Richmond /USA/ PNN /
The City Council of Richmond, California, has passed a resolution that accuses Israel of practicing ethnic cleansing and apartheid against the Palestinian people. The resolution was adopted with a majority of five votes in favor and one against, under the title: “Richmond City Council Affirms Support and Solidarity with the Palestinian People.”
This city, with a population of over a quarter of a million citizens, had listened to its residents' positions before the vote, with most of them expressing their support for the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights. The resolution affirms that "the City of Richmond stands in solidarity with the Palestinian people in Gaza, who are currently facing a campaign of ethnic cleansing and collective punishment by the state of Israel."
It emphasizes that collective punishment is considered a war crime under international law, pointing out that the state of Israel practices collective punishment against the Palestinian people in Gaza, including cutting off all access to electricity, drinking water, food, and humanitarian assistance.
The resolution also references reports from the United Nations stating that nearly two million people in Gaza will soon lack access to drinking water and medical care.
The resolution considers Israel is currently engaged in a campaign of ethnic cleansing by explicitly demanding that nearly two million Palestinians in Gaza leave immediately or risk being bombed in their homes by the Israeli army. Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on Earth and has been referred to repeatedly by human rights groups as "the world's largest open-air prison" due to the unbearable living conditions imposed by Israel, including a complete land, air, and sea blockade, concrete walls, barbed wire fences, and strict restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in and out of the area.
Before the current water shortage, only 1% of Gaza's residents had access to safe drinking water, leaving Gaza's residents, half of whom are children, increasingly vulnerable to waterborne diseases, infections, and drought. Israel has not allowed many common cancer diagnosis and treatment tools, including Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanning and radiation therapy, to enter Gaza since 2007.
The City of Richmond also commits to fighting anti-Semitism and all forms of racial and ethnic hatred in all their forms and, finally, they have decided that the City of Richmond will defend the dignity and safety of the people in every society, regardless of the crimes that its leadership may commit, and that peaceful diplomacy is the only way to achieve this safety and dignity.
