Image by: Carlos Latuff

Petition: for two activists… that you know well
To all the friends of the freedom of speech and opponents of racism: (Names Updated regularly)

We are a group of Palestinians and other activists for the Palestinian cause of various nationalities and affiliations, and believe that unity and persistence is important to confront the injustice our people had suffered in the past and still at present, probably in the unforeseeable future by Zionist and colonialist powers.

Zionism has damaged us from the first day when they started implementing their colonialist project to colonize all of Palestine, and when the opportunity comes, extend it beyond the borders of historic Palestine, damaging other Arabs. From the first day, they had been resorting to physical, psychological, moral and propaganda terror against all sorts of resistance whether it is in armed self-defense, and even against the power of the word by Palestinians and their supporters. They had been resorting to personal and communal targeted assassination, terrorizing Palestinians and their supporters all round the world in order to shut up all sorts of resistance. They try to break us apart, because they know our unity is dangerous to their colonialist and racist plans. They had been trying to control and shut the free and honest media, and political activism by financial bribery and blackmailing when running for any sort of political offices at all levels, especially against those who call for the liberation of Palestine and the Right of Return of Palestinians to their homes and land and want them to live under a democratic, sovereign and free state under the rule of law.

Among those free fighters against Zionism are two non-Arab supporters of the Palestinian cause, two outstanding personalities who are also great fighters for the implementation of freedom and liberty to all the subjugated peoples of the world, Gilad Atzmon, the ex-Zionist London-based musician and writer, and Mary Rizzo, the Italy-based blogger of Peacepalestine http://peacepalestine.blogspot.com/. They have been attacked by Zionists for a long time, but they are also being attacked by certain other people who are in the movement for Palestine.

Almost no day goes past when Tony Greenstein is not waging a war against Gilad Atzmon and Mary Rizzo, and we believe his actions have overstepped all limits. We have watched as he tries to smear them as racists, and we are saddened that his attempts increase as our own situation becomes more and more dramatic. These useless and pointless defamation campaigns are intolerable, as he circulates falsity against these activists. His attempts to do this only hurt our cause and waste our energy, not the least, they distract from the important issues, and go against the very idea of unity that we value.

We, Palestinians and activists for Palestine, express our solidarity with Gilad Atzmon and Mary Rizzo, who when they realized the tragedies Palestinians and other Arabs suffered, especially ethnically cleansed from their ancestral homeland, at the hands racist colonialist Zionism decided to fight for the rightful Palestinian cause. Atzmon willingly liberated himself from this inhuman and destructive project, by choosing the road of self-imposed exile and public exposure of what the Zionist project is all about. Tony Greenstein created among his usual lies that some Palestinians attack and defame the two dedicated supporters of the Palestinian cause, Atzmon and Rizzo. We declare that he does not speak for us or in our names when he attacks these and other activists.

We also take the opportunity to condemn the strangling siege that is being imposed over the Gaza Strip in particular and the West Bank and the rest of the Palestinian Arab people in general to complete their ethnic cleansing from their historic homeland. We urge all peace loving supporters of the freedom of thought, against all racism and Zionism and dedicated to the just Palestinian Arab cause as well as Iraq and all occupied Arab lands, to sign the petition calling for an end to the defamation campaign and a focus on the issues that are important to our people. Add you name, location and organization or group you are part of if you wish. Send it to palestinesomoud@yahoo.fr. A list will be made public.

Initial Signatories: other names will be added and comments that have been sent will be compiled and published.
Adib S. Kawar, Nazareth, Palestine – Beirut, Lebanon
Walid Halabi, France-Italy
Arab Abdel-Hadi PMWATCH, Ansar Al-Quds. LEBANONVIEW, Free Palestine and others
Malak Abdel-Hadi, Palestinian living in Dubai
Shahira Mehrez, Egyptian living in Cairo, Egypt
Paola Pisi, Italy, URUKNET
Ismail Zayid, Canada
Nizar Issa, London, UK
Nadia Hasan, Chile
Dr Sadek Pharaon MD, Syria
Oren Ben Dor, UK
Manuel Talens, Spain
Dima Hamdan, London, UK
Iqbal Tamimi, Exiled Journalist Network – UK, A Palestinian journalist and poet
Samir Daoud – Akka Palestine – residence: Beirut – Lebanon
Nadia Daoud – Akka Palestine – Residence: Beirut – Lebanon
Hala Kawar – Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Wajih Freij – Jerusalem, Palestine – Residence: Beirut – Lebanon
Lamia Kawar – Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Ibrahim Kawar – Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Fausto Giudice, Secretary, France, Zapatist Alliance for Social Liberation
Ginette Hess Skandrani, France, Chairwoman, Zapatist Alliance for Social Liberation
Wael AlSaad, Düsseldorf-Germany. PYN Coordinator-Germany Palestinian Community Düsseldorf Board
Dr Hajo G. Meyer, Heiloo, the Netherlands, survivor of Auschwitz
The Radical Press, Canada
Mauro Manno, Italy
Manuela Vittorelli, Italy
Diego Traversa, Italy
Vicente Romano, Spain
Carlos Sanchis, Spain
Nancy Harb Almendras, United States, Germany
Zuhair Nafa, Palestine
Raja Chemayel, The Hague, Netherlands
Theodore D. Turner, Brooklyn, New York
Kristoffer Larsson, Sweden
Ellen Rohlfs, Germany, German-Palestinian Society and Gush Shalom
Hergen Matussik, Germany
Benedetta Scardovi-Mounier, USA/Italy
Cristina Santos, London, UK
Rocío Anguiano, Spain
Sigge Andersson, pre-med student, Sweden
Guenter Schenk, France/Germany, Aktionsbündnis für einen gerechten Frieden in Palästina
LanceThruster, LA, CA, USA
Mary Sparrowdancer, Tallahassee, FL
Birgit Jödahl, Sweden
Miguel Martinéz, Florence, Italy
Susanne Scheidt, Al-Awda Italia
Jean-Marie Flémal, writer and translator, WPB (Workers' Party of Belgium), Charleroi, Belgium.
Edna Spennato, South Africa-Brazil, Earth Heal Geoharmonic Research Project
Abdullah Husain, Palestine by birth, KSA, India by life accident
Wendy Campbell, California, USA, MarWen Media
Peter Brooke, UK, www.peterbrooke.org.uk
Daniel McGowan, Geneva, NY, Exec. Director, Deir Yassin Remembered
Debbie Brown, Hacienda Heights, California USA
Kenneth Rasmusson, Sweden
Redress Information & Analysis, London, UK
Schuyler Ebbets, USA, The People's Voice.org
Ragnar B. Johannessen, Norway, The People's Voice.org
Annie Selden Annab, Annie's Letters Blog
Jim Leven, UK, PSC member
Javier Fernández Retenaga, Spain
Shaukat Khawja, Toronto, Canada Profession: Engineer
Volker M., Canada
Lina Abubaker, London, UK
Brenda Heard, UK, Friends of Lebanon, http://www.friendsoflebanon.org/
Letizia Tessicini, Orte, Italy
Simon R-Levin, Manchester, UK
Paloma Valverde, Spain,member of CEOSI
Sarah Stevens, UK
Ralph Pinner, UK
Inge Soder, Germany
Sarah Gillespie, London, UK
Raja Ibrahim, Pistoia, Italy, ASSOCIAZIONE AMICIZIA ITALO – PALESTINESE
Haitham Sabbah, Sabbah's Blog, http://sabbah.biz/