Official Israeli radio bans ad critical of Gaza siege

The Israeli national broadcasting Authority has refused to allow radio stations in Israel to air ads sponsored by Israeli peace groups that criticize Israel's 15-month long siege on the Palestinian civilian population in the Gaza Strip.The siege, which is in direct violation of the responsibilities of an occupying power under the Fourth Geneva Convention (signed by Israel in 1953), affects 1.4 million civilians in Gaza – forcing them to live in dire poverty without access to proper medical care, and with chronic shortages of food and fuel. Nearly 150 patients have died due to the Israeli siege, when Israeli authorities refused to allow them to exit the Gaza Strip for needed medical treatment.New radio ads produced by the Israeli peace group, Gisha, point out one often-forgotten piece of the siege: the hundreds of students enrolled in universities abroad, who will experience serious setbacks in their education due to being imprisoned in the Gaza Strip and unable to return to school.Palestinian analysts often point out that these young people represent the best and brightest of the Gazan population, and by preventing them from going to university, Israel is fomenting the very extremism that the siege is supposedly trying to punish. These analysts argue that the students who study abroad tend to have a moderating effect on the population, and by imprisoning them, Israel is creating worse problems for themselves than before.

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