22 june 2014
Arab Knesset member Hanin Zoabi launched a scathing attack on Palestinian authority president Mahmoud Abbas for his stated position against the captors of the three Jewish settlers, describing him as a "traitor." In televised remarks on Saturday, Zoabi said that Abbas's involvement in security coordination with Israel is a betrayal of the Palestinian people and their national cause.
The lawmaker attributed Abbas's recent remarks on the incident to his fears of losing his authority and power in the West Bank
She expressed her refusal to apologize for her recent remarks in which she said that the captors of the three settlers were no terrorists, and highlighted that she supports the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people against the occupation.
She also slammed the Israeli media for its racist positions towards what happen to the Palestinians, and accused them of ignoring the recent killing of Palestinians in the West Bank and focusing only on the missing settlers as if the Palestinian victims were not humans.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas last week expressed hope that the three Jewish teens who went missing in a southern West Bank settlement a week ago could return safe to their homes and expressed his sympathy to their families.
The lawmaker attributed Abbas's recent remarks on the incident to his fears of losing his authority and power in the West Bank
She expressed her refusal to apologize for her recent remarks in which she said that the captors of the three settlers were no terrorists, and highlighted that she supports the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people against the occupation.
She also slammed the Israeli media for its racist positions towards what happen to the Palestinians, and accused them of ignoring the recent killing of Palestinians in the West Bank and focusing only on the missing settlers as if the Palestinian victims were not humans.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas last week expressed hope that the three Jewish teens who went missing in a southern West Bank settlement a week ago could return safe to their homes and expressed his sympathy to their families.
Mohammed Karaka 13
A 15-year-old was killed and at least five others seriously injured when a blast hit a vehicle traveling in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Sunday morning.
The blast, which marks the first time an Israeli has been killed in the Golan Heights since the outbreak of the Syrian revolution and civil war more than three years ago, occurred near the Israeli settlement of Tel Hazeka near the ceasefire line with Syria.
The blast hit a vehicle belonging to a Defense Ministry contractor employed by the Israeli army to reinforce the border fence, according to Israeli news site Ynet.
The victim was a Palestinian citizen of Israel from the village of Arraba in the Galilee region, and Israeli news site Ynet reported that he was joining his father to work when the blast struck their vehicle.
Initial reports suggested that it was a mortal shell, but at the time of publishing it was still not clear how the blast had occurred.
Israeli forces responded by shelling the Syrian side of the ceasefire line.
Mortars have occasionally struck the Golan Heights from Syria as a result of fighting between government forces and rebels across the border.
Israel has responded to these hits with return fire, and has at times closed areas near the border as a result of fighting near the ceasefire line between pro- and anti-government forces.
In March, a roadside bomb injured four Israeli troops near the ceasefire line, and Israel responded by bombing Syrian military posts.
Israel occupied the Golan Heights after invading Syria in the 1967 war in which it also captured the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
A 15-year-old was killed and at least five others seriously injured when a blast hit a vehicle traveling in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Sunday morning.
The blast, which marks the first time an Israeli has been killed in the Golan Heights since the outbreak of the Syrian revolution and civil war more than three years ago, occurred near the Israeli settlement of Tel Hazeka near the ceasefire line with Syria.
The blast hit a vehicle belonging to a Defense Ministry contractor employed by the Israeli army to reinforce the border fence, according to Israeli news site Ynet.
The victim was a Palestinian citizen of Israel from the village of Arraba in the Galilee region, and Israeli news site Ynet reported that he was joining his father to work when the blast struck their vehicle.
Initial reports suggested that it was a mortal shell, but at the time of publishing it was still not clear how the blast had occurred.
Israeli forces responded by shelling the Syrian side of the ceasefire line.
Mortars have occasionally struck the Golan Heights from Syria as a result of fighting between government forces and rebels across the border.
Israel has responded to these hits with return fire, and has at times closed areas near the border as a result of fighting near the ceasefire line between pro- and anti-government forces.
In March, a roadside bomb injured four Israeli troops near the ceasefire line, and Israel responded by bombing Syrian military posts.
Israel occupied the Golan Heights after invading Syria in the 1967 war in which it also captured the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Israel's foreign minister has threatened to expel the UN's special envoy for offering to help transfer Qatari funds to the Gaza Strip, Channel Two television reported. Avigdor Lieberman said Robert Serry, the world body's special envoy on the Middle East peace process, had first tried to convince the Palestinian Authority (PA) to transfer $20 million (14.7 million euros) from Qatar to resolve a pay crisis for Hamas employees in Gaza, the broadcaster reported Saturday.
But after Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas refused to do so, the rightwing ultra-nationalist Lieberman charged, Serry proposed UN help in making the transfer.
Serry rejected the allegations, saying in a statement that the Palestinian authority had approached him "informally" on the matter.
"In considering any UN role on the issue of payments of salaries in Gaza that has potentially destabilising effects on security in Gaza, I made it clear that we would only be able to be of assistance if acceptable to all stakeholders, including Israel," he added.
Israel had been kept informed of all the discussions, he insisted.
Lieberman told AFP he was seeking an "urgent meeting" on Sunday about the row in which Israeli television reported the foreign minister would propose that Serry be declared persona non grata in Israel.
"We look upon Robert Serry's behaviour with the utmost seriousness, and strong measures will be imposed," Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told AFP.
"The foreign ministry issues diplomatic visas and can also withdraw them," he added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement the premier told UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon he opposed the transfer of Qatari funds to Hamas, which he accuses of kidnapping three young Israelis in the West Bank on June 12.
On June 13, the gas-rich Gulf state of Qatar said it would help the new Palestinian unity government pay former employees of Islamist movement Hamas's disbanded Gaza government.
Doha said it would contribute a total of $60 million while the PA grapples with a pay row, the first challenge for a government formed to try to end years of Palestinian rivalry.
The dispute erupted when the PA's Gaza-based staff received their salaries but their Hamas counterparts did not. This prompted Hamas to demand that employees from its disbanded Gaza government be taken onto the PA payroll.
The PA, which previously refused to adjust the salaries of Hamas officials because they were named after Fatah forces were ousted from the Gaza Strip in 2007, announced the creation of a special fund to pay wages while the government discussed how to resolve the issue.
But after Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas refused to do so, the rightwing ultra-nationalist Lieberman charged, Serry proposed UN help in making the transfer.
Serry rejected the allegations, saying in a statement that the Palestinian authority had approached him "informally" on the matter.
"In considering any UN role on the issue of payments of salaries in Gaza that has potentially destabilising effects on security in Gaza, I made it clear that we would only be able to be of assistance if acceptable to all stakeholders, including Israel," he added.
Israel had been kept informed of all the discussions, he insisted.
Lieberman told AFP he was seeking an "urgent meeting" on Sunday about the row in which Israeli television reported the foreign minister would propose that Serry be declared persona non grata in Israel.
"We look upon Robert Serry's behaviour with the utmost seriousness, and strong measures will be imposed," Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told AFP.
"The foreign ministry issues diplomatic visas and can also withdraw them," he added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement the premier told UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon he opposed the transfer of Qatari funds to Hamas, which he accuses of kidnapping three young Israelis in the West Bank on June 12.
On June 13, the gas-rich Gulf state of Qatar said it would help the new Palestinian unity government pay former employees of Islamist movement Hamas's disbanded Gaza government.
Doha said it would contribute a total of $60 million while the PA grapples with a pay row, the first challenge for a government formed to try to end years of Palestinian rivalry.
The dispute erupted when the PA's Gaza-based staff received their salaries but their Hamas counterparts did not. This prompted Hamas to demand that employees from its disbanded Gaza government be taken onto the PA payroll.
The PA, which previously refused to adjust the salaries of Hamas officials because they were named after Fatah forces were ousted from the Gaza Strip in 2007, announced the creation of a special fund to pay wages while the government discussed how to resolve the issue.
21 june 2014
Member of Hamas's political bureau Khalil Al-Hayya said that Israel's persistence in shedding the Palestinian blood makes his Movement more determined to continue its armed struggle against the occupation. Hayya made his remarks during the funeral ceremony for five resistance fighters from Al-Qassam Brigades of Hamas who died on Thursday when a tunnel they were in collapsed in Al-Shujaiya neighborhood, east of Gaza city.
"We have taken this path while we know for sure that our blood and souls could be taken from us," the Hamas official said.
"We will keep digging tunnels and make rockets until we avenge the death of our martyrs and liberate our prisoners. We will remain stepping forward on the path of resistance and struggle," he added.
"We have taken this path while we know for sure that our blood and souls could be taken from us," the Hamas official said.
"We will keep digging tunnels and make rockets until we avenge the death of our martyrs and liberate our prisoners. We will remain stepping forward on the path of resistance and struggle," he added.
Head of Hamas's political bureau Khaled Mashaal on Friday phoned Malaysian premier Mohamad Najib Abdul Razak and briefed them on the latest developments in the Palestinian arena. Mashaal highlighted over the phone Israel's mass arrest campaign in the West Bank, the blockade on the Gaza Strip and the suffering of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
The Hamas official criticized the double standard of the international community and the UN when it comes to Israel's violations against the Palestinian people.
He urged the Malaysian premier to move diplomatically at the international level to curb Israel's violence against the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza and pressure it to release the hunger striking administrative detainees.
A telephone conversation also took place between Mashaal and Malaysian minister of interior Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Hamas official criticized the double standard of the international community and the UN when it comes to Israel's violations against the Palestinian people.
He urged the Malaysian premier to move diplomatically at the international level to curb Israel's violence against the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza and pressure it to release the hunger striking administrative detainees.
A telephone conversation also took place between Mashaal and Malaysian minister of interior Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Arab Organization for Human Rights (AOHR) strongly denounced the continued Israeli arrest campaign for the seventh consecutive day, during which 300 Palestinians including 11 members of the Legislative Council and 52 ex-detainees, released as part of the Shalit agreement, were arrested.
The organization also condemned what PA chairman Abbas describes as “cooperation aimed at protecting the interests of the Palestinian people”. Security coordination has over the years led to the arrest of thousands of Palestinians, 6 of whom died under torture, and the extracting of confessions that were later handed over to the Israeli side to facilitate the arrest of Palestinians who were then sent away for a very long time or held in administrative detention, the human rights organization added.
Coordination has been very much one-sided and has greatly impacted Palestinian national resistance. The Israeli side rarely if ever presents the Palestinians with any information about the activities of settlers who wage daily attacks against Palestinians while remaining fully protected by the Israeli army. None of these settlers has ever been arrested or brought to justice, according to the organization's statement.
The statement pointed out that the facts on the ground as evidenced by the campaign of terror launched by Israel against Palestinian cities and towns is further proof that security coordination runs contrary to Palestinian interests. "In an ideal world, President Mahmoud Abbas would have directed his anger against the barbaric acts of killings and arrests committed by the Israelis."
Among those who were arrested recently was the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Aziz Dweik and on the 15th of May 2014, Israeli killed two children in cold blood-Nadeem Nowara, 17, and Mohammed Mahmoud Abu-Al-Daher, 16.
The London-based organization held the occupation fully responsible for the deterioration of the security situation in the Occupied Lands after ignoring the demands of the administrative detainees who have been on hunger strike since the 24th of April 2014.
The organization also condemned what PA chairman Abbas describes as “cooperation aimed at protecting the interests of the Palestinian people”. Security coordination has over the years led to the arrest of thousands of Palestinians, 6 of whom died under torture, and the extracting of confessions that were later handed over to the Israeli side to facilitate the arrest of Palestinians who were then sent away for a very long time or held in administrative detention, the human rights organization added.
Coordination has been very much one-sided and has greatly impacted Palestinian national resistance. The Israeli side rarely if ever presents the Palestinians with any information about the activities of settlers who wage daily attacks against Palestinians while remaining fully protected by the Israeli army. None of these settlers has ever been arrested or brought to justice, according to the organization's statement.
The statement pointed out that the facts on the ground as evidenced by the campaign of terror launched by Israel against Palestinian cities and towns is further proof that security coordination runs contrary to Palestinian interests. "In an ideal world, President Mahmoud Abbas would have directed his anger against the barbaric acts of killings and arrests committed by the Israelis."
Among those who were arrested recently was the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Aziz Dweik and on the 15th of May 2014, Israeli killed two children in cold blood-Nadeem Nowara, 17, and Mohammed Mahmoud Abu-Al-Daher, 16.
The London-based organization held the occupation fully responsible for the deterioration of the security situation in the Occupied Lands after ignoring the demands of the administrative detainees who have been on hunger strike since the 24th of April 2014.
Palestinian foreign minister Riyadh al-Maliki expressed his rejection of any Palestinian reaction to Israel's recent escalation in the West Bank, saying that the Palestinians are committed to preventing a popular uprising against Israel at all costs.
He said in press statements in Paris on Friday that the newly formed unity government would be threatened if Hamas was responsible for the kidnap operation. "We will not accept risking Palestinian national interests."
However, al-Maliki described Israel's reaction to the kidnapping of three Jewish settlers as irrational, expressing his condemnation of the international continued silence.
For his part, spokesman for Hamas Sami Abu Zuhri said that al-Maliki’s remarks concerning the disappearance of the three Israeli settlers are suspicious.
In a press release issued on Friday, Abu Zuhri declared his movement’s rejection of al-Maliki’s statements that reflect his suspicious positions.
The spokesman said that the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and settlers, if it happens, is a source of pride to the Palestinian people and their resistance factions.
He said in press statements in Paris on Friday that the newly formed unity government would be threatened if Hamas was responsible for the kidnap operation. "We will not accept risking Palestinian national interests."
However, al-Maliki described Israel's reaction to the kidnapping of three Jewish settlers as irrational, expressing his condemnation of the international continued silence.
For his part, spokesman for Hamas Sami Abu Zuhri said that al-Maliki’s remarks concerning the disappearance of the three Israeli settlers are suspicious.
In a press release issued on Friday, Abu Zuhri declared his movement’s rejection of al-Maliki’s statements that reflect his suspicious positions.
The spokesman said that the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and settlers, if it happens, is a source of pride to the Palestinian people and their resistance factions.
Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas arrives in Jeddah on Tuesday to attend the OIC conference. Makkah Gov. Prince Mishaal bin Abdullah was present at the airport to receive the president.
Leftist prisoners in Israeli jails said President Mahmoud Abbas’s remarks in the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting are “disgraceful" and "do not represent the Palestinian people,” Palestinian President Wednesday addressing an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in Jeddah said "Those who kidnapped the three teenagers want to destroy us. We will hold them accountable,"
Abbas also vowed not to resort to arms or allow Palestinians to launch another uprising, or Intifada, against ‘Israel’.
On security coordination, which binds the Palestinian Authority services to locate and jail resistance elements in the occupied West Bank, he stressed that "It is in our interest to have security coordination with Israel because that would help protect us," he said.
In a letter leaked from the Rimon prison, prisoners loyal to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) condemned Abbas’s remarks as "a national disaster that should not pass unnoticed and a setback to the Palestinian people, particularly the prisoners on hunger strike for 57 days,”
“His [Abbas] address carries extreme insult to the Palestinian people and their valiant resistance, as it lines with the pro-occupation positions and the aggressive military measures against our people, stigmatizing the [Palestinian] resistance as destructive, and openly speaking of the PA willing to find the kidnappers of three settlers,” the letter read.
The letter added: “President Abbas completely ignores the calls to go to the International Criminal Court to try the [Israeli] occupation for his crimes against the Palestinian people, as he previously defended a decision to delay the endorsement of the Goldstone report [on Gaza war crimes at the UN Human Rights Council].”
The PFLP prisoners considered the security coordination as "yet another ugly face of the occupation", and the Abbas’s remark that it is a Palestinian interest and to protect our people as "being blurred by the security services suddenly disappearing when Israeli forces invade the Palestinian towns and villages."
Leftist prisoners in Israeli jails said President Mahmoud Abbas’s remarks in the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting are “disgraceful" and "do not represent the Palestinian people,” Palestinian President Wednesday addressing an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in Jeddah said "Those who kidnapped the three teenagers want to destroy us. We will hold them accountable,"
Abbas also vowed not to resort to arms or allow Palestinians to launch another uprising, or Intifada, against ‘Israel’.
On security coordination, which binds the Palestinian Authority services to locate and jail resistance elements in the occupied West Bank, he stressed that "It is in our interest to have security coordination with Israel because that would help protect us," he said.
In a letter leaked from the Rimon prison, prisoners loyal to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) condemned Abbas’s remarks as "a national disaster that should not pass unnoticed and a setback to the Palestinian people, particularly the prisoners on hunger strike for 57 days,”
“His [Abbas] address carries extreme insult to the Palestinian people and their valiant resistance, as it lines with the pro-occupation positions and the aggressive military measures against our people, stigmatizing the [Palestinian] resistance as destructive, and openly speaking of the PA willing to find the kidnappers of three settlers,” the letter read.
The letter added: “President Abbas completely ignores the calls to go to the International Criminal Court to try the [Israeli] occupation for his crimes against the Palestinian people, as he previously defended a decision to delay the endorsement of the Goldstone report [on Gaza war crimes at the UN Human Rights Council].”
The PFLP prisoners considered the security coordination as "yet another ugly face of the occupation", and the Abbas’s remark that it is a Palestinian interest and to protect our people as "being blurred by the security services suddenly disappearing when Israeli forces invade the Palestinian towns and villages."
20 june 2014
Palestinian security services on Friday prevented a march supporting prisoners in Hebron from taking place, participants and onlookers reported.
Security services prevented a march that was called for by the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies to support hunger-striking prisoners in Israeli jails.
Security services prevented journalists from doing their jobs, a journalist told Ma'an.
"Journalists were prevented from taking pictures of the march, and then they were allowed to but the march was prevented to walk to al-Manara. Then they were allowed to walk to al-Haras mosque and the security divided them there.”
An employee of a US-based news network told Ma'an that the security services beat reporters "savagely" and broke at least one camera.
The Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies condemned the security service for preventing the march.
The governor of Hebron has updated the prime minister on the incident, informed sources said.
Security services prevented a march that was called for by the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies to support hunger-striking prisoners in Israeli jails.
Security services prevented journalists from doing their jobs, a journalist told Ma'an.
"Journalists were prevented from taking pictures of the march, and then they were allowed to but the march was prevented to walk to al-Manara. Then they were allowed to walk to al-Haras mosque and the security divided them there.”
An employee of a US-based news network told Ma'an that the security services beat reporters "savagely" and broke at least one camera.
The Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies condemned the security service for preventing the march.
The governor of Hebron has updated the prime minister on the incident, informed sources said.
UN cultural agency UNESCO on Friday granted endangered World Heritage status to ancient terraces in the West Bank that are under threat from the Israeli separation barrier.
After an emergency nomination by Palestinian officials, UNESCO's annual World Heritage Committee gathering in Doha voted to grant the protected status to the agricultural community of Battir, which straddles the Green Line just south of Jerusalem and where Israel plans to erect part of its separation wall.
The granting of the status is likely to boost the efforts of local residents locked in a high-profile court battle to change the route of the barrier.
"The site is inscribed, congratulations to Palestine," committee chairwoman Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani said after the resolution was narrowly approved, against the recommendations of UNESCO experts.
The Palestinian delegation rejoiced at the vote, hugging and cheering.
Battir is famous for its ancient terraces and Roman-era irrigation system which is still used by villagers for their crops.
But the village has come under threat from Israeli plans to erect part of the West Bank separation barrier there, which experts say will irretrievably damage the water system.
The Palestinians won membership in UNESCO in October 2011 and quickly moved to submit a number of sites for recognition, including an emergency application for Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity which was approved in June the following year, despite Israeli objections..
After an emergency nomination by Palestinian officials, UNESCO's annual World Heritage Committee gathering in Doha voted to grant the protected status to the agricultural community of Battir, which straddles the Green Line just south of Jerusalem and where Israel plans to erect part of its separation wall.
The granting of the status is likely to boost the efforts of local residents locked in a high-profile court battle to change the route of the barrier.
"The site is inscribed, congratulations to Palestine," committee chairwoman Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani said after the resolution was narrowly approved, against the recommendations of UNESCO experts.
The Palestinian delegation rejoiced at the vote, hugging and cheering.
Battir is famous for its ancient terraces and Roman-era irrigation system which is still used by villagers for their crops.
But the village has come under threat from Israeli plans to erect part of the West Bank separation barrier there, which experts say will irretrievably damage the water system.
The Palestinians won membership in UNESCO in October 2011 and quickly moved to submit a number of sites for recognition, including an emergency application for Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity which was approved in June the following year, despite Israeli objections..
Hamas on Thursday lambasted Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas for his cooperation with Israeli forces as a massive search operation for three missing Israeli teenagers across the West Bank enters its second week.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said that security coordination with Israel "is a crime and a violation of the Cairo agreement which stated that security cooperation is punishable by law," referring to an earlier reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas.
The sharp denunciation of the security coordination between president Abbas and Israel during the daily military raids came a day after the Palestinian Prisoner's Society said that the number of detained had topped 300, more than two-thirds of whom are Hamas members.
Abu Zuhri also called on Egypt to commit to its responsibilities as the sponsor of the prisoner exchange deal in 2011 that exchanged Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, after Israeli forces detained dozens of those freed in the deal. Egypt oversaw the deal, and has already demanded Israel end its arrest campaign across the West Bank.
Abu Zuhri, in a press conference in Gaza, also warned against any possible Israeli attempt to exile Hamas leaders and lawmakers, saying that the Israel had previously tried it and failed, and saying that any attempt to exile the detainees "will open the gates of hell on the occupation."
Abu Zuhri reiterated that resistance, in all its forms, is a right for Palestinians in order to free their lands and holy sites.
Abu Zuhri also condemned President Mahmoud Abbas’' comments during an Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday, in which he criticized the kidnapping of the three Israeli youths from a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank.
"We condemn President Abbas shocking comments, which do no represent Palestinians or the martyrs and prisoners of Fatah. Those who give up on the Intifada only isolate themselves," he added.
"Intifada is the greatest phenomena in our modern history," he added, saying: "It is renewed whenever pressure and aggression are increased on our people."
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said that security coordination with Israel "is a crime and a violation of the Cairo agreement which stated that security cooperation is punishable by law," referring to an earlier reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas.
The sharp denunciation of the security coordination between president Abbas and Israel during the daily military raids came a day after the Palestinian Prisoner's Society said that the number of detained had topped 300, more than two-thirds of whom are Hamas members.
Abu Zuhri also called on Egypt to commit to its responsibilities as the sponsor of the prisoner exchange deal in 2011 that exchanged Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, after Israeli forces detained dozens of those freed in the deal. Egypt oversaw the deal, and has already demanded Israel end its arrest campaign across the West Bank.
Abu Zuhri, in a press conference in Gaza, also warned against any possible Israeli attempt to exile Hamas leaders and lawmakers, saying that the Israel had previously tried it and failed, and saying that any attempt to exile the detainees "will open the gates of hell on the occupation."
Abu Zuhri reiterated that resistance, in all its forms, is a right for Palestinians in order to free their lands and holy sites.
Abu Zuhri also condemned President Mahmoud Abbas’' comments during an Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday, in which he criticized the kidnapping of the three Israeli youths from a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank.
"We condemn President Abbas shocking comments, which do no represent Palestinians or the martyrs and prisoners of Fatah. Those who give up on the Intifada only isolate themselves," he added.
"Intifada is the greatest phenomena in our modern history," he added, saying: "It is renewed whenever pressure and aggression are increased on our people."
19 june 2014
A Palestinian protester heads a soccer ball next to Israeli border police during a demonstration near Ramallah in solidarity with hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners, June 11, 2014
By Ismaa al-Ghoul
The FIFA Congress decided on June 11 to form a neutral committee to monitor Israeli violations against Palestinian sports, but fell short of punishing Israel. The committee will submit its report in a meeting in Morocco in December. Despite expectations, it didn’t turn out to be the day to punish Israel for violations against Palestinian soccer and other sports, FIFA regulations and the Olympic Charter.
Maj. Gen. Jibril Rajoub, the head of the Palestinian Football Federation, did not abide by his promise in mid-May not to hesitate to ask the FIFA Congress, which will meet in Sao Paulo this month on the sidelines of the World Cup in Brazil, to vote on expelling Israel from the organization.
Ibrahim Abu Salim, the deputy head of the Palestinian Football Federation, told Al-Monitor in a phone conversation from Sao Paulo in the early hours of June 12, “I want to be frank. Unfortunately, the general atmosphere didn’t help the Palestinian delegation to introduce a resolution expelling Israel or freezing its membership to vote. … The delegations that were supposed to support Palestine in case the issue of expelling Israel was raised — such as some Arab, Islamic and friendly delegations — advised us to not put forward that request now for fear that the vote will fail. The vote requires 75% of the participating countries and if it happens now, the request may fail rather than be postponed until next year.”
He stressed the importance of including on FIFA’s agenda Israel’s violations against Palestinian sports and repeated the condemnation by FIFA's president Joseph Blatter of Israeli practices in his last speech to the FIFA Congress.
Blatter said in his June 11 speech, “The problems between Israel and Palestine have been going on for more than 50 years and it would not be possible for us to solve them in one year … but we have made positive first steps.”
Mohammed al-Amssi, the assistant secretary-general of the Palestinian Football Federation, met with Al-Monitor at the headquarters of the Olympic Committee. He explained the steps adopted by FIFA and said that the constant Israeli actions against Palestinian sports since 1994 have resulted in the issue of Israeli violations against Palestinian soccer to be added to the Palestinian agenda during the FIFA Congress meeting held in Mauritius on May 30. Accordingly, Blatter was given a mandate by member states to pursue the matter. But since then, Israel has not stopped the violations, returning the issue to the congress’ agenda.
FIFA’s decision has dampened the hopes of Palestinian athletes about this issue before the World Cup. At the Gaza Sports Club where newcomers train, Palestinian soccer player Anas Yasser al-Helou said, “I feel injustice and frustration. I am spending the best days of my youth and professionalism, which I’m supposed to spend playing with the team, to train others.”
Helou, who Al-Monitor met a few hours before the congress’ decision, said, “I hope to find a solution so that we can travel through Beit Hanoun [Erez],” adding that Israel had not given him permission to participate in three tournaments, most recently the Asia Challenge Cup in the Maldives, where Palestine won for the first time.
Helou, who turns 24 in a few days, lamented, “I was watching the last game in the Challenge Cup with the crowd in the port yard, imagining that my fans in Gaza were watching me on television as I achieved victory for the team.”
Helou cannot travel through the Rafah crossing to participate in the games. He must first join the Palestine team’s training camp in the West Bank for two weeks before traveling from there.
Supporting Helou's statement, the Palestinian team's assistant coach Saeb Jundiyya told Al-Monitor during a meeting at the headquarters of the Olympic Committee, “Gaza players have been unable to reach the team’s training camp in the West Bank for a long time. Four players were supposed to be part of the team in the West Asian Championship in Qatar and the Challenge Cup in the Maldives, but they could not.”
He added that the same ban applies to the Olympic soccer team and the beach soccer team, which holds the bronze medal in Asia and was unable to join the championship last May because Israel refused to issue permits. “The players’ morale is devastated. Obstacles to travel are placed on sports in Palestine in general. But it is twice as bad on sports in the Gaza Strip.”
Sports writer Ashraf Matar, who met with Al-Monitor before the FIFA Congress meeting, said that the European and Asian soccer confederations and the Arab group are pressuring Israel tp stop its violations against Palestinian sports.
“Any decision that will be made by the congress would not stop the suffering of Palestinian sports, but only alleviate it,” said Matar. He discounted the possibility that Israel’s FIFA membership would be frozen because of the power of the Israeli lobby, despite the lack of a veto on decisions made by the congress.
Issued in 2013, the booklet chronicling violations by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian Football Federation is filled with hundreds of cases from the last five years. The violations are divided into several categories: blocking infrastructure projects and the bombing and destruction of more than 14 clubs and playing fields in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank; imposing restrictions on the movement of athletes between Gaza and the West Bank; preventing travel outside the West Bank and Gaza for players, managers, coaches and referees; and preventing the entry of foreign guests and international sports teams.
The booklet included violations by customs procedures that prevent the entry of sports equipment, such as aid or donations; human rights violations, including the deaths of six athletes in Israeli bombardment; and the arrest of dozens, of whom the best known is Mahmoud al-Sarsak. He completed a 90-day hunger strike before being released in July 2012.
Amssi said that the booklet issued by the Palestinian federation did not include violations from 2014, which include the arrest of player Sameh Maraiba in April when he returned from Qatar through the Karama crossing and the firing of dozens of bullets at the feet of players Adam and Jawhar Halabiyya in January as they returned from a training session at the Faisal Al-Husseini stadium, preventing them from playing soccer again due to injuries sustained.
Amssi, prevented three times from obtaining a permit, most recently to travel to the FIFA Congress meeting in Brazil, said, “It is Palestine’s right to play sports as a state with full membership. It is an acquired right through a journey of sport and political struggle going on for years. Any FIFA decision will be an embarrassment for Israel, which always invokes tenuous security reasons to suppress Palestinian sports.”
By Ismaa al-Ghoul
The FIFA Congress decided on June 11 to form a neutral committee to monitor Israeli violations against Palestinian sports, but fell short of punishing Israel. The committee will submit its report in a meeting in Morocco in December. Despite expectations, it didn’t turn out to be the day to punish Israel for violations against Palestinian soccer and other sports, FIFA regulations and the Olympic Charter.
Maj. Gen. Jibril Rajoub, the head of the Palestinian Football Federation, did not abide by his promise in mid-May not to hesitate to ask the FIFA Congress, which will meet in Sao Paulo this month on the sidelines of the World Cup in Brazil, to vote on expelling Israel from the organization.
Ibrahim Abu Salim, the deputy head of the Palestinian Football Federation, told Al-Monitor in a phone conversation from Sao Paulo in the early hours of June 12, “I want to be frank. Unfortunately, the general atmosphere didn’t help the Palestinian delegation to introduce a resolution expelling Israel or freezing its membership to vote. … The delegations that were supposed to support Palestine in case the issue of expelling Israel was raised — such as some Arab, Islamic and friendly delegations — advised us to not put forward that request now for fear that the vote will fail. The vote requires 75% of the participating countries and if it happens now, the request may fail rather than be postponed until next year.”
He stressed the importance of including on FIFA’s agenda Israel’s violations against Palestinian sports and repeated the condemnation by FIFA's president Joseph Blatter of Israeli practices in his last speech to the FIFA Congress.
Blatter said in his June 11 speech, “The problems between Israel and Palestine have been going on for more than 50 years and it would not be possible for us to solve them in one year … but we have made positive first steps.”
Mohammed al-Amssi, the assistant secretary-general of the Palestinian Football Federation, met with Al-Monitor at the headquarters of the Olympic Committee. He explained the steps adopted by FIFA and said that the constant Israeli actions against Palestinian sports since 1994 have resulted in the issue of Israeli violations against Palestinian soccer to be added to the Palestinian agenda during the FIFA Congress meeting held in Mauritius on May 30. Accordingly, Blatter was given a mandate by member states to pursue the matter. But since then, Israel has not stopped the violations, returning the issue to the congress’ agenda.
FIFA’s decision has dampened the hopes of Palestinian athletes about this issue before the World Cup. At the Gaza Sports Club where newcomers train, Palestinian soccer player Anas Yasser al-Helou said, “I feel injustice and frustration. I am spending the best days of my youth and professionalism, which I’m supposed to spend playing with the team, to train others.”
Helou, who Al-Monitor met a few hours before the congress’ decision, said, “I hope to find a solution so that we can travel through Beit Hanoun [Erez],” adding that Israel had not given him permission to participate in three tournaments, most recently the Asia Challenge Cup in the Maldives, where Palestine won for the first time.
Helou, who turns 24 in a few days, lamented, “I was watching the last game in the Challenge Cup with the crowd in the port yard, imagining that my fans in Gaza were watching me on television as I achieved victory for the team.”
Helou cannot travel through the Rafah crossing to participate in the games. He must first join the Palestine team’s training camp in the West Bank for two weeks before traveling from there.
Supporting Helou's statement, the Palestinian team's assistant coach Saeb Jundiyya told Al-Monitor during a meeting at the headquarters of the Olympic Committee, “Gaza players have been unable to reach the team’s training camp in the West Bank for a long time. Four players were supposed to be part of the team in the West Asian Championship in Qatar and the Challenge Cup in the Maldives, but they could not.”
He added that the same ban applies to the Olympic soccer team and the beach soccer team, which holds the bronze medal in Asia and was unable to join the championship last May because Israel refused to issue permits. “The players’ morale is devastated. Obstacles to travel are placed on sports in Palestine in general. But it is twice as bad on sports in the Gaza Strip.”
Sports writer Ashraf Matar, who met with Al-Monitor before the FIFA Congress meeting, said that the European and Asian soccer confederations and the Arab group are pressuring Israel tp stop its violations against Palestinian sports.
“Any decision that will be made by the congress would not stop the suffering of Palestinian sports, but only alleviate it,” said Matar. He discounted the possibility that Israel’s FIFA membership would be frozen because of the power of the Israeli lobby, despite the lack of a veto on decisions made by the congress.
Issued in 2013, the booklet chronicling violations by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian Football Federation is filled with hundreds of cases from the last five years. The violations are divided into several categories: blocking infrastructure projects and the bombing and destruction of more than 14 clubs and playing fields in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank; imposing restrictions on the movement of athletes between Gaza and the West Bank; preventing travel outside the West Bank and Gaza for players, managers, coaches and referees; and preventing the entry of foreign guests and international sports teams.
The booklet included violations by customs procedures that prevent the entry of sports equipment, such as aid or donations; human rights violations, including the deaths of six athletes in Israeli bombardment; and the arrest of dozens, of whom the best known is Mahmoud al-Sarsak. He completed a 90-day hunger strike before being released in July 2012.
Amssi said that the booklet issued by the Palestinian federation did not include violations from 2014, which include the arrest of player Sameh Maraiba in April when he returned from Qatar through the Karama crossing and the firing of dozens of bullets at the feet of players Adam and Jawhar Halabiyya in January as they returned from a training session at the Faisal Al-Husseini stadium, preventing them from playing soccer again due to injuries sustained.
Amssi, prevented three times from obtaining a permit, most recently to travel to the FIFA Congress meeting in Brazil, said, “It is Palestine’s right to play sports as a state with full membership. It is an acquired right through a journey of sport and political struggle going on for years. Any FIFA decision will be an embarrassment for Israel, which always invokes tenuous security reasons to suppress Palestinian sports.”
A senior Hamas official said Thursday that the group is capable of starting an Intifada, warning of the consequences of continuing pressure on Palestinians.
"We are capable of igniting a third Intifada which is an irrevocable right that will go off when more pressure is exerted on the Palestinian people," Hamas official Salah Bardawil said during a solidarity rally for the director of al-Aqsa TV network, who was detained in Ramallah on Wednesday.
Hamas will not sit on its hands as Israel "continues with its crimes in the West Bank," he added.
Israel's ongoing arrest campaign aims to break the resistance and prevent a new Intifada, he said, adding that "nobody can foil reconciliation because our people insist on unity and on liberating land and prisoners."
Over the past six days, Israeli troops have turned properties upside-down and arrested more than 240 Palestinians in the West Bank in the search for three Israelis who disappeared while hitchhiking on Thursday.
Over 200 of those arrested are affiliated with Hamas.
"We are capable of igniting a third Intifada which is an irrevocable right that will go off when more pressure is exerted on the Palestinian people," Hamas official Salah Bardawil said during a solidarity rally for the director of al-Aqsa TV network, who was detained in Ramallah on Wednesday.
Hamas will not sit on its hands as Israel "continues with its crimes in the West Bank," he added.
Israel's ongoing arrest campaign aims to break the resistance and prevent a new Intifada, he said, adding that "nobody can foil reconciliation because our people insist on unity and on liberating land and prisoners."
Over the past six days, Israeli troops have turned properties upside-down and arrested more than 240 Palestinians in the West Bank in the search for three Israelis who disappeared while hitchhiking on Thursday.
Over 200 of those arrested are affiliated with Hamas.
"Abbas has to rescind the reconciliation agreement to prove his sincerity," Israeli Prime minister's office announced Thursday following Abbas statement. The office also demanded Abbas to cooperate with Israel to bring the settlers back.
In his statements that were condemned By Hamas, Abbas emphasized Wednesday that the Palestinian Authority will cooperate with Israel to find the missing soldiers. He defended the security cooperation with Israel, claiming that "it is for the interests of the Palestinian people.”
Israeli army have stormed Palestinian cities and towns, raided more than 700 houses, and arrested 300 citizens in hunt for three settlers who were missed a week ago in the West Bank city of Hebron.
Yet, no clear evidence the three settlers were abducted as Israel claimed.
In his statements that were condemned By Hamas, Abbas emphasized Wednesday that the Palestinian Authority will cooperate with Israel to find the missing soldiers. He defended the security cooperation with Israel, claiming that "it is for the interests of the Palestinian people.”
Israeli army have stormed Palestinian cities and towns, raided more than 700 houses, and arrested 300 citizens in hunt for three settlers who were missed a week ago in the West Bank city of Hebron.
Yet, no clear evidence the three settlers were abducted as Israel claimed.