Pressure Builds on UN to Uphold Court Rulings on Gaza


Almost 200,000 emails have been sent to the UN missions of a couple of dozen nations reading “I urge your country to move to convene an emergency session of the UN General Assembly and use Uniting For Peace (Resolution 377) to impose an arms embargo and targeted sanctions on the Israeli government, suspend the Israeli government from the United Nations, and send unarmed peacekeepers to Palestine.” World BEYOND War has partnered on the effort with RootsAction.org.

The emails have gone to the United Nations Consulates of South Africa, Nicaragua, Brazil, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Egypt, Honduras, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Turkey, Mexico, Pakistan, Spain, Libya, China, Russia, Algeria, Ecuador, Guyana, Japan, France, Malta, Mozambique, Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Switzerland, and Canada.

The International Court of Justice has ordered Israel to cease its genocidal acts, and the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has requested arrest warrants. And still the United Nations Security Council does not act, and in fact allows its members to provide Israel with the weaponry needed to continue the crime. United Nations General Assembly Resolution 377 (Uniting For Peace) allows the General Assembly to act when the Security Council fails. The General Assembly should NOT escalate the war or deploy armed troops. It should convene an emergency session and use “Uniting For Peace” to impose an arms embargo and targeted sanctions on the Israeli government, suspend the Israeli government from the United Nations, and send to Palestine unarmed peacekeepers (who have repeatedly shown their superiority to armed peacekeepers).

World BEYOND War is working with Code Pink, Veterans For Peace, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, and others, organizing phone calls, in-person lobby visits at the United Nations in New York, and vigils outside the United Nations in New York that include fasting.

Can you help with making phone calls to UN consulates to request meetings? If so, please contact World BEYOND War President Kathy Kelly at vcnv@gmail.com.
Can you help with attending meetings, vigils, or fasting in New York at the United Nations? If so, please let us know here.
We’ve sent almost 200,000 emails to UN missions from around the world. Help us increase that number by sending an email using our online action tool here.

A tentative schedule of upcoming events in New York City follows:

August 10th at 11 a.m. gather with the Yemen vigil at Union Square and then at Maryhouse Catholic Worker located at 55 East Third Street for introductions and planning.
August 11th at 10:15 a.m. join a vigil across from St. Patrick’s cathedral, 631 5th Avenue
August 12th – 15th at 10 a.m. Assemble at the Isaiah Wall at First Avenue and 43rd St. At 11:30 a.m. there will be a single file procession to the U.S. Mission to the UN at First Avenue and 46th St., holding placards and remaining there during the lunch hour. During each weekday, people will fan out to deliver letters to various Missions to the UN.
August 14th at 7 p.m. attend presentation by Rev. Munther Isaac at Riverside Church.

World Beyond War