By IRNA,
London : British Jews, including prominent lawyers, writers, historians and psychologists, have joined the worldwide chorus of condemnations of Israel’s brutal killing of passengers aboard the Gaza Freedom Flotilla.
“The killing by Israeli forces of at least 10 civilians and the injuring of many more of those on board the flotilla taking aid to Gaza is the latest in a series of crimes for which Israel must be condemned by the world community,” Sir Geoffrey Bindman said.
“It is the failure of Britain, the EU and the US to condemn Operation Cast Lead and Israel’s other violations of international law that leads Israel to believe it can act with impunity,” said the professor of law, who specializes in human rights issues.
“As human beings, as Jews, as citizens, we call upon the new British government to distance itself from the craven attitude shown by its predecessor towards Israel,” he said in a letter to the Guardian newspaper Wednesday signed by other leading academics.
“The government and the EU must now take serious and effective action to rein in Israel,” their joint letter warned.
Jews For Justice For Palestinians (JfJfP) have also castigated the Israeli regime for sending commandoes into international waters to attack the latest humanitarian convoy seeking to break the three-year siege of Gaza.
“We call on Israel to end the siege of Gaza which constitutes an illegal collective punishment of the whole population,” said JfJfP, which represents the largest alternative voice of Jews in the UK and Europe.
In a statement obtained by IRNA, it called on the UK government “to acknowledge that the only way to prevent more outrages in future is for Israel to end its occupation and settlement of Palestinian land and agree to the creation of a Palestinian state.”
JfJfP signatory Moris Farhi described the attack on the flotilla as a “vile terror act” executed in international waters against unarmed civilians.
“It is time for the Israelis to open their eyes and see that their deadliest enemy is not outside the country’s borders but inside, in the corridors of the Knesset,” said Farhi, a Turkish-born novelist and vice president of International PEN.