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News
International Middle East Media Center
Haifa
University bans commemoration of Israeli invasion
IMEMC 29 Dec 2009 -
Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 22:52, Following a similar ban at Hebrew
University, students at the University of Haifa were notified Tuesday
that the administration would not allow their planned protest
commemorating Israel's invasion of Gaza one year ago.
Israeli
tanks open fire at farmers in northern Gaza Strip
IMEMC 29 Dec 2009 -
Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 16:21, A number of Israeli tanks opened
fire on Tuesday midday at Palestinian farmers near the northern Gaza
Israeli borders.
A
patient dies in the Gaza Strip; death toll due to the siege reaches 367
IMEMC 29 Dec 2009 -
Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 16:00, A Palestinian patient was reported
dead on Tuesday after he was unable to leave the besieged Gaza Strip
for medical care.
The
Israeli military kidnaps five civilians from the West Bank
IMEMC 29 Dec 2009 -
Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 15:51, Five Palestinian civilians were
kidnapped by Israeli troops on Tuesday during pre dawn invasions
targeting a number of west Bank communities.
Troops
Invade Bil’in, kidnap two children
IMEMC 29 Dec 2009 -
Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 14:16, Israeli soldiers invaded on Tuesday
at dawn the village of Bil’in, near the Central West Bank city of
Ramallah, and kidnapped two children after breaking into their homes.
Haniyya
Seeks To Expand His Government
IMEMC 29 Dec 2009 -
Tuesday December 29, 2009 - 13:37, Palestinian sources in the Gaza
Strip reported that Ismail Haniyya of Hamas, Prime Minister of the Gaza
government dissolved by President Mahmoud Abbas, is seeking to expand
his government as a number of ministers in his limited governments are
holding several ministerial posts.
Court
overturns segregation of highway 443
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Israel's High Court of Justice decided on
Tuesday to allow Palestinians to use a West Bank highway that had
previously been designated for exclusive Israeli use. The ruling, that
Palestinians may use highway 443 and the nearby Beituniya road, will
not go into effect for several months. The court's justices accepted a
petition from the village of Beit Sira which was filed in 2007 and
backed by 24 other petitioners. According to Israeli news reports,
Justices Dorit Beinisch and Uzi Fogelman ruled that the military must
find an alternative solution to alleged security issues related to
Palestinian use of the road. Before the ban, a section of highway 443
was a main artery for Palestinians in the Ramallah area. The road,
which cuts through the West Bank, linking Jerusalem with Tel Aviv, has
been closed to Palestinians since 2002 after several cases of shooting
along the highway.
Gaza
activists detained at US Embassy in Cairo
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Egyptian police detained 40 American protesters at
the US Embassy in Cairo after they arrived seeking assistance to enter
the Gaza Strip, pro-Palestinian activists said. "Forty were detained
outside the American Embassy," said Ziyaad Lunat, a spokesman for the
Gaza Freedom March. Another activist, Gael Murphy, said in a statement
that she believed US Embassy staff asked Egyptian security to detain
the americans. Organizers say more than 1,400 people from 40 countries
have gathered in Egypt for the Freedom March. They had planned to enter
the Strip on Tuesday through the Rafah border crossing in time for a
march to Israel's Erez border crossing. Egypt informed the group that
they were not allowed to travel to Gaza due to the sensitive situation
on the border. The marchers were at the US Embassy to ask officials'
help in negotiations with the Egyptian government. After negotiations,
Lunat said that the members of the group were permitted to meet with
embassy officials in groups of 10.
Witnesses:
Israeli forces open fire in north Gaza
12/29/2009 - Gaza -
Ma'an - Israeli forces opened fire on Palestinians in the northern Gaza
Strip on Monday night and Tuesday morning, witnesses said. Palestinians
in the area said Israeli forces shot at farmers at 11:30am in the
northern border area. They also said five Israeli tanks entered 300
meters into Palestinian territory and swept the area. Witnesses also
said Israeli soldiers shot at farmers near the Erez crossing point on
Monday night. Seven Israeli vehicles were seen patrolling the area. No
injuries were reported in either incident. On Saturday morning, Israeli
forces shot dead three Palestinians near Erez, claiming they attempted
to enter Israel. Palestinian officials said the three were collecting
scrap metal from the ruins of the industrial zone which was demolished
by the Israeli military.
VIDEO
- US lawmaker: Cut aid to Israel over Gaza blockade
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - A member of the US House of Representatives says he
will push for a cut in aid to Israel if the blockade of the Gaza Strip
is not lifted. Brain Baird, a Democrat representing the Third District
of the state of Washington, told Al-Jazeera television that the US
should impose a financial penalty on Israel if the suffering of Gaza
residents is not eased. "There will be a cost in dollars, in aid, in
support, if some fundamental changes don't happen," he said. Baird
visited Gaza in February along with fellow congressman Kieth Ellison in
the aftermath of Israel's three week offensive on the territory. As a
part of a blockade that began in June 2007, Israel bans all
construction materials from Gaza, preventing reconstruction from the
destruction wrought during the war. According to the Israeli
organization Gisha, The Legal Center for Freedom of Movement,. . .
Rights
group: Israel covers up torture
12/30/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israel systematically prevents accountability over
allegations of torture against its Shit Bet security force, a new
report by the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI)
charges. The group said the 98-page report "exposes an intolerable
reality. ""Officials at the highest levels of Israel's justice system
directly and indirectly thwart the opening of criminal investigations
against torture suspects," the committee said in a statement. The main
finding of the report, titled "Accountability Denied: The Absence of
Investigation and Punishment of Torture in Israel"is that Israel has no
real mechanism for looking into complaints of torture. "This results in
absolute criminal immunity for interrogators who commit grave crimes,"
the committee added. Of hundreds of complaints of torture submitted
over the years, PCATI says not one result in a criminal investigation.
-- Link: PCATI
Report: 10 years, Hundreds of Complaints, No Investigations. . . .
Settler
shoots Palestinian north of Hebron
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - An Israeli settler on Tuesday shot and injured a
Palestinian shepherd near the settlement of Bat Ayin, north of the city
of Hebron, a witness and the Israeli military said. The settlement is
built on lands that were confiscated from Palestinian villages of
Al-Jab'a, Safa, and Surif. Ahmad Shakarna, a taxi driver who witnessed
the shooting, told Ma'an that Nabil Ibrahim Abdul Majid, in his
thirties from Al-Jab'a, and a Bedouin man who lives in the same
village, were herding their sheep in the fields near the village. A
settler from Bat Ayn approached them and ordered them to leave claiming
the land belonged to the settlement, Shakarna said. When the shepherds
tried to explain that the land belongs to their village, and that the
settler in fact was the intruder, a heated argument began, he said.
According to Shakarna, the settler then took out a handgun and shot
Abdul Majid in the shoulder.
Report:
Lebanon fires on Israeli warplanes
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - The Lebanese army said on Tuesday it fired
anti-aircraft rounds at four Israel Air Force warplanes which flew at
low altitude over south Lebanon, Reuters news agency reported. Israeli
warplanes fly over southern Lebanon frequently but are not frequently
fired on, Reuters added. Lebanon and UN officials say the flights
violate Security Council Resolution 1701 that ended a 34-day war
between Israel and Hizbullah guerrillas in 2006. Approached by Ma'an, a
spokesman for the Israeli military said "The IDF does not comment on
Israel Air Force activity or rumors relating to it. "
Gaza:
Entitled to justice in accordance with international law
12/30/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - On 29 December 2008, Hani Al-Mahdi, 27, died when a
Grad-type missile fired from Gaza exploded at a construction site in
Ashkelon. The same day, in a separate incident, Irit Sheetrit, 39, was
killed and several wounded when a Grad exploded in Ashdod. Hamas'
Al-Qassam Brigades claimed responsibility for the attack. Both deaths,
occurring hours apart during the third day of Israel's devastating
assault on the Gaza Strip, were two out of only three cases in which
Israeli civilians were killed by projectile fire during the three-week
operation that began on 27 December 2008. Meanwhile, the Palestinian
toll rose to 364, according to medics, who estimated that 1,500 Gazans
had been injured by then-ongoing airstrikes that continued for a third
day. Israel said its warplanes struck 100 targets, including the
headquarters of five de facto government ministries and the UN Special
Coordinator's Office (UNSCO) in Gaza City.
PCHR:
Gaza Christians aged 16-35 denied Bethlehem permit
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Though Israel announced the issuance of 300 permits
for Christians living in Gaza to exit the Strip and visit Bethlehem for
24 hours on 24 December, investigations revealed that none of those
permits were issued to Christians aged 16-15, a human rights group
says. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR condemned the move,
demanding "Israeli occupation authorities "¦ cancel their decision and
immediately allow all Christians to move freely, to grant access to the
Church of the Nativity and Church of the Resurrection, and to respect
the right to freedom of religion. "PCHR researchers cited Palestinians
sources in Gaza saying Israeli officials "refused to consider any
application for permits for those aged between 16 and 35 from both
sexes for no apparent reason," resulting in a total of at least 550
Christians being denied travel permits to Bethlehem.
Gaza:
Nahal Oz shutdown continues
12/29/2009 - Gaza -
Ma'an - The Nahal Oz fuel transfer station continues to be closed as
Israel insists on sending limited amounts of fuel into Gaza via the
Kerem Shalom crossing, officials confirmed Tuesday. Crossings official
Raed Fattouh said limited amounts of cooking gas will be allowed though
the Kerem Shalom crossing, but noted no industrial diesel for the power
plant would be allowed through. The official noted 103 truckloads of
aid would also be permitted through the crossing. According to the UN
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Nahal
Oz fuel pipelines are operating one out of five days a week.
"Indications suggest that Israel intends to shut down Nahal Oz crossing
entirely in the near future and the direct all fuel imports to the
Kerem Shalom crossing," the office said in their latest Protection of
Civilians report.
Israeli
forces detain four teens, three minors overnight.
12/29/2009 - Salfit
- Ma'an - Two 16-year-old boys were among four detained by Israeli
troops overnight, while dozens of citizens reported harassment at the
hands of the invading soldiers. Bil'in residents reported the invasion
of Israeli soldiers into the village at 2am Tuesday morning. A
statement from the local Popular Committee said approximately 50
soldiers entered the area on food accompanied by a dozen military
vehicles. A statement from the committee said solders "abducted Hamouda
Imad Yassin (16) and Ibrahim Khalil Yassin (16) after searching their
homes. "The two had just been released from Israeli prison, where they
spent five months. "This is the latest in a series of raids and arrests
that have continued in Bil'in [during] the last six months," the
statement said. Palestinian police confirmed the raid and detentions,
noting several homes were invaded.
PA
cancels arrest warrant for Journalists Syndicate chief
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Palestinian Authority (PA) Attorney General
Muhammad Al-Mughanni announced will cancel the arrest warrant against
head of Palestinian Journalists Syndicate Na'im Tubasi issued on
Monday. Al-Mughanni told Ma'an on Tuesday that the decision to stop
pursuing Tubasi was made out of consideration for the public interest,
particularly the Syndicate's interest as the body prepares to hold
elections. The warrant was issued after Na'im Tubasi refused to appear
for questioning in connection with three separate lawsuits. In one
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 another suit, a
Ramallah resident accused Tubasi of refusing to pay for a tract of land
that the syndicate purchased.
Israel
arrests nuclear whistleblower Vanunu
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israeli police arrested nuclear whistleblower
Mordechai Vanunu on Monday for violating a ban on speaking to
foreigners. His lawyer said he was arrested over a romantic
relationship with a Norwegian woman. "Vanunu was arrested [for] a
relationship between a man and a woman, with a Norwegian citizen,"
attorney Avigdor Feldman told reporters, as quoted by Reuters news
agency. "He is not being accused of giving any secrets. She is not
interested in nuclear business -- she's interested in Mordechai Vanunu
[and he] is probably interested in her," Feldman said, according to the
agency. Police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld told Ma'an Vanunu was
arrested late on Monday night "after meeting with a number of
foreigners, which was against the previous court decision about his
status. "Rosenfeld said Vanunu was questioned and appeared before the
Magistrate's court in Jerusalem on Tuesday.
Egypt
detains 4 Palestinians entering via tunnels
12/29/2009 -
Al-Arish - Ma'an - Egyptian security forces detained four Palestinians
in Rafah after they allegedly snuck into the country via smuggling
tunnels running from the Salah Ad-Din border area. Security sources
told Ma'an the men had entered Egypt in order to finish smuggling deals
with the local merchants. Intelligence reportedly questioned the men on
the identity of Egyptian smugglers, but did not indicate if any names
had been disclosed. One of the men detained was identified as
31-year-old "HR," who allegedly disclosed the location of the tunnels
he used to enter Egypt. The tunnels were reportedly on private Egyptian
land, while two others were located on public lands. Egyptian
investigators said they were continuing to question the detained men
for more information on the tunnel industry.
Since
the war by the numbers - Gisha
12/29/2009 - From
the Israeli organization, Gisha, The Legal Center for Freedom of
Movement - Despite the fact that a year has passed since the start of
the Gaza military operation, the damage caused by three weeks of war
and the near total closure preceding it has yet to be repaired. The
reason: Israel's ongoing policy blocking goods from entering the Gaza
Strip, including a near total ban on reconstruction materials. Funds
for Reconstruction: "¢Reconstruction funds pledged at the Sharm
Ash-Sheikh Summit Some $4. 5 billion. "¢Number of months international
community negotiated with Israeli government over mechanism for
transferring reconstruction funds and materials: Nine months. "¢
Implementation of mechanism for transferring reconstruction funds and
materials: None. Housing: "¢ During the war: Some 3,500 homes were
completely destroyed, some 2,800 sustained heavy damage, and some
54,000 were lightly damaged. -- Link: Gisha
- One Year Since Gaza War : No Access By the Numbers. . . .
Witnesses:
Soldiers assault four workers
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israeli soldiers assaulted four Palestinian workers
on Tuesday night in the West Bank village of Al-Walajah, near
Bethlehem, witnesses told Ma'an. Residents of the village described how
the soldiers broke the legs of three men, and arrested a fourth, taking
him to an unknown detention center. Three of the men were dragged to a
field in Al-Walajah, the witnesses added. The reason for the reported
assault was unclear. Residents of Al-Walajah said three of the men were
taken to the hospital in the neighboring town of Beit Jala. One of the
men was identified as Anees Kabha, a resident of the northern West
Bank. An Israeli military spokesman said the report would be checked.
Nazareth
mayor targeted in grenade attack on home
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Nazareth Mayor Ramez Jeraisi's home was the target
of an attack Monday evening, which saw the official's bodyguard injured
lightly and the property damaged, Israeli media reported. Attackers
threw a grenade at the home, a rare incident in the city, a large
Palestinian community situated inside Israel. The Israeli daily
newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth's Hebrew edition quoted Jaraisi as saying
there had never been threats to him personally, but he added that there
have been threats to public figures in the past. "I hope police will
investigate the incident seriously," Jaraisi said, and described the
assault as "exceeding all red lines. . . gangsters must be fought. "
Fatah
official: Deadly Beirut blast was an accident
12/29/2009 -
Ramallah - Ma'an - Fatah Central Committee member Sultan Abul Enein
said on Tuesday that the blast in Beirut on Saturday that caused the
deaths of two Hamas members was an accident. He said in an interview
with Voice of Palestine radio that the explosion resulted from a
"misuse of arms," and had no security or political significance. He did
not say on what basis he made these assertions. Abul Enein served as
one of Fatah's senior leaders in Lebanon for years before moving to the
West Bank in August. The two Hamas members were buried on Tuesday.
Hamas has not publicly accused anyone of carrying out the apparent
bombing. Speaking at the funeral on Monday, Hamas' top leader in
Lebanon, Osama Hamdan declined to speculate on who was responsible.
Also on Monday Lebanon's official National News Agency reported that
the blast had been caused by 15 kilograms of TNT.
PA:
Police officer injured by settler stoning
12/29/2009 -
Ramallah - Ma'an - The Palestinian Authority (PA) said on Tuesday one
of its police officers was injured by stones thrown by Israeli settlers
at his car in the village of Biddu, south of Ramallah. A statement from
the general administration of the Palestinian police said settlers
blocked the road and threw rocks at the officer's car, breaking the
windshield and injuring the man. The statement added that the officer
managed to drive past the settlers to the police station in Biddu,
where other officers took him to a hospital. [end]
Hamas
leaders meet in Damascus for talks
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Top Hamas leaders from the Gaza Strip and the
diaspora met in Damascus Monday for talks expected to last until late
Tuesday evening, likely around the latest Israeli response to mediated
prisoners swap talks, a source told Syria's Al-Watan newspaper. The
high-profile delegates from Gaza included Mahmoud Zahhar and Khalil
Al-Hayya, who arrived in Damascus from Cairo. Deportation of key
prisoners to Gaza and abroad is the latest offer by Israel in the swap
talks in order to meet the demands of Hamas and other factions for the
release of a specific list of 450 prisoners plus 550 of Israel's
choosing. At issue is Israel's claim that the release of approximately
100 of the 450 into the West Bank would pose a security risk. Israel
calls the 100 'prisoners with blood on their hands,' and initially
refused their release.
Erekat:
New Jerusalem homes further sabotage US effort for peace
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Every home Israel builds is a resounding "No" to
international efforts to foster peace between Israel and Palestinians,
Chief Palestinian Negotiator Saeb Erakat said in a statement on Monday.
Responding to Israel's latest announcement that a further 692
settlement units will be built in East Jerusalem, for which Palestinian
land will be confiscated, Erekat called Israel's settlement moratorium
a "mockery. " Israel has further sabotaged international efforts to
resume permanent status negotiations, Erekat's statement said, noting
the Sunday approval the additional units followed close on the heels of
the decision to construct 900 units in Gilo, which came only days
before Israel announced its partial moratorium on construction in West
Bank settlements. Construction continues in several West Bank
settlements, however, despite the stop work orders delivered by the
Israeli army.
Egypt:
Viva Palestina must obey our rules
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - The Egyptian government has the right to determine
through which port aid convoys to Gaza can arrive, and to request
cooperation from the activists, Husam Zaki, spokesman of the Egyptian
foreign ministry told Egyptian TV on Monday. Zaki told Egypt's Channel
Two that activists had finally listened to government orders, saying
they would re-route the convoy to travel via Al-Arish, the
Mediterranean port, rather than Nuweiba, the Red Sea port. Viva
Palestina organizers lamented in a statement that the demand would "add
days and costs to the journey, as it [would] entail hiring ships and
sailing around the Sinai Peninsula through the Suez canal. "The first
two convoys also traveled to Gaza via Al-Arish, and organizers did not
explain why they had changed course for this trip. The first Viva
Palestina convoy, backed by British MP George Galloway, started in the
UK, went south to Spain, then across North Africa to Egypt.
Hamas
denies rejecting prisoner swap offer
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Hamas denied on Tuesday that its leaders
rejected an Israeli offer for a prisoner exchange that would secure the
release of a thousand Palestinian prisoners in return for an Israeli
soldier. A Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, said that no
decisions had been made and no statements issued on the deal. "The
movement is still conducting internal consultations on the deal and it
is still too early to talk about any results," he said, denying a
report from Al-Arabiya television that the group turned down an Israeli
offer. Al-Arabiya reported that Hamas leaders met in Damascus for 12
hours, after which they decided to reject Israel's most recent offer,
saying it was less than what was agreed upon between the parties. The
Dubai-based network also quoted Hamas sources saying that Israel is
delaying the deal by refusing to release 50 Hamas officials it holds in
its prisons.
Hamas:
PA security detained seven affiliates in West Bank
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Palestinian Authority security services detained
seven Hamas affiliates from locations in Hebron, Nablus and Qalqiliya
overnight, party officials said Tuesday. Among those detained were the
mother and daughter of a Palestinian currently being held by Israel.
The women were identified asNahla Samara and her granddaughter daughter
Fida Samara by Hamas sources. In Hebron,a statement from Hamas leaders
said Walid Khader Humeidat from Bani Na'im village was detained, while
Anas Riyad from Meithalun village was detained in the Jenin
governorate. From Nablus, the statement said, Abd Ar-Rahman and Omar
Ashour were also detained. The detentions could not be independently
verified by Ma'an.
PA
cabinet discusses airport location
12/29/2009 -
Ramallah - Ma'an - The Special Ministerial Committee on the Palestine
International Airport briefed the Palestinian Authority Cabinet on its
feasibility study during the Monday meeting of the ministers in
Ramallah. The update focused on alternatives for airport locations
based on the criteria set out by specialists, and the Cabinet decided
on a location between Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley. The Cabinet
further recommended the formation of three committees to represent the
government institutions involved in the follow-through of the project.
One of the committees will examine the requirements for rehabilitation
of the Qalandiya and Gaza Airports. Qalandiya was used by Jordan during
its rule over the West Bank between 1948 and 1967, and the airport was
annexed to Israel when it occupied the area. The Rafah airport in Gaza
operated from 1998 to 2001, when it was bombed by the Israeli airforce
during the second Intifada.
Hamas:
We won’t sign Egyptian unity plan
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an -Hamas does not want to sign the Egyptian
reconciliation document, but the party is ready to talk unity, Hamas
politburo deputy chief Moussa Abu Marzouq told Saudi newspapers
Tuesday. Hamas leaders are ready to talk about reconciliation, but not
on the terms of the Cairo document, the leader said, as high-profile
Hamas leaders met in Damascus to discuss the same issues, along with
Israel's latest offer in prisoner swap talks. Abu Marzouq said the
issue of reconciliation was at the top of the party's priority list,
along with securing a prisoner release in exchange for a captured
Israeli soldier. Hamas will not think of signing the document unless
our comments are taken into account, Abu Marzouq said, noting that if
Egypt was not capable of brokering a deal [then] Palestinians would go
elsewhere for assistance.
Haniyeh
plans to enlarge government
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Palestinian de facto Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh
is planning to appoint more ministers to his Gaza-based administration,
sources in the government said on Tuesday. The sources said the move is
intended to ease the workload of some ministers who are currently
responsible for more than one portfolio. "These new steps are made to
support the administration of the government and provide well support
to Palestinians," said a Gaza government official who asked not to be
named. The last addition to Haniyeh's cabinet was that of Interior
Minister Fathi Hammad, who replaced Said Siyam, who was killed by an
Israeli airstrike targeting his brother's home during last winter's
war. Haniyeh became prime minister in 2006 when Hamas won parliamentary
elections. Tension persisted with the rival Fatah movement until 2007
when Hamas took full control of Gaza, shutting down Fatah's security
forces.
Barak
under heavy guard following settler threats
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Israel has put Defense Minister Ehud Barak
under heavy security out of concern that right-wing settlers could
attempt to harm him, Israel's Channel 2 television reported on Tuesday.
Settlers could attack Barak over his role in enforcing the a partial
moratorium on construction in West Bank settlements, the report said.
The minister recieved a threatening letter similar to those to Israeli
Police Commissioner David Cohen last week. The Israeli government
declared the 10-month freeze, which does not apply to the greater
Jerusalem area or construction that began earlier, in a gesture to the
US, which wants renewed peace talks. The move angered settlers, who saw
it as an attack on them. The director of Israel's Shin Bet security
service was quoted in the Channel 2 news report saying that settler
extremists would try to sow chaos in order to disrupt enforcement of
the freeze.
PSE
rises: Al-Quds Index up 0.81% on Tuesday
12/29/2009 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Stocks rose on the Palestine Securities Exchange in
Nablus on Tuesday. At the close of trading the Al-Quds Index stood at
486. 3, increasing by 3. 92 points (0. 81%). Trading volume was
1,309,531 shares traded for a total value of 1,943,243. 04 US dollars,
in 310 trades. The shares of 24 companies were traded. The share prices
of 11 companies rose, and five declined. The top five gainers were AHC
by 5. 00%, AZIZA by 4. 88%, AMB by 4. 29%, PRICO by 4. 00%, MIC by 3.
39%. The top five losers were PID by 4. 12%, GMC by 2. 53%, WASSEL by
1. 72%, PEC by 0. 99%, and JCC by 0. 34%. In other financial news the
Bank of Israel announced on Tuesday that it hiked the interest rate for
January 2010 by a quarter point to 1. 25%.
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - It's doubtful whether Israel can allow itself to ignore U.S. wishes and stand alone against Iran's response.
Hamas threatens to kidnap more IDF soldiers if Shalit swap fails
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Hamas awaiting German mediator's return to Mideast to give its official response to proposed deal.
High Court allows Palestinians to use Israeli highway
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Second time in months Supreme Court orders the military to open roads deemed off-limits to Palestinians.
Lebanon army says it fired at Israeli jets in south
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Israel Air Force warplanes routinely fly over Lebanon but are rarely fired upon.
Officer shoots Palestinian said to have tried to steal rifle
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - The officer claimed that a Palestinian dressed as a shepherd approached him at around noon on Tuesday.
Barak: New Iran nuclear facility resistant to regular bombs
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Defense Minister calls 2010 'year of threats, opportunities', encouraged by Abbas interest in renewing peace talks.
U.S.: Israel plan to build in East Jerusalem harms peace process
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Israel to build 700 new homes in East Jerusalem; state also may seize private Palestinian land in West Bank.
More than 140 job-seekers apply to help IDF enforce settlement freeze
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Applicants must have completed full military service, have a drivers license, good speaking skills and know how to interpret a map.
Israel preparing to hand northern Ghajar over to UN
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - IDF plan to pull out from divided Lebanon border down angers residents, who want to return to Syria control.
Israeli hurt in second West Bank road attack this week
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Woman suffers burns after firebomb hits bus; IDF soldier hurt in clashes with Palestinians in Hebron.
Bedouin mayor urges IDF to limit arms issue, after soldier kills comrade
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - IDF soldier shot in chest by comrade in Be'er Sheva mall as shoppers looked on; second soldier arrested.
Hamas arrives in Egypt for Shalit talks, as Israel warns deal 'not close'
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - PM says Israel still 'not close' to closing deal with Hamas for release of abducted IDF soldier.
Hamas marks year since war, but Gazans stay home
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - After days of heavy advertising, only a trickle of Hamas loyalists turn up to a commemoration in Gaza City.
Israel's military avatar: Robots on the battlefield
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - With self-detonating grenades, thinking bullets and robot warriors, humans on the frontline could soon be a thing of the past.
Despite U.S. rap, Netanyahu says IDF will keep 'aggressively' defending Israelis
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Police: IDF snatched gun used to kill Israeli; U.S.: Explain killing of militants following attack.
At militants' funeral, Palestinians vow revenge on Israel
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - IDF kills three Al Aqsa operatives responsible for death of West Bank settler earlier this week.
B'Tselem: IDF may have executed unarmed Palestinian militants
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - IDF officer: Militants refused to surrender, posed a threat, and were shot to neutralize the threat.
Hamas: Response on Shalit deal in three days
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Hamas leadership split over exiling prisoners, with Gaza leadership more willing to accept deal.
Israeli killed in West Bank shooting attack
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Security forces alerted to the scene to investigate the incident; victim apparently resident of settlement.
Year after Gaza war, Hamas says ready to fight Israel again
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Armed wing says ready with all manpower to 'confront Zionists', but won't say what capabilities it has.
[uruknet.info]
Gaza report finds major powers complicit in Israel's collective
punishment
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - To mark one year since Israel's military assault on Gaza, a
report by 16 aid agencies has strongly condemned the major powers for
failing to end Israel's illegal and inhumane blockade of Gaza. While
the report holds Israel primarily responsible for the appalling
conditions under which the Palestinian people are living (see "Aid
report details social...
[uruknet.info]
From a tent to a mud house in Gaza
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - Majid al-Athamna, 70, stands next to his new home in Gaza's
Izbet Abed Rabbo neighborhood of Jabaliya. Since the Israeli attack one
year ago, which destroyed his family's three-story building, he and his
family lived in a tent. The al-Athamna family's new home is made of
mud. It is part of an effort by UNRWA --...
[uruknet.info]
Another legacy of Operation Cast Lead': 500+ US-based academics,
authors & artists endorse the academic and cultural boycott of
Israel
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - A year since the assault on Gaza, Israel continues to evade
accountability. The failure of the international community to use the
Goldstone Report to address the war crimes committed during the
fighting has been a boon to the growing movement for boycott,
divestment and sanctions against Israel. This movement seeks to hold
Israel accountable through non-violent...
[uruknet.info] "I
live today, but I am afraid of tomorrow"
Uruknet December 29,
2009 -My name is Sema Onbus. I am 37 years old, from Tulkarem refugee
camp. My story starts when my brother was killed, on 6 September 2001,
when an Apache [attack helicopter] dropped a bomb on him and his
friends. It was the same day that my sister was due to get married, and
he was on his...
[uruknet.info]
PHOTO ESSAY ~~ THOUSANDS GATHER IN NEW YORK IN SUPPORT OF GAZA
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - On December 27th, the first anniversary of Israel's brutal
attack on Gaza that left 1,400 dead (mostly civilians) thousands
wounded, and hundreds of thousands homeless, about 2,000 people met at
Times Sq. in N.Y.C. They marched through the streets filled with both
New Yorkers and tourists in holiday mode, passing crowded Rockefeller
Center, and ending at...
[uruknet.info]
Tactics of desperation: using false accusations of "anti-Semitism" as a
weapon to silence criticism of Israel's behaviour
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - For more than 60 years, Israel has engaged in an unceasing
campaign to dispossess Palestinians of their land and their rights. Its
ability to do this has depended on three factors in particular: *
overwhelming military superiority; * keeping public opinion, especially
in North America and Europe, on its side; and * making ordinary
working-class Israeli Jews believe that...
[uruknet.info]
Iran Boils: First Street Fights, Then Major Arrests
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - ...Important sections of people are rising in fearless
resistance to their oppressors. They have built new organizations
secretly over the last months, made vital new connections in the
streets, learned important political lessons through bitter experience
- and they have clearly emerged more and more determined to break the
spine of the hated Islamist Regime. Clearly...
[uruknet.info]
Gaza One Year Later
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - A December 2009 report prepared by Oxfam International, Amnesty
International UK, United Civilians for Peace, Christian Aid, and a
dozen other international NGOs (called NGOs below) titled, "Failing
Gaza: No rebuilding, no recovery, no more excuses" is hard-hitting and
to the point. It says a year after Operation Cast Lead, extensive
damage hasn't been repaired and...
[uruknet.info]
Iran rally leaders 'enemies of God'
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - A representative of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
has said opposition leaders were "enemies of God" who should be
executed under the country's sharia law. "Those who are behind the
current sedition in the country ... are mohareb (enemies of God) and
the law is very clear about punishment of a mohareb," Abbas
Vaez-Tabasi, the representative...
[uruknet.info]
Egypt Approves Gaza Freedom March Passage, Viva Palestina Blunders
Paperwork and Blames Egypt
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - In a press conference conducted earlier this evening, the
Egyptian foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit announced some threats,
warnings, surprises as well as some good news. The press conference
that aired on Egyptian official TV a few hours ago was boiling with
Aboul Gheit's very firm and angry answers to the journalists' questions
who did not...
[uruknet.info]
Gaza's writing on the wall
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, which has controlled
Gaza since 2007, fully facilitates the work of its graffiti artists -
from purchasing spray paint, to inviting artists to work on choice
locations. Elaborate, colourful calligraphy brightens the drab streets
and alleys of the Gaza Strip's densely populated towns and refugee
camps. Most is political in nature,...
[uruknet.info]
Rights group: Israel covers up torture
Uruknet December 29,
2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israel systematically prevents
accountability over allegations of torture against its Shit Bet
security force, a new report by the Public Committee Against Torture in
Israel (PCATI) charges. The group said the 98-page report "exposes an
intolerable reality." "Officials at the highest levels of Israel's
justice system directly and indirectly thwart the opening...
Palestine, December 29, 2009 (Pal Telegraph) - At the end of 2009, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) Issued a Press Release on the Palestinians in the World. • 10.9 million Palestinians in the World by the end of 2009, more than half of them live in Diaspora. • By the end of 2009, about 4.0 million Palestinians were...
UNRWA calls for opening Karni crossing
London, December 29, 2009 (Pal Telegraph)-The United Nation Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) called for opening Karni commercial crossing east of Gaza city and lifting the siege imposed on the coastal enclave.
Viva Palestina Takes Different Route
Jordan, December 29, 2009 (Pal Telegraph)- Organisers of Viva Palestina aid convoy, which is trying to reach the Gaza Strip, have now agreed to go via Syria en route for 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 Latakia to sail from there...
Israel Detains 5 Palestinians
West Bank, December 29, 2009 (Pal Telegraph) - The Israeli occupation forces kidnapped on Tuesday dawn 5 Palestinians from different governorates in West Bank: Hebron, Ramallah, and Nablus. The Palestinian police clarified that Israeli occupation forces raided Belain town in Ramallah. They arrested Khalil Yasin, 17, and Hamouda Yasin, 17, after they had invaded number of the citizens' houses. As...
Gaza War: Demonstrators Mark the 1st anniversary in Geneva
Geneva, December 29, 2009, (Pal Telegraph) - Hundreds of Swiss and solidarity with the Palestinian people gathered in front of the headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva to mark the 1st anniversary of the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip on Monday afternoon. Among the protesters were nongovernmental and political organizations that defied the severe cold weather and took...
The National 29 Dec 2009 - A humanitarian aid convoy aimed at breaking the nearly three-year-old blockade on the Gaza Strip is hoping that Egypt will guarantee its safety.
Gaza: many Israelis believe attack was justified, but ended too soon
The National 29 Dec 2009 - Few Israelis have qualms about the high death toll inflicted by their country's assault on the Gaza Strip last year
Gaza: both sides learned lessons for the next battle
The National 29 Dec 2009 - Both Israel and Hamas have learned lessons from the Gaza offensive that will prepare them for a future battle, something many believe is inevitable
AlJazeera 29 Dec 2009 - Representative of the supreme leader says opposition leaders should face execution.
Gaza aid convoy to change course
AlJazeera 29 Dec 2009 - Viva Palestina to re-route via Syria to enter Gaza through the Mediterranean.
Egypt blocks US activists' march
AlJazeera 29 Dec 2009 - Police in Cairo attempt to stop US activists from approaching the American embassy.
Israel plans settlement expansion
AlJazeera 28 Dec 2009 - Palestinians condemn move to build 700 new apartments in east Jerusalem settlements.
Alternative Information Center
Beyond Commemoration: Operation Cast Lead One Year AfterAlternative Information Center 29 Dec 2009 - Three hundred and sixty five days after the beginning of the Operation “Cast Lead,” what characterizes these days is silence. The silence of those who didn't survive—those 1,400 people killed by bombings in Gaza. Three hundred...
PNN 29 Dec 2009 - A Norwich councillor has been placed under house arrest in Egypt after trying to reach the Gaza Strip to deliver art materials to people traumatised by the conflict in the territory. Peter Offord, Green county councillor for Thorpe Hamlet, set off last week to join the Gaza Freedom March, a 1,000-strong international delegation calling for the borders to be re-opened to let...
Russian Orthodox Church Representative Succumbs to Illness
PNN 29 Dec 2009 - Jerusalem // Archimandrite Joasaph, 47 was head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem. Archimandrite Joasaph of the Russian Orthodox Outside Russia passed away atMassachusetts General Hospital on December 18th, 2009, after being diagnosedwith cancer last August. Archimandrite Joasaph was born in 1962 and raised in the Boston area, wherehe went on to study Slavonic languages and theology. He was tonsured apriest at...
Israel announces new Jewish homes in Jerusalem area
PNN 28 Dec 2009 - JERUSALEM - Israel announced plans on Monday to build nearly 700 new homes for Jews in areas of the occupied West Bank it considers part of Jerusalem, a city it has excluded from a limited moratorium on settlement construction. A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the plan, saying new building on territory occupied by Israel since the 1967 Middle East...
Ban Ki-Moon: Gaza reconstruction not being addressed
PNN 28 Dec 2009 - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has said more must be done to repair damage done in the Gaza Strip by Israeli military action one year ago. Mr Ban said Gazans were being denied basic human rights and urged Israel to end its unacceptable and counterproductive blockade . He said Israeli well-being depended on conditions improving in the enclave. Rallies are being held across...
Police hit hardest by Israeli missiles in Gaza assault
PNN 28 Dec 2009 - GAZA CITY // There is a framed picture on a shelf in the office of the spokesman of Gaza’s police force. It is a blurred, low-resolution TV footage still. It shows the yard outside the window of the spokesman’s office minutes after missiles struck the Arafat Police Headquarters in central Gaza City in the first salvo of Israel’s Gaza offensive, at around 11.30am...
Police arrest nuclear whistleblower Vanunu
PNN 29 Dec 2009 - Jerusalem police arrested nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu on Monday, on suspicion that he met with foreigners in direct violation of his parole orders. Vanunu was released from prison in 2004 after serving an 18-year sentence for revealing details of Israel's nuclear weapons program. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said Vanunu was detained on suspicion he met with several foreigners, in violation of the...
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Aboul Gheit: Egypt believes Israeli PM is serious about resuming peace talks with the Palestinians.
Taglit-birthright celebrates 10 years
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - 400 participants gather with alumni at festive ceremony attended by MKs, IDF officers, donors.
Hamas denies rejecting Israel offer
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Taha says Mashaal, Zahar still debating proposal; Damascus source: Mediator told to get better offer.
High Court: Palestinians can use 443
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Judge accepts petition submitted by villagers against IDF ban on driving on highway in West Bank.
Diskin: Don't free Hamas inmates to W. Bank
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Shin Bet chief warns against releasing terrorists to territory and scenario of Barghouti replacing Abbas.
Intel: Iran plans to smuggle raw uranium from Kazakhstan
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Teheran willing to pay $450 million for 1,350 tons of purified uranium, claims report by IAEA member state; UN official: We don't have any proof.
'Barak receives death threat in mail'
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Shin Bet reportedly doubles number of bodyguards protecting defense minister in light of angry letter.
Netanayhu: It's time to resume talks
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - PM calls on PA to "show readiness" to move process forward, lauds security forces for Nablus operation.
IDF: Palestinian was not stealing gun
Jeruslalem Post 29 Dec 2009 - Initial probe suggests bullet that injured shepherd was accidentally fired by Bat Ayin security guard.
IPS BERKELEY, California, Dec 29 (IPS) - News that Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is withdrawing a billion dollars from the country's Foreign Reserve Fund in order to complete Phases 15 and 16 of the gigantic South Pars gas project has generated concern among Iranian analysts, who believe the move reveals the...
LEBANON: Hip-hop Kindles Hopes in Destroyed Refugee Camp
IPS NAHR AL-BARED (North Lebanon), Dec 29 (IPS) - The hip-hop beats ringing through the muddy, unlit streets of this burnt-out Palestinian refugee camp seem incongruous. But the rhymes are camp-grown - and courageous.
PCHR During the reporting period, Israeli occupation forces used force to disperse peaceful demonstrations organized by Palestinian civilians and international and Israeli human rights defenders, to protest the construction of the Annexation Wall in the West Bank.
International Solidarity Movement
Gaza’s border must be opened NOW12/30/2009 - International Solidarity Movement - Pam Rasmussen, The Electronic Intifada, 29 December - This time is clearly different. I have traveled to Gaza twice this year, in groups ranging from 40 to 60 persons, and although there was a lot of behind-the-scenes work involved in “greasing the wheels” with the Egyptian authorities, we pretty much sailed in. CODEPINK (the group that organized both of my previous trips) developed a well-earned reputation for being able to pull just the right levers to open the doors to the isolated enclave of Gaza — even more so than George Galloway’s Viva Palestina convoy, which is typically allowed in for only 24 to 48 hours (versus our four days). But too many months have gone by with no change in the crippling isolation of Gaza imposed by Israel and Egypt, and it was time to risk our privileged access to take our efforts to break the siege up a notch.
'I live today, but I am afraid of tomorrow'
12/30/2009 - International Solidarity Movement - Jody McIntyre and Sema Onbus, The Electronic Intifada, 29 December - The following is former Palestinian political prisoner Sema Onbus's story as told to The Electronic Intifada contributor Jody McIntyre: My name is Sema Onbus. I am 37 years old, from Tulkarem refugee camp. My story starts when my brother was killed, on 6 September 2001, when an Apache [attack helicopter] dropped a bomb on him and his friends. It was the same day that my sister was due to get married, and he was on his way from Ramallah to visit the wedding when he was murdered. After my brother's death, my husband decided to join the resistance, and started working with the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. He had soon joined Israel's wanted list. On 28 October 2002, the Israeli army invaded the camp and started shooting at random, spraying bullets through the streets at anyone who happened to be in sight. My 15-year-old cousin was killed … they shot him six times. My husband was shot three times, twice in his stomach and once in his leg, but he survived.
Israeli Occupation Forces arrest two village youth during night raid in Bil’in early Tuesday morning
12/29/2009 - International Solidarity Movement - Israeli Occupation Forces arrested two village youth from the small West Bank village of Bil'in early Tuesday morning during a night raid operation there around 2:30 am. Lookouts with the Bil'in Committee for Popular Resistance Against the Wall and Settlements spotted Israeli soldiers near the Southwest gates of the town as well as in the Western groves of olive trees around 1am Tuesday morning and quickly mobilized the rest of the night patrol team. "We do not have enough people to try and stop them tonight, David," Haitham Al-Katib, the Media Coordinator for Friends of Freedom and Justice Bil'in, told me. “Tonight you are not an activist, ok? Tonight you are a photographer. We will show the world the truth about what is happening here. ”. Hamoda Iymad Yassen and Khalil Abraham Yassen, 16, were arrested at their homes around 2:30am Tuesday morning.
Hebrew University bans student conference on anniversary of Gaza invasion
12/29/2009 - International Solidarity Movement - IMEMC News - A student group affiliated with the socialist ‘Hadash' party in Israel had organized a conference commemorating and condemning the Israeli invasion of Gaza one year ago, but the Hebrew University administration banned the conference, saying that it violates the University's principles. When students from the Hadash party handed out fliers for the event to their fellow students, some students from the right-wing Zionist Likud party took copies of the flier to the school administration, which determined that the event constituted ‘incitement against the state of Israel' and would not be permitted. The reason given by the university was that the conference would include a commemoration of the civilians killed in Israel's Gaza invasion one year ago. Human rights groups have estimated that over 80% of the 1400 Palestinians killed during the 3-week long Israeli assault were civilians. 5 Israeli civilians were killed in the same time period.
After period of daily harassment from Israeli soldiers and settlers, residents of Bir Idd celebrate small victories
12/29/2009 - International Solidarity Movement - 28 December - When I arrived in Bir Idd on 15 November 2009, it was obvious that international accompaniment was needed. There was daily harassment from soldiers and settlers. The villagers were not allowed to use the road. They were officially restricted by the army (DCO) to 20 dunums of land around the village. With support from internationals living in the village (usually two), and daily visits by Israeli activists, plus legal support from Rabbis for Human Rights, and larger groups of Israeli activists coming to the village on Saturdays (and sometimes other days as well), the villagers engaged in nonviolent resistance by not accepting the restrictions the Israeli military had put upon them. The villagers grazed their sheep far from the village. They continued to use the road in spite of continual harassment from soldiers and settlers.
Egypt to open Gaza border if Shalit deal succeeds
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Zaki, who was quoted in the Egyptian newspaper Al Masry al Youm, did not make it clear whether this Egyptian position was coordinated with Israel. Nor was he clear on whether the emerging deal for Gilad Shalit is indeed a comprehensive one that would not only bring the abducted soldier home, but would also grant a normal life to Gaza's inhabitants. Perhaps this was one of the things Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak discussed at their meeting Tuesday. ...
Court: Vatican Bank can't be tried in U.S. for storing Nazi loot
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - An American appeals court on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit by Holocaust survivors who alleged the Vatican bank accepted millions of dollars of their valuables stolen by Nazi sympathizers. ...
Mubarak to allow Jewish pilgrims to visit famous rabbi's tomb
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak Tuesday acceded to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request to allow hundreds of Jewish pilgrims to visit the tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abuhatzeira near Alexandria at the end of next week. ...
Egypt FM: Netanyahu is serious about renewing peace talks
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit on Tuesday said he was encouraged by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Cairo. ...
Hamas: Shalit swap negotiations still ongoing
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Senior Hamas officials on Tuesday said they would continue to discuss an Israeli proposal for a prisoner exchange deal that would free Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, after Al-Arabiya television reported the Islamist group had rejected the swap. ...
Mofaz to Haaretz: Livni lacks leadership, will never be PM
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - The Kadima party's leadership primary in September 2008 was rigged, MK Shaul Mofaz charged in an interview with Haaretz this week. ...
Vanunu: I was arrested because I have a Norwegian girlfriend
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - A Jerusalem court on Tuesday released nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu to house arrest, after he was detained for meeting with a Norwegian citizen in direct violation of his parole orders. ...
Netanyahu at Likud meet: Unity has always been important to us
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said he is still interested in forming a unity government, despite Kadima leader Tzipi Livni's rejection this week of his offer to join the coalition. ...
Fearing settler threats, Shin Bet increases security for Barak
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - The Shin Bet security service has significantly increased security for Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Channel 2 news reported on Tuesday. ...
Chief rabbis intensify fight against abortion
Ha'aretz 29 Dec 2009 - The Ashkenazi and Sephardi chief rabbis of Israel stepped up their campaign against abortion in recent days, sending a letter to local rabbis employing religious arguments to encourage them to dissuade women in their communities from terminating pregnancies. ...
Relief Web 29 Dec 2009 - Source: UN Radio
OPT: This Is Not Humane - We Need Dignity
Relief Web 29 Dec 2009 - Source: Carter Center
PCHR Publishes New Report: "Israeli Attacks on Palestinian Disabled Persons in the Gaza Strip"
Relief Web 29 Dec 2009 - Source: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
Remembering Gaza
Relief Web 29 Dec 2009 - Source: Muslim Aid
OPT: Cast Lead daily stories - Day 3: Yebna Refugee Camp, Rafah
Relief Web 29 Dec 2009 - Source: Al Mezan Center for Human Rights
OPT: On First Anniversary of Operation Cast Lead, Al Mezan Organizes Specialized Workshop Entitled "International Law: Justice and Accountability"
Relief Web 29 Dec 2009 - Source: Al Mezan Center for Human Rights
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Serious air incident above Belgrade: Incorrect instructions from Serbian air traffic controller direct Air France plane into collision course with Israeli plane. Israel and Serbia investigating incident
Hamas: Israel refusing to free 4 senior prisoners
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Palestinian organization's official website says Jewish state won’t release Barghouti, Saadat and two other inmates, but notes that discussions on deal continue
US administration delaying trial against PA
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Federal judge criticizes American administration's refusal to take stand on damages claim filed against the Palestinian Authority over terror attack which left American citizen dead
Student protest of Cast Lead canceled
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Haifa University management decides to revoke license granted to Arab student groups to protest on campus on anniversary of Israeli operation in Gaza out of concern for 'disturbances of peace.' Hadash group: We will continue fighting occupation, blockade
Explosive devices found near Gaza border
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Military officials say terror attack thwarted Saturday following incident in which three Palestinians were killed
Security around Barak tightened
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Shin Bet decides to double number of guards protecting defense minister, apparently due to evaluation of situation
Report: Iran seeking to smuggle raw uranium
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Diplomats concerned about intelligence report that says Islamic Republic trying to import 1,350 tons of purified uranium ore from Kazakhstan
MK Aflalo tenders official request to split from Kadima
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Week after saying he has lost faith in party chairwoman, lawmaker issues formal request to Chairwoman Livni to leave Kadima. Move will likely result in suggestion to impose sanctions against him, but estimates indicate that coalition opposition to penalties may prevent this
IDF colonel filmed stealing game console
YNet News 29 Dec 2009 - Modiin store owner amazed to see senior officer rob device on security cameras. Army launches investigation into incident
26 Dec 2009 - One year ago today, Operation Cast Lead began. 762 Palestinians who did not take part in the hostilities were killed, and vast damage was caused to houses, factories, and infrastructure in Gaza. Israel has not yet instituted an independent apparatus to i
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 A representative of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday opposition leaders were "enemies of God" who should be executed under the country's sharia law. The statement by cleric Abbas Vaez-Tabasi coincided with rallies by tens of thousands of government supporters calling for opposition leaders to be punished.
Egypt encouraged by Israel's stance on peace talks
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Israel's prime minister on Tuesday presented Egypt with ideas for restarting Mideast peace talks, impressing his hosts with proposals that go further than past Israeli positions, Egypt's top diplomat said. The meeting took place as a Hamas official said his group had rejected Israel's latest proposal for a prisoner swap with the Islamic militants.
Iran ready to swap enriched uranium abroad: FM
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Iran is ready to swap abroad its low-enriched uranium for nuclear fuel, the Foreign Ministry's spokesman said on Tuesday, insisting that the exchange should happen in several stages. Iran is ready for "fuel swap in several stages and has said that this can be an opportunity for the two sides" to build confidence, Ramin Mehmanparast told reporters.
Secret files show panic over Iran shah's plan to move to Britain
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Britain was desperate for the shah of Iran not to move near London after the 1979 revolution despite previously supporting him, even planning a cloak-and-dagger mission to the Bahamas to put him off. Premier Margaret Thatcher was "deeply unhappy" that Britain could not offer sanctuary to a "firm and helpful friend."
Chances of new Palestinian intifada in 2010 low, says head of Israel's Shin Bet
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 The chances of a new Palestinian uprising erupting in 2010 are low, barring a dramatic event like an attack on Muslim holy places, the head of Israel's Shin Bet security agency was quoted as saying on Tuesday. A change in Palestinian leadership or large-scale release of Hamas prisoners into the Israeli occupied West Bank could also destabilize the region.
Court re-opens West Bank highway for Palestinian use after seven-year closure
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Israel's Supreme Court ordered the military on Tuesday to allow Palestinians to travel on the part of a major highway that runs through the occupied West Bank, handing Palestinians their biggest victory yet against Israel's practice of reserving some roads for Jews. The occupied West Bank section of a road linking Jerusalem and Tel Aviv was closed in 2002 to Palestinians.
'Israel is the persecutor,' says Holocaust survivor on hunger strike for Gaza
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 An 85-year-old Holocaust survivor entered the second day of her hunger strike on Tuesday, in protest over the Egyptian government's refusal to allow an international Palestinian solidarity march to enter the Gaza Strip. American peace activist Hedy Epstein came to Cairo as part of an international delegation with participants from 43 countries.
Iraq security adviser warns of Al-Qaeda threat ahead of poll
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Al-Qaeda in Iraq is a far smaller force than at its peak three years ago but still poses a threat in the run-up to March elections, national security adviser Safa Hussein told AFP in an interview. Hussein said the group had fallen under the influence of diehard elements of the ousted Baathist regime of now executed dictator Saddam Hussein.
Sleiman set for Sarkozy meet, Hariri firms Syria border move
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 President Michel Sleiman called Tuesday for reforms in the state's administrations as well as for the quick implementation of a plan to fill vacant administrative positions, while urging military and security institutions to stand alert to Israeli aggressions. Sleiman's statements came ahead of his trip to Paris on a family vacation during which.
Baz: Lebanon to sustain high growth
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 A leading banker said that the high liquidity in the Lebanese market would allow Lebanon to sustain steady GDP growth in 2010. "We had $14.6 billion additional deposits in the first 10 months of 2009 and this figure will be $18 billion at the end of this year. This is high liquidity. We are not talking sentiments," Freddie Baz, the adviser of the chairman of Audi Bank.
Abboud urges MEA to boost tourism in mountain regions
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud held meetings on Tuesday with Middle East Airlines (MEA) and the Lebanese International Business Council to discuss the growing tourism sector and ways to develop it further. Abboud first met with MEA Chairman Mohammad Hout and the two tackled the problem of building hotels in Beirut while mountain regions such.
Ali Hussein Sibat must not be executed
Daily Star 29 Dec 2009 Despite genuine efforts by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia to reform and modernize the kingdom, the pushback from those who resist modern civilization is shocking and villainous. The horrifying case of a former television presenter from Lebanon, Ali Hussein Sibat, is just one example. Sibat is a Lebanese citizen and was the host of a call-in television show broadcast from Lebanon.
Palestinian Information Center
Turkish IHH warns of mass deaths among Gazans because of the tight siegePIC 29 Dec 2009 - The Turkish IHH humanitarian relief foundation operating in Gaza warned of mass deaths among Gazans because of the tight blockade imposed for more than three years on basic needs and commodities.
Haneyya holds consultations to expand his government
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - Ismail Haneyya, the Palestinian premier in Gaza Strip, announced on Tuesday that he was holding consultations with professional and independent figures to join his government.
Khudari calls for continued world marches until Gaza siege is lifted
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - MP Jamal Al-Khudari has urged the organizers of marches in London, New York, Paris, Istanbul and other capitals to maintain the momentum until the Israeli siege on Gaza is lifted.
IOF troops arrest five Palestinians including a boy
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - Israeli occupation forces (IOF) arrested five Palestinian West Bankers at dawn Tuesday including a 15-year-old boy for interrogation, locals reported.
Lifeline convoy changes route in response to Turkish initiative
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - The Lifeline 3 convoy moved Tuesday from Aqaba port heading to Syria and then to the Arish city in response to the agreement reached by the Turkish premier's envoy with the Egyptian authorities.
Resheq: Hamas respects Egypt's sovereignty
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - Ezzet Al-Resheq, political bureau member of Hamas Movement, has warned of the serious repercussions of the Egyptian construction of a steel wall underneath its borders with the Gaza Strip.
Ministry of detainees appeals for saving life of heart patient in Israeli jail
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - The Palestinian ministry of prisoners reported that the health condition of prisoner Zamel Shalluf in Eichel Beersheba central prison seriously deteriorated after he underwent a heart surgery.
Abbas's militias kidnap seven citizens including a mother and her daughter
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - Militias loyal to Mahmoud Abbas, the former PA chief, rounded up seven Palestinians over the past couple of days in the districts of Qalqilia, Nablus and Al-Khalil including a mother and her daughter.
Dozens of Palestinians sustain injuries during settlers’ attack on their bus
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - Dozens of Palestinians were injured Monday after a brutal attack on a bus they were traveling in near Nablus, north of the West Bank.
Hamduna: Investigate failure of surgeries on Palestinian detainees in Ramle
PIC 29 Dec 2009 - Ra'fat Hamduna, the director of the prisoners' center for studies, has asked all those concerned to investigate the failure of surgeries operated by Israeli doctors on Palestinian prisoners.
LA Times 29 Dec 2009 - Authorities round up political activists and even seize the corpses of some of those killed in weekend violence in an apparent effort to stem demonstrations. Iranian authorities dramatically intensified a crackdown on the country's burgeoning opposition movement Monday, rounding up political activists and seizing the corpse of one leading dissident's nephew, along with the bodies of other victims of weekend violence, in an apparent effort to stem further protests.
Iran sanctions: U.S. and allies may narrow their approach
LA Times 29 Dec 2009 - Tehran's growing crackdown on protesters has officials worried about hurting ordinary Iranians -- and about public perception. With Iran's crackdown on protesters intensifying, the Obama administration and allied governments are rethinking their approach to planned sanctions in hopes of focusing the punishments more tightly on the Iranian leadership, U.S. officials say.
White House decries Israel's plan to build homes in East Jerusalem
LA Times 29 Dec 2009 - The Israeli government says the 700 houses for Jewish families in the Palestinian-dominated area are not subject to its recently announced construction moratorium. An Israeli government plan to build nearly 700 homes for Jewish families in Palestinian-dominated East Jerusalem drew fire Monday from the Obama administration, which called the plan a hindrance to relaunching peace talks.
Iran protests turn violent as demonstrators confront police
LA Times 28 Dec 2009 - The nephew of opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi is among nine people reported slain as protesters in Tehran turn a Shiite holiday into a day of raucous demonstrations. The months-long confrontation between Iran's budding opposition movement and a hard-line government determined to stamp it out escalated sharply over the weekend, as parts of the capital became engulfed in fiery political protest and demonstrations broke out across the country on the occasion of an important Shiite religious holiday.
New York Times 29 Dec 2009 - A highway running through the West Bank can no longer be closed to most Palestinian traffic, the court ruled.
Iran Lashes Out at West Over Protests
New York Times 29 Dec 2009 - Accusing Western countries of supporting protesters, the Iranian government summoned the British ambassador.
World Briefing | Middle East: Israel: Ex-Foreign Minister Declines to Join Right-Leaning Government
New York Times 29 Dec 2009 - Tzipi Livni, leader of the opposition Kadima Party, on Monday turned down, as expected, an offer from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to join his government.
Israel Plans Homes in East Jerusalem
New York Times 29 Dec 2009 - Palestinian leaders said the move to build new housing was evidence that Israel was undermining peace efforts.
Israelis’ Cancer Is Linked to Holocaust
New York Times 29 Dec 2009 - Immigrants who arrived in Israel after World War II have higher cancer rates than those who arrived during the war, a study found.
Tehran Protesters Defy Ban and Clash With Police
New York Times 27 Dec 2009 - Demonstrations in Iran underline the government’s inability to suppress the opposition despite beatings with batons and chains.
Mondoweiss - 29 Dec 2009 - Related posts: Brian Baird compared his own children to three slaughtered in Gaza What will Brian Baird do next? ‘I do not call my family, they don’t call me’ (The Jewish crisis of Gaza)
Another legacy of ‘Operation Cast Lead’: 500+ US-based academics, authors & artists endorse the academic and cultural boycott of Israel
Mondoweiss - 29 Dec 2009 - A year since the assault on Gaza, Israel continues to evade accountability. The failure of the international community to use the Goldstone Report to address the war crimes committed during the fighting has been a boon to the growing movement for boycott, divestment and sanctions against...
Meet the Post-zionist Zionists: Jesse Fox
Mondoweiss - 29 Dec 2009 - This post is part of a week-long series of interviews with Jewish Israelis discussing their connection to the idea of Zionism. We hope this series will spark a conversation over the what Zionism means today. For more on these interviews see this post . Jesse Fox Urban...
Update: Egyptian security forces confront Gaza Freedom March protesters, possibly at the request of the US embassy
Mondoweiss - 29 Dec 2009 - Protest in Cairo (Photo: Michael Ratner) 12:27 pm – Update : The details of what is going on in Cairo are a bit sketchy. I sent the email below to Ali Abunimah in Cairo to verify and he sent this back – "The report is not accurate...
The ‘war’ for legitimacy is a war Israel may never win
Mondoweiss - 29 Dec 2009 - While there is no doubt that Israel holds military superiority over any possible armed force it might go to war with, there is another threat that Israel appears to have no response for – moral outrage. The Jerusalem Post covers a new report which outlines Israel’s...
Beyond Commemoration: Operation Cast Lead One Year After
Alternative Information Center - 29 Dec 2009 - Three hundred and sixty five days after the beginning of the Operation “Cast Lead,” what characterizes these days is silence. The silence of those who didn't survive—those 1,400 people killed by bombings in Gaza. Three hundred names of children murdered in operation Cast Lead will resonate...
Articles
Anniversary of a pogrom
Ahmed Yousef, Ma’an News Agency 12/30/2009
Gaza - The presence of Islamic politics in Palestine has proven its permanence. A year after Gaza"™s genocide, Hamas still enjoys massive support as seen during its 22nd anniversary celebrations.
Despite seemingly insurmountable challenges, the residents of Gaza continue to favor resistance over submission. In fact, the year 1430/2009 will be remembered as the year of failure, not of Palestinian will but of Israeli myth.
We Palestinians are indeed weak; but only in the areas of public relations, propaganda and moral blackmail. Those who criticize Israeli actions, for example, are invariably labeled anti-Semitic or oblivious to the threat of terrorism. It is a convenient tactic to reframe discussion of Israeli atrocity.
As Haaretz journalist Gideon Lichfield puts it, “some of Israel’s spokespeople could talk the hind legs off a donkey and then persuade the donkey to dance the hora, and that the Palestinians barely even know what a spokesman is.” But he also acknowledges that despite this prowess the numbers discredit even the best spin doctors.
Gazans continue to live under the most inhuman, man-made conditions conceivable. By the end of January, Israelis had murdered 1,400, maimed 5,500 and demolished over 10,000 homes and buildings. But the horrors did not end with their withdrawal. 80,000 cubic meters of raw sewage continue to seep into the oceans, creating conditions ripe for disease. more.. e-mail
One Year Since Gaza War : No Access By the Numbers
Gisha: Legal Center for Freedom of Movement 12/27/2009
Despite the fact that a year has passed since the start of the Gaza military operation, the damage caused by three weeks of war and the near total closure preceding it has yet to be repaired. The reason: Israel’s ongoing policy blocking goods from entering the Gaza Strip, including a near total ban on reconstruction materials.
Funds for Reconstruction:
Reconstruction funds pledged at the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit Some $4.5 billion.
Number of months international community negotiated with Israeli government over mechanism for transferring reconstruction funds and materials: 9 months.
Implementation of mechanism for transferring reconstruction funds and materials: None.
Housing: During the war: Some 3,500 homes were completely destroyed, some 2,800 sustained heavy damage, and some 54,000 were lightly damaged. These homes housed about 325,000 people.
Policy on import of construction materials (cement, glass, iron) prior to the war: Banned, few humanitarian exceptions.
Policy on import of construction materials today:Construction materials (cement, glass, iron, etc.) banned; 19 trucks of mostly cement and gravel permitted to enter for exceptional humanitarian projects.
Needed to rebuild homes: At least 40,000 tons of cement, 25,000 tons of iron.... more.. e-mail
10 years, Hundreds of Complaints, No Investigations
Public Committee Against Torture in Israel - PCATI 12/28/2009
A new report by The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI), that will be launched this evening at a conference marking ten years since the Israeli High Court of Justice’s "Torture Decision", exposes an intolerable reality. Israeli authorities systematically prevent investigations of complaints of torture against General Security Service (GSS) interrogators. In fact, officials at the highest levels of Israel’s justice system directly and indirectly thwart the opening of criminal investigations against torture suspects in direct contradiction of the obligation to investigate charges of serious crimes and of Israel’s obligations under international law.
The main conclusion of this report – "Accountability Denied: The Absence of Investigation and Punishment of Torture in Israel" – is that Israel has no genuine investigation mechanism for complaints of torture. This results in absolute criminal immunity for interrogators who commit grave crimes. In practice the system enjoys the acquiescence and encouragement of the law enforcement system for torture that occurs in GSS interrogations. Among other things, complaints are checked by an active GSS agent who is the official in charge of checking interrogee complaints. His recommendations not to open a criminal investigation are universally accepted by the high ranking attorney in charge in the Ministry of Justice and by the Attorney General. In practice, this means that the Attorney General and his assistants provide sweeping approval to use torture in Israel.
All of this, together with additional layers of protection for torturers - GSS exemption from the obligation to provide audio or video recording of interrogations, a dual system for keeping interrogation records, systematic denial of the detainee’s right to meet an attorney and the deliberate concealment or withholding of detainee medical records - lead to the fact that each and every torture complaint in Israel is shelved with no investigation and no justice. According to data provided by the State, since 2001 more than 600 complaints of torture by GSS agents were submitted while not even a single criminal investigation was opened. -- Link: Full Report (PDF) -- See also: Full Report (PDF) more.. e-mail
Gaza's border must be opened NOW
Electronic Intifada: 29 Dec 2009 - Too many months have gone by with no change in the crippling isolation of Gaza imposed by Israel and Egypt, and it was time to risk our privileged access to take our efforts to break the siege up a notch. Our numbers had to be massive enough to threaten the jailers' growing complacence and broad enough to send the message that this is a global movement that won't stop until the Palestinian people are given the freedom and justice they deserve. Pam Rasmussen comments for The Electronic Intifada.
No justice, no peace: interview with activist Haidar Eid
Electronic Intifada: 29 Dec 2009 - On 31 December 2009, one year after Israel's devastating attacks on the Gaza Strip, activists plan to converge for the Gaza Freedom March. An unprecedented effort, the march draws inspiration from South Africa's struggle for liberation from apartheid and from Gandhi's tactics during the campaign for India's independence. The Electronic Intifada contributor Bianca Zammit recently interviewed the Gaza Freedom March Steering Committee member Dr. Haidar Eid about the effort.
"I live today, but I am afraid of tomorrow"
Electronic Intifada: 29 Dec 2009 - My name is Sema Onbus. I am 37 years old, from Tulkarem refugee camp. My story starts when my brother was killed, on 6 September 2001, when an Apache [attack helicopter] dropped a bomb on him and his friends. It was the same day that my sister was due to get married, and he was on his way from Ramallah to visit the wedding when he was murdered.
From a tent to a mud house in Gaza
Electronic Intifada: 29 Dec 2009 - Majid al-Athamna, 70, stands next to his new home in Gaza's Izbet Abed Rabbo neighborhood of Jabaliya. Since the Israeli attack one year ago, which destroyed his family's three-story building, he and his family lived in a tent. Rami Almeghari reports from the occupied Gaza Strip.
In Gaza: 29 Dec 2009 - The walls surrounding the Shifa hospital compound came to life today when students from Gaza’s Al Aqsa University evoked scenes of the Israeli war on Gaza last winter. Some scenes were representative of the destruction, savagery and mass casualties during the Israeli massacre, the desecration and shocking incidents that occured throughout the Strip at the bands of Israeli soldiers. Ambulances and emergency services were attacked during the massacre; 16 emergency workers were killed and 57 injured; 9 ambulances were completely destroyed, another 7 damaged; 15 hospitals and 43 clinics were destroyed. Nesma’s mural morphed the periods during and after the massacre. “During the attacks people were terrified, exhausted, hungry, thirsty…hopeless,...
Palestine Chronicle: 29 Dec 2009 - By Stuart Littlewood – London The Viva Palestina convoy is being given the run-around by Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak and his ’Awkward Squad’. My heart goes out to the 500 or so dedicated people from 17 different countries who brought their convoy of 200 vehicles almost to the gates of Gaza, only to be stranded at Aqaba just 4 hours short of their destination. And not only the 500 driving with the Viva Palestina convoy but the thousands of supporters, fund-raisers and donors back home who have worked for months to provide the medical supplies, the food, the transport and the countless other humanitarian items. These 500 ‘salt of the earth’ were kicking their heels in Aqaba, and threatening a hunger strike while their precious cargoes spoiled in the heat, because the Egyptian authorities wouldn’t allow them to enter Egypt through the port of Nuweiba. The reason appeared to be that the road across the Sinai from Nuweiba to Rafah ran close to the Israeli border and the 250 trucks and ambulances of the convoy might have caused “a big infiltration problem”. Why the Egyptian army couldn’t have provided an escort to ensure that no trucks left the column, wasn't explained. The convoy had already taken great trouble and gone many hundreds of extra miles to avoid Israel. To have come so far and given so much - in time, effort, money and other resources - and to be thwarted at the last minute, was very hard to take. However,...
No Friends in Egypt
Palestine Chronicle: 29 Dec 2009 - By Ahmed Amr This just in - read all about it in Al Ahram - Egypt's semi-official paper. A multi-millionaire, Yehia El Komy, denied marrying Kheloud al Onzy. I ran across this earth shattering news while scanning the front pages of the government operated rag looking for something - anything - relating to the "Viva Palestina" convoy that is now stranded in Jordan. I can't say I was terribly disappointed, but I did expect some mention of the hundreds of French citizens who were protesting in front of their embassy in Cairo. Apparently, these foreign agitators are also making outrageous demands to deliver aid to Gaza. You'd think some genius at Al-Ahram might have noticed that little development and scribbled a few lines about it. Maybe the staff at Al-Ahram was too caught up in the festivities celebrating the annual anniversary of the founding of the paper. That story also made the front page. Just for the record, Al Ahram has been publishing since 1875 - seven years before the British occupation. Call me a contrarian, but my take is that some papers get so old and decrepit that they should stop celebrating and consider retiring from the business of delivering news to their readers. To be fair, there was an off-hand mention of the international convoys on their way to breaking the siege of Gaza. I stumbled on it in on the fifth page. The bold headline was that Abu El Gheit, Egypt's foreign minister, went out on a...
Gaza One Year Later
Palestine Chronicle: 29 Dec 2009 - By Stephen Lendman A December 2009 report prepared by Oxfam International, Amnesty International UK, United Civilians for Peace, Christian Aid, and a dozen other international NGOs (called NGOs below) titled, "Failing Gaza: No rebuilding, no recovery, no more excuses" is hard-hitting and to the point. It says a year after Operation Cast Lead, extensive damage hasn't been repaired and thousands "are being prevented from rebuilding their shattered society." It's not from a lack of commitment or enough resources with over $4 billion in pledged aid. It's because Israel blocks goods and equipment from entering Gaza. The world community and Arab world do nothing to stop them, so much of the Strip still lies in ruins. Following Hamas' January 2006 electoral victory, all outside aid was cut off. Sanctions and an economic embargo were imposed, and the democratically elected government was falsely designated a terrorist organization and isolated. Stepped up repression followed as well as regular IFD attacks, killings, targeted assassinations, property destruction, and more. Gazans have been imprisoned ever since. Since June 2007, the Strip has been under siege, described in an August 2009 OCHA report ("Locked In: The Humanitarian Impact of Two Years of Blockade on the Gaza Strip") as a: "protracted human dignity crisis with negative humanitarian consequences." At its heart is the "degradation (of) living conditions," the erosion of livelihoods, the lack of vital services in the areas of health, water, sanitation and education, and the collapse of essential infrastructure in the wake of Operation Cast Lead....
A Single State, with Liberty and Justice for All
Palestine Chronicle: 28 Dec 2009 - By Susan Abulhawa with Ramzy Baroud Prior to the establishment of Israel, Palestine had been multi-religious and multi-cultural. Christians, Muslims and Jews, Armenians, Greek Orthodox, to name a few, all had a place there; and all lived in relative harmony. Other nations fought wars and waged epic struggles to attain the kind of coexistence that was already a reality in Palestine.But while the world strives toward the noble truths that we are all created equal, Israel legislates the notion of a Chosen People with exclusive rights and privilege for Jews. Where countries have worked to integrate their citizens to create the richness of diversity, Israel is working in reverse, employing racist policies to "Judaize" the land whereby property and resources are confiscated from Christians and Muslims for the exclusive use of Jews. Where there is consensus that certain human rights are inalienable, Palestinians have lived subject to the whims of soldiers at checkpoints; of airplanes and helicopters raining death onto them with impunity; of curfews and restrictions and denials; and of violent armed settlers who fancy themselves disciples of God. Living under Israeli occupation, in refugee camps or in exile, we Palestinians have endured having everything callously taken from us – our homes, our heritage, our history, our families, livelihoods, freedom, farms, olive groves, water, security, and freedom. In the 1990s, we supported the Oslo Accords two-state solution even though it would have returned to us only 22% of our historic homeland. But Israel repeatedly squandered our generosity, confiscating more...