Sign Petition not to fund Gaza disengagement with our $

[Comadreja]

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While news of Israel's possible disengagement from Gaza is welcome, this unilateral move must not come at the expense of the American taxpayer, and should be part of a comprehensive plan to fully pull out from Palestinian territory in compliance with international law.

The United States should not be responsible for paying Israel to evacuate the illegal settlements that it has created in the Gaza Strip in defiance of U.S. policy and international law. The United States already provides substantial foreign aid that supports Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.

Congress authorized $9 billion in loan guarantees to Israel over the course of three years beginning in 2003. If the United States is interested in helping Israel to evacuate settlements from Gaza, it should earmark funds to do so from already appropriated funds and annual assistance rather than to do so from already appropriated funds and annual assistance rather than ask the U.S. tax-payers to shoulder this burden at a time of unprecedented budget deficits.

Military occupation, under international law, is viewed as a temporary expedient. Israel’s 36 year-old military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip has become permanent in nature. Israel’s treatment of Palestinians living under military occupation violates numerous international laws designed to protect civilians living under foreign military occupation.

U.S. support for Israel’s unilateral disengagement from Gaza must be conditioned on Israel’s dismantling of all 21 illegal settlements in Gaza, not just the 17 mentioned in Sharon's unilateral disengagement plan.

A Sharon spokesperson confirmed that Israel is considering the option of transferring Gaza Strip settlers to West Bank settlement blocs that it wants to annex. Transferring settlers from one occupied territory to another is illegal under international law and cannot be countenanced by the United States.

While Sharon’s plan for unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip calls for the evacuation of most illegal settlements, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) plans to continue its military occupation of the Gaza Strip after the settlements are evacuated. The U.S. must demand full military disengagement from Gaza.

Any U.S. support for Sharon’s unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip should be seen as only a first step toward ending Israel’s illegal military occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem. UN Security Council Resolution 242 calls for Israel to withdraw its “armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict <1967>.”

Israeli unilateral disengagement from Gaza must not come at the expense of the American taxpayer, and should be part of a comprehensive plan to fully pull out from Palestinian territory in compliance with international law.

Thank you for consideration of this matter.

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BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

On Monday, February 2, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon outlined to the Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz his plans for a unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip and the dismantling of three settlements in the West Bank. Sharon stated: “So as part of the disengagement plan I ordered an evacuation - sorry, a relocation - of 17 settlements with their 7,500 residents, from the Gaza Strip to Israeli territory…The aim is to move
settlements from places where they cause us problems or places where we won't remain in a permanent arrangement. Not only settlements in Gaza, but also three problematic
settlements in Samaria " (Ha’aretz, February 3, “Sharon’s plan: 20 settlements to go within a year or two.”).

Asked whether he would coordinate his plans with the United States, Sharon responded: “Clearly this must be done with American agreement and support. We are not taking any steps that contravene their positions. Agreement is needed on both the evacuation and the matter of the fence. It is important that everything we do be part of the Bush vision and fits in the American concept."

U.S. officials arrived in Israel on February 18 to discuss the details of Sharon’s disengagement plan. Sharon is expected to visit President Bush in late March to seek approval for his plan.

[Lithos]

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Lithos
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