25 August 2013 —VTJP
News
International Middle East Media Center
Palestinian Injured Near Jerusalem
IMEMC – Palestinian medical sources have reported that a young Palestinian man was injured in the foot, on Saturday evening [August 2r, 2013] when an Israeli soldier raised a spike strip as the young man was stepping on it. …
Army Invades Three Towns Near Hebron
IMEMC – Palestinian sources in Hebron, in the southern part of the occupied West bank, have reported that dozens of Israeli military jeeps invaded on Sunday at dawn [August 25, 2013] the towns of Bani Neim Doura, and Ath-Thaheriyya in the Hebron district, and kidnapped one resident. …
PA: Israeli forces expand illegal outpost in Nablus
8/25/2013 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — Israeli bulldozers on Sunday leveled private Palestinian land in Nablus in order to enlarge an illegal settlement outpost, a Palestinian Authority official said. Ghassan Daghlas told Ma’an that Israeli forces dug up vast tracts of land surrounding Einabus village to enlarge an outpost known as Hill 782. Settlers destroyed dozens of olive trees to illegally establish the outpost. [END]
Jewish extremists enter Al-Aqsa compound
8/25/2013 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Around 65 Jewish extremists entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on Sunday, escorted by Israeli police, the Al-Aqsa Foundation said. Yehuda Glick, an extremist settler and activist for Israeli sovereignty of the compound, was among the group, the foundation said. The group toured the mosque and received talks on the possibility of building a Jewish temple on the compound, it added….
Israel orders partial demolition of Palestinian school
8/25/2013 – JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Israeli authorities on Sunday ordered the demolition of part of a Palestinian school in East Jerusalem, a Palestinian official said. Samir Jabril, a Palestinian Authority education official, said the Jerusalem municipal council decided to demolish the top floor of an elementary school in Sharafat village. The floor, which consists of three classrooms and a staff room, was added in 2000. [END]
Israel urges world to ‘take out’ Syria chemicals
8/25/2013 – JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israeli President Shimon Peres called Sunday for an international effort to “take out” chemical weapons in Syria after claims President Bashar Assad’s regime used them in a deadly attack.”The time has come to make a joint effort to take out all the chemical weapons from Syria,” Peres said, without elaborating if he envisioned this being achieved through military strikes or….
2 teenagers arrested in Beit Ummar
8/25/2013 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli forces on Sunday arrested two teenagers near the illegal Karmei Tzur settlement south of Beit Ummar near Hebron, a local committee said. The spokesman of the popular struggle committee against settlements and the wall said that Mohammad Jadallah Sleibi, 17, and Mohammad Shehda Sleibi, 16, were with a group of friends when they were attacked by Israeli forces. He added….
Head of Islamic bloc to visit Palestine
8/25/2013 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The secretary general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, will visit Palestine on Wednesday, the group said. The two-day visit will see Ihsanoglu meet with President Abbas and a senior PA delegation to discuss the latest developments in peace talks. The visit is also a demonstration of the OIC’s support for Palestine and aims to “shine the….
Venezuela to build eye hospital in Palestine
8/25/2013 – CARACAS (Ma’an) — Venezuela and the Palestinian Authority on Saturday signed an agreement which will see the Latin American country build an eye hospital in Palestine. The hospital will cost around $15 million and was part of a wider energy agreement to sell oil to the PA. [END]
PA, Jordan meet to ease travel for pilgrims
8/25/2013 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — Palestinian Authority transport minister Nabil al-Dmidi met Sunday with his Jordanian counterpart Lina Shbaib to discuss ways to facilitate the travel of pilgrims. The Palestinian delegation to Jordan, led by al-Dmidi, proposed suggestions to ease delays for Palestinians transiting Jordan to perform pilgrimages to Saudi Arabia, al-Dmidi said. [END]
DFLP, Karama meet to discuss Egypt unrest
8/25/2013 – CAIRO (Ma’an) — The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the leftist Karama party met on Saturday to discuss the ongoing unrest in Egypt. The secretary general of the DFLP, Nayef Hawatmeh, met Karama party leader Majdi Zaabal, with both leaders agreeing that the June 30 protests were a corrective to the Jan. 25 revolution of 2011. The parties warned against American….
662 people go through Rafah crossing
8/25/2013 – EL-ARISH, Egypt (Ma’an) — The total number of people who crossed Rafah crossing on Sunday was 662, the director of the Egyptian side of the crossing said. Sami Mitwali added that 338 left Gaza for Egypt, and 324 entered Gaza. The crossing operates from 10 a. m. to 2 p. m. daily, after it was closed on Aug. 15 over security concerns. [END]
Egyptian FM to visit Ramallah on Monday
8/25/2013 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Egyptian foreign minister Nabil Fahmy will visit Ramallah on Monday to discuss bilateral relations between Egypt and Palestine with President Mahmoud Abbas, the Egyptian ambassador to Palestine said. Yasser Othman told Ma’an that the visit comes in support of the Palestinian return to negotiations and in gratitude for the Palestinian Authority’s position in support of the Egyptian….
Hamas targets Ma’an News Agency in media tirade
8/25/2013 – GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The Hamas-run Al-Aqsa satellite channel on Saturday dedicated a one hour talk show to criticizing Ma’an News Agency and its senior employees. Former chief of Hamas media, Hasan Abu Hashish, presenter Raji al-Hums, and an unknown Jordanian journalist claimed that Ma’an’s editor-in-chief Nasser Lahham worked for the Palestinian Authority’s preventative security services…. Related: Nasser Lahham: A man has bitten a dog
Hamdallah: PA wants to reach agreement with teachers
8/25/2013 – NABLUS (Ma’an) — Caretaker Palestinian Authority prime minister Rami Hamdallah said Sunday that the PA is dedicated to finalizing an agreement with teachers after months of strike action.”I can’t pledge things which are impossible to fulfill, but we have followed a policy of transparency so as to be able together to go through these hardships and continue to build our institutions….
Japanese envoy visits Ma’an News Agency
8/25/2013 – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The Representative of Japan to the Palestinian Authority visited Ma’an News Agency in Bethlehem on Thursday. Junya Matsuura was given a tour of the news agency’s facilities and met with editors and translators working on Ma’an’s English desk. The Japanese official met with editor-in-chief Nasser Lahham and discussed politics, cultural issues and the media in Palestine. [END]
3 injur
ed in road Hebron accident
8/25/2013 – HEBRON (Ma’an) — Three people were injured in a road accident in Hebron on Sunday, a Red Crescent official said. Ahmad Khaddour, 20, was injured and taken to Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem by an Israeli ambulance. Passengers Mohammad Khaddour, 55, and Ali Khaddour, 31, were lightly injured and taken to local hospitals. [END]
Truck crash in Negev leads to chemical spill
8/25/2013 – BEERSHEBA, Israel (Ma’an) — Israeli police closed down a street in the Negev on Sunday after a crash between two trucks spilled chemicals onto the road. The accident took place near Beit Kama junction. Both drivers were lightly injured and taken to hospital for treatment. [END]
Kerry ‘discussed’ chemical attack with Syrian FM
8/25/2013 – WASHINGTON (AFP) — US Secretary of State John Kerry spoke Thursday with Syria’s foreign minister about an alleged chemical weapons attack a day earlier that reportedly killed hundreds of civilians, an American official said. Kerry discussed the attack on rebel-held areas near Damascus with Walid al-Muallem “to make clear that if, as they claimed, the Syrian regime has nothing to hide, it should have….
Egypt army kills 4 militants in Sinai
8/25/2013 – EL-ARISH, Egypt (Ma’an) — Egypt’s army killed four militants in the Sinai peninsula on Saturday, security officials said. Egyptian forces clashed with Islamic militants in a school located in the city of Sheikh Zuweid, with four militants killed and several detained during the incident. Earlier, Egyptian forces arrested a man suspected of involvement in attacks on security forces in Sinai. The 40….
West raises stakes over Syria chemical claims
8/25/2013 – DAMASCUS (AFP) — Pressure mounted Sunday on Damascus to allow a UN probe into claims of chemical weapons attacks, as Washington and London said there are “increasing signs” Syria’s regime is to blame. A senior United Nations envoy is in Damascus pressing for an investigation by UN inspectors who have been on the ground in war-ravaged Syria for a week to probe three other….
Egypt’s Mubarak attends court as trial resumes
8/25/2013 – CAIRO (AFP) — Egypt’s ousted dictator Hosni Mubarak attended his trial Sunday on charges of inciting the murder of protesters, days after he was released from prison and placed under house arrest. Live state television footage showed the 85-year-old in the defendants’ cage along with his co-defendant interior minister, six security chiefs and his two sons. [END]
Iran army warns US of ‘harsh consequences’ over Syria
8/25/2013 – DAMASCUS (AFP) — A war of words erupted Sunday over Syria as Washington said it is ready to take action over chemical weapons attacks and Tehran warned US intervention would carry “harsh consequences”. Pressure mounted on Damascus to allow a UN probe of chemical attacks, with French President Francois Hollande saying evidence indicated the regime in war-ravaged Syria was to blame and Israel demanding action against….
Hollande says evidence implicates Assad in chemical attacks
8/25/2013 – PARIS (AFP) — French President Francois Hollande said Sunday that evidence indicated Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime had carried out chemical weapons attacks on its own people last week. Hollande said there was “a body of evidence indicating that the August 21 attack was chemical in nature, and that everything led to the belief that the Syrian regime was responsible for this unspeakable act….
Hagel: US military ready to act over Syria chemical claims
8/25/2013 – KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Sunday the US military was ready to take action against the Syrian regime if ordered, but stressed that Washington was still evaluating claims of a chemical weapons attack.”President Obama has asked the Defense Department to prepare options for all contingencies. We have done that,” Hagel told reporters in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.”Again, we are….
US: ‘Very little doubt’ chemical weapons used in Syria
8/25/2013 – WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States said Sunday there was “very little doubt” Syrian forces had used chemical weapons on civilians and dismissed an offer by Damascus for a UN team to view the attack site. The comments marked a significant escalation of a showdown over the horrific attack outside the Syrian capital which killed up to 1,300 people last week, and came as Washington appeared….
Moscow warns US against Syria military action
8/25/2013 – MOSCOW (AFP) — Military action against the Syrian regime would be a “tragic mistake,” Russia said Sunday, warning the West not to preempt the results of a UN probe into alleged deadly chemical attacks. Moscow warned there was a danger of history repeating itself a decade after the US-led invasion of Iraq, which it opposed, and urged the United States to refrain from any reckless decision….
Mubarak back in court, Brothers trial adjourned
8/25/2013 – CAIRO (AFP) — Egypt’s toppled dictator Hosni Mubarak appeared in court Sunday for the first time since his release to house arrest, as a separate court adjourned a hearing of Muslim Brotherhood chiefs. The hearings come against the backdrop of political uncertainty in the wake of the July 3 ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, followed by a crackdown on his Brotherhood movement. Security….
occupied Palestinian territory: Gaza-Egypt Border Opens as Muslim Brotherhood Shifts Tactics
Relief Web 24 Aug 2013 – Source: Voice of America Country: Egypt, occupied Palestinian territory Heather Murdock CAIRO — The Egyptian government is reopening its border with Gaza Saturday for the first time in five days. Some activists say the move is a sign that the…
Chemical attack spurs finger-pointing inside Assad regime
The National 25 Aug 2013 – Exclusive: Split in Syrian regime’s military as officers say they were not told missiles contained nerve gas. Phil Sands reports
Al Qaeda plan to ‘change face of history’ led to US scare: Yemen
The National 25 Aug 2013 – A vow made in a phone call by the leader of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to carry out an attack that would “change the face of history” lay behind this month’s closures of many western embassies, Yemen’s president said.
Egyptian courts adjourn cases against Mubarak and Islamists
The National 25 Aug 2013 – ‘Trial of two regimes’ is sign of intention to crush resistance
Americans strongly oppose US intervention in Syria – even if chemical weapons are confirmed
The National 25 Aug 2013 – About 60 per cent of Americans in new poll say the US should not intervene in Syria’s civil war, while just 9 per cent think the US president, Barack Obama, should act.
Ajman opens technical high schools for boys and girls
The National 25 Aug 2013 – The Institute for Applied Technology will open a boys’ and a girls’ school in Ajman next week.
Scepticism over UAE ban on smoking in cars
The National 25 Aug 2013 – Police have yet to decide how to enforce the new law that prevents smoking inside cars when there are children below the age of 12 inside.
Uttar Pradesh halts ‘politicised’ religious procession
The National 25 Aug 2013 – Uttar Pradesh police arrest 600 Hindus ignoring a ban on annual walk around Ayodhya. Samanth Subramanian reports
Regional and US leaders plot Syria action
The National 25 Aug 2013 – Military chiefs from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and the United States have met in Jordan to discuss the crisis in Syria, days after a chemical weapons attack outside Damascus killed hundreds. Elizabeth Dickinson reports
Fatah official says PA will soon make ‘painful decisions’ against Hamas
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Azzam al-Ahmed: Hamas will not be considered partner.
Government to infuse NIS 16 m. into east Jerusalem’s City of David park
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Park in Arab neighborhood owned by right wing Jewish group.
Police seeking parents of baby girl abandoned in Jerusalem
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – 2-day-old left on doorstep with umbilical cord still attached.
Lapid unconcerned with shoe-throwing
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Finance Minister calmly says “Young artists are supposed to be rejectionist and anti-establishment.”
Authorities considering ban on use of Taser guns
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Justice Ministry indicts police officer, Sa’il Anaim, for shocking handcuffed man 24 times
Fears of food and water poisoning after Damascus chemical weapons attack
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Sarin gas can affect humans through contaminated water sources.
Haredi girls are first to return to school
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Haredim represent 18.5 percent of the total number of Israeli children in the national school system.
Postal Service reports four-fold increase in gas mask inquiries among Syria attack talk
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – According to Home Front Command figures, only 60% of Israelis have gas masks, the rest are lining up as Syria heats up.
Syria’s Nusra threatens to target Alawites over alleged chemical attack
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Al-Qaida-affiliated rebel group threaten to fire off 1,000 rockets at Assad-connected community as revenge for Damascus attack.
Reuters/Ipsos poll: As Syria war escalates, Americans cool to US intervention
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Polls indicate wrenching photos from alleged attack may actually be hardening many Americans’ objection of strike.
Muslim Brotherhood leaders, Mubarak face trial in Egypt
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Mohamed Badie, aides face charges relating to July 30 protest; Egyptian appeals court ordered Mubarak’s retrial.
PM: Israel’s ‘finger on the pulse’ of Syria developments, if necessary will also be ‘on the trigger’
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Netanyahu says situation in Syria is “horrible tragedy, crime”; political leaders meet with French FM, discuss Syria.
French FM: World leaders to decide in coming days on response to Syrian atrocities
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – In meeting with President Peres, Fabius says decision will be made when culprit of chemical weapons use is determined.
Analysis: Despite criticism, Obama’s cautious approach on Syria is justified
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – In Syria, there is no choice between “good” and “bad.”
Syria, Iran warn US against military intervention
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Syrian minister: US strike in Syria would set Middle East ablaze.
Palestinians, Israelis gather in Jerusalem to sign a people’s peace treaty
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – Minds of Peace initiative brings citizens from both sides to the capital to talk to each about all of the core issues.
Hagel: Pentagon prepared to exercise military options on Syria, if Obama chooses
Jerusalem Post 25 Aug 2013 – US defense secretary says DoD has “options for all contingencies” if president decides to exercise any on Syria.
Report: Syrian FM says gov’t will cooperate with UN on visit to chemical attack site
Jerusalem Post 24 Aug 2013 – Walid Moualem says Syria, UN mission in talks for preparing visit.
Re-turning rights
Uruknet
Haidar Eid: “holding our breath in Gaza”
Uruknet
“Price Tag” attacks strike again
Uruknet
Blame the Illegal Military Occupation for the Cholera Outbreak in Haiti
Uruknet
No Room for Hate Racism and the Movement to End the Israeli Occupation
Uruknet
Constitutional Black Out 13 Things the Government is Trying to Keep Secret From You
Uruknet
Poll says Jewish Israelis oppose ending the occupation, 53% to 39%
Uruknet
Palestinian children routinely tortured, some threatened with rape: Israel rights group
Uruknet
Israeli occupation forces demolish an entire Bedouin community in Beit Hanina
Uruknet
Arab Liberals are much more obsessed with the West than Arab Leftists ever were
Uruknet
Will Gaza have a date with lean years in the future?
Uruknet
Egypt after the revolution: curfew nights and blood-stained days
Uruknet
On the Trail of a Rendition The CIA Came at Night
Uruknet
Bombs, shootings kill at least 47 across Iraq – police
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 Car bombs, roadside bombs and shootings killed at least 47 people in Iraq on Sunday, police and medical sources said, as tensions intensify between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims across the Middle East.
Pope urges world to help find solution to war in Syria
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 Pope Francis appealed Sunday to the international community to help find a solution to the civil war in Syria while denouncing a proliferation in massacres and atrocities there.
Bombing strikes Yemen air force bus, killing 3
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 A bomb likely hidden on a bus carrying high-ranking Yemeni air force personnel exploded Sunday in the capital, killing three people in a country fighting an al-Qaida affiliate, officials said.
Britain says Syria chemical attack evidence may already be destroyed
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 Britain said on Sunday that evidence of a chemical weapons attack in the suburbs of Damascus could have already been destroyed ahead of U.N. inspectors visiting the site.
Libya launches national dialogue initiative
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan Sunday announced the launch of a national dialogue initiative to tackle issues ranging from national reconciliation to disarmament, as Libya battles a wave of instability.
Hama province governor assassinated: Syria state TV
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 The governor of Hama province in central Syria was killed in a car bombing on Sunday, state television reported, in an attack it blamed on rebels.
Russia warns U.S. not to repeat in Syria past mistakes in region
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 Russia warned the United States on Sunday against repeating past mistakes, saying that any unilateral military action in Syria would undermine efforts for peace and have a devastating impact.
UN political chief to visit Iran for Syria talks
Daily Star 25 Aug 2013 The political affairs chief of the United Nations Jeffrey Feltman is to visit Iran on Monday to discuss the war in Syria and unrest in Egypt and Lebanon, a report said.
Report: British destroyers set to participate in Syria attack
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – ….
French PM: World cannot allow crimes against humanity in Syria
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – ….
Fears of food and water poisoning after Damascus gassings
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – ….
Syria lets UN inspect attack site, Washington says too late
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – ….
Iraq denies halting services to Iranian exile camp
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – ….
Obama’s dilemma
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – Op-ed: US still bleeding from long war in Iraq; cautious approach to Syria crisis understandable ….
Christians under siege
YNet News, 25 Aug 2013 – Op-ed: For some reason, West accepts suffering of Christians in Muslim countries as an internal problem that does not warrant intervention ….
Palestinian Information Center
Six Palestinian prisoners start hunger strike in solidarity with Abu Sisi
PIC – Six Palestinian prisoners in Eshel jail started an open-ended hunger strike at midnight Sunday in solidarity with hunger striker Dirar Abu Sisi, who is isolated in an Israeli prison.
Five EU states warn companies of breaking ban against Israeli settlements
PIC – At least five European states have recently warned companies and businessmen against engaging in business activities in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian lands.
Israeli regime extends exile of director of Aqsa Mosque
PIC – Yitzhak Aharonovich, the Israeli minister of internal security, gave orders to extend the exile of director of the Aqsa Mosque Sheikh Najeh Bukeirat until the third of September.
Israel plans to set up gas pipeline on seized lands north of O. Palestine
PIC – The Israeli occupation authority intends to install a gas pipeline running from the Palestinian towns of Tur’an and Kafr Kanna to Mashhad town in the lower Galilee, according to an informed source.
PA intelligence questions Amayreh on his outspoken criticisms of Sisi coup
PIC – PA intelligence apparatus questioned Palestinian journalist Khalid Amayreh in connection with his alleged “outspoken criticisms of and scathing attacks” against the bloody Egyptian coup.
Shevchenko calls on Moscow to raise the file of Rabaa Adaweya massacre to UN
PIC – Russian journalist Maxim Shevchenko called on his country as a member of the Security Council to raise the file of Rabaa Adaweya massacre to UN to prosecute those responsible.
Israel igniting religious war in the region
PIC – Dr. Ismail Radwan, the Awkaf and religious affairs minister in Gaza, has charged Israel with seeking to ignite a religious war in the Middle East.
Dozens of settlers storm al-Aqsa Mosque
PIC – Dozens of Jewish settlers stormed on Sunday morning al-Aqsa mosque from the Maghareba gate, under the protection of the Israeli police.
IOF arrests a young man in al-Khalil
PIC – The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) last night raided several towns in al-Khalil south of the West Bank, and arrested a Palestinian youth from the town of Bani Na’im.
DFLP welcomes the initiative of Haneyya
PIC – DFLP welcomed the statements of Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haneyya, in which he called for activating the elections of municipalities and student unions and councils.
Israel Notifies Jerusalemites with Demolishing Orders
WAFA – 25 Aug 2013
Foreign Minister Signs Energy Cooperation Agreement with Venezuela
WAFA – 25 Aug 2013
Newspapers Review: Dailies Cover Abbas’ Statements on Peace Talks
WAFA – 25 Aug 2013
Exports, Imports Down in June 2013, says Statistics Bureau
WAFA – 25 Aug 2013
Power, politics underlie two trials in Egypt
LA Times 25 Aug 2013 – CAIRO — Courtrooms in Cairo echoed Sunday with the alleged crimes of fallen leaders who personify a divided nation that cannot escape its repressive past even as it moves to crush those with designs on its future.
In Syria, the acrobatic street game parkour gives youths an escape
LA Times 25 Aug 2013 – The discipline focuses on quickly surmounting all obstacles in one’s path, and requires no equipment — perfect for a deprived, war-torn city like Damascus. DAMASCUS, Syria — The boys clutch at the bright green shirts handed out by their coach, putting them on quickly before…
U.S. prepares for possible retaliatory strike against Syria
LA Times 24 Aug 2013 – President Obama meets with top national security advisors about allegations that the Syrian government used chemical weapons against civilians. WASHINGTON — President Obama huddled with his top national security advisors at the White House for a Saturday meeting as the U.S. military prepared for a…
Prayer Plaza in Jerusalem for Both Sexes Ignites Uproar
New York Times 25 Aug 2013 – Israeli officials unveiled a plaza where men and women can pray together. But the move was denounced as discriminatory by the main group that has protested the rules at the holy site.
A Sharp Shift in Tone on Syria From the White House
New York Times 25 Aug 2013 – An Obama aide’s statement that Syria’s promise to allow United Nations inspectors access to the site of a possible chemical attack was “too late” appeared to move the United States closer to potential military action.
Bombing Strikes Yemen Air Force Bus, Killing 3
New York Times 25 Aug 2013 – A powerful blast ripped through a bus carrying air force personnel down a main street in Yemen’s capital on Sunday, causing a score of casualties, officials said.
Bomb Tears Through Yemen Air Force Bus, Killing Officer
New York Times 25 Aug 2013 – A bomb tore through the side of a bus carrying Yemeni air force personnel to their base in the capital Sanaa on Sunday, killing at least one officer and wounding several others, state media reported.
Tamar, Leviathan in talks with Egyptian customers
Globes Energy & Water – Delek Drilling has confirmed talks with Egyptian customers to sell gas to LNG facilities.
Syria tensions send fuel price higher
Globes Energy & Water – The price of self-service 95 octane gasoline will jump by at least NIS 0.15 per liter at midnight Saturday.
Natural gas-powered trucks on way to Israel
Globes Energy & Water – “Yediot Ahronot”: The Transport Ministry is conducting a test of natural gas-powered trucks,
Bloomberg: Erdogan endangering Israel gas link
Globes Energy & Water – “The inability to complete a pipeline deal would hurt Turkish ambitions to become a regional natural gas transit center.”
Rupert Murdoch exits Channel 10
Globes Main News – Murdoch’s NewsCorp is exercising its put option, requiring Arnon Milchan to pay $6 million for its 9% stake.
Enzymotec publishes Nasdaq IPO prospectus
Globes Main News – Enzymotec, which has developed a proprietary method for processing fatty acids, is seeking to raise $75 million.
Sun: Banks pull market down
Globes Main News – The banks fell today, as did Israel Chemicals on the day’s biggest turnover, but Perrigo bucked the market.
Judge closes IDB hearing without decision
Globes Main News – Judge Eitan Orenstin wished everyone a “Happy New Year”, and left the courtroom. He will apparently issue a ruling later today.
Dankner meets IDB cash deadline
Globes Main News – Just before today’s decisive court hearing, Nochi Dankner and Alexander Granovsky produced NIS 520 million.
Europe’s disastrous decade
Globes Macro Economics – By just about every measure, Japan performed better during its “lost decade” than Europe has since the adoption of the euro in 2002.
IDF Failures in Lebanon Continue
Tikun Olam – There have been two recent incidents involving IDF assaults on Lebanese targets which ended in failure. Given the even greater failures of the 2006 Lebanon war in which Israel lost over 100 civilian and military dead, its soldiers were largely outmaneuvered by dogged Hezbollah veterans, and…
Israel’s Rx for the Palestinians, and the region: managed conflict
Mondoweiss – You may have noticed that John Kerry’s peace process, by excluding Hamas among other measures, is aimed at managing the conflict. Not resolving the basic justice issues, because they seem too overwhelming, but putting the conflict on the back burner so it doesn’t boil up. Trying…
Are we all Islamists now?
Mondoweiss – This is part of Marc H. Ellis’s “Exile and the Prophetic” feature for Mondoweiss. To read the entire series visit the archive page . Was the creation of Israel, like the Egyptian revolution, an exercise in magical realism? Is the Holocaust, when employed in a distorted…
Bulldozers move in on East Jerusalem, and another 1500 settlement units are set for approval
Mondoweiss – Land, property theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing Israel levels East Jerusalem land for ‘national park’ JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 21 Aug — Israeli bulldozers leveled Palestinian land in the Jerusalem neighborhood of al-Tur on Wednesday. Israeli police closed the area of Khallat al-Ein and prevented local residents from…
Women of the Wall Launch Sit in at Kotel To Protest New Plans
The Foward Breaking News 25 Aug 2013 – The Women of the Wall on Sunday launched a 24-hour sit-in at the Western Wall in protest against an impending plan to bar the group from praying as it sees fit at the holy site. Click here for the rest of the article…
Egypt Reopens Rafah Border Crossing To Gaza
The Foward Breaking News 25 Aug 2013 – Egypt reopened its border crossing with the Gaza Strip on Saturday after four days of it being closed, allowing stranded passengers to cross in and out of the Palestinian territory that is controlled by the Islamist Hamas group. Click here for the rest of the article……
Syria Warns U.S. Military Action Will Inflame Entire Middle East
The Foward Breaking News 25 Aug 2013 – Syria warned the United States against any military action over a suspected chemical weapons attack in its civil war, saying it would “create a ball of fire that will inflame the Middle East”. Click here for the rest of the article…
New Plan Would Remove Women of the Wall from Kotel Plaza
The Foward Breaking News 25 Aug 2013 – Israel’s cabinet secretary is expected to present a plan on Sunday that aims to resolve the ongoing dispute over the rights of non-Orthodox Jews, including women, to pray at the Western Wall according to their customs. Click here for the rest of the article…
Syria to let UN inspect attack site
BBC 25 Aug 2013 – The Syrian government agrees to allow UN inspectors immediate access to the site of a suspected chemical weapon attack near Damascus.
Yes, They Are Takfiris
Al-Akhbar Opinion 25 Aug 2013 – Residents of Beirut’s southern suburb, including relatives of victims of the car bomb on August 15, place flowers on a memorial stand erected in dedication to the victims of the Tripoli bombing, at the site of the bomb that targeted Beirut’s southern suburb on 24 August…
Syrian rebels receive 400-ton weapons shipment: opposition
Al-Akhbar News 25 Aug 2013 – Gulf-based supporters have sent a 400-ton shipment of arms to Syria’s rebels, one of the biggest to reach them in their two-year-old uprising, opposition sources said on Sunday. The consignment – mostly ammunition for shoulder-fired weapons and anti-aircraft machine guns – came into northern Syria via…
Five Iraqi soldiers shot dead then burned
Al-Akhbar News 25 Aug 2013 – At least 12 people were killed across northern Iraq on Sunday, including five soldiers who were shot dead by gunmen who then burned their bodies, police and military sources said. The attackers ambushed two taxis carrying soldiers on the road to Mosul from Baghdad and killed…
Oman Sultan’s visit to Tehran may aim to mend US/Iran relations
Al-Akhbar News 25 Aug 2013 – Oman’s Sultan Qaboos bin Said al-Said on Sunday began the first visit to Iran by a foreign leader since President Hassan Rouhani took office and Iranian media said his trip might be an effort to mediate between Tehran and Washington. Oman, a Gulf Arab state that…
Week In Photos (16 August – 23 August)
Al-Akhbar News 25 Aug 2013 – Lebanese citizens gather outside al-Salam mosque, at the site of a powerful explosion in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on 23 August 2013. (Photo: AFP – STR) Lebanese citizens gather outside al-Salam mosque, at the site of a powerful explosion in the northern Lebanese city…
Egypt postpones trial of Brotherhood leaders
Al-Akhbar News 25 Aug 2013 – Egyptian judge Mohammed al-Karmouti (C) announces the adjournment of the trial of Muslim Brotherhood Supreme leader Mohammed Badie and 32 other Islamists on 25 August 2013 at a Cairo court. (Photo: AFP – Marwan Naamani) The trial of Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood chief Mohammed Badie and his…
Damascus, Tehran warn US against Syria intervention
Al-Akhbar News 25 Aug 2013 – Syrian army soldiers are seen deployed in the Jobar neighborhood of Damascus on 24 August 2013. (Photo: AFP / STR) Updated 1:30 pm: Syria and its ally Iran separately warned the United States against any military action over a suspected chemical weapons attack in Ghouta, shortly after…
Tripoli Tends Its Wounds in Silence and Despair
Al-Akhbar Politics 24 Aug 2013 – A Lebanese young woman puts on make up near amid vehicles that were dameged in a bombing outside Al-Taqwa mosque on 24 August 2013 in the northern city of Tripoli. (Photo: AFP – STR) A Lebanese young woman puts on make up near amid vehicles that…
Egypt: Tales of Death at Zeinhom Morgue
Al-Akhbar Politics 24 Aug 2013 – Egyptian activists and pro-government protester demonstrate outside the Turkish embassy in Cairo on 24 August 2013, against Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. (Photo: AFP – Mohamed El Shahed) Egyptian activists and pro-government protester demonstrate outside the Turkish embassy in Cairo on 24 August 2013, against…
Syria to let UN inspect attack site
BBC 25 Aug 2013 – The Syrian government agrees to allow UN inspectors immediate access to the site of a suspected chemical weapon attack near Damascus.
Hosni Mubarak appears in court
BBC 25 Aug 2013 – The former Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, appears in court, three days after being released from prison and placed
under house arrest.
Iraq suffers wave of bomb attacks
BBC 25 Aug 2013 – Bomb attacks across Iraq kill at least 46 people, police and medical sources say, with the deadliest blasts in Baquba and Baghdad.
Deadly bomb hits Yemen military bus
BBC 25 Aug 2013 – A bomb blast strikes a bus carrying air force personnel in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, killing at least one person, officials say.
Articles
Testimonies: Systematic abuse, beatings and threats against Palestinian children
Noam Sheizaf, +972 Magazine 8/25/2013
Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem is laying the blame on Israel’s police for ignoring the systematic abuse and violations of Palestinian minors’ rights during interrogations. The organization has received dozens of complaints by Palestinian residents under the age of 18 who have been beaten and threatened during interrogations in Etzion police station, which is in charge of the Hebron and Bethlehem areas. Many of those minors and their families were afraid or reluctant to press formal charges.
According to B’Tselem, some of the events described included torture. Once defendants admit to breaking the law (usually stone throwing), the beating and threats cease.
Palestinians are tried in military courts, where almost 100 percent of defendants are convicted. In many cases, the leading evidence against a defendant is his or her testimony during police or army interrogations.
Over the last three-and-a-half years, B’Tselem received 56 complaints of beatings, abuse and threats towards minors in Etzion police station. Minors between the ages of 12 and 18 have been threatened with sexual abuse, violence against their parents (including threats to kill them), and electrical shocks. In at least one case, a 14-year-old was made to listen to blood-curdling screams from a nearby room, while being told that the same fate awaits him. Others were beaten, at times while their hands were tied.
B’Tselem has transferred 31 complaints to the Justice Ministry unit in charge of investigating police violations. Twenty families eventually decided to withdraw their complaint, fearing retribution from the authorities, and the Ministry is not willing to look into cases which are not submitted by the victim him/herself. The remaining 11 cases were either dropped by the Ministry or the investigation was never concluded. — See also:http://972mag.com/special/children-under-occupation/ more.. e-mail
Abbas forfeits Palestinian right to land and memory
Ramona Wadi, Middle East Monitor (MEMO) 8/25/2013
What was previously regarded as an irresponsible and submissive statement uttered by a leader relinquishing his right to return has now expanded into a treacherous framework encompassing Palestinians….
Diplomacy and submission have been propelled to prominence with Mahmoud Abbas’s recent concession to Israel. Allegedly speaking on behalf of Palestinians, Abbas declared that the Palestinian Authority would agree to an epilogue to the “conflict” if a just agreement was offered. In return, he added, the Palestinian Authority would ensure a renunciation of the right for Palestinians to return to Jaffa, Acre and Haifa. The declaration prompted Hamas and other Palestinian factions to call for a collective refutation by the people who have, once again, been regarded as mere spectators in a process which is guaranteed to deepen the divide between the oppressed and the occupier. The PA has now clearly affirmed its support for the existence of the Israeli occupation by, illegally, waiving refugees’ right of return.
According to Israeli media, Abbas said, “You have a commitment from the Palestinian people, and also from the leadership, that if we are offered a just agreement, we will sign a peace deal that will put an end to the conflict and to future demands from the Palestinian side. We will not demand in the future to return to Jaffa, Acre or Haifa.”
Abbas’s statement echoes a previous personal forfeiting of the right to return made during an interview with Israel’s Channel 2 in November 2012: “I visited Safed once before… It’s my right to see it but not to live there…I am a refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that the West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts are Israel.” The acknowledgement went beyond recognition of the occupation; void of any semblance of indignation it expressed acquiescence and validated decades of oppression against Palestinians who assert the centrality of the right to return in relation to reclaiming land and memory.
Both statements portray a sequence of betrayal and degeneration of Palestinian right to land and memory…. more..e-mail
Fear Spreads Through Palestinian Camps in Syria
Franklin Lamb, Yarmouk Palestinian Camp, Damascus, CounterPunch 8/23/2013
Many Flee, as Worries Over Chemical Weapons Mount
Close to 50,000 children from Yarmouk Palestinian camp in Syria have fled Syria, being among the more than one million other children according to Palestinian Popular Committees in the Damascus-Homs area and head of U.N. children’s agency UNICEF, Anthony Lake, said in a statement. Roughly 75% of the Palestinian youngsters fleeing Syria are under the age of 11. They make up a large portion of the UNHCR refugees population that has now exceeded one
million who have fled Syria and the two million children who are internally displaced,. than two million children have been driven from their homes in the face of the conflict, which has morphed into a vicious, sectarian civil war.
Problem for Palestinians fleeing Syria continue at the Syria-Lebanon Masnaa crossing, adding to the number of Palestinian children who are homeless and without encouraging prospects of finding shelter or school enrollment, as classes begin next month. Approximately 8000 children, younger than fifteen, have been killed so far in the 30 month civil conflict in Syria.
Palestinian Popular Committee in al-Yarmouk Camp as well as the other twelve camps (two “unofficial” ) have reported both directly and indirectly to this observer that they posess information that clearly suggests the possibility, indeed probability, of a terrorist use of chemical weapons in the Camp, calling the Palestinian factions to take preemptive steps to prevent that.
The Popular Committee inside the “free” area of Yarmouk, pockets inside the eastern edge of the camp, advised in a statement, “in the framework of agitating the political and media war against the government of Syria, channels of destruction and sedition have started to air misleading propaganda, claiming that the Syrian Arab Army would fire mortars and or missiles into the Camp with chemical gases, whereas these elements themselves are planning chemical attacks to blame the government much as what happened in Irbin.”
The Committee added “those who invaded and destroyed the Camp after having displaced its residents would not hesitate to use the meanest ways of killing and destruction to fulfill the U.S.-Zionist goals.” more.. e-mail
Egypt’s Foreign Relations on Tightrope
Nicola Nasser, Arabic Media Internet Network (AMIN) 8/23/2013
The internal crisis in Egypt has indulged the country in its most critical foreign relations test since these relations were shaped by the U.S. sponsored Camp David accords and the peace treaty with Israel in 1979.
An indicator is the warnings against travel to Egypt from east and west, which are exacerbating the rapidly shrinking tourism industry. Stopping production in Egypt by industrial giants like General Motors, Toyota Motor Corp. and Suzuki Motor Corp. is a second indicator. Summons of foreign envoys to Egypt by their governments, which invoked similar Egyptian reciprocal summons, is a third indicator. A fourth was cancelling the U.S. military’s participation in next month’s Operation Bright Star in Egypt and delaying the delivery of four fighter jets to the country. Suspension of the sale of military equipment used for “internal repression” by the EU was a fifth. Threats to cut or suspend aid to Egypt by the U.S. and EU was another more important indicator.
In the immediate proximity, and three days after the ouster of the elected president Mohammed Morsi on July 3, the Peace and Security Council of the fifty – four member African Union decided “to suspend the participation of Egypt in AU activities until the restoration of constitutional order.”
On August 20, South Africa, a leading member of the AU as well as the BRICS five – member association, issued a statement to remind the “interim government” in Cairo that its “principled position is based on the Constitutive Act of the African Union, where any unconstitutional change of government – whatever the premise – is specifically rejected” immediately.
So far, the AU reaction is ironically the only concrete international diplomatic measure taken in defense of the western widely trumpeted rule of law and democracy. The African “sphere” is traditionally only second to the Arab one as a cornerstone of Egypt’s foreign policy. more.. e-mail
Irish Fears over Worsening Conditions in Gaza
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Aug 2013 – By Gaza Action Ireland Irish activists have expressed growing concern about the dire consequences in Gaza due to the closure of the Rafah crossing, at the border with Egypt. While deploring the violence in Egypt and the appalling behavior of the military regime there, members of Gaza Action Ireland (GAI) have reiterated that the people of Gaza must not be forgotten and abandoned. “Palestinians in Gaza are fully locked in by this siege, with the opening of their only two border crossings dependent on the whims of Israel at Erez and Egypt at Rafah,” said Zoe Lawlor, a spokesperson for GAI who visited Gaza earlier this year. “The Israeli blockade is being enforced on all sides and the lifeline via the Rafah crossing into Egypt is no longer operational. The Rafah crossing is now almost permanently closed and the military regime in Egypt is refusing to allow people to enter…more
My Arab Spring that Never Was – A Poem
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Aug 2013 – By Nasser Barghouty I thought in numbers we could say what is or what was right placards drawn with blood and no fright young and old stay the course street by street and night after night where the stars have turned a page and time its stray discourse and the whole world a stage on my spring that never was Tell me if I am right if you happen to see my black from my white tell me if might had always made right in this Arab spring of mine that never was tell me if you
can tell me if history or geography or a crude stereography have me and my story and our Arab glory in their jaws or will it in my night and in my endless flight ever shine? Tell me if you can Red is the new color of my sight not white red is…more
Anne Speckhard: Heroine of Israeli Hasbara
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Aug 2013 – By Vacy Vlazna “But the most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly and with unflagging attention. It must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over. Here, as so often in this world, persistence is the first and most important requirement for success.” – Adolf Hitler As its daily violations of international law, war crimes and settlement expansion flatline Israel’s international reputation, its desperate public relations (hasbara) efforts, scrambling for message control, have revived and slammed, yet again, Palestinians with the old catchall shibboleth of ‘terrorist’. As luck would too conveniently have it, from a recently published book, a new heroine of hasbara has risen, Christian American, Anne Speckhard; propaganda princess, and wanna be femme fatale. The saga-length title of her book amplifies the desired fear and Islamaphobia effect and fastens the yoke of ‘terrorist’ on…more
New Zealand: Christians, Muslims Express Solidarity with Egypt
Palestine Chronicle: 25 Aug 2013 – By Julie Webb-Pullman Hundreds of New Zealanders gathered on Friday evening in capital city Wellington’s Civic Square together with Christian and Muslim leaders, to express solidarity with the people of Egypt, and to denounce the brutality of the military regime headed by General Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. Beneath banners bearing R4BIA, the “four-fingered salute” symbolizing solidarity with those massacred at the Rabaa al-Adawiya protest camp, the Muslims present prayed the maghrib prayer led by Sheikh Khalid, followed by a prayer for the dead, and for Egypt. “I ask God – the Mighty and Majestic – by His Beautiful Names and Lofty Attributes to spare the blood of the people of Egypt and to remove the calamity, and to grant the people of Egypt security and peace,” prayed Sheik Khalid, originally from Egypt. Father Gerard Burns, a Roman Catholic priest based in Wellington, told the crowd that he was pleased to join…more
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The New Dark Age 