Will this increase or decrease the likelihood of terrorist actions in America, Europe and the rest of the world?

If you were a member of a family murdered in this conflict, would you be seeking revenge?

Should Tzipi Livni and Ehud Olmert, be tried for war crimes if or when this conflict comes to an end?

What will the price of oil be in 4 weeks time?

Arab victim 'stabbed 10 times by haredim'

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4045047,00.html

they must be for terrorists who sail on that boat .they are scum
headline seekers alice look closer to your family

any british person helping those murderers should be in prison

Israeli Military Stop Christian Leader From Visiting Central Hebron
http://imemc.org/article/61518

you anti-semites are hysterical LOL

you dont see these people going to help the syrians .they are being murdered and not a word from people like alice walker she is only doing it to sell her books .
it is a wonder you dont blame israel for that has well

Not helping one group, doesn't stop you helping another group. After all, this thread is about Israel and Gaza.

Video: Richard Levy & Kathy Kelly Join US Activists to Sail to Gaza In Humanitarian Flotilla
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10284

go and join them
instead of talk talk talk
try walk walk walk
LOL

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/a-moment-before-boarding-the-next-flotilla-1.369336

Why I, an American Jew, am joining the Gaza flotilla

Id rather use my influence and power, in concert with other members of American civil society, to actively and nonviolently resist policies I consider abominable.

You might wonder what would motivate a Jewish American college student to participate in what may be the most celebrated - and controversial - sea voyage of the 21st century, one that aims to nonviolently challenge U.S.-supported Israeli military power in the occupied territories. I simply cannot sit idle while my country aids and abets Israel's siege, occupation and repression of the Palestinians. I would rather use my personal influence and power, in concert with other members of American civil society, to actively and nonviolently resist policies that I consider abominable. So, next week, I and more than 30 other American civilians will be sailing on the U.S. ship the Audacity of Hope, to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

I am one of a growing number of young American Jews who are determined to shake off an assumed - and largely imposed - association with Israel. Prominent advocacy organizations, such as the American Jewish Committee, which proudly proclaim their unconditional support of Israel, for several years have been declaring their "serious concern" over the increasing "distancing" of young American Jews from the state.

But what Israel apologists like the AJC view as a crisis, I see as a positive development for American Jews, who, like other parts of U.S. society, are shifting from blind support for Israel to a more critical position that reflects opposition to our country's backing for Israel's policies.

If Israel's apologists in the U.S. are alarmed by a falling off in unconditional support for Israel, they should be even more concerned that such a diverse range of youth - especially young Jews - are joining up with constituencies that actively organize against America's role in the occupation. Today, the so-called crisis has expanded from the coasts to such places as Arizona. It probably was just a matter of time before a Jewish anti-occupation group emerged in my home state, given that a fairly substantial portion of the Students for Justice in Palestine chapter on the University of Arizona campus (in Tucson ) were Jewish. For our part, we Jews launched an initial chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace at the UA campus in spring 2010 - one of nearly 30 JVP chapters throughout the country, which has a mailing list of 100,000 - and thereafter branches in the general Tucson and Northern Arizona communities, and at Arizona State University, in Phoenix.

In Athens, as I write, waiting to board the Audacity of Hope, I am wearing a Star of David amulet around my neck, which was given to me the night before I left Arizona by a dear friend and fellow JVP organizer. She got it from a silversmith in Haifa while on a "Birthright" trip as an adolescent. For her, it had always been the reminder of the crude brainwashing she felt she had encountered on that trip. But when she came across the star recently, she decided it might be put to good use if I were to wear it on my journey. And so that's what I'm doing.

I wear it as a symbol of the basic values of Judaism that I feel are not emphasized sufficiently today: the imperative to welcome the stranger as you would want to be welcomed; and of helping to free the slave from a bondage that you would not wish to suffer.

As a consequence of various nonviolent actions undertaken all over the world, led crucially by Palestinians on the ground, the Israeli occupation will one day end. Those of us who face up to the unavoidable choice of either tolerating or resisting these crimes will determine how long the death and suffering of mainly Palestinian noncombatants continues, and how long a lasting peace in Palestine/Israel remains out of reach.

"Let Us Call On Israel To STOP SHOOTING CHILDREN!" Congressman Brian Baird

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noTojOAAC8M&feature=share

Passengers grabbed Israeli weapons to stop the killing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeUhwELoKWo&feature=related

President Jimmy Carter pounds israel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDKw0f95k7Q&feature=share

http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/strenger-than-fiction/israel-is-tearing-apart-the-jewish-people-1.369341

Israel is tearing apart the Jewish people

Israel has never had a government that so blatantly violates the core values of liberal democracy, which dismisses identities of 85% of the world's Jewry.

In June last year, Peter Beinart published an article in the New York Review of Books that created quite a storm by pointing out the deep estrangement between the young generation of American Jews and Israel. A year later, it is time to take stock.

Unfortunately, the situation has only grown a lot worse. In my travels to Europe I speak to predominantly Jewish audiences, but also to non-Jews who care deeply about Israel. They voice their pain and anguish openly: They want to understand what has happened to Israel. They desperately want to stand by it, but they are, increasingly, at a loss of knowing how to do so.

Their questions are simple. They know that Israel is located in one of the world's most difficult neighborhoods; they have no illusions about the Iranian regime or Hezbollah; and they know the Hamas charter. But they don't understand how any of this is connected with Israel's settlement policies, the dispossession of Palestinian property in Jerusalem, and the utterly racist talk about the 'Judaization' of Jerusalem. They feel that they no longer have arguments, even words, to defend Israel.

Israel has never had a government that so blatantly violates the core values of liberal democracy. Never has a Knesset passed laws that are as manifestly racist as the current one. Israel has had foreign ministers who were unworldly and didn't know English; but it has never had a foreign minister whose only goal is to pander to his right-wing constituency by flaunting his disdain for international law and the idea of human rights with such relish.

Moreover, there has never been a government so totally oblivious of its relation to world Jewry. It passes laws that increase the Orthodox establishment's stranglehold on religious affairs and personal life - completely disregarding that 85 percent of world Jewry are not Orthodox - and simply dismissing their Jewish identities and their institutions. As a result, this majority of world Jewry feels Israel couldn't care less about its values and identity.

Israel's Orthodox establishment claims that by monopolizing conversion to Judaism and the laws of marriage, they are preventing a rift in the Jewish people. The exact opposite is true: It is Israel's turn toward racism that extends not only toward its Arab citizens, but toward Ethiopian youth not accepted into schools in Petah Tikva, toward Sephardic girls not allowed to study in Haredi schools in Immanuel, that most Jews in the world cannot stand for. It is the unholy coalition between nationalism and Orthodoxy that is tearing the Jewish people apart.

The overwhelming majority of American and European Jews are deeply committed to Universalist values, and have been so for most of their existence. This commitment is not a fad or an attempt to be fashionable and politically correct. It is the deeply felt conclusion the majority of world Jewry draws from Jewish history: After all that has happened to us, we Jews must never, ever allow violation of universal human rights.

This is why Jews in the U.S. have been central in the Civil Rights movement; this is why Jews in Europe will never forget that only Universalist liberals stood by Alfred Dreyfus in 1890s France. For most Jews of the world, it is simply unfathomable: How can we, who have suffered from racial and religious discrimination, use language and hold views that - as Israel Prize laureate and historian of fascism Zeev Sternhell argued - were last held in the Western world by the Franco regime?

For most of world Jewry, the idea of Yiddishkeit in the second half of the 20th century meant that Jews must never compromise on the equality of human beings before the law and the inviolability of their rights. So how can they stand by a state that continues to pay rabbis who argue that Jewish life has a sanctity that doesn't extend to gentiles, and that it is forbidden to rent property to Arabs?

In moments of despair, I try to remember that Israel's move to the right is driven by fear and confusion, ruthlessly fanned by politicians whose hold on power depends on the panic of Israel's citizens. I feel it can't be true that the country that was supposed not only to be the homeland of the Jews, but a moral beacon, is descending into such darkness. I try to remember that such times of darkness do not reflect on the human quality of a whole nation; that countries like Spain, Greece and Portugal emerged from dark times into the free world; that even though the winds of right-wing nationalism are sweeping over Israel, it is still a democracy.

Sometimes, along with the majority of Jews committed to liberal and Universalist values, I feel as if I were simply in a bad dream; that when I wake up, Herzl's vision of a Jewish state committed to the core values of liberalism will be the reality.

Open Letter on Middle East Policy

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,767819,00.html

June 10, 2011

Palestinian Unity Is a Prerequisite for Peace with Israel

A new Palestinian government is expected to be formed soon as a result of the agreement recently signed between the main Palestinian factions -- Fatah and Hamas. The new, transitional government composed of independent figures will be tasked to pave the way for the holding of parliamentary and presidential elections in May 2012.

Palestinian reconciliation is part of the momentous changes sweeping through the Middle East. Brokered by Egypt following its own revolution and reflecting a strong public desire to overcome the four-year long internal rift, Palestinian unity is a fruit of the "Arab Spring."

As former international leaders and peace negotiators, we have learnt first-hand that achieving a durable peace requires an inclusive approach. We consider it of vital importance that the international community supports Palestinian unity and avoids any steps that could jeopardise the fragile reconciliation process. In particular, we urge the United States and the European Union to constructively engage with the transitional government as well as with the Palestinian leadership that results from the elections next year. This is imperative for the following reasons:

Firstly, overcoming the political and institutional divide between the West Bank and Gaza is an obvious pre-condition for the establishment of a unified and viable Palestinian state.
Secondly, a durable settlement with Israel can only be achieved if the Palestinian leadership is able to negotiate on behalf of all Palestinians and with the agreement of main political forces. Reconciliation is thus a prerequisite for achieving the two-state solution. It is not an obstacle to it. Asking Fatah to choose between making peace with Hamas and making peace with Israel presents a false choice: a lasting peace with Israel is only possible if Hamas is on board.

'A Chance for Course Correction'

Palestinian reconciliation is also an opportunity to enhance Israel's security. The unity deal could help consolidate a ceasefire, preventing renewed attacks from the Gaza Strip against Israeli civilians. An exchange of Palestinian prisoners for the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit could be another positive off-shoot of the agreement.

The opportunity presented by the unity deal must be seized without repeating past mistakes. In 2006, following the victory of Hamas in the Palestinian election, the US and the EU opted for political and financial boycott. In hindsight, those policies were a major setback for the peace process by exacerbating Palestinian divisions and entrenching the blockade of Gaza.

The new unity deal and the developments in the wider region offer a chance for course correction by the US and the EU. The so-called Quartet principles including recognition of Israel should be treated as goals rather than preconditions of engagement with the Palestinian leadership and factions. Adherence to a ceasefire and non-violence is a realistic threshold from which to commence negotiations.

By supporting Palestinian unity at this vital juncture, the US and the EU have an opportunity to show their commitment to the two-state solution as well as to the democratic aspirations currently being voiced throughout the broader Middle East. The alternative is hard to contemplate. If Palestinian reconciliation is undermined, it will throw the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into an even deeper impasse, with dramatic consequences for all parties and the international community at large.

LIST OF SIGNATORIES

Dries van Agt: Former Prime Minister, the Netherlands.

Lord John Alderdice: Former Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Massimo d'Alema: Former Prime Minister, Italy.

Frans Andriessen: Former Finance Minister, the Netherlands; former Vice-President of the European Commission.

Halld grsson: Former Prime Minister, Iceland; Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Hanan Ashrawi: Former spokesperson of the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East peace process.

Shlomo Ben-Ami: Former Foreign Minister, Israel.

Betty Bigombe: Ugandan politician, former chief LRA - Uganda government negotiator.

Laurens Jan Brinkhorst: Former Vice-Prime Minister of the Netherlands.

Hans van den Broek: Former Foreign Minister, the Netherlands; former EU Commissioner for External Relations.

Uffe Ellemann-Jensen: Former Foreign Minister, Denmark.

Gareth Evans: Former Foreign Minister, Australia.

Sir Jeremy Greenstock: Former UK Ambassador to the United Nations.

Lena Hjelm-Wall: Former Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Sweden.

Ioannis Kasoulides: Former Foreign Minister, Cyprus.

Mogens Lykketoft: Former Foreign Minister, Denmark.

Ram Manikkalingham: Former Senior Advisor to the President of Sri Lanka on the peace process with the Tamil Tigers.

Louis Michel: Former Foreign Minister, Belgium; former EU Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid.

Poul Nyrup Rassmussen: Former Prime Minister, Denmark.

Elisabeth Rehn: Former Minister of Defense, Finland; former UN Under-Secretary General.

Alvaro de Soto: Former UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process.

Thorvald Stoltenberg: Former Minister of Defense and of Foreign Affairs, Norway; former UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

Erkki Tuomioja: Former Foreign Minister, Finland.

Hubert Vrine: Former Foreign Minister, France.

WHY DO YOU KILL ZAID?

And this is only for few years how about 60+ years with a daily Israeli murders?.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Oh1DDFx6Kk

muslim men tie bomb to child to take to police station .
sorry muslim not men but subhumans

United Church Presbytery Group Launches Boycott Divestment Campaign against Israel

http://www.bdsmovement.net/2011/united-church-presbytery-7322

Support the U.S. Boat to Gaza: Deliver Hillary Petition; Change your Facebook/Twitter Icon

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/audacityofhope/supportactions#deliver

Getting on board with peace in Israel
An Israeli American explains why she will be among many boat passengers trying to break through Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

By Hagit Borer

June 26, 2011

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Later this month an American ship, the Audacity of Hope, will leave Greece on a journey to the Gaza Strip to attempt to break Israel's blockade. It will join an expected nine other ships flying numerous flags and carrying hundreds of passengers from around the world. I will be one of those passengers.

I am an Israeli Jewish American. I was born in Israel, and I grew up in a very different Jerusalem from the one today. The Jerusalem of my childhood was a smallish city of white-stone neighborhoods nestled in the elbows of hills. Near the center, next to the central post office, the road swerved sharply to the left because straight ahead stood a big wall, and on the other side of it was "them."

And then, on June 9, 1967, the wall came down. Elsewhere, Israeli troops were still fighting what came to be known as the Six-Day War, but on June 9, as a small crowd stood and watched, demolition crews brought down the barrier wall, and after it, all other buildings that had stood between my Jerusalem and the walls of the Old City, their Jerusalem. A few weeks later a wide road would lead from my Jerusalem to theirs, bearing the victors' name: Paratroopers Way.

A soldier helped me sneak into the Old City. Snipers were still at large and the city was closed to Israeli civilians. By the Western Wall, a myth to me until then, the Israeli army was already evicting Palestinian residents in the dead of night and demolishing all houses within 1,000 feet. Eventually, the area would turn into the huge open paved space it is today, a place where only last month, on Jerusalem Day, masses of Israeli youths chanted "Muhammad is dead" and "May your villages burn."

It is a different Jerusalem now. It is not their Jerusalem, for it has been taken from them. Every day the Palestinians of Jerusalem are further strangled by more incursions, by more "housing developments" to cut them off from other Palestinians. In Sheik Jarrah, a neighborhood built by Jordan in the 1950s to house refugees, Palestinian families recently have been evicted from their homes at gunpoint based on court-sanctioned documents purporting to show Jewish land ownership in the area dating back some 100 years. But no Palestinian proof of ownership within West Jerusalem has ever prevailed in Israeli courts. Talbieh, Katamon, Baca, until 1948 affluent Palestinian neighborhoods, are today almost exclusively Jewish, with no legal recourse for the Palestinians who recently raised families and lived their lives there.

In his speech on Jerusalem Day, Yitzhak Pindrus, the deputy mayor of Jerusalem, assured a cheering crowd of the ongoing commitment to expanding the Jewish neighborhood of Shimon Hatzadik, as Sheik Jarrah has been renamed.

This is not my Jerusalem. The tens of thousands of jeering youths that swarmed through its streets on Jerusalem Day have taken the city from me as well. That they speak my native tongue is almost impossible for me to believe, for there is nothing about them or about the society that gave birth to them that I recognize.

Did we know in 1967, in 1948, that it would come to this? Some did. Some knew even then that a society built on conquest and dispossession would have to dehumanize the conquered in order to continue to dispossess and oppress them. A 1948 letter to the New York Times signed by Albert Einstein and Hannah Arendt, among others, foretells much of the future. Martin Buber did not spare David Ben-Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel, his perspective on the expulsion of the Palestinians in 1948-49.

But too many others, including members of the U.S. Congress who recently cheered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are determined to not hold the Israeli government responsible or the Israeli-Jewish society culpable.

Let us note that some Israeli Jews do stand up and protest. There are soldiers who refuse to serve, journalists who highlight injustice, and human rights organizations, activist groups, information centers. In a sense, all of us seeking justice have been on a virtual boat to Gaza all these decades. We have been trying to break through the Israeli blockade, in its many incarnations. We wish to say to the Palestinians that, yes, there are people in Israel who know that any viable future for the Middle East must be based on a just peace not the forced imposition spelled out by Netanyahu to Congress or else we are all doomed. We want it known that the soldier is not the only face of Israeli Jews. There are those who say to the government of Israel, "You do not represent us." We say to the people of the United States in general and to American Jews in particular that yes, you do have an alternative. You can support peace. A true peace.

Hagit Borer moved from Israel to the United States to study in 1977. She became an American citizen in 1992 and is currently a professor of linguistics at USC.

Copyright 2011, Los Angeles Times