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News
International Middle East Media Center
US
denies backing down on settlement issue
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 23:39, In a visit to the Arab
Gulf state of Qatar Monday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said
that the US has not backed down on demanding that Israel end its
expansion of illegal settlements on Palestinian land in the West Bank –
despite earlier statements by US President Barack Obama that the US was
willing to compromise on the issue.
The
Israeli Military Detain 12 Palestinian Civilians During Invasions in
the West Bank
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 16:01, Twelve Palestinian
civilians were detained by Israeli troops, on Monday, during invasions
targeting a number of West Bank communities.
The
Israeli Military & Police Raid Palestinian Areas in Jerusalem to
Enforce Taxes
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 15:28, The Israeli police
forces, along with Israeli soldiers, stormed a number of Palestinian
neighborhoods, on Monday, to enforce resident to bay taxes.
British
Journalist Detained In Gaza
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 03:48, Palestinian and British
sources confirmed that a British documentary director was arrested by
the Hamas controlled security forces after he arrived at a Gaza court
to testify in a law suit filed against a Palestinian gunman accused of
collaborating with Israel.
Arab
Parliamentarians In Gaza Monday
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 03:22, The Hamas-dominated
Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) reported that 26 Arab
Parliamentarians from different countries will visit, Monday, to
express solidarity with the residents of the war-torn &
impoverished region.
Child
Wounded By Israeli Fire In Central Gaza
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 02:56, Palestinian medical
sources in the Gaza Strip reported on Sunday evening that a Palestinian
child suffered moderate wounds after the Israeli army bombarded a
number of homes in the Juhr al-Deek area, in central Gaza.
Husseini:
“I Was Framed; Tape Was Dubbed To Blackmail Me”
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 02:43, Dr. Rafiq Husseini, a
top aide to president Mahmoud Abbas in Jerusalem, stated at a Sunday
evening press conference in Ramallah, that the “sex tape scandal”
against him was dubbed, and added that a “gang framed him to
politically blackmail him due to his sensitive position”.
Gaza
Children Suffer Psychological Issues Due To War
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Monday February 15, 2010 - 01:04, Fadel Abu Hayyin, head
of the Psychological Program at the Palestinian Ministry of Health in
Gaza, stated that more than 100.000 Palestinian children in Gaza are
suffering from different psychological issues resulting from the
Israeli war and seige on Gaza.
PFLP
Leader Visits Cairo, Holds Talks with Egyptian Leaders
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Sunday February 14, 2010 - 08:37, Visiting Cairo, member
of the Political Bureau of the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation
of Palestine (PFLP), Jamil Majdalawi, held a series of meetings with
Egyptian leaders to ease the tension between Egypt and Hamas in Gaza,
and to find a way to prepare the atmosphere for signing a Palestinian
unit deal supervised by Egypt.
MK
Tibi: “We Are The Natives Of This Land”
IMEMC
15 Feb 2010 - Sunday February 14, 2010 - 01:27, Arab member of Knesset,
Ahmad Tibi, slammed the statements of Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister,
Danny Ayalon, who called for swapping areas inhibited by the Arab
population in Israel with settlements. Tibi stated that the Arabs are
the natives of the country and are not immigrants.
At
least 15 detained at West Bank checkpoint
2/16/2010
- Tulkarem - Ma'an - Israeli forces detained more than 15 youths at a
checkpoint in the northern West Bank on Monday, onlookers said. Ma'an's
correspondent, reporting from the scene, said 15 young Palestinians
were being held up at the At-Tunib checkpoint near Deir Sharaf, between
Tulkarem and Nablus. According to the correspondent, the searches were
humiliating because all the detainees were being forced to hold their
hands in the air for no apparent reason as people passed by. He added
that dozens of vehicles were also held up at the checkpoint. Forces
were searching the cars intensively and making any young males found
inside step out for inspection. An Israeli military spokesman did not
immediately return calls seeking comment. . . . .
Gazan
detainee released after 10 years of detention
2/15/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - Israeli forces released on Sunday Iyad Abu Shiha from
north the Gaza Strip after being detained for 10 years. Abu Shiha, 33,
was detained on 16 July 2000 at the Beit Hanoun crossing and was
sentenced for 10 years. Abu Shiha continued his studies while he was in
prison, undertaking a varied syllabus. Since 2005, Abu Shiha was banned
from receiving family visits, during which his mother passed away. [end]
Wife
of Gazan detainee accuses Israeli Prison Service of neglect
2/15/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - The wife of a Gazan detainee suffering from bone
marrow cancer accused the Israeli Prison Service of medical negligence
on Monday. Raed Muhammad Drabyeh, 36, from the Jabaliya Refugee Camp
was sentenced to life and has undergone several surgeries to treat his
cancer, Drabyeh's wife said. "We are so worried about his life,
particularly after his last surgery in March 2009 following which he
lost sensation in his legs and was no longer able to walk," she said.
Head of the Prisoner Studies Society, Ra'fat Hamdounah, condemned
alleged medical negligence at the hands of the IPS, citing a number of
cases of prisoners with chronic illnesses who have not been allowed
access to medical treatment. Hamdounah called on human rights
organizations to intervene and end the neglect of detainees in Israeli
jails. . . . .
UK
filmmaker accused of ’violating Gaza’s security’
2/16/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - The de facto Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed on
Monday that the arrest of British filmmaker Paul Martin was based on
suspicions of "violating the security of Gaza. " "Mr. Martin is alleged
to have committed offences contrary to the law and harmful to the
security of the country. . . The allegations made against Mr. Paul will
be fully investigated in accordance with the law," read a statement
issued by the ministry. Martin was granted access to a private lawyer
and received a visit from a British official, the ministry added. "The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to reassure all journalists working
in the region that the Palestinian Government guarantees their freedom
to work in the Gaza Strip without interference. Nonetheless, the
government has a duty to investigate any individual who acts in manner
that is likely to threaten the security of the Palestinian people," the
statement said.
PCHR
condemns shooting incident at Qalqiliya journalist’s home
2/15/2010
- Bethlehem - Ma'an - The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR)
called for investigations into a shooting incident at the home of
journalist Mostafa Sabri in Qalqiliya on Thursday, in which no injures
were reported. According to investigations conducted by the PCHR,
including the testimony of Sabri's wife, unknown gunmen fired at the
house of Mostafa Ali Abdullah Sabri, 43, in the Ghyada neighborhood of
Qalqiliya city in the northern West Bank at approximately midnight on
Thursday, according to a statement. Sabri's family told the PCHR that
they had heard three gunshots from a pistol fired at the outer walls of
the house. However, they did not know who the perpetrators were and why
they shot at the home. In her testimony, Sabri's wife, Laila Naji
Dawood, said that the firing had been pre-planned because at
approximately 7pm on 8 February, big stones had been thrown at the door.
Press
forum condemns arrest of journalists by PA
2/15/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - The Palestinian Press Forum condemned the detention of
a journalist by Palestinian Authority forces on Monday after being
summoned to the Palestinian intelligence forces. Ma'ath Mash'al, 24,
was called on to present himself for questioning on Saturday and his
family was informed that evening of Mash'al's arrest, sources said. The
PPF expressed their concern for the continued arrest of journalists in
the West Bank by the PA, saying that it was a move that opposed the
freedom of the press, in a statement. The forum further called for the
release of four other journalists, Mustapha Sabry, Mohammad Bsharat,
Yazid Khader and Tareq Abu Zeid, who have been detained for more than
three months, as well as all other journalists currently detained in PA
jails. . . . .
Clashes
kill 2 at Lebanon refugee camp
2/15/2010
- Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Clashes have killed at least two people
in a refugee camp in Lebanon, The Associated Press quoted Palestinian
officials as saying Monday evening. The US news agency reported that it
was not clear what prompted the clashes at Ein Al-Hilweh refugee camp,
reportedly between Islamists and gunman affiliated with Fatah. The AP
report identified the Islamists as members of the Asbat Al-Ansar group.
A Fatah member was seriously wounded, according to the report, which
quoted Palestinian sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because
they were not authorized to make official statements. Last month, Fatah
gunmen clashed with fighters affiliated with the Jund Ash-Sham faction
in the same refugee camp. The clashes came after Fatah official Sultan
Abu Al-Aynayn accused external parties of bringing. . .
Israeli
soldiers seize 12 in night raids
2/15/2010
- Washington - Ma'an - The Israeli military said on Monday it seized 12
Palestinians during raids in the West Bank overnightAccording to the
military spokesperson's unit, seven were detained in the Nablus area,
two in Hebron, and three in the Ramallah area. A gun was found in the
home of one of the detainees, who were all taken on account of their
"wanted" status. Palestinian security sources identified those detained
in Nablus as Thaer Walid Najim, 28, his brothers Mujahid, 19, and Imad,
as well asMuhammad Minni, 20, Mahdi Salim, 25, Raji Salim, 20, and
Mujahid Qutub, 23. The Israeli military also reported that three
Palestinians carrying three pipe bombs and a knife were detained at an
army checkpoint in the Nablus area on Sunday. It was unclear if these
three were included in the total of 12 detentions reported by Israel.
PA
security chief detained in Jerusalem
2/15/2010
- Jerusalem - Ma'an - Israeli forces detained the head of the
Palestinian Authority's preventative security services in Jerusalem on
Monday. Ma'an's Jerusalem correspondent reported that Muhammad
As-Sayyad was seized at his home, and will be held for 24 hours of
questioning. An Israeli police spokesman said he was not familiar with
the report. [end]
Two
Gaza crossings partially open, export prohibited
2/15/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - Israeli authorities partially opened the Kerem Shalom
and Karni crossings into the Gaza Strip on Monday to allow the transfer
of food and fuel, according to Palestinian border crossings official
Raed Fattouh. Approximately 80 will enter through Gaza's southern
border, Kerem Shalom, delivering humanitarian aid and limited varieties
of commercial goods, Fattouh said. Limited quantities of domestic gas
and industrial fuel will also be transfered through Kerem Shalom,
vitally needed to operate Gaza's sole power plant. Through Gaza's
northern border crossing, Karni, Fattouh said 118 truckloads of wheat
and animal feed will be permitted entry, for the first time in six
days. No provisions have been made to allow the export of goods from
the besieged strip. . . . .
Fayyad
meets with new UNRWA commissioner general
2/16/2010
- Ramallah - Ma'an - Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad
Al-Maliki met with the newly-appointed Commissioner General of UNRWA
Fillipo Grandi in Ramallah. Al-Maliki said that UNRWA should be enabled
to continue offering its services to Palestinian refugees inside
Palestine and in the Diaspora, and efforts should be undertaken to
improve these services. Moreover the foreign minister said that the
international community should force Israel into bringing an end to the
siege imposed upon the Gaza Strip and enable the PA to commence
reconstruction, following the extensive damage sustained throughout
Gaza during Israel's Operation Cast Lead. Grandi asserted that UNRWA
abided by its duties toward Palestinian refugees, despite the financial
deficit it faced and called on donor countries to submit much needed
financial support to the organization so that it is able to continue
serving Palestinian refugees.
Dubai:
European team killed Hamas leader
2/16/2010
- Bethlehem - Ma'an - Hamas leader Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh was assassinated
by a team of 11 mercenaries in his hotel room in Dubai last month, the
emirate's police chief said Monday. "This is a highly sophisticated
operation conducted by people who knew when Al-Mabhouh would arrive in
the country," Lt. Gen. Dhahi Tamim told reporters in Dubai. "We have
identified the suspects and will issue arrest warrants against them and
will take legal action against anyone or any party which will prove to
stand behind the murder," Tamim added, as police released photos and
CCTV videos of the accused European nationals. Tamim said two suspects
are Palestinians, both residents of the UAE. They have been detained on
suspicion they provided logistical support to the operation, he said.
According to the Dubai-based satellite network Al-Arabiya, the two were
handed over by Jordan.
On
Mash’al’s heels, Netanyahu arrives in Moscow
2/15/2010
- Washington - Ma'an - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
arrived in Moscow early on Monday morning for a three-day visit that
follows by less than a week a trip by Hamas leader Khalid Mash'al.
Russia is an ally of Israel, but is also the only member of the
diplomatic Quartet that has open relations with Hamas. The other
members of the peace negotiations-sponsoring Quartet - the US, EU, and
UN - boycott the Islamic group. Russia's relations with key opponents
of Israel - Iran, Syria, and Hamas among them - will top the agenda for
Netanyahu's meetings with Russian officials. "I view Russia as in
important power and an important friend of the State of Israel. We will
discuss a range of issues, but first and foremost Iran," Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet on Sunday. "Israel
believes that strong pressure must be applied to Iran, especially. . . "
Clinton:
US can’t force Israel, PA into peace talks
2/15/2010
- Washington - Ma'an - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday
made an unusual acknowledgement of frustrations with the long-frozen
Palestinian-Israeli negotiation process. Speaking at the US-Islamic
World Forum in Doha, Qatar, on the first day of a trip to the Middle
East, Clinton said,know people are disappointed that we have not yet
achieved a breakthrough. " "The President, Senator Mitchell, and I are
also disappointed. But we must remember that neither the United States
nor any country can force a solution. The parties themselves must
resolve their differences through negotiations," she added, according
to a transcript. "The United States stands ready to play an active and
sustained role, and to support the parties as they work to resolve all
permanent status issues including security for Israelis and
Palestinians, borders, refugees, and Jerusalem," she also said. "
Olmert:
If there’s a chance for peace, it’s based on my offer
2/15/2010
- Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert said on Sunday that a peace settlement could only be based on
the offers put forward during his premiership, the Israeli daily
Yedioth Aharanot reported. "I gave the elected Palestinian leader
[Mahmoud Abbas] an offer that I think was not made in the past and will
not be made in the future. If there's any chance for a settlement, it's
on the basis of what I offered and they must respond to it so we can
complete what we nearly finished," Olmert was quoted as saying in the
daily. With regard to the withdrawal from Palestinian territories the
former prime minister said "I said as early as 2003 that we would have
to withdraw from most territories, including Jerusalem. It was after I
reached the conclusion that in choosing between the greater Land of
Israel and a Jewish, democratic state, I prefer the latter. "
Tamimi:
Israel working to build Third Temple
2/15/2010
- Jerusalem - Ma'an - Supreme Judge Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi said Monday
that Israeli institutions, settler groups and the government are
working to fulfill 18th century Rabbi Vilna Goan's prophecy declaring
that the Third Temple would be re-built by 16 March 2010. He said
archeological excavations have caused structural damage to the
Al-Marwani Mosque, under the Al-Aqsa Mosque's northern walls, and to
Palestinian homes in the Old City of Jerusalem. The sheikh further
alleged that a plan had been implemented in 1993 to intensify efforts
to "Judaize" Jerusalem by establishing two major settlements around the
city and a military brigade dedicated to closing off the city and
separating it from its surrounding neighborhoods. Tamimi said the plan
included the shutting down of Palestinian institutions in Jerusalem,
the expulsion of dignitaries and the revokingof Israeli ID cards of
Jerusalem. . .
Settlement
goods banned in PA-controlled cities
2/15/2010
- Ramallah - Ma'an - The cabinet of the Ramallah-based Palestinian
government voted on Monday to approve a law prohibiting the entrance of
settlement goods into areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority.
During the weekly cabinet meeting in Ramallah, ministers said they
approved the legislation as settlements amount to "an attack on the
Palestinian territories, and violate international law. " In a
post-meeting statement, the cabinet added that "This decision comes as
a basic step toward advancing the national economy and supporting
Palestinian products. "Also, ministers also voted to alter the penal
code on "family honor" killings, upgrading the crime to murder. "No one
can take the law into his own hands," the cabinet said, adding that
they agreed to the change "to ensure that the principles of equality. .
. "
In
show of goodwill, 13 factions meet in Gaza
2/16/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - More than a dozen Palestinian political factions,
including rivals Hamas and Fatah, verbally reaffirmed their commitment
to ending infighting during a summit at the offices of the leftist
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) in Gaza City on
Sunday. Officials at the meeting all said they were committed to
getting every party to sign an Egyptian unity document already ratified
by Fatah. "An atmosphere of placing national interest ahead factional
interest had prevailed. All of the factions agreed on the urgent need
to end division in order to confront the [Israeli] occupation," said
PFLP leader Rabah Muhana after the meeting. He also urged the Egyptian
government to continue its efforts to broker a power sharing agreement.
Mahmoud Az-Zaq, a member of the politburo of the Palestinian Popular
Struggle Front (PPSF) said, "the meeting is intended to. . . "
Hamas:
PA security detains 5 affiliates in Ramallah
2/16/2010
- Bethlehem - Ma'an - Hamas accused the Palestinian Authority Security
Services of detaining five of the movement's affiliates in the West
Bank, a statement said on Monday. The statement said that all five
Hamas supporters were detained in Ramallah. [end]
PA
tells Hamas: Local elections will be fair
2/15/2010
- Ramallah - Ma'an - The head of Palestine's Central Elections
Commission met with a delegation of Hamas officials in Ramallah on
Sunday ahead of planned local elections. The commission's chief, Hanna
Nasser, met with Hamas-aligned Palestinian Legislative Council members
Omar Abdul Razeq and Mahmoud Ar-Ramahi. A statement from the commission
said Hanna pledged "to hold free and honest elections that would
guarantee the participation of all. "The commission is meeting with
each Palestinian faction in preparation for municipal elections. Last
week the Fatah-dominated West Bank-based caretaker government set 17
July as the date for the local polls. Sources familiar with the talks
said the two Hamas officials expressed confidence in the Elections
Commission, but also voiced fears about a general lack of a politically
"free atmosphere" in Palestinian Authority-controlled areas of the West
Bank.
Fatah
official: Hamas must sign before amending deal
2/15/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - A member of Fatah's Revolutionary Council in Gaza,
Abdullah Abu Samahdaneh, on Monday urged Hamas to sign the
Egyptian-backed reconciliation document, which he said is the means to
discuss additions to the proposal. Abu Samahdaneh's comments followed a
meeting of 13 Palestinian factions in Gaza on Sunday to discuss the
Egyptian document, in which both Fatah and Hamas particpated. "The
Egyptian document is the outcome of multiple dialogue sessions, held in
Cairo, which means it is a national, Palestinian product. Hamas must
realize that reconciliation starts when it signs it and any delay means
a delay in reconciliation, which harms the national project," he said.
The Revolutionary Council member said Fatah had signed the agreement,
despite the movement's reservations, and that all factions' suggestions
will be taken into consideration following its ratification.
PFLP
slams ’insufficient’ commission of inquiry
2/15/2010
- Ramallah - Ma'an - A commission of inquiry set up to investigate
corruption allegations raised by a former intelligence officer does not
go far enough, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine said
on Monday. In a statement, the leftist faction said the commission,
made up of three Fatah members, "does not meet the requirements to
ensure professional and objective findings as it was formed of only one
party. "The PFLP called on President Mahmoud Abbas and the PLO
Executive Committee to expand its inquiry to include professionals and
human rights organizations, on a national rather than factional basis,
to more effectively respond to what the group termed Israeli targeting.
Abbas dismissed his chief of staff, Rafiq Al-Husseini, on Sunday after
Israel's Channel 10 broadcast a videotape that allegedly showed
Al-Husseini propositioning an unidentified woman for sex in exchange
for political favors.
Haniyeh:
Unity talks should start where they left off
2/15/2010
- Gaza - Ma'an - Ismail Haniyeh, the de facto government prime
minister, said on Monday that national reconciliation talks "starts and
continues from where we reached, and not from where we were. ""We back
national unity and our position concerning reconciliation is fixed and
will not change, he added, speaking at the High Court building in Gaza
City. "Reconciliation does not mean a return to zero, but to build on
what has been accomplished. " Haniyeh's remarks came after a member of
Fatah's Revolutionary Council in Gaza, Abdullah Abu Samahdaneh, urged
Hamas to sign an Egyptian-backed document which he said is the means to
discuss modifications to the proposal. Both statements from leaders of
the main two rival parties followed a meeting of 13 Palestinian
factions in Gaza a day earlier, in which both Fatah and Hamas
participated. "
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Counterterrorism Bureau: Israelis could be target for revenge attacks over Mughniyeh, Iran scientist killings.
Ex-IDF chief: Israel can't handle nuclear Iran alone
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Dan Halutz says Israel should not take it upon itself to be the flag-bearer of the West against Tehran.
Egypt official: Israel assassination policy inflaming entire Mideast
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - PA source to London Times: Other countries won't agree to turn into Israel-Palestinian killing field.
Gaza sources: Sole power plant to halt over Israel fuel blockade
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Ma'an report: Strip's officials appeal international groups, Arab nations to end ongoing electricity deficit.
IDF thwarts knife attack on soldier in Hebron
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Palestinians: IDF kills two militants near Gaza; IDF soldiers on alert for Hamas kidnap attempts.
Hamas: Next war with Israel will be regional conflict
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Political leader Meshal accuses Israel of making threats against Gaza, Syria and Lebanon.
Is Israeli society strong enough to face the future?
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - At the base of Netanyahu's worldview is profound anxiety over Israel's fortitude in the face of external threats.
Hundreds attend funeral of IDF officer killed in West Bank Attack
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Ihad Khatib, stabbed to death by a member of PA security, laid to rest in Druze community of Maghar.
Shin Bet: We foiled Hamas attempt to abduct and kill Israeli soldier
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Israel arrested two Hamas men in Dec. who allegedly tried to murder soldier, perform terror attacks.
IDF says jihadi terrorist killed in Gaza air strike
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Air force targets terror squad allegedly planning attack near Karni humanitarian aid crossing.
Work starts to reroute West Bank security fence at Bil'in
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Newly routed barrier will hand 700,000 square meters of agricultural land back to Bil'in village.
Palestinian policeman who killed soldier 'had personal problems'
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Israel general suggests suicidal motive for Wednesday's stabbing in West Bank.
IDF twice raids Ramallah office of pro-Palestinian group
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Army confiscates computers, T-shirts and bracelets from International Solidarity Movement.
West Bank attack victim Ihab Khatib 'had a heart of gold'
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Family describes victim's enthusiasm for service in the IDF, his desire to contribute.
How
Israeli policies and attacks have ravaged Gaza’s agricultural sector
Uruknet
February 15, 2010 - "If we didn’t get the wheat planted today, we would
not have had crops this year," says Abu Saleh Abu Taima, eyeing the two
Israeli military jeeps parked along the border fence east of Khan
Younis, southern Gaza Strip. Although his land is more than 300 meters
away, technically outside of the Israeli-imposed "buffer zone," Abu...
Haiti
Is Open for Business
Uruknet
February 15, 2010 - In December 1984, Canada's conservative prime
minister, Brian Mulroney, told the New York Economic Club that "Canada
is open for business," meaning US companies were welcome, the two
countries would work for greater economic integration, America's
sovereignty took precedence of his own, and corporate interests from
both countries could operate freely at the expense of most...
Sheikh
Tamimi: Israel working to build Third Temple
Uruknet
February 15, 2010 - Palestinian Supreme Judge Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi
warned on Monday that Israeli institutions, settler groups and the
current Israeli government are working to fulfill the 18th century
Rabbi Vilna Goan's prophecy declaring that the Third Temple would be
re-built by 16 March 2010. Tamimi said that Israeli archeological
excavations have caused structural damage to the Al-Marwani Mosque,...
Abbas
suspends chief of staff
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - Mahmoud Abbas has suspended his chief of staff amid
allegations of financial impropriety, Palestinian media have reported.
Abbas, currently on a tour of the Far East, ordered the suspension of
Rafik al-Hussein on Sunday and launched an investigation into claims
made by Fahmy Shabaneh, a former Palestinian intelligence officer,
Wafa, the official Palestinian news agency, reported......
Israeli
poll: 75 percent favour deporting fellow citizens; Netanyahu favours
birth control
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - A survey conducted by the Israeli Knesset channel
shows that 75 percent of Israeli Jews are in favour of deporting
Israeli-Arab citizens to a future Palestinian state as part of any deal
between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority. Almost
seven hundred people representing a sample of the Jewish public in
Israel were asked if...
PFLP
Leader Visits Cairo, Holds Talks with Egyptian Leaders
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - Visiting Cairo, member of the Political Bureau of
the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), Jamil
Majdalawi, held a series of meetings with Egyptian leaders to ease the
tension between Egypt and Hamas in Gaza, and to find a way to prepare
the atmosphere for signing a Palestinian unit deal supervised by
Egypt....
Child
Wounded By Israeli Fire In Central Gaza
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip
reported on Sunday evening that a Palestinian child suffered moderate
wounds after the Israeli army bombarded a number of homes in Juhr Al
Deek area, in central Gaza. Medical sources identified the child,
Yousef Al Atrash, 14. He was at home when the army opened fire at the
area......
Old
City stores in Jerusalem threatened with demolition
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 – Several Palestinian shops inside Jerusalem's Old
City in Damascus Gate face the threat of demolition after the Israeli
Jerusalem Municipality inspectors handed down notices to owners and
tenants on Wednesday. The notices were given to Muhammad Abu Ad-Dab'at,
owner of several shopes, and to tenants Mu’tasim Abu Rmeila, Samir
Salayma, and Najati Ja’bari. All were given...
Abu
Hein: 100,000 children in Gaza traumatized by the Israeli war
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - GAZA, (PIC)-- Director of the mental health program
in the Gaza Strip Fadel Abu Hein said Saturday that more than 100,000
Palestinian children were traumatized as a result of the Israeli war on
Gaza, pointing out that the magnitude of this problem is bigger than
the capacity of health institutions...
Imprisoned
Iranian protesters share a bond forged in hell
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - ...It began in a police station courtyard. Their
legs lashed together with electrical cables, the demonstrators -- part
of the protest movement that sprang up after June's disputed
presidential election -- were lined up while a judge read out the
charges: acting against national security, arson, damaging public
property, clashing with law enforcement and colluding with...
De
facto gov't: 4 fishermen detained by Israeli navy off Gaza coast
Uruknet
February 14, 2010 - Israeli naval forces detained four Gazan fishermen
off the Sudaniyya coast of northern Gaza, according to Nixar Ayyash,
head f the Union of Fishermen in Gaza. Sources within the de facto
government identified those detained as Awad Ramadan Sultan, Fadl Jamal
Sultan, Sharif Muhammad Sultan, and Samih Rajab Sultan...
PFLP
condemns Fayyad's betrayal of Palestinian interests
Uruknet
February 13, 2010 - The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
said on February 11, 2010 that PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad showed
"shameful disregard for the interests of the Palestinian people,"
harshly denouncing Fayyad's condemnation of the killing of an Israeli
occupation soldier at an occupation checkpoint in the West Bank of
Palestine by a Palestinian resistance fighter....
Jerusalem, February 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph)- Matan Vilnai, Israel's deputy defense minister, said: "construction in 29 Jewish settlements in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem continues despite the 10-month freeze decision." Vilnai stated in remarks published in The Jerusalem Post on Monday that this statement came in his response to a question from the leader of Meretz, Haim Oron, in the...
West Bank: Israel detains 12 Palestinians
West Bank, February 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - Israeli occupation forces detained 12 Palestinians in the West Bank. Palestinians sources said that seven Palestinians, including three brothers, were detained in Nablus, two from Hebron and other three from Ramallah. All the detainees were transferred to Israeli investigation centers. Israeli occupation forces raided Nablus earlier today. Eyewitnesses said Israeli occupation forces...
Palestinian prisoner released after 10 years in prison
Gaza Strip, Feb. 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph)- Israel has released Palestinian prisoner Eyad Abu Shiha. He was received after serving 10 years in Israeli jails by the Waed Society for Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners and a large mass of Palestinians from the northern Gaza Strip. Abu Shiha, 33, was arrested on July 16, 2000, at the Erez checkpoint. During his imprisonment,...
Arab parliamentarians visit Gaza
Gaza, February 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - The Hamas-dominated Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) reported that 26 parliamentarians from different Arab countries will visit the Gaza Strip on Monday to express solidarity with residents. The PLC issued a press release stating that Dr. Ahmad Bahar, deputy head of the PLC, will represent the council in welcoming the visiting Arab officials. They...
Congressman: U.S. should break Gaza siege
Gaza, February 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - The United States should break Israel's blockade of Gaza and deliver badly needed supplies by sea, a U.S. congressman told Gaza students yesterday. Rep. Brian Baird, a Democrat from Washington state, also urged U.S. President Barack Obama's Middle East ambassador, George Mitchell, to visit Gaza to get a firsthand look at the destruction...
The National 14 Feb 2010 - Hillary Clinton arrives in Qatar, where she is holding talks with top government leaders and speaking at an international conference.
Like father like son, the same dilemma
The National 14 Feb 2010 - As the drums of war between Israel and Hizbollah beat louder, Saad Hariri faces his father's old problem: how to reconcile a vision of economic development with an agenda of national resistance.
Ban flouted in latest West Bank settlement expansion
The National 15 Feb 2010 - Recent construction defies the government ban on new housing in settlements, aimed at restarting peace talks with the Palestinians after months of US pressure.
The Media Line 14 Feb 2010 - U.S. companies to travel to Libya with hopes of tapping growing Libyan market. A large and high profile U.S. trade delegation due to arrive in Libya in February is signaling a further thawing of Libyan-American relations....
Abbas Suspends Official Accused of Sex Scandal
The Media Line 14 Feb 2010 - Palestinian leader sets up inquiry to investigate corruption allegations. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas suspended one of his top advisors on Sunday following the official's implication in a sex scandal. Abbas's political advisor Rafiq Al-Husseini has...
Afghan Drug Trade Affronted by Unlikely Partners: Iran and U.S.
The Media Line 14 Feb 2010 - Iranian efforts to seal its borders to the insurgent Afghan drug trade is being aided by the allied offensive in Afghanistan, but experts say success may be limited. Taliban forces and Afghan drug lords are facing...
Vice President Biden to Visit Middle East
The Media Line 14 Feb 2010 - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is set to visit the Middle East next week, stopping at Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel. This will be the first visit to Israel by the vice president since the...
Threatened Sunni Boycott Undermines Iraqi Elections
The Media Line 14 Feb 2010 - A Shi'ite-led purge of Sunni candidates has spurred threats of a boycott of next month's crucial national elections in Iraq by its Sunni political leadership. An Iraqi judicial appeals committee agreed to reinstate just 100 out...
Russia Says It Won't Cancel S-300 Missile Sale to Iran
The Media Line 14 Feb 2010 - The Kremlin has announced that it will not cancel a deal for the sale of S-300 anti-aircraft missiles to Iran on the grounds that these were defensive weapons and therefore not subject to international sanctions. "There...
Dubai Allows Israeli to Compete at Tennis Championships
The Media Line 13 Feb 2010 - Israeli tennis star Shahar Pe'er arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday to compete in the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships a year after she was denied a visa to enter the country and compete in...
Sudan Begins First Multi-Party Election Campaign
The Media Line 13 Feb 2010 - Candidates have begun campaigning for the April 11 presidential election. The campaign for Sudan's first multi-party election in 24 years began on Saturday. After being delayed twice, the poll scheduled for April 11 will include elections...
AlJazeera 14 Feb 2010 - Political leaders back reconciliation with Syria as thousands remember former PM.
Abbas suspends chief of staff
AlJazeera 14 Feb 2010 - Palestinian officials investigate corruption claims as aide says he was blackmailed.
Clinton ramps up rhetoric on Iran
AlJazeera 15 Feb 2010 - US secretary of state uses Gulf tour to press for support on sanctions drive.
Deadly fighting in Lebanon camp
AlJazeera 15 Feb 2010 - Woman killed in clashes between rival groups in Ain al-Helweh Palestinian refugee camp.
Alternative Information Center
The Rising Phoenix of Israel's Assassination PolicyAlternative Information Center 15 Feb 2010 - Monday, 15 February 2010, The assassination of Hamas leader Mahmud Abdel Rauf al-Mabhuh in Dubai on 20 January raised concerns in the region about Israeli efforts to neutralize Palestinian activists. According to reports in the press,...
Displaced Persons: Arab-Jews, Arab-Palestinians, Mizrahis and Palestinian Refugees
Alternative Information Center 15 Feb 2010 - Monday, 15 February 2010, Documentation of the fourth meeting in the series “Meetings from the Dark Perspective,” the headline of which was “1948 Refugees: Mizrahi Perspectives.” A panel discussion with Ilan Halevi, Kochavi Shemesh, Nizar Hassan...
Right of Return and Israeli Democracy
Alternative Information Center 15 Feb 2010 - Friday, 12 February 2010, The comprehensive Israeli veto of discussion about the right of return of Palestinian refugees exposes democracy and human rights as tools intended to protect the discriminatory nature of the ethnic society in...
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Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - Livni rules out compromising with political rivals.
PM urges Iran fuel sanctions
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - Netanyahu praises Medvedev for showing understanding over nuclear issue.
IDF manpower chief raps letter by top army rabbi
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - Senior officer had advised army rabbis to refrain from answering questions from soldiers on settlement outpost-related mutiny.
Livni 'willing to get cuffed'
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - Universal jurisdiction law fix could wait until after UK's elections.
Mullen to IDF Haiti delegation: Humanity is proud of you
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - "The important work you did will not be forgotten," says chairman of US Joint Chief of Staff.
UAE: European team killed Mabhouh
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - Dubai police: 11 people involved in Hamas man's death; 2 reportedly arrested.
Will Israel run Obama's red light on Iran ?
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - If the US gives Israel a firm red, the gov’t will have to approach the oncoming fateful intersection with extreme caution.
Clash in Palestinian camp in Lebanon kills 2
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - Clashes involved Asbat al-Ansar, which US has accused of being linked to al-Qaida.
Teheran: West made new nuclear proposal
Jeruslalem Post 15 Feb 2010 - US denies, says only offer is IAEA plan; Clinton: We won't accept nuclear Iran.
IPS RAMALLAH, Feb 5 (IPS) - Gazans hoping for a modicum of justice following Israel’s indiscriminate military assault on the coastal territory during December 2008 and January 2009 - which left 1,400 Palestinians, mostly civilians, dead - could be waiting in vain.
MIDEAST: Corrupt Arab Regimes - Who is to Blame?
IPS RAMALLAH, Feb 2 (IPS) - The Mideast continues to be plagued by autocratic Arab regimes where human rights, democracy and freedom of speech are a pipe dream for the average citizen. But who is to blame and what can be done to amend this situation?
MIDEAST: U.S. Non-Profit Targeted Rights Group over Goldstone
IPS WASHINGTON, Feb 9 (IPS) - A campaign of attacks against the New Israel Fund (NIF), a U.S.-based progressive organisation that supports human rights groups in Israel, has gained attention in both the Israeli and U.S. media, raising questions about the role played by foreign non-profits and non-governmental organisations in influencing...
MIDEAST: Gaza Energy Crisis Averted - For Now
IPS RAMALLAH, Feb 9 (IPS) - Pressure exerted on the Palestinian Authority (PA) by international and regional officials has given Gazans a last minute reprieve, albeit temporary, from plunging into darkness and plummeting temperatures.
PCHR Israeli soldiers arrest a Palestinian civilians during clashes in Shu'fat refugee camp near Jerusalem 04 – 10 February 2010 Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)
International Solidarity Movement
Violent Zionists Tour Sheikh Jarrah2/15/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - 14 February - At approximately 1 pm today, roughly 20 Zionist tourists entered the yard of the occupied al-Kurd home in Sheikh Jarrah as part of a settlement promotion tour. Verbally harassing both Palestinian residents and Internationals and attempting to block their cameras, tourists listened as a guide expounded upon the religious claims which Zionists use to justify the eviction of Palestinians from their homes. After concluding with song, the tourists passed through the gate as several verbally attacked Palestinians present. 85-year-old Rifqa al-Kurd was roughly pushed while observing the visitors. Upon crossing the street to view the Gawi home, a particularly violent woman verbally attacked an ISM activist, flinging the activist's camera several meters into the air. Although intentionally provocative Zionist tours are nothing new in. . .
Sheikh Jarrah woman arrested as far-right MK tours settler-occupied homes
2/14/2010 - International Solidarity Movement - Sheikh Jarrah resident, 45 year old Fatima Diab was arrested by Israeli police on Saturday evening, February 13, following the provocative appearance of far-right Knesset member Micheal Bin Ari at the Al-Gawi home in solidarity with the extremist settlers occupying the house. Diab was released on a bail of 2000 shekels following an appearance in Jerusalem District Court on February 14. Tensions were raised in the neighbourhood as MK Bin Ari arrived around 7pm, entering the occupied Al-Gawi house to inspect the state of the settler takeover, accompanied by heightened settler and police presence. Shouting broke out as Bin Ari exited the stolen home, with settlers and Palestinian residents exchanging taunts. Diab, who stood in the crowd, flicked water on Bin Ari as he walked to his car, causing police to immediately demand that she accompany them to the police station for questioning.
Editorial / Israel should heed Obama's warning not to strike Iran
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Israeli and Iranian leaders have escalated the threats they have been exchanging over the past few weeks.
Yossi Melman / Dubai assassins used Mossad methods to kill Hamas leader
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - The hitmen arrived on separate flights, stayed in different hotels and entered the target's room using keys.
Hamas probing Dubai murder with help of Iran and Syria
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Dubai police: Hamas operative was assassinated by 11-member hit squad carrying European passports.
Netanyahu to Hamas: Israel's offer for Shalit is final
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Medvedev promises PM Russia will hold off on delivering S-300 advanced air defense system to Iran.
Saudi Arabia: Efforts to rid Mideast of nukes must apply to Israel
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Saudis cool to idea of Iran sanctions; Clinton in Mideast as part of bid to shore up effort against Iran.
Dubai seeks to arrest 11 for Hamas assassination, still won't rule out Mossad
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Police Chief: All suspects in Mabhouh's murder carry European passports; Hamas still blames Israel.
Russia tells Netanyahu it will hold off on Iran arms deal
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - In Moscow, Netanyahu asks Medvedev to back 'sanctions with teeth' against Iran over its nuclear program.
World powers urge Iran to accept standing nuclear offer
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Secretary of State: Iran is turning into military dictatorship; Biden to visit Israel as row over Iran grows.
U.S. denies dropping demand for Israel settlement freeze
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Palestinians won't agree to talks until U.S. clarifies offer; Abbas to meet Mitchell aide in coming days.
Lebanon urges France: Help prevent Israel from attacking us
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Lebanon parliament speaker urges France to use its international influence to see Resolution 1701 enforced.
Israel official: India bomb attack not intended for Chabad house
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - No one has yet claimed responsibility for the Pune restaurant attack, which killed 9, wounded 60.
Lieberman: Palestinian Authority behind campaign to smear Israel
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - FM says that 16 years of futile talks are proof of Palestinians' lack of real drive to reach peace.
'Livni may cause own arrest to shame U.K. into changing law'
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Israel says Kadima chairperson nixed a December London trip after warned of warrant awaiting her arrival.
U.S. congressman: U.S. should break Israel`s blockade of Gaza
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Rep. Baird: U.S. Mideast envoy should visit Gaza to look at destruction caused by Israel's offensive.
Hitler painting that may have belonged to Freud put up for auction
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Starting price for the watercolor by Hitler is 10,000 pounds; Painting may have hung in Freud's clinic.
The Guardian 15 Feb 2010 - Dubai police says 11 people, including one woman, are wanted over hotel murder Six members of an 11-strong hit squad suspected of killing a senior Hamas military commander in Dubai entered the country using British passports,...
British journalist detained in Gaza
The Guardian 15 Feb 2010 - Documentary film-maker Paul Martin was due to testify on behalf of man accused of collaborating with Israel Hamas officials said today that they have detained a British freelance journalist. Documentary film-maker Paul Martin was detained yesterday...
Hillary Clinton: 'Iran is moving towards a military dictatorship'
The Guardian 15 Feb 2010 - US secretary of state steps up war of words against Tehran, calling on regime to rethink 'dangerous' nuclear policy Hillary Clinton today said Iran was becoming a military dictatorship as the Obama administration's diplomatic campaign against...
Talk to Hamas | Arik Diamant and David Zonsheine
The Guardian 15 Feb 2010 - As Israeli soldiers we hang our heads in shame over last year's attack on Gaza's civilian population. Dialogue, not war, is needed The Israeli media marked the one-year anniversary of Operation Cast Lead , the war on...
Avatar protest at West Bank barrier
The Guardian 14 Feb 2010 - Demonstrators dress as Na'vi from Avatar for weekly demonstration against Israel's separation barrier, in Bilin
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - The stereotype of seniors sitting at home and doing little more than channel surfing may be quite off the mark, at least the channel part: 55 percent of the elderly in Israel report using a computer, and 15 percent even use Facebook. ...
IN PICTURES / Christian pilgrims baptize en masse in Lake Kinneret
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - More than 250 Colombian pilgrims traveled to the Yardenit Park near Lake Kinneret on Monday to participate in a mass baptizing ceremony in the Jordan River's water. ...
Israeli reporter insists IDF officer 'confirmed kill' of Gaza girl
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Israeli television reporter Ilana Dayan appealed to the Jerusalem District Court to overturn its ruling favor of an Israel Defense Forces officer who sued her and Channel 2 for defamation. ...
Israel mulls NIS 500M 'heritage' trails that reach into West Bank
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - Netanyahu at Herzliya Conference: Our continued existence relies on our knowledge of Israel's legacy.
Yisrael Beiteinu under fire for pre-elecion spending
Ha'aretz 15 Feb 2010 - State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss released a report on Monday on political parties spending for the elections to the 18th Knesset held a year ago. A number of parties were subject to harsh criticism in the report on their election spending, and in particular Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu party. ...
Relief Web 15 Feb 2010 - Source: Agence France-Presse
OPT: The Humanitarian Monitor - Jan 2010
Relief Web 15 Feb 2010 - Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
OPT: Confronting Settlement Expansion in East Jerusalem
Relief Web 15 Feb 2010 - Source: Middle East Research and Information Project
OPT: With funding from the Australian Agency for International Development CARE International streams efforts to improve access to safe water to 3,500 people in six communities in Jenin governorate
Relief Web 14 Feb 2010 - Source: Australian Agency for International Development, CARE
YNet News 15 Feb 2010 - Ynet special: Security affairs analyst Ron Ben-Yishai examines Hamas man's assassination in Dubai in wake of dramatic police revelations, says assassins highly professional, some questions remain unanswered
Dubai: Hamas man assassinated by 11 mercenaries
YNet News 15 Feb 2010 - Ten men, one woman carrying various passports behind assassination of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai, local police say; 2 Palestinians detained in connection with killing. Assassins dressed up as tennis players, used advanced technology
Livni rejects Mofaz's primaries ultimatum
YNet News 15 Feb 2010 - Kadima chairwoman says she will not bring Kadima's primaries forward, slams Mofaz's conduct
Qatari PM: Arabs must negotiate with Israel
YNet News 15 Feb 2010 - Qatari leader says negotiations with Israel a must in order to advance peace process
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 SYDNEY: Five Muslims, among them Lebanese-Australians, were jailed for up to 28 years Monday for plotting an attack using guns and explosives to protest against Australia’s role in the “war on terror.” The five men, who cannot be identified by name, were already convicted in October of gathering firearms, chemicals and bomb-making instructions, along with a mass of Islamist propaganda, for the attack on an unknown target.
Clinton: Iran moving toward military dictatorship
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 RIYADH: The United States believes that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards are driving the country toward military dictatorship and should be targeted in any new UN sanctions, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Monday. Speaking in Qatar before flying to Riyadh, Clinton denied the United States planned to attack Iran and said Washington wanted dialogue with Tehran.
Abbas seeks US answers before agreeing to talk to Israel
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 RAMALLAH, Occupied West Bank: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Monday he was still waiting for the United States to explain how it might help restart peace talks before he will consider reopening those negotiations. A senior aide to US mediator George Mitchell will meet Abbas in the coming days, a senior US official said
Britain and France lead call for probe into Iran election violence
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 GENEVA: Britain and France led a call Monday for an international probe into the violence that followed last year’s disputed presidential election in Iran. The demand, which Iran swiftly rejected, came during the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council’s first review of Iran’s rights record since the organization was founded in 2006. Iran should invite UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to “investigate the postelection violence.
Hundreds of protesters flock to funeral of ‘tortured’ Darfur student
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 KHARTOUM: Hundreds of protesters gathered at the funeral of a Darfuri student who colleagues said was abducted, tortured and killed by Sudanese authorities in a case that has sparked tensions ahead of polls. Sudanese security services have denied any involvement in the death of Mohammad Musa, 23, who fellow students told Reuters was abducted in Khartoum on Wednesday and later found dead and disfigured.
UK journalist to be detained for ‘harming’ Gaza security: Hamas
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 GAZA City, Gaza Strip: Hamas officials said Monday that a British freelance journalist detained in Gaza will be held for 15 days, an unprecedented step against a foreigner since the Islamic militants seized Gaza in 2007. Documentary filmmaker Paul Martin was detained on Sunday at a Gaza military tribunal where he was to testify on behalf of a Gaza man accused of collaborating with Israel.
Berri urges France to take ‘firm stand’ against Israeli aggression
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 BEIRUT: Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday urged France take a “firm stand” to stop Israel from launching an attack on Lebanon. “In view of its ties and influence, we demand France take a firm stand to prevent Israel from attacking Lebanon … and from turning Lebanon into an arena for regional proxy wars,” Berri said at a luncheon with Gerard Larcher.
More than half of region’s employers plan to recruit in Q2
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 BEIRUT: More than half of the region’s employers, 56 percent, plan to recruit over the next few months, according to a Jobs Index study conducted by leading website Bayt.com, in conjunction with research specialists YouGov Siraj. The number of employers planning to recruit shows an improvement on the last wave, when 52 percent said they would hire during the quarter.
Arbitrating the US-Iran saga
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 The geopolitical chess game between Washington and Tehran has seen a recent up-tick on the rhetorical and diplomatic fronts. Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaei, the adviser to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, recently visited Doha to confer with senior Qatari officials. Qatar’s emir advised Western countries to rely on states like Iran to foster peace and security in the region.
Lebanon hands over bodies of 10 foreign victims of Ethiopian airlines crash
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 Lebanon on Saturday handed over the bodies of 10 foreign victims killed in last month's Ethiopian plane crash. Ethiopian Airlines flight ET409, bound for Addis Ababa, crashed into the Mediterranean Sea on January 25 shortly after take-off from Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport. All 83 passengers and seven crew are presumed dead
A ‘Green New Deal’ is good for Lebanon
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 Lebanon faces a threat. Its natural environment has reached a state of degradation approaching the point of no return. Yet, like many developing and middle-income countries, it is still focused on economic growth and lifting people out of poverty. Protecting the Lebanese environment seems only secondary to these objectives. In 2008, a group of Europeans that included green and social activists.
Thousands express their love for Rafik Hariri
Daily Star 15 Feb 2010 The flags blocking the view at least offered some protection from the sun. On one of the hottest days of the year so far, citizens old and young waved them in their thousands; sky blue for the Future Movement, white for Lebanese Forces, livid red for March 14. The perfect weather brought partisans of Lebanon's majority parliamentary bloc from across
Palestinian Information Center
Haneyya's government invites Mousa to visit Gaza StripPIC 15 Feb 2010 - The legitimate PA government in the Gaza Strip has welcomed the visit of an Arab parliamentary delegation stressing that it is about time for Amre Mousa to visit the Strip.
Rocky sediments hamper Egypt's steel wall along Gaza borders
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - The team that is building the Egyptian steel wall along the borders with the Gaza Strip affirmed Monday that rocky sediments caused by the heavy rains and floods..
Kandil: There is an Arab scheme to liquidate Palestinian issue
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - The famous Egyptian journalist Hamdi Knadil has warned Monday of a vicious scheme between the Arab regimes and the USA to liquidate the Palestinian issue and to pressure the Palestinian people..
Sheikh Salah: I am not afraid of the prison sentence issued against me
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - Sheikh Ra’ed Salah said that he does not care for the imprisonment sentence issued by Israel against him and stressed that the Palestinians are ready to defend their right without hesitation.
Israeli policemen attack committee of Zakat in Aqsa Mosque
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - Israeli policemen and intelligence officers on Sunday stormed and ransacked the headquarters of the Zakat committee in the Aqsa Mosque.
IOA orders administrative detention of mayor's wife
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) has held Muntaha Al-Tawil the wife of detained mayor of El-Bireh Sheikh Jamal Al-Tawil under administrative detention.
13 Palestinian factions including Hamas and Fatah meet in Gaza
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - 13 Palestinian factions including Hamas and Fatah held a meeting described as the first of its kind since two years in the office of the popular front for the liberation of Palestine in Gaza.
Erdogan calls for pressuring IOA to end Gaza siege
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - Turkish premier Recep Erdogan has called for world pressures on the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) to end the siege on Gaza and to open its commercial crossings.
Al-Quds center warns of Israeli plan to banish 20,000 Jerusalemites
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - Al-Quds center for legal rights warned of an Israeli plan to expel more than 20,000 Palestinian citizens from their homes in the occupied city of Jerusalem at the pretext of unlicensed residence.
26 Arab parliamentarians arrive in Gaza
PIC 15 Feb 2010 - The Palestinian legislative council (PLC) said that a 26-member delegation of Arab parliamentarians is due in the Gaza Strip at noon Monday on a two-day visit to the beleaguered Strip.
LA Times 16 Feb 2010 - The secretary of State, speaking in Qatar, says sanctions against the Islamic Republic must be aimed at the Revolutionary Guard, which she warns is supplanting the government. Bluntly warning that Iran is sliding into military dictatorship, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told an audience in Qatar on Monday that economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic should be increasingly aimed at its elite Revolutionary Guard.
Imprisoned Iranian protesters share a bond forged in hell
LA Times 14 Feb 2010 - Former inmates describe the horrors they endured during five days in Kahrizak prison in Tehran after their arrests during postelection unrest. "What is this place?" the guard shouted.
New York Times 15 Feb 2010 - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said that the U.S. feared Iran’s government was being supplanted by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Hamas Arrests British Journalist in Gaza
New York Times 15 Feb 2010 - The detention of a journalist for unspecified security offenses is the first time Hamas has arrested a foreigner since it took over Gaza in in 2007.
Clinton Pleads for Patience at U.S.-Islamic World Forum
New York Times 15 Feb 2010 - Little has changed since President Obama pledged to improve relations between the United States and the Muslim world.
Opposition in Iran Meets a Crossroads on Strategy
New York Times 15 Feb 2010 - After a vast street protest failed to materialize last week on the anniversary of the country’s Islamic Revolution, opposition supporters are re-examining their movement.
Palestinian President Suspends Aide in Sex Scandal
New York Times 15 Feb 2010 - The accusations against Rafiq Husseini have stoked a crisis of confidence in Palestinian leadership.
Biden Expects China’s Support on Iran
New York Times 15 Feb 2010 - Vice President Joe Biden said that the United States expected to gain China’s support for imposing sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program.
Mondoweiss - 15 Feb 2010 - Two U.S. Congress members entered the Gaza Strip yesterday, the Palestinian news agency Ma’an and the Associated Press reported. Representative Brian Baird , a Democrat from Washington State who is retiring from the House of Representatives, is one of the lawmakers who entered. It’s not clear who...
US diplomacy hits a roadblock in Doha called… Gaza
Mondoweiss - 15 Feb 2010 - Jeffrey Goldberg and other Israel advocates argue that Israel/Palestine is not a big deal. But it is a big deal. Have you seen the headlines from Qatar’s US-Islamic forum? Islamic states think the US should stop the settlements. And many of them care about Gaza : [T]he...
‘Time’ magazine publishes pro-sanctions piece
Mondoweiss - 15 Feb 2010 - Tony Karon smuggles a pro-BDS argument into a piece in Time magazine about the stalled peace process: It was certainly a courageous decision by De Klerk [20 years ago], but it’s important to remember that it was not some epiphany about the immorality of apartheid that...
Sullivan doubles down
Mondoweiss - 15 Feb 2010 - He has a good column provocatively titled What Often Happens to Israel’s Critics I , picking up a Johann Hari piece on his own smearing for daring to criticize Israel. Hari: Any attempt to describe accurately the situation for Palestinians is met like this. If you recount...
Quotas
Mondoweiss - 15 Feb 2010 - Not bad. One of the Americans is not Jewish. He is sent to Syria and Lebanon. Haaretz : A high-level U.S. delegation will visit Israel next week for strategic talks on Iran and a number of other issues. In contrast to the original plans, talks will not...
The Rising Phoenix of Israel's Assassination Policy
Alternative Information Center - 15 Feb 2010 - Monday, 15 February 2010, The assassination of Hamas leader Mahmud Abdel Rauf al-Mabhuh in Dubai on 20 January raised concerns in the region about Israeli efforts to neutralize Palestinian activists. According to reports in the press, al-Mabhuh was injected with a drug to induce heart failure. Smadar...
Jerusalem Diaries Episode 34: Once Upon a Time... and Again in Oush Grab
Alternative Information Center - 15 Feb 2010 - Thursday, 11 February 2010, Since the first days of February, Israeli soldiers and bulldozers have occupied the area of Oush Grab, Beit Sahour Municipality, in the Bethlehem district. The area, which was a former Israeli military base, was abandoned in 2006. In 2008 the Municipality of...
Right to Return to the Middle East
Alternative Information Center - 15 Feb 2010 - Friday, 12 February 2010, Many years ago, my friend Rachel showed me a photograph of a transit camp in the center of Israel and a picture of a refugee camp in Jordan, and asked me to distinguish between them. I couldn’t. The tents were the same...
Right of Return and Israeli Democracy
Alternative Information Center - 15 Feb 2010 - Friday, 12 February 2010, The comprehensive Israeli veto of discussion about the right of return of Palestinian refugees exposes democracy and human rights as tools intended to protect the discriminatory nature of the ethnic society in Israel. The perception according to which the power of democracy...
Displaced Persons: Arab-Jews, Arab-Palestinians, Mizrahis and Palestinian Refugees
Alternative Information Center - 15 Feb 2010 - Monday, 15 February 2010, Documentation of the fourth meeting in the series “Meetings from the Dark Perspective,” the headline of which was “1948 Refugees: Mizrahi Perspectives.” A panel discussion with Ilan Halevi, Kochavi Shemesh, Nizar Hassan and Shiko Behar*. The meeting was conducted in Tel Aviv,...
Articles
Breaking the Silence: Women Soldiers Speak Out
Stephen Lendman, Dissident Voice 2/13/2010
Breaking the Silence is an organization of veteran Israeli soldiers that collects anonymous testimonies of soldiers who served in the Occupied Territories during the Second Intifada. They recount experiences that deeply affected them, including abusing Palestinians, looting, destroying property, and other practices “excused as military necessities, or explained as extreme and unique cases.”
They disagree in describing “the depth of corruption which is spreading in the Israeli military” to which its society and most Western observers turn a blind eye. Since 2004, Breaking the Silence collected over 650 testimonies, including from combat veterans. Most remain anonymous to avoid recriminations, but feel compelled to go public — to “demand accountability regarding Israel’s military actions in the Occupied Territories perpetrated by us in our name.”
Last year, a collection of 54 damning testimonies from 30 Israeli soldiers was published. On January 31, a new publication was released titled Breaking the Silence: Women Soldiers’ Testimonies, a collection of 96 stories from dozens of women who served in the Territories since 2000.
On January 29, Israel’s ynetnews.com reported that “Female soldiers break their silence,” revealing accounts of “systematic humiliation of Palestinians, reckless and cruel violence, theft, killing of innocent people and cover-up.”
On July 15, 2009, Reuters reported that participating IDF soldiers in the recent Gaza conflict said “they were urged by commanders to shoot first and worry later about sorting out civilians from combatants. Accordingly, they (said, they) went into Gaza with guns blazing,” with comments like the following typical of others. more.. e-mail
Hagee’s Gifts to Pro-Settler Groups
Tikun Olam: Make the World a Better Place 2/12/2010
Recently, Max Blumenthal uncovered that Elie Wiesel accepted a $500,000 gift from John Hagee, the anti-Semitic pro-settler televangelist. Wiesel appears to have resisted Hagee’s blandishments to come to San Antonio to speak to his congregation as he admits in a video available at the Hagee website. But once Hagee waved that $500,000 check in his face, and after Bernie Madoff had already cleaned him out, Wiesel saw the benefit of making common cause with the Christian Zionist zealot. Wiesel is also a useful tool for Hagee, as the former provides the latter that veneer of Jewish respectability he needs in the face of massive criticism of his motives and his record of strange statements about Jews and the Holocaust.
Thanks to Didi Remez, I’ve been doing some digging among Hagee’s other gifts to Israeli organizations. In fairness, he does give gifts to hospitals and absorption centers, which are perfectly reasonable. But it is notable how much money and how extensively he gives to pro-settler and extreme rightist Israeli groups.
Besides Im Tirtzu ($200,000 over two years), the radical right smearmeisters who put a horn on Naomi Chazan in a disgusting ad in the Jerusalem Post and Hebrew language press, there are these others (some of which are listed here on page 12): Gush Katif, $200,000 / Young Israel, $150,000 / Shurat Ha-Din, $100,000 / Nefesh B’Nefesh, $1,000,000 / Ariel (settlement), $500,000 / Gush Etzion, $150,000.
Gush Katif funds support the settler malcontents who resisted the Gaza withdrawal. It offers them financial support to continue their resistance to territorial compromise and defiance of the directives of Israel’s democratically elected government. more.. e-mail
Education in Palestine Challenges and Ways Forward
Marwan Tarazi, This Week in Palestine 1/27/2010
Under occupation, with a lack of natural resources, the West Bank and Gaza’s only asset is human capital, yet the Palestinian educational system has extremely alarming limitations. In this technological era, when global competition is driven by intellectual capital, Palestinians are seriously behind. Decision and policy makers and supporters seem to be oblivious to the fact that a human time-bomb is in the making and that the single-most critical investment in the Palestinian future is education. After all, a third of the Palestinian population today is in the educational system! Without adequate education, Palestinians will not be able to create leaders, build institutions, develop the economy, fight poverty and social problems, or effectively resist the occupation - a state of affairs we are all very familiar with. Unfortunately, investment in education remains dismal and continues to follow ineffective classical and conservative approaches.
The numbers speak for themselves. Today close to 50 percent of all high school students fail their final high school matriculation exams and also fall amongst the lowest performers on international benchmark exams (e.g., TIMMS). Thirty percent of the pupils in the upper-elementary East Jerusalem schools are illiterate (Jerusalem Center for Social and Economic Rights). Not only are we failing to provide adequate education in the essentials, almost none of our schools equip our youth with the skills and aptitudes needed to meet the challenge of the 21st-century marketplace. The 21st century poses a new set of challenges that require important additional skills which are practically non-existent in our educational systems. These include problem solving, critical thinking, collaboration, technology know-how, entrepreneurship, communications, and continuous learning. These skills are crucial if our youth are to succeed, build a productive economy, and compete and contribute globally. more.. e-mail
Defending Palestinian children: An interview with Rifat Kassis
Electronic Intifada: 15 Feb 2010 - Defence for Children International-Palestine Section aims to protect the rights of children and minors living in occupied Palestine. The Electronic Intifada contributor Adri Nieuwhof recently interviewed director Rifat Kassis about DCI-PS's work and the special situation of Palestinian children growing up under occupation.
Israel bombs Gaza's agricultural sector to the brink
Electronic Intifada: 15 Feb 2010 - Since the first constraints of the siege on Gaza were imposed nearly four years ago, the destruction of Gaza's agricultural sector and potential to provide produce and economy to a severely undernourished Strip has dramatically worsened. With Palestinians in Gaza now largely dependent on the expensive Israeli produce that is inconsistently allowed into Gaza, the plight of the farmers reverberates throughout the population. Eva Bartlett reports from the occupied Gaza Strip.
Elton John: Don't stand on the wrong side of history again
Electronic Intifada: 15 Feb 2010 - The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) calls upon Elton John, as a world-famous artist and a public supporter of key human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Oxfam, not to perform in Israel, a state that maintains an illegal and inhumane system of occupation, colonization and apartheid and that has been widely accused by leading UN experts and human rights organizations, including Amnesty, of committing war crimes and other grave violations of human rights.
In Gaza: 15 Feb 2010 - One of many destroyed water wells in Gaza’s border regions. The Electronic Intifada [blog version longer and slightly modified from that published on E.I.] “If we didn’t get the wheat planted today, we would not have had crops this year,” says Abu Saleh Abu Taima, eyeing the two Israeli military jeeps parked along the border fence east of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip. Although his land is more than 300 meters away, technically outside of the Israeli-imposed “buffer zone,” Abu Taima has reason to be wary. “They shot at us yesterday. I was here with my wife and nephews.” Like many farmers along Gaza’s eastern and northern borders, Abu Taima...
Palestine Chronicle: 14 Feb 2010 - By Deepak Tripathi My Father was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza's Untold Story. Ramzy Baroud. Pluto Press, London: 2010. In the foreword to Ramzy Baroud’s book, Palestinian scholar Salman Abu Sitta refers to a bold assertion by David Ben Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister, in June 1948 – soon after the declaration of the state of Israel and in the midst of large-scale cleansing of Palestinians from their homeland. “Not one refugee will return,” proclaimed Ben Gurion, “The old will die. The young will forget.” To some living at the time, it would have sounded like a hasty prediction. Not only has the Palestinian tragedy lasted six decades and more, its consequences today go beyond Palestine, the Arab world, even the Middle East. It lies at the heart of a much wider and far more serious crisis facing the world. How wrong Ben Gurion was. There cannot be another conclusion. The seeds of the Palestinian tragedy had been sown while the Ottoman Empire was collapsing under British and French pressure almost a century ago. In a covert pact stitched in 1916, known as the Sykes-Picot Agreement, Britain and France, with the assent of Imperial Russia, determined the fate of Palestine as a largely internationalized territory. A year on, British Secretary of State Arthur James Balfour promised a ‘national home’ for the Jews in a secret letter to Baron Lionel Walter Rothschild, a leading Zionist, wealthy and powerful, who wielded much influence on Britain’s foreign policy. Increasingly, the Palestinians began to be...
Questioning Our Special Relationship with Israel
Palestine Chronicle: 14 Feb 2010 - By Stephanie Westbrook A "regional economic power." That's how ANIMA, the Euro-Mediterranean Network of Investment Promotion Agencies encompassing 70 governmental agencies and international networks, described Israel in its January 2010 Mediterranean Investment Map. The report analyzed the economies of the 27 European Union countries as well as 9 "partner countries." And who can argue. Touting an annual GDP growth rate around 5% for the years 2004 to 2008, Israel was also ranked 27 out of 132 countries in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report last fall. It ranked 9th for innovative capacity. In the 2008 World Competitiveness Yearbook by IMD, Israel comes in 2nd for the number of scientists and engineers in the workforce. No other country in the world spends more on research and development as a percentage of GDP than Israel. Since the year 2000 it has hovered around 4.5%, or twice the average of OECD member countries. I am not an economist, but I have to wonder why US taxpayers are doling out $3 billion a year in direct military aid to a "regional economic power." In August 2007, a Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Israel was signed committing the US to give, not loan, $30 billion to Israel over 10 years. US taxpayers are directly funding close to 20% of Israel's annual defense budget. No wonder Israel is able to invest in R&D! To help put these figures into perspective, a new web site was launched last week that illustrates how your state...
USA and USSR: Accidental Parallels?
Palestine Chronicle: 14 Feb 2010 - By M. Shahid Alam Is the question of parallels between the USA and the USSR idle, even mischievous? Perhaps, it is neither, but, on the contrary, deserves our serious consideration. During the Cold War, the USA and USSR were arch rivals, each the antipodes of the other. For some four decades, they battled each other for ‘survival’ and global hegemony, staring down at each other with nuclear tipped missiles, ready at the push of a button to consummate mutually assured destruction. What parallels could there possibly exist between such irreconcilable antagonists? Dismissively, the skeptic might retort that their similarities start and end with the first two letters in their names. The USA won and the USSR lost the Cold War. With all four of the letters in its name, the USSR is dead and gone. Its successor state, Russia, now ranks a distant second behind the USA in military power, a position it retains only by virtue of its nuclear arsenal. Measured in international dollars, the Russian economy ranked eighth in the world in 2009, trailing behind its former client, India. On the other hand, the USA still believes it can ride roughshod over much of the world like a Colossus. It came close to doing this for a few years after the collapse of communism. In the years since its occupation of Iraq, that image has been deflated quite a bit. Haven’t the events of the last decade – the growing challenge to its hegemony in Latin America, the...