PRESS RELEASE
15 July 2007
This afternoon a group of Palestine solidarity protesters entered the main
UK warehouse of Israeli company Carmel Agrexco in Uxbridge, Middlesex.
Their action is part of the growing movement to boycott Israeli apartheid,
which aims to end Israel’s breach of International law and abuse of human
rights in the occupied territories of Palestine.
Nine protesters went inside the warehouse, handed leaflets to the workers
to explain the reasons for their actions. Two have locked themselves to
equipment with D locks. They asked to speak to workers about Carmel
Agrexco’s support for ethnic cleansing and war crimes in Palestine, but
were met with violence and aggression
Another group hoisted a Palestinian flag up the pole at the front of the
depot to symbolically establish a Palestinian solidarity settlement on
Carmel Agrexco's land. Their aim was to highlight the illegality of
Israeli settlements that have been established throughout the West Bank on
land stolen from Palestinians. This was particularly fitting, given that
much of Carmel Agrexco’s fruit, vegetables, flowers, herbs and other
produce is grown and packed on these illegal Israeli settlements. Carmel
Agrexco is
thus complicit in war crimes under the International Criminal Court Act
2001 (ICC Act).
Carmel Agrexco is Israel’s largest importer of agricultural produce into the
European Union and is 50% Israeli state owned. The warehouse is in
Swallowfield Way,Hayes, Middlesex, at their main depot in the UK.
Many of the protesters have visited Palestine and witnessed at first hand
the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli military occupation. They have
seen land that has been claimed by illegal Israeli settlements, but was
stolen from Palestinian families. They have visited villages where the
whole community have been issued with demolition orders by the Israeli
Army to make way for more illegal settlements.
The action today is part of three years of action against the company.
Palestine solidarity protesters have taken part in five blockades of the
premises, the first in November 2004.
Before the protest a legal warning letter was sent to Carmel Agrexco
stating clearly why they are in breach of the law.
Today’s action aims to draw attention to this company’s complicity, in
murder, theft and damage of occupied land, collective punishment,
apartheid and ethnic cleansing, and other breaches of International Law.
Contact
thewallmustfall@riseup.net/tel.07726 923 075 for interviews/pictures
Links:
Photos of the last blockade of Carmel Agrexco
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/11/357149.html?c=on Photos of the second blockade
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/08/349440.html Text of letter sent to Carmel Agrexco by Palestine Solidarity Campaign
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/london/2006/08/347361.html Report on Carmel's Involvement in the Jordan Valley:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2005/09/322537.html Press release from previous trial (with links):
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/01/331851.html War on Want's Report -"Profiting from the Occupation":
http://www.waronwant.org/?lid=12671 Notes to Editors:
1. For comments please call
2. On 9th June 2005 a coalition of Palestinian Civil Society Organisations
issued a 'Call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel until
it complies with International Law'.
See
http://www.stopthewall.org/downloads/pdf/BDSEnglish.pdf for the full
statement and signatories.
3. Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights in 1967 in
contravention of international law.
Since then Israel has moved over 380,000 settlers into these occupied
territories in contravention of the Fourth Geneva Convention (article 49),
the Hague Regulations and United Nations Security Council Resolutions.
Israel continues to build an illegal apartheid wall inside the West Bank
despite the Advisory Ruling of the International Court of Justice in 2005
that the wall is illegal. Fifty five illegal Israeli settlements will be
on the Israeli side of the wall separated from the West Bank.
Since 2000 Israel has demolished 664 Palestinian houses, in acts of
collective punishment. These demolitions constitute a war crime. They have
demolished a further 12,953 palestinian homes for 'miliary reasons' (often
to expand Israeli settlements) and 1,214 because they were built 'without
a permit'
4,058 Palestinians have been killed as a direct result of Israeli
military actions during the current uprising which
began in September 2000.
(Above statistics confirmed by Israeli Information Centre
Btselem see www.btselem.org )
Contact
thewallmustfall@riseup.net/tel. 07726 923 075 for interviews/pictures
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