FFIPP-International: An Urgent Call to Stop Violence and Make Peace

The Palestinian people are again subject to horrific violence and unbearable suffering. Particularly critical are the conditions in Gaza, following a long siege situation, repeated Israeli killings of civilians and now an ongoing military operation, a disproportionate response to the abduction of an Israeli soldier.

According to humanitarian observers, Gaza is now on the verge of a crisis where all civil society may become dysfunctional, and large scale diseases and hunger are imminent. The recent cycle of violence, like all previous ones, has been a consequence of the forty year-long occupation.

The incarceration of democratically elected Palestinian representatives by the Israeli army occurs at a time when they were showing signs of pragmatism by endorsing all international agreements accepted by the PLO, and while the majority of Israelis favor the end of occupation for the sake of peace and security.

Faculty for Israeli Palestinian Peace International (FFIPPI) insists on respect of human rights and international law and the application of the fourth Geneva Convention, which clearly holds the occupying forces responsible for the safety and welfare of the civilian population.

FFIPPI condemns all forms of violence against civilians in both sides.  FFIPPI holds that there is no justice and never will be peace or security until the Israeli occupation ends. While it considers resistance to occupation legitimate, FFIPPI promotes non-violent practices as the best path for justice and peace.

FFIPPI calls upon the Hamas led Palestinian government to declare that its goal is not the destruction of  Israel. FFIPPI calls upon the Israeli government to declare its  acknowledgment of the Palestinian right to have a viable independent state within the 1967 borders.

The world can not remain a passive witness to this unfolding disaster. It is the duty of the international community to rescue life and oblige the Israeli government to stop its military activities, respect the elected government of the Palestinian people, resume financial assistance to the Palestinian government and introduce genuine  negotiations that will lead to a just peace.
We urge  all academics and intellectuals of conscience worldwide to support this call.