And other news from Today in Palestine:
Land, property, resources theft and destruction/Ethnic cleansing/Settlers
Al Arakib update: Four consecutive days of demolitions
From the Negev Coexistence Forum (NCF). Last week brought four consecutive days of demolitions in Al Arakib. For the first time on February 9 we witnessed bulldozers clearly marked as belonging to the Jewish National Fund (JNF-KKL), destroying tents that had been erected overnight by the residents. The JNF can no longer claim to have no involvement in the repeated destruction of Al Arakib.
http://theonlydemocracy.org/2011/02/al-arakib-update-four-consecutive-days-of-demolitions/
Bedouins Barricaded in Cemetery as Israel Demolishes Village for 17th Time, Injuring Children
The residents of the Bedouin village Al Araqib were forced from their land for the 17th time Wednesday (16/2) and barricaded inside the village cemetery, as Israel continues its ethnic cleansing efforts in the Negev.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/israeli-society/3305-bedouins-barricaded-in-cemetery-as-israel-demolishes-village-for-17th-time-injuring-children-
A House Surrounded on all Sides
After the Israeli Courts ruled against the demolition of Omar Hajaj’s home in Al Walajah, the Ministry of Defense ordered to surround his home with an electronic fence. If the plans are implemented, Omar and his family will be virtually entirely cut off from his village and surrounding land.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1688
Please Help Rebuild 13 Water Cisterns Destroyed by the Israeli Army
The situation of the Palestinian cave-dwellers in South Hebron Hills continues to be difficult. They suffer from permanent harassment carried out by the military and settlers. This year, however, has been even more difficult, due to a severe drought.
http://theonlydemocracy.org/2011/02/please-help-rebuild-13-water-cisterns-destroyed-by-the-israeli-army/
Violence and Aggression
Palestinian Youth Injured By Settlers Fire Near Nablus
Palestinian medical sources reported on Tuesday evening that a Palestinian youth was shot and wounded by settlers fire near Jaloud village, south of Nablus, in the northern part of the West Bank.
http://www.imemc.org/article/60654
Settlers shoot teenager south-west of Nablus
Settlers shot and wounded a boy of 18 whilst he was farming on his father’s land at 1400hrs today, in the village of Jaloud, south-west of Nablus. Wael Mahmoud Tobase Ayad was planting trees together with his brother. As they were finishing, three settlers from a nearby illegal settlement, armed with handguns and a rifle, appeared from amongst some trees between 50 – 100m away. One of the settlers shot and wounded him in his right side with a hand gun.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/02/16676/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29
Report: Settler violence not probed
Yesh Din issues report showing 91% of Palestinian complaints end without indictments. ‘Data show that people who lack rights under our rule are abandoned to their fates, and this has both moral and legal consequences,’ says Attorney Michael Sfard. Police: We’re looking into report’s findings.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4029576,00.html
Detainees
Israeli forces detain 18 Palestinians overnight
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=360260
Hamas: PA arrests 8 party members
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Palestinian security forces arrested eight Hamas affiliates in the West Bank. Hamas said Palestinian Authority security forces arrested the party members in Nablus and Hebron.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=360431
Israeli forces detain Palestinian at Erez crossing
GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israeli security forces on Tuesday detained a Palestinian from an ambulance at the Erez crossing on the Israel-Gaza border, Palestinian sources said. Muhammad Mussa Zu’rub, 38, was traveling with his brother, who suffers from cancer, to the Israeli Bilson Hospital, local sources said. Israeli security officials detained Zu’rub from the ambulance, sources added. An spokeswoman for Israel’s District Coordination Office said the crossing was manned by a civilian security company, but that she would look into the report.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=360274
IOF troops kidnap patient’s escort
Family of Mohammed Zo’rub appealed to human rights groups to pressure the IOF into releasing their son who was kidnapped by those troops at Erez (Beit Hanun) crossing north of the Gaza Strip.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%
Ex-detainees: Prisoners in PA jails held in grave-like cells
A number of Palestinian ex-detainees released from West Bank jails said that the Palestinian authority security militias lock up prisoners in very small cells like “graves.”
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=
Siege/Humanitarian Issues/Racism and Discrimination
Industrial Fuel – Needs Vs. Supply – Jan 16 – Feb 12
http://www.gazagateway.org/2011/02/industrial-fuel-%e2%80%93-needs-vs-supply-%e2%80%93-jan-16-%e2%80%93-feb-12/
Goods – Needs Vs. Supply – Jan 16 – Feb 12
http://www.gazagateway.org/2011/02/goods-%e2%80%93-needs-vs-supply-%e2%80%93-jan-16-%e2%80%93-feb-12/
Tell Egypt: Open the Rafah Crossing Now!
The situation for the hundreds of Palestinian men, women and children in Egypt who have been trapped at the airport since 25 January 2011, the beginning of the Egyptian Revolution, is dreadful and getting worse each day.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/news/3304-tell-egypt-open-the-rafah-crossing-now-
The Egyptian Blockade of Gaza – February 26, 2011 March to Gaza
To join the March to Gaza click here. There is much talk about who and what is behind the popular revolts in the Arab world and I find such talk as interesting as anyone. But more than talk I am interested in action. Indeed that is why tears of joy streamed down my face as I watched the Egyptian people cleansing themselves of the shame brought upon them by Mubarak and his fellow thieves and traitors. Clearly however, the job is far from complete.
http://vineyardsaker.blogspot.com/2011/02/egyptian-blockade-of-gaza-february-26.html
Egyptian officer: Rafah crossing to be opened regularly following arrangements
Senior Egyptian officer said that the Rafah border crossing with the besieged Gaza Strip will be soon opened on a regular basis after making security arrangements for that.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87M
Police revoke charges against East Jerusalem teen allegedly beaten by police during detainment
Murad Banna, 19, was arrested and held over seven months for allegedly throwing stones; he claimed he was forced to give false confession.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/police-revoke-charges-against-east-jerusalem-teen-allegedly-beaten-by-police-during-detainment-1.343577?localLinksEnabled=false
A Palestinian boy’s Kafkaesque trial in Israel’s military court, Joseph Dana
On a sunny day people usually stand outside or sit in the direct sun in the waiting area at the Ofer military court. To observe a trail at Ofer, one must enter the facilities and, in a way, become a prisoner. Visiting diplomats and human rights officials alike, are allowed to bring only money and cigarettes into the court area. Trials are given times in two vague categories - before the lunch break and after. Often a trial is listed for ‘before the lunch break’ and so observers will arrive at the court around 9 a.m., only to find that it has been postponed until after the break, leaving the unlucky observers with five to six hours to kill in what is basically a large prison yard – buckled asphalt surrounded by watchtowers shaped like World War Two-era pillboxes, and chain link fences topped with rolls of barbed wire.
http://josephdana.com/2011/02/a-palestinian-boy%E2%80%99s-kafkaesque-trial-in-israel%E2%80%99s-military-court/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-palestinian-boy%25e2%2580%2599s-kafkaesque-trial-in-israel%25e2%2580%2599s-military-court
16 Feb. 2011: In Silwan, like in Tel Aviv, Youth Law not enforced
On 4 February 2011, Ha’aretz published an article on the police’s handling of central-region youth suspected of drug use. According to the article, all the minors questioned in the matter, most of whom were about 17 years old, were interrogated without their parents present, although some parents requested they be allowed into the interrogation room. One of the young girls was informed by the “intelligence officer” that the interrogation was not even being recorded.
http://www.btselem.org/English/Detainees_and_Prisoners/20110216_Minors_Interrogattions_Silwan_and_Gush_Dan.asp
URGENT APPEAL – Children of Silwan
An appeal to end the use of violence by the Israeli army and police during the arrest of children from Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem.
http://www.dci-pal.org/english/doc/press/UA_2_11_SILWAN_16_Feb_2011.pdf
Activism/Solidarity/Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions
Action around the globe for Jawaher
Feb 16, 2011– More than a dozen protests, vigils and other actions were staged on the 10th and after in honor of Jawaher Abu Rahmah and in conjunction with the commemoration in Bil’in. Check out photos and reports from actions across the globe.
http://stopthewall.org/worldwideactivism/2480.shtml
Contest Winner: Confronting the Wall
Feb 16, 2011– We wish to present the third winning video, “Confronting the Wall” This video won the Palestine Jury Prize. Watch the video here and learn more about Israeli Apartheid.
http://stopthewall.org/latestnews/2481.shtml
Solidarity visit to striking municipal employees in Jenin
Feb 15, 2011– Stop the Wall organized a solidarity visit to municipal workers in the Jenin governorate who have been on strike for the past consecutive weeks, and on hunger strike for the past three days. Workers are demanding that the Ministry of Local Government, along with the head and the council of the Jenin Municipality commit an interpretation of the law governing local bodies that guarantees employees and workers stable employment and dignified living.
http://stopthewall.org/latestnews/2479.shtml
The doves return to Al-Arakib / Adam Keller
15 Feb – “Just like the demonstrators in Egypt were not deterred by the police violence, never left the square, so will we stick to Al-Arakib. This is the Negev’s Tahrir Square. Just like the demonstrators in Cairo won in the end, so will we win” said the young man who greeted us when the activist convoy – a full bus and a string of private cars – reached the hills northwest of Be’ersheba.
http://adam-keller2.blogspot.com/2011/02/doves-return-to-al-arakib.html
#BDS: Action Alert: Ban Ahava from Professional Beauty 2011
“We, the undersigned, are aware that Ahava have a stand at Professional Beauty 2011 ExCel 27-28 February. We urge Professional Beauty to reconsider granting Ahava a stand for the following reasons.
http://youthanormalization.blogspot.com/2011/02/bds-action-alert-ban-ahava-from.html
Knesset committee approves bill allowing Israel boycotters to be fined
Bill calls for heavy fines to be imposed on Israeli citizens who initiate or incite boycotts against Israeli individuals, companies, factories, and organizations.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/knesset-committee-approves-bill-allowing-israel-boycotters-to-be-fined-1.343596?localLinksEnabled=false
Illegal for Israelis to support BDS?, Joseph Dana
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanction (BDS) movement endorsed by Palestinian civil society organizations in 2005 has become one of the most controversial issues surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In the spirit of the boycott movement against Apartheid South Africa, BDS activists have racked up a number of successful cultural, academic and economic boycotts of Israel over the country’s treatment of Palestinians under occupation in the West Bank and Gaza. This afternoon, the state of Israel took steps towards criminalizing support of BDS by Israeli citizens.
http://josephdana.com/2011/02/illegal-for-israelis-to-support-bds/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=illegal-for-israelis-to-support-bds
Political Developments/News
The Palestine Papers – a matter of public interest
Following the leak of some 1600 documents a selection known as the Palestine Papers were released by Al Jazeera and the Guardian newspaper; they highlight previously unknown details relating to the peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine.
http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/resources/briefing-papers/2057-the-palestine-papers-a-matter-of-public-interest
Abbas: Israel has no vision for peace
RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — President Mahmoud Abbas said Monday that the current Israeli government had no vision for an end to the occupation. Addressing Palestinians released from Israeli detention at his Ramallah headquarters, the president said Israel continued to shut down all avenues to peace.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=360208
UN eyes vote on resolution against Israel (AFP)
AFP – The UN Security Council is likely to vote this week on a resolution filed by Arab countries condemning Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories, according to a Palestinian diplomat.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110216/wl_mideast_afp/israelpalestiniansunsettlementsrights
EU’s Ashton targets Palestinian state by September (AFP)
AFP – EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Tuesday said the international community still sought to achieve a peace deal and a Palestinian state by September, despite the region’s political turmoil.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110215/wl_afp/israelpalestinianspeaceeu
Envoy to UN says US will continue “frontal opposition” to attempts to “chip away at Israel’s legitimacy.”
NEW YORK – In an address given at the World Affairs Council in Portland, Oregon, on Friday evening, US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice pledged American loyalty to Israel at the UN, saying that “efforts to chip away at Israel’s legitimacy will continue to be met by the frontal opposition of the United States.”
http://endtheoccupationblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/rice-israels-legitimacy-beyond-dispute.html
Congress prepares “Middle East Stability” funding package
There’s a raging debate on Capitol Hill surrounding huge cuts to foreign aid funding proposed in the House Republicans’ latest spending bill. But several senators are looking to add a generous foreign aid package for Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and other Middle Eastern countries when the bill comes over from the House.
http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/02/15/congress_prepares_middle_east_stability_funding_package
Turkey wants Israel raid apology, regardless of UN
Turkey will insist on an apology from Israel for its bloody raid on a Gaza-bound Turkish aid ship as a condition for mending ties, regardless of the findings of a UN investigation, a Turkish diplomatic official said. “We expect the UN investigation to be balanced so we won’t get what we want and Israel won’t get what it wants, but apology and compensation are a red line for us,” the official told a group of reporters in Ankara on condition of anonymity. (Reuters)
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4029221,00.html
Palestine Analysis/Op-ed
Palestinian Revolution by Default, Mel Frykberg
RAMALLAH, Feb 16, 2011 (IPS) – The Egyptian revolution, and the threat to autocratic Arab regimes all over the region, have forced rapid changes on the Palestinian political scene – with major players Hamas and Fatah scrambling to catch up.
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=54495
Upheavals highlight tension between Jordan’s Palestinians and ‘East Bankers’
AMMAN // Like Yemen and Bahrain, Jordan recently has been shaken by popular protests stemming from rising food prices and high unemployment, especially among the young. Yet the upheaval in Jordan also reflects a factor peculiar to the country – namely, its delicate demographic balance between indigenous tribes, known as “East Bankers”, and Palestinians who have emigrated to Jordan in the past six decades and have received Jordanian citizenship.
http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/middle-east/upheavals-highlight-tension-between-jordans-palestinians-and-east-bankers
‘Israeli filter’ colors U.S. response to Egyptian revolution, Alex Kane
Hosni Mubarak’s former regime got many things wrong, but Egyptian officials sure knew how to accurately read at least some parts of U.S. foreign policy. A State Department cable written in December 2007 recently released by WikiLeaks describes how the Egyptian government believed that “their discussions with the United States” passed “through a perceived ‘Israeli filter.’” It’s fair to assume that Egypt was referring to how, as Helena Cobban writes in Salon, “pro-Israeli groups and individuals in Congress and the rest of the American political elite” have enormous influence on how Washington conducts foreign policy.
http://alexbkane.wordpress.com/2011/02/15/israeli-filter-colors-u-s-response-to-egyptian-revolution/
Only in Palestine, Amra Amra
Those brave people who firmly stood up and fought for their freedom and independence against whatever type of inhumanity or injustice that was prevalent in their time. Reading about these infamous leaders in history inevitably has planted a seed of persistence and determination in us, yet we may not recognize it. As a Palestinian having spent most of my life abroad, I remember clearly my continual participation in Palestinian protests against the ongoing Israeli occupation in Palestine. Having lived in the US, I found myself struggling to firmly hold on to my ancestral Palestinian roots. Despite this, I fortunately managed to voice and express my beliefs and opinions with many other Palestinian solidarity activists by holding a megaphone, carrying a poster with pictures of innocent victims that have fallen as a result of the Israeli occupation, with the famous traditional Palestinian kuffiyeh wrapped around my neck. Yet no amount of protests, activities, or events could have prepared me, either physically and emotionally, for the reality of Palestine.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1685
Revolt in the Middle East
Slideshow: Protests Sweep Bahrain, Iran And Yemen
Following uprisings that deposed leaders in both Egypt and Tunisia, a wave of protest movements have engulfed the Middle East in recent days. Protests have shaken the regimes in Bahrian, Iran and Yemen. Iran has arrested 1,500 demonstrators and two people were killed in protests in the capital, Tehran. There have also been violent clashes between pro and anti-government factions in Yemen and the Kingdom of Bahrain, two protesters have been killed in clashes with the security forces.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/15/middle-east-protests-iran-bahrain-yemen_n_823503.html
Riz Khan – The Egypt effect
Thousands of people are taking to streets across the region demanding political and social reform.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tPO7E3JhHU&feature=youtube_gdata
The US Department of State: explaining its own hypocrisy (it is good)
“QUESTION: How about other countries – Bahrain, Yemen, or Algeria, or Jordan? Why you are not talking about those countries and you are condemning what is happening in Iran?
MR. CROWLEY: Well, actually, in the other countries there is greater respect for the rights of the citizens. I mean, we are watching developments in other countries, including Yemen, including Algeria, including Bahrain. And our advice is the same. As the Secretary made clear in her Doha speech, there’s a significant need for political, social, and economic reform across the region, and we encourage governments to respect their citizen’s right to protest peacefully, respect their right to freedom of expression and assembly, and hope that there will be an ongoing engagement, a dialogue between people in governments, and they can work together on the necessary forms.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/us-department-of-state-explaining-its.html
Jordan’s reforms
“Srour said Tuesday that protesters would still have to inform authorities of any gathering two days in advance to “ensure public safety” and that they would have to observe public order. However, he stressed that the government would no longer interfere in such matters.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/jordans-reforms.html
Jordan’s King is desperate
His Minister of Justice demonstrated yesterday calling for the release of the Jordanian soldier who shot at Israeli students. He even called him a hero. The minister does not know of the services by his King to Israel, it seems.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/jordans-king-is-desperate.html
Obama reassures Jordan king of U.S. support
The president made a weekend call to Jordanian King Abdullah II to assure him of U.S. support, but also to say that Washington wants Jordan to move toward reform. With protests rocking the Middle East, the Obama administration is reaching out to King Abdullah II of Jordan, trying to reassure a badly shaken ally of its support even as it calls for greater political freedom across the Arab world.
http://feeds.latimes.com/%7Er/latimes/middleeast/%7E3/NqiObpboV90/la-fg-obama-mideast-20110216,0,216248.story
Mufti warns of revolution in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabian Mufti Sheikh Yusof al-Ahmad has warned that unless the government fights poverty and unemployment, it will face a revolution like those in Egypt and Tunisia.
http://presstv.com/detail/165211.html
Egypt
Tariq Al-Bishri
The man who is assigned to head the committee to revise the constitution of Egypt is a supporter of the struggle of the Palestinians and a foe of Israel. Please tweet that, o Zionists.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/tariq-al-bishri.html
Tariq Al-Bishri: the man leading the committee to revise the Egyptian constitution
Jamal sent me this: “You may want to point readers to a few items on Tariq al-Bishri. Egyptian English-language blogger Baheyya referenced him several times in recent years as can be seen in these two posts on her blog:
In this piece from 2009 she wrote about how he had critiqued Sadat’s constitution in the early 70s for the powers it gave an unaccountable presidency:
In this piece from 2007 she highlights how back in 2004 he had put out a piece defending precisely the types of non-violent resistance that just succeeded in overthrowing Mubarak (needless to say, more meaningful than anything Gene “who’s that guy” Sharp):
Finally, regarding your totally correct point about al-Bishri being an enemy of US and Zionist imperialism, point your readers to his roughly decade-old book “al-3arab fi muwajahat al-3udwan”/”The Arabs in the Face of Aggression”. I read it many years ago, so I might be slightly off here, but his main thesis as I recall was that in the face of dead subservient regimes, the only places that effective resistance to imperialism has arisen has been where the state is weak: i.e., the Lebanese resistance for example. He did have some kooky 9/11 ideas of the “we don’t even know Bin Laden did this” variety, but it didn’t take away from his core point. The entire book can be found online here.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/tariq-al-bishri-man-leading-committee.html
Ashkenazi: Israel ready for collapse of peace with Egypt
In his first appearance as a civilian, former IDF chief of staff says “there is a weakening of the moderate camp” in Egypt.
http://www.jpost.com/VideoArticles/Video/Article.aspx?id=208215
Egypt junta names panel to reform constitution
CAIRO – Egypt’s military regime warned on Tuesday that a wave of strikes sweeping the country was “disastrous,” as it gave a panel of civilian experts 10 days to revise the constitution. Against a backdrop of persistent nationwide walk-walkouts and street protests, the junta promised to rapidly restore constitutional rule following the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak’s regime.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/02/15/egypt-junta-names-panel-to-reform-constitution/
Egypt labor not resting after Mubarak’s ouster
CAIRO (IPS) – Before his ouster on Friday, toppled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak had made one of the biggest mistakes of his reign: not learning from the lessons of hundreds of small labor and professional strikes that littered the country since 2005.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11804.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
Sinai Bedouin and the revolution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfuxyCjtZhw&feature=player_embedded
Egypt’s Copts hope for bright future
As the country emerges from Hosni Mubarak’s rule, civil society is being opened to change. Al Jazeera’s Jamal Elshayyal reports from Alexandria on the historic union between Coptic Christians and Muslims in Egypt – and their aspirations for the years ahead
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gVgvCSoj9Y&feature=youtube_gdata
Mubarak given up, wants to die in Sharm-Saudi official
SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Feb 16 (Reuters) – Egypt’s ousted president has given up and wants to die in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh where he has been living since a popular uprising ended his rule, a Saudi official said on Wednesday.
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/mubarak-given-up-wants-to-die-in-sharm-saudi-official
Egypt’s Mubarak taking phone calls in Sharm-source
CAIRO, Feb 15 (Reuters) – Egypt’s deposed President Hosni Mubarak is in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh and taking telephone calls, said a source who spoke to him on Tuesday. “He’s fine,” the source said. “He is at his residence in Sharm el-Sheikh with his family. He is receiving telephone calls. I spoke to him at 3 o’clock (1300 GMT) this afternoon.”
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/egypts-mubarak-taking-phone-calls-in-sharm-source
Report: Hosni Mubarak is in Israel
JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak is in a luxury hotel in the Israeli city of Eilat, the Israel-based news site Al-Arab reported Tuesday. Locals said there was a huge presence of Israeli security forces surrounding the hotel, and airplanes were hovering above monitoring activity in the area, the Arabic-language report said. A hotel employee revealed that Mubarak was a guest at the hotel, according to the news site. The hotel declined to comment.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=360317
Mubarak’s residence in Sharm
Officially former president Mubarak has not left the country , he said it clearly that he would live in Egypt till the end of his life and will be buried in it after his death. Officially former president Mubarak is in Sharm El-Sheikh. Some sources say that he is so sick to the level of being currently in coma , other sources say that he is fine but he is deeply depressed, while other sources like the Times says that he eats Caviar and Swiss chocolate in his self-exile at the Red Sea. Der Spiegel shared with us the location of Mubarak’s palaces or rather villas at Sharm El-Sheikh Maritime peninsula hotel & resort. Mubarak and his sons got three villas or rather palaces in an excellent location there.
http://egyptianchronicles.blogspot.com/2011/02/mubaraks-residence-in-sharm.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EgyptianChronicles+%28Egyptian+chronicles%29
Mubarak’s friends
The gallery.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/mubaraks-friends.html
The Mubarak grand kid was even being prepared for succession
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/mubarak-grand-kid-was-even-being.html
Mohamed ElFarmawy Assaulted by Police in #Tahrir
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DPBFIoJ1Reo
Bahrain
Bahrain protesters keep up pressure
Protesters demanding sweeping political reforms from Bahrain’s rulers held their ground in an Egypt-style occupation of the capital’s landmark square today, calling for a third day of demonstrations.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/bahrain-protesters-keep-up-pressure-2216370.html
Update: Clashes in Bahrain
Thousands have taken to the streets in Bahrain, as a second protester is laid to rest on Tuesday. For two days, demonstrators have been demanding government reform. Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Manama, who we are not naming for safety reasons, has the latest.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYaFh4CHaq4&feature=youtube_gdata
Protesters occupy Bahrain square
Anti-government protests continue in tiny kingdom, despite apology by king for the deaths of two demonstrators.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/201121635518925202.html
Deaths stoke Bahrain tension
Offering apology, king says incidents will be investigated, but opposition group suspends parliamentary participation.
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2011/02/2011215194859291708.html
US is freaking out over Bahrain
“The home of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet — and a recently-launched $580 million U.S. expansion effort slated to double the U.S. Navy’s acreage there — could be in jeopardy if Bahrain’s monarchy falls.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/us-is-freaking-out-over-bahrain.html
From Bahrain
K. sent me this: ”Tomorrow Bahrain will definitely face even more media restriction than those seen in Cairo. The counter-revolution has already started with ‘Day of Happiness’ parades held on Saturday, (staged, perhaps to celebrate the promise of BD 1,000 (around $2650) handouts announced) and set to continue tomorrow, a Ministry of Interior twitter account – who knows which unfortunate has been given the honour of tweeting “Illegal rally in Karzakan 3 policemen attacked, Police had to fire 2 rubber buttons 1st as warning shot 2nd bounced & hit a demonstrator” on behalf of possibly the least respected and most notorious, corrupt, and brutal institution in the country. [continues]
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/from-bahrain.html
Comrades from Bahrain
Bahraini people, the Bahraini King kills three protestors in the day to celebrate the national charter I just got home from the protests and have heard the news that it has been confirmed that three protestors were killed today, including an eight year old boy. I am absolutely fuming. In the protest that I was in which lasted about 20 minutes, the police arrived and started attacking us (mostly old women and children) with rubber bullets and tear gas aimed directly at as and at close range. I haven’t been through this before and I can tell you it was bloody scary. All we could do was dive to the ground and find somewhere to hide. The unfortunate thing is, that the police, mostly Pakistani, Syrian and Yemeni (many of them were out today) are completely irresponsible and trained to do one thing, to shoot at protestors and wave guns at you.
Two issues seriously p***ing me off:
1. Where is the media? The BBC is still reporting a minor skirmish in Karzakan village last night, when in fact thousands across the country protested resulting in 3 deaths. Aljazeera is reporting the deaths in its rolling text pane. Why aren’t they using all the footage on youtube like they did in Egypt showing peaceful protests being attacked? Bahrain is a Gulf state, is it too close to home for the Qataris to give a shit?
2. Three deaths in ONE day is the highest death toll that Alkhalifa’s thugs have been responsible for in the history of modern Bahrain. This is big. When two men were killed by the police in the nineties, it took five years to quell the uprising. This time, it might be much worse.
After the incident last night, our buffon royal foreign minister, tweeted that the photo being circulated was an old photo. Can you ask him if this photo is also old? Tweet about this you buffoonr, you have blood on your hands, and your obnoxious remarks are no longer tolerated.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/comrades-from-bahrain.html
From Bahrain
“One demonstrator killed already, Ali Abdulhadi Al Mushaima in his 20s has died in hospital as a result of being shot being in the back http://yfrog.com/h4k6gqtj, and Mohammed, both from Sitra critically injured http://yfrog.com/h3gyerrj.
Woke up this morning to the sound of helicopters; driving to work there were massive deployments of riot police stationed at the roads leading from the main highway of Budaiya; up to 8 police jeeps and a bus of riot police ready for unarmed people protesting peacefully (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3LazFJ0wa4).
I witnessed myself, and according to reports from other gatherings around the country, demonstrators have deliberately taken a nonviolent approach; example, some 200+ people, men, women, children holding a sit-in at the sehla junction.
one demonstrator killed already, Abdulhadi Al Mushaima in his 20s has died in hospital as a result of being shot being in the back http://yfrog.com/h4k6gqtj, and Mohammed, both from Sitra critically injured http://yfrog.com/h3gyerrj.
Woke up this morning to the sound of helicopters; driving to work there were massive deployments of riot police stationed at the roads leading from the main highway of Budaiya ready for unarmed protestors (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3LazFJ0wa4). I witnessed myself (and according to reports from other gatherings around the country, demonstrators have deliberately taken a nonviolent approach). Several tweeters reported the blockage of internet sites, particularly videos showing police attacking demonstrators on youtube.
To keep track of events in English, http://twitter.com/maryamalkhawaja and in Arabic http://twitter.com/Nabeelrajab
For photos, pls see http://www.facebook.com/album.php?id=687160937&aid=274586“
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/from-bahrain_15.html
More from Bahrain
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/bahrain-today.html
Live Broadcast
http://bambuser.com/channel/alaali/broadcast/1417785
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsn4A-orHxo&feature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qw_1w1RI_eg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYWruCI13rE&feature=player_embedded
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2011/aj150211.html
Pictures from Bahrain
http://wattani.in/forum/showpost.php?p=1509291&postcount=2
http://twitpic.com/3zu7ag
S E C R E T MANAMA FOR DNI BLAIR FROM AMBASSADOR ERELIE.O.
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR MANAMA DIALOGUE, ….
12. (C) King Hamad is personable and engaging. He rules as something of a “corporate king,” giving direction and letting his top people manage the government. He has overseen the development of strong institutions with the restoration of parliament, the formation of a legal political opposition, and a dynamic press. He is gradually shifting power from his uncle, Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, who remains the head of the government, to his son, the Crown Prince. Crown Prince Salman received his high school education at the DOD school in Bahrain and earned a BA from American University in 1985. He is very Western in his approach and is closely identified with the reformist camp within the ruling family – particularly with respect to economic and labor reforms designed to combat corruption and modernize Bahrain’s economic base.
http://friday-lunch-club.blogspot.com/2011/02/wikileaks-bahrain-sheikh-khalifa.html
Yemen
Yemenis protest amid crackdown
Violence escalates between government supporters and protesters calling for the president’s ouster.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/201121611012256401.html
Tensions rise between sides in Yemen
In Yemen, thousands of people returned to the steets for a fifth day demanding President Ali Abdullah Saleh steps down. At the same time, swelling numbers of government loyalists occupied strategic locations in the capital, chanting slogans and saying they won’t allow pro-democracy protesters to drive the country towards instability and chaos. Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra reports.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqwASfQYc4E&feature=youtube_gdata
Fresh clashes in Yemeni capital
Security forces in Yemen’s capital Sanaa use tear gas and batons to disperse thousands of anti-government protesters.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-middle-east-12476469
Yemeni protest chants
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/yemeni-protest-chants.html
Yemen Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bdEW0LgJ4E&feature=email
U.S. to spend $75 million on new Yemen military training
The United States aims to spend $75 million to double the size of a special Yemeni counter-terrorism unit, a U.S. official said on Monday.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/14/us-usa-yemen-idUSTRE71D7AQ20110214
Libya
Hospital: 38 injured in Libya clashes
TRIPOLI (AFP) — Thirty-eight people were injured in clashes between Libyan security forces and demonstrators in Benghazi overnight, the director of Al-Jala hospital in the eastern city told AFP on Wednesday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=360552
Hundreds of Libyans demand the government’s ouster
Reports say they are calling for removal of the prime minister and strongman Moammar Kadafi, who has ruled for decades. Hundreds of Libyans calling for the government’s ouster took to the streets Wednesday in the country’s second-largest city as Egypt-inspired unrest spread to the country long ruled by Moammar Kadafi.
http://feeds.latimes.com/%7Er/latimes/middleeast/%7E3/bnFQ7vaw-8g/la-fgw-libya-riots-20110216,0,5114233.story
Libya: Video from protests
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=111774312231462
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aojjN96r2dk
SNAP ANALYSIS-Riots break out in Libyan city of Benghazi
ALGIERS, Feb 16 (Reuters) – Several hundred people clashed overnight with police and government supporters in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, a witness and local media said.
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/snap-analysis-riots-break-out-in-libyan-city-of-benghazi
Iraq
Teen killed as Iraq guards fire into demo (AFP)
AFP – A teenager was killed Wednesday when private guards shot at protesters who set fire to several Iraqi government offices, in the country’s most violent demonstrations since uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110216/wl_mideast_afp/iraqpoliticsdemosecurity
Three killed in Iraq protests as guards fire into demo
Three people were killed and dozens wounded in the southern Iraqi city of Kut on Wednesday in clashes between security forces and protesters demanding better basic services, police and hospital sources said.
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/02/16/137896.html
Iraq activists storm public offices
At least one person killed in clashes with security forces after protesters break into council building.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/2011216114058147154.html
Falluja citizens protest against Iraq government
Demonstrators called to stop arbitrary arrests, to resume conscription and to dismiss any foreign nationality holder from the government. They called as well to end the US deal. Protestors give voice to their daily concerns as well evoking the electricity crisis, lack of ration cards and unemployment. Demonstrators accused Iraqi officials of corruption. Local officials in the city of Falluja joined demonstrators in their rally calling for essential services and blaming the central government for not having spent the budget of Anbar Province. Falluja rally is a continuity of protests all over Iraq showing the same denunciation to lack of services in the country.
http://www.alsumaria.tv/en/Iraq-News/1-60425-Falluja-citizens-protest-against-Iraq-government.html
Tuesday: 8 Iraqis Killed, 12 Wounded
At least eight Iraqis were killed and 12 more were wounded in new violence, while two mass graves were discovered in Diyala province. Back in Germany, an Iraqi defector codenamed Curveball has admitted to lying about weapons of mass destruction. A lie that lead to the Iraq war.
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2011/02/15/tuesday-8-iraqis-killed-12-wounded/
Recalling the Slaughter of Innocents
Twenty years ago, as Americans were celebrating Valentine’s Day, Iraqi husbands and fathers in the Amiriyah section of Baghdad were peeling the remains of their wives and children off the walls and floor of a large neighborhood bomb shelter.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27479.htm
Iran
Iran funeral triggers new clashes
Government supporters and opposition activists clash at funeral procession for student killed in Tehran.
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2011/02/20112169518348693.html
Iran confirms deaths in protest
Iran’s MPs call for the execution of the opposition leaders who called for demonstrations in several cities.
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2011/02/2011215205829237551.html
Iran’s protests: What follows?
Following Monday’s protests, in which at least two protesters died, the Iranian government is moving to hold the two opposition leaders who called for the demonstration to be held accountable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TefcEE3aboc&feature=youtube_gdata
Other Mideast News
Origin: Embassy Cairo — Classification: CONFIDENTIAL : LEBANON
4.(C) Afifi said that Saad Hariri was in Cairo, and had seen FM Aboul Gheit, and was scheduled to see President Mubarak that day (June 23). “He is in great spirits and is now a statesman,” Afifi said. From Cairo, Hariri will go to Riyadh, where Afifi said he expects Hariri will receive “guidance” on formation of a Lebanese government. Hariri told the Egyptians he did not foresee too much difficulty in government formation. Afifi assessed that the Lebanese opposition (of 2009′) “may not get the blocking third in the way that they want it,” and that Hizballah was focused on a compromise position that would keep the issue of Hizballah arms out of the national dialogue and obtain some kind of assurance that some executive and judicial positions would be designated for opposition members.
http://friday-lunch-club.blogspot.com/2011/02/wikileaks-egyptians-have-been-wrong-on.html
Analysis/Op-ed
Inside Story – Can Egyptians forgive and forget?
Egypt’s police took to the street to show solidarity with protesters who toppled president Mubarak. Shouting they are hand in hand with the people, they said were following orders. Can the police force wipe out its bloody history with the people of Egypt? Will the Egyptians forgive and forget?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M55wGOlB7wk&feature=youtube_gdata
The New York Times story yesterday about the origins of the Egyptian and Tunisian revolutions
That story is still bothering me (see yesterday). I have received many links and articles from colleagues and people in Latin America in particular about the role of Gene Sharp or AEI or the Einstein Foundation. But all this is so irrelevant. Even if US foundations brought youths from Egypt and even if they distributed translated works about non-violence, and even if some attended workshops all this affect a dozen or so of those youths. This is a movement by hundreds of thousands of people and would not have succeeded if people who are NOT facebook or twitter generation did not join in. And I still argue: the notion that people in Egypt know who Gene Sharp is is rather funny and crazy. I mean, who buys that except Sharp himself to flatter himself? Or those who believe those claims in the New York Times. I want to also say this: the thesis of the article yesterday conforms with the thesis of the Mubarak regime itself: they for days in their official media peddled that thesis and argued that those youths had attended workshops by US foundations to do all that. They had one disguised Youth member on TV one day: and it was so crazy. He said: yes, they took us to a workshop and we stayed at a hotel and we attended lectures. The anchorwoman said: and you got paid, right? He said: yes, we were paid. She asked: what was the amount? He said: we were paid good money. I got paid $500 for the leadership training program. So $500 can buy a revolution? Against a puppet regime that you were desperate to keep? But you know what it is? The White Man can’t leave the natives alone. No matter what they do, he has to take credit for their actions–if they are not violent. But if the natives engage in violence, Islam and culture are responsible, and the White Man washes his hands of the natives. And now there is a new ridiculous claim: that this comic book about Martin Luther King inspired the Egyptian Revolution. It is only going to get worse once the book are written (and articles appear in the New York Times magazine). But what do I expect when I read that a speech by Condoleezza Rice (who is hated throughout the region) actually inspired the uprisings.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/new-york-times-story-yesterday-about.html
Thomas Friedman on the Nile (still)
Just read the opening lines of this piece of…material from Friedman. His writing style is so simplistic that it is jarring. Only the Economist of mainstream press pointed out the obvious: that he is a lousy writer. Notice how he is at pains to reassure Israel–and Zionists like himself–that Egyptians don’t dislike Israel and that their opposition and overthrow of the regime would not change Egyptian foreign policy. Dream on, Friedman. You think that a democratically elected foreign minister of Egypt would dare hold hands with Israeli foreign minister days before assault on Gaza? But if you reach–with great difficulty–the end of the article you realize what was going on (in Arabic, there is a proverb: once the cause is known, surprise goes away): the only Egyptian that Friedman cites in this lousy article is none other than `Ali Salim: an untalented Egyptian playwright who specializes in the sleazy and crude humor. But Salim is a shunned man who lives in isolation because out of a population of 85 million Egyptians he is the only one who openly calls for normalization with Israel (although the opportunist attacks Israel AND Jews when he appears on Aljazeera–almost all friends of Israel in the Arab world (a handful plus tyrants) are notorious anti-Semities, just as Sadat was). He writes a column for the mouthpiece of Prince Salman (Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat) and is a clown for House of Saud. Salim was expelled from professional associations because he had visited Israel. So to represent Egyptians, Friedman talks to this guy. This is like taking Mithal Allusi in Iraq as the representative of Iraqis. Oh, and Friedman says this:”The Arab tyrants, precisely because they were illegitimate, were the ones who fed their people hatred of Israel as a diversion.” Of course, it is the other day round. Arab tyrants are friends of Israel and the bit of anti-Israel rhetoric that comes out of them is forced by the people on them.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/02/thomas-friedman-on-nile-still.html
Robert Fisk: Three weeks in Egypt show the power of brutality – and its limits
After three weeks of watching the greatest Arab nation hurling a preposterous old man from power, I’m struck by something very odd. We have been informing the world that the infection of Tunisia’s revolution spread to Egypt – and that near-identical democracy protests have broken out in Yemen, Bahrain and in Algeria – but we’ve all missed the most salient contamination of all: that the state security police who prop up the power of the Arab world’s autocrats have used the same hopeless tactics of savagery to crush demonstrators in Sanaa, Bahrain and Algiers as the Tunisian and Egyptian dictators tried so vainly to employ against their own pro-democracy protestors.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-three-weeks-in-egypt-show-the-power-of-brutality-ndash-and-its-limits-2216121.html
Egypt’s reform process: What, who, and how?, Helena Cobban
I am trying to follow– from the very great distance of central Virginia, USA, what is happening regarding the very necessary and WAYS overdue process of political/constitutional reform and rebuilding that Egypt so desperately needs if the democracy revolution of the past few weeks is to be able to survive and thrive.
http://justworldnews.org/archives/004164.html
Seventeen Days That Shook The World
The astonishing Egyptian uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in two-and-a-half weeks of immense popular struggle has sent shock waves reverberating throughout the Middle East, putting Washington’s imperial clients on notice that their days of impunity are now numbered. Close to two million flooded into Cairo’s Tahir Square. One million assembled in Martyr’s Square in Alexandria. 750,000 gathered in downtown Mansoura. A quarter of a million came together in Suez.
http://dissidentvoice.org/2011/02/seventeen-days-that-shook-the-world/
Why Tahrir Infuriates the Neo-Cons, Shiva Balaghi
Everywhere you turn, Niall Ferguson is berating Obama’s “muddling” of Egypt. He’s blogging on The Daily Beast, spewing angrily on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, and inaugurating his new column in Newsweek with a cover story blasting Obama. Tahrir Square is the neo-cons’ worst nightmare… And Ferguson is one of the scribes who helped globalize and legitimize the neo-cons’ ideas. Since 9/11, Ferguson’s books on empire have become airport bestsellers, and he’s gone from Oxford to NYU to Harvard.
http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/647/why-tahrir-infuriates-the-neo-cons
Tunisia, Egypt, Lebanon?
We are living in extraordinary times. 2011 Egypt, in hindsight, will be seen as just as, if not more, “historic” as the 1952 coup. This precedent and others should that this revolution is not the instantiation of thepolitical awakening of a “stagnant” part of the world, and nor was it brought to you (only) by Facebook or twitter. For now, the 2011 people’s uprising in Egypt and in Tunis resists categorization, and cannot be contained or explained by adjectives that Middle East “experts” have used to shape the dominant discourse on the Arab world such as Islamist, communist, liberal, pro-American, anti-American, fundamentalist, or feminist. We should cherish these moments of discursive resistance because they paint an image of life as it is lived, messy and contradictory.
http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/648/tunisia-egypt-lebanon
Civic Institutions Essential for Egypt’s Democracy, Ralph Nader
Colman McCarthy, a former Washington Post writer and founder of the Center for Teaching Peace, must be very happy with the news from Egypt. For twenty-five years, McCarthy has been persuading high schools and colleges to adopt peace studies in their curriculum (for more information, contact him at cmccarthy@starpower.net). Now he has another example of a largely non-violent revolution—led by young people of all backgrounds—successfully ousting a dictatorial regime
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=16656
Egypt: Social Movements, the CIA and the Mossad, James Petras
The mass movements which forced the removal of Mubarak reveal both the strength and weaknesses of spontaneous uprisings. On the one hand, the social movements demonstrated their capacity to mobilize hundreds of thousands, if not millions, in a successful sustained struggle culminating in the overthrow of the dictator in a way that pre-existent opposition parties and personalities were unable or unwilling to do.
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=16653
The Revolutionary Rebellion in Egypt, FIDEL CASTRO
Several days ago I said that Mubarak’s fate was sealed and that not even Obama was able to save him. The world knows about what is happening in the Middle East. News spreads at mind-boggling speed. Politicians barely have enough time to read the dispatches arriving hour after hour. Everyone is aware of the importance of what is happening over there.
http://www.counterpunch.com/castro02152011.html
Samir Amin, “What Is Happening in Egypt”
The plan of the ruling system, supported by the United States of course, is not to allow that — it’s to make minimal concessions in order to safeguard the essentials of the system: that is, neoliberal capitalist integration into the global system, which is at the root of all these social devastations of course; but simultaneously a system aligned with US policy on the world and the region, which means also tolerating, allowing de facto, Israel to continue the devastation in occupied Palestine. . . .
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2011/amin150211.html
Why Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Isn’t The Islamic Bogeyman
Western fears of Islamist takeover in post-Mubarak Egypt are unfounded. During recent protests, the Muslim Brotherhood has demonstrated a commitment to peaceful political participation. The US now has an opportunity to support a truly democratic Egypt, including the Brotherhood.
http://www.csmonitor.com/layout/set/print/content/view/print/363223
The Egyptian Revolution and Democracy, Brian Napoletano
Imperial conquests have always had their ideological justifications. Even in earlier ages, exterminating a people, exploiting their resources, stealing their lands, and enslaving their children were generally non-starters when it came to firing up the local populace for another military campaign. Accordingly, the Romans “civilized” the barbarians, the Spanish conquistadores “brought the gospel” to the “New World,” and the English were “shining the light of civilization” on the Indian subcontinent. Although most history books tend to minimize the genocide and slavery that accompanied Europe’s string of conquests (including North America), few have any illusions about the true objectives of Rome, Spain, Portugal, Great Britain, and other countries’ imperial adventures.
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=16654
Revolution and counter-revolution in the Egyptian media / Ursula Lindsey
MERO 15 Feb – …And while social media and online communities did much of the spadework for the success of the protests — fashioning a new political consensus among hundreds of thousands of middle-class Egyptians and functioning as organizing tools — the revolution included many, many people, maybe a majority, who do not have Internet access at home, let alone Facebook accounts.
http://www.merip.org/mero/mero021511.html
Mahfouz’s Prophesy, RAOUF J. HALABY
During the past sixty years US politicians have convinced Americans citizens that some of the world’s tyrants and dictators are “strong and dependable allies of the US.” To wit the State Department’s official statements about Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak during the first few days of the uprising that has swept Egypt like a firestorm.
http://www.counterpunch.com/halaby02152011.html
Egypt, Tunisia, and ‘The Resumption of Arab History’
The recent popular uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt attest above all to the indomitability of the human spirit, and the extraordinary capacity of collective action to bring out the very best in humanity. In these respects the daring, creativity, discipline, resolve, perseverance and euphoria of the people of Egypt and Tunisia - while primarily theirs – belongs to us all, joining as they do an endless caravan of successful, aborted, hijacked and failed challenges to illegitimate authority across the globe since the dawn of time.
http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/653/egypt-tunisia-and-the-resumption-of-arab-history
The US Versus the Egyptian People
The last thing the U.S. policy elite wants is real democracy in Egypt. That country has been a linchpin of American foreign policy for more than 30 years precisely because its government has been able to defy the will of the Egyptian people.
http://original.antiwar.com/srichman/2011/02/15/the-us-versus-the-egyptian-people/
In Bahrain, protesters bridge Sunni-Shiite divide to challenge monarchy
Protesters in Bahrain, inspired by Egypt, face a stern test in the monarchy of King Hamad bin Isa, whose family has ruled the country for more than two centuries.
http://rss.csmonitor.com/%7Er/feeds/world/%7E3/JGpUj0z6viQ/In-Bahrain-protesters-bridge-Sunni-Shiite-divide-to-challenge-monarchy
Bahrain Rising, Robin Yassin-Kassab
On the tiny island state of Bahrain an intelligent, highly politicised Shia majority is ruled by an actively sectarian Sunni ‘king’ and his mercenary police force. To ensure minimum fraternisation, and to shrink the Shia majority, Sunni Arabs from such countries as Syria, Jordan and Yemen are awarded citizenship after loyal service in the police.
http://pulsemedia.org/2011/02/15/bahrain-rising/
Overcoming Israel’s attempts to discredit protest
In recent months, Israel’s tactics to discredit legitimate protestors have become increasingly Orwellian as it steps up its campaign against human rights activists within the country and abroad, especially in the United Kingdom. Ismail Patel comments for The Electronic Intifada.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11805.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29
The Long Arab Revolution, VIJAY PRASHAD
The Arab Revolt of 2011 is unabated. Protests continue in such unlikely places as Bahrain. On Valentine’s Day, a protest march in Manama had no love for the al-Khalifah royals. It wanted to deliver its message. “Our demand is a constitution written by the people,” the protestors chanted. Opposition leader Abdul Wahab Hussain told the press, “The number of riot police is huge, but we have shown using violence against us only makes us stronger.” The police fired rubber bullets and dispersed the as yet small crowd. “This is just the beginning,” Hussain said after he had been beaten off the streets.
http://www.counterpunch.com/prashad02152011.html
Racist Subjectivity and Intellectual Dishonesty, Mohamed El Mokhtar
It felt sometimes quite depressing, and indeed demeaning, to be an Arab, living or going to school in America, during the Second Intifada, and hear ad nauseum the same old refrain chanted every minute in every media, at work, on campus: “Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel this, Israel that..!”. It is all the more insulting that, besides being quite inaccurate to a large extent, it is, inherently, dishonest to say the least. It is, also, primarily meant to hurt some more than to extol others. This is certainly the case when coming out of the mouth of openly racist and cynically biased pundits like the O’Reillys, the Cavutos, or the Blitzers of this world, and the many spins doctors to whom they give, on a daily basis, a free platform to air their one-sided and unchallenged view of the Arab-Israeli conflict or the Muslim world.
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=16655
