31 mar 2014
A Palestinian teenager was found hanged to death in a village northwest of Ramallah, police said Monday.
The body of a 16-year-old girl was found under a tree in the village of Kobar with "scratches of a rope" around the neck, a police statement said.
Locals said the girl's family found her body hanging from a rope fastened to an olive tree in the garden of their home.
The victim was home alone at the time, locals said.
The circumstances surrounding the death are unclear.
The body of a 16-year-old girl was found under a tree in the village of Kobar with "scratches of a rope" around the neck, a police statement said.
Locals said the girl's family found her body hanging from a rope fastened to an olive tree in the garden of their home.
The victim was home alone at the time, locals said.
The circumstances surrounding the death are unclear.
Six-member Malaysia media delegation managed to enter the Gaza Strip on Sunday night via the Rafah border crossing with Egypt after several hours of delay at the Egyptian side of the terminal. The delegation members were received on arrival by Omar Siyam, the director of Aman Palestine – Malaysia Institute.
Siyam said that the delegation, comprising Malaysian journalists, would stay in Gaza for around two weeks in a solidarity visit.
He added that they would write reports on the suffering of the Gaza population due to the siege.
Rafah border crossing has been working since Saturday after 50 days of closure and is expected to be closed again by the end of the day Monday.
The general department for borders and crossing said in a statement on Monday that the Egyptian authorities allowed the departure of 735 Palestinians on Sunday. It added that they comprised patients, students, stranded persons, holders of Egyptian passports, and humanitarian cases.
It added that those authorities returned 21 passengers without mentioning any reason for the step.
Thousands of stranded passengers hope that the Egyptian authorities would extend the opening of the crossing.
Siyam said that the delegation, comprising Malaysian journalists, would stay in Gaza for around two weeks in a solidarity visit.
He added that they would write reports on the suffering of the Gaza population due to the siege.
Rafah border crossing has been working since Saturday after 50 days of closure and is expected to be closed again by the end of the day Monday.
The general department for borders and crossing said in a statement on Monday that the Egyptian authorities allowed the departure of 735 Palestinians on Sunday. It added that they comprised patients, students, stranded persons, holders of Egyptian passports, and humanitarian cases.
It added that those authorities returned 21 passengers without mentioning any reason for the step.
Thousands of stranded passengers hope that the Egyptian authorities would extend the opening of the crossing.
30 mar 2014
A Palestinian member of the Israel's Knesset HaneenZoabi stressed that the Israeli occupation not only seeks to confiscate the land, but to control our minds and to eliminate the Palestinian relation with the homeland. She said Saturday on the anniversary of Land Day in al-Nassera " Land Day does not just celebrate a regular event , it is a historical and important event for the Palestinian people.
She pointed out that it is an important event that gathers the pre-1948 Palestinian minorities who still in their lands and an incentive that moves us to maintain our rights to exist and live in our lands in peace.
“The Israeli occupation practices will not deter the Palestinian from the right of maintaining sovereignty over his homelandwhich is derived from Palestinians' historical right.” she asserted, “ Palestinians are still keeping their pride and belonging to their land. In this day, they stressed their right to struggle against the Israeli occupation.”
Land Day indicated our historical novel which the Israeli occupation wanted to erase, distort and change its parameters.
Land Day, March 30, is an annual day of commemoration for Palestinians of the events of that date in 1976. In response to the Israeli government's announcement of a plan to expropriate thousands of dunams of land for security and settlement purposes, a general strike and marches were organized in Arab towns from the Galilee to the Negev. In the ensuing confrontations with the Israeli army and police, six unarmed Palestinian citizens were killed, about one hundred were wounded, and hundreds of others arrested.
She pointed out that it is an important event that gathers the pre-1948 Palestinian minorities who still in their lands and an incentive that moves us to maintain our rights to exist and live in our lands in peace.
“The Israeli occupation practices will not deter the Palestinian from the right of maintaining sovereignty over his homelandwhich is derived from Palestinians' historical right.” she asserted, “ Palestinians are still keeping their pride and belonging to their land. In this day, they stressed their right to struggle against the Israeli occupation.”
Land Day indicated our historical novel which the Israeli occupation wanted to erase, distort and change its parameters.
Land Day, March 30, is an annual day of commemoration for Palestinians of the events of that date in 1976. In response to the Israeli government's announcement of a plan to expropriate thousands of dunams of land for security and settlement purposes, a general strike and marches were organized in Arab towns from the Galilee to the Negev. In the ensuing confrontations with the Israeli army and police, six unarmed Palestinian citizens were killed, about one hundred were wounded, and hundreds of others arrested.
Gaza premier Ismail Haneyya has pledged to rebuild a house for a Palestinian family in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, that was destroyed in a fire that also killed two children. Two toddlers of the Sheikh Eid family were killed and other family members suffered various burns as a result of the fire caused by a candle, which is widely used in the repeated absence of power in the besieged enclave.
Haneyy’s pledge was voiced during his visit to the family afternoon Saturday to offer condolences.
Haneyy’s pledge was voiced during his visit to the family afternoon Saturday to offer condolences.
29 mar 2014
A group of civil organizations operating in Morocco on Friday launched events to commemorate the Palestinian Land Day, which falls on March 30. The events started on Friday with a reception for the Palestinian activist Zaid Shuaibi, a member of the national committee for boycott, divestment and sanctions (against Israel), and an open meeting with activists in the central headquarters of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights in Rabat.
These associations intend to stage a vigil on Sunday in the Moroccan capital Rabat, and on Monday they will organize a seminar with participation of the Palestinian activist Zaid Shuaibi and activist Sion Asidon, in Marrakech.
They also called upon all human rights, women and political organizations and all the freedom fighters to take part in these events, in support of the Palestinian people's struggle for their legitimate rights against the Israeli occupation and settlement activities.
The organizations participating in these actions include the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Initiative (BDS - Maroc), the Moroccan - Palestinian Solidarity Association, Moroccan Association for Human Rights, the Moroccan Observatory against Normalization, National Working Group for Palestine, the Moroccan Association for supporting the Palestinian struggle, and the National Union for higher education.
For its part, the al-Adl wal Ihsan group in Morocco called on all conscientious forces in the world, concerned with the Palestinian issue, to continue supporting the case and reveal the truth of the Israeli racism.
It urged in a statement on Friday published on its official website the activists and supporters of Jerusalem and Palestine to teach the nation's youth about the Arab - Israeli conflict, to present to the young generations the Palestinian cities, villages and holy sites, and to continue organizing solidarity activities including marches and meetings.
These associations intend to stage a vigil on Sunday in the Moroccan capital Rabat, and on Monday they will organize a seminar with participation of the Palestinian activist Zaid Shuaibi and activist Sion Asidon, in Marrakech.
They also called upon all human rights, women and political organizations and all the freedom fighters to take part in these events, in support of the Palestinian people's struggle for their legitimate rights against the Israeli occupation and settlement activities.
The organizations participating in these actions include the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Initiative (BDS - Maroc), the Moroccan - Palestinian Solidarity Association, Moroccan Association for Human Rights, the Moroccan Observatory against Normalization, National Working Group for Palestine, the Moroccan Association for supporting the Palestinian struggle, and the National Union for higher education.
For its part, the al-Adl wal Ihsan group in Morocco called on all conscientious forces in the world, concerned with the Palestinian issue, to continue supporting the case and reveal the truth of the Israeli racism.
It urged in a statement on Friday published on its official website the activists and supporters of Jerusalem and Palestine to teach the nation's youth about the Arab - Israeli conflict, to present to the young generations the Palestinian cities, villages and holy sites, and to continue organizing solidarity activities including marches and meetings.
Senior Hamas official Salah Al-Bardawil said that asking his Movement to give its written approval to the holding of Palestinian elections is a misleading proposal that gives the impression that Hamas is the party that refuses the national reconciliation. In press remarks to Palestine newspaper on Friday, Bardawil called on de facto president Mahmoud Abbas to give in writing his approval to the execution of the reconciliation agreement as one package deal instead of making such proposals.
Abbas on Wednesday had told journalists in Kuwait that it would be enough for him to start elections and form a government if Hamas only said on a piece of paper that it accepts the holding of elections in six months.
Bardawil said that Abbas unveiled his true intentions towards the Palestinian reconciliation and his deliberate avoidance of implementing its files, adding that Abbas selected a contentious file and ignored the consequences of holding elections without creating the atmosphere for that in the West Bank.
He explained that the Palestinian national reconciliation includes the rebuilding and activation of the Palestine liberation organization (PLO) and the formation of a transitional government working on preparing for the elections, in addition to the social reconciliation.
The Hamas official affirmed that his Movement does not refuse the holding of elections, but this file must be implemented as part of a package of other steps that must be done altogether, noting that the government had previously facilitated the work of the election committee in Gaza.
"The reconciliation is bigger than bringing up the issue of elections every once in a while without providing an atmosphere of freedom in the West Bank and safeguards for real political partnership involving all parties," the Hamas official stressed.
"The [Palestinian] Authority is not serious when it talks about the elections because it still persists in chasing the resistance and having security cooperation with the occupation against the Palestinian people," he added.
Abbas on Wednesday had told journalists in Kuwait that it would be enough for him to start elections and form a government if Hamas only said on a piece of paper that it accepts the holding of elections in six months.
Bardawil said that Abbas unveiled his true intentions towards the Palestinian reconciliation and his deliberate avoidance of implementing its files, adding that Abbas selected a contentious file and ignored the consequences of holding elections without creating the atmosphere for that in the West Bank.
He explained that the Palestinian national reconciliation includes the rebuilding and activation of the Palestine liberation organization (PLO) and the formation of a transitional government working on preparing for the elections, in addition to the social reconciliation.
The Hamas official affirmed that his Movement does not refuse the holding of elections, but this file must be implemented as part of a package of other steps that must be done altogether, noting that the government had previously facilitated the work of the election committee in Gaza.
"The reconciliation is bigger than bringing up the issue of elections every once in a while without providing an atmosphere of freedom in the West Bank and safeguards for real political partnership involving all parties," the Hamas official stressed.
"The [Palestinian] Authority is not serious when it talks about the elections because it still persists in chasing the resistance and having security cooperation with the occupation against the Palestinian people," he added.
Jenin city
Unknown gunmen opened fire on the car of an official of President Mahmoud Abbas' Fateh movement, as it was parked in front of his home in Jenin city, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.
Local sources said that Ata Abu Ermeila, secretary of Fateh movement in Jenin, parked his car in front of his home, and that the shots were fired at it after he went inside his home, the Radio Bethlehem 2000 has reported.
The sources said the attack might have been “a message” to the official, and that it is likely the shooters did not intend to physically harm him.
The shooters drove away directly after the shooting; the Palestinian Security Forces in Jenin did not comment on the incident.
It is likely that the shooting is connected to recent incidents in the Jenin district, especially following clashes between Palestinian security forces, local gunmen and residents in the Jenin refugee camp.
Abu Ermeila is originally from the Jenin refugee camp, but lives in Jenin city.
Unknown gunmen opened fire on the car of an official of President Mahmoud Abbas' Fateh movement, as it was parked in front of his home in Jenin city, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.
Local sources said that Ata Abu Ermeila, secretary of Fateh movement in Jenin, parked his car in front of his home, and that the shots were fired at it after he went inside his home, the Radio Bethlehem 2000 has reported.
The sources said the attack might have been “a message” to the official, and that it is likely the shooters did not intend to physically harm him.
The shooters drove away directly after the shooting; the Palestinian Security Forces in Jenin did not comment on the incident.
It is likely that the shooting is connected to recent incidents in the Jenin district, especially following clashes between Palestinian security forces, local gunmen and residents in the Jenin refugee camp.
Abu Ermeila is originally from the Jenin refugee camp, but lives in Jenin city.
26 mar 2014
Palestinian Government in Gaza held its weekly meeting No (334) on Tuesday, March 25, 2014, and concluded with the following statement:
Jewish Breakings into Al Aqsa
Palestinian Government denounces the continued breakings into Al-Aqsa Mosque, where 2,500 Jewish extremists entered the mosque since the beginning of 2014, and calls on the Palestinians in occupied West Bank to defend the holy site through staying up at the mosque.
Colonial Settlement:
Palestinian Government denounces the continued and accelerated pace of settlement construction and Judaization of occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, which rate has rose by 123 % in 2013. The government asserts that more negotiations with the occupation shall provide a cover for Israeli authority to build more settler houses, and calling for Palestinian Authority to withdraw from ‘peace process’.
Rafah Border:
The Palestinian government finds bizarre the Egyptian authorities’ continued, unjustified closure of the Rafah crossing which has lasted for 46 days since the onset of 2014; calls on the Egyptian authorities to respect humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law by opening the Rafah crossing and allowing about 10,000 travel applicants stranded in Gaza.
International Calls for Siege Break:
The Palestinian government hails the positions calling to break the unjust siege on the Gaza Strip, the latest of which was the statements of both Mr Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA and Mr Richard Falk, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, who called for breaking the longest siege marked over history and ‘assessing the legal status of the prolonged Israeli occupation’. Government emphasizes the need to translate all these statements into actions that lead to an urgent lift of the unjust blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Arab Summit:
The Palestinian government stresses the need that the Arab nations keep to treat the Palestine Cause and Jerusalem as the central issue and the Arab leaders to assume their historical responsibilities in supporting the Palestinian struggle and steadfastness against occupation. Government calls on the Arab leaders to enforce the decisions of the previous summits, which call for breaking the brutal eight-year-long Gaza blockade, and to mediate with the Egyptian authorities to open the Rafah border crossing closed.
Political PA Arrests:
The government decries the increasing political arrests carried out by Palestinian Authority Security Services loyal to Fatah in the West Bank, the latest of which was against leader Nazih Abu Aoun, It demands the immediate release of all political prisoners in the West Bank.
Jewish Breakings into Al Aqsa
Palestinian Government denounces the continued breakings into Al-Aqsa Mosque, where 2,500 Jewish extremists entered the mosque since the beginning of 2014, and calls on the Palestinians in occupied West Bank to defend the holy site through staying up at the mosque.
Colonial Settlement:
Palestinian Government denounces the continued and accelerated pace of settlement construction and Judaization of occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, which rate has rose by 123 % in 2013. The government asserts that more negotiations with the occupation shall provide a cover for Israeli authority to build more settler houses, and calling for Palestinian Authority to withdraw from ‘peace process’.
Rafah Border:
The Palestinian government finds bizarre the Egyptian authorities’ continued, unjustified closure of the Rafah crossing which has lasted for 46 days since the onset of 2014; calls on the Egyptian authorities to respect humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law by opening the Rafah crossing and allowing about 10,000 travel applicants stranded in Gaza.
International Calls for Siege Break:
The Palestinian government hails the positions calling to break the unjust siege on the Gaza Strip, the latest of which was the statements of both Mr Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA and Mr Richard Falk, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, who called for breaking the longest siege marked over history and ‘assessing the legal status of the prolonged Israeli occupation’. Government emphasizes the need to translate all these statements into actions that lead to an urgent lift of the unjust blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Arab Summit:
The Palestinian government stresses the need that the Arab nations keep to treat the Palestine Cause and Jerusalem as the central issue and the Arab leaders to assume their historical responsibilities in supporting the Palestinian struggle and steadfastness against occupation. Government calls on the Arab leaders to enforce the decisions of the previous summits, which call for breaking the brutal eight-year-long Gaza blockade, and to mediate with the Egyptian authorities to open the Rafah border crossing closed.
Political PA Arrests:
The government decries the increasing political arrests carried out by Palestinian Authority Security Services loyal to Fatah in the West Bank, the latest of which was against leader Nazih Abu Aoun, It demands the immediate release of all political prisoners in the West Bank.
Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani attends the 25th Arab League summit at Bayan palace in Kuwait City, on March 25, 2014
Hamas Movement and Palestinian Government appreciated the Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani's speech at the Arab summit in Kuwait; his take on the Palestinian cause, Jerusalem and settler breakings of Al-Aqsa Mosque. Ezzat el-Rishq, a Hamas politburo member, welcomed Qatar's call to hold a mini-Arab summit to discuss Palestinian national reconciliation and establishment of an Arab fund for the resilience of Jerusalem, and its initiative to contribute 250 million dollars to this fund.
Ihab al-Ghusain, Spokesman of the Palestinian government, said that Qatar affirms again its genuine stance supporting the Palestinian cause and its insistence to discuss it at Arab summits.
"We welcome the Qatar Emir's speech as a whole; especially his demand for the siege imposed on Gaza Strip to be lifted and for the Palestinian reconciliation to be backed,” Mr al-Ghusain said.
Ghusain hoped the summit provisions to be reflected on the ground and not remain on paper.
Qatar has offered tangible support to the Palestinians meeting all of its promises towards the Palestinian cause and the Gaza siege, which can be observed during the last two wars, and power and storm crises, Ghusain told ALRAY.
The summit leaders called to withdraw the Arab peace initiative with the occupation in this critical time of the Palestinian cause in response to the Israeli occupation's violations in occupied West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip.
Hamas Movement and Palestinian Government appreciated the Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani's speech at the Arab summit in Kuwait; his take on the Palestinian cause, Jerusalem and settler breakings of Al-Aqsa Mosque. Ezzat el-Rishq, a Hamas politburo member, welcomed Qatar's call to hold a mini-Arab summit to discuss Palestinian national reconciliation and establishment of an Arab fund for the resilience of Jerusalem, and its initiative to contribute 250 million dollars to this fund.
Ihab al-Ghusain, Spokesman of the Palestinian government, said that Qatar affirms again its genuine stance supporting the Palestinian cause and its insistence to discuss it at Arab summits.
"We welcome the Qatar Emir's speech as a whole; especially his demand for the siege imposed on Gaza Strip to be lifted and for the Palestinian reconciliation to be backed,” Mr al-Ghusain said.
Ghusain hoped the summit provisions to be reflected on the ground and not remain on paper.
Qatar has offered tangible support to the Palestinians meeting all of its promises towards the Palestinian cause and the Gaza siege, which can be observed during the last two wars, and power and storm crises, Ghusain told ALRAY.
The summit leaders called to withdraw the Arab peace initiative with the occupation in this critical time of the Palestinian cause in response to the Israeli occupation's violations in occupied West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip.
25 mar 2014
By Khalid Amayreh in Occupied Jerusalem
This week, Hamas commemorated the murderous assassination by Israel of its founder and spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yasin with a massive rally in central Gaza, attended by tens of thousands of supporters.
The wheelchair-bound quadriplegic Yasin was assassinated when an Israeli helicopter gunship fired a hellfire missile at him as he was being wheeled from early morning prayers.
His killing, in an attack that also claimed the lives of both his bodyguards and nine bystanders, was widely condemned. It prompted Palestinian resistance fighters to carry out a series of bombing operations inside Israel as an act of revenge.
Yasin is still widely revered by all Palestinians for his moderation, commitment to national unity and wisdom. He is also viewed as a source of inspiration for many Islamists especially in Palestine.
Yasin had little faith in peace negotiations between Israel and the PLO. He often said in interviews with the foreign press "I resist, therefore I exist." On many occasions, he argued that in the absence of any semblance of a balance of power between Israel and the Palestinians, peace negotiations, irrespective of any amount of good will showed by the Palestinians, would never lead to the conclusion of any just and dignified peace deal as far as the Palestinian people were concerned.
In an interview with this writer a few weeks before his death, Yasin was asked to justify the campaign of suicide bombings (Hamas called them martyrdom operations) by Hamas against Israel.
Yasin said: "The Israelis are offering us two choices: Either they kill us quietly -like they slaughter meek sheep- at the Jewish slaughter house, or make us die an honorable death in the streets of Israel."
Messages to whom it may concern
The massive rally commemorating Yasin as well as two other Hamas leaders, Abdul Aziz Rantisi and Ibrahim Maqadma, both brutally murdered by Israel, was meant to convey a message to Hamas's friends and foes alike.
The first message was to the Palestinian people and Hamas's supporters and sympathizers, namely that the movement is still strong and withstanding mounting pressures by the Sissi regime, Israel, and the western-backed Ramallah regime of Mahmoud Abbas.
Hamas repeatedly accused Egyptian intelligence in cooperation with anti-Islamist elements, e.g. Fatah agents, of trying to foment trouble in the Gaza Strip in order to destabilize the Islamist regime there. However, these alleged efforts were always decimated by a potent, vigilant and loyal Hamas security apparatus.
The second message was meant for Israel. Haniyeh said that Hamas was stronger than ever and that it possessed firepower more than the Israeli estimated.
The third message was sent to the anti-Islamist Sissi regime that no matter how Hamas is dehumanized, demonized, and pushed to the corner, the movement would remain a hard number not only at the Palestinian arena but at the Arab arena as well.
The Egyptian regime has been vilifying Hamas nonstop ever since the anti-Ikhwan coup in July, accusing the Islamist Palestinian movement of interfering in Egyptian internal affairs and aiding anti-regime elements in the Sinai Peninsula.
Hamas vehemently denies the charges, arguing that neither Hamas nor the Palestinian people have any interest whatsoever in alienating whatever government there is in Cairo.
According to Mushir al Masri, a local Hamas leader, "the negative and often bellicose Egyptian stance toward Hamas stems from the Sissi regime's ideological hostility to the Muslim Brotherhood ideology."
Egypt is yet to offer any hard evidence linking Hamas to violence at the Egyptian arena. But Fatah, Hamas's ultimate rival at the Palestinian arena, has been making desperate efforts to instigate the Sissi regime against Hamas.
Last week, Fatah's spokesman in Ramallah, Ahmed Assaf, claimed during a press conference in Cairo that Hamas and the ousted Mursi regime were planning to establish a Palestinian state and settle Palestinian refugees in the Sinai desert. Most serious pundits and observers in both Egypt and occupied Palestine would scoff at these allegations, dismissing them as no more than "concocted fantasies with not an iota of truth."
Good will toward Egypt
Speaking at the rally, Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh admitted that Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza were suffering and facing many troubles, due to an enduring Israeli blockade and an increasingly vindictive Egyptian approach toward Gaza.
"We are living through a difficult stage and harsh challenges, but we are not terrified and we are not defeated. We have become familiar with difficulties and this stage is not the most difficult."
Alluding to Egypt’s recent push to eradicate smuggling tunnels into the Gaza Strip, Haniyeh rhetorically asked: "Why punish Gaza? Was it because it achieved victory against the occupier? Why punish Gaza? Was it because it took up the rifle against Israel?" However, he did praise Egypt as Hamas' "brother, friend and neighbor.
Will Hamas survive the no-holds barred campaign against the Ikhwan?
There is no doubt that Hamas is facing one of the most difficult -if not the most difficult ordeals- since its foundation in the late 1987.
However, most pundits believe it is unlikely that the current Egyptian bullying -short of an all-out invasion by the Egyptian army, possibly in a tacit or not so-tacit coordination with Israel and the Abu Mazen regime- would overthrow the movement.
Moreover, the draconian restrictions against Gaza, particularly from Egypt’s side, are unlikely to cause Hamas to reach "the breaking point" especially in the immediate and foreseeable future. In the final analysis, Hamas is a resilient and austere movement long-tried and steeled by many years of internecine wars and hermetic blockades by Israel. The group is also strongly backed by a hardcore body of ideological followers and supporters who see support for Hamas as a religious duty of the first order.
But Hamas is coming under unprecedented pressure to choose between ideology and morality on the one hand and expediency and financial survival on the other.
That is why the movement has been trying to mend relations with Iran, but without seriously re-embracing the Iran-Syria-Hizbullah-axis. However, it is yet uncertain if this tight-rope walking will guarantee a lasting safety net for Hamas.
A final note: the Hamas leadership is thoroughly convinced that any Egyptian invasion of Gaza wouldn't take place without an Israeli approval. Egypt has no real sovereignty over the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Gaza, despite Egyptian rhetoric to the contrary. Hence, Egyptian forces would have to obtain permission from Israel to operate there.
Hence, a possible but unlikely Egyptian incursion into Gaza would most likely spark off a new round of war between Hamas and Israel. This scenario could significantly embarrass the Egyptian regime. (Many Palestinians already believe that Egyptian Defense Minister Abdul Fattah al Sissi is actually the son of a Jewish mother of Moroccan origin and that he is a Jew disguised as Muslim). Moreover, the ample praise Sissi receives from the Hebrew press enforces these convictions.
Other pundits would argue that Israel would never allow Egypt to go as far as invading Gaza, since an invasion of the coastal enclave would effectively reshuffle the cards of the political game in the region, militate against Israeli interests, especially in the long run, and might significantly increase international pressure on Israel to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories.
More to the point, the overthrow of Hamas would also cause Israel to lose an invaluable “red herring" used by the Israeli propaganda machine to justify the Israeli lebensraum policy in the West Bank.
This week, Hamas commemorated the murderous assassination by Israel of its founder and spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yasin with a massive rally in central Gaza, attended by tens of thousands of supporters.
The wheelchair-bound quadriplegic Yasin was assassinated when an Israeli helicopter gunship fired a hellfire missile at him as he was being wheeled from early morning prayers.
His killing, in an attack that also claimed the lives of both his bodyguards and nine bystanders, was widely condemned. It prompted Palestinian resistance fighters to carry out a series of bombing operations inside Israel as an act of revenge.
Yasin is still widely revered by all Palestinians for his moderation, commitment to national unity and wisdom. He is also viewed as a source of inspiration for many Islamists especially in Palestine.
Yasin had little faith in peace negotiations between Israel and the PLO. He often said in interviews with the foreign press "I resist, therefore I exist." On many occasions, he argued that in the absence of any semblance of a balance of power between Israel and the Palestinians, peace negotiations, irrespective of any amount of good will showed by the Palestinians, would never lead to the conclusion of any just and dignified peace deal as far as the Palestinian people were concerned.
In an interview with this writer a few weeks before his death, Yasin was asked to justify the campaign of suicide bombings (Hamas called them martyrdom operations) by Hamas against Israel.
Yasin said: "The Israelis are offering us two choices: Either they kill us quietly -like they slaughter meek sheep- at the Jewish slaughter house, or make us die an honorable death in the streets of Israel."
Messages to whom it may concern
The massive rally commemorating Yasin as well as two other Hamas leaders, Abdul Aziz Rantisi and Ibrahim Maqadma, both brutally murdered by Israel, was meant to convey a message to Hamas's friends and foes alike.
The first message was to the Palestinian people and Hamas's supporters and sympathizers, namely that the movement is still strong and withstanding mounting pressures by the Sissi regime, Israel, and the western-backed Ramallah regime of Mahmoud Abbas.
Hamas repeatedly accused Egyptian intelligence in cooperation with anti-Islamist elements, e.g. Fatah agents, of trying to foment trouble in the Gaza Strip in order to destabilize the Islamist regime there. However, these alleged efforts were always decimated by a potent, vigilant and loyal Hamas security apparatus.
The second message was meant for Israel. Haniyeh said that Hamas was stronger than ever and that it possessed firepower more than the Israeli estimated.
The third message was sent to the anti-Islamist Sissi regime that no matter how Hamas is dehumanized, demonized, and pushed to the corner, the movement would remain a hard number not only at the Palestinian arena but at the Arab arena as well.
The Egyptian regime has been vilifying Hamas nonstop ever since the anti-Ikhwan coup in July, accusing the Islamist Palestinian movement of interfering in Egyptian internal affairs and aiding anti-regime elements in the Sinai Peninsula.
Hamas vehemently denies the charges, arguing that neither Hamas nor the Palestinian people have any interest whatsoever in alienating whatever government there is in Cairo.
According to Mushir al Masri, a local Hamas leader, "the negative and often bellicose Egyptian stance toward Hamas stems from the Sissi regime's ideological hostility to the Muslim Brotherhood ideology."
Egypt is yet to offer any hard evidence linking Hamas to violence at the Egyptian arena. But Fatah, Hamas's ultimate rival at the Palestinian arena, has been making desperate efforts to instigate the Sissi regime against Hamas.
Last week, Fatah's spokesman in Ramallah, Ahmed Assaf, claimed during a press conference in Cairo that Hamas and the ousted Mursi regime were planning to establish a Palestinian state and settle Palestinian refugees in the Sinai desert. Most serious pundits and observers in both Egypt and occupied Palestine would scoff at these allegations, dismissing them as no more than "concocted fantasies with not an iota of truth."
Good will toward Egypt
Speaking at the rally, Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh admitted that Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza were suffering and facing many troubles, due to an enduring Israeli blockade and an increasingly vindictive Egyptian approach toward Gaza.
"We are living through a difficult stage and harsh challenges, but we are not terrified and we are not defeated. We have become familiar with difficulties and this stage is not the most difficult."
Alluding to Egypt’s recent push to eradicate smuggling tunnels into the Gaza Strip, Haniyeh rhetorically asked: "Why punish Gaza? Was it because it achieved victory against the occupier? Why punish Gaza? Was it because it took up the rifle against Israel?" However, he did praise Egypt as Hamas' "brother, friend and neighbor.
Will Hamas survive the no-holds barred campaign against the Ikhwan?
There is no doubt that Hamas is facing one of the most difficult -if not the most difficult ordeals- since its foundation in the late 1987.
However, most pundits believe it is unlikely that the current Egyptian bullying -short of an all-out invasion by the Egyptian army, possibly in a tacit or not so-tacit coordination with Israel and the Abu Mazen regime- would overthrow the movement.
Moreover, the draconian restrictions against Gaza, particularly from Egypt’s side, are unlikely to cause Hamas to reach "the breaking point" especially in the immediate and foreseeable future. In the final analysis, Hamas is a resilient and austere movement long-tried and steeled by many years of internecine wars and hermetic blockades by Israel. The group is also strongly backed by a hardcore body of ideological followers and supporters who see support for Hamas as a religious duty of the first order.
But Hamas is coming under unprecedented pressure to choose between ideology and morality on the one hand and expediency and financial survival on the other.
That is why the movement has been trying to mend relations with Iran, but without seriously re-embracing the Iran-Syria-Hizbullah-axis. However, it is yet uncertain if this tight-rope walking will guarantee a lasting safety net for Hamas.
A final note: the Hamas leadership is thoroughly convinced that any Egyptian invasion of Gaza wouldn't take place without an Israeli approval. Egypt has no real sovereignty over the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Gaza, despite Egyptian rhetoric to the contrary. Hence, Egyptian forces would have to obtain permission from Israel to operate there.
Hence, a possible but unlikely Egyptian incursion into Gaza would most likely spark off a new round of war between Hamas and Israel. This scenario could significantly embarrass the Egyptian regime. (Many Palestinians already believe that Egyptian Defense Minister Abdul Fattah al Sissi is actually the son of a Jewish mother of Moroccan origin and that he is a Jew disguised as Muslim). Moreover, the ample praise Sissi receives from the Hebrew press enforces these convictions.
Other pundits would argue that Israel would never allow Egypt to go as far as invading Gaza, since an invasion of the coastal enclave would effectively reshuffle the cards of the political game in the region, militate against Israeli interests, especially in the long run, and might significantly increase international pressure on Israel to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories.
More to the point, the overthrow of Hamas would also cause Israel to lose an invaluable “red herring" used by the Israeli propaganda machine to justify the Israeli lebensraum policy in the West Bank.
Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani called for convening an Arab mini-summit with the aim of forging reconciliation between the Palestinian factions, ending the state of internal division. and ending the Gaza blockade.
Sheikh Tamim said, in a speech he delivered on Tuesday before the 25th Arab summit convening in Kuwait, "The Palestinian issue still represents the most important challenge facing the Nation", and stressed that Israel's breaches remain an obstacle to achieving a peaceful settlement.
He also called for taking serious actions to end the Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than eight years, unabated, and opening the crossings to save Gaza residents.
For his part, Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber said that the just and comprehensive peace will only be achieved through the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, pointing out that the Israeli violations have been hampering the achievement of peace.
Sheikh Tamim said, in a speech he delivered on Tuesday before the 25th Arab summit convening in Kuwait, "The Palestinian issue still represents the most important challenge facing the Nation", and stressed that Israel's breaches remain an obstacle to achieving a peaceful settlement.
He also called for taking serious actions to end the Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than eight years, unabated, and opening the crossings to save Gaza residents.
For his part, Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber said that the just and comprehensive peace will only be achieved through the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, pointing out that the Israeli violations have been hampering the achievement of peace.
Rola Ma'aya, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities received in the ministry's headquarters in Bethlehem, Mr. Teguh Wardoyo, Indonesia's ambassador to Jordan and Palestine and Mr. Fariz Mahdawi, Palestine's ambassador to Indonesia, in the presence of Sayel al-Deek, General Director of tourism services in the ministry.
Minister Ma'aya welcomed the new Indonesian Ambassador and wished him success in his new post as an ambassador to Palestine.
Ma'aya valued the relationship between the two countries and the efforts made by the Indonesian Government to support Palestine in the various aspects of life. She also emphasized the importance of building strong relationships between the two countries.
Ma'aya familiarized them with the plans and programs of the ministry that aim at prompting and developing the tourism in Palestine.
Ma'aya talked about the current situation in Palestine and the obstacles imposed by Israel on the tourism sector. She pointed out to the efforts made by the ministry to improve the services provided to tourists, through the opening of the archaeological sites and museums for the visitors, in addition to promote all the cities and Palestinian sites, stressing on the importance of tourism to Palestine, not only economically, but also for giving a good image about Palestine.
The Indonesian Ambassador expressed his pleasure for being in Palestine, adding that his country will remain committed to supporting the Palestine in many forums, especially the tourism.
Both countries agreed on the importance of encouraging the religious tourism to Palestine through cooperation between Palestinian and Indonesian tourism agencies, and cooperation with Jordan to promote joint tourist programs that include Jordan and Palestine and promote these programs in Indonesia.
At the end of the meeting it was agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding between the three parties concerning this issue.
Minister Ma'aya welcomed the new Indonesian Ambassador and wished him success in his new post as an ambassador to Palestine.
Ma'aya valued the relationship between the two countries and the efforts made by the Indonesian Government to support Palestine in the various aspects of life. She also emphasized the importance of building strong relationships between the two countries.
Ma'aya familiarized them with the plans and programs of the ministry that aim at prompting and developing the tourism in Palestine.
Ma'aya talked about the current situation in Palestine and the obstacles imposed by Israel on the tourism sector. She pointed out to the efforts made by the ministry to improve the services provided to tourists, through the opening of the archaeological sites and museums for the visitors, in addition to promote all the cities and Palestinian sites, stressing on the importance of tourism to Palestine, not only economically, but also for giving a good image about Palestine.
The Indonesian Ambassador expressed his pleasure for being in Palestine, adding that his country will remain committed to supporting the Palestine in many forums, especially the tourism.
Both countries agreed on the importance of encouraging the religious tourism to Palestine through cooperation between Palestinian and Indonesian tourism agencies, and cooperation with Jordan to promote joint tourist programs that include Jordan and Palestine and promote these programs in Indonesia.
At the end of the meeting it was agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding between the three parties concerning this issue.
Hamas movement hailed the initiative by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) that called for an urgent national conference that would adopt a unified strategy for Palestinian struggle. Dr. Mousa Abu Marzouk, member of Hamas’s political bureau, said in a statement on his Facebook page at dawn Tuesday that the PFLP call was very much appreciated and deserves to be heeded.
The PFLP had called for adopting a unified national strategy that would serve as an alternative to the settlement process and the “frivolous” negotiations and would adopt resistance.
The PFLP had called for adopting a unified national strategy that would serve as an alternative to the settlement process and the “frivolous” negotiations and would adopt resistance.
