Nine anti-war protesters, including socialist and civil rights campaigner Eamonn McCann, are in jail in Northern Ireland for occupying an arms manufacturer. The demonstrators stormed the Derry base of US arms manufacturer Raytheon on Wednesday 9 August, barricading themselves in the building. Raytheon produces software for Guided Missile Units (GBU) currently being used by Israel�s army in its assault on Lebanon.

Johannesburg, South Africa - It is finally time. After years of internal arguments, confusion, and dithering, the time has come for a full-fledged international boycott of Israel. Good cause for a boycott has, of course, been in place for decades, as a raft of initiatives already attests. But Israel's war crimes are now so shocking, its extremism so clear, the suffering so great, the UN so helpless, and the international community's need to contain Israel's behavior so urgent and compelling, that the time for global action has matured. A coordinated movement of divestment, sanctions, and boycotts against Israel must convene to contain not only Israel's aggressive acts and crimes against humanitarian law but also, as in South Africa, its founding racist logics that inspired and still drive the entire Palestinian problem.

The U.S./UK proposal to send international forces to southern Lebanon, on their conditions, will only escalate this war. Deploying more firepower that is clearly 100% on the side of Israel will not stop this violence but will worsen the conflict. The immediate need is for Israel to stop its attacks.