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Source PACUSA via El Taller International - Tunis

Today in Palestine !

Vendredi, 4 septembre 2009 - 8h16 AM

Friday 4 September 2009

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Land Theft/Destruction/Apartheid

Bilin’s next generation
Every Friday, Palestinian residents of the West Bank village of Bilin march to Israel’s apartheid wall, which has stolen more than half their land. But this day was a Wednesday, and the kids’ turn to demonstrate. It was a beautiful morning, the perfect time to add a new element to the nonviolent resistance in Bilin. While the Israeli army kidnaps their fathers, their brothers and their cousins, the resistance lives on through the next generation.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10734.shtml

Join the annual Palestinian olive harvest!
The Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign and its popular committees are coordinating collective efforts to safeguard the annual olive harvest and are calling on volunteers to stand in solidarity with Palestinian communities and join in the harvest, which will begin 15 October 2009. Local farmers have refused to be forced off their land, and continue the harvest each year in the face violence and repression from both soldiers and settlers.
http://stopthewall.org/latestnews/2054.shtml

As nonviolent activist remains unconscious in hospital, Israelis declare his shooting "act of war"
On August 18th, the Israeli Ministry of Defense informed American activist Tristan Anderson’s family and legal counsel that it considers his shooting during a nonviolent protest in the West Bank village of Nil’in, which left him critically injured, an “act of war,” absolving the soldiers responsible from any liability under Israeli law. Anderson was shot directly in the forehead with a high-velocity tear gas canister by Israeli forces on March 13th, 2009, suffering several condensed fractures and necessitating several life-saving surgeries. To date, he remains unconscious at Tel Hashomer Hospital in Tel Aviv; his prospects for recovery are as of now unclear.
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6668

Jerusalem in July: Bulldozers strike Silwan and Beit Hanina
Finally, the Occupation municipality also continued its campaign against Palestinian civil society, closing down the Nidal Center for Community Development under the pretext of security. The Nidal Center is a Palestinian organization that provides educational, health, and development services to Jerusalem residents.
http://stopthewall.org/latestnews/2053.shtml

West Bank: A settler’s story
Karnei Shomron is, however, also deep inside the occupied West Bank, a Jewish settlement not far from the Palestinian city of Nablus and, under international law, illegal. But when Raz and his family moved here in 1994 they and their neighbours did not consider themselves settlers. It was the time of the Oslo peace accords and a moment of what Raz called "euphoria" about how Israelis and Palestinians might live together in peace. It was also, ironically, a time of accelerated settlement growth.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/aug/25/west-bank-israel-settler-story

Organ Theft Controversy

Swedish daily publishes second article on ’IDF organ harvesting’
In the article, published Sunday, Oisín Cantwell and Urban Andersson report from the northern West Bank village of Imatin, where 19-year-old Bilal Ahmad Ghanem was killed during a clash with Israeli soldiers in 1992. According to the family, the IDF demanded NIS 5,000 (about $1,300) to return the body. "It was the middle of the night. The soldiers caused an electrical power outage in the entire village. Bilal was returned in a black bag; he had no teeth. The body was stitched from the neck all the way down to the abdomen," the Swedish newspaper quoted the mother as saying.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3765992,00.html

Israeli lawyer sues ’Aftonbladet’ in NY Court
Israeli lawyer Guy Ophir has filed a lawsuit against the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet over articles it published accusing IDF soldiers of harvesting organs from Palestinians. The $7.5 million suit, which names the paper and writer Donald Bostrom, was filed in Manhattan Supreme Court on Tuesday, according to Ophir, who said the article’s allegations were anti-Semitic and amounted to "racist blood libel" against Jews and Israeli soldiers.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1251145124980&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Detention

IOA to establish special military courts for Palestinian minors
Hebrew daily Yediot Ahronot quoted an Israeli army source as saying that the decision followed the growing number of Palestinian children who were involved in "attacks" against Israeli forces. The source noted that the number of those minors during the present year neared 400 who were all less than 16 years old.
http://palestine-info.co.uk/en/

Israel releases young woman after six years in prison
Israel released a Palestinian woman from prison after holding her for six years on Wednesday. Sabrin Abu Amarah, 26, originally from the Old City of Nablus, was released from Hasharon prison in northern Israel. Local sources said her family welcomed her when she returned to Nablus through the Beita military checkpoint.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=221808

Abu Mujahid: "Resistance cannot be blackmailed"
Abu Mujahid stated that the resistance will not abandon its vows to the detainees, and that the Israeli pressures and illegal conducts against the detainees and their families, will only boost the determination steadfastness of the Palestinian people. Israel carried a series of measures against the detainees, denying their visitation rights, barring them from meeting with their lawyers, and placed dozens of detainees in solitary confinement. It also decided to bar the detainees from pursuing higher education while in detention.
http://imemc.org/article/61490

Report: Shalit deal to be declared by High Holy Days
This after the Germans got Syria, Sudan and a number of European countries to agree to take in Hamas exiles, under the condition that they return to their original place of residence after a year. According to the report, most of the Israeli Labor ministers are in favor of his release, but the majority of Likud ministers oppose. Netanyahu however, "seems to have had a change of heart and now supports Barghouti’s release," the website said.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3767244,00.html

Violence and Aggression

Israeli soldiers wound Palestinian in West Bank
Israeli soldiers shot and wounded a Palestinian man at an army checkpoint in the flashpoint city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, medics and the army said. The southern West Bank city is often the scene of clashes, being home to some 600 hardline Jewish settlers who live under the protection of the army amid some 170,000 Palestinians.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090826/wl_mideast_afp/mideastconflictwestbank

Amy breaks into Radio Bethlehem 2000, confiscates its equipment
Israeli soldiers broke on Tuesday evening into the Radio Bethlehem 2000 station in Beit Jala, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem, and confiscated its equipment.
http://imemc.org/article/61489

Netanyahu assails group that alleged IDF wrongdoing in Gaza
The group, Breaking the Silence, caused a stir after it commissioned a report in which unnamed Israel Defense Forces soldiers alleged that Palestinians were used as "human shields" during Operation Cast Lead. In a briefing to reporters who are accompanying Netanyahu on his trip to Europe, the prime minister said he expects all European governments to cease aid to groups of this kind.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1110037.html

Humanitarian Issues

Health ministry: 400 patients facing death due to shortage in dialysis solution
It noted that more than 400 patients were at risk of death at ICU wards especially kidney patients. The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) is deliberately stalling in allowing entry of necessary medical equipment and medicine into the besieged Strip, the ministry charged. It asked all free and honorable people of the world to act immediately to end this "savage annihilation" of the Strip’s patients.
http://palestine-info.co.uk/en/

Carter, Tutu among global Elders promoting peace in Israel, West Bank
The delegation is led by former Brazilian President Fernando Cardoso and also includes Indian microfinance pioneer Ela Bhatt and former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Brundtland. Meeting with residents of Qalandiya camp, in the shadow of Israel’s massive Qalandiya military checkpoint, the world leaders listened to locals’ tales of life under occupation.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=221739

Egypt opens Rafah crossing to Gaza for two days
According to Al Quds radio station, the crossing is only open to those wishing to enter the Gaza Strip and not leave. The last time the border was opened was August 15 when more than 2,000 Palestinian pilgrims crossed on their way to Mecca.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20090826/155931015.html

Stress management days for Gaza employees and volunteers was conducted by the PRCS to include 6000 participants
The Palestine Red Crescent Society in Gaza has commenced, during the month of August, stress release and management days for its staff, volunteers and their families at Gaza beach, where more than 6,000 persons participated. The event, as part of the Psychosocial Support Program (PSP), aimed at assisting PRCS staff and volunteers as well as their families to cope with their daily stress, especially after the last Gaza crisis. It was conducted with support from the ICRC.
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/JBRN-7VAFY8?OpenDocument&rc=3&emid=ACOS-635PFR

FHI calls on Italian gov’t to end suffering of Palestinian exiles
The organization said the three Palestinians who were deported from their lands in the West Bank in May 2002 are living in inhuman conditions in Italy. It noted that their living conditions are getting worse especially after the Palestinian authority (PA) had cut their financial allocations. It also expressed dismay at the Italian government for trying to invent excuses and pretexts for not improving the living conditions of the Palestinian exiles.
http://palestine-info.co.uk/en/

U.S. Military officials in Egypt to present plan to counter tunnels
The officials held a meeting with their Egyptian counterparts and presented a detailed plan that includes high-tech equipment to uncover tunnels. The equipment was donated by the United States as the country is sponsoring the installation of high-tech devices to stop the smuggling at the Gaza-Egypt border.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61485

OCHA: "Gaza on the verge of humanitarian crisis"
The UN stated that some 120.000 employees have lost their jobs, while %75 of the residents does not even have sufficient access food, proper education and health services. It also said that as Israel hold foods supplies on the borders for extended periods under security claims, most of the food eventually expires and becomes unfit for human consumption.
http://imemc.org/article/61486

West Bank youth see Israel with ’Birthright’ tour
Fourteen-year-old Jum’a Ismail lives 50 km (30 miles) from the Mediterranean but had never seen the sea. The Palestinian youth had never set eyes on an Israeli civilian or an airport. Once Palestinian children turn 15, they must carry Israeli-issued West Bank identity cards and are no longer able to travel through Israeli checkpoints without special permits.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3764938,00.html

Political Developments

British PM upbeat after Netanyahu talks
“Jerusalem is sovereign capital of Israel and we accept no limitation to our sovereignty. Jerusalem is not a settlement,” said Netanyahu, at a joint press conference with Brown after talks in his Downing Street office.
“We’re working hard to advance a peace process that will lead to an actual peace result. And we hope to move forward in the weeks and months ahead,” Netanyahu told reporters.
http://dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=105706

Cairo gives Hamas, Fateh, an ultimatum to achieve unity
An Egyptian source said that both movements are not making concessions, and insist on their own agendas, an issue which sheds doubt on unity talks, and raises fears that the United States and Israel might try to pass a peace deal that only involves the West Bank.
http://imemc.org/article/61488

Abbas to call election if talks with Hamas fail
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Wednesday he would press ahead with a January parliamentary and presidential election opposed by the rival Hamas movement if reconciliation efforts failed.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090826/wl_nm/us_palestinians_abbas_election_1

PLO holds poll amid criticism
The Palestinian National Council (PNC) convened in Ramallah in the West Bank on Wednesday to elect six new members to its executive committee. But the PNC, the highest legal body for Palestinians, is facing criticism from Palestinian factions who say the body has failed to represent the Palestinian people. Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad have refused to join until the organisation is reformed.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/08/2009826105648928211.html

Mideast: Palestinian factions agree on new executive
Bethlehem, 26 August (AKI) - Rival Palestinian factions have agreed on the appointment of six new members to the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s executive committee. Citing unnamed sources, the Palestinian news agency Maan reported on Wednesday that the members include veteran Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat (photo), Ahmad Majdalani, Salih Raafat, Ziad Amr, Ahmad Qureia, and Hanna Amira.
http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Politics/?id=3.0.3697637696

Israeli PM resists US pressure over settlements
With the international community backing the US demand, the Israeli prime minister finds himself trying to placate intense diplomatic pressure while keeping together his right-leaning coalition government. Briefing reporters travelling with him, Netanyahu said "the question of the settlements is a problem, but the main problem is the (Palestinian) refusal to recognise Israel as the Jewish state".
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/18/20090826/twl-israeli-pm-resists-us-pressure-over-3cd7efd.html

Palestinian officials: Abbas open to meeting with Netanyahu
Abbas has refused to reopen peace talks until Netanyahu halts all construction in settlements in the West Bank, though the prime minister rejects this demand. The Palestinian officials said Abbas is not dropping his conditions, and that the meeting would be a chance to talk, but would not amount to negotiations.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1251145121889&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Abbas to Meet Sarkozy in Paris Next Week
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas will meet his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris on September 4, a Palestinian official told AFP on Wednesday. "President Abbas will travel to Paris on September 3 and will meet President Sarkozy the next day," the official said on condition of anonymity.
http://www.almanar.com.lb/NewsSite/NewsDetails.aspx?id=100756&language=en

U.S. mulls Peres plan for Palestinian state with interim borders
Sources close to Peres’ initiative told Haaretz there is some skepticism both in Washington and in the Prime Minister’s Bureau as to the probability that both the Palestinians and the Netanyahu government will embrace the plan. Sources close to Netanyahu said there was no chance he would accept a plan which required withdrawal from most of the West Bank as a first step.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1110126.html

Barak vows outposts will be evacuated within weeks
"The defense minister has declared a number of times that the evacuation of illegal outposts is our obligation as a democratic state," Barak’s office said in a statement released Tuesday. "This is a process which will be implemented in weeks, not years." Barak promised months ago to clear out 23 outposts, but said it was a matter of law enforcement and was not addressed in talks with the Americans over freezing settlement construction.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1110003.html

U.S. believes it is narrowing gaps with Israel on settlements
It remains unclear what kind of progress was made, especially since the Obama administration demanded Israel to fully halt the construction of settlements, while Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, refused international and U.S. calls in this regard.
http://imemc.org/article/61492

Germany: Israel must prepare to compromise for peace
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday that Israel must be prepared to compromise for a two-state solution, a day before her scheduled meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Berlin.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1110230.html

Other News

Arabs slam education minister’s vision for school system
The Arab MKs urged Sa’ar to put aside his "mock patriotism" and deal with the real issues plaguing the educational system: Student violence, intolerance and the erosion of democratic values. "We categorically oppose the new model suggesting schools would be financially rewarded according to the number of students who enlist in the military or National Service," said Dr. Hala Espanioly, who heads the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee’s educational board.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3767518,00.html

Palestine TV boss fired for not hyping Fayad
The director of Palestine TV, Muhammad Dahoudi, has been fired for failing to give enough coverage to Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salaam Fayad, Palestinian journalists said on Tuesday. The decision to dismiss Dahoudi was taken by Yasser Abed Rabbo, a senior official who is in charge of the PA media.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1251145116597&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Hamas starts school year in Gaza unilaterally
"We have agreed to start the school year on Aug. 23 but the Ramallah government bottled out at the last minute due to pressures by some sides unrelated to the education family," Ibrahim said.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/24/content_11932765.htm

Gov’t aid committee gives $108, 000 to poor Gaza citizens last month
Head of the committee Majdi Abu Amsha stated that the committee held last month six meeting to discuss many requests submitted by citizens in need of humanitarian assistance, noting that 518 requests were approved by the committee. Abu Amsha affirmed that the committee would continue its efforts to support more citizens during the holy month of Ramadan.
http://palestine-info.co.uk/en/

Israelis urged to boycott IKEA
The website which published the petition explained that "after the anti-Semitic publication and the blood libel against IDF soldiers, and the refusal of Sweden’s foreign minister and prime minister to condemn this report, there is no way that we can continue buying products made in Sweden. Don’t settle for signing the petition. Real action is needed."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3766153,00.html

Activism/Solidarity/Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment

Investment giant BlackRock divests from Leviev’s Africa-Israel due to Israeli settlements
The Globes article follows a similar report by the Norwegian news service Norwatch. The move comes after a nearly two-year long global boycott campaign of Leviev’s businesses that developed in response to the billionaire’s construction activities in at least four Israeli settlements in the Occupied West Bank, all of which violate international law, and his abusive labor practices in the diamond industry in Angola and Namibia.
http://palsolidarity.org/2009/08/8190

Palestine film festival returns to Toronto next month
The second annual Toronto Palestine Film Festival (TPFF) is coming to theaters in September. The festival will showcase 34 films, many of which are Canadian and North American premieres. TPFF is pleased to be opening and closing the festival with the critically acclaimed feature films Amreeka and Laila’s Birthday.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10735.shtml

History

Israel: A Stalemated Action of History
Later I learned from someone who ran a displaced persons camp in Germany that the large majority of Jews wanted to go anywhere but Palestine. They were compelled to state Palestine or else risk receiving no aid. I understood very early that there was much amiss in the countless Arab villages and homes I saw destroyed, and that the entire Zionist project – regardless of the often venal nature of the Arab opposition to it – was a dangerous sham.
http://www.counterpunch.org/kolko08252009.html

Opinion/Analysis

Netanyahu, do Israel a service by firing Lieberman
During the hot August days, usually thin on news, Lieberman is giving the media and MKs thirsty for comments a daily show. He is bashing Sweden, thumping Norway, clearing the Foreign Ministry of Arabs and Haredim, making the prime minister out to be a fool and wasting his time in a pointless diplomatic effort - threatening his envoys to align themselves with the official line being dictated from above or wind up on the outside. Who knows what he will announce next.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1110142.html

Our political oligarch
Lieberman has been able to decipher the secret of Israeli politics years ago: A majority among our population is emotional and clings to the past and to primordial fears entrenched in us. This population group doesn’t have the time or desire to think: One can hurl a word or two in its direction as bait, it “eats up,” and is caught. Now, it’s time to move on to the next fish.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3767505,00.html