And more news from Today in Palestine:
Land, property, resources theft and destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Settlers
Israeli bulldozers raze Palestinian home in Negev village
NEGEV, (PIC) 27 Feb — Israeli municipality teams bulldozed on Sunday morning a Palestinian home in Z’rura village in the Negev, occupied since 1948, in line with a campaign of demolitions in that village, local sources said.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc
Anglican Bishop of Jerusalem’s visa revoked
Jerusalem (AsiaNews) 25 Feb — Israel’s Interior Ministry has revoked the permit for the Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem, The Rt Revd Suheil Dawani, to live in Jerusalem, and has refused requests to reinstate it, in spite of protests by Anglican authorities in the West specifically the United States. The Bishop is a native of the Holy Land and has spent most of his life and ministry here, but cannot obtain either citizenship or legal residence in Israel, since he was born in Nablus … Since the Bishop has of course remained at his post, in Jerusalem, without the permit, he could be arrested at any moment, be put on trial for being in Israel illegally, be sentenced to a prison term – or simply be forcibly removed from Jerusalem.
http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Anglican-Bishop-of-Jerusalem%E2%80%99s-visa-revoked-20875.html
Khater: Coming tourism conference marks Israeli success in Judaizing Jerusalem
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 27 Feb — Secretary-General of the Islamic-Christian Commission Dr. Hassan Khater has said an Israeli tourism conference to be held in Jerusalem the coming month marks Israel’s success in promoting the holy city as a capital for all Jews. Israel will stage a conference running from February 29 until March 31 that promotes Jewish tourism in Jerusalem. It is also behind a virtual reality website that shows Jerusalem without its Arab features.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc
N. Jordan Valley sit-in highlights education dilemma under occupation
JORDAN VALLEY, (PIC) 27 Feb — Palestinian activists sat in at the Ain al-Halwa school in the northern Jordan Valley on Saturday with hopes to raise awareness on the Israeli occupation which has rendered meeting the educational needs of Area C impossible. The ”save the Jordan Valley” campaign, one of the sit-in organizers, said Israeli policies have hampered the building of schools, and military checkpoints have restricted movement of teachers and students. Israeli authorities have pursued a policy of destruction of private and public facilities including schools, said Wahba Usfour, a sit-in coordinator, citing as an example what happened in Khirbet Tana, a village east of the city of Nablus with a population of about 300.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc
Ein il Hilwe opening day
[Photos] 27 Feb — Saturday… Palestinian and international organizations and activists shared our opening day of Ein Il Hilwe tent school. Although the occupation army threatened the Ein Il Hilwe community of demolition the night before, the community was very happy to celebrate the opening of their tent school last Saturday … The Bedouin community of Ein Il Hilwe is located in the north of the Jordan Valley. The children from this community as well as from the neighboring communities used to attend school in Tayasir for which they had to travel through the difficult Tayasir checkpoint. On a daily basis the children were facing harassment from the soldiers when trying to get to and from school. Some days children were forced off the bus and were left to walk the 13 km back home on the dangerous main road.
http://www.jordanvalleysolidarity.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=174:ein-il-hilwe-opening-day&catid=15:2010&Itemid=21
Hebron girl hit by settler car
HEBRON (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — Medical officials in Hebron said an 11-year-old girl from the city was transferred to Hadassa Hospital in Israel on Sunday, after she was struck down by a settler car at the Beit Ainun junction. The girl, identified as Amani Al-Mutawer, was said to have been walking to school when she was hit. Her condition was described as moderate.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363952
Violence / Extrajudicial assassinations
Court indicts J’lem teen for manslaughter
Ynet 27 Feb — Jewish stabber not charged with murder. Other teens involved in murder of Arab man to stand trial for aggravated assault, obstruction of justice. Father of victim: ‘My son brutally murdered for speaking Arabic’
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4034967,00.html
Report: Shehadeh killing legitimate; civilian deaths due to intel failure
Ynet 27 Feb — A report submitted to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday determined that the targeted killing of senior Hamas figure Salah Shehadeh on July 22, 2002 was imperative as he posed a ‘certain, immediate and significant’ threat to Israeli citizens … The commission further concluded that the difficult collateral consequences of the strike against Shehadeh, in which 13 uninvolved civilians, mostly women and children, were killed and many others injured, became clear in hindsight to most of the senior officials involved in the planning and implementation of the operation … During the operation, a one-ton bomb was dropped on the house in which Shehadeh was staying, killing him, Hamas figure Zahar Natzer, Shehadeh’s wife Layla and his 15-year-old daughter Iman, who were with him in the house.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4035172,00.html
Israel’s own people increasingly targeted by Jewish state / Tim King
One of Israel’s activists for humanity takes a soldier’s rifle butt to the cheek [in Hebron rally]; is it time now for the People’s Revolution of Israel? … Today we’re talking about 20-year old Israeli activist Sahar Vardi; whose appearance was marred on this occasion by the actions of an Israeli soldier, who drove the butt of the rifle into her face … As Ha’aretz relates, Sahar Vardi was dubbed a traitor and the daughter of a traitor by far-right groups in Israel. Her father is Amiel Vardi, a researcher and lecturer in classics at the Hebrew University. He is one of the founders of Ta’ayush, an Arab and Jewish political activist group that demonstrates on the issue of mass detentions of Palestinians that also engages in humanitarian aid activity. His reward for trying to help Palestinian farmers reach their vineyards during the grape harvest was a bullet from an Israeli settler.
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/february262011/sahar-vardi-tk.php
Siege / Restriction of movement
3 injured in Gaza tunnel collapse
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — Three Palestinians were injured Sunday when a smuggling tunnel collapsed near Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, medics said. Gaza medical spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said the injured were transferred to Yousef An-Najjar Hospital. [End]
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363856
Palestinians turn to computer technology to avoid Israeli roadblocks
Media Line 27 Feb — Checkpoint-buster program uses text messages to warn drivers of long lines ahead – Adopting an attitude of ‘If you can’t beat ’em, go around ’em, ‘ Palestinian computer programmers have developed a simple text-messaging system to help cope with surprise or crowded checkpoints set up by the Israeli army across the West Bank. Called “Ezma,” or Arabic for traffic, the program is sustained on a user-fed databank that ferries it to subscribers, much like a traffic monitoring system in other countries …”The days of long lines don’t exist anymore. The IDF has learned the lessons and has even set up special units to deal with roadblocks,” Lt.-Col. Avital Leibovitz, an IDF spokeswoman, told The Media Line … But Alon said the line or no lines, he perceived a real threat coming from technology-savvy Palestinians like Al-Badawi and Samar, who are like their peers leading revolutions in Egypt and Tunisians.
http://www.themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=31498
Waterborne diseases likely to erupt in the Mediterranean
Salem-News 26 Feb — The quality of water in Gaza is deteriorating rapidly, and until another source of water is found, the population in Gaza remains at risk as there is little that can be done as long as the Israel policy of closure continues. Ninety percent of the water available in Gaza coming from the coastal aquifer is undrinkable … The treatment of Gaza’s waste water cannot progress as long as Israel restricts basic building materials and adequate levels of fuel and electricity, and, with a rising population over-burdening the capacity of the current facilities. Now it looks like the closure will imperil Israel as the bacteria infested untreated waste water dumped into the sea off Gaza will inevitably flow to Israeli beaches and further up north and beyond.
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/february262011/gaza-water.php
2 Gaza border crossings open for limited goods
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — Israeli authorities will open two crossing into Gaza on Sunday for the transfer of limited quantities of goods, fuel and construction material, a Palestinian official said … Fattouh added that Israeli authorities would also allow the export of two truckloads of flowers and one truckload of tomatoes from the besieged coastal enclave to European countries.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363714
Detention
Video: 11-year-old Palestinians stonethrower arrested
Ynet 27 Feb — Footage shows officers chasing down boy who took part in West Bank riot, taking him to police station without chaperone. B’Tselem: Stop treating kids as if they are dangerous wanted criminals [this video has been around for a while, but apparently Ynet has just discovered it]
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4035104,00.html
IOA imprisons Hamas MP for six months
SALFIT, (PIC) 27 Feb — The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) sentenced Hamas MP and former finance minister Dr. Omar Abdulrazek to six months in administrative detention. The international campaign for the release of detained Palestinian MPs in a statement on Sunday lashed out at the international silence toward the continued IOA “piracy” against elected representatives of the people.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcO
PA militias transfer detainee Annatsheh to Jericho hospital
Al-KHALIL, (PIC) 27 Feb — The family of political detainee Mutasim Annatsheh said that the Palestinian authority intelligence apparatus in Jericho city transferred their son to hospital after his health deteriorated. According to his family, Annatsheh suffers from irregular heartbeat as a result of the maltreatment and physical abuse he is exposed to at the hands of PA interrogators. The PA intelligence refused to release the detainee, although there was a decision from the higher court of justice demanding his immediate release. Prisoner Annatsheh is the brother of Al-Qassam martyr Mamoun and has been kidnapped in September 2010 without any guilt or charge leveled against him.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc
Reprisals
Gaza govt: Israel lying about projectile numbers
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — …”Over the past days, the Israeli occupation has been publishing lies on the firing of projectiles from Gaza toward Israel, in order to create excuses to prepare world public opinion for an escalation against Gaza,” the statement said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363913
Rocket fired from Gaza hits Israel, no injuries
JERUSALEM (AFP) 27 Feb — A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit Israeli territory on Sunday morning, raising Israel’s alert level but causing no damage or casualties, according to Israel’s military and police. The latest rocket, which the military’s spokeswoman said struck a field in the Eshkol region in southern Israel, comes after a string of Israeli air raids targeting militant training camps across the Gaza Strip on Saturday night.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363747
Activism / Solidarity
Clashes continue throughout Silwan
Silwan, Jerusalem (SILWANIC) 27 Feb — Violent clashes resurged in Silwan yesterday evening, 26 February, with Israeli forces firing round after round of tear gas and rubber bullets at Palestinian demonstrators. 20 Palestinian residents were injured by rubber bullets. Eyewitness accounts report that Israeli forces ambushed a number of young demonstrators. 3 paramedics were also injured.
http://silwanic.net/?p=12716
Attack in Hebron and a ‘Jesus challenged empire’ / Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh
[with video] BETHLEHEM 26 Feb — I joined the large demonstration in the old city of Al-Khalil/Hebron that is commemorating the day 17 years ago when a Jewish settler massacred worshippers in the Haram Ibrahimi. In today’s report, we look at the large popular resistance movement and demonstrations today (e.g. in Hebron where we got attacked). The video of inspiring events in Bethlehem to Hebron is included.
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/february262011/rebel-jesus-mq.php
Hundreds rally in Jerusalem against racism
Ynet 26 Feb – Some 1,500 left-wing activists gathered in Jerusalem’s Zion Square Saturday to protest “the wave of racism consuming the country and Israeli society” due to government policies and especially those backed by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. A large number of youth group members were present at the rally, as well as activists belonging to Labor, Peace Now, and Meretz. Posters said, “Ivette – Niet” and “Fight racism – protect Zionism” as well as “Fight the government of darkness”.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4034499,00.html
Fatah youth vows non-violent resistance
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — The Fatah Youth Movement said Saturday that despite the US veto of an anti-settlement resolution at the UN, the group remained committed to non-violent resistance
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363665
Palestinians and Libya / Egypt
PCHR: Thousands of Palestinians stranded abroad since Egypt events
RAMALLAH, (PIC) 27 Feb — Thousands of Gazans have been stranded abroad for over a month during changes in Egypt that have hindered their entry into the Cairo International Airport, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) has said. Palestinians returning to the Gaza Strip must transit Egypt before crossing over to the strip through Rafah.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcO
Ambassador: Palestinians in Libya are safe
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) — The 70,000 Palestinians in Libya are safe, but actions must be taken to ensure their continued protection, Palestinian Ambassador in Tripoli Atif Mustafa Auda said Sunday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363746
Palestinian refugees
Jihad slams Lebanese gov’t for changing law concerning Palestinian refugees
BEIRUT, (PIC) 27 Feb — The Islamic Jihad Movement said that the amendment made to the law of labor and social security in Lebanon only serves the policy of resettlement that is rejected by the Palestinian people, calling on the Lebanese government and parliament to reconsider this law.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
Harb approves draft on Palestinian work permits
DS 23 Feb — BEIRUT: Caretaker Labor Minister Butros Harb approved Tuesday a decision to organize Palestinian refugees’ work based on which they would be granted work permits … Over 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are registered at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. The bulk of these refugees live in and around 12 camps across the country. Palestinian refugees are barred from all but the minimum amount of professions in the country … In August, the Parliament passed a draft law based on which Palestinian refugees would be granted work permits, access to a few additional professions and the provision of medical care services that would be funded by UNRWA, with most major concerns remaining unaddressed.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_ID=1&article_ID=125208&categ_id=1#axzz1FBShmCdR
Palestinian refugees may become a political vanguard / Ruba Salih
DS 25 Feb …the long-standing issue of the Palestinian refugees’ right of return, enshrined in international law since 1949, remains unresolved. The recent release of the “Palestine papers” has, if anything, confirmed the lack of any serious plan that would bring justice to four generations of displacement and statelessness. For the last 60 years and more, Palestinian refugees have been held hostage by two inflexible standpoints. On the one hand, Israel has adamantly refused to be held accountable for the tragedy of the refugee crisis, the Nakba, and is only ready to accommodate, on historical Palestine, a symbolic number of first-generation refugees. On the other hand, many host countries (with the exception of Jordan, where Palestinians have access to citizenship rights but are subject to more subtle forms of discrimination and exclusion) have endorsed the claim that tawtin [naturalization] and even tatwir (or development) would constitute a de-facto assimilation of the refugee populations and, eventually, undermine their right of return.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_ID=10&article_ID=125298&categ_id=5#axzz1FBShmCdR
Displaced families from areas adjacent to Nahr al-Bared still in limbo
DS 22 Feb — TRIPOLI: More than 100 Palestinian families displaced from the area surrounding Nahr al-Bared refugee camp have been left in limbo by the government’s delay in honoring its commitment to reconstruct their homes, The Daily Star can reveal … U.N. Relief and Works Agency’s northern project manager Charles Higgins said that those displaced from the camp’s adjacent area were stuck waiting for reconstruction money pledged in 2008.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_ID=1&article_ID=125158&categ_id=1#axzz1FBShmCdR
Political news
Unity tops agenda in West Bank, Gaza
RAMALLAH/GAZA (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — An all-factions committee was called in Gaza, as legal professionals announced a sit-down in the West Bank to discuss mechanisms by which to use the Palestinian Basic Law to end the state of political division. In Gaza City, independent figures invited Sunday all Palestinian factions to a meeting where organizers said delegates would discuss current options to end the Palestinian split … In Ramallah, lawmakers agreed on Saturday to prepare a document based on Palestinian Basic Law and the constitution which would attempt to repair the division between the executive and juridical authorities when Hamas established independent rule in Gaza, and the West Bank set up an alternative government.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363878
Dweik: Call for elections illegal
AL-KHALIL, (PIC) 27 Feb — Speaker of the Palestinian legislative council Dr. Aziz Dweik has said that the call for legislative and presidential elections was illegal. He told the PIC on Sunday that de facto Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and his premier Salam Fayyad were trying to rid themselves of crises by calling for those elections. Dweik opined that such calls were insignificant as long as the duo (Abbas & Fayyad) were not committed to ending the internal split.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcO
Other news
New resource tracks Israeli arms exports / Adam Horowitz
Mondoweiss 27 Feb — UAVs are a key export of Israel’s arms industry. A number of Israeli firms export drones, most prominently Aeronautics Defense Systems, Elbit Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries. UAVs are commonly used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and targeting missions. More recently some models have begun to carry armed payloads.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/02/new-resource-tracks-and-analyzes-israeli-arms-exports.html
Gaza assailants plant bomb under Christian car
Ynet 27 Feb — Dr. Maher Ayyad say received text messages to halt evangelical work or face harsh punishment … Ayyad says he does not preach his faith.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4035146,00.html
Police: Campus guards attacked son of commander
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 27 Feb — Palestinian Authority police on Sunday said arrest warrants were issued for university security guards because they “brutally attacked” a police chief’s son.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=363829
Israeli, Palestinian entrepreneurs come together in search of investors
Haaretz 27 Feb — The event, at Jaffa’s Peres Center for Peace, drew 125 programmers, user experience experts, graphic artists, businessmen and investors. They included 111 Israelis, but only 14 Palestinians, from places including Jenin, Nablus and Ramallah
http://english.themarker.com/israeli-palestinian-entrepreneurs-come-together-in-search-of-investors-1.345923
Analysis / Opinion
Toward Palestine’s ‘Mubarek moment’ / Ali Abunimah
The Palestinian Authority should dissolve itself, as it is acting in Israel’s interest, writer says … There are numerous reasons to oppose new PA elections, even if Hamas and Fatah were to sort out their differences. The experience since 2006 demonstrates that democracy, governance and normal politics are impossible under Israel’s brutal military occupation. The Palestinian body politic was divided not into two broad political streams offering competing visions, as in other electoral democracies, but one stream that is aligned with, supported by and dependent on the occupation and its foreign sponsors, and another that remains committed, at least nominally, to resistance. These are contradictions that cannot be resolved through elections.
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/02/2011224141158174266.html#
Before the almond trees disappear / Daphna Golan
We do not have to continue to obliterate the past of the Arabs who lived in this land. It would be better to acknowledge the pain of their loss and offer them peaceful coexistence … Lifta is a small link in Jerusalem’s shrinking green necklace, its extraordinarily beautiful terrace agriculture a reminder of an extinct cultural landscape. Its land is being divided up and marketed even though no caretaker has yet been assigned to see to the preservation of its springs and green spaces. Jerusalem’s treasures are being privatized and given to well-connected developers, who become rich at the expense of the public and future generations. The village could have symbolized the hope of reconciliation.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/before-the-almond-trees-disappear-1.345926
Either democracy — or Hebron / Carlo Strenger
Israel’s right-wing, time and again, claims a monopoly for the Zionist idea: In a recent article, Moshe Arens claims that those who are against schools taking students to Hebron have lost their roots in the land of Israel because the foundation of Zionism, has always been the return of the Jewish people to the land of its forefathers. Therefore, he argues, establishing a Palestinian state that would include some of Judaism’s most sacred places undermines the entire Zionist idea. To put it in a nutshell: For Arens, Zionism without Hebron is dead.
http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/strenger-than-fiction/either-democracy-or-hebron-1.345693
The racist entity that is taking over Israel must be toppled / Sefi Rachlevsky
The atrocities in Libya send an unequivocal message to the world: Patriotism lies with democracy, not with the regime — The wretchedness of the law in the face of Rabbi Dov Lior has many meanings, and Lior’s refusal to be interrogated over his support for “The King’s Torah – The Laws for Killing Gentiles” – only marginally gets at the heart of the matter. Thirty years ago, the terrorist organization known as the “Jewish Underground” was set up with the purpose of killing Arabs. The group’s head of operations, Menachem Livni – who was convicted on multiple counts of murder before being pardoned by the regime – testified at the time that the living spirit, the initiator, the religious instructor and the coordinator of the murders was Lior.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/the-racist-entity-that-is-taking-over-israel-must-be-toppled-1.345929
Arab MKs must beg forgiveness for Libya visit / Salman Masalha
All the [Israeli] Arab public figures who went to Libya should now publicly express remorse and beg forgiveness, first from the Libyan people and next from the Arab citizens they purport to represent.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/arab-mks-must-beg-forgiveness-for-libya-visit-1.345930
From Chicago to the world: about Mordechai Vanunu and a ‘brief’ history / Eileen Fleming
Salem-News 26 Feb (CHICAGO) – As of this this weekend, it has been five years since this reporter started covering the situation of Mordechai Vanunu who was imprisoned by Israel for blowing the whistle on Israel’s nuclear weapon’s program
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/february262011/vanunu-history-ef.php
One nation, under repression: the Arab world and the ‘Palestine effect’ / Yousef Munayyer
The focus here is not meant to be on which region is more repressive, or which period or year was most repressive. Rather, what stands out immediately is that these 22 states, with all their different domestic dynamics, acted in a remarkably similar fashion over time throughout the Arab world. In many of the 28 years on this scale, the three series go up together or down together to similar extents. This defies just about anything anyone could expect when conducting such an analysis … Certainly, I would not go so far as to say that the revolution in Tunisia or Egypt or the uprisings taking place across the Arab world were immediate reactions to anything going on in Palestine … Rather, Palestine is a central Arab issue often adopted by opposition groups across the Arab world, whether for self-interested or altruistic purposes, and has been for the better part of a century.
http://muftah.org/?p=834
Mideast / Arab world
Saturday: 19 Iraqis killed, 33 wounded, hundreds possibly beaten
The casualty figures from yesterday’s protests continued to rise today as reports trickled out from a number of cities across Iraq; however, the most chilling news came from Baghdad were hundreds of protesters may be detained and suffering from beatings. At least 19 Iraqis were killed and 33 more wounded besides those rumored beaten during arrests. Also, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani asked the government to improve services and combat corruption, while Human Rights Watch called for an investigation into the illegal use of force by security personnel. A possible explanation for the low estimate of wounded yesterday comes from four journalists who saw many wounded detainees inside a Defense Ministry prison in Baghdad yesterday. The four journalists, who were beaten and arrested as well, used their connections to gain freedom
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2011/02/26/saturday-19-iraqis-killed-33-wounded-hundreds-possibly-beaten/
Lebanese protesters urge political system change in Beirut rally
Feb 27 (Reuters) — In wake of unrest sweeping Mideast, some Lebanese protesters chanted the now-familiar refrain of ‘The people want to bring down the regime …”We are here to bring down the sectarian system in Lebanon because it is more of a dictatorial system than dictatorship systems themselves,” said protester Rahshan Saglam.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/international/lebanese-protesters-urge-political-system-change-in-beirut-rally-1.346006
Factbox: Unrest in Arabian peninsula
Feb 27 (Reuters) – Unrest sweeping the Arab world against entrenched leaders has spread to the Arabian Peninsula, with tens of thousands demanding change in Yemen and Bahrain and smaller numbers demonstrating in neighbouring Gulf countries. Here is a summary of recent protests in the oil-producing region, which have broken out despite pledges of billions of dollars in state handouts and modest political changes designed to appease popular opposition to autocratic rulers.
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/factbox-unrest-in-arabian-peninsula
Deaths in Oman protests
AJ 27 Feb — At least two people have been killed in an industrial town in Oman, after police fired rubber bullets on anti-government protesters … Witnesses said a police station and a government building were set on fire.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/2011227112850852905.html
Tunisia prime minister resigns after protests
TUNIS, Feb 27 (Reuters) – Tunisia Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi announced his resignation on Sunday following a wave of street protests. Critics have accused Ghannouchi of being to close to the North African state’s former government, toppled in an uprising last month, and of failing to enact reforms … Three people have been killed and several people wounded in clashes between security forces and demonstrators since Friday over Ghannouchi’s role in the interim government.
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/tunisia-prime-minister-resigns-after-protests
Bahraini Shi‘ite leader hints could accept king
MANAMA, Feb 27 (Reuters) – A Bahraini hardline Shi‘ite dissident said on Sunday he would accept a Western-style constitutional monarchy in the Gulf Arab kingdom if protesters supported the measure. Hassan Mushaimaa was allowed to return to Bahrain as part of several concessions by the ruling al-Khalifa family to Bahrain’s majority Shi‘ites who have been at the forefront of nearly two weeks of protests demanding more say in government.
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/bahraini-shiite-leader-hints-could-accept-king
Egypt proposes presidency reform
AJ 26 Feb — Egypt is planning constitutional amendments that would open up competition for the presidency and only allow the winner to stay in office for eight years. The proposed amendments, outlined on Saturday by a judicial committee appointed by Egypt’s ruling military council, will be put to a referendum ahead of elections that will hand power back to a civilian government.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/2011226163611509450.html
Afghanistan
Afghan night raid survivors, in their own words
KABUL (Reuters) 26 Feb — The growing use of “night raids” by NATO-led and Afghan forces to kill or capture insurgents is one of the most controversial strategies in the Afghan war. Here are some accounts by Afghan civilians of night raids they experienced, which left them injured or bereaved.
http://www.uruknet.info/?new=75388
U.S.
Will the Arab revolutions finally penetrate the US echo chamber? / James M. Wall
Salem-News 26 Feb — CHICAGO — Alastair Crooke, a veteran British diplomat and author, wisely reminds us that echo chambers are extremely difficult to penetrate — The revolutions that began in Tunisia, continued in Egypt and now threaten Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, are spreading throughout the Middle East. Perhaps, one day, the revolution may even engulf Palestine. There are signs emanating from the echo chamber that controls US thought on all matters pertaining to Israel, that sounds of the revolutions may soon penetrate into the chamber.
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/february262011/arab-revolut-jw.php
