25 july 2017
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As the Al-Aqsa protests continue despite a deadly Israeli crackdown, writer Mariam Barghouti says Palestinians across the Occupied Territories “are reiterating their right to exist”.
TRNN transctipt: AARON MATE: It’s The Real News. I’m Aaron Mate. Palestinians continue to protest Israeli restrictions in Jerusalem amid a deadly crackdown. Israeli forces have shot dead at least four Palestinians and wounded hundreds more since Friday. Three Israeli settlers were also stabbed to dead in a West Bank settlement. Palestinians have taken to the streets against new Israeli restrictions on the holy Al-Aqsa mosque compound, following a |
Palestinian shooting attack earlier this month. Worshipers are boycotting Israel’s control of Al Aqsa, praying in the streets outside. The recent spate of violence is the worst to hit the occupied West Bank in years, and there are fears it could worsen. Mariam Barghouti is a Palestinian-American writer who covers Palestine and the Israeli occupation. She joins me now from Ramallah. Mariam, welcome.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Thank you.
AARON MATE: Talk about what’s been happening since Friday, when the violence erupted, leading to initially the killing of three Palestinians, but these clashes have continued through the weekend.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right. Well you have Palestinians in Jerusalem instigating these waves of protests across Palestine, in protest of basically, what it is essentially is a checkpoint near Lion’s Gate, near the old city of Jerusalem. And Palestinians have been confronting and protesting these measures that are being enforced by Israel as part of its larger systematic policy of encroaching on Palestinian life and controlling Palestinian daily life.
AARON MATE: When you say checkpoints in the old city, what do you mean?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: I mean, you have Israeli soldiers that would check people’s IDs, you have what they’re saying are these metal detectors, but they mean so much more. And it’s basically this process to just move from one place to another in the same city, on the same street, where you are humiliated and you must endure this kind of degradation by Israeli forces, just to be able to move from one point to another.
AARON MATE: Okay, so Mariam, when we talk about what’s happening right now in Jerusalem, many people here are just hearing news that Israel wants to impose some metal detectors after there was a shooting attack in which some Palestinian gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers at the compound. But the standoff, or this protest, is about much more than that. Can you talk about what context might be missing from that picture?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right. This is not an event that’s happening in a vacuum. It’s an accumulation of Israeli strategy and policies to control and dominate Palestinian life. It’s kind of this reinforcing the narrative that we are here, we are present, and we are going to continue controlling your life until you flee. Just recently, an Israeli minister told, warned Palestinian, basically, of a third Nakba, warning them of another ethnic cleansing. They’re well aware of what their strategies are under these justifications of “well there was an attack.” You had an incident in Hebron happen in ’94, when an Israeli settle went into the Ibrahimi mosque and shot Palestinians, killing tens of Palestinians. And at the end, what happened now is Israel was able to take over a large portion of Hebron. You have an entire street, Shuhada Street, which was once a vibrant market, that is now closed. So it’s not just metal detectors. It has nothing to do with security, more than it does with trying to asphyxiate Palestinians very, very slowly.
AARON MATE: You mentioned that Israeli minister warning of another Nakba, so just to explain to people what that means, a Nakba is the term Palestinians use to describe 1948, when some 700,000 Palestinians were forced to flee from their homes during the war that led to Israel’s independence. And this minister, [inaudible 00:04:19] whose cabinet the regional cooperation minister, Tzachi Hanegbi, he wrote, “Remember 1948, remember 1967, this is how a Nakba begins.” So Mariam, can you talk more about what Palestinians have been saying in terms of the incitement that they’ve gotten from Israelis like this minister? There also has been some opposition to, but not very much attention paid, to the fact that you’ve had right wing Israelis touring the holy Al Aqsa site under armed protection.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right, I mean, look. This is nothing new. If you ask the Palestinians, they will tell you, well it might seem unusual or as if it’s breaking news to the international community, but for us, this is daily life. This is what it’s been like for decades, with complete silence. And Israel continues with impunity. So what’s happening right now is we’ve reached a breaking point, and if you follow up on Palestinian politics, you realize that every moment Palestinians rise, it’s usually more intense than the other. Because you can strangle people for so long before they start trying to fight back. They’re reiterating the right to exist. That’s what’s happening here. And I think that’s the very, very important message, is that there has been this ethnic cleansing, this fight over a narrative. The Zionist movement started with the myth of a land for people without a land, and you have Palestinians saying that’s not true at all, and we are enduring this heavy oppression. We have Gaza that just entered 10 years of siege. That’s 10 years. It’s unfathomable. You have the West Bank that’s been divided by 530 more checkpoints. You have Palestinians with Israeli citizenship that are treated as second and third class citizens. And you have 50%, half of the Palestinian population, in the diaspora.
AARON MATE: Mariam, it’s just amazing, after so many years watching this conflict and seeing on the Israeli side of the narrative, or at least the pro-Israeli side of the narrative, denying things like the Nakba. And now you have a minister openly threatening to impose another one. It’s just amazing to watch the discourse shift in that direction. Your thoughts on that?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: I mean, look, the Israeli narrative towards Palestinians has always been very, very clear. It’s been one of domination and supremacy, one of “we’re going to take over your lives” and you see it with the night raids in villages, the way soldiers speak to Palestinians, it’s with this arrogance. And very, very heavy supremacy. It’s the language to the international community that’s always baffling, and how the international community constantly buys these narratives that Israel is working for its security, completely contextualization, that Israel was built through colonizing Palestinian lands, and then it continues to reinforce its state with an occupation that’s entering its fiftieth year this year. So it’s … The narrative isn’t really new, it’s more how people are taking it without doing further research, without trying to understand the Palestinian narrative.
AARON MATE: And in terms of what Palestinians have been doing over the past week, so much attention was paid to the violence that’s happened this weekend. As I said, four Palestinians being shot dead, there also were three Israeli settlers killed in a stabbing attack by a Palestinian inside a West Bank settlement. But a lot of people missed this unprecedented boycott of the Al Aqsa compound with thousands of people praying in the streets. Can you talk about this civil disobedience campaign that’s been going on for over a week now?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right. And it’s very important, because you’re constantly asking Palestinians, you should be non-violent. The international community is constantly prodding us to have this “Palestinian Gandhi” and right now you have these mass protests of unarmed civilians in Jerusalem that are trying and shouting for their right to move with ease to a place of worship. And that is very important to understand, that they’re going to pray, and they’re still being stopped and impeded and obstacles are placed before them. And suddenly there is no real support for Palestinians, despite being suppressed violently, despite having a settler shoot a Palestinian protester who later died that day. It’s mass civil disobedience, completely non-violent, and still, no one’s really speaking about it. So that leaves Palestinians completely alone, searching for other alternatives to try and liberate themselves, to try and find whatever this place has left to afford of dignity.
AARON MATE: And Mariam, in response to the Israeli crackdown, the Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas has said he’s suspending security cooperation with Israel. He’s made similar statements before. Is there any belief that that will actually amount to anything?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: I mean, on the ground, there’s complete disenchantment with the Palestinian Authority. For the past two decades, it has been nothing but complicit with the Israeli occupation, especially through security coordination, where they’re basically turning in Palestinians to Israel. And it’s a one way street. Palestinian authority hasn’t benefited from Israeli intel at all. So even if Mahmoud Abbas does give a speech, we need to remember how he completely forfeited the Palestinian call when a hunger strike was going on, one of the largest hunger strikes in Palestinian history, and instead was cajoling to the Trump administration. You have to keep in mind that this same Palestinian Authority that’s claimed to stand with Palestinians in Jerusalem is also helping Israel asphyxiate Gaza very slowly. So it’s taking whatever the PA has to say with a grain of salt, really. It’s more of an avoiding this eruption to be directed towards the PA, while it’s very much complicit with the Israeli occupation.
AARON MATE: Mariam, finally, what are some of the short term solutions that are being proposed to this standoff over the Al Aqsa compound? And even if they’re resolved, do you think that the anger that’s been unleashed by this week of violence and restrictions on the compound is gonna subside, given the reality of the everyday occupation?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: If Palestinian demands of removing these metal detectors, as if it’s an airport and not a residential area, then there is a possibility of moving forward. But as long as Israel keeps escalating and that is exactly what it’s doing, it’s trying to provoke Palestinians even further, then I don’t see any way the situation to kind of de-escalate. On the contrary, I see it as further entering an uprising from the Palestinian end.
AARON MATE: Mariam Barghouti, Palestinian-American writer, speaking to us from Ramallah. Mariam, thank you.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Thank you.
AARON MATE: And thank you for joining us on The Real News.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Thank you.
AARON MATE: Talk about what’s been happening since Friday, when the violence erupted, leading to initially the killing of three Palestinians, but these clashes have continued through the weekend.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right. Well you have Palestinians in Jerusalem instigating these waves of protests across Palestine, in protest of basically, what it is essentially is a checkpoint near Lion’s Gate, near the old city of Jerusalem. And Palestinians have been confronting and protesting these measures that are being enforced by Israel as part of its larger systematic policy of encroaching on Palestinian life and controlling Palestinian daily life.
AARON MATE: When you say checkpoints in the old city, what do you mean?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: I mean, you have Israeli soldiers that would check people’s IDs, you have what they’re saying are these metal detectors, but they mean so much more. And it’s basically this process to just move from one place to another in the same city, on the same street, where you are humiliated and you must endure this kind of degradation by Israeli forces, just to be able to move from one point to another.
AARON MATE: Okay, so Mariam, when we talk about what’s happening right now in Jerusalem, many people here are just hearing news that Israel wants to impose some metal detectors after there was a shooting attack in which some Palestinian gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers at the compound. But the standoff, or this protest, is about much more than that. Can you talk about what context might be missing from that picture?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right. This is not an event that’s happening in a vacuum. It’s an accumulation of Israeli strategy and policies to control and dominate Palestinian life. It’s kind of this reinforcing the narrative that we are here, we are present, and we are going to continue controlling your life until you flee. Just recently, an Israeli minister told, warned Palestinian, basically, of a third Nakba, warning them of another ethnic cleansing. They’re well aware of what their strategies are under these justifications of “well there was an attack.” You had an incident in Hebron happen in ’94, when an Israeli settle went into the Ibrahimi mosque and shot Palestinians, killing tens of Palestinians. And at the end, what happened now is Israel was able to take over a large portion of Hebron. You have an entire street, Shuhada Street, which was once a vibrant market, that is now closed. So it’s not just metal detectors. It has nothing to do with security, more than it does with trying to asphyxiate Palestinians very, very slowly.
AARON MATE: You mentioned that Israeli minister warning of another Nakba, so just to explain to people what that means, a Nakba is the term Palestinians use to describe 1948, when some 700,000 Palestinians were forced to flee from their homes during the war that led to Israel’s independence. And this minister, [inaudible 00:04:19] whose cabinet the regional cooperation minister, Tzachi Hanegbi, he wrote, “Remember 1948, remember 1967, this is how a Nakba begins.” So Mariam, can you talk more about what Palestinians have been saying in terms of the incitement that they’ve gotten from Israelis like this minister? There also has been some opposition to, but not very much attention paid, to the fact that you’ve had right wing Israelis touring the holy Al Aqsa site under armed protection.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right, I mean, look. This is nothing new. If you ask the Palestinians, they will tell you, well it might seem unusual or as if it’s breaking news to the international community, but for us, this is daily life. This is what it’s been like for decades, with complete silence. And Israel continues with impunity. So what’s happening right now is we’ve reached a breaking point, and if you follow up on Palestinian politics, you realize that every moment Palestinians rise, it’s usually more intense than the other. Because you can strangle people for so long before they start trying to fight back. They’re reiterating the right to exist. That’s what’s happening here. And I think that’s the very, very important message, is that there has been this ethnic cleansing, this fight over a narrative. The Zionist movement started with the myth of a land for people without a land, and you have Palestinians saying that’s not true at all, and we are enduring this heavy oppression. We have Gaza that just entered 10 years of siege. That’s 10 years. It’s unfathomable. You have the West Bank that’s been divided by 530 more checkpoints. You have Palestinians with Israeli citizenship that are treated as second and third class citizens. And you have 50%, half of the Palestinian population, in the diaspora.
AARON MATE: Mariam, it’s just amazing, after so many years watching this conflict and seeing on the Israeli side of the narrative, or at least the pro-Israeli side of the narrative, denying things like the Nakba. And now you have a minister openly threatening to impose another one. It’s just amazing to watch the discourse shift in that direction. Your thoughts on that?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: I mean, look, the Israeli narrative towards Palestinians has always been very, very clear. It’s been one of domination and supremacy, one of “we’re going to take over your lives” and you see it with the night raids in villages, the way soldiers speak to Palestinians, it’s with this arrogance. And very, very heavy supremacy. It’s the language to the international community that’s always baffling, and how the international community constantly buys these narratives that Israel is working for its security, completely contextualization, that Israel was built through colonizing Palestinian lands, and then it continues to reinforce its state with an occupation that’s entering its fiftieth year this year. So it’s … The narrative isn’t really new, it’s more how people are taking it without doing further research, without trying to understand the Palestinian narrative.
AARON MATE: And in terms of what Palestinians have been doing over the past week, so much attention was paid to the violence that’s happened this weekend. As I said, four Palestinians being shot dead, there also were three Israeli settlers killed in a stabbing attack by a Palestinian inside a West Bank settlement. But a lot of people missed this unprecedented boycott of the Al Aqsa compound with thousands of people praying in the streets. Can you talk about this civil disobedience campaign that’s been going on for over a week now?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Right. And it’s very important, because you’re constantly asking Palestinians, you should be non-violent. The international community is constantly prodding us to have this “Palestinian Gandhi” and right now you have these mass protests of unarmed civilians in Jerusalem that are trying and shouting for their right to move with ease to a place of worship. And that is very important to understand, that they’re going to pray, and they’re still being stopped and impeded and obstacles are placed before them. And suddenly there is no real support for Palestinians, despite being suppressed violently, despite having a settler shoot a Palestinian protester who later died that day. It’s mass civil disobedience, completely non-violent, and still, no one’s really speaking about it. So that leaves Palestinians completely alone, searching for other alternatives to try and liberate themselves, to try and find whatever this place has left to afford of dignity.
AARON MATE: And Mariam, in response to the Israeli crackdown, the Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas has said he’s suspending security cooperation with Israel. He’s made similar statements before. Is there any belief that that will actually amount to anything?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: I mean, on the ground, there’s complete disenchantment with the Palestinian Authority. For the past two decades, it has been nothing but complicit with the Israeli occupation, especially through security coordination, where they’re basically turning in Palestinians to Israel. And it’s a one way street. Palestinian authority hasn’t benefited from Israeli intel at all. So even if Mahmoud Abbas does give a speech, we need to remember how he completely forfeited the Palestinian call when a hunger strike was going on, one of the largest hunger strikes in Palestinian history, and instead was cajoling to the Trump administration. You have to keep in mind that this same Palestinian Authority that’s claimed to stand with Palestinians in Jerusalem is also helping Israel asphyxiate Gaza very slowly. So it’s taking whatever the PA has to say with a grain of salt, really. It’s more of an avoiding this eruption to be directed towards the PA, while it’s very much complicit with the Israeli occupation.
AARON MATE: Mariam, finally, what are some of the short term solutions that are being proposed to this standoff over the Al Aqsa compound? And even if they’re resolved, do you think that the anger that’s been unleashed by this week of violence and restrictions on the compound is gonna subside, given the reality of the everyday occupation?
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: If Palestinian demands of removing these metal detectors, as if it’s an airport and not a residential area, then there is a possibility of moving forward. But as long as Israel keeps escalating and that is exactly what it’s doing, it’s trying to provoke Palestinians even further, then I don’t see any way the situation to kind of de-escalate. On the contrary, I see it as further entering an uprising from the Palestinian end.
AARON MATE: Mariam Barghouti, Palestinian-American writer, speaking to us from Ramallah. Mariam, thank you.
MARIAM BARGHOUTI: Thank you.
AARON MATE: And thank you for joining us on The Real News.
14 july 2017
Palestinian ex-detainees on Thursday handed Turkish consul Gurcan Turkoglu a letter during his presence in Ramallah city, explaining their humanitarian suffering after the Palestinian Authority deprived them of their monthly allowances.
A Palestinian Information Center (PIC) reporter said the ex-detainees’ letter asked for intervention to convince the PA to revoke its decision to cut off the payment of salaries to them.
He added that the ex-detainees handed the letter during the news conference that was held by the consul in Ramallah to mark the first anniversary of the failed coup attempt in Turkey.
A Palestinian Information Center (PIC) reporter said the ex-detainees’ letter asked for intervention to convince the PA to revoke its decision to cut off the payment of salaries to them.
He added that the ex-detainees handed the letter during the news conference that was held by the consul in Ramallah to mark the first anniversary of the failed coup attempt in Turkey.
11 july 2017
A senior official unraveled a decision by the Palestinian Authority (PA), chaired by Mahmoud Abbas, to suspend social allowances to over 80,000 families in the blockaded Gaza Strip.
According to a senior PA official, 80,000 underprivileged families in Gaza are to be shorn of social allowances previously allotted to the enclave’s poorest families.
Similar measures have recently been opted for by the PA against thousands of Gaza’s civil servants and prisoners’ families.
The decision makes part of a chain of castigatory steps pursued by PA chief Mahmoud Abbas to tighten the noose around Gazans’ neck following pressure by Israel and the US.
Thousands of Gaza’s workers were pushed into early retirement; thousands of others, including MPs and ex-prisoners, have had their salaries and allowances cut without justification.
According to a senior PA official, 80,000 underprivileged families in Gaza are to be shorn of social allowances previously allotted to the enclave’s poorest families.
Similar measures have recently been opted for by the PA against thousands of Gaza’s civil servants and prisoners’ families.
The decision makes part of a chain of castigatory steps pursued by PA chief Mahmoud Abbas to tighten the noose around Gazans’ neck following pressure by Israel and the US.
Thousands of Gaza’s workers were pushed into early retirement; thousands of others, including MPs and ex-prisoners, have had their salaries and allowances cut without justification.
Palestinian ex-prisoners, whose salaries were cut off by the Palestinian Authority (PA), continued on Tuesday their protest sit-in for the 24th consecutive day in Yasser Arafat Square in Ramallah City.
The protesting ex-prisoners have started the sit-in nearly three weeks ago in Yasser Arafat Square after the PA decided to cut off their monthly payments.
Palestinian MPs, national figures and local and foreign activists have been joining the sit-in on daily basis showing their total support for the protesters’ demands.
The PA recently stopped to pay salaries to 277 ex-detainees, most of them released as part of the 2011 swap deal.
The protesting ex-prisoners have started the sit-in nearly three weeks ago in Yasser Arafat Square after the PA decided to cut off their monthly payments.
Palestinian MPs, national figures and local and foreign activists have been joining the sit-in on daily basis showing their total support for the protesters’ demands.
The PA recently stopped to pay salaries to 277 ex-detainees, most of them released as part of the 2011 swap deal.
5 july 2017
Joint civil defense drills have been staged by the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian Authority (PA), chaired by Mahmoud Abbas, according to Hebrew-speaking sources.
A Wednesday report by Yedioth Aharonot newspaper unraveled underway drills carried out concurrently by the PA and Israeli civil defense crews at a military checkpoint pitched in Jenin.
The exercises simulated the evacuation of wounded people from crushed vehicles following traffic accidents.
Security cooperation between the PA forces and the Israeli army has been ongoing despite the political stalemate between the two sides, the same source added.
A Wednesday report by Yedioth Aharonot newspaper unraveled underway drills carried out concurrently by the PA and Israeli civil defense crews at a military checkpoint pitched in Jenin.
The exercises simulated the evacuation of wounded people from crushed vehicles following traffic accidents.
Security cooperation between the PA forces and the Israeli army has been ongoing despite the political stalemate between the two sides, the same source added.
1 july 2017
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) has welcomed an acknowledgement, from World-Check, that PSC should never have been placed on the database at all and, specifically, should not have been associated with “terrorism”. There were no grounds to suggest that they were either associated with terrorism related activity or that the organisation presented any kind of financial risk.
In December 2015, World-Check created a profile for PSC in their ‘terrorism’ category, identifying Mr. Hugh Lanning as the Chair of the organisation. In March 2017, following correspondence between PSC, Hugh Lanning and World-Check through their respective legal teams, World-Check conceded that PSC and Mr. Lanning ought not to have ever been included in the database.
The PSC, Hugh Lanning and World-Check have reached an agreement to address the harm done to PSC and Mr. Lanning’s reputation, and to resolve the matters between them arising from that profile. The PSC and Mr. Lanning are satisfied with that resolution.
Lanning said: “I am pleased that World-Check agreed it was wrong to include my name in the database, as there are no grounds for me being associated with terrorism.
“I hope the Israeli government and their supporters follow this good example and stop repeating unfounded smears about the PSC and its members. We expect the media to take note of the vindication and rethink printing smears made without qualification, as was done following my deportation from Israel.
“In particular, we hope social media channels will be more responsive to our complaints about inaccurate postings made about us on their mediums.”
Ben Jamal, Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign said: “Like many others, our organisation was included on this database for no reason at all.
We take such allegations seriously and will not stand for false allegations made about us and our work. Campaigns for Palestinian human rights should not be treated differently from other human rights focused campaigns.”
Ravi Naik, the PSC solicitor from ITN Solicitors, said: “Following correspondence between our firm and lawyers for World-Check, it has been accepted by World-Check that our clients should never have been on the database at all, let alone for an unfounded allegation as egregious as terrorism.
“Our clients maintain that they do not present any financial risk and the agreement reached between them and World-Check regarding the profile has vindicated this position.”
In December 2015, World-Check created a profile for PSC in their ‘terrorism’ category, identifying Mr. Hugh Lanning as the Chair of the organisation. In March 2017, following correspondence between PSC, Hugh Lanning and World-Check through their respective legal teams, World-Check conceded that PSC and Mr. Lanning ought not to have ever been included in the database.
The PSC, Hugh Lanning and World-Check have reached an agreement to address the harm done to PSC and Mr. Lanning’s reputation, and to resolve the matters between them arising from that profile. The PSC and Mr. Lanning are satisfied with that resolution.
Lanning said: “I am pleased that World-Check agreed it was wrong to include my name in the database, as there are no grounds for me being associated with terrorism.
“I hope the Israeli government and their supporters follow this good example and stop repeating unfounded smears about the PSC and its members. We expect the media to take note of the vindication and rethink printing smears made without qualification, as was done following my deportation from Israel.
“In particular, we hope social media channels will be more responsive to our complaints about inaccurate postings made about us on their mediums.”
Ben Jamal, Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign said: “Like many others, our organisation was included on this database for no reason at all.
We take such allegations seriously and will not stand for false allegations made about us and our work. Campaigns for Palestinian human rights should not be treated differently from other human rights focused campaigns.”
Ravi Naik, the PSC solicitor from ITN Solicitors, said: “Following correspondence between our firm and lawyers for World-Check, it has been accepted by World-Check that our clients should never have been on the database at all, let alone for an unfounded allegation as egregious as terrorism.
“Our clients maintain that they do not present any financial risk and the agreement reached between them and World-Check regarding the profile has vindicated this position.”
29 june 2017
Image of Mohamed Dahlan
A leading Israeli writer revealed yesterday an Israel-Egypt-UAE plan to install Mohamed Dahlan as the leader of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip instead of Mahmoud Abbas.
In an opinion piece in Haaretz, Zvi Bar’el said that while Hamas would remain in control of security and not be demilitarised, at least “Israel would have a partner in Gaza who supports reconciliation” with the Zionist state.
Dahlan, he pointed out, is the Palestinian president’s “political rival” and if the plan succeeds it is expected that Abbas would be “pushed into a dark corner”, leaving the former Fatah official free to move against him. The endgame could see Dahlan installed as Abbas’s successor at the top of the Palestinian Authority, Fatah and the PLO.
Read: Hamas delegation reaches ‘understandings’ with Egypt and meets Dahlan reps
According to Bar’el, Egypt will ease the siege of Gaza by opening the Rafah Border Crossing for people and goods. The UAE, meanwhile, will fund a power station on the Egyptian side of the border near Rafah; a port is also a possibility. Dahlan is very close to the governments in Cairo and Abu Dhabi.
“It’s still too early to assess whether this plan will be fully implemented,” he wrote, “and if Hamas will agree to place Dahlan at the head of the Gaza government, a step that could all but sever Gaza from the West Bank, especially given the long feud between Abbas and Dahlan.” On the other hand, the writer pointed out, if the plan does come to fruition, it could make an Israeli-Egyptian dream come true. A “state of Gaza” could become a reality with Dahlan at its head, something that, for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, is “the plan’s key”.
If the plan succeeds, said Bar’el, it would “neutralise” the role of Qatar and Turkey in Gaza. He described Israel’s policy of “what’s good for Hamas is bad for Israel, and what helps Gazans strengthens Hamas” as a “failed concept”. Instead, he clearly believes that this “new strategy” which places the people of Gaza first should be given serious consideration.
Read: Dahlan behind differences between Egypt and Fatah
Observers point out that it is significant that Bar’el refers to “Gazans” and “people of Gaza” rather than Palestinians in Gaza. “This,” said one, “tries to convince the world that ‘Gazans’ are somehow not Palestinians and all actually belong in the Gaza Strip. The reality is that most of the residents of Gaza do not originate there; they come from places inside what is now Israel and are refugees by design, not choice.”
“The Gaza Strip” is a relatively recent term, he added. “It’s only been used since the Nakba of 1948, prior to which the land was simply part of historic Palestine.”
A leading Israeli writer revealed yesterday an Israel-Egypt-UAE plan to install Mohamed Dahlan as the leader of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip instead of Mahmoud Abbas.
In an opinion piece in Haaretz, Zvi Bar’el said that while Hamas would remain in control of security and not be demilitarised, at least “Israel would have a partner in Gaza who supports reconciliation” with the Zionist state.
Dahlan, he pointed out, is the Palestinian president’s “political rival” and if the plan succeeds it is expected that Abbas would be “pushed into a dark corner”, leaving the former Fatah official free to move against him. The endgame could see Dahlan installed as Abbas’s successor at the top of the Palestinian Authority, Fatah and the PLO.
Read: Hamas delegation reaches ‘understandings’ with Egypt and meets Dahlan reps
According to Bar’el, Egypt will ease the siege of Gaza by opening the Rafah Border Crossing for people and goods. The UAE, meanwhile, will fund a power station on the Egyptian side of the border near Rafah; a port is also a possibility. Dahlan is very close to the governments in Cairo and Abu Dhabi.
“It’s still too early to assess whether this plan will be fully implemented,” he wrote, “and if Hamas will agree to place Dahlan at the head of the Gaza government, a step that could all but sever Gaza from the West Bank, especially given the long feud between Abbas and Dahlan.” On the other hand, the writer pointed out, if the plan does come to fruition, it could make an Israeli-Egyptian dream come true. A “state of Gaza” could become a reality with Dahlan at its head, something that, for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, is “the plan’s key”.
If the plan succeeds, said Bar’el, it would “neutralise” the role of Qatar and Turkey in Gaza. He described Israel’s policy of “what’s good for Hamas is bad for Israel, and what helps Gazans strengthens Hamas” as a “failed concept”. Instead, he clearly believes that this “new strategy” which places the people of Gaza first should be given serious consideration.
Read: Dahlan behind differences between Egypt and Fatah
Observers point out that it is significant that Bar’el refers to “Gazans” and “people of Gaza” rather than Palestinians in Gaza. “This,” said one, “tries to convince the world that ‘Gazans’ are somehow not Palestinians and all actually belong in the Gaza Strip. The reality is that most of the residents of Gaza do not originate there; they come from places inside what is now Israel and are refugees by design, not choice.”
“The Gaza Strip” is a relatively recent term, he added. “It’s only been used since the Nakba of 1948, prior to which the land was simply part of historic Palestine.”
2 june 2017
(Image: United Nations oPt official map, Wikipedia)
Israel has agreed to expand the powers of the Palestinian Authority in Area C of the West Bank, which is under full Israeli military and civil control, government spokesman Yousef al-Mahmoud said on Thursday.
He said, according to WAFA, that Prime Minister Rami Al-Hamdallah met on Wednesday evening with Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, at his Ramallah office, and discussed political and daily life issues.
Hamdallah told Kahlon in the meeting, which took place in the presence of Minister of Civil Affairs Hussein Al-Sheikh, that the position of the Palestinian leadership is that a political solution comes first and foremost to anything else because it constitutes the essence of any political process and that there is nothing called “economic solution”, as claimed by some Israelis.
During the meeting, it was agreed to keep Al-Karama/King Hussein/Allenby border crossing with Jordan open for Palestinian travelers around the clock except on Fridays and Saturdays starting from June 20 until October. The crossing will then be open around the clock throughout the year starting in 2018.
It was also agreed to activate the Joint Economic Committee as well as revise the Paris Economic Protocols signed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in 1994.
It was also agreed to expand the powers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank territory controlled by Israel and classified as Area C, particularly in relation to construction and planning and the cessation of demolitions of Palestinian buildings and installations under the pretext of not being licensed, said al-Mahmoud.
It was also agreed to build an industrial zone in Tarqumiya in the Hebron governorate, which includes a customs clearance area and fuel and gas reservoirs.
The meeting also discussed other issues and Israel’s obligations under the signed agreements, said the government spokesman.
Related: 05/24/17 The Palestinian Authority Security Forces: Whose Security?
05/31/17 Struggle for Jerusalem Taking a ‘Serious Turn’, says Analyst
05/29/17 PA: No Agreement on Gaza Electricity Crisis
05/24/17 Can Trump Find the Elusive Land of ‘Peacerael’?
Israel has agreed to expand the powers of the Palestinian Authority in Area C of the West Bank, which is under full Israeli military and civil control, government spokesman Yousef al-Mahmoud said on Thursday.
He said, according to WAFA, that Prime Minister Rami Al-Hamdallah met on Wednesday evening with Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, at his Ramallah office, and discussed political and daily life issues.
Hamdallah told Kahlon in the meeting, which took place in the presence of Minister of Civil Affairs Hussein Al-Sheikh, that the position of the Palestinian leadership is that a political solution comes first and foremost to anything else because it constitutes the essence of any political process and that there is nothing called “economic solution”, as claimed by some Israelis.
During the meeting, it was agreed to keep Al-Karama/King Hussein/Allenby border crossing with Jordan open for Palestinian travelers around the clock except on Fridays and Saturdays starting from June 20 until October. The crossing will then be open around the clock throughout the year starting in 2018.
It was also agreed to activate the Joint Economic Committee as well as revise the Paris Economic Protocols signed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in 1994.
It was also agreed to expand the powers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank territory controlled by Israel and classified as Area C, particularly in relation to construction and planning and the cessation of demolitions of Palestinian buildings and installations under the pretext of not being licensed, said al-Mahmoud.
It was also agreed to build an industrial zone in Tarqumiya in the Hebron governorate, which includes a customs clearance area and fuel and gas reservoirs.
The meeting also discussed other issues and Israel’s obligations under the signed agreements, said the government spokesman.
Related: 05/24/17 The Palestinian Authority Security Forces: Whose Security?
05/31/17 Struggle for Jerusalem Taking a ‘Serious Turn’, says Analyst
05/29/17 PA: No Agreement on Gaza Electricity Crisis
05/24/17 Can Trump Find the Elusive Land of ‘Peacerael’?
21 may 2017
Newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron has reiterated his stance that he will not recognize Palestine as a state because he would rather not spoil French relations with Israel.
Prior to the win, Macron said that he backed a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but that recognizing Palestine would cause instability, and he would not risk France’s relationship with Israel to serve the Palestinian agenda.
At a political rally during his electoral campaign, Macron said: “Unilateral recognition of Palestine, right now, will undermine stability.”
The centrist politician won with 65 percent of the vote, to 34 percent for Le Pen, according to Days of Palestine.
Prior to the win, Macron said that he backed a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but that recognizing Palestine would cause instability, and he would not risk France’s relationship with Israel to serve the Palestinian agenda.
At a political rally during his electoral campaign, Macron said: “Unilateral recognition of Palestine, right now, will undermine stability.”
The centrist politician won with 65 percent of the vote, to 34 percent for Le Pen, according to Days of Palestine.