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STOP THE WAR COALITION
NEWSLETTER
No. 1074 19 January 2009
Email office@stopwar.org.uk
Tel: 020 7278 6694
Web: http://www.stopwar.org.uk
IN THIS NEWSLETTER
1) GAZA: DEMONSTRATE SATURDAY 24 JANUARY
2) NATIONAL ACTIVISTS MEETING LONDON 11am - 1pm SAT JAN 24
3) NATIONAL STUDENT DAY OF ACTION THURSDAY 22nd JANUARY
4) GAZA EVENTS ROUND THE COUNTRY
5) ISRAEL HAS "ACHIEVED ITS OBJECTIVES, AND MORE"
6) WILL OBAMA MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
7)
8) JOIN STOP THE WAR COALITION
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1)
A fourth demonstration in
24 January. Israel has stopped bombing schools, mosques,
hospitals, universities and residential buildings, no doubt
not wanting to be seen killing yet more women and children
when Barack Obama is inaugurated as US president on Tuesday.
"We have achieved our objectives, and more," says Israeli
prime minister Olmert.
So slaughtering 1300 Palestinians, 400 of them children,
injuring 6000 people, bombing hospitals and ambulances,
killing medical staff - this will do for now. But, says
No real ceasefire is possible without the complete removal of
of the blockade and the opening of all
Even as it was agreeing to this "mission accomplished"
ceasefire,
disgraceful offer to send the British navy to support
thereby endorsing retrospectively the barbarism of the past
three weeks. What the British government should be doing is
banning all arms trade with
This is why a fourth demonstration in
for Saturday 24 January. We will be demanding that
out of
opened and that there is a complete arms embargo on
The demonstration will assemble at BBC Broadcasting House, to
protest against the BBC's Gaza reporting, which has often been
little more than an extension of Israel's propaganda machine.
We will march to
shortly.
Please encourage your relatives, friends, work colleagues,
fellow students, neighbours etc to join us. A leaflet for
downloading will be available shortly.
DEMONSTRATION 24 JANUARY
ISRAEL OUT OF GAZA NOW: LIFT THE BLOCKADE
ASSEMBLE BBC BROADCASTING HOUSE
PORTLAND PLACE, LONDON, W1A 1AA
(NEAREST TUBE OXFORD CIRCUS)
MARCH TO TRAFALGAR SQUARE
For updates, go to: www.stopwar.org.uk
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2) NATIONAL STOP THE WAR ACTIVISTS MEETING 11am - 1pm
SATURDAY JANUARY 24
The Stop the War Coalition has called this important meeting
to discuss the situation in Gaza and the wider War on Terror
and how to take the campaign forward.
We will also be discussing the campaign to bring the troops
out of
at the G20 meeting in
Obama's first visit to
We are asking for delegations from every Stop the War group
round the country.
The venue will be announced shortly.
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3) STUDENT DAY OF ACTION, THURSDAY JAN 22
Students have been at the forefront of the uproar over
universities, schools and
schools and
campus after campus, and successful occupations at the LSE and
SOAS in
This Thursday we are calling on all students to join in the
wave of protests and organise further occupations, walkouts,
die ins and collections for the people of
Please e-mail Stop the War with your plans.
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4)
Local events round the country have been getting an inspiring
response, such is the outrage over
Stop the War groups are reporting big turnouts for meetings
and protests including 1,200 in Nottingham, well over a
thousand in Manchester, 80 in Southend and very large
donations for aid to Gaza (one Stop the War group collected
over £700 in two hours on its street stall).
Please send or phone any details of planned events in your
area. We are posting details here: http://tinyurl.com/8v4fb3
Please email reports of events in your area to
office@stopwar.org.uk.
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5) ISRAEL HAS "ACHIEVED ITS OBJECTIVES, AND MORE
Stop the War's website has one of the most moving testaments
to Israel's barbarism without limits in an interview with Dr
Aboul Aish, a physician living in Gaza, who previously treated
thousands of Israelis when he worked in Israel. Over the past
three weeks Dr Aish reported regularly from
Israeli television. On the day
he is interviewed just after the Israeli army shelled his
home, killing his three daughters and two grandsons.
The whole of Israel saw this interview and the desperate cries
of a father who has seen the mass murder of his family, but
there have been no public protests for this crime against
humanity, one of many witnessed in the massacre of Gaza. This
must watch video can be viewed here: http://www.stopwar.org.uk
or here: http://tinyurl.com/7b7myo
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6) WILL OBAMA MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Everyone will celebrate the end of George Bush's presidency,
rightly condemned as the worst in American history. Barack
Obama takes office on a wave of hope and expectation, not
least that he will turn away from Bush's war policies. Obama's
statements on Afghanistan and on Israel, however, raise
serious concerns for all those hoping for an end to the War on
Terror, concerns underlined by his Secretary of State Hilary
Clinton giving unqualified support for the carnage in Gaza.
Even in
18 months is hedged by many provisos which suggest that the
aim is to maintain control over
oil, without the deployment of the
far, the anti-war movement around the world must remain
mobilised.
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7)
Four more British soldiers have been killed in
the past week, with barely a mention in the media. This is a
war that is comprehensively lost, even if
allies had any idea of what a "victory" would be. The Vietnam
War showed how a lot more killing and destruction can happen
even when it's clear that a war is lost.
This is why the demonstration against the G20 meeting in
London in April, which Barack Obama will attend, and the
international protests in Strasburg in the same month for
Nato's celebration of 60 years since its founding, will focus
on the need for the pointless war in Afghanistan to end and
all occupation armies to be removed from the country. Details
of these demonstrations will be published shortly.
For copies of the Stop the War pamphlet Afghanistan: Why We
Should Get Out, phone 020 7278 6694
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8) JOIN STOP THE WAR COALITION
Many people have become members of Stop the War Coalition over
the weeks of the Gaza massacre, citing their appreciation of
our work in mobilising opposition to Israel's attacks.
Becoming a member of Stop the War is one of the best ways you
can help us fund our office and the wide range of protests,
rallies, meetings, speaking tours, cultural events etc that we
organise against all the wars associated with the so-called
"war on terror".
Membership of Stop the War can cost as little as £2 a month
(please give more if you can afford it). You can join online:
http://tinyurl.com/9lxmc8 or by calling 020 7278 6694.
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NEWSLETTER
No. 1073 16 January 2009
Email office@stopwar.org.uk
Tel: 020 7278 6694
Web: http://www.stopwar.org.uk
3RD NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION FOR GAZA
SATURDAY 24 JANUARY
ISRAEL OUT OF GAZA NOW: LIFT THE BLOCKADE
ASSEMBLE BBC BROADCASTING HOUSE
PORTLAND PLACE, LONDON, W1A 1AA
(Nearest tube Oxford Circus)
MARCH TO TRAFALGAR SQUARE
With over 1100 killed, 350 of them children, and over 5500
injured, the suffering in Gaza is beyond catastrophic.
is ignoring the worldwide clamour for it to stop now and is
escalating its attacks.
A third national demonstration against Israel's barbarity and
war crimes has been called for Saturday 24 January in London
by Stop the War Coalition, Palestine Solidarity Campaign,
British Muslim Association and many other organisations.
The demonstration will assemble at BBC Broadcasting House,
one-sided coverage of the
spokespeople endless opportunities to propagate lies and
deception without challenge.
We will march from the BBC to
details, including timings and route, will be available
shortly.
Stop the War calls on all its local groups and supporters to
start building now for what we need to make an even bigger
demonstration than the 100,000 who protested on 10 January.
solidarity with the people of
atrocities.
Stop the War will publicise further details and updates by
email and on our website, as we get them.
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