INDONESIAN MUSLIMS CONDEMN ISRAELI AGGRESSION ON GAZA by Fardah

   Jakarta, Nov 19, 2012 (ANTARA) - Over the past two consecutive days, Indonesian Muslims staged rallies in front of the US embassy to protest the Israeli Aggression on Gaza where at least 90 Palestinians including children and women, were killed during the Israeli air
strikes across the Gaza Strip over the last six days.

        "Send Troops, Free Gaza", "Stop out-of-date solution, send troops immediately to drive away Israel", and "the US Supports Israel, Destroy it," were among texts in the banners being demonstrated during a rally participated in by around 200 protesters in Jakarta, on Monday.

         The rally was organized by Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) Muslim organization that urged Muslim countries' leaders to send troops to Gaza.

         "If every country sends at least 500 soldiers, we could collect 25,000 soldiers from more than 50 Muslim nations, including Indonesia," HTI spokesman Muhammad Ismail Yusanto said as quoted by Detik.com.

         HTI urged President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to initiate the sending of troops to Gaza.

         On the previous day, Sunday (Nov 18), a number of protestors grouped in the Action Unity of Muslim Students (KAMMI) shouted "Israel, Go to the Hell, Save Palestine, Save Palestine" also in front of the US embassy, the closest ally of Israel.

        They also held banners bearing texts that read "Save Palestine", "Stop violence" and "Israel, Go to Hell".

         KAMMI spokesman Inggar Saputra told Media Indonesia: "We strongly condemned the brutality of Israeli soldiers against Palestinian people."
    Darmawan, a coordinator of the rally, said the US who self-claimed as a human rights police, stayed idle and kept quiet while witnessing the Israeli aggression.

         Condemnations and decries against the Israeli aggression also happened in several other regions such as in Aceh Darussalam, West Java, Lampung, Central Java, and East Kalimantan.

         In Aceh Province, Chief of the National Committee for Palestinian People (KNRP) Suripto has appealed to Muslim countries to press the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to step in to stop  Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip in Palestine.

        "The concrete step to settle the Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip is stopping the attacks and imposing sanctions on Israel for violating human rights," he said in Banda Aceh, on Sunday.

        Muslim countries can propose to the UN Security Council to stop the Israeli attacks, he told a press conference held on the sidelines of a charity concert to raise funds for the Palestinian people.

          According to him, Muslim countries can also propose sanctions on Israel to the Security Council for violating human rights in Gaza Strip.

         "The Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip are one of human rights violations and they (Israel) must be brought to the international court of justice," he said.

         He expressed optimism that the participation of Muslim countries would help stop the Israeli attacks and lead to the imposition of sanctions on Israel.

        On the occasion, Suripto also lauded the entire Aceh community for their donations in the form of money and goods to help alleviate the sufferings of the Palestinian people.

        Aceh legislator Mahyaruddin in the local parliament's plenary meeting in Banda Aceh, Monday, the capital of Aceh Province, urged the Aceh provincial administration to issue a statement condemning the military aggression of Israel.

        In Bogor, West Java, around 100 students from Birul Waalidain, an Islamic elementary school, staged a peaceful rally in the school's front yard on Monday, to denounce the Israeli aggression in Gaza.

        "We strongly condemn the Israeli attacks on the people of Palestine. So far, 78 Palestinians have been killed in the aggression," said Memed Jalaludin, Chairman of the Birul Walidain foundation.

         The students came up with posters and banners that read, `Save Palestine', `Say No To Israel', `We love peace' and `Murder is the biggest sin',  claiming that colonialism should be abolished and freedom is the basic human rights.

        The Israeli aggression has killed many Palestinian children. "Students in Bogor pray for our brothers and sisters in Palestine," said Jalaludin.

        In Bandar Lampung, Lampung Province, Sumatra Island, a number of women staged a protest against Israel, for attacking Gaza.

        These women wore black dresses to express their sorrow over the deaths of many children, women and old folks in Gaza.
   They urged Indonesians to support and assist the Palestinians and not to ignore Israel's barbaric acts of violence.

        What is going on in Gaza is a complete violation of human rights and Indonesia, together with the rest of the world, should do something to stop the acts of aggression, they said.
    Meanwhile, the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC) has called on the Indonesian government to play an active role in helping end the ongoing Israeli aggression in Gaza.

        AIPMC chairperson Eva Kusuma Sundari told ANTARA in Semarang, Central Java, on Sunday that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono should make the Palestinian issue a priority during his administration, which will last until 2014.

          "Indonesia's Constitution has mandated that the country help occupied nations gain freedom, just as the late president Soekarno had demonstrated in the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)," she noted.

         "As long as the Palestinian nation is not in the hands of the Palestinian people, Indonesia will continue to be against Israeli occupation," Eva said.

         "We call on the Indonesian President to be more active in supporting the Palestinian struggle for independence, because it is the aspiration of the Indonesian people and the world. Indonesia must understand that the fight for human rights cuts across borders, races, religions, or citizenship," she added.

         The AIPMC condemned the Israeli aggression against Palestinians, calling it "an arrogant and humiliating act".

          "The Israeli violence will trigger violence by radical groups in other parts of the world," Eva said. 
     AIPMC urged the United Nations to help stop the conflict and force the two parties to return to the negotiation table.
     To show Indonesia's strong support to Palestine, the chairman of the Medical Emergency Rescue Committee (MER-C), Dr Jose Rizal Jurnalis, expressed hope that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would visit North Gaza, Palestine.

          "In the past, during a time of conflict, the then president Suharto had visited Bosnia. Now, we hope President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would visit Gaza," he said at a press conference in Jakarta, on Monday.

          "The President's visit to Gaza would help strengthen our relationship with Palestine. Israel knows it very well that Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim country," Jurnalis added.

          Twenty-eight MER-C volunteers have been deployed in Bayt Lahiya, North Gaza, to help build an Indonesian hospital for Palestinians.

          As tension escalated in Gaza following the ongoing Israeli air strikes, Jurnalis instructed the MER-C volunteers to take shelter in the hospital.

          In the same press conference, Al Fatah  Islamic boarding school chairman Muhyiddin Hamidy, said the Indonesian volunteers remained calm in the face of bombings taking place just 100 meters away from the hospital.

       "They want to continue being involved in the hospital's construction because for them it's a sacred mission," he explained.

        "The volunteers' families in Indonesia are very proud of them because they are carrying out a noble task in Gaza," Hamidy added.

        Hamidy strongly condemned Israel for killing Izzudin Al Qassam Brigade leader Ahmed Al Jabbari, his bodyguard and a family member in Gaza recently.
    "It once again proves that Israel is the real terrorist. The Israeli Zionist soldiers do not care about human rights, and in particularly the the rights of the Palestinians to be independence" said Hamidy, concurrently the chairman of the Mi`raj News Agency (MINA).

        The Indonesian people are also urged to boycott products whose profits used to support Israel.

         The Indonesian foreign ministry has also called for a boycott of products made by Israeli Zionist's supporters. The ministry should inform the public what the products are," Agus Sudarmaji, the chairman of the Aqsa Working Group (AWG), said in the press conference on Indonesia's supports to Palestine.

         As a staunch supporter of Palestine, Indonesia has refused to establish diplomatic ties with Israel as long as the Zionist nation occupies Palestinian land. ***1***
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