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International Middle East Media Center

Viva Palestina convoy re-routed through Syria
IMEMC 28 Dec 2009 - Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 00:34, A humanitarian aid convoy on its way to the Gaza Strip has been re-routed through Syria after it was turned away at the Gulf of Aqaba.

Israel To Build 700 Homes For Jewish Settlers
IMEMC 28 Dec 2009 - Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 00:21, The Israeli settler-led government, headed by Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud Party, decided to construct additional 700 homes for Jewish settlers in illegal settlements it considers part of the “Greater Jerusalem” area.

New Settlement constructions bids in Jerusalem
IMEMC 28 Dec 2009 - Monday December 28, 2009 - 14:23, The Israeli Housing Ministry released hundreds of new bids to construct homes in Settlements around East Jerusalem.

Israeli tanks invade areas in northern and southern Gaza Strip
IMEMC 28 Dec 2009 - Monday December 28, 2009 - 13:59, In two separate attacks, Israeli tanks invaded on Monday areas close to the northern and southern Gaza Israeli borders.

The Israeli military kidnaps nine Palestinian civilians from the West Bank
IMEMC 28 Dec 2009 - Monday December 28, 2009 - 13:46, Israeli troops kidnapped on Monday nine Palestinian civilians during pre dawn military invasions targeting a number of West Bank communities.

Abbas: “We Will Prosecute Those War Criminals”
IMEMC 28 Dec 2009 - Monday December 28, 2009 - 13:02, Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, stated that the Palestinian Authority will act on prosecuting all Israeli war criminals who killed women, elderly and children during the aggression on Gaza one year ago.

Ma'an News

Settler stoning causes bus to overturn, hurting 5
12/28/2009 - Nablus - Ma'an - Five people were injured on Monday evening when a bus skidded out of control and overturned after it was pelted with stones thrown by Israeli settlers near the West Bank city of Nablus. The incident occurred on the road near the settlement of Yitzhar. Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) medics said the five were taken to the Women's Union Hospital in Nablus for treatment of slight and moderate injuries. Bus driver Methkal Khaled from Tulkarem, Rifat Arafeh from Jerusalem, Salam Rabaya from Jenin, and Bilal Farraj were injured, the medics said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said that four Palestinians were injured in what the military termed a car accident. She said complaint was filed at the Nablus District Coordination Office (DCO) that the crash had been caused by stone throwing. "After an initial search by IDF soldiers in the area no signs of rock-hurling were found," she said. 

’I will pay the price for this testimony when I return’
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - An estimated 300 Palestinians were killed in the first 48 hours of Israel's winter assault on the Gaza Strip, which entered its second day one year ago today. With an increased focus on Rafah, Israeli warplanes bombarded around 100 more targets on 28 December 2008, leaving about 70 more Palestinians dead, and raising the child death toll to 22 and the civilian toll to 60, including nine women. Israeli jets struck Islamic University in Gaza City, the offices of de facto Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, and the Saraya prison, ironically killing four members of Hamas' domestic rival Fatah, as well as three mosques and 11 homes and apartments. Fires engulfed Rafah after Israeli missiles hit underground fuel pipelines in some 40 sorties on the Strip's tunnel network. Fleeing the flames, terrified residents of Gaza's south attempted by the hundreds to escape to Egypt, but were prevented from leaving by Egyptian security forces. 

Gaza’s children living with trauma
12/28/2009 - Gaza - Ma'an - A year after Israel's assault on Gaza, children still recall moments of fear, scenes of blood, and the sound of shelling. Nearly half of the Gaza Strip's population is under 18. The vast majority of Gaza's children (98% according to one study) have experienced trauma or witnessed violence. Fourteen-year-old Amira Al-Qarm's father and two brothers were killed in front of her eyes when an Israeli rocket struck her family's home in Gaza's Tel Al-Hawwa neighborhood. Although she was also injured by shrapnel, she managed to crawl to shelter in another home where she lay bleeding for four days. Amira recalled the first moments of the war: "In the first strike, the building of the preventive security which was near our home in Tel Al-Hawa was shelled, and I went to search for my brothers who were at school the moment the shelling happened. 

PA wants Journalists Syndicate chief arrested
12/28/2009 - Nablus - Ma'an - The Palestinian Authority's Attorney General Muhammad Al-Mughanni said on Monday he issued arrest warrant for the head of Palestinian Journalists Syndicate Na'im Tubasi after he refused to appear for questioning. "Nobody is above the law, and we are trying to apply law nothing more. We took into account that Tubasi is a legal person as he is heading the syndicate of journalists, but he refuses to appear for questioning," Al-Mughanni told Ma'an. Tubasi was supposed to be questioned by the attorney general in relation to three separate lawsuits. In the first suit, filed by the Journalists Syndicate, Tubasi is accused of embezzlement. Al-Mughanni said an investigation into the issue was postponed until the union could vote on the issue. In the second suit, a Ramallah resident accused Tubasi of refusing to pay for a tract of land that the syndicate purchased. 

Hamas buries two killed in Beirut bombing
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - The Hamas movement laid to rest on Monday two men killed in an explosion in Beirut on Saturday. The two were buried in Al-Burj Ash-Shamali Refugee Camp in Beirut. According to Lebanese sources, forensic experts determined that the blast was caused by a 15 kilogram charge of TNT that was placed underground in the city's Haret Hreik district. Also on Monday, the leader of Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, became the first to point the finger at Israel for the apparent assassination. In his weekly column in the Al-Anbaa newspaper that the incident was a "sabotage act that only confirms the [depth] of Israel's aggressions against Lebanon, either through recurrent violations of Lebanon's airspace, land and sea or through security incidents. " At a news conference on Sunday afternoon, Hamas' top official in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan. . . 

Report: US guarantees to relaunch talks
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - The United States is drafting two "letters of guarantee" for Palestinians and Israelis to serve as the basis for relaunching peace talks, Arab and Western diplomats in Cairo told Agence France-Presse. "US special envoy George Mitchell will present two draft letters of guarantee, one for Israel and one to the Palestinian Authority during his next visit to the region," the Paris-based news agency quoted an Arab diplomat as saying. "The United States are hoping that the two letters will serve as a basis for the relaunch of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations but we don't know if they will satisfy the Palestinians who want a complete freeze of settlement activity before talks resume," the diplomat added. According to a Western diplomat, the US has been engaged in talks with the Palestinian and Egyptian sides over the letters, AFP reported. 

Pro-Gaza protesters ’besieged’ in Cairo
12/29/2009 - London - Ma'an - Surrounded by police, an international group of human rights advocates staged a demonstration at a UN installation in Cairo on Monday after the Egyptian government denied their request to enter Gaza. Former EU parliament vice president Luisa Morgantini, Filipino Senator and president of the Transnational Institute Walden Bello and others held a news conference outside the UN building in Cairo in hopes to negotiate their entry in Gaza via the Rafah crossing. Another member of the Gaza Freedom March group, Holocaust survivor Hedy Epstien, 85, declared a hunger strike in protest of Egypt's decision. More than 600 others joined the demonstration at the UN building, one of the event's organizers told Ma'an in a telephone interview. "We have a lot of police surrounding us - we are besieged," Ziyaad Lunat said, speaking from outside the UN compound on Cairo's Mourad Street. 

Palestinian detained after knife found at checkpoint
12/29/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Israeli border police detained a Palestinian after discovering a 7 cm (about 2. 7 inch) knife in their car at a military checkpoint near Bethlehem on Monday. The arrest reportedly took place at the "Container" checkpoint northeast of Bethlehem, on the road to Ramallah. The knife was confiscated. Israeli soldiers detained nine Palestinians during raids in the West Bank overnight, the military said earlier on Monday. [end] 

Two Gaza crossings open, others closed
12/28/2009 - Gaza - Ma'an - Israeli authorities decided to open the Kerem Shalom and Karni crossings into Gaza on Monday while keeping the Nahal Oz crossing closed. Palestinian liaison official Raed Fattouh said 77 truckloads of commercial products and humanitarian aid would be allowed into Gaza through Kerem Shalom crossing in addition to limited quantities of cooking gas and industrial diesel badly needed to run the Strip's only power plant. He added that 70 truckloads of wheat and animal feed through Karni crossing confirming that the Nahal Oz crossing will remain closed. Gaza has no crossing point with Egypt equipped for importing goods. Greater quantities of goods are transferred through smuggling tunnels dug under the Egypt-Gaza border. 

Nine detained in Israeli night raids
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israeli forces detained nine "wanted" Palestinians during overnight operations in the West Bank, the military said. A military official said two people were arrested in Qalandiya south of Ramallah, one in Biddu also south of Ramallah, two in Surif near Hebron, and four in Beit Awwa southwest of Hebron. [end] 

Lawyer says sick client sentenced 10 years
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - An Israeli court issued a 10-year sentence for a prisoner from Beit Fajjar, near Bethlehem, who suffers from a rare skin disease, according to his attorney. In a statement, 24-year-old Abdul-Hadi Muhammad Taqatqa's lawyer said Israel's prison service has failed to offer treatment for the disorder, which causes burn-like marks. Taqatqa was first detained three years ago, the attorney added. [end] 

In photos: Gaza marks war anniversary
12/28/2009 - Hamas-affiliated security officers march during a ceremony marking the one-year anniversary of Israel`s Gaza assault. Israel launched the three-week offensive on 27 December last year, purportedly to end projectile fire on Israeli border towns. About 1,400 Palestinians were killed during the offensive, including hundreds of civilians. A Palestinian family is seen outside their tent in Jabaliya`s Ezbet Abed Rabbo district in northern Gaza, an area heavily hit during the winter assault. On Sunday, the Strip marked one year since the start of the deadliest offensive waged by Israel since 1967 on the isolated enclave, swathes of which still remain in ruins. Hamas supporters burn posters depicting Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, , chief of staff Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi, former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, and former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert during a demonstration marking the war anniversary in the northern Gaza refugee camp of Jabaliya. 

Al-Aqsa Brigades claim Gaza shelling
12/28/2009 - Gaza - Ma'an - The Al-Aqsa Brigades, the armed wing of Fatah, said on Monday that they fired a homemade projectile overnight at an Israeli installation near the Kissufim crossing in the central Gaza Strip. The group said in a statement that this was in retaliation for the Israeli operation in the West Bank city of Nablus on Saturday when three Al-Aqsa-affiliated men were killed. An Israeli military spokesperson said officials were not aware of any such event. "From an initial check the IDF is not aware of any shelling or any rocket falls in the Kissufim area," a military representative said over the phone. Israeli special forces killed the three Nablus men alleging that they were linked to the fatal shooting of a settler on Thursday night. Also on Saturday, Israeli force shot death three Palestinians who Israel claimed tried to enter Israel. Palestinian officials said the three were collecting scrap metal near the border. 

Abbas to talk peace with Saudi king on Tuesday
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - President Mahmoud Abbas is to visit Saudi Arabia to discuss with King Abdullah Ibn Abdul-Aziz means of reviving the moribund peace process. The two leaders will also address Hamas-Fatah reconciliation and the possibility of ending the Palestinian political crisis that has persisted since Hamas' June 2007 takeover of the Gaza Strip. Palestinian Authority (PA) Waqf and Religious Affairs Minister Mahmoud Al-Habbash told the Saudi newspaper Okath that Abbas' visit to kingdom would last one day. "The visit is of special importance as it coincides with a critical stage of the Palestinian cause because of Israel's recklessness toward international resolutions," Al-Habbash was quoted as saying. Al-Habbash added that the visit would also be an opportunity to update the Saudi leadership on the situation in Palestine. 

UK to send £50 million to PA, UNRWA
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - Britain marked the first anniversary of Israel's war no Gaza on Sunday by announcing a 50 million pound aid package for Palestinians. According to the UK's Independent newspaper, most of the funding will go the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah, while 7 million pounds has been earmarked for Gaza. Five million will pay for teachers at schools run by the UN relief agency UNRWA. Douglas Alexander, the UK's International Development Secretary, was quoted saying "Better education in Gaza, free from extremist influences, is key to building the region's future. " The Independent also notes that UNRWA's operations director in Gaza, John Ging, who welcomed the British donation, said ending the Israeli blockade of Gaza would help combat extremism. International donors pledged nearly four billion US dollars to rebuild Gaza from the war at a conference in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm Ash-Sheikh in March. 

White House criticizes new Israeli settlement plan
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - The White House is opposed to Israel's plan to build nearly 700 new settlement units in and around occupied East Jerusalem, its press secretary, Robert Gibbs, announced late Monday. "The United States opposes new Israeli construction in East Jerusalem. The status of Jerusalem is a permanent status issue that must be resolved by the parties through negotiations and supported by the international community," he said in a statement. "Neither party should engage in efforts or take actions that could unilaterally pre-empt, or appear to pre-empt, negotiations. Rather, both parties should return to negotiations without preconditions as soon as possible," Gibbs added. Israel announced its intention to build hundreds of new houses in settlements in East Jerusalem earlier Monday. According to the Israeli daily Haaretz, government spokesman Mark Regev said. . . 

Report: Israel ready to respond to UN on Gaza findings
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - An Israeli news outlet reported on Monday that the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs completed its response to a UN report alleging war crimes in Gaza. Israel refused to cooperate with South African Jurist Richard Goldstone's UN Fact Finding Mission into last winter's Gaza war. In November the UN General Assembly asked Israel and Palestinian authorities to carry out their own investigations of the allegations in Goldstone's 575-page report on the Gaza war. The website of Israel's Reshet Bet radio station reported that Israel will soon deliver its response to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon after Israel's political and military leaders debate whether to make public their findings. The news site also said that Israel's response was the result of months of deliberations involving the Prime Minister's Office, the Justice Ministry, the National Security Council, and the Foreign Ministry. 

Swap deal: Identity of German middleman revealed
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - A German newspaper revealed last week the identity of the German intermediary who is brokering the secret prisoner swap negotiations between Hamas and Israel. The German newspaper Tagesspiegel revealed that the mediator is Gerhard Conrad, a renowned expert on the Arab world in the German intelligence service BND. Since early summer, the paper reported, Conrad has been shuttling between Jerusalem, Gaza, and Cairo, in an effort to arrange an exchange of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in return for Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier captured by Palestinian fighters who tunneled into Israel in June 2006. Little is known about Conrad, except that he was reported to be the brokered the successful 2008 prisoner exchange between Israel and Hizbullah. Israel released five live prisoners and around 200 bodies in return for the remains of two soldiers captured at the onset of the 2006 war with the Lebanese group. 

Jerusalem sheikh urges higher social expenditures
12/28/2009 - Jerusalem - Ma'an - Sheikh Ekrima Sabri, head of the Supreme Islamic Committee in Jerusalem, called on Monday for the allocation of 500 million US dollars to support health, education, and housing projects in the city. Speaking at the Arab Parliament Union in Cairo, Sabri suggested establishing a housing fund for newlyweds in Jerusalem. In an interview with Ma'an, Ekrima said the meeting tackled a number of issues, including violence at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, over which he urged the international community to do a better job protecting holy sites from Israeli extremists. [end] 

US criticizes new settlement plan
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - The White House is opposed to Israel's plan to build just under 700 new settlement units in and around occupied East Jerusalem, its press secretary, Robert Gibbs, said in the following statement:"The United States opposes new Israeli construction in East Jerusalem. The status of Jerusalem is a permanent status issue that must be resolved by the parties through negotiations and supported by the international community. "Neither party should engage in efforts or take actions that could unilaterally pre-empt, or appear to pre-empt, negotiations. Rather, both parties should return to negotiations without preconditions as soon as possible. "The United States recognizes that Jerusalem is a deeply important issue for Israelis and Palestinians, and for Jews, Muslims, and Christians. We believe that through good faith negotiations the parties can mutually agree on. . . 

Peres meets with Christian leaders in Jerusalem
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israeli President Shimon Peres hosted Christian leaders at a traditional ceremony in Jerusalem on Monday, his office said in a statement. Representatives of the Greek, Latin, Armenian, and other communities were in attendance, the statement said. "It is Israel's responsibility to make sure every believer can pray to his or her Lord without interruption. Israel is deeply committed to protecting the holy sites for every religion. We will not tolerate any offense toward any church, mosque, or synagogue," Peres was quoted as saying. [end] 

PA police crush 72 stolen cars in Ramallah
12/28/2009 - Ramallah - Ma'an - Palestinian Authority police in Ramallah said on Monday they confiscated and destroyed 72 stolen cars. The police said the cars were crushed into "iron cubes" which will be sold in an auction. The proceeds will be transferred to the ministry of finance. A statement said that other confiscated cars are awaiting a judge's order to be destroyed. Separately police said they arrested 10 people in Ramallah on charges of robbery and drug trafficking. Eight of the suspects were charged in connection with the sale of hashish. Another two were arrested for stealing 60,000 Israeli shekels worth of goods from a warehouse and cars. The arrests of the two accused thieves came after a Ramallah resident complained that his car was stolen and the robbers demanded money in return for the vehicle. 

PSE drops: Al-Quds Index down 0.42% on Monday
12/28/2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - Stocks fell on the Palestine Securities Exchange in the West Bank city of Nablus on Monday. At the close of trading, the Al-Quds Index stood at 482. 38, decreasing 2. 03 points (0. 42%). Trading volume was 582,251 shares traded for a total value of 906,996. 16 US dollars, in 292 trades. The shares of 24 companies were traded. The shares of 11 firms rose, while nine fell. The top five gainers were NIC by 4. 87%, QUDS by 4. 39%, PRICO by 4. 17%, AIG by 3. 90%, and MIC by 3. 51%. The top five losers were PEC by 2. 88%, ISBK by 2. 82%, AMB by 2. 78%, AIB by 2. 54%, and AHC by 2. 44%. [end] 

Ha'aretz Defense page

Uruknet

An International Crime Called Gaza
Uruknet A fully pre-meditated international crime of genocide has been taking place during the last 62 years in the heart of the Arab World. The victims are the Palestinian people especially those in the Gaza Strip. The assassin is the worst ever terrorist group deceptively called the Israeli Defense Forces under the leadership of the theocratically most racist "god's chosen" deceitfully...

Video: Fears remain after Gaza war
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - One year after the start of Israel's war on Gaza, Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros revisits a family she met during the assault. Rima Abid, the mother, says that even though the bombings have stopped, reminders of the war are still present in the family's daily life. Her children are afraid to sleep alone, fearing there might...

Viva Palestina: A Report from Aqaba
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Just as the world was shocked and outraged one year ago with Israel barbarically dropping bombs on civilians in the Gaza Strip including banned white phosphorous, it is just as appalled now with a new crime being perpetrated against the Gazans once again. A convoy called Viva Palestina had started traveling from London, England on December...

EGYPT: Are there hidden motives behind blocking of Gaza aid convoy?
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - The stranding of the Viva Palestina humanitarian convoy in the Jordanian port of Aqaba since Thursday has prompted speculation over why the group is being prevented entry into the besieged Gaza Strip through Egyptian territories via the Nuweiba port. Led by British lawmaker George Galloway, the convoy, whose volunteers have topped 500 carrying medical supplies, food...

Gaza massacre reflections
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - The anniversary of the first day of Israel's massacre of Gaza last winter passed yesterday. Palestinians still locked in Gaza couldn't avoid thinking about that hell, recalling to others where they were when the first strikes hit...what they did, what they thought, what they saw and smelled and heard. At 11 am yesterday I'm in a...

Video: A Day in the Life of a Palestinian Child in Gaza
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Imagine never knowing one day of peace in your life, nor ever having hope..or dreams for your future. Imagine being in a constant state of terror and hunger. Welcome to the Gaza of the 21st century! Most of us just want a dry roof over our heads, food in our stomachs and health and safety for...

Video: Witness - Gaza Fixer 2
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Raed Atharmneh has been the right-hand man for journalists covering Gaza for many years, providing essential knowledge, contacts and logistical backup for a number of reporters. In 2006 he became part of the news story himself, when 18 members of his family were killed by an Israeli bomb. In Gaza Fixer 2, filmmakers George Azar and...

Iran holds bodies of slain protesters
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Iranian authorities said Monday that they were holding the bodies of five slain anti-government protesters, including the nephew of the opposition leader, in what appeared to be an attempt to prevent activists from using their funerals as a platform for more demonstrations. Pro-reform Web sites and activists said the government also detained at least eight prominent...

Iran seizes opposition figures
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Security forces in Iran have arrested a number of prominent critics of the government in the wake of opposition protests that left as many as eight people dead in Tehran, the capital. Ebrahim Yazdi, who served as foreign minister in the early months of Iran's 1979 revolution, and Emadeddin Baghi, a human rights campaigner and journalist,...

A cold, lonely place called dishonour
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - On December 27 2008 Israel launched a murderous air assault against 1.5 million men, women and children in the most overcrowded piece of land on Earth - the Gaza Strip. Starved, besieged, yet unbowed, they could do nothing except endure as the bombs and missiles rained down, targeting hospitals, schools, civic buildings, homes, police stations and...

Abortions, Cancer, Diseases and ... in Gaza
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Al - Dameer Human Rights Organization issued a Position Paper on Health and Environmental Problems in the Gaza Strip that Lead to an Increase in the Number of Babies Born with Birth Defects, Abortion, and Cancer Diseases. On Sunday, 20 December 2009, Al Dameer Association for Human Rights published a position paper on "Health and Environmental...

Gaza aid convoy to change course
Uruknet December 28, 2009 - Organisers of Viva Palestina aid convoy, which is trying to reach the Gaza Strip, have now agreed to go via Syria en route to Egypt. The agreement came after a Turkish mediator reached a deal with the Egyptian consul in Jordan's Red Sea port of Aqaba. The convoy will now head to the Syrian port of...

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