9 aug 2016
Black Lives Matter and The Movement for Black Lives, a coalition of more than 50 organizations representing African Americans, published a comprehensive platform, Friday of last week, which addresses the systemic racism, violence, oppression and discrimination faced by black communities in the United States.
Along with calling for ‘an end to the war against black people, the policy platform has unambiguously declared its solidarity with the Palestinian people, as it calls Israel an ‘apartheid state’ and endorses Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) of the Israeli state.
This is a major development in Black-Palestine solidarity in the United States, and a boost for BDS worldwide. Black and Palestinian activists, in the United States and Palestine, have been intensively forging deeper bonds since the Summer of 2014, with Israel’s brutal military assault on Gaza.
When activists in the U.S. were protesting Israel’s war on Gaza, Missouri police murdered Michael Brown, leaving his body on the ground for more than four hours, and sparked the Ferguson rebellion which gave birth to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Since then, PNN reports, many black activists, artists and intellectuals have visited Palestine on delegations to see, learn and exchange ideas of struggle and resistance and to express solidarity. This led to the 2015 release of the Black Solidarity Statement with Palestine, signed by over 1,000 prominent black activists, artists and intellectuals, followed by an the video, ‘When I See Them, I See Us.’
This last move cemented the bond between the black and Palestinian liberation movements to challenge white supremacy and political Zionism. In turn, the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), the largest coalition in Palestinian civil society that leads the global BDS movement, has endorsed the inspiring and liberating policy platform, issued last week by the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), with concrete policy demands for Black power, freedom and justice:
“We pledge to firmly and consistently stand in solidarity with our black sisters and brothers in the United States and around the world by supporting the demands and policy proposals in this platform.
The BDS movement is deeply inspired by the US Civil Rights Movement and the many struggles by Blacks and other people of color for racial and economic justice. Your refusal to stay silent in the face of massive and systemic state violence targeting black bodies and your resistance against repression and disenfranchisement in black communities are a source of inspiration to our own struggle against Israel’s regime of occupation, settler-colonialism and apartheid.
From Florida to Ferguson to New York to Baltimore to Los Angeles to Minneapolis and beyond the unapologetic cry of “Black Lives Matter!” has shaken the system of racism and white supremacy that allows police to gun down black people with impunity, to cage black people in obscene numbers, and to systematically impoverish and degrade the black community as a whole.
The BNC has been honored to have met in Palestine with multiple solidarity delegations of leaders from Black Lives Matter, the Dream Defenders and other organizations within the Movement for Black Lives and has learned much from these interactions. The 2015 Black for Palestine statement shed a brilliant light on the organic relationship between the US’s domestic racial oppression and its racialized imperial oppression against people of color worldwide while sending a powerful message to all Palestinians about this movement’s commitment to solidarity with Palestinians and all oppressed people around the world.
We cannot thank the Movement for Black Lives enough for the powerful words of solidarity in the invest-divest section of the platform specifically endorsing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) measures against Israel’s occupation and apartheid in line with the 2005 Palestinian civil society call until all Palestinian human rights are respected.
We warmly welcome the Platform’s call for an end to US military aid to Israel and for the billions of dollars in military aid that currently enable Israel’s endless wars of aggression and what the prominent Israeli historian Ilan Pappe calls ‘incremental genocide in the Gaza ghetto,’ to be reinvested in education, health, employment, social programs, and the economic uplifting of communities of color in the U.S.
While the fastest growing Jewish group in the U.S., Jewish Voice for Peace, has endorsed the M4BL Platform in its entirety, predictably, anti-Palestinian groups in the U.S. that work to protect Israel’s regime of colonial oppression by ensuring the unconditional flow of billions in US taxpayers money denounced it loudly. The latter feel that the growing joint struggle between Blacks and Palestinians, which is evolving through sustained and long-term intersectional grassroots efforts among our two communities and supported by progressive Jewish communities, may threaten US support for Israeli apartheid.
This thinly-veiled racism of the ‘white moderate’ reminds us of what Malcolm X once said:
‘I believe that there will ultimately be a clash between the oppressed and those that do the oppressing. I believe that there will be a clash between those who want freedom, justice and equality for everyone and those who want to continue the systems of exploitation.’
We in the BNC are honored to be listed as a resource in the Platform and will provide whatever support we can to the Movement for Black Lives. We will work with our partners in the U.S. and around the world to ensure stronger ties of solidarity between our movements and to mobilize the Palestine solidarity community in support of actions and policy recommendations of the Movement for Black Lives. We will work against anti-blackness wherever we find it, including within our own movement. And we will continue to say loudly and proudly those three words that in a just world would be completely uncontroversial but in the unjust world we live in have inspired a movement: Black Lives Matter!
Stephen Biko, the South African liberation leader who founded the Black Consciousness Movement wrote, ‘The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.’ This M4BL Platform is an empowering policy platform that shows how to liberate the minds of the oppressed to achieve justice and liberation.”
Edited for continuity by Chris Carlson, imemc.org
Along with calling for ‘an end to the war against black people, the policy platform has unambiguously declared its solidarity with the Palestinian people, as it calls Israel an ‘apartheid state’ and endorses Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) of the Israeli state.
This is a major development in Black-Palestine solidarity in the United States, and a boost for BDS worldwide. Black and Palestinian activists, in the United States and Palestine, have been intensively forging deeper bonds since the Summer of 2014, with Israel’s brutal military assault on Gaza.
When activists in the U.S. were protesting Israel’s war on Gaza, Missouri police murdered Michael Brown, leaving his body on the ground for more than four hours, and sparked the Ferguson rebellion which gave birth to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Since then, PNN reports, many black activists, artists and intellectuals have visited Palestine on delegations to see, learn and exchange ideas of struggle and resistance and to express solidarity. This led to the 2015 release of the Black Solidarity Statement with Palestine, signed by over 1,000 prominent black activists, artists and intellectuals, followed by an the video, ‘When I See Them, I See Us.’
This last move cemented the bond between the black and Palestinian liberation movements to challenge white supremacy and political Zionism. In turn, the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), the largest coalition in Palestinian civil society that leads the global BDS movement, has endorsed the inspiring and liberating policy platform, issued last week by the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), with concrete policy demands for Black power, freedom and justice:
“We pledge to firmly and consistently stand in solidarity with our black sisters and brothers in the United States and around the world by supporting the demands and policy proposals in this platform.
The BDS movement is deeply inspired by the US Civil Rights Movement and the many struggles by Blacks and other people of color for racial and economic justice. Your refusal to stay silent in the face of massive and systemic state violence targeting black bodies and your resistance against repression and disenfranchisement in black communities are a source of inspiration to our own struggle against Israel’s regime of occupation, settler-colonialism and apartheid.
From Florida to Ferguson to New York to Baltimore to Los Angeles to Minneapolis and beyond the unapologetic cry of “Black Lives Matter!” has shaken the system of racism and white supremacy that allows police to gun down black people with impunity, to cage black people in obscene numbers, and to systematically impoverish and degrade the black community as a whole.
The BNC has been honored to have met in Palestine with multiple solidarity delegations of leaders from Black Lives Matter, the Dream Defenders and other organizations within the Movement for Black Lives and has learned much from these interactions. The 2015 Black for Palestine statement shed a brilliant light on the organic relationship between the US’s domestic racial oppression and its racialized imperial oppression against people of color worldwide while sending a powerful message to all Palestinians about this movement’s commitment to solidarity with Palestinians and all oppressed people around the world.
We cannot thank the Movement for Black Lives enough for the powerful words of solidarity in the invest-divest section of the platform specifically endorsing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) measures against Israel’s occupation and apartheid in line with the 2005 Palestinian civil society call until all Palestinian human rights are respected.
We warmly welcome the Platform’s call for an end to US military aid to Israel and for the billions of dollars in military aid that currently enable Israel’s endless wars of aggression and what the prominent Israeli historian Ilan Pappe calls ‘incremental genocide in the Gaza ghetto,’ to be reinvested in education, health, employment, social programs, and the economic uplifting of communities of color in the U.S.
While the fastest growing Jewish group in the U.S., Jewish Voice for Peace, has endorsed the M4BL Platform in its entirety, predictably, anti-Palestinian groups in the U.S. that work to protect Israel’s regime of colonial oppression by ensuring the unconditional flow of billions in US taxpayers money denounced it loudly. The latter feel that the growing joint struggle between Blacks and Palestinians, which is evolving through sustained and long-term intersectional grassroots efforts among our two communities and supported by progressive Jewish communities, may threaten US support for Israeli apartheid.
This thinly-veiled racism of the ‘white moderate’ reminds us of what Malcolm X once said:
‘I believe that there will ultimately be a clash between the oppressed and those that do the oppressing. I believe that there will be a clash between those who want freedom, justice and equality for everyone and those who want to continue the systems of exploitation.’
We in the BNC are honored to be listed as a resource in the Platform and will provide whatever support we can to the Movement for Black Lives. We will work with our partners in the U.S. and around the world to ensure stronger ties of solidarity between our movements and to mobilize the Palestine solidarity community in support of actions and policy recommendations of the Movement for Black Lives. We will work against anti-blackness wherever we find it, including within our own movement. And we will continue to say loudly and proudly those three words that in a just world would be completely uncontroversial but in the unjust world we live in have inspired a movement: Black Lives Matter!
Stephen Biko, the South African liberation leader who founded the Black Consciousness Movement wrote, ‘The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.’ This M4BL Platform is an empowering policy platform that shows how to liberate the minds of the oppressed to achieve justice and liberation.”
Edited for continuity by Chris Carlson, imemc.org
A Saudi judo competitor Joud Fahmi pulled out of her first-round match at the Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro on Sunday, ahead of a prospective second-round bout tie with an Israeli rival.
However, Israeli and Saudi accounts offered different reasons for Joud Fahmy's withdrawal.
Israeli press reports claimed that Fahmy decided to leave the competition because she could meet Gili Cohen, a 25-year-old Israeli athlete, in the next round if she managed to secure a victory against Christianne Legentil from Mauritius.
But the Saudi Olympic Delegation tweeted that Fahmy's withdrawal from the games was because of injuries she had picked up in training, and not for political reasons.
The Saudi medical team had advised her not to participate, the tweet said.
All Arab and Muslim athletes agree on withdrawing against Israeli players because Israel is an occupying country and playing against its players grants Israel an official recognition.
Fahmy's decision received a large-scale welcome from Arabs in general and Palestinians in particular. Abdussalam Haneyya, member of the Palestinian Football federation, announced establishing a mural of Fahmy’s photo in appreciation of her position.
However, Israeli and Saudi accounts offered different reasons for Joud Fahmy's withdrawal.
Israeli press reports claimed that Fahmy decided to leave the competition because she could meet Gili Cohen, a 25-year-old Israeli athlete, in the next round if she managed to secure a victory against Christianne Legentil from Mauritius.
But the Saudi Olympic Delegation tweeted that Fahmy's withdrawal from the games was because of injuries she had picked up in training, and not for political reasons.
The Saudi medical team had advised her not to participate, the tweet said.
All Arab and Muslim athletes agree on withdrawing against Israeli players because Israel is an occupying country and playing against its players grants Israel an official recognition.
Fahmy's decision received a large-scale welcome from Arabs in general and Palestinians in particular. Abdussalam Haneyya, member of the Palestinian Football federation, announced establishing a mural of Fahmy’s photo in appreciation of her position.
25 Palestinian citizens, including 13 children, suffered from smoke inhalation when a drone belonging to an Israeli aerospace company on Tuesday afternoon crashed into a residential house in the village of Zalafa near Umm al-Fahm city.
Israel Aerospace Industries said the drone crashed during a test flight and that it would investigate the circumstances of the incident.
According to Israel's Channel 2, the drone crash triggered a fire in a populated house and led a private car outside it to burn.
25 people, including 13 children, received medical care after they suffered from inhaling fire smoke. The drone that crashed is a Heron 1 type, also known as Shoval, which has been utilized by the Israeli army for over a decade.
Israel Aerospace Industries UAV crashes in northern Israel
Heron 1 drone crashes into a house in the village of Zalafa in Wadi Ara, causing a fire to break out; seven people, five of them children, suffer from smoke inhalation.
An Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Heron 1 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) crashed during a training flight near Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel on Tuesday afternoon.
The UAV crashed into a house in the village of Zalafa in Wadi Ara, causing a fire to break out.
As a result, seven people who were in the house at the time, among them five children, suffered from smoke inhalation. The seven were taken to the HaEmek Medical Center in light condition.
The IAI said it was investigating the causes of the crash.
The Transportation Ministry initially reported that the UAV crash landed on an abandoned house.
Israel Aerospace Industries said the drone crashed during a test flight and that it would investigate the circumstances of the incident.
According to Israel's Channel 2, the drone crash triggered a fire in a populated house and led a private car outside it to burn.
25 people, including 13 children, received medical care after they suffered from inhaling fire smoke. The drone that crashed is a Heron 1 type, also known as Shoval, which has been utilized by the Israeli army for over a decade.
Israel Aerospace Industries UAV crashes in northern Israel
Heron 1 drone crashes into a house in the village of Zalafa in Wadi Ara, causing a fire to break out; seven people, five of them children, suffer from smoke inhalation.
An Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Heron 1 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) crashed during a training flight near Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel on Tuesday afternoon.
The UAV crashed into a house in the village of Zalafa in Wadi Ara, causing a fire to break out.
As a result, seven people who were in the house at the time, among them five children, suffered from smoke inhalation. The seven were taken to the HaEmek Medical Center in light condition.
The IAI said it was investigating the causes of the crash.
The Transportation Ministry initially reported that the UAV crash landed on an abandoned house.
8 aug 2016
The Homeland Protection and Normalization Resistance Committee in Jordan has strongly denounced derogatory remarks made by a senior Israeli official against the kingdom.
"Every once in a while, the Zionists release statements against Jordan, and the latest one was made by former minister of the Zionist army Moshe Ya'alon who said that 'Israel protects the Palestinian Authority and Jordan from collapsing," head of the committee Manaf Mujali stated on Sunday.
Mujali added that such remarks reflected that the Israeli plots have no boundaries, describing Israel as a "cancerous tumor that needs to be fully removed."
He called on the Jordanian government to respond to such insulting Israeli remarks and revoke the Wadi Araba peace treaty.
"Every once in a while, the Zionists release statements against Jordan, and the latest one was made by former minister of the Zionist army Moshe Ya'alon who said that 'Israel protects the Palestinian Authority and Jordan from collapsing," head of the committee Manaf Mujali stated on Sunday.
Mujali added that such remarks reflected that the Israeli plots have no boundaries, describing Israel as a "cancerous tumor that needs to be fully removed."
He called on the Jordanian government to respond to such insulting Israeli remarks and revoke the Wadi Araba peace treaty.
6 aug 2016
Sailor Udi Gal, a member of Israel's Olympics delegation, says members of the Lebanese delegation refused to let the Israelis ride the bus with them to the Maracana stadium, where the opening ceremony was to take place.
The Rio 2016 Olympic Games began on a sour note for the Israeli delegation, but not one relating to the actual competition. When the delegation was ready to board the bus to the Maracana stadium in the Brazilian city, they were physically prevented from doing so by the Lebanese delegation, already aboard, according Israeli sailor Udi Gal.
“The 2016 Olympics – a disgrace!!” wrote Gal in a Facebook post. “(When) Israel’s Olympic delegation got ready to board the bus for the opening ceremony, it turned out the bus was shared with the Lebanese delegation. Once the members of the Lebanese delegation realized they were (sharing the bus) with the Israeli delegation, they asked the driver to close the door, with their delegation leader heading (the effort).”
Gal claimed that the organizers tried to calm things down. “The organizers tried to split us up to different buses, something which was not possible security and representation-wise,” he wrote, “I insisted and we insisted that we get on the intended bus, and if the Lebanese don’t want (to ride with us), they are welcome to get off (of it). The bus driver opened the door, but this time the head of the Lebanese delegation blocked the entrance with his body. The organizers tried to prevent an international incident and sent us aside to a special (vehicle).”
Gal was surprised the organizers gave in to the pressure, writing, “How is it that they let something like this happen, and on the opening night of the Olympic Games? Isn’t this the opposite of what the Olympics represent and (don’t the actions by the Lebanese delegation) work against it? I cannot describe the way I feel. I’m enraged and shocked by this event.”
Lebanese delegation head, Salim al-Haj Nakoula gave the Lebanese press his version of the story on Saturday. In an interview given to the An-Nahar newspaper, Nakoula claimed that each delegation was to have its own bus. “There are over 250 buses dedicated to transporting the delegations from the Olympic village to the opening ceremony. After we boarded Bus 22, which was dedicated to the Lebanese delegation, I was surprised by the Israeli delegation’s approaching and wanting to get on the bus with us,” he said.
“I asked the driver to shut the door, but the guide who was there with the Israeli delegation prevented him from doing so. I had to stand at the entrance to the bus to block it, and prevent the (Israeli) delegation from coming in,” Nakoula said. He claimed that the Israelis were trying to cause an incident on purpose. “They have a bus of their own like all delegations. Why did they want to get on the Lebanese delegation's bus?” he asked.
Head of the Israeli delegation to the Rio 2016 games, Gili Lustig, responded to Nakoula by saying, “The organizing committee was the one that determined the travel arrangements, and which bus we would take to the ceremony. The organizing committee saw the rude behavior of the Lebanese delegation head and immediately provided an alternate bus. The behavior of the Lebanese delegation head is in conflict with the Olympic truce. As far as we are concerned, the whole thing is behind us and we’re ready for the competitions.”
Lusting mentioned that the organization committee apologized for the incident. “They pointed us at a bus with ten Lebanese people in it. It was an unwise decision from the start and it’s too bad they didn’t think of that before. This king of incident could have been prevented. We certainly don’t believe in boycotts. The committee’s people tried to talk to the Lebanese, who refused to accept us. It should be said that the busses were joint: They’d fill a bus, and move on. They asked that we not make a scene ahead of the opening ceremony.”
Lebanese Minister of Youth and Sport Abdel Motaleb Hannawi told a Lebanese news site that this was not the first time Israel has attempted to embarrass a Lebanese delegation in this kind of circumstance. He praised the delegation’s behavior, Nakoula’s specifically. “His stance was principled and patriotic,” he said.
Nakoula became the hero of the day in Lebanon after the incident was publicized. The Al Mayadeen and Al-Manar news networks, both associated with Hezbollah, gave Nakoula praise, with the latter also interviewing him. Hezbollah supporters and officials praised him on social media, with one Al-Manar broadcaster tweeting, “The Israelis were sent away from the bus because normalization (with Israel) is not to be had in any form, and because the Lebanese identity (is that of) resistance. Be proud to be Lebanese.”
The Rio 2016 Olympic Games began on a sour note for the Israeli delegation, but not one relating to the actual competition. When the delegation was ready to board the bus to the Maracana stadium in the Brazilian city, they were physically prevented from doing so by the Lebanese delegation, already aboard, according Israeli sailor Udi Gal.
“The 2016 Olympics – a disgrace!!” wrote Gal in a Facebook post. “(When) Israel’s Olympic delegation got ready to board the bus for the opening ceremony, it turned out the bus was shared with the Lebanese delegation. Once the members of the Lebanese delegation realized they were (sharing the bus) with the Israeli delegation, they asked the driver to close the door, with their delegation leader heading (the effort).”
Gal claimed that the organizers tried to calm things down. “The organizers tried to split us up to different buses, something which was not possible security and representation-wise,” he wrote, “I insisted and we insisted that we get on the intended bus, and if the Lebanese don’t want (to ride with us), they are welcome to get off (of it). The bus driver opened the door, but this time the head of the Lebanese delegation blocked the entrance with his body. The organizers tried to prevent an international incident and sent us aside to a special (vehicle).”
Gal was surprised the organizers gave in to the pressure, writing, “How is it that they let something like this happen, and on the opening night of the Olympic Games? Isn’t this the opposite of what the Olympics represent and (don’t the actions by the Lebanese delegation) work against it? I cannot describe the way I feel. I’m enraged and shocked by this event.”
Lebanese delegation head, Salim al-Haj Nakoula gave the Lebanese press his version of the story on Saturday. In an interview given to the An-Nahar newspaper, Nakoula claimed that each delegation was to have its own bus. “There are over 250 buses dedicated to transporting the delegations from the Olympic village to the opening ceremony. After we boarded Bus 22, which was dedicated to the Lebanese delegation, I was surprised by the Israeli delegation’s approaching and wanting to get on the bus with us,” he said.
“I asked the driver to shut the door, but the guide who was there with the Israeli delegation prevented him from doing so. I had to stand at the entrance to the bus to block it, and prevent the (Israeli) delegation from coming in,” Nakoula said. He claimed that the Israelis were trying to cause an incident on purpose. “They have a bus of their own like all delegations. Why did they want to get on the Lebanese delegation's bus?” he asked.
Head of the Israeli delegation to the Rio 2016 games, Gili Lustig, responded to Nakoula by saying, “The organizing committee was the one that determined the travel arrangements, and which bus we would take to the ceremony. The organizing committee saw the rude behavior of the Lebanese delegation head and immediately provided an alternate bus. The behavior of the Lebanese delegation head is in conflict with the Olympic truce. As far as we are concerned, the whole thing is behind us and we’re ready for the competitions.”
Lusting mentioned that the organization committee apologized for the incident. “They pointed us at a bus with ten Lebanese people in it. It was an unwise decision from the start and it’s too bad they didn’t think of that before. This king of incident could have been prevented. We certainly don’t believe in boycotts. The committee’s people tried to talk to the Lebanese, who refused to accept us. It should be said that the busses were joint: They’d fill a bus, and move on. They asked that we not make a scene ahead of the opening ceremony.”
Lebanese Minister of Youth and Sport Abdel Motaleb Hannawi told a Lebanese news site that this was not the first time Israel has attempted to embarrass a Lebanese delegation in this kind of circumstance. He praised the delegation’s behavior, Nakoula’s specifically. “His stance was principled and patriotic,” he said.
Nakoula became the hero of the day in Lebanon after the incident was publicized. The Al Mayadeen and Al-Manar news networks, both associated with Hezbollah, gave Nakoula praise, with the latter also interviewing him. Hezbollah supporters and officials praised him on social media, with one Al-Manar broadcaster tweeting, “The Israelis were sent away from the bus because normalization (with Israel) is not to be had in any form, and because the Lebanese identity (is that of) resistance. Be proud to be Lebanese.”
5 aug 2016
Haifa Bay
State-appointed scientific committee determines research methods used in study that pointed to a connection between air pollution in the Haifa Bay area and cancer rates among the residents were inadequate to reach the conclusions drawn.
A scientific committee was tasked by the Health and Environmental Protection Ministries with examining the results of a study that pointed to a connection between air pollution in the Haifa Bay area and cancer rates among the residents. This committee has determined that the research methods used were inadequate to reach the conclusions drawn.
"These findings cannot form a basis to assessing the morbidity rates or to drawing a connection between air pollution and the morbidity in the Haifa Bay area," the committee's report determined.
The large-scale study, which made headlines at the beginning of the year and caused a public outcry, was funded by the Haifa District Municipal Association for Environmental Protection and from fees paid by the polluting factories.
The study, conducted by researchers from Haifa University, examined six sub-topics: The incidence of lung cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; the health of infants; the incidence of asthma in children; the incidence of asthma among new IDF recruits; biological monitoring of the impact of air pollution; and air quality data.
The researchers collected data on the health condition of the residents of the area, specifically focusing on cancer, heart diseases and lung diseases. These data were presented in conjunction with data on the air quality in the Haifa Bay area. Researchers also compared morbidity rates in Haifa to those in Tel Aviv and Hadera.
They found that babies born in areas of Haifa suffering from high levels of pollution have lower-than-average weight and head circumference, with measurements 20-30 percent less than babies from other areas in the city.
In addition, researchers found that rates of lung cancer and lymphoma in those areas are up to five times the national average.
The study points to three main areas with high rates of morbidity: Kiryat Haim and Kiryat Bialik, southeast Kiryat Tivon, and the Carmel range—the side facing the industrial zone.
State-appointed scientific committee determines research methods used in study that pointed to a connection between air pollution in the Haifa Bay area and cancer rates among the residents were inadequate to reach the conclusions drawn.
A scientific committee was tasked by the Health and Environmental Protection Ministries with examining the results of a study that pointed to a connection between air pollution in the Haifa Bay area and cancer rates among the residents. This committee has determined that the research methods used were inadequate to reach the conclusions drawn.
"These findings cannot form a basis to assessing the morbidity rates or to drawing a connection between air pollution and the morbidity in the Haifa Bay area," the committee's report determined.
The large-scale study, which made headlines at the beginning of the year and caused a public outcry, was funded by the Haifa District Municipal Association for Environmental Protection and from fees paid by the polluting factories.
The study, conducted by researchers from Haifa University, examined six sub-topics: The incidence of lung cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; the health of infants; the incidence of asthma in children; the incidence of asthma among new IDF recruits; biological monitoring of the impact of air pollution; and air quality data.
The researchers collected data on the health condition of the residents of the area, specifically focusing on cancer, heart diseases and lung diseases. These data were presented in conjunction with data on the air quality in the Haifa Bay area. Researchers also compared morbidity rates in Haifa to those in Tel Aviv and Hadera.
They found that babies born in areas of Haifa suffering from high levels of pollution have lower-than-average weight and head circumference, with measurements 20-30 percent less than babies from other areas in the city.
In addition, researchers found that rates of lung cancer and lymphoma in those areas are up to five times the national average.
The study points to three main areas with high rates of morbidity: Kiryat Haim and Kiryat Bialik, southeast Kiryat Tivon, and the Carmel range—the side facing the industrial zone.
Lung-cancer rates in the Haifa District, with red, orange and yellow areas having above-average rates
The state-appointed scientific committee, headed by Prof. Siegal Sadetzki, examined the research methods used in the first year of the study. After scrutinizing the report, meeting with the researchers and discussing their findings, the committee unanimously determined that that the research methods used in the first year were inadequate to reach the conclusions drawn. The committee can therefore disregard the findings heretofore presented.
According to the committee, the study is plagued with fundamental methodological problems that raise doubt as to the credibility and validity of the data and that of the methods used by the researchers. This therefore also raises doubts regarding the validity and significance of the results presented.
The committee determined that while the research methods could point to changes over time in the concentration of pollutants by comparing different cities, they cannot be used to discerning the differences in the concentration of pollutants in different areas within Haifa.
In addition, the committee pointed to the fact the team of researchers did not include an expert on air quality, while the study itself lacked an assessment of exposure to this air quality.
The research team said in response, "The full report, led by researchers at the University of Haifa, was written by leading experts in the country, including experts from the University of Haifa, the Technion, Tel Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University.
"The report itself consists of various studies, conducted by researchers from various universities, and based on external data repositories from several sources—the Health Ministry, the Environmental Protection Ministry and the IDF. Although the study includes various different researchers, studies and databases, all of the results are consistent, and there is a high correlation among the various studies regarding the 'hot spots' of morbidity discovered.
"Moreover, another study based on the methodology of the report was recently published in the Environmental Research journal, which publishes only a few dozen studies every year that have been carefully examined and selected from among hundreds submitted to the journal. This indicates that it is a leading study in its field, and that the methodology used by the researchers meets international scientific standards."
Meanwhile, the Haifa Municipality said in response, "The municipality accepts verbatim the statement by the Environmental Protection and Health Ministries that rejects the research methods, as well as the interim results released to date.
"In the coming days, we will examine the issue and work alongside the Environmental Protection and Health Ministries to promote an alternative research, comprehensive and professional, to clarify the data on the quality of air in the area."
The state-appointed scientific committee, headed by Prof. Siegal Sadetzki, examined the research methods used in the first year of the study. After scrutinizing the report, meeting with the researchers and discussing their findings, the committee unanimously determined that that the research methods used in the first year were inadequate to reach the conclusions drawn. The committee can therefore disregard the findings heretofore presented.
According to the committee, the study is plagued with fundamental methodological problems that raise doubt as to the credibility and validity of the data and that of the methods used by the researchers. This therefore also raises doubts regarding the validity and significance of the results presented.
The committee determined that while the research methods could point to changes over time in the concentration of pollutants by comparing different cities, they cannot be used to discerning the differences in the concentration of pollutants in different areas within Haifa.
In addition, the committee pointed to the fact the team of researchers did not include an expert on air quality, while the study itself lacked an assessment of exposure to this air quality.
The research team said in response, "The full report, led by researchers at the University of Haifa, was written by leading experts in the country, including experts from the University of Haifa, the Technion, Tel Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University.
"The report itself consists of various studies, conducted by researchers from various universities, and based on external data repositories from several sources—the Health Ministry, the Environmental Protection Ministry and the IDF. Although the study includes various different researchers, studies and databases, all of the results are consistent, and there is a high correlation among the various studies regarding the 'hot spots' of morbidity discovered.
"Moreover, another study based on the methodology of the report was recently published in the Environmental Research journal, which publishes only a few dozen studies every year that have been carefully examined and selected from among hundreds submitted to the journal. This indicates that it is a leading study in its field, and that the methodology used by the researchers meets international scientific standards."
Meanwhile, the Haifa Municipality said in response, "The municipality accepts verbatim the statement by the Environmental Protection and Health Ministries that rejects the research methods, as well as the interim results released to date.
"In the coming days, we will examine the issue and work alongside the Environmental Protection and Health Ministries to promote an alternative research, comprehensive and professional, to clarify the data on the quality of air in the area."
