22 October, 2010 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Moratinos: “I Regret Leaving Without Seeing Peace in Palestine”
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 11:58, The former Foreign Minister of Spain, Miguel Angel Moratinos, who was replaced on Wednesday by Trinidad Jimenez, told the media that, despite the efforts, he has been unable to achieve peace in Middle East.
Israel Considers Unilateral Moves
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 10:37, Israeli officials are considering declaring unilateral steps if the Palestinian leadership of Mahmoud Abbas implements its vows to walk out of the negotiations and seek international recognition of a Palestinian State.
New Electronic Checkpoints to Replace Soldiers in the West Bank
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 10:33, Some new “soldier-free” checkpoints will replace ordinary checkpoints between Israel and the West Bank beginning next year.
Israeli Soldiers Kidnap Five Citizens From Towns Near Hebron
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 10:13, On Friday morning, the Israeli military abducted five Palestinian citizens from the towns of Beit Umar and Beit ‘Awa near Hebron.
More Clashes Reported In East Jerusalem
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 09:25, Israeli soldiers invaded on Thursday at night the Al Tour neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem, and clashed with dozens of residents.
PCHR Weekly Report: 2 killed, 3 wounded, 13 abducted by Israeli forces this week
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 08:24, According to its Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory for the week of 14— 20 October 2010, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights found that two members of the Palestinian resistance were killed by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip; three civilians were wounded, and 13 abducted, including two Israeli peace demonstrators and a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council.
Artery Of Life Makes It Into Gaza
IMEMC – 22 Oct 2010 – Friday October 22, 2010 – 06:08, Participants of the Artery of Life (Viva Palestina 5) solidarity convoy managed to enter the Gaza Strip on Thursday afternoon via the Rafah Border Terminal between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
15 injured at Nabi Saleh protest
10/22/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Fifteen demonstrators were injured including one seriously and three houses caught fire in Nabi Saleh on Friday, as protesters attended weekly demonstrations against settlements and Israel’s wall. Israeli forces dispersed the protest by firing tear gas and live and rubber-coated bullets. Dozens inhaled gas and one was hospitalized. Soldiers….
Settlers attack Palestinian farmers in Deir Ibzi
10/22/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian farmers while they were picking olives on Friday, onlookers said. Settlers from the Dolab outpost made the farmers leave as they threw stones before stealing their olives, according to Deir Ibzi locals. One of the farmers said the settlers came by car to the area and as….
Report: Mash’al says ready to accept 2 states
10/22/2010 – TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma’an) — Hamas chief Khaled Mash’alsays his group is willing to accept any peace agreement achieved between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, as long as it enjoys a Palestinian consensus, Israeli media reported Thursday. In an interview with Newsweek magazine, which was not online late Thursday, Mash’alreportedly….
Rolling blackouts resume in Gaza
10/22/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — One of the generators in Gaza’s sole power plant will stop running Friday as it has run out of fuel, a Gaza Electricity Company spokesman said. Jamal Ad-Dardasawi said efforts to open Kerem Shalom crossing for the entry of fuel had failed. Israeli authorities informed Gaza crossings official….
Settlers attack family picking olives
10/22/2010 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Dozens of settlers attacked a family who were picking olives in Yatta, in the West Bank district of Hebron, witnesses said. Locals said settlers attacked Othman Abu Sabha and his family, damaged his car and stole their olives. Meanwhile, settlers entered Kfir Qaddum village east of Qalqiliya, and wrote graffiti on….
Settlers gather on hilltop overlooking village
10/22/2010 – QALQILIYA (Ma’an) — Locals said Friday that a number settlers amassed on a hilltop overlooking a village north of Qalqiliya. Kafr Qaddum villagers, in a bid to protect property, also amassed in the area. The settlers’ intentions were not immediately clear, and there were no immediate reports of injury or damage. Settlers have….
Dozens hurt at Ramallah-area demonstrations
10/22/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israeli forces dispersed two protests in the West Bank village of Nil’in and Al-Mas’ara on Friday. A 65-year-old French activist was shot in the head with a stun grenade, onlookers in Al-Mas’ara said. There were also reports of arrests but they could not be….
Commander questioned over Gaza killings
10/22/2010 – TEL AVIV (Ma’an) — An Israeli army commander was questioned Thursday over his involvement in the killing of 21 members of a Gaza family during Israel’s last war on Gaza, Israeli press said. Colonel Ilan Malka told Military Police that he was unaware of a civilian presence in the Samouni household when….
Sources: 6 detained at dawn from Hebron
10/22/2010 – HEBRON (Ma’an) – Israeli forces detained six residents of the West Bank district of Hebron at dawn on Friday, Palestinian security sources said. The sources said Israeli soldiers detained Tareq Ahmad, 35, and confiscated 6 laptops and 21 cell phones from his home. Meanwhile, Mahmoud Sawarneh, 18, and his 16-year-old brother Ahmad were….
Settlers rebuild outpost south of Bethlehem
10/22/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli settlers rebuilt an outpost Friday near the Beit Ha’een settlement southwest of Bethlehem. Itwas demolished last week on the grounds that it did not have backing from the state. Israeli officials said the settlers were determined to rebuild any demolished structure….
Poll: Palestinians say they need results from talks
10/22/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Palestinians believe they are of greater need of success in the negotiations, and Israelis think both sides need it equally, but both publics are skeptical about their success. These are the results of a poll conducted by the Harry S Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace at Hebrew University….
8 countries absent from OECD tourism conference
10/22/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) Norway, Canada, Ireland, the UK, Sweden, Iceland, Turkey and South Africa will not be present at the OECD tourism conference to be held in Jerusalem this month despite objections from the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian civil society groups said Thursday. The controversy comes amid attempts by Israel to use the conference to….
World Bank grants PA $3 million in social service support
10/22/2010 – WASHINGTON (Ma’an) — The World Bank approved Thursday an additional grant of $3 million to support the delivery of essential social services to the Palestinian Authority. The program, now totaling $18 million, is designed to assist the PA in sustaining the delivery of education, health and social services to the Palestinian population, the World….
Elders: Israeli violations damaging chances for peace
10/22/2010 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — The Elders, a group of eminent global leaders, said Thursday that settlement expansion, home demolitions and deportations were eroding chances for a two-state solution. Former US President Jimmy Carter, former Irish President Mary Robinson and Indian women’s rights campaigner Ela Bhatt, concluded a week-long visit to Israel and the….
PLO official slams Clinton remarks
10/22/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — A member of the PLO negotiating team on Friday slammed remarks by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton a day earlier, when she said the Americans had no “magic formula” to restart peace talks. Fatah leader Nabil Sha’ath said in response, “Do we need ‘magical formulas’ or….
Haniyeh: World remains silent on Gaza siege
10/22/2010 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Ismail Haniyeh, the dismissed prime minister and Hamas leader, welcomed on Friday the Viva Palestina convoy which arrived a day earlier via Rafah. It is a “blow to the Israeli siege and international organizations which remain silent,” he said. In remarks Friday at a local mosque, Haniyeh said the convoy….
Report: PA officers secretly visit Rabin Center
10/22/2010 – TEL AVIV, Israel — Palestinian security officers reportedly participated in a special tour of the Rabin Center in Tel Aviv on Thursday, as Israel commemorated the assassination of former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. An Israeli news site reported that Palestinian officials arrived at the museum accompanied by Civil Administration head Brig. -Gen. Yoav Mordechai and “Judea….
Netanyahu repeats ‘Jewish state’ demand
10/22/2010 – TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma’an) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated Friday his demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported quoting Army Radio. Speaking at a meeting of worldwide Jewish leaders in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said that only upon such recognition will the Palestinians be ready to….
Palestinian MK on ‘the other citizens of Israel’
10/22/2010 – PARIS (Ma’an) — Is there no limit to what the American government will accept from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hard-line foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman? That’s the question Palestinian-Israeli Knesset member Ahmed Tibi posed to the Obama administration Friday in an International Herald Tribune op-ed comparing Israel’s proposed…. Related: Tibi: The Other Citizens of Israel
Falk: Settlements ‘almost insurmountable’ obstacle to statehood
10/22/2010 – PARIS (Ma’an) — Israel’s settlement construction in the occupied territories has become an almost insurmountable obstacle to creating an independent Palestinian state, a UN envoy was quoted as saying Friday. A Palestinian state “seems increasingly problematic as a solution because it would require a substantial reversal of the settlement process,” said Richard….
Palestinian crime scene technicians graduate
10/22/2010 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — A graduation ceremony was held Thursday in Ramallah for 36 Palestinian crime scene technicians following a 6-week training program, a EUPOL COPPS statement said. Technicians received forensic training, and were taught how to use equipment installed in crime scene investigation vans recently donated by the Netherlands and Norway. The training….
Syria to officially invite Fatah to Damascus
10/22/2010 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Syria will officially invite Fatah to continue Palestinian reconciliation talks in Damascus as a dispute between the two has been resolved, sources told Ma’an. A meeting was scheduled to be held in the Syrian capital on Wednesday, but Fatah delayed the meeting over a perceived snub at the recent….
Report: PA confirms uncovered Hamas arms cache
10/22/2010 – TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma’an) — A Palestinian Authority security spokesman said Friday morning that his men have uncovered a “huge” Hamas weapons storage facility in Ramallah. Many shells and arms where found on site, the English-language Israeli news site Ynet reported. Adnan Damirireportedly said the weapons were intended for attacks against the PA leadership….
America’s tea party phenomenon
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Tea Party.org calls itself “a grassroots movement (for making Americans aware of) any issue that challenges the security, sovereignty, or domestic tranquility of our beloved nation, the United States of America. From our founding, the Tea…
Juan Williams and the slew of fired journalists
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Should Juan Williams have been fired for expressing an opinion tinged with racism? I don’t think so. Not that I support racist views. But I do believe strongly in freedom of speech and the tolerance of…
Tomorrow’s Youth Organization hosts Bill Clinton
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Tomorrow’s Youth Organization (TYO) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that works in disadvantaged areas of the Middle East, enabling children, youth and parents to realize their potential as healthy, active and responsible family and community members….
Syria to mediate Fatah-Hamas reconciliation
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Washington – Syria has officially invited Fatah and Hamas to continue stalled reconciliation talks in Damascus, Ma’an News Agency reported Friday. A meeting in Damascus between the two groups was originally scheduled for Wednesday, however Fatah…
McAuliffe: Americans need to know that mess Obama inherited will take more time to fix
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – This week in Washington, I have worked with leading Palestinian-American entrepreneurs and political activists Hani Masri, Samia Farouki and Huda Farouki in raising awareness of the work in Nablus, Palestine of a women’s and children services…
They are calling out for Bill Clinton’s magic
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Last night, I got to talk to and briefly hang with former President of the United States Bill Clinton (along with 400 other folks) who temporarily paused his “rejuvenation tour” for beleaguered Democratic Party friends in…
Report: PA discovers Hamas arms depot
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Washington – Palestinian Authority security forces uncovered and confiscated a large amount of Hamas ammunition hidden in a residential area of the West Bank city of Ramallah, the Jerusalem Post reported Friday. PA security forces spokesman…
Carter joins protests in East Jerusalem
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Washington – Former US President Jimmy Carter addressed protesters in East Jerusalem, saying that the evictions and destruction of Palestinian homes was not conducive to attaining peace in the region, The Jerusalem Post reported Friday. Carter…
West Bank cemetery vandalized
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Washington – A Muslim cemetery in the West Bank village of Kafr Qaddum east of Nablus was vandalized, Ynet News reported Friday. Several headstones were desecrated with “Kahane was right” sayings, referring to the late Rabbi…
Netanyahu: Recognition of Israel necessary for peace
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Washington – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed worldwide Jewish leaders and emphasized the need for Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state as a pre-requisite for a solution to the ongoing conflict, Haaretz reported…
IDF commander questioned over 21 Gaza civilian deaths in 2008
Palestine Note 22 Oct 2010 – Malka testified that he was unaware of the civlians’ presence in the building, and insisted that he done a number of checks to be sure that no civilians would be harmed. Washington – Colonel Ilan Malka,…
Netanyahu Reiterates Demand for Jewish State Recognition
PNN – Bethlehem — PNN – Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who has frequently denounced Palestinian negotiators for bringing up a settlement freeze as a “precondition” for peace talks, said on Friday in an…
Protestors March Against Wall in Beit Awla
PNN – Hebron — PNN – A protest march against the Israeli wall was launched on Friday morning from the village of Beit Awla, north of Hebron. Issa al-Umla, a coordinator for the Popular…
Dozens Suffer from Gas Inhalation at Ni’lin Weekly Wall Protest
PNN – Bethlehem – PNN — Dozens were injured in the weekly march against the wall in the central West Bank village of Ni’lin. After Friday prayers, Ni’lin villagers listened to a speech from…
Fifteen injured, Three Homes Burned In Nabi Saleh Village
PNN – Ramallah — PNN — At least 15 civilians were injured on Friday and three homes were burned by the Israeli military when troops attacked the weekly anti-wall protest in the village of…
Giant Communal Wedding Comes to Nablus
PNN – Sidqi Musa — Nablus — PNN – The cheers of a thousand Nablus families echoed around the Roman amphitheater in Gamal Abd al-Nasser Park. The podium was splayed with lights, chairs had…
One Injured, Two Arrested, During Wall Protest Near Bethlehem
PNN – Bethlehem — PNN — One international supporter was injured and two others were arrested by Israeli soldiers during the weekly anti-wall protest in Al Ma’ssara village near Bethlehem on Friday. Israeli and…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (14— 20 October 2010)
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
UN envoy: Settlements major obstacle to Palestinian state
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Special rapporteur on Palestinian human rights, David Falk, tells General Assembly that two-state solution “seems increasingly problematic because it would require a substantial reversal of the settlement process.”
NY Times Friedman says many in US ‘fed up’ with Israel
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Columnist contends Americans no longer care about Israeli-Palestinian conflict and this could eventually hurt Israel’s national security interests.
Ashton, Russia call on Iran to agree to nuclear talks
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – EU foreign affairs chief and Russian Foreign Ministry urge Teheran to agree to talks on nuke program to be held in Vienna in November.
Muslim cemetery found desecrated near Kalkilya
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Slogans such as “Kahane was right” and “price tag” scrawled on tombstones in graveyard on outskirts of West Bank village of Kfar Kadum.
Carter, Robinson join anti-settler protest in Sheikh Jarrah
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Former US president addresses demonstrators in east J’lem, saying destroying houses and evicting families from homes they have inhabited for generations are unjust actions that are not conducive to attaining peace.
PM: Future of Jews depends on ensuring Israeli security
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Netanyahu speaks at conference of Jewish leaders, warning that Iran has “spread its tentacles throughout the Middle East.”
PM: Future of the Jews depends on ensuring Israeli security
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Netanyahu speaks at conference of Jewish leaders, saying he’s willing to make painful compromises for peace as long as Israel’s citizens not harmed; warns that Iran has “spread its tentacles throughout the Middle East.”
PM: Imagine what Iran would do if it had nuclear weapons
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Netanyahu speaks at conference of Jewish leaders, emphasizing the gravity of the Iranian threat to Israel and the need for Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish State as well as defensible borders.
Israeli champ takes chess Guinness record from Iran
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Alik Gershon, 30, plays against 525 opponents simultaneously in Tel Aviv, to honor the 20th anniversary of FSU aliyah, wins 454 of games played.
Report: PA claim capture of Hamas arms cache in Ramallah
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Security forces spokesman claims arms were to be used attack senior PA officials or to sabotage Palestinian security obligations in W. Bank; Hamas issues denial.
MK Rotem to propose bill to dissolve Chief Rabbinate
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – Yisrael Beiteinu member reacting to conversion controversy threatens to pass with opposition support new bill to recognize IDF rabbis conversions, claims Chief Rabbinate has ulterior motives for challenging validity of process.
Netanyahu: Kadima isn’t joining the coalition
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – After meeting and phone call with Livni, rumors spread about coalition negotiations; Netanyahu reportedly says talks were routine.
Egypt’s emboldened press now feeling the backlash
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – After the development of a growing independent media sector, the Egyptian government cracks down to keep “calm and obedience.”
Peres: We cannot exist without the US
Jeruslalem Post 22 Oct 2010 – The president says Israel should end Palestinian conflict to help build anti-Iran coalition; says “We cannot give back to the US what the US is giving us, but in our own small way, we can be of help.”
Security and Defense: Quietly taking over
Jeruslalem Post 21 Oct 2010 – The PA’s and Israel’s interests dovetail in the West Bank, as both work to prevent Hamas from taking power there.
Cityfront: More than a single problem
Jeruslalem Post 21 Oct 2010 – Flyers have been posted around Jerusalem urging people to be more considerate toward religious singles.
International Solidarity Movement
PRESS RELEASE: Israeli Settlers Attack a Palestinian Boy and Two Internationals in South Hebron Hills
10/22/2010 – International Solidarity Movement – October 21st, 2010 – At-Tuwani – On Thursday, 21st October, at around 9. 20 am, two Operation Dove volunteers, coming back to the village of At-Tuwani after having visited some Palestinian families in the village of Tuba, were attacked by Israeli settlers from the illegal outpost of Havat Ma’on (Hill 833). While walking, the internationals….
Israeli grandmaster takes chess world record back from Iran
Ha’aretz – Alik Gershon broke Guinness World Record for concurrent games after facing 527 opponents. Iranian held previous record with 500 games.
Netanyahu may be eyeing Livni and Kadima as coalition partners
Ha’aretz – Officials believe Netanyahu seeks to include largest opposition party in coalition ahead of a possible resumption of settlement freeze.
Court finds former defense official guilty of assaulting female coworker
Ha’aretz – Former IDF Lt. Col. and Public Security Ministry official, admits to striking fellow employee as a result of being ‘disrespected’ during a 2007 office quarrel.
Interior Ministry’s Oz police unit accused of beating U.S. immigrants
Ha’aretz – Their lawyer: Police yelled at them, ‘Afro-Americans, kushim [darkies], we don’t need you here.’
Police seek prosecution of ex-IDF officer suspected of forging Galant document
Ha’aretz – Galant document purported to outline a PR campaign for Major-General Yoav Galant in his efforts to become the next IDF chief of staff.
2 IDF soldiers arrested for allegedly trading stolen weapons
Ha’aretz – State, military police join forces to probe 6 suspects in illegal trading of M-16 rifles, hand grenades and ammunition to criminals.
AG to Barak’s wife: Payment of fine not sufficient penalty for your crime
Ha’aretz – Nili Priel admitted earlier this week that she had employed an illegal foreign worker as a house cleaner and said she takes full responsibility for the action.
Lod welfare officials: Only two of 50 city social workers speak Arabic
Ha’aretz – The cabinet has promised an all-out war against crime and violence in Lod, but social welfare officials who will also be needed for the task may be ill-equipped to help…
Tens of thousands in Be’er Sheva go without running water for hours
Ha’aretz – Municipality distributed water cisterns to residents, while Ben-Gurion University students were forced to shower in the campus gym.
Rabbi accused of sexual abuse: Man’s strength is in his silence
Ha’aretz – Police recommended Elon, one of the most prominent rabbis in the religious Zionist movement, be indicted on charges of sexual crimes following several complaints.
Man caught on airport scanner smuggling more than 5,000 pills into Israel
Ha’aretz – The suspect told investigators that he had brought 5,500 Valerian pills, 100 Nutropin tablets and 20 bottles stuffed with other “prescription” drugs for personal use.
Netanyahu: Rabin would not have opposed securing West Bank border
Ha’aretz – In address to special Rabin memorial session in Knesset, PM says Israel must insist on security to prevent Iran from ‘touching the fence’ like it has in Lebanon and Gaza;…
Senior Labor minister: We’ll quit coalition if Mideast talks don’t resume by year’s end
Ha’aretz – Despite Braverman’s warning, party leader Barak has yet to deliver ultimatum to Netanyahu; Labor holds 13 of the 71 seats and its defection could bring down the government.
Netanyahu at Rabin memorial: I am a partner to his approach to peace
Ha’aretz – Israeli dignitaries gather at Mount Herzl to mark 15 years since Rabin assassination; Peres: Peace need not divide our nation – it can unite us.
Husband, four others, arrested in murder of Lod woman
Ha’aretz – Abir Abu-Katifu, a 33-year-old mother of five, was shot in her vehicle on Tuesday night in Lod.
No Knesset majority for loyalty oath for Jews and non-Jews
Ha’aretz – Only 56 of 120 MKs say they support the bill requiring Jews and non-Jews alike to pledge allegiance to Israel as a Jewish and democratic state; Justice Minister: I’ll quit…
Shooting of Lod woman marks this month’s third murder in the city
Ha’aretz – Police search for individuals who brought the victim to the hospital, where she died, and immediately disappeared.
Palestinian graveyard vandalized in settler ‘price tag’ operation
Ha’aretz – Witnesses report seeing three suspects at the graveyard in West Bank village of Kfar Kadum.
Netanyahu: Only when Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state will they be ready for peace
Ha’aretz – PM tells Jewish leaders that peace requires security and that Israel’s security needs are growing more and more.
Report: PA uncovers Hamas arms cache in Ramallah
Ha’aretz – PA security forces find rockets and automatic weapons in warehouse, which may have been meant for use on PA officials as well as targets in Israel.
Berlusconi ‘hopes’ Israel won’t take military action against Iran
Ha’aretz – Italian PM doubts effect of sanctions on Iran, says sanctions tended to reinforce regimes in countries such as Cuba, suggests more prudent approach would be more effective., Speaking in front…
Lebanon PM: Israel’s loyalty oath akin to South Africa apartheid
Ha’aretz – Hariri also says law will make ongoing peace talks with Palestinians unbearable, and urges EU to intervene.
IDF soldier involved in Rachel Corrie’s death testifies in public for first time
Ha’aretz – Soldier, who has not been tried nor identified, delivers testimony anonymously over 2003 death of American pro-Palestinian activist.
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (14— 20 October 2010)
Uruknet October 21, 2010 – Summary: Israeli violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued during the reporting period (14 — 20 October 2010): Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF killed two members of the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip, and wounded 3 civilians, including a child, in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In…
Israeli army officers investigated over Gaza air strike that killed 21
The Guardian 22 Oct 2010 – Military police question commander and colonel over air strike that killed members of the Samouni family during Gaza war Senior Israeli army officers are under investigation by military police over the authorisation of an air strike…
Gaza blockade continues to exact high humanitarian toll — UN rights expert
Relief Web 22 Oct 2010 – Source: UN News Service
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 (A/65/331)
Relief Web 22 Oct 2010 – Source: UN General Assembly
West Bank: a breach in the barrier
Relief Web 22 Oct 2010 – Source: ICRC
OPT: PROTECTION OF CIVILIANS 13 – 19 October 2010
Relief Web 22 Oct 2010 – Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
MIDEAST: Treasure House Under Threat
IPS Few outside of Gaza would consider its history much beyond the decades of Israeli occupation. But Gaza is a historical treasure house. Many of those treasures are now in Israeli museums, and those that remain are becoming difficult to preserve due to the Israeli siege.
8th Week against the Apartheid Wall, November 9 — 16 2010
Stop The Wall – [
US man home after release from Iran jail
YNet News – Reza Taghavi, 71, an American businessman accused of passing money to rebel….
IDF boosts presence near Kafr Qaddum
YNet News – IDF forces deployed around the West Bank village of Kafr Qaddum, west of Nablus, Friday night, in an attempt to prevent settlers from nearby Kedumim, from infiltrating …….
PM: We’ll work to ward off radical Islam
YNet News – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday addressed world Jewish leaders at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem as part of the Jewish People Policy Institute’s conference on …….
PA says Israel hogging water resources
YNet News – Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Friday urged the international community — especially the Palestinian Authority’s Mediterranean neighbors — to work to find a …….
‘Politics overshadowing racism’
YNet News – WASHINGTON — Several prominent Jewish leaders in the United States have spoken up against what they called “the growing atmosphere of racism in Israel,” as apparent from …….
Israeli artist: IDF an army of evil
YNet News – Several Israeli artists and creators joined by dozens of other Israelis took part in a MachsomWatch tour of the West Bank Friday, in order to “get first hand knowledge of …….
W. Bank Palestinian cemetery desecrated
YNet News – The Muslim cemetery at Kafr Qaddum, a West Bank village located some eight miles west of Nablus, was vandalized Friday. Security forces called to the scene found …….
Palestinian Information Center
Palestinian captives at Atzion live on bread and water for the past 10 days
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – Director of the PPS in the district of al-Khalil called on all human rights organisations to intervene to put a limit to the suffering of Palestinian captives at the Atzion detention centre
Jewish settler attacks al-Jazeera reporter in Jerusalem
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – A Jewish settler attacked on Thursday night Elias Karram, who works as a reporter for al-Jazeera satellite television, in a market street in Jerusalem while accompanied by two cameramen.
Clashes with the IOF in al-Tur Jerusalem suburb
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – Violent clashes erupted on Thursday night between Palestinian youth and IOF troops in al-Tur suburb of the occupied city of Jerusalem when IOF troops raided the suburb and provoked the residents.
Lifeline 5 enters Gaza Strip amidst big jubilation
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – Members of the lifeline 5 convoy have arrived Thursday to the besieged Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing point after the Egyptian authorities allowed them entry..
Global Elders meet residents of the Silwan Jerusalem suburb
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – The Global Elders delegation visiting the Middle East have met Thursday with Palestinian residents of the Jerusalem suburb of Silwan, and listened to their stories of suffering ..
Sawalha: The Siege on Gaza must end now
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – Mohammed Sawalha, the deputy-head of the international committee for breaking the siege on Gaza, said on Thursday that the convoy’s message to the world was that the blockade must end immediately.
Birawi: Lifeline carries 5 million dollars worth of aid
PIC 22 Oct 2010 – Spokesman for Lifeline 5 convoy to the Gaza Strip, Zaher Birawi, said on Thursday that the convoy carries with it 5 million US dollars worth of aid including medical, humanitarian and educational aid.
As government pressure mounts on Egypt’s media, new technologies offer an out
LA Times 22 Oct 2010 – The government and politically connected businessmen are pressuring editors, silencing columnists and booting talk show hosts. But Egypt is finding it hard to silence protest voices in emerging media. Hisham Kassem crunches over mortar and dust, passes along rough brick walls and steps into his unfinished newsroom, which, if the investors come through , will soon house 100 journalists Twittering and typing out longer tales on the troubled state of the nation.
Leaked Reports Detail Iran’s Aid for Iraqi Militias
New York Times 22 Oct 2010 – The American military reports disclosed by WikiLeaks say Iran trained Iraqi militias and gave them weapons like rockets and bombs.
World Briefing | Middle east: Gaza: Donated Vans Driven From Egypt
New York Times 22 Oct 2010 – A convoy of 140 donated vans drove into Gaza on Thursday through Syria and Egypt.
AL-KHALIL (HEBRON): Palestinian family awakens to discover 100 mature grapevines destroyed
Christian Peacemaker Teams – Palestine –
AT-TUWANI/ABORIGINAL JUSTICE REFLECTION: Seeking the peace of Palestine by engaging our own settler reality
Christian Peacemaker Teams – Palestine –
AL-KHALIL (HEBRON) REFLECTION: God’s justice, even for the shops
Christian Peacemaker Teams – Palestine –
HEBRON: Open Shuhada St. movement changes tactics
Christian Peacemaker Teams – Palestine –
Obama’s gonna have to leave politics before he denounces the occupation
Mondoweiss – Today Jimmy Carter and the Elders joined the weekly protest in occupied East Jerusalem of Israel’s evictions of Palestinians so as to make way for Jews. (Thanks to Ofer Neiman)
Viva Palestina’s ‚ÄòLifeline 5‚Ä? convoy reaches Gaza
Mondoweiss – Viva Palestina 2010 (Photo: Reuters) Viva Palestina Lifeline 5 convoy reached Gaza today , with 140 vehicles, 300 activists and over three million pounds worth of aid. Each consecutive convoy is larger than the last one, increasing the number of activists involved (from 30 countries) and publicity…
The Democratic-Likud Party
Mondoweiss – Ynetnews.com today publishes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “list of millionaires,” a group of people Netanyahu identified as potential donors to him ahead of the 2007 primary elections in Israel. What’s important about the list of donors that Netanyahu identified is what it says about the…
Ethnocracy: The true ‚Äòcore of the conflict’
Mondoweiss – Ari Shavit recently offered seven reasons to recognize Israel as a Jewish state in a Haaretz article entitled “The core of the conflict “. There are in fact seven reasons why his thinking forms the primary basis for conflict rather than offer any solution. Here I address…
Liberal rabbis Lippman and Bachman urge Brooklynites to buy products from Occupied West Bank!
Mondoweiss – This is amazing. Next Tuesday evening, several groups will be picketing Ricky’s NY, a cosmetics store in Brooklyn Heights that sells Ahava products, which are made in the occupied West Bank from minerals that belong to Palestinians. Nancy Kricorian of Code Pink, one of the organizers (…
Viva Palestina Arrives in Gaza with Tons of Aid
Al-Manar 22 Oct 2010 – An aid convoy organized by “Viva Palestina” arrived in the Gaza Strip on Thursday overland from Egypt with tons of medical equipment and food supplies for the residents of the coastal enclave to a warm welcome from the Hamas movement. The convoy, which contains over…
Report: Shalit Mediator Met with Senior Detained Hamas Official
Al-Manar 22 Oct 2010 – The Arabic language newspaper Al-Hayat reported yesterday that the German mediator in the Shalit deal, Gerhard Conrad, met last month in an Israeli prison with one of the leaders of Hamas in the West Bank, Sheikh Hassan Yousuf. A senior Hamas figure, who asked to…
Israeli Drone Crashes in Northern Gaza
Al-Manar 21 Oct 2010 – An Israeli occupation army drone crashed in the north of the Gaza Strip on Thursday but was recovered by a military unit, an army spokeswoman said. “The drone crashed in northern Gaza, at first reading from a technical fault,” she told AFP. “A unit was…
Israeli presence ‘irreversible’
BBC 22 Oct 2010 – A UN human rights rapporteur says continued settlement construction will probably make Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land irreversible.
Jordanian election doubts raised
BBC 22 Oct 2010 – Human Rights Watch calls on Jordan to “respect the right to free expression” in the run up to next month’s general election.
Overland aid convoy reaches Gaza
BBC 22 Oct 2010 – Pro-Palestinian activists drive 137 aid vehicles into the blockaded Gaza Strip, but chief organiser and former British MP George Galloway is kept away.
Articles
The Other Citizens of Israel
Ahmad Tibi, New York Times10/21/2010
Is there no limit to what the American government will accept from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hard-line foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman?
With Netanyahu’s backing, the Israeli cabinet voted in support of Lieberman’s loyalty oath for non-Jewish immigrants, which requires allegiance to a “Jewish and democratic state” of Israel. It was as if Mexican immigrants to the United States would have to swear allegiance to a United States that is white and Protestant, while immigrants from Europe would face no such oath.
In response to an international outcry, notwithstanding silence from American officials, Netanyahu has called for an amendment that would impose the oath on all immigrants, Jewish and non-Jewish alike.
But there is far more wrong with the loyalty oath than simply the original intent of applying it only to non-Jews. Swearing allegiance to an Israel that is Jewish and democratic is logically inconsistent and an attempt to relegate Palestinian citizens of Israel to inferior status.
Palestinian citizens of Israel comprise 20 percent of the population. The insistence of some Jewish leaders on the state being “Jewish” is a punch in the gut to Palestinians who for more than 60 years have struggled to achieve equal rights in Israel.
At a time when there are over 35 laws that discriminate against Palestinians, and with more working their way through the Knesset, it is long past time for Americans to ask their political leaders what their tax money is funding in Israel. more.. e-mail
The violence debate
Ramzy Baroud, Ma’an News Agency10/22/2010
An American activist once gave me a book she wrote detailing her experiences in Palestine. The largely visual volume documented her journey of the occupied West Bank, rife with barbed wires, checkpoints, soldiers and tanks. It also highlighted how Palestinians resisted the occupation peacefully, in contrast to the prevalent media depictions linking Palestinian resistance to violence.
More recently, I received a book glorifying non-violent resistance, which referred to self-proclaimed Palestinian fighters who renounced violence as “converts.” The book elaborated on several wondrous examples of how these “conversions” came about. Apparently a key factor was the discovery that not all Israelis supported the military occupation. The fighters realized that an environment that allowed both Israelis and Palestinians to work together would be best for Palestinians seeking other, more effective means of liberation.
An American priest also explained to me how non-violent resistance is happening on an impressive scale. He showed me brochures he had obtained during a visit to a Bethlehem organization which teaches youth the perils of violence and the wisdom of non-violence. The organization and its founders run seminars and workshops and invite speakers from Europe and the US to share their knowledge on the subject with the (mostly refugee) students.
Every so often, an article, video or book surfaces with a similar message: Palestinians are being taught non-violence; Palestinians are responding positively to the teachings of non-violence.
As for progressive and leftist media and audiences, stories praising non-violence are electrifying, for they ignite a sense of hope that a less violent way is possible, that the teachings of Gandhi are not only relevant to India, in a specific time and space, but throughout the world, anytime. more.. e-mail
Syria’s Diversified Options
Robin Yassin-Kassab, Pulse10/19/2010
A sigh of relief blew across Syria when the Bush administration was retired. Bush had backed Israel’s reoccupation of West Bank cities, described Ariel ‚Äòthe Bulldozer’ Sharon as “a man of peace”, given Syria two million Iraqi refugees and an inflation crisis, and blamed Syria for the assassination of Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri. Veiled American threats of “regime change” scared the Syrian people — who observed the blood rushing from neighbouring Iraq — almost as much as they scared the regime itself.
Obama’s re-engagement signalled an end to the days of considering Syria — in the predatorial neo-con phrase — “low-hanging fruit”, but American overtures have remained cautious, the new administration’s policy severely limited by its commitments to Israel and the domestic Israel lobby. Obama nominated Robert Ford as the first American ambassador to Damascus in five years, but the appointment has since been blocked by the Senate. In May, Obama renewed Bush-era sanctions, citing Syria’s “continuing support for terrorist organizations and pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and missile programs,” which, “continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States.”
So not much has changed. The neoconservative language is still in place, the same elision of distance between American and Israeli interests, and between anti-occupation militias and al-Qa’ida-style terrorists, plus a flat refusal to understand that the countries really under unusual and extraordinary threat of attack are Syria, Lebanon, and — Netanyahu’s “new Amalek” — Iran.
It is clear to Syria that the US is both unwilling and unable to deliver an Arab-Israeli settlement which would fulfill its minimum demand — the return of the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel since 1967 (creating 100,000 refugees) and annexed in 1981 (a move condemned by UN Security Council Resolution 497)…. more.. e-mail
Police repress convergence on UK weapons factory
Electronic Intifada: 22 Oct 2010 – As Israeli warplanes flew over Gaza on 13 October, activists converged on Brighton, United Kingdom for the annual mass action against the local EDO/ITT factory that produces components used in weapons by the Israeli Air Force, amongst others, to devastating effect.more
Treasure House Under Threat
In Gaza: 22 Oct 2010 – * ancient church and mosque in Gaza City [photo by Emad Badwan ] Oct 22, 2010 (IPS) — Few outside of Gaza would consider its history much beyond the decades of Israeli occupation. But Gaza is a historical treasure house. Many of those treasures are now in Israeli museums, and those that remain are becoming difficult to preserve due to the Israeli siege. Gaza, set along the historical silk road and on the bridge between Africa and Asia, was host to civilisations, including the Pharaohs, Canaanites, Philistines, Crusaders, Mamluks, Romans and many following. Alexander the Great invaded Gaza; Napoleon Bonaparte passed through. *photo: Abeer Jamal “Throughout Gaza, you find pottery and carved columns and capitals, and the remnants of civilisations past, including artifacts from early human presence like the iron and bronze ages,” says Asad Ashoor from the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in Gaza. “There are visible relics in Gaza,”…more
Israel Shooting and Electric-Shocking Palestinian Children
Dissident Voice: 21 Oct 2010 – Defence for Children International (DCI) Palestine Section (DCI/Palestine) “is a national section of the international non-government child rights organisation and movement (dedicated) to promoting and protecting the rights of Palestinian children,” according to international law principles. 1 Both covered Israel’s systematic, institutionalized use of torture of Palestinian children as brutally as against adults. DCI/Palestine’s latest September Bulletin adds more, saying: For the first time… three (documented) cases of children reporting being given electric shocks by Israeli interrogators (occurred) in Ari’el Settlement. Each was accused of stone throwing. Electric shocking extracted confessions although the boys maintain their innocence. DCI and PACTI (the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel) demanded Israel investigate reports that a Gush Etzion settlement interrogator “attached car battery jump leads to the genitals of a 14-year old boy in order to obtain a confession to stone throwing.” The August 5 incident involved four boys walking near a road…more
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The New Dark Age 
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