Jun 17, 2009, 2:40 PM

Carter says Palestinians are treated 'like animals'

Carter says Palestinians are treated 'like animals'

Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter said on Tuesday that Palestinians are being treated “like animals.”

“Tragically, the international community too often ignores the cries for help and the citizens of Palestine are treated more like animals than like human beings,” Carter said at a joint news conference with Hamas leader Ismail Haniya.

 

The former president called for a lifting of Israel's merciless blockade of the Gaza Strip and ending “all violence” against the Palestinians.

 

“The starving of 1.5 million human beings of the necessities of life -- never before in history has a large community like this been savaged by bombs and missiles and then denied the means to repair itself,” Carter said at a UN school graduation ceremony in Gaza City.

 

The United States and Europe “must try to do all that is necessary to convince Israel and Egypt to allow basic goods into Gaza,” AFP quoted Carter as saying.

 

“At same time, there must be no more rockets” from Gaza into Israel, said Carter.

 

“I have to hold back tears when I see the deliberate destruction that has been wracked against your people,” he said at a destroyed American school, saying it was “deliberately destroyed by bombs from F16s made in my country.”

 

Israel's blitzkrieg in January killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and left large swathes of the coastal strip sandwiched between Israel and Egypt in ruins.

 

GJ/PA

END

MNA

News ID 34370

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