Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel
Elections Archive - June 2008
Elections Archive - June 2008
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Assad to host Abbas for talks in July Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/30/2008 RAMALLAH, Occupied West Bank: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is to hold talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad next month during a tour of Arab and European countries, his spokesman said on Saturday. Syria provides shelter to Hamas supreme leader Khaled Meshaal, whose movement won democratic elections in January 2006 and then touted gunmen loyal to Abbas’ Fatah faction in the Gaza Strip a year ago, effectively splitting the Palestinians into two entities. [end] Bureau of Fatwa and Legislation: President Abbas’ term to coincide with current PLC mandate Ma’an News Agency 6/29/2008 Ramallah – Ma’an – The PA Bureau of Fatwa and Legislation issued a statement on Saturday saying that the President Abbas’ term will extend to the end of the legislative mandate of the second Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), which was elected on 25 January 2006. Councillor Abdel Karim Abu Salah, head of the Bureau, said in the statement that "the forthcoming presidential elections must be held simultaneously with the legislative elections. According to the law, the period preceding the legislative elections is the complete term of the presidential mandate. " He pointed out that the time period between legislative elections is considered equivalent to the presidential mandate, and stressed that new presidential elections should be held in parallel with the next legislative elections. Fatah youth election in Gaza was sabotaged, committee says Ma’an News Agency 6/28/2008 Gaza – Ma’an – The Fatah movement’s branch in the Gaza Strip denied media reports on Saturday that Palestinian President and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas would certify the results of an incomplete election for the leadership of the organization’s youth wing held last Thursday. In a statement released Saturday the Fatah movement in Gaza said that the elections had been obstructed, and accused unnamed actors of "conspiring and sabotaging and distorting the image of Fateh and its history. " Fatah’s Gaza committee plans to launch an investigation into the alleged wrongdoing, and that the perpetrators would be "brought to account by the movement and would punished according the internal rulings and bylaws of the movement. " Israeli Politicians Avert Elections Mark Lavie, MIFTAH 6/28/2008 Israel stepped back from the brink of political turmoil Wednesday after the two main parties in the ruling coalition hammered out a last-minute compromise to prevent the passage of a bill calling an election. This gives Prime Minister Ehud Olmert a few more months to pursue peace talks with the Palestinians and to try to win release of three captured soldiers. But the price was agreeing to a primary election in September that is likely to end his reign. Olmert’s main coalition partner, Labor, was poised to vote in favor of a bill to dissolve the parliament and call elections Wednesday. Labor’s support would have guaranteed approval, mostly symbolic at this stage because the bill would have needed to pass three more parliamentary votes to become law. Olmert had threatened to fire Labor Cabinet ministers if they voted for the election bill. That would have removed his parliamentary majority and made elections inevitable. An election campaign would put peace efforts far onto the back burner. Fatah permitted to hold elections, de facto Interior Ministry says Ma’an News Agency 6/27/2008 Bethlehem – Ma’an – The Interior Ministry of the de facto Hamas-lead government in Gaza announced on Friday that it will allow Fatah to conduct elections throughout the Gaza Strip. In a statement received by Ma’an, the Interior Ministry said that the gesture of allowing elections "shows that the government gives full freedom to all factions. "At the same time, however, the statement cautioned Fatah against any "excesses while the elections take place. " The statement added that the Interior Ministry hopes that "all factions abide by the law and help maintain public order" during any coming elections. Fatah spokesman Fahmi Az-Za’arir commented on the decision, saying: "The Fatah movement considers Hamas as an illegitimate authority that does not have the right to prevent or allow any activities by any Palestinian faction. Palestinian lawmaker says 'Israel is punishing us for refusing to die'ť Khalid Amayreh in Hebron, Palestinian Information Center 6/22/2008 A Palestinian lawmaker recently released from Israeli captivity has accused Israel of "adopting Nazi tactics"ť nd applying them to Palestinian prisoners. Bassem al, Za’arir, 45, who lives in the town of Sammou, south west of Hebron, won a seat in the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in the January, 2006. However, a few months later , Za’arir and dozens of other Islamic-oriented lawmakers, cabinet ministers, mayors and other elected officials, were violently abducted by undercover Israeli soldiers as part of a sweeping crackdown on Hamas supporters and sympathizers. Israel said the abductions were in response to the capture by Palestinian freedom fighters of an Israeli occupation army soldier. However, Hamas maintains that Jewish enmity to Islam was the main motive behind the widespread crackdown which also witnessed. . . Gaza truce comes into force, but both sides remain wary of breakdown Sakher Abu El Oun, Daily Star 6/20/2008 Agence France PresseGAZA CITY: A fragile truce came into force in the Gaza Strip on Thursday amid skepticism over how long the Egyptian-brokered deal between Israel and the Islamist Hamas movement would hold. The six-month truce is the first since the Islamists seized the territory just over a year ago after winning democratic elections and defeating rival militias, triggering a crippling Israeli blockade. Underscoring the fragility of the deal, a Palestinian was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza City just minutes before the guns were to fall silent. "Hamas is determined to respect the truce and guarantee its success," spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said after the cease-fire took hold at 0300 GMT. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s spokesman Mark Regev said the Jewish state will likewise "respect all the commitments it made. Gaza truce comes into force, but both sides remain wary of breakdown Sakher Abu El Oun, Daily Star 6/20/2008 Agence France PresseGAZA CITY: A fragile truce came into force in the Gaza Strip on Thursday amid skepticism over how long the Egyptian-brokered deal between Israel and the Islamist Hamas movement would hold. The six-month truce is the first since the Islamists seized the territory just over a year ago after winning democratic elections and defeating rival militias, triggering a crippling Israeli blockade. Underscoring the fragility of the deal, a Palestinian was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza City just minutes before the guns were to fall silent. "Hamas is determined to respect the truce and guarantee its success," spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said after the cease-fire took hold at 0300 GMT. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s spokesman Mark Regev said the Jewish state will likewise "respect all the commitments it made. Abu Zuhri: Calm fruit of people’s steadfastness Palestinian Information Center 6/19/2008 GAZA, (PIC)-- Dr. Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza, said on Thursday that his Movement was committed to the calm with Israel and was keen on ensuring its success. Abu Zuhri in a statement said that the ball was now in the Israeli court as far as the commitment to the agreement on the ground was concerned. He noted, however, that the Israeli occupation forces preceded the calm with a crime in Juhr Al-Dik area in which they killed a Palestinian and wounded a number of others. Calm agreement is the fruit of the Palestinian people’s steadfastness in face of aggression and siege in addition to reflecting failure of all those wagering on weakening, toppling or bypassing the Hamas Movement, Abu Zuhri elaborated. The spokesman urged the world community to re-evaluate its position toward his Movement and to adopt the right step of recognizing its legitimacy and the results of general elections, which Hamas won. Abu Zuhri: Calm fruit of people’s steadfastness Palestinian Information Center 6/19/2008 GAZA, (PIC)-- Dr. Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza, said on Thursday that his Movement was committed to the calm with Israel and was keen on ensuring its success. Abu Zuhri in a statement said that the ball was now in the Israeli court as far as the commitment to the agreement on the ground was concerned. He noted, however, that the Israeli occupation forces preceded the calm with a crime in Juhr Al-Dik area in which they killed a Palestinian and wounded a number of others. Calm agreement is the fruit of the Palestinian people’s steadfastness in face of aggression and siege in addition to reflecting failure of all those wagering on weakening, toppling or bypassing the Hamas Movement, Abu Zuhri elaborated. The spokesman urged the world community to re-evaluate its position toward his Movement and to adopt the right step of recognizing its legitimacy and the results of general elections, which Hamas won. Khudari in Austria, rallies the world to lifting Gaza siege Palestinian Information Center 6/18/2008 VIENNA, (PIC)-- Palestinian lawmaker and head of the Gaza-based anti-siege popular committee MP Jamal Al-Khudari is in Austria with the aim to rally the popular and official support for ending the unjust Israeli economic siege on Gaza Strip. The blockade was imposed more than two years ago after Hamas Movement won most of the seats in the PA parliament in transparent and democratic elections witnessed by more than 1000 observers headed by former US president Jimmy Carter among other prominent personalities. The Palestinian official met with prominent Austrian figures, including chairman of the Green Peace group, and head of the Arab-Austrian friendship in addition to many Austrian officials supporting the Palestinian people’s cause, where he briefed them on the brutal Israeli policies against the Palestinian people, and the bad repercussions inflicted on the Palestinian people as a result of the Israeli sanctions. Islamic Movement in Jordan warns of 'Jordanian option' idea raised by McCain Palestinian Information Center 6/18/2008 AMMAN, (PIC)-- The Islamic Movement in Jordan warned of the gravity of what was stated by John McCain, the republican candidate for the US presidential elections, about adopting the Jordanian option to get rid of the burden placed by the Palestinian cause on the public policy of his country in the Middle East. An advisor to McCain said that the latter adopts a strategy to resolve the conflict in the Middle East based on the Jordanian option which states that Jordan is the natural home for millions of Palestinians and the best solution to the issue of the Palestinian refugees. Irheel Gharaibah, the secretary-general of the Islamic action front party in Jordan, underlined that such statements reflect a very serious juncture in the American official discourse and an inauguration of a new stage calling for disengaging from any commitments to international laws regarding the Palestinian land and refugees. Egypt lets ailing Palestinians back into Gaza Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/19/2008 AL-ARISH, Egypt: Egypt opened its border with the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, a security official said, to allow Palestinians to return to the Hamas-ruled territory after receiving medical treatment. The move came the day after a truce between Hamas and Israel was announced to begin on Thursday, including a loosening of Gaza’s border closures, but the "exceptional" opening was one-way only for sick Gazans to return home. Since the Islamist Hamas movement seized power in Gaza a year ago after winning democratic elections and trouncing gunmen loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah faction, Israel has sealed the territory to all but very limited humanitarian assistance. In a similar exceptional opening, Egyptian authorities allowed hundreds of sick Palestinians to cross into Egypt for treatment in May. - AFPTags: Egypt, Hamas, Israel, Palestinian Printable VersionSend to a friend. . . Netanyahu refuses calm, champions attacking Gaza Palestinian Information Center 6/16/2008 NAZARETH, (PIC)-- Leader of the Israeli opposition party, the Likud, Benjamin Netanyahu has declared his absolute rejection of truce with Hamas and other Palestinian resistance factions and called for attacking Gaza. He told the Hebrew TV that Hamas should not be allowed to "prepare for new attacks on Israel through the calm". The government should take the initiative and launch ground, air and naval offensive on Hamas, he said, adding, "We must not remain hostages, Gaza is the city of terrorists". Netanyahu also advocated early Israeli elections, explaining, "We should have a strong government, which is only possible through new elections". Meanwhile, two Israeli ministers, Ze’ev Boim and Shaul Mofaz, called on the army to prepare for launching a strong onslaught on Gaza that would end up with full control on the Strip and all its crossings. Rice arrives in Tel Aviv, says will discuss settlement issue with Israel Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/15/2008 US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, arrived in Tel Aviv on Saturday and said that Israel is not doing enough as it is ongoing with settlements construction in the West Bank. Rice described the issue of settlements as "a problem" and called on Israel to ease restrictions on the Palestinian people. This visit is the sixth trip Rice conducts since the beginning of this year in an attempt to boost the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks. Palestinian officials stated that the ongoing Israeli construction of settlements in the occupied West Bank and the corruption probe against Olmert which could force him out of office have negative impacts on the peace process and could hinder achieving a peace deal this year. If the corruption charges against Olmert force him to out of office, Israel will have to move to new elections which will limit the chances of achieving a peace deal this year. Barak: Kadima power struggle stalling cease-fire with Hamas Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/14/2008 Defense Minister Ehud Barak told activists in his Labor Party on Friday that the current power struggle within the ruling Kadima Party was sabotaging the cease-fire negotiations between Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas. "If this government wasn’t overshadowed by the Kadima primaries, a truce agreement with Hamas would have been achieved a long time ago," the Labor Party chairman said in a speech at the party headquarters in Tel Aviv. The Kadima Party, led by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, has been heading toward primary elections since the launch of a corruption investigation against Olmert, who is suspected of having illicitly received hundreds of thousands of dollars from Jewish American millionaire Morris Talansky. "The government is incapable of making decisions in regard to Hamas, Syria, Lebanon, Iran or the United States. Imprisoned lawmaker: we have a historic opportunity for national reconciliation Palestinian Information Center 6/13/2008 Meggido Prison NABLUS, (PIC)-- Imprisoned lawmaker, Reyad al-Emleh, said that the Palestinian people today have a historic opportunity to achieve national reconciliation without external pressures, including the US rejection of Palestinian reconciliation dialogue. He said, in a statement he made from his cell in the Israeli Megiddo prison, that the failure of the US project under the leadership of George Bush over the past eight years makes him less able to hamper the efforts for Palestinian dialogue. The Hamas lawmaker, who has been detained by the Israeli occupation since 29 June 2006, said that there are many factors that limit US ability to prevent inter-Palestinian dialogue, including US failure in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon in addition to being busy with the presidential elections. He also pointed out that it was foreign interference, especially the US, that was the. . . Israel ’supports’ Gaza truce - and prepares invasion Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/12/2008 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israel threw its weight on Wednesday behind Egyptian efforts to broker a truce with Hamas in and around Gaza but at the same time ordered its armed forces to prepare for a possible offensive against the Palestinian territory. Hamas, the Islamist movement which has controlled the Gaza Strip since June 2007 when it routed rival Fatah forces who refused to accept its win in democratic elections, mocked Israel for talking of further cease-fire negotiations while still threatening military action. A senior Israeli government official said while there was little hope the talks would bear fruit, "for the time being we decided to give them a chance. ""The Security Cabinet decided this morning to support Egyptian efforts to achieve calm in the south and end the daily targeting of Israeli civilians by the terrorists in Gaza," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s spokesman Mark Regev said. British spokesperson: UK supports Palestinian unity Ma’an News Agency 6/11/2008 Bethlehem/Ramallah - Ma’an Exclusive - Jon Wilks, the official Arabic-language spokesperson of the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said on Tuesday that Britain supports the Palestinian President’s efforts to unite the Palestinian people. During a visit to Ma’an’s Bethlehem news center on Wednesday morning Wilks said: “We want to unite the Palestinian people and we appreciate Abbas’ efforts for a dialogue with Hamas on the bases of the two governments and negotiating with Israel. ”Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called for renewed dialogue with the rival Hamas movement who won the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections and currently control the Gaza Strip. Abbas dismissed a Hamas-Fatah unity government last June after Hamas seized control of Gaza. He added: “We support the efforts of Abbas and Egypt towards ceasefire. Israel mulls onslaught as strike kills three Hamas men Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/11/2008 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israeli troops killed three Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip Tuesday as Premier Ehud Olmert met with top ministers to weigh up a possible military offensive on the besieged territory. The meeting came a day after the parents of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, held at a secret location by Gaza militants, received a letter from their son who was captured two years ago. Israel’s political and military leaders have for months been mulling a wider military blitz in the Gaza aimed at ousting its Hamas-run government. The Israelis have been trying to unseat Hamas since the Islamist group won democratic elections across the Palestinian territories in January 2006, stepping up their siege last June after Hamas took control of the enclave by routing forces loyal to the rival Fatah faction which had refused to accept the results of the polls. Barghouthi: Democracy is the Key to Restoring National Unity Palestine Monitor 6/10/2008 Ramallah: PNI leader, Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi MP, today welcomed steps towards restoring national unity currently being taken by President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leaders, and stressed that this new initiative cannot be missed. He underlined that the democratic process - free and fair elections, respect for the separation of powers and the rule of law, and the equality of all Palestinians before the law - was the key to restoring national unity. Dr. Barghouthi stressed the need for national unity to end divisions on the Palestinian street and between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, to lift the Israeli siege on Gaza, and to protect the Palestinian national cause. He pointed out that national unity was of greater importance now than ever before in the face of increased Israeli military attacks since Annapolis, together with the ongoing siege on Gaza, the continued. . . PM to Bush, Abbas: I’ll weather legal storm, stay in office Yossi Verter Barak Ravid Shahar Ilan and Jack Khoury, Ha’aretz 6/7/2008 Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told President George W. Bush and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas this week that he believes he can overcome his legal and political difficulties and stay in his post. It also appears that the push for early primary elections in Olmert’s Kadima party have been blocked, and there are difficulties finding a Knesset majority for early elections - both developments that are expected to bolster the Olmert government. During talks with senior figures in Kadima, Olmert said the cross-examination of the chief witness for the prosecution, the American fund-raiser Morris Talansky, will undermine Talansky’s credibility and restore a bit of calm in the coalition and political atmosphere. This, Olmert said, should keep him in his post and allow him to continue the peace negotiations with the Palestinians. Olmert tells Bush and Abbas: I will survive political turmoil Yossi Verter Barak Ravid Shahar Ilan and Jack Khoury, Ha’aretz 6/6/2008 Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told President George W. Bush and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas this week that he believes he can overcome his legal and political difficulties and stay in his post. It also appears that the push for early primary elections in Olmert’s Kadima party have been blocked, and there are difficulties finding a Knesset majority for early elections - both developments that are expected to bolster the Olmert government. During talks with senior figures in Kadima, Olmert said the cross-examination of the chief witness for the prosecution, the American fund-raiser Morris Talansky, will undermine Talansky’s credibility and restore a bit of calm in the coalition and political atmosphere. This, Olmert said, should keep him in his post and allow him to continue the peace negotiations with the Palestinians. Fayyad tells AP that he is frustrated of the ongoing settlement activity in the West Bank Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMc News, International Middle East Media Center News 6/2/2008 The Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad expressed his frustration towered the ongoing Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank. Fayyad made his comments during an interview with AP in his office located in Ramallah. Fayyad added that he will continue to work towards enhancing the leving conditions of the Palestinians in the West Bank. Primer Fayyad, who took office after President Mahmoud Abbas fired the Hamas Government in June2007, said that last year was the whores hear ever for the Palestinians because of the division between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The Hamas Movement won the Palestinian legislative elections of 2006, after which it formed the National Unity government. Later the movement ended a bloody internal conflict with President Abbas Fatah party and controlled the Gaza Strip. Israeli court delays sentence on Dwaik for two months Palestinian Information Center 6/2/2008 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli Ofer military court on Sunday adjourned its hearing into the trial of Palestine Legislative Council speaker Dr. Aziz Dwaik without passing a sentence. The court judge said that the hearing was the last before passing a verdict against him and told his lawyers that the sentence would be issued within two months, the speaker’s wife told Ramattan news agency in a telephone contact. She said that the most prominent charge was representing Hamas in the Palestinian legislative elections, and pointed out that her husbands refused to recognize the court. Dwaik, who appeared in high morale despite his deteriorating health and two years in harsh incarceration, asserted that he was elected as chairman of Palestinian legitimacy and enjoyed immunity and Israel had no right to prosecute him, the wife elaborated. Moussa: Hamas is ready for unconditional national dialog immediately Palestinian Information Center 6/1/2008 GAZA, (PIC)-- Yehya Moussa, the deputy head of the Hamas parliamentary bloc, renewed his Movement’s willingness to resume unconditional national dialog immediately, stressing that any initiative must be based on what had been achieved in the previous agreements starting from the national accord document to the Makkah agreement. This came in response to the initiative suggested by Munib Al-Masri, the head of the Palestine forum and a prominent Palestinian businessman, which is intended for ending the internal discord. Moussa underlined that any initiative which does not recognize the results of the elections and political changes, and not take into account that the state of division was caused by external interference will not culminate with success. The lawmaker said that PA chief Mahmoud Abbas is weak and cannot say no to the American dictates, adding that Abbas can end this. . .  Articles
Breathing Space Safwat Kahlout, MIFTAH 6/23/2008 Ever since Hamas won an overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections in 2006, Palestinians have been paying the price for practicing democracy. From the beginning, the international community refused to deal with the result of the elections and preferred to treat them as an atonal interlude in the international political symphony. Instead of engaging Hamas, the international community imposed the three well-known Quartet conditions that Hamas, for equally well-worn reasons, rejected. Accordingly, international financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority stopped and along with it ended the salaries of state employees. Public sector employee salaries are the engine of the Palestinian economy and as they ended, others felt the knock-on effect and unemployment and poverty rose. At the time it was felt that that was as bad as it was going to get, but after Hamas ousted Fateh-affiliated security forces in Gaza, people here discovered that it could get a whole lot worse. ’Zionism, a very clear ideology of exclusion, racism and expulsion’ - exiled Israeli academic Apostolis Fotiadis, Daily Star 6/20/2008 Interview with Ilan Pappe Inter Press Service, ATHENS: Support for an academic boycott of Israeli universities exposed Ilan Pappe to death threats last year, forced him to resign as senior lecturer of political science at the University of Haifa, and leave the country. His argument that the creation of Israel in 1948 was followed by a policy of cleansing Israeli territory of Arabs, his support for the Hamas resistance despite rejecting its political ideology, and the denouncement of Israeli academia for justifying the occupation of Palestine have made him an unwanted person in Israel. But still he remains a firm believer that the only way to improve this reality is by exposing its worst aspects. In an interview with IPS, Pappe discusses the current situation in Palestine, and the Arab-Israeli conflict 60 years after it began. IPS: Can Barack Obama’s victory make a difference. IP: I think people who strive to hold the post of the strongest person in the world are not interested in moral issues, or are really moved by suffering and oppression. Obama is no different, and the morality of the issue or the suffering of the Palestinians would not move him. He would move in a different direction if he and his advisers would feel that showing less support for Israel enhances their political power. So far this is not the case. It is better to be pro-Israeli to win American elections and be re-elected for the second term. If there is any hope, this is from a second term, when the powerful men are brought back to their normal human size again, and may begin to think like you and me about injustice, oppression and occupation. ’Zionism, a very clear ideology of exclusion, racism and expulsion’ - exiled Israeli academic Apostolis Fotiadis, Daily Star 6/20/2008 Interview with Ilan Pappe Inter Press Service, ATHENS: Support for an academic boycott of Israeli universities exposed Ilan Pappe to death threats last year, forced him to resign as senior lecturer of political science at the University of Haifa, and leave the country. His argument that the creation of Israel in 1948 was followed by a policy of cleansing Israeli territory of Arabs, his support for the Hamas resistance despite rejecting its political ideology, and the denouncement of Israeli academia for justifying the occupation of Palestine have made him an unwanted person in Israel. But still he remains a firm believer that the only way to improve this reality is by exposing its worst aspects. In an interview with IPS, Pappe discusses the current situation in Palestine, and the Arab-Israeli conflict 60 years after it began. IPS: Can Barack Obama’s victory make a difference. IP: I think people who strive to hold the post of the strongest person in the world are not interested in moral issues, or are really moved by suffering and oppression. Obama is no different, and the morality of the issue or the suffering of the Palestinians would not move him. He would move in a different direction if he and his advisers would feel that showing less support for Israel enhances their political power. So far this is not the case. It is better to be pro-Israeli to win American elections and be re-elected for the second term. If there is any hope, this is from a second term, when the powerful men are brought back to their normal human size again, and may begin to think like you and me about injustice, oppression and occupation. Palestinians Trapped at Crossroads Nicola Nasser, Middle East Online 6/2/2008 Firing home-made primitive rockets at Israeli targets from the Gaza Strip, the mass sweeping through the Palestinian – Egyptian border crossing of Rafah in January and the series of ongoing peaceful demonstrations at Gaza’s crossing points with Israel are not an aggressive demonstration of self-confidence, but more a show of defensive despair and weakness against the tight Israeli military siege, as much as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ threats to resign are passive defensive reaction to the political siege imposed on him by the United States and Israel, who so far fail to deliver on their promises to bring about an agreement to create a Palestinian state by the end of 2008. Given the corruption investigations, which have already heralded either a premiership change or early elections that would lead to a government change in Israel, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is likely nearing the end of his term to join Abbas and US President George W. Bush, whose terms will come to their end next January, as outgoing leaders whom all their protagonists are counting down time until their departure, before they could deliver on their promised vision of a two-state solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. LinksAdalah Adalah (Justice in Arabic) is the first non-profit, non-sectarian Palestinian-run legal center in Israel. The main goal of Adalah’s work is to achieve equal rights and minority rights protections for Palestinian citizens of Israel. Addameer Prisoners’ Support and Human Rights Organization: Addameer (conscience) is a Palestinian non-governmental, civil institution which focuses on human rights issues. Supports Palestinian prisoners, advocates for rights of political prisoners, works to end torture. Amnesty International Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. AI’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. Amnesty International USA Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. AI’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. Arab Association for Human Rights - HRA The HRA was founded in 1988 to promote and protect the political, civil, economic, and cultural rights of the Palestinian Arab minority in Israel and to further the domestic implementation of international human rights principles. It is an independent non-governmental organisation registered in Israel. Association for Civil Rights in Israel - ACRI In Hebrew - The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) was founded in 1972 as a non-political and independent body, with the goal of protecting human and civil rights in Israel and in the territories under Israeli control. B’tselem The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. It endeavors to document and educate the Israeli public and policymakers about human rights violations in the Occupied Territories, combat the phenomenon of denial prevalent among the Israeli public, and help create a human rights culture in Israel. Boycott Israeli Medical Association UK: The Medical Committee for Boycott of the Israeli Medical Association (IMA) will document the systematic torture of Palestinian people by agents of Israel. It will publicise the practice in order to bring world opinion to bear on Israel. And it will challenge the Israeli Medical Association which has repeatedly failed to issue advice to doctors who are involved in any way with torture. Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch is an independent, nongovernmental organization, supported by contributions from private individuals and foundations worldwide. Human Rights Watch is dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world. Palestinian Center for Human Rights The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) is an independent legal body based in Gaza City dedicated to protecting human rights, promoting the rule of law, and upholding democratic principles in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Palestinian Prisoners Society The Palestinian Prisoner Society is a social and human institution and its members are prisoners inside prisons and released prisoners. Membership is open to every Palestinian prisoner inside and outside prisons who meets the conditions of membership. Physicians for Human Rights - Israel Physicians for Human Rights - Israel (PHR-Israel) was established in 1988 as a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, dedicated to promoting and protecting the medical human rights of all residents of Israel and the Occupied Territories. Public Committee Against Torture in Israel - PCATI An independent human rights organization founded that monitors the implementation conditions in detention centers and continues the struggle against the use of torture in interrogation in Israel and the Palestinian Authority. United Nations Information System on the Question of Palestine The main collection contains the texts of current and historical United Nations material concerning the question of Palestine and other issues related to the Middle East situation and the search for peace. World Organisation Against Torture OMCT is today the largest international coalition of NGOs fighting against torture,summary executions, forced disappearances and all other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment in order to preserve Human Rights. It has at its disposal a network, SOS Torture, consisting of some 240 non-governmental organisations which act as sources of information.
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