Message to all who purport to be supporters of Israel: we need to hear the
"D" word now from foreign officials
Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA 21 July, 2014

Dear supporter of Israel,

At this very moment U.S. Secretary of State Kerry is following through on
President Obama's instruction to push for a ceasefire with a return to
"quiet for quiet" and no clear mention of any kind of need to demilitarize
the Gaza Strip.

In Israel we are talking about demilitarization. But overseas there is
mostly silence on this matter.

Consider the J Street press release: "Beyond the need to end the current
hostilities, the events of the past month underscore the urgency of finding
a political solution to the underlying conflict between Israelis and
Palestinians."

The demilitarizing of the Gaza Strip should not be linked to "finding a
political solution to the underlying conflict between Israelis and
Palestinians".

The demilitarizing of the Gaza Strip stands by itself.

The demilitarization of the Gaza Strip is something that the PLO,
representing the Palestinian people, already agreed to in writing -
including in the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and
the Gaza Strip signed in Washington, D.C., September 28, 1995. An agreement
witnessed by the United States, Russian Federation, European Union, Kingdom
of Norway and the Arab Republic of Egypt.

Please take note: Mahmoud Abbas never claimed that the Palestinians have
the right to have rockets and missiles in the Gaza Strip.

Please take note: Rockets and missiles also are inconsistent with the
official "non paper" of the PLO with regard to what weapons can be deployed
in a future sovereign Palestinian state.

Now is the time for all those who purport to support Israel to insist that
the Gaza Strip be demilitarized.

And now is the time for all those who purport to support Israel to insist
that their national leaders also state for the record that the Gaza Strip be
demilitarized.

Not within the framework of a "political solution" that may or may not be
reached but as something that must take place independent of other
developments.

To be clear: we are not talking about having an international team come in
with their eyes closed to the Gaza Strip who proclaim that it has been
demilitarized.

Instead we are talking of first having concrete numerical goals and
timetables for the the removal/destruction of illegal weapons and the
equipment for manufacturing these weapons.

Now is the time to act.

Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director IMRA (Independent Media Review & Analysis)
(Mail POB 982 Kfar Sava)
Tel 972-9-7604719/Fax 972-3-7255730
INTERNET ADDRESS: imra@netvision.net.il
Website: http://www.imra.org.il