CITU expresses severe shock and deep indignation at the despicable warlike crime committed by Israeli Government by bombarding residential buildings and killing Palestinian people in their (Israel) illegal and inhuman pursuit to capture East Jerusalem with military force.
On 8th May, the last Friday of Ramzan, when Palestinian people were offering mass prayer at the Al-Aqsa mosque in East Jerusalem, which is the third holiest shrine for Muslims, Israeli forces attacked the mass gathering and fatally injured around 300 Palestinians. This ghastly attack was the cruel continuation of forcible eviction of Palestinian residents from the neighbourhoods of East Jerusalem, Sheikh Jarrah and Siwan.
Further escalating the barbarian attack, on 11th May the Israeli military resorted to air strikes targeting number of high-rise apartment towers and killed 53 Palestine citizens including 14 children and 2 women and hundreds of people suffered injuries in the southern city of Ashkelon. This attack followed heavy deployment of Israeli troops in the Gaza border signaling more deadly attacks.
The latest is the 15th May Israeli airstrikes which completely destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza city. Apart from loss of many lives, the major media centres housed in the building – Associated Press Bureau, Al-Jazeera and more – have been destroyed. Further, as per reports, a fleet of 160 warplanes bombarded for 40 minutes causing many causalities.
Israel is intensifying deployment of ground forces suggesting war scale invasion of Gaza by imperialist supported Netanyahu Government. It is worth noting that having been rejected by the people in the recent rounds of elections in Israel, in order to the hide his failure Netanyhu has launched such military action. Moreover as per media reports, street violence has erupted in many mixed populated localities (Jews and Arabs in Israel) implying danger of civil war. Sadly, this year Eid celebration for Palestine people has been suppressed by horror and mourning erupting from the inhuman cruelty of Israeli Government.
CITU voices its strongest protest against the inhuman military barbarity of the despotic Netanyahu Government. CITU reiterates the non-negotiable right of the Palestine people for a full-fledged independent state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its national capital.
CITU appeals to fellow country-men and the entire trade union fraternity to rise to the occasion and extend solidarity with the people of Palestine and condemn Israeli Government for the war crime.
Issued by
Tapan Sen
General Secretary