24 mar 2018
AIPAC President Mort Fridman has sent supporters an email announcing the approval, by US Congress, of almost $4 billion of US tax money to Israel, while cutting aid to Palestinians widows, orphans, Days of Palestine reports.
“Our work together just made a difference for Israel’s security and for its future,” wrote Fridman, according to If Americans Knew Blog.
“Early this morning, the United States Congress passed major pro-Israel legislation as part of its Omnibus Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2018.
“This legislation includes many critical initiatives that will bolster Israel’s security, including:
“The bill was also the vehicle for Congress to pass the Taylor Force Act, critical legislation that cuts funding to the Palestinian Authority if it continues paying terrorists or their families.”
Reacting to the inclusion of the Taylor Force Act in the United States spending bill for 2018, Husam Zomlot, head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) General Delegation to the United States, said on Saturday that with this act, the US Congress is rewarding occupation and punishing those who seek peace.
“Halting aid to the Palestinian Authority as a tool for a politically-motivated financial pressure does not work, and severely damages the prospects for peace in the Middle East,” said Zomlot in a statement. “The bill rewards the illegal Israeli occupation and ongoing violations of human rights, while simultaneously punishing the Palestinian Authority, which is the only agency committed to peace and nonviolence, and undermines the American-Palestinian bilateral relationship and decades of U.S. investments in the two-state solution.”
Zomlot added that “Congress’ bias is flagrantly obvious, targeting a stipend program that provides dignity and education for children and families of the victims of occupation, and security for both sides, while turning a blind eye towards Israel’s daily violations of US policy and international law.”
He said, according to WAFA, that the Taylor Force Act, which calls for cutting aid to the Palestinian Authority due to the latter’s financial support to families of Palestinians who resisted the Israeli occupation and got either killed or imprisoned, represents the most recent effort in this 30 year old trend of legislations that deliberately targets the Palestinian people.
Congress has targeted the PLO as a terrorist organization since 1987 to date, despite the signing of the Oslo Accords, Israel’s recognition of the PLO, and the numerous bilateral agreements with the United States.
“The ongoing bias against Palestinians in Congress is not irreversible. We have taken notice of the principled and brave members of Congress who have raised concerns over the Taylor Force Act. Also, we are inspired by recent efforts to promote Palestinian children’s rights included in H.R. 4391 Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children Act introduced by the courageous Rep. Betty McCollum to prevent United States tax dollars from supporting the Israeli military’s ongoing detentions and mistreatment of Palestinian children,” said Zomlot.
“Our work together just made a difference for Israel’s security and for its future,” wrote Fridman, according to If Americans Knew Blog.
“Early this morning, the United States Congress passed major pro-Israel legislation as part of its Omnibus Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2018.
“This legislation includes many critical initiatives that will bolster Israel’s security, including:
- $3.1 billion for U.S. security assistance to Israel, to help our ally defend herself and protect her citizens. [See this]
- $705.8 million for missile defense programs, representing $105 million more than last year’s funding level. [See this]
- $47.5 million for joint anti-tunneling technologies, a $5 million increase from last year. [More info on US aid to Israel]
“The bill was also the vehicle for Congress to pass the Taylor Force Act, critical legislation that cuts funding to the Palestinian Authority if it continues paying terrorists or their families.”
Reacting to the inclusion of the Taylor Force Act in the United States spending bill for 2018, Husam Zomlot, head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) General Delegation to the United States, said on Saturday that with this act, the US Congress is rewarding occupation and punishing those who seek peace.
“Halting aid to the Palestinian Authority as a tool for a politically-motivated financial pressure does not work, and severely damages the prospects for peace in the Middle East,” said Zomlot in a statement. “The bill rewards the illegal Israeli occupation and ongoing violations of human rights, while simultaneously punishing the Palestinian Authority, which is the only agency committed to peace and nonviolence, and undermines the American-Palestinian bilateral relationship and decades of U.S. investments in the two-state solution.”
Zomlot added that “Congress’ bias is flagrantly obvious, targeting a stipend program that provides dignity and education for children and families of the victims of occupation, and security for both sides, while turning a blind eye towards Israel’s daily violations of US policy and international law.”
He said, according to WAFA, that the Taylor Force Act, which calls for cutting aid to the Palestinian Authority due to the latter’s financial support to families of Palestinians who resisted the Israeli occupation and got either killed or imprisoned, represents the most recent effort in this 30 year old trend of legislations that deliberately targets the Palestinian people.
Congress has targeted the PLO as a terrorist organization since 1987 to date, despite the signing of the Oslo Accords, Israel’s recognition of the PLO, and the numerous bilateral agreements with the United States.
“The ongoing bias against Palestinians in Congress is not irreversible. We have taken notice of the principled and brave members of Congress who have raised concerns over the Taylor Force Act. Also, we are inspired by recent efforts to promote Palestinian children’s rights included in H.R. 4391 Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children Act introduced by the courageous Rep. Betty McCollum to prevent United States tax dollars from supporting the Israeli military’s ongoing detentions and mistreatment of Palestinian children,” said Zomlot.
20 mar 2018
During lesson discussing blessing of trees and 'strange creatures', Sephardi chief rabbi offers Talmudic exceptional examples in which 'negroes' should be blessed: 'when their parents are both white and they have a monkey.'
Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel Yitzhak Yosef has drawn criticism for comparing, during one of his weekly religious lessons, a "negro" with a monkey.
"We don’t say a blessing for every negro … He needs to be a negro whose father and mother are white … if you know, they had a monkey for a son, they had a son like that,” Rabbi Yosef said.
During the lesson, which was given on Saturday night on the weekly Torah portion of Vayakhel-Pekudei, the rabbi spoke about the blessings of trees which is a customary ritual during the month of Nissan, which began last Shabbat.
The halachic question revolves around whether to bless one tree or at least two and in this context, Rabbi Yosef offered examples of other blessings, for example the blessing of "strange creatures" that evoke attention or repulsion, rather than aesthetic pleasure.
“Someone who sees strange creatures blesses them,” he said. “You see a negro, bless him as an exceptional creature. Which negro? When his father and mother are white and he comes out black.” The rabbi emphasized that “not every negro needs to be blessed” and that it only applied to a blak person who was born to white parents.
Elaborating on the halachic matter, Rabbi Yosef continued: “You go around in the streets of America, every five minutes you will see a negro. Do you bless him as an ‘exceptional creature?’ However, he should be a negro whose father and mother are white.
“We don’t say a blessing for every negro … He needs to be a negro whose father and mother are white … if you know, they had a monkey for a son, they had a son like that,” Rabbi Yosef continued. So what will you say, that there needs to be two negroes? No, but this an example that the Gemorah ( commentary on the Mishnah, the Oral Torah) gave. So the same applies to trees.”
Rabbi Yosef has already found himself on the wrong side of a number of organizations for lessons in the past which have contained racist and other controversial content. Women’s organizations, the IDF and other organizations have criticized the rabbi for some of his statements.
He once described the the courts as worse than "the courts of gentiles" and asked "why do they deal with matters of halacha?" Furthermore, he criticized the IDF’s rules of engagement. “Don't be afraid of anyone who afterwards will go to the High Court or some chief of staff will come along.”
He also described the last government as a “government of malice” and said that mixed-gender classes were “against Halacha and against the Torah. But it is possible to educate small children of 9 years old in a mixed school.”
A statement issued on Rabbi Yosef’s behalf insisted that “The words of the rabbi are quoted from the Babylonian Talmud in Berakhot. R. Joshua b. Levi said: 'On seeing pockmarked persons one says: Blessed be He who makes strange creatures. An objection was raised: If one sees a negro … he says: Blessed be He who makes strange creatures…. Our Rabbis taught: On seeing an elephant, an ape, or a long-tailed ape, one says: Blessed is He who makes strange creatures.’”
Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel Yitzhak Yosef has drawn criticism for comparing, during one of his weekly religious lessons, a "negro" with a monkey.
"We don’t say a blessing for every negro … He needs to be a negro whose father and mother are white … if you know, they had a monkey for a son, they had a son like that,” Rabbi Yosef said.
During the lesson, which was given on Saturday night on the weekly Torah portion of Vayakhel-Pekudei, the rabbi spoke about the blessings of trees which is a customary ritual during the month of Nissan, which began last Shabbat.
The halachic question revolves around whether to bless one tree or at least two and in this context, Rabbi Yosef offered examples of other blessings, for example the blessing of "strange creatures" that evoke attention or repulsion, rather than aesthetic pleasure.
“Someone who sees strange creatures blesses them,” he said. “You see a negro, bless him as an exceptional creature. Which negro? When his father and mother are white and he comes out black.” The rabbi emphasized that “not every negro needs to be blessed” and that it only applied to a blak person who was born to white parents.
Elaborating on the halachic matter, Rabbi Yosef continued: “You go around in the streets of America, every five minutes you will see a negro. Do you bless him as an ‘exceptional creature?’ However, he should be a negro whose father and mother are white.
“We don’t say a blessing for every negro … He needs to be a negro whose father and mother are white … if you know, they had a monkey for a son, they had a son like that,” Rabbi Yosef continued. So what will you say, that there needs to be two negroes? No, but this an example that the Gemorah ( commentary on the Mishnah, the Oral Torah) gave. So the same applies to trees.”
Rabbi Yosef has already found himself on the wrong side of a number of organizations for lessons in the past which have contained racist and other controversial content. Women’s organizations, the IDF and other organizations have criticized the rabbi for some of his statements.
He once described the the courts as worse than "the courts of gentiles" and asked "why do they deal with matters of halacha?" Furthermore, he criticized the IDF’s rules of engagement. “Don't be afraid of anyone who afterwards will go to the High Court or some chief of staff will come along.”
He also described the last government as a “government of malice” and said that mixed-gender classes were “against Halacha and against the Torah. But it is possible to educate small children of 9 years old in a mixed school.”
A statement issued on Rabbi Yosef’s behalf insisted that “The words of the rabbi are quoted from the Babylonian Talmud in Berakhot. R. Joshua b. Levi said: 'On seeing pockmarked persons one says: Blessed be He who makes strange creatures. An objection was raised: If one sees a negro … he says: Blessed be He who makes strange creatures…. Our Rabbis taught: On seeing an elephant, an ape, or a long-tailed ape, one says: Blessed is He who makes strange creatures.’”
17 mar 2018
“We call on, and demand that president Ramaphosa places this matter [the Israeli occupation of Palestine] on the BRICS agenda,” said Naledi Pandor, South Africa’s Minister of Higher Education.
BRICS is the acronym for the association of five major emerging national economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Referring to US President Donald Trump’s reckless decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the US embassy there, Pandor explained that there was now “a need to identify powerful members of the global community who may give greater impetus to progress in finding a two-state solution, perhaps the BRICS countries should be called on to assume such global leadership.”
Pandor made the comments at an Israeli Apartheid Week event at the University of Cape Town (UCT) on Wednesday night, where she was the keynote speaker.
The comments are significant since South Africa is chairing BRICS in 2018. Collectively, the BRICS bloc represents over 3.6 billion people, or about 41% of the world population. Russia and China both hold permanent veto power at the UN Security Council.
Hosted by the UCT Palestine Solidarity Forum (PSF), Pandor reaffirmed both the South African government and the African National Congress’s solidarity with the people of Palestine. She further urged South Africans – particularly young South Africans born in post-1994 democratic South Africa - to act in support of international struggles for freedom and self-determination just as the global community stood in solidarity with the anti-Apartheid movement in South Africa.
“One of the things we failed to appreciate as South Africans is the immense contribution to our struggle by the international anti-Apartheid movement. We enjoyed support from all corners of the world and now that we are free we are ignoring and enjoying our freedom and we have forgotten those who are oppressed in other parts of the world.”
As former beneficiaries of selfless international support, South Africans have a collective duty to lend a supportive hand to others seeking justice and equality, explained Pandor to a crowd of over 250 students. “Now that we have achieved our freedom, we must not forget our friends and allies who helped us liberate ourselves,” she cautioned.
According to Pandor, it was this duty that guided the ANC’s deliberations on the issue of Palestine at its 54th National Conference in December, where South Africa’s ruling party passed a resolution to immediately and unconditionally downgrade South Africa’s embassy in Tel Aviv to a liaison office. The pro-Israel lobby in South Africa was outraged by the resolution, calling the move “discriminatory”.
The minister said that the decision to downgrade the South African Embassy in Tel Aviv is not an anti-Israel resolution, it is a pro-Palestine resolution.
“There has been consternation in Israel about the ANC’s decision, but our decision does not detract from our commitment to a two-state solution. It does express our dismay and anger at the absence of any attempt by Israel, which is the powerful component of the struggle and its powerful friends in the north, their absence of any attempt to free the people of Palestine from the oppression they suffer today.”
Pandor’s comments were welcomed by the Palestinian solidarity movement in South Africa.
BRICS is the acronym for the association of five major emerging national economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Referring to US President Donald Trump’s reckless decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the US embassy there, Pandor explained that there was now “a need to identify powerful members of the global community who may give greater impetus to progress in finding a two-state solution, perhaps the BRICS countries should be called on to assume such global leadership.”
Pandor made the comments at an Israeli Apartheid Week event at the University of Cape Town (UCT) on Wednesday night, where she was the keynote speaker.
The comments are significant since South Africa is chairing BRICS in 2018. Collectively, the BRICS bloc represents over 3.6 billion people, or about 41% of the world population. Russia and China both hold permanent veto power at the UN Security Council.
Hosted by the UCT Palestine Solidarity Forum (PSF), Pandor reaffirmed both the South African government and the African National Congress’s solidarity with the people of Palestine. She further urged South Africans – particularly young South Africans born in post-1994 democratic South Africa - to act in support of international struggles for freedom and self-determination just as the global community stood in solidarity with the anti-Apartheid movement in South Africa.
“One of the things we failed to appreciate as South Africans is the immense contribution to our struggle by the international anti-Apartheid movement. We enjoyed support from all corners of the world and now that we are free we are ignoring and enjoying our freedom and we have forgotten those who are oppressed in other parts of the world.”
As former beneficiaries of selfless international support, South Africans have a collective duty to lend a supportive hand to others seeking justice and equality, explained Pandor to a crowd of over 250 students. “Now that we have achieved our freedom, we must not forget our friends and allies who helped us liberate ourselves,” she cautioned.
According to Pandor, it was this duty that guided the ANC’s deliberations on the issue of Palestine at its 54th National Conference in December, where South Africa’s ruling party passed a resolution to immediately and unconditionally downgrade South Africa’s embassy in Tel Aviv to a liaison office. The pro-Israel lobby in South Africa was outraged by the resolution, calling the move “discriminatory”.
The minister said that the decision to downgrade the South African Embassy in Tel Aviv is not an anti-Israel resolution, it is a pro-Palestine resolution.
“There has been consternation in Israel about the ANC’s decision, but our decision does not detract from our commitment to a two-state solution. It does express our dismay and anger at the absence of any attempt by Israel, which is the powerful component of the struggle and its powerful friends in the north, their absence of any attempt to free the people of Palestine from the oppression they suffer today.”
Pandor’s comments were welcomed by the Palestinian solidarity movement in South Africa.
13 mar 2018
The Israeli Health Ministry is imposing Jewish religious law on Arab citizens with no legal authority: ‘No law in the State of Israel prevents citizens from carrying leavened foods into hospitals.’
Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel is fighting an Israeli government ban that prevents Arab citizens from bringing leavened bread products into hospitals during the Jewish holiday of Passover.
Jewish religious law forbids Jews from consuming leavened bread products during Passover, which commences on 30 March and lasts for a week.
Archive IMEMC post 05/09/14 — Netanyahu: Talmud Will be the Basis of Israeli Law
Adalah filed a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court on 27 February 2018 against the Health Ministry’s ban on bringing leavened bread products into hospitals or eating bread in hospitals for the duration of the holiday.
According to this policy, which has been enforced in hospitals nationwide over the past several years, all individuals – including non-Jewish Arab citizens – must undergo strict searches at hospital entrances. Any leavened bread products found are confiscated or destroyed. In a number of past cases, individuals who refused to hand over their bread products to security guards were prevented from entering hospitals and visiting admitted family members.
The Israeli Health Ministry is imposing this ban on leavened bread products without any legal authority, Adalah Attorney Sawsan Zaher wrote in the petition:
“There is no law in the State of Israel that prevents citizens from bringing leavened foods into hospitals and there is no law in the State of Israel that prevents them from bringing non-kosher food for their hospitalized relatives to eat.”
Further, this policy humiliates Arab patients and visitors and violates Israel’s Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty.
“The aggressive intervention of public authorities in private decisions regarding what to eat and where – particularly when an individual is in a vulnerable situation as is the case with hospitalized patients or visiting family members – is a violation of human liberty and personal dignity.”
The ban also constitutes religious coercion of hospitalized Arab citizens and their visiting family members during the Passover holiday.
In the wake of numerous complaints received over the past number of years, Adalah has written to the Health Ministry and the Attorney General but received no appropriate response.
Last year, the Attorney General’s office informed Adalah that he was working with the Health Ministry to find a solution to the issue but no decision on the matter has yet been issued.
Adalah demands the Supreme Court either issue an interim order preventing the Health Ministry from enforcing its ban this upcoming Passover, or schedule an urgent hearing in order to secure a solution prior to the holiday.
Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel is fighting an Israeli government ban that prevents Arab citizens from bringing leavened bread products into hospitals during the Jewish holiday of Passover.
Jewish religious law forbids Jews from consuming leavened bread products during Passover, which commences on 30 March and lasts for a week.
Archive IMEMC post 05/09/14 — Netanyahu: Talmud Will be the Basis of Israeli Law
Adalah filed a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court on 27 February 2018 against the Health Ministry’s ban on bringing leavened bread products into hospitals or eating bread in hospitals for the duration of the holiday.
According to this policy, which has been enforced in hospitals nationwide over the past several years, all individuals – including non-Jewish Arab citizens – must undergo strict searches at hospital entrances. Any leavened bread products found are confiscated or destroyed. In a number of past cases, individuals who refused to hand over their bread products to security guards were prevented from entering hospitals and visiting admitted family members.
The Israeli Health Ministry is imposing this ban on leavened bread products without any legal authority, Adalah Attorney Sawsan Zaher wrote in the petition:
“There is no law in the State of Israel that prevents citizens from bringing leavened foods into hospitals and there is no law in the State of Israel that prevents them from bringing non-kosher food for their hospitalized relatives to eat.”
Further, this policy humiliates Arab patients and visitors and violates Israel’s Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty.
“The aggressive intervention of public authorities in private decisions regarding what to eat and where – particularly when an individual is in a vulnerable situation as is the case with hospitalized patients or visiting family members – is a violation of human liberty and personal dignity.”
The ban also constitutes religious coercion of hospitalized Arab citizens and their visiting family members during the Passover holiday.
In the wake of numerous complaints received over the past number of years, Adalah has written to the Health Ministry and the Attorney General but received no appropriate response.
Last year, the Attorney General’s office informed Adalah that he was working with the Health Ministry to find a solution to the issue but no decision on the matter has yet been issued.
Adalah demands the Supreme Court either issue an interim order preventing the Health Ministry from enforcing its ban this upcoming Passover, or schedule an urgent hearing in order to secure a solution prior to the holiday.
12 mar 2018
“Do not speak Arabic” was a racist order issued recently to Arab workers of an Aroma cafe branch in southern Israel by their manager.
According to Israel’s Channel 2, an Aroma cafe manger in a city south of Israel issued an order prohibiting workers from speaking the Arabic language between them or with Arab customers.
The cafe branch justified its measure by claiming it was aimed at preserving the dignity of the customers who do not understand Arabic.
Following this development, Arab Knesset member Yousef Jabbareen (the Join List) filed a complaint with the Israeli equal employment opportunity commission against the cafe, and asked it to investigate the matter and demand the cafe company to cancel its ban on speaking the Arabic language, describing it as ‘arbitrary and racist.”
According to Israel’s Channel 2, an Aroma cafe manger in a city south of Israel issued an order prohibiting workers from speaking the Arabic language between them or with Arab customers.
The cafe branch justified its measure by claiming it was aimed at preserving the dignity of the customers who do not understand Arabic.
Following this development, Arab Knesset member Yousef Jabbareen (the Join List) filed a complaint with the Israeli equal employment opportunity commission against the cafe, and asked it to investigate the matter and demand the cafe company to cancel its ban on speaking the Arabic language, describing it as ‘arbitrary and racist.”
10 mar 2018
East Jerusalem residents at the Population Authority's offices in Wadi al-Joz
Residents of the eastern portion of the capital are forced to wait for six or more months to receive appointments at the Wadi al-Joz offices of the Population Authority; 'It's abuse, there's no protection from sun or rain,' resident complains; Authority says steps 'under review' to correct situation.
East Jerusalem residents have been complaining of being forced to wait for months at a time to receive an audience at the Population and Immigration Authority's offices in the Wadi al-Joz neighborhood on the eastern side of the capital.
When an appointment is finally made, they said, they have been forced to wait for long hours under dire conditions, without cover from the sun or rain.
In order to make an appointment at the Authority's offices, east Jerusalem residents visit its website and ask for one. Several days later, they receive information of the appointment, with many of them claiming they received dates six months or more later.
Congestion at the offices is so enormous, moreover, that dozens of people arrive in the wee hours of the morning to receive an optimal place in line. "We wait outside the building for hours and sometimes go home without ever having received service," one resident said. "There's no cover to protect those waiting from the sun, rains or cold."
Said Salim, a resident of the Mount of Olives, said, "I'm an Israeli citizen and am not able to issue a passport for my wife, my children and myself. If I have one issued at Ben Gurion Airport it'll cost a fortune. I can't book an appointment either and no one answers the phones. Why this disrespect? We can't even take out a new I.D. card. They're abusing us."
Khana Khouri, another east Jerusalem resident, said, "It pains us that there's no other branch to spread the load. I personally booked an appointment and received confirmation only eight months later. It's abuse and cannot go on. We've contacted those responsible and they promise to solve it every time, but unfortunately nothing is done."
Aatdal Alabassi from the Silwan neighborhood said this week, "I'm diabetic and have a problem with both my legs. I booked an appointment four months ago and only received word to come in today.
"I'm a sick woman in need of the Population Authority's services, but it seems they don't care about the sick—we aren't people to them. They have to open more branches in east Jerusalem. Where else could we go?"
Ahmad, another resident, said, "People arriving to the Wadi al-Joz office are abused. I've never seen anything like it in the Jewish sector, only in ours. Elderly people, pregnant women and children come in, but they're all degraded. Sometimes people here pass out and need medical attention.
"It's the second time I've been back here. The first time I waited for hours and ended up not being allowed in. Today I'm going to insist—scream and cause a scene. Let them arrest me."
Ismail Ottman, a public official from Abu Ghosh, attempted to ameliorate the situation. "The situation is critical," he said. "Today, after a Ynet reporter and cameraman came here, the Population Authority's security asked not to film here and let the people waiting in line inside.
"Some of the people who arrived later thought the offices were closed, because they're not used to not seeing long lines stretching outside. We'll continue our struggle. I've contacted MKs and others, but we're still tackling a major problem. I hope the suffering can end."
The Population and Immigration Authority provided comment, saying, "The issue has been at the top of the list of priorities for a while and steps are currently under review to alleviate congestion, including searching for (a site for) another office to provide responses and services to the east Jerusalem populace."
Residents of the eastern portion of the capital are forced to wait for six or more months to receive appointments at the Wadi al-Joz offices of the Population Authority; 'It's abuse, there's no protection from sun or rain,' resident complains; Authority says steps 'under review' to correct situation.
East Jerusalem residents have been complaining of being forced to wait for months at a time to receive an audience at the Population and Immigration Authority's offices in the Wadi al-Joz neighborhood on the eastern side of the capital.
When an appointment is finally made, they said, they have been forced to wait for long hours under dire conditions, without cover from the sun or rain.
In order to make an appointment at the Authority's offices, east Jerusalem residents visit its website and ask for one. Several days later, they receive information of the appointment, with many of them claiming they received dates six months or more later.
Congestion at the offices is so enormous, moreover, that dozens of people arrive in the wee hours of the morning to receive an optimal place in line. "We wait outside the building for hours and sometimes go home without ever having received service," one resident said. "There's no cover to protect those waiting from the sun, rains or cold."
Said Salim, a resident of the Mount of Olives, said, "I'm an Israeli citizen and am not able to issue a passport for my wife, my children and myself. If I have one issued at Ben Gurion Airport it'll cost a fortune. I can't book an appointment either and no one answers the phones. Why this disrespect? We can't even take out a new I.D. card. They're abusing us."
Khana Khouri, another east Jerusalem resident, said, "It pains us that there's no other branch to spread the load. I personally booked an appointment and received confirmation only eight months later. It's abuse and cannot go on. We've contacted those responsible and they promise to solve it every time, but unfortunately nothing is done."
Aatdal Alabassi from the Silwan neighborhood said this week, "I'm diabetic and have a problem with both my legs. I booked an appointment four months ago and only received word to come in today.
"I'm a sick woman in need of the Population Authority's services, but it seems they don't care about the sick—we aren't people to them. They have to open more branches in east Jerusalem. Where else could we go?"
Ahmad, another resident, said, "People arriving to the Wadi al-Joz office are abused. I've never seen anything like it in the Jewish sector, only in ours. Elderly people, pregnant women and children come in, but they're all degraded. Sometimes people here pass out and need medical attention.
"It's the second time I've been back here. The first time I waited for hours and ended up not being allowed in. Today I'm going to insist—scream and cause a scene. Let them arrest me."
Ismail Ottman, a public official from Abu Ghosh, attempted to ameliorate the situation. "The situation is critical," he said. "Today, after a Ynet reporter and cameraman came here, the Population Authority's security asked not to film here and let the people waiting in line inside.
"Some of the people who arrived later thought the offices were closed, because they're not used to not seeing long lines stretching outside. We'll continue our struggle. I've contacted MKs and others, but we're still tackling a major problem. I hope the suffering can end."
The Population and Immigration Authority provided comment, saying, "The issue has been at the top of the list of priorities for a while and steps are currently under review to alleviate congestion, including searching for (a site for) another office to provide responses and services to the east Jerusalem populace."
5 mar 2018
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3 mar 2018
Through US senator Lindsey Graham, Israel has made renewed war threats against Lebanon at the pretext of confronting Hezbollah and Iran.
Graham said Tuesday, following a trip to the Middle East, that Israeli officials warned him and other lawmakers during his visit to Israel that “should Hezbollah continue to taunt Israel with its threats to assault the country with its growing arsenal of long-range missiles, Israel would have to go to war, according to Haaretz newspaper.
“They've told us in no uncertain terms that if this threat continues — they keep making rockets that can hit the airport and do a lot of damage to the State of Israel — they are going to have to go in,” Graham was quoted as saying to reporters earlier this week.
"Southern Lebanon is where the next war is coming," Graham noted.
Speaking further of his meetings with Israeli officials, Graham said that they had two major requests for American lawmakers, “the first one was military support in the form of ‘ammunition, ammunition, ammunition,’” and “the second was Washington's backing should Israel have to resort to striking civilian targets in Lebanon, where it believes Hezbollah is operating.”
Graham also referred to a report in January that claims that Iran was helping Hezbollah construct a precision weapons factory in Lebanon.
Graham said Tuesday, following a trip to the Middle East, that Israeli officials warned him and other lawmakers during his visit to Israel that “should Hezbollah continue to taunt Israel with its threats to assault the country with its growing arsenal of long-range missiles, Israel would have to go to war, according to Haaretz newspaper.
“They've told us in no uncertain terms that if this threat continues — they keep making rockets that can hit the airport and do a lot of damage to the State of Israel — they are going to have to go in,” Graham was quoted as saying to reporters earlier this week.
"Southern Lebanon is where the next war is coming," Graham noted.
Speaking further of his meetings with Israeli officials, Graham said that they had two major requests for American lawmakers, “the first one was military support in the form of ‘ammunition, ammunition, ammunition,’” and “the second was Washington's backing should Israel have to resort to striking civilian targets in Lebanon, where it believes Hezbollah is operating.”
Graham also referred to a report in January that claims that Iran was helping Hezbollah construct a precision weapons factory in Lebanon.
28 feb 2018
Russia and Ukraine provided Israel with most of its settlers who flocked to the occupied Palestinian territories in 2017, a study found out.
Russia emerged as Israel’s largest provider of settlers with 7,224 Jewish newcomers, followed by 7,182 settlers from Ukraine, according to an updated report of immigration to Israel, or aliyah, by a partnering organization of the Ministry for Immigrant Absorption.
Of the 28,598 settlers last year, 50.4 percent were from Russia or Ukraine, according to the chart. France was Israel’s third largest source of settlers with 3,424 newcomers, followed by the United States, Ethiopia and Belarus with 2,996, 1,312 and 973 settlers, respectively.
The increase in immigration from Ukraine and Russia came amid a financial crisis in both countries, which in 2014 entered a territorial dispute.
Last year was also the first time that Israel saw the arrival from Russia and Ukraine of settlers who had already begun their conversion to Judaism in their countries of origin.
Over recent years, thousands of Zionist Israelis and Jewish settlers have settled in the occupied Palestinian territories after financial facilities were made by the Israeli government and its allies.
Russia emerged as Israel’s largest provider of settlers with 7,224 Jewish newcomers, followed by 7,182 settlers from Ukraine, according to an updated report of immigration to Israel, or aliyah, by a partnering organization of the Ministry for Immigrant Absorption.
Of the 28,598 settlers last year, 50.4 percent were from Russia or Ukraine, according to the chart. France was Israel’s third largest source of settlers with 3,424 newcomers, followed by the United States, Ethiopia and Belarus with 2,996, 1,312 and 973 settlers, respectively.
The increase in immigration from Ukraine and Russia came amid a financial crisis in both countries, which in 2014 entered a territorial dispute.
Last year was also the first time that Israel saw the arrival from Russia and Ukraine of settlers who had already begun their conversion to Judaism in their countries of origin.
Over recent years, thousands of Zionist Israelis and Jewish settlers have settled in the occupied Palestinian territories after financial facilities were made by the Israeli government and its allies.
