[LCM Articles] Press Release: Montreal Marks 1 Year Anniversary of Israeli War on Lebanon.

[Tadamon!]

For Immediate Release:

Montreal Marks 1 Year Anniversary of Israeli War on Lebanon.
http://tadamon.resist.ca/index.php/post/762/

Press Conference: THURSDAY, JULY 12th, 10:30am
Location: the School of Community & Public Affairs
2149 Mackay Street, metro Guy-Concordia

One year ago, Israel launched a military assault on Lebanon, commencing a 34 
day war that left more than 1300 Lebanese civilians dead, large parts of the 
national infrastructure destroyed and southern Lebanon littered with over one 
million unexploded cluster bomblets.

On this anniversary, a group of Montreal organizations including Al-Hidaya 
Association, Association des jeunes libanais musulmans (AJLM) and Tadamon! 
Montreal mark this occasion in three ways:

* By sending messages of solidarity to the people of Lebanon especially those 
who suffered and continue to suffer loss and hardship as a result of the 
Israeli attack on Lebanon in 2006,

* By protesting the unabated support of the Canadian government for Israel 
during the war, and

* By reflecting on the aftermath and ongoing impacts of the war on Lebanon and 
the Lebanese community in Montreal.

According to major international human rights organizations including Amnesty 
International and Human Rights Watch, Israel committed "war crimes" throughout 
the 2006 war on Lebanon. The aftermath of these war crimes continues to affect 
the Lebanese people until.

Lebanese civilians in the southern part of the country remain constantly at 
risk due to the millions of cluster bomblets and anti-personal mines planted in 
Lebanese soil. Politically, the country is facing its severest test of 
stability in recent history. This instability, related directly to the 2006 
war, is inhibiting critical reconstruction efforts.

Outrage in Canada to Israel's assault on Lebanon sparked major demonstrations 
in Montreal and across the country in opposition to the Israeli attack. In 
contrast to popular opinion in Quebec, Prime Minister Stephen Harper labeled 
the full-scale military assault on Lebanon a "measured response" to the capture 
of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah, while, recently, P.M. Ehud Olmert of 
Israel admitted that the assault on Lebanon was planned four months prior to 
July 2006.

Montreal was deeply impacted by Israel's attack, as hundreds within the city 
were in Lebanon at the time of the attack, while many within the 
Lebanese-Canadian community received the horrific news of family members 
becoming victims of the Israeli bombardment. Montreal's Al-Akhras family was 
particularly devastated by the Israeli attack, as 12 of its members lost their 
lives in a single Israeli air strike on a civilian residence in the village of 
Aitaroun in southern Lebanon.

On this anniversary, Montrealers rise to remember the Lebanese victims of the 
Israeli attack on Lebanon, and pressure the Canadian government to actively 
support the human and humanitarian rights of all peoples. Through popular 
actions, demonstrations, lobbying, media work and international solidarity, 
Montrealers will continue to fight for justice, freedom and dignity across the 
Middle East.

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