11 May 2012 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
New UNRWA Upgrade Plan To Improve Dheisheh Refugee Camp
IMEMC – Dheisheh, the oldest refugee camp in the West Bank, is set to receive a facelift under a new UNWRA upgrade plan. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), is launching a new program to upgrade UN refugee camps’ dilapidated facilities. …
Washington Urges Netanyahu To Push For Peace
IMEMC – With previous claims of unsettling his coalition government if he made gestures towards Palestinians, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received a call from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urging him and his new coalition partners to advance peace talks …
Meridor: “Palestinian State Will Never Be Established On 1967 Lines”
IMEMC – Israeli Deputy Prime Minister, Dan Meridor, stated that the Palestinian state will never be established along the 1967 six-day war border, adding that there should be different maps, and certain compensations. …
PCHR Weekly Report: 12 civilians wounded; 19 abducted in 65 Israeli invasions this week
IMEMC – In its Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories for the week of 03– 09 May 2012, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) found that 12 Palestinian civilians, including two children, were wounded and 19 Palestinians were abducted in 65 separate Israeli invasions into the West Bank and Gaza Strip. …
No Deal Reached With Hunger-Striking Detainees
IMEMC – The Palestinian Center for Defending the Detainees (PCDD) issued a press release stating that, contrary to certain media reports, no agreement has been reached between the hunger-striking Palestinian detainees and the Israeli Prison Administration. …
Two Palestinians Arrested In East Jerusalem
IMEMC – Israeli soldiers and Policemen arrested, on Thursday, two Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem under the claim that they stabbed an Israeli person several days ago, inflicting injuries. …
Israeli Army Abducts 17 Palestinians
IMEMC – The Palestinian News Network PNN reported that Israeli soldiers abducted 17 Palestinians from various locations across the West Bank on Thursday morning. …
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
PCHR Condemns the Break-up of the Concluding Colloquium of the Palestine Festival of Literature by Security Forces in Gaza
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
UAE warns of regional arms race over Israel
The National 11 May 2012 – Ambassador says country’s refusal to join Non-Proliferation Treaty ‘threatens security of Arab states and international peace’.
Blasts put Syria on brink of civil war
The National 11 May 2012 – The International Committee of the Red Cross says the conflict in some parts of Syria already meets its definition of civil war.
First presidential debate reveals wide open race
The National 10 May 2012 – Reporter’s notebook: Amr Moussa and Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh scored minor coups, but neither candidate walked away from Egypt’s first televised presidential debate a clear victor.
Nasrallah: Hezbollah able to strike anywhere in Israel
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Light earthquake rattles northern, central Israel
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
President Peres successfully undergoes hernia surgery
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Israeli social justice activists to join international protest over weekend
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Amid fears of party split, Kadima MKs lambaste Netanyahu-Mofaz unity cabinet
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Israeli left-wing debates Netanyahu-Mofaz deal at Tel Aviv conference
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Court order to demolish West Bank outpost hinders issue’s resolution, Israeli officials say
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Palestinians say Israel’s West Bank fence threatens ancient Roman irrigation system
Ha’aretz – 11 May 2012
Obama gay marriage remarks spark debate among Israeli MKs, ministers
Ha’aretz – 10 May 2012
High Court confronts religious panel over ban on female attorneys
Ha’aretz – 10 May 2012
Kadima faces split, as unity cabinet leaves both winners and losers
Ha’aretz – 10 May 2012
Yair Lapid goes back to the future
Ha’aretz – 9 May 2012
US resumes Bahrain arms sales despite rights concerns
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – State Department says equipment approved for key Gulf ally facing Iran not used for “crowd control.”
Nasrallah: Hezbollah able to strike anywhere in Israel
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – “Today we are not only able to hit Tel Aviv as a city but we are able to hit specific targets in TA and anywhere in occupied Palestine,” Hezbollah leader says in televised address.
5.5 magnitude earthquake shakes Israel, Lebanon
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – Earthquake felt as far north as Safed, in Jerusalem; epicenter near Cyprus; no injuries, damages reported after tectonic event.
Ashton hopes talks will end Iran nuke program
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – EU foreign policy chief says she has high hopes for upcoming negotiations in Baghdad between Tehran, P5+1.
Education minister: TAU Nakba event ‘outrageous’
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – Sa’ar calls on Tel Aviv University president to reconsider his decision to allow on-campus ceremony marking Nakba Day.
Peres undergoes surgery after discovering hernia
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – President diagnosed during his trip to Canada; he likely will not present this years Wolf Prizes as a result of condition.
Palestinian prisoners escalate hunger strike
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – Hunger-strikers say they’ll refuse vitamin supplements, prison clinics; solidarity demonstrations take place across W. Bank.
Beersheba stabbing suspects sent to house arrest
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – Three are suspected of stabbing to death a father of two who had asked them to be quiet outside his apartment.
Gulf Arab states face obstacles to unity push
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – GCC members to discuss ties amid growing threats from Iran, al-Qaida; seek to avoid heavy influence of Saudi Arabia.
Israel laments decision to drop windsurfing
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – ISAF votes to drop windsurfing from Olympics in favor of kiteboarding; Israeli official: Delegates “may have been napping.”
Ulpana meeting ends; ministers to hold more talks
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – Rivlin: Just solution must be legislated for the outpost slated for demolition; Gal-On says move encourages lawbreakers.
‘PA arrests suspects in Jenin governor shooting’
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – Arrests follow PA crackdown in the Jenin area, detaining scores of Fatah militiamen and security officers.
US: Too early to call UN Syria peace plan failure
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – US Amb. to UN Rice defends American record on Israel at Jewish center, rules out supplying weapons to Syrian rebels.
Egypt candidates vow to review Israel treaty
Jerusalem Post 11 May 2012 – In first-ever presidential debate in the Arab world, Abol Fotouh calls Israel an enemy, Amr Moussa calls it an adversary.
Air pollution surges during Lag Ba’omer bonfires
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Highest concentration of respirable particles occurred from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m., says Environmental Protection Ministry.
Falls, violence mar Lag Ba’omer; MDA treats 230
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Some 150 of the injuries during the minor holiday occurred at Meron, Magen David Adom said.
Thousands head to parks to watch the birds
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – International event aims to raise awareness about the plight of migratory flocks.
Column One: The lessons of Prof. Netanyahu
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Today the heirs of the failed utopian movements of the last century have joined forces to deny the Jewish people our sovereign rights to our land.
Intrigue always gets high ratings
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – The Netanyahu-Mofaz agreement saved the Treasury millions of shekels by torpedoing the national election proposed for September 4.
Brandishing bulldozers: The Beinart-Gordis debate
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Into the Fray: Last week’s exchange in NY was disappointing – more for what was not said rather than what was.
Politics: A marriage made in heaven – or hell?
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Look at key challenges PM, Shaul Mofaz must overcome for new bond between Likud, Kadima to last.
Security and Defense: The war between wars
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Gantz increased covert operations conducted by IDF. Gantz believes Israel cannot sit idly by as enemies build up.
Blessing in disguise
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – When Lisa Cohen made aliya she found the country to be lacking in environmental awareness.
His Story after their Stories: Pedro de Villarreal
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Unfortunately they were not the only members of the Lopéz-Villarreal family to face the Inquisition in Castile.
Parshat Behar: Strangers in our midst
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – “And for thy cattle, and for the beasts that are in thy land, shall all the increase thereof be for food.”
In Plain Language: From a distance
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – “For when the smoke clears, and clarity appears, there is only Am Yisrael Hai.”
Keep Dreaming: Fighting for the Zionist dream
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – If this is a fight we are going to win, then those of us who live here need to explain why we do to those who don’t.
Think Again: Looking for win-win
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Changes in haredi society have taken place largely under the secular radar.
Finding beauty on a plate
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – A food stylist and photographer join together to do what they love most: styling and photographing food.
That holiday stench
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – It’s time to rethink the way we celebrate Lag Ba’omer.
The relationship between TV viewing and eating
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – A new study examines the association between TV viewing and eating, shedding light on childhood and adolescent obesity.
A View from Israel: Conscription Now
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – Haredi leaders must accept that they are causing a nationwide ’hillul Hashem.’
Home cooking from scratch
Jerusalem Post 10 May 2012 – At Ayelet and Gili in Zichron Ya’akov, the food is delicious and the welcome is warm.
Gaza’s children reveal their hopes and fears – in pictures
The Guardian 11 May 2012 – An exhibition of drawings made by primary school children from al-Zarqa, one of the Gaza Strip’s poorest areas, highlights their yearning for a clean, safe neighbourhood
Hunger Feeds Growing Protests in Prison
IPS With more than 1,500 Palestinian prisoners weeks into an open-ended hunger strike in protest against worsening conditions in Israeli jails, including two that have gone without food for 72 days, human rights groups say many lives are in danger and are calling for urgent intervention.
Double U-Turn in ‘Theatre of the Absurd’
IPS A double-barrelled ‘coup de théâtre’ – advanced, then postponed, elections within days – has disoriented a polity accustomed to grappling passively with their Prime Minister’s backstage intrigues. But the ‘Theatre of the Absurd’ played outwardly by the “virtuoso of Israeli politics” conceals a deep need for stability.
NATO Heads for Chicago
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – A $100 million NATO invasion is coming. Low intensity conflict may follow. The “City of Broad Shoulders” may get more than it bargained for. Nelson Algren once called Chicago the “City on the Make.” NATO’s May 20/21 “on the make” invasion isn’t welcome. Chicago NATO.org announced an Obama-hosted “diplomatic summit.” Thousands plan…
U.S. Military Taught Officers: Use Hiroshima’ Tactics for Total War’ on Islam
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – The U.S. military taught its future leaders that a “total war” against the world’s 1.4 billion Muslims would be necessary to protect America from Islamic terrorists, according to documents obtained by Danger Room. Among the options considered for that conflict: using the lessons of “Hiroshima” to wipe out whole cities at once,…
Libya moving to democracy through torture?
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – Thousands of supporters of Colonel Gaddafi are being detained, with some tortured in secret prisons by revolutionary brigades, the head of the UN Support Mission in Libya says. Rights groups have already raised the alarm on torture in Libyan prisons. At an open session of the United Nations Security Council, the UN…
UN says three Libya prisoners likely tortured to death
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – Several prisoners likely were tortured to death at a detention center in Libya under government control, the United Nations said on Thursday as it urged the country to make stamping out such practices a top priority. Libya’s Justice Ministry has control of 31 detention centers with some 3,000 detainees, but about 4,000…
Tel Aviv University imposes restrictions on Nakba Day events
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – Tel Aviv University has imposed policies and procedures intended to restrict those Arab students who wish to organise Nakba commemorative events on campus. Palestinians remember the Nakba (Catastrophe) on 15th May every year, the date on which the state of Israel was created on their land. According to a report in Haaretz…
Palestinian Hunger Strikers: Fighting Ingrained Duplicity
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – On his seventy-third day of hunger strike, Thaer Halahleh was vomiting blood and bleeding from his lips and gums, while his body weighs in at 121 pounds-a fraction of its pre-hunger strike size. The thirty-three-year-old Palestinian follows the still-palpable footsteps of Adnan Khader and Hana Shalabi, whose hunger strikes resulted in release….
012)
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – Summary : Israeli violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued during the reporting period (03 – 09 May 2012): Shooting: In the West Bank, IOF wounded 12 Palestinian civilians, including two children, in the West Bank. Eleven of these civilians, including a child, were wounded during the dispersion of…
Afghan Soldier Kills US Soldier, Wounds Two Others
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – For the second time this week an Afghan soldier has opened fire on US troops. This attack saw an Afghan Army member attacking US troops in Kunar Province, killing one and wounding two others. The attack is the 20th reported death of a NATO soldier as a result of an attack by…
No Deal Reached With Hunger-Striking Detainees
Uruknet May 11, 2012 – The Palestinian Center for Defending the Detainees (PCDD) issued a press release stating that, contrary to certain media reports, no agreement has been reached between the hunger-striking Palestinian detainees and the Israeli Prison Administration. The PCCD reported that “some agencies, possibly with good intentions in mind, are trying to announce that an…
012 (Warning: Graphic Videos)
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Thursday ended with 37 martyrs documented by name, 11 of them were victims of the terrorist bombing in Kazzaz identified by names, most of them are from several areas in Damascus. The rest are: 10 martyrs in Homs, 8 in Aleppo, 3 in Damascus suburbs, 2 in each of Idlib and Daraa…
Libya finmin says to resign soon, cites “wastage”
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Libya’s interim finance minister said on Thursday he would resign soon because of “wastage of public funds”, citing a now-halted scheme to compensate former fighters and pressure from them for payment. “I will resign. I can’t keep working in these circumstances,” Hassan Ziglam told Reuters in an interview. “There is a wastage…
Thaer Halahleh told he “could die any moment,” as hunger strikers’ condition increasingly urgent
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Thaer Halahleh has been told he “could die any moment,” by an Israeli prison doctor, as the gravely ill Palestinian who is held without charge or trial by Israel, completed his 73rd day of hunger strike. Meanwhile, there have been continued solidarity protests in Palestine against international neglect of the estimated 2,000…
Palestinian Children Labour for Little in Israel
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – “It’s tiring,” says 15-year-old Ibrahim*, deep lines running across his forehead. “But there is no alternative.” Only a teenager, Ibrahim has been working full-time for three years already. The eldest son in a family of ten children, he lives in the Palestinian village Al-Fayasil in the occupied Jordan Valley, and is forced…
Settler Leaders Confess Illegality of Homes Built on Palestinian Land
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – On Thursday, 10th May, according to police documents reveal, settler leaders said they knew from the beginning that Beit El’s Ulpana neighborhood was constructed on privately owned Palestinian land, though Israeli settlers claim that they own these houses. Three years ago, and during a police interrogation, Yoel Tsur, CEO of the company…
012 : A Video Roundup
Uruknet
I DO NOT WANT TO BE ARRESTED – Testimony of an Iraqi Professor
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – It is painful for a person who has lived since 1975 until this moment within the Iraqi university campus as a student and as a professor, who witnessed the process of academic development for 18 years before 2003, and then its deterioration and collapse since that year. This institution has become vapid…
012
Uruknet May 10, 2012. Chaos and violence continue, Nouri has plenty of money to spend on some things (none apparently on basic services), Nouri targets academia again, the political crisis continues, a meet-up excludes Nouri, Josh Rogin expose the White House spin on the release of a prisoner suspected of killing 5 US service members, and more….
Dignity
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Dignity is such a word that makes us shudder. We Palestinians want our leaders and political leaders around the world to show a fraction of the dignity shown by Thaer and his comrades. Dignity. Self respect. Honor. Independence that begins with freeing our minds from mental occupation. Dignitry is what we 11.2…
Activist in Nabi Saleh Looses Eye as Israel Escalates Repression
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – The second anniversary of the start the popular resistance by the people of Nabi Saleh, located 30 kilometers northeast of Ramallah, was marked by the brutal injury of young Mustafa Abdul-Razzaq al-Tamimi, 27, who was shot in the face at less than 10 meters. This occurred while the UN Special Rapporteur for…
Israel: Profile of a Police State
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Police states are defined by lawlessness, injustice, and contempt for democratic values. Merriam Webster calls them “political unit(s) characterized by repressive governmental control of political, economic, and social life usually by an arbitrary exercise of power by police and especially secret police in place of regular operation of administrative and judicial organs…
Israeli forces detain Gaza fishermen
Uruknet May 10, 2012 — Israeli naval forces on Thursday detained two fishermen off the northern Gaza coast, Gaza‘s Ministry of Agriculture said. The men, from Beit Lahiya, were fishing north of Gaza City, the ministry said in a statement.An Israeli military spokesman said a fishing boat deviated from the permitted fishing area designated by Israel… The…
Imprisoning Protest
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – If you had followed May Day protests in New York City in the mainstream media, you might hardly have noticed that they happened at all. The stories were generally tucked away, minimalist, focused on a few arrests, and spoke of “hundreds” of protesters in the streets, or maybe, if a reporter was…
George Galloway’s Convoy through Syria
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – The 6th Viva Palestina convoy is en route to Gaza at this moment. As with any aid convoy going to Gaza we wish them the very best and would LIKE to offer them support. However we cannot because unlike previous aid convoys to Gaza, this one is passing through a country whose…
US military officers taught to target civilians and wage total war’ on Islam
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Over the past decade, fringe ideas about Muslims and Islam have seeped into law enforcement agencies across the country. Now we know the details about what some members of the US military have been learning about Muslims. It’s not pretty. Wired’s Spencer Ackerman first broke the story last month, when he revealed…
Wall Street’s immunity Why has the Obama administration so aggressively protected the financial industry from legal accountability?
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – Of all the ignominious actions of the Obama administration, the steadfast, systematic shielding of Wall Street from criminal liability is probably the most corrupt in the traditional sense of that word. In Newsweek this week, Peter Boyer and Peter Schweizer have an excellent examination of what happened and why, tying together crucial…
‘Back-to-Back’ Procedure: Patients at Checkpoints
Uruknet May 10, 2012 – The detainment of a person that is being transferred by an ambulance to one of the six Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem, until the completion of the bureaucratic procedures, falls under the euphemistic title of: “co-ordinations”. These entail nothing more than the authorization of the secret services that grant the patient permission…
Daily Star
Egypt deal 4-1 blow to Lebanon
Daily Star 11 May 2012 Egypt defeated Lebanon 4-1 in convincing fashion Friday in Tripoli, with the hosts looking well under par in a worrying performance leading up to next month’s World Cup qualifiers.
US lawmakers want Haqqani named ‘terrorist’ group
Daily Star 11 May 2012 The leaders of U.S. congressional intelligence committees, urged Clinton on Friday to immediately designate the militant Haqqani network as a “terrorist” group.
Israel to respond Saturday to Abbas grievances
Daily Star 11 May 2012 Israel is to reply on Saturday to a letter from Mahmud Abbas voicing the Palestinian president’s grievances over the failed peace process, a senior Palestinian official said.
Amnesty blasts Iran for cartoonist lash sentence
Daily Star 11 May 2012 Iran‘s reported conviction of a cartoonist to 25 lashes for a caricature of a former lawmaker is the Islamic republic’s latest attack on freedom of expression.
Big blast near Baath party office in Syria’s Aleppo: NGO
Daily Star 11 May 2012 A large explosion went off near an office of the ruling Baath party in Syria‘s second city of Aleppo on Friday evening, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
US resumes some arms shipments to Bahrain
Daily Star 11 May 2012 The United States is resuming some arms shipments to Bahrain after most transfers were suspended last year amid a crackdown on political dissent.
Egypt ends curfew around defence ministry
Daily Star 11 May 2012 Egypt’s military rulers lifted a curfew around the defence ministry in Cairo that was imposed after deadly clashes ahead of this month’s presidential election
Hezbollah backs proportional representation for 2013 polls
Daily Star 11 May 2012 Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah voices support for an elections law based on proportional representation, describing it as the most optimal system for the upcoming polls.
5.5 quake felt throughout Lebanon
Daily Star 11 May 2012 An earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale stikes most regions of Lebanon.
US resumes some arms sales to Bahrain
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – ….
Nasrallah: Hezbollah could hit specific targets in Tel Aviv
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – ….
5.5 magnitude quake felt across country
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – ….
Earthquake rocks Israel
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – Residents noted tremors in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Beersheba among other cities; no injuries, damage were immediately reported ….
Earthquake reported in northern, central Israel
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – ….
Kafr Kanna: Thousands rally in support of Palestinian hunger-strikers
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – ….
Murder wave: Salesman stabbed to death in Netanya
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – Salesman killed during what appeared to be argument over faulty phone accessory ….
Peres undergoes hernia repair surgery
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – President was diagnosed with hernia during State visit to Canada, but completed trip before undergoing treatment ….
Likud ministers: PM using Kadima
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – While senior Likud members postulate broadened Coalition’s days are numbered, officials affiliated with Minister Mofaz seek to prevent faction from crumbling ….
Prosecutor’s Office: Don’t bypass court ruling on Ulpana
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – During meeting with senior cabinet members, including Mofaz, judicial officials reiterate objection to legislation that would bypass High Court deadline for Beit El neighborhood’s evacuation ….
Mofaz and media’s bias
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – Op-ed: Media only slam lying politicians when they join rightist camp, praise those who join Left ….
Kadima MK: I’m part of Bolshevik coalition
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – Members of Mofaz’s party criticize unity deal with Netanyahu. MK Molla: We can’t promote anything anyway, all funds go to settlements ….
Mofaz to Ynet: Unity government historic opportunity
YNet News, 11 May 2012 – In special interview, Kadima leader defends decision to join Netanyahu’s coalition. ‘Elections would have cost Israel billions; now we can advance vital issues,’ he says ….
Palestinian Information Center
Seven striking captives at risk of dying
PIC – Lawyer Jawad Boulus on Friday said that seven hunger strikers in occupation jails are at risk of dying according to doctors at the Ramla prison hospital where the prisoners were moved.
Occupation to expand Gillo settlement
PIC – Israeli occupation authority is planning to expand the settlement of Gillo, to the south of occupied Jerusalem, by building 2,242 new housing units, as part of 3 settlement expansion plans.
Adnan: Israeli intelligence contact captives’ families to demoralize them
PIC – Islamic Jihad leader, Sheikh Khader Adnan warned against dealing with phone calls from anonymous callers to families of captives, because the Israeli intelligence is behind such calls.
Occupation displaces hundreds of families from southern al-Khalil
PIC – IOF troops, on Thursday raided the eastern area of Yatta city south of Al-Khalil and notified its residents to evacuate the area, as preparations for the demolition of houses within one month.
Halahleh’s father denies receiving promises of his son’s or Diab’s release
PIC – Thaer Halahleh’s father has denied receiving promises or guarantees from the occupation authorities for the release of his son Thaer and Bilal Diab who have been on hunger strike for 75 days running.
PRC honours Baroness Jenny Tonge
PIC – The Palestinian Return Centre (PRC) hosted an award evening celebrating individuals standing up for freedom and justice in British politics.
The release of Hazem Assida after ten years in occupation prisons
PIC – Al-Ahrar center for prisoners’ studies and human rights said that the detainee Hazem Assida, 30, from Tall town near Nablus, has been released after 10 years in occupation prisons.
11 students go on hunger strike in solidarity with prisoners
PIC – 11 students, who are activists in the Islamic bloc in the Gaza Strip’s universities and colleges, have launched an open hunger strike since Thursday 10th May until meeting all the prisoners’ demands.
PA security services take measures to prevent a third intifada
PIC – PA security services held a meeting at the beginning of this week where they discussed the solidarity activities in support of the striking prisoners for the fourth week running.
An international campaign to break the siege on Jerusalem kicks off in Cairo
PIC – The Committee of Foreign Relations in the Egyptian Press Syndicate launched the “International Campaign to break the siege on Jerusalem,” ..
Abbas Urges UN to Save Life of Striking Prisoners
WAFA –
PCBS: Palestinian Population over 11 Million by End of 2011
WAFA –
Palestine UN Mission: Compel Israel to Stop Detentions
WAFA –
Families of Striking Prisoners Shut Down Red Cross Office
WAFA –
France Concerned About Health of Striking Prisoners
WAFA –
Israeli Army Arrests 15 Palestinians across West Bank
WAFA –
Israel’s military looks to the sea
LA Times 11 May 2012 – Israel buys a sixth German-made submarine. A navy officer explains why Israel’s military is looking increasingly to the seas. TEL AVIV — With the acquisition this month of a sixth German-made submarine, Israel is seeking to position itself as the region’s undisputed naval powerhouse.
Iran Promotes Its Candidate for Next Shiite Leader
New York Times 11 May 2012 – Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi would extend Iran’s influence over the Iraqi people and Shiite Muslims everywhere if he were to succeed Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
Nuclear Negotiator Seeks ‘Beginnings of the End’ of Iran Dispute
New York Times 11 May 2012 – Catherine Ashton, the lead negotiator for the six-nation group bargaining with Iran over its contentious uranium enrichment program, did not offer specifics about talks on May 23 in Baghdad.
Tensions Between Iran and West To Keep Oil Prices High
New York Times 11 May 2012 – The International Energy Agency said on Friday that the tension between Iran and the West would likely keep oil prices high despite an improvement in world supply.
Egypt Election Dominated by Question of Islam
New York Times 11 May 2012 – The main candidates have said that security and the economy are the most important issues to voters, but a debate returned repeatedly to questions about religious influence.
Egyptian Candidates Clash in TV Debate, an Arab First
New York Times 11 May 2012 – Two of the leading candidates to become Egypt’s next president traded barbs about their political histories and arguments about the role of religion in public life.
74-Year- Old Hunger Striker against Administrative Detention
Al-Haq –
Thousands march across the West Bank in support of the prisoners’ hunger strike
Mondoweiss – Palestinians march in support of prisoners on hunger strike, Nablus, May 11, 2011. (Photo: Ahmad Al-Bazz/ActiveStills) Press Release …
CNN’s Amanpour interviews Kopty and Pollak on Palestinian prisoner strike
Mondoweiss –
The Israeli consul is selling ‘brand Israel’, but very few in one upper west side synagogue are buying
Mondoweiss – Brand Israel On Wednesday evening, May 9, Ido Aharoni, the Israeli consul general in New York, spoke at Ansche Chesed, a Conservative synagogue on New York’s Upper West Side to which our family belongs. I attended with two aims: to see how members of our quite…
Liberal Zionists are afraid their parents will reject them if they come out
Mondoweiss – Ilyse Hogue For weeks now I have been meaning to post the speech below, an astonishing speech given at J Street’s conference last March 26 by a longtime progressive activist, Ilyse Hogue . It’s best I get out of the way and let Hogue speak for herself,…
Palestinians shut down a second int’l aid organization to demand action on dying hunger strikers
Mondoweiss – Hunger striker Tha’er Halahleh’s father protesting on Thursday, May, 10, 2012 outside of the ICRC building in Ramallah. For the second day in a row Palestinians shut down the offices of an international organization in Ramallah, expressing dissatisfaction over a lack of action on behalf of…
Small Earthquake Rattles Northern Israel
The Foward Breaking News 11 May 2012 – A light earthquake was felt Friday in several cities throughout northern and central Israel. Click here for the rest of the article…
Britain Pushes To Ease Iran Insurance Sanction
The Foward Breaking News 11 May 2012 – Britain reportedly is urging its European partners to reconsider one of the most biting Iran sanctions among those set to kick in this summer. Click here for the rest of the article…
Israeli Leftists Debate New Coalition Government
The Foward Breaking News 11 May 2012 – A number of prominent Israeli politicians and hundreds of activists from various organizations attended a left-wing conference organized by Peace Now on Friday. Click here for the rest of the article…
Obama Spurs Israeli Debate on Gay Marriage
The Foward Breaking News 11 May 2012 – Comments by U.S. President Barack Obama in support of same-sex marriage in an ABC News interview on Wednesday have sparked debate in among Israeli ministers and MKs, and also among U.S. Jewish groups. Click here for the rest of the article…
Israel Loses a Real Opposition
The Forward New 11 May 2012 – In Israel, some say a new phase of stability has begun with the coalition deal between the Likud and Kadima parties. To others, the new government has ushered in an era of unaccountability. Click here for the rest of the article…
West Bank Mosque Raises Questions about Donor Aid in Palestine
Joseph Dana 11 May 2012 – The Palestinian economy is characterized by a reliance on huge sums of international foreign aid – they are one of the largest recipients in the world. But where exactly this money gets spent is not always so obvious. In a small town just outside the boundaries…
Expats vote for Egypt president
BBC 11 May 2012 – Egyptian expatriates start voting in the first presidential elections since an uprising forced Hosni Mubarak to step down last year.
Ruling party wins Algeria polls
BBC 11 May 2012 – Algeria’s governing National Liberation Front (FLN) wins parliamentary elections, official results say, amid widespread voter apathy.
Articles
The Unholy Trinity: Barak, Bibi, Mofaz
Yacov Ben Efrat, Challenge 5/11/2012
On the night of May 7, Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz joined Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to obviate the need for early elections and rescue Israel from the mess it has gotten itself into. In the international sphere, two fateful and insoluble problems dog the government: the Iranian nuclear project and the Palestinian question. Moreover, the two issues are linked: Israel’s quarrel with the US over the settlements in the occupied territories makes it hard to get US backing for its policy towards Iran.
On the domestic, social and political fronts, the government is shadowed by the threat of renewed social protest this summer, which is expected to be more aggressive and focused than it was last summer. Bibi’s latest stunt pours oil onto the flames of social discontent, especially in light of the last protest’s failure to achieve any results. The new “unity government” was established, among other reasons, to implement budgetary cuts and raise taxes while ignoring the hardships of the population. On the other hand, the government is feeling pressure from the High Court, which it despises and holds in contempt. The Court demands the evacuation of settlements that were built on private Palestinian land, and the government – cajoled by rightist elements in the Likud – is coming up with various maneuvers to prevent the demolition of the homes. This kind of evacuation would likely lead to clashes with the “hilltop youth” (settlers who “occupy” hilltops by setting up dwellings) and the extremist Feiglin faction within the Likud, which enjoys increasing influence in the party.
This tangled mess is the main reason for the unholy alliance – Bibi, Ehud Barak and Shaul Mofaz. In an earlier night-time maneuver, Bibi succeeded in breaking up the Labor Party, keeping Barak and a few others within the coalition as a new faction called “Independence.” Now he has swallowed up Kadima, the product of a different trinity – Ariel Sharon, Shimon Peres and Haim Ramon – which has since been ejected from politics: Sharon to a deep coma, Peres to the presidency, and Ramon following conviction for indecent assault. more.. e-mail
Is the Administration’s new policy benefitting our enemies in the war on terrorism?
by Seymour M. Hersh, The New Yorker 3/5/2007
Efforts to curb Iran’s influence have involved the United States in worsening Sunni-Shiite tensions….”It’s not that we don’t want the Salafis to throw bombs; it’s who they throw them at—Hezbollah, Moqtada al-Sadr, Iran, and at the Syrians, if they continue to work with Hezbollah and Iran.”
A STRATEGIC SHIFT
In the past few months, as the situation in Iraq has deteriorated, the Bush Administration, in both its public diplomacy and its covert operations, has significantly shifted its Middle East strategy. The “redirection,” as some inside the White House have called the new strategy, has brought the United States closer to an open confrontation with Iran and, in parts of the region, propelled it into a widening sectarian conflict between Shiite and Sunni Muslims.
To undermine Iran, which is predominantly Shiite, the Bush Administration has decided, in effect, to reconfigure its priorities in the Middle East. In Lebanon, the Administration has coöperated with Saudi Arabia’s government, which is Sunni, in clandestine operations that are intended to weaken Hezbollah, the Shiite organization that is backed by Iran. The U.S. has also taken part in clandestine operations aimed at Iran and its ally Syria. A by-product of these activities has been the bolstering of Sunni extremist groups that espouse a militant vision of Islam and are hostile to America and sympathetic to Al Qaeda.
One contradictory aspect of the new strategy is that, in Iraq, most of the insurgent violence directed at the American military has come from Sunni forces, and not from Shiites. But, from the Administration’s perspective, the most profound—and unintended—strategic consequence of the Iraq war is the empowerment of Iran….more.. e-mail
U.S. Military Taught Officers: Use ‘Hiroshima’ Tactics for ‘Total War’ on Islam
Noah Shachtman and Spencer Ackerman, Wired 5/10/2012
The U.S. military taught its future leaders that a “total war” against the world’s 1.4 billion Muslims would be necessary to protect America from Islamic terrorists, according to documents obtained by Danger Room. Among the options considered for that conflict: using the lessons of “Hiroshima” to wipe out whole cities at once, targeting the “civilian population wherever necessary.”
The course, first reported by Danger Room last month and held at the Defense Department’s Joint Forces Staff College, has since been canceled by the Pentagon brass. It’s only now, however, that the details of the class have come to light. Danger Room received hundreds of pages of course material and reference documents from a source familiar with the contents of the class.
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff recently ordered the entire U.S. military to scour its training material to make sure it doesn’t contain similarly hateful material, a process that is still ongoing. But the officer who delivered the lectures, Army Lt. Col. Matthew A. Dooley, still maintains his position at the Norfolk, Virginia college, pending an investigation. The commanders, lieutenant colonels, captains and colonels who sat in Dooley’s classroom, listening to the inflammatory material week after week, have now moved into higher-level assignments throughout the U.S. military.
For the better part of the last decade, a small cabal of self-anointed counterterrorism experts has been working its way through the U.S. military, intelligence and law enforcement communities, trying to convince whoever it could that America’s real terrorist enemy wasn’t al-Qaida — but the Islamic faith itself. In his course, Dooley brought in these anti-Muslim demagogues as guest lecturers. And he took their argument to its final, ugly conclusion. more.. e-mail
Palestinian Authority silent as Israel consolidates fuel monopoly
Electronic Intifada: 11 May 2012 – Charlotte Silver Ramallah 11 May 2012 Israel’s monopoly over distribution of fuel to the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip has yet to be challenged by the Palestinian Authority.more
Israeli police brutally arrest hunger strike demonstrators, threaten them with rape
Electronic Intifada: 11 May 2012 – Sawsan Khalife’ the Galilee 11 May 2012 A complaint has been lodged with the Israeli ministry of justice after the violent arrest of 17 demonstrators at a hunger strike solidarity protest near Ramle prison.more
Palestine Nakba 64 Years Later
Palestine Chronicle: 11 May 2012 – By Jamal Kanj Each year on May 15 Palestinians commemorate the Nakba or Catastrophe. On that May Day, Palestine ceased to exist from the world’s map and 85 percent of its natives were evicted from their historical homes and villages. The expulsion of Palestinians was part of Zionism’s early obsession with creating a nation with a Jewish majority. Their increasing preoccupation with changing the population demography in Palestine was envisaged by the World Zionist Organization (WZO) in the late 1800s. In his writings in 1896 Herzl, founder of WZO foretold expelling “… the poor [native] population across the border unnoticed.” Immediately following the UN’s vote to divide Palestine between native inhabitants and European immigrants, Israel’s founder Ben-Gurion declared before the Central Committee of the Histadrut? the Eretz Israel Workers Party? in December 1947 that the UN vote makes “the total population of the Jewish State at the time of its…more
Nuclear Israel: Image of Apocalyptic Horror
Palestine Chronicle: 11 May 2012 – By Ismail Salami Imagine a world plunged in darkness and extreme cold with the sunlight screened off by a thick pall of dust cloud. Imagine a world flung back into chaos. This is an image conceived of a world abandoned to dereliction by doomsday weapons. According to Samson Option theory, Israel reserves the option to retaliate massively with nuclear weapons when its existence is gravely endangered by the military might of another country although the regime refuses to admit to the possession of a huge nuclear arsenal. As a first sign of a nuclear threat, in the 1973 Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) War considered to be the fiercest Arab-Israeli conflict, when Arab forces were about to defeat Israeli forces, the Zionist Prime Minister Golda Meir ordered that 13 nuclear bombs be readied to be used either by missiles or by aircraft. And President Nixon agreed to the Israeli…more
Operetta in 5 Acts: Netanyahu’s Own Theater
Palestine Chronicle: 10 May 2012 – By Uri Avnery The master magician has drawn another rabbit from his top hat. A real and very lively rabbit. He has confounded everybody, including the leaders of all parties, the top political pundits and his own cabinet ministers. He has also shown that in politics, everything can change – literally – overnight. At 2 a.m. the Knesset was busy putting the finishing touches to a law to dissolve itself – condemning half of its members to political oblivion. At 3 a.m. there was a huge new government coalition. No elections, thank you very much. An operetta in 5 acts. Act one: Everything tranquil. Public opinion polls show Binyamin Netanyahu in absolute control. His popularity is approaching 50%; nobody else’s even approaches 20%. The largest party in the Knesset, Kadima, sinks in the polls from 28 seats to 11, with all indications that it will continue to fall. Its new…more
The Language of Occupation: The Greek Collapse
Dissident Voice: 11 May 2012 – I take to the streets and go to rallies but maybe I should go to parliament to blow my brains out. – Dimitris Christoulas to a friend, Business Insider , Apr 5, 2012 The cornered tend to be desperate. The insecure can lose their bearings. The Greek financial crisis is producing an assortment of warring metaphors, some more plausible than others. The common target in this whole business is Germany, implying that more than just the eurozone may be under threat. It suggests, in fact, that financial instability will, in time, lead to a nationalist critique of the European idea. As with broader conflicts, the national is explained through the local. Global events can be seen through individual lenses, the stories of citizens who have suffered, even if those stories can unduly simplify the complex. In Greece, Dimitris Christoulas has offered the premise for the Greek protest movement. The 77-year-old retired…more
Egypt-Israel Gas Issue Becoming Explosive
Dissident Voice: 11 May 2012 – IPS — The two weeks since Egypt’s abrupt cancellation of a Mubarak-era gas-export deal with Israel have seen an exchange of indirect threats and warnings between the two countries, culminating in an apparent Israeli military build-up on the border of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. “In recent days, Israel appears to have begun preparing for military deployments on its southern border,” Tarek Fahmi, head of the Israel desk at the Cairo-based National Centre for Middle East Studies, told IPS. On April 22, Egypt unilaterally cancelled a 2005 export agreement for the sale of natural gas to Israel, which for the past five years had ensured a steady supply of Egyptian gas from the northern Sinai Peninsula to Israel. Egyptian energy officials attributed the move to Israel’s failure to meet payment deadlines, stressing that the decision was “not politically motivated.” Israel, which is said to depend on Egyptian gas for some 40 percent…more
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The New Dark Age 
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