News
International Middle East Media Center
Israeli minister cancels trip to weapons fair in France after French activists threaten lawsuit
IMEMC – 13 Jun 2010 – Ehud Barak, the Israeli Defense Minister, canceled a trip to an arms trading fair in France at the last minute, after French survivors of the Israeli attack on a humanitarian aid mission two weeks ago said they plan to file a lawsuit against the state of Israel for war crimes.
`They said crying at Al-Aqsa was incitement`
6/13/2010 – Jerusalem – Ma’an – Head of the Jerusalem Prisoners Society was summoned by Israeli police on Sunday, where he was threatened with deportation from the city, and answered questions around an alleged incitement infraction incurred the week earlier. The local leader, Naser Qous, had lead a visitors trip of Palestinian youth from the diaspora on a tour….
Prisoners barred from sitting exams, group says
6/13/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – The Israeli Prison Service is barring Palestinian prisoners from sitting the Palestinian and Jordanian high school matriculation exams, known as the tawjihi, for the third consecutive year, a detainees’ society said Sunday. The Palestinian Committee for Prisoners’ Defense said the move by the IPS was to exert pressure on the captors of Israeli….
Israel plans second dig in ancient Muslim graveyard
6/13/2010 – By Jonathan CookJerusalem – Israeli authorities pressed ahead with plans to build a courthouse complex on a large historic Muslim cemetery in Jerusalem, an area already at the center of protest over plans to locate a Museum of Tolerance at the same site. The proposed courthouse was expected to provoke stiff opposition, especially from Islamic groups….
Report: Israel’s Barak cancels France visit over flotilla raid
6/13/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak canceled an official visit to Paris on Sunday, after French Freedom Flotilla passengers threatened to file suit against the minister over a deadly raid that killed nine, Israeli media reported. Barak was due to attend the international military exhibition, Eurosatory, with Israel’s Defense Ministry, but excused himself….
Report: 5 Israeli civilians infiltrate Nablus tomb
6/13/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Israeli forces detained five civilians who infiltrated Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus without authorization, Israeli media reported on Sunday. According to Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, those detained were removed from the site and transferred to police custody for questioning. It is unclear if the Israeli civilians were residents of one the numerous adjacent….
Arab League chief arrives in Gaza
6/13/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa arrived in Gaza on Sunday morning via the Rafah crossing, where he will be received by Gaza government officials for a 12-hour visit. A Gaza government spokesman said Moussa will visit the Samouni and Ad-Daya families, who lost dozens of relatives during Israel’s Operation Cast Lead in….
Fayyad in the Galilee: We won’t be hostages
6/13/2010 – Ramallah – Ma’an – Ramallah government Prime Minister Salam Fayyad attended the inauguration of the Mahmoud Darwish Foundation for Creativity in the Kafr Yasif village, northern Israel on Saturday, delivering an address for the celebration.”From the Darwish platform, I hereby assert that we will not be hostages to Israeli choices of either siege or separation,” the….
Moussa makes no promises for Gaza
6/13/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Arab states will hold a meeting at the beginning of October nail down a stance on proximity talks between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators, and examine the “seriousness” of the efforts, Secretary-General of the Arab League Amer Mousa said Sunday. The words indicated a shift in focus from what Moussa announced on his entrance….
Haniyeh wishes Algeria good luck in World Cup
6/13/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Gaza government Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh wished the Algerian football team good luck on Saturday, during a reception for a delayed Algerian aid convoy’s arrival in Gaza.”We are all fans of the Algerian team, which represents the Arab people in the World Cup. I will watch the match as its fans promised….
Palestinian hospitals to see ’technological revolution’
6/13/2010 – Nablus – Ma’an – Palestinian hospitals will undergo a “technological revolution” providing better services to patients, Palestinian Authority Minister of Health Fathi Abu Moghli said Sunday. A series of innovations followed the ratification of an agreement between the PA and USAID, a statement said, which aimed at compiling a central and comprehensive database for Palestinian hospitals. The….
Qrei’a slams deportation of Jerusalem lawmakers
6/13/2010 – Jerusalem – Ma’an – PLO chief of Jerusalem affairs Ahmad Qrei’a denounced Israel’s recent decision to deport four Jerusalemite lawmakers because of their affiliation to Hamas, a statement read Sunday.”Israel continues with its policy of ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians in Jerusalem by expelling them from their city. These systematic and oppressive acts are a violation….
Critics call Moussa visit too little too late
6/13/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa’s visit “came too late,” one Gaza analyst said, while others said it undermined the whole league but aligning the body with humanitarian missions recently attacked by Israel. Citing a perceived decline in the political weight of Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan following his choice words to Israel following the….
Report: Israel promises foreign input into flotilla probe
6/13/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Israel’s vice premier Dan Meridor told the daily Turkish newspaper Haberturk that international participation would be sought in the military’s internal probe into the slaying of nine activists aboard a ship bound for Gaza. The interview, published on Sunday, reiterated earlier statements from Israeli officials around the promise of a probe, but….
PA denies report Abbas maintaining Gaza siege
6/13/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an -President Mahmoud Abbas ask his US counterpart for a continuation of Gaza’s blockade, presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudaineh told reporters on Sunday.”President Abbas had raised the issue of the necessity of lifting the blockade as a matter on a par with the fate of the peace process,” Abu Rudaineh told the Palestinian….
Israel appoints Gaza flotilla probe
AlJazeera 13 Jun 2010 – PM’s office rejects UN calls for international investigation into aid flotilla raid.
Arab League demands Gaza siege end
AlJazeera 13 Jun 2010 – Amr Moussa begins first visit to territory since Israel imposed its blockade in 2006.
‘Beyond The Sun’ Film Premiere — First Production Of ‘Turning Point’ Project
PNN – Ramallah – PNN — The Palestinian film ‘Beyond the Sun’ — the first film production of the ‘Turning Point’ project was screened for the first time to the public, in al-Kasaba theater…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Weekly Report on Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (03— 09 June 2010)
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Analysis: Was Mabhouh worth it?
Jeruslalem Post 14 Jun 2010 – Israel is facing a crisis with its closest EU allies: Poland and Germany.
Israel, Poland mum about ‚ÄòMossad arrest’
Jeruslalem Post 14 Jun 2010 – Emirate’s police chief asks that Israeli be punished in Germany.
40 countries at J’lem Shoah conference
Jeruslalem Post 14 Jun 2010 – Turkish delegation backs out following raid on Gaza flotilla.
40 countries attend J’lem Shoah conference
Jeruslalem Post 14 Jun 2010 – Turkish delegation backs out following raid on Gaza flotilla.
IDF probe considers Turkey intel needs
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – “No agency currently collects intelligence on terrorists in Turkey.”
IDF probe to consider intel gathering needs
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – “No agency currently collects intelligence on terrorists in Turkey.”
Israel yet to divest from Iran
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 РSteinitz now implementing ‘08 law against firms engaged in Teheran.
Despite law, Israel yet to divest from Iran
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 РSteinitz only now implementing ‘08 law against companies doing major business with Teheran
Hamas hopes blockade end in sight
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – Arab League head in Gaza: Reconstruction can’t take place under siege.
‘Don’t undo blockade, it weakens Hamas’
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – Israel tells EU FMs: Group’s grip on Gaza loosening under embargo.
Ashkenazi: Flotilla meant to de-legitimize Israel
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – IDF Chef of Staff speaks at ceremony honoring injured soldiers.
Senior IDF officers to be investigated
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – Brigade commanders suspected of permitting violence with Palestinians.
Barak cancels trip to Paris show
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – Needs to prepare for inquiry; Ayalon calls for Barak’s resignation.
Moussa begins visit to Gaza
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – Arab League head to reach out to Hamas leaders in face of blockade.
Egypt closes Gaza to Algerian aid
Jeruslalem Post 13 Jun 2010 – Despite the Egyptian announcement of an open border, aid not allowed in.
International Solidarity Movement
Palestinian activist faces prison sentence
6/13/2010 – International Solidarity Movement – Amnesty International – Amnesty International has urged an Israeli military court not to convict a Palestinian non-violent activist who has been detained since last July, after he took part in a protest against the Israeli built fence/wall on Palestinian land. Adeeb Abu Rahma has been charged with “being present in a declared military zone”, “incitement” and “activity against public order”. There is a real concern that the Ofer Military Court in the Israeli-occupied West Bank will convict him on Sunday. “A guilty verdict would set a worrying precedent for other activists charged and awaiting trial, as Adeeb Abu Rahma would be the first activist against the fence/wall to be brought to a full evidential trial in a case of this kind,” said Amnesty International. Related:Source: Amnesty International
Wheat harvest met with live ammunition in Gaza ‘buffer zone’
6/13/2010 – International Solidarity Movement – Israeli forces attacked women farmworkers and international human rights activists with heavy gunfire during three days’ wheat harvest in the southern Gaza Strip. The Israel-imposed “buffer zone” illegally claims over 30% of Gaza’s arable farmland. In Khoza’a village, east of Khan Yunis, substantial wheat remains unharvested despite severe poverty and food shortages, as a result….
Court sentences man convicted of sexual abuse to 14 years in jail
Ha’aretz – Jerusalem court found Yosef Shunim guilty of sexually abusing 3 girls, daughters of close friends, who were aged 6, 10, and 12 at the time of the offense.
Sect members charged with abusing children to ‘protect them’
Ha’aretz – Leader of the ‘Ithaca’ who allegedly ordered the children be hit to ‘save their souls’ committed suicide in his prison cell days after being arrested.
21-year-old Israeli killed in China bus crash
Ha’aretz – Israeli
woman was traveling with a friend in Chinese Western province Yunnan when bus overturned due to bad weather.
PMO officially announces internal Gaza flotilla raid investigation panel
Ha’aretz – Commission of inquiry to include two foreign observers ‘world renowned in legal, military and human rights fields.’
IDF orders probe of officers condoning violent behavior
Ha’aretz – IDF to probe officer who said the use of violence is not only allowed, but sometimes necessary to prevent escalation of a situation.
IDF Chief: We’re probing Gaza flotilla raid to glean lessons for next time
Ha’aretz – Turkish educators and officials pull out of international Holocaust conference in Jerusalem to protest deadly May 31 raid.
Tony Blair: I hope to see Gaza blockade eased in next few days
Ha’aretz – Blair briefs German minister on situation in Gaza a day before European Union foreign ministers are to meet.
Iran marks first anniversary of disputed elections
Ha’aretz – Revolutionary Guards warn they will clamp down any violent demonstrations as the country’s opposition supporters take to the streets.
Netanyahu: Naval blockade on Gaza will not be lifted
Ha’aretz – Abbas denies Haaretz report that he had asked Obama to prevent the lifting of the naval blockade on Gaza.
Dubai: We won’t seek extradition of suspected Mossad agent held in Poland
Ha’aretz – Uri Brodsky suspected of helping supply fake passports to Mossad team that allegedly killed Hamas man Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai.
Arab League chief visits Gaza for talks with Hamas
Ha’aretz – Arab League Secretary General Chief Amr Moussa is the highest Arab official to visit Gaza since Hamas seized control in 2007.
Netanyahu: Gaza flotilla probe to be headed by former justice
Ha’aretz – Yaakov Tirkel is to head the Israeli investigative committee that will look into the IDF’s takeover of Gaza-bound flotilla, which resulted in nine deaths.
Is Israel losing another ally because of Dubai hit?
Ha’aretz – Poland feels caught between Germany and Israel as it considers whether to extradite an alleged Mossad spy arrested in Warsaw earlier this month.
Iran official: Russia obligated to complete S-300 sale
Ha’aretz – Esmail Kowsari tells Mehr news that Iran would develop its own missile defense system in case planned deal falls through due to recent UN sanctions.
IDF chief was not in command during onset of Gaza flotilla raid
Ha’aretz – Gabi Ashkenazi, as well as his second in command, did not arrive at the army’s command center until after the takeover had taken a violent turn.
Report: Suspected Mossad agent arrested in Poland over Dubai assassination
Ha’aretz – Uri Brodsky arrested in Warsaw for allegedly obtaining forged German passport involved in Hamas strongman hit, AFP reports; Foreign ministry confirms Israeli citizen arrested in Poland.
Arab League chief: Gaza siege must be broken
13 Jun 2010 – Rafah, June 13, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) — Arab League chief Amr Moussa said during his first-ever visit to the Gaza Strip on Sunday that a four-year siege on the Gaza Strip must be broken. “This blockade which we are all here to confront must be broken and the position of the Arab League is clear,” Moussa said after Palestinian officials…
Israel raids Hebron, no reported detentions
13 Jun 2010 – Hebron, June 13, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) — Israeli occupation forces (IOF) raided Sunday the city of the West Bank of Hebron, no detentions were reported. Security sources said to SAFA news agency that Israeli forces supported with military vehicles raided the neighborhoods of Hebron and roamed the streets. The IOF roamed the neighborhoods which triggered the citizens’ fear. Also, IOF…
Israel prevents prisoners from sitting secondary school exams
13 Jun 2010 – Palestine, June 13, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) — The Israeli Prison Service is preventing Palestinian prisoners from sitting the high school exams, known as the tawjihi, for the third year in a row. Riayd Al-Ashqar, the spokesman for the Palestinian Committee for Prisoners’ Defense, said that the Israeli Prison Service prevented in 2009 more than 1800 detainee from sitting the high…
Three Palestinians including pregnant woman wounded by Zionist settlers
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – Three Palestinians were left with bruises and wounds on Sunday morning in clashes which took place between extremist Zionist settlers and the residents of a village east of Yatta of Al-Khalil district. Local sources in Yatta said that a large number of settlers have attacked the village, broken into homes, and assaulted local village residents….
Italian flotilla journalist: My credit card was used after IDF confiscated it
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – An Italian journalist who was detained by the Israel Defense Forces following the raid on the Gaza-bound flotilla says his credit card was used to purchase items after it was confiscated by the Israeli authorities. Manolo Luppichini was aboard the Sfintoni-8000, one of the smaller boats in the flotilla, when the naval commandos took it…
Video: CONFIRMED Israeli soldiers used suppressed Uzi Sub-Machine Guns
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – Analysis on BBC’s Newsnight (2010/06/01) shows that the
IDF boarded carrying suppressed (silenced) versions of Uzi submachine guns. This clearly gives credence to the view that the Israelis attacked with lethal intent…
Israeli minister cancels trip to weapons fair in France after French activists threaten lawsuit
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – Ehud Barak, the Israeli Defense Minister, canceled a trip to an arms trading fair in France at the last minute, after French survivors of the Israeli attack on a humanitarian aid mission two weeks ago said they plan to file a lawsuit against the state of Israel for war crimes. The French humanitarian aid activists…
`They said crying at Al-Aqsa was incitement`
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – Head of the Jerusalem Prisoners Society was summoned by Israeli police on Sunday, where he was threatened with deportation from the city, and answered questions around an alleged incitement infraction incurred the week earlier. The local leader, Naser Qous, had lead a visitors trip of Palestinian youth from the diaspora on a tour of Jerusalem,…
Following the Gaza Attack, Swedish Dockworkers Decide to Block Israeli Ships
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – As a gesture to protest the attack on the aid-flotilla that was headed for Gaza, the Dockworkers of Sweden have now collectively decided to launch a blockade that will last for a week. This purpose of this will be to block Israeli ships and goods that are headed towards the Nordic nation. Nine of the…
HRANA: Over 900 People Arrested in Tehran on June 12
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – According to Human Right Activists News Agency (HRANA), Over 900 people were arrested on the one year anniversary of protests against the fraudulent Iranian Presidential election. According to HRANA reporters, at least 300 of the detainees are women and their families are unaware of their situation. Security forces prevented gatherings by families of the detainees…
Video reveals European, American weapons used in Israeli attack on Gaza Flotilla
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – On Friday 11 June, the Cultures of Resistance Foundation (CoR) released a full hour of video taken aboard the Mavi Marmara before and during the Israeli assault on the ship in the early hours of 31 May in the international waters of the Mediterranean Sea about 80 miles west of the coast of Israel. At…
In his own words: Abbas NOT calling for unconditional lifting of Gaza blockade
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – After Israel’s Gaza flotilla massacre, the Abbas Palestinian Authority (PA) in Ramallah has been claiming that it is calling for “unconditional lifting” of the blockade of Gaza. This is in order to jump on the anti-siege bandwagon, and to conceal the PA’s embarrassment about the fact that it has long effectively supported the blockade, along…
Egypt torture, kill Internet user
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – On Sunday, June 6 at 11.30 p.m., young Khaled Said, 28 years old, from Alexandria was in a internet caf?© in the district of Cleopatra when a group of police informers entered the caf?© and started inquiring about the internet users. When they reached Khaled they tried to search him, he refused and asked for…
Israeli Embassy in Poland Intervened to Protect a German Mossad Agent
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – Israel indirectly admitted the responsibility of “Mossad” for the assassination of Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Mabhouh last January 20 2010 in the Al-Bustan Rotana hotel in Dubai. Israel’s indirect admission of the crime was revealed during the interference of the representative of Israel in Poland, ambassador Zvi Rav-Ner, who demanded that the polish government should not…
Netanyahu: Naval blockade on Gaza will not be lifted
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a meeting of Likud ministers on Sunday that he supports easing the three-year blockade Israel has imposed on the Gaza Strip, but that he would not approve the lifting of the naval blockade on the Hamas-ruled territory. With this declaration, Netanyahu rejected the proposal made by the foreign ministers…
Siege takes toll on Gaza children
Uruknet June 13, 2010 – International pressure has been mounting on Israel to lift its blockade of Gaza since the deadly raid on an aid flotilla bound for the Palestinian territory. The UN has said 80 per cent of people there depend on food hand-outs. But Israeli officials insist that there is no humanitarian crisis in the enclave. UN aid…
Shameless stonewalling
Uruknet June 12, 2010 – Undeterred by international criticism over its bloody raid on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla in international waters in the Eastern Mediterranean on 31 May, the Israeli government has rejected calls for an independent, neutral and third party investigation into the “Flotilla massacre”. Instead, Israeli leaders said the Jewish state might conduct its own “internal investigation” aided…
Recalling the anti-apartheid spirit
Uruknet June 12, 2010 – Israel has worked hard to defeat the purpose of the Freedom Flotilla that sought to break the four-year-old Israeli stranglehold on 1.5 million suffering Palestinians in Gaza. Despite international public outrage, Israeli policy, endorsed by the US, is tantamount to tightening the Gaza siege by intercepting all humanitarian aid shipments to it in international waters…
The boats are coming
Uruknet June 12, 2010 – I grew up by the Gaza Sea. Through my childhood, I could never quite comprehend how such a giant body of water, which promised such endless freedom, could also border on such a tiny and cramped stretch of land, a land that was perpetually held hostage, even as it remained perpetually defiant. From a young…
Schumer’s Sippenhaftung and the Children of Gaza
Uruknet June 12, 2010 – “Gaza” is an abstraction to most Israelis, including [partisans of Israel like] Sen. Charles Schumer of New York. A majority of the 1.5 million Gazans is not even from Gaza, but rather is from what is now Israel. Americans do not know, and perhaps do not care, that 68% of Gazans are refugees living in…
Child Hospitalized After Being Attacked By Israeli Soldiers in Hebron
Uruknet June 12, 2010 – Palestinian medical sources in Hebron, in the southern part of the West Bank, reported on Saturday evening that a 10-year-old child was hospitalized after being violently attacked and beaten by Israeli soldiers. The child, Gandhi Nidal Al Oweywy, 10, suffered concussions and bruises to several parts of his body. His father told the Maan News…
Who is Afraid of a real Inquiry?
U
ruknet June 12, 2010 – If a real Commission of Inquiry had been set up (instead of the pathetic excuse for a commission), here are some of the questions it should have addressed: 1. What is the real aim of the Gaza Strip blockade? 2. If the aim is to prevent the flow of arms into the Strip, why are…
Jerusalem : New threat to Muslim cemetery
Uruknet June 12, 2010 – Israeli authorities are pressing ahead with plans to build a courthouse complex on a large historic Muslim cemetery in Jerusalem that is already at the centre of protest over plans to locate a museum there. The proposed courthouse is expected to provoke stiff opposition, especially from Islamic groups, after it was revealed that an excavation…
Anger on the streets of Cairo
The National 13 Jun 2010 – More than 100 people gathered near Egypt’s ministry of interior building to protest the alleged murder of a 28-year-old man.
Aid ships wait for Gaza go-ahead
The National 13 Jun 2010 – With Iran keen to bolster its credentials as champion of the Palestinian cause, its Red Crescent vessels are to set sail and challenge the Israeli blockade.
Israeli Minister of Defence Cancels Trip Due to Possible International Charges for Role in Attack on Freedom Flotilla
Alternative Information Center – Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak canceled an official visit to Paris on Sunday (13 June), announcing he would stay in Israel while the government establishes an investigative committee to explore Israel’s…
Israeli Soldiers Shoot, Kill Palestinian in East Jerusalem Neighbourhood of Wadi al-Joz
Alternative Information Center – Residents of Wadi al-Joz were still in shock Friday evening (11 June) after a Palestinian man was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers in the East Jerusalem neighborhood earlier that day. “I was inside and then…
Barak Staying out of France because of Flotilla
WAFA – TEL AVIV, June 13, 2010 (WAFA)- Israeli Security Minister Ehud Barak unexpectedly announced Sunday morning that he will not be traveling to Paris for the international military exhibition,
Ayalon: We won’t Apologize for Flotilla Raid
WAFA – TEL AVIV, June 13, 2010 (WAFA)- Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon told CNN that Israel should not and would not apologize for the IDF raid on the Gaza-bound flotilla, Ynet reported.
Netanyahu: Naval Blockade on Gaza will not be Lifted
WAFA – TEL AVIV, June 13, 2010 (WAFA)- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a meeting of Likud ministers on Sunday that he supports easing the three-year blockade Israel has imposed on the
Abbas Asked Obama for Lifting Gaza Siege
WAFA – PARIS, June 13, 2010 (WAFA)-Presidency Spokesperson Nabil Abu Rdeina denied on Sunday reports in the Israeli daily Haaretz saying that President Mahmoud Abbas told U.S. President Barack Obama during
Moussa visits Gaza Strip, calls for lifting Israel’s siege
Daily Star 13 Jun 2010 GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip: The Arab world’s top diplomat declared support Sunday for the people of blockaded Gaza in his first visit to the Palestinian territory since Hamas seized control of it three years ago. The…
Israeli ministers want ‘Mossad agent’ in Poland sent home
Daily Star 13 Jun 2010 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: An Israeli man arrested in Poland who is believed to be a Mossad agent linked to the January killing of a Hamas chief in Dubai must be brought home and not extradited to Germany,…
Israel PM: Gaza policy talks under way
Daily Star 13 Jun 2010 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he was engaged in discussions on ways to meet Gaza’s humanitarian needs while preventing the entry of arms into the Hamas-run coastal strip. Netanyahu told reporters at…
Iran regime backers besiege opposition leader in Qom
Daily Star 13 Jun 2010 TEHRAN: Iran’s opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi was surrounded by regime supporters in the house of a senior cleric in the Shiite holy city of Qom on Sunday, following a quiet one-year anniversary of Iran’s disputed election…
Tallying Gaza’s offshore fiasco
Daily Star 13 Jun 2010 After this month’s confrontation between Israeli troops and an aid ship bound for Gaza that resulted in the deaths of nine activists, Israel’s ability to control access to the 64-by-16 kilometer enclave off of the Gaza…
Saudis deny helping Israel bomb Iran
Daily Star 13 Jun 2010 LONDON: Saudi Arabia rejected media allegations it had agreed to allow Israeli warplanes to use its airspace to raid Iran’s nuclear facilities, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Saturday. Saudi Arabia rejects “the violation…
White House backs Israeli internal inquiry into Gaza flotilla deaths
The Guardian 13 Jun 2010 – Trimble to be among two foreign observers on inquiry panel – Spain, France, Italy and UK lead EU pressure for blockade end Israel last night flouted pressure for an independent international inquiry into the lethal…
OPT: Gazaclosure – not another year!
Relief Web 13 Jun 2010 – Source: ICRC
Israel to set up own inquiry into Gaza ship raid
Relief Web 13 Jun 2010 – Source: Reuters – AlertNet
Arab League chief visits Gaza Strip
Relief Web 13 Jun 2010 – Source: Reuters – AlertNet
Investigation into IDF officers who supported beating of Palestinians
YNet News – Probe ordered into former commanders of Kfir Brigade, Shimshon regiment; case….
Meridor to Turks: Gaza inquiry will have international input
YNet News – Vice premier tells Turkish newspaper commission probing flotilla raid to include….
State to form new Gaza policy
YNet News – Minister Katz to outline new plan for transfer of goods to Strip, including more….
Makhoul: Arab’s every move seen as security offense
YNet News – At start of Hezbollah spy case, defendant Ameer Makhoul says, ‘Everything an….
Barak staying out of France because of flotilla
YNet News – Defense Ministry reports that Barak will remain in Israel until team of experts….
Ministers want Mabhouh suspect in Israel
YNet News – Tourism minister suggests Israel use relations with Poland to fight Uri….
2.5 acres of natural woodland burned
YNet News – An extensive fire broke out Sunday in the forest between Kibbutz Ramat Rahel and Jerusalem’s Armon Hanatziv neighborhood. Eight teams of firefighters were called to the …….
Iran says it has dismantled terrorist group
YNet News – Iran’s official news agency says the country’s intelligence service has dismantled a terrorist network that killed at least four people and wounded several others in …….
Egyptian FM: Positive change in Gaza imminent
YNet News – Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Sunday that Cairo is holding contacts with elements in the international arena, including Israel in an effort to lift the …….
Ayalon to CNN: We won’t apologize for flotilla raid
YNet News – WASHINGTON – Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon told CNN that Israel should not and would not apologize for the IDF raid on the Gaza-bound flotilla. During a …….
Palestinian Information Center
Sheikh Salhab: IOA decision to Judaize Buraq Square in Jerusalem a conspiracy
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Sheikh Abdul Azim Salhab, President of the Council of the Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem, confirmed that Israel’s plans to Judaize the city of Jerusalem are being implemented rapidly.
Barhoum asks Abbas to prove falsity of Hebrew report, send aid to Gaza
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, urged Mahmoud Abbas, the former PA chief, to prove falsity of a Hebrew press report and to personally lead an aid shipment to Gaza Strip.
Mousa exchanges views with Haneyya on siege, reconciliation
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Arab League Secretary General Amr Mousa exchanged views with Palestinian premier Ismail Haneyya on Sunday over means of achieving Palestinian national reconciliation and breaking the siege on Gaza.
Barak cancels visit to France for fear of being arrested
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Ehud Barak unexpectedly canceled his visit to France out of fear of being arrested and brought to trial after several French activists announced their intention to prosecute him.
Khudari invites Arab FM to meet in Gaza
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – MP Jamal Al-Khudari has invited the Arab foreign ministers to hold a special session in Gaza Strip that would practically declare an end to the siege on Gaza.
Three Palestinians including pregnant woman wounded by Zionist settlers
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Three Palestinians were left with bruises and wounds on Sunday morning in clashes which took place between Zionist settlers and the residents of a village east of Yatta of Al-Khalil district.
Bardawil: The west made a mistake by not dealing with Hamas
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Senior Hamas official Salah Al-Bardawil stated Saturday that the European demands for ending Gaza siege is recognition that the blockade is unjust and illegal.
Massive demo in Spain against Gaza siege
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Hundreds of people participated in a march in the Spanish capital on Saturday to express their solidarity with the Palestinian people and denounce Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip.
Frie
nds of humanity urges the world to stand against Israel’s apartheid
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – Friends of Humanity called on the world to be inspired by the victory achieved against the defunct apartheid system in South Africa and stand firm against Israel’s apartheid in Palestine.
Iranian aid ships awaiting official approval to sail for Gaza
PIC 13 Jun 2010 – The Iranian Red Crescent society said it is waiting for a green light from the ministry of foreign affairs before its two aid ships sail for the besieged Gaza Strip.
Israel Names Panel to Examine Raid on Gaza Flotilla
New York Times 13 Jun 2010 – The government-appointed commission includes foreign participation in an effort to dampen criticism from abroad and stave off an international inquiry.
Iran Opposition Is Focus of Attacks
New York Times 13 Jun 2010 – Government supporters attacked the car of a moderate Iranian opposition leader and surrounded the home of a senior cleric on Sunday, the opposition Kaleme Web site reported.
Gaza, Through Fresh Eyes
New York Times 13 Jun 2010 – While troubled, life in Gaza often has the staggering quality of the very ordinary.
Israeli Minister of Defence Cancels Trip Due to Possible International Charges for Role in Attack on Freedom Flotilla
Alternative Information Center 3 – Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak canceled an official visit to Paris on Sunday (13 June), announcing he would stay in Israel while the government establishes an investigative committee to explore Israel’s…
Israeli Soldiers Shoot, Kill Palestinian in East Jerusalem Neighbourhood of Wadi al-Joz
Alternative Information Center 1 – Residents of Wadi al-Joz were still in shock Friday evening (11 June) after a Palestinian man was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers in the East Jerusalem neighborhood earlier that day. “I was inside and then I heard live shooting. I went outside and I saw…
My brother-in-law was going to pray when he was killed
Mondoweiss – We received a note from “the Jilani family” responding to Adam’s post yesterday on the killing of Ziad Jilani, a 41-year-old tradesman and father, on Friday night : I am writing to you on behalf of my nieces, the daughters of Ziad Jilani, who was killed by…
‚ÄòLA Times’ runs two incisive pieces on the conflict
Mondoweiss – I’ve continually asked for one thing: journalism about the occupation of Palestine that rivals journalism about other outrages. The LA Times has delivered. Read Edmund Sanders’s first few paragraphs from Gaza : Don’t ask Hatem Hajaj whether there’s a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. Four months…
Non-violence is not a principle, it is a tactic
Mondoweiss – Max Ajl, who blogs at Jewbonics , responds to Matthew Taylor’s post urging non-violence in the wake of the flotilla raid: I thought the latest post by Matthew Taylor was out of touch. I have news for him: violence works. Violence pushed Israel out of southern Lebanon,…
A father, 41, is killed at a Jerusalem checkpoint. Now whose story should you believe?
Mondoweiss – Haaretz reports in their article ” Palestinian killed in suspected East Jerusalem terror attack “: A Palestinian driver was shot and killed in Jerusalem Friday after running over two Israeli border patrolmen, with an apparent intent to kill. The man reportedly hit two the two policemen…
Let’s be clear: We have taken the American left
Mondoweiss – Last week we picked up Jacob Berkman’s report that the Jewish leadership’s inflexible support of the flotilla raid risks alienating the Jewish street, which is “conflicted” about the raid. Yes, because the left now has profound misgivings. This is from a conservative site, Human Events , smart…
Gaza Internal Security Break into Offices of Five NGOs; Confiscate Belongings:Al Mezan Condemns the Assaults, Calls for Respecting the Law
Al Mezan Center for Human Rights –
Flotilla Activists Detained in Israel without Access to Lawyers, Al Mezan Calls for Investigation, Accountability, and End of the Siege of Gaza
Al Mezan Center for Human Rights –
Israel Violently Attacks the Freedom Fleet in International Waters; Al Mezan Calls on International Community to Investigate and Protect Solidarity Activists
Al Mezan Center for Human Rights –
Israel probes Gaza flotilla raid
BBC – Israel sets up an internal inquiry, with two foreign observers, into its deadly raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla last month.
Arab chief meets Hamas in Gaza
BBC – The Arab League chief visits Hamas-held Gaza for the first time, adding to pressure on Israel to lift its blockade.
Articles
Joe Biden: In Israel’s Service
Jeffrey Blankfort, CounterPunch6/11/2010
Poster Boy for “Dual Loyalties”
Israel appears to be in more serious trouble diplomatically than at any time in its history following the botched attack by an “elite” commando squad on the Mavi Marmara in the early morning hours of June 1 that left at least nine dead and scores wounded. Thanks to Al-Jazeera and Iran’s PressTV, whose reporters were aboard the ship, much of the world was able to watch the attack unfold on its TV and computer screens and the result has been an avalanche of outrage and ongoi
ng protests against the Jewish state. Within Israel this has led to finger-pointing and calls for resignations while its hasbara machinery has gone rapidly into damage-control and disinformation mode.
Lest we forget, the first U.S. official to give Israel’s bloody assault a thumbs up sign was Vice President Joe Biden. The former Delaware senator has been a key part of Israel’s hasbara branch, American section, since entering the Senate in 1973 and on the Wednesday following the Israeli attack, he appeared on the Charlie Rose Show where he showed no hesitation in defending Israel’s handling of the raid, something that President Obama had been reluctant to do.
On the following morning, Jerusalem Post Editor David Horvitz speaking for 45 minutes to Congressional staffers and AIPAC members on a conference call praised Biden’s performance. “It is not entirely clear in Israel where America stands,” he said, but “Israel was very pleased with what Joe Biden had to say.”
But isn’t that why Joe was picked for the job? Was it not to get the vote and the money from those Jews who were afraid that Barack Obama —who they suspected of being a closet Muslim—was no true friend of Israel?
Obama picked Biden “who is about as close to the pro-Israel community as any member of either house,” observed MJ Rosenberg, a former AIPAC staffer, on TPM Café, just after Biden’s selection. “Biden is rated 100 per cent by AIPAC …”more..e-mail
Corrie and Dogan: Murdered, American Heroes
Rannie Amiri, CounterPunch6/11/2010
“You [Israel] killed 19-year-old Furkan Dogan brutally. Which faith, which holy book can be an excuse for killing him? … The sixth commandment says, ‚ÄòThou shalt not kill.’ Did you not understand? I’ll say again. I say in English, ‚ÄòYou shall not kill.’ Did you still not understand? So I’ll say to you in your own language. I say in Hebrew, ‚ÄòLo Tirtzakh.’”— Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, 4 June 2010
In the past seven years, two Americans were unjustly, maliciously and violently killed by the Israel “Defense” Forces (IDF). Both had unwittingly given their lives for Gaza, and in the aftermath of their murders, their government forsook them.
Their names were oft-repeated—if not by follow citizens, then by citizens of the world—as Israel’s horrific assault on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla was discussed. These two young, brave individuals were Rachel Corrie and Furkan Dogan.
Rachel Corrie
A 23-year-old hailing from Olympia, Washington, Rachel Corrie took time off from school in 2003 to travel to Palestine and work on a “sister city” project between Olympia and Rafah, Gaza. While there, she joined the peaceful protests and resistance activities of the International Solidarity Movement, a group committed to nonviolently opposing Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land.
On March 16, 2003 (long before Hamas came to power), IDF soldiers were bulldozing homes in the Rafah refugee camp along Gaza’s border with Egypt. Wearing a bright orange fluorescent jacket with megaphone in hand, Corrie courageously placed herself well in front of an armored bulldozer in order to prevent a home’s destruction. The driver did not stop and she was crushed to death.more..e-mail
Israel’s Greatest Loss: Its Moral Imagination
Henry Siegman, Ha’aretz6/11/2010
If a people who so recently experienced such unspeakable inhumanities cannot understand the injustice and suffering its territorial ambitions are inflicting, what hope is there for the rest of us?
Following Israel’s bloody interdiction of the Gaza Flotilla, I called a life-long friend in Israel to inquire about the mood of the country. My friend, an intellectual and a kind and generous man, has nevertheless long sided with Israeli hardliners. Still, I was entirely unprepared for his response. He told me—in a voice trembling with emotion—that the world’s outpouring of condemnation of Israel is reminiscent of the dark period of the Hitler era.
He told me most everyone in Israel felt that way, with the exception of Meretz, a small Israeli pro-peace party. “But for all practical purposes,” he said, “they are Arabs.”
Like me, my friend personally experienced those dark Hitler years, having lived under Nazi occupation, as did so many of Israel’s Jewish citizens. I was therefore stunned by the analogy. He went on to say that the so-called human rights activists on the Turkish ship were in fact terrorists and thugs paid to assault Israeli authorities to provoke an incident that would discredit the Jewish state. The evidence for this, he said, is that many of these activists were found by Israeli authorities to have on them ten thousand dollars, “exactly the same amount!” he exclaimed.
When I managed to get over the shock of that exchange, it struck me that the invocation of the Hitler era was actually a frighteningly apt and searing analogy, although not the one my friend intended. A million and a half civilians have been forced to live in an open-air prison in inhuman conditions for over three years now, but unlike the Hitler years, they are not Jews but Palestinians. Their jailers, incredibly, are survivors of the Holocaust, or their descendants. Of course, the inmates of Gaza are not destined for gas chambers, as the Jews were, but they have been reduced to a debased and hopeless existence.more..e-mail
Disinformation about the Gaza Freedom Flotilla
Palestine Chronicle: 13 Jun 2010 – By Ron Forthofer The Israeli propaganda effort has been really active in spreading disinformation about Israel’s attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. Deflection, distraction and disinformation are used to obfuscate about something that should be straightforward. For example, suppose it were Iran or China instead of Israel that had attacked a flotilla of unarmed ships carrying human rights activists and aid in international waters. Suppose that the attackers killed a number of the passengers, severely beat many more, seized the ships, kidnapped the passengers, stole their possessions, and detained them for days. Wouldn’t things be crystal clear then? There wouldn’t be any questions about the legality of the attack or about the killing of unarmed people. We certainly wouldn’t have questioned defensive measures taken by those being attacked. To cloud this straightforward issue, Israel immediately attempted to control the coverage by kidnapping and holding the human rights activists incommunicado for…more
81 Questions: Who is Afraid of a Real Inquiry?
Palestine Chronicle: 13 Jun 2010 – By Uri Avnery If a real Commission of Inquiry had been set up (instead of the pathetic excuse for a commission), here are some of the questions it should have addressed: 1. What is the real aim of the Gaza Strip blockade? 2. If the aim is to prevent the flow of arms into the Strip, why are only 100 products allowed in (as compared to the more than 12 thousand products in an average Israeli supermarket)? 3. Why is it forbidden to bring in chocolate, toys, writing material, many kinds of fruits and vegetables (and why cinnamon but not coriander)? 4. What is the connection between the decision to forbid the import of construction materials for the replacement or repair of the thousands of buildings destroyed or damaged during the Cast Lead operation and the argument that they may serve Hamas for building bunkers — when more than enough…more
Museum of Tolerance: Round Two
Palestine Chronicle: 13 Jun 2010 – By Jonathan Cook – Jerusalem Israeli authorities are pressing ahead with plans to build a courthouse complex on a large historic Muslim cemetery in Jerusalem that is already at the centre of protest over plans to locate a ‘Museum of Tolerance’ there. The proposed courthouse is expected to provoke stiff opposition, especially from Islamic groups, after it was revealed that an excavation last year for the museum, close by, unearthed as many as 1,500 Muslim graves. Dorit Beinisch, the president of the Supreme Court, who last year expressed reservations about the location of the new courthouse, is reported to have lifted her objections recently. According to Meir Margalit, a Jerusalem city councillor, municipal officials said they had assured the judge that no graves had been discovered at the new site during excavations. However, a spokeswoman for the Israeli antiquities authority, which is responsible for carrying out such digs, said in…more
Palestine — A Poem
Palestine Chronicle: 13 Jun 2010 – By Heathcote Williams Israel is the colostomy bag Of a dying empire, America. It’s emptied out each day onto Gaza. Everyone can then settle down To relax and enjoy A continuous firework show Which costs three billion dollars a year. There are cluster bombs, Thermobaric missiles, Depleted uranium shells, And white phosphorus, All carefully choreographed To light up Palestine’s sky. These novelties are regularly dispatched To a clientele hungry for pyrotechnics From the Pentagon Incendiary Company; Though it has a poor safety record As its products routinely kill Anyone who gets too close. Resenting those who stage this spectacle Of flying limbs, and spurting blood And tiny corpses with napalmed flesh — Gaza residents occasionally Strap home-made fireworks To their own bodies; leave Their open-air torture chamber — This coliseum of exploding sewage — And put on a display for their captors. – This poem was contributed to PalestineChronicle.com.more
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