Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel
Elections Archive - October 2010
Elections Archive - October 2010
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'We want social justice for all'Mustafa Barghouti represents the Palestinian hope of an emerging third power. Uruknet October 30, 2010 - He is articulate, courteous, handsome and suave. A medical doctor by profession he is also a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and was candidate for the Presidency of Palestinian Authority in 2005. Fifty-six-year-old Mustafa Barghouti wears many hats, but what he most represents is the hope of an emerging third power for his Palestinian... "No chance for two states": Interview with Knesset member Haneen Zoabi Electronic Intifada: 31 Oct 2010 - There is now "no chance" for a two-state solution. So said Haneen Zoabi, a Palestinian member of the Israeli parliament in an exclusive interview with The Electronic Intifada, two days after she was injured by Israeli police.more Bread and the Circus Palestine Chronicle: 31 Oct 2010 - By Uri Avnery – Israel I was surprised when, towards the end of 1975, I received an invitation from the Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin, to meet him at his residence. He opened the door himself, poured me a glass of whisky, poured one for himself, and without any further ado asked me: 'Tell me, Uri, have you decided to destroy all the doves in the Labor Party?' Some weeks before, my magazine, Haolam Hazeh (“This World”), had started to publish disclosures about the corrupt dealings of the candidate for President of the Central Bank, Asher Yadlin. On the eve of the conversation, we had also started to publish suspicions concerning the Minister of Housing, Avraham Ofer. Both were leaders of the Labor “doves”. I answered that, unfortunately, I could not offer immunity to corrupt politicians, even if their political positions were close to mine. These are separate matters. I told...more Republicans urge Obama to prevent Palestinian state recognition YNet News - As Congressional midterm elections approach, Republican representatives call on.... Obama sells the peace process Ramzy Baroud, Ma’an News Agency 10/29/2010 It wouldn't be an exaggeration to claim that the resumption of peace talks between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority have thus far yielded nothing of value, at least not as far as settling the decades-long struggle. For one, the media has paid the talks little attention, aside from the ceremonial coverage of the first round of talks in Washington on 2 September. It barely noticed the following round in the Middle East nearly two weeks later. What did capture the media's attention was US President Barack Obama's attempt to minimize the damage he invited upon himself for merely pressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to issue a partial moratorium on settlement building (about 11 months ago), and then to extend the settlement freeze. The US president has, as expected, failed to persuade Israeli leaders to uphold such a basic prerequisite to ensuring a smooth-sailing peace process. Its resumption signaled the return of American diplomacy to the Middle East. Its current problems and expected failure, unlike previous rounds of talks, could very much usher the end of American political adventurism in the region. If a president like Obama -- who once enjoyed such a massive national and international mandate -- could weaken before a right-wing Israeli prime minister, then why should others even try? To save face -- and postpone failure -- Obama has reportedly promised Israel broad security and diplomatic guarantees. All he has asked for in return is the mere extension of the settlement moratorium by 60 days -- enough to push his party through the November elections. more.. e-mail Bread and the circus Uri Avnery, Ma’an News Agency 10/30/2010 I was surprised when, towards the end of 1975, I received an invitation from the prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin, to meet him at his residence. He opened the door himself, poured me a glass of whiskey, poured one for himself, and without any further ado asked me: "Tell me, Uri, have you decided to destroy all the doves in the Labor Party?" Some weeks before, my magazine, Haolam Hazeh (This World), had started to publish disclosures about the corrupt dealings of the candidate for president of the Central Bank, Asher Yadlin. On the eve of the conversation, we had also started to publish suspicions concerning the minister of housing, Avraham Ofer. Both were leaders of the Labor "doves." I answered that, unfortunately, I could not offer immunity to corrupt politicians, even if their political positions were close to mine. These are separate matters. I told this story this week at a conference held by Tel Aviv University devoted to a new book by Professor Yossi Shain, "The language of corruption." The panel was very mixed. There were two former ministers of justice -- Yossi Beilin, the chairman of the Geneva Initiative, and Daniel Friedman, a right-winger whose unrestrained attacks on the Supreme Court had aroused public indignation; Yedidia Stern, a national-religious intellectual who is advocating reconciliation with the secular camp, and retired General Yitzhak Ben-Israel of the Air Force and the Israeli Space Agency, a member of the last Knesset for the Kadima party. I was introduced as the creator of Israel's investigative journalism, who was responsible for the exposure of the first big corruption affairs that rocked the nation. more.. e-mail The Palestinian Third Way Palestine Monitor - He is articulate, courteous, handsome and suave. A medical doctor by profession he is also a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and was candidate for the Presidency of Palestinian Authority in 2005. Fifty-six-year-old Mustafa Barghouti wears many hats, but what he most represents is the... Cape Town Opera: Don't help Israel whitewash its crimes Electronic Intifada: 30 Oct 2010 - The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel calls on the Cape Town Opera to cancel its upcoming concert in Israel.more The Palestinian Third Way Palestine Monitor: 30 Oct 2010 - He is articulate, courteous, handsome and suave. A medical doctor by profession he is also a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and was candidate for the Presidency of Palestinian Authority in 2005. Fifty-six-year-old Mustafa Barghouti wears many hats, but what he most represents is the hope of an emerging third power for his Palestinian people fed-up of the Fatah-Hamas binary. In Delhi recently to attend a conference on a Just Peace for Palestine, he modestly downplays the significance of his party — the Palestinian National Initiative, of which he is currently the Chairman. Barghouti founded the party along with the late Edward Said and Haider Abdel Shafi, who had headed the Madrid delegation in 1990. “We have the support of hundreds of intellectual and activists among the Palestinians in the territories and in the diaspora. Our programme is to end the occupation of our land and people by Israel;...more Fayyad says not planning to run for president 10/29/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) --Appointed Prime Minister in the Palestinian Authority Salam Fayyad said an end to the Palestinian factional split could only be rectified by a turn at the ballot boxes, the Jerusalem daily newspaper Al-Hayyat reported Friday. An interview published by the newspaper quoted Fayyad as saying he believed the ballot box should.... Zahhar: Hamas will accept results of any genuine elections PIC 29 Oct 2010 - MP Dr. Mahmoud Al-Zahhar said on Thursday that his Movement would accept the results of any democratic and true elections in Palestine, urging Fatah Movement to announce the same. American democracy: Pro-Israel Tweedledum and Tweedledee Maidhc Ó Cathail, Redress 10/29/2010 Helen Keller’s pithy observation about American democracy being little more than a choice “between Tweedledum and Tweedledee” was never more true than in the upcoming mid-term elections in the ninth congressional district of Illinois. In a district which includes the affluent northern suburbs of Chicago along the shore of Lake Michigan, the central issue is not the two wars – or is it now three? – the country is fighting, nor is it the tanking economy, in great part caused by those debt-inducing wars. No, the burning issue here is: who cares more about Israel? “A Jewish candidate has been trying to convince the mostly Jewish voters that his Jewish opponent has not done enough to protect the Jewish interest,” reports Ynetnews, the English language website of Israel’s most-read newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth. Although less than 25 per cent of the ninth district’s constituents are Jewish, and there is little agreement about what constitutes “the Jewish interest”, it’s not a bad summary of Republican challenger Joel Pollak’s campaign to oust the Democratic incumbent, Representative Jan Schakowsky. Pollak, an Orthodox Jew born in South Africa, charges Rep. Schakowsky with being “soft on Israel’s security”. Let’s take a brief look at Congresswoman Schakowsky’s record on Capitol Hill to see if there’s any truth to Pollak’s allegations. Since she was first elected to Congress in 1998, Schakowsky has consistently backed policies sought by Tel Aviv and its unregistered foreign agents in Washington, ensuring the continuation of the US military, diplomatic and financial support on which Israel crucially depends. As might be expected, her “100 per cent” pro-Israel record has included a reflexive defense of Israeli aggression and demands for crippling sanctions against Iran. more.. e-mail US Palestinians converging to help shape homeland's future Electronic Intifada: 29 Oct 2010 - This weekend in Chicago, the second Popular Conference for Arabs and Palestinians in the US promises to continue to push our movement forward. After more than six decades of colonization, forced dispossession, home demolitions, occupation and apartheid, Palestinians remain steadfast in their refutation of the Israeli assertion that "The old will die, and the young will soon forget."more Anti-Arab Militia Latest Face of Galilee's Judaisation Palestine Monitor: 29 Oct 2010 - Between 20:00 and midnight in Karmiel in the Galilee, a "city guard" watches over the entrances to the town: they don't want any Arabs to visit. Israeli human rights activists Peace Now (Gush Shalom) said the guards are a "racist right militia" and argue every citizen, regardless of ethnicity, has the right to freedom of movement and do not need explanations to enter a town. The city guards target Arabs living in the surrounding villages, blocking them from enjoying Karmiel's night life. The city guards were created by deputy mayor Oren Milstein, whose rise to power began with a "Save the Jewish character of Karmiel" campaign. "Milstein was elected on a purely racist platform," said Gush Shalom founder Uri Avnery. Along with screening Arabs visiting Karmiel, Avernay said the deputy mayor is trying to keep Arabs from settling in the city by "agitating for Jewish inhabitants to inform on other...more Hamas Minister To Be Forced Out Of His Village IMEMC - 28 Oct 2010 - Thursday October 28, 2010 - 13:02, Wasfy Qabha, an elected minister affiliated with the Hamas movement, stated Thursday that Israeli soldiers and a senior security commander broke into his home and informed him that, starting next month, he will not be allowed into his village, Barta'a Al Sharqiyya, near the northern West Bank city of Jenin. Iran likely to become a member of new UN Women agency board Jeruslalem Post 28 Oct 2010 - New agency is meant to promote equality; Iran recently sentenced a woman to death for adultery; Saudi Arabia also a candidate. Israel defeats Turkey at regional forum YNet News - An Israeli representative, Knesset Member Majalli Whbee (Kadima,) and a French representative were elected as vice-chairmen of the Parliamentary Assembly of the ....... Cultural minister appreciates election of J'lem as Arab cultural capital PIC 28 Oct 2010 - Palestinian cultural minister Osama al-Issawi said he appreciated the view of Arab ministers, who met in Doha, Qatar, to adopt Jerusalem as the permanent capital of Arab culture. Mental Health Treatment in Palestine: Electroshocks and Out-dated Medicine Palestine Monitor - The World Health Organisation's key requirements for mental health treatment include “physical security, social support networks, employment, access to education and healthcare and the opportunities for self-actualisation.” These conditions don't exist in Palestine, where they are needed most. Written and photographed by Liza Noteris. Palestinians are... Israeli police shoot legislator as racists march in Arab town Electronic Intifada: 28 Oct 2010 - Israeli police injured two Arab legislators on Wednesday in violent clashes provoked by Jewish right-wing extremists staging a march through the northern Arab town of Umm al-Fahm.more Democracy in Illinois: Pro-Israel Tweedledum and Tweedledee Palestine Chronicle: 28 Oct 2010 - By Maidhc Ó Cathail Helen Keller’s pithy observation about American democracy being little more than a choice 'between Tweedledum and Tweedledee' was never more true than in the upcoming midterm elections in the ninth congressional district of Illinois. In a district which includes the affluent northern suburbs of Chicago along the shore of Lake Michigan, the central issue is not the two wars—or is it now three?—the country is fighting, nor is it the tanking economy, in great part caused by those debt-inducing wars. No, the burning issue here is… who cares more about Israel? “A Jewish candidate has been trying to convince the mostly Jewish voters that his Jewish opponent has not done enough to protect the Jewish interest,” reports Ynetnews, the English language website of Israel’s most-read newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth. Although less than 25 percent of the ninth district’s constituents are Jewish, and there is little agreement about...more Mental Health Treatment in Palestine: Electroshocks and Out-dated Medicine Uruknet October 27, 2010 - The World Health Organisation’s key requirements for mental health treatment include "physical security, social support networks, employment, access to education and healthcare and the opportunities for self-actualisation." These conditions don’t exist in Palestine, where they are needed most. Palestinians are exposed to extraordinarily high levels of trauma, the effects of which can last a lifetime.... Iran fuels first nuclear plant Palestine Note 27 Oct 2010 - Washington - The Islamic Republic of Iran has begun fueling the core if its first nuclear plant, the BBC reported Wednesday. The Bushehr nuclear plant is set to produce electricity starting in 2011. Russia will facilitate... Egypt detains opposition supporters Palestine Note 27 Oct 2010 - Washington - Approximately 70 of Muslim Brotherhood supporters were detained for putting up election posters in Alexandra, the BBC reported Wednesday. An Egyptian security official stated that the posters breached a law as they used religious... Better Place to bring electric taxis to San Francisco area Jeruslalem Post 27 Oct 2010 - Full infrastructure will consist of charge spots and battery switch stations; deployment in Israel on track for late 2011. Peel-on protection from cell phone radiation Jeruslalem Post 27 Oct 2010 - A product from Israel deflects cell phone radiation from your body and claims to reduce electromagnetic exposure by 98 percent. Israel Reveals Documents related to the Gaza Closure Policy Gisha 10/21/2010 After one and a half years in which Israel at first denied their existence and then claimed that revealing them would harm "state security", the State of Israel released three documents that outline its policy for permitting transfer of goods into the Gaza Strip prior to the May 31 flotilla incident. The documents were released due to a Freedom of Information Act petition submitted by Gisha - Legal Center for Freedom of Movement in the Tel Aviv District Court, in which Gisha demanded transparency regarding the Gaza closure policy. Israel still refuses to release the current documents governing the closure policy as amended after the flotilla incident. "Policy of Deliberate Reduction" The documents reveal that the state approved "a policy of deliberate reduction" for basic goods in the Gaza Strip (section h.4, page 5*). Thus, for example, Israel restricted the supply of fuel needed for the power plant, disrupting the supply of electricity and water. The state set a "lower warning line" (section g.2, page 5) to give advance warning of expected shortages in a particular item, but at the same time approved ignoring that warning, if the good in question was subject to a policy of "deliberate reduction". Moreover, the state set an "upper red line" above which even basic humanitarian items could be blocked, even if they were in demand (section g.1, page 5). The state claimed in a cover letter to Gisha that in practice, it had not authorized reduction of "basic goods" below the "lower warning line", but it did not define what these "basic goods" were (page 2). "Luxuries" denied for Gaza Strip residents In violation of international law, which allows Israel to restrict the passage of goods only for concrete security reasons, the decision whether to permit or prohibit an item was also based on "the good's public perception" and "whether it is viewed as a luxury" (section c.b, page 16). In other words, items characterized as "luxury" items would be banned – even if they posed no security threat, and even if they were needed.... more.. e-mail Debunking pro-Israeli arguments against boycott Electronic Intifada: 27 Oct 2010 - While the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against apartheid Israel continues to grow, its opponents continue to resort to the same old canards in trying to defend Israel. Sami Hermez comments for The Electronic Intifada.more Gaza's ancient treasures threatened Electronic Intifada: 27 Oct 2010 - GAZA CITY, occupied Gaza Strip (IPS) - Few outside of Gaza would consider its history much beyond the decades of Israeli occupation. But Gaza is a historical treasure house.more Mental Health Treatment in Palestine: Electroshocks and Out-dated Medicine Palestine Monitor: 27 Oct 2010 - The World Health Organisation's key requirements for mental health treatment include “physical security, social support networks, employment, access to education and healthcare and the opportunities for self-actualisation.” These conditions don't exist in Palestine, where they are needed most. Written and photographed by Liza Noteris. Bethlehem Psychiatric Hospital Palestinians are exposed to extraordinarily high levels of trauma, the effects of which can last a lifetime. War, imprisonment, restricted movement, daily humiliation, poverty, house demolitions or evictions have all had a corrosive effect on the psychological wellbeing of the Palestinian population. This acute and chronic stress which accompanies daily life for many Palestinians makes them more likely to suffer psychological problems. Symptoms of anxiety and depression are common across the territories. According to the Humanitarian Practice Network one out of three Palestinians is in need of mental help. Traditionally close ties within families mean that mentally ill people are often cared for...more Mental Health Treatment in Palestine: Electroshocks and Out-dated Medicine Palestine Monitor - The World Health Organisation's key requirements for mental health treatment include “physical security, social support networks, employment, access to education and healthcare and the opportunities for self-actualisation.” These conditions don't exist in Palestine, where they are needed most. Written and photographed by Liza Noteris. Bethlehem Psychiatric... The Chosen Peoples – Book Review Palestine Chronicle: 26 Oct 2010 - By Jim Miles (The Chosen Peoples - American, Israel, and the Ordeals of Divine Election. Todd Gitlin and Liel Leibowtiz. Simon & Schuster. 2010.) A work on studying chosen peoples needs to be approached with some kind of trepidation when one knows that they themselves are not chosen. If for nothing else, it is impossible to rationally argue against faith in biblical ‘chosenness.’ However, if one accepts the underlying premise that other people believe in their being chosen then the idea of chosenness can be worked with. This appears to be what the authors of this new book “The Chosen Peoples” attempt to examine. In an historical sense, looking at the way the idea of being chosen affected the decisions and events around the people claiming to be chosen, the authors did a reasonable job. It is much more of an historical overview than a psychological examination of the ramifications...more Palestinian MP sentenced to administrative detention 10/26/2010 - HEBRON (Ma'an) -- An Israeli military court on Monday sentenced a Hamas-affiliated member of the Palestinian Legislative council to six months of administrative detention. Hatem Qafaish, elected to the Palestinian parliament in 2006 with Hamas' Change and Reform bloc, was detained after Israeli forces ransacked his home last Monday. The PLC member was.... Related: Israel continues political detention campaign Hamas warns officials: Israel may booby-trap new cars 10/26/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The Hamas-led government in Gaza has warned officials and leaders of Palestinian factions to avoid buying the new cars that have been entering the Strip over the month, according to media reports late Monday."A note has been circulated to all concerned parties, warning them of the new cars the Israeli.... Poll: Abbas enjoys support of young Palestinians Ha'aretz - Nearly 40 percent of young Palestinians say they would vote for Palestinian president's secular Fatah faction, with only 10 percent backing Hamas., Iran begins loading fuel into Bushehr reactor, marking step toward the start-up of Irans's first nuclear plant., On October 1, 2009, Iran approved a plan top send 75% of its low-enriched uranium abroad; on October 26, 2010, it began loading its first nuclear reactor. Poll: Abbas enjoys support of young Palestinians Ha'aretz 26 Oct 2010 - Nearly 40 percent of young Palestinians say they would vote for Palestinian president's secular Fatah faction, with only 10 percent backing Hamas., Iran begins loading fuel into Bushehr reactor, marking step toward the start-up of Irans's first nuclear plant., On October 1, 2009, Iran approved a plan top send 75% of its low-enriched uranium abroad; on October 26, 2010, it began loading its first nuclear reactor. Gaza Interior Ministry warns officials against using Israeli car imports PIC 26 Oct 2010 - Gaza’s Interior Ministry Tuesday alerted resistance faction elements in the Strip of using cars Israel recently allowed to be supplied to the Gaza Strip. Will Fatah choose reconciliation or collaboration? Electronic Intifada: 26 Oct 2010 - Clashes between the main Palestinian movements Hamas and Fatah date back to the late 1980s when Hamas was officially founded and the early 1990s when Fatah took control of the Palestinian Authority, newly established under the 1993 Oslo accords. Raja Abdulhaq comments.more Dennis Ross strokes AIPAC on delegitimization and 2-states (‘before it is too late’) Mondoweiss - Is it election season? Laura Rozen reports that Dennis Ross, the Obama aide at large , and really a representative of the Israel lobby, went to AIPAC in Florida to talk about Iran etc. Read the speech and you will see all the talk about the joint... 2 Gaza workers killed inside tunnel 10/25/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) - Two Palestinians died Monday in an accident in a smuggling tunnel under the Egypt-Gaza border, medics said. Musa Sleima and Abd Muhammad Zurob, both 20 years old, were killed by an electricity short, medics said. They were taken to hospitals in Rafah, where they were pronounced dead on arrival, medical.... Resheq: No date or venue fixed yet for the reconciliation meeting PIC 25 Oct 2010 - Political bureau member of Hamas Ezzet Al-Resheq has denied that a date or venue were yet set for the next reconciliation meeting between his movement and Fatah faction. As Israel fires on activists, BDS movement claims victories Electronic Intifada: 25 Oct 2010 - At least fifteen Palestinians were injured in the occupied West Bank village of Nabi Saleh on Friday, 22 October, when Israeli forces opened fire at a demonstration against the wall and ongoing land confiscation.more OECD and Israel's "tourist" colonization of Syria's Golan Electronic Intifada: 25 Oct 2010 - Leading up to the recent Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development tourism committee conference in Jerusalem, there was conjecture on how the member countries in attendance would handle Israel's tourism policies regarding the occupied territories.more Egyptian song and dance lift Gaza weddings Electronic Intifada: 25 Oct 2010 - Samara is the name of a new Palestinian-Egyptian dance troupe that has started a craze in the Gaza Strip. Rami Almeghari reports for The Electronic Intifada.more Cut, cut, cut the budget (just don’t touch Israel) Mondoweiss - If the GOP’s electoral wins next week are enough to take over Congress, one thing they’ve pledged to do is “stop out-of-control spending,” as their “Pledge to America” policy blueprint says. But don’t even think about touching the over $3 billion in annual aid the United... Unity now SC Yuter, Ma’an News Agency 10/24/2010 With West Bank peace negotiations going nowhere, the stage is set to make peace in Gaza first, as proposed decades ago by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. This requires engagement with Hamas in unity with Fatah. The Elders, led by former president of Ireland Mary Robinson, recently visited the Gaza Strip. Robinson said Hamas should be involved in regional talks "because the movement actually controls the Gaza Strip and they were elected." There are factions within Hamas, which at various times have included both Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and Hamas leader Khaled Mash'al, that have accepted a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders. Mash'al recently stated that Hamas would accept a 1967 borders agreement "if a majority of Palestinians approved it." Israel has withdrawn beyond the 1967 Gaza borders. Israel, the United States and the European Union have opposed engagement with Hamas although Israel negotiates with the Islamist movement via a German mediator for the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. And, reportedly, former US Ambassador Thomas R Pickering is in direct contact with Hamas and reports to John Brennan, the deputy national security advisor in charge of counter-terrorism in The White House. The Palestinians are considering declaring statehood, seeking recognition by the international community of a state comprising the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. They declared a state more than 20 years ago, and have embassies in many countries, but still are not recognized by key Western countries like the US. Veto-bearing Security Council members Russia and China fear that a successful independent Palestinian state declaration would risk similar declarations by Chechnya and Tibet.... more.. e-mail PPP: Obstacles in unity talks will be overcome 10/23/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Member of the leftist Palestinian People's Party politburo said Saturday that he expected Hamas and Fatah to overcome obstacles placed before unity talks following the postponement of a meeting on Wednesday."Intensified contacts by Palestinian factions and Arab figures are being held,"Walid Al-Awad said, speaking to Ma.... Bardawil: Reconciliation meeting next week PIC 23 Oct 2010 - Dr. Salah Al-Bardawil, a Hamas leader, said on Saturday that his movement has agreed with Fatah faction on holding their reconciliation meeting next week. Weimar in Jerusalem Uri Avnery, Ma’an News Agency 10/23/2010 In Berlin, an exhibition entitled "Hitler and the Germans" has just opened. It examines the factors that caused the German people to bring Adolf Hitler to power and follow him to the very end. I am too busy with the problems of Israeli democracy to fly to Berlin. Pity. Because since childhood, precisely this question has been troubling me. How did it happen that a civilized nation, which saw itself as the "people of poets and thinkers," followed this man, much as the children of Hamelin followed the pied piper to their doom. This troubles me not only as a historical phenomenon, but as a warning for the future. If this happened to the Germans, can it happen to any people? Can it happen here? As a 9-year old boy I was an eye-witness to the collapse of German democracy and the ascent of the Nazis to power. The pictures are engraved in my memory – the election campaigns following each other, the uniforms in the street, the debates around the table, the teacher who greeted us for the first time with “Heil Hitler.” I resurrected these memories in a book I wrote (in Hebrew) during the Eichmann trial, and which ended with a chapter entitled: "Can it happen here?" I am returning to them these days, as I write my memoirs. I don't know if the Berlin exhibition tries to answer these questions. Perhaps not. Even now, 77 years later, there is no final answer to the question: Why did the German republic collapse? This is an all-important question, because now people in Israel are asking, with growing concern: Is the Israeli republic collapsing? For the first time, this question is being asked in all seriousness. Throughout the years, we were careful not to mention the word Fascism in public discourse. It raises memories which are too monstrous. Now this taboo has been broken. more.. e-mail The Legacy of Mubarak Palestine Chronicle: 23 Oct 2010 - By Ali Younes Mohammad Hosni Mubarak, former Air Force General became president of Egypt after the assassination of President Mohammad Anwar Al Sadat by Muslim extremists on 6 October 1981. President Mubarak, as a result, became the longest serving president of Egypt since Mohammad Ali Pasha, who ruled Egypt from 1805-1849. Mubarak’s rule, since he assumed power nearly 30 years ago, has been characterized by his authoritarian grip on power and his reliance on Emergency laws to govern Egypt and curtail civil liberties and personal freedoms. Under the “state of emergency” his government has the right to detain and imprison individuals virtually for no reason. This device is used by the government to mainly attack the Muslim Brotherhood and any other political party and deny them to formally participate in the elections. In using the Muslim Brotherhood as a “scarecrow” to counter pressure from the US or the European Union...more New Electronic Checkpoints to Replace Soldiers in the West Bank IMEMC - 22 Oct 2010 - Friday October 22, 2010 - 10:33, Some new “soldier-free” checkpoints will replace ordinary checkpoints between Israel and the West Bank beginning next year. Rolling blackouts resume in Gaza 10/22/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- One of the generators in Gaza's sole power plant will stop running Friday as it has run out of fuel, a Gaza Electricity Company spokesman said. Jamal Ad-Dardasawi said efforts to open Kerem Shalom crossing for the entry of fuel had failed. Israeli authorities informed Gaza crossings official.... The violence debate Ramzy Baroud, Ma’an News Agency 10/22/2010 An American activist once gave me a book she wrote detailing her experiences in Palestine. The largely visual volume documented her journey of the occupied West Bank, rife with barbed wires, checkpoints, soldiers and tanks. It also highlighted how Palestinians resisted the occupation peacefully, in contrast to the prevalent media depictions linking Palestinian resistance to violence. More recently, I received a book glorifying non-violent resistance, which referred to self-proclaimed Palestinian fighters who renounced violence as "converts." The book elaborated on several wondrous examples of how these "conversions" came about. Apparently a key factor was the discovery that not all Israelis supported the military occupation. The fighters realized that an environment that allowed both Israelis and Palestinians to work together would be best for Palestinians seeking other, more effective means of liberation. An American priest also explained to me how non-violent resistance is happening on an impressive scale. He showed me brochures he had obtained during a visit to a Bethlehem organization which teaches youth the perils of violence and the wisdom of non-violence. The organization and its founders run seminars and workshops and invite speakers from Europe and the US to share their knowledge on the subject with the (mostly refugee) students. Every so often, an article, video or book surfaces with a similar message: Palestinians are being taught non-violence; Palestinians are responding positively to the teachings of non-violence. As for progressive and leftist media and audiences, stories praising non-violence are electrifying, for they ignite a sense of hope that a less violent way is possible, that the teachings of Gandhi are not only relevant to India, in a specific time and space, but throughout the world, anytime. more.. e-mail The Democratic-Likud Party Mondoweiss - Ynetnews.com today publishes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “list of millionaires,” a group of people Netanyahu identified as potential donors to him ahead of the 2007 primary elections in Israel. What’s important about the list of donors that Netanyahu identified is what it says about the... Police repress convergence on UK weapons factory Electronic Intifada: 22 Oct 2010 - As Israeli warplanes flew over Gaza on 13 October, activists converged on Brighton, United Kingdom for the annual mass action against the local EDO/ITT factory that produces components used in weapons by the Israeli Air Force, amongst others, to devastating effect.more Ardent Zionist turns boycott advocate Electronic Intifada: 21 Oct 2010 - Occupied East Jerusalem (IPS) - A former captain in the Israeli Air Force, previously an ardent Zionist who lost many members of his family in the Holocaust, has been labeled a psychopath and denounced by many Israelis for the moral stand he has taken against the Israeli occupation.more Sha'ath: Talks on hold until US election 10/21/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A member of the PLO's negotiating team said Thursday that the Obama administration had all but given up its efforts to restart peace talks at least until US midterm elections next month. Fatah leader Nabil Sha'ath said the US position threw the Palestinian Authority into crisis through.... Israel Shooting and Electric-Shocking Palestinian Children Uruknet October 21, 2010 - Defence for Children International (DCI) Palestine Section (DCI/Palestine) "is a national section of the international non-government child rights organisation and movement (dedicated) to promoting and protecting the rights of Palestinian children," according to international law principles. Two earlier articles addressed their work. Both covered Israel's systematic, institutionalized use of torture of Palestinian children as brutally... NDP officials: Hosni Mubarak seeks sixth term Palestine Note 21 Oct 2010 - Washington - A top official from Egypt's National Democratic Party (NDP) has indicated that current President Hosni Mubarak will seek another six-year presidential term in next year's elections, Ynet News reported Thursday. This news comes after... Electronic Checkpoints to Make Palestinian Passage "More Pleasant" PNN - Bethlehem – PNN - Military sources told Israeli news house YNetNews.com that they would begin installing new “soldier-free” checkpoints between Israel and the West Bank. Under the new system, entry and exit... Octogenarian Mubarak will seek new presidential term - official Daily Star 21 Oct 2010 CAIRO: Egypt's octogenarian President Hosni Mubarak, in power for 30 years and whose health has raised questions, is to run for re-election in 2011, a high-ranking ruling party official said on Thursday. "The candidate of the... Ardent Zionist turns boycott advocate Mel Frykberg, The Electronic Intifada, Electronic Intifada 10/21/2010 A former captain in the Israeli Air Force, previously an ardent Zionist who lost many members of his family in the Holocaust, has been labeled a psychopath and denounced by many Israelis for the moral stand he has taken against the Israeli occupation. Yonatan Shapira, 38, was fired from his job, has been verbally abused in public, subjected to death threats in newspaper talk-back comments, called a traitor by many Israelis, falsely charged with assaulting Israeli security forces, and interrogated by Israel's domestic intelligence agency, the Shin Bet. While Israel often gets a lot of negative publicity for its brutal treatment of Palestinians and the inherent racism within its society, there is a growing core of Israeli human rights activists who are challenging government policy -- and paying a high price for their courage. Shapira made international headlines recently while on board the Irene, a boat sent by Jews for Justice in an effort to break the siege of Gaza but which was intercepted by Israeli commandos. On board the small boat were a number of Israelis and several Holocaust survivors. "The commandos separated my younger brother Itimar and me away from the other passengers. It was obvious we were being targeted. I was tasered twice on the shoulder and once near the heart area after my life jacket was lifted by the commando to get better access," Shapira told IPS. After media equipment was confiscated the passengers were taken to a police station in Ashdod where they were interrogated. Shapira was charged with assaulting a commando, despite eyewitnesses disputing this. more.. e-mail Ardent Zionist turns boycott advocate Electronic Intifada: 21 Oct 2010 - Occupied East Jerusalem (IPS) - A former captain in the Israeli Air Force, previously an ardent Zionist who lost many members of his family in the Holocaust, has been labeled a psychopath and denounced by many Israelis for the moral stand he has taken against the Israeli occupation.more Jerusalem center promotes Palestinian heritage Electronic Intifada: 21 Oct 2010 - Situated just a few yards away from the Haram al-Sharif in the Souq al-Qattanin, the Cotton Market in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem, the Centre for Jerusalem Studies is both an assertion of the city's Palestinian identity, and an example of the threat that identity faces.more Shooting and Electric-Shocking of Palestinian Children Palestine Chronicle: 21 Oct 2010 - By Stephen Lendman Defence for Children International (DCI) Palestine Section (DCI/Palestine) "is a national section of the international non-government child rights organisation and movement (dedicated) to promoting and protecting the rights of Palestinian children," according to international law principles. Both covered Israel's systematic, institutionalized use of torture of Palestinian children as brutally as against adults. DCI/Palestine's latest September Bulletin adds more, saying: "For the first time....three (documented) cases of children reporting being given electric shocks by Israeli interrogators (occurred) in Ari'el Settlement." Each was accused of stone throwing. Electric shocking extracted confessions although the boys maintain their innocence. DCI and PACTI (the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel) demanded Israel investigate reports that a Gush Etzion settlement interrogator "attached car battery jump leads to the genitals of a 14-year old boy in order to obtain a confession to stone throwing." The August 5 incident involved four boys walking near a...more Fatah to visit Gaza Palestine Note 20 Oct 2010 - Washington - A Fatah delegation, headed by presidential advisor Abdullah Al-Ifranji, is set to visit the Gaza Strip on Sunday, Ma'an News Agency reported Wednesday. The delegation seeks to improve relations with rival faction, Hamas, a... Hamas willing to welcome peace deal with Israel Palestine Note 20 Oct 2010 - Washington - In an interview with Newsweek, Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal stated that the militant political faction would be willing to accept a peace deal between the Palestinian Authority and Israel so long as a Palestinian... McClatchy: Israel and P.A. Agree to Keep Up Appearances to Help Obama's Midterm Prospects The Media Line 19 Oct 2010 - McClatchy Newspapers is reporting that Israel and the Palestinians have agreed to keep up appearances through Election Day in America as a personal gesture to President Obama as he struggles to minimize losses in the House... Scavenging lures Gazans to dangerous "buffer zone" Electronic Intifada: 20 Oct 2010 - EREZ CROSSING, occupied Gaza Strip (IPS) - Crossing through the metal-caged tunnel that leads from the Israeli side of the boundary into northern Gaza towards the Palestinian checkpoint, several groups of young Palestinian men and boys can be seen scavenging through piles of rubble.more Dutch company raided over involvement in occupation Electronic Intifada: 20 Oct 2010 - Last week, the Dutch National Crime Squad raided and searched the headquarters of Riwal in Dordrecht, the Netherlands, following criminal complaints lodged by the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq.more Israeli police recruiting from settlements for first time Electronic Intifada: 20 Oct 2010 - As US-sponsored peace talks have stalled over the issue of settlements, Israel's national police force has revealed that it is turning to the very same illegal communities in its first-ever drive to recruit officers from among the settlers.more Occupation affects every aspect of olive oil production Electronic Intifada: 19 Oct 2010 - London, UK (IRIN) - The first day of the Palestinian olive harvest officially began on 15 October, and Rani Ali and his family -- like hundreds of others -- were out among their olive trees, starting to bring in what looks to be a good harvest.more "The priority is to return and remain" Electronic Intifada: 19 Oct 2010 - The Electronic Intifada contributor Jillian Kestler-D'Amours spoke with Hassan Jabareen, the founder and director general of Adalah, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, about Israel's new loyalty oath and what it means for Palestinian citizens of Israel.more Israel continues political detention campaign 10/18/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces detained a Hamas-affiliated member of the Palestinian Legislative Council on Monday from the southern West Bank district of Hebron. Hatem Qafaish, elected to the Palestinian parliament in 2006 with Hamas' Change and Reform bloc, was detained after Israeli forces ransacked his home, a local source told Ma'.... Fatah official urges more reconciliation efforts 10/18/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Fatah official Azzam Al-Ahmad said Monday that Israel creates obstacles whenever Palestinian factions are close to reconciliation, but said efforts to achieve unity must continue. In an interview with Ma'an Radio, the Fatah lawmaker said he was optimistic about the future of relations between the rival factions. Hamas spokesman.... Israel continues political detention campaign Uruknet October 18, 2010 - Israeli forces detained a Hamas-affiliated member of the Palestinian Legislative Council on Monday from the southern West Bank district of Hebron. Hatem Qafaish, elected to the Palestinian parliament in 2006 with Hamas' Change and Reform bloc, was detained after Israeli forces ransacked his home, a local source told Ma'an. The PLC member was detained on... Video: Siege hurts Gaza wheelchair users Uruknet October 18, 2010 - The Gaza Strip has around 16,000 registered wheelchair users or one per cent of its population. And aid delivery is the only way for electric wheelchairs to come in. But it is not enough, and the Israeli embargo also makes it hard to repair them.... Hamas insists on holding next meeting with Fatah in Damascus PIC 18 Oct 2010 - Hamas informed Fatah faction that it was adamant on holding the next round of dialog talks in Damascus on Wednesday as previously agreed upon between the two movements in their latest meeting. ADL's demonization of student activism denounced Electronic Intifada: 18 Oct 2010 - As members of several student groups working for justice in Palestine, we affirmatively state that the ADL's characterization of our campus educational efforts and activism about Israeli injustices against Palestinians as "biased" is a disingenuous and misguided attempt to vilify students who criticize Israel's occupation, which denies Palestinian human rights and self-determination.more The international community's final test Electronic Intifada: 18 Oct 2010 - Negotiations between two unequal parties cannot succeed. Success in Palestinian-Israeli negotiations requires a reasonable balance of power, clear terms of reference and abstention of both sides from imposing unilateral facts on the ground. None of that existed in the talks that were re-initiated in September. Mustafa Barghouthi comments.more JNF plants trees to uproot Bedouin Electronic Intifada: 18 Oct 2010 - The Electronic Intifada contributor Arwa Aburawa spoke to Ra'ed al-Mickawi from Bustan, a green Bedouin organization, and Alice Gray an environmental expert based in the West Bank to find out more about the role of greenwashing in the Israeli occupation of the Naqab desert.more Remembering Furkan Dogan Electronic Intifada: 18 Oct 2010 - Furkan Dogan was an American, a young American of only 19 years when on 31 May a hail of Israeli bullets ended his life on the Mavi Marmara Turkish humanitarian aid shipmore The State of Bla-Bla-Bla Palestine Chronicle: 18 Oct 2010 - By Uri Avnery Will Germany enact a law that demands that every Turk aspiring to citizenship swear allegiance to the 'German Federal Republic, the Nation-State of the German People'? Sounds like a ridiculous idea. Will the US Senate adopt a law that would compel every candidate for citizenship to swear allegiance to “The United States of America, the Nation State of the…” Of whom? “The American People”? “The Anglo-Saxon People”? “The Christian People”? An absurd idea. But the Knesset is about to enact a law that demands from every non-Jew who desires Israeli citizenship to swear allegiance to “The State of Israel, the Nation-State of the Jewish people”. It seems that our benighted law-makers do not see anything questionable about this. And there already hovers in the air a bill that demands that all Israeli citizens, or perhaps only the non-Jewish ones, swear allegiance to this Nation-State of the Jewish...more Gaza factions slam Abed Rabbo comments 10/17/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Palestinian factions convening in Gaza City on Saturday denounced comments made by PLO Secretary-General Yasser Abed Rabbo on recognizing Israel as a Jewish state if the US were to present a map of the Palestinian state on 1967 borders. Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine politburo member Jamil Muzhir.... Israel takes center stage in Illinois election campaign YNet News - Forget the financial crisis; in the Ninth Congressional District of Illinois, it is Israel that has taken center stage in the election campaign. A Jewish candidate has ....... Palestinian factions meet in Gaza City 10/16/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Palestinian factions, including Hamas and Fatah, met in Gaza City on Saturday to discuss the rise in extremist Israeli policies, Palestinian People's Party member Walid Al-Awad said. Al-Awad said the meeting was held in the offices of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, where delegations from.... Defence for Children International - Palestine Section: Detention Bulletin - Issue 09 - September 2010 Uruknet October 15, 2010 - For the first time in September, DCIPalestine documented three cases of children reporting being given electric shocks by Israeli interrogators in Ari’el Settlement. The children, one as young as 14-years, were each accused of throwing stones at a settler by-pass road in the occupied West Bank. Following the electric shocks, the boys provided their interrogators... Minister Herzog announces candidacy for Labor Party leader Ha'aretz - Announcement marks beginning of intense competition as candidates try to take on current party head, Defense Minister Ehud Barak. Smothered by settlements Mustafa Barghouthi, Ma’an News Agency 10/15/2010 Negotiations between two unequal parties cannot succeed. Success in Palestinian-Israeli negotiations requires a reasonable balance of power, clear terms of reference and abstention of both sides from imposing unilateral facts on the ground. None of that existed in the talks that were re-initiated in September. Much like previous rounds of talks, these negotiations were dominated on one side by an Israeli government that controls the land, roads, airspace, borders, water and electricity, as well as the trade and economy of the Palestinian side, while possessing a powerful military establishment (now the third military exporter in the world) and a robust gross domestic product, which has tripled in the last decade. This same Israeli "partner" now also boasts a general public that has shifted dramatically to the right, and to which an apartheid system for Palestinians has become an acceptable norm. On the other side is the Palestinian Authority — one that paradoxically holds little real authority, and exists as a sort of fiefdom within the Israeli matrix of control. Further debilitating the PA is a protracted internal Palestinian division, total dependence on foreign aid and a decline of democracy and human rights. Finally, the PA is constantly pressured to provide security for its occupier while failing to provide any protection whatsoever to its own people from that same occupier. How did we get here? The answer, in large part, has to do with the continued and unabated construction of settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in the 17 years since the Oslo agreement. In this time, the number of settlers has increased by 300 percent and the number of settlements doubled. The settlements are only the front line of a complex and profitable system.... more.. e-mail Forced to take the apartheid oath Electronic Intifada: 15 Oct 2010 - In all likelihood, I will be one of the very first non-Jews expected to swear loyalty to Israel as an ideology rather than as a state. Until now, naturalizing residents, like the country's soldiers, pledged an oath to Israel and its laws. That is the situation in most countries. But soon, if the Israeli parliament passes a bill being advanced by the government, aspiring citizens will instead be required to uphold the Zionist majority's presumption that Israel is a "Jewish and democratic state."more German firm helps Israel cement occupation with light rail Electronic Intifada: 15 Oct 2010 - Last month, the German company TÜV NORD Group announced that it will test the technical safety of the first line of the controversial Jerusalem light rail project that critics say is being built in violation of Palestinian rights. The light rail project will connect West Jerusalem with several illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and is expected to enter into operation next spring.more Portugal upgrades Palestinian representation 10/14/2010 - LISBON, Portugal (Ma'an) -- Portugal said Thursday it will upgrade Palestine's diplomatic representation in the country from office to mission. The announcement comes amid ongoing efforts by the Palestinian Authority's Foreign Affairs' Ministry to upgrade Palestinian diplomatic status internationally. Portugal was elected to the UN Security Council on Tuesday.... Iran's oil minister elected president of OPEC Palestine Note 14 Oct 2010 - Washington - Iran's oil minister Masoud Mir-Kazemi has been elected president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and will begin his term January 1, 2011. Iran is the world's second largest oil producer, the... Shooting in "buffer zone," air strikes across Gaza Electronic Intifada: 14 Oct 2010 - Israeli snipers shot a Palestinian boy collecting scrap building material in the northern Gaza Strip yesterday. The shooting follows several air strikes across the Gaza Strip, injuring a total of eight Palestinians, according to medical sources.more Israel conducts population transfer training exercises Electronic Intifada: 14 Oct 2010 - Israel secretly staged a training exercise last week to test its ability to quell any civil unrest that might result from a peace deal with the Palestinian Authority requiring the forcible transfer of many Palestinian Arab citizens, the Israeli media has reported.more IDF did use violence on Gaza relief boat Uruknet October 13, 2010 - The Israeli Defence Force says that there was no resistance and no violence in the boarding of The Jewish Boat To Gaza (Report, 29 September). In fact, when boarded, we cut the engines and I held the wheel with all my strength. With one commando standing by with an electric Taser, two others removed me (... Egypt imposes text messaging restrictions Palestine Note 13 Oct 2010 - Washington - Egypt has imposed a set of restrictions on mobile phone text messaging capabilities ahead of legislative elections, Al Jazeera reported Wednesday. Mahmoud el-Gweini, adviser to Egypt's telecommunications minister, said on Tuesday that companies sending... What Does a 'One State Solution' Really Mean? Alain Gresh, CounterPunch 10/8/2010 Beyond the Failed "Peace Process" Renewed Arab/Israeli negotiations, opened under the auspices of President Barack Obama in September, are undermined not just by settlement building but differing visions on other fundamental issues. The impasse has led to calls by some senior figures, including Israelis, for the creation of a single state from the Mediterranean to the Jordan “The lesser danger, the lesser evil, is a single state in which there are equal rights for all citizens,” said the Israeli parliament’s speaker. Another politician, a former minister, added that the only remaining option for Israel is the declaration of a single state covering the whole of the historical territory of Palestine, from the Mediterranean to the Jordan. A young female member of parliament with strong religious convictions has also defended the same conclusions. These three politicians are not members of Hamas, nor even Palestinians, nor European anti-Zionists. They are prominent members of the Israeli right. The Knesset speaker, Reuven Rivlin, has challenged the idea of an Arab demographic threat and said this attitude “leads to thinking of transfer, or that they should be killed. I am appalled by this kind of talk. I go into schools, and when they hold mock elections, Lieberman [the foreign affairs minister and leader of the extreme right party, Yisrael Beitenu gets 40 per cent of the vote and I hear kids saying that Arabs should be killed. It seems to me that many of the belligerent Jewish movements that were built upon hatred of Arabs, and I’m not only talking about Lieberman but within the Likud as well, grew out of the patronizing, socialist attitude that said ‘They’ll be there and we’ll be here.’ I have never understood this. When Jabotinsky (1) says ‘Zion is all ours’, he means a Jewish prime minister and an Arab deputy prime minister” (2). more.. e-mail Book review: diary from pre-Nakba Palestine Electronic Intifada: 13 Oct 2010 - A Young Palestinian's Diary 1941-1945: The Life of Sami 'Amr is an interesting departure from the growing number of Palestinian memoirs published in English. Asa Winstanley reviews for The Electronic Intifada.more Ten years later, no justice for October 2000 killings Electronic Intifada: 13 Oct 2010 - Ten years since 13 Palestinian citizens of Israel were killed by the Israeli police force during nonviolent demonstrations at the outset of the second Palestinian intifada, Palestinians in Israel fear the worst is yet to come. Jillian Kestler-D'Amours reports for The Electronic Intifada.more Will the OECD stand up to Israel? Electronic Intifada: 13 Oct 2010 - The upcoming OECD tourism summit in Jerusalem will test its member countries' commitment to international law. Sam Bahour and Charles Shamas comment.more Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi Declares An Alternative To Failing Negotiations Uruknet October 12, 2010 - Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi, Secretary General of the Palestinian National Initiative (PNI), MP and runner-up in the 2005 presidential election declared in a press conference in Ramallah yesterday that failed negotiations are threatening the last opportunity of peace based on a two-state solution. He argued that negotiations are meaningless and damaging while Israeli settlement building continues,... New survey shows American Jewish support for Obama waning Palestine Note 12 Oct 2010 - Washington - A new survey , conducted ahead of the heated run toward midterm elections, by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) shows that American Jewish support for President Obama's handling of US-Israeli relations is dropping. In a... Islamists accuse Egypt police of pre-poll arrests Daily Star 12 Oct 2010 CAIRO: Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood on Tuesday accused the government of cracking down ahead of November's parliamentary elections, as police arrested at least 28 members of the Islamist group. The Brotherhood, which fields independent candidates to skirt... ACRI Demands Clarification on Alleged Transfer Exercise Association for Civil Rights in Israel - ACRI 10/12/2010 ACRI to Netanyahu: Deny reports of large-scale training exercise to handle protests against population transfer To: Mr. Binyamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister, Jerusalem Dear Sir, Re: Security Forces Exercise Simulating Population Transfer We learned through a report on Kol Israel (Reshet B, October 8) of a large-scale training exercise by the Prison Service, Police, Firefighters, emergency crews, and the Homefront Command simulating in detail how these forces would handle demonstrations and protests by Arab citizens in response to the execution of plans to exchange populations and territory in the context of a diplomatic agreement with the Palestinian Authority. If this is true, we demand an incontrovertible and immediate denial of this report by the most senior officials, given its extreme and outrageous nature. If these reports are accurate - and the fact that such an exercise took place would attest as such - it would confirm that notions of transfer, also termed land swaps or population exchanges, in the context of a diplomatic process are not only elections slogans or the private fantasy of certain politicians and ministers, but a concrete possibility at the top of the agendas of the government and those behind the execution of the exercise. Indeed, it is an idea that is gaining legitimacy daily on the part of government and public officials. more.. e-mail Israel’s other 'peace' plan: arm-twisting Obama Jonathan Cook in Nazareth, Redress 10/12/2010 A ghost haunted the meeting of the Arab League in Libya at the weekend, as its foreign ministers decided to give a little more time to the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. That ghost was the Camp David talks of summer 2000, when US President Bill Clinton publicly held Yasser Arafat, the then-Palestinian leader, responsible for the breakdown of the negotiations, despite an earlier promise to blame neither side if they failed. Mr Clinton's finger-pointing breathed life into the accusation from Ehud Barak, Israel's prime minister, that there was "no Palestinian partner for peace"; brought about the collapse of the Israeli peace movement, and ultimately sanctioned the decision of Mr Barak's successor, Ariel Sharon, to invade the Palestinian-controlled areas of the West Bank. A decade later, the Arab League ministers did not want to expose Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, to a similar charge from Barack Obama. They therefore played the safest hand possible: they offered Washington another month's breathing space to persuade Israel to renew a freeze on settlement building, while also supporting Mr Abbas's decision to break off direct talks until the freeze was back in place. The decision's dual purpose was to throw the spotlight squarely back on Israel as the recalcitrant party, and allow the White House to continue to pretend the talks are still on track. The league's new deadline was chosen precisely to appease Washington. Mr Obama's most pressing concern is shoring up his Democratic Party's vote at the congressional mid-term elections in early November. Neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians want to be seen walking away from the president's peace initiative before then. more.. e-mail EU police mission complicit in Israeli, PA rights abuses Electronic Intifada: 12 Oct 2010 - Rather than help nurture institutions for a future Palestinian state, a much-vaunted EU police training mission in the West Bank acts as a proxy for the Israeli occupation and is complicit in severe human rights abuses. David Cronin reports for The Electronic Intifada.more Time for New Palestinian Political Strategy Palestine Chronicle: 12 Oct 2010 - By Dr. Elias Akleh Palestinians had long lost confidence in their Palestinian Authority as their representative, who was supposed to defend their rights and work to achieve their statehood. Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President, was imposed on the Palestinians in the 2005 election when the Israeli forces had arrested and restricted the movements of other Palestinian candidates and his campaign was given 94% of TV coverage. Although his presidency had expired in January of 2009 he is still, illegally and unconstitutionally, occupying his position. Polls had shown that his popularity is very low. Palestinian Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, and his government were also imposed on Palestinians when Abbas appointed him to the position after the democratically elected Hamas government foiled an American coup d’état that eventually caused a division between the Palestinians. The Palestinians were deceived by the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accords. They were misled that the Accords...more Israel’s loyalty oath: Discriminatory by design Editorial, The Guardian 10/11/2010 New pledge requires future citizens declare their loyalty to an ideology, one intended to exclude Palestinians There are two narratives at work in Israel that have a bearing on the capacity of its leaders to negotiate the creation of an independent Palestinian state next to it. The first is official and intended for external consumption. It is the one that claims Israel is ready to sit down with the Palestinians in direct talks without preconditions and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, should not have wasted so much of the 10 month partial freeze on settlement building before he did so. On Saturday, America was given another month by the Arab League to persuade Binyamin Netanyahu's government to halt settlement building, the bare minimum required for talks to continue. There is however a second narrative, which could be called business as usual, and it has nothing to do with occupation, Iran's nuclear programme, Hizbullah's rocket arsenal, or any threat which could be called existential. This was evident in all its inglory yesterday when the Israeli cabinet approved a measure requiring candidates for Israeli citizenship to pledge loyalty to "the state of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state". The naturalisation oath would not apply to Jews, who are granted automatic citizenship under the law of return, so it is, by definition, discriminatory. The existing text binds individuals to declare their loyalty to the state of Israel. The new version requires future citizens to declare their loyalty not just to a state but an ideology, one specifically designed to exclude one fifth of its citizens who see themselves as Palestinian. Palestinian Israeli leaders have described this proposal as racist. Palestinian Israeli citizens do not have to take this oath, but their partners seeking naturalisation do. Neither could agree with Israel's characterisation of itself as a Jewish state. It could be a state of Jews and all its citizens, but never a Jewish state. Nor is this the only bill around. There are 20 others in the slipstream that have a similar effect.... more.. e-mail Alvin Ailey: don't dance around Israeli apartheid Electronic Intifada: 11 Oct 2010 - The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) is deeply disturbed by news reports that your company plans to participate, later this month, in the fourth annual Tel Aviv Dance Festival, an initiative sponsored by the Tel Aviv Municipality and cultural institutions that are complicit in maintaining Israel's system of colonial oppression.more Israel's other "peace" plan: arm-twisting Obama Electronic Intifada: 11 Oct 2010 - Rather than investing wasted energy in doomed talks, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators appear to be adopting the same alternative strategy: cutting a deal directly with Washington that circumvents the other party. Jonathan Cook analyzes.more Trying to watch the stars in the Palestinian desert Electronic Intifada: 11 Oct 2010 - The Electronic Intifada contributor Sarah Irving recounts an attempt to enjoy the Palestinian night sky despite the obstacles of the occupation.more Protests in Ramallah demanding local elections 10/10/2010 - RAMALLAH (Ma'an) - Palestinians erected a sit-in tent in the center of Ramallah on Saturday to protest the postponement of local elections and appointment of "municipal council members," which has begun in the West Bank. The organizers, supporters of a campaign demanding better roles for women and youth in elections, demanded the Palestinian Authority.... Report: Obama wants delay for midterm elections 10/10/2010 - BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) - Israeli TV reported Saturday evening that US President Barack Obama asked Arab leaders for a month's delay before he devotes his efforts to negotiations between Israel and the PLO. The delay Obama requested, according to Israeli TV, was meant to give him enough time to work on midterm elections.... Israel adopts law forcing citizens to pledge allegiance to a ‘Jewish state’ PIC 10 Oct 2010 - The Israeli gov't voted Sunday on draft to amend a law requiring candidates for Israeli citizenship to give a pledge of allegiance to the “Jewish and democratic state of Israel”. Muslim Brotherhood snubs ElBaradei, will run in parliament elections Palestine Note 9 Oct 2010 - Washington - The hardline Islamist group of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the main opposition party in Egypt, has confirmed it will be taking part in the upcoming Egyptian parliamentary elections. Leader Mohammed Badie said that the... Gaza leaders say airstrikes aimed at thwarting talks 10/8/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Several Gaza leaders believe Israel's recent increase in aerial strikes against the Gaza Strip aim at derailing both peace and Palestinian unity talks, and to prompt a response from factions. Political analyst Ibrahim Abrash said Israel's surge in military activity had three goals: "To rid the.... Two Palestinians killed in bloody Israeli raid 8 Oct 2010 - London, October 8, (Pal Telegraph) - Two leaders of Hamas' military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, were killed overnight Friday in Hebron during an Israeli army raid in the Jabal Johar village, witnesses told Ma'an. The two killed were identified as Nashat Al-Karmi and Maamoun Al-Natsha. Witnesses told Ma'an earlier they believed one of the killed was an important factional leader... Rival Palestinian factions 'to meet October 20' Relief Web 8 Oct 2010 - Source: Agence France-Presse Palestinian armed factions vow to avenge murder of two fighters in Hebron PIC 8 Oct 2010 - Palestinian resistance factions have vowed to avenge the murderous killing on Friday of two resistance fighters.. Zahhar: Fatah agreed on Hamas's vision on PLO, election committee PIC 8 Oct 2010 - Dr. Mahmoud Al-Zahhar, member of Hamas's political bureau, has disclosed Thursday that there was agreement between Hamas and Fatah Movements on most of the security issues.. In south Lebanon, tourism develops despite threat of war Electronic Intifada: 8 Oct 2010 - KHIAM, Lebanon (IPS) - The contours of a modern medieval castle stretch along the Wazzani River delineating Lebanon's border with Israel. A few meters away from the United Nations-mandated Blue Line, on Lebanon's first line of fire with Israel, a tourism project at an estimated cost of 20 million dollars is slowly taking shape.more Book review: "A Wall in Palestine" Electronic Intifada: 8 Oct 2010 - The conflict in Palestine has become so all-consuming that even objects are central to the struggle. French journalist René Backmann's A Wall in Palestine illustrates this fact.more MSD files complaint in Geneva to stop Israel from exiling Jerusalemite officials PIC 7 Oct 2010 - Al-Maqdesi for society development said it filed a complaint with the UN human rights council in Geneva to prevent Israel from exiling four Jerusalemite elected officials from their native city. Bracing for Israel’s Next Attack on Lebanon Franklin Lamb, CounterPunch 10/7/2010 The Four Conflicts Maron al Ras on the Lebanon border You can see Akka, Palestine from my favorite Lebanese village, Maron al Ras. On any day, but particularly since September 21 of this year, you can also see beefed up IDF military patrols, assorted electronic listening posts and sundry spy devices, new Raytheon-produced surveillance equipment, two new supposedly camouflaged cinder block one room shacks with Zionist soldiers peering out. They frequently glare from widows heavily screened to keep out stones that tourists on the Lebanon side of the ‘blue line’ regularly throw at them when UNIFIL guys aren’t paying attention or shoo them away. You can also see land mine fields, wide soft sand swatches along the wire fences to expose trespassing neighbors’ footprints, a couple of orchards, and the edges of three colonial settlements. The increase in activity along the Blue line, especially near Fatima’s Gate is only partially in preparation for the rumored visit of Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in mid- October. He is expected to appear and speak at Maron al Ras, presumably resisting the temptation to cast a few stones in solidarity with the Palestinian intifadas. UNIFIL personnel at the scene reveal that several Israeli military leaders have been visiting the area this past month, including Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi. It is here in this ancient verdant, war-scarred hillside village of Maron al Ras that tradition asserts that Jesus (Issa) from Nazareth, less than a day’s walk to the south, accompanying his mother Mary (Miriam), paused to rest on their trek to a wedding feast at Qana, some 30 km west.... more.. e-mail Interview: Palestine's red lines of struggle Electronic Intifada: 7 Oct 2010 - The National Committee for the Protection of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People is a newly-formed body that upholds the red lines of the Palestinian struggle. Hazem Jamjoum interviews committee co-founder Bilal al-Hassan for The Electronic Intifada.more No justice for slain laborer Electronic Intifada: 7 Oct 2010 - SHUAFAT, occupied East Jerusalem (IPS) - A peaceful morning is interrupted by the sounds of an Israeli helicopter circling overhead -- often a sign of trouble on the ground. Later Sunday the news broke -- a Palestinian man was shot dead in the village of Issawiya by Israeli paramilitary border police as he tried to enter Israel in search of work.more Bracing for Israel's Next Attack on Lebanon Palestine Chronicle: 7 Oct 2010 - By Franklin Lamb - Maron al Ras on the Lebanon border You can see Akka, Palestine from my favorite Lebanese village, Maron al Ras. On any day, but particularly since September 21 of this year, you can also see beefed up IDF military patrols, assorted electronic listening posts and sundry spy devices, new Raytheon-produced surveillance equipment, two new supposedly camouflaged cinder block one room shacks with Zionist soldiers peering out. They frequently glare from widows heavily screened to keep out stones that tourists on the Lebanon side of the ‘blue line’ regularly throw at them when UNIFIL guys aren’t paying attention or shoo them away. You can also see land mine fields, wide soft sand swatches along the wire fences to expose trespassing neighbors’ footprints, a couple of orchards, and the edges of three colonial settlements. The increase in activity along the Blue line, especially near Fatima’s Gate is only...more Islamic Jihad charges PA with life of prisoner 10/6/2010 - GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Islamic Jihad sent a statement to the Palestinian Authority on Wednesday, saying it held the government solely responsible for the life of its captured leader. Khader Adnanm, detained by PA forces on Wednesday, was cited in a warning delivered by 12 Gaza factions sent to the PA that security officers.... Related: Islamic Jihad says PA out to ban movement Hamas threatens retaliation against Palestinian Authority Palestine Note 6 Oct 2010 - Washington - Despite the ongoing Fatah-Hamas reconciliation efforts, the militant political faction Hamas has threatened to retaliate against the Western-backed Palestinian Authority should the arresting of Hamas officials continue, Haaretz reported Wednesday. A Hamas mural in... Hamas armed wing threatens to target PA officials Jeruslalem Post 6 Oct 2010 - Despite reconciliation talks between the Palestinian factions, claims of detainment and torture of "activists" lead to threats of retribution. Hamas's military wing threatens PA officials amidst arrests Jeruslalem Post 6 Oct 2010 - Despite reconciliation talks between the Palestinian factions, claims of detainment and torture in West Bank lead to threats of retribution. Boy used as human shield by Israeli soldiers speaks out Electronic Intifada: 6 Oct 2010 - Majid Rabah, age 11, had a broad smile on his face as he relaxed at his family's apartment in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood of Gaza City on Monday, 4 October. He had just heard the news that the two Israeli soldiers who had used him as a human shield had been convicted of their crime in an Israeli military court. Rami Almeghari reports from Gaza.more Israel deports nobel peace laureate Electronic Intifada: 6 Oct 2010 - RAMALLAH, occupied West Bank (IPS) - Irish Nobel Laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire was deported from Israel Tuesday after spending more than a week in detention at Tel Aviv Airport as she attempted to fight the deportation order.more Bahar calls on Fatah to dissolve Fayyad government PIC 5 Oct 2010 - Dr. Ahmed Bahar has called on Fatah faction to adopt a courageous decision and dissolve the illegitimate government of Salam Fayyad in the West Bank. Palestine boycott committee calls on US pension fund to divest from Israel Electronic Intifada: 5 Oct 2010 - The Palestinian BNC calls upon the US non-profit pension fund TIAA-CREF to live up to its motto of providing "Financial Services for the Greater Good" by divesting its funds from companies that profit from Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and violation of Palestinian rights.more Towards accountability: John Dugard interviewed Electronic Intifada: 5 Oct 2010 - Last month, Professor John Dugard, former UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, chaired a meeting on universal Jurisdiction in the Hague. Adri Nieuwhof interviewed Dugard about means of bringing Israel to account for its human rights violations, particularly the legal mechanism of universal jurisdiction.more Coalition solidarity fractures ahead of diplomatic decision Jeruslalem Post 4 Oct 2010 - Candidates to succeed Barak as Labor leader continued to pressure Netanyahu to do whatever was necessary to maintain diplomatic negotiations. Palestinians need a commission of truth Khalid Amayreh, Desert Peace 10/4/2010 There are portents of reconciliation in the air, and Palestinians and their friends and allies are quite optimistic that Fatah and Hamas may finally be on their way to close one of the saddest chapters in our recent history. Needless to say, the national rift which emanated from manifestly treacherous efforts by American-backed elements within the Fatah movement to effectively undo the outcome of the 2006 elections, which Hamas won decisively, wreaked havoc on the Palestinian cause and thoroughly poisoned inter-Palestinian relations to an extent never seen before. We all know how the former Bush administration utilized the bribable and buyable elements within Fatah to carry out a bloody coup aimed at decapitating Hamas once and for all in the Gaza Strip. Which eventually forced Hamas to do what it did in July, 2007? Likewise, and looking retrospectively, one might safely claim that had the Fatah leadership refused American and Israeli solicitations and incitement, the Palestinian arena would have been spared the hateful ramifications of the rift. I know for sure that Hamas didn’t enjoy the so-called ”victory” over Fatah three years ago. In the final analysis, a victory against one’s brother and countryman is not a real victory; it was rather a real defeat for both Hamas and Fatah and the entire Palestinian people and its just cause. None the less, what could Hamas have done, watching treacherous elements, enjoying Israeli and American backing, sharpen their swords and daggers, and preparing their guns to gang up on Hamas in order to consign the movement into oblivion. Hamas had to defend itself and thwart criminal American designs to eliminate every anti-Zionist and revolutionary Islamic movement in the context of its ill-conceived “global war on terror. more.. e-mail The mendacity of "restraint" Electronic Intifada: 4 Oct 2010 - As Israel's self-imposed and largely irrelevant settlement freeze ends, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked settlers to show "restraint." It is an interesting choice of adjective, for people who show restraint are the injured and outraged; they are victims who although entitled to a full measure of justice settle for less to maintain good will and harmony. Richard Irvine comments.more For Palestinians in Israel, "transfer" threat nothing new Electronic Intifada: 4 Oct 2010 - Nora Barrows-Friedman reports on the response of Palestinian citizens of Israel to the Israeli Foreign Minister's plan proposed to the United Nations to strip Palestinians of their Israeli citizenship.more Obama letter confirms Palestinian fears Electronic Intifada: 4 Oct 2010 - The disclosure of the details of a letter reportedly sent by US President Barack Obama last week to Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, will cause Palestinians to be even more skeptical about US and Israeli roles in the current peace talks. Jonathan Cook reports.more What unity could look like S. C. Yuter, Ma’an News Agency 10/1/2010 Unity between Palestinian factions has remained elusive, but as peace talks falter and the Arab League mulls the idea of bringing the Palestinian issue to the UN Security Council, reconciliation becomes more and more essential in the creation of a viable Palestinian state. While most unity agreements involve the collapse of the Hamas government in Gaza and its amalgamation into a West Bank PA framework, increasing criticism of the PLO, as unrepresentative and biased, give credence to new ideas that recognize the legitemacy of Hamas as a ruling party elected by the Palestinian people, but bring the government into an international fold by extending a 10-year hudna, or truce, to Israel, under the umbrella of which sides could develop trust and end the siege on Gaza. Hamas and Fatah would have to agree on the 10-year truce, under which Hamas would continue to govern and police the Gaza Strip, and Fatah the West Bank via the Palestinian Authority. Hamas truce would include a moratorium on violence, provisional respect for agreements reached between Israel and the PLO, and temporary recognition for Israel’s right to exist. At the same time Fatah and the Palestinian Authority would agree to amend all relevant documents of the PLO to admit Hamas as a member of the PLO for the 10-year period. In all governing bodies, Hamas would be granted rights equal to those of Fatah. Political and economic incentives for the agreement would come from the international community in the form of a treaty, which would see a port opened in Gaza, effectively ending the siege on Gaza and promoting peaceful business coexistence among Hamas, Fatah and Israel during the 10-year truce. more.. e-mail PLO: Israel responsible for obstructing talks 10/2/2010 - RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian leadership holds Israel responsible for the collapse of talks over continued settlement construction, PLO Secretary-General Yasser Abed Rabbo said Saturday. Speaking after a meeting with the PLO Executive Committee, President Mahmoud Abbas and faction leaders, Abed Rabbo said the Palestinian leadership "holds Israel responsible for obstructing talks," and thwarting.... Bringing the PFLP back into PLO fold? 10/2/2010 - RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian People's Party extended its hand on Friday to leaders from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, asking that the faction take part in Saturday's PLO discussions. As of late Friday, however, PFLP's politburo chief Khalida Jarrar confirmed that the party intended.... US Senate pushes for democracy in Egypt Palestine Note 1 Oct 2010 - Washington - A resolution has been drafted in the Senate by Russ Feingold and John McCain to urge President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt to "to take all steps necessary to ensure that upcoming elections are free,... Israeli mayors' visit runs aground in Spain, Netherlands Electronic Intifada: 1 Oct 2010 - The Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG) canceled a 19 September visit by Israeli mayors because the delegation included leaders of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, igniting a firestorm in the Dutch parliament centered at foreign affairs minister Maxime Verhagen.more Musical storytelling: Reem Kelani interviewed Electronic Intifada: 1 Oct 2010 - Reem Kelani, born in Manchester, UK to Palestinian parents and raised in Kuwait, tells a tough tale of her struggle to establish herself as a Palestinian artist in the "world" music industry. Sarah Irving interviews for The Electronic Intifada.more In defense of South African academics' boycott call Electronic Intifada: 1 Oct 2010 - When African National Congress leader Chief Albert Luthuli made a call for the international community to support a boycott of apartheid South Africa in 1958, the response was a widespread and dedicated movement that played a significant role in ending apartheid. Ronnie Kasrils comments a new petition by South African academics aimed at supporting the boycott call of Israel.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.
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