31 May 2012 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Calls for Intervention in Arrests of Fishermen in Gaza
IMEMC – The General Union of Palestinian Workers in Gaza demanded that human rights organizations intervene immediately to stop attacks on Palestinian fishermen that occur every fishing season. …
Barak: “Israel Might Consider State With Temporary Borders”
IMEMC – Israeli defense minister, Ehud Barak, suggested, Wednesday, that Israel might consider a “unilateral move” for establishing a Palestinian state with temporary borders should negotiations between Israel and Palestine remain at a standstill. The statement was deemed ‘unacceptable’ by the Palestinian presidential spokesman, Nabil Abu Rodeina. …
Ailing Detainee, Released One Week Ago, Dies In Hospital
IMEMC – Palestinian medical sources reported that former political prisoner, Zoheir Lubbada, 38 years old, died on Thursday at the Intensive Care Unit of the National Government Hospital in Nablus, in the northern part of the West Bank, one week after he was released from an Israeli prison suffering numerous health complications due to medical negligence in prison clinics. …
Israeli Citizen Fights for Palestinian Citizenship
IMEMC – An Israeli citizen has been imprisoned for trying to drop his Israeli citizenship and replace it with Palestinian citizenship. He said that he does not recognize Israeli courts and the Israeli government as they represent an illegal occupation. …
Remains of 91 Palestinians Returned to Ramallah, Gaza
IMEMC – Minister of Civil Affairs in the Palestinian government in Ramallah, Hussein ash-Sheikh, reported that Israel handed the bodies of 91 Palestinians, buried over many years in the “Numbers Graveyard”; the remains were sent to the Gaza Strip and to Ramallah. …
Israeli Fundamentalists Hold Protest Against African Immigrants In Tel Aviv
IMEMC – Israeli daily, Haaretz, reported that an Israeli citizen of Ethiopian origin was injured, on Wednesday evening, after being attacked by Israeli fundamentalists during a protest against African immigrants which called for their expulsion from Israel. …
‘Outrage’ as Israel refuses to hospitalize hunger strikers
5/31/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Rights groups on Thursday expressed outrage at Israeli authorities “disregard” of the immediate danger to the lives of two Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike. Mahmoud al-Sarsak has been on hunger strike for 74 days and Akram al-Rekhawi has refused food for 50 days. Physicians for Human Rights – Israel petitioned an Israeli….
Female prisoners boycott clinics to protest negligence
5/31/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Six Palestinian women jailed in Israel are boycotting prison clinics to protest mistreatment by the prison doctor, the Palestinian prisoners society said Thursday. The female detainees have filed a complaint against the doctor for negligence, and a prison official has promised to look into it as soon as possible, they said….
Israeli forces ‘seize 4 Gaza fishermen’
5/31/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained four Palestinian fishermen off the coast of the Gaza Strip on Wednesday morning, witnesses said. Israeli warships surrounded two fishing boats off Beit Lahiya, in northern Gaza, forcing the fishermen off the vessels and taking them to an unknown destination, a Ma’an correspondent said. The….
Israel returns the remains of 91 Palestinians
5/31/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Palestinian Authority civil affairs minister said Thursday that Israel has delivered the remains of 91 Palestinian bodies interred in numbered graves. Hussein al-Sheikh told Ma’an that the bodies were received by the Palestinian side on Thursday morning and are being delivered to Ramallah and the Gaza Strip. A…. Related: Family plans daughter’s funeral 9 years after her death and Gaza, West Bank receive bodies returned by Israel
Report: Israeli police caught robbing Palestinian workers
5/31/2012 – TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma’an) — Three Israeli policemen were arrested Wednesday on suspicion of beating and stealing from Palestinian workers in Jerusalem, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported. A police representative told an Israeli court on Thursday that Uziel Hanun, Osama al-Sahly and Reuven Dhokerker regularly used threats to escort Palestinian workers into alleys in….
Family plans daughter’s funeral 9 years after her death
5/31/2012 – JENIN (Ma’an) — After nine years of efforts to bring the body of their daughter home, Hiba Daraghmeh’s family on Thursday hoped to bury her next to her grandfather. Israeli authorities have agreed to return the bodies of 91 Palestinians whose remains it kept in unnamed graves in the “cemetery of numbers…. Related: Israel returns the remains of 91 Palestinians and Gaza, West Bank receive bodies returned by Israel
Prisoner dies from ongoing health condition
5/31/2012 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — A prisoner released to hospital last week by Israeli authorities died on Thursday due to complications from an ongoing illness, a Palestinian Authority official said. Zuheir Labada, 51, passed away in Nablus, director of prisoners affairs in the region Samer Samaro told Ma’an. Labada suffered from a kidney and….
Gaza, West Bank receive bodies returned by Israel
5/31/2012 – RAMALLAH/GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip on Thursday gathered to welcome the return of the bodies of 91 Palestinians which had been held in an Israeli cemetery. The release of Palestinian remains, some held for decades in unnamed graves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, was slated by…. Related: Family plans daughter’s funeral 9 years after her death and Israel returns the remains of 91 Palestinians
In photos: Bodies of 91 Palestinians repatriated
5/31/2012 – Reuters/ MaanImages – Crowds gathered in Gaza and the West Bank to receive the remains of 91 Palestinians kept in an Israeli cemetery, which were returned on Thursday. Official ceremonies were held in Ramallah and Gaza City, before families took their deceased relatives to hometowns for burial…. Related: Israel returns the remains of 91 Palestinians and Minister: Israel to return more bodies in June
Minister: Israel to return more bodies in June
5/31/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israel will return the remains of another group of Palestinians in June, the PA minister of prisoner affairs said Thursday, as 91 bodies were repatriated to the West Bank and Gaza. Issa Qaraqe told Ma’an that Israel was willing to hand over more bodies but did not say how….
PA court hears teachers’ wrongful dismissal case
5/31/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — The Palestinian high court on Thursday held a session to consider the situation of teachers claiming wrongful dismissal in the West Bank. A panel of 18 judges heard the defense lawyers’ arguments in 16 cases, and ruled the verdict would be given on June 14. The teachers held a demonstration….
Violence, poverty besets Palestinians in Israel
5/31/2012 – LOD, Israel (Reuters) — “My friend is on the floor, dying, 11 holes in his body, and I only have 10 fingers,” raps Tamer Nafar.”Don’t close your eyes, blink if you can hear me.” Nafar isn’t rapping about violence and crime in urban America, but murders, drugs, guns and gang warfare….
PA officials ponder Barak ‘unilateral action’ remarks
5/31/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israel’s defense minister said Wednesday that his government may consider “unilateral action” if peace talks remain at a standstill, in remarks that puzzled Palestinian leaders. Ehud Barak’s suggestion at a security conference that Israel should “consider a provisional arrangement or even unilateral action” if negotiations remain deadlocked….
US think-tank: Iran site buildings ‘completely razed’
5/31/2012 – VIENNA (Reuters) — A US security institute has published satellite images which it said increased concerns that Iran was trying to “destroy evidence” of suspected past research relevant for developing a nuclear weapons capability, a charge Tehran dismisses. The Institute for Science and International Security posted them on its website hours after diplomats said the UN….
Israeli commander: Syria set to become failed state
5/31/2012 – TEL AVIV, Israel (Reuters) — Syria is heading for collapse and will become a “warehouse of weapons” for Islamist militants as it descends into chaos, a senior Israeli army commander said.” Syria is in civil war, which will lead to a failed state, and terrorism will blossom in it,” said Major-General Yair Golan, making a rare….
4 Israelis enter Salfit ‘by accident’
5/31/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Four Israelis on Thursday entered the West Bank town of Salfit “by accident” and were escorted out by Palestinian security officers, the Israeli army said. PA officers handed the Israeli citizens to the Civil Administration, an Israeli military spokesman said….
Abu Marzouq: Abbas to call PLC meeting in June
5/31/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — President Mahmoud Abbas will call a PLC meeting in late June after a unity government has been chosen, the deputy-chief of Hamas said Thursday. Moussa Abu Marzouq said on his Facebook page that Hamas and Fatah officials discussed the tasks of the new government over two days of talks in….
2 American tourists kidnapped in Egyptian Sinai
5/31/2012 – El-ARISH, Egypt (Ma’an) — Two American tourists were kidnapped by armed men in the Sinai peninsula early Thursday, Egyptian security sources said. Jonathan Shizarlasky and Carter Brabon were kidnapped in the Red Sea city of Nuweiba. The two US citizens were seized at gunpoint from a car near the Hilton hotel and taken to….
China urges world to give Annan’s Syria plan time
5/31/2012 – BEIJING (Reuters) — China on Thursday urged the world to give UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan’s peace plan for Syria more time to work, saying there could not be instant solutions to such a complex crisis. Syrian rebels on Wednesday gave President Bashar Assad a 48-hour deadline to comply with an international peace…. Related: Arabs urge China to apply more pressure on Syria
Arabs urge China to apply more pressure on Syria
5/31/2012 – HAMMAMET, Tunisia (Reuters) — Senior Arab officials pressed China on Thursday to use its influence to help stop the violence in Syria. China, along with Russia, has blocked efforts to take more robust action against Syrian President Bashar Assad in the United Nations Security Council, but pressure for a firm response has grown since the massacre…. Related: China urges world to give Annan’s Syria plan time
Egypt on edge before verdict in Mubarak trial
5/31/2012 – CAIRO (Reuters) — Egyptians could hardly believe their eyes when Hosni Mubarak went on trial for complicity over the killing of protesters last year, but those who toppled him doubt Saturday’s verdict will deliver justice for the almost 850 who died. Still less will it deal with the legacy of an autocratic ruler who….
Syria rebels demand Hezbollah apology to free Lebanese
5/31/2012 – BEIRUT (Reuters) — Syrian rebels in Aleppoprovince said in a statement that Lebanese Shiite hostages were with them and “are in good health”, the news channel Al Jazeera reported Thursday. They also said negotiations to release them could start only after Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, an ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, apologizes for a….
Young woman sentenced to death by stoning in Sudan
5/31/2012 – KHARTOUM, Sudan (Reuters) — A Sudanese woman, believed to be around 20, has been sentenced to be stoned to death for adultery, and is being held near Khartoum, shackled in prison with her baby son, rights groups and lawyers said on Thursday. Campaigners condemned the ruling, saying it violated international standards and raised concerns that Sudan….
Israel returns remains of Palestinians
AlJazeera 31 May 2012 – Bodies of the 91 “martyrs” killed during attacks on Israel since 1967 brought to Ramallah in the West Bank.
In Israeli desert town, print newspapers are all the rage
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Letter to rich U.S. Jew sheds light on Netanyahu’s ties to foreign backers
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
AG criticizes State Comptroller, as war of words over Harpaz affair continues
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
State mulls relocating West Bank outpost to land set aside for IDF
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Channel 10 head quits, says weary of fighting for crippled channel
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israeli left-wing NGOs split on accepting Madonna’s invite to Tel Aviv show
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israeli policemen suspected of robbing Palestinian workers in Jerusalem
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israeli minors charged with robbing, beating African migrants in Tel Aviv
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israeli court slams police for probe of fatal shooting of Israeli Arab man
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Eli Yishai: Israeli women afraid to report rape by African migrants due to AIDS stigma
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Sinai peacekeeping force commander warns of weapons smuggling to Gaza
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israel transfers bodies of Palestinian terrorists to West Bank, Gaza
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israeli official: Iran wants to control Mideast while supporting Syria massacre
Ha’aretz – 31 May 2012
Israeli court orders ‘road-rage’ assailant to give victim NIS 1.7 million
Ha’aretz – 30 May 2012
Be’er Sheva’s Old City to get brand new $30 million science museum
Ha’aretz – 30 May 2012
Even rockets can’t keep Israelis away from towns near the Gaza Strip
Ha’aretz – 30 May 2012
Israeli research finds magnetic way to break the smoking habit
Ha’aretz – 30 May 2012
Number of Israelis who smoke at record low
Ha’aretz – 30 May 2012
Supreme Court swears in two new justices
Ha’aretz – 30 May 2012
Everest climber to receive Medal of Honor
Jerusalem Post 1 Jun 2012 – President Peres to award Israeli Nadav Ben-Yehuda who saved life of Turkish climber.
Man charged with attempting to murder former wife
Jerusalem Post 1 Jun 2012 – Divorced Beersheba mother of one suffered stab wounds, fractures, eye injuries.
Gang of 11 minors indicted for attacks on Africans in TA
Jerusalem Post 1 Jun 2012 – Defendants allegedly committed crimes as acts of revenge following media reports about criminal offenses carried out by Africans.
Health Ministry agrees to ease rules on home births
Jerusalem Post 1 Jun 2012 – Officials believe it is safest to deliver in hospital, but decide on compromise amid demand for home births.
German president contradicts Merkel on Israel
Jerusalem Post 1 Jun 2012 – Jewish NGO calls on Gauck to “clarify his stance on Israel” after he apparently undercut Merkel’s pledge to the Jewish state regarding its security concerns.
NGO: Don’t force people to do national service
Jerusalem Post 1 Jun 2012 – National Civil Service Volunteers Association official says if volunteering became compulsory for Arab Israelis, ultra-Orthodox fewer people would be willing to do it.
Kadima rebels threaten to split party
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Rebel MKs say that raising the value-added tax from its current 16 percent to 17% reason enough to leave.
30 years after Lebanon war, pilots reminisce
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – 1982 war marked first time the Israel Air Force used attack helicopters in combat, helping establish doctrine relevant today.
Israeli officials link Tehran to Assad’s massacres
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – “The Iranian regime is in a very concrete manner lending its support to the Syrian government’s murder of the Syrian people, and this is part of their very aggressive and dangerous behavior in the region,” official says.
US condemns reported Russian arms ship to Syria
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – UN Human Rights Council set to call for full inquiry into Houla massacare, issue draft resolution to condemn killings.
PA honors dead terrorists in Ramallah ceremony
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Abbas presides over ceremony honoring 91 terrorist whose remains were returned by Israel in goodwill gesture.
Syrian rebel chief urges Annan to declare peace plan over
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Clinton indicates that Washington continues to support the UN peacekeeping mission in Syria rather than direct intervention by the United States.
Madonna kicks off world tour in Ramat Gan
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – “The Middle East and all the conflicts that have been occurring here for thousands of years – they have to stop,” pop star says.
Thousands of Turks rally on anniversary of flotilla
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – On second anniversary of ‘Marmara’ raid, thousands chant against Israel in Istanbul, call for justice for those responsible.
‘Israel’s creation worst catastrophe to hit world’
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Head of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Badie reminds followers of movement’s “sacrifices” in efforts to destroy the Jewish state.
Glorifying terror
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Delegitimizing terrorism is a prerequisite for coexistence – a symbolic prelude to actually fighting terrorism, the barest minimum we rightfully expect of peace partners.
Sinai Today: Sinai Indaba
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Sinai Indaba brings together a diverse mix of speakers who have the knowledge, experience and eloquence to enlighten and inspire other participants.
Military service for all
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Undoubtedly, it will take a great deal of political skill for Netanyahu and his coalition colleagues to work out a viable substitute for or revision of the unpopular Tal Law.
Before we lose control
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – It’s not a war on immigration that lies ahead of us, but a war over the continuation of the Jewish majority in Israel.
Clinton rejects Barak’s unilateral withdrawal
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – “The United States believes there is no substitute for direct talks between the parties,” said the US secretary of state.
Why is Israel expelling migrant workers?
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – For workers to live in quasi-slave like conditions seems highly inappropriate to the spirit of social justice in Israel.
Savir’s Corner: Diplomacy on Iran
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – I doubt if at this point the Iranians themselves know how they will react to a real give-and-take offer.
A-G: Comptroller misleading on Harpaz
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Weinstein says that Lindenstrauss never raised criminal charges, “not explicitly, not as a hint, not in writing, not verbally.”
Rights group: Russia arms shipment sent to Syria
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Updated shipping databases show that cargo ship docked in the port of Tartus, says Human Rights First.
US officials to attend Asher Palmer murder trial
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Ofer Military Court tries Wa’al al-Arjeh and Ali Saadeh with intentional killing of father and infant son on Route 60.
Journalists to protest against Blau indictment
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Jerusalem Journalists Association plans protest outside Justice Ministry over A-G’s decision to indict Haaretz reporter Uri Blau.
Ukraine extradites head of massive fraud to Israel
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Extensive Ukraine-Israel cooperation leads to Dmitri Malkiel’s extradition for aggravated fraud against hundreds of Israeli victims.
J’lem square ‘fraudulently’ named after oligarch
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Councilwoman petitions court to rescind naming of plaza after Ukrainian businessman, who city wrongly claimed was dead.
The Weekly Schmooze: Mayim logs off
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – JPost on hot Jewish news: Pee-Wee, Apatow collaborate; Refaeli canoodles with Flying Tomato; Israeli Virgin Mary.
Off The Beaten Track: The road up to Jerusalem
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – The road from Ben Gurion Airport up to Jerusalem is actually the perfect place to start a tour of Israel.
UN official: Yishai wrong, African migrant AIDS rate low
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Shas leader claims there is an epidemic of infectious disease among African infiltrators in Israel, UN dismisses claim.
Annan plan favored as Ban warns of Syrian civil war
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – US, China, France and UK call for pursuing Annan plan, but with differing enthusiasm for alternatives should it fail; UN Sec.-Gen. says another massacre could lead to civil war.
Peres calls for stop to racism and incitement
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – “Hatred of the stranger is alien to the foundations of Judaism,” president declares at swearing-in ceremony of two new Supreme Court justices.
Chosen Bites: Summer Tapas
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Let the cheese be the star of the show with this baked feta cheese in spicy tomato sauce.
2 new justices sworn in to Supreme Court
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Uri Shoham and Professor Daphna Barak-Erez replace outgoing justice Asher Grunis and Eliezer Rivlin.
So much to be proud of
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – In honor of TA Pride, a look back at the triumphs and tragedies that have shaped the LGBT community in Israel.
‘Foreigners crime rate lower than general public’
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Knesset research does not distinguish foreigners by country; adds there was a rise in foreigner crime rate in 2011-2012.
IDF returns 91 terrorist bodies to PA
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – PA to honor suicide bombers, terrorists by holding military funerals and a national rally in honor of “martyrs.”
Syrian honorary consul in California quits
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – “You get to a point where your silence or your inaction becomes ethically and morally unacceptable,” says Hazem Chehabi.
James ossuary collector sentenced to month in jail
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Tel Aviv antiquities collector fined NIS 30,000 for three minor charges of illegal trading in antiquities and handling goods suspected of being stolen.
Privatizing enforcement of smoking laws rejected
Jerusalem Post 31 May 2012 – Justice Ministry refuses to privatize enforcement, even though number of fines for illegal smoking are “ridiculously low.”
Cop gets 3 months probation for assaulting teen
Jerusalem Post 30 May 2012 – “This just gives the cops a license to abuse people,” says the father of a boy who they say was beaten by a Karmiel officer.
Maoz increasingly angers judges in murder trial
Jerusalem Post 30 May 2012 – Daniel Maoz, accused of murdering his parents, infuriates judges on 3rd day of testimony by attempts to circumvent questions.
‘Syria military intervention would engulf Israel’
Jerusalem Post 30 May 2012 – Iranian warns: “Ash rising from the flames would definitely envelop the Zionist regime,” ‘Tehran Times’ reports.
Montenegro Jews get organized, all 10 of them
Jerusalem Post 30 May 2012 – Singer Zappa once quipped every self-respecting country needs its own beer and airline. Now add Jewish community to that list.
Israeli, Asian fellows urge cleantech partnerships
Jerusalem Post 30 May 2012 – ‘What really drives the seed of innovation is the mentality of constantly being unsatisfied,’ says Chinese student at TAU.
Israeli minister inflames racial tensions with attack on ‘infiltrators’
The Guardian 31 May 2012 – Interior minister Eli Yishai uses interview to suggest many African migrants are criminals infected with HIV Israel’s interior minister has risked further inflaming public sentiment against African migrants by saying that the area of Tel Aviv…
Israeli journalist faces trial over receiving secret documents
The Guardian 31 May 2012 – Israel is to put a journalist on trial for receiving secret military documents from a former soldier. The country’s justice ministry said charges will soon be filed against Uri Blau – an investigative reporter for the…
Israel returns bodies of Palestinian militants
The Guardian 31 May 2012 – Humanitarian gesture intended to get peace process back on track, says spokesman for Binyamin Netanyahu Israel has transferred to Palestinian authorities the bodies of dozens of Palestinian militants, saying it hoped the move would help restart…
Syria Simmers Amid U.N. Security Council Deadlock
IPS The United States and its Western allies appear increasingly inclined to push for regime change in Syria, although the latest round of diplomatic talks at the U.N. Security Council Wednesday suggest that it remains a distant possibility.
Egyptians Protest Choice Between Right and Right
IPS Like the delayed after-effects of an earthquake below the ocean before the subsequent tsunami hits adjacent coastlines, Egyptian anger finally exploded this week after several days of stunned silence following the controversial results of Egypt’s first-round of presidential elections.
Israel Fans a Virtual Flame Against Iran
IPS A new super-weapon has entered the Mideast cyber arena. First detected on Monday by a Moscow-based security company, ‘Worm.Win32.Flame’ – just call it ‘Flame’ – might be “the most sophisticated cyber weapon yet unleashed” on Iran’s secret nuclear networks.
Israeli Activist Imprisoned For Trying to Become Palestinian
Uruknet May 31, 2012 – Andrew Pshenichnikov, 23, has been in an Israeli prison for one week for trying to become a Palestinian citizen and give up his Israeli citizenship. Two months ago Pshenichnikov moved to Dheisheh Refugee Camp in Bethlehem. The Israeli government was able to arrest him as Dheisheh is in Area A of the…
Saudi-Bahraini Gulf union opposed by Iran, GCC states
Uruknet May 31, 2012 – …On the eve of the 14 May meeting of the 14th Gulf Cooperation Council Advisory Summit in Riyadh, Saudi and Bahraini officials had said that the proposed union would be announced at the summit. However, this never happened, reflecting the concerns of GCC state members. Qatar, in particular, sees such a move…
Mavi Marmara indictments herald an end to Israeli impunity
Uruknet May 31, 2012 – As one of the activists on the Mavi Marmara, I was overjoyed at the news that Turkey had this month issued indictments against those responsible for Israel’s assault on unarmed humanitarian aid workers sailing in international waters for Gaza two years ago today. Nine were killed, and 189 injured at the hands…
Taliban statement Declaration of the Islamic Emirate regarding the schools burning and poisoning of the female studen
Uruknet May 31, 2012 – According to the media reports recently in Takhar province some female students of a school were poisoned. Earlier reports were given about Khost province and some other parts of the country. Some pro-colonial and anti-jihadi media which normally reports these incidents prior to anyone else, abruptly blamed the Islamic Emirate and did…
‘Outrage’ as Israel refuses to hospitalize hunger strikers
Uruknet May 31, 2012 – Rights groups on Thursday expressed outrage at Israeli authorities “disregard” of the immediate danger to the lives of two Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike. Mahmoud al-Sarsak has been on hunger strike for 74 days and Akram al-Rekhawi has refused food for 50 days. Physicians for Human Rights – Israel petitioned an Israeli…
012 (Warning: Graphic Videos)
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – 46 martyrs have been reported thus far today, among them 3 children and 2 Free Syrian Army soldiers. 14 martyrs were reported in Homs, 10 in Daraa (Tayba, Nawa, Inkhel), 12 in the Damascus Suburbs (Douma, Daraya, Thayabiya), 5 in Aleppo (Izaz and Atareb), 2 in Idlib and 2 martyrs in Kafr…
South Tel Aviv stories: I left Sudan due to war and I’m still in a war’
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – Abraham Alu, a 35-year-old refugee from what is now South Sudan, was on his way to the store last Wednesday night when an anti-African protest in south Tel Aviv turned violent. Jewish Israelis chased and beat African asylum seekers, broke the windows of a car full of African men, and smashed storefronts…
Power shortages spark political row in Iraq
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – As Iraq’s scorching summer months approach, worries about power shortages have come to the fore with the Electricity Ministry officials warning of protracted daily outages.In the meantime, pledges by the ministry that conditions will improve dramatically once major power stations currently under construction come on stream are falling on deaf ears.Several Iraqi…
Cleaning Up Obama’s “Dark Side”
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – Obama’s handlers, with the able assistance of the New York Times, paint a presidential portrait that “reconciles the old, imagined Obama with Dick Cheney’s dark side.’” The president routinely violates international law and subverts the U.S. Constitution but, we are told, he does so with a keen sense of moral obligation. His…
Open Letter from Khan Sheikhon Residents to UN Monitors
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – We, the residents of Khan Sheikhon, are outraged at what we found written in the latest UNSMIS report about the events that transpired in our town on May 15, 2011. We view the text as deeply insulting to the many people who have lost their lives on that horrible day. On May…
Obama uses Memorial Day speech to rehabilitate Vietnam War
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – President Barack Obama chose the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC as the site for a Memorial Day speech in which he sought to rehabilitate the Vietnam War.The speech was timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first time US forces were deployed in a major combat operation inside the country…
012 : A Video Roundup
Uruknet
012
Uruknet May 30, 2012. Chaos and violence continue, empire gets discussed, Marcy Winograd has an announcement, Talabani doesn’t want Nouri to face a vote of no confidence, Tareq al-Hashemi feels the continued drama surrounding him is about to wrap up… and more… Alsumaria reports Iraqi Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi states he will return to Iraq soon and…
Violence-Wracked Honduras
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – On June 28, 2009, a coordinated State Department-Pentagon project allied with Honduran military commanders and top opposition figures ousted President Manuel Zelaya. Industrialists, financial interests, large landowners, and transnational corporations supported the coup.A Porfirio Lobo fascist dictatorship replaced him. Washington backs, arms and funds it. All Honduran officers from captains on up…
Controversy over Jerusalem Museum of Tolerance’ featured in the Daily Beast’
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – The heated dispute over the building of a “Museum of Tolerance” by the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) on top of a historic Muslim cemetery shows no signs of letting up. As work on and around the site near Jerusalem’s Old City continues, an international coalition persists in their efforts to try and…
Israel: Case dropped against authors, endorsers of gentile-killing manual
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – Israel’s attorney general decided to drop the case against racist book “Torat Ha’Melech” – since its racism was couched in religious terms. The prosecution, backed by Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein, announced Monday that it is dropping the case against rabbis Yizhak Shapira, Yoseph Elizur, Dov Lior and Yizhak Ginzburg. The first two…
How extremism is normalized
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – …But that’s the point: once something is repeated enough by government officials, we become numb to its extremism. Even in the immediate wake of 9/11 – when national fear and hysteria were intense – things like the Patriot Act, military commissions, and indefinite detention were viewed as radical departures from American political…
The UN’s Cold Blooded Plan How to Starve in Somalia on 10 Cents a Day
Uruknet May 30, 2012 -The UN announced its budget for feeding the over one million Somali refugees under its care for the next year and have allocated less than 10 cents a day to do so. Anthony Lake, once nominated to head the CIA, now UNICEF supremo, held a press conference in April 2012 to declare a…
Israel Extends Monopoly over Oil/Gas Supply to West Bank and Gaza: PA Quiet
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – Two Israeli oil companies have signed 2 year contracts which will supply all of the gasfuel requirements of the West Bank and Gaza Strip thus extending Israel’s monopoly and strategic leverage over the Palestinian Authority and the lives of Palestinians. The Paz Oil Company Ltd has extended the Palestinian Authority gas supply…
Obama At Large: Where Are The Lawyers?
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – The rule of law is rapidly breaking down at the top levels of our government. As officers of the court, we have sworn to ‘support the Constitution,’ which clearly implies an affirmative commitment on our part. Take the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. The conservative American Bar Association sent…
Wanton Thievery and Demolitions in Hizma
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – Around 12:30 AM on Tuesday 29 May 2012 upwards more than of 60 Israeli army soldiers raided the village of Hizma. Included within the greater East Jerusalem municipality, the village lies on the opposite (West Bank) side of Israel’s Apartheid Wall. With jeeps blocking all entrances and exits, the entire village was…
Palestinian contractors demand UN exclude Israel firms from Gaza tender
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – “It is our patriotic obligation towards our people that we must reject any involvement by Israeli contracting companies in any development project in the occupied Gaza Strip,” said Osama Kahil, the Gaza-based head of the Palestinian Contractors Union, in response to reports that UNICEF has invited Israeli companies to bid for tenders…
Mother demands action to save Palestinian soccer player on hunger strike
Uruknet May 30, 2012 — The mother of an imprisoned Palestinian soccer player demanded Wednesday to know why officials aren’t urgently seeking a solution to her son’s extended hunger strike. Mahmoud al-Sarsak, a forward in Palestine’s national soccer team, has been on hunger strike for over 70 days in protest of his imprisonment in an Israeli jail…
The face of collateral damage
Uruknet May 30, 2012 – Around midnight on May 21, 2010, a girl named Fatima was killed when a succession of U.S.-made Hellfire missiles, each of them five-feet long and traveling at close to 1,000 miles per hour, smashed a compound of houses in a mountain village of Mohammed Khel in North Waziristan along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border….
012 (Warning: Graphic Videos)
Uruknet May 29, 2012 – The number of martyrs in Syria has reached 72, including 2 women, 9 children and 8 soldiers from the Free Syrian Army. 24 martyr in Homs, 15 martyrs are from Deir Ezzor, including 13 unidentified bodies that were disposed of by security forces this morning, 7 in Aleppo (Atareb, Mangh and Babkeh),…
Decades-old Egypt emergency ends: military
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Egypt’s decades-old state of emergency came to an end on Thursday as its last renewal expired, the ruling military said, vowing to continue to “protect” the nation.
For Obama and Romney, Syria is no-win situation
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Escalating violence in Syria has become the ultimate no-win political situation for President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney.
Tunisia PM warns Islamists over further violence
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Security forces will not hesitate to use lethal force to restore order, said Tunisia’s Interior Minister on Thursday, following a string of violent incidents around the country in recent weeks.
Yemen northern rebels ‘ready’ for dialogue
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Yemen’s Zaidi Shiite rebels have agreed to join a national dialogue aimed at easing the country out of a protracted political crisis, a commission in charge of the talks said on Thursday.
Syria armed group says holding Lebanon Shiites: Al-Jazeera
Daily Star 31 May 2012 A previously unknown armed group calling itself the “Syrian Revolutionaries — Aleppo Province” said that it is holding a group of Lebanese Shiite pilgrims who went missing last week.
Syria blames rebels for Houla massacre
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Syria blamed up to 800 rebel fighters for the massacre in central Syria last week that killed more than 100 people, nearly half of them children, in its most comprehensive explanation to date of the bloodshed.
Thousands remember victims of Israeli raid on Gaza flotilla
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Thousands of people rallied in Istanbul Thursday to remember the nine victims of a deadly Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla on this date two years ago.
Libya says it is ready to try Gaddafi loyalists
Daily Star 31 May 2012 The civilian trials of senior officials in Muammar Gaddafi’s former government will begin in early June with his former spy chief, Libya’s prosecutor general said on Thursday.
Kuwaiti tweeter jailed 6 months for insulting Shiites
Daily Star 31 May 2012 Kuwait’s court of appeals reduced a seven-year jail term of a Sunni tweeter to a six-month imprisonment for allegedly insulting the faith of the Shiite minority, his lawyer said.
Edwards acquitted on 1 count, mistrial on others
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – ….
Madonna kicks off world tour in Israel
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – ….
Yaakov Ayash appointed military attach? in Washington
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – IDF Chief Gantz announces Head of Operations Directorate to replace Major-General Shamni in coveted position abroad ….
Lecturer suspected of incitement won’t be indicted
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – State Prosecutor’s Office closes case against Dr. Eyal Nir who called to ‘break rightists’ necks’ on Facebook, for lack of evidence ….
US calls Syrian probe of Houla massacre a ‘lie’
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – ….
Clinton: There’s no substitute for direct talks
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – US secretary of state rejects Barak’s statements on possible unilateral move in West Bank ….
China says keeps faith in Annan peace plan for Syria
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – ….
US says Russia arms shipment to Syria ‘reprehensible’
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – ….
Woman detained after cursing Sara Netanyahu
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – Petah Tikva resident approaches prime minister’s wife at shopping mall and curses her ….
Former US presidents to honor Peres
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – Jimmy Carter, George W. Bush, Henry Kissinger among those invited to special White House dinner in which Obama will present President Peres with Medal of Freedom ….
Palestinians welcome terrorists’ bodies
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – Special ceremony held at Ramallah’s Mukataa after Israel transfers 79 terrorists’ bodies to PA in gesture to Abbas; 12 more bodies transferred to Gaza ….
Litzman: Infiltrators cost us NIS 50M a year
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – Deputy health minister claims African refugees receive treatment ‘at the expense of Israel’s weak population’ ….
Is IDF a hollow army?
YNet News, 31 May 2012 – Op-ed: Will Israel’s undertrained, ill prepared military be ready to face foes in day after Iran strike? ….
Palestinian Information Center
200 million dollars to plant fake Jewish graves around Al-Aqsa mosque
PIC – Media coordinator at AFEH, Mahmoud Abu Atta, confirmed that there is a project sponsored by the occupation government which aims to plant thousands of fake Jewish graves around Al-Aqsa mosque.
Occupation renews MPs’ administrative detention
PIC – Israeli occupation authority has renewed, on Wednesday, the administrative detention of the MP Abdel Rahman Zeidan for another six months one day before his due release.
Abu Zuhri: The occupation is trying to provide cover for the aggression on Gaza
PIC – Hamas spokesman , Sami Abu Zuhri, said that the Israeli occupation aims behind its reports about the growing military strength of the movement to cover any coming aggression on the Gaza strip.
El-Khoudary: Marmara anniversary should refocus attention on Gaza siege
PIC – Independent MP Jamal El-Khoudary said that the anniversary of the Turkish ship Marmara’s massacre has to pave the way for more intensive efforts to end the siege imposed on the Gaza strip.
Hamas mourns death of Lubada
PIC – Hamas has mourned the death of its official Zuhair Lubada who died Thursday morning in the hospital he was transferred to after his release from an Israeli jail a few days ago.
Health status of prisoner suffering from cancer seriously worsens
PIC – Tadamun society said the Israeli jailers transferred the cancer patient Amer Baher from his cell in Beersheba jail to the hospital of Ramla prison after serious deterioration of his health status.
IOF soldiers storm refugee camp, arrest student
PIC – Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed Fawar refugee camp at dawn Thursday and arrested 22-year-old student Sayyaf Abu Tuaima, eyewitnesses said.
Khareisheh: Any future gov’t should get constitutional approval
PIC – Second deputy speaker of the PLC Hasan Khareisheh said any government to be formed in the future would be illegal and unconstitutional if it did not receive parliamentary confidence.
Lubada dies one week after release from Israeli jail
PIC – Hamas leader in Nablus Zuhair Lubada, 50, was pronounced dead at dawn Thursday after one week of his release from Israeli jails for health reasons, sources concerned with prisoners’ affairs said.
Abbas Criticizes Israeli Determination to Change International References
WAFA –
PEX Report: Al-Quds Index Down Again
WAFA –
PLO Official Criticizes US Senate Bill on Refugees
WAFA –
Two-Day International Meeting on Palestine Opens at UNESCO
WAFA –
German President Arrives in Ramallah
WAFA –
American TV News Anchor Shares Experience with Palestinians
WAFA –
Released Prisoner Dies of Health Complications
WAFA –
Remains of Palestinians Killed in Action Arrive in Ramallah
WAFA –
Syria rebels say they’re preparing for war
LA Times 31 May 2012 – The opposition fighters have lost faith in Kofi Annan’s peace plan and are using the time to rearm for a bigger conflict when the cease-fire is declared dead. QUSAIR, Syria — Sitting on a tennis court at a summer villa in the Syrian countryside, 22…
Syrian War Likely if Russia Doesn’t Act, Clinton Says
New York Times 31 May 2012 – Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton pressed Russia and China to back decisive action against the Syrian president before the violence draws neighboring countries into the conflict.
News Analysis: For the White House, a Wary Wait as Syria Boils
New York Times 31 May 2012 – President Obama is loath to engage in new military actions, but with each passing incident, the scale of the crisis in Syria grows.
Israel Returns 91 Palestinian Bodies
New York Times 31 May 2012 – The remains included some perpetrators of deadly suicide bombings carried out against Israelis in the last decade, while the oldest of the remains had been held by Israel since 1975.
Top Israeli Weighs Imposed Borders for Palestinians
New York Times 31 May 2012 – Israel’s defense minister, Ehud Barak, on Wednesday became the most senior member of the government to suggest bypassing a stagnant peace process.
Facebook Bans Israeli Graphic Artist for Biting Political Cartoons
Tikun Olam – Tweet ‘A Problem of Self-Image,’ banned by Facebook Looks like the folks at Facebook have more to worry about than their plummeting stock price (off 28% since the IPO last week). In recent days, Facebook suspended the account of the Israeli graphic artist, Mysh , about whom…
Gaza’s unemployment rate reaches 31.5%
Gisha –
Knesset member and J14 advocate: Jail all human rights activists who support African migrant workers and send them to work camps
Mondoweiss – MK Yulia Shamalov-Berkovich speaking to Tel Aviv’s J14 social protest movement, 2011. This week the minister called to round up leftist who support African migrant rights and dump them into work camps. (Photo: Lahav Harkov/The Jerusalem Post) On Tuesday during a Knesset meeting a Kadima member…
AP investigates the ‘Made in Israel’ label
Mondoweiss – Following decisions from the South African government and Switzerland’s largest supermarket chain to distinguish between products made in the occupied territories from those west of the green line, the Associated Press reports on the “Made in Israel” label. From ” Made in Israel? Not a simple question “:…
Killed by Syrian government — but young filmmaker had focused on Israel
Mondoweiss – Last night Charlie Rose asked Fawaz Gerges about the new Arab public opinion and the Israel-Palestine conflict. He said: Israel and the United States really are making a major strategic mistake, to underestimate, that deep down– yes the focus [of the Arab spring is] on domestic…
The audacity of our ancestors
Mondoweiss – Rae Abileah Chutzpa. That’s the word that described all three ancestral change-makers whose stories were told at “Reclaiming Jewish Activism,” a panel discussion held at Congregation Sha’ar Zahav last Thursday, May 24th, that brought together three Jewish activists, including me, to speak about our ancestors who…
9th grade Palestinian boy arrested at 3:45 am, soldier leans close and whispers ‘F*ck your mother’ as they haul him off
Mondoweiss – link to silwanic.net link to www.gazagateway.org link to www.palestine-info.co.uk link towww.middleeastmonitor.org.uk link to electronicintifada.net link to www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk link towww.palestine-info.co.uk link to www.theyeshivaworld.com link to www.aljazeera.com link to www.maannews.net link to silwanic.net link to www.palestine-info.co.uk link to www.imemc.org link to www.imemc.org link to www.palestine-info.co.uk link…
Madonna’s Ticket Offer Rejected by Some Activists
The Foward Breaking News 31 May 2012 – Earlier Thursday, Madonna donated 580 tickets to her show in Tel Aviv to members of the Israeli and Palestinian peace camps, who are set to take part in a special tribunal on peace. Click here for the rest of the article…
Israeli Charities May Strike Over Funding
The Foward Breaking News 31 May 2012 – Nonprofit groups that feed the needy say they may decide to go on strike for a day or two if they don’t get up to $64 million in the upcoming budget. Click here for the rest of the article…
Minister Claims Africans Often Rape Israeli Women
The Foward Breaking News 31 May 2012 – In further remarks on migrant workers from Africa, Interior Minister Eli Yishai said Thursday that many Israeli women have been raped by migrant workers “but do not complain out of fear of being stigmatized as having contracted AIDS.” Click here for the rest of the article……
Israel Hands Over Bodies of 91 Palestinians
The Foward Breaking News 31 May 2012 – Israel turned over to Palestinian officials the bodies of 91 terrorists. Click here for the rest of the article…
Bloody Syria
The Forward Editorial 31 May 2012 – FORWARD EDITORIAL : The latest massacre in Syria demands we do more to end the slaughter, if only because the scenes of bloodshed so clearly echo massacres past. Click here for the rest of the article…
Memories From Israel Parade Founder
The Forward New 31 May 2012 – Ted Comet knew that his pro-Israel promenade up Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue would feel flat without tubas, so he turned to an unlikely source: Catholic school bands. Click here for the rest of the article…
Anatomy of a Parade
The Forward New 31 May 2012 – The Forward crunched the numbers to take you inside New York’s annual Celebrate Israel Parade. The marchers are mostly young people, Modern Orthodox and suburban. Click here for the rest of the article…
Clinton accuses Russia over Syria
BBC 31 May 2012 – Russian policy on Syria is going to contribute to a civil war, the US secretary of state says, as the UN warns of a looming “catastrophic” conflict there.
Egypt’s state of emergency ends
BBC 31 May 2012 – Egypt’s state of emergency, which gave extensive powers to the authorities to detain suspects, has expired after 31 years in force.
Israel returns Palestinian bodies
BBC 31 May 2012 – Israel hands over to the Palestinian Authority the remains of 91 Palestinians who died carrying out attacks against Israel.
Israel rejects Flame malware link
BBC 31 May 2012 – Israel dismisses the suggestion that it is behind the Flame cyber-attack which was uncovered this week.
Home Evictions in Sheikh Jarah
US Campaign to End the Occupation 31 May 2012 – Below is an excerpt from the third trip report of the Interfaith Peace-Builders (IFPB) delegation to Palestine/Israel. It was written by Marianne Torres. “They came for us at 5:00 in the morning when everybody was asleep. It was August 2, 2009 when the soldiers came after…
Tonight: Conference Call on U.S. Military Aid!
US Campaign to End the Occupation 31 May 2012 – Join us for a conference call tonight, Thursday, May 31, at 9pm EST to learn more about U.S. military aid to Israel, and to hear from inspiring activists across the country about the creative things they are doing- from ad campaigns, to campaigns in city councils,…
By supporting Israel, Hillary Clinton and Congress flout US human rights law
US Campaign to End the Occupation 31 May 2012 – Josh Ruebner is National Advocacy Director at the US Campaign. Guess which institution had the following to say about Israel’s human rights record in 2011: “Arab citizens of the country faced institutional and societal discrimination.” “Resources devoted to Arabic education were inferior to those devoted to…
Articles
Israeli settlers trying to turn south Tel Aviv into Hebron
Yael Ben Yefet, MyYnet, Alternative Information Center 5/30/2012
Radical right-wing activists are attempting to transform south Tel Aviv into Hebron. Don’t let them.
Last Thursday the well-known settlers Baruch Marzel, Ben Gvir and MK Michael Ben Ari organized a demonstration of hatred, conducting a parade from Tel Aviv’s weakened Hatikva neighbourhood to Mesila, the municipal centre that assists the city’s foreign community.
There is much to say about the resources which weren’t invested in south Tel Aviv for the benefit of its veteran residents, those suffering from municipal and racist discrimination, and the municipality’s need to brag about Mesila’s humane and important service to the foreign community, all the while ignoring the needs of veteran residents. It is possible to criticize the cynicism inherent in opening Mesila, while the municipality refuses to open a library in the neighbourhood of Kiryat Shalom. And all of this when directly across the street from the Mesila centre is an expensive municipal building, given free of a charge to a centre belonging to the kibbutz movement. It is possible to say much about the kibbutz member sitting in the 12th floor of the municipality building who steadfastly refuses to establish a high school in the weakened neighbourhoods of the city.
It is possible. However, what is interesting to me is the fact that last week’s hour of hatred, led by the three settlers, provided a glimpse into a reality that crosses borders, between the racist shouts and police orders that everyone with black skin must cross the road. We can see what is happening with the actual neighbours of the demonstration’s organisers, over there in the settlements.
The calls of violence from the demonstrators included threats of murder, wishes that women will be raped, curses and other fascist trash coming directly from the school of Hebron’s Beit Hadassah settlement. — See also: Source: MyYenet (Hebrew) more.. e-mail
Israel: It’s called fascism
Michael Warschawski, Alternative Information Center 5/31/2012
Our elders used to say that if something looks like a duck, quacks like a duck and walks like a duck – then it’s a duck. Similarly, it is possible to say that if a state acts like a fascist state, legislates fascist laws, its spokespersons speak using fascist terms and some of the population responds in a fascist manner – then such a state is fascist.
For numerous years I warned against use of the word “fascist” in defining the state of Israel. The Israeli regime is first and foremost a colonial regime, moved by colonial considerations of excluding the indigenous population and taking over their country and lands. The use of the term fascism served to soften the colonial character of the Zionist project and of the state of Israel.
There exists no doubt, of course, that the Zionist state did not lose its colonial essence but on the contrary, deepened even further the character traits it shares with states such as Rhodesia, Australia of the 18th and 19th century and the United States in its conquest of the west. However, Israel underwent processes which today justify also defining it as a fascist state. Seemingly, the grandchildren of the victims of German fascism and the project to destroy Jews who lived under its rule were supposed to know how to identify the fascist characteristics which developed as a terminal illness during the last decade.
The use of the word “cancer” in relation to a group of human beings, for example. Knesset Member Miri Regev (Likud) recently used this word to define the African refugees seeking asylum in Israel. Our ancestors were defined as “cancer” by the Nazis, and even today this word stands at the centre of the international fascist discourse when speaking about foreigners…and Jews. Another characteristic is the increase in pogroms: a mob incited by right-wing politicians, but also by the official discourse and the media, which violently attacks a minority group under the slogan “death to…!” So familiar to those who listened to stories of our grandparents! An additional example from the fascist modus operandi: the incitement of one disempowered group against another. more.. e-mail
By supporting Israel, Hillary Clinton and Congress flout US human rights law
Josh Ruebner, Electronic Intifada 5/29/2012
Washington, DC – US-Israel relations are growing even rosier despite Israel’s atrocious human rights record.
Guess which institution had the following to say about Israel’s human rights record in 2011:
* “Arab citizens of the country faced institutional and societal discrimination.”
* “Resources devoted to Arabic education were inferior to those devoted to Hebrew education in the public education system.”
* “Human rights organizations reported that ‘physical interrogation methods’ permitted by Israeli law and used by Israeli security personnel could amount in practice to torture.”
* “In the West Bank and East Jerusalem, the Israeli Civil Administration, part of Israel’s Ministry of Defense, continued to demolish homes, cisterns, and other buildings and property constructed by Palestinians in areas under Israeli civil control on the basis that these buildings lacked Israeli planning licenses. Compensation was generally not offered in these cases.”….
….If you were the typical member of Congress who believes that Israel is a shining beacon of light to humanity and the greatest thing since sliced bread, then you would probably answer one of the following: some anti-Semitic agency of the United Nations, an obviously biased Palestinian organization, or one of those self-hating Israeli organizations.
But you would be wrong.
These quotations come from the US State Department’s Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011, released on 24 May. — See also: Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011 more.. e-mail
Taboo of truth-telling about Palestine in US classrooms tackled by new book
Electronic Intifada: 31 May 2012 – Steven Salaita 31 May 2012 The question of how to teach Palestine, and anti-Zionism’s career-killing consequences, is the focus of a new book.more
Mavi Marmara indictments herald an end to Israeli impunity
Electronic Intifada: 31 May 2012 – Sarah Colborne United Kingdom 31 May 2012 Turkey has indicted four Israeli commanders for their role in the killing of nine humanitarians aboard the Mavi Marmara aid ship two years ago.more
Israel blocks mother from visiting her own daughters
Electronic Intifada: 31 May 2012 – Mya Guarnieri Tel Aviv 31 May 2012 Hundreds of thousands of families — from Palestinians to Southeast Asian migrant workers to African refugees — are being fractured by Israel’s racist laws which seek to limit the number of non-Jews in the country.more
Nuclear Irony is Lost on West
Palestine Chronicle: 31 May 2012 – By Jamal Kanj It is ironic that Western nations seeking to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions are the same countries that sold nuclear technology to it in the first place. Iran worked with the US and Western nations since the 1950s to develop its knowledge in nuclear energy. In 1975, German conglomerates Kraftwerk Union and Siemens started the construction on the now infamous Bushehr Nuclear Plant. After completing more than 50 per cent of work and following the Iranian revolution, the Germans abandoned the project in an apparent dispute over payments with the new government. In the mid-1990s, employing the same German-pressurized water reactor technology, Iran contracted Russia to complete the work. The nuclear facility eventually became operational almost 30 years later to a fanfare of international condemnation and Israeli protestation. Western counties, especially nuclear powers, have little to fear from Iran – even if it ever becomes a nuclear power….more
More material available from Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel – www.vtjp.org
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