Craig Mokhiber (see longer quote below) just posted: “The Israeli regime has just attacked and commandeered the humanitarian ship #Madleen, in blatant violation of international law.” Mokhiber lists a litany of other illegal acts by Israel and states: “The UN has a duty to respond to threats to international peace and security and to defend human rights. Expel, isolate, embargo, and sanction the regime now. #UnitingForPeace.” Uniting for Peace is a mechanism whereby the UN General Assembly can take action when a member has used their veto in the Security Council in a way that prevents the Council from fulfilling its core responsibility of ensuring peace.” The U.S. again vetoed a UNSC ceasefire resolution last week. See IPA news release: “Can Uniting for Peace Help Save the International Legal Order?”
A group of Veterans for Peace and allies are on day 20 of a 40-day fast with all-day vigils in front of the U.S. mission to the U.N. They are conducting a series of actions this week, including an action Monday at 11:30 a.m., carrying empty pots and spoons to the British mission. Contact: Kathy Kelly, (773) 619-2418, [email protected]
The UN General Assembly is scheduled to meet on Thursday, June 12, in an emergency special session regarding Israel. The Assembly passed a resolution in December calling for a ceasefire, but without conseqences for Israel.
ROBERT JERESKI, [email protected], @codepink
Jereski is a New York City based attorney who has led CODEPINK’s World Court Project, which includes meetings with various UN missions. He said today: “The draft we’ve seen of the resolution expected to be voted on Thursday — apparently drafted by Spain — is very weak. The UN must confront Israel for breaking the ceasefire, for blocking humanitarian aid, for barring international press, for murdering record numbers of local journalists, as well as humanitarian workers, for incitement to genocide. …”
“Israel rightly perceives words without consequences as a greenlight to continue committing grave crimes. Countries that have been outspoken against Israel’s ongoing crimes will either impose effective sanctions on Israel or be complicit with it.”
CRAIG MOKHIBER, [email protected], @CraigMokhiber
Available for a limited number of interviews, Mokhiber is an international human rights lawyer and former director of the New York Office of the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights.
He said today: “If the new draft is indeed essentially the same as the old resolution, that would be disgraceful at this stage.
“All well and good to call for a ceasefire, release of prisoners, and access for humanitarian aid, but, at this stage, we are long overdue for:
* The mandating of a force, based on the 1956 precedent, but deployed to the OPT with Palestinian consent (As well as Egyptian and Jordanian access);
* The call for all states to implement comprehensive sanctions and a military embargo;
* The establishment of an accountability mechanism for perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and gross violations of human rights;
* The reactivation of the anti-apartheid mechanisms;
* Safe passage for sea-borne humanitarian aid, including the Madleen and the Freedom Flotilla;
* Safe passage and access for the humanitarian March to Gaza;
* The lifting of all sanctions imposed on the ICC;
* A full return of UNRWA and other humanitarian agencies and the dismantling of the GHF [Gaza Humanitarian Foundation];
* A reiteration of the imperative of all states to fully implement the relevant advisory opinions of the ICJ and its provisional measures in the genocide case, and to fully cooperate with the ICC in arrest of indicted Israeli suspects.”