Hamas pledges Gaza ceasefire to end five days of bloodshed Group hopes temporary truce will stop escalating violence spiralling out of control

Hamas pledges Gaza ceasefire to end five days of bloodshed

Group hopes temporary truce will stop escalating violence spiralling out of control*

By Donald Macintyre in Gaza

Tuesday, 23 August 2011

Hamas has told Egypt it will enforce a ceasefire by militant factions in Gaza aimed at halting bloodshed which started with the killing of eight Israelis by gunmen last week.

The truce was finalised yesterday in Gaza after the Popular Resistance Committees, the faction blamed by Israel for last Thursday's lethal attack near the Red Sea resort of Eilat, finally agreed to what it called a "temporary" ceasefire.

Although Hamas was thought, along with Israel, to be anxious not to let the cycle of Israeli air strikes and Palestinian rocket attacks to spiral out of control, the agreement in Gaza appeared to be a success for Egyptian diplomacy, backed by the UN.

Around 15 rockets and mortars were fired by Gaza militants overnight, causing no injuries. Israel responded with an air strike which targeted a rocket launcher.

At least 15 Palestinians have been killed in the air strikes, mainly militants, but also including a doctor, and three children under the age of 14.

A 38-year old Israeli man was killed in a rocket attack on Beersheeva on Saturday night. The PRC claimed responsibility for the attack.

Israel has made clear that it has not made an agreement with the Palestinian factions but that it will respond in kind provided the rocket attacks stop. Israel's President Shimon Peres said while on a tour of the southern Israeli communities that are most affected by rocket attacks: "If they will cease fire, there will be a cease-fire."

However, an Israeli official warned that the military would reserve the right to attack those attempting to fire rockets, whether before or after the rockets had actually been fired, and to fire on those Palestinians who approach too close to the border fence with Israel.

The official declined to confirm that Israel had helped to pave the way for the factions' agreement to a ceasefire by making clear in advance to the Egyptians that it would respond positively if one was called. But an Israeli delegation was in Cairo on Sunday while its terms were being drawn up.

Israel has been anxious to maximise co-operation with the post-Mubarak authorities after a diplomatic row blew up at the weekend.

Egypt threatened to withdraw its ambassador from Tel Aviv over complaints that three of its security personnel had been killed by Israeli troops firing on gunmen as they retreated across the border after Thursday's attack along Route 12, which is 20km from Eilat.

In a rare statement issued during the Sabbath, Defence Minister Ehud Barak expressed Israel's "regret" for the deaths of the three security men and promised a joint investigation to be carried out by both the Israeli and Egyptian military authorities.

The air strikes on Gaza started within hours of Thursday's attack.

One of the strikes – believed to be by a drone – killed five prominent PRC members in the yard of a house in the southern town of Rafah. But the strike also killed the two-year-old son of one of the PRC members.

Meanwhile, the Israel Defence Force has not yet released any names of the seven gunmen that it says it hit. But it says that it killed at least four gunmen in the fierce exchanges of gunfire which followed on from Thursday's well-executed attack.

Israeli officials say they knew that the attack was the work of the PRC because of prior intelligence that the organisation planned an attack in the area – intelligence some Israeli critics have argued should have enabled security forces to prevent the attack. While the information was detailed this did not extend to the timing of the attack, an unexpectedly bold raid conducted in daylight.

Meanwhile a senior Israeli military officer, Colonel Zvika Haimovitch, acknowledged yesterday that the new "Iron Dome" rocket defence system did not offer full protection against all the salvos that had been fired from Gaza over the last few days.

It shot down four out of five Grad rockets fired by the PRC at Beersheeva, for example, but the fifth rocket killed an Israeli civilian. The man had left his car as the attack was underway.

*Url:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/hamas-pledges-gaza-ceasefire-to-end-five-days-of-bloodshed-2342169.html

Israeli Army Arrests over 50 Palestinians in Hebron

Israeli Army Arrests over 50 Palestinians in Hebron

Ramallah, Aug 21 (Prensa Latina) Israeli forces arrested over 50 Palestinians in Hebron on Sunday, in the biggest raid carried out in the last eight years in the city, announced Palestinian sources.

Detained include various leaders and relatives linked to the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), one of them legislator Mohamed Abu Dheishe and some children of the members of the organization, said deputy Samira Halaik, and Maan and Wafa news agencies.

The Israeli forces accompanied by more than 100 military vehicles invaded the city of Hebron, in the south of West Bank, Sunday at dawn, and in neighboring villages such as Dura, Surif, Beit Umma, Yatta, and Samua.

Official Wafa news agency of the Palestine National Authority reported 40 arrests, though the estimates are higher.

Qassam Brigades end truce with Israel

Qassam Brigades end truce with Israel*

Sat Aug 20, 2011

At least 16 Palestinians have been killed in two days of Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

The armed wing of Hamas, the Al-Qassam Brigades, has ended their two-year de facto ceasefire in response to two days of Israeli airstrikes on Gaza that killed at least 16 people.

“There is no longer any truce with the enemy,” the Al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement broadcast over a Hamas radio station on Saturday.

At least sixteen Palestinians have been killed and dozens have been injured over the past two days by Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, which began on Thursday, shortly after eight Israelis were killed near the Red Sea resort town of Eilat.

Medical sources said that children as young as three were among the Palestinian casualties in the attacks on Gaza.

Israeli officials have blamed a Gaza-based militant group called the Popular Resistance Committee (PRC) for Thursday's attack and have vowed a “full force” response targeting Gaza.

Israel said the attackers had infiltrated from the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, although the PRC, which is not affiliated with Hamas, denied involvement in the incident.

Hamas has said that it had nothing to do with the assault and has warned against any act of aggression against the Gaza Strip.

PG/HGL

* Url:http://www.presstv.ir/detail/194767.html

Israeli Anarchists, Palestinians and International Activists protest theft of Bow Spring

Israeli Anarchists, Palestinians and International Activists

protest theft of Bow Spring

Last 12 Aug 2011, twenty Israeli Anarchists Against the Wall along with solidarity activists from Belgium, Netherlands, UK, US, Italy and Ireland joined Palestinians in protesting against the theft of village land and its spring for the expansion of the nearby colony of Halamish. As the demonstrators descended the hill leading to the Bow Spring occupation forces opened fire on them from behind and subsequently from three firing positions. Some three hours after the demonstration was suppressed with stun grenades and tear gas, motor vehicles were prevented from entering the village for a period by soldiers manning the permanent checkpoint outside Nabi Saleh – it was feared this was a prelude to the village, same as occurred last Friday, to being raided again but the terror raid failed to materialize.

* Url:http://info-wars.org/2011/08/13/israeli-anarchists-palestinians-and-international-activists-protest-theft-of-bow-spring

'IDF troops shot at journalists covering W. Bank protest'

'IDF troops shot at journalists covering W. Bank protest'

By BEN HARTMAN

05/08/2011

Photojournalist files complaint alleging IDF intentionally fired at him; IDF says it cannot investigate incident in depth without full details.

An American-Israeli photojournalist on Thursday lodged a complaint with the IDF Spokesman’s Office, the Government Press Office and the Foreign Press Association, alleging that IDF soldiers intentionally fired anti-riot projectiles at him and a fellow journalist while they were covering a protest in the West Bank village of Nabi Salih last Friday.

“At the start of the weekly Palestinian protest in Nabi Salih, Alexandroni Brigade reservists and Border Police officers opened fire with riot-control weapons on a group of some 10 press photographers,” Mati Milstein, 36, and originally from New Mexico, said in his complaint letter.

“At the time the attack took place, the troops had already repelled Palestinian protesters with tear gas canisters, and the only people left on the street in view of the Israeli force were accredited press photographers,” wrote Milstein.

“The photographers were clearly identified; carrying still and video cameras and tripods and wearing unique blue flak jackets and helmets marked with ‘PRESS’ or ‘TV.’ The distance between the journalists and soldiers was approximately 100m. and visibility was clear,” he wrote.

Milstein said that the tear gas canisters and rifle-fired gas grenades shot at the Israeli, Palestinian and foreign journalists were not fired in an arc, indicating to Milstein that the soldiers were not trying to fire over him and his colleagues, rather, directly at them.

He said the barrage lasted three to five minutes and included at least 12 rounds fired at the journalists, none of whom were wounded.

When he went to the soldiers to complain, officers from the Alexandroni Brigade threatened him with arrest and demanded that he stand against a wall, which prevented him from performing his job, Milstein said.

“Other television and still photographers in the area were also sequestered – under threat of arrest – to a location behind military lines from which it was virtually impossible to photograph the events,” he said.

Milstein, who first reported the incident in a post he wrote for the blog “972mag,” told The Jerusalem Post by e-mail on Thursday that in the years that he has worked at the protests, “previous Israeli military commanders serving in this sector had generally taken a more tolerant and sophisticated approach to dealing with the weekly protests, not infrequently seeking negotiation or coordination with Palestinian village leaders aimed at diffusing potentially violent situations. However, since early 2001, army and Border Police units operating in Nabi Salih have taken an increasingly heavy-handed approach to the protests.”

He said a similar escalation has been carried out toward the press, an escalation he says is “the product of a military environment that increasingly sees the media as an enemy or a fifth column rather than as one of the key elements required for the maintenance of a democratic, transparent state.”

Milstein said that he knows of other journalists who have suffered abuse from one side or another in covering the conflict, but have kept quiet to avoid damaging their credibility or out of professional interests.

He said that he is seeking no personal damages following the incident, and that he decided to file the complaint because of a situation in the West Bank where “abuse of journalists and draconian limitations on press freedoms are now largely seen as acceptable. And perhaps, in some cases and in some units, are even encouraged.”

None of the other journalists filed a complaint with the Foreign Press Association, but the FPA referred the case to the International News Safety Institute and forwarded his entry on “972mag” to Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists, Milstein said.

The IDF Spokesman’s Office responded that “the IDF respects journalistic freedom of expression and understands its importance. As proof of this, every week there are dozens of journalists present covering the disturbances [in the West Bank] in a free manner, as long as they do not interfere with the work of [IDF] forces.

“Every complaint that is issued will be thoroughly examined by the IDF and any deviation from command, if discovered, will be dealt with accordingly. It should be noted that journalists who enter territories in which there are disturbances and illegal activities on a regular basis – such as Nabi Salih – do bear responsibility. Since full information on this incident was not submitted, it will not be possible to examine it in depth,” the IDF spokesman said.

* Url:http://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=232556

Gaza Freedom Flotilla 2: Tensions are high in the middle east...

Gaza Freedom Flotilla 2: Tensions are high in the middle east

because the US and EU political elites have consistently made the wrong choices and sided with Israel.

Wednesday, 6 July 2011

There is little doubt an internationally co-ordinated campaign by Israel, and its main backer the USA has been mounted to stop the Free Gaza Freedom Flotilla 2 from sailing to Gaza. Whilst stopping the flotilla from sailing is to be appalled, it does show the Gaza flotillas are having a considerable impact on international public opinion. Why else would Israel and its friends go to such lengths to crush it? As the saying goes, you do not crush a butterfly on a wheel.

On Saturday last, the Middle East Quartet, whose main representative in the region is English war criminal Tony Blair, and which consists of the USA, UN, EU and Russia, urged governments to discourage Gaza bound aid flotillas, claiming they could escalate tension in the region. If ever their was an example of Israel being given carte blanche to break international laws this statement is it. It is more than that alone, it also tells the Palestinian people they cannot look to the USA or EU for salvation, they must suffer in silence and endure the daily injustices they face at the hands of the state of Israel. What the Free Gaza Campaign has proven is whilst governments sit silently or bolster Israel, the mass of ordinary people within the US and EU are beginning to stir. Unlike their governments they can see a direct similarity between how the Israeli state treats the Palestinians and how the SA apartheid State treated its black, colored and Asian ‘citizens.’

It is this which Israel fears, and its is the prospect of a boycott of Israel taking off in a big way which has led to the current restrictions placed on the Freedom Flotilla by the Greek government. Greece, a country which is not known for being anti Palestinian, is in a perilous economic situation and has clearly been pressurized to stop the Flotillas ships from leaving Greek ports. Indeed it has gone as far as issuing a statement which says:

“Greece is banning the departure from Greek ports of vessels with Greek or foreign flags bound for Gaza. Greece’s stance regarding the need to lift the Gaza blockade and to improve the humanitarian conditions in the area is known and remains unchanged. Greece’s positions of principle for the need to respect international law and not to resort to the use of force are also well known. Greece, as it is widely known, actively supports the resumption of peace talks, which constitute the only road to a comprehensive and viable resolution of the Palestinian issue, with the creation of a Palestinian state that will coexist peacefully with the state of Israel. These positions have been made clear to all concerned parties.”

What absolute humbug, the only way international law could be broken is if Israel resort to the use of force in international waters as it did in 2010, when it attacked the Turkish aid ship Mavi Marmara, which resulted in nine people on board having their lives stolen. If the Greek government and other EU nations feel so strongly about international law they should give the Free Gaza Flotilla 2 an armed escort to ensure it reached Gaza port unhindered.

Again Greece and its EU partners prefer to collude in criminality with Israel rather than ensure the rule of lay runs in Mediterranean waters. According to Jack Shenker writing in the Guardian:

“The Greeks have intercepted several of the Flotilla's 10 ships as they tried to leave port in recent days, while others were forced to withdraw from the voyage due to damage which passengers blamed on Israeli sabotage.

One small French craft did manage to evade the Greek coastguard and reach international waters on Tuesday, but those on board decided not to try for Gazan waters alone and have now turned back. Meanwhile, the American captain of The Audacity of Hope, a flotilla vessel which was forced back to shore after attempting to break free on Friday, was released from custody on Tuesday. John Klusmire had been arrested on charges of setting sail without permission and endangering passengers, prompting a hunger strike from activists on board. Other protests by flotilla campaigners in Athens – including the occupation of the Spanish embassy – are ongoing.”

Nevertheless those on board the FGF2 have become even more determined to end the blockade of Gaza, Alejandro Fierro, a FGF activist on the Spanish ship Guernica, which is being detained in Crete, told al-Jazeera.

"We've learned patience from the Palestinian people who have been resisting Israeli occupation for 60 years, so we can wait. We will sail to Gaza.”

A Greek foreign ministry spokesperson, aware of international public opinion turning against Greece, issued an Orwellian statement which attempted to defend its indefensible decision to stop the Free Gaza Flotilla 2 leaving its ports.

"It is time to step up so that we can show everyone that at a critical turn of affairs for the Middle East, which is currently in the midst of tensions, there will not be developments that will exacerbate the climate further."

What mumbo jumbo is that, on all the major issues of the day, cutting the deficit, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, occupied Palestine and the blockade of Gaza, Europe's political elites are out of step with the overwhelming majority of its peoples. The above statement which was echoed throughout the EU’s political chancellors says it all. If tensions are high in the middle east it is because the US and EU political elites have consistently made the wrong choices and sided with Israel, instead of the Palestinians whom it oppresses. Only when this injustice is corrected will the peoples of the middle east begin to live in harmony.

MH.

* Url:http://www.organizedrage.com/2011/07/gaza-freedom-flotilla-2-tensions-are.html

Israeli Soldiers Shoot, Severely Beat Palestinian

Israeli Soldiers Shoot, Severely Beat Palestinian*

Date : 23/6/2011

JERUSALEM, June 23,2011 (WAFA)- Israeli police are detaining Palestinian man Ahmed Ali Mahmoud, 36, in Shaare Zedek hospital west of Jerusalem, despite his injury with live bullets and bruises to his head after an assault by Israeli soldiers yesterday in Al-Issawiya town in Jerusalem.

Mahmoud’s family said his condition is stable after he was shot with a live bullet in his leg, and that he is suffering from wounds and bruises to his face, yet Israeli police continue to bind his hands and feet.

Mahmoud was hit during an Israeli raid on Al-Issawiya yesterday in which soldiers arrested his 10 year old nephew Mohamed Mahmoud Ali. His uncle, Ahmed, rushed to the scene and was shot by Israeli soldiers in his leg at close range. He was then taken away by car and beaten severely, without treatment for his leg. He finally collapsed and was taken to hospital.

* Url:http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=16523

IOA orders destruction of Jerusalemite home

IOA orders destruction of Jerusalemite home*

23/06/2011

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- An Israeli court issued a ruling Wednesday in favor of destroying the home of Wael al-Razem in the Wadi Yasul neighborhood of Jerusalem’s Silwan district, claiming the home was built without license.

The family of eight, most of whom are children, was given until the middle of July to evacuate.

The Razems began building in September 2010 and went to reside in their home after a month, Um Mohammed al-Razem said, adding that in November officials from Israel’s Jerusalem municipality came and handed the family a demolition notice.

She said more officers came later to inform them that they were not allowed to make reparations to the home.

She went on to say that the family appointed a lawyer to help fight the demolition decree and tried to get a license to build issued.

* Url:http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7

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Israel calls demolition report 'incorrect'

Israel calls demolition report 'incorrect'*

Published Thursday 23/06/2011

Their homes demolished by the CA on Tuesday, Ahmed Abdullah Harfi and his

family stand in front of the ruins. [MaanImages/Hilary Minch, EAPPI]

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Israel's Civil Administration lashed out Wednesday night, calling a rights group report "incorrect and misleading," in its claim that home demolitions had spiked alarmingly in 2011.

Israeli rights group B'Tselem, had published a document saying more homes had been demolished in the first six months of 2011 than in the 12 months of the year before.

"Last week alone, 33 residential structures were demolished in the Jordan Valley and southern Hebron hills," the report said, cataloging the displacement of 706 individuals, including 341 minors.

A representative of the Civil Administration could not be reached for a follow-up comment to specify what in the B'Tselem report was identified as inaccurate or misleading.

"The Civil Administration has not put numbers or explanations to back up their criticisms," B'Tselem spokeswoman Sarit Michaeli told Ma'an, saying the group welcomed any investigation into the findings.

"In order to get the numbers, we corroborated with other rights groups and OCHA, all of our numbers are cross referenced with theirs, and are based on independent field work," Michaeli said, noting that B'Tselem's numbers did not include the demolition of animal shelters and storage containers which are included in reports from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The Bt'Tselem report also accused the Civil Administration of failing to include Palestinian communities into planning, and wrote that the body does "not enable any construction or development beyond what already exists, making it impossible for Palestinians to build legally in these areas."

In response, the CA said it "has recently formulated new criteria designed to aid in the process of approval of Palestinian urban master plans."

The statement also said it sought to "put things into context and clarify that enforcement [of demolition orders] carried out against the illegal Israeli and Palestinian construction is done due to the authorities' duty to uphold planning and construction law. This activity is carried out according to priorities that have been presented tens of times before the High Court of Justice.

"Among other things, priority is given to buildings that are located in fire zones, thus putting the lives of the residents in danger."

According to the latest report from OCHA, 18 percent of the West Bank has been designated as a "firing zone," a 2009 report notes that much of the land also "overlaps with that which falls under the jurisdiction of Israeli [settlement] regional councils."

Speaking for B'Tselem, Michaeli said the report did not dispute that the structures were illegal under Israeli law, saying "that's the problem."

The report called for "plans for Palestinian communities there that will reflect the needs of the population and enable these communities to develop."

* Url:http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=399120

Occupation bulldozers demolish Palestinian homes in Negev

Occupation bulldozers demolish Palestinian homes in Negev*

NEGEV (PIC) 17 June -- Israeli occupation bulldozers demolished three residential structures in the villages of Karnab and Faraa, two unrecognised villages of Negev in southern occupied Palestine, as part of the occupation efforts to cleanse the Negev of Palestinian Bedouins. Head of the regional council of unrecognised villages, Ibrahim al-Waqili, said ... "For the Zionist Ministry of Interior to choose this this time for the demolition is an indication that they aim to destroy man not walls,"... pointing out that the occupation authorities chose the time of final secondary exams to carry out such demolitions to demolish the hopes of affected students of passing their final exams.

* Url:http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc

Cabinet expected to curtail Barak's power to veto West Bank settlement construction

Cabinet expected to curtail Barak's power

to veto West Bank settlement construction*

Haaretz 17 June

Anticipated decision would move control of World Zionist Organization's Settlement Division from Agriculture Ministry to Prime Minister's Office -- The cabinet is expected to vote on Sunday to curtail Defense Minister Ehud Barak's authority to supervise construction in West Bank settlements. The proposal would revoke Barak's right to veto West Bank construction by the World Zionist Organization's Settlement Division. The division budgets NIS 25 million a year for this purpose.

* Url:http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/
cabinet-expected-to-curtail-barak-s-power-to-veto-west-bank-settlement-construction-1.368137

State moves to expand settlement on Palestinian land confiscated by Jorda

State moves to expand settlement on Palestinian land confiscated by Jordan*

Haaretz 17 June

Israel is pushing ahead with a plan that would legitimize construction on land near the settlement of Ofra in the West Bank. The Supreme Court ruled as early as 1979 that settlements may not be built on confiscated private Palestinian land. The move's legal foundation appears to hinge on the fact that it was the Jordanians, not the Israelis, who confiscated the land - before Israel took over the West Bank during the Six-Day War in 1967. Jordan had confiscated land from the villages of Ein Yabrud and Silwad to build a military camp.

* Url:http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/
state-moves-to-expand-settlement-on-palestinian-land-confiscated-by-jordan-1.368136

IDF soldiers destroy Bedouin tents

IDF soldiers destroy Bedouin tents*

JORDAN VALLEY (PIC) 14 June -- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) tore down Bedouin tents and tin homes in Fasayel Al-Wusta area in the Jordan Valley on Tuesday morning rendering ten families homeless. Safa news agency ... said that the IOF demolition displaced more than 120 individuals including women, children, and old people. Bedouins in Fasayel Al-Tihta opened their homes for the displaced families. Locals said that the soldiers confiscated small electricity generators used by those Bedouins. The sources noted that the IOF soldiers recently discovered relics in the area and demolished the Bedouin homes in a bid to turn the area into a tourist attraction.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7H7Gtp

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Home demolitions in Fasayel

Home demolitions in Fasayel*

Tuesday, 14 June 2011

On the 14.06.2011, the colonialist forces demolished 21 structures in Fasayel, Southern Palestinian Jordan Valley.

At 6 o'clock this morning, about 10 military jeeps, one civil administratiion car and 3 bulldozers entered Fasayel Wasta and Foqa, turning the area into a 'closed military area', preventing anybody to enter the village for more than 3 hours.

The army demolished 18 homes and 3 animal shelters, leaving 103 homeless and destroying the means of production of 3 families.

The owners of those structures are the following :

Qaïd Atallah Salame

Uhsein Yassin Mossa Rosheide

Khader Yassin Mossa Rosheide

Abed Yassin Mossa Rosheide

Khaled Abdallah Ali Ghazal

Ammar Mossa Ali Odeh

Nasser Mossa Ali Odeh

Sami Mossa Ali Odeh

Ali Uhsein Hassan Zaïd

Najih Ali Uhsein Zaïd

Omar Mohammad Khalil Taamri

All of them but Omar Taamri had got a demolition order 3 months ago.

Soldiers attacked Taamri's wife and daughter, hitting both of them.

Moreover, the army cut electrical lines that provides electricity to Fasayel Wusta area. At now residents don't have any access to electricity.

Fasayel Wusta 2 weeks before the demolitions, Tomer settlement in the background (photo AFPS 44)

http://www.jordanvalleysolidarity.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=289

IOF serves notice for demolition of village mosque

IOF serves notice for demolition of village mosque*

15/06/2011

BETHLEHEM, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Tuesday stormed the village of Ma’sara south of Bethlehem and told the inhabitants that their village mosque would be knocked down for unlicensed construction.

Spokesman of the popular anti-wall committee in Bethlehem Mohammed Brejiah said in a press release that the notice gave the inhabitants 13 days to contest the decision at the civil administration’s office in Etzion south of the city or else the demolition would take place after this period.

He pointed out that the village is the target of intensive settlement activity, noting that it witnesses weekly anti wall and anti settlement rallies.

The IOF troops earlier Tuesday destroyed five water wells south of Al-Khalil, local sources said, adding that clashes erupted between the soldiers and owners of the water wells. Soldiers beat the citizens and fired gas bombs at them, they said.

* Url:http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b

Palestinian Christian groups commemorate Nakba

Palestinian Christian groups commemorate Nakba

Published Monday 16/05/2011

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Civil society groups representing Palestinian Christians commemorated the 63rd anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba on Sunday, in an event that saw more than 100 gather beside the separation wall in Bethlehem.

The city's Sumud Center, part of the Arab Educational Institute near Rachael’s Tomb, acted as a meeting point for marchers, who walked along the route of the wall to the Wi’am Centre for conflict resolution.

Wi'am director Zughbi Zughbi lead the gathered group in song, and gave a speech, urging Palestinian Christians and Christians around the world to stand by the oppressed regardless of religion, color, or nationality.

"A Palestinian state must be recognized," Zughbi demanded.

Participating organizations included the Arab Educational Institute, a member organization of Pax Christi International in Palestine, the Jerusalem Inter-Church Centre, YMCA, Wi’am Center, and Sabeel Centre.

Press freedom group condemns injury of photojournalist

Press freedom group condemns injury of photojournalist*

Published Monday 16/05/2011

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms on Monday condemned the use of "indiscriminate fire" by Israeli forces on Palestinian protesters, which injured hundreds including at least two journalists.

Freelance photographer Mohammad Osman, 25, and local radio correspondent Mohammad Bakr Allouh, 23, were both injured while covering the Palestinian commemoration of Nakba Day, which made headlines around the world.

Osman was covering the March of Return in the Gaza Strip, a report from the center said. The photographer was hit with live
rounds to his chest and right hand and had to be evacuated to Kamal Udwan hospital for emergency treatment before being transferred to the Ash-Shifa Hospital for surgery, the center said.

Osman will be transferred to Turkey for treatment, the report added.

At the same rally, Sawt al-Watan radio correspondent Mohammed Bakr Allouh suffered severe effects from excessive tear gas inhalation and was evacuated to hospital for treatment.

The media freedoms group called the injuries a "clear violation of the laws governing freedom of expression," and condemned the treatment of reporters as they covered peaceful protests in Palestine.

* Url:http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=388216

Monday strike called to mourn Nakba fallen

Monday strike called to mourn Nakba fallen*

Sunday 15/05/2011

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Islamic and national factions had called for a two-hour general strike in the West Bank on Monday, to mourn those killed during events marking the 63rd anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba.

Coordinator of the factions Wasel Abu Yousef said the strike would begin at 8:00 am and end at 10:00 am, saying the hours would allow Palestinians to commemorate the Palestinians and Syrians killed "while defending their right to return to their land."

Reports by the end of the day tallied 13 killed by Israeli fire in Gaza, Syria and Lebanon, where protesters marched toward their borders with Israel and demanded their right to return to the homes and villages from which they were expelled.

In the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Druze from Syria breached the border briefly, and according to Israeli news reports were returned to Syria by Israel's military and police forces after soldiers opened fire on the group.

Two demonstrators have been confirmed dead from the incident, which took place near Majdal Shams, the hub city of the occupied Golan, which was taken from Syria by Israel in the 1967 war.

Palestinian refugees gathered on Lebanon's border with Israel, and reportedly attempted to breach the border near the town of Maroun Ar-Ras. Officials have said between four and ten were killed when Israeli forces opened fire on the demonstrators.

Refugees in Gaza marched toward the Erez crossing between the Strip and Israel, with medics confirming one teenager was killed by Israeli fire.

Hundreds were injured in protests across the West Bank.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered an address following the shootings, and vowed that Israel would continue to protect its borders faced with those who sought its destruction.

"Their struggle is not over the 1967 borders, but it questions the very existence of Israel, which they describe as a catastrophe which must be resolved," he said in a televised address.

"We are determined to defend our borders and our sovereignty."

* Url:http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=387980

From the Fatah-Hamas Accord to UN Recognition of the Palestinian State

From the Fatah-Hamas Accord to UN Recognition of the Palestinian State

Statement of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Israel

28, April 2011

The Communist Party of Israel (CPI) welcomes the accord initialed by representatives of the Fatah and Hamas movements, concerning the establishment of an interim unity government, and preparations for elections for the Presidency, the Parliament, and the Palestinian National Council within eight months.

An accord between Fatah and Hamas regarding political cooperation is an important contribution toward the efforts by the PLO and the Palestinian Authority to achieve the support of a majority of UN assembly members next September in favor of the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, alongside Israel.

The CPI stresses that the UN assembly’s upcoming vote regarding a Palestinian State within the lines of June 4, 1967 serves the basic interests of both Israeli and Palestinian peoples in achieving a just and stable peace, based on the end of occupation, evacuation of settlements, and a solution to the refugee problem in accordance with UN resolutions.

CPI’s Political Bureau condemns the impassioned reaction by Prime Minister Netanyahu, according to which Fatah must make a choice between peace with Israel and peace with Hamas. It is important to note that Netanyahu and his cabinet are the ones who have argued repeatedly that signing an agreement with the Palestinians would be impossible, because the Chairman Abu-Mazen does not represent the government in Gaza. Now, as a Fatah-Hamas accord is in the making, it is once again revealed that the only thing that interests this dangerous obstructionist government is the continuation of occupation and settlement, while risking the possibility of new wars.

CPI calls upon its partners in Hadash (the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality) and on all supporters of peace in Israel, Jews and Arab alike, to intensify the struggle to end the occupation and to join forces in an effort to garner as broad public support as possible for the coming declaration of the UN Assembly in favor of establishing an independent Palestine alongside Israel. The chance to achieve a permanent peace, based on the principle of two independent states, in lines of June 4 1967, is more tangible today than ever before.

Let us not allow this historical opportunity escape us! Let us save our two peoples from further war and bloodshed!

An independent Palestine is also in the interest of the masses of the Israeli people!

Tel Aviv, 28, April 2011


* Url:http://21stcenturymanifesto.wordpress.com/2011/05/03/from-the-fatah-hamas-accord-to-un-recognition-of-the-palestinian-state/

'Mediator' Inciting Conflict-KCNA

'Mediator' Inciting Conflict

Pyongyang, April 29 (KCNA) -- Recently the United States has openly supported Israel's anti-peace moves, revealing its true colors as wrecker of peace.

The world community unanimously condemns Israel's building of Jewish settlements and "security walls", but only the U.S. acts contrary to this trend, though styling itself a mediator of peace in the Middle East.

On February 18 the UNSC conducted a voting on an anti-Israel resolution, which rejects the persistent expansion of Jewish settlements in West Bank and East Kuds. This resolution, submitted by Arab countries, was voted by 14 member nations of the UNSC but vetoed only by the U.S.

On April 18 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed "deep thanks" to the U.S. for having financed the "Iron Dome" missile defense system and the mortar defense system aimed to contain Palestine.

Under the active patronage of the U.S., Israel is getting more hell-bent on Jewish settlements construction while committing brutal atrocities against Palestinians almost every day.

It is reported to have prepared massive armed attack on Palestine. The prime minister, the defense minister and other high-ranking officials of Israel would bluster that they are ready to go over into action with strong armed forces. Under this situation the "Iron Dome" system and military units in combat readiness are being deployed in the areas adjacent to West Bank.

The U.S. protection of Israel is an intentional deed of bringing the Mideast peace process to rupture as it is designed to escalate antagonism between Palestine and Israel and tighten its intervention and domination over this region.

The ultimate purpose of the U.S. is to make Israel invariably serve as an agent for implementing its aggressive strategy in the Middle East, a region rich in natural resources and a point of strategic importance, and secure its strategic interests in this region.

Nevertheless, the U.S. is styling itself a coordinator and mediator for the Mideast peace. This is a mockery of the world community and shows moral vulgarity of the U.S.