13 August, 2010 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Arab Parliamentarians Enter Gaza To Deliver Supplies
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Saturday August 14, 2010 – 02:57, A convoy of Arab parliamentarians managed to cross into Gaza via the Rafah Border Terminal in order to deliver aid supplies estimated by 150 M. USD.
Eritrean Woman Wounded By Egyptian Fire
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Saturday August 14, 2010 – 02:28, Medical sources in Egypt reported Friday evening that an Eritrean woman was shot and wounded by Egyptian Border Police fire while trying to cross into Israel through a border fence, seven African immigrants were arrested in a separate incident.
One Injured, Two Arrested During Anti Wall Protests Near Bethlehem
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Friday August 13, 2010 – 20:12, A Palestinian man sustained light wounds two others arrested by Israeli soldiers during the weekly anti wall protest in Al Walajah village between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
Protesters wounded in Anti-wall protests in two W.B villages
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Friday August 13, 2010 – 19:57, Dozens of Palestinian and International protesters were wounded during the nonviolent weekly anti-wall protest in the village of Ni’lin near Ramallah in the central West Bank.
Israeli Peace Activist Injured During The Weekly Protest In Bil’in Village
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Friday August 13, 2010 – 19:42, One Israeli peace activist was injured and other civilians suffered from tear gas inhalation as Israeli troops attacked the weekly anti wall protest in the village of Bil’in, in the central West Bank.
PCHR Weekly Report: 2 civilians injured, 66 abducted by Israeli forces this week
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Friday August 13, 2010 – 18:25, In its Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory for the week of 05 -11 August 2010, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights found that two Palestinian civilians were injured, and Israeli forces abducted 66 civilians, including 3 human rights defenders, 4 children and 45 people abducted en masse from Jalboun village near Jenin.
Three Palestinians beaten by Israeli soldiers in Hebron
IMEMC – 13 Aug 2010 – Thursday August 12, 2010 – 15:31, Israeli troops invaded the city of Hebron on Wednesday to declare the closure of three shops in Bab Al-Bladeya neighborhood. They beat the owner of one of the shops, as well as two young men who tried to intervene.
Rights group: Teen tortured, held by Israeli forces
8/13/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Palestinian rights group Addameer said it received a sworn affidavit from a 17-year-old boy who said he was detained by Israeli forces at a West Bank checkpoint and tortured. The boy, identified as Emad Al-Ashhab, remains in Israeli custody under his third Administrative Detention order following his incarceration on 21….
Gaza crossings shut down for weekend
8/13/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israeli officials told Palestinian liaison officers the Gaza crossing terminals would be closed on Friday, meaning a two day goods transport hiatus with the scheduled closure on Saturday. Palestinian coordinator Raed Fattouh said he was informed on Friday morning that crossings would be shut down until Sunday. A UN report….
Army shuts down peaceful rallies across West Bank
8/14/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israeli soldiers used force to shut down weekly non-violent anti-wall protests in villages across the West Bank on Friday. International, Israeli and Palestinian activists in Bil’in, Nil’in, and An-Nabi Salih, near Ramallah, and in Al-Ma’sara, near Bethlehem, were met with tear-gas grenades as they marched….
Fuel crisis ongoing in Gaza
8/14/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Fuel for generators is running out as the power crisis in Gaza continues, an electricity company official said Friday. Kin’an Obed, vice-president of the Palestinian Energy Authority in Gaza, said the quantity of industrial diesel that Israeli authorities allowed into the Strip on Thursday was only sufficient to….
Israeli forces demolish 5 shops in Qalqiliya
8/13/2010 – QALQILYA (Ma’an) — Israeli forces demolished five shops east of Qalqiliya at dawn on Friday, locals said. The shops, located on the main street between West Bank cities of Qalqilya and Nablus, were owned by Tahseen Mansour, who said he was not given any notice to remove the shops’ contents. An Israeli Civil….
‘Prison administration fails to respect Ramadan’
8/13/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israel’s prison administration is preventing detainees from observing the holy month of Ramadan, a detainees’ center reported. Head of the center, Ra’fat Hamdounah, said the prison administration was not distributing food according to Ramadan fasting schedules, but rather sticking to the regular meal service routine….
VIDEO – Watch: ‘Internet killed Israeli PR’ mocks flotilla response
8/14/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — A YouTube video surfaced Thursday lampooning the Israeli military’s public relations efforts following its 31 May raid on a Gaza-bound humanitarian aid flotilla that left nine crew members dead.”Internet Killed Israeli PR” parodies The Buggles’ 1979 “Radio Star” hit and features a mash-up of clips released by….
8 African migrants detained, 1 shot, on Israeli border
8/14/2010 – AL-ARISH, Egypt (Ma’an) — Eight African migrants were detained trying to cross Egypt’s border into Israel on Friday, an Egyptian security source said. Egyptian security forces saw the group trying to enter Israel south of the Kerem Shalom crossing, and fired warning shots in the air. Seven of the migrants stopped, but….
100,000 Muslims pray at Al-Aqsa
8/13/2010 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Roads leading to Jerusalem’s Old City were heavily congested and checkpoints were overcrowded as tens of thousands attempted to reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform prayers on the first Friday of Ramadan. Israeli forces deployed at checkpoints around the city and prevented large numbers of young Palestinians from entering….
Israeli army opens Nablus-Qalqiliya road
8/13/2010 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — Israeli forces removed a closed checkpoint on the Nablus-Qalqiliya road on Friday, a spokesman of the Nablus governorate told Ma’an, apparently re-opening following a five-year closure. The official said Israeli forces were seen taking down the checkpoint infrastructure, in the area closed off to Palestinian traffic since 2005, and….
In photos: Israel paints checkpoint blue for Ramadan
8/13/2010 – The sky-blue color covers over much of the graffiti on the separation wall, – MaanImages / Luay Sababa – Muslim worshipers try to cross into Jerusalem through an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank city of Bethlehem during the first Friday of the holy month of Ramadan August 13, 2010. Israeli forces painted the separation wall around the….
Aide: Abbas awaiting Quartet statement
8/14/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — President Mahmoud Abbas is awaiting a statement from the Middle East Quartet to decide whether to resume direct talks with Israel, a Fatah official said Friday. EU peace envoy Catherine Ashton said a statement would be issued by the Quartet – which is also represented by the UN, the US, and Russia….
‘Major powers’ working on Mideast framework: EU
8/13/2010 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an/Agencies) – “Major powers” are at work outlining the basis for direct peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian negotiators, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton indicated, a Thursday night Reuters report said. In a letter seen by the British news wire in the wake of a new Palestinian proposal for direct talks….
Report: Ghaddafi’s son negotiates mini swap deal
8/13/2010 – TRIPOLI, Libya (Ma’an/Agencies) — The son of Libya’s leader reportedly worked out a deal with Israeli leaders securing the release of Palestinian prisoners for an Israeli held in Tripoli, BBC Arabic reported on Thursday. Sayf Al-Islam Al-Ghaddafi, son of Libyan leader Muammar Al-Ghaddafi, spoke to the news service about a deal….
Israel denies report of Netanyahu formula for talks
8/13/2010 – LONDON (Ma’an/Agencies) — The internationally-based Al-Haya newspaper said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was preparing a formula for direct talks based on a 90 percent withdrawal from the West Bank and the evacuation of 50,000 settlers. The alleged plan was said to resemble a declaration of principals prepared during the Oslo Accords peace….
Hamas: PA security arrest 6 affiliates
8/13/2010 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — A statement from Hamas officials in the West Bank accused Palestinian Authority officers of detaining six of its party members for political reasons on Thursday. According to the document, detentions targeted Hamas members in Bethlehem, Ramallah and Qalqiliya. Ma’an was not able to verify the reports independently….
New soap opera launched in Palestine
8/13/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Usually the word “team” is associated with football, but this Ramadan, a new “team” is being launched, a soap opera documenting a different side of Palestine, far from popular conceptions of life under occupation.” The team” will be broadcast each of the 28 nights of Ramadan, and will reflect the daily….
Scientific summer camp held in Jerusalem
8/13/2010 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — A scientific summer camp for Palestinian students in Jerusalem came to a close on Monday. More than 100 students participated in the eight week camp, organized by the US consulate in the city and Al-Quds University, which focused on scientific learning in a university setting, a consulate statement explained. Participants were….
Bourj el-Barajneh: Searching for meaning in a refugee camp
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Two young girls stood, as if frozen, starting below them at an ever vibrant Beirut. Their balcony, like the rest of their house and most of their refugee camp was of an indistinct color. It was…
From Goldstone to Uribe
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Despite a credible start, the fix is in. Expect justice again to be denied. After the Gaza War (Operation Cast Lead), the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) appointed Justice Richard Goldstone to lead an independent four-person…
Gaddafi son: ‘Palestinian prisoners were swapped for Israeli’
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì The release this week of an Israeli photographer from Libya was a quid pro quo for the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel, according to statements by Seif Al-Islam Al-Gaddafi, son of the Libyan…
WATCH: Injuries, detentions reported at Friday demonstrations
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington – Fridays generally mark regular demonstrations in towns across the West Bank protesting the incursion of the Israeli security barrier. Friday, injuries and arrests were felt among Palestinian, Israeli and international protesters in Walaja, Nabi…
WATCH: US humanitarian groups fear prosecution, may cut aid to Gaza
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì Nearly two months after the Supreme Court ruled “material support” foreign organizations the US considers terrorists illegal, even if that aid is aimed towards peace, many humanitarian organizations are worried over whether they will…
Small loans empower Gaza women
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington – As reports roll in detailing the detrimental effect of Israel’s siege on Gaza’s economy – industry destroyed, expert commerce stagnant, tunnel trade thriving – many reports hone in on the subsequent unemployment and its…
100,000 pray at Al-Aqsa despite restrictions
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington – Traffic was congested and checkpoints were packed as Muslims went to pray at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City for the first Friday of Ramadan, Ma’an News Agency reported . Israeli restrictions on entry to…
Israeli court orders gov’t to appoint woman to flotilla panel
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled Thursday that the government must offer an additional position on the Turkel commission investigating the May 31 flotilla raid to a woman, Haaretz reported . The Mavi Marmara was…
Clinton pushes Netanyahu on talks
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington – Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu Friday “in a bid to clear hurdles to restarting direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks,” AFP news agency reported . Secretary of State Hillary Clinton [Marcn…
Suspected Mossad agent ‘free to return to Israel’
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì The suspected Israeli Mossad agent who collaborated in the assassination of Hamas leader Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh has been released from German custody for the duration of his trial. The suspected Mossad agent has been charged…
Al-Jazeera gets Emmy nom for Gaza war coverage
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì Al-Jazeera English has been nominated for an International Emmy for its news coverage of the 2008-2009 Gaza War. The Huffington Post reported Thursday: Al-Jazeera English (Qatar) has been nominated for an International Emmy in…
World Bank gives PA $5m for teacher training
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington – The World Bank will give the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority $5 million to train primary school teachers, a World Bank press release reported Thursday. UNRWA classroom [United Nations – Flickr] Palestinian Prime Minister Salam…
Hezbollah implies cooperation in Hariri tribunal
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì Despite early reports that the Lebanese Islamist group would not turn over to the UN its evidence implicating Israel’s involvement in the 2005 assassination of former PM Rafik Hariri, the group now says it…
Abbas aide: ‘We’re waiting on the Quartet’
Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 – PA to decide on direct talks after Quartet invite Washington -Nimr Hamad, an aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, told AFP news agency Friday that the Palestinian Authority awaits a formal invitation to the negotiating parties…
Israeli Peace Activist Injured During The Weekly Protest In Bil’in village
PNN – Ramallah ‚Äì PNN – One Israeli peace activist was injured other civilians suffered tear gas inhalation as Israeli troops attacked the weekly anti wall protest in the village of Bil’in, central West…
Israeli Soldiers Attack Anti Wall Protests In Central West Bank
PNN – Ramallah ‚Äì PNN – Two wall protests were reported on Friday in Nil’in and Al Nabi Saleh villages central West Bank. Israeli and international supporters joined the two events. At the village…
One Injured, Two Arrested During Anti Wall Protests Near Bethlehem
PNN – Jerusalem ‚Äì PNN – A Palestinian man sustained light wounds two others arrested by Israeli soldiers during the weekly anti wall protest in Al Walajah village between Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Village residents…
PCHR: 2 injured ; 54 Arrested By the Israeli Army This Week
PNN – Ghassan Bannoura ‚Äì PNN- This week Israeli military attacks on Palestinian communities in the West Bank and Gaza left two civilians injured; the Palestinian Center for Human Rights said in its weekly…
In Gaza A Small Loan Makes A Big Difference
PNN – ANERA ‚Äì PNN – On a hot , dusty day in mid-July, Aniza Hendi is busy tending dozens of pigeons in the backyard of her home in Khan Younis, Gaza. She raises pigeons…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (05 -11 August 2010)
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Hizbullah to give data to UN tribunal
Jeruslalem Post 13 Aug 2010 – “Evidence” implicating Israel in Hariri assassination to be sent.
Abuelazam was suspect in Israel
Jeruslalem Post 13 Aug 2010 – Israeli suspected of killing 5 in US was probed for Ramle stabbing.
Clinton presses for direct talks
Jeruslalem Post 13 Aug 2010 – Secretary of State calls PM after Mitchell visit fails to yield talks.
Iran reactor to be fueled Aug. 21
Jeruslalem Post 13 Aug 2010 – Report: Russia will load fuel into nuclear reactor at Bushehr station.
Turkel Commission: Er, where does the buck stop?
Jeruslalem Post 12 Aug 2010 – PM and Barak showed they’re not Harry Truman.
Vice Premier slams Barak over his testimony on Gaza flotilla raid
Ha’aretz – Labor party secretary threatens to lead Labor out of government coalition if Vice Premier Moshe Ya’alon is not removed from his position due to comments.
IDF soldier on leave attacks group of Peace Now activists in Tel Aviv
Ha’aretz – Soldier from elite Givati Brigade attacked activists passing out flyers near Tel Aviv’s central train station; Peace Now to file formal complaint against soldier.
Shock in Ramle at U.S. arrest of former neighbor
Ha’aretz – Elias Abuelazam, an Israeli citizen living in the U.S., was arrested on suspicion of involvement in a string of 20 stabbings that left five dead.
Hezbollah to hand over evidence it claims implicates Israel in Hariri assassination
Ha’aretz – Hezbollah says it will give information to Lebanese authorities; UN Hariri tribunal asked to see the evidence, following Hezbollah chief Nasrallah’s presentation on Monday.
Clinton prods Netanyahu on Middle East peace talks
Ha’aretz – Following trip to the region by U.S. envoy George Mitchell this week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calls PM Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss obstacles to direct peace talks with the…
Lebanon PM: UN must probe claims of Israeli complicity in Hariri murder
Ha’aretz – Saad Hariri suggests evidence presented by Hezbollah could point to Israeli involvement in the assassination of his father in 2005, Lebanese paper reports.
Video: Palestinians denied mosque access
Uruknet August 13, 2010 – On the first Friday prayers in Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, thousands of Palestinians flocked towards the Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem to attend prayers. But, as is often the case, many were not allowed inside to pray. Israeli authorities have put restrictions on who can attend prayers at the holy site, but they say…
Russia to start up Iran reactor
Uruknet August 13, 2010 – Russia has announced it will begin loading fuel into Iran’s first nuclear power plant next week, a key step in launching the highly sensitive project after years of delays. The power plant, built by Russia in the Iranian southern city of Bushehr, will be loaded with uranium-packed fuel rods after nearly 40 years of delays,…
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (05 -11 August 2010)
Uruknet August 13, 2010 – Israeli violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued during the reporting period (05 ‚Äì 11 August 2010): Shooting: During the reporting period, 2 Palestinian civilian were wounded by IOF in the West Bank. During the reporting period, IOF used excessive force to disperse peaceful demonstrations organized by Palestinian civilians in protest…
Israel accepts trivial probe
Uruknet August 12, 2010 – The four-member panel is due to meet for the first time in New York on Tuesday. UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-Moon hailed the formation of the panel calling it, “an unprecedented step”. “I am grateful for the spirit of constructive engagement that has made this unprecedented panel possible. I am confident that this initiative will…
Israel releases bogus video to implicate MK Zoabi
Uruknet August 12, 2010 – Passengers on the Freedom Flotilla to Gaza have asked the Israeli authorities repeatedly for the return of their belongings and the release of the video footage they shot during the Jewish state’s attack on their boat, the Mavi Marmara, on 31st May. The Israeli assault took place over 10 weeks ago and yet it is…
Iran stoning woman ‘confesses’
Uruknet August 12, 2010 – An Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning for allegedly committing adultery has reportedly appeared on state television to “confess” her crime.In an interview broadcast Wednesday night, a woman identified as Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani admitted to conspiring to murder her husband with the man’s cousin, with whom she had been having an affair.The Islamic Republic…
Israel “has declared war on the living and the dead to erase Palestinian identity”
Uruknet August 12, 2010 – An Arab member of the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, has called the authorities’ destruction of hundreds of graves in the Muslim Ma’aman Allah Cemetery in Jerusalem “a declaration of war against living and dead Palestinians”. Massoud Ghanayem said that this “declaration of war” is Israel’s way of “imposing its agenda and trying to erase Palestinian…
Gaza Police Disperses Peaceful Assembly by PFLP; Four Arrested and 21 Injured
Uruknet August 12, 2010 – At approximately 8am on Tuesday 10 August 2010, the Gaza police dispersed a peaceful protest organized by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The event took place in the Unknown Soldier Square, opposite the Palestinian Legislative Council in the Al Remal neighborhood in Gaza City. The protest was organized against the electricity…
Ramadan on zeroWhile some extra goods are now available to people in Gaza, few have the money to buy them
Uruknet August 12, 2010 – …Gaza residents fear that power shortages will continue during Ramadan. “Ramadan will be very difficult if blackouts continue,” asserted Nader Qonita, 35, who lives in Al-Tifah district in Gaza City. “Will we break our fast in candlelight? Will we be able to bear fasting in the heat of summer without air conditioning? If this continues,…
Demonstrators Suffer Tear Gas Inhalation in Bil’in
WAFA – RAMALLAH, August 13, 2010 (WAFA)- Dozens of demonstrators suffered tear gas inhalation , sound bombs and rubber coated steel bullets in west Bank Village of Bil’in west of Ramallah in the
World Bank Grants PA $5M. for Training of Primary School Teachers
WAFA – RAMALLAH, August 13 2010 (WAFA)- The World Bank will provide the Palestinian Authority (PA) $5 million to fund the Teacher Education Improvement Project. A grant agreement was concluded and signed
Peace summit or the height of folly? | Khaled Diab
The Guardian 13 Aug 2010 – Can an activists’ peace summit at the top of Mont Blanc help bridge the abyss of Israeli-Palestinian conflict? With Israel-Palestine diplomacy leading nowhere and the situation steadily worsening in recent years, even the most optimistic doves…
OPT: Referral Abroad of Patients from the Gaza Strip – WHO Monthly Report, July 2010
Relief Web 13 Aug 2010 – Source: World Health Organization
OPT: Protection of Civilians Weekly Report, 28 July – 10 August 2010
Relief Web 13 Aug 2010 – Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Sharp increase in demolitions and displacement in the West Bank update July 2010
Relief Web 13 Aug 2010 – Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Israeli Generals and Intel Officials Oppose Attack on Iran
IPS Pro-Israeli journalist Jeffrey Goldberg’s article in “The Atlantic” magazine was evidently aimed at showing why the Barack Obama administration should worry that it risks an attack by the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Iran in the coming months unless it takes a much more menacing line toward Iran’s…
New Report: People versus Oppression
Stop The Wall – One year ago, Stop the Wall and Addameer released a report entitled “Repression Allowed, Resistance Denied”, which detailed the repression of Palestinian human rights defenders active against the Wall since 2002.Today, in the 6th anniversary of the ICJ ruling against the Wall, The campaign publish this new document covering the ongoing repression between March – June 2010. [
Russia says to load fuel in Iran reactor on Aug. 21
YNet News – Spokesman for Russia’s state atomic corporation says Bushehr reactor will be….
Report: Netanyahu to offer withdrawal from 90% of West Bank
YNet News – London-based al-Hayat newspaper quotes Ramallah sources as saying prime minister….
Internal Hamas dissent stymies Shalit deal
YNet News – Negotiations for release of kidnapped Israeli soldier not progressing. Security….
Ya’alon: Barak like snakes in Kirya base
YNet News – Vice premier launches unprecedented attack on defense minister on backdrop of….
Clinton prods Netanyahu on Mideast peace talks
YNet News – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about issues blocking direct peace talks with the Palestinians as the Obama …….
Hezbollah to give ‘evidence’ on Hariri murder‚Äé
YNet News – Hezbollah on Friday said it would hand over data allegedly implicating Israel in the murder of ex-premier Rafik Hariri to Lebanese authorities, following a request by a …….
German judge sets ‘Uri Brodsky’ free on bail
YNet News – An alleged Israeli spy wanted in connection with the slaying of a Hamas leader in Dubai earlier this year was set free on bail Friday by a German judge, a spokesman for …….
August enlistment cycle sees record combat applicants
YNet News – Recent years have witnessed a gradual increase in motivation among Israel’s youth to enlist in combat units, but the current August cycle of new recruits broke all …….
Palestinian Information Center
130,000 worshipers attend Friday prayers at Aqsa
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – More than 130 thousand worshipers attended the Friday prayers at the Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of the blessed month of Ramadan, according to a statement issued by the Aqsa Foundation.
Confrontations with the IOF during anti-wall demonstrations
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – Dozens of protestors suffered breathing difficulties on Friday when IOF troops used teargas to disperse their weekly peaceful demonstrations to protest the building of the Apartheid wall..
Dozens of Jerusalem residents have iftar with the Jerusalem MPs
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – Palestinian residents of Jerusalem express their support for their elected MPs, who are threatened with deportation, by visiting them at their sit-in tent at the Red Cross compound..
Hamdouna: occupation provides meal seven hours before dusk
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – Rafat Hamdouna, director of Captives Studies Centre, said that the Israeli occupation prison authority refuses to provide the main meal at sunset, which is the time Muslims break their fast.
Netanyahu rejects any preconditions for direct talks
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – The Israeli government has informed the US envoy for the peace process in the region, George Mitchell, of its rejection of the Palestinian preconditions for the renewal of bilateral direct talks.
220 Swiss organisations support Freedom Flotilla 2
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – 220 NGOs and unions have expressed support for the Freedom Flotilla 2 which is slated to sail to the Gaza Strip before the end of the year, by participating in one of its ships, the Swiss ship.
Bkeirat: IOA must be prosecuted over destruction of Muslim cemetery
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – Najeh Bkeirat has called Thursday for prosecution of the Zionist entity leaders over the destruction of the Mamanullah graveyard in the occupied city of Jerusalem..
Badran: We receive Ramadan with full determination for freedom
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – Husam Badran, a Palestinian leader imprisoned in Israeli jails, has said that Palestinian captives in Israeli jails receive the holy month of Ramadan in full determination for freedom..
Jarrah: we won’t tolerate violation against journalists and citizens in the Gaza
PIC 13 Aug 2010 – Abu Obaida Al-Jarrah said on Thursday that the Palestinian police is obliged to hold accountable any policeman or police officer involved in violating the citizens rights, including journalists.
Russia to begin activating Iran’s first nuclear power plant
LA Times 14 Aug 2010 – Officials say fuel will be loaded into the Bushehr facility on Aug. 21. Though the move isn’t connected to Tehran’s secret atomic program, U.S. officials worry that it sends mixed signals. Russia announced Friday that it will soon begin loading fuel into Iran’s first nuclear power plant, the initial step toward bringing the long-delayed project on line at a time when the U.S. is attempting to weaken Tehran’s atomic program with new international sanctions.
Gravestones’ Origins Fuel Feud Over Jerusalem Memorial Site
New York Times 13 Aug 2010 – Muslims said historic graves were destroyed overnight, while city officials said the knocked-over tombstones at a construction site were fake.
Russia Moves Toward Start-Up of Iran Nuclear Plant
New York Times 13 Aug 2010 – The move is sure to disappoint American diplomats trying to halt Iran’s nuclear program.
German Suspect Linked to Hamas Figure’s Assassination Posts Bail
New York Times 13 Aug 2010 – A court in Cologne charged the suspect with acquiring a passport under false pretenses. He then posted bail and could even return to Israel, the prosecutor’s office said.
Occupied Prayer
Palestine Monitor – On the first Friday of Ramadan, mass prayer to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem from the West Bank went smoothly – at least for men over the age of 50, and women over the age of 45. Whilst a large number of young Palestinians were prevented…
‘NYT,’ Bloomberg, Lehrer lead mainstream stampede in support of mosque
Mondoweiss – The weather is changing. Obama has at last crept out on the limb of supporting the mosque in downtown New York. The liberal media are preparing the ground for him. The other day Brian Lehrer of WNYC (whom I assailed repeatedly for the interview he did…
Birthright travel diary: Offering a Palestinian perspective is ‘not the donor’s agenda’
Mondoweiss – Last month, activist Rachel Marcuse spent 10 days in Israel as part of the Taglit-Birthright program — a fully sponsored trip for young North American Jews to learn more about the country. She went to bear witness and ask questions about the Israeli state’s treatment of…
While tax exempt money flows to the settlements, a humanitarian sits in prison for aiding Palestinians
Mondoweiss – We give a lot of attention on this site to non-profits that raise tax-exempt donations in the US to support the Israeli colonization of the West Bank. The flipside to that story is that at the same time the US government continues to harass, and shut…
The Mavi Marmara and the end of Israeli impunity
Mondoweiss – We have a chapter in the new book Midnight on the Mavi Marmara: The Attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla and How It Changed the Course of the Israel/Palestine Conflict . Alternet is running an excerpt of our piece today: The Freedom Flotilla was not able to…
UN: Sharp increase in West Bank demolitions and displacement during July
Mondoweiss – And other news from Today in Palestine: Land and Property Theft and Destruction/Ethnic Cleansing Civil Administration demolishes Bedouin village of al-Farsiya, in the Jordan Valley In two waves of demolitions, on 19 July and 5 August, the Civil Administration demolished all the structures in al-Farsiya, a…
‘Abbas Very Close to Agreeing to Direct Talks with Israel’
Al-Manar 13 Aug 2010 – Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas is very close to agreeing to direct talks with the Israeli enemy… The announcement was made by EU foreign affairs Chief Catherine Ashton in a letter to foreign ministers. Abbas “has requested a few more days for final consultations with…
Letters from Palestine – a very special book
Palestine Think Tank 13 Aug 2010 – REVIEW BY MARY RIZZO Very often, among activists for Palestine who are not Palestinians themselves, a sort of fraternity develops. Our love of Palestine is our primary common denominator, but how frequent it is (and how joyful and satisfying) when we find other affinities that create…
Iran nuclear plant start date set
BBC 13 Aug 2010 – Russia says it will undertake a key step next week towards starting up a reactor at Iran’s first nuclear power station at Bushehr.
Israeli ‘agent’ freed in Germany
BBC 13 Aug 2010 – Germany frees on bail a suspected Israeli agent arrested in connection with the killing of a Hamas commander in Dubai.
TV show angers Lebanon Christians
BBC 13 Aug 2010 – An Iranian-made television series about the life of Christ being shown on two Lebanese channels has been taken off air after complaints from Christians.
Israeli stabbing suspect in US court
BBC 13 Aug 2010 – A man arrested in connection with a series of nearly 20 stabbings agrees to return to Michigan to face charges in one of the attacks.
A Neocon Preps US for War with Iran
Antiwar.com 13 Aug 2010 – Ray McGovern on the return of Jeffrey Goldberg
White House Questions Suspension of Military Aid to Lebanon
Antiwar.com 13 Aug 2010 – Several powerful members of Congress have worked to suspend U.S. military aid to Lebanon’s military after a deadly skirmish on the Lebanese-Israeli border last week which left two Lebanese soldiers, a Lebanese journalist and one Israeli officer dead. Howard Berman, chair of the House Foreign Affairs…
Rethinking the Antiwar Movement’s Israel Campaign
Antiwar.com 13 Aug 2010 – Brendan O’Neill cautions against using empire’s own rhetoric
Articles
Going organic: The siege on Gaza
Jon Elmer, AlJazeera, Axis of Logic8/11/2010
“Hamas’ agriculture minister, Muhammad al-Agha, has issued a ten-year plan designed to side-step the blockade by increasing local food production and agricultural self-sufficiency in Gaza.”
In February 2006, following Hamas’ electoral victory, a top advisor to Ehud Olmert, the then Israeli prime minister, Dov Weisglass, described the essence of Israel’s Gaza policy.
“It’s like a meeting with a dietitian,” Weisglass said. “We need to make the Palestinians lose weight, but not to starve to death.”
Although any Gazan will quickly point out that the blockade on the movement of goods – and people – into and out of Gaza long predates the election of Hamas, as the years have passed the exact date of the siege has often been, for reasons of political expedience, recast to coincide with the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007.
Israel characterises the blockade as “economic warfare” targeting Hamas and its constituents.
’No humanitarian crisis’
According to government documents that have surfaced in response to a lawsuit before Israel’s high court, “the limitation on the transfer of goods is a central pillar in the means at the disposal of the state of Israel in the armed conflict between it and Hamas”.more.. e-mail
An Open Letter To Chick Corea: Don’t Turn Your Back On Gaza
Palestinian Students’ Campaign for the Academic Boycott of Israel, Desert Peace8/10/2010
Mr. Corea, we call upon your free soul that has been adding magnificent art for decades into this disenchanted world of ours, to join those courageous people of conscience like Elvis Costello, Gil Scott-Heron, the Pixies, Carlos Santana and Devendra Banhart in boycotting Israel until it complies with international law, and until justice and accountability are reached just as the global BDS movement made way for the collapse of apartheid in South Africa.
Dear Mr. Corea,
We are a group of students from Gaza, and our only fault is being Palestinians. For that, Mr. Corea, we are imprisoned with our families and loved ones in what major Human Rights Organizations call the largest open air prison in modern history. The state you are planning to entertain, committed a process of ethnic cleansing against the indigenous people in 1948. And now it is engaged in, what the Israeli academic Ilan Pappe calls, “slow motion genocide” against the 1.5 million population of Gaza.
We are writing to you from under the hermetic siege imposed on us. We are punished just because we belong to this land and hold its identity. Israel committed, what Prof. Richard Goldstone called “war crimes and crimes against humanity,” knowing very well that it would be immune from accountability. You must be aware that all aspects of our life are affected by the siege, which in itself is a gross violation of international humanitarian law.
We love music. But, we are deprived from it. The sound of Israeli-US made F16s, F15s, F35s, Surveillance planes, White Phosphorous bombs, naval gunboats and Merkava tanks do not allow us to listen to music any more. In Gaza, we are forbidden from experiencing the meaning of humanity, from being in love and expressing it in art, dance, music, and all its magnificent other forms that we long to live and experience. more.. e-mail
Searching in a refugee camp
Ramzy Baroud, Ma’an News Agency8/13/2010
Two young girls stood, as if frozen, staring below them at an ever vibrant Beirut. Their balcony, like the rest of their house and most of their refugee camp was of an indistinct color. It was dirty, as were their clothes.
They, on the other hand, looked beautiful and bright, although their future didn’t.
In Bourj Al-Barajneh, one of a dozen Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, time seems to have stood still for years. Generation after generation, children grow up in the same desperate reality, punished for crimes they did not commit, injured by a history not of their making. They stand on dirty balconies, cracked beyond repair, watching Beirut and the world go by.
The city is abuzz with life, politics, rumors, anticipation and intrigue. It remains perpetually divided between many worlds and contradictions, in a way that seems almost impossible to reconcile or bridge.
Bourj Al-Barajneh has grown into a ‘municipality’ since its original inception as a ‘temporary’ accommodation for the Palestinian refugees who were expelled from their homes and land in Palestine between 1947 and 1948. The Palestinian physical share of the camp has largely remained the same, although the numbers have significantly grown.
Influxes into the area of Shia Muslims, Sunni Muslims, and more recently Iraqis, have seen low-income or persecuted groups move in and around the vicinity of the camp. Little was put in place to accommodate the natural growth, or to regulate the latter population influxes. more.. e-mail
Occupied Prayer
Palestine Monitor: 13 Aug 2010 – On the first Friday of Ramadan, mass prayer to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem from the West Bank went smoothly – at least for men over the age of 50, and women over the age of 45. Whilst a large number of young Palestinians were prevented from entering the Old City. ST McNeil reporting from Qalandiya checkpoint. Israel had eased restrictions for the religious holiday, according to Haaretz. As the Quartet push the Palestinian Authority and Israel’s government towards peace talks, the move could be seen as an attempt at ground-floor diplomacy. At the Qalandiya checkpoint, the crowd was split into male and female lines entering at separate entrances. Red Crescent Ambulances provided scant shade for squatting adults and children – all in various states of hunger and thirst, some experiencing caffeine and nicotine withdrawal. Today is the third day of Ramadan, the global Muslim religious holiday, where all of…more
Explaining Murder: Israeli Hasbara in Full Swing
Palestine Chronicle: 13 Aug 2010 – By Richard Lightbown The hasbara industry is in full swing at the moment as Benjamin Netanyahu’s government pulls out all the stops to create a smokescreen to cover its crimes. Leading from the front Mr Netanyahu sat in front of the Turkel Commission for four hours on Monday, although anyone hoping to hear anything of interest would have been disappointed. Mr Netanyahu only spoke in front of the public for ninety minutes of that time during which he regaled the committee with complaints about Hamas, Sderot and Gilad Shalit. He told the committee that Israel had a right to search for weapons on board the flotilla. (Israel has since announced that it found no weapons for Hamas. Did nine people really have to die so that Israel could confirm the certification the flotilla already had?) He further told them that there was no humanitarian crisis in Gaza as a result…more
From Goldstone to Uribe
Palestine Chronicle: 13 Aug 2010 – By Stephen Lendman Despite a credible start, the fix is in. Expect justice again to be denied. After the Gaza War (Operation Cast Lead), the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) appointed Justice Richard Goldstone to lead an independent four-person fact-finding Commission to investigate human rights and humanitarian law violations committed on both sides, Israel doing everything possible to obstruct him in vain. The Commission conducted 188 interviews, got over 300 reports, submissions and other documents, comprising more than 10,000 pages, 30 videos, and 1,200 photographs, much of it gathered first-hand. Secondary sources added corroboration, in total providing clear evidence of Israel crimes. On September 15, 2009, the Commission concluded that: “There is evidence indicating serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law were committed by Israel during the Gaza conflict, and that Israel committed actions amounting to war crimes, and possibly crimes against humanity.” “While the Israeli Government has…more
There Already Is One State
Dissident Voice: 13 Aug 2010 – The overwhelming desire within Israel, and more importantly within the United States, to divide Palestine into two states reflects a 130-year old dream to create a Jewish state in the Holy Land. Aside from the attractiveness or repulsiveness of such a dream, such a division flies in the face of reality or what might be called “facts on the ground.” Within the current borders controlled by Israel (including pre-1967 Israel, the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan Heights) there is in fact a single state. It has one electrical grid, one water system, one currency, one major highway system, one postal service, and one external border. Goods and people entering this de facto state come through harbors, airports, and a restricted number of crossings. Bills of lading and passports are checked and stamped by officials of this single state. To avoid arguing about what is Israel and what is Palestine,…more
Bourj el-Barajneh: Searching for Meaning in a Refugee Camp
Dissident Voice: 13 Aug 2010 – BEIRUT, LEBANON — Two young girls stood, as if frozen, starting below them at an ever vibrant Beirut. Their balcony, like the rest of their house and most of their refugee camp, was of an indistinct color. It was dirty, as were their clothes. They, on the other hand, looked beautiful and bright, although their future didn’t. Here in Bourj el-Barajneh, one of a dozen Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, time seems to have stood still for years. Generation after generation, children grow up in the same desperate reality, punished for crimes they did not commit, injured by a history not of their making. They stand on dirty balconies, cracked beyond repair, watching Beirut and the world go by. The city is abuzz with life, politics, rumors, anticipation and intrigue. It remains perpetually divided between many worlds and contradictions, in a way that seems almost impossible to reconcile or bridge….more
More material available from Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel – www.vtjp.org
To subscribe, please write to OccupationNews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OccupationNews/join
The New Dark Age 
Leave a comment