These kids: OK. Palestinian kids? Not so much...
Nearly two weeks of fighting have seen the death of 785 Palestinians, including over 250 children. The latest report from the United Nations cited witnesses saying Israeli forces moved about 110 Palestinians into a house, told them to stay inside, and later shelled it repeatedly, killing more than 30 people, half of them children.
All of this is happening 9,000 miles away from Los Angeles, yet our city's mayor felt compelled yesterday to give his complete and total support for the Israeli invasion and wholesale destruction of Gaza and tacit backing for the deaths of civilians as part of Israel's "right of self-defense".
The LAProgressive reports that:
LA Jews for Peace (LAJP), joining a chorus of critics, calls for a meeting with Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa and city council members Wendy Greuel, Janice Hahn, Jack Weiss and Dennis Zine to express disappointment in their public support of Israel’s relentless bombing and blockade of Gaza.
“We ask that our mayor set aside his personal political ties to work for the greater good, “says Marcy Winograd, co-founder of LA Jews for Peace. “In backing Israel ’s bombing and blockade of many innocent Palestinians in Gaza , he is, perhaps unintentionally, fueling the fire of hatred and violence".
Jeff Warner, Chair of LA Jews for Peace, notes the Mayor and the media are ignoring another side to this tragic story. “I do not defend the rockets - there is no excuse for Gazans shooting into civilian towns,” says Warner. “However, I can understand why the Palestinians in general and the Gazans in particular, are very upset. The problem is that Israel has had Gaza under siege for almost two years, choking off food and medical supplies. Even during the six-month cease-fire, Israel still did not open the crossings into Gaza , and that was one of the agreements of the cease-fire. This is an important point that is ignored by most American leaders,” adds Warner.
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