February, 12 2019, 11:00pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Medea Benjamin | CODEPINK co-founder | medea.benjamin@gmail.com | 415 235 6517
Ariel Gold | CODEPINK national co-director | ariel@codepink.org | 510 599 5330
Activists Arrested During Elliot Abrams Testimony in Congressional Hearing on Venezuela
A group of CODEPINK activists, Ariel Gold, Caroline Debnam and Kei Pritsker, protested today during testimony by U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela Elliot Abrams at the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. The group spoke out against the US-orchestrated coup underway currently in Venezuela, against Elliot Abrams as a witness at the hearhing, and against the possibility of war and US military intervention.
WASHINGTON
A group of CODEPINK activists, Ariel Gold, Caroline Debnam and Kei Pritsker, protested today during testimony by U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela Elliot Abrams at the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. The group spoke out against the US-orchestrated coup underway currently in Venezuela, against Elliot Abrams as a witness at the hearhing, and against the possibility of war and US military intervention.
CODEPINK national co-director Ariel Gold was the first to get arrested. Standing on a chair in the hearing room, she stated to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, "Don't listen to Abrams. We must not go down a path to war. We need you to push for negotiations, not a US-orchestrated coup. No coup in Venezuela."
Caroline Debnam said after her arrested, "Setting up a parallel government with Juan Guaido is illegal, irresponsible and sets Venezuela on a path toward civil war. Instead of exacerbating the tensions, the US should be supporting with efforts of Mexico, Venezuela and the Vatican to mediate the crisis."
Kei Pritsker said, "Look at the history of Eliot Abrams throughout Central America and the Middle East, creating wars, chaos and mayhem on behalf of US corporations. He should be tried for war crimes, not testifying in the US Congress."
CODEPINK is a women-led grassroots organization working to end U.S. wars and militarism, support peace and human rights initiatives, and redirect our tax dollars into healthcare, education, green jobs and other life-affirming programs.
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Muhannad Fadl al-Lili, captain of the Al-Maghazi Services Club and a member of Palestine's national football team, died Thursday from injuries suffered during an Israeli airstrike on his family home in the central Gaza Strip earlier this week, making him the latest of hundreds of Palestinian athletes killed since the start of Israel's genocidal onslaught.
Al-Maghazi Services Club announced al-Lili's death in a Facebook tribute offering condolences to "his family, relatives, friends, and colleagues" and asking "Allah to shower him with his mercy."
The Palestine Football Association (PFA) said that "on Monday, a drone fired a missile at Muhannad's room on the third floor of his house, which led to severe bleeding in the skull."
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The Palestine Chronicle contrasted the worldwide press coverage of the car crash deaths of Portuguese footballer Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva with the media's relative silence following al-Lili's killing.
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The advisory opinion builds on two landmark decisions last year. In April 2024, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the Swiss government violated senior citizens' human rights by refusing to abide by scientists' warnings to rapidly phase out fossil fuel production.
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Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) issued a joint statement condemning the Trump administration's push to approve the project while rushing through environmental impact reviews.
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