CONTACTS: Nick Mottern – (914) 806-6179 –
Rev. Dr. Peter Kakos – – (email only)
CEASEFIRE FASTERS CALL ON U.S. ATTORNEY FOR MASSACHUSETTS TO ENFORCE LEAHY LAW
Three members of the peace community in Western Massachusetts who have been fasting for two weeks to stop the slaughter of Palestinians, today called on Joshua Levy, Acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts to enforce the U.S. statute known as the Leahy Law and shut down operations in the state of five of the world’s largest military contractors in order to halt the flow of weapons from the U.S. to Israel.
The requested action would shutter Massachusetts facilities of General Dynamics, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman and RTX (Raytheon) and other suppliers of weapons and war-enabling services to the Israel Defense Forces and other facilities in other parts of the U.S., until the shipment of weapons to Israel from the U.S. stops.
“The fact that the President and Congress have chosen not to enforce the Leahy Law does excuse the weapons makers from obeying that law,” the three fasters said in letter to U.S. Attorney Levy. (Letter attached.)
The Leahy Law refers to legislation, sponsored by former U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy. Approved by Congress in 1996 and 1997, the legislation forbids the U.S. to ship weapons to military units that are grossly violating human rights, “which Israel is most certainly doing,” the fasters say.
As evidence that the Leahy Law is being violated, the letter notes that on Oct. 18, 2023, Josh Paul resigned from the State Department because the Leahy Law was not being enforced with respect to Israel.
Those fasting are: Jeanne Allen, of Easthampton, the Rev. Dr. Peter Kakos, a Congregational minister from Northampton, and Nick Mottern, also of Northampton and a member of the national board of directors of Veterans For Peace.
Our Leahy Fast began 6 am to 6 pm on December 14, 2023, to reinforce demands for: (1) A permanent cease fire in Gaza and the West Bank; and (2) Enforcement of the Leahy Law with respect to weapons shipments to Israel. Colleagues in the Connecticut River Valley of Western Mass have joined from time to time, which will continue until a permanent cease-fire in Israeli – Palestine.
*Featured Image: At least four Israelis and 22 Gazans were killed over the weekend as cross-border violence escalated.Credit…Haitham Imad/EPA, via Shutterstock, src: NY Times. (By the way, over 200 Palestinians were killed on Christmas Day, Editor)