ADC Calls for an Immediate End to Israeli Military Strikes

Washington, DC | February 28, 2008 | www.adc.org | The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) strongly condemns recent airstrikes by Israel which have killed 24 Palestinians, 5 of whom are children aged 10, 12, 13, and 15, and one baby 6 months of age. The children had been playing in the Jabaliya refugee camp when they were killed by Israel‘s strikes. ADC is appalled by the Israeli treatment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and calls for international intervention to stop a growing humanitarian crisis.
According to media reports, in the three months since the peace talks at Annapolis, Maryland more than 205 Palestinians have been killed, many of them civilians and five Israelis have been killed. Additionally, Israel‘s blockade of Gaza, which has been in effect since January 12, has left the Gaza Strip without supplies essential to purify water, increasing the risk of contamination and disease. Residents in Gaza are being urged to boil all drinking water to avoid the spread of disease because more than one-third of Gaza’s water supply is now untreated. United Nations officials have warned the situation could lead to a health disaster for Gaza‘s 1.5 million residents.
The Gaza Strip is one of the most densely populated places on earth with almost half of the population under the age of 15. More than 1.5 million people live in the 140 square miles (360 square kilometers) which is the Gaza Strip. According to the UN Development Programme (UNDP), 84.6% of Gaza’s residents live below the poverty line (US $ 2/day). ADC reiterates the fact that despite its unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, Israel continues its occupation because it has control over Gaza’s land, sea, and air borders; utilities; tax revenue; and internal economy.
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NOTE TO EDITORS: The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which is non sectarian and non partisan, is the largest Arab-American civil rights organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980, by former Senator James Abourezk to protect the civil rights of people of Arab descent in the United States and to promote the cultural heritage of the Arabs. ADC has 38 chapters nationwide, including chapters in every major city in the country, and members in all 50 states.
The ADC Research Institute (ADC-RI), which was founded in 1981, is a Section 501(c)(3) educational organization that sponsors a wide range of programs on behalf of Arab Americans and of importance to all Americans. ADC-RI programs include research studies, seminars, conferences and publications that document and analyze the discrimination faced by Arab Americans in the workplace, schools, media, and governmental agencies and institutions. ADC-RI also celebrates the rich cultural heritage of the Arabs.

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