Israeli Planes Strike Civilian Targets in Gaza; PDA Demands Enforcement of the U.S. Arms Control Export and Foreign Assist. Act

Tell Congress to enforce the law.

Gaza --The Israeli Air Force attacked the occupied Gaza Strip killing an estimated 200 or more people and injuring hundreds more, yesterday. (See video)These Israeli attacks come on top of a brutal siege of the Gaza Strip, which has created a humanitarian catastrophe of dire proportions for Gaza's 1.5 million Palestinian residents by restricting the provision of food, fuel, medicine, electricity, and other necessities of life. A virtually unarmed and starving people, the Palestinians of Gaza have been living under an illegal blockade and lock down for the past six months.

As Bill Fletcher warned on this site less than two weeks ago, silence toward human rights abuses against the Palestinian people means the removal or elimination of a people, a stated objective of a segment of the Israeli ruling class.

While the scope of civilian casualties in these attacks is not yet clear, it is unmistakable that Israel carried out these attacks with F16 fighter jets and missiles provided by the taxpayers of this country. From 2001-2006, the United States transferred to Israel more than $200 million worth of spare parts to fly its fleet of F16's. In July 2008, the United States gave Israel 186 million gallons of JP-8 aviation jet fuel. Last year, the United States signed a $1.3 billion contract with Raytheon to transfer to Israel thousands of TOW, Hellfire, and "bunker buster" missiles. In short, Israel's lethal attack today on the Gaza Strip could not have happened without the active military and political support of the United States.

PDA urges its member to take immediate action:

1. Tell your member of Congress to uphold the law and enforce the U.S. Arms Control Export and Foreign Assistance Act, which prohibits aid to countries that abuse human rights or use weapons purchased from the U.S. for offensive purposes. Click here.

2. Contact the White House to protest the attack and demand an immediate cease-fire. Call 202-456-1111 or send an email to comments@whitehouse.gov.

3. Contact your local media by phoning into a talk show or writing a letter to the editor. To find contact info for your local media, click here.