{news} GP RELEASE Greens: UN Gen. Assembly must invoke 'Uniting for Peace'

[Justine McCabe]

 GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
http://www.gp.org

 For Immediate Release:
Tuesday, August 8, 2006

 Contacts:
 Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, mclarty at greens.org
 Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, starlene at greens.org


 Greens call for U.N. General Assembly to invoke 'Uniting for Peace'
 resolution for immediate ceasefire in Lebanon

. The U.S. veto in the U.N. is the major obstacle to peace, say Greens, who
 note that Bush ideologues favor attacks on Iran and a wider Middle East
 conflict

 . Israel must withdraw troops from Lebanon immediately


 WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Green Party of the United States today called on 
the
 General Assembly of the United Nations to invoke Resolution 377 'Uniting 
for
 Peace' in the face of the U.N. Security Council's inability to stop the
 violence the Middle East.

 Greens also urged the U.S. and U.N. to place pressure on Israel to respect
 Lebanese sovereignty and remove troops from Lebanon immediately, stressing
 that without a withdrawal a ceasefire will be impossible.

 "The U.N. must take all possible steps to press Israel to withdraw from
 Lebanon, to enact a ceasefire, and to prevent Israel, with U.S. support,
 from expanding the war with strikes against Syria and Iran," said Kathleen
 Culver, Green candidate for Congress in Tennessee (District 7)
 <http://www.kate4congress.com>.  "Every day the attacks between Israel and
 Hezbollah continue brings us closer to a wider regional conflict, and a
 possible global war."

 Under international law, the Security Council must take action to prevent
 war, but has been blocked by a veto from the Bush Administration with the
 support of the Blair government.  Under Resolution 377, the UN General
 Assembly can take action when the Security Council fails to do so.

 Greens in the U.S. have urged both sides to halt the exchange of violence,
 which has left over a thousand civilians dead in Lebanon and Gaza and at
 least 75 dead in Israel, and have warned that Israel's retaliatory killing
 of civilians, 'targeted' assassinations, and destruction of infrastructure
 violate Fourth Geneva Convention prohibitions against 'collective
 punishment.'  Israel's use of U.S.-made weapons violates U.S. laws against
 deploying such weapons for use against civilians.

 Green Party leaders listed several reasons for the U.N. General Assembly to
 act decisively for a ceasefire:

 . According to Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space
 <http://www.space4peace.org>, Pentagon personnel responsible for selecting
 targets for cruise missile first-strike attacks have been sent to Israel,
 evidence that Israel and the U.S. may seek a wider conflict.

 . Bush officials have sought excuses for an attack on Iran, in harmony with
 a program articulated by Bush Administration ideologues for military
 'preemption,' war on multiple fronts, and a political makeover of the 
Middle
 East to give the U.S. power over and permanent access to Middle Eastern
 resources, especially oil.

 . As Iraq slides into civil war as a result of the U.S. invasion and
 occupation, expansion of the Israel-Lebanon-Palestine conflict will hinder
 efforts to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq.

 . The policies and actions of Israel, the U.S., and U.K. increasingly draw
 condemnation from the rest of the world, internal dissension from their own
 citizens, and the rage of other Middle Eastern and Muslim nations, risking
 global war.

 . An ecological catastrophe looms as oil leaking from a Lebanese power
 station bombed by Israel has spreads north to the Syrian coastline and
 endangers the eastern Mediterranean region; more environmental damage is
 likely if the conflict spreads and more infrastructure is targeted.

 On April 3, 2003, the Green Party of the United States urged the U.N. to
 invoke 'Uniting for Peace' in response to the U.S. invasion of Iraq, which
 violated the U.N. charter and U.S. constitutional law.

 Greens have repeatedly called for Israel to end the occupation and fully
 recognize the human rights of Palestinians, in accord with international 
law
 and U.N. directives, as necessary first steps for lasting peace and 
security
 in the Middle East.  In November, 2005, the Green Party endorsed a
 resolution calling for divestment and a general boycott of Israel until it
 complies with international law and realizes human rights for Palestinians,
 including those living within Israel's borders
 <http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2005_11_28.shtml>.

 ==> For Green campaign listings, news, photos, and web sites, visit the
 Green Party's candidate spotlight page <http://www.gp.org/2006elections> 
and
 the Green elections database <http://www.greens.org/elections>, which lists
 all 2006 candidates.


 MORE INFORMATION

 Green Party of the United States
 http://www.gp.org
 1700 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 404
 Washington, DC 20009.
 202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
 Fax 202-319-7193

Green Party Peace Action Committee (GPAX)
 http://www.gp.org/committees/peace

 'Uniting for Peace' Petition
 http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/justforeignpolicy.org/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=325 http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/justforeignpolicy.org/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=326 "A Road to Peace in Lebanon?" (article on the U.N.'s 'Uniting For Peace' resolution) by Jeremy Brecher and Brendan Smith, Common Dreams, July 27, 2006 http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0727-27.htm ~ END ~