FIRST, earlier this week, we conveyed a request from US Boats to Gaza, the US arm of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, for calls to the State Department demanding they secure the release of the two kidnapped Global Sumud Flotilla activists–Spanish-Palestinian Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian Thiago Avila, whose illegal and brutal imprisonment has been extended to at least May 10 by Israel (Saif is reportedly being tortured; both remain on hunger strike.)
If you have not called
(or wish to call again), please call the state department at (202) 647-4000. Also ask that they protect US citizens sailing with the flotilla and hold Israel accountable for its piracy.
SECOND, Rep. Rashida Tlaib is circulating a Congressional letter demanding “action and accountability from the United States to protect abducted US citizens, to allow the free flow of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza enduring forced starvation, and an end to the decades of impunity that enable these crimes.”
So far,
Rep. Mark Pocan is the only one from WI who has signed onto the letter.
If Pocan is your Rep, please call and thank him for signing and push him to speak out publicly and forcefully (including on social media), including demanding safe passage for the flotilla and an end to US support for Israel’s genocide and ethnic cleansing.DC Office: (202) 225-2906
Madison Office: (608) 258-9800
The other WI Rep seen as a priority for calls is Gwen Moore of Milwaukee, who has a weaker record on Gaza and has not yet signed. If you are a constituent, please call and ask her to sign the letter as well as to take a stronger public stand against Israeli genocide and aggression.DC Office: (202) 225-4572Milwaukee Office: (414) 297-1140
THIRD, The Global Sumud Flotilla asks you to use this tool, which after you enter your information once, will send an email to the foreign ministries of Spain and Sweden (Saif holds both citizenships), Brazil (about Thiago), Greece (where the kidnapping happened, in their SAR zone), and the European Parliament’s human-rights and foreign-affairs committees (DROI & AFET) — in their native languages — demanding immediate proof of life, consular access, and the return of Saif and Thiago.
FINALLY, the International Fellowship of Reconciliation, as part of the Global Solidarity for Peace in Palestine network of more than 100 international faith-based and civil society organizations representing tens of thousands worldwide, urges you to sign this petition to the governments of the world, sponsored by World Beyond War. SIGN HERE!!!
These actions are important not only to secure the release of the two kidnapped and brutalized activists, but also the safety of the those on the 57 boats of the combined flotillas that remain sailing or are currently in port; see Flotilla Tracker here.
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MRSCP
P.O. Box 5214
Madison, WI 53705
Wisconsin Bail Out the People Movement 