowed

Israel to use violence and violate international law

• Massive military, economic & political support

• $$$ 1.6 Billion US tax dollars a day

• Illegal use of U.S. made weapons;F-16 bombs, DIME (Dense Inert Metal Explosive), White Phosphorous

U.S. Involvement

• United States - one of the leading nations to encourage, facilitate, and arbitrate cease-fire accords between Israelis and Palestinians

• Foster democracy and economic growth in the region

• Obama administration to solidly pursue a two state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

However, there have been no further improvements

Solutions: What Can We Do?

• These war crimes must be stopped• Collective punishment violates international law; deserves

universal condemnation• Unite against the wrong and evil• Stand for the good and innocent• Attend protests, lectures, become involved, take action!• Justice Must Be Served

We are forgetting …“Peace is not an absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a

disposition for benevolence, confidence, and justice.” – Baruch Spinoza

“We should all be reflecting on elevating the situation of our less fortunate brothers and sisters to bring peace to our part of the world that will have a ripple effect that spreads worldwide.”–Cindy Sheehan