Land Theft and Destruction
'Settlers uproot trees, police take no notice'
Palestinian farmer from Ramallah area claims his crops have been vandalized some 100 times, directs blame at settlers from nearby outpost who escape unpunished. Civil Administration says inquiry underway
http://www.ynetnews.com/
"Eyewitness Jerusalem II: Fighting Home Demolitions and Evictions in the Courtroom"
As Palestinians continue to face the threat of home demolition and eviction in East Jerusalem neighborhoods, The Palestine Center’s Yousef Munayyer sat down for an interview with Hatem Abo Ahmad, an attorney for several families in Jerusalem fighting eviction and demolition orders. Recently, in part one of Eyewitness Jerusalem, we conducted an interview with two of Mr. Abo Ahmad’s clients, Sharihan al-Hanoun and Nasser al-Ghawi, who were evicted from their homes in the Shiekh Jarrah neighborhood on 2 August 2009. In this second part, we explore the challenges of defending Palestinians in the Israeli legal system.
http://www.thejerusalemfund.
Activism/Solidarity/Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment
Two Ramallah villages protest settlements
Ramallah – Ma’an – Dozens of Palestinians rallied in the villages of Deir Nidham and An-Nabi Salih near Ramallah on Tuesday, protesting the expansion of Israeli settlements and confiscation of land by Israel.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Bilin activist: "Words are not enough"
I started my life in jail at 17, during the first intifada, a popular uprising amongst ordinary Palestinians. It was not the first time I participated in nonviolent resistance. I have always believed that this is the way to end the occupation. But as the intifada clearly showed, the Israeli military does not understand let alone sympathize with such methods. Iyad Burnat's story as told to The Electronic Intifada contributor Jody McIntyre.
http://electronicintifada.net/
Join Howard Zinn, Richard Falk and others in helping to save Flashpoints
Flashpoints, a daily, national investigative news magazine based out of KPFA in Berkeley, California, is in danger of ending. Run by Dennis Bernstein, Miguel Molina and Nora Barrows-Friedman, the show has been an essential source for reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Just recently we mentioned them as being the only national outlet to run Ali Abunimah’s speech from the Hampshire BDS conference. It seems the show is in danger due to cutbacks at KPFA, which may be politically motivated. Ironically, Flashpoints’s work is so valuable that it had just been awarded a lifetime achievement award from Project Censored and the Media Freedom Foundation.
http://mondoweiss.net/2009/12/
Labor for Palestine: Open Letter from U.S. Trade Unionists to AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka
http://palestineconference.
Ahava, Covent Garden, Shut Down by Boycott Israel Campaigners
UK Indymedia - We arrived at about 11.30am, and two activists locked themselves to a concrete block. They were there until 4.40pm, when the police cutting teams removed them, and they were arrested. We hope they will be charged with `aggravated trespass`, so the lawyers can expose Ahava`s activities. Unfortunately, Ahava knows this, so it`s unlikely it will get to court.
http://www.kibush.co.il/show_
23 Palestinian Youth Learn Empowerment and Creative Resistance through Art
People examining paintings done by the workshop participants during the graduation ceremony in Hebron on 12 December.This past Saturday, 12 December, the Alternative Information Center (AIC) conducted the graduation ceremony for its second series of art empowerment training workshops, conducted weekly throughout the second half of 2009 in the West Bank city of Hebron. Twenty-three Palestinians, of whom 21 were women, completed the art training workshops, which provided participants with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed for employing art as a tool for creative resistance and personal and community expression.
http://www.alternativenews.
Why I Am Going To Gaza for New Year’s
Almost a year ago, on the celebration of Martin Luther King’s birth and just as the Israeli military assault on Gaza was coming to a close, I wrote a piece titled, Israel in Gaza: A Time Comes When Silence is Betrayal. In that piece I spoke of the role of American Jews and of Americans in remaining silent in the face of horrendous human rights violations perpetrated on Palestinians. I acknowledged that: “For too long, and I do not exempt myself, most of us have stood silently by or made only a marginal protests about the massive violations of Palestinian rights carried out by Israel.” I pointed out that for “as long as this silence continues so will the U.S. billions in aid and arms that facilitates the killings of Palestinians.”
http://mondoweiss.net/2009/12/
100 International Students to Participate in International Delegation Gaza Freedom March
http://www.paltelegraph.com/
Detainees
Report: Prisoner going blind as Israel refuses treatment
Gaza – Ma’an – The People's Movement for Prisoners and Palestinian Rights demanded that the Israel Prison Service (IPS) allow a Palestinian detainee, held at Nafha prison, undergo treatment for his deteriorating health, a statement said Tuesday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
West Bank: IOF Detain 15 Palestinians Overnight
West Bank, December 15, 2009 (Pal Telegraph) -The Israeli occupation forces jailed 15 Palestinians in raids at dawn, in Jenin, Qalqilia and Bethlehem in West Bank .Local sources demonstrated that yesrerday Israeli forces overran small town in Qalqilia governorate and detained nine youngmen.
http://www.paltelegraph.com/
Detention of young children up 64%
DCI-Palestine continues to be deeply concerned at the high number of young children (12-15 years) in Israeli detention facilities.
http://www.dci-pal.org/
Israeli court bars Gazans from jail visits
JERUSALEM — Israel's Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a government decision that bars Gaza Strip residents visiting relatives in Israeli jails, saying this is not a "basic humanitarian need." Israel, which holds thousands of Palestinians in its prisons, has barred all travel from Gaza to Israel, except for humanitarian cases, since the Islamist group Hamas seized control of the coastal strip in June 2007.
http://www.google.com/
Arabs in the Service of Israel
Official: Egypt launches anti-tunnel sweep
Al-Arish – Ma’an – Egyptian security forces launched a campaign to shut down smuggling tunnels along the border with the Gaza Strip, a security official said on Tuesday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Fifth PA battalion to be deployed
A fifth battalion of Palestinian security forces, trained in Jordan under United States sponsorship, will return to the West Bank next week to beef up Palestinian Authority forces in cracking down on Hamas infrastructure in the territories. IDF sources confirmed that the battalion, which had been training for four months in Jordan, was scheduled to return to the West Bank next week ahead of Christmas. After the battalion returns, another battalion - consisting of several hundred security officers - will leave for training in Jordan in January. The sources said it was not yet known which city the battalion would deploy in. There are currently battalions deployed in Nablus, Jenin, Bethlehem and Hebron. The sources said that the Palestinian forces, trained by the Jordanians under the direction of US Gen. Keith Dayton, were doing a good job cracking down on Hamas infrastructure and restoring law and order in the West Bank.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/
Humanitarian Issues/Siege/Human Rights
Three tunnels workers missed
Rafah, December 15, 2009 (Pal Telegraph) - Egyptian security sources declared that a tunnel between Gaza and Egypt collapsed. The Palestinian government informed the Egyptian side that three Palestinians tunnel workers have been lost since Monday night. It pointed out that the exerted efforts to rescue them failed. Egyptian security sources stated that the citizens missed in the Egyptian side 1000m north Rafah port.
http://www.paltelegraph.com/
Gaza blockade is economic genocide: Iran
TEHRAN – Supreme National Security Council Secretary Saeed Jalili stated here on Monday that the continued blockade of the Gaza Strip represents an “economic genocide”.
http://www.tehrantimes.com/
Siege victims up to 366
Gaza Strip, December 15, 2009, (Pal Telegraph) - The number of the siege victims has gone up to 366 after the death of the citizen Walid Mohammad Madi (33) from Gaza city. Walid was suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis and passed away because he was unable to travel abroad for medical treatment due to the ongoing siege which has been imposed on the Gazan residents for over 3 years now.
http://www.paltelegraph.com/
War Criminals
Israeli minister Moshe Ya'alon turned down UK visit over arrest fears
Vice-prime minister pulled out of fundraising event after being warned he could be held on suspicion of war crimes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/
Confusion over Livni warrant - 15 Dec 09
A court in the UK has issued - and then cancelled - an arrest warrant against Israeli opposition leader Tzipi Livni. According to the Guardian newspaper, the warrant was issued at the request of lawyers representing pro-Palestinian activists and sought Livni's arrest on suspicion of war crimes related to last year's War on Gaza. Al Jazeera's Lauren Patterson reports.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Israel angry over UK Livni warrant
British court's order to arrest former foreign minister sparks furore.
http://english.aljazeera.net/
Israel summons U.K. envoy to protest Livni arrest warrant
The Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned the British envoy to Israel to rebuke him over the arrest warrant issued for Kadima chairwoman Tzipi Livni for alleged war crimes in Gaza.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Political Developments
Palestinians back Abbas staying off poll: survey
A majority of Palestinians support President Mahmoud Abbas’ decision not to run in the next presidential elections, a new opinion poll said yesterday. However, a majority also said they believe Abbas will eventually change his mind and run for a second term in office when elections are held.
http://www.gulf-times.com/
Abbas tells PLO will not accept return to violence
Source: Reuters RAMALLAH, West Bank, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose peace talks with Israel have been stalled for a year, said on Tuesday he would not accept any return to violence.
http://www.alertnet.org/
Abbas: No peace talks until Israel adheres to road map
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of preventing the renewal of Middle East peace negotiations by violating Israel's obligations as spelled out in the road map.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Jailed Fatah leader says no elections without unity
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghuti said in an interview with AFP that Palestinian elections should not be held without a national reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas. "Presidential and parliamentary elections must be held after reconciliation and in the context of a complete national agreement," Barghuti said in written responses to questions from AFP.
http://www.google.com/
Hamas political leadership meets with top Iranian officials
The Hamas political leadership met with Sa’eed Jalili, the chief negotiator of Iran’s nuclear file, as well as the head of the expediency discernment council and the minister of foreign affairs.
http://www.palestine-info.co.
Hamas says will unite with Iran if Israel attacks
TEHRAN, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said on Tuesday that Islamist militant groups would back Iran if the country was attacked by Israel, state television reported. "All Islamist militant groups will form a united front with Iran against Israel if it attacks Iran," Meshaal told a news conference.
http://www.alertnet.org/
Abbas names 1967 borders as precondition for talks
PLO Central Committee convenes in Ramallah to discuss plan aimed at resolving its political crisis. Palestinian president clarifies he will not seek another term and slams building freeze, which he says 'is not considered a halt of settlement activity'.
Other News
Akiva Eldar / U.S. tax dollars fund rabbi who excused killing gentile babies
The White House condemns the torching of a mosque, yet respectable Americans contribute to a yeshiva whose rabbi said it's okay to kill gentile babies. It is no surprise that the American administration tacitly, if unenthusiastically, accepted the excuse that the map of national priority zones the cabinet approved on Sunday does not violate the decision to freeze construction in the settlements.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Israeli police interrogate Fatah's Jerusalem chief
Jerusalem – Ma’an – Israel's Shin Bet intelligence agency on Monday initiated an investigation into Fatah official Hatem Abdul Qader's violation of an order banning him from the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Report: “Excavations Ongoing At The Al Aqsa Mosque Area”
The Aqsa foundation for Waqf and Heritage revealed large scale Israeli excavations being executed in the area adjacent to the southern wall of Al-Aqsa mosque, the area is well known as the Umayyad Palaces area.
http://www.imemc.org/index.
Hamas vows to continue resistance
Haniya tells anniversary rally in Gaza City that peace talks have "failed".
http://english.aljazeera.net//
Palestine will determine world’s fate: Ahmadinejad
TEHRAN, Dec. 13 (MNA) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the Palestine issue will determine the fate of the entire world. At a meeting with Hamas Political Bureau chief Khaled Meshaal in Tehran on Sunday, Ahmadinejad said it is essential that all Muslim and free nations support the Palestinian resistance and Iran will always stand beside the resistance and the oppressed people of Palestine.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/
Jordanian youths turned back at Allenby crossing
Jericho – Ma’an – A Jordanian delegation heading to a session of the Palestinian Youth Parliament was turned back at an Israeli-controlled border crossing into the West Bank when they refused to have their passports stamped on Monday, members of the group said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Analysis/Op-ed/Human Interest
Corporate American Media and Israel’s 2008-09 Gaza Invasion
The following piece is an excerpt from a talk Salaita gave at the School of Oriental and African Studies on December 7, 2009. I’m starting on the assumption that we’re all aware of Israel’s brutality in the Gaza Strip and that we all find it unconscionable, as does the vast majority of the world. I assume as well that we’re aware of the brutality preceding and following Israel’s military assault nearly a year ago. I’d like to examine how corporate media in the United States presented coverage of Israel’s invasion, and how discourses of justification for Israel are built into the foundation of that coverage.
http://jnoubiyeh.blogspot.com/
Israel: Who will soldiers obey on settlements – Netanyahu or rabbis?
Israel Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Sunday cut ties with a religious seminary that feeds students to the military amid concerns that its students might refuse orders to evacuate settlements.
http://www.csmonitor.com/
Oren: God intercedes in human history– and gave us the land
Josh Nathan-Kazis, flashing his shoeleather, posts this astonishing passage from Michael Oren’s speech to a Conservative Jewish audience last week. It reminds me of why Shlomo Sand’s book is so necessary and important right now. Sand demonstrates how Zionism–Jewish nationalism–took biblical myths and made them into an ideology of Jewish race and nation. Oren, who is not nearly as critical or intelligent as Sand, has swallowed that ideology but does us the service of exposing its religious basis.
http://mondoweiss.net/2009/12/
‘Harvard Crimson’ runs piece attacking Oren as apologist for war criminals
Here is another sign that the discourse of delegitimization post-Gaza that threatens Israel in international circles but which the lobby has succeeded in blocking at the gates of Washington, is nonetheless embedded in American establishment culture. The Harvard Crimson runs an attack on Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren by a member of the Palestinian solidarity group at the school, Abdelnasser Rashid. The piece underlines what the BDS conference at Hampshire last month demonstrated: young Americans know what white phosphorus is; the Palestinian viewpoint is now embraced by many students, and the school newspaper has to express it.
http://mondoweiss.net/2009/12/
No Road to Jerusalem
The most recent provocations by Israel centered on the Al Aqsa Mosque highlight a certain cynicism: by using this highly sensitive issue, Israel indeed angers the worshipers, depriving them from their fundamental right of freedom of religion (protected by Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights). The usual strategy of Israel is based on a tactic of provocation-reaction that Israel uses to justify the repression, and eventually the takeover of a disputed place. In the case of Al Aqsa, the reaction was “guaranteed,” since the special attachment of the Palestinian Muslims to the mosque has been demonstrated many times over the years.
http://dissidentvoice.org/
Israel, Not Hamas, Bans Music in Gaza
musicDuring my visit to Gaza this summer saw devastation, destruction and hunger on daily basis. I heard so many horror stories about the situation on the ground prior to my visit, but many of those stories came alive as I walked down the shattered streets of Gaza and spoke to people with shattered dreams and broken spirits. One effect of the Israeli embargo is to limit the goods making it into Gaza Strip to punish the government of Hamas. Items such as cement, glass, paper and steal are also banned; even NGOs commissioned with the rebuilding of Gaza in the aftermath of the Israeli offensive have yet to deliver on their promises of rebuilding.
http://www.kabobfest.com/2009/
Hot-diggity-dawg: ‘Harper’s’ says Zionism may be immoral
Two friends tonight told me excitedly about Joshua Cohen’s review of Yitzhak Laor’s book, The Myths of Liberal Zionism, in the new Harper’s. This piece strikes me as a high watermark in the American mainstream press’s treatment of anti-Zionism as anything other than leprosy and proves if it needs re-proving that after 50 years of purdah, and abeyance and obedience to the lobby, anti-Zionism is coming back into the house. (When will the Atlantic get the news?) Not available online yet, but Jeffrey Blankfort got me this excerpt.
http://mondoweiss.net/2009/12/
“Saving Israel” or Assisting it to Commit Suicide?
I had to struggle with myself to decide which of two headlines was most appropriate for this article - the one above or “The hard core of lunatics are pulling up the drawbridge”. A Jewish friend in Canada drew my attention to an article in the Jewish Ledger, an independent weekly newspaper in Westport, Connecticut. The headline over it is Saving Israel” Expert says American Jews key to Israel’s survival. I have rarely read such dangerous nonsense. It’s the voice of Zionism, deluded as ever, but with more than a hint of panic.
http://www.
Iraq
Bombers breach Baghdad security again, killing four (AFP)
AFP - Three car bombs rocked Baghdad killing four people in the fourth wave of coordinated attacks in as many months as bombers also struck two churches in the main northern city of Mosul, killing a man.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Big explosion, gunshots heard in central Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- A big explosion and gunshots were heard in central Baghad early morning Tuesday. The explosion occurred at around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday (local time) near the heavy-guarded Green Zone in Baghdad. Xinhua correspondents in the Mansour Hotel witnessed black smoke in the area.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
Monday: 8 Iraqis Killed, 20 Wounded
At least eight Iraqis were killed and 20 more were wounded in the latest violence. One small attack took place last week, but the delayed account highlights the difficulties in reporting casualties in the war-torn country. Meanwhile, female servicemembers who have returned home to the United States report having difficulties transitioning back into society. Also, Iran says it will try three American hikers who crossed into the country from Iraq.
http://original.antiwar.com/
Baghdad bomber called Syria before August attack: minister (AFP)
AFP - Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad Bolani told parliament on Monday that a suicide bomber who attacked the foreign ministry in August made a phone call to Syria before detonating his payload, an MP said.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
The Rush for Iraq's Oil
Iraq is set to become one of the world largest exporters of oil after international companies accepted low fees to develop the country's vast crude reserves. Representatives of 44 oil companies ignored the recent devastating bomb attacks in Baghdad to cram into a hall in the Oil Ministry to bid for contracts to increase production in Iraq's biggest oilfields.
http://www.counterpunch.com/
Inside Story - Justifying war? - 14 dec 09
Today we're looking at the surprise admission by former British prime minister tony Blair, that he would have gone to war against Iraq even if he knew there were no weapons of mass destruction. Yet at the time it was the WMDs which justified the action. So what does this mean for the public inquiry into the war? And can Tony Blair now be prosecuted for war crimes?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Tony Blair's attitude to Iraq war 'a disgrace'
The ex-director of public prosecutions has accused Tony Blair of "sycophancy" towards President Bush. Sir Ken MacDonald called the 2003 Iraq war a "foreign policy disgrace of epic proportions".
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_
Lebanon
Hezbollah Fortifies Frontier Against Israel
NABATIYEH, Lebanon – In the mountains towering above this southern city, Hezbollah (Party of God) is building a new line of defense on lands where a fierce war was once fought between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel.
http://original.antiwar.com/
Sleiman Confirms to Obama Lebanon’s Right to Defend Itself
15/12/2009 Stressing on refusing to settle the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and confirming the right of return, Lebanese President Michel Sleiman told his US counterpart President Barack Obama that Lebanon has the right to defend its territories and regain it from the occupation. After a meeting with Obama at the White House, President Sleiman said said he had complained about "Israeli threats" against his country and urged Obama to press Israel to withdraw its forces from areas such as occupied Shebaa Farms. "We also discussed the Israeli threats against Lebanon which are taking place and place obstacles to the economic growth of the country," Sleiman said.
http://almanar.com.lb/
Obama raises arms smuggling with Lebanese President (AFP)
AFP - US President Barack Obama on Monday raised concerns about arms smuggled into Lebanon that could threaten Israel, as he welcomed Lebanese President Michel Sleiman to the Oval Office.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Berri: Israeli Threats Won't Urge Us to Abandon Resistance
14/12/2009 Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri reiterated on Monday that the Resistance was a necessity in Lebanon as long as Israeli occupation and threat persist. "The resistance is an ultimate need which we will not abandon as long as there are occupied Lebanese territories," Berri said. "Neither Israeli threat nor Congress pressure would urge us to abandon the Resistance," he added. The Speaker called for a unified stance on rejecting all kinds of normalization of ties with Israel and on increasing the support for the Palestinian people and its right in practicing all forms of resistance. Berri concluded by saluting Syria's complete support for Lebanon and the new Lebanese government.
http://almanar.com.lb/
Afghanistan
Canada kept Afghan governor in power despite torture reports
A former governor of Kandahar who's accused of personally torturing Afghans might have been removed from office back in 2006 if Canadian officials hadn't defended him.
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/
U.S. and Other World News
Archbishop Desmond Tutu on President Obama: "He Is Now a Nobel Laureate, Become What You Are"
Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa also traveled to Copenhagen this weekend to urge world leaders to tackle the climate crisis. The longtime anti-apartheid campaigner and Nobel Peace Prize laureate spoke on Saturday at a candlelight vigil just outside the UN climate summit.
http://www.democracynow.org/
'US fighter jets attack Yemeni fighters'
The US has used modern fighter jets and bombers in its offensive against the Yemen fighters, Houthis said in a statement. - The development comes as The Daily Telegraph on Sunday reported that the US has sent its special forces to Yemen to train its army.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.
Air strike 'kills 70 civilians' in Yemen
Bani Maan, the village hit by the air raid is in the border region between Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The Yemeni army has reportedly claimed it carried out the attack, not Saudi Arabian forces.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/
Report: U.N.-Backed Congo Troops Killing Civilians
A U.N.-backed Congolese military operation to oust rebels from eastern Congo has caused more civilian casualties than damage to rebels, with more than 1,400 people deliberately killed over a nine-month period, human rights groups said Monday.
http://www.npr.org/templates/
The Saudi-Israeli Conspiracy: the plot thickens
Saudi Arabia must not flog 75-year-old woman
The Saudi Arabian authorities must not carry out the imminent flogging and imprisonment of an elderly woman and two younger men, Amnesty International said on Monday. The Minister of Interior is reported to have ordered the immediate detention and flogging of a 75-year-old woman, Khamisa Mohammed Sawadi, along with two Saudi Arabian men known only as Fahad and Hadyan. All three were found guilty in March of being in the company of members of the opposite sex who are not close relatives, known as khilwa. The verdict was subsequently upheld by a court of appeal. Attempts to lodge an appeal at the Supreme Court were recently rejected.
http://www.amnesty.org/en/
www.TheHeadlines.org
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