4 February, 2011 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Egyptian protesters return to the streets Friday for ‘Day of Departure’ demonstration
IMEMC – Saturday February 05, 2011 – 01:34, At least 100,000 demonstrators held protests in Cairo, Alexandria, Suez and other cities in Egypt Friday, calling on the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to step down immediately. Friday’s ‘Day of Departure’ protests came after a group of Mubarak supporters attacked demonstrators with clubs, pipes and guns on Thursday, killing four.
UN condemns Israeli destruction of Palestinian water systems
IMEMC – Saturday February 05, 2011 – 00:47, After documenting the destruction of 27 water cisterns, and diversion of 15 mountain springs by Israeli forces over the last year, the Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Territories for the United Nations, issued a statement condemning the attacks on water.
Clashes Continue in Silwan
IMEMC – Friday February 04, 2011 – 15:42, Sporadic clashes erupted between Israeli forces and Palestinian residents of Silwan, East Jerusalem yesterday.
Human Rights Groups Criticize PA for Crackdown on Solidarity Rallies
IMEMC – Friday February 04, 2011 – 15:20, Palestinian and international human rights groups on Thursday warned of a decline in freedom of expression in the West Bank, amidst the banning of Egypt solidarity rallies by the Palestinian Authority.
PA Bans “Unlicensed Gatherings” in order to “Preserve Order”
IMEMC – Friday February 04, 2011 – 14:35, Palestinian Authority security spokesman, Adnan Ad-Dmeiri announced on Thursday that the PA has forbidden “unlicensed gatherings” in order to preserve order in the West Bank.
Gaza facing fuel crisis as tunnel trade stops
2/4/2011 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The Gaza Strip is facing a fuel crisis since political unrest in Egypt led to the closure of smuggling tunnels, fuel company officials warned Thursday. Deputy head of fuel companies in the Strip Mahmoud Al-Khazendar said gas stations have completely run out of fuel. Most petrol and diesel supplies enter….
Witnesses: Army detains 3 Beit Ummar residents
2/4/2011 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained three Palestinians on Thursday near the illegal settlement of Karmi Tzur in Hebron, witnesses said. Palestinian Solidarity Project spokesman Mohammad Awad said soldiers detained Belal Hamdan Abu Maria, 25, Issa Mohammad Issa Baher, 20, and Abdallah Samir Abdallah, 20. All three are residents of Beit Ummar, he said….
Israel restricts access to Al-Aqsa mosque
2/4/2011 – JERUSALEM (AFP) — Access to Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound was restricted Friday in a bid to prevent demonstrations in support of the Egyptian uprising after Muslim prayers, police said.” This Friday, we are forbidding access to the compound to men under 50 years old carrying an Israeli identity card,” police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld….
Israel plans to ‘improve’ Palestinians’ economic lot
2/4/2011 – JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel proposed on Friday to wean Hamas-run Gaza off its infrastructure network, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set out a series of steps intended to ease the economic lot of the Palestinians. In a statement on the eve of a meeting in Munich of the Middle East diplomatic Quartet, Netanyahu said Israel would….
Rights group: PA banning freedom of expression
2/5/2011 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — A Palestinian rights group on Thursday warned of deteriorating freedom of expression in the West Bank, as the PA banned “unlicensed assembly” in response to rallies in solidarity with Egyptians. In a statement, the Palestinian Commission for Human Rights condemned the PA’s closure of the demonstrations. On Wednesday, PA…. Related: PA bans ‘unlicensed assembly’
Center: Detainee’s wife banned from visits
2/4/2011 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — Israel’s prison administration has banned a detainee’s wife from visits for one year because she refused to be strip-searched, a detainees’ center said Thursday. Mahmoud Al-Qawasmi’s wife was accused of trying to smuggle a cell phone to her husband during a visit. She denies….
UN rights chief to visit Palestinian territories
2/5/2011 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The UN’s high commissioner for human rights Navi Pillay will visit the Palestinian territories this week. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights announced the visit Friday.” Pillay will look closely at the situation in the Palestinian territories, and will be looking at ways to promote….
Detainee enters 22nd year in Israeli jail
2/4/2011 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — A detainee from Ramallah entered his 22nd year in an Israeli prison on Thursday, the Gaza government Detainees’ Ministry said. Hassan Yousef Mahmoud Ghafri, 40, was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1990, accused of killing Israeli soldiers, ministry spokesman Riyad Ashqar said. Ghafri received his high school diploma and….
Explosive planted outside Gaza home
2/4/2011 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Unknown assailants on Wednesday planted an explosive in front of a three-story home in the northern Gaza Strip, the building’s owner said. Raed Khadra, 36, said all the windows in the building shattered and walls were damaged in the explosion in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood. Four families live….
Israel wary of Egyptian democracy
2/4/2011 – JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel has long prided itself on being the only democracy in the Middle East and seems happy to keep things that way. As massive protests broke out in Egypt against the repressive 30-year rule of President Hosni Mubarak, leaders from across the globe rushed to express their support for the democratic aspirations….
PA bans ‘unlicensed assembly’
2/4/2011 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — The Palestinian Authority has banned “unlicensed gatherings” in order to preserve order in the West Bank, security spokesman Adnan Ad-Dmeiri announced Thursday. The PA official said the ruling was in response to demonstrations in solidarity with uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. In a statement, Ad-Dmeiri said the PA affirmed the right…. Related: Rights group: PA banning freedom of expression
Palestinian negotiator backtracks on CIA charge
2/5/2011 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The PLO’s chief negotiator has backed down from allegations an Al-Jazeera journalist worked for the CIA and stole a cache of secret documents on behalf of the Qatar-based network. Saeb Erekat claimed in January that Clayton Swisher, a US citizen and Al-Jazeera International journalist, was a current member of….
Korean film industry breaks into international arena
2/4/2011 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Korean ambassador to Palestine Chungnam Park on Thursday visited Ma’an News Agency headquarters and discussed airing Korean dramas on Palestinian television. Editor-in-chief Nasser Laham said Palestinian TV was over-saturated with American imports and that he believed Korean dramas would be popular with Palestinian viewers, who he said were….
Fayyad: Occupation factor in regional instability
2/4/2011 – PARIS (Ma’an) — Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Thursday said the failure to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict had contributed to unrest across the Middle East. Fayyad said protests across the region reflected people’s desire for political reform and their legitimate aspirations for democracy. But while internal conditions sparked the wave….
Erekat: Quartet should recognize Palestinian state
2/4/2011 – JERICHO (Ma’an) — Chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat on Friday called on the Quartet of world powers to recognize a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders and move forward on final-status issues like refugees.”The key to Middle East security, stability and democracy is an end to the Israeli occupation and the establishment of….
Fayyad: Democracy key to Arab stability
2/4/2011 – PARIS (AFP) — Salam Fayyad said Friday that democracy and good governance were the key to stability in the Arab world, and the West would be mistaken in not encouraging them.”Impeding political evolution is not stability, this is fragility,” he said in a debate on building a Palestinian state at the International Diplomatic Academy in….
Report: US discussing plan for Mubarak to quit now
2/4/2011 – WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States urged the Egyptian government Thursday to begin transition talks “immediately” and was reportedly pushing for President Hosni Mubarak to quit right away. The New York Times reported that President Barack Obama’s administration was discussing with Egyptian officials a plan for Mubarak to turn power over now to a….
Huge crowds turn out for Mubarak ‘departure day’ demonstration
2/4/2011 – CAIRO (AFP) — Egyptian protesters massed Friday for sweeping “departure day” demonstrations to force President Hosni Mubarak to quit after he said he would like to step down but fears chaos would result. Tens of thousands filled Cairo’s central Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the 11 straight days of protests that have shaken the….
Iran’s Khamenei calls for Islamic regime in Egypt
2/4/2011 – TEHRAN (AFP) – Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday called for an Islamic regime to be installed in Egypt, saying the wave of Arab revolts is an “earthquake” triggered by the 1979 Iranian revolution. The all-powerful Khamenei said the Arab uprisings, if successful, would lead to failure of US policies in the….
Al-Jazeera says its Cairo offices attacked
2/4/2011 – DOHA (AFP) – Al-Jazeera, the pan-Arab satellite television channel banned since last weekend from operating in Egypt, said Friday its offices in Cairo have been attacked.” Unknown persons came into the Al-Jazeera bureau in Cairo and destroyed equipment inside,” the Doha-based channel said in a statement, without giving details. Last Sunday, the Egyptian information ministry ordered….
Health workers ‘blocked in Egypt turmoil’
2/4/2011 – GENEVA (AFP) — The international Red Cross said on Friday that health workers had been hindered from reaching people wounded in unrest in Egypt, as it flew in emergency medical supplies to treat a surge in casualties. The International Committee of the Red Cross also reported that hundreds of passengers have been stranded in the international….
Brotherhood leader ‘ready to talk’ when Mubarak goes
2/4/2011 – DUBAI (AFP) – Egypt’s opposition Muslim Brotherhood is ready to hold talks on the transition from President Hosni Mubarak’s rule once he has resigned, its supreme guide Mohammed Badie told Al-Jazeera television Friday.” We stand with all the political forces supporting dialogue with whoever wants to implement reforms in the country after….
Europe warns Egypt against violence
2/4/2011 – BRUSSELS (AFP) — European leaders bluntly warned Egypt against any breakout of violence during Friday’s “departure day” protests as they took stock of the turmoil sweeping the Arab world. With Europe slammed for saying too little too late on the unrest rolling across its southern flank, leaders of Britain, Germany and Italy joined a….
Yemen govt supporters tighten grip on Sanaa square
2/4/2011 – SANAA (AFP) — Supporters of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh tightened their control of Sanaa’s central square on Friday, after crowding out a planned opposition rally there the previous day/Tents, national flags and portraits of Saleh were erected across Al-Tahrir Square, which was occupied by hundreds of supporters of the ruling Popular Congress….
UN rights chief: Egypt set for Tunisia-style change
2/4/2011 – GENEVA (AFP) — UN human rights chief Navi Pillay said on Friday that Egypt would experience the kind of change that has swept Tunisia in the wake of a popular revolt that toppled that country’s president last month.” Change is coming to Egypt, as it came to Tunisia, but the violence and bloodshed must….
Jordanians in fresh protest at PM’s office
2/4/2011 – AMMAN (AFP) — Around 1,000 protesters gathered on Friday outside the Jordanian prime minister’s office to demand reforms, before staging a sit-in near Cairo’s embassy in support of anti-regime protests in Egypt. The demonstrators, answering calls by the powerful Islamic Action Front, the political arm of the country’s Muslim Brotherhood….
Bouteflika criticizes ‘excesses’ during Algerian riots
2/4/2011 – ALGIERS (AFP) — Algeria’s president denounced on Thursday “regrettable excesses” during deadly January riots while announcing measures demanded by the opposition including shortly lifting the state of emergency.” There is no justification for the attack on people or property. These excesses are regrettable,” Abelaziz Bouteflika said in a statement marking his first reaction to….
Egypt’s army holds the key but plays the sphinx
2/4/2011 – CAIRO (AFP) — The wait-and-see stance of the Egyptian military is raising many questions, but underlining one fact: its role will be decisive regardless of how the ongoing turmoil will end. Political analysts are scrambling to decipher its sphinx-like conduct. Is it complicit in police brutality? Prudent in the face of a fluid situation? Split at….
EU freezes assets of 46 associates of Tunisia’s Ben Ali
2/4/2011 – BRUSSELS (AFP) — The European Union on Friday slapped asset freezes on 46 associates of ousted Tunisian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, an EU official told Agence France-Presse….
EU-27 demand Egypt transition ‘now’
2/4/2011 – BRUSSELS (AFP) — Europe’s 27 leaders demanded the transition to democracy in Egypt start “now” in a joint statement Friday that also condemned violence in the country “in the strongest terms….
Egypt PM rules out Mubarak handing power to deputy
2/4/2011 – CAIRO (AFP) — Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq on Friday ruled out the possibility that President Hosni Mubarak would hand over power to his vice president, amid deadly protests calling for the leader’s ouster….
Europe leaders demand Egypt transition ‘now’
2/4/2011 – BRUSSELS (AFP) — Europe’s 27 leaders on Friday demanded Egypt’s transition start “now” in a joint statement marking a policy U-turn in EU ties with its volatile neighbours on its southern flank. Slammed for doing too little too late as unrest unfurls on the southern shores of the Mediterranean, European Union leaders….
Unrest spreads across the Arab world
2/4/2011 – CAIRO (AFP) — Key events around the Arab world on Friday, as the revolts that began on Jan. 14 in Tunisia continue:EGYPTJan. 25 saw the start of massive demonstrations against President Hosni Mubarak’s regime, in power since 1981. The unrest has left at least 300 dead, according to unconfirmed figures from the United….
Facebook fails to ignite protests in Syria
2/4/2011 – DAMASCUS (AFP) — Rain, not protesters, flooded the streets of Damascus on Friday after Muslim prayers when a “day of anger” had been promoted by online activists in an echo of Egypt’s popular uprising. For a week, Facebook activists had touted Friday as the day they would mark a peaceful “2011 Syrian revolution” to….
Gaza Operation Hope; Open Gaza Port Now
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – I am sure the Americans and the Europeans will be very pleased if Abbas of Ramallah and Haniyeh of Gaza announced to the world their willingness to entrust the management and operation including security for the…
Gaza feeds hungry Egyptian troops in role reversal
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Haaretz – Egyptian soldiers isolated on the Gaza border by 10 days of internal upheaval are getting bread, canned goods and other food supplies from the enclave, which is usually on the receiving end of food…
Israel, Palestinians float Gaza gas rapprochement
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Alert Net – Israel and the Palestinians are eyeing talks to develop a gas field off the Gaza coast and other initiatives for an independent Palestinian infrastructure, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday. The…
Gang Attacks Peaceful Demonstrators; Police Look On
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Alert Net – Syria’s government should immediately cease its intimidation and harassment of demonstrators expressing solidarity with pro-democracy campaigners in Egypt, Human Rights Watch said today. With calls on Facebook and Twitter for large protests in…
Hundreds protest Jordan’s newly appointed Prime Minister
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – Inspired by Egypt’s uprising, hundreds of Jordanians on Friday staged a protest against their prime minister, installed just days earlier in response to anti-government marches, the Associated Press reported. Friday’s turnout was…
Shows of support for Egyptian protesters seen in Iran, Turkey, Malaysia and elsewhere
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – Across the Muslim world, worshipers and leading clerics on Friday expressed support for the uprising in Egypt. In Malaysia’s biggest city, Kuala Lumpur, hundreds marched outside the U.S. Embassy, calling on the…
Mass protests in city of Alexandria
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Al Jazeera – Tens of thousands of people have staged protests against Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, in Alexandria, on what activists have dubbed his ” Day of Departure “. An Al Jazeera producer said the…
Palestinian Authority: End Violence Against Egypt Demonstrators
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Alert Net – The Palestinian Authority should end police violence against peaceful demonstrators, the latest instance being an attack against demonstrators at an evening rally on February 2, 2011, in Ramallah in support of the Egypt…
European Union leaders urge dialogue, end to violence
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – European Union leaders urged dialogue and an end to violence in Egypt in a joint statement at the conclusion of a one-day summit in Brussels on Friday, ignoring calls by Britain’s prime…
Mubarak issue divides Palestinians
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Jon Donnison, BBC News – Palestinians, like most people in the Middle East, are watching events in Egypt closely. For decades, President Hosni Mubarak has been a key player in peace talks between Israel and the…
Some Fear a Street Movement’s Leaderless Status May Become a Liability
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – New York Times – Members of the Muslim Brotherhood helped run a clinic to treat injured protesters. Construction workers from southern Egypt smashed rocks for the defense of Tahrir Square. Lobna Elshoky and Nora Abusamra, both…
Prime minister warns police against interfering with Friday protests
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – As Egyptians braced for another potential flashpoint in their campaign against President Hosni Mubarak, the country’s new prime minister told state-run television that he had ordered police to refrain from disrupting a…
The Price of Success: Fanatical Wingnuts Target Jewish Voice for Peace Activist
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – On the same day that Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) could celebrate an excellent article about it in the New York Times, they also had to send out the alert below, alerting us to another threat…
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says Egyptian uprising is an Islamic ‘awakening’
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – Iran’s spiritual and political leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said the popular uprisings against Western-backed autocrats in Tunisia and Egypt represent an “irreversible defeat” for the United States. Speaking amid heightened security during…
Rural Poor Paid to Attack Opposition Supporters
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Spiegel – The bloody clashes in Cairo show that not all of Egypt’s 80 million people want to see President Hosni Mubarak overthrown or a new start heralded by fresh elections. Many are fiercely loyal to…
5,000 injured since unrest began, health minister says; protests continue
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – Around 5,000 people have been injured since the unrest in Egypt began, Egypt’s health minister Ahmed Sameh Farid told the Al-Arabiya network Friday. Tens of thousands joined the beaten and bandaged in…
Proposals for change: a national security council and proportional representation
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Los Angeles Times – The Egyptian protesters and opposition have proposed a set of demands and reforms to resolve the current crisis and create a new political order: the departure of President Hosni Mubarak, his family…
What will it take to realize the bias?
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – The New York Times published an Associated Press report on Mike Huckabee’s trip to Israel. Huckabee’s solution to the Israel/Palestine conflict is for Palestinians to get their state on land from Arab or Muslim countries. “There…
Egyptian Protesters Clamor For ‘Friday Of Departure’
Palestine Note 4 Feb 2011 – Mubarak regime continues to resist crowd’s demands NPR – Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters massed again in central Cairo for what organizers billed as a “Friday of Departure” seeking to force out President Hosni Mubarak…
Hard Choices for the US and Israel Loom In A New Middle East
Palestine Note 3 Feb 2011 – This article originally appeared at The Third Way All of us writers, analysts, bloggers and Mideast observers, across the political spectrum are in agreement about one thing: the recent upheavals in Tunisia and Egypt, and the…
Egypt holds ‘Day of Departure’
AlJazeera 4 Feb 2011 – Hundreds of thousands flood Tahrir Square for largely peaceful ‘Day of Departure’ protest against President Mubarak.
Live blog Feb 5 – Egypt protests
AlJazeera 4 Feb 2011 – From our Doha headquarters, we keep you updated on all things Egypt, with reporting from Al Jazeera staff in Cairo and
Berlusconi: Mubarak is a wise man
AlJazeera 4 Feb 2011 – Italy’s PM says he hopes there can be a transition to democracy in Egypt without a “break” from the president.
Khamenei hails ‘Islamic’ uprisings
AlJazeera 4 Feb 2011 – Iranian supreme leader urges Egyptians to follow in the footsteps of Iran’s 1979 revolution.
Rallies for reform held in Jordan
AlJazeera 4 Feb 2011 – Hundreds of protesters demand reform in Amman while a “day of rage” planned for Damascus fails to get underway.
Fayyad in Paris: Remember the European Consensus, End the Occupation
PNN – Paris – PNN – In a meeting with French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris, Palestinian Prime Minister Dr. Salaam Fayyad stressed on Friday that the 2009 European Consensus declaration was the starting…
Israeli Troops Attack Anti-Wall Protesters Marching in Solidarity with Egypt
PNN – Ramallah – PNN – Scores of Palestinians joined Israeli and international supporters to march against the Israeli wall in different locations in the West Bank on Friday. This week, protests were held…
Palestinian Popular Committees to Egyptian Protesters: Abandon the Treaty
PNN – Jerusalem – PNN – In a Friday press release directed to “the Egyptian Arab nation,” the Palestinian Popular Committees Against the Israeli Occupation called for the renunciation of the 1979 peace treaty…
Ahead of Saturday Pro-Egypt Protests, PA Bans “Unlicensed Assembly”
PNN – Ramallah – PNN – The Palestinian Authority (PA) issued a statement on Thursday evening banning what it called “unlicensed gatherings” in response to planned solidarity demonstrations with Egypt and Tunisia by Palestinians…
Clinton Condemns Attacks on Journalists in Egypt
PNN – Washington, D.C. – PNN – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton strongly condemned on Thursday the attacks on local and foreign journalists in Egypt. “We condemn in the strongest terms attacks on…
PCHR: Israeli Attacks Left Three Palestinian Killed this week
PNN – PCHRGaza – PNN – Israeli military attacks left three Palestinians dead; troops arrested 23 civilians this week, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights said in its weekly report. The report, which documents…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (27 Jan. – 02 Feb. 2011)
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Will Syria come next?
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – A Facebook campaign titled “Syrian Day of Rage” tries to shake Syrian President Assad’s throne, but prospects of success seem slim.
Obama challenges Mubarak: Consider your legacy
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – US president cautions that “entire world is watching”; says issues at stake in Egypt would not be resolved through violence; condemns attacks on journalists, human rights activists.
Obama: Political transition in Egypt must begin now
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – US president cautions that “entire world is watching”; says issues at stake in Egypt would not be resolved through violence, condemns attacks on journalists, human rights activists.
Amid protests, views of post-Mubarak Egypt emerge
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – For first time in 11-day-old wave of protests, varying scenarios being put forward over how to usher country into new era.
Blair: We want to engage with whoever will rule Egypt
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – Quartet envoy explains he understands why those in Israel are worried about Gaza border; “we must take care of security concerns.”
Galant: I believe I will be the next chief of staff
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – After A-G, state comptroller reject his appointment as IDF chief, Galant says he has been made into public enemy.
PM pledges to support Palestinian economic growth
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – Netanyahu makes promise in meeting with Blair; steps include improving e. J’lem infrastructure and electricity, water resources in Gaza.
Al-Jazeera says Egypt offices torched amid unrest
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – Top UN human rights official complains that media covering pro-democracy protests being arrested “in blatant attempt to stifle news.”
Boy dies, 6 injured after car overturns near Jordan Valley
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – Series of deadly road accidents also leave 35-year-old man, Palestinian man and baby dead, 3 injured.
Khamenei: Uprising in Egypt sign of ‘Islamic awareness’
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – “America’s control over Egypt’s leaders has … turned Egypt into the biggest enemy of Palestine,” Iranian supreme leader says.
Saudi bloggers back Egypt uprising,don’t want their own
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – King Abdullah remains popular even after throwing support to Mubarak; Saudis say situation in Egypt can’t compare to Saudi Arabia.
This Week in History: Ayatollah Khomeini returns to Iran
Jeruslalem Post 4 Feb 2011 – Although revolution in Iran was likely to happen with or without Khomeini, his return ensured it became an Islamic Revolution.
Security and Defense: Something rotten in the IDF?
Jeruslalem Post 3 Feb 2011 – With a possible radical regime change on Israel’s doorstep, the military echelon should be focused on targeting enemy states – not each other.
Netanyahu’s Speech: Whither Egypt
Jeruslalem Post 3 Feb 2011 – In an address to the Knesset Wednesday, PM calls for a reality check and sums up Israel’s overriding concerns regarding the situation.
Women’s Whispers: The voice of a woman
Jeruslalem Post 3 Feb 2011 – The Raise Your Spirits production company was formed during the second intifada so the women of Gush Etzion could stand against Arab terror with song.
Gaza feeds hungry Egyptian troops in role reversal
Ha’aretz – Underground tunnels generally used to smuggle goods into Gaza are moving traffic in the opposite direction in the wake of the popular uprising in Egypt.
Netanyahu commits to promoting Arab construction in East Jerusalem
Ha’aretz – Commitments comes as Israel plans gestures to Palestinians in bid to deflect Quartet criticism over settlement construction.
Gaza militants fire Qassam rocket into southern Israel
Ha’aretz – Rocket attack comes days after long-range Grad rockets landed near the cities of Netivot and Ofakim, leading to 4 people being treated for shock.
Israel Police brace for possible Temple Mount unrest amid Egypt turmoil
Ha’aretz – Police limit entry to Temple mount to men over age of 50 and women due to fear that there will be copycat riots, like the ones currently occurring in Egypt.
Despite getting ousted from IDF chief post, Galant still fighting for position
Ha’aretz – Former IDF chief-designate believes he still has a chance to assume the position since decision by Netanyahu, Barak to cancel his appointment has yet to come into effect.
Israeli soldiers attack anti-wall protests in WB
4 Feb 2011 – West Bank, (Pal Telegraph) Israeli soldiers suppressed the weekly anti-wall rallies held by Palestinian protestors following Friday prayer in Bi’lin, Ni’lin and Nabi Saleh villages in the occupied West Bank.
Egypt youth to announce formation of 25-person negotiating body, including Baradei, Zewail and Moussa
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Members of the coalition of youth movements, which triggered the 25 April popular uprising and have since provided field leadership to the occupation of Tahrir Sq have agreed on mandating a 25-person committee of public and political figures to negotiate on behalf of the pro-democracy protesters, lawyer Ziad El-Eleimy, a leading member of one of…
EGYPT: Vice President Omar Suleiman to discuss transition plan Saturday
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Egypt’s newly appointed vice president plans to meet a group of prominent figures Saturday to discuss a proposed solution to the country’s crisis in which he would assume the president’s powers for an interim period, a member of the group said. Diaa Rashwan told Reuters news agency Friday that he and others had been invited…
The Anti-Empire ReportA cautionary tale
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – …The events in Egypt cannot help but remind me of Portugal. Here, there, and everywhere, now and before, the United States of America, as always, is petrified of anything genuinely progressive or socialist, or even too democratic, for that carries the danger of allowing god-knows what kind of non-America-believer taking office. Honduras 2009, Haiti 2004,…
Out with the collaborators: in with honest unity
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – A recent article by Nima Shirazi, “How to Say Nothing without Really Trying”, nicely exposed the drivel spouted by US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley in his attempt to block a draft United Nations Security Council resolution criticizing Israel’s settlement building. And it reminded us of the sharp political observations of that remarkable Victorian writer,…
Egypt protests: US resists calls to cut military aid
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – The Obama administration today resisted calls to cut its massive military aid to Egypt and is instead working behind the scenes with the commanders of the country’s armed forces on how to oust President Hosni Mubarak. The White House sees the Egyptian military as the key to removing Mubarak, regarded as a necessary first step…
Swapping a Dictator for a Torturer in Egypt
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – As things now stand, the United States appears ready to have Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak tossed out in exchange for his newly-named Vice President, Omar Suleiman, the Egyptian spy master. That is, maintain the status quo by swapping one dictator for another. Of course, Israel must sign off on this deal aimed at assuring that…
Settlers kill 2 Palestinian teens, soldiers attack funeral
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Israeli settlers shot and killed two Palestinian teenagers in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank as Israeli forces continued to shoot at Palestinian laborers in Gaza and arrest and beat civilians in other parts of the country, including children. The Electronic Intifada brings you this special news brief on events related to Israeli violence…
From Counter-Attack to Departure DayMubarak’s Last Gasps
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – … Ambassador Wisner, who has been in Egypt since Saturday, was asked to deliver to Mubarak an ultimatum from Obama. It would be similar to the one given to Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines in 1989 by then President George H. W. Bush. Mubarak would be told that he should resign and transfer his presidential powers…
Rights group: PA banning freedom of expression
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – A Palestinian rights group on Thursday warned of deteriorating freedom of expression in the West Bank, as the PA banned “unlicensed assembly” in response to rallies in solidarity with Egyptians. In a statement, the Palestinian Commission for Human Rights condemned the PA’s closure of the demonstrations. On Wednesday, PA security forces shut down a rally…
Egypt holds ‘Day of Departure’
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Hundreds of thousands of protesters have gathered in Cairo’s Tahrir Square in what has been a largely peaceful protest, calling for Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, to stand down. The square, which has been the focal point of protests in Egypt, saw demonstrators observe what they have termed a “Day of Departure” for the man…
Egypt – The Peoples’ Voices.
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Arguably never has a momentous event, its triumphs and blood soaked tragedies, been so instantly transmitted across the globe, panicking governments, bent on quelling it, inspiring millions with similar aspirations to Egypt’s populus, into “can do” and unstinting support mode, with, literally, a vengeance. The first act of Egypt’s regime was to put an end…
Syria: Gang Attacks Peaceful Demonstrators; Police Look On Security Officer Threatens, Assaults Activist
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – – Syria’s government should immediately cease its intimidation and harassment of demonstrators expressing solidarity with pro-democracy campaigners in Egypt, Human Rights Watch said today. With calls on Facebook and Twitter for large protests in Syria on February 4, 2011, Human Rights Watch urged Syria’s authorities to respect the right of Syrians to assemble peacefully. On…
Egypt’s ‘final push’ protests begin
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Chants urging President Hosni Mubarak to leave are reverberating across Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the focal point of protests in Egypt, where hundreds of thousands have gathered for what they have termed the “Day of Departure”. As the country entered its eleventh day of unrest, mass demonstrations commenced after Friday prayers. Thousands also gathered in the…
Obama’s crocodile tears over Egypt’s violence
Uruknet February 4, 2011 – Obama’s prayer follows a series of White House and State Department statements “deploring” the violence in Egypt and expressing moral indignation over the attacks by the regime of President Hosni Mubarak on peaceful protesters and the media. Who do they think they are kidding? For 30 years, US administrations, Democratic and Republican alike, including that…
$5 million lawsuit targets Jimmy Carter for ‚Äòattacking Israel’
Uruknet February 3, 2011 – Former President Jimmy Carter has become the target of a class action lawsuit over ostensibly mean things he said about Israel in his best-selling 2006 book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid. The lawsuit, filed in New York by an Israeli firm, alleges that the book “contained numerous false and knowingly misleading statements intended to promote the…
US plan: Replace Mubarak with torture-linked ‚ÄòCIA point man’
Uruknet February 3, 2011 – A US plan to see Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak leave office immediately is reportedly in the works and would see a transitional government formed by Mubarak’s vice-president, a former head of Egypt’s spy agency and an alleged “CIA point man” who facilitated the “extraordinary rendition” of terrorism suspects. US officials are discussing a plan with…
Obama Treats Egypt like a Banana Republic
Uruknet February 3, 2011 – President Barak Obama calls on President Mubarak to immediately arrange for transfer of power, and that a transition of power must begin ‘now’ not only sounds hypocritical but also disingenuous. Not to defend President Mubarak or his regime, but Obama and many in his administration, in bossing and pushing Mubarak around like a little boy…
Goldstone’s Legacy for Israel
Uruknet February 3, 2011 – A sprawling crime scene. That is what Gaza felt like when I visited in the summer of 2009, six months after the Israeli attack. Evidence of criminality was everywhere‚Äîthe homes and schools that lay in rubble, the walls burned pitch black by white phosphorus, the children’s bodies still unhealed for lack of medical care. But…
White House, Egypt Discusses Plan for Mubarak’s Exit
Uruknet February 3, 2011 ‚Äî The Obama administration is discussing with Egyptian officials a proposal for President Hosni Mubarak to resign immediately, turning over power to a transitional government headed by Vice President Omar Suleiman with the support of the Egyptian military, administration officials and Arab diplomats said Thursday. Even though Mr. Mubarak has balked, so far, at leaving now,…
A people united in anger
The National 5 Feb 2011 – Meet six protesters who represent the voices of Egypt’s Tahrir Square that have captured the world’s attention over the past 11 days.
Analysts say US must avoid meddling in Egypt
The National 5 Feb 2011 – The backing of Mr Suleiman is among a range of diplomatic options under consideration by the US administration as the US sought to get ahead of the curve of events in Egypt.
Khamenei credits Iranian revolution with fuelling Egyptian revolt
The National 4 Feb 2011 – The supreme leader of Iran characterised the unrest in Egypt, Tunisia and beyond as an “Islamic liberation movement” and called to channel the discontent into rejecting the West.
Obama urges Mubarak, as a proud patriot, to heed Egypt’s call
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 U.S. President Barack Obama Friday urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, as a proud patriot, to “listen” to protesters demanding he quit, apparently hinting the Arab strongman should go now. The EU also kept up its pressure…
Cairo instructs army to assist foreign media
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 Egypt’s Army has been instructed to assist foreign media and help protect them from groups in plain clothes who have attacked and beaten journalists, the Cabinet said Friday while a top U.N. human-rights official and a…
Protesters across Egypt pray for Mubarak ouster
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 Egyptians from all walks of life poured into the streets of Cairo and other major cities Friday, the Muslim day of rest, praying and chanting after two days of bloody battles with regime militants. Young and…
Egypt’s military holds the key but continues to play the sphinx
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 CAIRO: The wait-and-see stance of the Egyptian military is raising many questions, but underlining one fact: its role will be decisive regardless of how the ongoing turmoil will end.
Suleiman to discuss assuming Mubarak powers
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 CAIRO: Egypt’s vice president will meet a group of prominent independent figures Saturday promoting a solution to the country’s crisis in which he would assume the president’s powers for an interim period, one of the groups…
Yemeni government supporters tighten grip on Sanaa square to keep protesters out
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 SANAA: Supporters of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh tightened their control of Sanaa’s central square Friday, after crowding out a planned opposition rally there the previous day. Tents, national flags and portraits of Saleh were erected…
Jordan Islamists take part in frank talks with king
Daily Star 4 Feb 2011 AMMAN: Jordan’s Islamist leaders said that talks with King Abdullah II had been “frank” and centered on reform while protestors gathered Friday outside the prime minister’s office. “The meeting with the king was frank and clear…
Israel plans to improve Palestinians’ economic lot
Relief Web 4 Feb 2011 – Source: Agence France-Presse
Palestinian Authority: End Violence Against Egypt Demonstrators
Relief Web 4 Feb 2011 – Source: Human Rights Watch
OPT: Protection of Civilians Weekly Report | 26 January – 1 February 2011
Relief Web 4 Feb 2011 – Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
In their own words: A report on the situation facing Palestinian children detained in occupied East Jerusalem
Relief Web 4 Feb 2011 – Source: Defence for Children International/Palestine Section
EGYPT: ElBaradei Appears an Unconvincing Alternative
IPS Since early last year, former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mohamed ElBaradei has been touted as a possible successor to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. But many protesters say ElBaradei enjoys little if any credibility on the street.
Egypt’s Fate Lies in a Square
IPS Demonstrators who turned up in Cairo’s Tahrir Square Friday in even larger numbers than on earlier days are from all walks of life: old men wearing traditional galibiyas, young people in jeans and T-shirts, and women of all ages wearing Islamic head scarves. The protesters, whose numbers across the nation…
Iran: Riots sign of Islamic awakening
YNet News – Supreme leader Khamenei satisfied with Egypt uprising. ‘The echoes of the….
Anti, pro-Mubarak protests feared in J’lem
YNet News – Following information Fatah and Hamas planning to protest in favor and against….
Qassam hits open area in south
YNet News – Three days after Grad barrage, rocket launched from Gaza explodes within Sdot….
Israeli arrested in Egypt released
YNet News – Tomer Sahiak returns to Israel after being detained by Suez police for 24 hours…..
Obama: Future of Egypt determined by people
YNet News – US President Barack Obama said on Friday that the transition of power in Egypt must begin now but the details of the process have to be worked out by Egyptians. “The …….
Gaza smuggling tunnels switch directions
YNet News – Egyptian soldiers isolated on the Gaza border by 10 days of internal upheaval are getting bread, canned goods and other food supplies from the enclave, which is usually …….
Jordanians protest against new gov’t
YNet News – Supporting their brothers – Hundreds of Jordanians inspired by Egypt’s uprising on Friday staged a protest against Jordan’s prime minister, installed just days earlier in …….
Report: 50,000 protest in Egyptian Rafah
YNet News – Hundreds gathered Friday afternoon across Egypt in protest of Hosni Mubarak’s regime, a week and a half after riots first erupted in the country. Qatar-based …….
Palestinian Information Center
Egyptian police tighten security at al- Marj prison
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – Egyptian police tightened security around al-Marj prison fearing an attack by the families of detainees held at that prison.
MP Fuqaha: National reconciliation and security coordination are opposites
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – Palestinian lawmaker MP Abdel Jaber Fuqaha of Hamas’s bloc in the PLC has asserted Thursday that the IOF kidnapping campaign against Palestinian lawmakers makes them more determined..
Ministry of captives condemns PA summoning of captive’s wife in Ramallah
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – The ministry of captives in the Gaza Strip has strongly condemned the PA security forces in the West Bank for summoning wife of a Palestinian captive incarcerated in an Israeli occupation jail
Fierce confrontations with IOF in Jerusalem
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – IOF troops on Friday intensified their presence in occupied Jerusalem, especially around the Aqsa Mosque fearing demonstrations in support of the Egyptian people’s revolution.
Mousa: The Egyptian revolution is causing a state of uncertainty in Israel
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – The Secretary General of the Arab League, Amre Mousa, said in a statement to PIC that the Egyptian people’s revolution is having a very serious effect on the whole region..
PA envoy in Egypt refuses to help stranded Palestinians in Cairo airport
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – Dozens of Palestinian citizens stranded in Cairo airport have accused the PA ambassador in Cairo of ignoring their appeals to help them return back to the Gaza Strip by air.
Israeli settlers cause environmental damage to Bethlehem villages
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – Israeli settlers on Thursday caused environmental damage to fields belonging to residents of the villages of Husan, Wadi Fokin and Nahalin to the west of Bethlehem.
Palestinian refugees in Jordan reject Abbas’s concessions, call for his ouster
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – Palestinian refugees in Jordan rejected the concessions made by Abbas and his negotiation teams with regard to their right of return as was lately revealed in documents leaked to Al-Jazeera.
Palestinian captives are following the Egyptian people’s revolution
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – Palestinian captives in the Negev desert prison are following closely the progress of the Egyptian people’s revolution and the news emanating from the Tahrir Square in Cairo..
IOF troops raid Jenin villages
PIC 4 Feb 2011 – IOF troops raided on Thursday morning a number of Palestinian villages to the south east of the northern West Bank city of Jenin where they set up roadblocks and combed the area..
Mubarak’s power grows more in doubt
LA Times 4 Feb 2011 – Some of the Egyptian president’s key allies make symbolic appearances with his opponents in Cairo’s Tahrir Square. The Obama administration presses opposition leaders to join in transition talks. The pressure on Hosni Mubarak to release his 30-year grip on Egypt escalated on a day when some of his key allies appeared at a largely peaceful anti-government rally and the Obama administration leaned on opposition leaders to join negotiations to discuss proposals to strip the president of power.
Obama urges Egypt to go into transition process ‘right now’
LA Times 4 Feb 2011 – President Obama, taking his first questions from the press on Egypt, stops short of urging President Hosni Mubarak to step down but says the Cairo government must undertake ‘an orderly transition process, right now.’ President Obama on Friday stopped short of urging President Hosni Mubarak to step down from power but made it clear that suppression and violence would not be effective in dealing with Egypt’s ongoing protests.
Iran’s supreme leader calls uprisings an ‘Islamic awakening’
LA Times 4 Feb 2011 – Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says the upheaval in the region is a defeat for the U.S., and a ‘liberating Islamic movement.’ But Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood rejects his statement, calling it the ‘Egyptian people’s revolution.’ Iran’s supreme leader called for the end of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s rule, saying Friday that the political upheaval in the Arab world was part of an “irreversible defeat” for the United States and an “Islamic awakening” in the Middle East.
Israel is popular stop for possible Republican presidential candidates
LA Times 4 Feb 2011 – Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour is the third potential GOP presidential contender to travel to Israel this year, following on the heels of Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney. The trips provide an opportunity to beef up foreign-policy credentials and woo Jewish voters in the U.S. Though the U.S. presidential primaries are still a year from now, a different sort of contest is underway in Israel.
France rocked by news of aid to Tunisia and Egypt
LA Times 4 Feb 2011 – France trained Egyptian police officers in crowd control and sent tear gas to Tunis. And its foreign minister vacationed in Tunisia after the uprising, using the jet of a man linked to the ousted president. As French officials continue to grapple with the fallout of their African foreign policy, they have been rocked by new disclosures about aid to security forces in Tunisia and Egypt, and calls for the foreign minister’s resignation over her holiday in Tunisia during the uprising there.
Egypt protesters set deadline as clashes spread
LA Times 4 Feb 2011 – The government offers new concessions, but protest leaders say President Hosni Mubarak must leave Friday. Amid an accelerating breakdown of law and order across Egypt’s capital, anti-government protesters have set the stage for a potentially explosive new confrontation by declaring that Friday, the main prayer day of the Muslim week, is the deadline for the embattled president to step aside.
Egypt Officials Seek to Nudge Mubarak Out
New York Times 4 Feb 2011 – Egypt’s new vice president and other military leaders were discussing steps to limit President Hosni Mubarak’s decision-making authority, officials said.
Discontented Within Egypt Face Power of Old Elites
New York Times 4 Feb 2011 – The rebellion pits those disenfranchised by Egypt’s government against the military and security apparatus and a fabulously wealthy clique.
U.S. Trying to Balance Israel’s Needs in the Face of Egyptian Reform
New York Times 4 Feb 2011 – Diplomats worry about a regional realignment in which Israel would be left feeling more isolated and its enemies emboldened.
Supporting democracy in the Middle East requires abandoning a vision of Pax-Americana
Mondoweiss – As the Mubarak regime turns to violence in a vain attempt to repress the peaceful protests that have swept Egypt’s streets for over ten days, the risks associated with current U.S. strategy for Egypt and the wider region continue to grow. In its response to the…
‚ÄòRevolutions don’t happen out of the blue’: Egyptian protests grounded in decades of struggle
Mondoweiss – Protesters in Cairo (Photo: Al Jazeera English ) Egypt is throbbing with resistance. Cairo is cloven between the forces of revolution and those of counterrevolution. Hundreds of thousands of people – on Tuesday, February 1, well over a million – have been streaming each day into Tahrir…
Ahmed Moor: There is a sense in Tahrir now that democracy is coming- and medics and journalists are granted respect
Mondoweiss – Phil Weiss talked to Ahmed Moor by telephone in Cairo. Your mood today? I’m optimistic. I’m optimistic that it’s going to end up in a negotiated resolution where Mubarak steps down but he still gets to die in Egypt. Which seems to be his red line,…
Only serious dissent on the Palestinian street will change the game: Former PLO negotiator Diana Buttu on the ‚ÄòPalestine Papers’ and the Egyptian uprising
Mondoweiss – The publication of nearly 1,700 leaked files by Al Jazeera on negotiations between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority has been largely overshadowed by the uprising in Egypt. But that doesn’t mean they don’t matter for the future of Israel/Palestine. I recently caught up with…
Never Again For Anyone: Right wing Zionists attempt to muzzle Holocaust survivor speaking for Palestinian rights
Mondoweiss – The International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network released the following statement in response to a controversy concerning its speaking tour Never Again For Anyone . (NEW YORK 1/30/2011) — Yesterday, right wing counter protestors disrupted an event honoring the memory of the Nazi Holocaust, ignoring the event’s message…
IDF Chief of Staff Ashkenazi Faces Criminal Investigation over Forged Memo
Tikun Olam – IDF chief of staff Ashkenazi: member of the gang that couldn’t see straight The campaign over who will be the next IDF chief of staff, already odd and dysfunctional, has taken a new turn for the bizarre. Everyone who reaches out for this rose seems to…
Tens of thousands rally in Yemeni capital
WSWS – The bourgeois opposition parties are seeking to prevent an Egyptian-style political explosion.
Israel’s Supreme Court Confirms IDF General’s Impunity
Tikun Olam – Judge Edna Arbel: rewarding IDF impunity When Ehud Barak designated IDF general Yair Naveh to be deputy chief of staff, Yesh Gvul filed a complaint seeking an injunction barring Naveh from taking the position because of his approval of targeted assassinations of unarmed Palestinian militants. It…
Cut Off U.S. Aid to Egypt-Now!
Tikun Olam – The Obama administration seemed determined Wednesday to put as much daylight as possible between Mr. Obama and Mr. Mubarak, once considered an unshakable American supporter in a tumultuous region, with Mr. Gibbs once again raising the specter of a cutoff of American aid to the Mubarak…
Liberating the Egyptians and Softening Our Hardened Hearts
The Magnes Zionist 4 Feb 2011 – Israelis, and Jews worldwide, have mixed feelings about the Egyptian revolution. From a tribal perspective – and, sadly, that’s the dominant perspective among Jews with whom I associate – there is the fear of the impact of the revolution on Israel. Would the new Egyptian regime,…
Gazans Take to Streets in Support for Egyptian Revolution
Al-Manar 4 Feb 2011 – Hundreds of Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip have taken to the streets to express their support for the ongoing Egyptian revolution. As anti-government protests in Egypt entered its 10th day, over 1,000 Gazans mainly students gathered at the Egyptian representative office in the Gaza…
Why isn’t the PA Supporting the Egypt Uprising?
Al-Manar 4 Feb 2011 – The Palestinian leadership has been careful not to support the uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, and has banned demonstrations in solidarity with the rebelling peoples. Palestinian television has virtually ignored the events in Egypt. Dr. Mamdouh al-Aker, a 68-year-old urologist, studied in Cairo and was…
From Nabi Saleh to Tahrir Square. Resistance Spreading in the Middle East
Joseph Dana 4 Feb 2011 – I am waking up on a cold and rainy morning in Nabi Saleh. I have been sleeping in the village on and off over the past few weeks along with some other Israeli and international supporters. The army has been raiding the village at night, terrorizing…
Egypt woes ‘costing $310m a day’
BBC 4 Feb 2011 – Egypt’s uprising is costing the country at least $310m a day as factories close and tourists avoid the country, Credit Agricole says.
Egypt sends shockwaves across Middle East
BBC 4 Feb 2011 – The upheaval in Egypt has had repercussions across the entire Middle East, and created concern in Israel about the stability of the region.
At the core
BBC 4 Feb 2011 – Egypt’s military lies at the heart of the country’s state apparatus
Palestinians split
BBC 4 Feb 2011 – Egypt unrest highlights West Bank and Gaza divide
End US Aid to Egypt
Antiwar.com 4 Feb 2011 – Stop the gravy train, says Justin Raimondo
Revolution in Egypt and Beyond
Antiwar.com 4 Feb 2011 – Doug Casey on prospects for the future
(en) KAF* – We salute the people in Egypt who dared, to stand up for their rights and freedom!
A-infos 4 Feb 2011 – Dear Comrades, As you know people’s revolt in Egypt, Yamen, Jordan, Algeria and Morocco are facing a vicious attack from the Governments thugs and secret police especially after the Demo on 01-02-11 by one million people in Tahrir Square. Now there are clashes and fighting between…
Articles
Gaza Operation Hope; Open Gaza Port Now
Sami Jamil Jadallah, Palestine Note2/4/2011
I am sure the Americans and the Europeans will be very pleased if Abbas of Ramallah and Haniyeh of Gaza announced to the world their willingness to entrust the management and operation including security for the Port of Gaza to the Americans and NATO. Let America manage and operate the port making sure only constructions materials, food suppliers and consumers goods comes through the port. Let American and the European break the siege of Gaza and end once and for all the Israeli Occupation of Gaza that has lasted some 42 years. Let America and Europe operate all of the security measures, not to Israel’s satisfaction but to the American and European satisfaction that all materials coming through are for civil purposes and nothing to make atomic weapon out of.
And yes, let Hosni Mubarak if he last till next week close the Rafah Crossing for all goods and people and let Israel close its borders crossing with Gaza depriving influential people of Ramallah of transit commissions and let Gaza Port be the only access to Gaza. Let the world this time end the siege of Gaza. Hamas and Fatah must not hold the people hostage to their own agendas. And yes, let the US Navy, NATO and US Coast Guard patrol the coastlines off Gaza for good measure making sure there is no smuggling of any goods in and out of Gaza.
The Gaza Reconstruction Conference which closed more that 2 years in its closing statement called on Israel to open with immediate effect all crossing for all humanitarian aids and for construction materials needed for the massive work ahead, of course nothing happened. Somehow every one in the conference including the Arabs forgot the geography of Gaza and that Gaza has some 50 km of shoreline and has a seaport.
The newspapers carried accounts of the secret list of forbidden or restricted items Israel concluded as threats to its own security including “pasta, pasta sauce, lentil and hearing aids”…. more.. e-mail
The Price of Success: Fanatical Wingnuts Target Jewish Voice for Peace Activist
Mitchell Plitnick, Palestine Note2/4/2011
On the same day that Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) could celebrate an excellent article about it in the New York Times, they also had to send out the alert below, alerting us to another threat to one of their activists.
I had reported some time back on a physical attack perpetrated by at least one member of the fanatical extremist group, Stand With Us against JVP members in Berkeley. The violence, however, doesn’t seem to be abating. Quite the opposite, as the defenders of occupation, human rights violations, and ethnic hatred continue to be exposed by groups like JVP, they will increasingly turn to intimidation tactics. It’s all they have.
I, obviously, know JVP well (indeed, when I worked for them, I also got a threatening phone call on my home phone). I know the membership and leadership will only be more determined in the face of these pathetic but monstrous tactics. The dispatch from Jesse Bacon is below, after which is a photo of the flyer that was found on the porch of the targeted activist. I know that even most people who oppose JVP equally oppose these sorts of tactics. Please spread this around so they can take action within their own communities to try to bring some civility back to the discourse around Israel.
From Jesse Bacon:
Los Angeles area Jewish peace activist targeted at home for work against Israeli occupation: Part of pattern of escalating harassment and attacks against Jewish peace advocates
[February 4, 2011, Los Angeles] On Wednesday February 2, Jewish Voice for Peace Los Angeles chapter leader Estee Chandler discovered a “WANTED for treason and incitement against Jews” poster on her front porch…. more.. e-mail
The Unraveling of U.S. Mideast Policy
Sheldon Richman, Future of Freedom Foundation2/3/2011
The blow to U.S. foreign policy by the popular uprising in Egypt cannot be overstated. The Egyptians’ demand that Hosni Mubarak, who has ruled Egypt with an iron hand and billions of American taxpayer dollars, step down is unquestionably a major setback to the U.S. governing class and its plans for the Middle East. Since the end of World War II, critics of U.S. policy have warned that defying the people of the region in favor of authoritarian ruling elites was doomed to failure. As things now begin to unravel, we see that those critics were right.
President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton say they support the aspirations of the Egyptian people. Previous officials have said that too. But let’s be clear. American officials support those aspirations only so long as they do not impede U.S. policy. Those officials are smart enough to know that if the Egyptian people have no way to let off steam, the lid will blow. So when the president says he supports reform, he means reform no deeper than necessary to take pressure off whatever the U.S. government regards as important.
The problem for the ruling elite is that there’s little it can do to steer events. Its vaunted firepower and intelligence apparatus are useless against the masses in the street. Still, Obama and Clinton persist in the fantasy that they can determine such things as the timing of the transition to a new government. Their admonitions and condescension are pathetic. The empire is revealed to be a pitiful giant.
The American policy elite is clearly in a bind. It is helpless, yet it needs Egypt to be controlled by Mubarak or someone like him. The main reason can be stated in one word: Israel. As the New York Times wrote, “For 30 years, [Mubarak’s] government has been a pillar of American foreign policy in a volatile region, not least because of Egypt’s peace treaty with Israel….” more.. e-mail
Settlers kill 2 Palestinian teens, soldiers attack funeral
Electronic Intifada: 4 Feb 2011 – Israeli settlers shot and killed two Palestinian teenagers in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank, and then attacked the funeral procession for one of them. Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued to shoot at Palestinian laborers in Gaza and arrest and beat civilians in other parts of the country, including children.more
A Villa in the Jungle?
Palestine Chronicle: 4 Feb 2011 – By Uri Avnery – Israel We are in the middle of a geological event. An earthquake of epoch-making dimensions is changing the landscape of our region. Mountains turn into valleys, islands emerge from the sea, volcanoes cover the land with lava. People are afraid of change. When it happens, they tend to deny, ignore, pretend that nothing really important is happening. Israelis are no exception. While in neighboring Egypt earth-shattering events were taking place, Israel was absorbed with a scandal in the army high command. The Minister of Defense abhors the incumbent Chief of Staff and makes no secret of it. The presumptive new chief was exposed as a liar and his appointment canceled. These were the headlines. But what is happening now in Egypt will change our lives. As usual, nobody foresaw it. The much-feted Mossad was taken by surprise, as was the CIA and all the other celebrated…more
We Are All Egypt!
Palestine Chronicle: 4 Feb 2011 – By Susan Abulhawa Rightly proud of their history, Egyptians like to announce, especially to other Arabs, that Egypt is the world’s mother. The Arabic version is far more tender and poetic ‘Misr Um el Dounia’! Light-hearted banter will often ensue between Egyptian and non-Egyptian friends when that statement is brought into the conversation. Today, I think every Arab will concede that, indeed, Misr Um el Dounia! The culture that is a pillar of history itself is, once again, unfurling a new era and, as one revolutionary protestor said, “the world before January 25th is not the same after January 25th”. With such spectacular passion, courage, endurance, and undaunted will, the people of Egypt are ushering in a new world order in the Middle East. Everyone, apparently except Hosni Mubarak, knows that Hosni Mubarak is finished. But his ousting is not merely the end of one Arab tyrant. The awe-inspiring unity…more
Moment of Reckoning for Arabs
Palestine Chronicle: 4 Feb 2011 – By Aijaz Zaka Syed – Dubai The magic of poetry is invariably lost in translation. Yet I must share these extraordinary lines by Faiz ahmed Faiz, South Asia’s revolutionary poet, with the readers, written for extraordinary times like ours. It’s as though he had those marching on Egypt’s streets today in mind: Hum dekhenge Lazim haike hum bhi dekhenge Woh dinke jiska waada hai Jo loh-e-azl pe likha hai Hum dekhenge Jab zulm-o-sitam ke koh-e-garaan Rui ki tarah ud jayenge Hum mehkumoon ke paun tale Yeh dharti dhad dhad dhadkegi Aur ahl-e-hukum ke sar upar Jab bijli kad-kad kadkegi Hum dekhenge Jab arz-e-khuda ke Kabe se Sab buth uthwaye jayenge Hum ahl-e-safa mardood-e-haram Masnad pe bithaye jayenge Sab taaj uchale jayenge Sab takht giraye jayenge Bas naam rahega Allah ka Hum dekhenge Lazim haike hum bhi dekhenge We shall see Certainly we, too, will see/ We shall see the day…more
Out With the Collaborators
Palestine Chronicle: 4 Feb 2011 – By Stuart Littlewood – London Nima Shirazi’s recent article ‘How to Say Nothing without Really Trying’ nicely exposed the drivel spouted by US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley in his attempt to block a draft United Nations Security Council resolution criticising Israel’s settlement building. And it reminded us of the sharp political observations of that remarkable Victorian writer Charles Dickens. To illustrate his point Shirazi selected this quote: “It is true that How not to do it was the great study and object of all public departments and professional politicians all round the Circumlocution Office.” (Charles Dickens, ‘Little Dorritt’, Chapter10) Dickens was able to anticipate, 150 years ahead of his time, the gobbledygook uttered by Western leaders like Clinton, Obama, Blair, Brown and now Cameron solemnly pledging peace in the Middle East while pursuing behind-scenes policies to achieve the exact opposite, in order to perpetuate the conflict for Israel’s benefit….more
Israel’s Fear of Arab Movement
Palestine Chronicle: 3 Feb 2011 – By Robin Yassin-Kassab Tony Blair, with the blood of Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine dripping from his fingers, says Egyptian dictator Husni Mubarak is “immensely courageous and a force for good.” The opinion is based on working “with him on the Middle East peace process.” Mubarak’s record on the pacification process involves helping the Palestinian Authority transform itself into a (stateless) police state apparatus, obstructing Fatah-Hamas reconciliation, and constructing, in concert with US army engineers, a metal wall underneath the Gaza border. Under Nasser’s police state Egypt had no popular sovereignty, but it did have national independence. This was lost at Camp David in 1979, when Sadat signed peace with Israel, retrieved the occupied Sinai peninsula, and received the promise of billions of dollars of annual American aid. After Israel, Egypt is the second largest recipient of US aid. American funding of the military is the reason why top officers remain…more
All the President’s Men in Egypt
Dissident Voice: 4 Feb 2011 – I talk to you during critical times that are testing Egypt and its people which could sweep them into the unknown. The country is passing through difficult times and tough experiences which began with noble youths and citizens who have practiced their rights to peaceful demonstrations and protests, expressing their concerns and aspirations but they were quickly exploited by those who sought to spread chaos and violence, confrontation and to violate the constitutional legitimacy and to attack it. Those protests were transformed from a noble and civilized phenomenon of practicing freedom of expression to unfortunate clashes, mobilized and controlled by political forces that wanted to escalate and worsen the situation. Those were the opening lines of President Mubarak’s speech to the Egyptian people on Tuesday night, but the clashes he mentioned in the speech hadn’t taken place until Wednesday noon. That leaves us with two options: either the president enjoys a…more
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