Quick Facts
MPT
selected stats and facts about the state of the world
Peace in the Middle East is possible.
There are Palestinians and Israelis working for peace, and they are joined by international peace activists from many countries. It is a myth that Palestinians need to be subjugated to keep Jews safe. The occupation is illegal, and only worsening the position of Jews in the Middle East. True safety only comes with justice and equality. History teaches us that when people come together around a common vision for peace, they can change even the most oppressive conditions....
YOU fund the Occupation of Palestine.
Israel, whose population is 0.1% of the total world population, gets roughly one-third of all US foreign aid. Annually this amounts to more than $3 billion in US taxpayer dollars going to Israel. $2.04 billion of that is military aid....
Over 1,000 Israelis have refused military service due to the Occupation.
In Israel, everyone is required to serve in the Defense Forces. In 2002, fifty Israeli soldiers signed and publicized "The Combatant's Letter". Excerpt is below: "We will no longer fight beyond the Green Line for the purpose of occupying, deporting, destroying, blockading, killing, starving and humiliating an entire people," declares a petition signed by the reservists. Refusnik Moshe Ingel explains why he refuses to serve in the Israeli Defense Forces in the Occupied Territories: "Because the activities we are told...
US Aid to Israel Harms Israelis
For every dollar the US sends to the Israeli military, Israeli taxpayers end up spending two to three extra dollars supporting their military. By strengthening the Israeli military establishment, US aid to Israel makes it even harder for progressive Israelis to create a civil society committed to a just peace in the region. Israel has one of the most powerful militaries in the world, with a large portion of the country's budget allocated for the military. The country's massive military...
Palestinians suffer a severe water shortage due to the Occupation
The Israeli government pursues a grossly discriminatory water policy . Since 1967, the Israeli government has been stealing up to 80% of the groundwater from the"Mountain Reservoir," a group of groundwater aquifers located underneath the mountains of the Occupied West Bank of Palestine, lincluding the Occupied Jerusalem. The Palestinian people are allowed no control of these extensive water resources. Currently, Israel consumes more than 80 percent of Palestinian ground water and denies Palestinians their rightful utilization of the Jordan River....
The Israeli government demolishes homes, uproots crops, and confiscates land.
Since September 2000, 4,170 Palestinian homes were demolished or blown up by Israeli Defense Forces. 291 acres of land were confiscated. 34,606 olive & fruit trees were uprooted. In East Jerusalem, Palestinian homes are demolished and land confiscated in order to ensure Jews have a majority in the city (the “Silent Transfer”). According to Amnesty International, Israel" frequently uses demolitions of homes as a form of collective punishment. Peter Hansen, Commissioner General of UNRWA, condemned Israel's demolitions: "Any humanitarian...
Israeli Settlements Are Illegal and Provocative
One of Israel's most egregious violations of the 4th Geneva Convention is the construction of massive settlements in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza. The terms of the Convention couldn't be clearer: "The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies." The Israeli government is essentially colonizing the Occupied Territories....
The occupation is killing children and innocent civilians
Israelis possess overwhelming military superiority over the Palestinians. Israeli soldiers are shooting individuals with missiles, using American made F-16s and Apache helicopters. Tanks roll into refugee camps, supposedly to root out terrorists. But so many of these so-called terrorists are young children. Total number of Palestinian deaths in West Bank & Gaza from Sept 2000 to May 2004 is: 3,517. Total number of Israeli deaths, same time period: 921. Total number of Palestinian children killed from 2000-2004: 514 Total number...
