#NoToAnnexation #FreePalestine

#NoToAnnexation #FreePalestine 

On July 1, 2020, Israel will annex 30% of the West Bank, which will further the theft of Palestinian land that began in 1948, reducing Palestine to 10% of it’s original size.  This brutal and illegal annexation has long been the dream of the apartheid Israeli government and current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Now, given the go-ahead by President Donald Trump, the far-right Israeli government can make its dream come true.  Make no mistake: the green light for the annexation came directly from Trump when he announced his ‘Deal of the Century’ in January 2020.   This ‘Steal of the Century’ calls for Israel to take control of  the Jordan River valley and East Jerusalem, and to illegally deny the guaranteed right of return for Palestinian refugees.

Trump and Netanyahu’s annexation plans further undermine the potential for a Palestinian state by relegating Palestinians to small pockets of rural land, surrounded by Israeli-claimed territory.  Palestinians and their supporters see these sundered pieces of land as “bantustans”—the term during South African apartheid for the areas to which the majority-Black population was relocated to prevent them from living in the urban areas with the white European minority.

The current Israeli annexation of the West Bank is the culmination of long-standing US government policy.  Since its inception, both Democratic and Republican administrations have supported and strengthened Israel in the face of constant Palestinian resistance.  It is not a surprise that one of the few Obama policies that Trump supports and continues, is US support for Israeli apartheid.  It should be remembered that Obama’s administration, despite performatively chastising Israel at times for its illegal settlements in the West Bank, increased military aid to Israel to $4 billion per year.   The Trump “deal” and the annexation of the West Bank continue this alliance, further reinforcing Israel as a pillar of the US imperial domination of the geopolitically-important Middle East, with its vast petroleum resources.

The current rush to annex Palestinian lands in the Occupied Territories has largely been pushed forward by political crises, failures and scandals in both the Trump regime and its counterpart in far-right apartheid Israel.  The resulting political desperation is being taken out on the millions of Palestinians through eviction, siege, occupation, mass incarceration, ethnic cleansing, extrajudicial murder, and other international crimes.  The ‘Steal of the Century’ is Trump’s and Netanyahu’s attempt to smother the continuing resistance of the Palestinian people and to hide their own continued political blunders.

The Anti-War Committee stands shoulder to shoulder in solidarity with Palestinians in their struggle against apartheid and occupation.  We will continue to promote and organize around the Boycott, Divest and Sanction (BDS) movement being led by the Palestinian civil society organizations.  We unconditionally condemn the imminent annexation, Israeli apartheid, and US aid to Israel, and support the self-determination of the Palestinian people as the only path forward to peace and justice.  From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free!

Take action!  Go to https://www.codepink.org/stopannexation to sign Code Pink’s letter to your members of Congress.

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