The Death Toll During the Intifada

I am looking to get the most recent death toll on the "Intifada". Since Sept. 29, 2000 what is the most recent death toll?

Respectfully,

Lee Roystone

Editor: Click on the  Deaths & Injuries or the  Human Price  sections of Al-Jazeerah, then click at October 2004.

You can see that the death toll was 4,135 at the end of September 2004 and about 112 until October 18, which makes the Palestinian deaths about 4,247 so far.

The Israeli death toll was about 920 until the end of September 2004, with no additional deaths in October.

 

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A real American

Hi. I am a real American. I am not a republican or a democrat. I represent the majority of Americans who think both Bush and Kerry are idiots but we have to choose one.

I am outraged at the way the rest of the world views our country because of what Bush has done. We are all not like this. I agree that Saddam was a dictator but he had no weapons and really posed no threat to the U.S.

I believe the only reason America was attacked by terrorists is because of our support for the terrorist state of Israel and all the terrorist Israelis that live there.

I am not blind to the fact that the Israelis are without the right to any of the land they dwell in. I wish the US would just sever ties with Israel.

So hopefully some of the Arab world understand that some of us here in America aren't stupid consumers that only care about starbucks and oil.

Thanks.

Chris Beard, USA

 

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Kashmir and Palestine

Dear Editor,

This refer to Dr.Ali Mazrui's well written article dated July 9,2004 under title "Kashmir and Palestine, Flames of Unfinished Partitions". Undoubtedly both conflicts are the by-products of Western colonialism. The mass resistance movements in Kashmir and Palestine are the direct result of occupation, not the cause of it. India and Israel both are the occupying powers and it is the legitimate right of the people of Kashmir and Palestine to defend themselves against their illegal occupation. Whereas the Kashmiris and the Palestinians have been dehumanized, brutalized and villainized for the last 56 long years. In occupied Palestine and Kashmir repression of occupiers has crossed all the boundaries of civilized behaviors.

Respectfully I may differ with the opinion of Dr.Mazrui when he suggests an unacceptable solution to the Kashmir dispute by supporting the idea of Kashmir accession to India which can never be welcomed by Pakistan and the people of Kashmir. After 56 years of struggle to change the status quo Pakistan will never accept a transformation of the so called Line of Control from a disputed border to a legitimate international border. Nor after so much turmoil and sacrifices for freedom are the Kashmiris can accept this as a final settlement of their quest for self determination.

When we look at the root cause of the Kashmir dispute it comes clear that Indian leadership accepted the formation of Pakistan of the Muslim majority areas of undivided India. Kashmir as a Muslim majority princely state was naturally a part of Pakistan. which India occupied forcefully and it was challenged by Pakistan and the Kashmiri people. Since 1989 Indian occupation army have massacred more than 85,000 innocent Kashmiri civilians in occupied Kashmir. It is an article of faith for the people of Pakistan to support their Kashmiri brothers. Today Kashmir is a nuclear flashpoint. Pakistan and India fought nearly 4 war based on Kashmir dispute.

In Kashmir India is facing a classic colonial situation. It can barely hold it's own by applying brute force. Like Palestine the occupation of Kashmir is the world's last military occupation. More than 75000 of Indian army is helpless in Kashmir to crush the will of the Kashmiri people to fight back the occupiers. Rapes gang rapes and routine search operations and killing of innocent civilians is a daily life in Kashmir. In nutshell the Kashmir uprising is the making of India's denial of basic human rights, the right of self determination to the people of Kashmir.
I also differ with the writer that India may qualify to become a super power of Asia down the road. A country where more than 300 million people live under the poverty level, a country having a religiously apartheid social system can not survive for a long time. Thanks to British and Muslim rule in India which kept India united.

In June 1998 following the India Pakistan nuclear tests the UN Security Council passed a unanimous resolution that linked peace and stability in South Asia to the resolution of the long standing dispute of Kashmir.

Sincerely,
Masood Hassan
Houston Texas, USA