It seems clear from media reports that Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskell is visiting Auckland this weekend as part of a trip to strengthen ties with New Zealand and other Pacific countries.
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa Co-chair Maher Nazal says he would expect Foreign Minister Winston Peters to have had, or will be having, a secret meeting with Haskell.
Read MorePSNA is urging Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to stand up to Israel and demand it allow the tens of millions in New Zealand aid to get through to the starving people of Gaza.
Despite the ceasefire the head of the World Health Organisation said today the hunger crisis in Gaza is “catastrophic”. Meanwhile 41 aid organisations have said Israel is “arbitrarily” rejecting aid shipments into famine-struck Gaza where the UN says a quarter of Gaza’s population is starving.
Read MorePSNA says Minister of Defence Judith Collins’ open-letter attack on teachers, for daring to raise Palestine in their discussions with the government, says more about her own prejudices than teacher priorities.
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa Co-chair Maher Nazzal says teachers, who have devoted their lives to educating children here, would be appalled at the wholesale slaughter of Palestinian school children in Gaza.
Read MoreAs nationwide protests against Israeli genocide continue this weekend into the third year, PSNA is demanding Foreign Minister Winston Peters condemn Israeli torture of Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti and Israel’s failure to abide by the terms of the ceasefire.
PSNA’s Co-chair, John Minto, says Barghouti is Palestine’s equivalent to South African anti-apartheid leader, Nelson Mandela.
Read MoreThe Palestine Solidarity Network’s legal challenge against the New Zealand Superfund’s investments in companies helping to build and maintain illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian Territories opens in the Auckland High Court tomorrow (Tuesday 14 October) and is expected to run for two days.
The named plaintiffs are PSNA Co-Chairs, Maher Nazzal and John Minto, and Rawaa Elhanafy. The lawyers taking the case are Rodney Harrison KC and Frances Joychild KC.
Read MorePalestine solidarity supporters will be welcoming home Will Alexander this afternoon at 2.45pm at Christchurch airport. Will and his partner Ava Mulla were part of the latest flotilla to try to break the Israeli siege of Gaza.
Will and Ava were aboard the “Conscience” which, along with eight smaller boats, was illegally intercepted by Israel on Wednesday last week in international waters while on its way to deliver desperately needed humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The New Zealand government has not protested this seizure of New Zealand citizens in international waters.
Read MorePSNA says Foreign Minister Winston Peters is quite correct to identify Israeli-supporting members of parliament as ‘extremists’.
Peters has made a ministerial statement in parliament today where he defended New Zealand’s non-recognition of Palestine, condemned ‘extremists on both sides…including those in this House’ and claimed there was ‘violent targeting of politicians’ private homes’.
Read MorePalestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa has joined the condemnation of the attack on Winston Peters’ home.
Co-chair John Minto says it has not yet been clearly established that the attack was motivated as a response to Peters’ refusal to recognise Palestinian rights and sanction Israel for war crimes and genocide.
Read MorePSNA says Foreign Minister Winston Peters has issued what it calls a gold-plated reward to appease Israel for its genocide against the Palestinian people, with the decision not to announce sanctions, or even to recognise a state of Palestine, at the United Nations today.
PSNA Co-chair Maher Nazzal, says that the rest of the world recoils in horror at Israel’s cruel and depraved war crimes against the Palestinian people, but Winston Peters has washed his hands and walked away.
Read MorePSNA says a proposed ‘thank you visit’ by Israel’s deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel would be embarrassing for the New Zealand government and expose it as a collaborator with Israeli genocide in Gaza.
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa Co chair, John Minto says he expects the New Zealand government will find some excuse to avoid having Haskel in New Zealand.
Read MoreAn international flotilla of ships and boats is sailing towards Gaza loaded with humanitarian relief supplies for the beleaguered Palestinians living there and suffering from Israeli-perpetrated mass killing and mass starvation of the population.
The people on the flotilla represent the very best of human values and are standing up for humanity when many governments, including our own, are failing to uphold these values.
We are requesting our government inform Israel that Aotearoa New Zealand expects them to facilitate the entry of this humanitarian convoy so it can deliver the desperately needed food, water and medical supplies.
Read MorePSNA says the ‘complexity’ excuse for cabinet inaction on Palestine this morning is a cowards’ way out for the government to avoid even the most tepid policy to oppose Israeli genocide in Gaza.
Prime Minister, Chris Luxon, said this morning that cabinet today would not be making decisions on recognition of Palestine for Foreign Minister, Winston Peters to take to the United Nations General Assembly next week.
Luxon said recognition of Palestine was ‘complex’ and government decisions were still weeks away.
Read MorePSNA anticipates Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, will get instructions to increase pressure on Israel at cabinet tomorrow.
The United Nations General Assembly High Level Leaders Debate starts in New York next Tuesday.
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa Co-Chair, John Minto says the government has to have listened to the voice of the people who marched for sanctions against Israel, in Auckland yesterday.
Read MorePSNA says Winston Peters must immediately and thoroughly condemn Israel’s bombing on the Qatari capital Doha.
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa Co-chair John Minto, says even Israel’s sponsor in chief, Donald Trump, has publicly disagreed with the Israeli attempt to kill Hamas negotiators in Qatar.
“Even by the blatant standards of aggression Israel has set itself, bombing a ceasefire negotiation meeting in yet another country is an outrage.”
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