Monday 27 June 2011

Today in Palestine! ~ Sunday, 26 May 2011

Land, property, resources theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Apartheid

Foundation: Israel razes Muslim gravestones

JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 26 June -- Israeli authorities bulldozed over 100 gravestones in a 12th-century Muslim cemetery in Jerusalem overnight Saturday, the Al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and Heritage said. The foundation said three bulldozers, two trucks and around 20 workers entered the historic Mamilla (Ma'man Allah) cemetery at 11 p.m. and destroyed over 100 gravestones, loading rubble from the gravestones into a truck ... In 2009, Israel disinterred over 1,500 graves in the historic cemetery to build a Museum of Tolerance on the historic site, funded by the US Simon Wiesenthal Center ... Prophet Muhammad's companions, numerous Sufi saints, jurists and Palestinian dignitaries are said to be buried at the site.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=399932

Hamas calls for urgent moves to save Ma'manullah cemetery

DAMASCUS (PIC) 26 June -- Hamas strongly condemned the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) on Sunday for its continued destruction of the ancient Islamic Ma'manullah cemetery west of Jerusalem. It said in a press release that the IOA was trying to wipe out the cemetery’s Islamic history through building on its ruins museums and other settlement projects, describing the IOA act as 'racist' and a blatant violation of heavenly religions and international norms.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b

Jerusalem's parliamentarians - Fact sheet

MEMO 26 June -- Palestinian Parliament members Detained at the Red Cross in Jerusalem *On July 1st 2010 four democratically elected members of the Palestinian Legislative Council sought refuge in the compound of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Jerusalem. *Muhammed Abu Teir, Ahmad Attoun, Muhammed Totah and Khaled Abu Arafeh (former Palestinian Authority Minister of Jerusalem Affairs) were elected in 2006, but like many others elected officials were subsequently imprisoned ... *In June 2010 the four PLC members were served with expulsion orders for disloyalty to the Israeli state and had their East Jerusalem residency permits revoked....http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/resources/fact-sheets/2519-jerusalems-parliamentarians-fact-sheet

IOA imposes heavy fine on Jerusalemite for unlicensed building

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (PIC) 26 June-- The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) imposed 150,000 dollars fine on the Jerusalemite citizen Fayez Abu Diyab for building without permit in Silwan town, south of the Aqsa mosque in occupied Jerusalem. Abu Diyab said that the house was built back in 1997 and since then the family has been trying to obtain a license but was always faced with fresh demands despite meeting all requirements ... The man’s wife feared worse demands in the future in light of the IOA practices. She said, "They don’t allow us to build and if we apply for a construction permit they reject it. We know that they want to evict all Arabs from Jerusalem especially in Silwan and its Bustan suburb in particular. But we will remain in our homes despite all arbitrary measures and despite the heavy fine."http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%

Activism / Solidarity

We will not be uprooted -- tree planting in Fasayel

JVS 26 June -- Today local and international activists joined families affected by last week’s demolitions in the Palestinian community of Fasayel in the occupied Jordan Valley as they planted 300 olive trees on their land ... The group planted olive trees for nearly 3 hours, putting down new roots in defiance of Israel’s brutal attempts to ethnically cleanse the village. Many of the trees were labeled with the names of Palestinian villages destroyed during the 1967 occupation, a symbolic act meant to connect the history of ethnic cleansing in Palestine to the ethnic cleansing taking place today in Fasayel. On June 14, 2011, the Israeli army destroyed the homes of 18 families in the village of Fasayel. The families have been without shelter for over a week now, and have still received no meaningful aid. http://www.jordanvalleysolidarity.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=295

The most important Jewish anti-occupation group needs your support / Noam Sheizaf

972mag 26 June -- Facing mounting legal costs, Anarchists against the Wall have issued an urgent plea for donations. This is why I think we should support them ... The name of the group might be misleading. AATW are not like similarly named groups in the West. Their main interest is not capitalism or environment, but the occupation. It is a position that assumes real responsibility for their identity as Israelis, and does not shy away from the difficult political reality in which the group operates, in favor of more abstract ideals. Unlike other organizations working in the West Bank, AATW is not backed by any fund, political party or institution. While there were Jewish groups that supported the Palestinian cause in the past, AATW were the first to actually join the unarmed protest in the West Bank villages and towns.
http://972mag.com/the-most-important-jewish-anti-occupation-group-needs-your-support/


Settlers

Hebron: 11 settlers armed with knives, stones attack Palestinian shepherds in South Hebron Hills

AIC 26 June -- Around 10 am on Saturday 25 June, Palestinian shepherds were grazing their sheep and goats in the Meshakha Valley when they were attacked by 11 settlers who came over the hill from the nearby illegal outpost of Havat Ma’on, armed with stones and knives. Some of the settlers were masked as they ran toward the shepherds throwing stones, yelling blasphemies against Islam and stating that internationals were now not present to protect them. According to Shaady from Maghayr al Abeed, a settler attacked his donkey with a knife, and when he attempted to stop the attacker and protect his donkey, he was then hit by stones in the back and torso. Blows that took his breath away. Shaady has a huge welt on his back and bruising as a result of the attack. Sheep and goats were also pummeled with rocks and the shepherds were forced to run to protect their flock. The shepherds were chased for several hundred meters. According to the Palestinian shepherds the soldiers saw the incident and refused to get involved. After the attack, Israeli soldiers were seen greeting and shaking hands with the settlers as they walked back into the trees of the outpost of Havat Ma’on. http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/hebron/3685-11-settlers-armed-with-knives-stones-attack-palestinian-shepherds-in-south-hebron-hills-

Israeli police, settlers dance together through Hebron streets

AIC 26 June -- On Thursday 23 June, Israeli police officers and settlers danced with a Torah through the streets of Hebron to commemorate the one year anniversary of the killing of an Israeli police officer south of the nearby settlement of Kiryat Arba. According to the settler-affiliated Arutz 7 news site, this event was a joint initiative of the Israeli police and the Jewish settlers in Hebron. The commemoration began at the Ibrahimi Mosque (Cave of the Patriarchs), the site of Baruch Goldstein’s horrific 1994 massacre, in which the Kiryat Arba settler killed 29 Palestinians praying in the mosque and wounded another 125. From here the police officers and settlers danced through the streets to the police station in Kiryat Arba.http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/hebron/3686-israeli-police-settlers-dance-together-through-hebron-streets-

Peace Now : Pardon Golani soldiers

Ynet 26 June -- Leftist group says troops who were photographed with provocative T-shirts were victims of rightist ploy ... "The Defense Ministry and the IDF must cut all ties with the Shomron Settlers' Committee, investigate the incident and examine the possibility of pursuing criminal proceedings against the citizens who took part in the scheme," [Oppenheimer of Peace Now] said. "Meanwhile, the soldiers who expressed regret and claimed they were deceived by the settlers should be pardoned."http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4087479,00.html

Gaza

2 injured in explosions in Gaza Strip

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 26 June -- A man and a child were injured Sunday in two explosions in the Gaza Strip, witnesses said. A child sustained critical injuries when an ordnance exploded in his hands while he was playing outside his home near Khan Younis refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip, locals said.
Meanwhile a man was injured in the early hours of Sunday morning in blast near Ansar security compound west of Gaza City. He was taken to the Ash-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Locals reported hearing a huge explosion in the area.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=399863

Limited goods to enter blockaded Gaza Strip

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 26 June -- Liaison officer Raed Fattouh told Ma‘an that Israeli officials decided to allow around 250 truckloads of supplies into Gaza through the southernmost Kerem Shalom crossing [Sunday].http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=399838

Flotilla

Gaza flotilla to set sail Tuesday

Ynet 26 June -- Significantly smaller fleet to set sail to Strip from Greece. Jerusalem believes flotilla will include only 10 vessels, 500 people ... Jerusalem believes that the reduced scope of the convoy can be attributed to the Foreign Ministry's intensive "anti-flotilla" campaign vis-à-vis its European counterparts. Saturday saw the first vessel – a French ship – leave from Corsica carrying six people.http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4087062,00.html

Israel warns journalists against covering the flotilla / Joseph Dana

972mag 26 June -- Athens -- The Israeli government has announced today that Israel will not differentiate between journalists and passengers on board any ship taking part in the Gaza flotilla. The Israeli government press office announced in a statement this morning that "is a dangerous provocation that is being organized by western and Islamic extremist elements to aid Hamas." Journalists from CBS, CNN, The New York Times, Democracy Now and The Nation (I am on assignment for the Nation) will be on board the US boat to Gaza, set to sail later this week from Greece. Previously, Israel warned activists on board the boat that they will be subject to a ten year ban from the State of Israel if the boats are intercepted by the state of Israel. In a bold statement, the government of Israel has now extended the same warning to the press wishing to cover the flotilla. It has also stated that equipment will be impounded and additional fines could be levied against any journalists on board. Israel has said that it will ‘embed’ members of the press on Israeli navy ships sent to intercept the boats. Army commandos are also being equipped with advanced recording devices to film any raids that take place aboard the flotilla ships. Israel has not released any footage collected by activists– it has confiscated all footage and has subsequently ‘lost’ all of the footage collected– on last year’s flotilla.http://972mag.com/israel-warns-journalists-from-covering-the-flotilla/

Ireland FM warns Israel against violent interception of Gaza flotilla

Haaretz 26 June -- Eamon Gilmore reiterates Ireland’s position that Gaza blockade is ‘unjust and counterproductive’ but does not advise Irish nationals to join the flotilla, which includes the Irish boat MV Saoirse ....Some 25 Irish participants, including former and current members of parliament and the European parliament, trade union leaders and former Irish rugby international player Trevor Hogan are among the passengers expected to set sail on the Saoirse.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/ireland-fm-warns-israel-against-violent-interception-of-gaza-flotilla-1.369721


American Indian Movement activist joins Gaza Freedom Flotilla / Brenda Norrell

Narcosphere 26 June -- The American Indian Movement and the Free Palestine Movement announced that Bill 'Jimbo' Simmons will be a member of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla Delegation. Tony Gonzales of AIM-WEST in San Francisco said Sunday that Simmons, Choctaw, joins the flotilla in solidarity to break the blockade.http://narcosphere.narconews.com/notebook/brenda-norrell/2011/06/american-indian-movement-activist-joins-gaza-freedom-flotilla

Frivolous lawsuit filed against Alternatives International for its support of Freedom Flotilla

AI 26 June -- A complaint has been filed in the Superior Court of Ontario (Canada) against Alternatives International by Ms Cherna Rosenberg on June 2nd, 2011, concerning our support to the Canadian Boat to Gaza where she claims over a million dollars in damages. The claim alleges that the actions of Alternatives International «are a step in the chain of conduct that ultimately leads to the rocket attacks that have traumatized the Plaintiff and caused her much suffering and loss». It matters to recall what is the project. Freedom Flotilla-II, named "Stay Human," includes one Canadian boat named Tahrir.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/news/3684-frivolous-lawsuit-filed-against-alternatives-international-for-its-support-of-freedom-flotilla-

Fear and no clean clothing / Amira Hass

Haaretz 26 June -- Social activist Stephan Corriveau warned all of us due to set sail on the Canadian ship dubbed the Tahrir - one of the boats participating in the upcoming Gaza flotilla - that we would have no opportunity to bathe during the three-day journey to Gaza but would have drinking water. There was no point in bringing a change of clothes, the Montreal-based Corriveau noted, because there would be nowhere to change, encouraging us to take as little as possible. In the best case scenario, we will make it to Gaza and can buy some clothing there, he said. http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/fear-and-no-clean-clothing-haaretz-reporter-preparing-to-sail-for-gaza-1.369611

MEP joining flotilla tells EI Eu's honest broker image 'a sham

EI 26 June -- ...
DC: On the eve of your departure to join the flotilla, you gave a speech in Brussels accusing the European Union of being complicit in Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people (“Video: EU must end complicity in Palestinian oppression,” 22 June 2011). Why did you make that accusation?
PM: It is a sham that the EU pretends to be an honest broker and sometimes pretends to be a friend of the Palestinians. What I highlighted in the Parliament is that probably the grossest example of complicity is that Israeli arms companies are recipients of EU funding under its scientific research program. These are companies like Elbit and Israel Aerospace Industries that make the drones used against Gaza in 2008 and 2009 and make surveillance equipment for the wall in the West Bank.http://electronicintifada.net/content/mep-joining-flotilla-tells-ei-eus-honest-broker-image-sham/10111

Detention

3 Palestinian teens arrested by Israeli army in Hebron

West Bank (Pal Telegraph) 26 June -- Three Palestinian teens were arrested Sunday by Israeli army from al-Uroob refugee camp and Sa‘eer in southern West Bank city of Hebron. Israeli army sent the three Palestinian teens to unknown destinations.
Local sources said that a number of Israeli forces accompanied by officers wearing civilian clothes invaded Yasouf town in the east of Salfit and started taking photos of various sites in the area, causing a state of tension among residents in fear of further Israeli attacks and escalations.
Moreover, Israeli military troops broke into several houses and neighborhoods in Nablus in the north of the West Bank, claiming that they are searching for wanted people.
http://www.paltelegraph.com/palestine/west-bank/9505-3-palestinian-teens-arrested-by-israeli-army-in-hebron.html

Hamas prisoners to go on hunger strike after Israel places top officials in isolation

Haaretz 26 June -- Palestinian prisoners to protest transfer of at least seven senior Hamas officials to solitary confinement, one of which suffers from serious health problems, according to Hamas.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/hamas-prisoners-to-go-on-hunger-strike-after-israel-places-top-officials-in-isolation-1.369724


A society is judged by the way it treats its prisoners / Gideon Levy
Haaretz 26 June -- ...Some of the Palestinians are political prisoners in every sense of the word; they were convicted of "membership" and other political offenses. Most were convicted by the military court system, whose connection to justice is like a military band's to music. Among them are victims of frame-ups by collaborators - they have been jailed without committing a crime. These are not "thousands of murderers." In any case, they all have rights according to Israeli and international law, rights they do not always receive. Some, especially those from the Gaza Strip, have not received family visits for years. And of course, there are no prison furloughs for Palestinians. Israeli Arab lifers do not even get their sentences reduced, the way any Jewish murderer does, which is scandalous in itself.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/a-society-is-judged-by-the-way-it-treats-its-prisoners-1.369635


Analysts: Shalit compared to 6,000 Palestinian prisoners

JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 26 June -- ...Speaking to Ma'ariv, Israel's prison commander Aharon Franco said the prison service had studied the conditions of Palestinian detainees. Franco said media reports that Palestinian prisoners were living in hotel-like conditions were exaggerated. He added that it was possible to arrange dishes served to 10 prisoners to look like a restaurant, but that in reality each detainee had a space of two square meters to spend days and nights. The commander said prisons in Israel were no different from those in most countries.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=399904

Racism / Discrimination

Arabs make up only 2.7% of academic teaching staff in Israel

Haaretz 26 June -- Despite government target of 10% Arab employees in Israel’s public sector by 2012, figures presented to Knesset by Council for Higher Education show only 2.7% of teaching staff, 1.7% of administrative staff at colleges and universities are Israeli Arabs.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/arabs-make-up-only-2-7-of-academic-teaching-staff-in-israel-1.369723


Political / Diplomatic / International news

Fatah: Hamas prevented official from leaving Gaza

RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 26 June -- Hamas security forces stopped senior Fatah official Amal Hamad from leaving the Gaza Strip, a Fatah spokesman said Sunday ... The deputy secretary-general of Fatah's Revolutionary Council planned to travel via Israel to the West Bank. Al-Jaghoub said the move threatened the "positive atmosphere we have been trying to maintain recently." Hamas and Fatah signed a reconciliation agreement in May after years of hostility.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=399976

Israel may halt flights to Denmark over security row

Haaretz 26 June -- Israel is considering halting all flights from Copenhagen to Tel Aviv, Haaretz learned on Sunday, as a response to Denmark's refusal to allow Israeli security personnel to perform independent security checks in Copenhagen for Israel's Arkia Airlines' newly launched Copenhagen-Tel Aviv route. After a meeting between Israeli and Danish officials over the weekend, it became evident that Denmark is unwilling to allow Israeli personnel to perform security checks on passengers traveling from Copenhagen to Ben Gurion Airport. Moreover, Denmark is also opposed to the Israeli security guards holding weapons in Copenhagen Airport.http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-may-halt-flights-to-denmark-over-security-row-1.369714

Other news

Tel Aviv buses 'go religious'

Ynet 26 June -- Religious status quo undermined: The new transportation reform in central Israel, to go into effect July 1, will mean that buses that up until now were allowed to travel shortly before the Shabbat ends will no longer be able to do so.http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4086975,00.html

Analysis / Opinion

West Bank struggles without security / Hugh Naylor

ABU DIS, WEST BANK (National) 25 June -- Communities along Israel's separation barrier have complained of an increase in crime and tribal-based violence in the absence of state security ... Israeli police no longer patrol the neighbourhoods of Abu Dis and Sawahera, as they did before the barrier was built six years ago, severing tens of thousands of Palestinians from their families and businesses in nearby East Jerusalem ... Mr Bader and others said the purported increase in crime and violence stems from dysfunctional security arrangements left over from the nearly two-decades-old Israel-Palestinian peace process, known as the Oslo Accords ... Palestinian officials complain that Israel not only shirks its responsibilities in West Bank Palestinian areas where it ultimately controls security, such as Abu Dis, but also regularly prevents Palestinian law enforcement from doing its job.http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/west-bank-struggles-without-security

The racist Facebook rants of Netanyahu's son / Noam Sheizaf

972mag 24 June -- Haaretz’s Uri Blau uncovered today racist comments and extreme right-wing rhetoric on Yair Netanyahu’s Facebook page. Yair, the eldest son of PM Netanyahu, is currently in mandatory IDF service, in the army’s spokesperson unit. He called for the boycott of Arab businesses (he was even the admin of a Facebook group for that, but only 23 members joined him), made racist comments about Muslims and Arabs, and expressed fierce opposition to a Palestinian state ... About two years ago, aides to Netanyahu also told the press not to think much of other racist comments about Arabs, made in an interview to Maariv by the PM’s father, 99 year-old Ben-Zion Netanyahu.http://www.uruknet.info/?new=78937

What's really going on at the Israeli Institute for Biological Reseach? / Saleh El-Naami
Exposing Israel's Most Dangerous Secret -- 24 June -- ...The IIBR is staffed by some 300 scientists and technicians employed in one or more of its many departments, each of which specialises in a specific area of chemical or biological research generally aimed at the production of chemical or biological weaponry. One of these departments, for example, is reported to have developed the poison that was used by the notorious Mossad assassination unit, Kidon, in its botched attempt to eliminate Hamas politburo chief Khaled Meshaal in 1997. Nevertheless, if there remains some question over the accuracy of this information, which was reported in Haaretz, no one disputes that the first time the institute's products were used in an assassination operation was in late 1977 when then prime minister Menachem Begin ordered Mossad to eliminate Wadie Haddad.http://www.uruknet.info/?new=78931
-- www.TheHeadlines.org

River to Sea Uprooted Palestinian

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