And other news from Seham’s digest, Today in Palestine:
Land theft and destruction/Ethnic cleansing
IOF troops demolish tens of Palestinian homes in Jordan Valley
The Jerusalem legal aid and human rights center reported that Israel issued demolition orders against dozens of Palestinians homes in the Jordan Valley known as Al-Aghwar region.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m
Settlers encroach on Palestinian East Jerusalem
The European Union has warned Israel over its plans to demolish dozens of Palestinian homes in occupied East Jerusalem. A statement issued by Catherine Ashton, the EU’s foreign policy chief, said: "Settlements and the demolition of homes are illegal under international law, constitute an obstacle to peace, and threaten to make a two-state solution impossible." Silwan is a Palestinian neighborhood near Jerusalem’s Old City and Jewish settlers there are increasingly encroaching on Palestinians’ land. Tension there are high after the Jerusalem municipality approved a controversial plan to demolish 22 Palestinian homes to make way for a park and shopping complex. Al Jazeera’s Sherine Tadros visited those families who’s homes are threatened by Israel’s demolition plans.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tprjhwlovn0&feature=youtube_gdata
Tensions mount as E. Jerusalem neighborhood awaits bulldozers
JERUSALEM — In a warren of cramped alleys in the crowded Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan, a slogan scrawled on a wall warns: "Silwan is in danger."
http://feeds.washingtonpost.com/click.phdo?i=3993f4d8ddd1a401a3c0c467a9ea9876
New settlement project in disputed area of Jabal Mukaber in J’lem
Channel 10 revealed an intended settlement project in Jabal Mukaber, east of Jerusalem, in the context of the schemes aimed at expanding the Jewish neighborhoods at the expense of Palestinian lands.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd
Fatah warns Israel: No more Jerusalem settlements
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Following an Israeli media report on the immanent construction of a 1,400-unit settlement hotel in East Jerusalem, a Fatah official said patience was running out, and warned the situation was at risk of an "explosion." The statement followed the airing of a Channel 10 News report on Tuesday, where reporters said the construction of 1,400-unit hotels on disputed lands in Jerusalem were given the go-ahead by Israel’s regional planning committee.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=295901
Abu-Tir indicted for staying in Israel illegally
Islamist group member indicted a mere month after release from Israeli prison. State seeks remand pending conclusion of trial; Abu-Tir refuses to post bail and leave Jerusalem.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3913798,00.html
Abu Tier detained; expulsion expected
Jerusalem – Ma’an – Jerusalem resident and elected Palestinian official Mohammad Abu Tier was detained by Israeli police on Wednesday, and reportedly taken to the Russian Compound for questioning. Former Minister of Jerusalem Affairs for the Palestinian Authority Khalid Abu Arafa confirmed the arrest, which he said was carried out near the official’s Sur Baher home, in a neighborhood of East Jerusalem.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=295914
IOA threatens deportation of Gazan to Egypt after completing his sentence
The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) has threatened to deport Gazan prisoner Mohammed Shaat, of Khan Younis, to Egypt.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%
Israel set to enforce revocation of Jerusalemites’ residency rights
Israeli human rights groups and Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority who extended his term under controversial emergency powers, have condemned a decision by Israel to expel four Palestinian politicians from East Jerusalem by the end of this week. Jonathan Cook reports.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11360.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
Zahalka: “Deporting Jerusalem Legislators, Part of Israel’s Ethnic Cleaning of Palestinians”
Arab member of Knesset of the National Democratic Assembly party, Dr. Jamal Zahalka, stated that the kidnapping of the Palestinian legislator from Jerusalem, Mohammad Abu Teir, and the Israeli decision to deport him is part of Israeli political and ethnic cleaning of the Palestinian people.
http://www.imemc.org/article/59043
Settlers lose court battle against East Jerusalem eviction
Settler group Ateret Cohanim had asked court to delay eviction from Beit Yonatan in the Arab-majority neighborhood of Silwan.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/settlers-lose-court-battle-against-east-jerusalem-eviction-1.299220?localLinksEnabled=false
The Battle For Al-Walaja
Hidden between the ancient cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem, lies the village of Al-Walaja. Home to around 2,000 people, mainly agricultural workers, the land is rich in olive trees, summer crops and other natural resources. But the village is at a crossroads. Reporting from Aaron Dearborn.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1468
Off the linguistic map
A leading Israeli linguist seeks to erase this country’s Arab past in a bid to prove to the entire world that it is under Jewish ownership, and that the Arabs of Jerusalem have no linguistic and spatial identity connecting them to ‘terrestrial Jerusalem’ and the city where they have been living for generations.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/off-the-linguistic-map-1.299098?localLinksEnabled=false
Talks Hit a Rock Called East Jerusalem, Jerrold Kessel and Pierre Klochendler
SILWAN, Occupied East Jerusalem, Jun 30, 2010 (IPS) – The sound of stun grenades and gunfire resounded through this embattled Palestinian neighbourhood. Amidst increased tension over plans to tighten Israel’s grip over the occupied eastern part of the city, Israeli border police and Palestinian youths confronted each other all through Sunday night. Dozens of Palestinians were wounded, mostly from tear gas inhalation; six policemen were hurt by stones.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=51998
Israel’s new master plan
Quietly, Israel is preparing the biggest illegal land grab in recent memory, all on Obama’s watch, writes Khaled Amayreh in Jerusalem.
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2010/1005/re1.htm
Solidarity/Activism/Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment
9 July 2010: Marking the 5th anniversary of the Palestinian Civil Society BDS Call
Occupied Palestine – The Palestinian Civil Society Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee (BNC) calls on people of conscience all over the world to unite for a BDS Media Day on 9 July 2010, the 5th anniversary of launching the BDS movement and the 6th anniversary of the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinion stating that Israel is to dismantle its illegal Wall and associated colonial regime.
http://stopthewall.org/worldwideactivism/2276.shtml
Israel convicts grassroots activist to two years’ imprisonment
On 30 June grassroots activist Adeeb Abu Rahmah was sentenced by Israel to two years imprisonment at a military court hearing at the Ofer Military Complex in the occupied West Bank. Abu Rahmah already spent 11 months behind bars and his arrest and detention is part of Israel’s repressive efforts to criminalize the grassroots popular resistance to the Israeli occupation. Amy Darwish reports for The Electronic Intifada.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11365.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
Weekly Stop the Wall Repression Update
Scope: Repressive measures against Palestinian human rights defenders active against the Wall and the settlements in the occupied West Bank.
http://stopthewall.org/latestnews/2309.shtml
Bil’in reports night raid
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli forces entered the village of Bil’in at 3am Wednesday morning, local officials said, adding that they feared the move signaled a new wave of night time detentions and home invasions. The raid was the first reported since 22 May, before which residents reported troops entering the area on an almost nightly basis. International activists began sleeping in the area and would film the incursions.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=295960
Direct action around Palestine
http://palsolidarity.org/2010/07/12829/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29
Egyptian opposition to pay Gaza visit
Gaza – Ma’an – A 30-member Egyptian delegation including nine parliamentarians from Egypt’s Wafd party will be welcomed by the Palestinian Legislative Council on Thursday, deputized speaker for the body Ahmad Bahar said. The group, traveling to Gaza as part of a continued effort from Egyptian officials to support the people of Gaza and to find ways of ending the Israeli-lead siege on the coastal area, was set to stay for 12 hours, tour the Strip and meet with officials
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=295973
A "Jewish Ship" for Gaza
Since the storming of the Mavi Marmara at the end of May, a growing number of aid flotillas is being sent to Gaza from all around the world. A group of German Jews also wants to demonstrate solidarity with the people in the Gaza Strip. Bettina Marx reports
http://www.qantara.de/webcom/show_article.php/_c-476/_nr-1352/i.html
Methodists launch boycott over West Bank
The Methodist Church today voted to boycott all products from Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories becoming the first major Christian denomination in Britain to officially adopt such a policy. The decision was made at the church’s Conference in Portsmouth, an annual gathering which decides Methodist policy. The official stance of the church, the fourth largest Christian denomination in Britain, will be to boycott any products made on Jewish settlements on the West Bank. Lay Methodists will also be encouraged to follow the church’s lead.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/methodists-launch-boycott-over-west-bank-2014827.html
Ahmadinejad orders ban on Israeli goods
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for the implementation of a bill demanding major efforts to enforce a total boycott on goods with Israeli origin. According to the website of the Iranian government, President Ahmadinejad ordered the implementation of the pro-Palestinian bill, which was ratified by the Iranian Parliament (Majlis) earlier in June. Iranian lawmakers agreed to task a committee with identifying Israeli companies and institutions to step up efforts for imposing a ban on Israeli products.
http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=132778§ionid=351020101
‘Balto Jewish Times’ piece calls BDS ‘powerful form of nonviolent resistance…’, Philip Weiss
The Jewish community knows something is breaking loose. Thus J Street’s recent statement on BDS that begins to crack open the door on the idea of targeted divestment. Now here is Donna Nevel of Jews Say No! with a piece in the Baltimore Jewish Times that calls upon the Jewish community to engage on the BDS issue. Nevel played a role in the forum on BDS that was held at a Unitarian church two weeks back in NYC.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/06/balto-jewish-times-piece-calls-bds-powerful-form-of-nonviolent-resistance.html
Why Israeli academia will be boycotted
Education Minister Sa’ar’s recent initiatives are a sign of the Israeli government’s increasing self-seclusion inside a bunker of delusions, as it distances itself from considerations guided by historical, political and social wisdom. His recent statements befit benighted regimes that have lost connection to the world, like Iran and other totalitarian states.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/why-israeli-academia-will-be-boycotted-1.299097
To end the occupation, cripple Israeli banks
If international civil society is serious about urgently ending Israel’s violations of Palestinian rights, including ending the occupation, then suspension of SWIFT transactions to and from Israeli banks offers an instrument to help bring about a peaceful resolution of an intractable conflict. Terry Crawford-Browne comments for The Electronic Intifada.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11362.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
Queers Against Israeli Apartheid to march in Toronto Pride
http://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.com/2010/06/queers-against-israeli-apartheid-to.html
Movie review: Iara Lee’s raw footage of the attack on the ‘Mavi Marmara’, Philip Weiss
How many of you have watched Iara Lee‘s film from the "Mavi Marmara" from start to finish? I’d only watched the key 15-minute section that Adam excerpted a couple weeks ago, till the other day when I saw two friends who’d viewed the whole 62 minutes and were blown away. I sat down and watched it twice. It astounds me that no one in the mainstream media has done a review of this film–a columnist or a critic or diplomatic correspondent. For it is a vital document of an important incident, and even as politicians describe the boat’s passengers as terrorists, the experts ignore this evidence of the truth.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/07/movie-review-iara-lees-raw-footage-of-the-attack-on-the-mavi-marmara.html
Violence and Aggression
Israeli aircraft strike Gaza, no injuries (AFP)
AFP – Israeli aircraft struck three targets in the Gaza Strip on Thursday but nobody was hurt, Palestinian security officials said.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100701/wl_afp/mideastconflictisraelgazastrikes
Limited Israeli incursion into Bethlehem
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Two armored Israeli military vehicles crossed into the central West Bank city of Bethlehem late Thursday near the separation barrier, onlookers said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said the soldiers were searching for a Palestinian suspected of throwing an explosive device toward a military installation in the same general area. There were no reports of injury or disruption of traffic during the limited incursion.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=295992
Security forces suspected of abusing 4 Palestinians in recent months
B’Tselem has documented three cases in recent months in which Palestinians suspected of being in Israel without a permit report severe abuse by the Israeli security forces
http://www.btselem.org/English/Beating_and_Abuse/20100630_3_abuse_cases_in_Hebron_district.asp
Settlers Attack Palestinian Water Well Keepers
Nablus – PNN – a group of armed Israeli settlers attacked on Wednesday two Palestinian water well keepers at the village of Sabastyia near the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Witnesses said that the settlers hurled stones at the two keepers, both escaped unharmed, witnsses added. Ghassan Doghlas, of the settlements affairs committee at the Palestinian government, announced that this attack is part of daily attacks by the settlers on villagers around Nablus city.
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8422
Nameless Palestinian Detainees: over 650,000 detained since 1967 and counting…
100 Palestinians Kidnapped in Hebron in June
A report published by the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), Hebron branch, revealed that Israeli soldiers kidnapped 100 Palestinians in several neighborhoods in the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and its surrounding towns and villages, in June.
http://www.imemc.org/article/59038
IOF raids Hebron, arrests four
Hebron, July 1, (Pal Telegraph) The Israeli occupying forces broke today into the town of “Beit Amer”, north of Hebron, and raided several houses, during which arrested 4 young men and a whole family suffered from suffocation due to inhalation of tear gas. The spokesperson of the Palestinian Solidarity Project in the town, Mohamed Ayad Awad, confirmed that the Israeli soldiers threw a tear-gas grenade inside the house belonging to Ahmed Mohammed Abu Maria, wounding his family from which five suffocated and were taken to the Academy Medical Center in the town for treatment.
http://www.paltelegraph.com/palestine/west-bank/6568-iof-raids-hebron-arrests-four
Abbas’s militias kidnap 12 Palestinians including religious figures in W. Bank
Abbas’s security militias kidnapped during the past two days 12 Palestinian citizens, most of them affiliated with Hamas, including religious figures and ex-detainees.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k
Tadamun: Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails suffer from paralysis and cancer
Tadamun society for human rights said that 23 prisoners permanently residing in the Ramle prison hospital are suffering from deliberate medical neglect by the Israeli prisons authority.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
IDF mistakenly summons 7-year-old Palestinian boy to Shin Bet interrogation, Amira Hass [Lies, they do arrest and interrogate children all the time, see here, here, here, here and here for a few examples]
Shin Bet spokesperson’s office tells Haaretz the security service does not summon children to be interrogated and this case was obviously a mistake.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/idf-mistakenly-summons-7-year-old-palestinian-boy-to-shin-bet-interrogation-1.299266
Retaliation
Gaza fighters claim attack on Israeli bulldozer
Gaza – Ma’an – The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine’s militant wing, the Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades, claimed to have launched an RPG at an Israeli military bulldozer operating in the border area south of Gaza City on Wednesday. The alleged attack came following the reported launch of a projectile – as yet unconfirmed by local armed groups – from southern Gaza, said to have hit near a structure inside Israel.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=295917
The Siege (Gaza & West Bank)/Humanitarian and Human Rights
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory 24- 30 June 2010
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/MMAO-86XGCR?OpenDocument&RSS20=02-P
Gaza: ailing health-care system puts lives at risk
The steady deterioration of the health-care system has become one of the most worrying issues in Gaza, explains Eileen Daly, who has overseen the ICRC’s health activities in the West Bank and Gaza since September 2006. What are the main reasons behind the continuing deterioration of Gaza’s health-care system?
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/MMAO-86XCXA?OpenDocument&RSS20=02-P
Gaza blackouts down to 8 hours per day
Gaza – Ma’an – A delivery of 250,000 liters of industrial fuel on Wednesday will allow the Gaza Power Plant to redistribute its electricity supply, providing central Gaza with 16 hours of power each day. With the infusion of fuel, the Gaza Energy Authority said in a statement, power production will once again reach 30 megawatts, bringing capacity back up to 50-60%.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=296053
Money ‘but no future’ in West Bank, Carol Malouf
An ‘opening soon’ sign hangs on top of a newly finished building in the centre of Ramallah. It belongs to an international hotel chain owned by Saudi Prince Walid bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding.
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2010/06/2010628815115427.html
In Gaza, looser blockade leaves smugglers in limbo (AP)
AP – Smuggling through tunnels into the Gaza Strip has dipped as their operators try to figure out whether they’ll still have a business once Israel eases its blockade of the territory.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100630/ap_on_bi_ge/ml_gaza_business_in_limbo
Oxfam: Gaza Unplugged; Weekly Update
Oxfam – PNN – the international aid work organization Oxfam realsed its weekly report documenting life in Gaza. The report covers the period from June 20th to 26th, 2010. Rahman Al Shurafa, a Gazan blacksmith is seen here looking at one of his works at his workshop in Gaza City. He is unable to work because of the daily blackouts that have left the coastal strip in total darkness. He would need a powerful generator costing thousands of shekels to be able to operate his machinery.
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8418
Lifting blockade the solution
JERUSALEM (CNS): Only a total lifting of the Israeli-imposed blockade on the Gaza Strip will significantly improve the situation for Gazans, the Jerusalem regional director of the Pontifical Mission of Palestine said after a two-day visit to the beleaguered region.
"The mood in Gaza is that really whatever sort of things are in the process to ease the blockade, they will not make a significant difference on their life," Sami El-Yousef, who met with civil and religious representatives including those of several Christian organisations during his visit on June 14 and 15, said.
http://www.catholicleader.com.au/news.php/world-news/lifting-blockade-the-solution_58302
Israeli siege halts Gaza projects
It’s three years since the international community promised Palestinians $7.7 billion at an aid conference in Paris. And on Thursday donors are meeting again. But in Gaza Al Jazeera’s found that while the promised money has been delivered to international organizations, Israel’s siege has meant it can’t be put to use. Al Jazeera’s Nicole Johnston.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxtqRsrukvw&feature=player_embedded
Chocolate and ketchup flow into Gaza, but still no cement
Israel is still deciding exactly what it will and will not allow into Gaza under a new approach towards the enclave, which it has blockaded for four years.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/chocolate-and-ketchup-flow-into-gaza-but-still-no-cement-1.299408?localLinksEnabled=false
Gaza lawyer challenges West Bank study ban
Israeli authorities deny Fatima Sharif permission to leave Gaza to study human rights at university in Ramallah. A 29-year-old lawyer from Gaza has launched a legal challenge against Israel’s refusal to allow her to travel to the West Bank to study human rights and democracy. Fatima Sharif must register for her masters degree at Birzeit University near Ramallah in two weeks’ time or she will lose her place.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/01/gaza-lawyer-challenges-study-ban
Mya Guarnieri: Israel Continues to Ignore the Human Toll of the Siege on Gaza
Fidaa Talal Hijjy, a resident of the Gaza Strip, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease in 2007–the same year Israel’s blockade of Gaza began. As her health deteriorated, so did Gaza’s medical system. Drugs are in short supply. Hospitals lack necessary equipment. And because the siege on Gaza also impedes the movement of people, medical staff cannot leave to get the training they need.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mya-guarnieri/israel-continues-to-ignor_b_631936.html
Ayalon: Gazans are provided for
Deputy foreign minister tells ambassadors gathered at Kerem Shalom crossing that Gaza receives equivalent of 40% of goods imported by Israel. It’s absurd for Israel to take care of Gazans while Hamas fires rockets, he says.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3913707,00.html
Flotilla Fallout/Investigation
Report: Arab states give up on emergency Gaza flotilla UN debate
Last week, Haaretz learned that Arab UN members had been pushing for a special session as a result of what they considered a disappointing UNSC debate.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/report-arab-states-give-up-on-emergency-gaza-flotilla-un-debate-1.299228?localLinksEnabled=false
Netanyahu envoy, Turkish minister in secret talks: report (Reuters)
Reuters – An envoy for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held secret talks on Wednesday with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on salvaging ties frayed by the Gaza ship raid, Israeli and Turkish media reported.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100630/wl_nm/us_israel_turkey
FM: Ben-Eliezer meeting with Turkish FM ‘violation of norms’
Netanyahu, Barak give their consent to Israeli minister’s meeting with Davutoglu in Europe, but Lieberman kept in the dark. ‘Incident undermines trust between foreign minister and prime minister,’ Lieberman’s office says.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3913350,00.html
Report: Obama pressured Israel and Turkey to hold secret talks
Barak opposed idea of Ben-Eliezer meeting Turkish FM, according to associates; Lieberman furious with Netanyahu for not informing him of plan, but says matter won’t lead Yisrael Beiteinu to quit coalition.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/report-obama-pressured-israel-and-turkey-to-hold-secret-talks-1.299357?localLinksEnabled=false
Pyjama photo forces Netanyahu into U-turn on Gaza flotilla inquiry
Israel is expected to broaden the powers of an internal inquiry into the botched raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla in May in the wake of a barrage of claims that its investigation lacks any credibility. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, appeared to cave in to domestic pressure after the committee was mocked in the Israeli media as a whitewash designed to defend the assault on 31 May that resulted in the death of nine Turkish nationals. A photograph of one 93-year-old panellist in his pyjamas looking at documents drew particular derision.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/pyjama-photo-forces-netanyahu-into-uturn-on-gaza-flotilla-inquiry-2015157.html
Political Developments
Palestinian leader gives interview to Israel media (AP)
AP – The Palestinian president has given a rare interview to Israeli media in an apparent effort to counter the claims in some circles that Israel has no partner for peace talks.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100701/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians
Top Sunni cleric says Palestinian unity an Islamic duty (AFP)
AFP – The head of Egypt’s prestigious Al-Azhar institution said on Wednesday resolving the rift between the Palestinian groups Hamas and Fatah was an Islamic duty and branded whoever blocked it a "sinner."
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100630/wl_mideast_afp/egyptpalestinianpoliticsislam
Netanyahu invites Palestinian leader to Jerusalem (AFP)
AFP – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday intensified calls for face-to-face peace talks with the Palestinians, pledging to visit Ramallah if Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas would come to Jerusalem.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100630/wl_mideast_afp/mideastconflictisraelpalestinianusdiplomacy
FM: Bulgaria Throws Weight behind Independent Palestinian State
Bulgaria supports strongly the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, stated Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov in Ramallah. Mladenov headed for talks with the leadership of the Palestinian Authority after visiting Israel. Earlier on Wednesday he met with Israel‘s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres.
http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=117669
Maariv: Netanyahu won’t meet Clinton; ‘sources’ say she “isn’t relevant”
Israeli diplomatic [euphemism for Prime Minister’s Office — DR] sources said: “Clinton isn’t relevant and is out of the circle of influence. Mitchell has taken over the peace process to a great extent and Obama, in any event, is the important person in this story because he is the one who decides.”
http://coteret.com/2010/07/01/maariv-netanyahu-wont-meet-clinton-sources-say-she-isnt-relevant/
Other News
Residents fight kindergarten for children of migrant workers
Kiryat Shalom residents threaten to prevent children from attending; say migrants, refugees ‘bring crime, economic problems’.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3913394,00.html
‘New material may affect decision to indict Lieberman in graft case’
State Prosecutor Lador says information will be included in the document compiled by the SPO, and which will be then be handed to the AG.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/new-material-may-affect-decision-to-indict-lieberman-in-graft-case-1.299242?localLinksEnabled=false
Why are so many Israelis arrested over illegal arms deals worldwide?
The U.S. authorities’ recent arrest of an Israeli for seeking to sell arms to Somalia raises disturbing questions and answers.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/why-are-so-many-israelis-arrested-over-illegal-arms-deals-worldwide-1.299308?localLinksEnabled=false
IDF officer suspected of seducing young girls
Police believe 25-year old Eyal Nahum contacted 4,000 girls, some under 14, for sexual purposes.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3913744,00.html
Analysis/Opinion
When the Police Have an Illegal Headquarters, David Cronin
BRUSSELS, Jun 30, 2010 (IPS) – Talks aimed at reaching an intelligence-sharing agreement between the European Union and Israel have skirted around the location of Israel’s national police headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem.
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=51999
Israel’s gay propaganda war | Jasbir Puar
In portraying itself as the only gay-friendly country in a homophobic region the Israeli state reveals its own desperation. Israel’s recent attack on a flotilla delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza, killing at least nine people, suggests a growing indifference of the Israeli government to global condemnation of its Palestine policies. Yet at the same time Israel appears to be actively concerned to shape itself as a benign and even progressive democracy.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jul/01/israels-gay-propaganda-war
Thomas Friedman caricatures the Palestinian position
Every time Thomas Friedman goes to the Arab world or the Middle East, I hold my breath. He has an uncanny knack for quoting unnamed, faceless Natives who sound a lot like dedicated readers of the Economist…or maybe of his columns and books. Many people (and most reporters) travel in order to meet new and different slices of the human spectrum and encounter fresh ways of viewing the world. For Friedman, travel seems to be an act of finding confirmation for his already well-formed prejudices.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/07/thomas-friedman-caricatures-the-palestinian-position.html
Writing from the ‘Ramallah bubble,’ Friedman is blind to Gaza and West Bank poverty, Alex Kane
Friedman has a curious definition of a Palestinian state, which according to Friedman is “in the West Bank and Arab neighborhoods of East Jerusalem.” Gaza is missing from this equation, and probably not by accident, as Friedman has a history of trying to dismiss Hamas-run Gaza as “undemocratic,” and therefore illegitimate–despite the fact that Hamas was democratically elected and the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority is in power illegally. Friedman seems to be following the “West Bank first” approach, first begun by the Bush administration and now followed by the Obama administration, that seeks to shower economic support on the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank while isolating Gaza. If the Gaza aid flotilla affair taught the world anything, though, those looking to end the violence in Palestine can’t ignore the situation in the besieged Gaza Strip.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/06/writing-from-the-ramallah-bubble-friedman-is-blind-to-gaza-and-west-bank-poverty.html
Ramadan in Ramallah / Partying in the West Bank’s Tel Aviv
Even here in Ramallah you have many poor people not really enjoying the economic change. Here, tonight, you see the elites. You won’t find people from the El Amari refugee camp in this tent." "This atmosphere is special to Ramallah," says Jihad. "The economic situation is better. You have more educated people. But not long ago there was a study that showed that 30 percent of West Bank children have never seen the sea. People in Tel Aviv shouldn’t think that just because people in one neighborhood are sitting around a pool means it’s like that in all of the West Bank."
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/ramadan-in-ramallah-partying-in-the-west-bank-s-tel-aviv-1.266854
Lessons from Camp David | Ben White
Ten years after Bill Clinton guided failed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the idea of a negotiation on equal terms is now defunct. Ten years ago this month, Israelis and Palestinians gathered at Camp David, under the guidance of President Bill Clinton, for negotiations aimed at reaching a final agreement. The talks ended in failure, and by the end of September, the second intifada had begun.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jul/01/israel-palestinian-peace-camp-david
Brand Israel: I Hear the Congo Has Some Lovely Views
Israel’s (fishy) acceptance into the OECD isn’t really a surprise, when you look into this Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development: It defines itself as a forum of countries committed to democracy and the market economy… [Wikipedia] "Democracy” and “market economy” (aka “capitalism”) have long been Israel’s reiterated mantras, in an attempt to cosy up to other “developed” countries of the world, that use the same phrasing in order to back up their military or economic exploitation of “less developed” people within and without. In fact, this seems to be a very natural coupling.
http://pulsemedia.org/2010/06/30/brand-israel-i-hear-the-congo-has-some-lovely-views/
Iara Lee: International pressure since flotilla shows it might be ‘the beginning of the end’
Filmmaker Iara Lee continues to be outspoken since returning from the freedom flotilla. Her footage from the Mavi Marmara offers some of the most compelling evidence of what took place the night of the Israeli attack, and Jared Malsin just interviewed her on her film and the importance of the flotilla.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/06/iara-lee-international-pressure-since-flotilla-shows-it-might-be-the-beginning-of-the-end.html
Will mainline American Protestants give Palestinian Christians a voice?
B’nai B’rith has issued a statement criticizing the recommendations of the Middle East Study Committee of the Presbyterian Church USA. These recommendations include possibly withholding US military aid to Israel in order to encourage it to abide by international law as well as an endorsement of the important Kairos Document, recently put forth jointly by the leaders of the Palestinian Christian community.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/06/will-mainline-american-protestants-give-palestinian-christians-a-voice.html
Enough With the Empty Words
Nothing irks me more than politicians who blow off serious situations with hollow phrases on the outrageous assumption that people will actually believe them. Living in Palestine with a career revolved around words, you can imagine how many times I am irked in a day. Today is no different.
http://www.miftah.org/Display.cfm?DocId=22296&CategoryId=13
“Play the game, change reality.”, Jesse Bacon
Anyone who is grew up shooting virtual Nazis as I did knows that video games can be addictive. They can also be a nice respite from a fairly dull existence. They can even be achingly, vacantly beautiful. But when I became an activist, I wondered where were the games that would teach us about social justice? I didn’t really have time to look anymore, what with the activism and all, but all I could come up with was “State of Emergency” a vastly oversimplified version of the WTO protests.
http://theonlydemocracy.org/2010/06/play-the-game-change-reality/
Just like Iraq, Gideon Levy
About a year and a half ago, Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi threw a pair of shoes at then U.S. president George W. Bush to protest the American occupation of his country. He was given three years in prison, the minimum sentence for this offense under Iraqi law. Our Pini Cohen threw only one shoe at Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch. But he was also given three years – the maximum penalty Israeli law prescribes for the offenses with which he was charged.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/just-like-iraq-1.299273
Ray Hanania and ADC: A Combination as Perfect as Chocolate and Peanut Butter
I respectfully differ with Programmer Buydatti over at Kabobfest for calling to remove Ray Hanania from the ADC’s national board. Hanania is actually at home with ADC (or should we say “at house”?) No shock or disappointment on my part. Hanania and ADC make unauthorized concessions on behalf of the Palestinian people. They both operate within the framework of the US empire and accommodate it instead of opposing it. They both lower the bar on Arab rights. They both undermine the political standing of our people in the US and in the Arab world. They both subscribe to self-defeating, compromising positions. The fundamentals of their politics overlap. Any differences are negligible nuances no more significant than preferences of condiments on the same dish. Here are a few examples.
http://ikhras.com/?p=257
Once in a Lifetime
Check it out — you could win a trip to beautiful Israel, land of peace, love, and…parties? Israel’s latest tourism campaign seeks to completely ignore the occupation and focus on the promiscuity instead.
http://www.kabobfest.com/2010/06/once-in-a-lifetime.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+kabobfest%2FGrillMe+%28KABOBfest%29
Iraq
Bombs and gunmen kill three Iraqi civilians (AFP)
AFP – Roadside bombs in Baghdad Thursday killed two civilians and wounded 12 people, including three soldiers and a militiaman, while a goldsmith was shot dead south of the capital, Iraqi officials said.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100701/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrest
4 members of Iraq security forces killed (AP)
AP – Two soldiers and two members of a government-backed Sunni militia fighting al-Qaida were killed in a day of attacks in Iraq, police officials said Thursday.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100701/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq
Wednesday: 13 Iraqis Killed, 16 Wounded
At least 13 Iraqis were killed and 16 more were wounded in a string of small attacks. The worst, in Hit, involved a suicide bomber at a medial compound. Also, Ankara said the any issues with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) does not affect trade with Iraq.
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2010/06/30/wednesday-13-iraqis-killed-16-wounded/
Iraq militants kill eight in attacks on police (AFP)
AFP – Insurgents killed a police commander, his wife and a companion in western Iraq on Wednesday before claiming the lives of three policemen in a suicide bombing, and two more police died in a shooting in Baghdad, security officials said.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100630/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrest
Suicide bomber blows himself up in Iraqi hospital
* Attacks by three suicide bombers
* Anbar has seen string of attacks on police
* Tensions simmering after inconclusive election
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LDE65T1WT.htm
Iraq death toll falls sharply in June: ministries (AFP)
AFP – The number of Iraqis killed in violence fell sharply year-on-year in June, figures released on Wednesday showed, with a slight fall in deaths from last month also recorded.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100630/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunresttollmonthly
Iraq’s Government Accused Of Targeting Sunnis
In Iraq’s Anbar province, Sunni Muslims are increasingly worried about a return to sectarian violence. They say the recent deaths of six Sunnis while in custody in Baghdad show that Sunnis are again being targeted by Iraq’s Shiite-led government.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128232533&ft=1&f=1010
Iraq’s TV Screens Reflect Sectarian Divide
Iraqis look to television for political information more than any other medum, but at the same time don’t trust what they see, new studies show. There are no neutral outlets. Broadcasts are funded by ethnic political parties, Islamists, business interests and the government.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128173325&ft=1&f=1010
Summer in Iraq
Afghanistan has been getting all the ink lately, and for good reason. General Stanley McChrystal’s act of self-immolation by way of Rolling Stone magazine kicked off a genuine no-bones-about-it constitutional crisis over civilian control of the military, until President Obama sacked him at pretty close to the speed of light. The number of troop deaths has reached 100, making June the deadliest month for the coalition since this war began eight years ago. Civilians continue to die all over the place, the poppies continue to flourish, and there’s talk about talks with the Taliban, but nobody really wants to talk about that. The so-called "mainstream" media was kind enough to wait for a Democrat to be in the White House before publicly coming to the conclusion that the war looks unwinnable. Somewhere, George W. Bush is smirking over that one, but that’s just par for the course.
http://www.truth-out.org/summer-iraq60901
Lebanon
Mossad: desperately seeking victory–even fake ones, As`ad Abukhalil
So the Mossad is so embarrassed with Lebanese police’s victories again the Zionist entity, so Israel yesterday announced that it cracked a Hizbullah spying network although the Zionist entity strictly censors news about military and espionage affairs involving Israelis. I won’t comment on the veracity of Israel’s claims but let us say that Lebanon has thus fair arrested 120 Israeli spies. So the score is 120 to 6–in Lebanon’s favor. In Lebanese police’s favor, for potato’s sake. Another indication why Israeli years are numbered. Hehehehe. [end]
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/06/mossad-desperately-seeking-victory-even.html
Sleiman willing to sign death sentences against Israel spies
BEIRUT: President Michel Sleiman said Wednesday he would sign death penalties against Israeli spies, if issued by the judiciary. "I trust verdicts issued by the military court and I will sign them," Sleiman told a gathering of reporters at the Baabda Presidential Palace.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=116592
Lebanon telco firm says employee held in spy case (Reuters)
Reuters – Lebanese state-owned mobile phone firm Alfa confirmed Wednesday an employee had been detained by the army on suspicion of spying for Israel, a case Hezbollah said showed the country’s security was under threat.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100630/wl_nm/us_lebanon_israel_spy
‘No Shebaa Pullout without Lebanon-Israel Negotiation’
30/06/2010 The Israeli enemy confirmed on Wednesday its policy of occupation, rejecting any possibility of withdrawing from the Shebaa occupied farms before ‘peace’ with Lebanon and accusing the Lebanese government of backing off from agreements over the occupied Ghajar village. Lebanese daily As-Safir said that the Israeli officer at the tripartite meeting has hinted to the Lebanese army representative Major General Abdel Rahman Shehaitli that the Zionist entity will not withdraw from the occupied Shebaa farms area before a "peace agreement" between the two countries.
http://www.almanar.com.lb/NewsSite/NewsDetails.aspx?id=144499&language=en
Berri: Lebanon will thwart attempts to steal energy reserves
BEIRUT: Speaker Nabih Berri said Wednesday that Lebanon’s army, people, and resistance will thwart any attempt by Israel to steal the country’s natural resources.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=116596
Beirut lodges complaint with UN over abduction of shepherd
BEIRUT: Lebanon has lodged a complaint with the UN Security Council over Israel’s abduction of a shepherd from what it says was Lebanese territory at the weekend, a Foreign Ministry source said Wednesday.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=116594
Khansa Files Lawsuit against Feltman over Congress Testimony
30/06/2010 Former US ambassador to Lebanon and US Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman is accused of sowing discord and seeking sedition and creating a terrorist organization. Indeed, the repercussions of the confessions made by Feltman earlier this month during his testimony before the US Congress in which he acknowledged that his administration has spent USD 500 million to bribe people into criticizing Hezbollah didn’t end yet. The repercussions weren’t limited to condemnation and denunciations made by Hezbollah officials here and there, but developed into a lawsuit against the US official, submitted by Lebanese lawyer May Khansa.
http://almanar.com.lb/NewsSite/NewsDetails.aspx?id=144525&language=en
U.S. and other World News
Fmr. Marine, State Dept. Official Matthew Hoh is First U.S. Official to Resign Over Afghan War
Last September Matthew Hoh became the first U.S. official known to resign in protest over the Afghan war. At the time of resignation he was serving as the senior U.S. civilian in Zabul province on the Pakistani border. In his resignation letter Hoh wrote: "I have lost understanding of and confidence in the strategic purposes of the United States’ presence in Afghanistan. I have doubts and reservations about our current strategy and planned future strategy, but my resignation is based not upon how we are pursuing this war, but why and to what end."
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/7/1/fmr_marine_state_department_official_matthew
From Ku Klux Klan Member to Iraq War Opponent and Obama Supporter, Late Sen. Robert Byrd Remembered for "Principle and Honor"
Democratic Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia will lie in state today following his death at the age of ninety-two. Elected in 1958, Byrd served an unprecedented nine terms in the US Senate. In the 1940s, Byrd was a prominent member of Ku Klux Klan in West Virginia, rising to the position of "exalted cyclops." He opposed the desegregation of the US military and filibustered the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Byrd would later apologize, saying his association with the Klan was a sad mistake. In 2008, he endorsed President Obama for president. In 2003, he was a leading critic of President Bush’s push to invade Iraq. Charles Ogletree says: "We don’t judge people by how they were born but how they lived their life, and here is a man who in the long-term was a giant and a champion."[includes rush transcript]
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/6/30/robert_byrd
Obama won’t charge Blackwater with violation of Sudan sanctions
WASHINGTON — The security contractor Blackwater Worldwide tried for two years to secure lucrative defense business in Southern Sudan while the country was under U.S. economic sanctions, according to current and former U.S. officials and hundreds of pages of documents. The effort to drum up new business in East Africa by Blackwater owner Erik Prince, a former Navy SEAL who had close ties with top officials in the George W. Bush White House and the CIA, became a major element in a continuing four-year federal investigation into allegations of sanctions violations, illegal exports and bribery.
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_15387037?IADID=Search-www.mercurynews.com-www.mercurynews.com&nclick_check=1
New Study Documents Media’s Servitude to Government, Glenn Greenwald
American newspapers are highly inclined to refer to waterboarding as "torture" when practiced by other nations, but will suddenly refuse to use the term when it’s the U.S. employing that technique.
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/
ACLU mounts first legal challenge to no-fly list
The American Civil Liberties Union plans to sue the U.S. government Wednesday on behalf of 10 citizens or legal permanent residents who have been placed on a no-fly list and, in some cases, stranded abroad.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/29/AR2010062904339_pf.html
Two Egyptian police officers charged with brutal death of blogger/activist
CAIRO — Two police officers were jailed on Wednesday for four days pending an investigation into the death of a 28-year-old man reportedly killed after they beat him to death, a security official said. "The prosecutor in (the northern city of Alexandria) has ordered the detention for four days of Mahmud Salah Amin and Awad Ismail Suleiman, pending an investigation into the circumstances of the death of Khaled Said," the official told AFP.
http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0630/egyptian-police-officers-charged-brutal-death-bloggeractivist/
Equal Rights for Women? Survey Says: Yes, but . . .
In addition, only in Pakistan, Egypt and Jordan did fewer than 80 percent of the respondents say that women should not be able to work outside the home. Even in those three countries, a majority said they supported women’s right to work.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/01/world/01iht-poll.html?_r=1
Robert Weller: Syria Bans Female Teachers From Wearing Veils
While much attention is being paid to European countries considering banning the burka, which allows only the eyes of Muslim women to be seen, an Arab country is barring its teachers from wearing them. Some groups in Europe consider banning the burka to be an assault on women’s rights. When confronted with the indisputable fact that some women wear them under pressure from their husbands, these groups reply that some women want to wear them. The idea is that this is their own way of interpreting the Koran.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-weller/syria-bans-female-teacher_b_630134.html
The High Cost of Cheap Fashion
What has been liberating for Western women is a system built literally on the backs of women in the developing world. How do Primark and its competitors in the West’s shopping malls and High Streets keep that cute frock so cheap? By starving and oppressing Bangladeshi, Chinese, Mexican, Haitian, and other women, that’s how.
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/wolf25/English
Twitter Musings In Syria Elicit Groans In Washington
When two young State Department officials took a delegation of Silicon Valley executives to Syria recently, they billed it as a chance to use the promise of technology to reach out to a country with which the United States has long had icy relations. Instead, the visit will be remembered for a series of breezy Twitter messages that the two colleagues sent home, riffing about how visitors can buy an American-style blended iced coffee at a university near Damascus and how one of them had challenged a Syrian communications minister to a cake-eating contest.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/30/twitter-musings-in-syria_n_630943.html
www.TheHeadlines.org
