MPAC Calls on President to Step in to Halt Violence Between Israel & Lebanon

MPAC

Posted Jul 17, 2006      •Permalink      • Printer-Friendly Version
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MPAC Calls on President to Step in to Halt Violence Between Israel & Lebanon


The Muslim Public Affairs Council today (July 16) called on President George Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to act quickly and decisively to prevent the further escalation of brutal violence in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, which has resulted in more than 200 deaths and compromised the human rights of the millions of innocent people.

In response to the stunning display of violence which has claimed more than 200 lives in the past week, MPAC will hold an “Interfaith Vigil to End the Occupation” in Los Angeles tonight in Los Angeles. Reverend George Regas, Rabbi Leonard Beerman, and Dr. Maher Hathout will address the ongoing crisis and offer spiritual reflections at the vigil, which will be held at the Islamic Center of Southern California (434 S. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90020) at 6:00 p.m. (Click here for more information.)

“The indiscriminate harm enacted upon innocent civilians is a violation of international law, which dictates that collective punishment is illegal in any and all situations,” said MPAC Executive Director Salam Al-Marayati. “Our government must be aggressive in its approach to halting this horrifying violence which betrays a fundamental respect for the sanctity and equality of all human life.”

The Israeli offensive has destroyed highways and the international airport, forced a full air, sea and land blockade against Lebanon, and bombed targets in Beirut and throughout the country leading to the death of more than 200 civilians.  Also more than 25,000 U.S. citizens currently in Lebanon have yet to be provided a means for safe evacuation. International leaders—including the European Union, Russia, Great Britain, and Germany—have condemned the military assault on Lebanon as a “a disproportionate act of war”, and warned against allowing the region to erupt into full-scale war. President Bush has not gone far enough by only calling for “restraint” in order to protect “the fragile democracy of Lebanon.”  U.S. national security and stability in the region are based on the sustenance of an already weakened democracy in Lebanon which is being pushed to the brink of collapse by these illegal Israeli aggressions.

By refusing Lebanon’s calls for a cease-fire, the U.S. undermines its stated commitment to winning hearts and minds and negatively impacts its ability to win the war on terrorism. How do we expect the U.S. will be judged when tens of millions in the region hear White House press secretary Tony Snow describe civilians whose lives are endangered by the conflict “possible so-called collateral damage”? By remaining on the sidelines, the Administration is reinforcing the perception of many Arab civilians to feel that their lives are less valuable than Israeli lives. The inevitable result of this is more anti-American sentiment and increased support for Hezbollah. Our current position on the ongoing conflict in the region displays poor moral leadership in the face of a massive level of bloodshed conducted with weapons paid for by American taxpayers.

Regardless to the role of Iran and Syria in this conflict it is illegitimate for pro-Israeli sympathizers to skirt from Israel’s responsibility for escalating the level of fighting within the region.  MPAC also calls upon all those who are engaging in an analysis of the current situation to cease the use of Islamic terminology to explain this very clearly political narrative. 

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