MUA condemns Israeli invasion of Lebanon

Beirut Revisited, 1985 Photo: Zoe Reynolds

At its nationwide stopwork meetings in July the union denounced Israel's brutal attack and massacre of women and children. It said the attacks were carried out with the full backing of both the US and Australian governments, in the hope of escalating the conflict .

Hundreds of Lebanese citizens have been killed during the attacks along with Israeli citizens killed in reprisal rocket attacks

The national officers' report to the meetings noted that Israel is dishing out collective punishment to an entire population and has blatantly targeted residential areas as well as civilian infrastructure, without regard to the long term consequences of further instability in the region.

It is not the first time. In 1982 during the last Israeli bombing, invasion and occupation of Lebanon, both waterside workers and seafarers imposed bans on all Israeli ships and cargoes in Australian ports.

Israel must take full responsibility for the current conflict which has links to their occupation of Palestinian territories and systematic oppression of the Palestinian people.

The United Nations has been calling for a return to Israel's original borders since 1969. Compliance with this demand by Israel would resolve much of the tension in the Middle East.

The pretext for Israel's latest assault on Lebanon was Hezbollah's capture of Israeli soldiers. This action was both a demonstration of solidarity with the Palestinian people who suffer daily from Israeli attacks, and an attempt to press Hezbollah's demand for the release of Lebanese kidnapped in the previous Israeli occupation and still held in Israeli prisons. This tit for tat abdutions has been a feature of the conflict since the last occupation. It was in this instance used to mount this outrageously unbalanced response without regard to escalation or civilian casualties.

Lebanon has only modest military forces to protect herself from attack and Israel's extreme over-kill response is nothing but a disgrace, the national officers' report said.

The resolution called on Israel to end its occupation and aggression toward the Palestinian and Lebanese people.

"The Union calls for an immediate ceasefire and urges the Howard Government to make such a call on the public stage. A cease-fire and negotiations need to be implemented along with a withdrawal of Israeli forces from occupied territories.

"We support the enactment of all UN resolutions relating to this area of conflict.

"The dangers of supporting such extreme military adventurism can only lead to further conflict and the potential to embroil the entire region in war that will have dire consequences not only the region but the entire world."

The union rejects all claims by Israel that the hundreds of women and children brutally massacred in Israeli bombing attacks on residential areas were terrorists or human shields.

The Israeli attacks were a blatant breach of international humanitarian law and amount to war crimes, according to Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, as "extensive destruction ... not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly."

You can donate to the emergency appeal for families and displaced people in Burj el-Barajneh Refugee camp in Lebanon via the ACTU aid agency Apheda at www.apheda.com.au

Or phone our toll free number 1800 888 674

GUEST FROM BEIRUT: Hussein Hamdan, Member of the Central Committee of the Lebanese Communist Party with MUA and CFMEU comrades in Sydney union rooms in May.

LEBANON REVISITED: The scars of Israeli occupation, Beirut and beyond, 1985. Photos Zoe Reynolds