Gush Shalom activists face eggs barrage

[Gush Shalom (Israeli Peace Bloc)]

GUSH SHALOM - pob 3322, Tel-Aviv 61033 - http://www.gush-shalom.org/

Tel-Aviv, June 7,2002

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Gush Shalom activists face eggs barrage, defying anti-Arafat hate campaign. 
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On the front pages of today's newspapers: the results of yesterday night's army raid upon 
Arafat's headquarters in Ramallah; piles of ruins; gaping holes in structures - which some of us 
saw a month ago during a visit by a Gush Shalom delegation. (One of the papers even showed 
the sandbags which we had seen being laid along the windows by the industrious presidential 
bodyguards.)

Ma'ariv's headline: "Sharon already decided to expel Arafat - only waiting for right timing". 
"Expel" is the euphemism; it is understood by everybody that sending Israeli troops into that 
scarred building with orders to seize Arafat could well end with the Palestinian leader's death.

At noon today Gush Shalom activists gathered at the monument behind the Tel-Aviv town hall, 
the place where Prime Minister Rabin was shot to death seven years ago, one of the few 
places in Israel where the photo of  Rabin's handshake with Arafat is still on public display. 
(Elsewhere in the country, copies of that photo had been quietly but thoroughly removed from 
official plaques.)  As Uri Avnery commented: "It was here that Yitzchak Rabin was murdered, 
because of his role as a peacemaker. Nowadays, Rabin is murdered again and again: his 
lifework is being systematically destroyed." 

Spreading out from the monument to the nearby traffic light we stood in line, holding out the 
signs: "Arafat is the partner"; "An end to the occupation = an end to suicide bombings"; "Yes 
to the Saudi peace plan"; "Thirty-five years of occupation - enough!"; "5/6/1967 - 5/6/2002 - the 
victory which turned to disaster". 

The first half hour passed quietly, except for some fierce debates and... a barrage of eggs 
thrown from the roof of the opposite building. (All but one of them missed their mark and 
smashed on the sidewalk in front of us, and the invisible assailant disappeared long before the 
police showed up on the scene.) 

At 2.30, as planned, artist Yuval Kaspi unrolled a large sheet which was attached to a nearby 
wall, and made a life-size drawing of Rabin and Arafat shaking hands, while the demonstrators' 
picket line divided in two, to allow passers-by and motorists on the busy Ibn Gvirol Street a 
chance to see the artistic proceedings. It took another half hour to complete, with the colours of 
the Israeli and Palestinian flags drawn in around the two leaders. 
[Yuval Kaspi is one of the main organizers of "Imagine", an ehibition of 300 Jewish and Arab 
Artists for Coeixistence which is due to open - simultaneoulsy in Tel-Aviv and 
Umm-El-Fahm  - on June 15. (Contact: yuval_caspi at hotmail.com, 053-904473; 
Kamila 053-370472).]
     
Also today, and also as part of Gush Shalom's marking of 35 years of occupation, two 
advertisements in Ha'aretz: a small one entitled "the historical mistake" - with the weekly 
statement [text follows]. But on this occasion also a bigger one, with the full text of Uri Avnery'
s 
article Operations Order appeared. To publication as an ad in Ha'aretz was decided after from 
very different sides this analysis of Sharon's real plans was acclaimed. You received it already 
ten days ago - and if you want you can re-read it at the Gush Shalom website
 in English:
http://www.gush-shalom.org/archives/article195.html 
or in Hebrew:
http://www.gush-shalom.org/archives/article195_heb.html

                                          THE HISTORIC MISTAKE

Thirty five years ago this week, after the Six-Day War, the Government of National Unity 
(Eshkol – Begin) made the worst mistake in the history of Israel. It intentionally forfeited the 
historic opportunity to make peace by enabling the inhabitants of the occupied territories to 
establish the State of Palestine next to the State of Israel.

Every day we all pay the price for that mistake: the vicious cycle of violence, the unending loss 
of life, disaster on the social front, economic ruin and moral debasement.

We can do otherwise – even today!


Today, Friday, at 2 pm, we shall demonstrate at the Rabin memorial in Tel-Aviv under the 
slogans:
                                ARAFAT IS THE PARTNER! 
                       YES TO THE SAUDI PEACE PROPOSAL!
         NO END TO BLOOSHED WITHOUT END OF THE OCCUPATION
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Gush Shalom,
Help us with donations to
P.O.Box 3322, Tel-Aviv 61033,
Phone 972-3-5221732.
http://www.gush-shalom.org
requests for information about current actions:
info at gush-shalom.org
[Gush Shalom ad published in Ha'aretz, June 7,  2002.]

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If you did not yet receive this from the new listserver it will happen soon

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