Arab Israelis protest for right to live in dignity in "homeland"

Peace talks off if UN adopts Gaza report: Israel

"Protecting Palestine"

People in Paris demonstrate in support of Gaza after South African judge Goldstone issued his critical report of Israel

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM/ Araba (Agencies)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Thursday the United Nations would deal a "fatal blow" to prospects for peace if it endorsed a report critical of Tel Aviv's 22-day assault on Gaza as Arab Israelis staged a general strike to protest for the right to live in dignity in their "homeland."

Israel has been stepping up public attacks on the report into its air, land and sea attack on the Gaza Strip -- calling it unbalanced and one-sided -- before a meeting on Friday by the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council.

" Advancing the so-called Goldstone report will deal a fatal blow to the peace process. Israel will not be able to take further steps and take risks for peace if it is denied the right of self-defense " Israeli PM "Advancing the so-called Goldstone report will deal a fatal blow to the peace process," Netanyahu said at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting. "Israel will not be able to take further steps and take risks for peace if it is denied the right of self-defense," he said, echoing comments he made last week at the U.N. General Assembly. Formal negotiations on Palestinian statehood have been suspended since the Gaza conflict. Richard Goldstone, a former U.N. war crimes prosecutor who led the U.N. inquiry, urged on Tuesday the 47-member state Human Rights Council to adopt the report which found that the Israeli military and Palestinian militants committed war crimes. Adoption of the report would mean it is referred to the U.N. Security Council for further action. Goldstone has urged the Security Council to bring the allegations to the International Criminal Court in The Hague if either Israel or Palestinian authorities failed to investigate and prosecute those suspected of such crimes within six months.

" The government is run by gangsters, not statesmen " Palestinian woman Israel claims it launched the deadly Gaza assault with the declared aim of halting cross-border rocket attacks by Palestinian fighters. More than 1,400 Palestinians and thirteen Israelis, mostly soldiers, were killed in the war. In a briefing to reporters after the Israeli cabinet met, Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said Netanyahu's government was discussing the possibility of setting up an independent commission to look into the military's conduct of the Gaza war. Netanyahu’s comments came even amid reports of continuing human rights violations in Gaza as Physicians for Human Rights-Israel released a report showing that Israeli security service’s slowness in responding to requests by Palestinians seeking medical leave from Gaza caused more than one-third of applicants to miss their medical appointments this year.

"Protecting Palestine" Arab Israelis protest against racist Israeli treatment Meanwhile in other Israeli news Arab Israelis staged a general strike on Thursday to protest "racist" policies and to mark the ninth anniversary of demonstrations at which police killed 13 Arabs. The strike culminated in a rally in the northern Israel village of Araba, where thousands of people chanted "with our blood, with our souls, we will protect you Palestine." A woman carried a picture of her young son who died in October 2000 when Israeli police killed 13 Arab Israelis who took part in protests that broke out days after the Palestinian uprising, or intifada, started. "The government is run by gangsters, not statesmen," the 58-year-old said. Stores, schools and other establishments were shuttered in predominantly Arab communities, including the Biblical city of Nazareth, and media reports said the strike was followed by about 90 percent of the Arab Israeli population.

" In recent months, there has been a parallel situation of racist policies in parliament and greater condoning of violence towards Arab citizens by the police and courts " Jafar Farah Organizers said the strike was called "to protest the continuation and escalation of racism and incitement against Arabs" and in defense of Arab citizens' "right to exist and live in dignity in their historic homeland." "In recent months, there has been a parallel situation of racist policies in parliament and greater condoning of violence towards Arab citizens by the police and courts," said Jafar Farah, who heads Mossawa, an Arab-Israeli advocacy group. "This attitude is feeding down to the streets," he said.