And other news from Today in Palestine:
Settlers/ Land, Property, Resource Theft & Destruction/Ethnic Cleansing
Palestinians target settlements in UN resolution (AP)
AP – The Palestinians plan to ask the U.N. Security Council in the coming days to declare Israeli settlements illegal and demand a halt to their construction, officials said Wednesday, in a high stakes gamble aimed at increasing pressure on Israel.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101229/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians
Palestinian draft resolution to highest UN body (AP)
AP – Excerpts of a draft resolution the Palestinian Authority intends to have presented to the United Nations Security Council in the coming days.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101229/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians_glance
PA: Israel continues land confiscations in West Bank
YATTA, Hebron (Ma’an) — Residents of the Saeer village south of Hebron said Wednesday that settlers had begun work on 1,500 dunums of lands confiscated for settlement expansion. Heavy equipments were brought to the area and lands razed, residents said. A day earlier, the PA cabinet condemned what it called “Israeli attacks on Palestinians and their property,” saying that within the past week, in addition to the land confiscation in the southern West Bank, 40 dunums in Nablus had been appropriated by the Israeli military, and dozens of trees had been taken down as the construction of the separation wall continues in Walajeh.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346370
Israeli army: leave Khirbet Tana or else, Palestine Monitor
Last week, the Israeli army ordered the inhabitants of a small shepherd village near Nablus to vacate the premises because their homes were to be demolished. The village was destroyed, but Khirbet Tana’s men are still there, every day welcoming PA officials and NGO and international organisations’ workers coming to assess the rebuilding costs. They sleep in the mosque – the only structure that was left standing – and in makeshift tents, leaving their fate, in their own words, ‟in the hands of God.”
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1654
Israel continues Negev home demolitions
AS-SADIR, Israel (Ma’an) — Several homes in the unrecognized Bedouin village of As-Sadir, in Israel’s Negev region, were bulldozed to the ground Wednesday morning, President of the Arab Democratic Party in Israel Talab As-Sane reported. The official said the homes belonged to the Al-Freijat family, adding in a statement that the continued moves to demolish Bedouin homes in the Negev region was a “crime… wreaking havoc on the land and displacing peoples.”
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346351
Israel plans to demolish homes in Yasul
The Wadi Silwan information center revealed Wednesday a wide-ranging Israeli plan to link Jerusalem’s Wadi Yasul district with Jewish settlements in Jebel al-Mokabbir.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k
Industrial Buildings Razed North of Jerusalem
Israeli forces demolished an agricultural storehouse, a gas station, and several other industrial buildings in the Palestinian village of Hazma, north of Jerusalem, PNN claimed on Wednesday.
http://www.imemc.org/article/60301
Settlers Attack Reuters Journalist’s Car South of Hebron
Hebron – PNN – On Wednesday evening settlers attacked a car carrying two journalists, one from Reuters and another from “Ball Media,” as they took pictures on the road east of Yatta village, south of Hebron. Yasri al-Jamal, who works as a cameraman for Reuters, said that a number of settlers from the settlement of Masa Ya’eir, built in the Umm al-Urays region of Yatta village, tried to pierce the tires of the car carrying him and another journalist as they took pictures. Al-Jamal said the assault took place near Israeli police and under the protection of Israeli military troops. There is no more information at present about the attack.
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9346&Itemid=64
Jewish settlers desecrate mosque
Jewish settlers attacked and desecrated a mosque in Rubin village near Ramle city in 1948 occupied Palestine in an attempt to change it into a Jewish synagogue, AFEH said.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%
Witnesses: Settlers torch tent in Hebron village
HEBRON (Ma’an) — Settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the south Hebron hills overnight on Tuesday setting fire to a tent, local peace groups reported. Residents of the illegal Suseya settlement threw flaming bottles at a tent in Susiya village, witnesses told Christian Peacemaker Teams and Operation Dove, who maintain a presence in the area. The incident was the latest in a string of violent attacks against Palestinian communities in the area. The owner of the tent filed a complaint with Kiryat Arba police, CPT said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346515
Settler clashes in northern West Bank
NABLUS (Ma’an) — Settler clashes broke out in two locations in the northern West Bank on Wednesday, resulting in the destruction of several cars and fire damage to agricultural fields, officials said. In the town of Asira Al-Qibliya south west of Nablus, farmers reported being attacked by settlers from the neighboring settlement of Yitzhar, for the second day in a row.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346428
Palestinian activist withdraws appeal of order banning him from Jerusalem
The IDF Home Front commander banned Adnan Jith from Jerusalem for four months, saying he threatens public order.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/palestinian-activist-withdraws-appeal-of-order-banning-him-from-jerusalem-1.334132?localLinksEnabled=false
Israel applies the “price tag” strategy in East Jerusalem
Ir Amim – Ir Amim sharply condemns the decision to stipulate the eviction and sealing off of Beit Yehonatan on the eviction of additional Palestinian families in East Jerusalem, and calls on the Israeli authorities to come to their senses and apply sound judgment in the most sensitive area of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
http://www.kibush.co.il/show_file.asp?num=44251
`Am al-Ara`is and Bi`r al-`Id
David Shulman – By now a truly amazing caravan of military and police vehicles have descended upon us; among the several dozen soldiers is Moshe, a portly major in the Civil Administration, which is in charge of arbitrating claims such as these. He knows the case. He approaches Yohanan, and we overhear him say to him in a low voice: “You know this fence is illegal.” But make no mistake. This doesn`t mean the field will be restored to its rightful owner. All it means is that, on some abstract level, someone high up in the Civil Administration has recognized, in a fleeting and perhaps unrepeatable moment, this theoretical truth.
http://www.kibush.co.il/show_file.asp?num=44250
Activism/Solidarity/Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions
Beit Hanoun demonstration commemorates “Cast Lead” as victims’ families mourn
A demonstration commemorating the beginning of “Operation Cast Lead” was held Tuesday in the Gazan city of Beit Hanoun. Families of victims were in attendance, as were 5 International Solidarity Movement activists. Two years have passed since the Israeli attacks on Gaza, which killed over 1400 people in just 23 days. The vast majority of victims were civilians, including 350 children, according to the United Nations and other major human rights organizations.
http://palsolidarity.org/2010/12/16259/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29
Ayed Morrar: Not Just a Friend: One Palestinian’s View of Israeli Activist Jonathan Pollak
Jonathan Pollak’s upcoming imprisonment highlights the support of some Israeli activists for Palestinian-led unarmed protests, and the Israeli government’s effort to crush our joint struggle.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ayed-morrar/not-just-a-friend-one-pal_b_802468.html
Seattle anti-Israel demonstration in wake of Metro ad controversy
“We’d like Israel to be held accountable for its actions and our government to stop spending our tax dollars to support Israel’s war crimes,” said Ed Mast, Mideast Awareness Campaign.
http://www.nwcn.com/home/?fId=112531474&fPath=/news/local&fDomain=10212
Students for Justice in Palestine condemns US government witch hunt
As students at over fifty American universities, we unequivocally condemn the abuse of grand jury subpoenas to chill the exercise of First Amendment rights by university students and anti-war activists speaking and organizing against Israel’s continued oppression of the Palestinian people.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11705.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
Spanish band plays at Hebron school
HEBRON (Ma’an) — A Spanish band on Monday gave a concert at a Hebron school for students who must cross military checkpoints every day. The band performed at Corboda elementary school in Hebron’s Old City. The school was named after the Andalusian city in southern Spain. The musicians played several compositions and pupils were given a chance to play their instruments.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345739
Youth groups paint murals in to mark Gaza war
GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Two youth groups in Gaza marked the second anniversary of Israel’s war on the Strip by painting murals on the walls of the destroyed government compound in Gaza City. The Cultural Club and Free Spectrum organized the activity, commemorating the 22-day offensive which left more than 1,400 dead and injured over 5,000.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346379
In photos: Wall art pops up in West Bank
Spanish artists paint on the Israeli separation barrier in the West Bank cities of Bethlehem and Qalqiliya, taking time to plant an olive tree near the site of their work in the latter on December 26, 2010. The artists, members of Mujeres Artistas Por La Paz (Artist Women for Peace) were in the area for Christmas.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346510
Campaign Against Mekorot Launched in Argentina
In response to Merkorot’s proposed involvement in the an Argentinian water project, The Palestinian Federation of Argentina has moblized to boycott the company and halt the deal under the slogan “Mekorot Out!”. The contract was revealed this January. Following a visit to Israel, the Governor of the Province of Buenos Aires announced that a tender for the construction of a regional water treatment plant in La Plata would be awared a consortium, of which Mekorot is a part.
http://stopthewall.org/worldwideactivism/2434.shtml
BDS 2010: More Powerful Than The Sword
It was two years ago today, 27 December, that Israel launched its invasion of Gaza, carrying out 22 days of murder and mayhem, killing 1400 and leaving 5400 civilians crippled for life. Since then it has continued to besiege the 1.5 million Gazans, causing hundreds more unnecessary deaths. Its actions were deemed war crimes by the UN Goldstone Report.
http://dissidentvoice.org/2010/12/bds-2010-more-powerful-than-the-sword/
Anti
Dutch Government Cuts Funding for Cordaid, NGO Involved in Palestine
The foreign policy agenda of the new Dutch government depends upon its makeup—and right now, the kingmaker is the Freedom Party of right-wing extremist Geert Wilders, who must be consulted on most decisions cast by the ruling coalition of the Liberal Party and the Christian Democrats. Wilders is fervently anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant, having proposed a headscarf tax and a ban on immigration from Muslim countries. “Wilders promotes ‘no money into the Third World,’” said Kosterman, “and especially no money into Muslim countries. He doesn’t believe in it.” According to Kosterman, Wilders’ ideal funding boycott extends to countries such as Yemen and Pakistan as well, where international aid projects often cut recruitment numbers for extremist groups. Wilders himself is perfectly clear on his position on Palestine—in the leadup to the Dutch general elections in February 2010, he proposed that Jordan rename itself Palestine to provide “an alternate homeland” for Palestinians.
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9344&Itemid=72
Photostory: Volvo equipment used in house demolitions (part 2)
Israeli forces are using Volvo construction equipment and trucks in the destruction of Palestinian property. This is the second part of a feature by The Electronic Intifada documenting the use of Volvo equipment by the Israeli government in its destruction of Palestinian property.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11704.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (16 – 22 December. 2010)
http://www.pchrgaza.org/portal/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7184:weekly-report-on-israeli-human-rights-violations-in-the-occupied-palestinian-territory-16–22-december-2010&catid=84:weekly-2009&Itemid=183
Humanitarian Issues/Human Rights
UPDATED URGENT APPEAL – Children of the Gravel
Appeal to stop the targeting of unarmed children working near the border in Gaza – 23 cases documented.
http://www.dci-pal.org/english/doc/press/UA_4_10_Children_of_the_Gravel_UPDATE_29_DEC_+2010(b).pdf
Voices from the Occupation
Hatem (17) was shot in the head whilst purchasing strawberries to sell at market in the Gaza Strip, about 800 metres from the border fence with Israel.
http://www.dci-pal.org/english/doc/press/Gaza_Hatem_S_23_DEC_2010.pdf
PA: Israel detained 1,100 children in 2010
RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained 1,100 Palestinian children in 2010, the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Detainees’ Affairs said Wednesday. The arrests were concentrated in East Jerusalem, where 500 children were detained, and in Hebron, the ministry found. PA Detainees’ Affairs Minister Issa Qaraqe said the high number reflected the Israeli policy to systematically pursue children, particularly in occupied East Jerusalem, where children were often put under house arrest.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346572
The Gaza prison
“After four pages filled with detailed charts of the number of grams and calories of every type of food to be permitted for consumption by Gaza residents (broken down by gender and age), comes this recommendation: “It is necessary to deal with the international community and the Palestinian Health Ministry to provide nutritional supplements (only some of the flour in Gaza is enriched) and to provide education about proper nutrition.” Printed in large letters at the end of the document is this admonition: “The stability of the humanitarian effort is critical for the prevention of the development of malnutrition.”…Some of these changes are the result of international pressure exerted upon Israel. For example, when he visited Gaza last February, U.S. Senator John Kerry was stunned to discover that Israel was not allowing Palestinians to bring in trucks loaded with pasta….”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/12/gaza-prison.html
Two Years After Gaza War, Gaza Remains Sealed-Off, Suffering Continues
December 27, 2010, marks the two-year anniversary of the beginning of Operation Cast Lead, Israel’s 23 day offensive on the Gaza Strip. This offensive – the single most brutal event in the history of the occupation – was characterised by systematic violations of international law. Its aftermath has been characterised by pervasive impunity.
http://www.imemc.org/article/60305
Video: I Shall Not Hate
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish tells the story of the death of his daughters during the Israeli attack on Gaza Uruknet Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a Palestinian medical doctor who was born and raised in the Jabalia refugee Camp. Dr. Izzeldin has written a book called “I Shall Not Hate” published in April 2010 about his three daughters who were killed during the Gaza tragedy of January 2009.
http://uruknet.info/?p=m73376&hd=&size=1&l=e
Gaza farmers pack strawberries and hope for export
On a recent afternoon, farmers bearing cartons of strawberries lined up in front of the office of a local agricultural organization in the northern Gaza Strip. “This is a moment that fills me with hope,” said Ibrahim al-Musallami, 58, one of the farmers.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11694.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
B’Tselem 2010 Video Summary -Six Wishes
In a video clip to mark the end of 2010, B’Tselem makes 6 wishes for the coming year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HgWGZbk1vA&feature=player_embedded
Racism & Discrimination
Rabbi’s wife: Arabs are the enemy
Woman who signed letter urging Jewish girls not to date Arabs says ‘separatism is what sustained the Jewish people throughout time.’ Meanwhile, Masorti Movement rabbi slams letter, says ‘our faith is strong enough in order to treat non-Jews with respect and equality’.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4006332,00.html
Violence/Aggression
Israeli MK proposes killing Bedouin smugglers
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli Knesset member Ya’akov Katz on Tuesday proposed putting “a bullet into the head” of Bedouins who lead convoys of foreign workers entering Israel illegally, the Hebrew-language daily reported. Katz, who heads the Committee on Foreign workers, presented his plan to residents of Tel Aviv’s southern neighborhoods who attended a Knesset meeting to lobby for “victims of the phenomenon of illegal infiltrators,” Ma’ariv reported.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346532
Gaza City residents report shelling
GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Locals in Gaza City said shelling was heard east of the city center near the border with Israel on Wednesday morning. Israeli army officials said they were not familiar with any military activity in the area, and medics said no injuries were reported. Wednesday afternoon the armed wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades released a statement saying its fighters had opened fire on Israeli soldiers carrying out maintenance work north of Beit Hanoun.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346337
Military chase sees Beit Ummar teen hospitalized
HEBRON (Ma’an) — An Israeli military vehicle’s pursuit of a Palestinian vehicle ended in injury on Monday, with 18-year-old Beit Ummar resident Hammad Ahmad Hammad Abu Maria hospitalized, local officials said. Abu Maria was driving the car with one passenger inside, traveling through the Al-Baq’a and A’seeda neighborhoods of the village.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345919
Detainees
Jenin resident detained at Allenby Bridge
JENIN (Ma’an) – Israeli forces detained on Wednesday a resident of Jenin at the Allenby Bridge crossing, the local detainees’ center said. Mustapha Abu Rihan, from Tamoun village, was detained as he returned to the West Bank from Jordan, the center said. Center director Mahmoud Sawafta condemned the detention and the practices of Israeli soldiers.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346541
Army arrests 1 in Nablus village raid
NABLUS (Ma’an) — Israeli soldiers raided a Nablus village on Wednesday and detained a 20-year-old resident, locals said. Ghareeb Ref’et E’zat Amir was detained after forces searched his home in Kafr Qalil. He was taken to an unknown location. An Israeli military spokeswoman said Amir was detained on suspicion of terrorist activity.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346402
Palestinian female detainee on four weeks of hunger strike
RAMALLAH, (PIC)– Linan Abu Ghulma has been on hunger strike for four weeks after the Israeli prison services refused to unite her with her sister Taghrid in the Damon jail, the Dhameer society for prisoners said. It said in a press release on Tuesday that its lawyer Samer Samaan met with Linan in Hasharon jail where the Israeli prison authority and intelligence official were pressuring her and playing on her nerves. He said that the officials were trying to compel Linan to end her strike especially after she started to vomit and to suffer acute pain.
http://palestinianprisoners.blogspot.com/2010/12/palestinian-female-detainee-on-four.html
PA Repression
Hamas: PA detains 7 supporters
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Hamas officials in the West Bank accused Palestinian security forces of detaining seven party affiliates in a statement issued on Wednesday. The Islamist party said the men were detained in Nablus, Ramallah, Bethlehem and Qalqiliya, and accused the PA of continuing its policy of detaining Hamas members for political reasons.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346336
Detained journalist questions right to freedom of speech for Palestinians
West Bank security forces allegedly held George Canawati for five days after he reported on tensions within Fatah party
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/29/george-canawati-palestinian-freedom-speech
Rights groups announce plans to sue PA leaders
Rights groups are demanding that the West Bank-ruling Fatah authority releases the six hunger strikers from its prisons, and have announced plans to prosecute PA security militia leaders.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7
Hamas Repression
FIDA denounces raid on Gaza offices
GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Gaza government security forces on Tuesday shut down the Rafah offices of the Palestinian Democratic Union and detained several leaders of the party, the union said. The leftist faction, known as FIDA, said the move was “a violation to national conventions that had prevailed during all the years of the Palestinian struggle,” in a statement issued Wednesday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346423
Political Developments
Al-Aqsa Brigades Announce Official Ceasefire with Israel
Ayhab Maqdad, the leader of the brigades, said the ceasefire was just one step in the direction of national reconciliation and a way to refuse Israel the impetus to start a new war on Gaza. Maqdad told Al-Quds newspaper, “After careful consideration the Brigades decided in the interests of general reconciliation to officially announce a ceasefire with the Israeli side, to avoid our people being drawn into a new war.”
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9341&Itemid=66
‘The Palestine Cables’: Other countries want to ’smoke out’ Israel on NPT and Mossad use of passports, Alex Kane
Whether it’s the Mossad’s use of foreign passports or the refusal to open up about its nuclear weapons program, Israel is developing a reputation as a rogue state. Some of the nearly 2,000 secret State Department cables so far released by WikiLeaks and its media partners reveal that governments around the world are getting impatient with these practices.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/the-palestine-cables-other-countries-want-to-smoke-out-israel-on-npt-and-mossad-use-of-passports.html
No Palestinian-Israeli final status issues at UN, says U.S.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) — The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday that the United States opposes any attempt to take the final status issues of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to the UN Security Council, insisting such efforts will not help the goal of a two-state solution. “Final status issues can only be resolved through negotiations between the parties and not by recourse to the UN Security Council, so we’ ve consistently opposed any attempt to take these kinds of issues to the Council,” said State Department spokesman Mark Toner.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-12/30/c_13670613.htm
Erekat: We want UN settlement condemnation, not recognition for state
Chief PA negotiator says ‘Israeli government is witnessing an international isolation that it hasn’t witnessed before.’
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/erekat-we-want-un-settlement-condemnation-not-recognition-for-state-1.334060?localLinksEnabled=false
Palestinians seek more than a “Facebook state”: PM (Reuters)
Reuters – Palestinians expect wider recognition of their statehood in the coming year and it will mean more than the mere “Facebook state” predicted by an Israeli minister, Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said on Wednesday.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20101229/wl_nm/us_palestianians_israel_recognition
Dahlan returning to West Bank to answer coup charges
Source close to Dahlan accuses Abbas of being “paranoid”; Fatah Central Committee suspends former Fatah security commander. Former Fatah security commander Muhammad Dahlan announced on Wednesday he plans to return to the West Bank this week to answer allegations that he plotted a coup against the Palestinian Authority leadership. A special commission of inquiry established by PA President Mahmoud Abbas is also trying to establish the sources of Dahlan’s personal fortune.
http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=201460
Other News
British secret file confirms Israeli nukes
Secret files released by Britain’s National Archives said on Wednesday that British officials feared Tel Aviv would use its nuclear weapons in case of another war with Arab countries in the region.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/157794.html
Presidential decree appoints Al-Fetyani governor of Jericho
JERICHO (Ma’an)– President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree on Tuesday appointing Majed Al-Fetyani governor of Jericho and the Jordan Valley, after his predecessor Kamel Hamid was appointed governor of Hebron. Former Hebron governor Hussein Al-Araj was named to an advisory post in the office of the President in November.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346291
PA to update Palestinian registry, include East Jlem
RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Palestinian government officials in Ramallah announced Tuesday a plan to update the Palestinian Authority’s National Registry, and upgrade the database to an electronic model. The decision, announced during the PA’s weekly cabinet meeting, was ratified based on the recommendations of the National Committee to update the registrar. Once complete, the new registry will include the residents of East Jerusalem, a cabinet statement said. Officials said the updating of the registry was part of the ongoing effort of the PA to prepare the Palestinian government to assume the responsibilities of statehood.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=346373
IDF officers warned of Iranian revenge
In detailed letter, army instructs reserve officers to take extra precautions in Israel and abroad following assassination of nuclear scientists in Tehran. Officers ordered to avoid travelling on same traffic routes, shopping for groceries at same place.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4006360,00.html
Israeli diamond trader expelled
An Israeli trader is expelled from the country’s diamond exchange after being accused of “blood diamond” smuggling.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/business-12088658
Largest natural gas reserve discovered in Israel worth approximately $95 billion
More than 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas discovered off Haifa shore in joint U.S.-Israeli drilling operation.
http://english.themarker.com/largest-natural-gas-reserve-discovered-in-israel-worth-approximately-95-billion-1.334111?localLinksEnabled=false
Judgment day for Katsav as former president faces verdict in rape case
Charges of sex abuse relate to period during which Katsav served as Israel’s tourism minister and president.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/judgment-day-for-katsav-as-former-president-faces-verdict-in-rape-case-1.334146?localLinksEnabled=false
Analysis/Op-ed
Michael Sfard on the Gaza war and Jewish morality
It has been a year, just one year since, but we can already safely say it was not just another Operation Rainbow, Summer Rains, or Autumn Clouds, as IDF operations in Gaza were named in recent years. Perhaps the officer in charge of naming the operations was replaced by another, or perhaps the IDF ran out of pastoral names. In any event, our most recent brutal attack against Gaza was given a violent sounding name: Cast Lead. Looking back, Operation Cast Lead was a turning point in the way Israeli society expresses its values. There, in besieged Gaza Strip, we exposed ourselves to a crystal-clear, shameless, and unmasked truth that we had thus far avoided by using repression and self-deceit methods that became more complex and clever with every war and operation we waged. Like that macho man who grew tired of pretending he was politically correct and angrily yelled at his wife to go back to the kitchen, we came out of the closet. We are who we are and we are proud of it!
http://coteret.com/2009/12/31/michael-sfard-on-the-gaza-war-and-jewish-morality/
Gaza Two Years Later: War is never over, Sarah Ali
“Let it go for God’s sake,” one would suggest. “Two years passed; just move on.” Though quite infuriated by how simple it can be thought of, I can somehow see their point. We, people of Gaza, seem to be still whining over the losses of the war. Objectively speaking, it is pretty justified to find it weird for Gazans to be blaming, probably cursing, Israel for the last war till the moment. Why can’t we “move on”? why is it hard for us to “forgive” or to even “forget”?!
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/gaza-two-years-later-war-is-never-over.html
Gaza Two Years Later: The world has come to recognize our plight, Mohammed Said AlNadi
It is odd that tragedies make obscure things more noticeable. For so many years, the tiny coastal belt, the Gaza Strip, being a needle-eye spot on the world’s map, was not present in the mind of the people across the world. They had no idea about what or where Gaza was, either because they were ignorant of it or they took the “hostile-entity” image for granted. But after Israel’s pogrom in winter 2008-2009, in which more than 1400 innocent people were massacred in Gaza, needless to talk about the extremely unrestrained indulgence in destroying businesses, civilian-owned houses, schools and mosques– Gaza has gotten into the very conscience of the world.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/gaza-two-years-later-the-world-has-come-to-recognize-our-plight.html
Gaza was #11 in the long sad caravan of Israel’s wars of regime change, Helena Cobban
This week is the start of the 22-day-long second anniversary of Operation Cast Lead– a.k.a. # 11 in the long, sad caravan of wars of forced regime change that Israel has launched against its neighbors since 1948. I used to describe Cast Lead as #5 in Israel’s wars of forced regime change… Then I realized I should also count a bunch of Israel’s earlier wars, nearly all of which had amongst their key geostrategic goals a forced change in the political regime of one or more neighboring countries.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/gaza-was-11-in-the-long-sad-caravan-of-israels-wars-of-regime-change.html
Is Israel a democracy? Five actions in 2010 that fueled the debate
Recent actions by Israel’s religious and right-wing communities have challenged the rights of the country’s growing Arab minority.
http://rss.csmonitor.com/%7Er/feeds/world/%7E3/vLhWTBGJwNo/Is-Israel-a-democracy-Five-actions-in-2010-that-fueled-the-debate
On Palestine, the US is a rogue state, John Whitbeck
Nations covering 80-90% of the world’s population recognise Palestine as a state. The US, subservient to Israel, stands out. On 17 December, Bolivia extended diplomatic recognition to the state of Palestine within its full pre-1967 borders (all of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem). Coming soon after the similar recognitions by Brazil and Argentina, Bolivia’s recognition brought to 106 the number of UN member states recognising the state of Palestine, whose independence was proclaimed on 15 November, 1988.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/dec/29/us-israel-palestine-independence
A (missed) opportunity for dialogue, Shiri Raphaely
This Tuesday, the Seattle Times began running a series of articles covering the response to The Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign’s plan to place an ad criticizing US investment in “Israeli War Crimes” on Seattle Metro busses. Various groups from the Jewish community vehemently objected to the ad, including Richard Fruchter, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle who stated that he believes the ad is “designed to insult Israelis and the 50,000 members of the Jewish community, many of whom support Israel.” In response to the reaction against the ad, by Thursday, Metro announced that it would not be run, leading to a missed opportunity for dialogue and contributing to further isolation and separation within the Seattle community.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/a-missed-opportunity-for-dialogue.html
Lanny Davis dismisses U.N. report on Ivory Coast because– U.N. blasted Israel, Philip Weiss
Lanny Davis is a symbol for me of everything that’s wrong with the new establishment. A, It’s just as bad as the old establishment, in that it supports rightwing dictators in out of the way places, for cash; B, It’s a new establishment in that it’s permeated by the Israel lobby. Justin Elliott at Salon reports on CNN grilling Lanny Davis about his work for the Ivory Coast strongman Gbagbo.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/lanny-davis-dismisses-u-n-report-on-ivory-coast-because-u-n-blasted-israel.html
Why doesn’t CNN hold Fran Townsend to the Octavia Nasr standard?, Philip Weiss
John Edelstein writes: Last Wednesday, a group of prominent Bush-era Republicans, including former NYC Mayor Rudy Guiliani, former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, former White House adviser Frances Townsend and former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, flew to Paris (per TPM) to speak in support of MEK, a Marxist Iranian exile group there — one that’s been designated an official terrorist organization by the U.S. (Frankly I’m more surprised they’re supporting Marxists.)
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/why-doesnt-cnn-hold-fran-townsend-to-the-octavia-nasr-standard.html
Am I allowed to be a Palestinian Jew?, Audrey Farber
“Our grandparents are from Poland and the Ukraine. They were communists, and they immigrated here from Europe. But our parents raised us as Palestinian – yeah, we’re Ashkenazi but we’re Palestinian. We went to Arab schools, we speak Arabic. Our friends are Arab.” Dumbfounded, I begged them to continue. I suppose it could have been the wine, but these Palestinian Jews veritably blew my mind.
https://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/am-i-allowed-to-be-a-palestinian-jew.html
Hard times for Palestine
As 2010 comes to an end, Palestinians are facing the most difficult of times. They are locked into a process of “peace negotiations” with Israel that seem likely to lead nowhere, and achieve nothing., This is thanks largely to the White House, which is not only unable to halt illegal Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian territory, but also impotent when it comes to demanding that Israeli Prime Minister Binjamin Netanyahu respect a temporary freeze on settlement construction.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=17&article_id=123059#axzz19YS35sl9
Lebanon
FM Summons British Ambassador over British FM Statements
29/12/2010 Lebanese Foreign Minister Ali Shami revealed on Wednesday that he had recently summoned British Ambassador to Lebanon Frances Mary Guy over recent statements by his British counterpart William Hague on the possibility of the eruption of violence in Lebanon. Shami told NBN that he had asked Guy for an explanation of the statements as the Lebanese were concerned that they were based on secret intelligence. Guy responded that Hague’s statements were not based on such intelligence nor do they represent the UK’s position, but they were only based on “personal analyses.” Hague had recently told Britain’s Sky News television that he was worried about the situation in Lebanon and that he feared violence may break out in January.
http://almanar.com.lb/NewsSite/NewsDetails.aspx?id=167946&language=en
Kissinger: on having the Syrian regime “clean up” the Lebanese Left in 1976
“Kissinger: We first thought it would be good to have the Syrians clean up on the left;”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/12/kissinger-on-having-syrian-regime-clean.html
New York Times on Al-Akhbar, As’ad Abukhalil
So Robert Worth has an article about Al-Akhbar in the New York Times. What do I think? Well, for one, it must be difficult to write an article about a paper that you can’t read. How does one judge a paper that one can’t read even if you talk to many people? I think that the article contains seeds of truth about the atmosphere of the paper. As seasoned Lebanese mainstream journalist, Rafiq Khuri, told me over the summer: it is a reporters’ newspaper. He commented on the lack of a big shot publisher. The largest owner of the paper, Hasan Khalil, really does not interfere in the paper whatsoever (I once witnessed how editor-in-chief, Khalid Saghiyyah nixed an idea by Khalil and in strong language.) When Khalil first called me (before we met in Beirut) to discuss the paper and my articles, he asked me if he could offer comments to me about my articles. I said: you can as a reader, but I won’t accept them from you as the publisher. The notion that Khalid and Omar “are Western-friendly” is outright silly: as if some diabolical conspiracy drive the paper–a paper that advertises (prominently) for Whiskey brands. Of course, its Saudi and Hariri enemies have nothing to attack except to refer to the paper as “pro-Hizbullah” or as the mouthpiece of Hizbullah. To them, I offer them a challenge. They are indeed mouthpieces of House of Saud princes and Hariri family members: can they dare to ever mildly–to use the word of Worth–criticize any aspect of Hariri or Saudi policies, I would then accept their labels. As Worth pointed out, the paper regularly carries criticisms of Hizbullah. Worth did not mention that Ibrahim Al-Amin (who is friends with Hizbullah leaders) wrote one of the most strident attack on Hizbullah in the wake of the Salah `Izz Id-Din scandal referring to corruption with the party. So has Khalid Saghiyyah. I wrote a 2400 words article on how Hizbullah is a sectarian party. But the publicity for Al-Akhbar is not bad these days: not that it needs it. But Worth needed to place the success of the paper in the context of the bankruptcy of Arab media in general. [end]
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/12/new-york-times-on-al-akhbar.html
Iraq
Wednesday: 7 Iraqis Killed, 8 Wounded
At least seven Iraqis were killed and eight more were wounded in light violence. In the worst attack, a noted police commander was killed during a suicide bombing in Mosul. Meanwhile, the murder trial for a British contractor accused of murdering two colleagues opened in Baghdad.
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2010/12/29/wednesday-7-iraqis-killed-8-wounded/
Triple suicide bombing hits Mosul
Attack targets police chief involved in anti-al Qaeda operations in Iraq, kills four.
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2010/12/2010122973842507940.html
Police chief killed in north Iraq
Suicide bombers attack a police battalion in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, killing the commander, officials say.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-middle-east-12088145
Iraq war deaths ‘drop in 2010’
Group monitoring civilian deaths says total is less than 2009 but warns of lingering, low-level conflict in years ahead.
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2010/12/201012302516691853.html
Murder trial for British contractor opens in Iraq (AP)
AP – The trial of a British security contractor charged with killing two of his colleagues last year opened Wednesday in Baghdad with testimony from a guard who said the contractor shot him.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101229/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq_contractor_trial
Iraq seeks to increase trade exchange with Egypt to $5 billion annually
An adviser in the Iraqi government for economic affairs, said on Tuesday, that Iraq is seeking to increase its trade exchange with Egypt to $ 5 billion annually. Salam al-Quraishi, told that the Egyptian investment companies will play a serious role in implementing investment, construction projects, housing complexes, building malls, and schools.
http://www.kurdishglobe.net/display-article.html?id=8D3DCFB1BD6B77D9A4E23EFE0C3CD1B1
Prison legacy haunts Iraq neighborhood
BAGHDAD — The name has been changed, along with the management. But the specter of Iraq’s notorious Abu Ghraib prison continues to haunt local residents, many of who still call it the “House of Satan.” Abu Ghraib, now called Baghdad Central Prison, became infamous in 2004 when pictures and reports emerged of horrific abuse carried out there by U.S. military police and other American agencies charged with running the facility. Evidence of physical, psychological and sexual abuses led to the prosecution of 11 American troops. To many around the world, the shocking images that emerged came to symbolize the worst of America’s occupation of Iraq. To those who live near the facility — most of them Sunni Arabs — the prison is to blame for a wide variety of social, economic and emotional problems that have beset the district in recent years. The more superstitious residents talk about the area being haunted by those who suffered while behind bars.
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/12/29/3285937/prison-legacy-haunts-iraq-neighborhood.html
US, Israel and Gulf dictatorships declare this the biggest security threat in the Middle East: Iranian ice-cream in Iraq
“In the heart of Baghdad’s Green Zone, just yards from the mighty fortress of the biggest U.S. embassy in the world, a small but symbolic challenge to America’s rapidly waning influence in Iraq is taking shape in the form of an Iranian ice cream parlor.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/12/us-israel-and-gulf-dictatorships.html
U.S. and other world news
Manufacturing Consent For Attack On Iran
Israeli Deputy PM: West has three years to stop Iran nuclear program: Moshe Ya’alon says Iran remains the govern.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/deputy-pm-west-has-three-years-to-stop-iran-nuclear-program-1.334040
Britain forms plan for Gulf evacuation in event of war with Iran
The British armed forces are drawing up contingency plans to evacuate hundreds of thousands of British residents and tourists from Dubai and other Gulf cities in the event of war with Iran.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/dubai/8228244/Britain-forms-plan-for-Gulf-evacuation-in-event-of-war-with-Iran.html
US withdraws Venezuela envoy’s visa
Decision to revoke visa for Venezuela’s ambassador to Washington follows rejection of US choice for Caracas.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/12/2010123023228116789.html
Espionage Act ‘threatens every left wing activist,’ son of executed US communists declares
As US officials investigated whether they can charge WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange under the 1917 US Espionage Act, a voice of remarkable experience with the controversial law spoke out in defense of the secrets proprietor, suggesting his indictment under the act would yet again transform “dissent into treason.”
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/espionage-act-threatens-left-wing-activist-son-executed-communists-declares/
Judith Miller Lands At Newsmax
Judith Miller, the now infamous former New York Times reporter whose hilariously wrong pieces on Iraq’s WMD program were cited by Bush administration officials as a factor in their decision to invade Iraq (by design, considering international grifter-clown Ahmed Chalabi was telling Miller exactly what the Bush White House wanted her to hear: as Jack Shafer puts it, “Bush’s guy was the Times’s guy“), is causing a stir on the Tweetdecks of American journalists today because she has published her first reported piece in print for the right-leaning Newsmax (where she has already served as an online contributor).
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/29/judith-miller-lands-at-ne_n_802352.html
Many Arab officials have close CIA links
“These officials are spies for the US in their countries,” Assange told Al Jazeera Arabic channel in an interview yesterday.
http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/qatar/137385-many-arab-officials-have-close-cia-links-assange-.html
Capital’s war against WikiLeaks
When your Swiss banker throws you overboard, you know you’ve made some very powerful enemies.
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/12/2010122971637433801.html
Affidavit Details FBI “Operation Payback” Probe
The FBI has raided a Texas business and seized a computer server that investigators believe was used to launch a massive electronic attack on PayPal, The Smoking Gun has learned.
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/internet/affidavit-details-fbi-operation-payback-probe
Terrorist watch list: One tip now enough to put name in database, officials say
Senior counterterrorism officials say they have altered their criteria so that a single-source tip, as long as it is deemed credible, can lead to a name being placed on the watch list.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/29/AR2010122901584.html
Tunisia struggles to end protests
Demonstrations over unemployment and poor living conditions continue despite president’s warnings of reprisals.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2010/12/20101229122733122341.html
Ancient church unearthed in Syria
DAMASCUS, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) — Syrian archeologists have discovered church remains dating back to the 5th century B.C., in Daraa province, south of the capital Damascus, Syrian official SANA news agency reported Wednesday. The archeologists found foundations of a church’s wall near the southern side of a Roman Temple site in Daraa province, the report said.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-12/30/c_13669834.htm
