20 March 2012 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Israeli Court Upholds Appeal To End Discrimination In “Feast Meals”
IMEMC – For the first time in Israel’s history, the Israeli District Court upheld an appeal filed on behalf a Palestinian political prisoner from the northern West Bank city of Jenin demanding an end to discrimination in the distribution of special meals that were only granted to Jewish prisoners during Jewish and Israeli holidays.
Civil Defence: “85 Fires In Gaza Due Power Circuits In Two Months”
IMEMC – The Civil Defense department in the Gaza Strip declared that 85 fires broke out in the Gaza Strip in January and February due to power circuits, and power related issues, and that the last two fires were caused by faulty power generators. …
UK Voices ‘Concern’ Over Israeli Settlement Building
IMEMC – British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, stated that his country is concerned regarding the Israeli policies that are meant to resume to construction and expansion of Jewish-only settlement in the occupied Palestinian territories. …
Shalabi Moved To Hospital After Sharp Health Deterioration
IMEMC – Palestinian Minister of Detainees, Issa Qaraqe’, stated on Monday evening that hunger-striking detainee Hana’ Ash-Shalabi, who has been on hunger strike since 34 days, was moved to Meir Israeli Hospital, in Kfar Saba, after a sharp deterioration in her health condition. …
Shalabi: Freedom is more precious than life
3/20/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Hunger-striking Palestinian detainee Hana Shalabi said Tuesday she will stay on strike despite pressure to back down after 34 days without food.”It’s true our lives are very precious, but our freedom is even more precious and more powerful than their cells,” Shalabi said, according to her lawyer Jawad…. Related: Group says Adnan to move back to prison
Palestinian children ‘subject to violence’ in Israeli jails
3/20/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Palestinian children are systematically ill-treated in Israeli detention, and in some cases tortured, an international child rights group said on Tuesday. The report by Defence for Children International records that a majority of children are detained from villages near “friction points” — Israeli settlements in the West Bank, or Israeli military and…. Related: 012)
Israeli forces detain 6 in West Bank night raids
3/20/2012 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained six Palestinians overnight Monday in raids across the West Bank, the army said. An Israeli military spokesman said six people were detained in Qabatiya near Jenin, Nablus, Ramallah and Hebron. They were taken for “security questioning,” he said. Women’s rights activist Amani al-Khandaqji, 27, was among….
Group says Adnan to move back to prison
3/20/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — A lawyer for the Palestinian prisoners society said Tuesday that Israeli prison authorities will move ex-hunger-striker Khader Adnan back to his jail cell after he ended his strike. Jawad Bulus said that he spoke with the Zaif hospital in Safad and the doctors confirmed that Adnan’s condition is improved…. Related: Shalabi: Freedom is more precious than life
UNRWA says second half of building plan agreed
3/20/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — UNRWA announced Tuesday that Israel is going to allow them to carry out an agreement of the second phase of a Saudi and Japanese project to build housing for Palestinian refugees. Adnan Abu Hasna, spokesman for UNRWA, said the UN agency is happy to announce the agreement for those projects….
Israel arrests Palestinian in raid near Hebron
3/20/2012 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained on Tuesday a Palestinian from Beit Ummar after raiding his house during clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces in the village, local activists said. Muhammad Ayyad Awad, the spokesman of the local popular committee, said three military jeeps raided the area. Samer Mahmoud al-Alami, 23, was struck before….
In photos: Forces guard Hebron settler tour
3/20/2012 – MaanImages / Trevor Lewis – Dozens of Israeli settlers and their supporters tour the streets of Hebron’s Old City, heavily guarded by the Israeli army, in a weekly organized rally. Around 800 Jewish settlers live among 30,000 Palestinians in the parts of the ancient city that are under Israeli control. Israeli restrictions on Palestinian movement….
Ashton: Palestinian youth aspire to better future
3/20/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashtonon Monday paid tribute to the potential of young Palestinians at a conference on Palestinian refugees in Brussels.” We are gathered here because we have recognized the potential of the youth of Palestine. Against all the odds, they continue to learn, to work, to dream and….
Fatah official: Assassinations kill 2-state solution
3/20/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The head of Fatah in the Gaza Strip hit out at Israel’s assassination policy on Monday, a week after factions in Gaza said a truce to halt recent violence would stop targeted killings by Israel. Abdullah Abu Samhadanah told reporters the killings had “assassinated the possibility of reaching….
Obama calls Abbas to discuss Middle East peace
3/20/2012 – WASHINGTON (Reuters) — President Mahmoud Abbas spoke with US President Barack Obama for the first time in six months on Monday to discuss the long-stalled Middle East peace process, the White House said. White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement that Obama called Abbas and told him the United States was committed to Middle…. Related: Abbas tells Obama: PLO ready for talks
Israel: Crossing procedures improved for Palestinians
3/20/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Israeli military department in charge of civil affairs in the Palestinian territories said on Tuesday it has made a number of improvements to Palestinians’ quality of life, Israeli media reported. The Israeli Civil Administration told Voice of Israel radio it had improved procedures at a number of military checkpoints….
Abbas tells Obama: PLO ready for talks
3/20/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — PLO official Saeb Erekat said Tuesday that President Mahmoud Abbas insisted Palestinians are ready to return to negotiations if Israel commits to Quartet requirements, in a conversation with US President Barack Obama. Obama called Abbas on Monday to assure him of the US commitment to Middle East peace, the White House…. Related: Obama calls Abbas to discuss Middle East peace
Germany sells sub to Israel but warns on attacking Iran
3/20/2012 – BERLIN (Reuters) — Germany said on Tuesday it will sell Israel a sixth military submarine and shoulder part of the cost, although it warned its ally that any military escalation with Iran could bring incalculable risks. German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere said he shared Israel’s fear of a nuclear-armed Iran and he was….
Hamas to provide ‘national carpool’
3/20/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Civil servants will offer a free taxi service to residents of the Gaza Strip from Monday in an innovative response by Gaza’s Hamas rulers to the ongoing fuel crisis. Employees are being instructed to provide lifts to residents of the coastal enclave. The service will only be on….
Fatah: Iran paid Hamas to block unity deal
3/20/2012 – GAZA CITY(Reuters) — Iran paid Hamas to block a deal with the rival Fatah movement that would have ended a five-year rift between the two main Palestinian factions, a Fatah spokesman said Tuesday. He said Tehran recently resumed financial aid to Hamas which it had suspended six months ago over the movement’s failure….
EU supports Gaza crossing upgrade
3/20/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The European Union contributed 13 million euros ($17. 2 million) to upgrade the sole goods crossing into the Gaza Strip, a press statement said Monday. A further 22 million euros ($29. 1 million) of EU funds will be used to build a medium scale wastewater treatment plant in the Tubas area….
Despite Iran jitters, Israeli anti-war camp muted
3/20/2012 – JERUSALEM (Reuters) — With all the talk of an attack on Iran, one might expect Israelis to be hiding in basements or marching against another war. But though polls show about three-quarters of them would oppose Israel resorting to force against Tehran’s disputed nuclear program without US support, that sense of unease has had….
HRW: Armed Syrian opposition torture, execute prisoners
3/20/2012 – BEIRUT (Reuters) — Armed opposition groups in Syria have kidnapped, tortured and executed members of the security forces and supporters of President Bashar Assad, the New York-based advocacy group Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday. The rights group condemned the tactics by opposition fighters, who have long accused government troops and loyalists of carrying out similar….
New passports ready for Gaza applications
3/20/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The passports office in the ministry of interior in the Gaza Strip is ready to begin distributing previously approved passports, officials said Tuesday. Passports can be picked up at the ministry headquarters in Tel Islam. Applicants are asked to bring two passport photos and 220 shekels during the next week….
PCBS: Economy grows 11 percent in 2011
3/20/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Palestinian economy grew 11. 2 percent in 2011, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said on Monday. The measure compares Gross Domestic Product — the value of all goods and services in the West Bank and Gaza Strip — in the last three months of 2011, compared to the same period the….
Egypt parliament votes to pay uprising victims
3/20/2012 – CAIRO (Reuters) — Egypt’s new parliament voted on Monday to award cash handouts to people left severely handicapped in clashes with security during last year’s uprising against Hosni Mubarak, in its latest move to boost compensation to victims of the violence. Forces loyal to Mubarak killed around 850 people and injured thousands….
Lawyer: Afghan shooting suspect ‘doesn’t remember’
3/20/2012 – LANSING, Kan. (Reuters) — The US soldier implicated in the massacre of 16 villagers in Afghanistan “doesn’t remember” the incident, his lawyer said on Monday after their first face-to-face meeting in a military detention center in Kansas.” He doesn’t remember everything about the evening in question,” attorney John Henry Browne told reporters….
UN chief urges says Syria situation unacceptable
3/20/2012 – JAKARTA (Reuters) — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday that the situation in Syria was unacceptable and called for the international community to speak with one voice and for Security Council members to display unity. The United Nations priorities were stopping the violence and starting political dialogue, Ban told an audience in Bogor, Indonesia, during….
Thousands gather for funeral of Egypt’s Pope
3/20/2012 – CAIRO (Reuters) — Thousands of mourners dressed in black gathered in Cairo on Tuesday for the funeral of Egypt’s Orthodox Christian Pope Shenouda, who spent his final years trying to comfort a community disturbed by the rise of political Islam. Shenouda, who died on Saturday aged 88, promoted religious harmony, winning respect among the….
Syrian cartoonist paid price for getting personal
3/20/2012 – LONDON (Reuters) — The moment Syrian cartoonist Ali Farzat chose to depict President Bashar Assad and his “inner circle” in his drawings, he knew he was courting trouble. The 60-year-old, famous across the Arab world and beyond for bitingly satirical works ridiculing corruption, nepotism and narrow-mindedness, had always avoided identifying individuals in his art. That….
Fears for Palestinian hunger striker
AlJazeera 20 Mar 2012 – Calls for Hana Shalabi, protesting against her detention by Israel, to be moved to hospital after month without food.
International Solidarity Movement
Attacked and arrested: Kufr Qaddoum anticipates an even larger demonstration following Israeli violence last week
3/20/2012 – International Solidarity Movement – By Jonas, 21 March 2012, International Solidarity Movement, West Bank – Last Friday two people were injured and two arrested when the repression of the Israeli army came down on the regular demonstration at Kufr Qaddoum. Attack dogs were used to frighten and incapacitate protesters, besides the usual tear gas, sound bombs and skunk water. But the village is….
Golani Brigade rampages through the Pharmacy District of Al Khalil
3/20/2012 – International Solidarity Movement – By Rune, 19 March 2012, International Solidarity Movement, West Bank – The Pharmacy District, once a prosperous part of Al Khalil (Hebron) centered around the now closed pharmacy, is now subjected to the violence and harassment of the Israeli military which continues to abuse residents of this historical area. Monday night International Solidarity Movement activists in….
Sohaib, 6 years old, injured by an Israeli bullet
3/20/2012 – International Solidarity Movement – By Rosa Schiano, 20 March 2012, il Blog di Oliva – On Saturday evening around 7pm, Israeli soldiers opened fire on the edge of Karm Abu Salem, east of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Sohaib Sultan, 6 years old, was playing at home with his brothers when he was injured by one of the bullets on the…. Related: il Blog di Oliva
Eight men freed in one more milestone for Egypt’s Islamists
The National 20 Mar 2012 – Simply being an Islamist in Hosni Mubarak’s Egypt was often enough to guarantee a jail sentence. Now the pendulum has swung the other way, reports Bradley Hope, Foreign Correspondent .
FBI accused of entrapping the ‘foolhardy’
The National 20 Mar 2012 – Critics say bureau informants are stitching up so-called plotters and arresting them on terror charges in a bid to convince the US it is safe.
Syrian army troops ‘stay only out of fear’, says deserter
The National 20 Mar 2012 – Mustafa Abdilhamit Shaban, a deserter of Bashar Al Assad’s security forces, says many are appalled by attacks on civilians.
Rights groups accuse Syrian opposition of abuses
The National 20 Mar 2012 – An international rights group yesterday accused some in Syria’s opposition of serious abuses, including kidnapping and torturing security forces, in a sign of the growing complexity of the uprising.
U.S. ‘concerned’ about sustainability of Palestinian institutions
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Israel Supreme Court: Settlers can no longer gain possession of land by farming it
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
France’s largest manhunt in recent years underway for Toulouse shooter
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Fatah: Iran paid Hamas to block Palestinian unity deal
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Ex-paratroopers suspected in Toulouse shooting questioned and released
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Barak praises latest Iran sanctions, but adds that all options remain on table
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Israel to phase out civilian atomic reactor by 2018
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Study: Israel’s social protests caused drop in racist incidents against Arabs
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
EU’s Ashton: I did not parallel Toulouse attack to Gaza deaths
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
After the carnage in Toulouse, France must stand together against anti-Semitism
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Lawmakers: Arab MK abusing position to criticize Israel’s policies
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
French police suspect neo-Nazi link to attack on Toulouse Jewish school
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
Lieberman: Ashton’s comparison of Toulouse attack to Gaza deaths ‘inappropriate’
Ha’aretz – 20 Mar 2012
U.S. war game predicts Israeli strike on Iran will result in regional war, hundreds of Americans dead
Ha’aretz – 19 Mar 2012
In rebuff to Obama, Abbas says he will send ultimatum to Israel
Ha’aretz – 19 Mar 2012
Report: Jewish settlers now control dozens of West Bank springs
Ha’aretz – 19 Mar 2012
Knesset passes bill banning use of underweight models in advertising
Ha’aretz – 19 Mar 2012
Livni warns: Kadima can’t exist without me
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Incumbent Kadima leader begins new campaign aimed at scaring Kadima voters into voting for her in leadership race.
Iran, Syria at forefront of Gantz talks in US
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – IDF Chief of Staff meets with US counterpart in Washington; “regular, candid dialogue is critical as we face common threats, challenges,” says Dempsey.
Peace Now asks High Court to reject Migron deal
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Request comes in advance of court hearing on the matter in Jerusalem.
Warsaw ceremony honors fighter killed in ghetto uprising
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Ceremony for Jewish fighter Pavel Frankel attended by education minister, former defense minister Moshe Arens.
Abbas blames Israel for impasse in peace talks
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – PA president: Palestinians would be ready to return to talks if Israel freezes W. Bank construction, recognizes pre-67 lines.
Bahais celebrate their New Year
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Nowruz also marks end of 19-day period of sunrise to sunset fasting which followers of Bahai observe.
Visiting the neighborhood nuclear reactor
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Reporter’s Notebook: A tour at the Soreq Experimental Nuclear Reactor was just like the kind on which Ahmadinejad leads the media every once in a while in Iran.
Victims of Toulouse attack on way to Israel for burial
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Gunman filmed his rampage at Jewish academy; Sarkozy offers “sincerest condolences” to Netanyahu as schools across France hold minute of silence; issue of burial funding resolved.
Rothschild Prize goes to HU’s Cedar
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Hebrew University medical faculty researcher steps out of director son’s shadow.
Why Congress suddenly cares about Iran threat in L. America
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Tehran-Caracas link could prove an important issue on which to challenge Obama’s overall military record.
Maybe Palestinians, Israelis need a break from each other
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Yalla Peace: The anti-normalization movement is really a movement of hatred that actively seeks negative contact.
Leaked papers detail Syrian efforts to stifle revolt
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Documents obtained by Al Jazeera calls on army to “carry out large-scale cleansing campaign in Idlib, towns near Aleppo.”
Terra Incognita: Victims of unoriginality
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – In making Jews feel guilty for having been persecuted and punishing them for mentioning it, one is erasing the history itself.
Answering those who deny Jerusalem’s Jewish history
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Jerusalem will no longer be built on hate. Jerusalem’s future will not be written on its destroyed past.
Israeli Arabs – rights, obligations and loyalties
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Candidly Speaking: Israeli Arabs could potentially make a major contribution toward achieving peace.
Encouraging philanthropy
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – When philanthropic projects succeed in attaining their objectives and prove they are being run efficiently the state should get involved as well.
Rice: UNESCO funding reduction hurts US
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – US envoy to UN urges Congress to resume funding of int’l body, which was cut off after UNESCO recognized Palestinians as member state.
ADL: 24% of French harbor anti-Semitic attitudes
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Levels of anti-Semitism up in 9 out of 10 European countries, poll shows; nearly half those polled believe Jews more loyal to Israel.
A festival for all
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – The Israel Festival is back. Performers from here and abroad will offer a wide range of performances.
Slipping into Tel Aviv under the radar
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – A holiday side band for ex-REM guitarist Peter Buck will be helping Ozen Hashlishit celebrate 25 years.
‘Russia slams IDF breaches of Lebanese airspace’
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Lebanese FM tells Lavrov in Moscow IDF has flown planes into Lebanon 9,000 times since 2006, RIA Novosti reports.
‘French Jewish community must not bow to fear’
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – CRIF president praises response by authorites, says security has tightened at Jewish sites across France.
Hamas welcomed at UN headquarters in Geneva
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Only the United Nations could twist the security threat so that the terrorist front man became the victim.
‘Libyans held journos after confusing Welsh, Hebrew’
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Misrata Brigade snatch two journalists, detain them in “cramped” bunker in Tripoli, accuse the two men of being Israeli spies, BBC reports.
Peres: Assad doesn’t have his father’s wisdom
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – “Assad is a cold blooded leader who inherited his father’s evil and desire to kill, but not his wisdom,” president says.
Russia ready to support Annan’s Syria mission
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Lavrov conditions support on absence of ultimatum, demand for simultaneous cease fire.
‘Ombudsman dealt with record no. of complaints’
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – State Comptroller report says National Insurance Institute, Police, Treasury received most complaints in 2011.
Syria rebels quit eastern city, army on offensive
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Shelling in central cities Hama and Homs kills 10; Russia ready to support new United Nations statement.
HRW: Syria opposition tortures, executes captives
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – “Government’s brutal tactics cannot justify abuses by armed opposition groups,” Human Rights Watch says.
‘Aussie nonprofit funding PFLP-linked Gazan group’
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Israel Law Center calls on Australian police to open investigation into the matter.
6th annual ‘Good Deeds Day’ set to kick off
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Study finds 18% of Israelis volunteer regularly to help their community.
Obama calls Abbas to discuss Middle East peace
Jerusalem Post 20 Mar 2012 – Phone call marks first time in six months US, PA leaders have spoken; Obama says both sides must avoid provocations.
Ethiopians face eviction from J’lem protest site
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – Activists fighting racism have been holding vigil at spot near PM’s residence where Schalit tent stood.
Gov’t renews tax-exempt status of Bahai Center
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – tax arrangement was originally agreed upon between the state and the Bahai movement in 1987.
Rivlin: Knesset cafeteria staff won’t be fired
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – Most cafeteria workers are fired twice a year, when the Knesset’s recesses begin.
‘Toulouse no longer safe for Jews’
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – Ex-resident says Toulouse Jews no longer feel safe walking around with a kippa or talking openly about Israel.
Friends say Rabbi Sandler was ‘warm, generous’
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – Sandler, who was among those killed Monday in a shooting in France, studied at kollel in Jerusalem’s Har Nof neighborhood.
‘Exporting gas would help economy, politics’
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – Energy and Water Minister Uzi Landau says portion of natural gas in Mediterranean Sea reservoirs should be exported.
One state solution proposals gain steam
Jerusalem Post 19 Mar 2012 – Speakers at conferences in US express anti-Israel sentiment.
What the Egyptian Summer Might Bring
IPS More than 800 Egyptians of varied backgrounds and political orientations have officially registered their candidacies for the country’s first post- Mubarak presidential election. Although more candidates are expected to emerge before the registration process ends Apr. 8, most local analysts say the contest – slated for late May – will…
Poll Shows Little U.S. Support for Syria Intervention
IPS Despite strenuous efforts by prominent neo-conservatives and other hawks, a war-weary U.S. public is clearly very leery of any armed intervention in what many experts believe is rapidly becoming a civil war in Syria, according to recent polls.
Libyan Air Strike Victims Still Waiting for Redress
IPS Amnesty International (AI) released a scathing report late last week calling for an investigation into civilian deaths from air strikes during the 2011 NATO-led military intervention in Libya, which began one year ago Monday.
Shalabi: Freedom is more precious than life
Uruknet March 20, 2012 — Hunger-striking Palestinian detainee Hana Shalabi said Tuesday she will stay on strike despite pressure to back down after 34 days without food. “It’s true our lives are very precious, but our freedom is even more precious and more powerful than their cells,” Shalabi said, according to her lawyer Jawad Bulus of the…
What Palestinian political prisoners are fighting for
Uruknet March 20, 2012 – The case of the freedom fighter Khader Adnan reminds us of where the strength of the Palestinian people lies. This is the strength that was squandered and dissipated in the Oslo process and the pursuit of a state at the expense of national liberation. With his historic hunger strike and his heroic…
012
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – March 19, 2012. Chaos and violence continue, Barack tries to squeeze a cheap campaign buck out of the blood and bones of the dead, the Abu Ghraib torture queen weighs in with her thoughts, and more on this 9th anniversary of the start of the Iraq War… Today Barack Obama declared of…
012 (Warning: Graphic Videos)
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – By the end of this Monday, 34 martyrs had fallen in Syria, among them 4 children. 10 martyrs fell in Deir Ezzor, 6 martyrs fell in Daraa, 5 martyrs fell in Hama, 3 fell in each of Idlib, Aleppo, and Damascus Suburbs (Qatana and Douma), and 2 martyrs in each of Qamishli…
Iraq Nine Years Later: Poverty and Violence Continue (Video)
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – … Nine years after the invasion, nine years, how many successive governments have come and the Iraqi people are still waiting for these governments to take into consideration that what the people want is to live a life that is normal, that is normal-services within acceptable limits, electricity, clean drinking water, jobs. The…
Palestinians face repeated house demolitions in the Jordan Valley; al-Araqib
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – Last week, Israeli bulldozers razed homes and livestock pens in a wave of demolitions in the occupied Jordan Valley in the West Bank. And on 6 March, the Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the Naqab was destroyed for the 33rd time since July 2010. Because of the rampant demolitions, the residents of…
Libyan Air Strike Victims Still Waiting for Redress
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – Amnesty International (AI) released a scathing report late last week calling for an investigation into civilian deaths from air strikes during the 2011 NATO-led military intervention in Libya, which began one year ago Monday…The report comes as a growing number of countries are calling for a similar intervention in Syria. It says…
Nine Years Out of Government and Pinning Hopes on Those Who Challenge it!!
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – Nine years ago, on March 19, 2003, I resigned from the U.S. Department of State in opposition to President Bush’s war on Iraq. A lot of water has gone under the bridge in the past nine years, but the concerns I have about our government and its policies have only grown-with the…
“Our Rights do not End where the Caprice of Authoritarian Bullies Begins”
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – At mid-evening, on Saturday, March 17, upon the six-month anniversary of the occupation of Zuccotti Park in Lower Manhattan, the NYPD – because the department suffered no ill consequences from their search and destroy mission launched, in the late fall of 2011, to scour Liberty Square of liberty – initiated another brutal…
012 : A Video Roundup
Uruknet
Settlers Attack Homes In Hebron
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – A group of armed extremist Israeli settlers of the Ramat Yishai illegal settlement outpost, in the southern West Bank city of Hebron, attacked on Sunday at night several Palestinian homes in Tal Romedia neighborhood, and chased the children around while cursing at them. The Palestinian News and Info Agency, WAFA, reported that…
Military Resistance 10C9: Highly Intelligent
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – It was in the early 1990s that the Assad regime began to shift its policy to one of significant liberalization policies to encourage foreign investment into Syria and to expand the private sector. This was particularly accelerated in the 2000s, with the expansion of private banking and businesses. The estimate of the…
Inspired by Shalabi, Palestinian prisoners boycott military courts
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – Political prisoner Hana Shalabi, now in her 33rd day of hunger strike, is spreading dissent across Israeli prisons, including a boycott of the military courts system. Shalabi is protesting Israel’s practice of administrative detention, or arrest without charge. As a result of her prolonged protest, she is now “in danger of immanent…
Uncontroversial yet Taboo: Gaza in Context
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – The recent killing of 25 Palestinians in Gaza and the wounding of at least 80 more within four days-March 9-12-requires some context as the majority of western mainstream media outlets are either unwilling or unable to provide any. More often than not these mainstream media reports in some form or another refer…
“The house is dark without them”: Israel kills father and daughter as they water vegetables
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – Said al-Hisoumi lost both his father and his sister when Israel bombed the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahiya earlier this month. “My father [Muhammad Awad] struggled throughout his life up to 12 March 2012,” al-Hisoumi said. “At noon on that day, my father and my sister Fayza were bending down,…
Libya: The forgotten victims of NATO strikes (Full report )
Uruknet March 19, 2012 – NATO has so far failed to investigate the killing of scores of civilians in Libya in airstrikes carried out by its forces, Amnesty International said today in a new briefing paper released a year after the first strike sorties took place. Libya: The forgotten victims of NATO Strikes says that scores of…
012 (Warning: Graphic Videos)
Uruknet March 18, 2012– Sunday ended with 67 martyrs fell by security forces and regime’s army shooting, including 3 children. 29 in Deir Ezzor, 14 in Idlib, 8 in Homs, 7 in Damascus suburbs, 4 in each Aleppo and Daraa, and a martyr in Hama. Homs: Talbieseh: Child Nadia Yaser Al-Sowais (7 years old) was martyred, and…
Video: Palestinian women and Resistance
Uruknet March 18, 2012 – Suha Barghouti is the Chair of the Palestinian NGO network, and a long-time human rights activist. In this interview, she discusses the history of Palestinian women’s roles in Palestinian popular resistance, what shape that resistance has taken today, and what she sees for the future. The interview was originally featured in the…
Iran will produce nuclear weapons if attacked: Russia
Daily Star 20 Mar 2012 Russia warned that Iran would have no option but to develop nuclear weapons if it came under attack from either the US or Israel over its contested atomic programme.
EU corrects Ashton speech after Israeli anger
Daily Star 20 Mar 2012 The EU issued a corrected version of a speech by its foreign policy chief which had angered Israel because it appeared to link a French school shooting and Gaza.
Iran paid Hamas to block Palestinian deal -Fatah
Daily Star 20 Mar 2012 Iran paid the Islamist group Hamas to block a deal with the rival Fatah movement that would have ended a five-year rift between the two main Palestinian factions.
Civilian deaths up in 2011 Israeli-Palestinian fighting: NGO
Daily Star 20 Mar 2012 The past year saw a sharp rise in the number of civilians killed in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, an Israeli human rights group reported on Wednesday.
Syria rebels quit eastern city; Russia critical
Daily Star 20 Mar 2012 Rebel fighters fled the eastern Syrian city of Deir al-Zor on Tuesday in the face of a fierce army assault.
The Ashton disgrace
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Op-ed: Europe’s foreign policy chief shows disturbing pattern of obsessive anti-Israel bias ….
Iranian convicted in arms smuggling case deported
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – ….
Germany sells sub to Israel but warns on attacking Iran
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – ….
Rabbi Scheinberg dead at 102
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – ….
Night vision devices disappear from IDF base
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Three goggles worth thousands of dollars each apparently stolen from Paratrooper Brigade training facility ….
Lionel Messi ties Barcelona’s club scoring record
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – ….
3 Givati troops arrested for suspected abuse of rookie comrades
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – ….
Israel to phase out civilian atomic reactor by 2018
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Small facility at Soreq to be replaced by particle accelerator; Israel Atomic Energy Commission says will pursue ‘continued and wide-ranging’ involvement with IAEA ….
A love letter to Israelis
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Op-ed: Pro-Israel blogger tries to counter Sweden’s new national sport – bashing Jewish state ….
FM: Ashton’s Toulouse-Gaza comparison inappropriate
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Lieberman blasts EU’s foreign affairs commissioner’s remarks equating attack on Jewish schoolchildren in France to IAF operations in Gaza; says she should ‘worry about Israeli children who live under constant fear of Gaza rockets’ ….
Iran sanctions useless
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Op-ed: Sanctions are good solution in Western world, not vis-?-vis brutal Muslim dictators ….
A first look at world’s future battleground
YNet News, 20 Mar 2012 – Defense Ministry to showcase latest developments in robotics, space and unmanned aircraft, alongside NASA, White House in Tel Aviv conference ….
Palestinian Information Center
IOF kidnap Palestinian young man, raid homes in Al-Khalil
PIC – The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed at an early hour Tuesday Al-Khalil city and kidnapped a Palestinian young man during raids on homes in different towns.
Ofer court extends illegal detention of MP Haj Ali
PIC – The Israeli military court of Ofer extended the administrative detention of Palestinian lawmaker Ahmed Al-Haj Ali, 72, for other six months, despite his hunger strike and his worsening health.
IOF soldiers storm Jenin villages, arrest two young men
PIC – Israeli occupation forces (IOF) arrested two Palestinian young men in a Jenin village at dawn Tuesday after storming six villages to the east and south of the city.
Hunger striker rushed to hospital
PIC – The Israeli Hasharon prison administration carried Palestinian detainee Hana’a Shalabi to hospital after serious deterioration in her health condition on the 34th day of her hunger strike.
UN report: Israel demolished 574 Palestinian buildings last year
PIC – The UN high commissioner for human rights criticized the Israeli forces for using live ammunition against unarmed Palestinians and for increasing demolition of their property.
Israeli court postpones decision on hunger striker
PIC – The Israeli military court in Ofer has postponed a decision on the demand for the release of detained hunger striker Hana’a Shalabi till next week.
IOA serves demolition notice in Al-Khalil
PIC – The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) has served a demolition notice to the owner of a house to the east of Halhul village to the north of Al-Khalil, local sources said.
Palestinians mark 9th anniversary of Rachel Corrie’s death
PIC – The Ministry of Youth and Sports held a solidarity stand on Monday on the Egypt-Gaza border in commemoration of the American activist Rachel Corrie’s assassination by the Zionist occupation in 2004.
Nunu: Al-Ahmed statements obstruct reconciliation
PIC – Successive statements of Fatah MP Azzam Al-Ahmed against Hamas and its government blow up all efforts aimed at expediting national reconciliation, Taher Al-Nunu, the Gaza government’s spokesman, said.
Abbas Condemns Attack on Jewish School in France
WAFA – 19 Mar 2012
Abbas Briefs Obama on Letter to Netanyahu
WAFA – 19 Mar 2012
Palestinian State-Building at Risk, says UN report to Donors Meeting
WAFA – 19 Mar 2012
Abbas Sends Letter to Emir of Qatar
WAFA – 19 Mar 2012
Third of Women Subjected to Violence in Palestinian Territory, Says Statistics
WAFA – 19 Mar 2012
Rome: BDS Action Against Culture as Cover for Israeli Crimes
Alternative Information Center – On Sunday March 18, 2012, at the Cartoons Festival of Rome, a group of 20 activists of the movement for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel requested, and were granted by the organizers, the possibility…
Press Conference by Organization of Islamic Cooperation Secretary-General
Relief Web 17 Mar 2012 – Source: Organisation of Islamic Cooperation , UN Department of Public Information Country: Syrian Arab Republic (the) , Afghanistan , occupied Palestinian territory , Somalia An immediate ceasefire was critical to solving the crisis in Syria, the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)…
Comparison of Gaza and French School Attack Angers Israel
New York Times 20 Mar 2012 – Remarks by the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, were perceived as equating the murders of three children at a Jewish school in France with the death of children during the fighting in Gaza.
Dueling Iranian New Year Greetings from Obama and Khamenei
New York Times 20 Mar 2012 – The leaders issued starkly divergent New Year messages on their respective web sites to Iran’s home audience on Tuesday.
Thousands Mourn Coptic Pope in Cairo
New York Times 20 Mar 2012 – Pope Shenouda III was remembered as both a wit and a “wise captain” who strengthened the identity of the Coptic Orthodox church.
Attacks Hit Iraq as It Prepares to Host Arab League
New York Times 20 Mar 2012 – Ahead of a meeting next week of Arab leaders, at least 43 people were killed on Tuesday in attacks on police stations and civilian targets in half a dozen cities across Iraq, security officials said.
Syrian Insurgents Accused of Rights Abuses
New York Times 20 Mar 2012 – A human rights group offered a more complex vision of the Syrian insurgents on Tuesday, accusing them of a catalog of abuses including kidnapping, detention and torture.
012 London Olympics
New York Times 20 Mar 2012 – Every participating nation at the London Olympics is expected to field at least one female athlete, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei, who have previously sent only male competitors.
Israel refuses to hospitalize Hana Shalabi: ‘our freedom is even more precious and more powerful than their cells’
Mondoweiss – The hunger striker’s father Yahya Shalabi, protesting in Birqin, 16 March, 2012. (Photo: Abed Omar Qusini/Reuters) Update: Today, Addameer, Physicians for Human Rights, and al-Haq issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s refusal to admit Hana Shalabi into Meir Hospital, after she was transferred to the facility…
Beinart’s ‘Zionist BDS’ will only help entrench the occupation
Mondoweiss – Peter’s Beinart argument for why boycott only settlements’ goods never made any sense. According to Beinart, boycotting anything inside the green line invites ambiguity about the boycott’s ultimate goal — whether it seeks to end Israel’s occupation or Israel’s existence. ( New York Times, March 18, 2012…
Pentagon fears Israeli strike on Iran would drag US in
Mondoweiss – Gen. James N. Mattis, who commands American forces in the Middle East, was said to be troubled by results of the war game. Matt Dunham/Associated Press For the third day in a row the New York print edition of the NYT has got a front page…
Munayyer: Liberal Zionist sympathy for Palestinians generally ends at the green line. This is moral and intellectual cowardice.
Mondoweiss – Yousef Munayyer, Zion Square’s sole Palestinian regular contributor , has responded to Peter Beinart’s settlement boycott op-ed in his first post for the Newsweek/Daily Beast blog . In it, Munayyer takes on “the increased volume voices described as ‘Liberal Zionists’ have garnered in the discourse on Israel/Palestine,” and…
A Growing Movement: Six days in Canada during Israeli Apartheid Week
Mondoweiss – “I will support Israel whatever the cost” recently said Stephen Harper, Canadian Prime Minister. When it comes to Israel, Mr Harper could not be more clear. He is not hiding behind pragmatic statements like his neighbour Mr Obama, who despite his active and blind support for…
Iran War Game Predicts Dire Consequences for U.S. Forces After Israeli Attack
Tikun Olam – Tweet The NY Times reports that a U.S. military war game simulation found that an Israeli attack on Iran drew a massive U.S. response after a U.S. warship was attacked and sunk by Iranian forces: The two-week war game, called Internal Look, played out a narrative…
China’s stance on Syria: ‘A matter of principle’
Voltaire Network 20 Mar 2012 – Moscow and Beijing have been firmly opposing intervention in Syria, stressing the need for a diplomatic solution to the crisis. Middle East expert He Wenping says this is matter of principle. He Wenping, of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, insists that Russia and China are…
Permission to examine “Jewishness”
Voltaire Network 20 Mar 2012 – Following in the footsteps of Israel Shahak and the Israeli League for Human and Civil Rights, many humanists have questioned the political ideology stemming from Jewish religion and culture. This is a delicate debate since it can be exploited for anti-Semitic purposes, hence the importance of…
012-03-18, Syrian Crisis Updated
Voltaire Network 19 Mar 2012 – Aleppo 3 explosions happen in Aleppo: first one takes place in Al-Slaimania neighborhood and is followed by shooting, second one in Bestan Al-Basha neighborhood and the third one in Al-Sakhour neighborhood. SANA: A booby-trapped car parked on the street behind the postal institution, located in Al-Slaimania…
State Department on Humanitarian Relief for Syrians
Voltaire Network 19 Mar 2012 – U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Office of the Spokesperson Humanitarian Relief for Syrians The United States is pursuing every avenue to get humanitarian relief into Syria and is engaged in focused diplomatic efforts to secure safe access for humanitarian organizations to reach those in need. To that…
South Africa: Govt Won’t Probe MTN Corruption Claims in Iran
allAfrica.com 20 Mar 2012 – [Biz-Community] South Africa will not probe allegations that mobile operator MTN paid bribes to win a licence in Iran, in exchange for Pretoria backing Tehran’s nuclear programme, the foreign minister said on Monday.
Egypt: Health Minister – Medical Support for Syria, Palestine, Yemen
allAfrica.com 20 Mar 2012 – [Egypt Online] Egyptian Health and Population Minister Fouad el-Nawawi said the Arab Health Ministers’ Council agreed to offer financial support to the Syrian people to be able to cover their needs for medical supplies.
Egypt: Nation’s Ambassador in Ramallah – Reconciliation Faces Difficult Situation
allAfrica.com 20 Mar 2012 – [Egypt Online] Ambassador of Egypt to the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Osman said on Monday 19/3/2012 that Egypt supports the need for continuing Palestinian meetings at all levels as the Palestinian reconciliation is going through a very difficult situation.
Egypt: Contacts Held to Release Palestinian Prisoner
allAfrica.com 20 Mar 2012 – [Egypt Online] Palestinian Minister of Prisoners’ Affairs Eissa Qaraq’e said that Egypt is exerting efforts to save the life of Hana Shalby, imprisoned in Israeli jails for 33 days now. She went on hunger strike in protest against her administrative arrest.
Rachel’s Reach
Rachel Corrie Foundation 20 Mar 2012 – We are so honored and amazed at the numerous requests we receive from people throughout the world wanting to honor Rachel’s stand on March 16th and beyond. Here are a just a few ways her memory lives on: Here in Olympia we are continuing our annual…
Oregon Ad Commemorating Rachel Corrie
Rachel Corrie Foundation 20 Mar 2012 – The following ad was placed in the Ashland and Medford Oregon newspapers on March 16, 2012, commemorating the ninth anniversary of Rachel’s stand in Gaza.
Help save solar and wind power in the West Bank
The Only Democracy? JVP 20 Mar 2012 – Ed’s Note: The Only Democracy? does not usually feature action alerts, but we have highlighted work of Comet-ME in the past and are proud to come to their defense. Watch Elad’s action alert Israel is threatening to demolish solar and wind power systems in rural communities…
Russia criticises Syrian ‘errors’
BBC 20 Mar 2012 – Syria’s leadership is making “a lot of mistakes”, says Russia, in a sign Moscow may be hardening its stance towards Damascus.
Egypt buries Coptic Church leader
BBC 20 Mar 2012 – The body of Pope Shenouda, leader of the Coptic Church, is buried at St Bishoy monastery after a funeral in Cairo.
W Bank prisoner ‘close to death’
BBC 20 Mar 2012 – Rights activists say a Palestinian on hunger strike for the past month in protest at her detention by Israel is at “immediate risk of death”.
Israeli ban on underweight models
BBC 20 Mar 2012 – Israeli lawmakers have passed legislation banning the use of underweight models in advertising and on catwalks.
Palestine-Israel, The expanding of the joint struggle is less than welcome by Israeli state forces
A-infos 20 Mar 2012 – It was a second Friday with Israeli activist of the anarchists against the wall initiative seriously wounded. Last week demo it was a metal bullet rubbed by rubber that hit the nap of the neck of one of our group in Naby Saleh. The previous Friday…
Articles
Bound, Blindfolded and Convicted: Children held in military detention
Report, Defence for Children International 3/20/2012
Since 1967, Palestinians from the West Bank have been living under Israeli military law and prosecuted in military courts. The United Nations (UN) estimates that during the last 44 years, around 726,000 Palestinian men, women and children have been prosecuted and detained under these emergency laws. In the past 11 years alone, around 7,500 children, some as young as 12 years, are estimated to have been detained, interrogated, and imprisoned within this system. This averages out at between 500-700 children per year, or nearly two children, each and every day.
This Report is the culmination of four years’ work during which time sworn testimonies were collected from 311 children held in Israeli military detention. The Report focuses on the period of time between the child’s arrest and being brought before a military court for the first time. The testimonies reveal that the majority of children are detained in the middle of the night in what are typically described as terrifying raids conducted by the army. Most children have their hands painfully tied behind their backs and are blindfolded, before being taken away to an unknown location for interrogation. The arrest and transfer process is often accompanied by verbal abuse and humiliation, threats as well as physical violence. Hours later the children find themselves in an interrogation room, alone, sleep deprived, bruised and scared. Unlike Israeli children living in settlements in the West Bank, Palestinian children are not accompanied by a parent and are generally interrogated without the benefit of legal advice, or being informed of their right to silence.
The testimonies reveal that most children undergo a coercive interrogation, mixing verbal abuse, threats and physical violence, generally resulting in a confession. The most common offence children confess to is throwing stones. The Report also finds that in 29 percent of cases, the children are either shown, or made to sign, documentation written in Hebrew, a language they do not understand. more.. e-mail
Test killing
Khaled Amayreh from occupied Jerusalem, Al-Ahram Weekly 3/15/2012
Israel’s unprovoked attack on Gaza had several aims.
The latest round of Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which started on 9 April and lasted for five days, began with the assassination of Sheikh Zuheir El-Qaisi, chief of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC).
El-Qaisi was riding a civilian car with a bodyguard when an Israeli apache helicopter gunship hit the vehicle with a hellfire missile, incinerating it and instantly killing them both. The assassination brought to an abrupt end the uneasy truce that had lasted several weeks. Hamas, the largest military force in Gaza, had successfully convinced other resistance groups, including the PRC and Islamic Jihad, to observe the tacit ceasefire reached in coordination with Egypt.
Israel subsequently concocted a statement claiming that the PRC Chief was “involved in the final stages of planning a major resistance attack on Israel’s border with Egypt”, which even the Israeli media did not take seriously. The Palestinians viewed the murder of El-Qaisi and his aide, recently released in the Shalit prisoner swap, as deliberate provocation. The reassertion of Israeli deterrence vis-Ã-vis the Palestinian resistance also achieved several of Tel Aviv’s political, operational and tactical goals, including testing the Iron Dome anti-missile missile system which the Israeli army has recently deployed outside the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli political and military establishment would like to bully the Palestinians into accepting a situation in which resistance activists, and even innocent civilians, are murdered and maimed on an almost daily basis without provoking the slightest reaction. more.. e-mail
Israel, UN Legitimacy and Khulood Badawi
Michael Warschawski, Alternative Information Center 3/18/2012
Khulood Badawi versus Israeli Ambassador the UN Ron Prosor – our choice is obvious, and so should be the choice of every decent woman and man: to side with the human right defender against the advocate of Israeli war crimes on international platforms.
Um Shmum (free translation: ‘UN my ass’) is what former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir used to say, stressing the hostility of the Israeli establishment to the organisation that rendered the very existence of Israel possible. For the Israeli propaganda apparatus, all means are legitimate to delegitimize the UN. All means are also legitimate to manipulate international public opinion away from Israel’s ongoing violations of International law, like the most recent massacre in Gaza.
Let’s take the latest “Khulood Badawi” affair. This is a non-event cynically exploited by Israel in order to divert public opinion from the real crimes committed by the Israeli army in Gaza. Last week Khulood Badawi, a UN employee, illustrated her private twitter post with a picture of a dead Gazan child. By mistake the picture was attributed to Israel’s most recent massacre, though in fact it was a picture from a 2006 car accident which Reuters also erroneously published. Needles to say that after having been informed of her error, Khulood immediately removed the picture from her private twitter post.
The mistaken picture now serves as the trigger and pretext for an overall offensive against Khulood Badawi, as well as against the UN. Ron Prosor, the Israeli ambassador to the UN, is demanding that Badawi be fired from OCHA. The Israeli military spokesperson has made the same demand. Can one imagine more cynical behavior from two men at the forefront of the Israeli propaganda machine which justified Israel’s massacre in Gaza three years ago. more.. e-mail
What Palestinian political prisoners are fighting for
Electronic Intifada: 20 Mar 2012 – Ameer Makhoul Gilboa Prison 20 March 2012 Khader Adnan’s hunger strike was not in protest of administrative detention but against Israel’s entire colonial system, argues Ameer Makhoul, writing from Gilboa prison.more
Athlete abused by Israeli soldier for carrying Palestine flag in Jerusalem marathon
Electronic Intifada: 20 Mar 2012 – Emily Lawrence Jerusalem 20 March 2012 An activist running the Jerusalem Marathon sought to bring attention to Israel’s rights abuses at the event.more
Kony’s Invisible Christian Fanaticism
Palestine Chronicle: 20 Mar 2012 – By Mamoon Alabbasi – London There is no doubt that the thirty-minute video ‘Kony 2012‘ by the advocacy group Invisible Children has raised much awareness regarding the relatively under-reported atrocities committed by the Ugandan rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). It is also true that the video, which boasts of over 80 million views on YouTube so far, has been subjected to much – I think fair – scrutiny. Criticism of the motives, accuracy and objectivity of the video’s makers has stirred a rather healthy debate on the issue, where alternative ways forward were discussed. However, I could not help but wonder how Invisible Children – whose founders are reported to have evangelical leanings – would have fashioned their video had the LRA been a Muslim extremist group (instead of being a Christian one, whose former name was the ‘Uganda Christian Democratic Army’). I am not suggesting here that…more
Hague Not Qualified to Engage Iranians
Palestine Chronicle: 20 Mar 2012 – By Stuart Littlewood UK Foreign Secretary William Hague has worked himself into a lather over Iran’s blocking of a Foreign Office website. He says: ‘I condemn this action by the Iranian Government. UK for Iranians’ was launched to reach out to Iranians, explaining, discussing and engaging with them on UK policy.’ “We have no quarrel with the Iranian people… At the launch of our website, I celebrated the links between the UK and Iran, and the richness of Iran’s culture… It is not just Iranians who are the poorer for their government’s censorship, but the rest of the world. We will continue to look for opportunities to engage with the Iranian people, confident that Iranians are outward looking and deserve the same freedoms that others enjoy around the world.” What a hoot! For months Mr Hague worked overtime to force the people of Iran into misery, poverty and isolation by…more
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The New Dark Age 