Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel
Elections Archive - August 2010
Elections Archive - August 2010
| Home | Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel Elections Archive - August 2010 |
|
|
|
 |
News 
Abbas is a man in exile, even among his own Uruknet August 30, 2010 - Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, faces a crisis of credibility among his own people as he heads into direct talks with Israel in Washington this week. Perhaps nothing better illustrates this than a rather awkward security crackdown Thursday in Ramallah, when leftist factions convened a meeting to protest against Mr Abbas’s decision to accept the... Abbas is a man in exile, even among his own Omar Karmi, The National 8/30/2010 Diana Buttu: “Failure could lead to another intifada, but not necessarily one against Israel. This one might well be directed against the Palestinian Authority.” RAMALLAH // Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, faces a crisis of credibility among his own people as he heads into direct talks with Israel in Washington this week. Perhaps nothing better illustrates this than a rather awkward security crackdown Thursday in Ramallah, when leftist factions convened a meeting to protest against Mr Abbas’s decision to accept the US invitation to the talks. Security officials justified the actions of dozens of plainclothes security officers, who disrupted the meeting and prevented a press conference from being held, as a legal measure against an “illegal rally”. But privately, Palestinian Authority officials expressed their dismay at what looked to most like an effort by security services to stifle dissent. And dissent there is. All Palestinian political factions, bar one, have denounced the direct talks, some in harsher language than others. Only Fatah, Mr Abbas’s own group, supports direct talks. Even among its members, though, there are plenty of disapproving voices. Ordinary Palestinians, as well as the political factions, feel they have little influence on the Palestinian leadership’s decisions. The Palestinian polity is broken.... more.. e-mail Hamas, the I.R.A. and Us Ali Abunimah, New York Times 8/28/2010 GEORGE J. MITCHELL, the United States Middle East envoy, tried to counter low expectations for renewed Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations by harking back to his experience as a mediator in Northern Ireland. At an Aug. 20 news conference with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, announcing the talks that will begin this week, Mr. Mitchell reminded journalists that during difficult negotiations in Northern Ireland, “We had about 700 days of failure and one day of success” — the day in 1998 that the Belfast Agreement instituting power-sharing between pro-British unionists and Irish nationalists was signed. Mr. Mitchell’s comparison is misleading at best. Success in the Irish talks was the result not just of determination and time, but also a very different United States approach to diplomacy. The conflict in Northern Ireland had been intractable for decades. Unionists backed by the British government saw any political compromise with Irish nationalists as a danger, one that would lead to a united Ireland in which a Catholic majority would dominate minority Protestant unionists. The British government also refused to deal with the Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein, despite its significant electoral mandate, because of its close ties to the Irish Republican Army, which had carried out violent acts in the United Kingdom. A parallel can be seen with the American refusal to speak to the Palestinian party Hamas, which decisively won elections in the West Bank and Gaza in 2006. Asked what role Hamas would have in the renewed talks, Mr. Mitchell answered with one word: “None.” No serious analyst believes that peace can be made between Palestinians and Israelis without Hamas on board, any more than could have been the case in Northern Ireland without Sinn Fein and the I.R.A. more.. e-mail What the wall has done Electronic Intifada: 31 Aug 2010 - Israel began constructing the wall in June 2002 following its invasion of cities in the West Bank, which it dubbed "Operation Defensive Shield." The immense scale of the 2002 invasion -- characterized by the destruction of Palestinian civilian infrastructure, mass arrests, assassinations and massacres -- ensured that the construction of the wall would commence with as little resistance as possible. Jamal Juma' comments.more "Once winter's over, the sun will shine" Uruknet August 30, 2010 - When Israel's construction of the wall began in their village May 2008, the people of the occupied West Bank town of Nilin embarked on a campaign of unarmed grassroots resistance against the theft of their land. They have followed a philosophy of direct action, cutting through the electronic fence and razor wire on an almost... Israel threatens war with Lebanon Palestine Note 30 Aug 2010 - Palestine is belligerently occupied. Threats continue against Iran and Syria as well as Lebanon, specifically Hezbollah, elected partner in the nation's unity government, bogusly designated a US State Department Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), what Israel also... Israel threatens war with Lebanon Stephen Lendman, Palestine Note 8/30/2010 Palestine is belligerently occupied. Threats continue against Iran and Syria as well as Lebanon, specifically Hezbollah, elected partner in the nation's unity government, bogusly designated a US State Department Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), what Israel also calls it, repeating veiled and overt warnings, suggesting violence or an impending attack. Why not, after so many earlier in 1978, 1982, 1993, 1996, and 2006. Also numerous incidents besides: -- refusing to comply with UN Security Council Resolution 425 by occupying South Lebanon belligerently and illegally for 18 years until mostly, but not entirely, withdrawing in May 2000 - still holding Sheba Farms, the 14-square mile water-rich land near Syria's Golan, also illegally occupied since 1967; in addition, Ghajar, the Lebanese village bordering Golan; -- during its occupation, using a proxy Christian South Lebanon Army as enforcer, UNIFIL Blue Helmets giving them and the IDF free reign instead of maintaining peace, how UN forces always operate, as paramilitaries against people they're supposed to protect; and -- for over 40 years, repeatedly violating Lebanon's territory, often daily, including 12 Israeli jet overflights on August 19. Hezbollah - Israel's Pretext for Incursions, Violence and War Hezbollah was born out of Israel's 1982 Lebanon invasion, its horrific war slaughtering around 18,000 people, mostly civilians, including in the Sabra and Shatila camps, what journalist Robert Fisk called "one of the most shocking war crimes of the 20th century.".... more.. e-mail Diana Buttu: direct talks bound to fail Electronic Intifada: 30 Aug 2010 - As US officials arrived in Jerusalem last week to meet with Palestinian Authority and Israeli government officials, The Electronic Intifada interviewed Ramallah-based lawyer and former PLO advisor Diana Buttu about this week's US-brokered direct talks between the two parties.more "Solidarity tastes different inside prison" Electronic Intifada: 30 Aug 2010 - "My human dignity, basic human rights and constitutional rights are suffering from basic violations. I still have no permit to meet my lawyers without being recorded." The Electronic Intifada publishes an edited excerpt from a 7 August 2010 letter written by Ameer Makhoul from Israeli prison.more "Once winter's over, the sun will shine" Electronic Intifada: 30 Aug 2010 - When Israel's construction of the wall began in their village May 2008, the people of Nilin embarked on a campaign of unarmed grassroots resistance against the theft of their land. They have followed a philosophy of direct action, cutting through the electronic fence and razor wire on an almost weekly basis. Jody McIntyre interviewed Mohammed Amireh, a leader of the Nilin Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements for The Electronic Intifada.more DFLP supporters rally in Gaza against talks 8/29/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Officials and supporters of a leftist Palestinian faction gathered in Gaza City on Saturday in protest over direct negotiations with Israel "in compliance with Israel and US preconditions."Senior Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine leader Salih Zeidan spoke at the rally, affirming his party's rejection of.... PLO slams party leader's call for 'Palestinian genocide' 8/29/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The chief PLO negotiator on Sunday called on the Israeli government to denounce recent remarks by Israel's former chief rabbi and to take action against outbursts of racism from other elected officials. Saeb Erekat said Shas party spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef's Saturday sermon, in which Yosef.... Related: PA condemns Israel party leader over 'racial incitement' PA bars Hamas man from speaking at mosque Uruknet August 27, 2010 -- A Hamas member of the Palestinian Legislative Council said he was threatened and intimidated by Palestinian Authority security forces as he attempted to deliver a Friday sermon in a mosque south of Hebron. Elected to the PLC with Hamas' Change and Reform Bloc in 2006, Nayef Ar-Rajoub said he attended prayer in the Dura Al-Kabir... WATCH Bloomberg: Park51 controversy is election year fodder Palestine Note 29 Aug 2010 - Washington - New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has been maintained a dispassionate and steadfast defense of the Park51 Islamic community center's right to operate, said on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart that the... PLC member released, barred from prayer 8/27/2010 - JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli police detained Palestinian Legislative Council member Sheikh Hamed Al-Betawi on his way to prayer at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday, family members said. The Palestinian lawmaker, who was elected as a member of Hamas' Change and Reform bloc, called his son from the Israeli interrogation center at the Russian.... Gaza civil servants to get salaries late, with deductions 8/27/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- The Gaza government will pay August salaries at the beginning of September, with cash deducted for electricity payments, an official from the local Ministry of Finance said Thursday evening. The announcement comes as employees across Palestinian areas expect yearly bonuses or the option of taking partial salary payments in advance.... PA bars Hamas man from speaking at mosque 8/27/2010 - HEBRON (Ma'an) -- A Hamas member of the Palestinian Legislative Council said he was threatened and intimidated by Palestinian Authority security forces as he attempted to deliver a Friday sermon in a mosque south of Hebron. Elected to the PLC with Hamas' Change and Reform Bloc in 2006, Nayef Ar-Rajoub said he attended.... PA bars Hamas man from speaking at mosque Uruknet August 27, 2010 -- A Hamas member of the Palestinian Legislative Council said he was threatened and intimidated by Palestinian Authority security forces as he attempted to deliver a Friday sermon in a mosque south of Hebron. Elected to the PLC with Hamas' Change and Reform Bloc in 2006, Nayef Ar-Rajoub said he attended prayer in the Dura Al-Kabir... Iraqi’s have faith in Obama, confident about future Palestine Note 27 Aug 2010 - Mohammed Allawi, the member of the Iraqi Parliament and often mentioned compromise candidate to break the election deadlock between his cousin, Ayad Allawi and former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Malicki, said Iraqis are confident about the future... General Who Came in From the Cold Alternative Information Center - The journey for the promotion of General Galant and his transformation from one of the candidates for Israel’s Chief of Staff to the only possible candidate, to present him as a saint saved from the swamp... No reconstruction despite siege "easing" Electronic Intifada: 27 Aug 2010 - Last week, nearly forty families who were displaced during Israel's winter 2008-09 attacks on the Gaza Strip took over an abadoned, partially-built building in the Jabaliya refugee camp. Rami Almeghari reports for The Electronic Intifada.more An artist's pledge to boycott Electronic Intifada: 27 Aug 2010 - I am proud to be among the many Irish and Ireland-based artists from across creative disciplines who have chosen to publicly support the growing campaign of boycott against apartheid Israel. Compared to the imprisoned Palestinian people themselves and to those taking part in flotillas and other perilous anti-apartheid activities in Palestine our contribution and risk may be justly considered small.more More Pointless Talks with Israel? Palestine Chronicle: 27 Aug 2010 - By Stuart Littlewood – London The Palestinians' champion - their White Knight - is preparing to ride forth next week and do battle at the negotiating table with the racist regime's Black Knight and his minder, the Great Satan. The rules of chivalry don’t apply, so the outcome is not in doubt. However, the White Knight is not quite as white or brave as he seems. Eager to do his lord’s bidding, Mahmoud Abbas is a willing fall guy. On this occasion Obama has imperiously snapped his fingers and announced he wants direct talks started “well before” the Black Knight (aka Israeli prime minister Netanyahu) ends the partial freeze on illegal settlements in a month’s time. And, by the way, US mid-term elections are coming up in two months’ time and Obama has to look good. So Abbas jumped. And Abbas is at least 18 months past the pack-your-bags date...more Palestinian Legislators From Across Political Spectrum Opposed To ‘direct Talks’ IMEMC - 26 Aug 2010 - Tuesday August 24, 2010 - 12:46, Mustafa Barghouti, a leading parliamentarian from the Palestinian left-wing, has published an open letter questioning the wisdom of ‘direct talks’ with Israel at this time. On the right of the political spectrum, the Hamas party, elected in 2006 to represent the Palestinian people, has also challenged the decision by rival party Fateh to engage in direct talks with Israel without pre-conditions. Fuel for Five Days To Gaza's Power Plant PNN - Gaza – PNN – the Palestinian Authority started on Wednesday to bump 600, 000 letters of industrial fuel to the Gaza’s only power plant. The amount will be enough to generate electricity... Serious diseases in Gaza with electric shock-like symptoms PIC 26 Aug 2010 - Dr. Nawaz Hussain, head of the Malaysian medical delegation that recently landed in Gaza, revealed an outbreak of a new illness in the Gaza Strip having symptoms similar to electric shock. Israel, Big Money and Obama Margaret Kimberley, CounterPunch 8/20/2010 “Barack Obama has established a strong record as a true friend of Israel, a stalwart defender of Israel’s security, and an effective advocate of strengthening the steadfast U.S.-Israel relationship, publicly stating that Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state should never be challenged.” – Lester Crown Lester Crown is a Chicagoan with a net worth of four billion dollars. He owns a large stake in and is a former president and board chairman of defense contractor General Dynamics. He also has held large holdings in Hilton Hotels, Maytag (now Whirlpool), and the Chicago Bulls and New York Yankees. Crown was an early supporter of Barack Obama’s candidacy first for the U.S. Senate, and then for president. He is one of the first and one of his most prodigious fundraisers. As the Obama presidential campaign website says, the candidate “… systematically built a sophisticated, and in many ways quite conventional, money machine.” The Crowns were an integral part of that machinery. One of Lester Crown’s children, James Crown, personally bundled $500,000 in campaign contributions for Obama and served as chairman of the Illinois fund raising effort. Lester Crown and his wife Renee hosted a fundraiser for Obama in 2007 at their home. The event invitation made it clear; their support for Obama was due to his support of Israel, its “right to exist“ and his willingness to strike militarily against Iran. Every American president has wealthy individuals and families dedicated to getting them elected. The reliance of candidates for public office on the largesse of the rich may be common and expected, but it is nonetheless extremely dangerous. This corruption insures access for the rich, which guarantees that their interests are at the top of any president’s agenda, usually at the expense of what is good for everyone else. more.. e-mail Police threaten freedom of expression Palestinian National Initiative (PNI, Ma’an News Agency 8/26/2010 We have followed with great concern the increasing external pressure, especially from the US and Israel, on the Palestinian Authority leadership to shift from indirect negotiations which have not resulted in any progress to direct negotiations without clear and binding terms of reference regarding a complete halt of all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory - including in Jerusalem. A conference in Ramallah took place in order to announce the firm stand against engaging in any type of negotiation with Israel. A number of political parties such as the Palestinian National Initiative, Popular and Democratic Front, the People’s Party and independent figures, including businessmen Munib Al-Masri, Mamdouh Al-Aker, Hani Al-Masri and several others. However, the conference was abruptly ended as it was stormed. The PNI stated that the actions that took place during the conference, such as turning off the electricity and the assault on participants ultimately threaten the freedom of expression, opinion and any attempt at promoting democracy. The party demanded that the PA condemn the actions and bring those responsible to justice as it does not serve the public interest. Actions like these only increase the division between Palestinians at a time when we are in great need of national unity. PNI Secretary-General Mustafa Barghouthi condemned the use of violence against the conference and its participants. The actions of certain people including the actions of some elements of security structures represent a threat to freedom of expression, human rights and democracy. more.. e-mail Why Americans should oppose Zionism Electronic Intifada: 26 Aug 2010 - More and more people are starting to pay attention to Israel's crimes and indignities. In so doing, more and more people are questioning the origin and meaning of Zionism -- that is, the very idea of a legally ethnocentric Israel. Steven Salaita comments.more Veolia whitewashes illegal light rail project Electronic Intifada: 26 Aug 2010 - Last week the Israeli daily Haaretz reported that the consortium holding the contract to the controversial Jerusalem light rail project surveyed city residents on whether they would feel comfortable sharing rail service with Palestinians. The bad publicity around the survey -- described as racist by even members of the Israeli government -- is an ironic turn of events. Adri Nieuwhof reports for The Electronic Intifada.more PA forces raid meeting as dissent grows Electronic Intifada: 25 Aug 2010 - Palestinian Authority forces today forcibly dispersed a meeting organized by Palestinian parties opposed to the Palestine Liberation Organization's scheduled direct talks with Israel. The meeting was held at the same time as a conference in Gaza City, where officials of various Palestinian parties also discussed their opposition to the PLO's plans for direct talks.more Church boycott calls ring louder Electronic Intifada: 25 Aug 2010 - The world's churches have long been one of the battlegrounds of the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement. With the strengthening of the BDS movement, a number of churches across the globe have seen the boycott of Israeli and Israeli settlement goods hotting up, and recent weeks have witnessed some notable victories.more Refusal to engage in direct negotiations without a clear settlement freeze Palestine Monitor: 25 Aug 2010 - We have followed with great concern the increasing external pressure, especially from the U.S. and Israel, on the P.A. leadership to shift from indirect negotiations which have not resulted in any progress to direct negotiations without clear and binding terms of reference regarding a complete halt of all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory - including in Jerusalem. A conference in Ramallah took place in order to announce the firm stand against engaging in any type of negotiation with Israel. A number of political parties such as the Palestinian National Initiative, Popular and Democratic Front, the People's Party and independent figures, including businessman Munib al-Masri, Dr. Mamdouh Al-Aker, Hani Al-Masri and several others. However, the conference was abruptly ended as it was stormed. The PNI stated that the actions that took place during the conference, such as turning off the electricity and the assault on participants ultimately threatens the...more Ashkenazi praises Barak's choice of Galant as successor Jeruslalem Post 22 Aug 2010 - Ashkenazi and Barak ask other candidates to continue serving in IDF; gov't to authorize Galant appointment next week; defense minister withholds IDF officer promotions. Israeli invention grants allows quadraraplegics to communicate by smell Ha'aretz - Professor Noam Sobel develops a system that allows quadriplegics to operate an electric wheelchair and enter text on a computer with their noses. Palestinian factions have mixed feelings over talks Palestine Monitor - Mustafa Barghouthi, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, described Clinton's statement that there would be no "pre-conditions" to talks as effectively acquiescing to Israel's demands, a move he described as "shameful." Clinton said she believed all issues could be resolved within one year, seemingly offering... hard days in Ramadan: no power, no water, soaring heats In Gaza: 22 Aug 2010 - *photo by Emad Badwan DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip, Aug 22, 2010 (IPS) – “It’s been days without electricity and water. We can’t do anything, and it’s unbearably hot now.” Abu Fouad, 83, speaks of the power cuts plaguing all of the Gaza Strip. While Palestinians in Gaza have grown accustomed to power outages, a combined result of the destroyed power plant, bombed by Israeli in 2006, and the siege imposed by Israel and the international community, the blackouts have increased in frequency and duration. For years, Palestinians in Gaza have been subject to power outages, ranging from six hours to 14 hours a day. More recently, the blackouts last entire days. The main reason is a reported lack of fuel for the plant, fuel which since November 2009 the Palestinian Authority has been responsible for buying and transferring to Gaza. Making matters worse, Gaza is experiencing a wave of intolerable...more Leftist factions reject invite for direct talks 8/21/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Two leftist Palestinian factions rejected Saturday calls by the Quartet and US to relaunch direct talks with Israel, a day after the PLO endorsed the resumption of negotiations. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Palestinian Peoples' Party released separate communiques slamming the Quartet's.... Israel: World powers must pressure Iran to stop nuclear activity Ha'aretz - U.S. says Bushehr nuclear power plant bears no 'proliferation risk'; Iranian officials say it would take up to 3 months before plant starts producing electricity. Barak resumes selection process for next chief of staff Jeruslalem Post 21 Aug 2010 - Barak meets with four of the five candidates to replace Ashkenazi. Palestinian factions slam PA leadership Jeruslalem Post 21 Aug 2010 - PA decision to negotiate directly with Israel draws condemnation. Israel: World powers must pressure Iran to stop nuclear activity Ha'aretz 21 Aug 2010 - U.S. says Bushehr nuclear power plant bears no 'proliferation risk'; Iranian officials say it would take up to 3 months before plant starts producing electricity. PLO accepts US invitation for direct talks with Israelis PIC 21 Aug 2010 - The PLO declared its acceptance of the US invitation for face-to-face talks with Israelis, although the majority of the Palestinian factions rejected these talks a few days ago. Palestinian factions have mixed feelings over talks Palestine Monitor - Mustafa Barghouthi, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, described Clinton's statement that there would be no "pre-conditions" to talks as effectively acquiescing to Israel's demands, a move he described as "shameful." Clinton said she believed all issues could be resolved within one year, seemingly offering... Behind a Shabak squeeze Mya Guarnieri, Ma’an News Agency 8/20/2010 Alarms sounded through Israel’s leftist camps when Jewish-Israeli activist Yonatan Shapira was summoned for an interview with the country's General Security Services, known by the Hebrew acronym Shabak. Shapira's questioning followed the summoning of a middle-aged Arabic teacher, a religious leader, and a high school drop-out—none of whom were involved in political activities, and all seem unlikely candidates for security interviews. Though it was the detention of a Jewish activist which raised eyebrows, it was the last in a long trail of signs that Israel's security apparatus was clamping down, and some say marching the country away from the democratic process. The string of summonses, targeting Palestinian citizens of Israel and the Israeli left in general, was preceded by a landmark case: the May detention and arrest of Ameer Makhoul, a Palestinian citizen of Israel and director of Ittijah—a platform for local Arab NGOs and an organization dedicated to empowering Palestinians in the country. Mahkoul and respected political activist and businessman Omar Said were detained at the same time and accused of spying for the Lebanese political party and militant group Hezbollah. The two were indicted for espionage, amongst other crimes—charges both deny. Palestinians in Israel decried the arrests as political persecution, and the Israeli left tuned in, realizing a trend of silencing dissent following the interrogation of Shapira. Analyzing a trend Abeer Baker, an attorney with Adalah, an organization dedicated to defending and promoting the human rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel, noted the Shabak squeeze on persons identified as 'dissenters' was not uncommon. more.. e-mail Palestinian factions have mixed feelings over talks Palestine Monitor: 21 Aug 2010 - Mustafa Barghouthi, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, described Clinton's statement that there would be no "pre-conditions" to talks as effectively acquiescing to Israel's demands, a move he described as "shameful." Clinton said she believed all issues could be resolved within one year, seemingly offering some reassurance to Abbas, however Barghouthi noted that even this was not given as a deadline. Predicting that the talks would be a "bigger failure" than Camp David, Barghouthi told Ma'an that negotiations would provide a cover for Israeli violations on the ground. The independent lawmaker said Palestinians need an "immediate alternative strategy" to build their own "facts on the ground" by unilaterally declaring a state on all occupied Territories, including East Jerusalem. An earlier statement by the official said "going to direct talks with Israel without halting settlement and setting references will lead to a larger and more dangerous failure than the Camp...more Palestinian factions have mixed feelings over talks 8/20/2010 - JERICHO (Ma'an) -- PLO Negotiations Chief Saeb Erekat said Friday that the Palestinian leadership welcomed the decision to go to direct talks following an announcement by US officials in Washington. Erekat said the leadership welcomed the Quartet invitation to resume direct talks with Israel in September, and added that he believed success could be.... Hamas must rebrand and take the wind out of Israel's and America's sails Uruknet August 19, 2010 - ...Fatah have done themselves (and others) irreparable damage. They have shot their bolt. How will they command respect in the foreseeable future? Meanwhile, it is four-and-a-half years since the fateful day Hamas was elected to power. They may have been surprised and unprepared then, but there is no excuse for squandering such a heaven-sent opportunity... Peretz: Delay search for new IDF chief Jeruslalem Post 20 Aug 2010 - Former defense minister asks gov't to postpone candidate interviews. Gazans Stitching Together a Living, Somehow Mel Frykberg, Antiwar.com 8/21/2010 GAZA CITY – Just off Omar Al-Mukhtar Street, Gaza City’s main thoroughfare, in a narrow, sandy alley way is a little second-hand clothing shop. In the dimly lit store, with only intermittent electricity for some hours a day at best, sits a single battered and aging sewing machine. This is where Khaled Nassan, a father of four children, tries in vain to eke out a living repairing and selling second-hand clothing. Nassan charges the equivalent of 25 cents on average to repair an item. Gazans can’t afford to pay the dollar it used to cost. Nassan is lucky if he takes home 20 dollars a day. "There is almost no business. I’m surviving on about 500 dollars a month, and I have several children at university. My family is dependent on aid from the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). Without them we would not survive," Nassan tells IPS. Prior to Israel’s systematic strangulation of the coastal territory (which began during the outbreak of the second Palestinian Intifada or uprising in 2000 but peaked with its hermetic sealing in 2007 when Hamas took over) Nassan had a clothing factory which employed 250 Gazans who in turn supported nearly 3,000 dependents. "I used to travel to Israel regularly for business to meet my Israeli business partners and visit stores where my clothing was sold. I would also purchase material there to bring back to Gaza but now I can’t import any material," says Nassan. "Previously my profits ranged around 20,000 dollars monthly. I used to give my kids five dollars daily pocket money; now they are lucky if they get 50 cents...." more.. e-mail Israel refuses to lift ban on family unification Electronic Intifada: 20 Aug 2010 - Jerusalem-born Firas al-Maraghi has been holding a hunger strike outside the Israeli embassy in Berlin, Germany, since 26 July, protesting a decision by the Israeli government to prevent his newborn daughter from being registered as a Jerusalem resident.more Youth re-imagine life through short films Electronic Intifada: 20 Aug 2010 - Palestinian youth premiered nine short films at public screenings in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip last week. Forty youths worked in small groups during two parallel three-week workshops conducted in the al-Aroub and Jabaliya refugee camps during the month of July. Palestinian and international trainers facilitated the workshops through the participatory media program Voices Beyond Walls, in partnership with local youth community organizations.more Palestinians face movement restrictions during Ramadan Electronic Intifada: 20 Aug 2010 - AZZUN ATMA, occupied northern West Bank (IPS) - For seven years Majda Abdul Qader Sheikh, 38, has not been allowed to visit the home of her parents, just a few hundred meters from her house. "I tried to get a special visitor's permit for a quick visit during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan but I was refused," says Sheikh, mother of seven children. "I have had no problems with the Israeli authorities, nor am I considered a security threat," she added.more Rights group: 2 civilians injured as factions clash in Gaza 8/19/2010 - GAZA (Ma'an) --Two civilians were injured in clashes between rival factions in Gaza Tuesday night, a rights group said. Clashes erupted between militants from the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, the Al Quds Brigades, and the militant faction of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, known as the National.... Hamas prison leader says peace talks dangerous 8/19/2010 - RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- "Direct talks would lead to a massive failure of the Palestinain National Project" a letter smuggled out of an Israeli prison from a Hamas leader read. The letter, delivered to a Hamas office in Ramallah earlier in the week, contained a warning from Abdul Khalek Al-Natsheh, calling for Palestinian factions to.... Leftist faction says Gaza police targeted member Uruknet August 18, 2010 - Gaza police opened fire Wednesday at a member of the leftist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party south of Khan Younis, the party said. Talal Abu Tharifeh was attacked while he was in his car in Khaza'a village en route to mediate a "field dispute" between members of his party and a group... Barak to resume interviews for IDF head Jeruslalem Post 20 Aug 2010 - All candidates to replace Ashkenazi exonerated in "Galant Affair." Shawa: Positive initiative approved to quickly solve power crisis in Gaza PIC 20 Aug 2010 - The Palestinian NGO Network says a solution for the electricity crisis in Gaza could be well underway after initiatives were approved by the governments in Gaza and Ramallah. West Bank boycott campaign impacting settlement economy Electronic Intifada: 19 Aug 2010 - Grassroots Palestinian boycott campaigns across the occupied West Bank to take Israeli settlement products off the shelves of local stores have made an impact on the Israeli settlement economy, to the unease of the Israeli government, noted the Israeli daily Haaretz this week.more Fighting expulsion and Western hypocrisy in Jerusalem Electronic Intifada: 19 Aug 2010 - Earlier this summer, Israel arrested Muhammad Abu Tir, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and Hamas. Israel also ordered two other PLC members, Muhammad Totah and Ahmad Attoun and the Palestinian Authority's former minister of Jerusalem affairs Khaled Abu Arafeh to leave their home town of Jerusalem. Rahela Mizrahi writes for The Electronic Intifada.more Al-Araqib residents fear fourth demolition Electronic Intifada: 19 Aug 2010 - JERUSALEM (IPS) - On the eve of the start of Ramadan last week, Israeli police demolished the Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the Negev desert. It was the third time within two weeks that the village had been razed. Unfazed, the Bedouin villagers immediately began rebuilding.more India employing Israeli oppression tactics in Kashmir Electronic Intifada: 19 Aug 2010 - The 2010 summer in the disputed area of Jammu and Kashmir, administered by India, has been marked by popular protests by Kashmiris and crackdowns by India's military. The stream of violence has left more than fifty dead, mostly young protestors. The situation in Kashmir has some parallels with Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, even borrowing the term intifada to describe the uprising. But the connection is more than analogy. Jimmy Johnson analyzes for The Electronic Intifada.more Trapped at Ground Zero Palestine Chronicle: 19 Aug 2010 - By Ramzy Baroud The controversy over the right of Muslim Americans to build community center and mosque a short distance from the site of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks is both strange and outright inappropriate. It should never be necessary for law-abiding Americans to justify exercising their right to freely practice their own religion. This right is in accordance to the First Amendment, part of the Bill of Rights that has constituted the foundation of American freedom for over 200 years. But in the age of Guantanamo-like gulags filled with bearded Muslim men, such principles are disregarded. The very ideals that have been celebrated in the United States for generations are being trampled upon, violated and abused. United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton can reference American ideals and speak of democracy while justifying the peculiar elections in Afghanistan, or the bewildering sectarian "democracy" underway in Iraq. However, when...more Hamas Must Re-brand Palestine Chronicle: 19 Aug 2010 - By Stuart Littlewood – London In the five years since I became interested in the conflict in Palestine, only two things of positive note have happened in the Occupied Territories. The Palestinians held full and fair elections in 2006 to establish themselves as a democracy… and much good it did them. And in Gaza these amazing people have resolutely survived a vicious land and sea blockade imposed by Israel and aided and abetted by the western powers as soon as those elections put Hamas into government. They have resisted almost daily air strikes and armed intrusions for four years and courageously withstood the cowardly Israeli blitzkrieg of 20 months ago. And during all that time they have endured unending barbarity and betrayal, which would have brought a lesser nation to its knees. They have come through. I often wonder if the British could have clung on through the London blitz,...more Leftists say new Lebanese law not enough 8/18/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A leftist Palestinian faction said Wednesday that Lebanon's decision to grant Palestinian refugees work rights "does not represent the minimum." The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine in Gaza said in a statement that "this law is a beautification of the deprivation policy by the Lebanese state.... Leftist faction says Gaza police targeted member 8/18/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Gaza police opened fire Wednesday at a member of the leftist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party south of Khan Younis, the party said. Talal Abu Tharifeh was attacked while he was in his car in Khaza'a village en route to mediate a a "field dispute.... Leftist faction says Gaza police targeted member Uruknet August 18, 2010 - Gaza police opened fire Wednesday at a member of the leftist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party south of Khan Younis, the party said. Talal Abu Tharifeh was attacked while he was in his car in Khaza'a village en route to mediate a "field dispute" between members of his party and a group... Israel breaks electricity-use record Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 - Electric Corporation says demand tops 11,200 megawatts. Aussie parties support Israel Jeruslalem Post 18 Aug 2010 - Candidates wrestle over ‘pro-Israel’ label. Gaza's record-breaking children Vittorio Arrigoni, Electronic Intifada, International Solidarity Movement 8/18/2010 Gaza’s kids truly are record-breakers. They survived Israel’s 2008-09 winter invasion and every day they put up with a state of war during a so-called ceasefire. Smeared in blood, they’ve crawled through the rubble of shelled buildings, taking care of younger siblings, and tending to languishing parents, often emerging from under the remains of their own beds. More than half of Gaza’s population are children. Though none of them has ever voted for Hamas, they’re the designated targets of Israel’s military operations and more generally, of the siege imposed upon Gaza. They’re resilient children, standing up against a multitude of ailments and obstacles. According to a recent report of the Palestinian Medical Relief Society, 52 percent of Gaza’s children are anemic and suffer from serious nutritional problems due to the insufficiency of phosphorous, calcium and zinc in their food. The rate of respiratory illnesses they suffer is also cause for concern. Gaza’s children suffer from psychological disorders, the consequence of enduring Israel’s attacks and siege. Their memories of dismembered bodies and burning buildings are indelible traumas that make them anxious and depressed, insomniac or incontinent. They live in overcrowded spaces without recreational areas. In the same streets where they now play, they remember having seen live flesh burning or rotting bodies. Missiles, destruction and death are evoked in their drawings whenever you hand them a blank piece of paper. If the right to play is a luxury here, the right to an education is denied. Besides toys and medicine, Israel has also blocked the entry of elementary school textbooks. Unlike the majority of Israeli children, Gaza’s children suffer from hunger and poverty. I see them every day pushing ploughs in the fields, or rummaging through the garbage bins, looking for recyclable material.... -- See also: Source: Electronic Intifada more.. e-mail Don’t deny our rights: An open letter to Mahmoud Abbas Ma’an News Agency 8/18/2010 We are Palestinians of diverse perspectives and affiliations -- scholars, intellectuals, artists, activists, trade unionists, human rights advocates and civil society leaders, inside historic Palestine and in exile -- who are united in our commitment to the fulfillment of the fundamental rights of all Palestinians, particularly our inalienable right to self-determination. This universally sanctioned right encompasses, at a minimum, freedom from occupation and colonization in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including Jerusalem; full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel; and the right of return for Palestinian refugees and their descendants. During a 9 June meeting with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, you reportedly said: "I would never deny [the] Jewish right to the land of Israel," a statement that you have yet to retract. We regard this announcement, which adopts a central tenet of Zionism, as a grave betrayal of the collective rights of the Palestinian people. It is tantamount to a surrender of the right of Palestinian citizens of Israel to live in equality in their own homeland, in which they have steadfastly remained despite the apartheid regime imposed on them for decades. It also concedes the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes. No Palestinian institution or leader has ever accepted an exclusive Jewish claim to Palestine, which is irreconcilable with the internationally recognized rights of the Palestinian people. Our rights inhere in us as a people; they are not yours to do with as you please. We, as Palestinians urgently need a legally and democratically elected leadership that is responsible, capable and committed to the fulfillment of our national rights and aspirations to live in freedom, dignity and just peace in our ancestral homeland.... more.. e-mail Turkey must oppose Uribe appointment to flotilla probe Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 - Mr. Prime Minister, it is an insult to the memory of those killed in the Israeli massacre against peace activists aboard the Mavi Marmara to have their blood "redeemed" by a man who has a record of violations against human rights and international law.more Chick Corea: don't turn your back on Gaza! Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 - We are a group of students from Gaza, and our only fault is being Palestinians. For that, Mr. Corea, we are imprisoned with our families and loved ones in what major human rights organizations call the largest open air prison in modern history. The state you are planning to entertain committed a process of ethnic cleansing against the indigenous people in 1948.more Israel keeps evidence of ethnic cleansing locked away Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 - History may be written by the victors, as Winston Churchill is said to have observed, but the opening up of archives can threaten a nation every bit as much as the unearthing of mass graves. That danger explains a decision quietly taken last month by Benjamin Netanyahu to extend by an additional 20 years the country's 50-year rule for the release of sensitive documents. Jonathan Cook reports.more Israel's multi-front war on Lebanese resistance Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 - Border clashes between Lebanon and Israel earlier this month, and Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah's presentation of evidence that Israel may have assassinated Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in 2005. are much more than a routine tug-of-war between two long-time foes. Hicham Safieddine analyzes for The Electronic Intifada.more UK, Irish artists saluted for principled boycott stance Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 - The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) salutes the British dance group Faithless for declining to play in Israel this summer. The cancellation of the group's Israeli gig is the latest in a string of cancellations of performances in Israel by artists and musicians of conscience.more Students, boycott Israel's propagandist youth festival! Electronic Intifada: 18 Aug 2010 - Once again, the Brand-Israel machine is in high gear, this time organizing a million-dollar international youth extravaganza in Eilat in September 2010 called "Funjoya." This unabashed propaganda exercise is sponsored by the Israel Ministry of Tourism and the Israeli Student Union, among other official and semi-official bodies.more Muslims and Arabs are not monolithic, but we sometimes act that way Palestine Note 17 Aug 2010 - When 68 percent of Americans say they oppose members of a religion building a house of worship blocks from Ground Zero, and a leading Republican candidate for president, Newt Gingrich, compares it to Nazism, there has... 'IDF holds document at center of row over appointment of new army chief' Ha'aretz - Israel Radio quotes testimony given by outgoing army chief as part of investigation into whether leading candidate to replace him orchestrated PR campaign to boost his candidacy. Arabs face increased discrimination at Tel Aviv University Electronic Intifada: 17 Aug 2010 - Measures designed to benefit Jewish school-leavers applying for places in Israeli higher education at the cost of their Palestinian Arab counterparts have been criticized by lawyers and human rights groups.more Economic and political pressures at Ramadan Electronic Intifada: 17 Aug 2010 - HIRBET DEIR, occupied West Bank (IPS) - Ramadan, with its extra expense (families and friends hosted every evening for the festive iftar meal that breaks the daily fast) and shorter working hours, is a time when most Palestinians especially struggle to make ends meet.more Is Canada passing information on its citizens to Israel? Electronic Intifada: 17 Aug 2010 - As a national intelligence organization shrouded in secrecy, it is hard to know if the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS) has been mandated to target Palestine solidarity activists. In the current political climate, however, it's not surprising that CSIS officials view anyone defending Palestinian rights as a threat. Yves Engler analyzes for The Electronic Intifada.more Hamas: A Beginner's Guide - Book Review Palestine Chronicle: 17 Aug 2010 - By Dr. Ludwig Watzal - Bonn Khaled Hroub, Hamas. A Beginner's Guide, Pluto, 2 nd Edition, London-Ann Arbor 2010 (2006), 196 p. Israel, the United States and the European Union call Hamas a "terrorist organisation". Yet Hamas swept to victory in the 2006 Palestinian elections and stunned the world. It is now a democratically elected political party. All the election observers agreed that the elections were free, fair, and democratic. The Palestinian people showed their ability to establish a democratic state next to Israel. But Israel, the United States and the EU did not like this idea of a democratic Palestinian state besides Israel and the outcome of a democratic election. According to their opinion, the Palestinian people voted democratically, but for the wrong party. What is wrong with the Hamas movement? And why is it demonised by Israel, the US and the European Union? The reviewed book asks all...more Palestinian factions reject US/Zionist pressure for direct negotiations Uruknet August 16, 2010 - The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine joined with Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the DFLP and 7 other Palestinian factions to issue a joint statement in Damascus in opposition to the resumption of negotiations, direct or indirect, with Israel on August 15, 2010. The joint statement, read at a press conference by Comrade Dr. Maher... Leftist faction condemns closure of Gaza office Uruknet August 15, 2010 - A member of a leftist Palestinian faction's leadership criticized on Sunday the raid on a popular committee office by Hamas-affiliated security forces a day earlier in the southern Gaza Strip. The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine's Ziad Jarkhoun described the closure of the Rafah refugee camp popular committee office building as "a violation... Palestinian groups reject talks AlJazeera 16 Aug 2010 - Syria-based Palestinian factions say direct peace talks are to bury Palestinians' rights. Palestinian factions reject Abbas's direct, indirect talks with Israelis PIC 16 Aug 2010 - Palestinian resistance factions rejected the Palestinian Authority's direct and indirect talks with Israel and warned of the dire consequences of making concessions and waiving the Palestinian rights. Palestinian roots of Western civilization: an interview with Basem Ra'ad Electronic Intifada: 16 Aug 2010 - Basem Ra'ad is a professor at Al-Quds University in occupied East Jerusalem. For the past two decades, he has been researching the ancient past of Palestine, much of which concerns the Western and Israeli appropriation of ancient languages and cultures, from the Canaanite alphabet to the Canaanite pantheon of gods and goddesses. Jonathan Scott spoke with Ra'ad for The Electronic Intifada.more Gaza's record-breaking children Electronic Intifada: 16 Aug 2010 - Gaza's kids truly are record-breakers. They survived Israel's 2008-2009 winter invasion and every day they put up with a state of war during a so-called ceasefire. Smeared in blood, they've crawled through the rubble of shelled buildings, taking care of younger siblings, and tending to languishing parents, often emerging from under the remains of their own beds. Vittorio Arrigoni writes from the Gaza Strip.more Palestinian factions reject direct talks 8/15/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Damascus-based Palestinian factions issued a joint statement Sunday rejecting direct talks with Israel. The statement came amidst growing international pressure on President Mahmoud Abbas, who met with US official David Hale Sunday evening to review a statement from the Mideast quartet - the EU, US, UN and Russia - pushing for a return.... Leftist faction condemns closure of Gaza office 8/15/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A member of a leftist Palestinian faction's leadership criticized on Sunday the raid on a popular committee office by Hamas-affiliated security forces a day earlier in the southern Gaza Strip. The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine's Ziad Jarkhoun described the closure of the Rafah.... Leftist faction condemns closure of Gaza office Uruknet August 15, 2010 - A member of a leftist Palestinian faction's leadership criticized on Sunday the raid on a popular committee office by Hamas-affiliated security forces a day earlier in the southern Gaza Strip. The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine's Ziad Jarkhoun described the closure of the Rafah refugee camp popular committee office building as "a violation... Fuel crisis ongoing in Gaza Uruknet August 13, 2010 - Fuel for generators is running out as the power crisis in Gaza continues, an electricity company official said Friday. Kin'an Obed, vice-president of the Palestinian Energy Authority in Gaza, said the quantity of industrial diesel that Israeli authorities allowed into the Strip on Thursday was only sufficient to power one generator, and would run out... Gaza's Electricity Crisis knows no end 14 Aug 2010 - Gaza, August 14, (Pal Telegraph) Kanaan Obeid, vice president of the Palestinian Energy Authority, said that the electricity crisis has reached a stalemate with the continued reduction of fuel for running Gaza’s only power plant that operates on one generator only. He said in press statement that Israeli occupation authorities allowed yesterday a quantity of industrial fuel to run Gaza’s... Fanatics seek to destroy two-states and peace Palestine Note 13 Aug 2010 - When Yasser Arafat, the legitimately elected president of Palestine, thrust out his hand in peace On Sept. 13, 1993, he gave his word and the word of Palestinians to embrace two-states and peace based on compromise.... Ramadan Kareem from Obama and Netanyahu Jeff Halper, Ma’an News Agency 8/14/2010 At 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday, the day before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan began, workers sent by the Israeli authorities, protected by dozens of police, destroyed the tombstones in the last portion of the Mamilla cemetery, a historic Muslim burial ground with graves going back to the seventh Century, hitherto left untouched. The government of Israel has always been fully cognizant of the sanctity and historic significance of the site. Already in 1948, when control of the cemetery reverted to Israel, the Israeli Religious Affairs Ministry recognized Mamilla "to be one of the most prominent Muslim cemeteries, where seventy thousand Muslim warriors of [Saladin’s] armies are interred along with many Muslim scholars. Israel will always know to protect and respect this site." For all that, and despite (proper) Israeli outrage when Jewish cemeteries are desecrated anywhere in the world, the dismantlement of the Mamilla cemetery has been systematic. In the 1960s "Independence Park" was built over a portion of it; subsequently an urban road was built through it, major electrical cables were laid over graves and a parking lot constructed over yet another piece. Now some 1,500 Muslim graves have been cleared in several nighttime operations to make way for…..a $100 million Museum of Tolerance and Human Dignity, a project of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles. (Ironically, Rabbi Marvin Hier, the Wiesenthal Center’s Director, appeared on Fox News to express his opposition to the construction of a mosque near Ground Zero in Manhattan, because the site of the 9/11 attack "is a cemetery.") more.. e-mail Montagnini on silent expulsion in Jordan Valley Barbara Malini, Ma’an News Agency 8/14/2010 An interview with Luisa Morgantini, former Vice President of the European Parliament, upon her return from a tour of the Jordan Valley and the West Bank in which she led an Italian peace delegation. You visited to the Jordan Valley twice in one week, just days after the Israeli army once again demolished homes of Bedouin communities in the north. What did you see? Montagnini: If Area C, 60 percent of the occupied West Bank, is a synonym for expulsion and annexation for Israeli colonization, in the Jordan Valley all this is greatly intensified. A silent displacement is being carried out by Israel, through demolitions, evictions, land confiscation, and denied access to water resources: these policies have promoted the establishment of over 30 illegal settlements. Even before the [1993] Oslo Agreements, Israel had already been aiming to create a seam-zone between the West Bank and Jordan in line with the Allon Plan, through the annexation of this 2,400 square kilometers of fertile land extending from the Green Line to the Dead Sea. An area cleansed of its inhabitants today is more easily annexed tomorrow. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has always stated that Israel will never give up the Jordan Valley; and a similar refrain characterized Olmert’s election campaign in 2006. This exact intent to maintain control of the area, beyond being theorized in the Allon plan, was also practiced by Israel during the First Intifada, when Palestinian residents in Nablus under curfew were blocked from reaching their properties and harvesting their fields located in the Jordan Valley. Now this area is a closed zone. more.. e-mail Fuel crisis ongoing in Gaza 8/14/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Fuel for generators is running out as the power crisis in Gaza continues, an electricity company official said Friday. Kin'an Obed, vice-president of the Palestinian Energy Authority in Gaza, said the quantity of industrial diesel that Israeli authorities allowed into the Strip on Thursday was only sufficient to.... Gaza Police Disperses Peaceful Assembly by PFLP; Four Arrested and 21 Injured Uruknet August 12, 2010 - At approximately 8am on Tuesday 10 August 2010, the Gaza police dispersed a peaceful protest organized by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The event took place in the Unknown Soldier Square, opposite the Palestinian Legislative Council in the Al Remal neighborhood in Gaza City. The protest was organized against the electricity... Dozens of Jerusalem residents have iftar with the Jerusalem MPs PIC 13 Aug 2010 - Palestinian residents of Jerusalem express their support for their elected MPs, who are threatened with deportation, by visiting them at their sit-in tent at the Red Cross compound.. Going organic: The siege on Gaza Jon Elmer, AlJazeera, Axis of Logic 8/11/2010 "Hamas’ agriculture minister, Muhammad al-Agha, has issued a ten-year plan designed to side-step the blockade by increasing local food production and agricultural self-sufficiency in Gaza." In February 2006, following Hamas’ electoral victory, a top advisor to Ehud Olmert, the then Israeli prime minister, Dov Weisglass, described the essence of Israel’s Gaza policy. "It’s like a meeting with a dietitian," Weisglass said. "We need to make the Palestinians lose weight, but not to starve to death." Although any Gazan will quickly point out that the blockade on the movement of goods - and people - into and out of Gaza long predates the election of Hamas, as the years have passed the exact date of the siege has often been, for reasons of political expedience, recast to coincide with the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007. Israel characterises the blockade as "economic warfare" targeting Hamas and its constituents. ’No humanitarian crisis’ According to government documents that have surfaced in response to a lawsuit before Israel’s high court, "the limitation on the transfer of goods is a central pillar in the means at the disposal of the state of Israel in the armed conflict between it and Hamas". more.. e-mail Gaza reflections Uruknet August 12, 2010 - ...Reconciliation, of course, would mean a united Palestine, not just united factions, and it must be kept in mind that Gaza and the West Bank cannot and should not be considered in isolation of each other. With Western complicity, Israel is trying to create a Palestinian Authority on a rump West Bank shredded into non-contiguous... PCHR Condemns Police's Attack on Public Sit-in Organized by PFLP in Gaza City Uruknet August 11, 2010 - The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) condemns the attack carried out by the Palestinian police on a public sit-in organized by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) in the Unknown Soldier Square in the center of Gaza City. The sit-in was organized yesterday in protest to the continued electricity crisis. PCHR... Despite setbacks, Iraq will survive Palestine Note 11 Aug 2010 - Baghdad - In spite of July temperatures in Baghdad that exceed 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) and are exacerbated by a severe lack of electricity, the daily topic of conversation among Iraqis is still the formation... ‘Israel' not welcome in Egypt The Media Line 10 Aug 2010 - A political candidate opts to hide her problematic middle name . An Egyptian political candidate is opting to omit "Israel" from her name, due to the negative connotation the Jewish state bears in the minds of Egyptians.Dr.... Palestine's students call on PLO envoy to boycott South African Zionists Electronic Intifada: 11 Aug 2010 - We address you from occupied Palestine urging you to cancel your participation in an event hosted by the South African Union of Jewish Students entitled "Towards Peace in the Middle East -- The Status of Current Democracy" at the University of the Witwatersrand on Thursday, 12 August 2010.more Gaza threatened with humanitarian disaster in wake of power failure Uruknet August 8, 2010 - The Palestinian Ministry of Health warned that ongoing power outages and the shortage of filters, oils and other crucial equipment could lead to a real "humanitarian disaster" in the Gaza Strip. Gaza Strip’s electric current shuts down for long hours, and there is a lack of filters, oils, and UPS machines (large-scale machines that can... Hamas creates volunteer program for Gaza's idle youth Electronic Intifada: 10 Aug 2010 - Israel's siege has had a disproportionate effect on Gaza's youth. Over half of the Gaza Strip's 1.5 million residents are under the age of 18, and thousands of young Gazans are unemployed. Hamas authorities in Gaza recently announced a voluntary employment program for Palestinian youth to get involved in their communities. Rami Almeghari reports from the occupied Gaza Strip.more New Reut Institute ‘case study’ tacit admission that BDS is working Mondoweiss - When the well-connected Israeli policy group, the Reut Institute , released a February 2010 report on what it labeled the "delegitimization challenge" from the global Palestine solidarity movement, Ali Abunimah of the Electronic Intifada pointed out that the report "never considers for a moment that the mounting... The "banality of evil" and Israel's destruction of al-Araqib Electronic Intifada: 10 Aug 2010 - In the early hours of 10 August, Israeli forces destroyed -- for the third time -- the Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the northern Negev desert. Israel had first destroyed the village on 27 July, and again each time the villagers have attempted to rebuild. Joseph Dana witnessed the latest destruction.more Gaza threatened with humanitarian disaster in wake of power failure Uruknet August 8, 2010 - The Palestinian Ministry of Health warned that ongoing power outages and the shortage of filters, oils and other crucial equipment could lead to a real "humanitarian disaster" in the Gaza Strip. Gaza Strip’s electric current shuts down for long hours, and there is a lack of filters, oils, and UPS machines (large-scale machines that can... Mitchell arrives amid low hopes Jeruslalem Post 9 Aug 2010 - Palestinian factions warn Abbas not to enter direct talks. Words without Borders "dialogue" violates Palestinian boycott call Electronic Intifada: 10 Aug 2010 - An initiative recently launched by the prestigious online literature magazine Words without Borders entitled "Cross-Cultural-Dialogues in the Middle East," rings alarm bells in light of the Palestinian civil society call for boycott divestment and sanctions on Israel. Haidar Eid comments.more Suspected torturer gets key police job in Jerusalem Electronic Intifada: 9 Aug 2010 - A police officer known as "Major George" who is accused of torturing Arab prisoners in his previous role as chief interrogator in a secret military jail has been appointed to oversee relations with Jerusalem's Palestinian population, it has emerged. Jonathan Cook reports.more New guide puts Palestine history, debates in activists' hands Electronic Intifada: 9 Aug 2010 - The Veritas Handbook , published free online this month, seeks to provide a comprehensive, accessible guide to Palestine's history and key issues involved activism. Produced independently by activists and students, the book aims to meet a long neglected need.more Syria-based factions convene in Damascus 8/8/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) - Palestinian opposition factions including Hamas and Islamic Jihad convened Saturday in Damascus, where the Syria-based movements reiterated their objection to any kind of talks with Israel. Faction leaders, including Hamas leader in exile Khalid Mash'al, warned in a statement the "serious outcomes of these negotiations [with Israel]" and vowed.... Gaza power plant shuts down citing lack of fuel Uruknet August 7, 2010 — Engineers shut down Gaza City's sole power plant on Saturday because of a lack of fuel, switching off electricity to some half a million people in the midst of a heat wave. The fuel for the plant is supplied by the rival Palestinian government in the West Bank, which says it has reduced shipments because... Fuel shortage sees Gaza go dark 8/7/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Hours after officials at the Gaza Power Plant warned of the site's immanent shut down on Saturday, the Gaza Strip went black. Power plant officials said a fuel shortage caused the shut-down, and blamed a refusal of the Palestinain Authority to ship sufficient fuel into the coastal enclave.... Related: Independents hope to solve Gaza's electricity crisis and PA to deduct 25% of Gaza salaries for electricity bill PA to deduct 25% of Gaza salaries for electricity bill 8/7/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Authority Ministry of Finance will begin deducting 25 percent from all employed Gaza residents from September to cover the Strip's electricity bill, an Electricity Company spokesman said Saturday, as the sole power plant ceased operations. Jamal Ad-Dardasawi told Ma'an that the deduction will "improve.... Related: Fuel shortage sees Gaza go dark UK delegation may impede unity, Fatah official says 8/7/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A Fatah official warned that the visit of British MPs to Gaza may hamper conciliation efforts between the rival factions on Saturday. Fatah's European spokesman Jamal Nazzal praised all efforts to lift the four-year siege on the Strip, but warned that holding unofficial meetings with Hamas leaders would.... Channel 2: IDF chief candidate using PR firm to smear competitor Ha'aretz - Channel 2 reveals document suggesting building a 'positive profile' for Maj. Gen. Yoav Galant and 'negative profile' for Maj. Gen. Benny Gantz; PR firm denies having composed such a document. Al-Habbash: Any political solution without Jerusalem will fail 8/6/2010 - JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Religious Affairs minister, Mahmud Al-Habbash, called on all factions to stand behind Jerusalem, which he said is the basis of a political solution in Palestine. Speaking at a press conference on Friday, the minister said that despite the difficulties such as checkpoints, many institutes are based in Jerusalem because of the.... Israel's siege on freedoms Uruknet August 6, 2010 - It's three years since I've been back to Gaza. Much has happened since my last visit. Fatah waged a failed coup and now rules only the West Bank, while Hamas is in charge of Gaza. Israel launched its deadly Cast Lead assault. Fuel shortages. Electricity crises. And so on. I needed to regain perspective. So... Backed to the wall Uruknet August 5, 2010 - ...No doubt, Hamas is relying on a false belief that it can marry governing and resistance. It believed that the "disengagement plan" and redeployment of Israeli troops to the periphery of the Gaza Strip in September 2005 represented a collapse of the Oslo Accords. Accordingly, its participation in the 2006 elections would not be regulated... Tilting the Turkey-Israel-US triangle Jeruslalem Post 5 Aug 2010 - Prime Minister Erdogan, facing domestic electoral challenges and feeling international pressure, is bashing Israel less… for now. Uribe's appointment to flotilla probe guarantees its failure Electronic Intifada: 6 Aug 2010 - The appointment of outgoing President of Colombia Álvaro Uribe Vélez to a UN-commissioned inquiry into the massacre by Israel of human rights activists aboard the Gaza Freedom Flotilla makes a mockery of the investigation. José Antonio Gutiérrez and David Landy comment for The Electronic Intifada.more Israel's siege on freedoms Electronic Intifada: 6 Aug 2010 - Zionist sympathizers and their ilk have been providing us with the same "evidence" that Gaza is burgeoning: the markets are full of produce, fancy restaurants abound, there are pools and parks and malls ... all is well in the most isolated place on earth -- Gaza, the "prison camp" that is not. However, "prison camp" might be an understatement.more Al-Quds University flouts own academic boycott Electronic Intifada: 6 Aug 2010 - Al-Quds University is maintaining a joint Israeli-Palestinian master's degree program with Haifa, Hebrew and Tel Aviv universities, despite a decision taken by its own University Council in February 2009 to distance itself from Israeli academic institutions. Jillian Kestler-D'Amours reports for The Electronic Intifada.more Associates: Barak hurting chief of staff YNet News - Defense Minister Ehud Barak will start interviewing candidates for the IDF chief of staff position on Thursday, six months before the current chief ends his term. ....... "Gaza is a man-made crisis" Electronic Intifada: 5 Aug 2010 - GAZA CITY, occupied Gaza Strip (IRIN) - The quality of life, the economy and food security for Palestinians living in Gaza have been severely impaired by Israel's strict four-year blockade, according to the UN. Israel says its closure regime is designed to protect Israeli citizens from attacks by militants in Gaza.more Israel destroys Bedouin village, again Electronic Intifada: 5 Aug 2010 - Bulldozers returned to the village of al-Araqib in the northern Negev on Wednesday, 4 August, and demolished approximately ten new structures residents and supporters had built a week after Israeli forces completely destroyed the village on 27 July.more Book review: Palestine brought to life in "Behind the Wall" Electronic Intifada: 5 Aug 2010 - Photographer Rich Wiles' Behind the Wall: Life, Love, and Struggle in Palestine is a story about the lives of people the author has encountered over the course of the last seven years living in Palestine. Marcy Newman reviews for The Electronic Intifada.more International solidarity under attack Electronic Intifada: 5 Aug 2010 - From small beginnings and with few resources, the international movement in solidarity with the Palestinians has grown into a force that Israel perceives as a major threat. The assault on the Gaza aid flotilla was a lethal escalation in what has become an increasingly bitter campaign against that movement. Mike Marqusee comments.more `Sinai rocket launch had Egyptian help` 8/4/2010 - Al-ARISH, Egypt (Ma'an) -- Monday's deadly rocket attack on Jordan and Israel was launched by a Palestinian faction with the help of Egyptian operatives, security officials in the Sinai believe. An Egyptian security source told Ma'an that the faction launched seven Grad-grade rockets toward the Red Sea resort cities of Eilat and Aqaba. Government officials said.... Egypt: Palestinian factions behind Sinai rockets 8/4/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Palestinian operatives from Gaza were behind Tuesday's rocket attacks on the Israeli and Jordanian coasts, Egyptian officials told local news media Wednesday. The apparent admission contradicts Cairo's initial denials to Ma'an and other news outlets in the hours following the deadly attack, which left a Jordanian citizen dead and three others injured.... Barghouthi: Unity talks ongoing 8/4/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Talks remain ongoing to secure a unity deal between the rival Fatah and Hamas movements, Palestinian National Initiative leader Mustafa Barghouthi said Wednesday. Barghouthi, a member an independent delegation approved by President Mahmoud Abbas to mediate between the factions, said a new round of talks have not been held because an official.... Rocket strike blamed on Gaza groups AlJazeera 4 Aug 2010 - Egypt says Palestinian factions behind rocket attack on Israeli and Jordanian towns. Egypt blames Palestinians for Sinai rockets Palestine Note 4 Aug 2010 - Washington - Egypt pointed to "Palestinian factions" Wednesday for a series of rockets launched from Sinai Peninsula Monday that hit Aqaba, Jordan and Eilat, Israel, killing a Jordanian man. Exploded shell [Flyk3r - Flickr] AFP news... Race is on for next chief of staff Jeruslalem Post 4 Aug 2010 - Barak to start interviewing candidates to replace Ashkenazi. Bardawil: Egypt’s allegations on Eilat rockets are contradictory PIC 4 Aug 2010 - MP Dr. Salah Al-Bardawil has described Wednesday the Egyptian claims accusing Palestinian factions of being behind the rocket attack on the seaports of Al-Aqaba and Eilat as contradictory. Petition to Mahmoud Abbas: We reject compromise on Palestinian Rights Antoine Raffoul, Palestine Think Tank 8/4/2010 It was reported recently that the S Daniel Abraham Centre for Middle East Peace hosted the Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas for dinner in Washington DC, on June 9 2010. The head of this Centre is Robert Wexler, a former Florida Congressman and a staunch supporter of Israeli government policies. He was a leading defender of the 2008 Israeli invasion of Gaza and of the recent Israeli assault on the ’Free Gaza’ Flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza. In attendance at this dinner were some of the most powerful Jewish leaders in the United States who work feverishly for the Zionist Agenda which promotes and preserves Israel as a Jewish State thus condoning the illegal occupation of Historic Palestine. Guests at this dinner included the Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; the Executive Director and the President of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC); the National Chairman of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL); the CEO & Executive Vice President of UJA Federation (United Jewish Appeal); the President of the Israel Policy Forum; and other American Jewish community leaders and foreign policy scholars. Mahmoud Abbas, whose mandate as President of the PA expired in July 2009, was invited to answer unscripted questions ’on the record’ put to him by his hosts and their guests to which he responded ’on the record’ on behalf of all Palestinians: those who elected him and those who did not. Those who were killed by the Israeli military machine and those who await that fate. Whilst we support dialogue and debate between friend and foe, we reject compromise on Palestinian rights. Dialogue is a two-way street and not a dead end road at the end of which you are simply answering questions thrown at you as if in an interrogation zone. more.. e-mail Hamas "morality" campaign restricts civil liberties in Gaza Electronic Intifada: 4 Aug 2010 - RAMALLAH, occupied West Bank (IPS) - Gazans are caught between a rock and a hard place. While Israel continues to apply a crippling siege on the coastal territory, Gaza's Hamas government is cracking down on civil and political liberties in what appears to be a campaign to slowly Islamicize Gaza.more Why is Obama moving to fund Israel's Iron Dome project? Electronic Intifada: 4 Aug 2010 - On 16 July 2010, US Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro laid out the Obama Administration's policy on strategic cooperation, noting that earlier this year, President Obama "asked Congress to authorize $205 million to support the production of an Israeli-developed short range rocket defense system called Iron Dome." If approved, these funds would be "above and beyond the $3 billion in Foreign Military Financing that the Administration requested for Israel" for 2011. Jimmy Johnson comments for The Electronic Intifada.more Japanese projects completed in Qalqiliya, Tulkarem 8/3/2010 - Bethlehem - Ma'an - The Japanese Representative Office to the Palestinian Authority announced the completion of two projects in the West Bank on Tuesday, for expanding compost production and upgrading an electricity network in two districts. In the Immatin village in Qalqiliya, the village council implemented a project for rehabilitation of the electric network in the village.... UNESCO: Lack of Palestinian state jeopardizes heritage sites Palestine Note 3 Aug 2010 - Washington – As UNESCO expands its list of prospective world heritage sites, the debate over Palestinian candidates continued during meetings this week, AFP News Agency reported Monday. "We are trying to promote discussions between Israel and... UPDATED: Scores injured in explosions, Israeli attacks on Gaza Electronic Intifada: 3 Aug 2010 - Tens of Palestinians were injured in a series of explosions on Monday, 2 August in the refugee camp of Deir el-Balah in the south of the occupied Gaza Strip at the home of senior Hamas official Alaa al-Danaf. It was unclear what caused the explosion which leveled his house and badly damaged at least 12 other homes nearby. This followed three consecutive days of Israeli strikes across the besieged territory.more Probe into flotilla killings met with skepticism Electronic Intifada: 3 Aug 2010 - UNITED NATIONS (IPS) - Despite initial misgivings, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon received the tacit approval of the Israeli government to establish an international panel to probe the widely-condemned killings of nine Turkish civilians onboard a flotilla of ships carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza last May.more PFLP leader: Israeli forces destroy pipes, detain 2 8/2/2010 - Hebron - Ma'an - Israeli forces destroyed over 30 dunums of farmland in the Hebron village of Al-Baq'a and detained two relatives Monday, the landowner and a Palestinian faction leader said. Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine leader Badran Jabir said Israeli troops ransacked his home and farm, damaging irrigation networks and seedlings. He said he.... Related: PFLP leader says forces destroy land, detain 2 Palestinians to Abbas: Give us back democracy Palestine Note 2 Aug 2010 - Washington – In an open letter sent Thursday to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, a collection of Palestinian intellectuals and activists have made a request of the PA leader: give Palestinians back their freedom. The Electronic... Book review: Israel and apartheid S. Africa's "Unspoken Alliance" Electronic Intifada: 2 Aug 2010 - In The Unspoken Alliance: Israel's Secret Relationship with Apartheid South Africa , historian and Foreign Affairs editor Sasha Polakow-Suransky explores the rise and fall of the Cold War-era alliance between Israel and apartheid South Africa. Jimmy Johnson reviews for The Electronic Intifada.more South Africa's lessons for Gaza Electronic Intifada: 2 Aug 2010 - The Palestinian national movement has overlooked this question: does the Gaza Strip resemble the racist Bantustans of apartheid South Africa? During the apartheid era, South Africa's black population was kept in isolation and without political and civil rights. Is Gaza similar? The answer is yes and no. Haidar Eid analyzes.more Israeli rabbi preaches slaughter of non-Jews Electronic Intifada: 2 Aug 2010 - A rabbi from one of the most violent settlements in the West Bank was questioned on suspicion of incitement last week as Israeli police stepped up their investigation into a book in which he sanctions the killing of non-Jews, including children and babies. Jonathan Cook reports.more  Links
Mossawa - The Advocacy Center for Arab Citizens of Israel Mossawa, The Advocacy Center for Arab Citizens in Israel, was established in October of 1997 as a Non Governmental Organization. Mossawa works to promote equality for ArabPalestinians within the borders of Israel. Palestinian Authority Ministry of Health This website requires Internet Explorer. Palestinian Authority Ministry of Information General information from the PA Palestinian Information Center Hamas news site Palestinian National Initiative - Al Mubadara The main objective of the Initiative is the realization of Palestinian national rights and of a durable, just peace. Both of these objectives can be best achieved at this juncture through the establishment of a national emergency leadership, the immediate implementation of democratic elections at all levels of the political system, and reform of political, administrative, and other institutional structures in order to meet the needs of the Palestinian people. PLO Negotiations Affairs Department Documents, maps, fact sheets and reports related to the occupation.
To receive
a once-daily e-mail digest of our News and Articles content, write
to Disclaimer: The views expressed in the material posted on this site are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the webmaster or Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel. FAIR USE NOTICE: This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
