Wednesday, August 22

Today in Palestine! ~ Headlines August 22, 2007 ~

Brought to you by Shadi Fadda
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Israel kills 12 Gazans, including two children, in 24 hours
The Israeli Occupation Force (IOF) has escalated its aggression in the Gaza Strip. Twelve Palestinians, including two minors, were killed in Gaza in the past 24 hours. In addition, the Israel's Naval Forces opened fire at fishermen and arrested eight of them in the town of Rafah today.

Israeli army demolishes home in Salfit
The Israeli army demolished an unfinished house belonging to Palestinian civilian from Qarrawa Bani Hassan village to the west of Salfit in the West Bank, on Wednesday morning, claiming that the man was not in possession of a valid construction license.

Senior Hamas commander killed in Gaza
Field commander in northern Gaza killed in IDF strike against group of gunmen advancing towards border. Qassam rocket hits factory near Sderot shortly after operation.

Palestinian Security forces kidnap 9 Hamas members
Palestinian Security forces of Fatah kidnapped 9 Hamas members from different parts of the West Bank on Wednesday morning.

26 Palestinians arrested near Jerusalem
Israeli sources said on Wednesday that 36 Palestinians were arrested between Jerusalem and Mode'en. Israeli military sources claimed they were throw stones and rockets at Israeli cars.

Israeli army kidnaps 8 Palestinian fishermen

The Israeli army abducted 8 Palestinian fishermen on Wednesday morning from the Rafah Sea.  Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli gun boats, reinforced by Israeli aircrafts, besieged the fishermen and opened fire at them. The kidnapped fishermen were identified as Abed Al Rahman Al Qen, 14, Iyad Abu Slemah, 14, Mohammad Farahat, 16, Yousif Al Najjar, 17, Ali Al Najar, 17, Kamel Abu Odeh, 48, Kalil Abu Odeh, 18, and Ahmad Al Najjar, 22. The army also destroyed 15 fishing boats and attacked a house near Rafah beach. No injuries were reported.

Soldiers kidnap two residents though their names were dropped from its "wanted list"

Human Rights sources in the occupied city of Hebron, in the southern part of the West Bank, reported on Tuesday that Israeli soldiers kidnapped two Palestinians who were wanted by the Israeli security and their names were among 250 Palestinians which Israel claimed it dropped them from their wanted list following an agreement with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas.

Abbas claims IDF action in Gaza jeopardizes the peace process
Israel's intensified operations in the Gaza Strip pose doubt in the country's desire to make peace with the Palestinians, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas claimed on Wednesday afternoon, Israel Radio reported.

Abbas aide: Israel won't discuss core issues preventing PA state
PLO Executive Committee member Yasser Abed Rabbo told the Arabic-language paper Al-Quds Al-Arabi that no negotiations are currently taking place between Israel and the Palestinian Authority on core issues standing in the way of the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Islamic-Christian front: "Israel is still carrying attacks against the Al Aqsa Mosque"
Dr. Hasan Khater, general-coordinator of the for the Islamic-Christian Front for Defending Jerusalem, stated on Tuesday, in an event commemorating the 38th anniversary of  burning the Al Aqsa mosque by a fundamental Jew, that the mosque is still endangered and isolated by Walls installed by Israel.

Israeli forces bulldoze house
Nablus - Ma'an - Israeli forces demolished the home of a Palestinian man near Salfit on Wednesday. Mahmoud Assi's house in Qarawat Bani Hassan, north of the city of Salfit, was built 15 years ago.   Eyewitnesses said a huge contingent of Israeli forces arrived in the town at dawn and ordered the occupants of the house to leave. They then used a bulldozer to demolish it.


Israeli court to rule on wounded Gaza girl's fate
The fate of a young Palestinian girl, left a quadriplegic after she was hit by shrapnel from an Israeli missile, rests in the hands of Israel's Supreme Court.

Gaza's public workers paid to stay home
Such is the irony of life in the Gaza Strip now that Hamas militants are firmly in charge. A rival pro-Western government in the West Bank is delivering salaries to most of Gaza's civil servants as long as they don't work.

Former Israeli official proposes PA thwart Hamas by giving welfare
The Palestinian Authority must establish a strong welfare system in the West Bank to win elections and gain more support than Hamas, according to a plan formulated by a former senior Israeli official.

Hamas refashions its militancy
There was a time when the killing of six Hamas gunmen, which Israel said it did Monday in an airstrike on the Gaza Strip, would have propelled the Islamic militants to unleash a barrage of rockets into southern Israel. But despite angry vows of revenge, Hamas continued to uphold Tuesday an undeclared policy, established after its takeover of Gaza in June, of limiting rocket attacks on Israel. At a time when Hamas is trying to consolidate power and show the world it can rule.

Press fury at Gaza blackout
Papers in the Middle East express outrage at the cuts in the electricity supply to the Gaza Strip, caused by an EU decision to stop paying for fuel for power generation. A Jordanian daily calls the EU move a "flagrant violation" of human rights, while an Iranian paper brands it a shameful "dirty step". Two Palestinian papers take a more resigned attitude, describing a sad and bleak situation in which people are patiently coping. 


Entry Visas Refused
The British Government, in a decision apparently taken at a senior level, have refused entry visas to the entire team. Although they will not provide reasons in writing, they say the decision was taken because the economic situation in Gaza, where the majority of the team are based, is so bad that they do not believe that the Palestinians will return home again. They deny taking the decision for any politically motivated reason, although they did say at one point that it was because the Israelis would not allow them to return - and so would create a refugee issue, but they have since denied this. PDF Leaflet

Fair Play for the Palestinians - Kick Israeli Apartheid Out of Football
On September 8th, England is due to play Israel in a return UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier at the new Wembley Stadium. The PSC, with the support of the BIG and J-BIG campaigns, the Scottish PSC and Friends of Al Aqsa, will hold a vigil by Wembley stadium on the 8th of September.

Peaceful demonstration against confiscation of Palestinian land by Israel near Ramallah
A peaceful demonstration against land confiscation took place on Wednesday, in an area north of Ramallah in the northern West Bank.

FEATURE-Rival Gaza children's camps mix fun with politics
Summer camp for the Palestinian children of the Gaza Strip isn't all swimming and soccer.   At a beachside camp run by the Islamist movement Hamas, youngsters race into the sea carrying the green flags of the group, which took over the territory in a civil war against the Fatah group of President Mahmoud Abbas two months ago.

Muslim movement offers alternative to Hamas
The bearded young Muslims strode in silence until we reached the threshold of a nondescript mosque in this middle-class town on the edge of Ramallah. "Now we'll see if we can convert you," he said with a sudden smile.


A 'better' West Bank faces roadblocks
International efforts are under way to inject new life into the Palestinian economy in the West Bank, something Israel hopes will contrast life under the Fatah government with life under Hamas rule.

Bush could have given Fatah that kiss of death
Ever since the takeover of Gaza two months ago by Palestinian resistance faction Hamas, Washington and its allies have steadfastly supported the rival Fatah movement headed by Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas. But public support for Fatah, which has come to be seen by many as a stooge of Washington and Tel Aviv, has dropped off markedly. "Popular support for Abbas and his Fatah party has fallen for several reasons," Essam al-Arian, a leading member of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood movement told IPS. "For one, Abbas seems prepared to give Israel all the concessions it wants without getting anything in return."

The king's pardon

Throughout history there has been a misconception concerning the true nature and influence of power. Many of us recognize correctly that power comes from strength, but where we fail to capture it is in the recognition of its ultimate use. To most of us, power -- especially within the context of occupation -- is determined by one's ability to inflict violence unilaterally and with impunity. However, this is wrong. Power, in its ultimate and perhaps most abusive form, is the ability to pardon. Anyone can kill but only the king can pardon -- the acceptance of which by the pardoned is the recognition of the king and his power.


'
US pushing Israel to attack Syria'
The paper said that recent moves made by the US including supplying Israel with weapons and agreeing to a $30 billion aid-package are methods the country was implementing to push the Jewish state to wage war on Damascus.

OPT: Life-saving medicine - The bird of mercy never dies
In the middle of Gaza stands the statue of a giant bird. A local legend says the bird rises to life again from its ashes soon after its death. While legends rarely come true, the shipment of medical supplies ANERA was able to send into Gaza in late June went a long way toward restoring life to Palestinians who needed care but were unable to leave and seek treatment abroad.

Meanwhile in Iraq
 (Detailed up to date news from Iraq)


Meanwhile in Amreeka   (Select news items)

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