International Coalition to End the Illegal Siege of Gaza formed after Israel's 22-day assault on Gaza in winter 2008-09.We are a diverse coalition that represents all faiths (and no faith) and is focused on human rights in conformance with international law.
To mark the fact that is has been one year since the Israeli attack, the coalition is mobilizing an international contingent for a nonviolent march alongside the people of Gaza on Dec. 31, to end the illegal blockade.
The coalition conceives this march as part of a broader strategy to end the Israeli occupation by targeting nonviolently its flagrant violations of international law from the house demolitions and settlements to the curfews and torture.
- Sandra Ruch is the Canadian coordinator for the march. She lives in Toronto and is the administrative coordinator for the Canadian Voice of Women for Peace, on the steering committee of Independent Jewish Voices and Gaza coordinator for CODEPINK Toronto.
- Ali Mallah is vice president of the Canadian Arab Federation in Ontario, a member of the steering committee of the Canadian Peace Alliance, and a founding member of Trade Unionists Against War and the Coalition to Stop War. Ali is the contact person for the North American Muslim/Arab Community Outreach Committee.
- Ehab Lotayef is a Montreal-based writer and engineer, and a veteran activist in the struggle for Palestinian rights.