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Palestine Diaries

courtesy The Electronic Intifada

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Map of Israel's planned "security fence", adapted for clarity from Gush Shalom map. Gush Shalom notes: The Israeli government did not publish full, official maps of the wall. The path of the Eastern wall was compiled by the Land Research Center and the Palestinian Hydrology Group, based on expropriation orders issued to Palestinian land owners.

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Video Archives
Audio Archives

VIDEO
BBC:
Gap Between CIA
And Bush Stories
posted 10/9/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Region As
Unsettled As It's
Ever Been
10/9/02

VIDEO
BBC:
"No compromise
here"
posted 10/8/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Another Gaza
Attack
posted 10/6/02

VIDEO
BBC:
PA's Erekat: We
Need International
Protection Now
posted 10/6/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Khalil Shikaki, CPR:
'Chances slim for
negotiation'
posted 9/28/02

PHOTOS
Islam Online:
Arafat HQ
Destroyed
posted 9/25/02

PHOTOS
Islam Online:
Nine Palestinians Killed In Gaza
posted 9/24/02

VIDEO
Konscious:
Metal of Dishonor
The Face of US
War on Iraq
posted 9/18/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Sabra & Shatila
Is Sharon A
War Criminal?
posted 9/13/02

VIDEO
CBC:
Israeli
Army Was
Embarrassed
By Release
of Video
released 3/18/02
posted 9/6/02

Video Archives

Conflict..

Palestinian fighter killed as Australia lists Hamas leaders as ''terrorists'' Al-Bawaba 11/21/2003 Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip killed a Palestinian fighter crawling toward the fence around the settlement of Netzarim on Thursday night, Israel Radio reported. Meanwhile, Australia listed six senior leaders of Hamas as "terrorists" Friday and froze the assets of five charities that it said help fund the movement's activities. The Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Friday he had acted because the men and organizations "are involved in terrorism." Three Galilee Arabs convicted of Jihad links Jerusalem Post 11/21/2003 Three residents of Kafr Manda in the Galilee were convicted of conspiring to aid the enemy, after they forged ties with Islamic Jihad and planned to carry out terror attacks, by Haifa District Court on Thursday. Sentencing is to be passed later...Khalim and Muhammad Hamid were also found guilty of having had contacts with a foreign agent. Khalim met a resident of the Gaza Strip while on a visit to Saudi Arabia about a year ago and remained in touch with the man, known only as Fahdi, who subsequently informed him that he was a member of Islamic Jihad and sought his help to perpetrate attacks. Tanzim commander nabbed near Hebron Jerusalem Post 11/21/2003 Nabil Abu Kibtah, a senior Tanzim commander in Yatta, near Hebron, suspected of planning shooting attacks in the Hebron area,was arrested by special IDF forces on Thursday morning. According to reports, the troops surrounded his home and called on him to surrender. When he failed to comply, a bulldozer began demolishing his home, and Abu Kibtah, who had hidden in a well, gave up. Chief rabbi threatened Jerusalem Post 11/21/2003 The life of Istanbul's chief rabbi is being threatened by the same terrorist organization, which claimed responsibility for the Istanbul bombings on Thursday and on Saturday. The Islamic Great Eastern Raider's Front group said it looked forward to eating halva at the funeral of Rabbi Isak Haleva, in a communique released on Channel 2 News Thursday night. Halva is traditional mourning food in Turkey. The Israeli security wall makes yet another village suffocate Jerusalem Times 11/21/2003 One day in the beginning of August three soldiers came to the house of Nidal Solyman Parawi, a farmer from No´man village. They wanted him to point his area of fields out for them. Since that day everything have altered for the 700 inhabitants of No´man and Al Khas villages in the outskirts of Bethlehem. The Israeli army has taken over the fields, claiming that it is now occupied for military purposes. Around 1300 olives trees have laid down there lives for the Israeli excavators working on the infamous security wall that is suppose[d] to encircle the entire West Bank. Apart from claiming the land for military purpose the Israeli government has since the year 2000 also prohibited any house building in the area of No’man, and two months ago the government tried to make the villagers sign an agreement saying that the land is not theirs. Not surprisingly they refused. Report about about the family of Naji Abaas / Report about about the child Islam Khateeb Rafah Today Naji Abaas is 35 years old, he used to work as a tailor/dressmaker and never was enganged in any terrorist or political activities. His family consists of 4 members. They live in Beit Lahia, near Jewish settlements. The 2 children suffer from anemia and the family is very poor. One day, while the family was sleeping at 7 o'clock, a group of Israli soldiers came with tanks to their street. They came to their house, smashed the door and entered the house while all family members were in bed. The faces of the soldiers were covered with paint, they did not look like human beings, all family members were shocked and filled with fear...The child on this photo is 8 years old, and her name is Islam Mahmoud Al Khateeb. Her family found her body buried in the sand near the Jewish settlement. Her body was burned and they found evidence of violence on her body.. Report from Rafah Rafah Today 11/18/2003 Sudden strange shelling, shooting, bombing.. Where from? No one knows from where these bullets are coming from. Yesterday at 12 p.m., most of the areas had no electricity because of shelling.. People were leaving their houses, and many groups of women were leaving their houses even forgetting their children. A red line appears in the dark sky and explodes in a house, and ambulances begin transferring more and more children at first, then when the area was surrounded by tanks and bulldozers they were unable to get to the injured people who were shot by the apaches and the tanks.. Shooting attack spurs tightened security at Arava border crossing Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Less than 24 hours after a gunman killed an Ecuadorian tourist and injured four others, the Yitzhak Rabin border terminal between Israel and Jordan reopened yesterday, but with a number of security-related changes. The head of the Israel Defense Forces' Eilat and Arava region, Brigadier General Shmuel Zakai, met yesterday with security forces at the border crossing for a briefing. Initial changes in security procedures were already in evidence. Mofaz, Ya'alon led Nusseirat cover-up Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon were the ones who decided to conceal the type of munitions used in an Israel Air Force strike on the Nusseirat refugee camp, though they did not explicitly order disinformation to be disseminated. IAF chief Major General Dan Halutz, the person who actually misled journalists about the nature of the munitions during a press briefing after the attack, was acting in accordance with his understanding of this policy when he did so. Jenin massacre revisited: ‘Revealing … the Zionist project’ Daily Star 11/21/2003 New doubts over official version of events -- JENIN: Israeli Army bulldozer driver Moshe Nissim, also known as “Kurdi Bear,” did enjoy his work in Jenin camp, fortified by an arsenal of alcohol. First published in the popular Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot and since reprinted on the website of the Israeli peace group Gush Shalom, his testimony gives a version of events that has since largely fallen off the country’s conscience. He left his own at the door to Jenin. “They were warned by loudspeaker to get out of the house before I come, but I gave no one a chance. I didn’t wait. I didn’t give one blow, and wait for them to come out. I would just ram the house with full power, to bring it down as fast as possible. I wanted to get to the other houses. To get as many as possible,” he recounts. Israel 'lied' over Gaza air raid BBC 11/21/2003 The Israeli military has been accused of providing false information about an air strike against suspected Palestinian militants in Gaza. Last month, the air force released video footage which it said disproved Palestinian claims that at least 10 civilians were killed in the raid. At the time, the air force chief said two missiles were fired, killing only the occupants in the car. But Israeli MPs say they have evidence a more deadly type of weapon was used. Israeli Extrajudicial Executions In Three Years: 309 Citizens Killed in 157 Crimes Jerusalemites 11/19/2003 A recent human rights report about the Israeli extrajudicial execution policy over the three years of the Al Aqsa Intifada revealed that 309 Palestinian citizens were killed in 157 executions. Among the killed were 195 "targeted" by these executions, three of whomwere under 18 years of age, and 114 others were just passing by when the execution took place. The report, which was released by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) and IPC got a copy of which, pointed out that among the "untargeted" who were killed,were 38 children under 18 years of age, including a two-month old baby, 14 women and 16 elderly citizens.

Diplomacy..

Israel's Sharon Plans Settlement Removal - Report Reuters 11/21/2003 JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon plans to remove some Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip by the summer of 2004 to make way for a Palestinian state, Israel's Channel 2 television said on Friday. Israeli and Palestinian officials were not immediately available for comment, but a source in Sharon's office said: "There is such talk, but for now it only concerns settlements in Gaza. A lot could happen by next summer." Sharon drops hint of parallel initiatives to road map moves Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is putting together a package of "positive unilateral steps" for Israel to take with respect to the Palestinians, sources in the Prime Minister's Office said yesterday. The sources said that the package, which will soon be presented to the public, will be "parallel, but not contradictory, to the road map," which the government has accepted as its diplomatic program. Israel Plans to Ease Off Palestinians Amid Dissent Reuters 11/21/2003 JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is planning a package of conciliatory moves toward Palestinians to quiet Israeli dissent over his hardline policies and bolster his new Palestinian counterpart, political sources said on Friday. Facing growing pressure at home and abroad to help revive a stalled U.S.-backed peace "road map," Sharon intends to unveil his initiative around the time of a summit expected in coming days with Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie, the sources said. Qorei: Peace possible within six months Middle East Online 11/21/2003 Ahead of his first meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, an upbeat Palestinian prime minister Ahmed Qorei has said a peace deal is possible within six months. "I am ready to talk with Sharon to conclude an agreement if it is possible," Qorei said Thursday in an interview with Norwegian public television. "If we want to, we are ready. We can do it in a very short time. We can do it once and forever. I think in six months we can close the deal and put an end to the conflict," Qorei said. He is expected to hold his first meeting with Sharon next week. US to trim loan guarantees to Israel Al-Jazeera 11/21/2003 Washington will deduct an unspecified amount from $9 billion of loan guarantees to Israel, a move apparently in response to the continued construction of Jewish settlements and an apartheid wall. Sources in the US congress said on Thursday about $220 million could be cut from the loan guarantees to Israel due to settlement growth in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. Under international law, these settlements are illegal, a stance not recognised by Israel. Yassin ups the cease-fire stakes Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin announced on Wednesday that he would not consider instituting another cease-fire until he saw what Israel was prepared to offer in exchange. Yassin, who met at his home in Gaza late Wednesday night with Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and a delegation from Qureia's Fatah faction, said that there could no discussions about a cease-fire until Qureia had succeeded in extracting certain commitments from Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Nasrallah threatens to strike at heart of Israel Middle East Online 11/21/2003 BEIRUT - The leader of the Lebanese-based Shiite fundamentalist movement Hezbollah threatened Friday to strike at the heart of Israel if the Jewish state acted on threats to attack Lebanon or Syria. "It is true that the Israeli airforce is powerful, but if they attack our people or our Syrian brothers, it is our legitimate right to strike not only the border regions but anywhere we can," Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah charged. "The arm of resistance is long and its counter-attack will be beyond all expectations," he told thousands of supporters here in a speech to mark Jerusalem Day - the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. To Encounter Pressure, Sharon Considers "Positive Unilateral Steps" International Middle East Media Center 11/21/2003 An Israeli Prime Minister Office source confirmed Thursday that PM Ariel Sharon is putting together a package of "positive unilateral steps" for Israel to implement with respect to the Palestinians. The source described the package, which will soon be presented to the public, as parallel steps to the road map. Addressing the conference on exports and international cooperation in Tel Aviv, Sharon said Thursday "We are committed to the road map, as approved by the cabinet, In addition, we do not rule out unilateral steps." In response to the growing public criticism of the lack of activity in the political sphere, the prime minister's declining status in the polls, the lack of success in security efforts, and the left's reawakening, Sharon and his aids have been seeking ideas for a new diplomatic initiative without taking "major political risks". Officials denounce ‘Jerusalem as capital of Israel’ bill Jerusalem Times 11/20/2003 Palestinian officials denounced bitterly the call to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel saying it is anti Palestinian and does not help the peace process. Senator Sam Brownback, a republican from Texas,introduced last Friday legislation calling again for the United States to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel and to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv. "This resolution states that before the United States recognizes a Palestinian state, the US Embassy must be moved to Jerusalem, and Jerusalem must be declared the undivided capital of Israel," said the Senator. Abed Rabbo is fighting for Geneva Accords Jerusalem Times 11/20/2003 A storm of critical questions met former Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo Thursday night as he presented the Geneva Accords in Ramallah. The promotion for a draft for a peace plan was presented to an audience of politicians, business men and journalists. People from Detroit and Geneva was also attending the meeting that was broad cast on a video phone. The atmosphere of the meeting was friendly but the mistrust in the Israeli counterpart was not hidden. Experiences from the capsized Oslo Agreements obviously is the root of the mistrust....The meeting in Ramallah disclosed that one of the sorest issues of the Geneva Accord is the right of return. U.S. Congress Schemes to Settle Palestinians in Lebanon, Host Countries An Nahar 11/21/2003 A new draft bill making the rounds at the U.S. House of Representatives proposes the settlement of Palestinian refugees in countries of their current abode, posing a major challenge to Lebanon, whose fragile demographic composition would not withstand the assimilation of some 350,000 refugees - almost all of them Muslims - into the society. According to An Nahar, nine congressmen have backed Draft Bill 311, authored by none other than Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the Florida representative who was the driving force behind the Syria Accountability and Lebanon Sovereignty Restoration Act, proposing sanctions against Damascus. Palestinian 'extremists' protest at Geneva Accords peace plan The Independent 11/21/2003 Thousands of Palestinian militants staged protests yesterday against the ground-breaking Geneva Accords initiative developed by Palestinian and Israeli moderates. The proposals, which emerged from two years of secret talks between moderate Palestinian and Israeli public figures, were denounced by Palestinian militants as well as Israel's right-wing Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon. Three million copies of the peace plan are to be presented to the former US presidents, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton and to Nelson Mandela at a ceremony in Geneva in 10 days. DeLay: 'It's not occupied territory, it's Israel' Jerusalem Newswire 11/21/2003 Jerusalem (jnewwire.com) - Fundamental faith issues relating to the God of Israel and the Land of Israel surfaced in the media this week, casting light on the basic beliefs of two of the United States' top politicians, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and President George W. Bush. DeLay told a gathering in New York Sunday that the land the world calls the occupied territory is in fact Israel's land. And speaking to reporters during his state visit to London Friday, Bush said he believed Christians and Muslims worship the same god - an interpretation rejected by Bible-believing Christians. Muasher, Meretz leader discuss Mideast peace Jordan Times 11/21/2003 AMMAN (Petra) — Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher said Thursday His Majesty King Abdullah's visit to Washington next month seeks to activate the US role in reviving the Middle East peace talks. Following a meeting with head of Meretz Party bloc at the Israeli Knesset, Zahava Galon, Muasher said Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia will be in Amman ahead of the King's trip to the US “to coordinate positions.” “We will take with us to Washington a clear plan from the Palestinian side on how to deal with the situation in a way that guarantees success of efforts to resume the peace process,” he added. Ex-IDF Intelligence Chief Makes Case Against Geneva Plan Arutz Sheva 11/21/2003 Gen. Yaakov Amidror, a religious Jew who headed IDF Military Intelligence, condemned the Geneva plan in yesterday's edition of Haaretz, noting a number of dangerous concessions proposed by Yossi Beilin and his colleagues. Gen. Yaakov Amidror, a religious Jew who headed IDF Military Intelligence, condemned the Geneva plan in yesterday's edition of Haaretz. He noted a number of dangerous concessions proposed by Yossi Beilin and the other Israelis who helped formulate the plan, including the ceding of the Temple Mount, which he said clearly indicates that the "Jewish nation is giving up on the center of its national identity, and giving it to its competitors who claim ownership of the land." The Swiss announce that December 1 would mark the Geneva accords ceremony ReliefWeb 11/20/2003 GENEVA, Nov 20 (KUNA) - The Swiss Foreign Ministry announced Thursday that the Geneva accords ceremony would take place on Monday December 1, 2003 in Geneva. And added that a news conference would take place in Geneva next week to outline the Swiss role in the accord and the aims of the accord. Security Council endorses Road Map leading towards two-State resolution of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, unanimously adopting resolution 1515 ReliefWeb 11/19/2003 The Security Council this afternoon endorsed the Middle East Quartet's Road Map towards a permanent, two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. By its unanimous adoption of resolution 1515 (2003), the Council called on the parties to fulfil their obligations under the plan in cooperation with the Quartet. In its preambular section, the text also reiterated the Council's demand for an immediate cessation of all acts of violence, including all acts of terrorism, provocation, incitement and destruction. It emphasized that a just and lasting peace should take into account the Israeli-Syrian and Israeli-Lebanese tracks, as well as the Israeli-Palestinian question...Following is the full text of Council resolution 1515 (2003)... Period of inertia, excuses, conditionality in Middle East peacemaking must end, Under-Secretary-General tells Security Council ReliefWeb/UNSC 11/19/2003 The period of inertia, excuses and conditionality in Middle East peacemaking must end, the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Kieran Prendergast, said this morning, as he briefed the Security Council. He said when he had last addressed the Council (21 October, Press Release SC/7902), he had called on the Israelis and Palestinian to return to the negotiating table and recommit to the Road Map process, and had urged the international community to reassert its role. Sadly, since then, everyone -- the Israelis, Palestinians and the international community - had waited for others to act. Israeli PM Left Reeling by Yellow Card from Closest Ally Miftah 11/21/2003 Israel has been left reeling by a dual setback at the hands of its staunchest ally after Washington backed a UN Security Council resolution on the roadmap peace plan and US President George W. Bush sharply criticised its policies in the Palestinian territories. Since taking office in March 2001, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has come to regard his "special relationship" with Bush as the main pillar of Israeli diplomacy. But in the space of just a few hours on Wednesday, the United States inflicted a twin blow to Sharon's strategy, prompting the Israeli premier to acknowledge differences with the Bush administration. Defense sources: Terrorism may tighten ties with Turkey Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Defense sources believe that the continued terror in Turkey will not harm cooperation between that country and Israel, but may lead to even closer ties between them due to Israel's abundant experience in foiling terrorism. The terror could undermine the stability of Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government and strengthen Turkey's army, which has been weakened over the past year. This in turn would be expected to strengthen the ties between the Israeli and Turkish defense establishments. Nasrallah warns Israel not to attack Lebanon, Syria Al-Bawaba 11/21/2003 The leader of Hizbullah on Friday threatened to strike at the heart of Israel if the latter attacked Lebanon or Syria. "It is true that the Israeli airforce is powerful, but if they attack our people or our (Syrian) brothers, it is our legitimate right to strike not only the (border) regions but anywhere we can," Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah stated Friday. Qurei discusses ceasefire with Palestinian factions Jerusalem Times 11/20/2003 Prime Minister Ahmad Qurei met Wednesday with leaders from different Palestinian factions including the Islamic group Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza, trying to persuade them to halt attacks on Israel as a step toward jump-starting the stalled U.S.-backed roadmap plan. Palestinian officials, accompanying the Premier,predicted a permanent ceasefire could be in force within two weeks. The Premier confirmed at the end of the meeting that ceasefire was discussed during the meeting. “There will be no free ceasefire…we are talking about a mutual ceasefire with conditions for there is an Israeli aggression that must end.” He also denied there is any international guarantees behind the ceasefire. Islamic factions demanded the Quartet and US provide guarantees that Israel will abide with the ceasefire conditions.

Human Rights..

Israeli plan aims to settle bedouins in towns, demolish scattered desert villages Jordan Times 11/21/2003 BIR HADAJ, Israel — Like a mirage, this sprawling desert shantytown of thousands of bedouin tribesmen fades in a twilight dust storm. There is no electricity, and it is soon lost in the night. Israel refuses to run electricity, water or roads to 45 bedouin encampments in the southern Negev Desert, or even list them on maps, because it rejects the tribes' land claims. With some Israeli officials warning the country is losing its last frontier for Jewish settlement to an exploding bedouin population, the government has adopted a plan to remove the encampments gradually. It will encourage residents to give up claims to scattered tribal grounds in return for housing lots in new towns. Jerusalem jailers are inhumane, report says Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Police in the Russian Compound holding cells in Jerusalem routinely use the internationally outlawed "banana" method - handcuffing prisoners' hands behind their backs and to their feet - to hold prisoners and detainees in the cells, says a report by Physicians for Human Rights received by Haaretz. The NPO's director-general, Tomer Pfeffer, said Wednesday that during a tour of the facilities by officers from the Israeli branch of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization, Yosef Ben Zikri, who runs the holding cells, described the method, and explained that detainees are sometimes held for hours that way, lying on their sides, on the ground. Between the Banana and a Night on the Floor Physicians for Human Rights-Israel 11/20/2003 On 21 October 2003, PHR-Israel visited the "Russian Compound" Detention Center, in Jerusalem. This is the main detention center for Jerusalem and the vicinity, and contains 332 beds for detainees. The center is divided into two sections: "criminal" (where Jewish and Arab detainees are held) and "security" (where Arab detainees are held). The PHR-Israel team was not allowed to view the security section, which is under the authority of the GSS ("Shabak" or "Shin Bet")....A full report on the visit to the Russian Compound Detention Center was compiled and is available in Hebrew. What follows here is a brief summery of the information disclosed in the report... New Orders in Barrier Enclaves: 11,400 Palestinians need permits to live in their homes B'tselem November 2003 In early October 2003, the OC Central Command ordered the area between the separation barrier in the northern section of the West Bank (Stage 1) and the Green Line a closed military area for an indefinite period of time. This area, known as the "seam area," covers a total of 96,000 dunams [4 dunams = 1 acre], or 1.7 percent of the West Bank. The area includes twelve Palestinian villages, containing 11,400 residents, and ten settlements, in which 22,000 people live. The prohibition on entering and being in the seam area without a permit from the Civil Administration, applies only to Palestinians. Israeli citizens, including settlers living in the seam area, Jews from around the world, and tourists visiting Israel are allowed to enter and stay in this area as they wish. The Route of the Separation Barrier Approved by the Cabinet and its Ramifications B'tselem 11/5/2003 875,000 Palestinians Directly Harmed by Barrier / 263,000 Palestinians imprisoned in enclaves, including 115,000 between the barrier and the Green Line -- B'Tselem has published an updated map of the separation barrier that is based on the recent Cabinet decision. B'Tselem has also prepared an analysis of the ramifications of the current route and statistics on the magnitude of the violation of Palestinian human rights that will result from construction of the barrier. Abused women clinics inaugurated in Gaza Jerusalem Times 11/19/2003 The president of the Palestinian human research and social development center in Gaza, Dr. Sufian Abu Najeileh, inaugurated recently a project involving the training of the qualified health clinic’s staff to deal with abused women who visit these clinics for medical health check up. The Project is implemented in coordination with UNRWA and in cooperation with OXFAM, Quebec. Dr. Sufian spoke during the ceremony on the idea of the project in which he pointed out that there are several cases of family violence and abuse against Palestinian women and that these women can not express their opinion on the violence they are encountering or complain, besides that the family restrictions imposed on them of not leaving the house and go out to visit specialists on this subject hindered any help the center could offer. State sends bad check to peace activist shot by IDF Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 A Defense Ministry check, sent "without any admission of liability by the State of Israel and/or the Ministry of Defense" to the family of a International Solidarity Mission volunteer shot by an Israel Defense Forces soldier, bounced when the family tried to cash it earlier this week. The ISM volunteer was rendered incapacitated as a result of the gunshot wounds sustained last April. The check for 8,370 pounds was sent to the family of Tom Hurndall, who was seriously wounded after being shot in the head by a soldier in the Rafah refugee camp. His family spent 17,000 pounds to take him home, and he has been hospitalized and connected to life-support machines ever since....the check issued by the Bank of Israel was returned after it emerged that the balance in the account did not allow payment. For Destitute Palestinian Children, Time is Running Out Palestine Chronicle 11/21/2003 Dear Readers, Supporters and Friends of Palestine: While grateful to those who opted to support our fundraising efforts: “Project Humanity: Sending Love and Relief to the Children in Palestine” (Click here for more information), we are equally disheartened by the shortage of donations collected as of today. Our goal of raising $20,000, jointly with KinderUSA (www.kinderusa.org) to aid malnourished and displaced Palestinian children, is nowhere near being met, with only $2,885 collected. Bureau of Palestinian Rights Committee welcomes Security Council's resolution endorsing 'Road Map' to solution of Israeli-Palestinian conflict ReliefWeb/UN 11/20/2003 The Bureau of the Committee on the Exercise of the InalienableRights of the Palestinian People welcomes today's unanimous adoption by the Security Council of resolution 1515 (2003), in which the Council endorsed the Quartet's performance-based Road Map to a permanent two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and called on the parties to fulfil their obligations under the Road Map in cooperation with the Quartet and to achieve the vision of two States living side by side in peace and security. Humanitarian Action Occupied Palestinian Territory - Donor Update 19 Nov 2003 ReliefWeb/UNICEF 11/19/2003 Estimated 2.4 million people affected, including 1,200,000 children and 650,000 women / Children cannot attend schools for extended periods of time due to closures, curfews and insecurity / Some 50 per cent of all children are psychosocially affected by the ongoing violence / Poverty increasing substantially: 60% of Palestinians now live on less than $2/day / UNICEF urgently requires $9 million to cover the 2003 Humanitarian Appeal

Economy..

Economy in brief - OPT Jerusalem Times 11/21/2003 PA, Israel sign energy cooperation agreements under EU auspices: The Palestinian Authority and Israel have signed an agreement aimed to regulate electricity sale and purchase agreements between Palestinian Distribution Companies and the Israeli Electricity Corporation. / US aid to the PA totaled more than $120 million in 2003: The US Agency for International Development (USAID)’s regular budget for the West Bank and Gaza was $74.5 million in fiscal year 2003, said the US State Department. The agency has requested another $75 million for fiscal year 2004. Hospital workers threaten labor sanctions Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Some 9,000 administrative and maintainence staff at state-run hospitals are planning to launch work sanctions on Sunday. If the workers go ahead with their strike, out-patient clinics, ward secretaries, receptions, dining rooms, computer laboratories and laundry services will all stop operating. The head of the national union of hospital workers' union, Batya Levy, said yesterday that the work stoppages would move from hospital to hospital every two days. Slight increase in October’s consumer price index Jerusalem Times 11/20/2003 Consumer price index (CPI) for the Palestinian areas for the month of October 2003 increased by 0.07% compared to the previous month, said the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) in its monthly report on inflation in the Palestinian areas. The index became 138.70 compared to 138.60 in September 2003.

People..

Exploring the meaning and purpose of art in war time Daily Star 11/21/2003 I hate politics,” says artist Ginane Makki Bacho with an exasperated sigh. “When I decided to really come back [to Lebanon],” she says, after a period of time in which she traveled back and forth from the States to see if she could fit back into her old life in the country she’d fled from with her family during the civil war, “I decided I’d never talk about religion or politics again.”...Her show includes a series of grainy black and white photographs, a video and an installation. On balance, the work is not overtly political, nor remotely religious. But the conceptual thrust behind it and the mental framework through which Makki Bacho has presented it tug rather insistently at the intersection of art and politics. Egyptian actor calls for refugee rights on visit to UNHCR offices in Beirut Daily Star 11/21/2003 Arab awareness about refugee issues is still rudimentary, said Egyptian actor Adel Imam, a goodwill ambassador in the Middle East and North Africa for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). Paying a visit on Thursday to the UNHCR office in Gemaizeh, Imam said that the UNHCR exists to provide an estimated 20 million people with protection. “The agency does that in several ways, using the 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention as its major tool,” Imam explained. “When I was first given this title, I thought my job would be mainly ‘honorific,’ and that I would have to deal with media representatives and dinner caterers only,” he said, “but now I know how heavy the responsibility of this title is.” Enhancing the future of Palestinian youth through Internet technology Jerusalem Times 11/20/2003 "I am planning to be a dentist," says Mais Muhannad Ghazal. "The Internet allows me to get updates on all of the new medical research." Ghazal is a 13-year-old Palestinian girl who looks to her future with anticipation. In spite of the hardships she has faced during the current political uprising, she keeps her eyes on the future. "The Internet makes it easier for me to write articles and make posters for school activities," states Ghazal. For children like Ghazal, the Internet Technology for Youth (IT4Youth) program offers a connection to the world outside of the West Bank and hope for improving their future quality of life. Technion scientists use DNA to make nano-transistors Ha'aretz 11/21/2003 Scientists at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology demonstrated for the first time how a DNA molecule can form a basic transistor. The research results, published yesterday in Science magazine, are a breakthrough in molecular electronics, a field in which scientists have been trying to harness molecules to assemble electric circuits. "We've succeeded in proving that electronics based on DNA is not fictional," said Professor Erez Braun of the Technion's physics department, under whose guidance the research was conducted. City councilors petition 'Jenin, Jenin' screenings Jerusalem Post 11/21/2003 Jerusalem city councilman David Hadari (National Religious Party) has initiated a public petition signed by more than two-thirds of city council members urging city cultural centers not to screen the movie Jenin Jenin, after a recent High Court of Justice ruling overturned a nationwide ban on the controversial film.

International..

IAEA Approves Wider Inspections For Iran Islam Online 11/21/2003 VIENNA, November 21 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog Friday, November 21, approved an additional protocol allowing wider inspections in Iran, clearing the way for Tehran to sign on to the new regime. The protocol gives the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors the right to make unannounced visits to suspect sites, even if the host country has not declared them as open to inspection. Nuclear body adjourns over Iran BBC 11/21/2003 The United Nations' nuclear watchdog has adjourned a meeting on Iran's nuclear programme as diplomats struggle to find a common position. The agency's director-general, Mohamed ElBaradei, said the board needed more time to work out its response to his latest report on the programme. Washington is calling for strong condemnation of Tehran for its failure to report its activities for 18 years. But European countries, including the UK, are taking a softer line. U.S. Rips Iran for Nuke Program 'Lies' Baltimore Sun 11/21/2003 VIENNA, Austria -- The United States assailed Iran on Friday for "lies" about its nuclear program and voiced unprecedented criticism of the U.N. atomic agency chief, suggesting he glossed over 18 years of deception that included enriching uranium and processing plutonium. "Questionable," U.S. envoy Kenneth Brill said of a section of a report from International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei, adding the agency found "no evidence" of an Iranian nuclear program. "Disingenuous," replied ElBaradei to Brill's criticism. Rights group blasts police torture in Egypt Jordan Times 11/21/2003 CAIRO (AP) — Torture and ill-treatment is systematic in Egyptian detention centres, where people continue to die in police custody, a leading human rights group said on Thursday. London-based Amnesty International said it has received information that at least seven people were allegedly tortured to death in police and state security custody in 2002. "Torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment continue to be practiced systematically in detention centres," Amnesty said in a statement faxed to the Associated Press. MENA has window of opportunity to fight HIV/AIDS Daily Star 11/21/2003 World Bank specialist: Low prevalence of disease in region provides chance to stem epidemic -- WASHINGTON: More than 20 years after its first discovery, HIV/AIDS continues to batter Africa, leaving orphans, wrecked communities and disrupted societies in its wake. Faced with the unchecked epidemic that persists, UNAIDS and the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international state of emergency last month, comparable to that of war. Yet in the midst of the seemingly inexorable flow of bad news, a voice of hope is making itself heard. World Bank: Spread of AIDS could take economic toll on Middle East Al-Bawaba 11/20/2003 The HIV/AIDS epidemic could cost the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region approximately one-third of today's gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025 according to a recently published World Bank report. With an estimated 0.3 percent of adults infected with the HIV/AIDS virus, MENA's level of infection is relatively low compared with Africa, South Asia and the Caribbean regions. The report cautions, however, that low prevalence does not mean low risk. In 2002 alone, 83,000 people were newly infected with HIV in the region and the total number of AIDS deaths has increased almost six fold since the early 1990s. Aoun Counsels Lahoud to 'Start Packing,' Christian Right Vetoes Extension American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee 11/21/2003 Gen. Aoun has advised Gen. Lahoud to "pack and leave" Baabda because he has lost the people's respect by going to Damascus "to plead for changing Lebanon's prime minister and to beg Syria for extending his presidential term." "What authority and what prestige are left for a president who goes to Syria to seek a change of the prime minister? What authority is left for a president who begs Syria to extend his term in office?" Aoun marveled in an interview published Friday by As Safir. Mubarak 'recovering from flu' Al-Jazeera 11/21/2003 Egypt's President Husni Mubarak has seen his health "stabilise" and temperature return to normal, after he curtailed his schedule due to a heavy dose of flu, a confidant has said. Samir Rajab, editor-in-chief of the government daily al-Jumhuriya, wrote the 75-year-old "Mubarak's health has completely stabilised" and both his blood pressure and temperature, at 37C degrees, were normal on Thursday. Man Was Deported After Syrian Assurances Washington Post 11/21/2003 U.S. officials said yesterday that they decided to send a Syrian-born Canadian citizen to Syria last year only after the CIA received assurances from Syria that it would not torture the man. Maher Arar, recently freed from prison, said he pleaded with U.S. authorities not to send him to Syria precisely because he believed he would be tortured. Arar has said he was tortured with cables and electrical cords during his 10-month imprisonment. Hezbollah TV taken off air Australian Jewish News THE Hezbollah-backed satellite television station Al-Manar has been pulled off air in Australia by its local supplier, pending an investigation by the Australian Broadcasting Authority. Its investigation will examine whether the Beiruit-based Al-Manar assisted in the “financing of terrorism” by soliciting donations and whether those funds were “used to facilitate or engage in a terrorist act”. Press Council 'upholds complaint' over SMH cartoon Australian Jewish News 11/20/2003 THE Australian Press Council has upheld part of a complaint relating to the publication of a cartoon in the Sydney Morning Herald which compared the Warsaw Ghetto wall with the security fence Israel is building to protect itself from terrorist attacks. Melbourne actuary Nathan Potaznik, 54, took the SMH to task, citing breaches of six of the Press Council’s nine principles. One was upheld and five were dismissed. Iran marks Jerusalem Day Middle East Online 11/21/2003 Hundreds of thousands of Iranians protested against Israel here on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, marking the Jerusalem Day initiated by the late Ayatollah Khomeini to support the Palestinians. The demonstrators, including families, ferried in to central Tehran by thousands of buses and private cars, chanted slogans against Israel, the United States and its ally Britain. U.S Envoy Says Guantanamo to Free 24 Soon The Guardian 11/21/2003 MADRID, Spain (AP) - The United States will release two dozen prisoners from Guantanamo Bay in the coming weeks, an American envoy said Friday. Pierre-Richard Prosper, the U.S ambassador-at-large for war crimes, said several dozen other prisoners will be transferred to the custody of authorities in their native countries. More than 600 prisoners are being held incommunicado at the U.S. naval base in Cuba, accused of links to al-Qaida or the former Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Some 60 former suspects have been freed and sent home. Guantanamo prisoners' fate still pending Al-Jazeera 11/20/2003 Roughly, 660 individuals identified by US authorities as unlawful combatants in the war on terrorism remain incarcerated at a military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Most of those detained have been jailed in small outdoor cells for more than 18 months, and are likely unaware of the many legal challenges filed on their behalf. The case of the Guantanamo prisoners has sparked significant controversy in the United States. Guantanamo Bay translator pleads innocent to charges US Today 11/20/2003 WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — A former Guantanamo Bay translator arrested with classified documents in his luggage pleaded innocent Thursday in a brief appearance in federal court. Ahmed Fathy Mehalba, who has been in federal custody since his arrest Sept. 29 at Logan International Airport, was charged in a Nov. 12 indictment with gathering, transmitting or losing defense information and making false statements. US hawk admits Iraq war 'illegal' Al-Jazeera 11/21/2003 A Pentagon official widely regarded as the key ideological driving force behind President George Bush's foreign policy has admitted the US-led invasion of Iraq is illegal. Richard Perle, a senior adviser to the US defence secretary, said the US had broken international law, blaming French reluctance to attack Iraq for leaving Washington with "no practical mechanism consistent with the rules of the UN for dealing with Saddam Hussein". "I think in this case international law stood in the way of doing the right thing," said Perle in London in comments published by the British media on Thursday.

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