18 August, 2010 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Three Palestinians seized by Israeli troops in overnight raids in Abu Dis, Hebron
IMEMC – 18 Aug 2010 – Wednesday August 18, 2010 – 15:42, In two separate invasions Tuesday night, Israeli forces attacked the east Jerusalem town of Abu Dis, and the southern West Bank city of Hebron, to search for men listed on the army’s ‘Wanted’ list.
Israeli settlers expand campaign to manipulate entries on Wikipedia
IMEMC – 18 Aug 2010 – Wednesday August 18, 2010 – 15:25, The internet’s open-source, user-edited encyclopedia called ‘Wikipedia’ has been targeted by Israeli governmental and non-governmental partisans since its inception, who have attempted to manipulate its contents to promote a Zionist agenda. This week, Israeli settlers launched a course for right-wing Israelis interested in helping to manipulate the contents of entries on the online encyclopedia.
Witnesses: Settlers beat 10-year-old Palestinian girl
8/18/2010 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli settlers assaulted a 10-year-old Palestinian girl on Sunday evening and an Israeli military jeep struck an 8-year-old boy in Hebron, witnesses said. Inas Mazen Qaaqour was beaten by residents of the illegal Tel Rumeida settlement and treated at the Hebron Government Hospital where medics said she was bruised….
Israeli warplanes strike targets in southern Gaza
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israeli warplanes bombed two sites in southern Gaza overnight Tuesday, hitting what residents said was a smuggling tunnel and an open area causing no injuries. A statement released by the Israeli military Wednesday said the targets included a “weapons manufacturing site in the central Gaza Strip, two weapons-smuggling tunnels and….
Lawyer says detainee could go blind without medical intervention
8/18/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — A Palestinian detainee from Ramallah appealed Wednesday for urgent intervention to receive treatment for an eye condition that could cause blindness, his lawyer said. Tamer Hamayel was treated at the Hadassa and Ramlah hospitals, but doctors said they were unable to provide him with the required treatment for his condition. Hamayel….
US academic appeals to UN over Mamilla demolitions
8/18/2010 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — US academic Rashid Khalidi appealed to the UN and other international officials Tuesday to defend a 12th century Muslim burial ground in West Jerusalem from desecration, providing new information on the latest wave of demolitions by the Jerusalem Municipality. Khalidi, writing on behalf of the Campaign to Preserve Mamilla Jerusalem Cemetery….
Israel jails father of child filmed protesting arrest
8/18/2010 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — The father of a now-famous child who was filmed begging Israeli forces to release his dad from detention has been sentenced to three months in prison plus a fine, relatives said Wednesday. Footage of Fadil Al-Jabari’s four-year-old son Khalid sobbing at the sight of his father being dragged away….
Hot-air balloon ride for ‘Best Zionist Editor’ at Wikipedia
8/18/2010 – TEL AVIV (Ma’an) — A powerful Israeli settlement group has offered a free hot-air balloon ride to the winner of its new initiative to alter articles on the online information site Wikipedia, an Israeli newspaper reported Wednesday. The Yesha Council of settlements announced the prize for the “Best Zionist Editor” – the person who over….
Goldstone follow-up committee hears criticism
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The credibility of internal Palestinian investigations into allegations of human rights violations by the Gaza government remains questionable, the local rights group Al-Mezan told UN officials Sunday. The Gaza City human rights organization, which has submitted several reports to the UN on Israeli rights violations and was recently given consultative….
Quantities fall slightly at Gaza crossing
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israeli authorities opened one crossing into Gaza Wednesday for the limited transfer of aid and commercial goods. Israeli officials told told Radio Israel the week earlier that supplies would be boosted for Ramadan, with an average of 350 truckloads of goods per open day. Palestinian crossing liaison officials were told….
Israeli army detains 3 Palestinians overnight
8/18/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Israeli army detained three Palestinians overnight Tuesday including two from East Jerusalem, an Israeli official said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said two Palestinians were seized from Abu Dis and Dura, a village in the southern West Bank district of Hebron….
Leftists say new Lebanese law not enough
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — A leftist Palestinian faction said Wednesday that Lebanon’s decision to grant Palestinian refugees work rights “does not represent the minimum.” The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine in Gaza said in a statement that “this law is a beautification of the deprivation policy by the Lebanese state….
Gaza NGO says security forces shut down clinic
8/18/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — A medical relief NGO said Wednesday that Hamas-affiliated security forces shut down its clinic in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, and confiscated equipment. Help Doctors said that at 10:30 a. m. , four men in civilian clothes including an employee with the Interior Ministry entered the medical dispensary for the care of….
In photos: Palestinians rally against Mamilla demolitions
8/18/2010 – MaanImages / Soraya Bauwens-Nuseibeh – Palestinians rallied on 18 August 2010 in the Mamilla cemetery in West Jerusalem in protest over the demolition of several renovated tombstones as the Israeli government continues with plans to build a Museum of Tolerance on the burial ground. Fatah’s chief of Jerusalem affairs Hatem Abdul Qader was among the…. Related: Palestinians rally against Mamilla demolitions
Palestinians rally against Mamilla demolitions
8/18/2010 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Palestinians from Jerusalem and villages inside Israel rallied on Wednesday at the Mamilla cemetery in West Jerusalem to protest the razing of several Muslim tombstones by Israeli municipal staff. Protesters gathered at the cemetery at 10am and called on the Israeli government to bring an end to demolitions, which began on…. Related: In photos: Palestinians rally against Mamilla demolitions
Gaza: Slain elderly woman accused of witchcraft
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — An elderly woman shot dead by unknown assailants on Tuesday evening in Gaza City had been accused by locals of witchcraft and practicing voodoo, officials said. Jabriyeh Abu Kanas, 62, was shot in the chest as she sat with her husband in their garden on Al-Abeed Street, the Palestinian Centre….
Egyptian official: Cairo won’t host peace talks
8/18/2010 – CAIRO (Ma’an) — Egypt is not likely to host direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, a foreign ministry official was quoted as saying by the Cairo-based newspaper Al-Ahram on Wednesday. Ministry spokesman Husam Zaki cautioned that it was too early to talk about who would host direct talks, as no agreement has yet….
Report: Israel soldier offered info on Hariri killing
8/18/2010 – BEIRUT (Ma’an) — A former Israeli military officer offered information about the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri to the Lebanese government, the Beirut-based Al-Diyar daily reported Wednesday. The report, quoted by the Israeli news site Ynet, said the unnamed ex-soldier showed up at the Lebanese embassy in Prague claiming to have information….
Former PA intelligence commander dies at 70
8/18/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Former Palestinian Intelligence Commander General Amin Al-Hindi died at the age of 70 in Jordan on Tuesday. Officials in Ramallah said his body would be transferred from Jordan to the West Bank on Wednesday for burial in the de facto capital. A mourning house will open in the evening at the…. Related: Military funeral held for former PA intelligence officer
PA police detain 6 for smoking during Ramadan
8/18/2010 – SALFIT (Ma’an) — Police in the northern West Bank district of Salfit detained and charged six men on Wednesday for smoking in public during fasting hours of the Muslim holy month. Police charged the unidentified men with “violating the sanctity of Ramadan.”Officers said that during a regular patrol of the area, they found….
PA denies rumors salaries won’t be paid
8/18/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Denying reports that the Palestinian Authority faces a major cash crisis and may not be able to pay August salaries, a PA official said Wednesday that workers will find money in the bank at the end of the month. PA spokesman Ghassan Al-Khatib conceded, however, that the government was facing a….
Leftist faction says Gaza police targeted member
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Gaza police opened fire Wednesday at a member of the leftist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party south of Khan Younis, the party said. Talal Abu Tharifeh was attacked while he was in his car in Khaza’a village en route to mediate a a “field dispute….
Military funeral held for former PA intelligence officer
8/18/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — An official military funeral was held Wednesday morning for a former Palestinian Authority intelligence officer at the Presidential compound in Ramallah, attended by President Mahmoud Abbas. PA forces fired 21 bullets in the air to commemorate the death of Intelligence Commander General Amin Al-Hindi, who passed away at the age of…. Related: Former PA intelligence commander dies at 70
Minister denies PA ‘waging war against Islam’
8/18/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — The Palestinian Authority minister of endowments and religious affairs critiqued Wednesday Gaza premier Ismail Haniyeh’s remarks that the Ramallah government was waging a war against Islam in the West Bank. Mahmoud Al-Habbash said in an interview with Al-Jazeera that Hamas was “clearly hostile” toward the PA “therefore, restoring to….
23 illegal cars seized in Salfit
8/18/2010 – SALFIT (Ma’an) — Palestinian Authority police in Salfit police seized 23 allegedly unlicensed cars during a campaign in the city. The cars were confiscated and investigative files will be opened to take legal action, police officials explained….
Gaza doctors successfully remove brain tumor
8/18/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Palestinian medical teams at Gaza City’s Ash-Shifa Hospital have removed a large tumor at the base of an elderly woman’s skull. Doctors Ashraf Barakat and Hani Al-Haytham from the hospital’s neurosurgery department were led by consulting physician Dr Basil Baker. All were congratulated by….
No relief as heat wave rises
8/18/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Palestinian Meteorological Department expects temperatures to increase six degrees above the yearly average starting Thursday or Friday. Temperatures will reach 41 to 42 degrees in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel. The department urges people to avoid prolonged exposure to the sun during daylight hours, particularly 11 a. m to….
The secrets in Israel’s archives
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Evidence of ethnic cleansing kept under lock and key History may be written by the victors, as Winston Churchill is said to have observed, but the opening up of archives can threaten a nation every bit…
Israel & the anti-Muslim blow-up
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – I don’t know why I am at all surprised that the American Right – including the Republican Party – has decided that scapegoating Muslims is the ticket to success. After all, it’s nothing new. I remember…
FAQ on boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS)
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – What is BDS? What are the goals of BDS? Who is calling for BDS? What are some examples of how BDS was used during Apartheid in South Africa? What is the call for academic and cultural…
WATCH: How Israeli mangos are drying up the River Jordan
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington – Reports in recent months have decried the pollution levels of the Jordan river, saying over-consumption and reckless sewage-dumping have made the river unsuitable for human consumption. Growing tropical fruits like mangoes are contributing to…
Report: Arabic fading into irrelevance?
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì With predictions that more than half of the world’s language will disappear by the end of the decade, and the seemingly ubiquitous takeover by English showing no signs of stopping, many in the Middle…
Poll: US support for Israel declining
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Only 51% say US must back Israel Washington – Support for Israel is declining sharply among Americans, particularly Liberals aligned with the Democratic party, a new poll shows. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz obtained some of the…
Gaza child injured in Israeli offensive treated in Chicago
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington – Wednesday, a 14-year-old Gaza boy received neurosurgical treatment at Hope Children’s Hospital in a suburb of Chicago, according to a report from the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund . Muath poses post-op with this host mother. […
Is the Gaza tunnel economy shrinking?
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington – Tunnels running from southern Gaza under the Egyptian border have served has one of the only viable employment options, and ways to procure goods since Israel tightened its blockade of the Gaza Strip in…
PA: Donors failing to pay
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì The Palestinian Authority Wednesday denied reports that its money problems would prevent it from paying salaries for the month, but officials don’t deny an economic crisis could be right around the corner. Ma’an News…
PLO reacts, 1 month late, to critique of Abbas
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington – The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) delegation denied on Wednesday that President Mahmoud Abbas told US Jewish leaders in June that he would ” never deny the Jewish right to the Land of Israel,” a…
Lebanon passes oil exploration law, challenging Israeli claims
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì Lebanon’s parliament voted Tuesday to approve a new bill okaying offshore exploration for oil and natural gas, the most recent move in a back-and-forth war of words with Israel over the region’s energy resources,…
Planner of Munich Olympics attack dies at 70
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington – Former intelligence commander for the Palestinian Authority and co-planner of the 1972 Munich Olympics attack Amin Al-Hindi died in Jordan Tuesday at age 70, news agencies reported. The apartment where the Israeli Olympic team…
‘Zionist editing’ aims to spread settler views on Wikipedia
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington ‚Äì Israeli Zionist groups have adopted a new hi-tech tactic to spread their views and ideology, namely “Zionist editing” on Wikipedia, Haaretz reported Wednesday. Wikipedia’s Hebrew-language version currently has just over 100,000 entries, compared to…
Report: Settlers beat 10-year-old girl
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Washington – Witnesses reported seeing settlers assault a 10-year-old Palestinian girl Sunday evening, Ma’an News Agency reported Wednesday. Much settler graffiti (the above reading “Gas the Arabs”) is written in English because many settlers come from…
Airstrikes hit southern Gaza
Palestine Note 18 Aug 2010 – Israeli warplanes target tunnels after earlier clashes Washington – Overnight Tuesday, four Israeli warplanes hit targets near Rafah and Khan Younis in the south of Gaza near the Egyptian border, AFP news agency reported . The airstrikes…
Palestinian Inelegance Force Founder Dies Of Cancer
PNN – Ramallah – PNN – The Palestinian Authority announced the death of Ameen Al Hindi, 70 years old, in a Jordan hospital after succumbing to Cancer case. Al Hindi was born in Gaza…
Video: Gilo Wall Removal; Half The Story Told
PNN – Ghassan Bannoura ‚Äì PNN – Recently the Israeli military announced that they would be removing part of a security wall near Har Gilo settlement between West Bank city of Bethlehem and Jerusalem….
Egypt : Israel Responsible For Power Cuts
PNN – Cairo ‚Äì PNN – An Egyptian government official has blamed a natural gas deal with Israel for the country’s power cuts, the independent daily al-Shorouq reported Wednesday. The export agreement leaves less…
PA Indict 4 Merchants For Violating W.B Boycott Law
PNN – Jerusalem – PNN – The Palestinian Finance Ministry decided Tuesday to indict four merchants who violated the boycotted on products made in West Bank settlements. Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad co-initiated the…
Security Council Briefed On “Turning Point” In Middle East Talks
PNN – Dianne Penn ‚Äì UN Radio – The UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs briefed the Security Council on the Middle East on Tuesday. Oscar Fernandez-Taranco spoke about prospects for direct talks between…
Gaza Farmers Over Use Pesticides
PNN – Mohamed Abu Shahma/PNN Exclusive ‚Äì When touring Gaza farms one rarely finds wild plants, only manmade grown crops are found. Ali Mo’amer, a 35 year old farmer lives in the southern Gaza…
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
UN releases Israeli, Palestinian responses to Goldstone
Jeruslalem Post 19 Aug 2010 – IDF: Launched over 150 investigations into misconduct, opened 47 criminal cases; Hamas “appears to have done nothing at all;” Ban Ki-moon declines to comment on reports.
Turkey denies clash with US
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Report said Obama warned Erdogan on Iran stance.
Netanyahu has no plans to visit Turkey
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Tension with Ankara “sharpens” Israel’s interests with Greece.
Israel’s new Mediterranean best friend
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Analysis: Greece not perfect replacement for Turkey, but fits.
Israel breaks electricity-use record
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Electric Corporation says demand tops 11,200 megawatts.
Soldiers suspected of flotilla theft
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – IDF arrests officer, soldiers who allegedly stole laptops from ships.
Iran condemns US ‘threats’
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Iranian envoy complains to UN about Mullen’s “attack plan” comments.
Turkey: Increase embassy security
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – In wake of gunman’s attack, sources blame Israel for security weakness.
Remanded extended for embassy gunman
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Injaz held for minor crimes; standoff unpunishable in Israel.
Aussie parties support Israel
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Candidates wrestle over ‚Äòpro-Israel’ label.
Man linked to Munich attack dies
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Amin al-Hindi was a senior PLO official under Arafat.
Death sentence for spies in Lebanon
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Two men convicted for espionage on Israel’s behalf.
IAF strikes targets in Gaza
Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 – Mortar attack on Tuesday injured 2 IDF soldiers.
International Solidarity Movement
Live ammunition used on demonstrators in Gaza who move a section of the buffer-zone fence
8/18/2010 – International Solidarity Movement – ISM Gaza – On Tuesday morning a demonstration in Gaza by Palestinian activists from Local Initiative Beit Hanoun, with four International Solidarity Movement volunteers and other international activists and journalists was met with live ammunition fired by the Israeli army. Soldiers opened fire on protestors in the buffer zone in Beit Hanoun, near to the Erez….
Contrary to popular belief, new report shows you can drown in the Dead Sea
Ha’aretz – Magen David Adom reports that of 117 near-drowning incidents that paramedics have attended to since the start of 2010, 17% have been at the Dead Sea.
IDF chief on Galant affair: We trust police will bring the truth to light
Ha’aretz – IDF Chief of Staff Ashkenazi made his first public remarks regarding the document at the center of a row over the appointment of the next IDF chief.
Anonymous vandals sabotage equipment at Ashkelon’s Barzilai hospital
Ha’aretz – Building site of new emergency room at the hospital has stirred anger in the ultra-Orthodox community as human remains had to be relocated to facilitate the building.
Turkey seeks better security for Israel embassy day after hostage stand-off
Ha’aretz – Nadim Injaz, a Palestinian from Ramallah, stormed the embassy in Tel Aviv on Tuesday; Court extends Injaz’s remand.
Israeli man, 21, ‘filmed rape of teenage girlfriend’
Ha’aretz – Suspect jumped on pregnant girl’s stomach and recorded rape using cellphone camera, prosecutors say.
Police probe double murder after couple found shot in Be’er Sheva home
Ha’aretz – Bodies of Moshe Abayev, 24, and Veronica Kur, 18 discovered in the early hours Wednesday morning.
Turkish embassy hands over Palestinian hostage taker after 6-hour standoff
Ha’aretz – Palestinian man seeking asylum from ‘murdering Jews’ storms embassy in Tel Aviv; Turkish Foreign Ministry: He tried to abduct the vice consul.
IDF soldiers suspected of theft from Gaza flotilla ship
Ha’aretz – At least four soldiers being detained on suspicion of stealing and selling laptops belonging to activists aboard the Mavi Marmara ship, Israeli media report.
U.S. support for Israel is decreasing, new poll shows
Ha’aretz – Survey conducted by U.S.-Jewish group the Israel Project asked Americans and Europeans about their views on Israel.
Egypt blames Israel for power blackouts
Ha’aretz – Government official says natural gas deal with Israel is the reason behind the country’s power cuts.
Knesset to hold emergency discussions on Galantgate ‘forgery’
Ha’aretz – Security committee to debate smear tactics in race to lead IDF as police investigation into ‘forged’ document unleashes storm in the defense establishment., Egyptian policeman injured in a battle with…
Israel detains Palestinian in Hebron
18 Aug 2010 – Hebron, August 18, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) ‚Äì Israeli occupation forces (IOF) detained today Palestinian citizen from Dora in the city of Hebron in the West Bank. Local sources said that Israeli occupation forces detained Hasan Abu Obaid after raiding his house. Obaid is from Tulkarem and lives in Dora. Besides, they search the houses of Ibrahim Al-Masri and Abed Al-Ftah…
Heat wave continues to impact Palestine’s atmosphere
18 Aug 2010 – Ramallah, August 18, (Pal Telegraph) Palestinian Department of Meteorology (Weather forecast) warned the Palestinian citizens from direct exposure to sunlight, especially at noon to avoid sunstroke, and also warned of fires. The department expected for the air and wind to be warm and hot today, while the impact of the heat wave continues and leads to a slight rise in…
Israeli court favores Israeli settlers over Jerusalemites
18 Aug 2010 – Jerusalem, August 18, (Pal Telegraph) The Israeli Court rejected A request filed by a family from East Jerusalem to order a precautionary evacuation of Israeli settlers out of their house which was occupied by Israeli settlers in Jerusalem, they lived in their house for more than forty years. The head of the Jerusalem unity in the Palestinian Authority, lawyer Ahmed…
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon can work now
18 Aug 2010 – Beirut, August 18, (Pal Telegraph) The Lebanese parliament issued in its session on Tuesday a proposed law intended to give Palestinian refugees residing in Lebanon the right to work. The proposal comes through the amendment of Article 59 of the Lebanese Labor Law of 1946, as for the hospital services and family allowances it remain as the responsibility of…
Shots at Turkish Embassy in Tel Aviv, 1 Palestinian injured
18 Aug 2010 – Ramallah, August 18, (Pal Telegraph) Palestinian youth named Nadeem Enjasah – resides in Ramallah – was moderately wounded in a shooting occurred Tuesday night at the Turkish Embassy in St. Alirkon in the city “Tel Aviv” which led the declaration of a state of alert in the vicinity of the embassy. According to the website of the Israeli newspaper “Yediot…
IOF warplanes bombard Gaza overnight
18 Aug 2010 – Gaza, August 18, (Pal Telegraph) Israeli Warplanes launched last night a series of raids on targets scattered throughout the Gaza Strip without injuries reported. Eyewitnesses in the town of Rafah said that Israeli aircrafts -type “F-16”- bombed two tunnels, one for Al Jaradat Area the other in Al-Salam neighborhood east of Rafah. The IOF warplanes bombarded a building belonging to…
When Settlers Attack….today (and everyday) in the West Bank
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – I’ve spent the past few weeks trying to understand the phenomenon of settler violence in the West Bank. Where does it happen, how does it happen, who is most vulnerable and how can this most effectively be countered. It is easy to say that settler violence is a result of Israeli occupation and it’s illegal…
IDF soldiers suspected of theft from Gaza flotilla ship
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – Military Police arrested an Israel Defense Forces officer suspected of stealing laptop computers from activists aboard the Gaza-bound aid ship raided by Israeli commandos in May and selling them to other officers. The officer allegedly sold the computers to a friend, who in turn sold them to friends of his. Three officers who are suspected…
Detainee Torture Cases Proceed Overseas as US Stonewalls
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – In June, the Supreme Court refused to hear the case of a Canadian man who contends that U.S. authorities mistook him for an al Qaida operative in 2002 and shipped him to a secret prison in Syria, where he was beaten with electrical cables and held in a grave-like cell for 10 months. Four years…
Leftist faction says Gaza police targeted member
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – Gaza police opened fire Wednesday at a member of the leftist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party south of Khan Younis, the party said. Talal Abu Tharifeh was attacked while he was in his car in Khaza’a village en route to mediate a “field dispute” between members of his party and a group…
Live ammunition used on demonstrators in Gaza who move a section of the buffer-zone fence
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – On Tuesday morning a demonstration in Gaza by Palestinian activists from Local Initiative Beit Hanoun, with four International Solidarity Movement volunteers and other international activists and journalists was met with live ammunition fired by the Israeli army. Soldiers opened fire on protestors in the buffer zone in Beit Hanoun, near to the Erez crossing but…
US academic appeals to UN over Mamilla demolitions
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – US academic Rashid Khalidi appealed to the UN and other international officials Tuesday to defend a 12th century Muslim burial ground in West Jerusalem from desecration, providing new information on the latest wave of demolitions by the Jerusalem Municipality. Khalidi, writing on behalf of the Campaign to Preserve Mamilla Jerusalem Cemetery, and Maria LaHood of…
Legal victory for BDS campaigners
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – Charges against four Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaigners have been dropped in London because of the clearly illegal activities of an Israeli cosmetics firm against which the four had been demonstrating. The case threw up some unusual and possibly ground-breaking legal arguments. Under international law, Israel’s settlements on the occupied West Bank are illegal….
Impact of Israeli Military Order No. 1650
Uruknet August 19, 2010 – Located at the European University Institute (EUI), the Robert Schuman Center for Advanced Studies (RSCAS) conducts “inter-disciplinary and comparative research (on) major issues facing the process of integration and European society.” Prepared by Asem Khalil, its new report is titled, “Impact of Israeli Military Order No. 1650 on Palestinians’ Rights to Legally Reside in Their…
Lebanon scatters a little chicken feed and labels it ‚Äòmanna from heaven’
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – At 3:02 p.m. on August 17 Lebanon’s Parliament began its deliberation on granting basic civil rights to its Palestinian refugees and within four minutes agreed to alter article 50 of Lebanon’s 1964 labor law to theoretically make it easier for Palestinian refugees to obtain a work permit and a job. There was no discussion of…
Israeli settlers expand campaign to manipulate entries on Wikipedia
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – The internet’s open-source, user-edited encyclopedia called ‘Wikipedia’ has been targeted by Israeli governmental and non-governmental partisans since its inception, who have attempted to manipulate its contents to promote a Zionist agenda. This week, Israeli settlers launched a course for right-wing Israelis interested in helping to manipulate the contents of entries on the online encyclopedia. The…
Witnesses: Settlers beat 10-year-old Palestinian girl
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – Israeli settlers assaulted a 10-year-old Palestinian girl on Sunday evening and an Israeli military jeep struck an 8-year-old boy in Hebron, witnesses said. Inas Mazen Qaaqour was beaten by residents of the illegal Tel Rumeida settlement and treated at the Hebron Government Hospital where medics said she was bruised all over her body. Sameh Natshe…
Palestinian Female Prisoners and the Struggle for Freedom
Uruknet August 18, 2010 – Palestinian women have always stood side by side with their fathers, brothers, husbands, comrades to resist the Zionist occupation, to fight for freedom and legitimate rights. They are the first to go to the streets to protest the brutality of the Israeli military occupation, the first to organize sit-ins and marches demanding the release of…
Mr. Erdogan: Please Say No to Uribe
Uruknet August 17, 2010 – Dear Mr. Prime Minister, We are writing to you from under a brutal, hermetic siege now entering its fourth year to express our outrage against the nomination of the notorious former president of Columbia, ?Ålvaro Uribe V?©lez to the Panel of Inquiry into the May 31, 2010 Israeli brutal attack on the humanitarian flotilla to…
Israel should not keep its history behind lock and key
Uruknet August 17, 2010 – History may be written by the victors, as Winston Churchill is said to have observed, but the opening up of archives can threaten a nation every bit as much as the unearthing of mass graves. That danger explains a decision quietly taken last month by Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, to extend by an…
Israel’s Abu Ghraib?
Uruknet August 17, 2010 – A former Israeli soldier Eden Abergil posted on Facebook pictures posing next to tied-up Palestinian prisoners on Facebook, leaving Palestinians outraged and has the Israeli army calling this shameful and repulsive behavior that doesn’t represent the IDF as a whole. Richard Hellman President at the Middle East Research Center argues that this isn’t Israel’s Abu…
Palestinians in Lebanon gain rights
Uruknet August 17, 2010 – The Lebanese government has granted some 400,000 Palestinians living in the country the right to work in professions they had been banned from for decades. Human rights groups welcomed Tuesday’s parliamentary vote as a step forward but said the bill still fell short of what is needed. Under the new bill, Palestinians still cannot own…
IS ISRAEL AN APARTHEID STATE?
Uruknet August 17, 2010 – …There are, for example, at least 30 laws that explicitly discriminate between Jews and non-Jews, “non-Jews” referring in the main to the fifth of the Israeli population who are Palestinian citizens. The reason for the very separate cultural and emotional worlds of Jewish and Palestinian citizens in Israel is not difficult to fathom. They live…
Palestinian baby caught in checkpoint turnstile; face cut, hand fractured
Uruknet August 17, 2010 – A 10-month old baby was injured Monday when he was caught in a turning metal slatted turnstile in an Israeli checkpoint near Bethlehem, where his face was repeatedly slammed into the iron bars until he fainted and fell to the ground. Witnesses said that 10-month old Mu’min Qasrawi’s mother was holding him, and about to…
Stop Demolishing Bedouin Homes, HRW Says
WAFA – JERUSALEM, August 18, 2010 (WAFA)-The Israeli government should immediately stop demolishing the homes of Bedouin citizens in the Negev desert in southern Israel and should compensate those
UN Chief Issues Second Report on Follow-Up to Inquiry into War on Gaza
WAFA – NEW YORK, August 18, 2010 (WAFA)- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has issued his second report to the General Assembly on the follow-up to the report made by the United Nations fact-finding mission
Palestinian Kids Prepare to Study in Shelters in East Jerusalem
WAFA – TEL AVIV, August 18, 2010 (WAFA)- Hundreds of Palestinian children of Eeast Jerusalem won’t be starting school come September, simply because there is no room, Ynet reported Wednesday. Those who do
ANERA: Serving Ein El Helweh Camp in Lebanon
WAFA – SIDON (LEBANON), August 18, 2010 (WAFA)- Ein El Helweh is the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon but is squeezed into an area of roughly 1.5 square kilometers. Living conditions for more
Fatah al-Islam confirms death of leaders in Lebanon
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Last Palestinian tied to 1972 Munich attack dies
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Embassy ‘hostage taker’ a former informer for Israel – lawyer
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Watchdog urges Jordan to veto ‘repressive’ cyber law
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
US Treasury official leaves Beirut after talks on Iran sanctions
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Jumblatt says he relayed Assad’s concerns over Lebanese stability to US official
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Military court charges colonel with spying for Israel
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Cabinet tasks Najjar with looking into false witnesses in Hariri probe
Daily Star 18 Aug 2010
Wikipedia editing courses launched by Zionist groups
The Guardian 18 Aug 2010 – Two Israeli groups set up training courses in Wikipedia editing with aims to ‘show the other side’ over borders and culture Since the earliest days of the worldwide web, the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has…
UN chief issues second report on follow-up to inquiry into Gaza conflict
Relief Web 18 Aug 2010 – Source: UN News Service
Second follow-up to the report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict: Report of the Secretary-General (A/64/890)
Relief Web 18 Aug 2010 – Source: UN General Assembly
West Bank women strive to make a difference
Relief Web 18 Aug 2010 – Source: UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
ILO and UNRWA statement on socio-economic rights of Palestinians in Lebanon
Relief Web 18 Aug 2010 – Source: International Labour Organization, UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
Tulkarem: Sit-in at the gate of Wadi al-Rasha
Stop The Wall – Farmers chanted slogans denouncing the wall and the Israeli Occupation Forces who stop these farmers from reaching their land by refusing to open the gate. This land is owned by approximately 450 farmers from Wadi al-Rasha, Ras Tira and Mughara al-Dabaa. [
Palestinian who stormed Turkish embassy faces court
YNet News – Tel Aviv Magistrates’ Court to extend Nadim Injaz’s remand by seven days. He is….
Palestinian linked to 1972 Munich attack dies
YNet News – Amin al-Hindi, who is believed to have been involved in murder of 11 members of….
Israel’s ‘Judgment Day’ shelters
YNet News – Jerusalem railway station, Haifa’s Carmel Tunnels and Habima parking lot in Tel….
Police: Soldiers looted flotilla ships
YNet News – An officer and a soldier are suspected of selling goods they took from the highly controversial aid flotilla to Gaza, which was raided by the IDF on May 31, Ynet learned …….
Netanyahu: Stop buzz over Galant affair
YNet News – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the ‘Galant document’ Wednesday, after IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi gave a public speech …….
Turkey asks Israel to boost security around embassy
YNet News – Turkey has asked Israel to step up the level of security around its embassy building in Tel Aviv, Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported Wednesday, quoting diplomatic …….
4 Arabs suspected of selling weapons to Palestinians
YNet News – Central District Police arrested four Israeli Arabs suspected of weapons dealing and selling them to Palestinian criminals. The Ramla Magistrates’ Court extended the …….
Palestinian Information Center
Jerusalemites demonstrate against damaging historical burial ground
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – National and Islamic forces organized a demonstration on Wednesday at the Ma’manullah cemetery in occupied Jerusalem in which hundreds of Jerusalemites took part.
Hamas to UNRWA: Quit talking about deficit, fulfill your obligations
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – Hamas’s refugee affairs department says it was concerned over the new and outrageous statements by UNRWA Commissioner-General Filippo Grandi about the agency’s present financial crisis.
Hamas: The option of negotiation is the choice of an isolated group
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – The Movement of Hamas reiterated its rejection of what it described as the frivolous negotiations with Israel and said that the option of peace talks is the choice of an isolated group.
NGO accuses Israel of violations against underage detainees
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – The Defense for Children International (DCI) has accused the Israeli Shin Bet security service of committing violations against Palestinian juveniles in detention.
Israeli soldiers deliberately break baby’s arm near Bethlehem
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – 10-month-old Mu’min al Qasrawi was taken to the Maqasid hospital in Jerusalem Monday evening after Israeli soldiers deliberately broke his arm.
New photos of soldiers rejoicing at killing, arresting Palestinians exposed
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – The Shovrim Shtika organization unveiled pictures posted by Israeli soldiers on the internet showing them standing beside Palestinian detainees or dead bodies rejoicing over what they had done.
Hamas detainees in Jericho jail end protest hunger strike
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – Hamas-affiliated detainees in the Jericho jail of Mahmoud Abbas’ authority ended a three-day hunger strike on Tuesday in protest at the maltreatment of jailers.
Lebanese parliament grants Palestinian refugees right to work in private sector
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – The Lebanese parliament passed a law on Tuesday allowing the Palestinian refugees to work in all private sectors after their job rights were limited to the most menial professions for decades.
Israeli warplanes launch night raids on the Gaza Strip
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – Israeli aircrafts launched late Tuesday night as many as five attacks on targets across the Gaza Strip leaving injuries, PIC reporters said.
Palestinians agree to solve Gaza power crisis
PIC 18 Aug 2010 – The Palestinian government in Gaza has reached agreement with Mahmoud Abbas’s authority in Ramallah to deduct a percentage of civil servants salaries in order to purchase fuel for Gaza station.
Egypt to Import Wheat from Argentina to Keep Bakeries Open
The Media Line 18 Aug 2010 – As Russia bans the export of wheat following wild fires, Egypt looks to Argentina. Egypt is set to import wheat from Argentina after Russia, Egypt’s traditional source of grain, banned wheat exports due to wildfires that…
Iranian F-4 Crashes at Defended Nuclear as Window Closes for Israeli Strike
The Media Line 17 Aug 2010 – Just as a former US ambassador to the UN warned Israel had just days to strike at Iran’s nuclear sites, an Iranian air force fighter jet crashed near the Bushehr nuclear power plant which Iran plans…
Palestinian Armed with Toy Pistol Takes over Turkish Embassy in Tel Aviv
The Media Line 17 Aug 2010 – A Palestinian armed with a knife, fuel can and a toy gun sparked a six-hour standoff after he broke into the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv apparently seeking asylum. An embassy guard reportedly shot the man…
Syrians dissatisfied, survey shows
LA Times 19 Aug 2010 – A survey conducted in secret because of a ban finds most of more than 1,000 respondents are unhappy with political and economic conditions and want emergency rule to end. A survey of Syrians, conducted in secret because of government prohibitions, shows strong dissatisfaction with prevailing political and economic conditions. Though that may not be a surprise, the fact that any kind of opinion poll could be conducted in Syria, was certainly an eye-opener, the study’s authors say.
‘Terror bird’ used its skull and beak to pick at its prey, scientists say
LA Times 18 Aug 2010 – The Andalgalornis steulleti , which lived in Argentina and went extinct about 5 million years ago, had a skull twice the size of a human’s that was used to demolish its prey, researchers say. From the size and shape of the beak, researchers have always known that the massive South American “terror bird” was a predator. Now they know precisely how the bird killed — wielding its huge skull and hooked beak like an pickax and repeatedly chopping at prey until it succumbed.
World Briefing | Middle East: Israel: Turkish Embassy Break-In
New York Times 18 Aug 2010 – A West Bank Palestinian who said he was being persecuted by the Palestinian Authority broke into the Turkish Embassy in Tel Aviv on Tuesday and demanded political asylum.
Expansion Of Settlements Continues
Palestine Monitor – Despite an annouced settlement freeze, despite an imminent Quartet announcement, despite international pressure since the Gaza Flotilla, Israel declared it will build more in the West Bank. Twenty-three mobile school units will be placed in 12 settler communities, including Ofra, Elon Moreh, Itamar, Emmanuel, and Talmon,…
Silwan: When David Becomes Goliath
Palestine Monitor – Fakhri Abu Diab abruptly interrupts the interview as an alarming swell of whistling rises up from the streets. He stands up and walks out of the “Al Bustan Center” tent, a makeshift wooden structure draped in black canvas and covered with blown up photos depicting moments…
Poll: Israel continues to lose support in the US, especially among liberals
Mondoweiss – Haaretz is reporting on a new poll conducted by the Israel Project . Among the findings: One of the questions that the poll presented was “Does the U.S. need to support Israel?” In August of 2009, 63% of Americans polled said that the U.S. does need to…
I am a Palestinian-American, and people tell me about my freedom
Mondoweiss – Flipping through a book of I.D.s from each country and territory in the world we keep around at my job (the number one capitalist and pro-American entity: a bank), I look for a picture of a Palestinian I.D. It is a thick book with multiple pictures…
Deutscher saw the future before he died in ‘67
Mondoweiss – Tariq Ali, quoting Isaac Deutscher in the Guardian (some years ago). Note that Deutscher died shortly after the ’67 War: In his last interview – after the 1967 six-day war – the historian Isaac Deutscher, whose next-of-kin had died in the Nazi camps and whose surviving…
Mosadegh and the Iranian standoff
Mondoweiss – As usual, mainstream media coverage of the U.S./Israel/Iran fracas ignores one of the most important facts at the heart of it all… the U.S./U.K./British Petroleum 1953 overthrow of Iran’s great democratically-elected leader, Mohammed Mosadegh, which led to decades of a U.S.-backed Iranian government that terrorized the…
Ethnic states are common these days. But
Mondoweiss – Rick Congress writes at his blog : I used to use the argument “Israel as an ethnic-based exclusively Jewish state is a throwback to earlier centuries, and modern states are secular and non-exclusive.” I used it until someone completely tore it to pieces. He was right. The…
Palestinian Prisoners: A Symbol of Resistance, Steadfastness and Pride
Sabr 18 Aug 2010 – 11/08/2010 — reham alhelsi My Palestine A couple of days ago I read the following tweet on twitter: “Too many long days and night passed since Gilad Shalit was kidnapped by Hamas 1501 is beyond comprehension.” Shalit, as any human being with a conscience would admit,…
New photos of soldiers rejoicing at killing, arresting Palestinians exposed
Sabr 18 Aug 2010 – [ 18/08/2010 – 01:16 PM ] OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, ( PIC )— The Israeli Shovrim Shtika (breaking the silence) organization unveiled pictures posted by Israeli soldiers on the internet showing them standing beside Palestinian detainees or dead bodies rejoicing over what they had done. The pictures, showing Israeli soldiers…
NGO accuses Israel of violations against underage detainees
Sabr 18 Aug 2010 – [ 18/08/2010 – 01:06 PM ] NAZARETH, ( PIC )— The Defense for Children International (DCI) has accused the Israeli Shin Bet security service of committing violations against Palestinian juveniles in detention, highlighting the force’s harsh treatment against suspects in even the most minor assault cases against Israeli…
Rights center slams Facebook pictures as crime against humanity
Sabr 18 Aug 2010 – [ 17/08/2010 – 03:17 PM ] GAZA, ( PIC )— The Palestinian center for defending prisoners condemned the pictures posted on Facebook showing a female Israeli soldier smirking at handcuffed and blindfolded Palestinian detainees as a crime against humanity and a violation of the Geneva convention. The center…
Turkish embassy man stays in jail
BBC 18 Aug 2010 – An Israeli court approves the detention of a man who broke into the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv, while the man’s lawyer says this client was an Israeli informer.
Palestinian linked to Munich dies
BBC 18 Aug 2010 – A funeral is held in the West Bank for a Palestinian believed to have been involved in the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre.
No Room for Arab Students at Israeli Universities
Antiwar.com 18 Aug 2010 – Measures designed to benefit Jewish school-leavers applying for places in Israeli higher education at the cost of their Arab counterparts have been criticized by lawyers and human rights groups. The new initiatives are viewed as part of an ongoing drive by right-wing politicians in Israel to…
The Israel Lobby Swims The Atlantic
Antiwar.com 18 Aug 2010 – Jeffrey Goldberg’s current cover story in The Atlantic, “The Point of No Return,” achieved massive distribution across a broad spectrum of old and new media in the United States. Some observers ‚Äì including Glenn Greenwald in “How Propagandists Function” ‚Äì noted how well the methodology and…
Articles
Gaza’s record-breaking children
Vittorio Arrigoni, Electronic Intifada, International Solidarity Movement8/18/2010
Gaza’s kids truly are record-breakers. They survived Israel’s 2008-09 winter invasion and every day they put up with a state of war during a so-called ceasefire. Smeared in blood, they’ve crawled through the rubble of shelled buildings, taking care of younger siblings, and tending to languishing parents, often emerging from under the remains of their own beds.
More than half of Gaza’s population are children. Though none of them has ever voted for Hamas, they’re the designated targets of Israel’s military operations and more generally, of the siege imposed upon Gaza. They’re resilient children, standing up against a multitude of ailments and obstacles. According to a recent report of the Palestinian Medical Relief Society, 52 percent of Gaza’s children are anemic and suffer from serious nutritional problems due to the insufficiency of phosphorous, calcium and zinc in their food. The rate of respiratory illnesses they suffer is also cause for concern.
Gaza’s children suffer from psychological disorders, the consequence of enduring Israel’s attacks and siege. Their memories of dismembered bodies and burning buildings are indelible traumas that make them anxious and depressed, insomniac or incontinent. They live in overcrowded spaces without recreational areas. In the same streets where they now play, they remember having seen live flesh burning or rotting bodies. Missiles, destruction and death are evoked in their drawings whenever you hand them a blank piece of paper.
If the right to play is a luxury here, the right to an education is denied. Besides toys and medicine, Israel has also blocked the entry of elementary school textbooks. Unlike the majority of Israeli children, Gaza’s children suffer from hunger and poverty. I see them every day pushing ploughs in the fields, or rummaging through the garbage bins, looking for recyclable material…. — See also: Source: Electronic Intifada more.. e-mail
Don’t deny our rights: An open letter to Mahmoud Abbas
Ma’an News Agency8/18/2010
We are Palestinians of diverse perspectives and affiliations — scholars, intellectuals, artists, activists, trade unionists, human rights advocates and civil society leaders, inside historic Palestine and in exile — who are united in our commitment to the fulfillment of the fundamental rights of all Palestinians, particularly our inalienable right to self-determination. This universally sanctioned right encompasses, at a minimum, freedom from occupation and colonization in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including Jerusalem; full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel; and the right of return for Palestinian refugees and their descendants.
During a 9 June meeting with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, you reportedly said: “I would never deny [the] Jewish right to the land of Israel,” a statement that you have yet to retract. We regard this announcement, which adopts a central tenet of Zionism, as a grave betrayal of the collective rights of the Palestinian people. It is tantamount to a surrender of the right of Palestinian citizens of Israel to live in equality in their own homeland, in which they have steadfastly remained despite the apartheid regime imposed on them for decades. It also concedes the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes.
No Palestinian institution or leader has ever accepted an exclusive Jewish claim to Palestine, which is irreconcilable with the internationally recognized rights of the Palestinian people. Our rights inhere in us as a people; they are not yours to do with as you please.
We, as Palestinians urgently need a legally and democratically elected leadership that is responsible, capable and committed to the fulfillment of our national rights and aspirations to live in freedom, dignity and just peace in our ancestral homeland…. more.. e-mail
Israeli Commandos Stop Peace Activists—But at What Cost?
Rachelle Marshall, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs8/1/2010
Faced with state terrorism we cannot be calm and silent…Killing innocent people and treating civilians as if they were terrorists are nothing but a degradation of humanity.—Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, June 1, 2010.
Veterans of the Israel Defense Forces will someday be able to boast to their grandchildren of their famous victory in the Mediterranean Sea, when they successfully defended their country from a group of unarmed peace activists and humanitarian aid workers traveling aboard a group of slow-moving cargo boats. The aid flotilla that sailed from Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus was carrying 10,000 tons of humanitarian supplies intended for Gaza, one of the poorest places on earth. Since the raid took place in international waters, it was by definition an act of criminal piracy.
At 4 a.m. on May 31, while the boats were still well out to sea, Israeli commandos dropped onto the boats from helicopters, firing sound grenades, plastic bullets and, by many reports, live ammunition. When passengers on the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmara tried to resist, the attackers killed nine of them. All but one of the dead were Turkish members of Insani Yardim Vakfi (IHH), a charitable organization founded in 1992 to aid Bosnians and now active in 120 countries, including Haiti.
Dozens of those aboard were badly beaten by the Israelis, among them a cameraman who was clubbed in the eye with a rifle butt. Videos showed two of the soldiers repeatedly stomping on a man who was down, and then shooting him.The ship was turned into “a lake of blood,” one woman reported. Dr. Mahmut Koskun said the commandos did not allow him to help the wounded aboard, and let at least one of the victims bleed to death.
All of the passengers were handcuffed and forced to lie face down on the deck for several hours. When the boats arrived in Ashdod, Israeli authorities seized their cargoes and arrested those aboard, including 15 journalists…. more.. e-mail
Turkey must oppose Uribe appointment to flotilla probe
Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 – Mr. Prime Minister, it is an insult to the memory of those killed in the Israeli massacre against peace activists aboard the Mavi Marmara to have their blood “redeemed” by a man who has a record of violations against human rights and international law.more
Chick Corea: don’t turn your back on Gaza!
Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 – 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.more
Israel keeps evidence of ethnic cleansing locked away
Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 – History may be written by the victors, as Winston Churchill is said to have observed, but the opening up of archives can threaten a nation every bit as much as the unearthing of mass graves. That danger explains a decision quietly taken last month by Benjamin Netanyahu to extend by an additional 20 years the country’s 50-year rule for the release of sensitive documents. Jonathan Cook reports.more
Israel’s multi-front war on Lebanese resistance
Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 – Border clashes between Lebanon and Israel earlier this month, and Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s presentation of evidence that Israel may have assassinated Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in 2005. are much more than a routine tug-of-war between two long-time foes. Hicham Safieddine analyzes for The Electronic Intifada.more
UK, Irish artists saluted for principled boycott stance
Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 – The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) salutes the British dance group Faithless for declining to play in Israel this summer. The cancellation of the group’s Israeli gig is the latest in a string of cancellations of performances in Israel by artists and musicians of conscience.more
Students, boycott Israel’s propagandist youth festival!
Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 – Once again, the Brand-Israel machine is in high gear, this time organizing a million-dollar international youth extravaganza in Eilat in September 2010 called “Funjoya.” This unabashed propaganda exercise is sponsored by the Israel Ministry of Tourism and the Israeli Student Union, among other official and semi-official bodies.more
Expansion Of Settlements Continues
Palestine Monitor: 18 Aug 2010 – Despite an annouced settlement freeze, despite an imminent Quartet announcement, despite international pressure since the Gaza Flotilla, Israel declared it will build more in the West Bank. Twenty-three mobile school units will be placed in 12 settler communities, including Ofra, Elon Moreh, Itamar, Emmanuel, and Talmon, according to the Hebrew-language Ma’ariv newspaper. President Benyamin Netanyahu was behind the plan to build the housing for students of the Ariel University near Nablus. Netanyahu called an “urgent meeting” to discuss the settler’s deprived education system. Attended by Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Minister of Education Gideon Star and Justice Minister Yaakov Neeman, Cabinet Secretary Zvi Hauser, the meeting members sought to “prevent a political and diplomatic crisis of lack of classrooms in the West Bank.” The Palestinian National Initiative and Negotiation Affairs Department (NAD) condemned the proposal, and the Israeli Justice Department won’t authorize it. “Educational need does not cancel the need to…more
Silwan: When David Becomes Goliath
Palestine Monitor: 18 Aug 2010 – Fakhri Abu Diab abruptly interrupts the interview as an alarming swell of whistling rises up from the streets. He stands up and walks out of the “Al Bustan Center” tent, a makeshift wooden structure draped in black canvas and covered with blown up photos depicting moments of the neighborhood’s popular struggle in the occupied East Jerusalem area of Silwan, the supposed site of the City of King David, the David who faced off Goliath. Small children yell and the whistling amplifies as three, then four, Israeli military jeeps screech to a halt in front of the tent. A half-dozen soldiers in black ski masks and riot helmets jump out into the street, shouting to each other and pointing their M-16s as if in combat. “You see this situation?” Abu Diab asks rhetorically, “This is our life. This is the problem. It’s like this everyday here now.” His eyes move from…more
United Against Paintings
Dissident Voice: 18 Aug 2010 – Some British Jews are desperate to stop the truth about the Jewish state being spread around. The Jewish Chronicle reported today that Jewish “Community leaders are battling to stop an exhibition of paintings by children from Gaza being shown in schools in the North of England.” Jewish campaigners say they have “no objection to the paintings, but have reacted with anger at a series of talks given to accompany them.” The man behind the exhibition and the talks is Rod Cox, 62, who visited Gaza and the West Bank a few times in recent years. The exhibition, Loss Of Innocence, has been on tour since September, visiting universities, town halls and, most recently, Manchester Cathedral. It was taken to a Quaker venue in Marple, Stockport, on Monday evening and plans are under way to take it to schools in the north west. Manchester Rep Council President Lucille Cohen said: “Rod…more
Israel Should Not Keep Its History Behind Lock and Key
Dissident Voice: 18 Aug 2010 – History may be written by the victors, as Winston Churchill is said to have observed, but the opening up of archives can threaten a nation every bit as much as the unearthing of mass graves. That danger explains a decision quietly taken last month by Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, to extend by an additional 20 years the country’s 50-year rule for the release of sensitive documents. The new 70-year disclosure rule is the government’s response to Israeli journalists who have been seeking through Israel’s courts to gain access to documents that should already be declassified, especially those concerning the 1948 war, which established Israel, and the 1956 Suez crisis. The state’s chief archivist says many of the documents “are not fit for public viewing” and raise doubts about Israel’s “adherence to international law”, while the government warns that greater transparency will “damage foreign relations”. Quite what such phrases…more
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The New Dark Age 