The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) has called for an immediate ban on weapons transfers to Israel and other combatants in the ongoing Gaza crisis. The ITUC, to which Irish unions are affiliated through ICTU, has also called on all governments to help broker a negotiated cease-fire and “an end to the blockade imprisoning 1.9 million people.”
In a 31st July statement, the ITUC said: “Attacks on civilians are against international law and we support the UN call for accountability and justice. Therefore, we call for an immediate ban of all transfers of weapons, directly or indirectly. But it cannot end there. The international community, not just the US and Egypt, must take immediate action to force the parties to the table and conclude a negotiated settlement that ends the occupation and that instils in both sides confidence in security and mutual respect.”
The trade union body also called on the international community to provide urgently needed humanitarian aid to Gaza, including food, water, medical aid and generators. “However, the only way for there to be a lasting peace and mutual understanding between the people of Israel and Palestine is for the occupation and blockade of the Palestinian territories to end,” it said.
Meanwhile, IMPACT and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions supported a national demonstration in solidarity with the people of Gaza earlier this month. ICTU general secretary David Begg also wrote to Irish foreign minister Charlie Flanagan calling on the Irish Government to “use its vote at all times, in all international fora, to maximise pressure on Israel, which is the aggressor in the conflict, to persuade it to comply with UN resolutions and international law and, in particular, to end the slaughter of the innocents in Gaza.”
