Ladies and gentlemen of the media

On behalf of the Socialist Forum of Ghana (SFG), we welcome you to this press conference designed to express our outrage against the aggression of the Zionist state of Israel against the people of Palestine in Gaza.

The continuing aggression is further evidence of the impunity of a colonial occupier, hell bent on defying world public opinion and international law in its brazen attempt to violate the political, economic and social rights of the Palestinian people. It tells us that Israel will stop at nothing to enforce its harsh colonial rule on a people who have been dispossessed of their lands.

At the last count, more than 800 Palestinians, mostly innocent women and children, had been murdered by Israel and at least 1,000 had been injured in the senseless show of brute force. Indeed in Israel’s war of aggression code-named ‘Operation Cast Lead’ in the 22-day-war in 2008-2009, 1, 400 Palestinians were killed and more than 5,000 were injured. All of these fit perfectly into a pattern of assassinations, imprisonment without charge or trial, sabotage of the Palestinian national economy and thievery of Palestinian resources by the decadent Israeli colonial administration.

Since 1948, Israel has continued to wage war on Palestine, killing and maiming, destroying economic and social infrastructure, and subverting the democratic will of the people. Israel’s intransigence has been helped by the substantial assistance it has continued to receive from the western countries especially the United States of America.

Over the years, Israel has achieved notoriety as the world’s prime threat to peace. It supported apartheid in South Africa; annexed Arab lands in Syria and Lebanon and has continued to subvert the national security of Sudan. A couple of weeks ago, Israel bombed Sudan in an unprovoked aggression. There are credible reports that Israel is also responsible for the assassination of Iranian scientists. Israel has also been deeply involved in the destabilization of Lebanon and is currently collaborating with Syrian rebels and terrorists in the futile attempt to topple the Assad regime.

We note that in spite of its war mongering and aggressive attitude some western countries have assisted Israel to stockpile nuclear weapons. As a fact Israel is the only country in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf which has a stock pile of nuclear weapons even as it refuses to sign international treaties guarding against the proliferation of such weapons.

The SFG is becoming increasingly alarmed at the growing aggression of Israel and its flagrant violation of the rights of the Palestinian people and calls on the international community to take the following measures to safeguard global peace and security:

1. Take steps to inspect and control Israel’s nuclear arsenal
2. Insist on Israel’s acceptance of resolutions of the United Nations on the rights of the Palestinian people including the right of refugees to return to their homeland.
3. Hold the Israeli authorities responsible for crimes against humanity including the assassinations it has committed in Iran, Lebanon Syria and elsewhere.

We also call on the Government of Ghana to bring pressure on Israel through such fora as the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement and the African Union to abide by the norms of decency in international relations and to refrain from acts of aggression against other states.

The Socialist Forum of Ghana also calls for an immediate end to the aggression against Gaza and the blockade of the coastal strip.

We salute the Palestinian people for steadfast resistance to colonial occupation.

Long live world peace and international solidarity.