While we are celebrating the national holiday in memory of Martin Luther King, Nobel Peace Prize winner and humanitarian, a reminder that, besides calling for an end to the US occupation of Iraq, Dr. King would have been appealing for an end to this recent humanitarian nightmare.

As Juan Cole writes, "most Americans will never even know that the Israelis have cut off fuel to Gaza's power plant, depriving tens of thousands of people of electricity. 

"Just a reminder that electricity is life and death for some people. The low is 48 degrees F. tonight; it is cold without electricity. And another reminder that the children of Gaza, who I suspect are 2/3s of the population, haven't done anything wrong, to be punished by this blockade."

According to the BBC, hospitals only have one or two days of emergency reserve power and bakeries cannot produce bread because of this power cut-of.  Meanwhile, UN supplied food aid won't reach 860,000 residents of Gaza because of the blockade.

The BBC also says, "Defence Minister Ehud Barak agreed to ease the curbs for one day, hours after the territory's sole power plant shut down, plunging Gaza City into darkness.

"The EU says Israel is 'collectively punishing' the Hamas-run territory."

Because of the blockade, critically ill people in Gaza cannot get care or obtain needed medication according to this story by Inter Press Service.

Unfortunately, as always, the innocent suffer and die.  As Dr. King reminds us, racism and militarism are always ascendant when profits and property rights are considered more important than people.