Do What's Right: Achieve Peace in Gaza

Dear President Obama,

We join with millions of people across the country and around the world in congratulating you on your election and looking forward to positive changes under an Obama administration. The spirit of "yes we can!" moves us forward toward the change we so desperately need.

In that spirit, we call on you now to condemn the Israeli invasion of Gaza. As concerned individuals committed to securing and promoting basic human rights to land, food, and water, we ask you to outline a new policy on Israel/Palestine based on respect for international law and the rights of both Israeli and Palestinian people to nationhood and livelihood with dignity.

While we firmly condemn the actions of Hamas, we also recognize the extreme disproportional force employed by the Israeli Government and our country's political and financial support of the Israeli military's actions.

Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip are being carried out with F16 fighter jets, Apache helicopters, naval gunboats, and missiles all provided by the United States with U.S. tax dollars.

From 2001-2006, the United States transferred to Israel more than $200 million worth of spare parts to fly its fleet of F16s and more than $100 million worth of helicopter spare parts for its fleet of Apaches. In July 2008, the United States gave Israel 186 million gallons of JP-8 aviation jet fuel and signed a contract to transfer an additional $1.9 billion worth of littoral combat ships to the Israeli navy. Last year, the United States signed a $1.3 billion contract with Raytheon to transfer to Israel thousands of TOW, Hellfire, and "bunker buster" missiles.

Israel's current assault on the Gaza Strip would not be possible without the jets, helicopters, ships, missiles, and fuel provided by the United States.

Furthermore, Israel's attacks come on top of an 18-month blockade and closure of the Gaza Strip, which has created a dire humanitarian catastrophe for Gaza's 1.5 million residents by restricting the provision of food, fuel, medicine, electricity, and other necessities.

This siege is a form of collective punishment and a war crime outlawed by the Fourth Geneva Convention. Article 33 reads "No protected person may be punished for an offense he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited."

In view of the central role that the United States has played in arming and enabling Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip, and your insistence that peace and security depend on respect for international law and for the rights, dignity, and common humanity of all peoples, we are asking that your Administration stand for a new policy in Israel/Palestine that emphasizes peace and justice for all.

This means holding Israel accountable for its misuse of U.S. weapons. The United States cannot continue to transfer arms to Israel while U.S. weapons are being misused to commit grave breaches of international law and human rights norms. The Arms Export Control Act (Public Law 90-829) limits the use of U.S. weapons given or sold to a foreign country to "internal security" and "legitimate self-defense" and prevents their use against civilians. The Foreign Assistance Act (Public Law 87-195), Section 116, states that "No assistance may be provided under this part to the government of any country which engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights."

As your campaign leaflets say, "What this country needs is a President who won't just do what's right when the politics are easy, but will stand up when the politics are hard." The politics are hard, but we have to ask you: Can we overcome politics to do what is right and just to achieve peace in Gaza and the Middle East? The answer must be: Yes we can!

Thank you for your time.