- Write to President Obama and urge him not to take military action and to vigorously support all diplomatic solutions. We recommend using template letter to President Obama as a guide when writing. Post a letter to: Barack Obama, President of the United States, The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington DC, USA or submit a comment less than 2,500 words on the White House website.
- Email your MP and encourage him/her to support an Early Day Motion urging US Congress not to support Obama’s proposed military strikes against Syrian targets.Write to Foreign Minister Hague and urge him to vigorously support all diplomatic efforts, in partcular the Geneva II peace talks, and to include all stakeholders including Iran, which, until now has been excluded, not to provide any military or “non-lethal” support to the rebels, because this undermines the peace talks, and to immediately call for a comprehensive arms embargo on all parties to the conflict. Unless this happens diplomatic efforts will fail.
The Peace and Justice Centre joined with Edinburgh Stop the War in demonstrating Tuesday outside the US Consulate in Edinburgh as demonstrations took place in London and all across the United States calling on the US not to bomb Syria.
Public pressure has succeeded in preventing the UK from supporting the US in its proposal for military action against Syria. And in the US it is helping delay any possible US action. But we must keep up the pressure to insure that the US does not take unilateral military action and instead pursues all possible diplomatic routes.
The immediate likelihood of US strikes has abated with the US responding positively to the Russian proposal for Syria to put its chemical weapons under international control but President Obama is continuing to argue that the US should take military action if necessary to prevent any use by Assad of chemical weapons. While the use by any party of chemical weapons is unacceptable and must be condemned we strongly believe that military attacks will only worsen the situation and lead to more not less civilian deaths and refugees. In his speech this week Obama said that the US is not the "world's policeman" but he also said it was "exceptional". We strongly oppose that notion. Under the UN Charter no state has the right to attack another state except in self-defense.
But states which continue to supply arms either to the regime or the rebels also share responsibility for the use of those weapons against civilians. Under the Arms Trade Treaty agreed just this year arms transfers to states which are likely to use those weapons to commit human rights abuses against their own people are prohibited. Russia continues to arm Syria. And the US and UK continue to supply so-called non-lethal aid, such as night vision goggles, logisitcal support and training to the rebels, while their allies, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan are supplying arms directly to the rebels. UK Foreign Minister William Hague has lead efforts to lift a European Union ban on arming the rebels. In response to this support and the anticipated air strikes rebel military activity has increased and with it government attacks. Both sides have committed atrocities and the death toll and flow of refugees has increased rapidly as a result of this military escalation. The possibility of US military action and the arming of the rebels has undermined any efforts at a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
- Write to President Obama and urge him not to take military action and to vigorously support all diplomatic solutions. We recommend using template letter to President Obama as a guide when writing. Post a letter to: Barack Obama, President of the United States, The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington DC, USA or submit a comment less than 2,500 words on the White House website.
- Email your MP and encourage him/her to support an Early Day Motion urging US Congress not to support Obama’s proposed military strikes against Syrian targets.Write to Foreign Minister Hague and urge him to vigorously support all diplomatic efforts, in partcular the Geneva II peace talks, and to include all stakeholders including Iran, which, until now has been excluded, not to provide any military or “non-lethal” support to the rebels, because this undermines the peace talks, and to immediately call for a comprehensive arms embargo on all parties to the conflict. Unless this happens diplomatic efforts will fail.
- Write to Foreign Minister Hague and urge him to vigorously support all diplomatic efforts, in partcular the Geneva II peace talks, and to include all stakeholders including Iran, which, until now has been excluded, not to provide any military or “non-lethal” support to the rebels, because this undermines the peace talks, and to immediately call for a comprehensive arms embargo on all parties to the conflict. Unless this happens diplomatic efforts will fail.
We also recommend groups raise funds for the Christian Aid Syria Crisis Appeal to support those suffering as a result the violent conflict by donating to our Syria Crisis Appeal. http://www.
