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Israel's Settlement Blocs Carve Up the West Bank
For the people of our small village of Bil'in, which lies west of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, the planned negotiations between Palestinian and Israeli leaders in Annapolis, Maryland evoke mixed feelings. Like all Palestinians, we pray that our children will not spend their lives as we did, under Israeli military occupation.
Another Bedouin family to be evicted as the round-up continues
Another Bedouin family is to be driven from their home as the Occupation continues its push to ethnically cleanse the areas around the Jerusalem-Jericho road to make way for settlement expansion. Ibrahim Dufula Abu Dahuk and around thirty others live to the north of Al Jeeb village, North West Jerusalem. They have been ordered by the Occupation court to leave the area within 14 days, as their house is to be demolished for the construction of the Apartheid Wall. Two nearby Bedouin communities of around sixty are awaiting judgement on the case for their expulsion, but it seems likely that they too will be removed.
Hundreds of Jerusalemites protest against Israeli policies in the city
A peaceful demonstration of hundreds of residents of East Jerusalem joined by a number of Israeli and International peace activists marched on Tuesday to protest the Israeli policies of home demolition and land confiscation in the city.
Peace Now: Settlers smuggling caravans to territories
Group issues report showing that settlers bypassing ban on moving caravans to West Bank by assembling them on site; report also finds population growth in settlements three times higher than in rest of country.
Israeli army demolishes a house in central Gaza
On Wednesday, the Israeli army demolished a Palestinian-owned house to the east of Deir Elbalah city in the central Gaza Strip, media reports and witnesses said. The two-storey house, which is located on the eastern outskirts of Deir Elbalah belongs to Mohammad al-Kurd and it is the third time this building has been demolished in the past seven years.
Israeli military kidnaps the father and brother of a 'wanted' Palestinian man in Jenin
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, Israeli military forces kidnapped the father and the brother of an al-Quds brigade leader in Jenin who is wanted by the Israeli security forces, in an attempt to force him turn himself in.
Punishing Gaza: On September 20, Haaretz reported
"The security cabinet voted unanimously yesterday to increase sanctions against the Hamas-run Gaza Strip (and declare) the region a 'hostile entity.' " A further statement read: "We will reduce the amount of megawattage we provide to the Strip, and Hamas will have to decide whether to provide electricity to hospitals or weapons lathes." Israeli officials also decided to punish Gazans by restricting:
-- fuel as well as electricity from Israel to Gaza;
-- the passage of goods and people through border crossings that are already severely restricted; and
-- visits to prisoners even further than how limited they are already.
An increased monitoring of funds was also announced as well as stating border crossings would be closed for up to 48 hours in response to (crude small homemade) Qassam rocket fire, and that Israel would supply nothing further to Gaza residents "except for (whatever Israel considers) humanitarian needs." Hamas' response was swift and sharp. Spokesman Fawzi Barhoum called the cabinet's decision and sanctions a "declaration of war" and said "we must unite the ranks to come together in the conflict with the cruel enemy....This is another attempt to force us to surrender (our sovereignty)."
Vital product - Gone too fast
When Samah Mohanna graduated from pharmacy school five years ago, she wanted to help children. When she got a job at a Red Crescent Society clinic, she met Azmi who had the same passion. They both discovered a severe shortage of medications in Gaza, especially antibiotics. The high rate of unemployment and poor economic situation means many households cannot afford even basic medications. In addition, Gaza is cut off from the world because the main crossing points are closed.
Hamas-Jihad clashes in Rafah leave one resident dead
One Palestinian resident has been reported killed and two others wounded after mourners, belonging to the Islamic Jihad group, traded gun-fire with Palestinian policemen in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.
PLC member: Palestinian prisoners to protest on eve of Annapolis summit
Issa Qaraq'e, a Palestinian law maker of the Fatah movement and the head of the Palestinian prisoners committee in the Palestinian Legislative Council, on Tuesday stated that Palestinian prisoners are planning to organize protests on the eve of the Annapolis peace conference.
Hamas accuses Fatah of arrests of its members in W. Bank
A spokesman for Islamic Resistance Movement(Hamas) in the Gaza Strip Tuesday accused the daily arrests of its activists in the West Bank by security forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israel, who termed the arrests as "an implementation" of the first phase of the Road Map peace plan.
Unknown gunmen abduct and torture son of Hamas senior official
A group of unknown gunmen kidnapped and attacked Suheib Yousef, 23, the son of West Bank Hamas leader Sheikh Hasan Yousef, on Tuesday afternoon. The young man is a student at the Al-Quds campus of Abu Dis University in East Jerusalem, and was abducted while participating in an activity on campus.
MI: If Annapolis fails, Abbas likely to step down
Military Intelligence believes that if talks at Annapolis fail, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas might step down. Abbas reportedly views the Annapolis conference as the last opportunity to resuscitate the peace process. If he does go home in the wake of a failure of the talks, without a successor acceptable to Fatah, Abbas' departure would create a lacuna in the Palestinian leadership and increase Hamas influence.
Palestinian Chief negotiator meets British envoy in Jericho
On Tuesday, the Palestinian Chief Negotiator, Saeb Erekat, met with the British envoy for the Middle East Peace process, Mike Williams, and the British General Counsel, Richard McBesy, in Jericho. The three discussed the latest political developments in the lead-up to a Summit in Annapolis, in the U.S., which has been scheduled for late November.
Palestinian official: US decides to send out invitations for Annapolis summit
The U.S. government apparently decided on Tuesday to send out invitations to would-be attendees of the Annapolis peace summit, stated an unnamed Palestinian official on Tuesday. The official added that the Summit will likely be held on November 26th. Speaking to the Agence France Presse agency, the official revealed "the U.S Secretary of States, Condoleezza Rice, has informed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, during their meeting yesterday, that Washington is set to send the invitations for the peace summit".
PLO denies signing a peace document with Israelis
A spokesperson of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) denied on Tuesday Israeli media reports that PLO has recently signed a document with the Israeli side, between PLO's secretary, Yasser Abed Rabo and head of Israeli Meretz Party, Yousi Bellen. According to the Israeli Daily, Maareef, yesterday, a new document between Abed Rabo and Belen, has been prepared and that a draft has been presented to top Palestinian negotiator, Ahmad Qurai and U.S Secretary of States, Condoleezza Rice.
Barak: Israel to retain control of passage between W. Bank, Gaza
Israel will not grant the Palestinians a direct territorial passage between the two parts of the Palestinian Authority, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Tuesday. The passage between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank - which may be worked out in the framework of a permanent agreement with the Palestinians - will remain under Israeli control and will either run underground or through bridges, Barak said.
Israeli police posed as a TV news crew to trap a one-time Palestinian informer, provoking an outcry from critics who said the sting threatened to put the lives of newspeople at risk. Police said the target of the operation was Nadim Injaz, a Palestinian man who had been wanted for making unspecified threats.
http://www.rawstory.com/news/mochila/Israeli_police_impersonate_reporter_11062007.html
Abu Teir praises Haniyeh speech
Sheikh Mohammad Abu Teir, a Hamas legislator currently imprisoned in the Israeli Nitsan detention center, on Tuesday praised deposed Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh's speech of last Sunday.
Bethlehem municipal workers demand salaries
Municipal workers from the Bethlehem district on Tuesday held a two-hour-long strike, in protest against non-payment of salaries by the municipal council. Scores of employees participated in the protest, held in front of the municipality building in Bethlehem city center, demanding immediate payment of both their salaries and additional benefits.
Hamas plans to build $200 million movie production house in Gaza
GAZA CITY - It's a tale worthy of its own movie script: The Gaza Strip's isolated and cash-strapped Hamas rulers plan to build a $200 million media city and movie production house that will be part tourist attraction and part effort to cement control of the territory it seized by force in June.
The End of the Palestinian National Movement
With the failure of the PA experiment, the Arab states have begun to return to the scene. The Jordanian government, with the encouragement of Israel, is establishing a renewed presence in the West Bank, especially in eastern Jerusalem. There is every reason to expect further cooperation between the West Bank and the East Bank in Jordan, which will also have political consequences. As long as the separation fence between Israel and the West Bank continues to be built, relations between the West Bank and Jordan will strengthen.
Women in focus at Palestinian film festival
From the tale of a Lebanese woman with a missing husband and narcoleptic son to a West Bank girl on the hunt for a birthday cake, a Palestinian film festival this week is throwing a rare spotlight on women. Billed as the first annual women's film festival in the Arab world, "Shashat" -- which means 'screens' in Arabic -- aims to offer alternative images of women and to provide a forum for female directors in a region and industry dominated by men.
Report: Israeli soldiers admit government has spied on international phone calls since 1973
The Israeli TV Channel 10 released a report Tuesday revealing that Israeli authorities have been spying on citizens' phone calls without warrants for over 30 years. In the report, Channel 10 interviewed Israeli soldiers who described being part of an organization which was started by the Israeli military in 1973, and remains in place until today. The organization is part of the Military Censor's Office, which monitors all work by foreign journalists working inside Israel.
Dutch "research" group covers for Israeli crimes, violations
Doron Livnat is co-owner of Riwal, a Dutch company involved in the illegal construction of the separation Wall in occupied Palestinian territory. In 2004 the Wall was confirmed by the International Court of Justice as being in violation of international law. Livnat is also a member of the board of the Centre for Information and Documentation on Israel (CIDI), a pro-Zionist political lobby group based in Amsterdam.
Israel: UN Human Rights Council 'morally bankrupt'
Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations harshly criticized the UN Human Rights Council on Tuesday, saying its repeated focus on Israel had rendered it "morally bankrupt."
Don't Sign for Apartheid in Palestine
The French group "Two Peoples, Two States" calls the public for signing a petition (based on a "Two States Solution", on the outlines of the Yossi Beilin and Yasser Abbed Rabbo's "Geneva Initiative", and the Ami Ayalon and Sari Nusseibeh's "The Peoples Voice"), which "acknowledge the equal legitimacy of both liberation struggle movements", and which, in a suspicious way, fails to call for Israel's full compliance with its obligations under international law through ending its illegal military occupation, its denial of Palestinian refugee rights, and its system of racial discrimination against its own Palestinian citizens.
Labor MKs slam Barak for failing to politically capitalize on Annapolis
Criticism is growing among senior Labor Party officials about the failure of their party chairman, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, to take political advantage of the upcoming summit in Annapolis.
Rabbis warn Bush: Annapolis will bring destruction to US
Group of right-wing rabbis writes open letter to US president demanding he cancel Annapolis summit or risk provoking 'wrath of the almighty.' Rabbis assert Katrina disaster a result of America's support of 2005 disengagement, say California fires a warning.
When do we stop sitting shiva for the Holocaust?
I marched and lobbied in DC last June to call for an end to forty years of Israeli occupation and the US policies that support it. The sign I carried posed a single question. It is one that urgently begs to be addressed, debated and answered. I believe it holds significant implications, not only for Jews, but for the entire Middle East. "When do we stop sitting shiva for the Holocaust?" EI contributor Rita Corriel asks.
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