First in a series
[img]2685|right|Jeff Warner||no_popup[/img]Meet “Jeff Warner of La Habra,” one of the most familiar signatures among letter-writers in the op-ed section of the Los Angeles Times.
For openers, he disagrees with 95 percent of Israelis, suggesting the Jewish state started the present war with Hamas and Gaza.
A Jew who is a frequent critic of Israel, especially its military tactics, the 75-year-old retired geologist will be flying the banner of L.A. Jews for Peace tomorrow from 12 noon to 2.
Peace will be in the air – verbally if not otherwise – when L.A. Jews for Peace hope to attract upwards of a hundred of the likeminded to stage a mid-day protest before the Israeli Consulate, 11766 Wilshire Blvd., between Bundy and Barrington.
Ninety unhappy persons turned out for last week’s protest at the Consulate.
With the Israel-Gaza war racing toward the one-month mark, a mid-city rally to end it – now – was inevitable. “All peace-loving people are welcome,” says their flyer.
Demonstrators will shout eight messages:
• Cease-fire now and open Gaza.
• Stop killing. Only peace gives security.
• Israel bombing, not in our names.
• Jews and Arabs are not enemies.
• End U.S. support for Israel’s war and blockade of Gaza.
• This Jew opposes U.S. support for Israel’s war on Gaza.
• Only peace will cease the fire.
• Stop bombing, stop rockets, cease-fire now.
When Mr. Warner was asked his opinion of the last three weeks of war, he quickly corrected his inquisitor.
“Three weeks is not the place to start,” he told the newspaper this afternoon. “You can keep going back. One place to start might be in early June when those three Israeli teens were kidnapped and killed.
“You might even go to May 15 when two Palestinians were shot in cold blood by the Israeli army. They were walking down the street, doing nothing.
“You can unravel this to probably the Balfour Declaration (Great Britain’s manifesto about the homeland of the Jews 90 years ago).
“I will start with the three Israeli teens,” said Mr. Warner. “They were abducted and killed. There is no excuse for that. I think that was a heinous crime.
“Israel didn’t really treat it as a crime, though. They treated it as a war. (Prime Minister) Netanyahu blamed Hamas. Hamas said they didn’t do it.
“What Israel started doing right away, when they knew these kids were dead, they went on a rampage through the West Bank. They arrested 500 or so Hamas supporters. This means like the local block precinct captain. These weren’t fighting people. These were people who identified politically with Hamas. The Israeli army rampaged through 2,000 Palestinian homes and institutions, schools and universities. Supposedly they were looking for these kids, but they were trashing houses in the middle of the night.
“The Israelis started bombing Gaza.”
(To be continued)
