In Gaza for the children, CodePink invite President Obama to visit the Strip

120 US citizens enter Gaza to bring help and solidarity to the children of Gaza, traumatised by long years of occupation, siege, and war. They invite President Obama to visit the Strip during his stay in Egypt on June 4th.

Yesterday, May 30th, a delegation of over 70 people entered the Gaza Strip bringing toys, school materials, medicines, and the makings of three playgrounds.

This delegation joins a group from New York and 40 students who were already in the Gaza Strip, bringing the US presence in the area to more than 120 people.

In addition to bringing solidarity to the population, the US activists invited US President Obama to visit the Strip during his upcoming stay in Egypt to see with his own eyes the conditions in which people are living because of the siege.

"We believe that if President Obama is serious when he says he wants to reverse the past trend of US policy, then he should personally see Gaza. ", declared Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CodePink Women for Peace and promoter of the delegation to the Gaza Strip. " We are sure that if he could go in person and see and hear of the sufferings, he would put the necessary pressure on the governments of Israel and Egypt to immediately open the borders. ".

"If President Obama can, at the last minute, add a visit to Saudi Arabia for a private dinner with the king, then he can certainly go to Gaza", said Colonel Ann Wright, co-leader of the delegation, a retired colonel who resigned from the Department of State in 2003 in protest at the war in Iraq.

To convince him, the invitation will be sent to him by way of an international petition, and the signatures collected on the Internet will be delivered to the US embassy in Cairo on June 4th, the day on which Obama will make his speech to the Islamic world.

Click here to sign the CodePink petition calling on Obama to take this important step towards peace in the region.

CodePink has organised several delegations to the Gaza Strip to witness the devastation caused by the Israeli attack and by the siege which continues to block the arrival of food, medicines, and materials for reconstruction almost 6 months after the Israeli invasion.