27 feb 2014
Almost one year after Obama asked Netanyahu to apologize for the death of nine Turkish nationals during the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid, talks with Turkey hit a dead end.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. President Barack Obama last week that the delay in signing an Israeli-Turkish reconciliation agreement is entirely the fault of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
A senior Israeli official involved in the talks with Turkey denied that Israel is to blame for the delay. The Turks are at least equally to blame, if not more so, he said, adding that there are still disputes between the sides that are preventing the deal from being finalized.
Erdogan conveyed his message in a telephone call with Obama last Wednesday, Haaretz has learned. The conversation dealt with a long list of issues connected to the situation in the Middle East, including the ongoing efforts to end the crisis in Turkish-Israeli relations that erupted following Israel’s botched raid on a Turkish-sponsored flotilla to the Gaza Strip in May 2010.
After that conversation, the White House issued a brief statement saying that Obama had urged Erdogan to finalize the agreement and normalize relations with Israel. But Israeli sources who were briefed on the details of the phone call said the two leaders actually held a lengthier discussion of the issue than the statement indicated.
According to the Israeli sources, Obama told Erdogan that almost a year had passed since Netanyahu called the Turkish leader and apologized for the deaths of nine Turkish nationals during the raid. That phone call, which took place during Obama’s visit to Israel, was personally orchestrated by the U.S. president, and it was supposed to launch negotiations between the two sides on a reconciliation agreement. Obama had expected those talks to be concluded within a few months, he told Erdogan, but a year later, nothing had happened.
Erdogan then told Obama that over the past few weeks, the negotiators had finished preparing a draft agreement that was supposed to restore normal relations. But Netanyahu hasn’t yet responded to the proposed agreement, Erdogan said, and is thereby delaying an end to the crisis. “The ball is now in Netanyahu’s court,” the Israeli sources quoted Erdogan as telling the U.S. president.
Obama then told Erdogan that he is supposed to host Netanyahu at the White House next Monday and that at this meeting he will demand the reconciliation deal be finalized promptly.
Israeli and Turkish negotiators finalized the draft agreement four weeks ago. The draft was then brought to Netanyahu for approval along with the negotiators’ recommendation that he sign, but he delayed making a decision. As the days passed, some on the Israeli side began to fear that Netanyahu had changed his mind about reconciliation with the Turks.
They also worried that if he didn’t approve the deal swiftly, somebody in either Turkey or Israel would do something to reshuffle the deck and push reconciliation further away, as had occurred more than once in the past. And indeed, that’s exactly what happened. A few days later, Erdogan once again declared publicly that he wouldn’t normalize relations until Israel ended its blockade of Gaza.
One theory in Jerusalem is that Erdogan’s statement stemmed from anger at Netanyahu’s delay in approving the agreement.
Over the past few weeks, the negotiations have entered the deep freeze, and Israel’s assessment is that no further progress will be made until after Turkey’s local elections on March 30.
ٍSource: HAARETZ
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. President Barack Obama last week that the delay in signing an Israeli-Turkish reconciliation agreement is entirely the fault of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
A senior Israeli official involved in the talks with Turkey denied that Israel is to blame for the delay. The Turks are at least equally to blame, if not more so, he said, adding that there are still disputes between the sides that are preventing the deal from being finalized.
Erdogan conveyed his message in a telephone call with Obama last Wednesday, Haaretz has learned. The conversation dealt with a long list of issues connected to the situation in the Middle East, including the ongoing efforts to end the crisis in Turkish-Israeli relations that erupted following Israel’s botched raid on a Turkish-sponsored flotilla to the Gaza Strip in May 2010.
After that conversation, the White House issued a brief statement saying that Obama had urged Erdogan to finalize the agreement and normalize relations with Israel. But Israeli sources who were briefed on the details of the phone call said the two leaders actually held a lengthier discussion of the issue than the statement indicated.
According to the Israeli sources, Obama told Erdogan that almost a year had passed since Netanyahu called the Turkish leader and apologized for the deaths of nine Turkish nationals during the raid. That phone call, which took place during Obama’s visit to Israel, was personally orchestrated by the U.S. president, and it was supposed to launch negotiations between the two sides on a reconciliation agreement. Obama had expected those talks to be concluded within a few months, he told Erdogan, but a year later, nothing had happened.
Erdogan then told Obama that over the past few weeks, the negotiators had finished preparing a draft agreement that was supposed to restore normal relations. But Netanyahu hasn’t yet responded to the proposed agreement, Erdogan said, and is thereby delaying an end to the crisis. “The ball is now in Netanyahu’s court,” the Israeli sources quoted Erdogan as telling the U.S. president.
Obama then told Erdogan that he is supposed to host Netanyahu at the White House next Monday and that at this meeting he will demand the reconciliation deal be finalized promptly.
Israeli and Turkish negotiators finalized the draft agreement four weeks ago. The draft was then brought to Netanyahu for approval along with the negotiators’ recommendation that he sign, but he delayed making a decision. As the days passed, some on the Israeli side began to fear that Netanyahu had changed his mind about reconciliation with the Turks.
They also worried that if he didn’t approve the deal swiftly, somebody in either Turkey or Israel would do something to reshuffle the deck and push reconciliation further away, as had occurred more than once in the past. And indeed, that’s exactly what happened. A few days later, Erdogan once again declared publicly that he wouldn’t normalize relations until Israel ended its blockade of Gaza.
One theory in Jerusalem is that Erdogan’s statement stemmed from anger at Netanyahu’s delay in approving the agreement.
Over the past few weeks, the negotiations have entered the deep freeze, and Israel’s assessment is that no further progress will be made until after Turkey’s local elections on March 30.
ٍSource: HAARETZ
Dr. Ahmed Bahar, the first deputy speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, has appreciated the Jordanian parliament resolution demanding the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador from Amman. Bahar said in a press release on Wednesday that the decision came in harmony with the Arab popular anti-occupation trends, which reject any form of normalization with Israel.
He urged parliaments of countries that have Israeli embassies to follow the Jordanian parliament’s step in its capacity as a supportive position of the Palestinian people and cause.
The Jordanian parliament earlier Wednesday endorsed a proposal by the chairman of Palestine committee MP Yehya Al-Saud and MP Khalil Atiya to expel the Israeli ambassador from Amman and to recall the Jordanian ambassador from Tel Aviv.
He urged parliaments of countries that have Israeli embassies to follow the Jordanian parliament’s step in its capacity as a supportive position of the Palestinian people and cause.
The Jordanian parliament earlier Wednesday endorsed a proposal by the chairman of Palestine committee MP Yehya Al-Saud and MP Khalil Atiya to expel the Israeli ambassador from Amman and to recall the Jordanian ambassador from Tel Aviv.
PLO Executive Committee member, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, told a visiting American delegation of presidents of Evangelical seminaries and universities that "Israel is behaving as a Crusader state and enslaving the Palestinian people on the basis of religion and institutionalized racism."
Ashrawi's statements came in response to the latest Israeli illagal polices and measures on the ground. She also briefed the delegation on the latest political developments in Palestine, including the negotiations.
In the meeting, Ashrawi answered questions regarding the siege on Gaza, Palestinian reconciliation efforts, Israel's deliberate campaign to strangulate Jerusalem and to transform the full geographic, demographic and cultural character of the city, Palestinian political prisoners, the U.S. Congress and AIPAC, and the BDS movement.
"We need to challenge the distortions and misrepresentations that have tainted some mainstream media in the United States. Americans need to understand that the Palestinian people represent a nation under occupation suffering from a system of apartheid and ethnic cleansing, and it is time for them to speak out against America's unquestioning support of Israel," concluded Dr. Ashrawi.
In a separate meeting yesterday, Dr. Ashrawi met with Austrian Representative to the State of Palestine, Dr. Leonhard Moll.
During the political briefing, both parties discussed the ongoing negotiations, regional developments, Austrian-Palestinian relations, and issues of mutual cooperation.
Ashrawi's statements came in response to the latest Israeli illagal polices and measures on the ground. She also briefed the delegation on the latest political developments in Palestine, including the negotiations.
In the meeting, Ashrawi answered questions regarding the siege on Gaza, Palestinian reconciliation efforts, Israel's deliberate campaign to strangulate Jerusalem and to transform the full geographic, demographic and cultural character of the city, Palestinian political prisoners, the U.S. Congress and AIPAC, and the BDS movement.
"We need to challenge the distortions and misrepresentations that have tainted some mainstream media in the United States. Americans need to understand that the Palestinian people represent a nation under occupation suffering from a system of apartheid and ethnic cleansing, and it is time for them to speak out against America's unquestioning support of Israel," concluded Dr. Ashrawi.
In a separate meeting yesterday, Dr. Ashrawi met with Austrian Representative to the State of Palestine, Dr. Leonhard Moll.
During the political briefing, both parties discussed the ongoing negotiations, regional developments, Austrian-Palestinian relations, and issues of mutual cooperation.
Israeli military sources have reported that three soldiers were injured, on Wednesday evening [February 26, 2014], after a Molotov cocktail struck their vehicle close to the Migdalim illegal settlement, near the northern West Bank city of Nablus.
The army said that the three soldiers suffered mild to moderate injuries, and that the army conducted a search campaign in the area.
In related news, the army said young Palestinian men hurled rocks at a settler’s car, near Azzoun town, in the northern West Bank district of Qalqilia. The army reported no injuries or damage to the vehicle.
Soldiers invaded nearby Palestinian areas and conducted military searches; no arrests have been reported.
The army said that the three soldiers suffered mild to moderate injuries, and that the army conducted a search campaign in the area.
In related news, the army said young Palestinian men hurled rocks at a settler’s car, near Azzoun town, in the northern West Bank district of Qalqilia. The army reported no injuries or damage to the vehicle.
Soldiers invaded nearby Palestinian areas and conducted military searches; no arrests have been reported.
Israeli sources have reported, Wednesday [February 26, 2014], that the body of an Israeli soldier who went missing last week has been located near a road leading to the Haifa University.
The Israeli army said that the soldier, 19 years of age, from the Higher Galilee, was repeatedly stabbed in the upper parts of his body, and that a big knife was located near his body.
The Israeli Police initiated an investigation into the incident, and said the attack seems to be criminally motivated.
The Israeli army said that the soldier, 19 years of age, from the Higher Galilee, was repeatedly stabbed in the upper parts of his body, and that a big knife was located near his body.
The Israeli Police initiated an investigation into the incident, and said the attack seems to be criminally motivated.
26 feb 2014
The Jordanian MPs voted unanimously Wednesday to expel the Israeli Ambassador to Jordan in protest of Knesset proposal to withdraw Jordanian custodianship and sovereignty over Al-Aqsa. Jordan News Agency (PETRA) reported that the Jordanian Parliament held a session Wednesday to discuss the Israeli Parliament’s debate of extending the Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem.
The Jordanian MPs voted unanimously in favor of the proposes made by the Committee of Palestine to expel the Israeli Ambassador to Jordan, Daniel Nevo, and recall the Jordanian Ambassador to Israel, Walid Obeidat.
As part of discussing the revocation of the Jordanian sovereignty over the holy sites in Jerusalem by the Knesset, the Jordanian MPs called for taking immediate measures to prevent Israel from carrying out its scheme.
They stated that extending the Israeli sovereignty over the Al-Aqsa Mosque would put the Jordanian Israeli peace treaty at stake, stressing that the Jordanian Government would present a bill to annul the peace treaty with Israel, expel Nevo and recall Obeidat should Israel extend its sovereignity over Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
The Jordanian MPs voted unanimously in favor of the proposes made by the Committee of Palestine to expel the Israeli Ambassador to Jordan, Daniel Nevo, and recall the Jordanian Ambassador to Israel, Walid Obeidat.
As part of discussing the revocation of the Jordanian sovereignty over the holy sites in Jerusalem by the Knesset, the Jordanian MPs called for taking immediate measures to prevent Israel from carrying out its scheme.
They stated that extending the Israeli sovereignty over the Al-Aqsa Mosque would put the Jordanian Israeli peace treaty at stake, stressing that the Jordanian Government would present a bill to annul the peace treaty with Israel, expel Nevo and recall Obeidat should Israel extend its sovereignity over Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
Europeans are opening their eyes to the true nature of Israel as Tel Aviv pushes on with its inhumane policies against Palestinians, an analyst tells Press TV.
"Now that Israel is reaching the end of its ethnic cleansing project in Palestine by pushing Palestinians into ever smaller areas and impoverishing them even more and making their lives as miserable as possible, even some of the Europeans are waking up to what is going on," said Paul Larudee, from the Free Palestine Movement, in an interview with Press TV.
"Even Germany which is one of the closest friends that Israel has, has said words of criticism and as of now less than twenty percent of the German people approve of Israel," he underlined.
He also noted that there is a "growing" trend of boycotting Israeli goods and services by European companies and institutions.
"What we can say is that it has been growing and it started on a popular level, but now it is going to the larger companies which are moving away from it. The banks, the financial institutions and the governments themselves especially in places like Norway and the Netherlands are beginning to endorse, if you will, some of the boycotts," the analyst said.
"It certainly is growing and whether it will continue to grow is uncertain but there is every sign that when governments do not step up to do what is necessary, the people seem to be willing to do so and that is the movement that we can hope will result in the change that we need," Larudee noted.
"Now that Israel is reaching the end of its ethnic cleansing project in Palestine by pushing Palestinians into ever smaller areas and impoverishing them even more and making their lives as miserable as possible, even some of the Europeans are waking up to what is going on," said Paul Larudee, from the Free Palestine Movement, in an interview with Press TV.
"Even Germany which is one of the closest friends that Israel has, has said words of criticism and as of now less than twenty percent of the German people approve of Israel," he underlined.
He also noted that there is a "growing" trend of boycotting Israeli goods and services by European companies and institutions.
"What we can say is that it has been growing and it started on a popular level, but now it is going to the larger companies which are moving away from it. The banks, the financial institutions and the governments themselves especially in places like Norway and the Netherlands are beginning to endorse, if you will, some of the boycotts," the analyst said.
"It certainly is growing and whether it will continue to grow is uncertain but there is every sign that when governments do not step up to do what is necessary, the people seem to be willing to do so and that is the movement that we can hope will result in the change that we need," Larudee noted.
PLO Executive Committee member, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, condemned in a press release the passing of a new Israeli Knesset bill that was sponsored by MK Yariv Levin of the Likud Party and that explicitly distinguishes between Muslim and Christian Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Ashrawi also denounced Knesset's discussion of a proposal initiated by right-wing MK Moshe Feiglin regarding the extension of Israeli sovereignty over the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
She said, "These moves demonstrate that Israel is transforming its military occupation into an outright religious confrontation and an ideological component of official policy as demonstrated in its insistence on the recognition of the 'Jewishness of the state.'"
"Such developments, along with its systematic campaign to annex and distort the character and demography of Jerusalem, constitute institutionalized racism, which is illegal by all measures of international law and defies all the basic principles of democracy and human rights," she added.
"They are also fundamentally offensive to all other religions and constitute an extreme provocation to Muslims worldwide. Using religion as a pretext to impose sovereignty on historical places of worship threatens to plunge the entire region into great conflict and instability. It is reminiscent of the same regressive ideology that brought the Crusades to Palestine in the Middle Ages," stressed Ashrawi.
She added, "History has revealed the dangers of extremism and religious bigotry being used to instigate and promote sectarianism and strife. This strategy is not only imposed on the Palestinians in Occupied Palestine, but it is also forced on Palestinian citizens of Israel (Christians, Muslims and Druze) who are subjected to an apartheid system of laws that neither respects nor implements human rights."
"We call on all members of the international community to hold Israel accountable and to curb Israel's legislated racial discrimination and deliberate aggression and assaults on Palestinian holy sites."
"While Palestine is committed to the principles of tolerance, pluralism, diversity, and inclusiveness in a genuinely democratic system of governance consistent with the global values of the 21st century, Israel is adopting a policy of the classification of its citizens based on religion or ethnicity which is an obsolete and outdated practice," concluded Ashrawi.
Ashrawi also denounced Knesset's discussion of a proposal initiated by right-wing MK Moshe Feiglin regarding the extension of Israeli sovereignty over the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
She said, "These moves demonstrate that Israel is transforming its military occupation into an outright religious confrontation and an ideological component of official policy as demonstrated in its insistence on the recognition of the 'Jewishness of the state.'"
"Such developments, along with its systematic campaign to annex and distort the character and demography of Jerusalem, constitute institutionalized racism, which is illegal by all measures of international law and defies all the basic principles of democracy and human rights," she added.
"They are also fundamentally offensive to all other religions and constitute an extreme provocation to Muslims worldwide. Using religion as a pretext to impose sovereignty on historical places of worship threatens to plunge the entire region into great conflict and instability. It is reminiscent of the same regressive ideology that brought the Crusades to Palestine in the Middle Ages," stressed Ashrawi.
She added, "History has revealed the dangers of extremism and religious bigotry being used to instigate and promote sectarianism and strife. This strategy is not only imposed on the Palestinians in Occupied Palestine, but it is also forced on Palestinian citizens of Israel (Christians, Muslims and Druze) who are subjected to an apartheid system of laws that neither respects nor implements human rights."
"We call on all members of the international community to hold Israel accountable and to curb Israel's legislated racial discrimination and deliberate aggression and assaults on Palestinian holy sites."
"While Palestine is committed to the principles of tolerance, pluralism, diversity, and inclusiveness in a genuinely democratic system of governance consistent with the global values of the 21st century, Israel is adopting a policy of the classification of its citizens based on religion or ethnicity which is an obsolete and outdated practice," concluded Ashrawi.
A new Israeli law giving Muslim and Christian Arab citizens separate representation on a national employment commission drew fire from the Palestinians on Tuesday.
"This law aims to create a new reality among our people based on religion and not national identity," Palestine Liberation Organization executive committee member Hanan Ashrawi said in a statement.
Israel's parliament on Monday passed into law a bill expanding the equal opportunities commission from five to 10 members, and giving separate seats for the first time to representatives of Christian and Muslim Arab workers' groups.
"We and the Christians have a lot in common. They’re our natural allies, a counterweight to the Muslims who want to destroy the country from within," Haaretz daily quoted the bill's sponsor, Yariv Levin, of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, as saying.
It also sets aside seats for Druze, ultra-Orthodox Jews and families of Jewish immigrants from Ethiopia, all groups which have higher than average unemployment.
The bill was passed three months ahead of the first trip to the Holy Land by Pope Francis, who is to visit Amman, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem from May 24 to 26.
The Palestinian Israeli community has its roots in the 160,000 Palestinians who remained inside Israel following its creation in 1948. Today they and their descendants number around 1.3 million out of a total Israeli population of 7.9 million.
Palestinian Israelis have full citizenship and are allowed to vote, but have long complained of official discrimination.
"This law aims to create a new reality among our people based on religion and not national identity," Palestine Liberation Organization executive committee member Hanan Ashrawi said in a statement.
Israel's parliament on Monday passed into law a bill expanding the equal opportunities commission from five to 10 members, and giving separate seats for the first time to representatives of Christian and Muslim Arab workers' groups.
"We and the Christians have a lot in common. They’re our natural allies, a counterweight to the Muslims who want to destroy the country from within," Haaretz daily quoted the bill's sponsor, Yariv Levin, of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, as saying.
It also sets aside seats for Druze, ultra-Orthodox Jews and families of Jewish immigrants from Ethiopia, all groups which have higher than average unemployment.
The bill was passed three months ahead of the first trip to the Holy Land by Pope Francis, who is to visit Amman, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem from May 24 to 26.
The Palestinian Israeli community has its roots in the 160,000 Palestinians who remained inside Israel following its creation in 1948. Today they and their descendants number around 1.3 million out of a total Israeli population of 7.9 million.
Palestinian Israelis have full citizenship and are allowed to vote, but have long complained of official discrimination.
25 feb 2014
The 10th annual Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) has kicked off in the United States and Britain with similar events expected to be held in other parts of the world in March.
University campuses across North America and the United Kingdom kicked off the events on Monday to build support for the growing boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaign.
The IAW ceremonies, organized by Palestinian student groups or their allies, include lectures, meetings with speakers who oppose Israeli policies, including Israeli students who live abroad, film screenings and demonstrations calling for boycotts of Israel.
Israeli Apartheid Week is being held in the United States and UK between February 24 and March 2. It is expected to be also observed in over 200 cities around the world.
In England, events will take place at Oxford, Cambridge, the London School of Economics and other high-status institutions.
According to organizers, there has been “a sharp increase of literature and analysis that has sought to document and challenge Israeli apartheid, including reports issued by major international bodies and human rights organizations and findings published by political leaders, thinkers, academics, and activists.”
The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.
The Israeli regime also maintains a defiant stand on the issue of illegal settlements on Palestinian land as it refuses to freeze settlement expansion. Tel Aviv has come under repeated and widespread international condemnation over the issue.
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds (Jerusalem).
University campuses across North America and the United Kingdom kicked off the events on Monday to build support for the growing boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaign.
The IAW ceremonies, organized by Palestinian student groups or their allies, include lectures, meetings with speakers who oppose Israeli policies, including Israeli students who live abroad, film screenings and demonstrations calling for boycotts of Israel.
Israeli Apartheid Week is being held in the United States and UK between February 24 and March 2. It is expected to be also observed in over 200 cities around the world.
In England, events will take place at Oxford, Cambridge, the London School of Economics and other high-status institutions.
According to organizers, there has been “a sharp increase of literature and analysis that has sought to document and challenge Israeli apartheid, including reports issued by major international bodies and human rights organizations and findings published by political leaders, thinkers, academics, and activists.”
The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.
The Israeli regime also maintains a defiant stand on the issue of illegal settlements on Palestinian land as it refuses to freeze settlement expansion. Tel Aviv has come under repeated and widespread international condemnation over the issue.
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds (Jerusalem).
The pension fund of Luxembourg's government workers has decided to add the five major Israeli banks and top firms to banned investment targets list. i24News reported that "The fund, FDC, is the latest in a line of European banks, pension funds and business firms to boycott Israeli business over its involvement in settlement activity in the West Bank."
The Israeli concerns have been on the rise over the European economic boycotts against the backdrop of the continued colonial settlement in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli occuption PM Benyamin Netanyahu discussed with officials efforts to combat the academic and commercial boycotts facing the state.
Netanyahu said the EU countries should enact laws prohibiting any future boycott of Israel.
The Israeli concerns have been on the rise over the European economic boycotts against the backdrop of the continued colonial settlement in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli occuption PM Benyamin Netanyahu discussed with officials efforts to combat the academic and commercial boycotts facing the state.
Netanyahu said the EU countries should enact laws prohibiting any future boycott of Israel.
The Palestinian Ministry of Information considers -the U.S. Congress Appropriations Committee's bill to ban assisting the Palestinian State until the latter stops the so-called incitement against Israel -as a political fallacy, and a distortion of the facts as well as full support of the occupation to continue its crimes against our people.
The Ministry stresses in a press release Tuesday that the axiomatic logic puts the U.S lawmakers and politicians before their duties to end the last and longest occupation in modern history, which commits all forms of killing and illegal settlement, violates the International law and ignores all the resolutions of the UN Security Council and General Assembly relevant to Palestine, since 1947 until now.
Some Congress members' biasness to the State of occupation prevented the hearing of the American official reports on the Israeli refusal to activate the Joint Committee to prevent incitement that the US recently tried to activate, and their maneuvers to prevent recognizing the rights of our people for having freedom and independence.
Its worth mentioning that the ministry would like to remind the US political parties, and defenders of the occupation that the Palestinian people shall have the right to recall the dreams of Martin Luther King for freedom and salvation, to stop supporting discrimination and biasness to the occupation and refrain from ignoring our just rights.
The ministry re-stresses that the U.S Appropriations Committee and Congress members should read and see the many Israeli violations against our people in the US media, and that they should work to stop the daily Israeli right-wing settlers' crimes against our people and their properties, and worship places, as well.
The Ministry stresses in a press release Tuesday that the axiomatic logic puts the U.S lawmakers and politicians before their duties to end the last and longest occupation in modern history, which commits all forms of killing and illegal settlement, violates the International law and ignores all the resolutions of the UN Security Council and General Assembly relevant to Palestine, since 1947 until now.
Some Congress members' biasness to the State of occupation prevented the hearing of the American official reports on the Israeli refusal to activate the Joint Committee to prevent incitement that the US recently tried to activate, and their maneuvers to prevent recognizing the rights of our people for having freedom and independence.
Its worth mentioning that the ministry would like to remind the US political parties, and defenders of the occupation that the Palestinian people shall have the right to recall the dreams of Martin Luther King for freedom and salvation, to stop supporting discrimination and biasness to the occupation and refrain from ignoring our just rights.
The ministry re-stresses that the U.S Appropriations Committee and Congress members should read and see the many Israeli violations against our people in the US media, and that they should work to stop the daily Israeli right-wing settlers' crimes against our people and their properties, and worship places, as well.
A senior expert at the United Nations says Israel’s policies in the occupied West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip appear to amount to “apartheid.”
Richard Falk, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, made the remarks in a searing 22-page report to the world body’s Human Rights Council on Monday.
"Through prolonged occupation, with practices and policies which appear to constitute apartheid and segregation, ongoing expansion of settlements, and continual construction of the wall arguably amounting to de facto annexation of parts of the occupied Palestinian territory, the denial by Israel of the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people is evident," the report said.
In East al-Quds (Jerusalem), the "revocation of residency permits" and "forced evictions of Palestinian families," as well as targeted demolition of Palestinian homes, amounts to a "gradual and bureaucratic process of ethnic cleansing," Falk wrote in the report.
The Israeli regime maintains a defiant stand on the issue of its illegal settlements on Palestinian land as it refuses to freeze settlement expansion. Tel Aviv has come under repeated and widespread international condemnation over the issue.
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds.
Falk condemned Israel’s use of force and unlawful killing of Palestinians, saying that the UN should consider imposing sanctions on Israel.
He also criticized Israel’s attacks on Palestinian farmers in the Gaza Strip, saying that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire. He added that Israel violates Palestinians’ rights to work, education, freedom of movement, and assembly.
Gaza has been blockaded since June 2007, a situation that has caused a decline in the standards of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.
The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.
Richard Falk, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, made the remarks in a searing 22-page report to the world body’s Human Rights Council on Monday.
"Through prolonged occupation, with practices and policies which appear to constitute apartheid and segregation, ongoing expansion of settlements, and continual construction of the wall arguably amounting to de facto annexation of parts of the occupied Palestinian territory, the denial by Israel of the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people is evident," the report said.
In East al-Quds (Jerusalem), the "revocation of residency permits" and "forced evictions of Palestinian families," as well as targeted demolition of Palestinian homes, amounts to a "gradual and bureaucratic process of ethnic cleansing," Falk wrote in the report.
The Israeli regime maintains a defiant stand on the issue of its illegal settlements on Palestinian land as it refuses to freeze settlement expansion. Tel Aviv has come under repeated and widespread international condemnation over the issue.
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds.
Falk condemned Israel’s use of force and unlawful killing of Palestinians, saying that the UN should consider imposing sanctions on Israel.
He also criticized Israel’s attacks on Palestinian farmers in the Gaza Strip, saying that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire. He added that Israel violates Palestinians’ rights to work, education, freedom of movement, and assembly.
Gaza has been blockaded since June 2007, a situation that has caused a decline in the standards of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.
The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.
24 feb 2014
Ministry of Education in Gaza said backing an Israeli bill to “strengthen the value of the State of Israel as the Jewish nation-state" in public school education reflects an extremist mindset. Chairman of Curriculum Committee at the ministry Jamal Abu Hashim told ALRAY that the ministerial committee for legislation’s move is a serious attempt to indoctrinate the Palestinians of 1948 territories and Jerusalem with extremist Jewish tenets.
Giving the Jewish character of the Israeli state shall gradually deny the Palestinian right to Palestine and eventually rejecting their presence in their land , as this character shall deprive the Palestinian refugees of their right of return, he explained in an interview with ALRAY.
Israeli website Haaretz reported on Feb. 9 that “a controversial bill requiring schools to "educate toward strengthening the value of the State of Israel as the Jewish nation-state" won the government's support,”
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli occupation prime minister, has made Palestinian recognition of Israel as the Jewish people's nation-state a key demand in the peace talks.
Giving the Jewish character of the Israeli state shall gradually deny the Palestinian right to Palestine and eventually rejecting their presence in their land , as this character shall deprive the Palestinian refugees of their right of return, he explained in an interview with ALRAY.
Israeli website Haaretz reported on Feb. 9 that “a controversial bill requiring schools to "educate toward strengthening the value of the State of Israel as the Jewish nation-state" won the government's support,”
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli occupation prime minister, has made Palestinian recognition of Israel as the Jewish people's nation-state a key demand in the peace talks.
Assistance to torture regimes violates US & international law
Guest post by Daniel Wickham
The top ten recipients of US foreign assistance this year all practice torture and are responsible for major human rights abuses, according to the findings of Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other leading human rights organisations. This may be in violation of existing US law, which requires that little or no aid be provided to a country which “engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights, including torture.”
A report released by the Congressional Research Service lists the following countries as the largest beneficiaries of US government-provided aid planned for 2014:
1. Israel - $3.1bn
2. Afghanistan - $2.2bn
3. Egypt - $1.6bn
4. Pakistan - $1.2bn
5. Nigeria - $693m
6. Jordan - $671m
7. Iraq - $573m
8. Kenya - $564m
9. Tanzania - $553m
10.Uganda -$456m
All ten have been accused of torturing people in the last year, and at least half of them are reported to be doing so on a massive scale. In Afghanistan, for example, a UN report that torture in prisons continues to be “widespread”, with over half of the 635 detainees who were interviewed claiming to have been abused. According to Amnesty International, torture is also “widespread” in Uganda and remains “common” practice in Iraq.
Elsewhere, in Kenya, Human Rights Watch claim that “police in Nairobi tortured, raped and otherwise abused and arbitrarily detained at least 1,000 refugees between mid-November 2012 and late January 2013.” Tanzanians “at most risk of HIV” also face “widespread police abuse” - including torture - and are “regularly raped, assaulted and arrested.”
The worst abuses in detention, however, are alleged to be happening Nigeria, where in addition to the “widespread” use of torture, nearly a thousand people died in military custody in the first six months of 2013. A senior officer in the Nigerian army, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that “about five people, on average, are killed nearly on a daily basis.” According to the Associated Press, “if the number is accurate, Nigeria’s military has killed more civilians than the (Boko Haram) militants did” in the same six month period.
The “abysmal” human rights situation in Egypt, whose government still receives half a billion dollars in foreign aid annually from the United States, is also a pressing concern. According to Tayab Ali of ITN solicitors in London, “the evidence suggests that Egypt’s military regime has carried out crimes against humanity on a horrendous scale, including murder, persecution, torture and enforced disappearances.” At least 1,300 protesters have been massacred and anywhere between 3,500 and 21,317 Muslim Brotherhood supporters arrested since the elected government of Mohammed Morsi was overthrown in a coup d’etat in July.
Although the crackdown shows no signs of letting up, with dozens more killed on the anniversary of the Egyptian uprising in January, the United States is on course to increase its support for the military regime after Congress passed a new bill which will allow the US to restore the full $1.5bn in foreign assistance which is traditionally provided.
Israel, the top recipient of US military aid, has also been accused of committing major human rights abuses over the last year, including the torture of Palestinian children. A recent report by the Public Committee against Torture in Israel described how detained children “suspected of minor crimes” have been sexually assaulted by Israeli security forces and kept in outdoor cages during the winter.
It found that “74% of Palestinian child detainees experience physical violence during arrest, transfer or interrogation.” This would appear to back up the claims of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, which last year reported that “Palestinian children are systematically subject to degrading treatment, and often to acts of torture” by the Israeli military and police.
Likewise, in Jordan and Pakistan, torture is practiced with “near-total impunity.” The Pakistani authorities have carried out particularly egregious human rights abuses in the province of Balochistan, where 160 people have been extra-judicially killed and 510 “disappeared” over the last year. According to reports from the country’s most widely read English-language newspaper, at least 592 mutilated dead bodies have now been found since January 2010. The United States, however, has kept silent on the mounting evidence of atrocities and continues to provide over a billion dollars in foreign assistance annually, making it Pakistan’s “largest donor of development and military aid.”
A number of other recipients of US foreign assistance are also alleged to practice torture systematically. In Bahrain, for example, Amnesty International report that “children are being routinely detained, ill-treated and tortured”, while in Mexico and Ethiopia, torture is described as “widespread.” Controversially, the Obama administration has also recently restored military aid to Uzbekistan, where the UN claim torture is practiced in its “worst forms.” In one particularly horrifying case, a man was actually boiled to death in an Uzbek prison for allegedly being a member of an Islamist group.
In spite of this, the United States remains a signatory of the United Nations Convention against Torture, which it ratified in 1994 [PDF]. However, the fact that the top ten recipients of US foreign assistance all practice torture raises serious questions about the Obama administration’s stance on human rights. If the United States wants to be taken seriously on these issues, a serious re-evaluation of its foreign assistance programme is needed. At a minimum, the Obama administration should respect existing US law by placing conditions, such as an end to the practice of torture, on the provision of military aid to foreign governments, which will hopefully then push those governments towards reform and a greater respect for human rights.
Guest post by Daniel Wickham
The top ten recipients of US foreign assistance this year all practice torture and are responsible for major human rights abuses, according to the findings of Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other leading human rights organisations. This may be in violation of existing US law, which requires that little or no aid be provided to a country which “engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights, including torture.”
A report released by the Congressional Research Service lists the following countries as the largest beneficiaries of US government-provided aid planned for 2014:
1. Israel - $3.1bn
2. Afghanistan - $2.2bn
3. Egypt - $1.6bn
4. Pakistan - $1.2bn
5. Nigeria - $693m
6. Jordan - $671m
7. Iraq - $573m
8. Kenya - $564m
9. Tanzania - $553m
10.Uganda -$456m
All ten have been accused of torturing people in the last year, and at least half of them are reported to be doing so on a massive scale. In Afghanistan, for example, a UN report that torture in prisons continues to be “widespread”, with over half of the 635 detainees who were interviewed claiming to have been abused. According to Amnesty International, torture is also “widespread” in Uganda and remains “common” practice in Iraq.
Elsewhere, in Kenya, Human Rights Watch claim that “police in Nairobi tortured, raped and otherwise abused and arbitrarily detained at least 1,000 refugees between mid-November 2012 and late January 2013.” Tanzanians “at most risk of HIV” also face “widespread police abuse” - including torture - and are “regularly raped, assaulted and arrested.”
The worst abuses in detention, however, are alleged to be happening Nigeria, where in addition to the “widespread” use of torture, nearly a thousand people died in military custody in the first six months of 2013. A senior officer in the Nigerian army, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that “about five people, on average, are killed nearly on a daily basis.” According to the Associated Press, “if the number is accurate, Nigeria’s military has killed more civilians than the (Boko Haram) militants did” in the same six month period.
The “abysmal” human rights situation in Egypt, whose government still receives half a billion dollars in foreign aid annually from the United States, is also a pressing concern. According to Tayab Ali of ITN solicitors in London, “the evidence suggests that Egypt’s military regime has carried out crimes against humanity on a horrendous scale, including murder, persecution, torture and enforced disappearances.” At least 1,300 protesters have been massacred and anywhere between 3,500 and 21,317 Muslim Brotherhood supporters arrested since the elected government of Mohammed Morsi was overthrown in a coup d’etat in July.
Although the crackdown shows no signs of letting up, with dozens more killed on the anniversary of the Egyptian uprising in January, the United States is on course to increase its support for the military regime after Congress passed a new bill which will allow the US to restore the full $1.5bn in foreign assistance which is traditionally provided.
Israel, the top recipient of US military aid, has also been accused of committing major human rights abuses over the last year, including the torture of Palestinian children. A recent report by the Public Committee against Torture in Israel described how detained children “suspected of minor crimes” have been sexually assaulted by Israeli security forces and kept in outdoor cages during the winter.
It found that “74% of Palestinian child detainees experience physical violence during arrest, transfer or interrogation.” This would appear to back up the claims of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, which last year reported that “Palestinian children are systematically subject to degrading treatment, and often to acts of torture” by the Israeli military and police.
Likewise, in Jordan and Pakistan, torture is practiced with “near-total impunity.” The Pakistani authorities have carried out particularly egregious human rights abuses in the province of Balochistan, where 160 people have been extra-judicially killed and 510 “disappeared” over the last year. According to reports from the country’s most widely read English-language newspaper, at least 592 mutilated dead bodies have now been found since January 2010. The United States, however, has kept silent on the mounting evidence of atrocities and continues to provide over a billion dollars in foreign assistance annually, making it Pakistan’s “largest donor of development and military aid.”
A number of other recipients of US foreign assistance are also alleged to practice torture systematically. In Bahrain, for example, Amnesty International report that “children are being routinely detained, ill-treated and tortured”, while in Mexico and Ethiopia, torture is described as “widespread.” Controversially, the Obama administration has also recently restored military aid to Uzbekistan, where the UN claim torture is practiced in its “worst forms.” In one particularly horrifying case, a man was actually boiled to death in an Uzbek prison for allegedly being a member of an Islamist group.
In spite of this, the United States remains a signatory of the United Nations Convention against Torture, which it ratified in 1994 [PDF]. However, the fact that the top ten recipients of US foreign assistance all practice torture raises serious questions about the Obama administration’s stance on human rights. If the United States wants to be taken seriously on these issues, a serious re-evaluation of its foreign assistance programme is needed. At a minimum, the Obama administration should respect existing US law by placing conditions, such as an end to the practice of torture, on the provision of military aid to foreign governments, which will hopefully then push those governments towards reform and a greater respect for human rights.
- This article was first published by Left Foot Forward
A photo of victims of the World War II
The propaganda campaign to stifle any criticism of the holocaust saga is aimed at desensitizing the world vis-à-vis Zionism’s role behind the World War II and Israel’s crimes against Palestinians, a political analyst writes for the Press TV website.
“The media’s obsession with the holocaust is part and parcel of the Zionist campaign to cast a spell over the collective consciousness of the Western world in order to desensitize the public to the suffering of the Palestinians and shield Israel from criticism,” said Brandon Martinez in a Monday article.
The analyst argued that the ongoing attempts to stifle unfettered debate about questionable aspects of the holocaust story can be considered as corroboration of contentions of the pundits who call for revising the historical records about the holocaust.
Martinez pointed to the Zionism’s role behind the World War II, noting, “Not only have we been misled about the true nature of Germany’s wartime concentration camps, we have also been deceived about the real culprits behind the Second World War itself and their motivations.”
He made reference to a letter by the Jewish-Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann, who became the first president of Israel in 1948, to British leader Winston Churchill in September 10, 1941.
In the letter, Weizmann assured Churchill that American Jewry would use their collective power to drag the United States into the war on Britain’s side during the World War II, in exchange for helping to build a Jewish fighting force for the future Zionist conquest of Palestine.
The propaganda campaign to stifle any criticism of the holocaust saga is aimed at desensitizing the world vis-à-vis Zionism’s role behind the World War II and Israel’s crimes against Palestinians, a political analyst writes for the Press TV website.
“The media’s obsession with the holocaust is part and parcel of the Zionist campaign to cast a spell over the collective consciousness of the Western world in order to desensitize the public to the suffering of the Palestinians and shield Israel from criticism,” said Brandon Martinez in a Monday article.
The analyst argued that the ongoing attempts to stifle unfettered debate about questionable aspects of the holocaust story can be considered as corroboration of contentions of the pundits who call for revising the historical records about the holocaust.
Martinez pointed to the Zionism’s role behind the World War II, noting, “Not only have we been misled about the true nature of Germany’s wartime concentration camps, we have also been deceived about the real culprits behind the Second World War itself and their motivations.”
He made reference to a letter by the Jewish-Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann, who became the first president of Israel in 1948, to British leader Winston Churchill in September 10, 1941.
In the letter, Weizmann assured Churchill that American Jewry would use their collective power to drag the United States into the war on Britain’s side during the World War II, in exchange for helping to build a Jewish fighting force for the future Zionist conquest of Palestine.
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A political analyst says Israel poses a "real threat" to world peace, adding the international community must deal with the menace before the outbreak of a third world war, Press TV reports.
In an interview with Press TV on Sunday, James Morris, a US-based commentator, said that Tel Aviv threatens both the region and the entire world, stressing, "How many wars has Israel started in the Middle East? Lebanon, Gaza, Palestine, over and over." "So, I think the real threat to world peace is Israel, and unless we address that, we could be on the brink of the next world war," added the analyst. Morris further described Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as |
"hypocritical," saying Tel Aviv uses Iran's nuclear issue as a "pretext" to set the stage for another war in the Middle East.
The progress of nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 group – Russia, China, France, Germany, the UK and the US -- has provoked the ire of Israel, with the Zionist regime intensifying efforts to derail the negotiations.
On Sunday, the Israeli premier said the Islamic Republic is "getting everything and giving virtually nothing" in its nuclear negotiations with the six states, adding that he would raise the issue with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during an upcoming meeting with her.
Israeli which is believed to be the sole possessor of nuclear weapons in the Middle East with 200-400 warheads, has refused to acknowledge that it possesses nuclear arms and, unlike Iran, is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Israel does not allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to visit its nuclear facilities.
The progress of nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 group – Russia, China, France, Germany, the UK and the US -- has provoked the ire of Israel, with the Zionist regime intensifying efforts to derail the negotiations.
On Sunday, the Israeli premier said the Islamic Republic is "getting everything and giving virtually nothing" in its nuclear negotiations with the six states, adding that he would raise the issue with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during an upcoming meeting with her.
Israeli which is believed to be the sole possessor of nuclear weapons in the Middle East with 200-400 warheads, has refused to acknowledge that it possesses nuclear arms and, unlike Iran, is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Israel does not allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to visit its nuclear facilities.
