6 October 2012 — VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Families Of Marmara Victims File Lawsuit Against Israel
IMEMC – The Turkish Hurriyet Daily reported that 33 family members of Turkish citizens who were shot and killed by the Israeli army when Israel attacked the Mavi Marmara solidarity ship that was heading to Gaza in 2010, filed on October 5 a lawsuit against Israel demanding compensation. …
Activists: 15-year-old injured by Israel gunfire
10/6/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli forces fired a rubber-coated bullet at protesters Friday in the occupied West Bank, injuring a 15 year old boy, activists in the Nabi Saleh village said. Soldiers fired so-called skunk water, rubber bullets, and high-velocity tear gas canisters at demonstrators protesting the loss of access to their land due to….
Settlers chop down 100 olive trees in village near Bethlehem
10/6/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli settlers chopped down over 100 olive trees in a Palestinian village near the West Bank city of Bethlehem, a Ma’an correspondent said Saturday. [END]
Settlers cut down olive trees, vines near Bethlehem
10/6/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli settlers on Friday destroyed 100 newly-planted olive saplings and at least 60 vine trees on private Palestinian land in Al-Khader village near Bethlehem. The coordinator of the local anti-wall committee, Ahmad Salah, said he noticed the vandalism while he was on a regular tour monitoring the town’s fields….
Israeli soldiers prevent farmers from accessing land
10/6/2012 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli soldiers prevented farmers from tending their land in Hebron on Saturday, medics said. Soldiers stopped over 50 farmers from accessing their olive trees on land near Adora settlement and fired tear gas to disperse them, Red Crescent official Abdul Haleem al-Jaafreh told Ma’an. The farmers were treated at….
Gaza, Israel officials meet at Erez crossing
10/6/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — A meeting was held recently at Erez crossing between Palestinian officials from the Hamas-run government and Israeli officials, Ma’an has learned. Khalil Faraj, an official in the ministry of civil affairs in Gaza, met with the head of the economics branch at the Gaza District Coordination and Liaison….
Youth stabbed to death in Tulkarem town
10/6/2012 – TULKAREM (Ma’an) — A 24-year-old Palestinian man was stabbed to death in the center of a northern West Bank town on Saturday, medical officials said. Muhannad Sharif al-Makhoul was stabbed four times by an unidentified assailant on the main street of Attil, neat Tulkarem, medics told Ma’an. His body was taken….
Hamas’ al-Hayyah says UN bid ‘a distraction’
10/6/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Senior Hamas leader Khalil Al-Hayyah said Friday that President Abbas’ bid for recognition at the UN was a bad idea. Addressing a mosque in the central Gaza refugee camp Al-Bureij, al-Hayyah said Abbas’ initiative was mainly to divert attention from the Palestinian Authority’s failure to strike….
Israel says shot down drone over Negev
10/6/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Israeli military said its air force shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle flying close to the West Bank on Saturday morning. The drone entered Israeli airspace from the area of the southern Mediterranean sea, near the Gaza Strip, before being detected by the army’s alert system, an Israeli….
Rafah crossing to operate 24 hours a day for Hajj pilgrims
10/6/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt will be open 24 hours a day from Oct. 14 to cater for Muslims making the Hajj pilgrimage, a Hamas official said Saturday. Crossings director Maher Abu Sabha told Ma’an that the crossing will be open around the clock for six….
Iran denies offering new plan on nuclear impasse
10/6/2012 – DUBAI (Reuters) — Iran denied on Saturday a US media report that it had offered a “nine-step plan” aimed at solving its stand-off with the West over its disputed nuclear program. The New York Times reported on Thursday that Iran had proposed a plan to European officials that required the West to lift harsh oil and….
Mashaal meets Egyptian officials for talks
10/6/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Hamas chief-in-exile Khalid Mashaal met with Egyptian officials on Saturday in Cairo, a Ma’an correspondent said. The Hamas chief, who lives in exile in Qatar, met with intelligence minister Raafat Shahata to talk about smuggling tunnels, Israel’s blockade and the Rafah crossing. Egypt has a vital….
Security services in Gaza hold drills
10/6/2012 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The ministry of interior in the Hamas-run government in the Gaza Strip conducted a field drill for all the security services including police and national security on Saturday. A ministry statement said the maneuver was part of “normal drill” for all the ministry’s security services and in line….
Campaigning begins for West Bank elections
10/6/2012 – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Campaigning for upcoming local elections in the West Bank started on Saturday, two weeks ahead of the poll date. The Oct. 20 elections will be contested in only 94 of the West Bank’s 353 electoral districts, according to information released by the Central Elections Commission. Commission director Hanna Nasser….
Palestinian water authority: West Bank prices will not increase
10/6/2012 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Palestinian Water Authority will not increase water prices in the West Bank, even if Israel decides on a price hike, an official said Saturday. Shaddad al-Attili, director of the authority, told Ma’an that they currently buy water from Israel for 2. 6 shekels ($0. 67) per cubic meter….
Israeli leaders confront political rift as election looms
10/6/2012 – JERUSALEM (Reuters) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned his defense minister, Ehud Barak, on Saturday to discuss allegations he had undermined the premier during recent trips to the United States, raising further speculation of an early election. The rift between Netanyahu and Barak, once close allies who have largely presented a united front when it….
Libya PM-elect withdraws govt list after discontent
10/6/2012 – TRIPOLI (Reuters) — Libya‘s prime minister-elect said on Thursday he had withdrawn his proposed government list, just a day after presenting it to the national congress for approval, after protesters stormed the assembly and politicians voiced discontent over his nominations. Speaking on Libyan television, Mustafa Abushagur said he was ready to change some of….
Jordan Islamists stage largest pro-reform protest
10/6/2012 – AMMAN (Reuters) — Thousands of Jordanian Islamist supporters marched on Friday in the largest demonstration since Arab Spring-inspired protests erupted last year, calling on King Abdullah to accelerate democratic reforms. Protestors from across the country flocked to the main street leading to the Husseini mosque in downtown Amman after Friday prayers and chanted: “Listen Abdullah, our….
Washington rejected US embassy request for plane in Libya
10/6/2012 – By Tabassum Zakaria and Susan CornwellWASHINGTON (Reuters) — State Department officials in May denied a request from the US Embassy in Tripoli to allow a security team to continue using an official US DC-3 aircraft, suggesting they could charter a plane instead, an unclassified email obtained by Reuters shows. The email dated May 3, carrying….
Official: Nigeria blast kills woman, wounds 5 children
10/6/2012 – LAGOS (Reuters) — An explosion near a state TV studio in eastern Nigeria’s Taraba state killed a woman and wounded five children overnight, the emergency services said Saturday. It was the second blast in the remote town of Jalingo, in Nigeria’s volatile ethnically and religiously mixed Middle Belt, in two days. A….
Tehran’s Grand Bazaar reopens after currency protests
10/6/2012 – By Yeganeh Torbati and Zahra HosseinianDUBAI (Reuters) — Tehran’s Grand Bazaar reopened under close police supervision on Saturday, traders said, days after clashes between riot police and crowds protesting against the collapse of the Iranian currency shut down the market. The resumption of trade suggested authorities had succeeded at least temporarily in containing public….
Iranian relief workers in Libya freed
10/6/2012 – BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) — Seven Iranian relief workers who had been taken hostage by an armed group in July in the Libyan city of Benghazi were freed on Saturday, a Libyan security source and the Libyan Red Crescent Association said. The seven Iranian men arrived in Benghazi in late July as guests of the Libyan Red….
Israel downs unidentified drone
AlJazeera 6 Oct 2012 – Spokeswoman for the military says Israeli systems on ground alerted the air force to the drone as it flew over Gaza.
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
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Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Alternative Information Center
PHOTOS: Nidal Center open after 3 year closure by Israel
Alternative Information Center – Jerusalem’s Nidal Center for Community Development, a Palestinian NGO shut down by the Israeli authorities in July 2009, is set to reopen as the Israeli-issued closure order expired on 12 September and was not renewed. Room…
Al Qaeda may be linked to attack on consulate
The National 6 Oct 2012 – There is “some connection” between the Islamist militant group and the two Tunisians detained in Turkey on Wednesday night, the United States defence secretary Leon Panetta said.
Fire victims pledge to act together
The National 6 Oct 2012 – Former tenants of the fire-gutted Al Tayyer tower meet in Al Nahda park to discuss their next move in their battle for compensation from the building’s owner.
US activists join drone protest in Pakistan
The National 6 Oct 2012 – Led by Imran Khan, a former Pakistan cricket star turned politician, the rally¿s jubilant supporters chanted “unacceptable, unacceptable, drone attacks unacceptable”.
Smoking ban ‘should apply to all’
The National 6 Oct 2012 – Dozens of shopping mall cafes are flouting the smoking ban despite threats of fines that can reach Dh100,000 for repeat offenders.
Syria mourns man who might have been
The National 6 Oct 2012 – The murder of Meshaal Tammo a year ago today robbed Syrian rebels of their only genuine potential statesman and leader.
Stars old and new are camp champions
The National 6 Oct 2012 – A nervous rookie and a confident veteran are crowned winners at the annual Western Union Camp Ka Champ (Champ of the Camp) singing contest.
Victim of rare virus dies in London hospital
The National 6 Oct 2012 – A passenger who flew from Dubai to Glasgow while battling a rare, infectious disease died yesterday in a London hospital.
Life-saving action by fire heroes
The National 6 Oct 2012 – The bravery of two men averts disaster after a fire ripped through the upper portions of a 13-storey building in the Tecom area.
Wake-up call for Obaid was night in jail
The National 6 Oct 2012 – Counsellors say they are treating alcohol addiction in almost twice as many 20 to 30 year olds as they did five years ago. As Obaid’s story reveals, alcohol addiction has a devastating effect on every aspect of a young person’s life, Colin Simpson reports
Reed beds can weed out the waste to return clean water
The National 6 Oct 2012 – Imagine a field of tall, green reeds, rustling lightly in the wind. Dragonflies flitbetween the stalks, attracting migratory birds to rest, eat and rehydrate. Now imagine if that beautiful scene were also a water-treatment facility. It could be.
Israeli attack on Iran this fall is no longer in the cards
Ha’aretz – 6 Oct 2012
Mystery of Mandatory Palestine-era belt solved
Ha’aretz – 6 Oct 2012
A new Kiryat Shmona project spotlights Israel’s old-timers
Ha’aretz – 6 Oct 2012
Israel’s ‘Let the Animals Live’ clings to lifelife
Ha’aretz – 6 Oct 2012
Netanyahu meets with Barak over ‘uncoordinated’ U.S. meetings
Ha’aretz – 6 Oct 2012
IDF shoots down drone that penetrated Israeli airspace
Ha’aretz – 6 Oct 2012
Prominent leader of Ramle’s Muslim community found dead in city mosque
Ha’aretz – 5 Oct 2012
At 1973 war ceremony, Morsi’s focus stays domestic
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Egyptian president says he fell short of his goals in first 100 days, seeks to assuage critics at war anniversary.
Court upholds Gaza to W. Bank exchange student ban
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – High Court maintains policy prohibiting five Gazan women’s rights activists from studying at Bir Zeit University north of Ramallah.
Ramle mourns loss of murdered Muslim leader
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Head of local “Waqf” Muhammed Taji, 80, found with stab wounds in his upper body; police deploy special YASSAM patrol officers.
Health Scan: TAU homing device attracts cancer
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Receptors that draw the cancerous cells to the brain as potential target for new treatments.
New Worlds: A better DNA mapping technique
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – An advanced automated system for mapping DNA that is used to uncover important principles on regulatory elements function.
Sipping from the fountain of youth
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Israeli physician, gerontologist and futurist Dr. Yaakov Ben-Shaul has written a new book on promoting longevity.
The red line should go from Tehran to Ramallah
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – In his UN address, Netanyahu chose not to acknowledge the connection between the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the effectiveness of an anti-Iran coalition.
The rial’s fall
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – This is not to say that sanctions should be abandoned. If anything, they should be tightened. Yet at the same time we must not rely on them to deliver the ultimate goods.
Think About It: The Knesset’s winter session
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – The Knesset session that will open right after Succot will undoubtedly spend most of its time in the process of dissolving itself.
Germany should return to the deutsche mark
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – If the German politicians really have the best interests of their citizens at heart they should turn off the euro spigot and let their people enjoy the benefits of a strong currency that rightfully comes with a strong economy.
A look at Israeli culture and social networks
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – An excerpt from the author’s new book, ‘What’s Next For Startup Nation?’ finds the connections between ‘haval al hazman’, ‘few against many’ and ‘chutzpa’.
Abbas: Israel blackmailing PA on Palestinian prisoner issue
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – PA president accuses Israel of exploiting the suffering of Palestinian prisoners jailed before 1993 Oslo Accords; Abbas responds to Friday Temple Mount riots, saying Israel launched “fierce assault” on al-Aksa Mosque.
Netanyahu, Barak meet amid public bickering
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Sources close to PM say he’s expected to ask defense minister for clarifications on meetings with US officials.
Tehran warns Syrian rebels to free captive Iranians
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Iran reacts to Syrian rebels’ ultimatum that they will execute 48 hostages if Iran, Assad don’t comply with their demands.
Labor seeks defense figures to boost Knesset list
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Polls show Labor nearly tripling in size after election; Yacimovich in talks with high-profile defense experts, social protest leaders.
Long-lost Jews returning to the fold in Italy
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – The San Nicandro Jews observed their own brand of homemade Judaism for years, even during fascist rule and World War II.
Iran denies offering new plan on nuclear impasse
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Tehran’s chief nuclear negotiator: ‘New York Times’ report is baseless, no negotiations taking place outside of P5+1 framework.
IAF shoots down UAV in northern Negev
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – UAV enters Israel’s airspace from Mediterranean, shot down by F-16s; origin of craft unknown, IDF believes sent to gather intel.
WSJ: Unrest in Tehran altering Israel’s stance
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – ‘Wall Street Journal’ says officials are reconsidering attack against Iran’s nuclear targets in face of effective sanctions.
French police kill 1 in raid linked to market attack
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Strasbourg police shot dead a suspect as part of investigation into grenade attack on Jewish market in Sarcelles last month.
‘Families of Marmara flotilla victims sue Israel’
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Turkish daily reports 33 relatives of 9 Turkish activists killed in 2010 IDF raid file for $5 mil. compensation lawsuit against Israel.
Turkey returns fire on Syria after Erdogan warning
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Turkey fires across border after bomb lands in field; follows Erdogan’s warning that testing Turkey would be a “fatal mistake.”
West Bank barrier could damage Roman Aqueduct
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – Israel intends to construct barrier through the village of Battir, which some fear could end ancient farming traditions.
‘Controversial anti-Islam ads set for Washington DC’
Jerusalem Post 6 Oct 2012 – ‘Washington Post’ reports inflammatory ad equating jihad with savagery to be posted in 4 DC subways beginning Monday.
Security and Defense: Fighting with faith
Jerusalem Post 4 Oct 2012 – Lt.-Col. Amichai Segal wasn’t thrilled when he received charge of the Kfir Brigade’s haredi battalion. Now he wouldn’t have things any other way.
As cool as they come
Jerusalem Post 4 Oct 2012 – Coolooloosh, the five-piece groove-based band from Jerusalem, has been making a name for itself here and abroad
Israeli air force shoots down drone over south of country
The Guardian 6 Oct 2012 – Reports suggest unmanned aircraft was for intelligence gathering and did not come from Gaza Strip The Israeli air force has shot down a drone after it entered the south of the country, the military has confirmed….
Israel’s Maariv ‘on verge of closure’
The Guardian 6 Oct 2012 – One of Israel’s leading newspapers, Maariv, is on the verge of closing, reports the New York Times. It is said to have lost its fierce contest with the country’s largest seller, Yediot Aharonot. Another title, Haaretz…
More Refugees Head to University Fall Semester Brings New Hope for Lebanon’s Palestinians
Uruknet
Video: Israeli forces smash Palestinian child’s head to ground near Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa
Uruknet
US drone war in Pakistan prompts fear and anger
Uruknet
Israeli police shut down, attempt to raid Palestinian school in East Jerusalem
Uruknet
Testimony: Israeli activist blindfolded, mugged, beaten by settlers
Uruknet
Hebrew University lecturer calls for expelling Palestinians as alien hostages in war against Muslims
Uruknet
Email Shows State Department Rejecting Request of Security Team at US Embassy in Libya
Uruknet
In the U.S. Election, No Time for Guantánamo, But Torture Rears Its Ugly Head
Uruknet
On the Killing of 8 Afghan Women
Uruknet
Former U.S. Defense Secretary Warns Israel Attack on Iran Would Be ‘Catastrophic’
Uruknet
Panetta: Syria clash with Turkey may escalate
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 The continued exchange of artillery fire between Syria and Turkey raises additional concerns that the conflict may escalate and spread to neighboring countries, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says.
Iran’s secret service launches website
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Iran’s Intelligence Ministry has launched a website for the first time in a move widely interpreted as an attempt to soften its image and coax Iranians into helping provide the country’s spies with information.
Obama still more liked than Romney despite poor debate: poll
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Mitt Romney’s strong debate performance did little to convince more voters he understands them or is a “good person” even though he has narrowed President Barack Obama’s overall poll lead, according to a Reuters/Ipsos survey.
Brahimi mission meets Syria armed opposition
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Mokhtar Lamani, the head of UN-Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi’s office in Syria, meets members of the armed opposition, a UN official says.
Syrian defense minister: Rebellion will be crushed
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Syria’s defense minister says the rebellion against President Bashar Assad’s regime will be crushed.
Tehran’s Grand Bazaar reopens, currency trade still frozen
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Tehran’s Grand Bazaar reopens under close police supervision, traders say, days after it was shut by clashes between riot police and protesters blaming the government for the collapse of the Iranian currency.
Israel shoots down unidentified drone
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 The Israeli air force shoots down an unarmed and unidentified drone after it enters the country’s airspace from the Mediterranean Sea, an army spokesman reports.
Syria army pounds Homs, rebels seize border village
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Syrian troops shell areas of Homs city and the Houla region where they clashed with rebels, as activists say rebels seized a village near the Turkish border.
Yemen foils car bomb attack on air base used by US troops
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 The Yemeni army on Saturday foiled a car bomb attack on the Anad air base used by US soldiers in the southern province of Lahj, a military official told AFP.
Egypt hardline Islamist party heals rift, for now
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Spokesmen for a party representing Egypt’s ultraconservative Islamists say a leadership dispute that threatened to break up the group, the country’s second-largest political bloc, has been resolved.
Two terror suspects extradited from Britain to appear in US court
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Two terror suspects extradited from Britain were on Saturday to appear in a US court in New Haven, Connecticut, officials said.
Analysis report of Samaha-Shaaban phone call referred to Lebanon judge: source
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 An analysis report of a phone conversation between an aide to President Assad and former Lebanese MP Samaha has been referred to Lebanon’s Military Investigative judge, a judicial source says.
Iran imposes currency cap to combat rial’s plunge
Daily Star 6 Oct 2012 Iran on Saturday sought to reverse a collapse of its currency by imposing a fixed dollar rate, days after protests erupted over the rial’s plunge, according to money changers who were refusing to comply.
Israel checking: Was drone headed to Dimona?
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – After IDF collects remnants of unmanned aircraft shot down over southern forest, security establishment examining possibility it was launched by Hezbollah to photograph Israeli reactor; army fears drones will be used to hit strategic sites ….
Lebanese general: Downed drone was American
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – ….
Downed drone: Iran testing Israel’s capabilities
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – Unmanned aircraft shot down by F-16 jets in south Israel was apparently launched from Lebanon by Hezbollah, or perhaps even by the Iranians themselves; IDF looking into possibility aircraft was supposed to photograph Dimona reactor ….
Ship sails for Gaza from Naples to challenge Israeli blockade
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – Spokeswoman says Swedish vessel ‘Estelle,’ carrying 17 pro-Palestinian activists and humanitarian goods, was chosen to show that campaign is ‘not violent’ ….
Panetta: More Iran sanctions if nuke talks don’t resume
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – ….
Jordan contacts ex-Syrian PM who defected
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – ….
Syria army pounds Homs, rebels seize border village
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – ….
Bolton players claim racist abuse by Millwall fans
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – ….
Aides: PM to reprimand Barak over US meetings
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – After accusing defense minister of stoking feud with Obama, Netanyahu summons Barak to reprimand him over ‘uncoordinated meeting’ with Rahm Emanuel. Associate: No one scolds the defense minister ….
Eilat hotel worker: We knew Hershkovitz was coming for Armando
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – Friend of American who was shot dead by police after killing Eilat hotel employee says, ‘We didn’t think h would take dispute this far’ ….
Judge: DC transit system must allow anti-jihad ads
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – Lawyer for American Freedom Defense Initiative says ads equating Muslims with savages can be posted under First Amendment ….
IAF shoots down suspicious aircraft in northern Negev
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – Unmanned, unidentified aircraft infiltrates Israeli airspace Saturday morning; IAF fighter jets intercept aircraft shortly thereafter; IDF: Aircraft did not depart from Gaza or carry explosives ….
Farewell Milan, hello Raanana
YNet News, 6 Oct 2012 – Op-ed: Woman who made aliyah with her family after 27 years in Italy finally feels at home ….
Palestinian Information Center
Salah warns of the systematic targeting of the Aqsa
PIC – Sheikh Raed Salah has charged that the systematic Israeli attacks on the holy Aqsa mosque in occupied Jerusalem were not sporadic incidents.
APU: Aqsa mosque a red line
PIC – Ali Al-Dikbasi, the speaker of the Arab parliamentary union, has warned the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) against tampering with the holy Aqsa mosque.
IOA blocks visit by medical team to hunger strikers
PIC – The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) has blocked a visit by a committee of specialized foreign doctors to three Palestinian detainees who have been on hunger strike for long periods.
Mishaal discusses alternatives to Rafah tunnels with Egyptian officials
PIC – Political bureau chairman of Hamas Khaled Mishaal discussed with Egyptian officials alternatives to the closing of Rafah tunnels that supply besieged Gaza Strip with vital supplies.
Amman holds festival in support of Aqsa Mosque
PIC – Thousands of Jordanians attended the festival that was organized on Friday evening by the Islamic Movement in support of the Aqsa Mosque in Nazzal neighborhood of Amman.
Jewish settlers chop off 120 Palestinian trees
PIC – Jewish settlers damaged and chopped off around 120 olive trees and grapevines in Al-Khader village, south of Bethlehem, on Friday, local sources said.
Anti-wall and settlement marches continue in the West Bank
PIC – Dozens of citizens and international activists suffered breathing problems after Israeli occupation forces fired tear gas at anti-settlement and apartheid wall marches in the West Bank on Friday.
Hamas slams US treasury for sanctioning two Palestinian charities
PIC – Hamas denounced the US treasury department for labeling Al-Quds international foundation and the welfare association for Palestinian and Lebanese families – al-Waqifya as terrorist organizations.
Israeli police clash with Jerusalemites
PIC – Israeli occupation police closed Ras Al-Amud roundabout in occupied Jerusalem on Friday night and provoked Jerusalemites into clashing with them.
Hamas warns of Israel’s ongoing violations against Aqsa Mosque
PIC – The Hamas Movement warned on Saturday against Israel’s persistence in its violations against the Aqsa Mosque and held it responsible for the consequences of its troops’ break-ins at the holy place.
Local Elections to be Held in only 94 Electoral Districts
WAFA – 6 Oct 2012
Abbas Calls on Islamic Cooperation to Protect Al-Aqsa
WAFA – 6 Oct 2012
Al-Tur Students in Jerusalem Go on Strike
WAFA – 6 Oct 2012
Israeli Settlers Attack Farmers in West Bank
WAFA – 6 Oct 2012
EU, Belgium contribute to Impoverished Palestinian Families
WAFA – 6 Oct 2012
Newspapers Review: Clashes at Al-Aqsa Dominate Dailies
WAFA – 6 Oct 2012
PEX Report: Al-Quds Index Up
WAFA – 4 Oct 2012
Kurdish autonomy in Syria troubling for rebels, Turkey
LA Times 5 Oct 2012 – With the Syrian rebellion has come a rise in Kurdish autonomy. The rebels have tense relations with the Kurds, and Turkey fears northern Syria may become a haven for the Kurdish militia the PKK. AFRIN, Syria —This tranquil town in northwest Syria is a haven…
Thousands march for reform in Jordan
LA Times 5 Oct 2012 – Led by the Muslim Brotherhood, demonstrators hold the country’s largest rally since the region’s Arab Spring protests began. While the king remains popular, changes to parliament are sought. AMMAN, Jordan — Thousands of demonstrators seeking democratic reforms and more economic opportunities marched through the Jordanian…
U.S. investigators leave consulate in Libya
LA Times 5 Oct 2012 – A team searches the wreckage for evidence and moves on without interviewing witnesses of the attack that killed the ambassador and 3 others, guards say. It was unclear if the team would return. BENGHAZI, Libya — The investigation of the deadly attack on the U.S….
Drone Downed by Israeli Jets
New York Times 6 Oct 2012 – The drone, which crossed into Israeli airspace on Saturday from the Mediterranean Sea,was shot down over the southern part of the country, a military spokeswoman said.
Iran Denies Plan to End Nuclear Standoff
New York Times 6 Oct 2012 – Tehran denied a report in The New York Times that it had offered a “nine-step plan” aimed at resolving its nuclear standoff with the West.
Turkey Fires on Syria After Mortar Lands on Its Side of Border
New York Times 6 Oct 2012 – A large armored contingent of Syria’s elite Republican Guard stormed a western Damascus suburb near the presidential palace on Friday, residents and antigovernment activists said.
Syrian Rebels Say West Has Abandoned Them
New York Times 6 Oct 2012 – Leaders of Syria’s rebellion say that by sitting on the sidelines, the West risks losing a potential ally in the Middle East if President Bashar al-Assad’s government falls.
World Briefing | Europe: Germany: Man Charged as Spy for Syria
New York Times 6 Oct 2012 – A man with dual German-Lebanese citizenship has been charged with spying for the Syrian intelligence service from 2007 until his arrest in February, the federal prosecutor’s office said Friday.
Syrian Government Forces Bombard Homs
New York Times 6 Oct 2012 – A large armored contingent of Syria’s elite Republican Guard stormed a western Damascus suburb near the presidential palace on Friday, residents and antigovernment activists said.
New Scientific Study Predicts 85,000 Casualties, “Devastating Consequences” for Iran Attack
Tikun Olam – The University of Utah’s Hinckley School of Politics and Omid for Iran conducted an extensive year-long study of the impacts of a western military attack on Iran. Led by Iranian-American environmental engineer Khosrow Semnani , a panel of nuclear engineers, scientists and senior U.S. military officers found:…
Clinton Blames Iranian Victim for Suffering Caused by Sanctions
Tikun Olam – Iran’s currency lost 40% of its value in past week and Iranians flee to money changers to protect their nest egg. (Ali Mohammadi/Bloomberg) Now that the Iranian economy is reeling and real people are feeling the pain from strangling sanctions imposed by the west, the perpetrators…
Jerusalem municipality to start ‘judaizing’ street names in East Jerusalem
Mondoweiss – link to www.palestine-info.co.uk link to www.slate.com link to english.pnn.ps link to electronicintifada.net link tomondoweiss.net link to silwanic.net link to english.pnn.ps link to silwanic.net link to www.jpost.com link to www.imemc.org link towww.ochaopt.org link to www.imemc.org link to palestinesolidarityproject.org link to www.jpost.com link to www.haaretz.com link…
Vicious Friday attacks on Al Aqsa
Mondoweiss – Friday’s violence against Al-Aqsa ( Israeli police storm al-Aqsa compound / Israelis celebrating Sukkot beat Palestinians worshipers also see video here ) is the result of a months long public campaign by Israeli forces against both the mosque and Palestinians in East Jerusalem. Electronic Intifada documented…
Israeli air force shoots down unidentified drone over Negev
Mondoweiss – Israeli military attempting to locate and recover downed drone, Southern Hebron Hills, October 6. Photo by Eliyahu Hershkovitz Haaretz : The Israeli Air Force shot down an unidentified aerial vehicle that penetrated Israel’s airspace on Saturday. IDF forces shot down the drone over the Negev, south of…
Sold-out Russell Tribunal on Palestine kicks off in New York
Mondoweiss – Watch live streaming video from fstv2 at livestream.com The Russell Tribunal on Palestine’s New York session kicked off this morning at Cooper Union (watch the live stream above). Hundreds of people have arrived to hear an expert cast of scholars on Israel’s violations of international law….
Israeli Attack on Iran This Fall Is No Longer in the Cards
The Foward Breaking News 6 Oct 2012 – The wave of demonstrations in Tehran over the last few days, sparked by the plummeting value of the Iranian rial and the consequent rise in the price of staple products, has significantly changed the nature of the international discourse on Iran. The harsh international sanctions that…
Netanyahu Reprimands Barak Over Meetings with U.S. Officials
The Foward Breaking News 6 Oct 2012 – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly called Defense Minister Ehud Barak for a meeting to reprimand him over recent meetings with U.S. officials. Click here for the rest of the article…
Mavi Marmara Victims’ Families File Lawsuit
The Foward Breaking News 6 Oct 2012 – Relatives of nine Turkish citizens killed in a raid by Israeli commandos on an activist ship attempting to break the naval blockade of Gaza have filed a lawsuit against Israel, according to Turkish media. Click here for the rest of the article…
IDF Shoots Down Drone in Israeli Airspace
The Foward Breaking News 6 Oct 2012 – The Israeli Air Force shot down an unidentified aerial vehicle that penetrated Israel’s airspace on Saturday. IDF forces shot down the drone over the Negev, south of Mount Hebron. Click here for the rest of the article…
Tunisia: Associations Call for Criminalising Normalisation With Israel
allAfrica.com 6 Oct 2012 – [Tunis Afrique Presse]Tunis -Several associations and organisations, Friday, called for including the “criminalisation of normalisation with Israel” in the new Tunisian Constitution.
Egypt: Israel’s Hard-Line Attitude Led Palestine to Resort to UN – FM
allAfrica.com 6 Oct 2012 – [Egypt Online]Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamed Amr received Thursday 04/10/2012 US Department of State Assistant Secretary for the Near Eastern Affairs Elizabeth Jones who is currently visiting Egypt.
Egypt: Minister – Sustainable Development Requires Political Will, Regional Cooperation
allAfrica.com 6 Oct 2012 – [Egypt Online]Minister of State for Environmental Affairs Moustafa Hussein Kamel asserted that realizing sustainable development requires political will and regional cooperation.
Kenya: Marende Orders Probe On Saudi ‘Slave Airlifts’
allAfrica.com 6 Oct 2012 – [The Star]The Speaker of National Assembly Kenneth Marende has ordered the ministry of Foreign Affairs to investigate claims that some of its officers have been colluding with local and international agents to airlift young women to Saudi Arabia to work as domestic workers where they end…
The Freedom Bus Rides to Beit Ommar
Palestine Solidarity Project 6 Oct 2012 – On Thursday 27th of September the Center for Freedom and Justice and Palestine Solidarity Project got a visit from the Freedom Bus , an initiative of the Freedom Theatre in Jenin. The Freedom Bus is a solidarity ride through occupied Palestine. The visitors, from Sweden, Germany, the…
Turkey ‘fires over Syrian border’
BBC 6 Oct 2012 – Turkey‘s military has fired into Syria for a fourth straight day after a Syrian mortar landed near a Turkish village, local media say.
Israel downs unmanned aircraft
BBC 6 Oct 2012 – The Israeli air force has shot down a mysterious small unmanned aircraft after it crossed into the south of the country, the military says.
Terror suspects before US court
BBC 6 Oct 2012 – Islamist cleric Abu Hamza and four other terror suspects appear in court in the US, after being extradited from the UK following a long legal battle.
Turkey Hones Its Killing Skills
Al-Akhbar Opinion 6 Oct 2012 – A mobile missile launcher is positioned at a military base on the Turkish-Syrian border at Suruc in Sanliurfa province, 6 October 2012. (Photo: Reuters – Murad Sezer) A mobile missile launcher is positioned at a military base on the Turkish-Syrian border at Suruc in Sanliurfa province,…
Aleppo’s History Lost in the Fighting
Al-Akhbar News 6 Oct 2012 – A handout picture released by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows a Syrian man searching for the people after an explosion in Aleppo on 9 september 2012. (Photo: AFP/SANA) A handout picture released by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows a Syrian man searching…
STL: Defense Lawyer Searches for his Defendants
Al-Akhbar News 6 Oct 2012 – He defends his theory about the independence of the judiciary in Lebanon based on three decrees he knows of which he claims went against the wishes of politicians, including a ruling to outlaw torture. (Photo: Marwan Tahtah) He defends his theory about the independence of the…
Tunisia police fire rubber bullets at Sidi Bouzid protesters
Al-Akhbar News 6 Oct 2012 – Tunisian police fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters in Sidi Bouzid who were demanding the governor’s resignation, an AFP journalist reported. Around 1,000 people gathered in the central Tunisian town, the birthplace of the uprising that toppled former dictator Zine El…
130 Sri Lankan maids food poisoned in Jordan
Al-Akhbar News 6 Oct 2012 – One hundred and thirty Sri Lankan domestic workers who had taken refuge at their embassy in Jordan have been hospitalized with food poisoning, a security official said. Colonel Farid al-Sharaa, in a statement, said their condition was “stable” after having fallen ill from food ordered from…
Video: Israeli police smash boy’s head to the ground in Aqsa incursion
Al-Akhbar News 6 Oct 2012 – A video has surfaced showing Israeli police smashing a teenage boy’s head to the ground during an incursion into the revered Aqsa compound in Jerusalem Friday. Police had fired tear gas and stun grenades at a group of worshipers Friday protesting the entry of illegal Jewish…
Leftist-Islamist Struggle Fuels Tunisian University Violence
Al-Akhbar Politics 5 Oct 2012 – Tunisian protestors calling for the resignation of the mayor storm the municipality building in Sidi Bouzid, the birthplace of 2011’s revolution which outed president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, on 5 October 2012. (Photo: AFP – Mokhtar Kahouli) Tunisian protestors calling for the resignation of the…
Articles
Tom Friedman’s Special Relationship
Belén Fernández, CounterPunch 10/5/2012
A Badge of Pride Called Israel
The following is an excerpt from The Imperial Messenger: Thomas Friedman at Work, blurbed by Alex Cockburn: “Filleting the silliest man on the planet needs a sure scalpel, and Belén Fernández wields hers with deadly finesse.”
In October 2010, during the latest round of the Israeli–Palestinian peace charade, Thomas Friedman is summoned to an interview with Israel’s Channel 2 television in order to defend his recent dispatch “Just Knock It Off,” in which he is critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s resistance to a brief continuation of the partial moratorium on Israeli settlement building in the West Bank.
The anchor comments that Netanyahu appears to have really gotten under Friedman’s skin this time. Friedman assures her that it is “not about anyone, uh, personal” and explains, amid an abundance of hand flourishes, that he is not asking Israel to sign a deal with the Palestinians specifying “where do we go, where do we withdraw, where do we leave,” but rather to create a “test where you take out all the other extraneous stuff—settlements, settlement building, okay—and you sit across the table, and everybody, now, show me your cards.”
The very reason for Friedman’s critical article and appearance on Channel 2—the settlement issue—has thus been promptly discarded as “extraneous stuff.” No hints are provided as to what non-extraneous stuff might entail; Netanyahu meanwhile evolves into an “interesting,” “engaging,” and “funny” character for whom Friedman professes sympathy, despite having hoped in 2005 for the same man to become head of Likud so that the party would “be free to be itself—to represent the lunatic right in Israel, become a fringe party and drive over a cliff.” more.. e-mail
To a South African the two-state solution sounds like apartheid
Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, Electronic Intifada 10/2/2012
People around the world increasingly agree with Palestinians who say they live in an apartheid system.
The documentary film Roadmap to Apartheid, directed by Ana Nogueira, a white South African and Eron Davidson, an Israeli Jew, has won a number of awards at film festivals around the world. The film takes a close look at the apartheid comparison often used to describe the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It draws on the many lessons from the South African experience relevant to conflicts all over the world. It breaks down the rhetorical analogy into a fact-based comparison, noting where analogy is useful and appropriate, and where it is not.
The film is as much a historical document of the rise and fall of apartheid, as it is a film about why many Palestinians feel they are living in an apartheid system today, and why an increasing number of people around the world agree with them.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is complex. However, the experience of the South African conflict tells us that there is always hope. Our government has positioned itself to play a facilitating role in the peace process by being one of the first countries to have diplomatic relations with both Israel and Palestine.
Non-governmental initiatives undertaken in this country include the ongoing campaigns by the Palestinian solidarity groups, the hosting of the third session of the Russell Tribunal on Palestine and the boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign aimed at increasing pressure on the Israeli government to negotiate, a strategy that proved successful in South Africa. The Russell Tribunal held hearings in Cape Town and concluded that Israel had committed crimes of apartheid, as defined by the United Nations apartheid convention. The 1973 apartheid convention was the ultimate step in the condemnation of apartheid and declared it to be criminal.more.. e-mail
Syria, the Story So Far
Wiliam Blum, CounterPunch 10/3/2012
Why the US Ambassador Would be Well Advised Not to Visit
“Today, many Americans are asking — indeed I ask myself,” Hillary Clinton said, “how can this happen? How can this happen in a country we helped liberate, in a city we helped save from destruction? This question reflects just how complicated, and at times, how confounding the world can be.”
The Secretary of State was referring to the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya September 11 that killed the US ambassador and three other Americans. US intelligence agencies have now stated that the attackers had ties to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
Yes, the world can indeed be complicated and confounding. But we have learned a few things. The United States began blasting Libya with missiles with the full knowledge that they were fighting on the same side as the al-Qaeda types. Benghazi was and is the headquarters for Muslim fundamentalists of various stripes in North Africa. However, it’s incorrect to claim that the United States (aka NATO) saved the city from destruction. The story of the “imminent” invasion of Benghazi by Moammar Gaddafi’s forces last year was only propaganda to justify Western intervention. And now the United States is intervening — at present without actual gunfire, as far as is known — against the government of Syria, with the full knowledge that they’re again on the same side as the al-Qaeda types. A rash of suicide bombings against Syrian government targets is sufficient by itself to dispel any doubts about that. And once again, the United States is participating in the overthrow of a secular Mideast government. more.. e-mail
How al-Aqsa Mosque Became a Refugee from Jerusalem
Dissident Voice: 6 Oct 2012 – Once upon a time, some people wanted to destroy al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. So the mosque asked its friends, “Will you help save al-Aqsa?” We’re over a thousand years old and need your help. “Not us,” said the Palestinians still living in Jerusalem. “We’re trying to keep our own houses and land.” “Not us,” said the Palestinians with Israeli citizenship. “We’re already a persecuted minority in Israel.” “Not us,” said the West Bank Palestinians. “We’re trying to save what we still have.” “Not us,” said the Gaza residents. “We don’t want another Israeli pogrom.” “Not us,” said the Palestinian Muslims. “We don’t want to be called terrorists.” “Not us,” said the Palestinian Christians. “Our churches are being defaced and burned by the same people. We have our own problems.” “Not us,” said the NGOs. “We only provide social services.” “Not us,” said the diaspora Palestinians. “We have a hard enough…more
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The New Dark Age 