| |
|
Sources reveal that President Abbas will resign if US and Israel do not accept unity government
Palestine News Network 11/21/2006
President Abbas is reported as saying that he will resign if the United States and Israel refuse to recognize the national unity government and allow a functioning government of the Palestinian people. The source, who wished to remain anonymous, said that President Abbas described the final agreement between the presidency and the government as a “national accomplishment embarking on the path to end the threat of starvation against the Palestinian people. ”The same source indicated that President Abbas intends to dismantle the existing security services and begin forming three central organs: public security, presidential security, and the police. Announcing a government of national unity is expected to bring significant changes that will end the US-led economic and political blockade imposed after the Legislative Council elections. [end]
PFLP leader calls for dialogue to include all factions, re-organisation of the PLO
Ma’an News Agency 11/20/2006
Gaza - The Fatah and the Hamas movements should re-organise and enlarge the dialogue so that it includes other factions in the Palestinian arena, the Palestinian Legislative Council member and leader in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), Jamil Majdalawi, has stressed. Majdalawi said that the results of the elections do not mean that other factions and elements in Palestinian society should be ignored. He described the way that Fatah and Hamas are dealing with the government formation as unsuitable. "It is better to build together what is to be [our] future," he said. In statements to Ma’an, Majdalawi said that "holding meetings between [Palestinian President] Abbas and [Prime Minister] Haniyeh will not be useful to the Palestinian issue. The others should be part of the dialogue".
Fatah may make Abbas their general leader
Ma’an News Agency 11/10/2006
Bethlehem - Sources have stated that the Revolutionary Council of the Fatah movement have begun discussions on appointing Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas as the general leader for Fatah in a move intended to enhance his power inside the movement. The Revolutionary Council has begun a three-day meeting aimed to resolve some internal Fatah issues. They will also crystallize their position related to the new Palestinian government, in addition to discussing the composition of a field leadership for Fatah in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the distribution of responsibilities for the movement’s activities that range from elections to conferences, including the movement’s general conference. [end]
Minister of Information: New Prime Minister is member of Hamas party
Palestine News Network 11/6/2006
The Palestinian Minister of Information confirmed on Monday that the new Prime Minister will be a member of the Hamas party as is the current Prime Minister, Ismail Haniya. Although the new Prime Minister’s name is not yet being published, it is hoped that a change in names will lead the United States to end the political and economic blockade that it imposed after the elections held early in the year. However Hamas spokesperson Ismail Radwan told PNN today that talking about a new Prime Minister is inappropriate as attacks on Gaza continue. "A new government is close to formation and when it is the Hamas party will announce the new Prime Minister, as is its role." The group involved in negotiations, including Hamas and Fateh members, is still at work ironing out details but progress has moved quickly.
Palestinian Association for Information conducts a social study on the Fatah movement
Ma’an News Agency 11/2/2006
Nablus – Salfit - The Palestinian association for information has undertaken a study on the status of the Fatah movement following the PLC elections. The study showed that a state of internal uprising is ongoing within the movement, after the losses at the last PLC elections. The study, which was supervised by the director of the association, the journalist Ghazi Abu Kishik, related the retreat in the movement’s status to the "individual and paralyzing directions; involving the movement in conditions and political requirements so complicated they become a threat to the history and destiny of the Fatah members, and even the movement itself." A member of the cadre of the Fatah movement in Nablus, Imad Ya’ish, said that the members of the movement have been dispersed and alienated through a lack of social and economic security...
|
 Conflict..
|
Diplomacy..
Jordan vows to reject ’unjust’ Palestinian-Israeli peace
Daily Star 11/29/2006
AMMAN: Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Tuesday pledged his country would reject any "unjust settlement" of the Palestinian issue that could undermine Amman’s own stability and development. The king was speaking at the opening of the fourth ordinary session of Parliament since June 2003 elections, and his "speech from the throne" was followed by the re-election of the speaker for the 110-seat lower house." My government... commits itself to offering all possible support to the Palestinians," the king said." Jordan will not accept an unjust settlement of this issue, nor will Jordan accept any settlement that comes at its expense," he told the Upper and Lower chambers of Parliament. Jordan, where half the population is of Palestinian origin, has repeatedly said it will never accept becoming a substitute state for the Palestinians...
Haniyya to meet Egyptian officials in Cairo Tuesday
International Middle East Media Center 11/27/2006
Senior Palestinian sources reported on Monday that Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyya, will head to Cairo on Tuesday for meetings with Egyptian officials to discuss the issues of National Unity Government, prisoner swap deal and lifting the embargo imposed on the Palestinians, the Ramattan news agency reported. The sources stated that Haniyya also intends to tour in several Arab countries to inform the leaders on the developments in Palestine. Haniyya did not leave the Gaza Strip since his movement, Hamas, won the legislative elections last January. On Sunday evening, Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashal left the Egyptian capital after a three-day visit where he met with the Egyptian Intelligence Chief, Omar Suleiman, and discussed with him several issues...
Rice drops plan for Jordan peace summit due to PA turmoil
Ha’aretz 11/24/2006
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had wanted to use her trip to Jordan next week to jump-start Israeli-Palestinian talks, but the idea was shelved due to the Palestinians’ ongoing failure to establish a unity government, Israeli government sources said. Earlier this week, U.S. President George W. Bush unexpectedly announced he would be joining Rice on her Jordan trip, which was scheduled to coincide with a conference that King Abdullah of Jordan is hosting. Bush is coming mainly to reassure a key American ally in the region that the United States will not execute a hasty withdrawal from Iraq in response to the Republican defeat in the American midterm elections earlier this month. But Rice’s visit was planned some time ago, and she originally considered inviting PM Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas...
Italy calls on the U.S. to press Israel on Palestinian conflict
Ha’aretz 11/10/2006
Italy’s Foreign Minister Massimo D’Alema called on the United States on Friday to refocus its foreign policy following midterm elections, saying it was time to stand up to Israeli hawks over the Palestinian conflict. A staunch critic of the Iraq war, D’Alema said he did not expect a sudden shift in President George W. Bush’s foreign policy following his party’s defeat in mid-term elections. But he called on Bush to press Israel, where he said the military was lashing out in Gaza to prove its might after failing to defeat Hezbollah in Lebanon." I’m referring to a government weakened from the Lebanon conflict, pressed by the right, with the accusation of not being determined enough in its military operation," he said. He said the U.S. should make resolving the Palestinian conflict its priority.
FM to launch effort to restart talks with PA bypassing Hamas
Ha’aretz 11/5/2006
The Foreign Ministry is looking for ways to hold talks with the Palestinian Authority that would "detour" Hamas. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, concerned over the diplomatic impasse with the Palestinians, instructed ministry officials to come up with ways for a dialogue without involving the Hamas cabinet. Among the ideas is whether the road map has to continue as the basis for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations; considering a Palestinian proposal to conduct talks whose outcome would be presented as a referendum to the Palestinian public or as the Fatah party platform in new elections; and formulating the goals of the talks -- a final arrangement, principles of a final arrangement, or a series of moves to allow an exit from the present impasse.
|
Human
Rights..
WHO concerned about deterioration in Palestinians’ access to medical services, particularly since the strike
Ma’an News Agency 11/20/2006
The World Health Organization issued the following press release on 16 November in which they voice their concern about the rapid deterioration in access for Palestinians to appropriate medical services in the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly since the start of the general strike:WHO is concerned about the rapid deterioration of Palestinians’ equitable access to adequate and effective medical services. This is mainly the result of the Palestinian Ministry of Health’s financial crisis which has followed the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in January 2006. The Government of Israel has stopped handing over the tax and customs revenues it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority (PA) and international donors have suspended direct aid to the Ministry of Health.
Take action against Israeli war crimes in Gaza
International Solidarity Movement 11/13/2006
Since the Israeli “redeployment” from Gaza on August 20, 2005, Israeli occupation troops have killed over 700 Palestinians and wounded four thousand others. Israeli is literally starving the Gaza strip. Israel has also taken advantage of the western media’s preoccupation with the US midterm elections to commit new war crimes including large scale home demolitions, indiscriminate firing on peaceful demonstrators and the massacre of civilians in their beds. The atrocities of the last few days could intensify unless we focus attention on them and insist they be exposed by the media and stopped immediately. Palestinians have also called for an international week of action against the Apartheid Wall, and against the ghettoization of Palestine for November 9-16. Please write about this subject to all national and local media outlets... -- International Week Of Action
|
People..
Almost 80% of Israelis Want Peretz Out Over Lebanon War
An Nahar 11/24/2006
Nearly 80 percent of Israelis want Defense Minister Amir Peretz to resign over failings from the war in Lebanon and unceasing Palestinian rocket attacks, a survey revealed on Friday. According to the poll, published in the Maariv daily, 78 percent of respondents believe Peretz should resign, compared to only 17 percent who said "no" when asked whether they thought he should step down. The survey also tracked a recent trend in rising support for right-wing parties, when respondents were asked which party they would vote for should snap elections be held immediately. Right-wing opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party came in top, set to win 29 seats in the 120-member parliament, compared to the 12 that his MPs currently occupy, the Maariv poll said.
TV ticker-tape sends messages to political prisoners, university graduates and political adversaries
Palestine News Network 11/23/2006
Under occupation the language of the short message has become one of the most common forms of discourse both on cell phones, and via the phone to the television screen. It began to gain more popularity after a group of students in the northern West Bank initiated a message-tree of sorts for families under major siege in the northern Gaza Strip earlier this month. And after Israeli forces killed five Palestinians yesterday in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians wrote even more. However, the messages are not limited to those of condolences for grieving families. Internal political debates have become fodder for those sending text messages, especially as university student elections and politics occupy the minds of the politically active. Birthday messages are going to political prisoners...
|
International..
Arabs heed Obama’s call for change
Alaa Bayoumi, Al Jazeera 2/4/2008
If it were not for Barack Obama, many Arabs would not even bother to follow the results of the US presidential race on Super Tuesday. Such gloomy views could be attributed to Arabs’ negative attitudes toward governments and politics in general. Arabs have been living under authoritarian governments, many of them US allies, for decades. And the US’s traditional support for Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian land, coupled with the war on Iraq, has meant Arab mistrust of the US has dipped to new lows in recent years. Against this backdrop, it is easy to see why many Arabs will not be following the latest news from the US presidential primary elections. ’Offensive’ rhetoric Many do not see any serious differences between the Republican and Democratic candidates who are taking part in the race.
Ahmadinejad battles on the home front
Khody Akhavi, Asia Times 2/5/2008
WASHINGTON - Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has garnered headlines around the world for his defiance of Washington, as well as his rhetorical grandstanding on Palestinian issues, Israel and his government’s alleged support of Shi’ite militias in Iraq. Still, it appears that Iran’s parliamentary elections in March will be determined less by debates over the country’s foreign policy than by rising criticism of incompetence and economic mismanagement of conservatives and hardliners in the legislature and in Ahmadinejad’s office." Ahmadinejad is in trouble, not only because his economic policies have not worked; he has managed to antagonize almost the entire Iranian elite because of his exclusivist management style," said Farideh Farhi, an independent researcher on Iran and political scientist at the University of Hawaii.
IRAN: Ahmadinejad Caught Between Reformists and Hardliners
Khody Akhavi, Inter Press Service 1/28/2008
WASHINGTON, Jan 28(IPS) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has garnered headlines around the world for his defiance of Washington, as well as his rhetorical grandstanding on Palestinian issues, the existence of Israel, and his government’s alleged support of Shiite militias in Iraq. Still, it appears that Iran’s upcoming parliamentary elections in March will be determined less by debates over the country’s foreign policy than by rising criticism of incompetence and economic mismanagement of conservatives and hardliners in the legislature and in the office of the president.
"Ahmadinejad is in trouble, not only because his economic policies have not worked; he has managed to antagonise almost the entire Iranian elite because of his exclusivist management style," said Farideh Farhi, an independent researcher on Iran and political scientist at the University of Hawaii.
Mideast press urges action on Gaza
BBC Online 6/14/2007
The Palestinian press makes an urgent appeal for action to prevent the violence in Gaza from turning into a full-blown civil war, urging President Abbas to call a state of emergency and ask for intervention from the region’s Arab states. Papers in the wider Middle East blame the violence on Palestinian leaders and demand fresh elections to resolve the power struggle between the Hamas and Fatah factions. In Israel, commentators ponder how the country should react to the Palestinian infighting, with one advocating a total withdrawal of Israeli troops and settlers from the occupied territories. -
Palestinian AL-QUDS --
It seems we have reached the point of no return in this infighting and are witnessing the beginnings of civil war.
Lebanon factions resume talks
AlJazeera 3/22/2006
Leaders of Lebanon''s rival factions have resumed talks on the fate of the country''s pro-Syrian president and a UN call for the disarmament of the Hizb Allah group. The talks come amid signs that an agreement remains elusive on the two issues that threaten to destabilise the country. The discussions, which began on 2 March, have focused on a 2004 UN Security Council resolution that calls for disarming Hizb Allah and Palestinian fighters. The resolution also urged new presidential elections. It was passed in September 2004, days before Lebanese legislators extended Emile Lahoud''s term for three years.
Chirac vows ''voice of reason'' on Iran
Daily Star 3/6/2006
French president labels cartoon row a ''clash of ignorance'' -- RIYADH: French President Jacques Chirac said Sunday the West would still reach out to Iran for a deal on its disputed nuclear file, in the first address to the Saudi consultative council by a foreign leader. The president''s wide-ranging speech in Riyadh also covered Lebanon, Syria, the Palestinian elections, reform in the conservative monarchy and the "clash of civilizations" between the West and Islam. "In Iran, the voice of reason that France, the United Kingdom and Germany wanted to be heard on the nuclear file has not been heard, for the time being," Chirac told the appointed advisory council, an all-male body of 150 members.
Palestinian Americans Push Religious Pluralism in P.A.
Forward 2/17/2006
WASHINGTON — Palestinian American activists are vowing to lobby Hamas against turning the West Bank and Gaza into an Islamic theocracy. Anxious about the victory of the Islamic fundamentalist group in last month''s Palestinian parliamentary elections, Palestinian American leaders say that they will push for laws favoring American-style church-state separation, pluralism, equality and inclusiveness. "We are at the time when defining decisions may very well be made in Palestine," said Ziad Asali, president of the American Task Force on Palestine. The task force is a prominent pro-Palestinian advocacy group in Washington.
Disagreement With Gaza Disengagement Sours Orthodox on Bush
Forward 6/24/2005
As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders this week, cracks were emerging in the coalition of Jewish conservatives that rallied this past November around the claim that President Bush was "the best friend Israel ever had in Washington." Many influential Republican loyalists and non-Orthodox hawks appear to be remaining firm in their support of Bush. But a growing number of Orthodox activists who were avidly courted by Bush in the 2004 election are feeling distinctly dismayed as the administration embraces Israel''s Gaza disengagement plan and presses for more aid to the Palestinians.
Elections give hope to Palestinian refugees
Daily Star 6/7/2005
BEIRUT: Palestinian refugees living in squalid and overcrowded camps dare to hope the legislative elections will directly improve their lives. "I have been monitoring the elections to see if they will bring change," said Mohammad al-Daoud, 21, outside Beirut''s Chatilla camp where portraits of candidates jostle those of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Some 400,000 Palestinian refugees live in 12 refugee compounds in South Lebanon, where conditions are often harsh and permanent citizenship is denied to all. Fouad Abed, 36, complained that the candidate he was rooting for lost in the first part of the four-stage elections that took place May 29.
El Salvador group opens park in honor of late Palestinian leader Arafat
Ha''aretz 5/25/2005
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador - A new plaza on Jerusalem Avenue was inaugurated Wednesday in honor of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, despite criticism from the Israeli Embassy in El Salvador. "We are making a monument to the maximum leader of the struggle for the liberation of Palestine," said one of the promoters, businessman John Nasser, as the square with a large bust of Arafat was inaugurated. Migrants from Palestine flowed to El Salvador for decades in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and several families became prominent in business and politics. Both President Tony Saca and his rival in last year''s election, Schafik Handal, are sons of families that migrated from the Palestinian city of Bethlehem.
AIPAC Losing this Fight
Electronic Intifada 3/7/2005
Press Release, Council for the National Interest -- AIPAC has been taken aback by new Mideast resolutions. Last month the House and the Senate each passed their own resolutions expressing support for the Palestinian Authority in the wake of their successful presidential elections. The Washington Jewish Week reported that many on the Hill feel the Israel lobby was caught asleep on this one. The problem for the lobby was simple: popular support and optimism after the Palestinian presidential elections took the wind out of any possible grounds for raising opposition to the resolutions.
Arabs warmly welcome Abbas election
Middle East Online 1/10/2005
Analysts, officials hail election of Mahmud Abbas as Palestinian leader, pay tribute to strong voter turnout. -- Arabs gave a warm welcome Monday to the election of Mahmud Abbas as Palestinian leader, admiring a successful exercise in Arab democracy and hoping that a strong voter turnout will bolster his position. Analyst Nabil Abdel Fattah of Cairo''s Al Ahram Center of Strategic Studies said the high turnout and the strong result for Mahmud Abbas "gives him the necessary legitimacy for his plans to resolve the conflict" with Israel.
Press Review: ''The hour of truth has arrived''
The Guardian 1/11/2005
Mahmoud Abbas wins but how will events now develop? -- Times, Editorial, January 10 - "After [Sunday''s] election ... there was a palpable feeling that something had changed ... Mahmoud Abbas, the pragmatist favoured by Israel and the outside world ... won a triumphant victory ... to succeed the late ... Yasser Arafat as president of the Palestinian Authority ...
|
Economy..
WHO concerned about further deterioration in access to medical services in Occupied Palestinian Territory
ReliefWeb/WHO 11/16/2006
WHO is concerned about the rapid deterioration of Palestinians’ equitable access to adequate and effective medical services. This is mainly the result of the Palestinian Ministry of Health’s financial crisis which has followed the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in January 2006. The Government of Israel has stopped handing over the tax and customs revenues it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority (PA) and international donors have suspended direct aid to the Ministry of Health. As a consequence of these measures, the PA has been unable to pay regular salaries since March 2006. Health workers employed by the PA have since received provisional allowances through the Temporary International Mechanism established by the European Union.
New elections for Journalists Union within six months
Palestine News Network 11/13/2006
The Palestinian Journalists Union met for consultation in Ramallah on Sunday night to find solutions to solve ongoing problems. Accusations and a call for new leadership recently became public and now members say they cannot wait long for corrective moves to be made in the administration. Director Naim Al Tobasi did not attend. Journalist in attendence, Said Ayyad told PNN that the meeting was informal and initiated by the journalists. They agreed that there is a need to reform administrative work and overcome several factors that are impeding the work of the union, including lack of ability for members to participate in meetings. Ayyad also told PNN that elections for a new administrative body will be held within the next six months. Journalist Hassan Abdullah was requested to rescind his resignation tendered 10 days ago. -- See also: Journalists Union calling for internal reform
Journalists Union calling for internal reform
Palestine News Network 11/2/2006
Signs indicate that a serious crisis is looming in the Palestinian Journalists Union offices in the West Bank. The crisis erupted as director Naim Al Tobasi began a visit to Tunisia with other union members. Some in the Journalists Union are calling for elections while others have resigned altogether. Administrative Board member Hassan Abdullah announced his resignation on Tuesday. He delivered his resignation with the comment that the “resignation does not supersede direct or indirect involvement in any activities. ”He is not relinquishing membership in the Union as it is the right of every member of the Palestinian media who meets the conditions for membership to be involved. Journalists Union Administrative Board member Said Ayyad is calling for new elections...
|
ISM
News
|
|
|
|
