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International Middle East Media Center
Turkish
President, Prime Minister, Refuse To Meet Barak
IMEMC 16 Jan 2010 -
Sunday January 17, 2010 - 02:30, Turkish media sources reported on
Saturday that the Turkish President, Abdullah Gül, and Prime Minister,
Receb Tayyip Erdogan, will not hold a meeting with Israel’s Defense
Minister, Ehud Barak, who will be visiting the country on Sunday.
EU
Parliamentarians Leave Gaza
IMEMC 16 Jan 2010 -
Sunday January 17, 2010 - 00:27, European Parliamentarian, who managed
to enter the besieged and devastated Gaza Strip on Friday, left the
coastal region on Saturday afternoon via the Rafah Border Terminal, in
the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
Current
Status of Detained Maán Journalist - Jared Malsin
IMEMC 16 Jan 2010 -
Saturday January 16, 2010 - 23:23, Ma'an have issued a press release
concerning the current status of chief English editer, Jared Malsin.
Arguments will be heard tomorrow at Tel Aviv District Court to
determine his possible deportation.
Israeli
Officials Arrive In Jordan After Attack On Embassy
IMEMC 16 Jan 2010 -
Saturday January 16, 2010 - 09:35, Following a bombing that was meant
to target Israeli diplomats in Jordan two days ago, a number of senior
Israeli security officials arrived in Amman to review the security
measures used to secure the Israeli embassy in the country.
Detainee
Seriously Wounded Due To Torture
IMEMC 16 Jan 2010 -
Saturday January 16, 2010 - 07:54, The Detainees Media Committee
reported that a Palestinian detainee was seriously wounded due to
extreme torture by Israeli interrogators at the Salem detention camp in
the northern part of the West Bank.
Hamas,
Islamic Jihad: “No Ceasefire Under Aggression”
IMEMC 16 Jan 2010 -
Friday January 15, 2010 - 22:06, The Hamas and the Islamic Jihad
movements in Palestine stated in separate press releases that the
Palestinian resistance did not reach a ceasefire deal with the
occupation and will always defend itself and the Palestinian people
from any Israeli aggression.
Women
prisoners smuggle letters detailing harsh living conditions
1/16/2010 - Salfit -
Ma'an - The Palestinian Detainees' Society said on Saturday that 34
women detainees await news on a prisoner swap deal, having contacted
the society by smuggling letters. The women prisoners wrote of the poor
living conditions inside Israeli jails, where they are punished
arbitrarily. The detainees further wrote of not having access to hot
water, not being given blankets, cramped cells and poor electricity.
The cells in particular lack decent access the light and fresh air. The
facilities are outdoors, the women wrote, and lack privacy. [end]
Witnesses:
Israeli tanks shell Beit Hanoun
1/16/2010 - Gaza -
Ma'an - Israeli tanks operating near the northern Gaza border near Beit
Hanoun targeted civilian properties with heavy artillery fire,
witnesses said late Friday night. Eyewitnesses said tanks were spotted
at the border, and noted a heavier than usual weaponry used by the
forces. They said the fire hit civilian homes on the outskirts of the
town, causing material damages but no injuries. Families said the
louder than usual tank fire terrified their children. An Israeli
military spokesman said he was unfamiliar with any military activity in
the area overnight, but said he would look into the incident. According
to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs' weekly
Protection of Civilians Report, last week saw a steep escalation in
violence in Gaza. It counted seven Palestinians in Gaza killed by
Israeli airstrikes, and called the deaths a "serious escalation. "
Seven
injured as fire breaks out in Rafah tunnel
1/16/2010 - Gaza -
Ma'an - Seven Palestinians from Gaza suffered burns after a fire broke
out in one of the smuggling tunnels in the border town of Rafah,
southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday. The seven injured were taken to
An-Nasser and Ash-Shifa hospitals in Gaza City to undergo treatment for
their injuries, sources at the Abu Yousef Najjar hospital told Ma'an.
In December three Palestinians were killed after a tunnel collapsed
beneath the Egypt-Gaza border. The three were reported missing, and
later found by rescue workers. Smugglers maintain a large network of
underground tunnels along the Rafah border, importing goods made scarce
by an Israeli-led blockade of Gaza. Accidents in the tunnels are
frequent. According to the Palestinian human rights organization
Al-Mezan, 120 people have been killed working in the tunnel trade since
its inception approximately three years ago. . . . .
Teenager
attacked by settlers in Sheikh Jarrah
1/16/2010 -
Jerusalem - Ma'an - A Palestinian teenager was attacked by settlers on
Saturday evening in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East
Jerusalem. Amina Nashashibi, 16, was pulled by the hair and beaten
whilst attending a demonstration in the area, Ma'an's reporter said.
Settlers verbally attacked demonstrators. The reporter said Israeli
police were present at the scene. On Thursday evening Israeli police
blocked the road leading to the Al-Kurd family home, which was taken
over in part by settlers. In early August, Israeli police forced more
than 50 members of two Palestinian families, from their homes in Sheikh
Jarrah and allowed Israeli settlers to move in. The evictions of the
families went forward despite near-universal condemnation from the
international community, including Israel's closest ally, the US.
Boy
injured in explosion, police suspect left over Israeli charges
1/16/2010 - Hebron -
Ma'an - A boy was injured when an unknown object exploded in Khashm
Ad-Daraj, near Yatta village in Hebron, a police report said on
Saturday. Saleh Muhammad Al-Hathalin, 12, was transferred to the Hebron
governmental hospital to undergo treatment for his injuries. Police
rushed to the scene and are investigating the incident, suspecting the
explosive to be a device left over by Israeli forces, the report added.
Medical sources said Al-Hathalin was injured in his left hand and
stomach. His condition was described as moderate. [end]
Military
bulldozers create third entrance to illegal Nablus settlement
1/16/2010 - Nablus -
Ma'an - Israeli bulldozers began overturning land to make way for a
third entrance to the illegal settlement of Shavi Shamron in the West
Bank city of Nablus on Saturday, according to Ghassan Daghlas,
Palestinian official responsible for the settlement file in the West
Bank. "A number of Israeli bulldozers, accompanied by dozens of
workers, began bulldozing several dunums of farmland confiscated by the
Israeli army to open a third entrance to the settlement," Daghlas said.
The official denounced the act, and called for "a real and serious halt
to settlement construction in the West Bank, particularly as these acts
of confiscation come shortly after US envoy George Mitchell's visit to
the region to push the peace process forward. " . . . .
Jordan
to UN: Restore Dead Sea Scrolls to rightful owner
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Jordan submitted an official complaint to
the United Nations last week, asking the body to intervene and return
the Dead Sea Scrolls to the country. The scrolls were seized from a
museum by Israel following the 1967 war. The complaint, filed with
UNESCO, followed Canada's refusal to hold the scrolls, which were on
exhibit in Toronto in cooperation with the Israeli Ministry of
Antiquities. Jordan asked Canada to take care of the historical
artifacts until a court could decide who their rightful owner was. "The
kingdom has filed a complaint to UNESCO that the scrolls belong to
Jordan," Rafea Harahsheh of the country's antiquities department said
in a statement quoted by the AP, noting "the government has legal
documents that prove Jordan owns the scrolls. " The scrolls were found
between 1948 and 1957 by Jordanian archaeologists following the first
find by Palestinian Bedouins in 1947.
Anti-wall
activists freed as detentions persist
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Following months of detention without charge in an
Israeli prison, anti-wall activists Mohammad Othman and Jamal Juma have
been released, a statement from the senior campaign officer said on
Saturday. "Their release is a massive victory. Thank you to everyone
who took action to help secure their freedom," the statement said. Juma
and Othman work for Stop the Wall, an organization opposed to Israel's
construction of the separation wall, which severely limits
Palestinians' freedom of movement and leads to the confiscation of
agricultural land. Their detention was part of Israel's ongoing
crackdown on anti-wall activists. "Your actions made my imprisonment
too uncomfortable for the Israeli authorities. We are deeply thankful
for all your efforts. The reasons for our arrests were purely political
"” an attempt to crush Stop the Wall and the popular committees against
the Wall.
Report:
Egypt further fortifies borders with Gaza, this time at sea
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Egypt is building a small sea port for
patrol boats monitoring the country's border with Gaza in an effort to
further block the Palestinian enclave's access to smuggling routes,
Reuters reported Friday. "The new anchorage will enhance the work of
the Egyptian patrol boats on the sea border with Gaza and prevent any
attempts of smuggling by sea," Reuters quoted an Egyptian security
source in North Sinai as saying. The anchorage, according to the
report, will be 10 meters deep and 25 meters long, and used to moor
border patrol boats charged with ensuring Palestinian fishing boats
stay in Gazan coastal waters. Egypt has said it believes the boats are
being used to carry out smuggling operations, though there have never
been reports of such incidents. "It is to secure the area. It will be
used to direct fishing boats in the area to ensure they do not cross. .
. "
Mash’al
asks for meeting with Abbas to end division
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Head of the Hamas politburo Khalid Mash'al asked
Egyptian leadership to prepare President Mahmoud Abbas for a bilateral
meeting in an effort to end division, he told reporters following a
speech in a Beirut conference Friday. "Despite the political
disagreement, I want to begin now and clear away the past. I am calling
on Abu Mazen[Mahmoud Abbas] to participate in a bilateral meeting in
which we will start a discussion on unity," Mash'al toldthe Arab and
International Forum t Support Resistance, noting the bilateral meetings
would be quickly followed by multi-faction talks. "Iam confident that
when we meet will agree and we will handle all the minor differences;
then we will go to Cairo along with a strong Arab presence to bless our
unity and agreement. " Mash'al acknowledged that the ball was in Hamas'
court as far as unity went, and said he "welcomes the. . . "
Hamas:
PA forces detained 15 across West Bank
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Hamas accused the Palestinian Authority security
forces on Friday of arrested 15 members of the Islamic movement, in a
statement. "Security forces arrested on of its affiliates from
Qalqiliya, one from Nablus, one from Hebron, three from Tubas and nine
from Tulkarem," the statement said. [end]
Italian
organization build new waste station in Gaza
1/16/2010 - Gaza -
Ma'an - The Gaza Municipality, in conjunction with the International
Italian organization of Cooperazione Internazionale (COOPI), have begun
the construction of a waste station inside the Al-Yarmuk landfill site
west of Gaza City, which will eliminate up to 90% of its refuse.
"Improving the living conditions in the Palestinian territories and
stopping the leakage of waste into the water and soil, which causes
contamination and pollution [are the aims of the project]," said COOPI
representatives. Yahaya Abu Zubeida, project supervisor working with
the Gaza Municipality to implement the project, said "a concrete fill,
surrounded by a cement wall of varying heights will be built, leaving
the southern side open as an entrance for workers and carts to dispose
of the waste collected from the streets into the waste station. "
Day
20: Israel ’knew of the location of the UNRWA premises’
1/16/2010 - 15
January 2009 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - On the morning of 15 January 2009,
the field office compound of UNRWA, situated in the southern Rimal area
of Gaza City, came under sustained shelling from the Israeli armed
forces. At least three high explosive shells and seven white
phosphorous container shells struck the workshop and warehouse area of
the compound causing massive damage as a result of ensuing fires. Five
of the shells exploded in the compound including all three high
explosive shells. Two complete container shells of white phosphorous
were retrieved. Five additional white phosphorous shells were retrieved
but not in their complete form. These five shells deposited large
amounts of the phosphorus wedges contained in the shells into the
compound, if not in fact all of the wedges. At least three shells hit
the Gaza Training Centre and caused light injuries to one staff member.
Israel
releases 5 detained from Balata Refugee Camp
1/16/2010 - Nablus -
Ma'an - Israeli authorities released five Palestinians detained in
Israeli prisons on Saturday, all from the Balata Refugee Camp in
eastern Nablus. Abdul Rahman Abu Jneid was amongst those released,
having served 26 months in several different Israeli prisons. He
commented on poor living conditions within the jails and the prison
administration's neglect of detainees' needs, adding that prisoners are
punished arbitrarily to force them into confessions, Abu Jneid said.
The remaining Palestinians released include Salah Abu daod, Haitham
Bahnajawi, Abdullah Al-Asy and Rady Nemer Hashash, all from the Balata
Refugee Camp. [end]
Resident
files complaint against PA security forces
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Abbas, 20, from Dheisheh Refugee Camp in Bethlehem,
filed a complaint with police concerning his treatment at the hands of
Palestinian Authority security forces during a nonviolent demonstration
in the camp on Wednesday. Abbas said he suffered blows and bruising as
he tried to film a sit-in at the refugee camp, and was forcibly removed
from the rally by PA security forces. He called on President Mahmoud
Abbas, the Mayor of Bethlehem, and human rights organizations to
investigate his case and take action against the security forces
responsible. [end]
Third
night in a row, Israeli forces close northern roads
1/16/2010 -
Qalqiliya - Ma'an - Israeli troops closed the Qalqiliya-Azzun road,
installed an impassible checkpoint and were seen searching areas east
of Qalqiliya on Saturday night. Witnesses said Israeli forces were
operating in the city, and said traffic was backed up for hours, until
word spread in the area that the road had been closed. The closure
marked the third night in a row that areas in the northern West Bank
were closed by Israeli military personnel. On Friday, three roads in
and out of Tulkarem were shut down, with witnesses describing a series
of flying checkpoints installed and inspections being carried out. On
Thursday, the city of Nablus was closed off, the Huwwara checkpoint
locked down and similar searches performed, according to witnesses. An
Israeli military spokesman said the closure was a part of regular
security measures in the West Bank, "to ensure the safety of all
residents in the area. "
Palestinian
bomb squad detonates explosives near Hebron
1/16/2010 - Hebron -
Ma'an - Explosives were discovered in a metal scrap shop by a resident
from the town of Ithna, west of Hebron on Thursday, and informed the
police of his find, head of the local police department Awad Ramadan
said. "A resident noticed suspicious objects inside a store and called
the police in Ithna," he said. "A patrol was dispatched to the scene
where the police bomb squad was called to discover if the explosives
were weapons left behind by the Israeli army. The bomb squad detonated
the explosives without causing damage or injuries. " The owner of the
shop was questioned, who told police that the explosives were purchased
from the Israeli city of Ashdod and "vowed not to buy such items,"
Ramadan said. Ramadan urged residents not to handle any suspicious
items and to inform the police immediately, keeping children away from
the area.
Shalit
’ill-omened’ tank taken out of service
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - The tank termed an "ill omen" from which soldier
Gilad Shalit was captured from, and in which two Israeli soldiers were
killed in 2006 has been taken out of service by the Israeli army.
Following Shalit's capture, the Siman 3 tank remained in service but
broke down in 2007 after it was bombed by Palestinian fighters. The
tank was repaired and sent back to the Gaza Strip. During Operation
Cast Lead, on 8 January 2009, a soldier was killed inside the tank by a
Palestinian sniper. The tank will now be used for military exercises in
the desert. [end]
Israeli
delegation visits Jordan to review embassy security
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - An Israeli delegation arrived in Jordan on Saturday
to review security procedures undertaken at the Israeli embassy in
Amman. Tovia Livna, former chief of security for Israel's intelligence
unit, the Shabak, said that there are a number of difficulties related
to ensuring the protection of Israeli embassies in Arab countries.
"There are many hardships and problems obstructing the protection and
defense of Israeli embassies. "According to Nabil Ash-Sharif, the
Jordanian minister of information, the delegation will not participate
in investigations relating to the blast that targeted an Israeli
diplomatic convoy in Jordan on Thursday evening, stressing that
Jordanian security will be responsible but has yet to make any arrests.
. . . .
Hamas:
Shalit talks underway and not stalled
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Hamas leader Osma Hamdan declared on Saturday that
negotiations to secure the release of caputured Israeli soldier Gilad
Shalit remain underway, the Arabic daily Al-Hayat reported. "As long as
there is one prisoner, talks are ongoing. We are negotiating to
conclude a deal to release Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails,"
he said during an interview. "The Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit will be
freed only when [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu accepts the
condition of the resistance. . . Netanyahu alone will be responsible
for obstructing the accomplishment of the deal if he refuses to
implement these conditions. ""Hamas is not in a rush. There is no
specific time to strike a deal. . . negotiations have their mechanisms
and we are not interested in revealing them," Hamdan told the
London-based newspaper.
Greece
must intervene in Israel land sales, delegation says
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - A delegation of Palestinian Orthodox Christians
called on the Greek government to take appropriate action against the
Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilios III for leasing church land to
Israeli officials and called for the deal to be nullified. The
delegation returned from Greece on Friday. The delegation met with the
Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs Spirus Kofelepos and secretary
general of the Greek Socialist Party, Poulina Lamisa, in addition to a
number of Greek officials, to discuss the consequences of the long-term
land leases to Israeli developers, including that of the Mar Elias
Monastery between occupied East Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The delegation
further appealed to Greek officials to undertake efforts to implement
internal reform in the Patriarchate in accordance with the law of the
Orthodox Church.
Fayyad
denies EU to cut down aid to PA if talks remain derailed
1/16/2010 -
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Caretaker Prime Minister Salam Fayyad denied that
the EU has threatened to decrease the amount of aid given to the
Palestinian Authority if no new developments are achieved in the peace
process, he told Ma'an's reporter in Hebron on Saturday. "I have no
idea about this issue at all," Fayyad said. Diplomatic EU sources in
Paris said on Friday that the EU will not maintain at its current level
of support for the PA in 2010, if there are no developments in the
peace process. Paris is ready to host another donor conference this
summer but on the condition that political progress is made, the
sources added. One source said that as a result of EU funding, the
Palestinian economy increased by 7% in 2008 and a further 10% in 2009.
The EU provides 1 billion Euros each year the PA. Mitchell warns Israel
of possible sanctionsUS Special Envoy to the Middle. . .
Fayyad
launches building restoration project in Bir Zeit
1/16/2010 - Ramallah
- Ma'an - It is the project of the Palestinian Authority to create new
and positive facts on the ground in efforts to achieve a Palestinian
state that meets the needs of its people, Prime Minister Salam Fayyad
told Bir Zeit residents on Friday. "Our national project needs enduring
energy and multiple efforts, determination and great hope," Fayyad
said, promising to support the construction of streets, water and
electricity networks, schools and health facilities. Fayyad was
inaugurating the restoration of an ancient building in the heart of the
village, supported by the Swedish Development Agency and the Dutch
government and in cooperation with the Bir Zeit municipality. He also
noted several other restoration projects would be soon underway,
supported by the United States. Mayor of Bir Zeit Dr Yousef Nasser
welcomed the infrastructure and projects, saying they supported. . .
PA
security forces: 11 fugitives detained at Allenby
1/16/2010 - Jericho
- Ma'an - Palestinian Authority security forces arrested 11 fugitives
during the week as they tried to enter Jordan via the Allenby Bridge, a
report issued by the media office of the Palestinian police said on
Saturday. Those apprehended were deemed "wanted" by Palestinian courts
and the general attorney relating to fraud charges and other financial
issues, the report said. During the past week, 19,201 people traveled
via the Allenby Bridge, the report concluded. [end]
Barghouti:
Palestinian division is a crime
1/16/2010 - Ramallah
- Ma'an - Mustafa Barghouti, secretary general of the Palestinian
National Initiative, said on Saturday that ongoing division between
Palestinian factions is detrimental to Palestinians. "Continued
division on the Palestinian arena is a crime against the Palestinians
and their future," he said. "Israel is eliminating the elements of the
Palestinian cause by changing the features of Jerusalem, with
settlements, enforcing an apartheid regime, changing the features of
the Jordan Valley and confiscating Palestinian sources of water and
imposing the siege on Gaza. " Under such circumstances, he said, "it is
a crime to continue with this state of division. . . every effort
should be made to restore national unity. "Barghouti called for
expanding and applying the popular resistance by reviving the boycott
campaign, imposing international sanctions on Israel "to stop its
crimes in the Palestinian territories. "
Enas
Muthaffar: Simply put, I’m a filmmaker
1/16/2010 - In the
first of a series dedicated to Palestinian film, Ma'an interviews
Palestinian filmmaker Enas Muthaffar, who, in addition to making
several short films and documentaries, has worked as assistant director
on several Palestinian films, including Paradise Now and Salt of this
Sea. Jerusalem - Ma'an - First and foremost, Muthaffar explains of the
difficulties faced by Palestinian filmmakers in the occupied
Palestinian territories, given the lack of Palestinian funding.
"Palestinian directors have to be their own producers. "Her work is
edgy and "lately, I tend to be sarcastic about the whole situation,"
she says. Much of her work is screened internationally and in the
occupied Palestinian territories, mostly in refugee camps across the
West Bank. "Because of everything, it's hard to get Palestinians to
view films. I am lucky, I have freedom of movement. I can be there, and
it's important. . . "
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Jordanian minister: Attack on Israeli diplomatic convoy was primarily an attack on Jordan.
ANALYSIS / Jordan bombing: Good intelligence, poor execution
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Attackers had knowledge of embassy's routine activities; Al-Qaida and Hezbollah are prime suspects.
Report: Jordan arrests suspect in attack on Israeli convoy
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Convoy transporting 3 Israeli diplomats targeted by remotely detonated roadside bomb; no casualties.
Three hurt in blast in Hezbollah south Lebanon stronghold
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Lebanon officials: Bomb exploded at entrance of building, wounded three students waiting for school bus.
Hamas to Gaza militias: Stop firing rockets at Israel
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Ismail Haniyeh says adhering to cease-fire with Israel protects Gazans from IDF attacks.
Barak tells Hezbollah: War with Israel not worth your while
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Defense minister makes remarks to soldiers during a tour of the northern border on Tuesday.
Hezbollah denies drug trafficking to fund Israel attacks
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Lebanon-based group deems Der Spiegel report 'false fabrication' and 'tool manipulated by Zionists.'
Report: 8 IDF troops fell asleep while patrolling Lebanon border
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Battalion troops, which included two commanding officers, had in the past complained of sleep deprivation.
Hamas: Gaza bombmaker killed in work-related blast
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Two others injured; Palestinian sources initially claimed casualties were caused by IAF missile strike.
IDF denies reports it attacked northern Gaza
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Palestinians say three militants killed in IAF strike on Strip; Gaza rocket hits Israel for fifth consecutive day.
'Iron Dome rocket defense system will take years to deploy'
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - 'Watch your step,' Barak warns Hamas over rockets; Hamas: Palestinian attacks are response to Israeli aggression.
Egypt says Israel's plan for border fence 'not our concern'
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Cairo denies link between Israel's barrier and its own wall now being constructed between Egypt and Gaza.
Druze MK seeks immunity in indictment over Syria meeting
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Balad's Said Naffaa says meetings in Syria arguing fall under his duties as a member of Knesset.
Bank of Israel forecasts 3.5% growth rate for 2010
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Bank says global recovery upped demand for Israeli goods; cautions that could scale back the forecast.
Palestinian terror cell head gets 2 life sentences
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Mohammed Abu-Sneina convicted of heading group that murdered two Jerusalem cops in 2008.
Israel to build NIS 1.5b fence along Egypt border
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Netanyahu approves plan to prevent migrant workers from infiltrating and 'ensure Jewish character' of Israel.
A
Palestinian artist paints 1400 White phosphorus works of art
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - As many other Palestinian artists who were deeply in love with
life that they created new heartbeats out of the shadows of death, The
Palestinian artist Maysara Barood held his latest exhibition in Gaza
entitled (White Phosphorus on the birth anniversary of Ailia'a).
Ailia'a is the ancient name of Alquds or Jerusalem and also is the...
Israeli
Internet company supplies an Iranian authority
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - The Israeli company Daronet Internet Solutions has sold 70
systems worth around US$ 1 million to the chamber of commerce of the
district of Teheran. This reported the Voice of Israel on January 14th.
Daronet vice CFO Yacov Harpaz told Israeli state radio that his company
got the order through a representative of the Iranian customer...
US
tax-exempt organization fights ‘with intensity’ against Jewish-Arab
marriage
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - Where to begin? Regular readers of this blog will undoubtedly
know about the severe problem of Israeli racism against Arabs in
general and Palestinians in particular. But this story leaves even me
incredulous. After Ali Abunimah posted a wonderfully sarcastic comment
to his Twitter feed about how much settlers love to hear about the
"rescue" of...
Video:
I am the Resistance
Uruknet Janaury 16,
2010 - Whenever there is injustice, there are people fighting it with
every possible means. We have seen it so many times before: the
oppressed rise up, the oppressor dehumanizes them calling them such
names as "terrorists", "saboteurs", "death loving" extremists... It is
only normal that the oppressor will always lie to justify his actions
and its crimes......
The
Militarization of Emergency Aid to Haiti: Is it a Humanitarian
Operation or an Invasion?
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - Haiti has a longstanding history of US military intervention and
occupation going back to the beginning of the 20th Century. US
interventionism has contributed to the destruction of Haiti's national
economy and the impoverishment of its population. The devastating
earthquake is presented to World public opinion as the sole cause of
the country's predicament. A country...
Barak
off to Turkey amid calls for arrest
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - Ahead of today's scheduled visit to Turkey by Defense Minister
Ehud Barak, an Islamic human rights group on Friday petitioned a
Turkish state prosecutor to start legal proceedings against him for
alleged crimes against Gazans during Operation Cast Lead. Barak is
expected to try to mend strained relations in the wake of the military
operation last...
The
Big One Devastates Haiti
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - ...The country is a text book example of oppressive rule,
exploitation, extreme poverty, widespread unemployment, and
overwhelming human misery - largely because of US dominance since the
19th century. From 1849 - 1913, navy ships entered Haitian waters 24
times to "protect American lives and property," and from 1915 - 1934,
US Marines occupied and ravaged...
GAZA:
what are promises of humanitarian aid worth?
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - We keep hearing from the British government that they have spent
£millions in humanitarian aid for Gaza. But nobody is saying exactly
where the money has gone and who benefited. Of course, if they had done
what they were supposed to and (with the rest of the international
community) made sure the Palestinians were left in...
Palestinian
Detainee Seriously Wounded Due To Torture
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - The Detainees Media Committee reported that a Palestinian
detainee was seriously wounded due to extreme torture by Israeli
interrogators at the Salem detention camp in the northern part of the
West Bank. The detainee was identified as Hatheefa Farid Ziyada from
the northern West Bank city of Nablus. He was repeatedly beaten to
several parts of...
Mash'al
asks for meeting with Abbas to end division
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - Head of the Hamas politburo Khalid Mash'al asked Egyptian
leadership to prepare President Mahmoud Abbas for a bilateral meeting
in an effort to end division, he told reporters following a speech in a
Beirut conference Friday. "Despite the political disagreement, I want
to begin now and clear away the past. I am calling on Abu
Mazen[Mahmoud...
Palestinian
women prisoners smuggle letters detailing harsh living conditions
Uruknet January 16,
2010 – The Palestinian Detainees' Society said on Saturday that 34
women detainees await news on a prisoner swap deal, having contacted
the society by smuggling letters. The women prisoners wrote of the poor
living conditions inside Israeli jails, where they are punished
arbitrarily. The detainees further wrote of not having access to hot
water, not being given...
Report:
Egypt further fortifies borders with Gaza, this time at sea
Uruknet January 16,
2010 - Egypt is building a small sea port for patrol boats monitoring
the country's border with Gaza in an effort to further block the
Palestinian enclave's access to smuggling routes, Reuters reported
Friday. "The new anchorage will enhance the work of the Egyptian patrol
boats on the sea border with Gaza and prevent any attempts of
smuggling...
Gaza, January 16, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - Four Palestinian work in smuggling tunnel were injured on Saturday in a fire in one of the tunnelunder the border between Gaza Strip and Egypt, medics and witnesses said. Witnesses said the fire broke out in tunnel used to smuggle fuel after a fuel leak. Rescue teams, firefighters and ambulances arrived at the...
British MP calls Gaza blockade “evil”
Gaza, January 16, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - A lawmaker from Britain's Labour Party is visiting the Gaza Strip and says the blockade of Gaza by Israel and Egypt is "evil." Gerald Kaufman also spoke in support of attempts by pro-Palestinian groups in Britain to have arrest warrants issued against Israeli politicians involved in Israel's war on Gaza last year. The...
Abbas will decline US pressure for talks
Ramallah, January 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he will reject renewed US pressure to resume peace talks unless Israel first fully halts settlement building in the occupied West Bank. Abbas was due to meet Jim Jones, US President Barack Obama's national security adviser, later on Thursday in Ramallah. Jones was also meeting Israeli Prime Minister...
UNRWA opens up healthcare for Palestinians refugees in Lebanon
Lebanon, January 14, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) -An agreement signed on Wednesday between the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) will strengthen healthcare for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and add to the number of facilities where they can receive treatment, the organizations said. Salvatore Lombardo, the director of UNRWA Affairs in Lebanon, said "...
Gaza: 75 Deformed Babies Caused by the War
Gaza, January 14, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - Recent scientific analyses have shown that the war was a direct cause of the increasing numbers of birth defects, miscarriages and cancer in the Gaza Strip. A report by Conscience Organisation for Human Rights concerning the environmental and health dangers resulting from the bombardment and invasion revealed that incidents of children born with...
The National 16 Jan 2010 - Comment Commemorations of Israel's invasion of Gaza seem misplaced, given that the war was neither completely imposed nor entirely unwelcome for Hamas.
Egypt's iron wall sends out tough message over border
The National 16 Jan 2010 - Analysis Unless Hamas bows to its more powerful neighbour and signs Cairo's unity document unabridged, Egypt could stealthily apply more pressure on Gaza.
No snow brings Middle East ski resort downhill
The National 15 Jan 2010 - Unseasonally warm weather in Lebanon's mountains has meant that local businesses have suffered as tourists have failed to turn up.
AlJazeera 16 Jan 2010 - Choice of supreme guide seen as victory for conservatives in largest opposition group.
No deal reached on Iran sanctions
AlJazeera 16 Jan 2010 - Diplomats from six key powers fail to agree on new sanctions against Iran.
'Arrest made' over Jordan explosion
AlJazeera 15 Jan 2010 - Taxi driver suspected of planting bomb targeting Israeli diplomats, Al Jazeera learns.
Alternative Information Center
Second Palestinian Activist—Mohammed Othman—Freed by IsraelAlternative Information Center 15 Jan 2010 - Amnesty International has welcomed the release from detention of Palestinian human rights activist Mohammed Othman — but is concerned that the Israeli authorities have imposed conditions which will prevent him exercising his human rights. Mohammed Othman...
PNN 16 Jan 2010 - In the small dusty money-changing shop where he works in the Jabalia refugee camp, 28-year-old Mohammed Abu Qamar draws on a cigarette, limps toward me and rolls up his trouser leg. Pink scars surround his ankle. He leans forward and places my hand on the back of his head. I feel an unnatural rough lump beneath his hair. Mr Abu Qamar was...
Israel restricts Palestinian lawyers' access to West Bank detainees
PNN 16 Jan 2010 - Israel is prohibiting Palestinian lawyers and the relatives of Palestinian detainees from reaching a military tribunal via the Beitunia checkpoint west of Ramallah. The prohibition, which has been in effect for the past three days, means that Israeli police are requiring Palestinians to use the Qalandiyah crossing 20 kilometers away, where they must produce an entry permit to Israel - which can...
West Bank land sales by Church spur uproar
PNN 16 Jan 2010 - The Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem is once again being rocked by controversy over alleged land sales to Israeli investors in the West Bank. So incensed is the local Palestinian orthodox community that Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch, had to be accompanied by security guards in full riot gear when he arrived in Bethlehem last week to celebrate Christmas. Many in...
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - Though no sanctions decided upon, diplomat says message to Iran is that time is running out.
Barak heads to Turkey to close UAV deal
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - 12-hour visit of defense minister, big delegation, hoped to mend deteriorating ties with Muslim state.
Ross joined Jones on visit to Israel
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - National Security Adviser also went to Lebanon after recent visit; Norway's FM arrives for meetings.
Ayalon threatens to expel ambassadors
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - Deputy FM: Variety of responses will be considered against any nation whose actions hurt Israel.
Israelis race to save lives in devastated Haiti
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - 'Jerusalem Post' correspondent in Haiti reports on operational IDF field hospital, deployed canine units; death toll may reach 200,000.
US Jewish leaders vexed by Turkey's hostility towards Israel
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - ADL and others convey concerns to Turkish embassy.
Analysis: US has limited leverage on Ankara to mend ties with Jerusalem
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - Strong internal standing of Erdogan's party, and his ideological zeal, means even White House pressure yields little.
'Meir Dagan is the Superman of Israel'
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - Egyptian daily praises Mossad chief for "painful blows" which have delayed Iran's nuclear program.
Jordan denies arrests in Israeli diplomat attack
Jeruslalem Post 16 Jan 2010 - Information minister says the bombing is an attack on Jordan first of all.
IPS JERUSALEM, Jan 13 (IPS) - One year after the devastating attack on Hamas in Gaza a new wave of reports castigating Israel for war crimes has emerged.
MIDEAST: Israel Cannot be Sultan
IPS JERUSALEM, Jan 14 (IPS) - A bizarre diplomatic incident - even by the Byzantine-like standards of the old near East - has threatened already strained relations between Israel and Turkey.
MIDEAST: Will You Marry Poor Me
IPS GAZA CITY, Jan 14 (IPS) - "If we had money we'd get married right away," says Samir*, 23. He has found his bride, but not the money to hold the wedding.
MIDEAST: Israel Cool to New U.S. Pressure
IPS JERUSALEM, Jan 11 (IPS) - In the past, whenever there was even a semblance of pressure from Washington on Israel, nerves in Jerusalem went all a-jangle.
PCHR
International Solidarity Movement
Israeli forces invade Bil’in following Friday demonstration, shoot live ammunition1/16/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - Eight demonstrators were injured today in Bil'in along with dozens who suffered tear-gas inhalation during a regular Friday protest against the Wall and subsequent army invasion into the village. The army used live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets and tear-gas grenades and canisters against the unarmed crowd. The demonstration, called by the Bil'in Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements, was joined by dozens of international and Israeli activists. Speeches were made commemorating the Palestinian martyrs, especially the late president Yasser Arafat and Bil'in resident Bassem Abu Rahmah. Bassem died after he was hit by a tear-gas canister the army shot at him from a short distance. Demonstrators marched towards the site of the Apartheid Wall, carrying a twenty-meter long Palestinian flag.
Building a different Middle East
1/16/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - Joel Beinin, The Nation, 15 January - Like every other woman in her village Umm Hasan wears a headscarf. Her husband and other male relatives are not on the scene. But this is not an obstacle to her animated interactions with the sixteen Israelis and foreigners she has never previously met but welcomes into her home. Among the visitors are a German and a Serb who are making a film about Palestinian hip-hop. Everyone has come to participate in the weekly demonstration against the separation barrier organized by the local Popular Committee. While the Israelis make preparations for the demonstration, Umm Hasan tells the filmmakers about the current situation in the village. Neria, a young Israeli woman who attended a bilingual primary school, makes a poster in Arabic and Hebrew, "so the [Israeli] soldiers will know what it means" with the slogan: "They destroyed the wall in Berlin; tomorrow we'll destroy it in Palestine. . . "
An Nabi Salih: resistance to settlement expansion met with military violence
1/16/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - 15 January - Israeli forces must have anticipated the large response to the An Nabi Salih Popular Struggle's call out for international solidarity in their 4th consecutive Friday demonstration on January 15th. Three International Solidarity Movement (ISM) activists were turned away from the seldom-staffed partial checkpoint of "˜Atara, between Ramallah and An Nabi Salih. Fortunately, a back route was established and the group made it to the village, joining 10 other internationals, a dozen journalists and over 300 Palestinians. The hilltop village of An Nabi Salih has a population of approximately 500 residents and is located 30 kilometers northeast of Ramallah along highway 465. The demonstration protested the illegal seizure of valuable agricultural land and the January 9th, 2010 uprooting of hundreds of the village resident's olive trees by the Hallamish (Neve Zuf) settlement located on highway 465, opposite An Nabi Salih. "
CPT: Hebron Incidents, December 17-31, 2009
1/16/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - The Christian Peacemaker Team in Hebron released this incident report for the period between December 17 and December 31, 2009. - December 17 - Shortly after morning worship, the team's neighbor told them that soldiers were on the roof of the apartment building. When Herbert, Schroeder, and Shiffer filmed them and asked why they kept coming up to the roof, they did not respond. Kern brought up tea and cookies, but none of the soldiers accepted this hospitality. The team decided next time the soldiers came up to the roof again, they would videotape themselves singing "Joy to the World" there for a digital Christmas greeting. When soldiers did not subsequently appear, the team decided to record a digital greeting anyway. December 18 - After consulting with their neighbor, team members decided to keep the stairwell door locked through the morning in case the soldiers arrived again.
Free Wa’el Al-Faqeeh
1/16/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - 15 January - On the night of December 9th 2009, over 200 Israeli soldiers entered the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Their mission: to round up local grassroots activists, whose promotion of popular struggle Israel had no answer for. Amongst those taken was 45 year old Wa'el Al-Faqeeh. Fifty soldiers stormed his home, pointing their weapons at him and his family as though the man they had come to arrest embodied a formidable threat. But those who know Al Faqeeh know that he worked tirelessly - and on a largely voluntary basis - in defense of human rights and the promotion of the strategies and philosophy of Palestinian non-violent resistance. Political prisoner Wa'el Al-Faqeeh has been detained without charge by Israeli authorities for over a month, and is now facing trial in a military court scheduled to begin on the 19th of January.
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The Guardian 15 Jan 2010 - A year ago today, Save the Children met a Palestinian boy named Mohammed. He was living in a shelter school after his house was damaged by the Israeli shelling of Gaza. A year later he describes...
I'm no hero for defending Palestinians | David Hirsh
The Guardian 15 Jan 2010 - Yes, I stood up against abusing the rights of Palestinians, but so do many Israelis – a fact that Yoav Shamir's film ignores The Bolsheviks used to aim to hit an enemy hard at its strongest...
What hope for Hebron? | Seth Freedman
The Guardian 15 Jan 2010 - With attacks on Palestinians by settlers commonplace, the last thing Hebron needs is the removal of international observers "The situation is getting worse here," says Zleikha Muhtaseb, the principal of a Palestinian kindergarten in Hebron's old...
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - "A Bag of Fibs," the classic collection of tall tales from the pre-state Palmach militia, tells of a truck driver sent from Tel Aviv to deliver a water cistern to Jerusalem. During the steep approach to the city, at Sha'ar Haggai, he slams on the brakes and the tank slips off the truck. While backing up in order to reload the tank, he falls in and drowns. Israel's cistern is the religious autonomy that has grown within it. ...
Steinitz: Foreign workers 'exploit' Israel's economy
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - The government panel headed by Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz will submit a plan today for reducing the number of illegal foreign workers in Israel. Steinitz said the initiative is aimed at combating the workers' negative influence on the Israeli economy. ...
Police arrest CEO of Israeli civil rights group in Sheikh Jarrah
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Police arrested 15 left-wing protestors in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem on Friday, among them the CEO of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Hagai Elad. ...
Israeli delegation to Haiti rescues top local official
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Ban Ki-moon confirms UN mission chief in Haiti died in the quake; Death toll could top 100,000.
PM's office denies claims that Sara Netanyahu abused housekeeper
Ha'aretz 16 Jan 2010 - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has denied allegations filed against the premier's wife by a former housekeeper who says Sara Netanyahu treated her unfairly when she worked at the couple's Caesarea home. ...
Relief Web 16 Jan 2010 - Source: Reuters - AlertNet
EU parliamentary delegation visits blockaded Gaza
Relief Web 16 Jan 2010 - Source: Xinhua
Second Palestinian activist freed by Israel
Relief Web 15 Jan 2010 - Source: Amnesty
OPT: A Colorful Way to Start the Day
Relief Web 15 Jan 2010 - Source: American Near East Refugee Aid
In Gaza, Sutures are Life Savers
Relief Web 15 Jan 2010 - Source: American Near East Refugee Aid
Lebanon/OPT: January 2010 Trip Diary
Relief Web 15 Jan 2010 - Source: American Near East Refugee Aid
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - Three other Hamas figures apprehended during West Bank operation, including clerk in Palestinian Interior Ministry
Russia says meeting on Iran sanctions yields no decision
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - Meeting of top powers to discuss further UN sanctions on Iran inconclusive but useful, says US representative
Israel threatens to expel Turkish ambassador
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - Deputy FM Ayalon tells Channel 2 he did not mean to humiliate Ambassador Celikkol by seating him on sofa lower than his own, but says Israel was right to make it clear to Turks that there would be a 'price tag' for 'trampling upon the dignity of the Jewish state'. Islamic human rights group holds march to protest Barak's planned visit to Ankara
Israeli aid delegation begins Haiti rescue efforts
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - Amidst total chaos, IDF Home Front Command rescue teams begin searching for survivors underneath UN building, schools; field-hospital prepares to treat some 500 wounded per day. 'It is a heart-breaking sight,' says delegation member
Nasrallah meets Mashaal, calls to end 'Arab weakness'
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - Hamas delegation headed by Mashaal meets Hezbollah chief Nasrallah in Lebanon. Joint statement says 'diplomatic activity to renew peace talks aimed at securing Israeli interests, underscores futility of official Arab stance'
Lebanon says will coordinate UN activity with Iran
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - President Suleiman tells visiting Iranian VP countries must cooperate in efforts to influence Security Council. Hezbollah deputy chief: Israel needs peace process to annex lands, extend occupation
Hamas says Shalit talks ongoing
YNet News 16 Jan 2010 - Senior Islamist group figure Hamdan says Netanyahu will be held responsible of prisoner swap talks fail
Daily Star 16 Jan 2010 An air strike against an Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) convoy in north Yemen on Friday killed six suspected leaders of the group, a senior Yemeni official said. Qassem al-Rimi was among 23 people who made a daring escape from a state security prison in Sanaa in February 2006 that left the government red-faced.
Tehran endeavors to render education more regime-friendly
Daily Star 16 Jan 2010 As they struggle to fend off their political opponents in the here and now, Iran's rulers are also taking a longer-term view with an ambitious project to indoctrinate future generations from an early age. Plans to inject school education with more Islamic content, anti-Western values and pro-regime and separate content for boys and girls amount to an attempt at an Iranian-style "Cultural Revolution."
Egypt police bar activists from town after Copt deaths
Daily Star 16 Jan 2010 Police on Friday barred 20 activists from a tense town in southern Egypt where Muslim gunmen killed six Coptic Christians earlier this month, a senior security official said. The group, which included bloggers and political activists, planned to meet and express solidarity with victims' families, said the official, who did not want to be identified.
Iran arrests dissident cleric, warns opposition
Daily Star 16 Jan 2010 Iran has stepped up pressure on the opposition, arresting a dissident cleric and warning against using SMS and email messages to organize anti-government protests, reports said on Friday. Mid-ranking cleric Mohammad Taghi Khalaji, who was close to late dissident Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, was arrested at his home in Qom Tuesday, reformist website Norooznews said.
Turkey, Israel on track to close drone deal: official
Daily Star 16 Jan 2010 Turkey and Israel appear to be on track to finalize a long delayed multi-million-dollar deal for the delivery of 10 drone aircraft for the Turkish air force, a Turkish official said Friday. The project, launched in 2005, was under threat of cancellation amid delays and rising tensions between the two countries over Israel's devastating offensive in Gaza last year.
Palestinian Information Center
Newspaper: Egypt will fortify its security system around the wallPIC 16 Jan 2010 - An Egyptian newspaper revealed that the Egyptian authorities intend to make its security system around the steel wall more complicated through building observation towers.
Diplomatic sources: EU links aid to PA with progress in settlement process
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - The European donor countries have warned the world community that they would not maintain the same level of financial aid to the PA in Ramallah in 2010 if no progress in the peace process was made.
European parliamentary delegation visits bombed area in north Gaza
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - The European parliamentary delegation visited many bombed areas in northern Gaza Strip to see closely the humanitarian conditions of citizens and war victims one year after the Israeli war.
Turkish paper: Gul, Erdogan refuse to meet Barak
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - Turkish president Abdullah Gul and his premier Recep Erdogan have refused to meet Israeli war minister Ehud Barak during his visit to Ankara, a Turkish paper reported on Saturday.
Radawn slams PA smear campaign against Sheikh Qaradawi in West Bank
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - Senior Hamas official Ismail Radwan strongly denounced the smear campaign waged by mosque preachers affiliated with the Palestinian Authority against Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradawi.
IOF troops wreak havoc in village, attack funeral and shell Gaza
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - Israeli occupation forces on Friday stormed and wreaked havoc in the Masara village, Bethlehem district, and blocked its weekly anti wall march, locals reported.
Jewish settlers close main road, confiscate land and uproot trees
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - Jewish armed settlers closed the main road linking northern and southern villagers in Al-Khalil district on Friday, local sources reported.
7th conference of Al-Quds int’l warns of Zionist schemes in Jerusalem
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - The seventh conference of Al-Quds international institution warned of the Zionist schemes that target the occupied city of Jerusalem and the Aqsa Mosque as well as the Arab identity of the city.
IOF quelling of peaceful anti wall march wounds 8 Palestinians
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - IOF used rubber bullets and gas canisters to quell two peaceful demonstrations organized by villagers of Bilin and Nilin villages to protest the building of the separation wall on their lands.
Haneyya calls for rehabilitating Egyptian-Saudi-Syrian axis in region
PIC 16 Jan 2010 - Ismail Haneyya called for a new Arab strategy based on the rehabilitation of the historic axis of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Syria in order to create a kind of power of balance in the face of Israel.
6 Major Powers Move Closer to Considering More Iran Sanctions
New York Times 16 Jan 2010 - China, however, kept to its position that it opposed new sanctions from the United Nations Security Council over Iran’s nuclear program.
Lonely Trek to Radicalism for Terror Suspect
New York Times 16 Jan 2010 - Behind Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’s journey from gifted student to terrorism suspect was a struggle between an investment in this life and a longing for the next.
The Iranian Exile’s Eye
New York Times 16 Jan 2010 - A reporter, driven out of Iran, returns via the Internet and finds herself freer to write about the meaning of events back in her homeland.
Iran Warns Protesters Era of ‘Mercy’ Is Over
New York Times 16 Jan 2010 - Iran’s national police chief warned that authorities would crack down more harshly not only on street protests but on anyone who used cellphone and e-mail messages to publicize them.
Envoys to Meet on Possible Sanctions Over Iran Nuclear Program
New York Times 16 Jan 2010 - The five permanent Security Council members, plus Germany, will try to reach agreement on new restrictions aimed at swaying Tehran.
Israel Raids Polygamist Compound
New York Times 15 Jan 2010 - An Israeli man who lived openly with at least 17 women and fathered dozens of children appeared in court on Thursday on suspicion of enslavement, sexual abuse and possible rape.
Palestine Monitor - 16 Jan 2010 - “I was detained in a tiny, narrow guardhouse, sleeping on a mattress less than 15 cm thick. 24 hours a day a yellow light was on. It was impossible to fall asleep because every hour I was awakened by noises, someone knocking on the door or...
For Israel, a reckoning
Palestine Monitor - 16 Jan 2010 - The farce of the climate summit in Copenhagen affirmed a world war waged by the rich against most of humanity. It also illuminated a resistance growing perhaps as never before: an internationalism linking justice for the planet with universal human rights, and criminal justice for those...
A slice of life in Tel Rumaida
Mondoweiss - 16 Jan 2010 - Tel Rumaida checkpoint (Photo: Reham Alhelsi) This is the checkpoint at the entrance to the Tel Rumaida neighborhood in the old city of Hebron. This section of Hebron used to be the center of Palestinian life in the city. It is now effectively ethnically cleansed. This...
Why Haiti Is Poor (I)
Mondoweiss - 16 Jan 2010 - Haiti’s poverty has a number of causes, but to a great extent the country is a victim of its own success. Just over 200 years ago, Haitians carried out the greatest slave revolt in human history, despite terrible losses (150,000 died in their uprising against France,...
Chomsky/Abunimah (the left and Zionism)
Mondoweiss - 16 Jan 2010 - Here is an exchange at KPFA in California between Noam Chomsky and Ali Abunimah and Jeff Blankfort touching on BDS and the Israel lobby. Actually, Chomsky declined to engage with Abunimah and Blankfort, so host Khalil Bendidb interviewed Chomsky on an earlier show, then on this...
Sometimes a headline says it all
Mondoweiss - 16 Jan 2010 - Haaretz : "Mitchell to arrive in Mideast this week with no plan…" Related posts: E&P dares to suggest that Gaza slaughter is ‘mass murder’ (then Huffpo censors headline) Look at the headline Sometimes the headline says it all
Haiti Gaza
Mondoweiss - 16 Jan 2010 - I’m moved by the American response to the Haiti disaster, by the sense of connection Americans are expressing to Haitians across traditional barriers of class, race, nation, and geography. Is this the Obama effect? Yes. Would the three network anchors have rushed across seas to Haiti...
Second Palestinian Activist—Mohammed Othman—Freed by Israel
Alternative Information Center - 15 Jan 2010 - Amnesty International has welcomed the release from detention of Palestinian human rights activist Mohammed Othman — but is concerned that the Israeli authorities have imposed conditions which will prevent him exercising his human rights. Mohammed Othman was arrested on 22 September 2009 when he returned from...
Ma'an News Agency Chief English Editor's Deportation Hearing Scheduled for SundayMa'an
Alternative Information Center - 14 Jan 2010 - Ma'an is pleased to share news that Tel Aviv District Judge Mirium Solokov agreed to hear the case of its chief English editor, Jared Malsin, during proceedings held at her court on Thursday morning. Solokov rejected a request by the Israeli attorney general to dismiss an...
Articles
For Israel, a Reckoning
John Pilger, Information Clearing House 1/15/2010
The farce of the climate change summit in Copenhagen affirmed a world war waged by the rich against most of humanity. It also illuminated a resistance growing perhaps as never before: an internationalism linking justice for the planet earth with universal human rights, and criminal justice for those who invade and dispossess with impunity. And the best news comes from Palestine.
Palestinian resistance to the theft of their country reached a critical moment in 2001 when Israel was identified as an apartheid state at a United Nations conference on racism in Durban, South Africa. To Nelson Mandela, justice for the Palestinians is "the greatest moral issue of our time." The Palestinian Civil Society Call for Boycott, Disinvestment and Sanctions (BDS), was issued on 9 July 2005, effectively reconvening the great non-violent movement that swept the world and brought the scaffolding of African apartheid crashing down. "Through decades of occupation and dispossession," wrote Mustafa Barghouti, a wise voice of Palestinian politics, "90 percent of the Palestinian struggle has been non-violent … A new generation of Palestinian leaders [now speaks] to the world precisely as Martin Luther King did. The same world that rejects all use of Palestinian violence, even clear self-defense, surely ought not begrudge us the non-violence employed by men such as King and Gandhi."
In the United States and Europe, trade unions, academic associations and mainstream churches have brought back the strategies and tactics that were used against apartheid South Africa. In a resolution adopted by 431 votes to 62, the US Presbyterian Church voted for "a process of phased selective disinvestment in multinational corporations doing business with Israel." This followed the opinion of the International Court of Justice that Israel’s wall and its "settler" colonies were illegal. A similar declaration by the court in 1971, denouncing South Africa’s occupation of Namibia, ignited the international boycott. more.. e-mail
Building a Different Middle East
Joel Beinin, The Nation 1/15/2010
Ma’asara, West Bank, December 2009
Like every other woman in her village Umm Hasan wears a headscarf. Her husband and other male relatives are not on the scene. But this is not an obstacle to her animated interactions with the sixteen Israelis and foreigners she has never previously met but welcomes into her home. Among the visitors are a German and a Serb who are making a film about Palestinian hip-hop. Everyone has come to participate in the weekly demonstration against the separation barrier organized by the local Popular Committee.
While the Israelis make preparations for the demonstration, Umm Hasan tells the filmmakers about the current situation in the village. Neria, a young Israeli woman who attended a bilingual primary school, makes a poster in Arabic and Hebrew, "so the [Israeli] soldiers will know what it means" with the slogan: "They destroyed the wall in Berlin; tomorrow we’ll destroy it in Palestine."
As the visitors arrive, Umm Hasan’s oldest son, Hasan, from whom her name is derived, is leading Friday prayers for a "dissident" congregation. His congregants support the weekly protests. The imam of the "official" village mosque does not. The consensus is that the imam and his followers fear that if they join in they will lose their permits to work in Israel or in the nearby quarry owned by a rich Palestinian who sells stone to Israeli contractors.
Hasan and his brother Muhammad are leaders of the Popular Committee of Ma’asara. Another leader, Mahmud, is currently in France on a political mission. Hasan is a supporter of Fatah, Muhammad supports the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and Mahmud supports the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. But these differences are of little consequence, because the Popular Committee includes all the factions in the village. more.. e-mail
No such thing as a Palestinian work visa
Stephanie Rhodes, Ma’an News Agency 1/16/2010
Last week I was listening to John Oliver talk about his experience with visas in America. During one memorable visa renewal interview, he remembered, “The woman behind the booth looked at me and said, with a stone face, ‘Give me one reason why I should let you back into America to criticize our country again.’”
Turns out, Oliver later explained, it was simply an ill-timed effort at humor. With the current news of Ma’an editor Jared Malsin’s ongoing detention, though, it feels quite real.
That isn’t to say that press freedom doesn’t exist in Israel. There are some great columnists who write thoughtful and often critical pieces about their own society. But I do think Jared’s situation speaks to other trends in the Israeli approach to controlling borders and territories: efforts to limit foreign influence in Palestinian areas. Just to be clear, when I say “foreign,” I don’t mean “terrorist infiltrator” foreign. I mean teachers and trainers and other professionals interested in building real capacity in Palestine.
It seems to me that Jared is being held not because he’s a journalist and not even really because he’s been critical of Israel. It’s that he’s doing so under the banner of a Palestinian news agency. Never mind that both Israeli and international media outlets routinely quote Ma’an; it’s still Palestinian.
When you’re entering or leaving Israel, the last thing you want is to be linked with anything Palestinian. I used to go through my wallet and remove East Jerusalem bus passes and random receipts, maybe edit the names in my phone – anything Arab had to go. It wasn’t because I was linked to anything shady. It was because any discernibly Arab contact marks you; at best it’s just harassment and at worst it’s being denied re-entry. more.. e-mail
In Lebanon refugee camp, "hip-hop is a school"
Electronic Intifada: 15 Jan 2010 - Hip-hop has got hold of the Burj al-Barajne camp in Beirut. As the music from a small but nascent rap-scene reverberates around the streets of this crowded community, its rappers are acutely aware of their position to foster not just musical change, but social change. Rasmus Bogeskov Larsen reports.
In Gaza: 14 Jan 2010 - Ahmad Hammad Electronic Intifada, Live from Palestine It’s a sunny day in the border region east of Beit Hanoun. Aside from a glaring absence of the citrus and olive trees which for decades abounded on this fertile land, finally razed by Israeli military bulldozers, all seems idyllic. “This is the first time I’ve returned here since my friends were killed,” Ahmad Hammad says. He stands at the edge of a vacant plot and gestures to its far end which lies over 1 km from the border separating Israel and the Gaza Strip. “They were over there, I was standing here,” he explains. Hammad, 24, recalls the day two years...
Palestine Chronicle: 15 Jan 2010 - By Stephen Lendman An October 2007 Haaretz editorial titled "Democracy or hypocrisy" contrasted the "occupying Land of Israel to the democratic Israel" in calling for a "debate about Israel's control over the lives of Palestinians deprived of civil rights," saying its democracy is flawed and not addressing it is hypocrisy. Throughout history, regimes rhetorically embraced democracy as cover for more despotic policies, no different today throughout the world in countries like India, Pakistan, America and Israel practicing what Michael Parenti calls "democracy for the few," (the) "shadier sides of US political life (in which) proponents of the existing social order have tried to transform practically every deficiency into a strength." He asked, "Who gets what, when, how and why?" Why do so few benefit at the expense of the many? Why are peace, social justice, and real democracy illusions in a nation embracing the opposite of what they represent? Why instead do poverty, racism, sexism, exploitation, rapacious capitalism, and imperialism, in fact, define how America and Israel are governed? Indian writer Arundhati Roy says her country's model is "designed to uphold the consensus of the elite for market growth (and has) metastasized into something dangerous" in her book titled, "Field Notes on Democracy: Listening to Grasshoppers." She admits to being "hysterical" about where India is heading, sabotaged by religious nationalism and political expediency, "genocide" in the bloody 2002 Gujarat riots, "ecocide" for greater profits, and corruption at the highest levels. She compares Hindu right wing persecution of Muslims to Hitler's...