Canada: protest letters re/Muslim demonization

2006-06-03

Richard Moore

--------------------------------------------------------
From: "Westaway" <•••@••.•••>
To: "Westaway" <•••@••.•••>
Subject: [Peace-l] Stockwell Day, Toronto & "Obsession"
Date: Fri, 2 Jun 2006 23:54:07 -0700

<begin forward>
Alfred Lambremont Webre, JD, MEd
ICIS-Institute for Cooperation in Space
3339 West 41 Avenue
Vancouver, B.C. V6N3E5 CANADA
TEL: 604-733-8134
FAX: 604-733-8135
Email: <mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••
ICIS: <http://www.peaceinspace.com>http://www.peaceinspace.com
EXOPOLITICS: <http://www.exopolitics.com>http://www.exopolitics.com
CAMPAIGN: <http://www.peaceinspace.org>http://www.peaceinspace.org
STAR DREAMS INITIATIVE
<http://www.peaceinspace.net>


Begin forwarded message:

From: Darrell Rankin <<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••>
Date: June 2, 2006 9:32:55 AM PDT (CA)
To: Peace List <peace-l@list.<mailto:•••@••.•••>web.net>
Subject: [Peace-l] Stockwell Day, Toronto & "Obsession"

Dear Friends,

Stockwell Day, the Minister responsible for letting a terrorist group into 
Canada to provoke Aboriginal rights activists at Caledonia (the KKK from the 
USA), is giving his endorsement to the film "Obsession" in Toronto, June 22. I 
don't have the details, just that the Winnipeg Free Press brags about it in an 
editorial (below).

By the way, Day reportedly prevented supporters of the Six Nations from the US 
from going to Caledonia.

Below is information on the response to the screening of Obsession in Winnipeg. 
Essentially, it is a film that tries to deepen tensions against Muslims and 
justify a war against Iran and other aggressions and occupations. It is crude 
propaganda film, but it has the backing of powerful politicians and business 
people.

We chose not follow the practice of opponents to Winnipeg's Palestine Film 
Festival who called for the cancellation of the screenings, but responses 
included a hate crime complaint, a public viewing of our own, and a critical 
public comments, among others. The film has a website: 
http://www.obsessionthemovie.com/

Perhaps if it had been ignored, it would not have created such a controversy. 
But it is part of staggering amount of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim vitriol, and it
evoked a large protest here. Once engaged, we will not turn back. Meetings are 
continuing here, and friends in the Toronto area can receive this as they would 
like.

Another point, inciting war is not now a crime in Canada, although it is in 
international law (Nuremberg, the trials Canada is supporting in Rwanda, etc.). 
If the Tories are so tough on crime, why is not inciting war criminalized? 
Obsession certainly would fall into that category.

Regards,
Darrell Rankin

* * * *
Letter to editor, Winnipeg Free Press
Fri Jun 2 2006
Don¹t blame local Muslims

Re: Face the truth (May 31).

From the editorial, it is obvious that the Free Press has already bought into 
the hate propaganda that the film Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War Against the 
West promotes. The editorial writer is convinced, based on snippets from the 
film, that ³education systems across the Islamic world², which includes 54 
independent nations, teaches hate against Jews and Christians. Did the editorial
writer, before soliciting this film, do any critical analysis, research or 
interview leaders from the Muslim community who could have dispelled any 
misinformation and offer context and perspective?

The editorial writer is also impressed with the ³experts² this film uses ‹ 
experts who exploit Western ignorance of Islam and Muslims for the purpose of 
raising fear. Was any effort made to question the qualifications, biases and 
agenda of these so-called experts? What the editorial refers to as ³howls of 
protest² are cries of disgust and pleas for justice and human rights from 
Canadian Muslims.

The editorial also praises Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day for endorsing 
this hateful film. I shudder to think what would happen if Minister Day was, 
like the Free Press, to buy into this hateful propaganda. What would this mean 
for the civil liberties of not only Muslims but Canadians in general?

Furthermore, the most malicious idea that the editorial puts forth, after 
alleging, like the film, that Islam poses the same threat as Nazism, is the 
chilling statement: ³If a similar movie had been made about Nazi Germany in the 
1930s, it might have caused a backlash against Germans, but that wouldn¹t be a 
reason to withhold it and allow the threat to continue unchallenged and 
unexposed.² Are we to conclude that the Free Press is sanctioning any violence 
this film may spawn against Muslims as acceptable for the greater good? Why else
would the writer dismiss our fears of backlash ‹ backlash which the Free Press 
itself has reported on?

For the record, we are not living in the Middle East. The Muslim community in 
Winnipeg is not consulted, informed or responsible for what may be said, done or
perpetrated there as a response to war, death, persecution and occupation. The 
reality of the people of Iraq, Afghanistan, Chechnya, Lebanon and that of the 
Palestinian people among others is one of tanks, bulldozers, bombs, massacres, 
humiliation, torture and abuse.

Therefore, the parallels being drawn between what some Muslims over there feel 
and know about the West, to what Canadian Muslims feel here and now, is a 
stretch and amounts to comparing apples and oranges. Would we hold responsible 
the Jewish community or target them for the brutality of Israeli occupation? 
Shall we judge Judaism and Christianity by the speech of the hate mongers in 
those communities?

Shahina Siddiqui, Winnipeg

* * * *
(Unpublished as of yet - 2 letters)
Letters to the Editor, Winnipeg Free Press

1. Editor:

The letters in the Winnipeg Free Press expressing ³outrage² at those who 
question the biases of Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War Against the West and the 
intentions of the film¹s sponsors confirm my worst fears. In their zealous 
defense of the film and its sponsors, the letters come very close to vilifying 
those who disagree with its message.

So eager are they to preach about ³the dangers that we are in², that not one, 
including your editorial Face the Truth, bothers to ask why the Muslim community
fears a backlash. Repeatedly, these zealots note that Obsession distinguishes 
between ³extremists² and ³moderates,² but no one wants to listen to what the 
moderates want to say; indeed, when they speak to the root causes of extremism 
they are ³Muslims who choose not to speak up against evil.²

There are serious distortions in the film, the worst are those used to associate
radical Muslims with Nazism. One letter actually exceeds what is said in the 
film, claiming that radical Islam has ³historical roots in Nazi Germany.²

In fact, the film makes spurious comparisons with Nazism and draws on one 
example where a Muslim leader flirted with Hitler. It fails to mention that Haj 
Amin Husseini¹s interest in Hitler was to overthrow British colonialist along 
with their pro-Zionist polices, and that he failed miserably to rally Arabs to 
his cause.

History is more complex than Obsession would have us believe. Those who take it 
as gospel and denigrate anyone who questions its sponsors¹ intentions 
demonstrate why showing Obsession is fear mongering.

Howard Davidson, Winnipeg

* * * *
June 1, 2006

2. Editor:

Since you chose not to publish my May 29th letter regarding the film Obsession: 
Radical Islam¹s War Against the West, which put the film in a broader political 
context, another letter along these lines may be a totally futile effort.

In your May 31 editorial, Face the truth, you state that it¹s only the 
³weak-minded² who would attempt to claim that ³the West is somehow to blame for 
the extremism that now threatens the world.² On the contrary, it¹s only a 
weak-minded editorialist or someone with historical amnesia who would ignore the
fact that the original mujahadeen in Afghanistan were recruited, funded, and 
armed by the CIA, complete with the recruitment of Osama bin Laden and some 
35,000 Arab zealots ­ their objective to fight Soviet troops and to destabilize 
the USSR. Once this was accomplished, the West inherited ³blowback² ­ bin 
Laden¹s attempt to force the USA to pull out its military base from Saudi Arabia
and to stop its support for Israel¹s almost 40-year occupation of the 
Palestinian West Bank. And now with its folly in Iraq, it¹s only the most obtuse
who can¹t see that it¹s American foreign policy that helps to create and fuel 
Muslim extremism.

As for the film, Obsession, despite protestations to the contrary, its purpose 
is to demonize Muslims and to soften up the public to accept and support a 
planned US attack on Iran, probably with nuclear weapons. With a misplaced 
Hitler/Nazi analogy, the film makes a plea to not waste time on ³appeasement² 
but to take action immediately. In effect, it¹s a plea for war on Iran and 
support for President Bush¹s ³all options are open² ‹ obviously meaning the 
possibility of a nuclear strike. The Free Press editorial reinforces this 
message by saying that it¹s not possible to ³even contemplate a reasonable 
dialogue² and that we must ³fight against extremism.² Hence, onward to Iran.

Both the film and the Free Press have hardly made a contribution to 
enlightenment or peaceful relations in the world.

John Ryan, Winnipeg

* * * * *
Editorial - Face the truth
Winnipeg Free Press, Wednesday, May 31st, 2006

A documentary film about Islamic extremism shown in Winnipeg this week has 
raised howls of protest from those who claim it promotes hate against Muslims. 
Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War Against the West is nothing of the sort. It is a 
point-of-view film that is intended as a wakeup call for the West and for 
moderate Muslims.

The movie is a powerful indictment of Islamic extremism and Western ambivalence 
to the problem, but it also goes out of its way to declare that most Muslims are
decent people who want to live in peace and harmony with their neighbours. If a 
similar movie had been made about Nazi Germany in the 1930s, it might have 
caused a backlash against Germans, but that wouldn¹t be a reason to withhold it 
and allow the threat to continue unchallenged and unexposed. Indeed, who knows 
how many lives might have been saved if a documentary about the real nature of 
Nazism had been shown around the world? Who knows how many lives might have been
saved if the West took seriously Hitler¹s own words, instead of dismissing them 
as deranged bravado?

With commentary from an impressive array of experts, including a former PLO 
terrorist, a Nazi youth commander and the daughter of an Egyptian spymaster 
killed by Israeli commandos, Obsession convincingly shows that a growing number 
of Islamic extremists and radicals are determined to kills Jews and Westerners, 
eliminate Israel and spread their doctrine of religious intolerance and hate. As
the film makes clear, there can be no compromise with this virulent brand of 
violent, irrational bigotry. And the weak-minded should stop apologizing, as if 
the West is somehow to blame for the extremism that now threatens the world.

The documentary shows that education systems across the Islamic world are 
teaching young children to hate Jews and Christians. It is hard to hope for 
peace ‹ or even to contemplate a reasonable dialogue ‹ under such conditions. 
But the message of the film is clear: Everyone, including moderate Muslims, must
stand up against extremism, or face the consequences. It is appropriate that 
Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day will endorse the film¹s message when it 
opens in Toronto on June 22. As one of the world¹s wealthiest nations with a 
reputation for promoting human rights, Canada has a duty to lead in the fight 
against extremism.

* * * * *
Anti-Muslim propaganda
Letter to editor, Winnipeg Free Press, Tue May 30 2006

Why would the Asper family, which is working so hard to establish a human rights
museum in Winnipeg, sponsor the IMAX screening of Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War
Against the West? I saw this awful film last Friday. It is a vicious piece of 
anti-Muslim propaganda that comes at you in a steady stream of images of 
violence and of Muslims chanting angry threats and shaking their fists. 
Throughout the film, talking heads make assertions that reveal either a profound
ignorance or crass disregard of the socio-political context of these events and 
a lack of critical thought. There is not a single image of the multitudes of 
dispossessed Muslim people who live in miserable squalor, nor of the vast 
majority of peaceful, law-abiding Muslims among us who regularly must deal with 
racism in their everyday lives. Instead, there is some black-and-white footage 
of a sheik meeting with Hitler, and from that the dire assertion that radical 
Islam is today¹s Naziism.

As I understand it, the purpose of the human rights museum is to remember many 
human rights abuses and struggles and, thereby, stimulate reflection and promote
understanding of the roots of hate and violence and their terrible personal and 
social costs. Why then, I ask, would the Aspers promote a film that can only 
breed intolerance and, worse still, provoke violence against Muslims in their 
own community?

Marguerite Warner, Winnipeg

* * * * *
Unpublished letter to Winnipeg Free Press
May 29, 2006
Letter to the Editor
Winnipeg Free Press

Editor:

The film, Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War Against the West, shown on May 26 at 
Mondragon Bookstore, is disturbing and malicious propaganda. Its purpose is to 
demonize Muslims and to soften up the public to accept and support a planned US 
attack on Iran, probably with nuclear weapons.

This American-produced film consists of an interminable barrage of hate speeches
and statements by various Muslims, totally without historical context, to make 
it appear that this is an unprovoked assault on the West¹s ³democracy and 
freedoms.² In actuality, most of the comments, accompanied by wildly cheering 
mobs of people, occurred in response to the US invasion and occupation of Iraq, 
and to Israel¹s ongoing almost 40-year occupation of the Palestinian West Bank.

The film follows the script of previous propaganda campaigns. In preparation for
the bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999, the public was subjected to months of 
horrendous outright lies comparing Milosevic and the Serbs to Hitler and the 
Nazis. In the year preceding the 2003 attack on Iraq, the same Hitler/Nazi 
propaganda was applied to Saddam Hussein and the Iraqis. And now it¹s Iran¹s 
turn ­ with the same Hitler/Nazi analogy ­ together with fervent pleas to not 
waste time on ³appeasement² but to take action immediately. In other words, it¹s
an outright plea for war on Iran and support for President Bush¹s ³all options 
are open² ‹ obviously meaning the possibility of a nuclear strike.

This film is to be shown at the Imax theatre and is sponsored by the Asper 
Foundation and two Zionist organizations. Since the Asper Foundation has 
launched the building of a human rights museum in Winnipeg, to be funded largely
by the public, one wonders how such a mandate allows them to be associated with 
a film that encourages war and incites hate and fear against Islam and Muslims.

John Ryan, Winnipeg

* * * * *
Aspers sponsor hate film, say critics
Tuesday, May 30th, 2006
By Carol Sanders

LAST night¹s Canadian premiere of the controversial documentary Obsession: 
Radical Islam¹s War Against the West was a sellout.

³People are basically excited about the film,² said Rabbi Daniel Klatzkow with 
the Jewish faith group Aish Winnipeg.

Aish, the Winnipeg Zionist Initiative and the Asper Foundation sponsored the 
screening last night at Imax in Portage Place. A second screening in the 
theatre, which seats about 300 people, was added for tonight.

The movie will also be shown in Toronto next month, with Canada¹s Minister of 
Public Safety Stockwell Day as a featured guest.

Local Muslims and some non-Muslims who obtained a copy of the film last week 
said it¹s hate propaganda that promotes intolerance.

Howard Davidson, who has spent time in the Middle East and is a director of 
aboriginal focus programs at the University of Manitoba, attended the screening 
and questioned the intentions of the film and its sponsors.

³A huge problem with the film is at no time does the film give any explanation 
for why people would be saying these things,² said Davidson.

³If the Asper Foundation is bringing in the film that is clearly propaganda and 
clearly fear-mongering and this is the organization that is a leader in the 
human rights museum, that is not only baffling, it¹s astounding. Where is their 
credibility? Their legitimacy?²

Klatzkow said before last night¹s screening that he believes the film is ³an 
exposé of human rights abusers that do not represent the majority of Muslims.²

³In fact, it is in the interest of all people, in particular moderate Muslims, 
to be aware of the issues that the film exposes.²

A Winnipeg police officer and private security guards watched over the theatre 
during the screening.

The film includes interviews with policy analysts, terrorists and journalists. 
It shows bloody carnage from terror attacks and snippets of translated speeches 
from religious leaders and young children.

³I don¹t like Jews because they¹re apes and pigs,² says a three-year-old girl on
Saudi Iqraa TV.

³I hope Bush dies in flames and I want to go to Ariel Sharon and kill him with a
gun and stab him with a sword because of the poor Palestinians,² said a 
six-year-old on Bahrain¹s Abu Dhabi TV.

In a written statement, the Asper Foundation said it regularly sponsors 
³stimulating educational events that seek to explore issues of a national and 
international nature. This film has no relationship to our development of The 
Canadian Museum for Human Rights.²

<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••

* * * * *
Muslims fear film could stir violence
Saturday, May 27th, 2006
By Carol Sanders

OPPONENTS of the screening of a controversial documentary say an Imax screening 
of Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War Against the West Monday and Tuesday night in 
Winnipeg may put Winnipeg Muslims in danger.

City police have been asked to increase their patrols around the Islamic school 
and mosques after the Imax screenings this week.

Once the film has been widely screened, Muslims in Winnipeg may become a target,
said Shahina Siddiqui, president of the Islamic Social Services Association Inc.
of Canada. She has filed a formal complaint with Winnipeg police alleging the 
movie promotes hatred.

Last night, the documentary was shown to a diverse group of about 60 Christians,
Muslims, Jews and others at Mondragon Bookstore and Coffeehouse. They discussed 
the film and how to respond to it being shown to the broader Winnipeg public.

³I would worry about its effect on people,² said Wayne Helgason, executive 
director of the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg who attended the screening. 
³It certainly doesn¹t promote tolerance,² he said.

³I¹d give it one star with poisonous points,² he said. ³I¹d describe it as a 
disjointed chronology of hate statements and conclusions that come at you like a
fire hose and for too long.²

The screening of the American-made film is being sponsored by the Winnipeg 
Zionist Initiative, Aish Winnipeg and the Asper Foundation.

The film includes interviews with policy analysts, terrorists and journalists 
and is peppered with images of bloody carnage from terror attacks and snippets 
of translated speeches from religious leaders and young children.

University of Manitoba professor Howard Davidson, a secular Jew, said he wonders
why some Jewish groups want to show the film here. He said he¹s concerned it¹s 
anti-Muslim propaganda intended to stir up support for a war with Iran.

³Why are they showing the film? Are they trying to promote understanding?²

The Winnipeg Jewish groups sponsoring the first Canadian screening of the 
documentary have said radical Islam is at war with the West, and people here 
need to understand that.

Its promoters in Winnipeg say an article that appeared in the Free Press last 
Saturday sparked huge interest in the film and Monday¹s event at Portage Place 
Imax has sold out. A second screening has been added the following evening.

<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••

* * * * *
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006
To: Darrell Rankin <<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••>
From: Darrell Rankin <<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••>
Subject: Tonight: viewing & discussion of ³Obsession²
Dear Friends,

People concerned that the Winnipeg Zionist Initiative and others may be trying 
to deepen tensions against Muslims, justify a war against Iran and other 
aggressions and occupations, are showing the film ³Obsession² tonight (Friday, 
May 26) at 7:30 pm at Mondragon, 91 Albert St.

A Sat., May 20 article in the Winnipeg Free Press (see below) quotes some 
personalities in the film making anti-Semitic remarks. These are, generally, 
children and people ³on the street², unlike statements made by powerful 
politicians.

For example, U.S. President George W. Bush¹ calling the war on terror a 
³crusade.² Or the recent reply of Mr. Shimon Peres, Israel¹s deputy Prime 
Minister, to Iranian threats against Israel that ³Iran too can be destroyed². 
(See letter to Kofi Annan, below, and also 
<http://www.palestineremembered.com/Acre/Famous-Zionist-Quotes/Story637.html>http://www.palestineremembered.com/Acre/Famous-Zionist-Quotes/Story637.html
.)

Of course, this kind of language can lead to trouble and maybe the death of 
millions of people, and does nothing to reduce tensions.

This makes it important to respond to the film and to the increased tensions in 
the Middle East with a democratic, anti-racist, pro-disarmament alternative. 
Best wishes for a productive discussion tonight following the film. Thank you 
Shahina Siddiqui and Howard Davidson for initiating the response.

Darrell Rankin

* * * *
Below:
1. Viewing notice by Mark Etkin
2. Film divides Jews, Muslims, Winnipeg Free Press, May 20

3. Letter to Kofi Annan from the The Israeli Committee For a Middle East Free 
from Atomic, Biological & Chemical Weapons

* * * *

From: ³Mark Etkin² <<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••>

To: <<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••>
Subject: FW: Free PRESS today about Obsession
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 19:14:26 -0500

You may have heard that the Winnipeg Zionist Initiative, Aish Winnipeg, and the 
Asper Foundation are bringing in the film called ³Obsession². According to the 
ad in the Free Press, this film is about ³Radical Islam¹s War Against the West².

There has been concern raised that this is a racist film, that it will promote 
hatred toward Muslims, and will contribute to further divisions rather than to 
peace. People wonder why this film is being promoted by these groups. You may 
have read last week¹s Free Press about the concerns raised.

We have access to a copy of this movie, and plan to show it at Mondragon 
tomorrow, May 26 at 7:30. If warranted, there may be further discussion or a 
media response to the local screening of this movie. Please come view this movie
if you can. Also, please distribute this invitation as you see fit. -Mark

Location: Mondragon, 91 Albert St.
Time: Friday, May 26, 7:30 p.m.

* * * * *
2. Film divides Jews, Muslims
Winnipeg screening of movie creating religious controversy
Saturday, May 20th, 2006
By Carol Sanders

WINNIPEG Jewish groups sponsoring the first Canadian screening of the 
documentary Obsession: Radical Islam¹s War Against the West, say it¹s a message 
people here need to hear. Local Muslims say it¹s propaganda that does nothing 
but generate hate.

²The majority of the people in the West don¹t have a complete understanding of 
the danger posed to Western civilization,² said Jeremy Feuer, chairman of the 
Winnipeg Zionist Initiative, which is sponsoring the May 29 IMAX screening with 
Aish Winnipeg and the Asper Foundation.

²Radical Islam has declared war on us,² said Feuer, whose group was founded 
about six years ago by the late Israel Asper.

The film includes interviews with policy analysts, terrorists and journalists 
and is peppered with images of bloody carnage from terror attacks and snippets 
of translated speeches from religious leaders and young children.

²I don¹t like Jews because they¹re apes and pigs,² says a three-year- old girl 
on Saudi Iqraa TV.

²I hope Bush dies in flames and I want to go to Ariel Sharon and kill him with a
gun and stab him with a sword because of the poor Palestinians,² said a 
six-year-old on Bahrain¹s Abu Dhabi TV.

²Some people aren¹t aware of what¹s being said in the non-English media in the 
Arab world,² said Rabbi Shimon Lesserson of Aish Winnipeg.

A member of Manitoba¹s Muslim community invited to preview Obsession said it 
presents a distorted image to advance ³hateful propaganda against Islam and 
Muslims.²

²It incites violence against Muslims and promotes fear about Islam,² said 
Shahina Siddiqui, president of the Islamic Social Services Association Inc. 
Canada.

²It uses selective imagery, interviews Islamophobes, twists history, manipulates
facts and constructs outright lies to make its case against Islam and Muslims.² 
Siddiqui has filed a formal complaint with police that the movie promotes 
hatred.

The documentary shows a Jihad recruitment video ‹ partly in English ‹ on the 
Internet with hip-hop artists dressed up like suicide bombers saying they¹re 
going to kill the non-believers. A 1998 Palestinian-Jordanian schoolbook says, 
³This religion will destroy all other religions through the Islamic Jihad 
fighters.²

Lesserson said Muslim religious extremists have taken a page from the Nazis in 
their belief in world dominance of their anti-Western ideology. ³It¹s a central 
idea, not just a certain group of people. It¹s a certain vision of how they see 
the world.²

One of the featured speakers in the film is Nonie Darwish, founder of Arabs for 
Israel, who will be speaking at the Winnipeg premiere.

²It¹s about time we showed the truth about the danger of radical Islam in the 
Middle East,² said Darwish, who was born and raised a Muslim in Cairo. Her 
father headed Egypt¹s military intelligence in Gaza in the 1950s when Gaza was 
under Egyptian control. He founded the Fedayen terrorist operations against 
Israel and was assassinated by the Israelis when Darwish was eight.

Obsession has upset some Muslims in U.S. cities where it¹s been screened, 
Darwish said from her home in Los Angeles.

²I say, ŒIf you love your religion, you should be on the front line,¹² said 
Darwish.

Siddiqui said the film crosses the line of decency and threatens to drive a 
wedge between faith groups.

²It belongs in the gutter and not in a public forum in our fair city,² said 
Siddiqui. ³The producers and sponsors of this screening should be ashamed.²

For tickets call 777-2474. Its promoters warn it¹s not recommended for children 
under 15 because of graphic footage.

<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••

* * * *
3. PLEASE FIND ENCLOSED A MESSAGE FOR WIDE CIRCULATION FROM AKIVA ORR
(<mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••).

*****************************************

The Israeli Committee For a Middle East Free from Atomic, Biological & Chemical 
Weapons

P.O Box 16202 Tel Aviv, 61161, Israel, Tel/Fax +972-(0)3-5222869
Email: <mailto:•••@••.•••>•••@••.•••
*****************************************

May 18, 2006

To: The Honorable Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations

Re: The Iranian threat to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty 
(NPT).

Your Excellency,

Iran¹s nuclear projects acquire an alarming significance with Iran¹s recent 
threat to withdraw its acceptance of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The Middle-East is a volatile region. In the last fifty years the Middle-East 
had more wars than any other region in the world. If governments in this region 
acquire nuclear weapons the probability of a nuclear holocaust in the M-E rises 
sharply.

A nuclear holocaust in the Middle-East will affect the entire world.

Efforts to stop Iran¹s nuclear projects lack credibility as long as they allow 
other governments in this region to have such weapons.

As is well known, in 1987 an Israeli court sentenced the Israeli Citizen 
Mordechai Vanunu to 18 years imprisonment for informing the ³Sunday Times² about
Israel¹s nuclear weapons industry.

The Israeli court declared Vanunu guilty of Treason, not of Libel.

This amounts to an official admission that Israel has nuclear weapons.

So far Iran denies that it intends to build nuclear weapons and has signed the 
NPT. All Israeli governments have refused to sign the NPT.

Mr. Shimon Peres, Israel¹s deputy Prime Minister, has recently replied to 
Iranian threats against Israel by declaring that ³Iran too can be destroyed².

We suggest that you act so that both Israel - and Iran ­ obey the NPT and put 
all their nuclear plants under International control.

Steps taken against Iran¹s nuclear projects that are not applied also to 
Israel¹s nuclear projects lack credibility and are bound to appear as biased and
as hypocrisy.

We call upon you to declare that the UN supports a Nuclear-Free Middle-East and 
will act to make all governments in this region sign the NPT.

Only pressure on ALL governments in this region can prevent a nuclear holocaust.

Yours sincerely,
awaiting your reply,

Gideon Spiro, Committee coordinator
On behalf of the following members of the Committee:
Akiva Orr
Yael Lotan
Dr. Yehuda Atai
Ehud Ein-Gil
Alon Marcus
Giyora Neumann.

Copies: ³Sunday Times², ³New-York Times², ³Washington Post², ³Le Monde²

_______________________________________________
Peace-l mailing list
Peace-l@list.<http://web.net>web.net
<http://list.web.net/lists/listinfo/peace-l>
-- 

--------------------------------------------------------
Escaping the Matrix website     http://escapingthematrix.org/
cyberjournal website            http://cyberjournal.org
subscribe cyberjournal list     mailto:•••@••.•••
Posting archives                http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/
Blogs:
  cyberjournal forum            http://cyberjournal-rkm.blogspot.com/
  Achieving real democracy      http://harmonization.blogspot.com/
  for readers of ETM            http://matrixreaders.blogspot.com/
  Community Empowerment http://empowermentinitiatives.blogspot.com/
  Blogger made easy             http://quaylargo.com/help/ezblogger.html