From the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation:

Our research shows that Motorola and its wholly owned subsidiary, Motorola Israel, directly support Israel's human rights abuses and occupation of Palestinian territory by:

*Producing the 980 Low Altitude Proximity Fuse for the MK-80 series of high-explosive bombs. On July 30, 2006, during its war on Lebanon, the Israeli Air Force dropped an MK-84 high-explosive bomb on an apartment building in Qana, Lebanon. The bomb killed at least 28 civilians, many of whom were children, who had taken shelter in the basement of their apartment building.

*Developing and supplying the Israeli military with the “Mountain Rose” secure cell phone communication system, which is the exclusive communications system in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

*Supplying Israel with the Wide Area Surveillance System (WAA to monitor and maintain the illegal wall it has constructed in the Palestinian West Bank. Motorola Israel’s provision of the WAAS to Israel contradicts the International Court of Justice (ICJ) advisory opinion in July 2004.

*Providing radar detection devices and thermal cameras for 47 illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. According to the Fourth Geneva Conventions, Article 49, it is a war crime for an occupying power to transfer its civilian population in to occupied territories.

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From the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL):

On January 22, President Barack Obama issued executive orders outlawing torture, instructing the CIA to close its secret prisons, and beginning the closure of the prison at Guantánamo Bay. These actions are a huge step forward for the United States, and we applaud the president's decisive action to recast this country's image around the world.

Congress should support the president's action by passing legislation to affirm U.S. compliance with international laws against torture and to restore enduring legal standards. Urge your senators to cosponsor the Lawful Interrogation and Detention Act (S. 147), which would support the closure of the Guantánamo Bay prison, end secret detentions, prohibit interrogations of detainees by government contractors, and require greater cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross.

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From Voters for Peace:

In his inauguration speech President Obama said: "America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace." But, he also began his speech saying "Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred" and concluded saying that the United States would "not to apologize for our way of life, nor waiver in its defense."

Voters for Peace will push for a "new era of peace" by continuing to organize peace voters and speaking out in a unified voice in opposition to war. A major focal point of our advocacy will be the cost of war in this time of economic crisis. With a military budget approaching $1 trillion and the economy collapsing and needing major investment, we can no longer afford the wasteful and bloated military budget. It is time to invest in diplomacy, negotiation and multilateralism so war can be prevented.

When President Obama is right we will applaud him and when he is wrong we will hold him accountable. Please take a few minutes to send a letter to President Obama today.

Click here to send your letter

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Last week, the House and Senate defied the wishes of a plurality of their constituents to voice support for Israel's shameful attacks on the Gaza Strip. In response, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) has drafted a resolution that asks the House of Representatives to call "on the Government of Israel and representatives of Hamas to implement an immediate and unconditional ceasefire and to allow unrestricted humanitarian access in Gaza." You can read the entire text of the resolution here.

Ask your representative to sign on as a co-sponsor.

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From ColorOfChange.org:

On New Year's Eve, Oscar Grant was murdered by a transit police officer. Grant was subdued, posed no threat, and was shot execution style.

Johannes Mehserle, Grant's killer, has not been arrested, charged with a crime, or even questioned by the Alameda District Attorney. More than 10 days later Mehserle still walks free.

Join us in demanding that California Attorney General Jerry Brown take over the case from the District Attorney and arrest Mehserle immediately. At the same time your action will result in an appeal to the US Department of Justice to investigate the repeated failures of BART Police and the Alameda County District Attorney's Office's to hold officer's accountable in police-killings.

Click here to sign the petition and watch the video.

(Warning: The video contains footage of the actual shooting. Some may find it too distressing.

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Text of Petition:

We call upon the next President of the United States to make a world free of nuclear weapons an urgent priority and to assure U.S. leadership to realize this goal.

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From the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation:

Dear President-Elect Obama,

Congratulations on your historic election as the next President of the United States.

Last year, you pledged to “take an active role, and make a personal commitment to do all I can to advance the cause of [Israeli-Palestinian] peace from the start of my Administration.” We are eager to work with you to fulfill this goal.

To do so, your Administration should break with past policies of unconditional support for Israel's illegal military occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip, and change U.S. policy toward Israel/Palestine to support human rights, international law, and equality.

We agree with Aaron David Miller, a 25-year State Department Middle East negotiator and adviser on Arab-Israeli affairs, who wrote that “For far too long, many American officials involved in Arab-Israeli peacemaking, myself included, have acted as Israel's attorney, catering and coordinating with the Israelis at the expense of successful peace negotiations.”

To become an honest and effective broker, your Administration should:

* Insist that Israel ends its siege of the Gaza Strip. Israel has deliberately impoverished the 1.5 million residents of the Gaza Strip and caused a humanitarian catastrophe of dire proportions by prohibiting the delivery of food, medicine, fuel, and electricity. Your Administration should insist on the illegality of collective punishment and support the human rights of Palestinians such as freedom of movement as a first step towards ending Israel's occupation of the Gaza Strip.

* Demand a freeze in the construction of settlements and Israel's Wall in the West Bank. Israel's West Bank settlements, including those in East Jerusalem, are all illegal under international law,and the International Court of Justice ruled in 2004 that Israel's Wall is illegal and must be torn down. Halting this construction should be a first step toward completely dismantling the infrastructure of Israel's occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which former President Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and others have labeled “apartheid.”

* Hold Israel accountable for its misuse of U.S. weapons. In 2007, the United States and Israel agreed to increase military aid to Israel by 25% over the next decade, totaling $30 billion. During the Bush Administration, Israel killed more than 2,000 innocent Palestinian civilians who took no part in hostilities, oftentimes with U.S. weapons in violation of the Arms Export Control and Foreign Assistance Acts. Your Administration should hold Israel accountable for these violations of U.S. law and cut off military aid as required by law, rather than increase it.

* End the U.S. veto protecting Israel at the United Nations. The United States has used its veto power at the UN more than 40 times since 1972 to shield Israel from the consequences of its violations of human rights, UN resolutions, and international law. Your Administration should work with, not in opposition to, the international community so that human rights, UN resolutions, and international law are applied and enforced uniformly.

* Base a just peace on human rights, international law, and equality. Such a policy is the only way to ensure the legitimate security needs of all peoples and can only be achieved by engaging in dialogue with all interested parties. A just and lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace includes the complete end of Israel's military occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip; a resolution to the Palestinian refugee issue consistent with international law and UN resolutions, including the right of return and/or compensation; and full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel. A policy denying Palestinians these internationally-guaranteed rights will only lead to yet another failed “eace process”.

Signed by,

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Once again, the time has come to start a new thread for more action alerts.

Although the old thread (Action Alerts V) will be closed shortly, you can still take action on any recent alerts in the thread. Simply click here to do so.

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