November 17, 2023

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on November 16 met with First Secretary at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo Juan Manuel Cammarano in the Diet building and made a request to the U.S. government to work on the Israeli government to stop the indiscriminate bombing of Gaza and work to help achieve an immediate ceasefire.

Explaining the JCP statement “Stop genocide in Gaza - a call on governments concerned to work for a halt to military attacks and an immediate ceasefire in Gaza”, Shii told the U.S. government official that Israeli military attacks on Gaza hospitals are deepening the humanitarian crisis to a “grave risk of genocide”.

Shii said, “For whatever reason, military attacks on hospitals are unacceptable. The U.S. government should criticize Israel’s attacks on hospitals for violating international humanitarian law and persuade the Israeli government to immediately stop targeting hospitals.”

Shii, in regard to a resolution adopted on November 16, Japan time, by the UNSC to demand “urgent and extended humanitarian pauses”, said, “This is the first resolution that the UNSC adopted on the Gaza crisis and is very important.” He added, although the United States abstained from voting, “It needs to abide by the resolution and to call for not only ‘pauses’ but also ‘an immediate ceasefire’.”

The U.S. government official explained the U.S. position on the issue and said, “I will certainly convey your request to Washington.”

Shii said, “Our party respects the tradition of liberty and democracy that the U.S. has nurtured since your declaration of human rights, the first such declaration in human history. As a country with the tradition of liberty and democracy and which has a significant influence on Israel, our party requests that the U.S. government take action which will gain acceptance by the international community.”

JCP Vice Chair Ogata Yasuo and the U.S. Embassy’s First Secretary, Bon Fleming, were also present at the meeting.

Past related article:
> JCP calls on governments concerned to work to stop genocide in Gaza [November 7, 2023]