Urgent Appeal to Stop Suicide Bombings

Al-Quds, June 20, 2002

We the undersigned feel that it is our national responsibility to issue this appeal in light of the dangerous situation engulfing the Palestinian people. We call upon the parties behind military operations targeting civilians in Israel to reconsider their policies and stop driving our young men to carry out these operations. Suicide bombings deepen the hatred and widen the gap between the Palestinian and Israeli people. Also, they destroy the possibilities of peaceful co-existence between them in two neighboring states.

We see that these bombings do not contribute towards achieving our national project that calls for freedom and independence. On the contrary, they strengthen the enemies of peace on the Israeli side and give Israel's aggressive government under Sharon the excuse to continue its harsh war against our people. This war targets our children, elderly, villages, cities, and our national hopes and achievements.

Military action is viewed are not assessed as positive or negative exclusively out of the general context and situation. They assessed based on whether they fulfill political ends. Therefore, there is a need to re-evaluate these acts considering that pushing the area towards an existential war between the two people living on the holy land will lead to destruction for the whole region. We do not find any logical, humane, or political justification for this end result.

Signatories:

Below are some of the Palestinian intellectuals and public figures who have signed the petition:

Dr. Sari Nuseiba, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, Saleh Rafat, Salah Zuheika, Mamdouh Nofal, Hanna Sineora, Dr. Mohammad Ishtiya, Ibrahim Kandalaft, Dr. Eyad El-Sarraj, Dr. Moussa El-Budeiri, Huda El-Imam, Dr. Marwan Abu El-Zuluf, Saman Khoury, Dr. Said Zidani, Dr. Omayya Khammash, Dr. Jad Ishaq, Dr. Manuel Hassasian, Salah Abdel Shafi, Shaher Saad, Dr. Mohammad Dajani, Imad Awad, Fadel Tahboub, Majed Kaswani, Taysir El-Zibri, Dr. Ahmad Majdalani, Dr. Taleb Awad, Khader Shkirat, Zahi Khouri, Majed Abu Qubo, Ehab Boulous. Dr. Isam Nassar, Dr. Salim Tamari, Dr. Suad El-Ameri, Dr. Adam Abu Shrar, Dr. Riema Hamami, Subhi El-Zbeidi, Dr. Munther El-Dajani, Osama Daher, Simone Cupa, Jeana Abu El-Zuluf, Yousef Daher, Jamal Zaqout Dr. Saleh Abdel Jawwad, Dr. Nathmi El-Juba, Dr. Jamil Hilal, Dr. Arafat El-Hadmi, Dr. Leila Faydi, Dr. Zakaria El-Qaq, Amna Badran, Dr. Ali Qleibo, Marwan Tarazi, Dr. RajaI El-Dajani, Issa Q'seisiya, Hani El-Masri, Dr. Jumana Odeh, Lucy Nuseiba, Abdel Qader El-Husseini, Zahra El-Khaldi

The Palestinian Centre for Rapprochement between People

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