5/12/07

From the Shadows…
Layla Anwar, An Arab Woman Blues
World War II with its ghettos, its camps, its bombs, its rapes…The Reich all over again… The names have changed though. They are called Mohamed, Hassan, Khalid and Muntasir-the Victorious. It is no Aushwitz, its called Adhamiya, Ameriya, Adil…and Gaza. There are no 6 pointed stars, just a scan of irises and a badge… And maybe a tattoo so you can be recognized, if you ever get lost, or if you are found lying with the dead decomposing stray dogs in a garbage dump… There is no Gestapo, only GI’s roaming around, obsessed with the dark faces whose name they can’t even pronounce. The American obsession with Eye Raq. With Iraq. What a strange obsession. What a fixation. Who would have thought that some American, who can’t even spell his own name will be here, polluting this land with his arsenal, with his semen, with his name, with his presence… Who would have thought that the land of Ur, the sacred land of the prophets will be soiled by some smelly rubber boot made in China?…

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Why Israel Has No “Right To Exist” The Annapolis meeting is a con
Oren Ben-Dor
…A Jewish state is a state which exists more for the sake of whoever is considered Jewish according to various ethnic, tribal, religious, criteria, than for the sake of those who do not pass this test. What precisely are the criteria of the test for Jewishness is not important and at any rate the feeble consensus around them is constantly reinvented in Israel . Instigating violence provides them with the impetus for doing that. What is significant, thought, is that a test of Jewishness is being used in order to constitutionally protect differential stakes in, that is the differential ownership of, a polity. A recognition of Israel ‘s right to exist as a Jewish state is a recognition of the Jews special entitlement, as eternal victims, to have a Jewish state. Such a test of supreme stake for Jews is the supreme criterion not only for racist policy making by the legislature but also for a racist constitutional interpretation by the Supreme Court…

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A generous offer to the Palestinian refugees?
Neta Golan, IMEU
…Under international humanitarian law the right of refugees to return to their homes is an inalienable, individual human right. Like all human rights, it is invaluable and cannot be bought. Under Israel and Bush’s “solution”, Palestinian refugee families who had been expelled from what is now Israel would be consigned to return, not to their homes, but to small, non-contiguous parts of less than 22% of their original homeland. Jews from anywhere in the world, on the other hand, would be free to “return” to more than 78% of historic Palestine, frequently to live on land seized from those same Palestinian refugees. Such clear discrimination against Palestinian refugees and privileging of Jews from anywhere in the world illustrates clearly that these proposals would further a separate but unequal solution that cannot result in peace.

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For Iraqi Refugees A Haven Becomes a Dilemma
Thanassis Cambanis, The New York Times
When the Lebanese police caught him in a routine sweep earlier this year, Jaffar Sadiq al-Lami, an illegal Iraqi immigrant, figured he would spend a month or two in jail and be released with a warning, like the previous two times he had been arrested.1205 09 But Mr. Lami, 50, found himself facing a stark choice that is increasingly being presented to Iraqi refugees here under a new policy adopted by Lebanese authorities: stay in jail indefinitely, or go back to Iraq. After seven months in jail, he could not stand the conditions in captivity any longer, his family said. Last week, he flew to Baghdad, the capital of a war-torn country he had not been to in a decade….

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Olmert will head Israeli cabinet discussion on Gaza strip invasion
IMEMC
Israeli media reported that no International bodies have committed to sending military forces into Gaza to restore order and security. At the same time Israeli security sources say that the military predicts that a wide-scale invasion of Gaza with the purpose of destroying the resistance fighters infrastructure, would take several months to execute. The same sources reported that Special Israeli Security forces must propose other possible resolutions on how the Israeli forces will exit from the Strip….

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US Official: Iraq Needs Oil Law
BRADLEY BROOKS, AP
A top U.S. Treasury official said Tuesday that international oil companies are ready to invest in Iraq despite the dangerous security situation but are largely holding off because the nation has not passed a new oil law. Deputy Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt, speaking to reporters during a trip to Iraq, said that until an oil law is enacted, both U.S. and international firms are unlikely to invest heavily in Iraq’s industry….

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I read the news today, o boy
Arablinks
There is an interesting world-turned-upside-down character to the Iraq news today, which beckons us to pay attention. The Mubarak administration in Egypt, the sickest man in the Arab-regime hospital, has suddenly become a diplomatic powerhouse, laying the groundwork for a meeting in Cairo in January on Iraqi national reconciliation (although the only party mentioned in this Al-Masryoun article as invitee that isn’t one of the GreenZone political parties is AMSI and arguably the Sadrists). It is making sure regional Arab regimes support this, and so on and so forth. And Abdulaziz al-Hakim, leader of the SIIC and the (Maliki-loyalist remains of the UIA) made statements in Washington praising Saudi Arabia for its efforts in supporting the Sunni awakening-councils in Iraq. Azzaman describes this as noteworthy because it is the first-ever praise from the UIA leader for the Saudi administration. Egypt the powerful regional broker, and Saudi the great friend of the Shiite-controlled GreenZone? The whole implausibility of it suggests that Condi has finally corralled Egypt and Saudi into some kind of a joint public effort to try and support the GreenZone “political process”…

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How Bad Does IT Have To Get For People To Do The Slightest Little Thing to Support The People of Gaza & Palestine?
Stop The Siege on Gaza
There are many online groups that say they support Palestine. There are thousands & thousands that say they support Palestinian Issues. Here is one way to support the people in Palestine, Join with the many groups and people and support the End The Siege on The Gaza Strip.
stopthesiegeongaza.blogspot.com/
At last look there were only 720 or so signatures on what is suposed to be an urgent petition regards a Siege on the Gaza Strip. At last glance Gaza is supposed to be in Palestine & now there is another petition to help stop the crisis in Gazan hospitals – how bad does it have to get for people to do even the slightest little thing for support of the people of Gaza.

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Tom Hayden and the Dead End Democrats
The Anti-War Enablers
SHARON SMITH
…So what do Hayden and Bennis share in common? Bennis is a close collaborator of the leadership to United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ), the largest national antiwar coalition in the U.S. Hayden was the only Democratic Party politician who attended UFPJ’s third national assembly on June 22nd-24th, which declared as a priority “engaging in the 2008 electoral season to project a peace and justice agenda.” Presumably, Hayden’s and Bennis’ appeals for election-year voter registration together represent the uninspiring consensus of the assembly. To follow this misguided advice will repeat the very mistakes that sidelined the antiwar majority during pro-war John Kerry’s campaign in 2004. All claims to the contrary, an electoral strategy effectively denigrates the importance of antiwar activism during election years-especially when such activism might embarrass pro-war candidates. Look no further back than 2004 to recall the demoralizing consequences for the antiwar movement. All movements must aim to influence government policy. There is no evidence to support the claim that supporting pro-war politicians furthers the aims of the antiwar movement, while there is plenty to discredit it….

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New reconciliation conference in Cairo
Roads to Iraq
Reported today on almesryoon, one of many conferences held before, but the interesting thing about this; AMSI is also invited with “Islamic Party” and “Al-Tawafiq” Party, also Shiites parties like Al-Da’awa and the Sadrists. Also worth to mention that Egyptian diplomat Al-Asha’al who is arranged for this conference said: Egypt wants to restore its role in Iraq particularly and the Arab region generally, this role decreased since the abduction and murder of Ambassador Ihab al-Sharif by the intelligence services of one of Iraq’s neighbors…

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The Israelis Cut of Fuel & Electricity To Gaza Strip Will Also Collapse the Systems of Drinking Water & Sanitation
Hiyam Noir, PalestineFreeVoice
The Israelis continues its strangulation of the Gaza Strip and its 1.5 million inhabitants. The Palestinian General Petroleum Corporation reported that the Israelis have cut the delivery of fuel to a half of its normal supply to the Gaza Strip on Monday.The fuel companies in Gaza Strip imported up to 350,000 liters of diesel and the same amount of gasoline and 300 tons of gas used for cooking on an average. On Tuesday most gas stations have closed and there are not many cars on the roads.Medical services in some health centres were disrupted as petrol stations closed down after Israel cut back fuel supplies to the Gaza Strip. Gaza Strip is completely dependent of fuel import.The normal and average transport of fuel to the people on Gaza Strip tangents over 100 thousands of liters/day…

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Commentary: Was Bush Behind the Iran Report?
Robert Baer, TimesOnline
Bombing Iran, it seems, is now off the table. There’s no other reasonable take on the latest National Intelligence Estimate that concludes Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003. But there is also no doubt that the Bush White House was behind this NIE. While the 16 intelligence agencies that make up the “intelligence community” contribute to each National Intelligence Estimate, you can bet that an explosive, 180-degree turn on Iran like this one was greenlighted by the President. And explode is what the hawks in and outside the Administration are about to do…

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Sick Gazans stuck in queue of death
Nidal al-Mughrabi, Reuters
Born last week with a heart defect, Salem al-Masri needs life-saving surgery. But like hundreds in the Gaza Strip, he and his parents have no permit from Israel to exit the enclave to a suitably equipped hospital. Palestinians suffering serious illnesses have long travelled from Gaza to nearby Israeli hospitals for treatments unavailable at facilities in the territory, which is home to 1.5 million people and was occupied by Israel for 38 years until 2005. However Israel has tightened border restrictions since Hamas Islamists seized control of the coastal enclave in June. It also prevents access to Gaza by sea or air and has ensured a border crossing into Egypt is mostly shut — so hundreds like baby Salem cannot get the care that could save lives….

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What Happens to U.S. Troops Who Commit Mass Murder?
Revolution
While U.S. atrocities in Iraq are generally covered up by the government, military, and mainstream media, there have been a few major incidents that have been impossible to keep completely hidden. In such cases, we may hear calls for an investigation or talk that some troops may get charged. But we rarely hear about what happens after that. Here is a look at three horrific war crimes committed by U.S. forces in Iraq, and what happened afterward to the troops involved…

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Fools Rush In: An Expert Dissection of the NIE Report
Chris Floyd , Empire Burlesque
…Several of the reactions collected by Glenn Reynolds advance the notion that, assuming the NIE is accurate, this demonstrates that the invasion and occupation of Iraq did in fact lead to the elimination of a gravely serious threat, namely, the threat that an Iran with nuclear weapons would have represented. If the invasion and occupation of Iraq prevented such a development, that means the Iraq catastrophe was justified. It is difficult to imagine a more heinously bankrupt moral argument. Iraq itself was no threat to the United States, and it was known to be no threat. We have destroyed Iraq completely, unleashed a genocide that continues with every blood-drenched day that passes, created refugees in the several millions, and wreaked havoc and devastation in numerous other ways. Because Iraq was known to be no threat to the U.S., the U.S. did all this in a criminal war of aggression — precisely the kind of crime against peace for which we properly condemned the Nazi regime. Yet now it is suggested that all this was morally justified — because it may have prevented a threat from arising in another country….

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Three US soldiers killed in Iraq
Africasia, UK
A “complex attack” by insurgents in Iraq’s Salaheddin province killed two US soldiers and wounded another two, one of whom died later of his wounds, the American military said on Wednesday. The soldiers died “as a result of injuries sustained from a complex attack involving an improvised explosive device and small arms fire while conducting operations” in the northern province on Tuesday, a statement said. Two soldiers were wounded in the attack, one of whom died of his wounds on Wednesday, it added…

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Stable Iraq within reach, says Gates as bombs kill 22
AFP
US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday the goal of a stable and democratic Iraq is within reach, during an unannounced visit to Iraq marked by a spate of car bombs that killed 22 people. “More than ever I believe the goal of a secure, stable and democratic Iraq is within reach,” Gates told a news conference after holding a flurry of meetings with Iraqi leaders in the embattled capital. Just ahead of the news conference in Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, a powerful car bomb exploded in a busy street in a nearby suburb, killing 14 people and wounding 32, Iraqi security officials said….

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Israeli army official: Israeli army is ready to invade the Gaza strip
Ghassan Bannoura – IMEMC
The Israeli army chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi stated on Wednesday that the Israeli military forces are ready for a wide scale ground invasion of the Gaza strip. The statement came during an interview Ashkenazi did with Israeli army radio on Wednesday morning. He said” If necessary, we are ready for the possibility of an operation in Gaza”. Army officials calmed that the purpose of the military operation will be to stop the Palestinian resistance from firing home made shells at Israeli areas located near the strip….

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Iraqi Resistance Report for events of Wednesday, 5 December 2007
Translated and/or compiled by Muhammad Abu Nasr, member, editorial board, the Free Arab Voice. www.freearabvoice.org
..In a dispatch posted Wednesday morning, the Yaqen News Agency reported that Dr. Qays Hasan Salman, the Director of the Forensic Medicine Institute has opted to remain in the United States and not return to Iraq after heading up a medical delegation on a visit to North America. Yaqen reported a medical source as saying that Dr. Qays took with him his personal computer which contains important files related to Iraqis killed during the occupation and the real number of bodies of victims of sectarian murder that have been recoved as well as important details regarding deaths in Baghdad and their causes. The source, who asked not to be identified, told Yaqen that Dr. Qays had been put under great pressure to minimize the numbers of victims in the killing that has taken place in Iraq since the US occupation and not to release the genuine information to the press….

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Liberal Hawk Says Iraq No Longer Matters
Ira Chernus, CommonDreams.org
Iraq is now a “Non- Story” and quickly becoming irrelevant to the presidential campaign. So says liberal pundit Peter Beinart. If there’s anything more dangerous than a neoconservative hawk, it’s a liberal hawk. Of course liberal hawks like Beinart want us to believe that public concern about Iraq is fading away. They don’t want the public paying attention as they lock in their plans to keep up to 50,000 U.S. troops permanently on massive military bases in that war-torn country. They don’t want the public to realize that the top three Democratic candidates for the presidential nomination have endorsed the plan to make Iraq an outpost of the empire….

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Caretaker government: A number of medical institutions in Gaza closed down
Palestinian Information Center
The PA caretaker government has announced the closure of a number of clinics and medical centers in the Gaza Strip as a result of the Israeli decision to reduce the fuel supplies to the Gaza Strip, warning of the serious repercussions on the live of dozens of Palestinian patients especially children. In a statement, the government held Fayyad’s unconstitutional government fully responsible for the fuel crisis in Gaza, explaining that the Fayyad government did not pay on purpose the financial dues to the Israeli Dor Alon oil company that exports fuel to Gaza, while paying the dues of the Israeli Bazan oil company that supplies the West Bank with fuel….

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