STOP THE WAR COALITION
NEWSLETTER  
No. 1108  31 July 2009
Email   
Tel: 020 7801 2768  
Web: http://www.stopwar.org.uk
Twitter: http://twitter.com/STWuk

IN THIS NEWSLETTER:  
1) STOP THE WAR CALLS NATIONAL AFGHANISTAN DEMONSTRATION  
2) DEAR PRIME MINISTER: SOLDIER WRITES TO GORDON BROWN
3) WILL THE IRAQ INQUIRY BE YET ANOTHER WHITEWASH?  
4) FILM: PALESTINE'S HISTORY OF DISPOSSESSION AND OCCUPATION  
5) STOP THE WAR IN THE MEDIA  
6) ANTI-WAR SONG OF THE WEEK  
7) OVER 100 A WEEK JOINING STOP THE WAR ON TWITTER

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1) STOP THE WAR CALLS NATIONAL AFGHANISTAN DEMONSTRATION

General Sir Richard Dannatt, outgoing head of the British  
army, has called for the British government to be put on a  
"war-like footing" over Afghanistan. Despite all the evidence
of failure (see http://bit.ly/pCjzK), despite British soldiers
suffering the highest level of deaths and injuries since the  
invasion in 2001, despite the majority of British people  
wanting the troops out now (see http://bit.ly/2QXiDj), the  
Government and the generals remain committed to this pointless
and bloody war.

Stop the War, in conjunction with the Campaign for Nuclear  
Disarmament and the British Muslim Initiative, has called a  
demonstration in central London on Saturday 24 October to mark
the eighth anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan.

We are asking all our supporters to start publicising the  
demonstration as widely as possible. Initial publicity is  
available to download here: http://bit.ly/1UxUut

200 DEAD PROTESTS  
Stop the War's local groups are preparing protests to take  
place the weekend after the 200th British soldier is killed in
Afghanistan. At the current rate of fatalities, with 191  
having died so far, it is likely this figure will be reached  
in the near future. It will be yet another testament to  
tragically wasted lives of soldiers -- some as young as  
eighteen -- sent to kill and be killed in a futile war.

WANT TO GET INVOLVED?
Local Stop the Groups campaigning to bring the troops home  
from Afghanistan are experiencing unprecedented levels of  
support, not least in the thousands who have signed our  
petition to Gordon Brown in recent weeks.

If you would like to get involved in a local Stop the War  
group, contact the national office for details of a group in  
your area: Tel: 020 7801 2768; Email

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2) DEAR PRIME MINISTER: SOLDIER WRITES TO GORDON BROWN

Lance Corporal Joe Glenton, from the Royal Logistics Corps, is
the first British soldier to speak out publicly against the  
war in Afghanistan.

In a letter to Gordon Brown which he delivered to 10 Downing  
Street on Thursday 30 July, he explained why he will not  
return to fight in Afghanistan because he believes politicians
must stop wasting soldiers' lives in an unjustified war.

Court martial proceedings for desertion against Joe begin on  
Monday 3 August.

HOW TO SUPPORT JOE:  
Email messages of support to   
A petition to collect signatures is available here:  
http://bit.ly/10gDKb

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3) WILL THE IRAQ INQUIRY BE YET ANOTHER WHITEWASH?

Stop the War Coalition has written to Sir John Chilcot, chair
of the panel for the Iraq inquiry, requesting that we be given
the opportunity to present evidence and to propose expert  
witnesses. We await his reply.

Chilcot promises the inquiry will be 'as open as possible',  
but will it be open enough to allow testimony and evidence to
be heard from Stop the War Coalition, the principal  
organisation leading the opposition to the war before it was  
begun in 2003 and to the subsequent occupation of Iraq. SEE  
http://bit.ly/18Xo8o

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4) FILM: PALESTINE'S HISTORY OF DISPOSSESSION AND OCCUPATION

How could the ruthless expropriation of an entire people  
happen? In a short film, John Rees, a national officer of Stop
the War, presents the history of how the state of Israel was  
born out of terror, war, conquest and the dispossession of the
Palestinian people.  
SEE THE 20 MINUTE FILM HERE: http://bit.ly/4AaVhg

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5)  STOP THE WAR IN THE MEDIA

The last few weeks have seen Stop the War gaining widespread  
coverage in the broadcast and print media, where we have been
featured on all the major networks and in the national press,
particularly on the issue of Afghanistan.

Our views on the Afghan war have been reported more widely  
than at any time since the invasion in 2001, now that the  
reality of the unwinnable war has forced itself into the  
headlines. Our involvement in the visit of Afghan MP Malalai  
Joya and our support for serving soldier Joe Glenton's in his
refusal to return to Afghanistan have received widespread  
coverage. Here are a few examples:

BBC NEWS  
* Soldier takes war protest to PM: http://bit.ly/p1dXg
* Afghan woman MP lists 'enemies': http://bit.ly/yHz3y

BBC RADIO 4: THE MORAL MAZE  
Stop the War's John Rees is interrogated on whether there is a
moral case for the war in Afghanistan: http://bit.ly/19gfhn

SKY NEWS  
* Interview with soldier Joe Glenton on why he won't return to
Afghanistan: http://bit.ly/PBPAc

MIRROR
*Afghanistan deaths: Is it still worth it? Stop the War's  
Lindsey German debates with government minister Bill Rammell:
http://bit.ly/fynji

DAILY MAIL  
Afghan veteran who deserted the Army marches on Downing  
Street: http://bit.ly/ZUj5z

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6) ANTI-WAR SONG OF THE WEEK

A very popular feature of Stop the War's website is our  
anti-war song of the week. This week's song is Oliver's Army  
by Elvis Costello: http://bit.ly/3xKfWU.

To see the full list of the series so far and to hear past  
selections, go here: http://bit.ly/nsHxo

We welcome suggestions for future anti-war songs of the week,
but please note that they need to be by well known artists.  
Much as we would like to, we simply don't have the time or  
resources to listen to songs by new bands or singers.

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7) OVER 100 A WEEK JOINING STOP THE WAR ON TWITTER

In little over two months, at a rate of over 100 a week, close
to 1200 people have chosen to follow Stop the War on Twitter.
If you would like to join them, go here to sign up:  
http://twitter.com/STWuk