News
International Middle East Media Center
10 Protestors Wounded In Bil’in Weekly Protest
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – The Friends of Freedom and Justice (FTJ) in Bil’in, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, reported Friday that at least ten protestors suffered the effects of tear-gas inhalation after Israeli soldiers fired dozens of gas bombs at them during their weekly nonviolent protest.
Soldiers Attack Weekly Protest In Ni’lin
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – As Palestinian residents in Ni’lin village, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, held their weekly nonviolent protest, joined by International peace activists, Israeli soldiers attacked them and fired gas bombs and rubber coated bullets.
Bodies Of Two Palestinians Located Under Tunnel Bombarded By Israel
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip reported on Friday afternoon that the bodies of two Palestinians were located under the rubble of a tunnel that was bombarded by the Israeli army, in Rafah, on Friday at dawn.
Likud Approves Resumption Of Settlement Activities
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – The Likud Party, headed by Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, decided on Thursday evening to resume settlement activities in the occupied territories directly after the declared settlement “freeze” expires on September 26.
Body Of Man Shot Dead on June 11, Exhumed For Forensic Examination
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – The boy of Ziad al-Julani, who was shot and killed by the Israeli army in Jerusalem on June 11, was exhumed, on Thursday after midnight, upon request of his family to perform an autopsy.
PCHR Weekly Report: 7 wounded, 53 abducted by Israeli forces this week
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – In its Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory for the week of 17-23 June 2010, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights found that 7 civilians were wounded — three of these, including a child, were injured during non-violent demonstrations in Bil’in village in the West Bank.
Israeli Air Force Strikes Gaza, Resident Wounded
IMEMC – 25 Jun 2010 – The Israeli Air Force carried out, on Friday at dawn, four air strikes targeting areas in the northern and southern parts of the Gaza Strip; one resident was wounded.
Child Tortured, His Genitals Electrified By Israeli Interrogators
IMEMC – 24 Jun 2010 – Israeli interrogators tortured a Palestinian child who was detained and sent to a detention center close to a settlement near Hebron. The child said that the interrogators used electricity in torturing him by attaching wires to his testicles.
2 bodies pulled from bombed Gaza tunnel
6/25/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Medics pulled two bodies from a Rafah-area tunnel following overnight airstrikes launched by Israeli fighter jets Friday. Officials said the young men were inside the tunnels during the strike and were crushed by falling rock and sand. One was identified by medics as Amer Abu Hadid, 23, while the second remains unnamed. A….
Israel warplanes target 4 sites across Gaza
6/25/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Israeli aircraft bombed four targets in the Gaza Strip before sunrise Friday. No injuries were reported in the attack that came a day after a Palestinian faction launched seven mortar shells into Israeli territory. Two airstrikes in the north and another two in the south caused severe structural damage to buildings in Jabaliya….
Family says Hebron teenager tortured
6/25/2010 – Hebron – Ma’an – A Hebron family living beside the illegal Israeli settlement Kyirat Arba said they were worried for the life of a brother, who they said was tortured last week, and not for the first time. The young man, 19-year-old Saleh Daoud Ar-Rajabi, was reportedly taken by Israeli soldiers on 14 June for several….
MOH: Israel prevents delivery of oxygen to hospitals
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an – Seven oxygen machines donated to the Palestinain Authority by a Norwegian development agency were seized by Israeli officials en route to hospitals in the West Bank and Gaza, the Ramallah-based health ministry said. The machines, the ministry said in a Thursday statement, were confiscated by Israeli officials who claimed that the generators attached….
3 hurt at Bethlehem demonstration
6/26/2010 – Bethlehem – Three protestors were injured in the weekly demonstration in Al-Mas’ara, near Bethlehem, after clashes broke out between protesters and Israeli forces at the entrance of the illegal settlement of Efrat on Friday. Protest organizer Mohammad Bergiasaid that “this rally was carried out in solidarity with Jerusalem’s lawmakers and to reject the Israeli policy that….
1 hurt at West Bank protest
6/25/2010 – Ramallah – Ma’an – A Palestinian man was lightly injured in the West Bank on Friday when Israeli forces opened fire at a crowd of demonstrators, activists said. Radwan Yasin, 50, was struck by a tear-gas canister fired at the crowd, which gathered to protest Israel’s wall being built on village land in Bil’in, which is near….
Gaza crossings closed, but imports rise marginally
6/25/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – Israel has informed Palestinianofficials that all Gaza’s crossings will be closed Friday and Saturday. The terminals are usually closed on Saturdays and have not opened on Fridays since June 2009 apart from one exceptional fuel delivery. Palestinian crossings official Raed Fattouh said he was informed that a few of the crossings would be….
Child dead after families clash in central Gaza
6/25/2010 – Gaza – Ma’an – A child was killed and a second was injured during a family clash in central Gaza’s An-Nusierat refugee camp on Thursday. Medical sources at Al-Aqsa Hospital said the child, identified by the initials AL, was eight years old and sustained gunshot wounds, while a second child was admitted to Gaza City’s Ash-Shifa Hospital….
Abbas meets lawmakers facing expulsion
6/25/2010 – Ramallah – Ma’an – President Mahmoud Abbas met Friday with four Palestinian parliament members facing expulsion from Jerusalem.”We are following up on this issue with sincerity and sensitivity considering its significance,” Abbas says in Ramallah.”We cannot stand idly by while people are expelled from their homeland, which we consider a crime.”The Palestinian Authority has….
Israel army arrests Jenin brothers
6/25/2010 – Jenin – Ma’an – Israel’s army on Friday arrested two brothers from the town of Qabatia, south of the West Bank city of Jenin. Security sources told Ma’an that “Israeli forces raided Qabatia and arrested brothers Abed Al-Karim Helmi Mohammad Kamil A’lawneh, 20, and his brother Ibrahim, 30, after breaking into their homes in the town….
3 detained south of Nablus
6/25/2010 – Nablus – Ma’an – Israel’s army arrested three young Palestinians including a school teacher south of the West Bank city of Nablus on Friday. Fawzi Shehada, head of the U’rif village, told Ma’an that “Israeli military jeeps raided the village at 1:00 a. m. and arrested three young men after breaking into their homes and carrying….
Captors firm 4 years since Shalit operation
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an – Four years after the capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, the Palestinian resistance remains insistent on the conditions of his release, Hamas leader Mahmoud Az-Zahhar said Friday. Speaking in Hebrew on the anniversary of Shalit’s capture, Az-Zahhar told Israel Radio that prisoner swap talks have reached a stalemate, as German middleman Gerhard Conrad….
Reports: Iranian ship may depart from Turkey
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Citing unnamed organizers, Israeli media reported Friday that Iran will not send ships to Gaza in an effort to break the continued siege on Gaza. US-based CNN released a report with a Tehran dateline, saying the official news agency of Iran released a statement to the same effect, quoting Hussein Sheikh Al-Islam….
Report: Lieberman invites Italy FM to Gaza
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has invited his Italian counterpart to head a delegation of European diplomats to the Gaza Strip, Israel’s Channel Two news reported Thursday. According to the report quoted by the Israeli daily Haaretz, Lieberman suggested that Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini and others also invest in Gaza’s infrastructure….
Holland follows US in UNRWA contribution
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an – Bumping up its financial support by 5 million Euro, Holland was the latest nation to respond to UNRWA’s emergency appeal to cover a 1. 6 million dollar shortfall. The contribution, a statement from Dutch officials said on Friday, would go to the general fund, going toward food, health care and education for Palestinian….
Hamas: 19 members detained by PA forces
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an – Palestinian Authority police and security officers detained 19 Hamas members and affiliates from five West Bank governorates, a statement from the party said Friday. Hamas officials said members were arrested for political reasons, and detained from Bethlehem, Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarem, Qalqiliya and Ramallah. A lull in statements, none of which could be confirmed….
PCBS: Solar energy consumption up 2%
6/25/2010 – Bethlehem – Ma’an – As of January 2010, 99. 9% of Palestinians were connected to the public energy network, a survey from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said. The survey, which took place between 21 February and 1 March 2010, found the lowest lowest number of homes were connected in the south of Hebron, with 99….
Lebanon arrests Palestinian accused of spying for Israel
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Washington — Lebanon arrested on Friday a Palestinian resident accused of being an Israeli informant, AFP News Agency reported . Jonathan Pollard was convicted in a US court of being an Israeli spy collecting US secrets. The…
This light is always red: Closure in Jerusalem’s backyard
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – New York – Inter-Press Service (IPS) published this report on Friday on the village of Sheikh Sa’ad, caught on the seam zone between what Israel defines as East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied West…
Lebanon: Israel stealing off-shore oil
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Washington — A proposed Lebanese bill will accelerate off-shore oil exploration and drilling in Lebanese waters, reported Ynet news Friday. The bill manifests accusations that Israeli rigs are stealing Lebanese oil. The Israeli Leviathan and Tamar…
Occupied Palestine: Good news and bad
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – First the good. On June 22, the International Middle East Media Center reported that the UN Human Rights Council (that established the Goldstone Commission) approved “forming an international committee to probe the deadly Israeli” Flotilla attack,…
Israel policy: Ignorance or cynicism?
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – It is becoming clearer every day that liberals in Congress, with a few exceptions, do not care a whole lot about Israel. (It’s not news that they don’t care a whit about the Palestinians.) Think about…
A call for livable futures
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – What to do when the country I live in totally loses its compass? Totally loses its shame? What to do when the regime that collects my taxes uses them to deploy its high-tech military, armed to…
Blockade ‘eased’ as Gaza starves more slowly
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – As Israel this week declared the “easing” of the four-year blockade of Gaza, an official explained the new guiding principle: “Civilian goods for civilian people.” The severe and apparently arbitrary restrictions on foodstuffs entering the enclave…
Abbas meets with Hamas MPs facing expulsion
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Washington — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas held a rare meeting on Friday with four Palestinians MPs whom Israel plans to throw out of Jerusalem over their affiliation with Hamas. Mohammad Abu Tir is one of four…
Sarkozy: Gaza siege won’t free Shalit
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – New York – French President Nicholas Sarkozy told the parents of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on Friday that the punishment of the Palestinians in Gaza will not help release their son. Nicholas Sarkozy speaks in…
Israeli history books omit Oslo Accords, first Lebanon war
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Washington — Israeli history textbooks make no mention of the first Lebanon War or the Oslo Peace Accords, Haaretz reported Friday. US President Bill Clinton, Israeli PM Yitzhak Rabin, and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat during peace…
Departing Reuters bureau chief sees ‘spreading labyrinth of boundaries’
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – New York – Alastair Macdonald is moving on after three years as the agency’s Jerusalem bureau chief. A Palestinian boy and Israeli soldier appear in front of the Israeli West Bank barrier in August 2004 . [Photo:…
UN: Easing of Gaza blockade not enough
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Washington — Israel’s proclaimed easing this week of the Gaza blockade has so far had marginal effects, according the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian…
Demonstration against East Jerusalem house demolitions
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – New York – At least 500 people held a demonstration in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan on Friday against an Israeli plan that would demolish 22 Palestinian houses in the area. Demonstration in Silwan [Courtesy…
ICRC: Hamas not obliged allow Shalit visits
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – New York – As a non-state actor, Hamas is not obligated under international law to allow representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to visit captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, a senior ICRC…
Iran cancels Gaza aid ship after Israeli threats
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Washington — Iran has canceled an aid ship that was to have set sail for Gaza on Thursday, citing Israeli threats of war, CNN reported Friday. The Mavi Marmara was part of a six-ship flotilla raided…
Israeli airstrikes kill 2 in Gaza
Palestine Note 25 Jun 2010 – Warplanes target Rafah tunnels New York – Israeli airstrikes killed two Palestinians in Gaza, medics told news agencies on Friday. Medics told Reuters they recovered the body of a man from a tunnel in the south…
Mideast night beat: Heat wave edition
Palestine Note 24 Jun 2010 – Today in Palestine, Israel, the broader Middle East, and beyond. These kids know how to beat the heat. [Hoyasmeg – Flickr] Washington – Thursday the US Senate voted 99-0 in favor of a new stringent set…
Deadly Israeli air raid on Gaza
AlJazeera 25 Jun 2010 – Two bodies retrieved following overnight bombing of coastal territory.
Nil’in, In Central West Bank, Protest The Israeli Wall
PNN – Ramallah — PNN – International supporters joined the villagers of Nil’in, central West Bank, and protest the Israeli wall on Friday. Villagers conducted the Friday midday prayers at lands the army is…
Israeli Troops Suppress 2 Anti Wall Protests Near Bethlehem
PNN – Bethlehem – PNN – Two anti wall protests were organized at the villages of Al Ma’ssara and Wadi Rahal near the southern west Bank city of Bethlehem on Friday. Villagers from Al…
Bil’in: One Injured As Troops Attack Anti Wall Protest
PNN – Ramallah — PNN – A Palestinian man was injured on Friday after being shot by Israeli troops during the weekly nonviolent protest against the wall in Bil’in village central West Bank. Israeli…
Two Killed As Jetfighters Bombard Targets In Gaza
PNN – Gaza — PNN — two Palestinians were killed as Israeli jetfighters bombarded on Friday a number of targets in the Gaza Strip. On Friday at dawn Israeli jetfighters fired three missiles at…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (10-16 June 2010)
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Barak: US wants Israel to take risks
Jeruslalem Post 26 Jun 2010 – Says peace initiatives give Israel more freedom on security issues.
Obama welcomes Iran sanctions
Jeruslalem Post 25 Jun 2010 – Clinton pledges complete implementation of tough new US sanctions.
G8 and G20 summit begins in Canada
Jeruslalem Post 25 Jun 2010 – Economics, security and Iran sanctions will be on the agenda.
‘Lebanon has right to benefit from gas’
Jeruslalem Post 25 Jun 2010 – Beirut parliament speaker urges gov’t to pass “oil expropriation law.”
Assad to start Latin American tour
Jeruslalem Post 25 Jun 2010 – Syrian leader seeks to strengthen int’l image, economic ties.
Report: Israeli spy arrested in Lebanon
Jeruslalem Post 25 Jun 2010 – Lebanese newspaper reports Palestinian suspect caught spying for Israel.
Is the sun setting on the solar energy boom?
Jeruslalem Post 24 Jun 2010 – Israel’s solar energy industry faces ruin.
Finally, a birth control pill for men
Ha’aretz – Research by Bar Ilan University’s Prof. Haim Breitbart on sperm life currently being used in development of breakthrough pill.
Report: Mossad chief Meir Dagan to step down
Ha’aretz – Dagan, who has been Mossad director since 2002, requested another year but was refused, Channel 2 news reported.
Punishing the Palestinian people won’t free Gilad, Sarkozy tells Shalit family
Ha’aretz – In letter to mark Gilad Shalit’s fourth year in captivity, French president condemns Hamas but praises Israel’s move to ease Gaza blockade.
Israelis demonstrate en masse to mark 4 years since Shalit capture
Ha’aretz – Human Rights Watch urges Hamas to give Red Cross access to abducted soldier; Shalit family: We’ll protest in Jerusalem until Gilad is free.
Palestinians: Two killed in IAF Gaza strike
Ha’aretz – Air Force hits two smuggling tunnels in the south and and an arms cache in the north., Human Rights Watch: Hamas violating international law; Hamas: Shalit talks have been frozen…
Lebanon arrests Palestinian suspected of spying for Israel
Ha’aretz – Suspect allegedly aided Israeli intelligence over course of five years, according to Lebanese media report.
U.S. Congress passes tough unilateral sanctions against Iran
Ha’aretz – The Senate and House of Representatives approved in quick succession on Thursday new sanctions targeting Iran’s banking, energy sectors.
‘Lebanon blocking new bid to break Gaza sea blockade’
Ha’aretz – Lebanese media reports Beirut working with Hezbollah to stop boats due to set sail Thursday; Nasrallah also reportedly canceled trip to Istanbul.
Israel still holding passport of British Journalist from Gaza Flotilla
Uruknet June 25, 2010 – A campaign has been launched by the Friends of Al-Aqsa organization for the government to take action to address the theft of yet another British Passport by the Israeli authorities. Al Jazeera journalist Jamal Elshayyal was on board the MV Marmara on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla which was stormed by Israeli soldiers on 31 May….
Occupied Palestine: Good News and Bad
Uruknet June 25, 2010 – First the good. On June 22, the International Middle East Media Center reported that the UN Human Rights Council (that established the Goldstone Commission) approved “forming an international committee to probe the deadly Israeli” Flotilla attack, massacring and injuring dozens of nonviolent activists on board. Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak urged Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to…
UC Irvine’s message: Criticize Israel, get suspended
Uruknet June 25, 2010 – Students across the country are monitoring events at UC Irvine as pro- Israel groups try to reestablish their deterrence capacity on American campuses. After a 4-month-long investigation, UC Irvine’s administration last week announced an unprecedented recommendation to suspend for one year the Muslim Student Union (MSU), a registered campus organization, for its alleged involvement in…
MOH: Israel prevents delivery of oxygen to hospitals
Uruknet June 25, 2010 – Seven oxygen machines donated to the Palestinain Authority by a Norwegian development agency were seized by Israeli officials en route to hospitals in the West Bank and Gaza, the Ramallah-based health ministry said. The machines, the ministry said in a Thursday statement, were confiscated by Israeli officials who claimed that the generators attached “came under…
Two bodies pulled from Gaza tunnel after Israeli strike
Uruknet June 25, 2010 – Medics pulled two bodies from a Rafah-area tunnel following overnight airstrikes launched by Israeli fighter jets Friday. Officials said the young men were inside the tunnels during the strike and were crushed by falling rock and sand. One was identified by medics as Amer Abu Hadid, 23, while the second remains unnamed. A third was…
Lieberman’s “Final Solution”
Uruknet June 25, 2010 – The right wing extremist and Israeli foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, in an article entitled “my blue print for a resolution” and published in the Jerusalem Post on Wednesday called for the expulsion of the remaining Palestinians from the 1948 occupied Palestine. In his article he rejected international calls for an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967…
The Last Keffiyeh Factory In Palestine
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – Originating in ancient Mesopotamia, the Keffiyah was popular among Arab men who used it to protect their face, head, and neck from the elements of nature. The traditional pattern, which is still used today in Palestine and other Arab Nations, was modeled after fishing nets and ears of grain. During the Arab Revolt in the…
PCHR Condemns Continued Detention of Journalists by Security Services in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) condemns the continued detention of Palestinian journalists by members of the security services in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which constitutes a grave violation of the right to freedom of opinion, expression and press, as well as media freedoms, all of which are ensured under the…
Petition: A World United for the Freedom of Humanity…Freedom of Palestine
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – I urge all worldwide citizens who read this petition to please consider signing it to provide a voice for the voiceless Palestinians and to disseminate it as widely as possible urging others to do the same. Thank you for your humanity. This Petition will be presented to the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki- Moon, Members…
Swedish ports boycott ships going to and from Israel
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – The Swedish dockworkers union announced on Wednesday that it will boycott shipments destined for or coming from Israel for one week, in protest against the Israeli attack on the Freedom Flotilla last month. The AFP quoted union spokesman Rolf Axelson as saying that the union has decided to boycott Israeli ships because of the Zionist…
To neutralizeUnlike in the case of their Jewish counterparts, when it comes to offending Arab drivers, the Israeli Border Police would rather kill than arrest.
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – If a policeman had witnessed the hit-and-run accident that took the life of cyclist Shneor Cheshin on Friday, would he have killed the driver after catching him? Of course not. But on Friday, June 11, in broad daylight in the middle of a residential neighborhood, a policeman killed a driver who ran into – but…
Punitive blockade still in force despite Israeli bait and switch
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – As Israel this week declared the “easing” of the four-year blockade of Gaza, an official explained the new guiding principle: “Civilian goods for civilian people.” The severe and apparently arbitrary restrictions on foodstuffs entering the enclave — coriander bad, cinnamon good — will finally end, we are told. Gaza’s 1.5 million inhabitants will have all…
Israelis Keep the Trigger Tight
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – “Where is my daddy? Why is he not coming home? I want my daddy,” sobs seven- year-old Yasmin, her big blue eyes filling with tears. She wakes up crying every night. “My life only began when I met him. I will never meet such a wonderful man again,” Yasmin’s mother Moira Julani tells IPS. While…
Fearing expulsion, Palestinians stay home
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – The Helou family is so worried about getting expelled to Gaza by Israeli authorities that they’re all but trapped in this West Bank town. They couldn’t even leave to get their disabled son the best possible surgery to let him walk. Some 20,000 Palestinians in the West Bank live under the same fear, because they…
FGM Collecting Evidence, Testimonies To Sue Israeli Over Flotilla Attack
Uruknet June 24, 2010 – Members of the Free Gaza Movement are collecting testimonies and evidence by contacting activists who were onboard the Turkish ship that was attacked by the Israeli military while heading to Gaza as part of the Freedom Flotilla humanitarian aid convoy. Member of Free Gaza Movement, Audrey Bomse, stated that testimonies were collected from the passengers…
Egypt’s ElBaradei leads thousands in protest against police
The National 25 Jun 2010 – Alexandria sees the largest demonstration yet over the killing of a man who witnesses say was beaten to death by undercover officers.
Israeli foreign minister wants Palestinians stripped of citizenship and relocated
The National 25 Jun 2010 – Lieberman’s blueprint for a resolution to the conflict demands that most of the country’s large Palestinian minority be moved outside Israel’s future borders.
Civil Society Representatives Discuss European Neighbourhood Policy
WAFA – RAMALLAH, June 25, 2010 (WAFA)- For the first time, the Palestinian Authority and the Office of the European Union Representative held a Joint Consultation with the representatives of the Palestinian
OCHA Weekly Report: 11 Palestinians Injured
WAFA – JERUSALEM. June 25, 2010 (WAFA)- Eleven Palestinians injured throughout the oPt; another Palestinian killed and two others injured in tunnel-related incidents in Gaza, said OCHA in Protection of
EU Continues Annual ‘Study in Europe’ Event at Al Najah University
WAFA – NABLUS, June 25, 2010 (WAFA)- After a successful launch at Gaza city earlier this year the office of the European Union Representative in collaboration with a number of EU Member States continue
Iran sanctions must not hit Russian business – envoy
Daily Star 25 Jun 2010 BRUSSELS: Russia’s cooperation with Europe in the Iranian nuclear standoff could be curbed if unilateral EU sanctions on Tehran hit Russian companies, a top envoy said Friday.Russia’s ambassador to the EU Vladimir Chizhov slammed decisions last…
Iran says Gaza aid ship trip ‘not going to happen’ – report
Daily Star 25 Jun 2010 TEHRAN: Iran has cancelled sending an aid ship to the Gaza Strip which had been scheduled to set sail for the Palestinian territory on Sunday, state news agency IRNA reported.”The trip is not going to happen,”…
Satellite firm cuts Al-Aqsa TV broadcasts to Europe
Daily Star 25 Jun 2010 PARIS: A Gaza-based television station, accused of inciting hatred of Jews and Israel, has had its broadcasts to Europe shut off, Eutelsat satellite firm said on Friday.Paris-based Eutelsat said its client Noorsat, the operator which handles…
US urges Syria to free prominent opposition lawyer
Daily Star 25 Jun 2010 WASHINGTON: The United States called on Syria on Thursday to free a Syrian lawyer who has been honored abroad for defending opposition figures but has been sentenced to three years in prison for “weakening national morale.”…
Thousands in Egypt protest police abuse
Daily Star 25 Jun 2010 ALEXANDRIA: Mohamed ElBaradei, the ex-atomic watchdog chief turned Egyptian dissident, led thousands of protesters in the northern city of Alexandria on Friday demanding an end to police brutality.ElBaradei emerged from the Muslim weekly prayers in Alexandria’s…
The debate within the Jewish state | Antony Lerman
The Guardian 25 Jun 2010 – Recent strident trends in Israeli nationalist ideology mask a more complex and potentially fruitful dialogue on the future of Zionism Israel may show all the signs of being a typical westernised, post-ideological society. But in response…
Israel air raid kills one in Gaza
Relief Web 25 Jun 2010 – Source: Agence France-Presse
OPT: Protection of Civilians Weekly Reports, 16 – 22 June 2010
Relief Web 25 Jun 2010 – Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
World Bank Proposes $55 Million in New Funding for Projects in the West Bank and Gaza
Relief Web 24 Jun 2010 – Source: World Bank
Women prepare for Gaza sail: We won’t fight Israel
YNet News – One of hundreds of female volunteers planning to sail to Hamas-ruled territory….
Miki Goldwasser: Gilad not home because of gov’t
YNet News – Mother of soldier captured and killed by Hezbollah hurls harsh criticism at….
Elena Kagan: Aharon Barak my judicial hero
YNet News – Statement made by Obama’s Supreme Court candidate in favor of retired Israeli….
Body of Palestinian who ran over police to be autopsied
YNet News – Corpse of Ziad Jilani, who injured four policemen in east Jerusalem, exhumed at….
Shalit abductor: Pressure your government
YNet News – As kidnapped soldier begins his fifth year in Hamas captivity, Popular….
Lebanon seeks to approve oil law against Israel
YNet News – Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri says Israel drilling in his country’s….
Palestinians stealing water in West Bank
YNet News – Irregular water supply on IDF bases, settlements near Mount Hebron has become….
IDF strikes in Gaza in response to rocket
YNet News – Air Force planes target weapons warehouse, two smuggling tunnels in Strip; no….
Barak: Clear mines from Israel-US ties
YNet News – Defense minister concludes meetings with senior American officials, calls for….
Shalit family: Pay price before it is too late
YNet News – On Friday, the fourth anniversary of Gilad Shalit’s kidnapping, the IDF soldier’s parents posted two separate videos on YouTube and online social networks in which they …….
Abbas: Expulsion of Hamas MPs from Jerusalem criminal
YNet News – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday met in Ramallah with four senior Hamas figures who are facing expulsion from Jerusalem, the Ma’an News Agency reported. …….
Sarkozy to Noam Shalit: Gaza blockade won’t free Gilad
YNet News – On the fourth anniversary of Gilad Shalit’s kidnapping, French President Nicolas Sarkozy wrote the IDF soldier’s parents a letter saying, “It is wrong to believe that …….
Hamas says asked by US to keep silent on talks
YNet News – A senior Hamas figure said Friday that official and unofficial US sources have asked the Islamist group to refrain from making any statements regarding contacts with …….
Peres to boost Israel’s image in Europe
YNet News – President Shimon Peres is planning to tour Europe in an effort to improve Israel’s image in the aftermath of the May 31 raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla, which left nine …….
Palestinian Information Center
Two Palestinians killed, one wounded in Israeli occupation airstrikes
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – Two Palestinians were killed Friday in an Israeli occupation air strike that targeted tunnels in the southern Gaza Strip district of Rafah at the border between with Egypt.
Friday prayers in solidarity with the Al Salah neighbourhood
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – A large number of worshipers performed the Friday prayers at the neighbourhood of Al Salah to the south of Jerusalem to express solidarity with the residents in face of Judaization schemes.
Human catastrophe looms in Gaza due to electricity shortage
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – The electricity distribution company in Gaza city has warned Thursday of a possible human catastrophe in the populated Gaza Strip if electricity shortage continued..
Egypt’s stubborn stand hinders Palestinian reconciliation efforts
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – An independent delegation of Palestinian figures and high-profile personalities striving hard to achieve Palestinian national reconciliation was shocked by Egypt’s stubborn stand.
Abu Teir warned by occupation to leave Jerusalem before Friday evening
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – The Israeli occupation authority gave an ultimatum to Sheikh Muhammad Abu Teir, member of the PLC to leave Jerusalem by Friday evening or be arrested and expelled from his city.
Abbas’s militia continue to kidnap Hamas supporters
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – Abbas’s Militia continued its campaign against Hamas supporters in the West Bank kidnapping 19 of them in the districts of Bethlehem, Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarem, Qalqilya and Ramallah.
A call to continue with the boycott campaign
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – The NGO network in the Gaza Strip said that it was important to keep the pressure on the Israeli occupation by continuing and widening to the economic, cultural and academic boycotts.
Lieberman’s “Final Solution”
PIC 25 Jun 2010 – The right wing extremist Avigdor Lieberman, in an article published in the Jerusalem Post on Wednesday called for the expulsion of the remaining Palestinians from the 1948 occupied Palestine.
Thousands in Egypt Protest What They Call Torture
New York Times 25 Jun 2010 – Egyptians, joined by the opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei, staged the largest demonstration to date in response to a young man’s death on June 6.
Questions for Tzipi Livni: Israel’s Opposition Leader
New York Times 24 Jun 2010 – The Israeli politician talks about Gaza and the future.
Oakland Demonstration Hailed A Success For BDS
Palestine Monitor – The Freedom flotilla, whilst unsuccessful in reaching its destination, raised an important message along with its sails: that the siege on Gaza must end. Now, through the efforts of international solidarity campaigns and Trade Unions, Israel’s own ships are being used to raise protests against Israel’s…
‘Safe passage’ shows the siege of Gaza is about more than just nutmeg
Mondoweiss – The Israeli NGO Gisha has just released an interactive computer game called ” Safe Passage ” to highlight the ongoing siege of Gaza. A player chooses one of three characters – a student trying to use a scholarship, a businessman who wants to sell ice cream…
The failed peace process is on display in Silwan
Mondoweiss – From Cast Lead to the Mavi Marmara , few states have displayed Israel’s commitment to unilateral action. A unique ability to deflect external criticism has allowed successive adminstrations to pursue unpopular policies without hindrance. A microcosm can be glimpsed in Jerusalem, where Mayor Nir Barkat’s intention to…
ElBaradei at Egypt police protest
BBC – Former UN nuclear chief Mohamed ElBaradei leads a protest against alleged police brutality over the death of Khaled Said.
Israel marks Shalit anniversary
BBC – Rallies are held in Israel to mark the fourth anniversary of the capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit by Palestinian militants.
Israelis Keep the Trigger Tight
Antiwar.com – RAMALLAH — “Where is my daddy? Why is he not coming home? I want my daddy,” sobs seven-year-old Yasmin, her big blue eyes filling with tears. She wakes up crying every night. “My life only began when I met him. I will never meet such a…
Richard Forer — Cutting Through the Confusion About Israel/Palestine (Must Read)
Sabbah report – By Richard Forer* | Sabbah Report | www.sabbah.biz In the spring of 2009, I was a member of a group that put up a billboard criticizing Israel’s lethal use of force during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza. A year later, the group received a letter from…
Yvonne Ridley — Americans in Gaza Freedom Flotilla Prosecuted as Terrorists
Sabbah report – By Yvonne Ridley* | Sabbah Report | www.sabbah.biz AMERICA is still embarrassed by the infamous McCarthy Hearings which ruined the lives of thousands of innocents during the Fifties. Anyone then, suspected of being linked to communism was arrested, interrogated and either imprisoned or forced to give…
Articles
’Let them eat coriander!’
Jonathan Cook, Ma’an News Agency6/25/2010
As Israel this week declared the “easing” of the four-year blockade of Gaza, an official explained the new guiding principle: “Civilian goods for civilian people.”
The severe and apparently arbitrary restrictions on foodstuffs entering the enclave — coriander bad, cinnamon good — will finally end, we are told. Gaza’s 1.5 million inhabitants will have all the coriander they want.
This “adjustment,” as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu termed it, was aimed solely at damage limitation.
With Israel responsible for killing nine civilians aboard a Gaza-bound aid flotilla three weeks ago, the world finally began to wonder what purpose the siege served. Did those nine really need to die to stop coriander, chocolate and children’s toys from reaching Gaza? And, as Israel awaits other flotillas, will more need to be executed to enforce the policy?
Faced with this unwelcome scrutiny, Israel — as well as the US and members of the EU that have been complicit in the siege — desperately worked to deflect attention from demands for the blockade to be lifted entirely. Instead it prefered to argue that the more liberal blockade for Gaza will distinguish effectively between a necessary “security” measures and an unfair “civilian” blockade. Israel cast itself as the surgeon who, faced with Siamese twins, is mastering the miraculous operation needed to decouple them.
The result, Netanyahu told his cabinet, would be a “tightening of the security blockade because we have taken away Hamas’ ability to blame Israel for harming the civilian population.” Listen to Israeli officials and it sounds as if thousands of “civilian” items are ready to pour into Gaza. No Qassam rockets for Hamas but soon, if we are to believe them, Gaza’s shops will be as well-stocked as your average Wal-Mart.more..e-mail
Lessons from the post-flotilla battle
Baha Hilo, Ma’an News Agency6/25/2010
Israel’s attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla and the slaying of at least nine people on board brought on another Middle East media battle.
Arguments and counter arguments were offered by all, to the point where it became to tell if the two sides were accounts of the same event or two separate fictions.
The arguments were meant to give answers to simple questions, like whether the story was about a humanitarian mission or a hate-fueled provocation; if those on board were activists or terrorists; if the Israeli commandos were attackers or defenders; and whether or not the act was justified by Israel’s claim of security. The explanations of what actually happened, however, will remain hazy, as Israel remains in control of thousands of images and days of video.
When the truth does out, the story will already have been consumed and forgotten.
While different sides of a story may be expected, the level of deception practiced by Israeli officials and their supporters, was to a degree that I found rather insulting to audiences.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu treated the international expression of shock around the flotilla deaths with contempt, telling the public that “This wasn’t The Love Boat, it was a hate boat.”
He called public outrage “an attack of international hypocrisy,” with other officials chiming in, labeling international interest in the event a “media circus,” as others commented that “we should have sunk it.”
Israel’s media response thus reflected its military one; naive and cowardly.more..e-mail
Tomgram: Juan Cole, Israel’s Gift to Iran’s Hardliners
Tom Engelhardt, Atlantic Free Press6/11/2010
On May 24th, a piece headlined“U.S. Is Said to Expand Secret Actions in Mideast”appeared on the front page of the New York Times. It clearly involved a leak of a key, previously unknown document, though not as far as a reader could tell by someone unfriendly to its policy implications; nor did the Obama administration make a fuss about it. In fact, despite its front-paging, it vanished from the news with next to no commentary or follow up, and few expressions of surprise.
Too bad. It should have been attended to. According to the Times’ Mark Mazzetti, in September 2009 Centcom commander General David Petraeus signed a “secret directive” expanding the use of U.S. Special Operations forces throughout the Greater Middle East “and beyond” — “to build networks that could ‘penetrate, disrupt, defeat or destroy’ al Qaeda and other militant groups, as well as to ‘prepare the environment’ for future attacks by American or local military forces…”
Among the most striking, if least discussed, aspects of this leaked story were the brief summaries of Centcom’s military policy towards Iran where, we were told, the seven-page directive “appears to authorize specific operations in Iran, most likely to gather intelligence about the country’s nuclear program or identify dissident groups that might be useful for a future military offensive.” The report — too ho-hum for most Americans to concern themselves with — was surely read with care in Tehran, for it offered a genuine gift to the present Iranian regime. How useful to its hardline leaders to know that the U.S. military has already inserted, or is considering inserting, Special Forces teams into their country to “identify dissident groups that might be useful for a future military offensive.”
And there was more. The piece quoted an unnamed “Pentagon official with knowledge of General Petraeus’s order” saying, “The Defense Department can’t be caught flat-footed” — in the event, that is, “that President Obama ever authorizes a strike [on Iran].”…. — See also:NYT: U.S. Is Said to Expand Secret Actions in Mideastmore..e-mail
Israeli killing leaves Jerusalem children fatherless
Electronic Intifada: 25 Jun 2010 – RAMALLAH, occupied West Bank (IPS) – “Where is my daddy? Why is he not coming home? I want my daddy,” sobs seven-year-old Yasmin, her big blue eyes filling with tears. She wakes up crying every night. “My life only began when I met him. I will never meet such a wonderful man again,” Yasmin’s mother Moira Julani tells IPS.
Oakland Demonstration Hailed A Success For BDS
Palestine Monitor: 25 Jun 2010 – The Freedom flotilla, whilst unsuccessful in reaching its destination, raised an important message along with its sails: that the siege on Gaza must end. Now, through the efforts of international solidarity campaigns and Trade Unions, Israel’s own ships are being used to raise protests against Israel’s blockade. In the early hours of Monday morning, more than 800 Oakland protesters gathered to prevent the docking of a cargo ship operated by Israeli shipping company Zim. With a decision made that two shifts of longshoremen workers would not cross the picket line, leaving nobody to unload the ship until the following day, the demonstration was declared a success. According to organizer, Richard Becker “ The Labour/Community Committee in Solidarity with the Palestinian People, formed just 10 days before this action, set a goal of stopping work on the Zim ship for a full day and succeeded in doing so”. Organisers and supporters…
Blockade ‘Eased’ as Gaza Starves more Slowly
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Jun 2010 – By Jonathan Cook – Nazareth As Israel this week declared the ‘easing’ of the four-year blockade of Gaza, an official explained the new guiding principle: ‘Civilian goods for civilian people.’ The severe and apparently arbitrary restrictions on foodstuffs entering the enclave — coriander bad, cinnamon good — will finally end, we are told. Gaza’s 1.5 million inhabitants will have all the coriander they want. This “adjustment”, as the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu termed it, is aimed solely at damage limitation. With Israel responsible for killing nine civilians aboard a Gaza-bound aid flotilla three weeks ago, the world has finally begun to wonder what purpose the siege serves. Did those nine really need to die to stop coriander, chocolate and children’s toys from reaching Gaza? And, as Israel awaits other flotillas, will more need to be executed to enforce the policy? Faced with this unwelcome scrutiny, Israel — as well…more
Alan, Bob or Henry: ‘Would Jesus Concur Or Weep?’
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Jun 2010 – By Tom Compton After the Palestine Chronicle published my story, ‘Would Jesus Concur or Weep?’ just over a year ago, I assumed that people would probably respond in one of three ways: 1. They would agree that Jesus would weep at the death of the innocent Palestinian children killed by the Israeli attacks on Gaza in December, 2008/ January, 2009. 2. They would be ambivalent and not care one way or the other. Or, they would not want to even talk about the subject. 3. They would say that I was not balanced in my statements because I didn’t mention anything about the deaths of innocent Israeli children. Never mine that there were no Israeli children killed during the 22 day siege on Gaza. I never heard from any of the “Type 2” readers but did from the “1 & 3 types”. So what do Alan, Bob and Henry have…more
Gaza: Dangers of Foreign Influence?
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Jun 2010 – By Belen Fernandez – Istanbul A June 13 exclusive on Intelwire.com entitled ‘Gaza Flotilla Official Was Foreign Fighter in Bosnia War’ purports to reveal the history of Osman Atalay, executive board member of IHH, the Turkish NGO instrumental in organizing the aid flotilla to Gaza intercepted on May 31 by Israeli commandos. Collateral damage from the interception included 9 Turkish humanitarian activists. According to the Intelwire article, Atalay served in the Bosnian Army from 1992 until 1994. Lest readers fail to equate this act with terrorism, additional condemning evidence is thrown in for good measure: “Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the September 11 mastermind, lived and worked in Sarajevo in late 1995, according to [a Bosnian intelligence] document, which says he was employed by a humanitarian organization called ‘Egipatska Pomoc’ or ‘Egyptian Help,’ believed to be a reference to the Egyptian Humanitarian Relief Organization (EHRA).” Other Intelwire investigations into the nonexistence of…more
Refugees in Lebanon: Righting a Perpetual Wrong
Palestine Chronicle: 24 Jun 2010 – By Ramzy Baroud Finally, a parliamentary debate in Lebanon over the human rights of Palestinian refugees. What is unfortunate though, is that granting basic civil rights to over 400,000 Palestinians – 62 years after their expulsion from their historic homeland and the issuing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights — has been a topic of ‘debate’ in the first place. Equally regrettable is the fact that various ‘Christian’ Lebanese political forces are fiercely opposing granting Palestinians their rights. Most Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are second and third generation refugees. Impoverished camps are the only homes they have ever known. In Palestine, their real home, their villages were destroyed, their fields were burnt down and their culture was eradicated. An ongoing attempt at erasing every aspect of the Palestinian Arab identity in today’s Israel continues unabated, strengthened by the rightwing government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Foreign Minister…more
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