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Elections Archive - October 2007
Elections Archive - October 2007
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for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel Elections Archive - October 2007 |
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A tale of two factions The Guardian 10/11/2007 From its establishment, in 1994, the Palestinian Authority was dominated by Fatah. Hamas refused to run in elections because it felt doing so would imply acceptance of Israel and the Oslo accords, both of which they rejected. But then, in 2005, it changed its mind. January 2006: Hamas wins elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council To its surprise, Hamas wins the Palestinian legislative elections, taking 76 seats out of a total of 132. Hamas has not planned for such a victory, hoping to a be a vociferous opposition party. Realising they are not ready for government, the party leaders hope a spell in opposition will allow them to maintain their ideological purity and prepare for government in the future. March 2006: Hamas forms a government Initially, Hamas hopes to form a unity government with Fatah, but some Fatah leaders believe the best way to get rid of Hamas quickly will be to force it to rule alone. Inside Gaza: the main players The Guardian 10/11/2007 Hamas supporters celebrate in July after capturing the headquarters of the Preventative Security Force, which was loyal to the Palestinian president and Fatah leader, Mahmoud Abbas, in Gaza City. Photograph: Abid Katib/Getty Images Hamas Hamas leaders have seemed genuinely surprised by their successes in recent years: they won the 2006 elections for the Palestinian legislative council and, earlier this year, when they attacked some of the institutions of the Palestinian Authority, the whole apparatus crumbled, leaving them in sole charge of the Gaza Strip. However, success has been bittersweet because it has brought them positions of responsibility for which they were ill prepared. Their attempts at government have foundered on their inability to bridge gaps with Fatah and the international community. While it remains the dominant force in Gaza, Hamas has discovered the limitations of power. OPT: Conflict, economic closure and human security in Gaza Oxford Research Group - ORG, ReliefWeb 10/15/2007 Justin Alexander Recent events in Gaza have had a profound impact not only on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict but on the whole Middle East region and beyond. Following the Palestinian presidential elections in January 2005, Israel’s unilateral "disengagement" from Gaza in September 2005, the Palestinian legislative elections in January 2006 and the formation of a national unity government following the Mecca Agreement in March 2007, many had hoped for a new window of opportunity for improving the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories which could potentially pave the way for the resumption of peace talks to bring about an end to the protracted conflict. However, the Palestinian situation has dramatically deteriorated since June 2006, turning Gaza’s already critical political, economic and security conditions into unprecedented levels of blockade, poverty, violence and uncertainty. Fatah official accuses Hamas of planning to sabotage elections in Gaza Strip Ma’an News Agency 10/15/2007 Bethlehem - Ma’an – A senior Fatah official accused Hamas of planning to sabotage presidential elections in the Gaza Strip by allowing only Hamas candidates to run, the Palestinian Al-Quds daily newspaper reported Monday. Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip in June. Since then the West Bank and Gaza Strip have all but separated into two entities. Fatah spokesperson Jamal Nazzal said European diplomats, who had met with Hamas officials, informed him of the plan. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ term ends in early 2009, but he has hinted that he may call for early elections. Nazzal also alleged that Hamas is secretly negotiating with Israel, offering to stop missile attacks and suppress military groups in exchange for Israeli support for continued Hamas rule over the Gaza Strip. He also accused Hamas of seeking to establish its own state in Gaza, on the model of Pro-Israelis fear left turn Down Under Daphna Berman, Ha’aretz 10/12/2007 The Australian Labor Party’s likely ascent to power in the coming elections may strain the country’s "extremely positive" relationship with Israel, a leading expert on Israeli-Australian relations said this week. "[Australian Labor leader] Kevin Rudd is pro-Israel, but there are left-wing elements in the party that are anti-Israel and I am worried that some elements in the party will try to push Labor further to the left," said Chanan Reich, an Israeli political scientist and the author of "Australia and Israel: An Ambigious Relationship. "Labor is traditionally more sympathetic to the Palestinians, to the underdogs," Reich said, adding that he is also "apprehensive" because Labor’s 1972-75 reign was a "disaster [and] bad experience" for Israel. According to recent polls, Rudd is expected to defeat Prime Minister John Howard in the coming elections.  Articles
Israel Ready to Negotiate on Jerusalem, Its ’Third Rail’? Dion Nissenbaum, MIFTAH 10/30/2007 The last time Israeli leaders sat down for meaningful peace talks with Palestinian negotiators, then-Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert led a march around the Old City’s ancient walls to protest any plans to divide his adopted home. "No concessions on Jerusalem," Olmert said on the eve of the 2000 Camp David summit. "For 33 years, Israel has said there will never be a compromise on Jerusalem. Do you think we were joking?" But seven years, one Palestinian uprising and three Israeli elections later, Olmert, now Israel’s prime minister, is floating the idea of carving up the city he led for 10 years. As he gears up for the most intense round of peace talks since the Camp David talks failed, Olmert has indicated that he’s prepared to turn over Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem to the Palestinians. In many ways, Jerusalem is the third rail of Israeli politics. Few are willing to touch it, and those who do often get burned. Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak came close to ceding control of about half of the Old City to the Palestinians before the Camp David talks crumbled, his government lost its credibility and Palestinians launched their second uprising. Rice Seeks to Marginalize Hamas Ashraf Khalil, MIFTAH 10/17/2007 Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday expressed hope that a successfully negotiated vision of a Palestinian state would marginalize the militant group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. "There will have to come a time when the Palestinian people will have to decide whether the prospect of that state is in their interest, and I think they will decide that it is," Rice said after meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. "But people are going to have to accept that it means accepting the existence of Israel and the right of Israel to exist." Rice met with Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah as part of several days of meetings building toward a proposed peace conference next month in Annapolis, Md. She repeatedly called for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. But Rice made it clear that Hamas, the Islamist movement that won Palestinian parliamentary elections last year and calls for Israel’s destruction, would have no role in the upcoming negotiations. "We’ve been very clear what the criteria are for involvement in this process," she said. "If you’re going to have a two-state solution, you have to accept the right of the other party to exist. If you’re going to have a two-state solution that is born of negotiation, you’re going to have to renounce violence." 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 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 Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories 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. Occupation Prisoners News stories and reports about Palestinian prisoners from International Press Center, of the Palestinian National Authority’s State Information Service. Palestinian Centre 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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