20 January, 2011 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Clinton: “Washington Opposes Security Council Move Against Israeli Settlement Activities”
IMEMC – Friday January 21, 2011 – 03:28, U.S Secretary Of State, Hilary Clinton stated Thursday that the White House rejects the proposal that was submitted by the Palestinian Authority to the United Nations in an attempt to condemn Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied territories.
PCHR Weekly Report: 1 Palestinian civilian killed, 8 wounded by Israeli troops this week
IMEMC – Friday January 21, 2011 – 02:23, In its Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories for the week of 13-19 January 2011, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) found that Israeli forces killed a Palestinian civilian and wounded 4 others in the Gaza Strip. In addition, 4 civilians, including a child and two international human rights observers, were wounded by Israeli forces in the West Bank.
Settlers Plant Trees Near Nablus
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 15:59, On Thursday a group of settlers planted dozens of trees in the evacuated settlement of Homesh, west of Nablus, near the Palestinian village of Burqa
FM Malki Condemns Land Rush in Jerusalem
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 15:27, In an interview with Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat on Thursday Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riad Malki condemned the “land rush” and “Judaization” of Jerusalem,
Haneyya’s Facebook Page Removed
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 15:14, The fan page of Gaza’s acting Prime Minister Haneyya has been removed from Facebook, the Palestinian Information Centre reported.
UK Labour Friends of Israel to Re-Launch
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 14:52, In an admission that Israel is losing the public relations battle in the UK with the Palestinians, Labour Friends of Israel (LFI), is to change tack and re-launch itself.
Over 200 Graves to Be Destroyed in Jerusalem’s Islamic Cemetery
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 14:47, Jerusalem’s municipality ordered the excavation of around 200 graves in the city’s largest Islamic cemetery, The Palestinian Information Centre reported.
Troops Attack House Near Jenin, Eight Palestinians Arrested in Southern Hebron
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 14:00, Israeli soldiers tear gassed a house in a village near Jenin, on Wednesday evening. Soldiers also arrested eight young Palestinians including five minors in the south of Hebron, the PNN reported.
Israel Claims Palestinian Woman Died Of Previous Health Condition, Medical Reports State Otherwise
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 13:31, The Israeli army issued a report claiming that Jawaher Abu Rahmah, who was killed by the army more than two weeks ago during a nonviolent protest against the Wall in Bil’in village, near Ramallah, died due to a previous health condition. Urgent care reports at a local medical center stated otherwise.
Israeli Committee Likely To Find Israel Not Guilty
IMEMC – Thursday January 20, 2011 – 13:26, According to the Jerusalem Post a source working closely with the Turkel Committee said on Thursday that its members were likely to find Israel innocent of war crimes when they release a report of its conclusions.
PA makes arrests after Palestinian killed at checkpoint
1/20/2011 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Security forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas arrested three Islamic Jihad affiliates shortly after Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian at a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank. Sources in the movement said intelligence services arrested three affiliates, identified as Adeeb Samudi, Murad Nawahdah and Samer Jaber, and searched the….
Israel finds hospital to blame for tear-gas death
1/20/2011 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — “Given the misinformation that the army has circulated to the media in the past two weeks,” the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee called Thursday in a statement for an “independent and professional” investigation into the findings of the military’s most recent report. Preliminary findings apparently leaked to Israeli media on….
Gaza imports continue through single crossing
1/20/2011 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The last remaining functioning crossing into Gaza was partially opened on Thursday for the entry of 190-200 truckloads of commercial goods and humanitarian aid,officials said. Palestinian liaison official Raed Fattouh said 10 of the truckloads set to enter were filled with cement for UNRWA andUNDP while and another….
No discharge for soldier who initiated Hebron slaying
1/20/2011 – TEL AVIV (Ma’an) — The Israeli military announced late Wednesday evening that the soldier who killed a civilian in his Hebron home would not be discharged, while a second officer who joined in the killing would have his military career “terminated.”The investigation looked into the death of the death of a civilian during….
Al-Jazeera reporter ‘banned from traveling’
1/20/2011 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli authorities recently prevented a West Bank-based Al-Jazeera correspondent from traveling to Jordan via the Allenby Bridge border, a Palestinian media watchdog said Wednesday. Forces offered no explanation to Awad Alrjoub as to the reason for this restriction, the Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms said in a statement. The….
Activist: Teenager detained near Hebron
1/20/2011 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli forces arrested Badran Jalal Badran, 16, from Hebron and took him to an undisclosed location, a human rights monitor said Thursday. Mohammad Eid of B’Tselem said four soldiers wearing civilian clothes attacked Badran and beat him severely before forcing him into a white car at which youths had….
Erekat: More than 100 countries back UN action
1/20/2011 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The chief PLO negotiator says he has the backing of more than 100 countries for a resolution condemning settlements at the UN Security Council. Saeb Erekat told Ma’an radio that the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah would not postpone efforts to condemn settlements until after the Quartet meets, despite reports….
Work to save stunning Jericho mosaics
1/20/2011 – JERICHO (AFP) — Near the ancient West Bank town of Jericho, Swiss architect Peter Zumthor is creating a masterpiece of his own in a bid to save the Middle East’s biggest mosaic. Recruited by the Palestinian Authority and UNESCO, the 67-year-old has developed a unique shelter that should both protect the stunning mosaics….
UK will consider UN resolution, but talks remain goal
1/20/2011 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — As Palestinians table a draft resolution at the UN, hoping to push international actors to make an official move on Israeli settlements, the UK’s minister for the Middle East wrapped up a tour of the West Bank and Israel, and gave little indication that Britain would come out in….
Egypt finds 4 tunnels
1/20/2011 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Egypt took over four tunnels Thursday on the border with Gaza and thwarted the transfer of metal and food. Authorities found large amounts of metal, used in building, and food, sources said. Authorities also found two tunnels. They were placed under tight guard to be destroyed. Security sources said the….
Israel ‘won’t tolerate insults forever’
1/20/2011 – JERUSALEM (AFP) — Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Thursday warned that Israel would not tolerate ongoing Palestinian attempts to secure condemnation of Israel in the international arena. Lieberman’s remarks, in which he warned there was a “dangerous gap” in relations between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority of Mahmoud Abbas, were made during…. Related: France’s new top diplomat in Mideast peace push
France’s new top diplomat in Mideast peace push
1/20/2011 – JERUSALEM (AFP) — French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie was in Israel on Thursday to seek ways of reviving the moribund Middle East peace talks which she said were crucial for the future of the region.” We have to move toward peace, it is in the interest of everyone and in the interest of Israel’s…. Related: Israel ‘won’t tolerate insults forever’
IOC: Israeli Olympic chiefs ready to help Palestinians
1/20/2011 – GENEVA (AFP) — Representatives of Israel’s Olympic committee are ready to help Palestinian athletes train for the London 2012 Games, the International Olympic Committee said Thursday. The offer came during a “constructive and cooperative” first meeting of Israeli and Palestinian Olympic officials in the Swiss city of Lausanne hosted by IOC President Jacques Rogge….
Ben Ali relatives held as Tunisian cabinet meets
1/20/2011 – By Najeh MouelhiTUNIS (AFP) – Tunisian authorities arrested 33 members of toppled dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s family and paraded a treasure trove of jewellery seized in raids on their homes on state television on Thursday. As the new-look government prepared for its first meeting of the post-Ben Ali era, one-time allies of….
Tunisia approves amnesty, declares mourning
1/20/2011 – TUNIS (AFP) — Tunisia’s caretaker administration approved a general amnesty at its first meeting Thursday and declared three days of national mourning for victims of unrest that toppled the previous government. The cabinet is tasked with ushering in presidential and parliamentary elections within six months, following the overthrow of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali….
Iran nuclear talks set to resume
AlJazeera 20 Jan 2011 – Russia calls for the rolling back of sanctions as world powers push for Iran to halt its enrichment activities.
Hariri seeks Lebanon premiership
AlJazeera 20 Jan 2011 – Caretaker leader declares bid to form new cabinet despite Hezbollah opposition but hints at accepting different outcome.
Israel discharges soldier over raid
AlJazeera 20 Jan 2011 – Commando who took part in botched raid that killed sleeping Palestinian man dismissed from service.
Shin Bet Chief Calls for Border Drawing Before Recognition from Spain
PNN – Nazareth — PNN – London’s Al-Hayat newspaper reported on Thursday that Israeli Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin anticipates that Spain will soon become the first European country to recognize an independent Palestinian…
3000 Settlers Storm Palestinian Lands in the West Bank, Protesting Farmers Attacked by Troops
PNN – Bethlehem — PNN — On Thursday morning around three thousand Israeli settlers stormed farmlands owned by Palestinian villagers near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem. Farmers owning the land from Ertas…
Soldiers Kill Palestinian Teenager near Northern West Bank Checkpoint
PNN – Jenin — PNN — A Palestinian teenager was gunned down on Thursday morning by Israeli troops manning a checkpoint close to the village of Ya’bud, near the northern West Bank city of…
Palestinians Submit Draft Resolution to UN Security Council Condemning Settlements
PNN – New York City — PNN – A representative from Lebanon, acting on behalf of Palestine, submitted a resolution to the UN Security Council on Wednesday condemning Israeli settlement activity and demanding that…
Israeli Army Discharges Soldier for Killing Palestinian Civilian
PNN – Tal Aviv — PNN — The Israeli army announced on Wednesday that it decided to discharge a soldier for killing an innocent 65-year-old Palestinian man during a military raid earlier this month…
An Unexpected Gift in Bag of Israeli Biscuits
PNN – Osama Awad — PNN – Samir Khoury, owner of a grocery store in Beit Sahour in the southern West Bank, was surprised to find a large piece of iron in a delivery…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (13-19 January 2011)
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Ramat Gan residents have faced their share of blasts
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – First came the Scuds, then a mob bombing. Compared to that, hosting relatives fleeing the 2nd Lebanon War was a pleasure for Elizah Yosef.
As Iran talks begin, concerns of complacency grow
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Israeli officials defend Dagan’s statement about mid-decade Iranian timeline, say it proves bomb not inevitable and there is still time to act.
PM: Israel will work to disconnect Gaza from power grid
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Lieberman slams PA in talks with French FM; Dennis Ross and David Hale here for talks on Israeli security needs.
Hariri vows to seek premiership despite Hizbullah pressure
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – “They have put aside all solutions and demanded Saad Hariri be excluded…we will go to constitutional talks on Monday with me as a candidate,” says Lebanese caretaker PM in Beirut.
Battered Labor touts packed room as sign of new life
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Poll shows it would win 9 seats in elections, and Barak’s Independence, 2; Peretz to Barak: “Thou shalt not invoke Ben-Gurion’s name in vain.”
Iran: We’ll be able to enrich uranium even if attacked
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Teheran’s nuclear envoy says because of “very serious threat,” Islamic Rebublic has set up “reserve facility.”
Barghouti says Israel is no partner for peace
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Jailed Fatah leader says no agreement can be reached with “government of settlement, occupation, terror, siege and aggression.”
Barghouti: There’s no real partner for peace in Israel now
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Jailed Fatah leader says no agreement can be reached with “government of settlement, occupation, terror, siege and aggression.”
PM calls Peres, gives condolences on wife’s death
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Netanyahu: In her modest and quiet life, Sonia represented good-heartedness; Barak: She constantly helped those in need.
UK: Direct talks best way to achieve Mideast peace
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – British Foreign Office minister says UK won’t recognize Palestinian state before peace deal; warns of increasing Israeli isolation.
PA FM condemns Israel’s ‘Judaization’ of Jerusalem
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – In interview with Arab paper, Malki laments “land rush” in east Jerusalem after Shepherd Hotel injunction lifted,, says Arab League ignored “Islamic holy city.”
Macy Gray lets fans decide if she should nix TA shows
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – US soul singer, who is target of pro-Palestinian boycott campaign, tells ‘Post’: “I like coming to Israel.”
Turkey, Qatar halt Lebanon mediation efforts
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – Davutoglu and Qatari PM say their proposals to quell political turmoil after Hizbullah leaves Lebanese government, presented in extensive meetings with Hariri, Nasrallah, were met with “reservations.”
Lebanese paper: Shin Bet gave Palestinian polio
Jeruslalem Post 20 Jan 2011 – ‘A-Safir’ claims an Israeli agent paid a prisoner to put a pill in a Palestinian prisoner’s drinking, leading to his paralysis.
Netanyahu: Sonia Peres was a symbol of modesty
Ha’aretz – Speaking of the wife of President Peres, was ” son-in-law Dr. Raphael Walden says she was ‘all nobility and devotion.’
Lieberman corruption case to be decided by the end of February
Ha’aretz – Attorney General’s office says that the recent state prosecutors strike is the reason for the delay in the decision over whether or not to charge the Foreign Minister with bribery,…
Sonia Peres, wife of President Shimon Peres, dies at 87
Ha’aretz – Sonia Peres rarely appeared in the public eye, preferring to play a backstage role in her husband’s six-decade political career.
Israel’s trains to start running again after being declared fireproof
Ha’aretz – Railway cars had to undergo professional inspection before they could be approved for use due to reports that the fire near Ronit Farm two weeks ago was caused by a…
Israelis go green for Tu Bishvat
Ha’aretz – Tu Bishvat celebrations will span over three days this year, metamorphosing from a tree-planting holiday into an occasion with wider environmental and social significance.
One dead in Tel Aviv shooting incident
Ha’aretz – Restaurant security guard opens fire at group of men who tried to forcefully enter private event; police say incident was criminally-motivated.
Turkel panel to say IDF acted in self defense during Gaza flotilla raid
Ha’aretz – The Israeli Commission, charged with investigating the events surrounding the Gaza flotilla of May 2010, will make its report public next week.
‘U.K. to consider UN censure of Israel’s West Bank settlements’
Ha’aretz – Comment by Foreign Office official comes as dovish advocacy group J Street voices support for the recently submitted draft resolution; Americans for Peace now urge Obama to refrain from vetoing…
U.K. will not recognize unilateral Palestinian state, official says
Ha’aretz – Speaking during Jordan visit, Foreign Office official Alistair Burt says direct talks are the only way to reach a viable two-state solution.
Israeli, Palestinian Olympic officials meet ahead of 2012 London games
Ha’aretz – IOC brokers 5-hour gathering discussing, among other issues, allowing athletes, coaches more freedom to travel from the West Bank, Gaza Strip., Obama adviser Dennis Ross and David Hale, deputy to…
IDF soldiers kill armed Palestinian in West Bank
Ha’aretz – IDF spokesperson says soldiers shot and killed the man after he opened fire on them near Jenin; IDF investigating incident.
Turkey, Qatar halt mediation of Lebanon political crisis
Ha’aretz – Turkish FM says situation ‘more positive’ than before, but Saudi Arabian FM raises prospect of Lebanon disintegrating along sectarian lines.
IDF discharges soldier involved in Hamas raid which left Palestinian civilian dead
Ha’aretz – Soldier was involved in raid to re-arrest five Hamas members in Hebron who had been released by the PA the previous day.
Iran urges U.S., Israel to stop ‘interference’ in Lebanon
Ha’aretz – Ahmadinejad tells U.S. and Israel that Lebanon and its allies ‘will chop off your dirty hands”; says Lebanon will overcome current political crisis.
Israeli Troops Tear Gas House near Jenin, Five Children Arrested in Hebron, Four Fishermen in Gaza
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – On Wednesday evening, Israeli troops threw tear gas canisters into a home in the village of Zabouba, west of Jenin in the northern West Bank, causing 11 people to suffer from inhalation. Local sources told the state-run news wire Wafa that a large military force entered Zabouba through a gate in the wall, throwing tear…
Two IOF soldiers aquitted of the murder of elderly Palestinian manIOF soldiers kill Palestinian near Jenin
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – Israeli occupation forces killed a Palestinian man near Mevo-Dotan roadblock at Arrabe crossing south of Jenin city at noon Thursday after claiming that he tried to shoot at them. IOF sources alleged that the soldiers killed the man in retaliation to this shooting attempt. The troops are blocking ambulance teams from evacuating his body. The…
Israeli Troops Tear Gas House near Jenin, Five Children Arrested in Hebron, Four Fishermen in Gaza Print
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – On Wednesday evening, Israeli troops threw tear gas canisters into a home in the village of Zabouba, west of Jenin in the northern West Bank, causing 11 people to suffer from inhalation. Local sources told the state-run news wire Wafa that a large military force entered Zabouba through a gate in the wall, throwing tear…
Israeli army confusion over Jawaher Abu Rahmah’s death
Uruknet January 21, 2011 – Last night, the army released a statement to the Israeli press about the death of Jawaher Abu Rahmah in Bil’in. For the past two weeks, the army has been spreading lies and half truths about her death ranging from suspected cancer to Abu Rahmah not being present at the demonstration on New Years Eve. The…
Israeli court permits destruction of 200+ graves in historic Jerusalem cemetery
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – A magistrates’ court in Jerusalem has given the legal go-ahead for the destruction of more than 200 graves in historic Ma’man Allah Cemetery in Jerusalem, considered to be the oldest and largest Muslim cemetery in the Holy City. The legal decision has been described by Al-Aqsa Foundation for Heritage and Endowments as a “major crime”….
Greybeards Urge U.S. not to Veto U.N. Anti-Settlement Resolution
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – Some four dozen former top U.S. diplomats and prominent policy analysts are urging President Barack Obama not to veto a proposed U.N. Security Council resolution that is expected to reaffirm the illegality of Jewish settlements in the Occupied Territories. In a letter released here Wednesday, former U.S. ambassadors to Israel, as well as other former…
Separation wall will isolate 100,000 Palestinians from Jerusalem
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – The Separation Wall, also called the “Apartheid” or “Annexation” Wall, will isolate Shu’fat, Ras Khamis, Ras Shehadeh, Kafr Akab and other Jerusalem districts and villages. The Ministry of Religious Endowments in the Gaza Strip has said that the completion of the Separation Wall in the vicinity of Jerusalem by the end of this year will…
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (13-19 January 2011)
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – Summary : Israeli violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued during the reporting period (13 — 19 January 2011): Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF killed a Palestinian civilians and wounded 6 others, including a child, and an Israeli human rights defender and a Dutch one in the West Bank and the…
Haneyya’s page removed from Facebook
Uruknet January 20, 2011 – The fan page of Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haneyya has been removed from Facebook. More than 10,000 people liked the site. Fans wrote to Facebook administration requesting the page’s return and the protection of pages Arabs use to express admiration for resistance leaders in Palestine and the Arab world…
Alternative Information Center
Internal Probe Likely to Find Israel Innocent of War Crimes in Attack on Freedom Flotilla
Alternative Information Center – A source close to the internal committee investigating Israel’s attack of the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla said that members were likely to findIsraelinnocent of war crimes when they release a report of its conclusions, Israel’s Army Radio…
Clashes Erupt in East Jerusalem
Alternative Information Center – Clashes occurred in the East Jerusalem neighborhoods of Shuafat, Ras Al-Amud and Silwan, on Tuesday and Wednesday, 18 and 19 January.
United Nations Funds Only Half of Planned Aid to Occupied Palestinian Territory
Alternative Information Center – The United Nations was only able tofund52 percent of its planned humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the WestBanklast year, according to a UN report released at a press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday, 19…
Tunisian government offers amnesty to all parties, protests continue
Daily Star 20 Jan 2011 ISTANBUL: Iran warned it would go on enriching uranium if it came under attack as its negotiators prepared for talks with six world powers Friday aimed at defusing a crisis over Iran’s disputed nuclear program. Expectations…
Iran vows to persist with enrichment work if attacked
Daily Star 20 Jan 2011 ISTANBUL: Iran warned it would go on enriching uranium if it came under attack as its negotiators prepared for talks with six world powers Friday aimed at defusing a crisis over Iran’s disputed nuclear program. Expectations…
Bombers kill at least 45 Shiite pilgrims in Iraq
Daily Star 20 Jan 2011 BAGHDAD: Bombers killed at least 45 Shiite pilgrims in Iraq Wednesday and also struck police for a third day in a row, in a wave of violence posing a challenge to Iraqi security forces as U.S….
First Muslim woman in U.K. Cabinet warns of religious discrimination
Daily Star 20 Jan 2011 LONDON: The first Muslim woman to sit in the British Cabinet warned Thursday that discrimination against Muslims in Britain has become socially acceptable and must be tackled. “It has seeped into our society in a way…
France voices support for U.N. resolution on Israeli settlements
Daily Star 20 Jan 2011 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: France will vote for a U.N. Security Council resolution on Israeli settlements drafted by Arab states if it is moderate and does not prevent the resumption of peace talks, its foreign minister said Thursday. “…
Egypt’s Al-Azhar halts dialogue with Vatican over pope’s ‘attacks’
Daily Star 20 Jan 2011 CAIRO: Egypt’s highest Islamic authority, Al-Azhar, said Thursday it was freezing all dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church over what it called Pope Benedict’s repeated insults toward Islam. “The freeze was prompted by the repeated attacks…
Israeli army discharges soldier for shooting Palestinian civilian
The Guardian 20 Jan 2011 – Investigation into death of Hebron man says soldier acted ‘unprofessionally’ The Israeli military has discharged a soldier for acting “unprofessionally” in shooting dead an unarmed 65-year-old Palestinian man in Hebron earlier this month. Another soldier, who…
GZ-Gaza II Emergency Water Additional Financing III
Relief Web 20 Jan 2011 – Source: World Bank
Palestinian killed in West Bank clash with army
Relief Web 20 Jan 2011 – Source: Agence France-Presse
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (13-19 January 2011)
Relief Web 20 Jan 2011 – Source: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
Palestinian faults Arabs over Jerusalem support
Relief Web 19 Jan 2011 – Source: Reuters – AlertNet
IDF kills terrorist who fired at soldiers near Jenin
YNet News – Terrorist armed with Kalashnikov rifle fires at fortified IDF post guarded by….
PA draft resolution: Declare settlements illegal
YNet News – Lebanon presents UN Security Council with Palestinian proposal to declare….
Hariri defiant, to seek PM role
YNet News – Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri said on Thursday he would seek to form a new government in talks next week, defying pressure from Hezbollah and its …….
Flotilla raid probe: IDF acted properly
YNet News – Some eight months after the lethal IDF raid on the Turkish Marmara vessel, the Turkel Committee charged with probing the incident is set to submit the first part of its …….
Iran: We have reserve nuke facility
YNet News – Iran will be able to carry out uranium enrichment even in the case of a military attack on its nuclear facilities, the country’s nuclear envoy said in Moscow on Thursday. …….
Palestinian Information Center
11 citizens treated for breathing problems after IOF gas attack
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – IOF soldiers callously fired teargas bombs at a Palestinian family home in Zabuba village, west of Jenin city, at a late night hour on Wednesday causing breathing difficulty for 11 of its occupants.
PFLP slams PA’s messing with Palestinian internal front
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – The popular front for the liberation of Palestine said that the Palestinian authority’s tampering with the Palestinian internal front serves the Israeli occupation’s schemes and interests.
UN raises $575m for Palestine’s needs in 2011
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – The UN has raised $575m in a humanitarian appeal to cover the needs of Palestinians in the Gaza strip, Jerusalem, and the West Bank in 2011.
Road to Hope Convoy: ‘Ambitious’ projects are under way
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – Senior Road to Hope convoy member says several ‘ambitious’ siege-busting projects are in the making.
Political moves to restart direct talks between Abbas and Israelis
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – The Hebrew radio there political moves to resume direct peace talks between officials from the Fatah-controlled Palestinian authority and Israel under the auspices of the American administration.
Ministry of religious affairs warns of Israel’s new apartheid wall in J’lem
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – The Palestinian ministry of religious affairs said the segregation wall being built now around Jerusalem will isolate about 100, 000 Palestinian natives living behind the wall from their holy city.
IOF soldiers kill Palestinian near Jenin
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – Israeli occupation forces killed a Palestinian man near Mevo-Dotan roadblock at Arrabe crossing south of Jenin city at noon Thursday after claiming that he tried to shoot at them.
IOF soldiers deliver new demolition notices in Nablus village
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – Israeli occupation forces (IOF) distributed demolition notices in Khirbat Al-Tawil east of Aqraba town, Nablus district, on Wednesday, local sources reported.
Israeli navy kidnaps four Palestinian fishermen at sea
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – The ministry of agriculture in Gaza Strip said that the Israeli navy gunboats kidnapped four Palestinian fishermen off the coast of Khan Younis, south of the Strip, at a late hour on Wednesday night.
Haneyya’s page removed from Facebook
PIC 20 Jan 2011 – The fan page of Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haneyya has been removed from Facebook.
Leader confounds both sides with plans for Palestinian state
LA Times 20 Jan 2011 – Salam Fayyad believes in nonviolence and is well thought of in the international community. But Israelis don’t get him and Palestinians lack faith in him. No one seems to know what to make of him. Israelis puzzle over the cleanshaven technocrat who denounces violence. Palestinians see an outsider who never cut his teeth on the tear-gas-choked streets of intifadas.
A new round of Iran nuclear talks, and some optimism this time
LA Times 20 Jan 2011 – Some diplomats are hopeful that talks in Istanbul, Turkey, involving Iran, the U.S. and five other nations will be more fruitful than a similar gathering in Geneva last month. Western diplomats meeting with Iranian officials in Turkey beginning Friday are hoping for at least modest gains in trying to get the Islamic Republic to limit its nuclear development program.
Premier Defies Hezbollah As Talks on Lebanon Fail
New York Times 20 Jan 2011 – Last-ditch negotiations broke down as the Lebanese prime minister, Saad al-Hariri, struck a defiant note toward Hezbollah and its allies in a speech.
Iran Talks Set to Resume
New York Times 20 Jan 2011 – Low expectations preceded another round of talks scheduled for Friday, but Tehran signaled interest in pursuing a fuel-swap arrangement designed by Washington.
Israeli Soldier Discharged Over Killing of Unarmed Palestinian
New York Times 20 Jan 2011 – The soldier, the Israeli military said, acted “unprofessionally” in a raid in Hebron.
Spirit of Tunisia is infectious
Mondoweiss – Here’s an aerial view of Israeli General Yoav Galant’s house, picked up by Haaretz, then passed along byYuval Ben-Ami, who writes: This is Israel, not California. Houses such as Galant’s are not common here, to say the least. Even Israel’s wealthiest suburban communities, such as Kfar…
MSM self-censorship on the Israel issue
Mondoweiss – Tonight Chris Matthews used the retirement of Joe Lieberman as an opportunity to bash the “neocons” for the Iraq war.Matthews landed on Lieberman’s disgraceful answer to Pat Buchanan’s question on Morning Joe today , saying theIraq war was worth it because ofWMD and Al Qaeda andSaddam’s threat…
‘Israeli occupation as brutal as Nazis” — Elkana, Holocaust survivor
Mondoweiss – Don’t ever useNazi analogies, right? No. When I went to Gaza, all I could think of was the Warsaw Ghetto, and the effect on the Jewish psyche of that humiliation, and the need to impose the same experience on others. You cannot understand the occupation without…
One foot in, one foot out: A tour of a Palestinian village
Mondoweiss – A demolished house in Wadi Rahal, a village near Bethlehem. (All photos: Cat Rabenstine) Last week I took a walk through a friend’s village near Bethlehem. The sky was blue and spotted with clouds. It was chilly but the sun peaked through with surprising radiance. First,…
Macy Gray shuns boycott, will play Tel Aviv
Mondoweiss – The ‘power of the affirmative’ is peddled by many a self-help guru who claims human happiness lies in saying ‘Yes!’. In opposition, responding ‘No’, turning down an opportunity and walking away is seen purely in its negative sense — as defeatist, miserablist. From Macy Gray’s Facebook…
Israeli Occupation Forces Kills a Palestinian in Jenin
Al-Manar 20 Jan 2011 – Israeli military forces have shot dead a Palestinian near the West Bank city of Jenin on Thursday. The Israeli military claimed that the man opened fire at an Israeli guard post and soldiers shot him dead, the Associated Press reported. Palestinian security officials confirmed…
Israeli Tanks, Bulldozer Enter Northern Gaza Strip Killing Teenager
Al-Manar 20 Jan 2011 – Seven Israeli tanks, accompanied by a bulldozer, have entered the northern part of the Gaza Strip, near the town of Beit Hanun killing a Palestinian teenager, Palestinian officials said. Hamas emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Selmiya named the victim as 17-year-old Amjad al-Zaanein, saying he…
Hariri vows to lead new coalition
BBC 20 Jan 2011 – Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister, Saad Hariri, says he will seek to lead a new coalition government, despite opposition from the Hezbollah.
Al-Azhar suspends ties with Vatican
BBC 20 Jan 2011 – The al-Azhar institution, the top Islamic authority in Egypt, suspends its dialogue with the Vatican in protest over recent remarks by Pope Benedict XVI.
Turkey, Qatar end Lebanon talks
BBC 20 Jan 2011 – Ministers from Turkey and Qatar suspend efforts to mediate in the political crisis in Lebanon following the collapse of the government last week.
Greybeards Urge US Not to Veto UN Anti-Settlement Resolution
Antiwar.com 20 Jan 2011 – Some four dozen former top U.S. diplomats and prominent policy analysts are urging President Barack Obama not to veto a proposed U.N. Security Council resolution that is expected to reaffirm the illegality of Jewish settlements in the Occupied Territories. In a letter released here Wednesday, former…
Serving Up Palestine One Slice at a Time
Antiwar.com 20 Jan 2011 – Philip Giraldi on the appeasement of Israel
Articles
Gaza doctor Izzeldin Abuelaish: ‘We saved lives,’ I told the children. ‘Your sisters’ blood wasn’t wasted”
Rachel Cooke, The Observer, The Guardian1/16/2011
Two years ago, Israeli shells fell on Dr Abuelaish’s family home in Gaza, killing three of his young daughters and their cousin. The horror was caught live on Israeli TV when the doctor phoned his broadcaster friend. Amazingly, the loss did not embitter Izzeldin Abuelaish. Instead he decided his girls’ deaths must not be in vain — and slowly he has turned his family tragedy into a force for peace
On 12 December 2008, Izzeldin Abuelaish, a doctor from Gaza, took his six daughters and two sons on a day out. The family rose early, packed a picnic and, at 7am, climbed into his old Subaru and headed out. Gaza is not big — just 25 miles long, and nine miles across at its widest — but the situation being what it is, it can take time to move around and Abuelaish was determined that they make the most of the hours ahead. Twelve weeks earlier, Nadia, his wife of 21 years, had died suddenly of leukaemia and ever since, every day had dawned black. It was his intention, that sunny winter morning, to shine a little light on them, to give his brood some respite, however brief, from their grief.
Their first stop was a surprise. Unbeknown to his family, Abuelaish had recently bought a small olive grove, about an acre in size. Separated from the urban sprawl by a 10ft-high fence, it was “a utopia, a little piece of Shangri-La”. The smaller ones, delighted to discover this new place, ran among the olive, fig and apricot trees, before finally settling down to eat their falafel sandwiches beneath a bower of vines. As they did so, the family talked. Abuelaish had been offered a job in Toronto, Canada, and he wanted to know how the children, who had never known anywhere other than Gaza, would feel about this. (Good, as it turned out. “I want to fly, daddy,” said his daughter, Aya.) The family discussion over, they headed to the beach, where the children dashed over the dunes, chased the surf, and wrote their names in the sand. Abuelaish cherished their laughter, the way they mimicked and teased one another. For the first time in many days, his spirits lifted. “We are getting there,” he remembers thinking. “They will be okay. Together, we can do this.” more.. e-mail
The Death of the Israeli Left
Jonathan Cook, CounterPunch1/18/2011
The Final Nail in the Coffin
Ehud Barak, Israel’s defence minister, appears to have driven the final nail in the coffin of the Zionist left with his decision to split from the Labor party and create a new “centrist, Zionist” faction in the Israeli parliament. So far four MPs, out of a total of 12, have announced they are following him.
Moments after Barak’s press conference on Monday, the Israeli media suggested that the true architect of the Labor party’s split was the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who, according to one of his aides, had planned it like “an elite general staff [military] operation”.
Netanyahu has pressing reasons for wanting Barak to stay in the most rightwing government in Israel’s history. He has provided useful diplomatic cover as Netanyahu has stymied progress in a US-sponsored peace process.
Barak had been happy to oblige as the government’s fig-leaf, so long as he was allowed to hold on to his post overseeing the occupation of the Palestinians. But as Labor became little more than a one-man show, it was racked with revolts, its MPs and handful of cabinet ministers regularly threatening to pull out of the coalition.
Netanyahu, however, has a larger purpose in seeking to draft the Labor party’s obituary — one related to the cementing of a domestic consensus cookbehind the right’s vision of a Greater Israel. The prime minister is hoping to unpick the last strands of the Israel created by the founders of Labor Zionism.
Labor’s impact on Zionism was truly formative. During the 1948 war, the party’s leaders established Israel as a socialist state — even if it was of a strange variety that worried almost exclusively about the welfare of its Jewish majority and carefully engineered systematic discrimination against the fifth of the citizenry who were Palestinian. more.. e-mail
Will the US Ignite the Lebanese Tinderbox?
Assaf Kfoury, Israeli Occupation Archive1/20/2011
For months now, the media has been reporting that the UN-mandated Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) is expected to indict Hezbollah members for the killing of Rafiq Hariri in February 2005. Up until about 2008, when Syria was Washington’s official evildoer, the STL targeted Syria. When the US sought to improve relations with Syria and draw it away from Iran, it was Hezbollah’s turn to assume the role and the STL put Hezbollah in its crosshairs. As with other shifting designations of who the official evildoers are, it is not too conspiratorial to suppose that the STL’s re-adjusted focus is more than mere coincidence and serves a political purpose.
On January 11, 2011, after months of squabbling with their internal opponents on how to react to the STL’s forthcoming indictments, Hezbollah’s two ministers and nine allied ministers withdrew from Lebanon’s unity government, forcing its collapse. This happened on the day the Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri (Rafiq’s son) was scheduled to meet President Obama in Washington. American officials deemed the act a “bid for impunity” by Hezbollah, a conclusion duly repeated by major newspapers.[1]
What is at play, however, is a far bigger game than the assassination of a former prime minister six years ago. There are many possible actors, near and far, in this sordid tale. So, let’s leave aside for a moment the question of who committed the crime and consider the following facts instead.
No party has been more adamant than the US about preserving the STL mandate. From Barack Obama, to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman — and on down to other US officials expressing any opinion on the matter — they all mouth the same line: “The work of the special tribunal must go forward, so justice can be served and impunity ended.”…. — See also: Source: ZNet more.. e-mail
Boycott roundup: Ahava products off the shelves, for now
Electronic Intifada: 20 Jan 2011 – Canadian and United Kingdom solidarity activists have scored recent victories towards deshelving cosmetics made in an illegal Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bankmore
Jerusalem evictions, demolitions leave lasting trauma
Electronic Intifada: 20 Jan 2011 – Occupied East Jerusalem (IRIN) – Evictions and house demolitions are a growing humanitarian concern for Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, says the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).more
Serving Up Palestine One Slice at a Time
Palestine Chronicle: 20 Jan 2011 – By Philip Giraldi As of last week, 110 countries in the United Nations have extended diplomatic recognition to the State of Palestine. All recognize Palestine as including the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, essentially the borders as they existed prior to the June 1967 Six Day War. Nearly every country in Latin America, Asia, and Africa has recognized Palestinian statehood and there are indications that many European nations will soon follow suit. Which leaves the United States, yet again, on the wrong side of history. In fact, Washington has gone in completely the opposite direction, insisting that there cannot be any Palestinian state until negotiations are completed between the two parties involved, meaning that Israel shall have a veto on any such development and will postpone it until some time in the next century. In fact, the United States is completely in lock step with Israel on…more
Generalizing Tunisia: Context Overrides Story
Palestine Chronicle: 20 Jan 2011 – By Ramzy Baroud When faced with problems, most authoritarian regimes maintain a policy of rigidity when the appropriate response would be flexibility, political wisdom and concessions. This policy gives authoritarian leaders their ability to control their populations to serve the interests of a few individuals and political and military elites. It can also, however, usher their downfall, for populations can only be oppressed, controlled and punished to a point. President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia, who controlled his population with an iron fist since his arrival to the presidential palace in 1987, must have crossed that point. He was forced to flee the country amid the angry chants of thousands of Tunisians, fed up with growing unemployment, soaring inflation, government corruption, violent crackdowns and lack of political freedom. These mounting frustrations led to relentless protests throughout the country. The government’s subsequent crackdowns only stirred emotions beyond any crowd control…more
Tunisian Uprising and West’s Double Standards
Palestine Chronicle: 20 Jan 2011 – By Mohamed El Mokhtar Tunisia is a compelling case study for the Arab world. Here is a repressive ‘secular’ police state imposed, with the flagrant complicity of the West, upon one of the most economically dynamic and culturally vibrant Arab societies. Despite its well-educated and entrepreneurial middle-class, this open and modern country was heavy-handedly ruled, with an iron-fist, by an autocratic ruler, and it turns out a very corrupt and cruel one too, for more than two decades unrelentingly. She remained all this time politically completely isolated from the outside world and its many democratic convulsions, ubiquitous class struggles and universal search for freedom. The main reason to this desolate state of affairs and underserved longevity lies within the following scam: The regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali has cunningly portrayed himself as a shining beacon of secularism and an indispensable bulwark against religious extremism and Islamic terrorism in…more
More material available from Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel – www.vtjp.org
To subscribe, please write to OccupationNews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OccupationNews/join
The New Dark Age 
Leave a comment