ILPS condemns massacre of Palestinians by Israel

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the International League of Peoples’ Struggle, Office of the Chairperson Jose Maria Sison.

We, the International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS) condemn in the strongest terms the cold-blooded massacre of unarmed Palestinian protesters by Israeli soldiers on March 14 in Gaza in the run up to the 70th anniversary of the Nakba (Catastrophe) on March 15, the day the state of Israel was established in 1948 forcing around 750,000 Palestinians from their homes.

This latest massacre of Palestinians by Israeli soldiers killed 60 and wounded 2,000 others. One of the casualties was an eight-month-old baby girl, Laila Anwar al-Ghandor. Israeli snipers were shooting with live bullets at the protesters including at children, women, journalists and paramedics.

While the carnage was going on, Donald Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, was celebrating with Benjamin Netanyahu the inauguration of the US embassy in Jerusalem. Only the representatives of 28 US client states attended the inauguration. When Trump announced on December 6, 2017 the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and to relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, 128 countries voted for a United Nations General Assembly resolution condemning such decision.

Jerusalem is considered as Occupied Territory with West Jerusalem being seized by Israel in 1948 and East Jerusalem in the 1967 “Six-Day War”. Israel’s declaration of sovereignty over the whole of Jerusalem in 1980 has never been recognized internationally. All countries currently maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv. Under international law, it is a criminal offence to “make permanent changes” on “territory acquired by force”.

The Palestinians have been demonstrating over the past six weeks in Gaza in what they call the “Great Return March” to highlight their demand to be allowed to return to their historic homes, including those in Jerusalem. Some 70% of Gaza’s population are descendants of refugees who were driven out of their homes when Israel was created in 1948 and later in the 1967 War.

We call on all freedom-loving people of the world to condemn this latest atrocity committed against the Palestinian people and support the just struggle of the Palestinian people against the barbaric Israeli occupation and for national and social liberation.

We fully support the right of return for Palestinian refugees which right has been reaffirmed by the United Nations (UN) from 1948 onwards through various UN General Assembly resolutions.

We condemn the most recent massacre and brutal dispersal of peaceful Palestinian protesters by the Israeli armed forces. We condemn the continuing support of the US and other western governments for the Zionist Israeli government with its continuing illegal occupation and reign of terror against the Palestinian people.