and other news from Today in Palestine:
Land, property, resources theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Settlers
Rightists in Jerusalem: Muhammad is dead, butcher Arabs
Ynet 2 June – Dozens of right-wing activists marching through Jerusalem Wednesday were filmed chanting inflammatory messages and singing provocative songs in the capital, including “Muhammad is dead, ‘ ‘May your village burn, ‘ ‘Death to leftists, ‘ and ‘Butcher the Arabs. ‘ The disturbing utterances were made during the traditional “Flag Dance” on the occasion of Jerusalem Day [see video (in Hebrew)]
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077292,00.html
In photos: right-wing extremist Jerusalem Day march in Sheikh Jarrah
Silwan, Jerusalem (SILWANIC) 2 June — some captions: A settler attempts to kick a Palestinian child out of his native Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood; Palestinian merchants close and barricade their shops in anticipation of the march’s destruction; One of the Sheikh Jarrah homes seized by settlers
http://silwanic.net/?p=17707
What is Jerusalem Day to the Palestinians?
Silwan, Jerusalem (SILWANIC) 2 June — …To Palestinians, the day marks the occupation of the entire eastern half of the city in 1967, reflected in present day by the demonstrations staged on the date by Israeli extremists, who flock to East Jerusalem in their thousands. The day is one of danger for Palestinian residents. In the past many have been physically attacked and had property damaged or destroyed by right-wing marchers, who enjoy the support and protection of Israeli state security forces. The marches immobilise the entire eastern city as the streets are overtaken by marchers chanting racist slogans and given free rein to cause havoc in the Palestinian neighborhoods. Many are seen to engage in binge-drinking during the marches, upping the aggression they inflict on residents.
http://silwanic.net/?p=17686
Palestinian woman beaten by colonists during march
GulfNews 1 June — Ramallah: A Palestinian teacher from Occupied East Jerusalem was admitted to hospital after a group of Israeli colonists attacked her and severely beaten her up. The attack on Noor Al Hussaini took place while she was in a supermarket buying items for her special needs students, when a group of ultra orthodox Israeli colonists attacked her for no apparent reason. Colonists did not stop beating the teacher until Palestinian residents interfered, according to sources.
http://gulfnews.com/news/region/palestinian-territories/palestinian-woman-beaten-by-colonists-during-march-1.816103
Jewish celebrations organized near banished Jerusalem officials
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 2 June — Jewish settlers celebrated Wednesday morning the occupation of Jerusalem near where the Palestinian officials have been seeking sanctuary at the Jerusalem Red Cross. The officials, two members of the Palestinian Legislative Council and a former Palestinian Authority minister, have been sitting in for almost a year after Israeli authorities ordered them to leave their native holy city … Ahmed Attoun, one of the PLC members stationed at the site, called choosing the location for the celebrations a “provocative move that reflects an extremist mentality.”
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcO
Muslim worshipers counter provocative Aqsa raid
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 1 June — Worshipers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem fought back after Jewish fanatics infiltrated the sacred site during the forty-fourth anniversary of the Israeli military occupation of Jerusalem. Muslims who had gone in reclusion since dawn prayers were dragged into intermittent clashes with the Jewish fanatics and Israeli police, the mosque security guards said … Jewish groups had announced beforehand that they would infiltrate the mosque in a bid to enforce “Israeli sovereignty” over it
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
Netanyahu’s office promoting plan to relocate 30,000 Bedouin
Haaretz 2 June — The government is to consider a plan drafted in the Prime Minister’s Office to relocate close to 30,000 Bedouin residents of unrecognized villages in the Negev to expanded areas of existing Negev Bedouin towns such as Rahat, Kseifa and Hura. The plan would involve transplanting about 40 percent of the 71,000 Bedouin residents in the unrecognized locales. The relocated Bedouin would receive both monetary compensation and alternate land.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/netanyahu-s-office-promoting-plan-to-relocate-30-000-bedouin-1.365409
Israel temporarily expels residents of Jordan Valley village
TUBAS (Ma‘an) 2 June — About 200 Palestinians were forced to leave their village in the Jordan Valley on Wednesday, locals said, instructed by Israeli forces to vacate the northern West Bank area as a training mission was conducted. According to villagers, who said soldiers and civil administration officials instructed them to move two kilometers outside the village of Khirbet Yarza, they were not told when they would be permitted to return. Residents told Ma‘an that they feared the move preempted [presaged?] their permanent expulsion from the area.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=392877
Israeli settlers clash with police during West Bank outpost demolition
2 June — Some 200 IDF soldiers, police arrive at outpost near Shilo settlement to dismantle four illegal structures; 11 lightly wounded in fray; three settlers arrested as result of clashes; video inside shows police car ablaze … The residents, who were prepared for the evacuation, blocked all roads to the outpost using large rocks and nails. During the confrontation, settlers hurled a firebomb at the vehicle of the police commander of the settlement of Benyamin.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/haaretz-exclusive-video-israeli-settlers-clash-with-police-during-west-bank-outpost-demolition-1.365518
[‘price tag’] After outpost evacuation, settlers smash 12 cars
TUBAS (Ma‘an) 2 June — Twelve Palestinian vehicles were vandalized Thursday morning, along the Nablus-Ramallah road not far from the Shilo settlement, where violence erupted before dawn as Israeli soldiers evacuated an illegal settlement outpost there. The cars’ windshields were broken by rocks, bats and sticks, locals told Ma‘an, doors dented, paint scraped and decals ripped off in what residents blamed on settler aggression … Under the policy, settlers make Palestinians “pay” for each evacuation of an outpost. In the past, the “price” has included arson, shootings, beatings, burning fields, uprooting trees and poisoning water wells belonging to Palestinians.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393096
[‘price tag’] Settlers torch crops in Nablus villages
NABLUS (Ma‘an) 2 June — For the second time this week, villagers reported fires set by settlers in farmlands south of Nablus, with Burin residents pointing the finger at residents of the Yitzhar settlement. Farmlands near the Madama and Burin villages, both south of Nablus, were ablaze Thursday afternoon, and villagers told settlements observer Ghassan Doughlas that settlers were seen in the area. Palestinian fire crews were able to contain the blazes, but several dunums of lands were wrecked, the official said. The fires came following the evacuation of a settlement outpost fifteen kilometers south of the villages.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393323
Israel creates ‘Obama’ settlement, more obstacles for viable Palestinian state / Saleh Naami
Ahram 31 May — In a move that comes as gesture of deep gratitude, the Israeli government permitted an extreme rightwing Israeli association to name a new settlement Obama. The building of settlements makes the establishment of a connected Palestinian state an impossible task … The location of the Obama settlement is along the main road that connects the West Bank’s northern and southern regions; a consequence of building the settlement would therefore be to separate those territories permanently. [not sure about this article – Ahram Online seems to be the only source]
http://english.ahram.org.eg/~/NewsContent/2/8/13353/World/Region/Israel-creates-Obama-settlement,-more-obstacles-fo.aspx
Jerusalem area settlement asks nearby mosques to turn down loudspeakers
Haaretz 2 June — The Ma’aleh Adumim local council is demanding that the loudspeakers announcing the Muslim call to prayer from some mosques in the adjacent Palestinian village of al-Eizariya be turned down because the volume is disturbing residents of the settlement, Palestinian sources told Haaretz … Beyond the religious sensitivities involved, the issue also has political implications. Last July, the Palestinian religious affairs ministry in the West Bank ordered mosques to stop reading from the Koran before the call to prayer, except during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, saying that the decision had been made in 2007 by the Palestinian Liberation Organization-Hamas unity government. Officials explained that Sunni Muslim experts did not consider the innovation to be required. Other religious figures in the West Bank disagreed, however, calling it an acceptable custom cherished in many parts of the Muslim world. About two months ago, the order eliminating the reading of the Koran was withdrawn.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/jerusalem-area-settlement-asks-nearby-mosques-to-turn-down-loudspeakers-1.365416
Gaza – under siege for 1450 days now
Gaza fishermen: Israeli navy hit skiff, 1 injured
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 2 June — Gaza fishermen said one skiff was hit and sunk Wednesday night by an Israeli naval boat off the Rafah coast. Fisherman Ahmad Abu Salmiyeh, 20, was injured after sinking with his boat following the collision, which took place near Tal As-Sultan in the southern Gaza Strip, his colleagues told Ma‘an. A group of fellow fishers rushed out to rescue him, Ma‘an’s correspondent reported.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393143
Rafah border: a dream that remains a dream
Gaza, June 1 — A major crisis mounted between Egypt and the de facto government of Gaza yesterday regarding Rafah border, which left both sides to exchange accusations of failing to create a mechanism to facilitate the crossing of Palestinians in both directions through Rafah crossing.
http://gazatimes.blogspot.com/2011/06/rafah-border-facing-crisis.html
Open border at Gaza is not so open, Palestinians find
NYTimes 1 June — GAZA — Days after Egypt, with great fanfare, opened its border permanently with Gaza, new restrictions have been imposed on Palestinians who want to cross, and the area’s Hamas rulers spoke on Wednesday with frustration and anger. Only three buses, carrying a total of 150 passengers, entered the Egyptian hall at the Rafah crossing on Wednesday, while five others remained stuck on the Palestinian side, Hamas officials said two hours before closing. “Since Tuesday, we are witnessing complications that we cannot understand,” said Salama Baraka, director of the crossing, who blamed “the Egyptian side for the nearly paralyzed movement of travelers.” Local reports said that Hamas was considering shutting the border in protest.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/02/world/middleeast/02gaza.html
Gaza crossing opens for limited goods
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 2 June — Three-hundred truckloads of goods were slated for import Thursday into the Gaza Strip, Israeli crossings officials told their Palestinian counterparts. The last shipment before the weekend will supply the commercial and humanitarian sectors serving Gaza’s 1.6 million residents, but it falls short of pre-siege levels by nearly 60 percent.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393098
Aussie surgeons to give Gaza girl ears
ABC TV 2 June — Towards Hope, a fledgling charity in Melbourne, has brought five-year-old Malak Al Ghoul across to potentially restore some hearing. Life in the Gaza Strip is hard enough, but especially so for those with a disability; Malak, one of triplets, was the only one born with a congenital condition called microtia ...It was an arduous logistical and bureaucratic task to get them to Australia, and a remarkable outcome for a family that had unsuccessfully sought help in Egypt, Israel and Jordan.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/06/02/3234254.htm?site=melbourne
Flotillas
30,000 Turks protest against Israel on Gaza flotilla raid
Xinhua 31 May — Some 30,000 Turks staged a protest against Israel on Istanbul’s main street Monday night on the anniversary of the Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. Holding candles, waving Palestinian flag and flags of Turkey and Iran, and shouting slogans such as “wait Palestinians, Mavi Marmara ship is coming” and “blockade is crime against humanitarian,” the protesters marched on the Istiklal street, the most important and prosperous business street in Istanbul, and gathered in the Taksim square. The event was organized by the Turkish nongovernmental organization the Foundation for Human Rights and Freedom and Humanitarian Relief (IHH)
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90777/90854/7396257.html
US: All flotillas provocative
Ynet 2 June — US State Department reinforces objection to Gaza-bound flotilla stressing ‘there are efficient mechanisms for getting humanitarian assistance.’ Spokesman: We’ve raised our concerns with Turkey
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077318,00.html
‘We are unarmed and we are sailing’ – on anniversary of Mavi Marmara killings, US Boat to Gaza announces passenger list
New York, NY 31 May — Organizers of the U.S. Boat to Gaza announced today that they expect some 50 people will be aboard The Audacity of Hope when it joins the second “freedom flotilla” in late June to break the siege of Gaza. So far, 34 passengers and four crew members have confirmed that they will be sailing on The Audacity of Hope. They range in age from 22 to 87 years old and live in 14 states in every region of the U.S. All are committed to non-violence. Members of the press will also be on the boat … Passengers and crew will gather in Athens on June 21, 2011 in advance of the anticipated sailing date, which will depend on weather conditions and logistics.
http://www.freegaza.org/home/56-news/1295-qwe-are-unarmed-and-we-are-sailingq-on-anniversary-of-mavi-marmara-killings-us-boat-to-gaza-announces-passenger-list?lang=en
Americans are joining flotilla to protest Israeli blockade
NYTimes 1 June — When an international flotilla sails for Gaza this month to challenge Israel’s naval blockade of the Palestinian territory, among the boats will be an American ship with 34 passengers, including the writer Alice Walker and an 86-year-old whose parents died in the Holocaust … Organizers said the new flotilla, scheduled to leave in late June from a port they would not identify, had at least 1,000 passengers on about 10 boats. One boat will carry Spaniards, another Canadians, another Swiss and another Irish.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/02/world/middleeast/02flotilla.html
Detention / Court actions
Hamas, Fatah leaders detained in West Bank
NABLUS (Ma‘an) 2 June — Israeli forces detained two members of the Palestinian Legislative Council from the Hamas and Fatah blocs overnight on Wednesday, following raids on their homes in Nablus and Tulkarem, official sources told Ma‘an. Fatah lawmaker Hussam Khader, a long-time proponent of reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, was taken from his home at 2 a.m., officials said … Palestinian security sources told Ma’an that An-Najah University professor Ghassan Thoqan was taken from his house in Nablus, as was Yasser Badersawi, the director of the Right of Return and Refugee Affairs Center. The [Israeli] spokesman confirmed, however, that Hamas lawmaker Abdul Rahmad Zeidan, also elected to the legislature in 2006, was detained from his home in Tulkarem.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393095
Trial of West Bank protest organizer Bassem Tamimi to begin Sunday
PSCC 2 June — After more than two months in custody, the trial of Bassem Tamimi, a 44 year-old protest organizer from the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, will finally begin Sunday. Tamimi, who is the coordinator of the Nabi Saleh popular committee, will plead not guilty to the charges against him. He will, however, admit to having organized demonstrations against settlement expansion and argue that it is, in fact, the Israeli Occupation that should be on trial.
https://www.popularstruggle.org/content/trial-west-bank-protest-organizer-bassem-tamimi-begin-sunday
Claim of swap deal raises hopes, ruffles feathers
CAIRO (Ma‘an) 2 June — A former Egyptian ambassador told a Cairo-based paper Thursday that 1,000 Palestinian prisoners could be released “within hours,” in exchange for the freedom of a captured Israeli soldier. The report sparked immediate reactions; hope from the families of prisoners, and swift denials from officials in Israel and Gaza. Finally, speaking to Ma‘an, the source quoted in the Egyptian paper denied the information, saying his comments were misrepresented.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393191
Naksa Day
Lebanon seals off Israel border ahead of planned demonstrations
Haaretz 2 June — Palestinian groups are planning to organize a demonstration on Sunday near the Israel-Lebanese border to commemorate the naksa, or defeat [setback], of 1967, which saw Israel occupy the West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, Syria’s Golan Heights and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula …The Lebanese army’s decision came after Israel warned Lebanon and Syria against allowing any naksa-related protests. “We shall use all means to prevent an attack on our sovereignty. You will be held accountable,” Israeli radio quoted a military source as saying.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/lebanon-seals-off-israel-border-ahead-of-planned-demonstrations-1.365563
Israel puts up barbed wire on border: Lebanon
MARJAYOUN, Lebanon (AFP) 2 June — Israeli soldiers on Thursday put up new barbed wire on the border with Lebanon, three days ahead of a planned Palestinian march, a Lebanese security official said. An AFP journalist at the scene saw the soldiers adding the wire on top of a fence already in place in the Adaisseh-Kfar Kila sector facing the Israeli town of Metulla.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2011/June/middleeast_June61.xml§ion=middleeast&col=
Netanyahu: Israel will defend its sovereignty during planned border protests
Haaretz 2 June — Prime Minister says Syria, Iran behind Nakba Day mass protests earlier this month, adding that the same elements were pushing for riots in rallies scheduled for Sunday.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/netanyahu-israel-will-defend-its-sovereignty-during-planned-border-protests-1.365571
Activism / Solidarity
Palestinians plan mass fly-in
Ynet 2 June — Amid heightened tensions over the next Gaza-bound flotilla set to depart in June, pro-Palestinian elements are planning to send a large number of activists on commercial flights to the Ben-Gurion airport in the beginning of July, with the aim of showing solidarity with the Palestinians, embarrassing the Israeli government and raising awareness for the Palestinian right of return. A report published by the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center claims the organizers of the event believe the “end the siege” convoys are “too limited” and broader actions are needed to “remove the blockade from the entire land of Palestine.” … According to the organizers’ website, the date of arrival to Ben-Gurion airport is set on July 8
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077266,00.html
Returning to Safed in shackles / Budour Youssef Hassan
EI 31 May — Much attention has been paid to the marches of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and Syria to the borders with occupied Palestine, as well as the courageous protests at the Qalandiya checkpoint in the occupied West Bank and in Gaza. But Palestinians inside what is known as the green line, Israel’s internationally recognized armistice line with the occupied West Bank and Gaza, marched on 15 May as well. We converged on the borders with Lebanon in a symbolic protest of the apartheid regime that has confiscated our lands, discriminated against us and attempted to strip us of our national identity.
http://electronicintifada.net/content/returning-safed-shackles/10025
Watch: Israeli Channel 2 (poorly) covers the protest in Nabi Salah / Joseph Dana
972mag 1 June — Recently, a popular Israeli news program visited the village of Nabi Saleh, just west of Ramallah, in order to investigate the demonstrations for an Israeli audience. They ended up producing half of hour of misleading Border Police testimonies while missing the fascinating story of Palestinian-Israeli cooperation inside the village.
http://972mag.com/israeli-channel-two-covers-demonstrations-in-nabi-saleh/
Deir Qaddis protesters stop construction of new settler road
PSCC 31 May — Demonstrators managed to drive away bulldozers that cleared path for a road connecting Route 446 to the settlement of Nili though village lands — This morning, residents of the West Bank village of Deir Qaddis noticed Israeli bulldozers working on their lands near Route 446, apparently to pave a new road to the Jewish-only settlement of Nili. At approximately 1:00 PM, villagers accompanied by activists from nearby villages went down towards the bulldozers, who have already advanced a significant distance of a few hundred meters away from Route 446 and into the lands. The protesters approached the vehicles, blocking their path and disrupting the work. The contractor, in turn, started throwing stones at the people but was eventually forced to pull back the bulldozers back towards Route 446. As soldiers arrived, it turned out that construction was being carried out without a permit.
https://www.popularstruggle.org/content/deir-qaddis-protesters-stop-construction-new-settler-road
Kufer Malek to protest new settlement on Friday
PSCC 2 June — Roughly two weeks ago, settlers from the Kohav Hashahar settlement put up two tents on a hilltop belonging to residents of Kufer Malek and set up a new outpost. Despite repeatedly raising the issue with the Israeli Civil Administration, directly and through the Palestinian coordination office, the settlers remain on the land. The people of Kufer Malek, located 17 km north east of Ramallah, will protest the establishment of the new outpost tomorrow, together with Israeli and international supporters. The procession will set out from the village’s mosque after the midday prayer, and will head towards the seized lands.
https://www.popularstruggle.org/content/kufer-malek-protest-new-settlement-friday
A summary of the Move Over AIPAC 2011 conference
1 June — On Friday we kicked off our actions with a demonstration outside the White House, and participated in the Hava Nagila parody flashmob, which has been seen by more than 50,000 people so far! See it here. On Saturday we had the privilege to hear keynote talks from The Israel Lobby authors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt, renowned authors, and a stellar panel of analysts discussing the way forward. The afternoon featured great workshops. Video coverage of Prof. Walt’s talk is now up on our website here. On Sunday we surrounded the AIPAC meeting at the convention center with chants, music and amazing visuals like the apartheid wall that turned into a Palestinian village scene and a human-powered flotilla to Gaza. See a slideshow of photo highlights here….
http://www.moveoveraipac.org/2011/06/a-summary-of-the-move-over-aipac-2011-conference/
Scottish councilor: Hamas are freedom fighters
Ynet 2 June — Scottish boycott leader backs Hamas, says equality and justice ‘words unknown to Zionists’; Councilor Jim Bollan tells Ynetnews terror group ‘elected with a bigger majority than the Israeli government’
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077577,00.html
Extrajudicial executions
Blog: Ofers’ ships took Mossad agents to Iran
Ynet 1 June — Ships belonging to the Ofer Brothers Group docked in Iranian ports dozens of times over the past few years, allowing Mossad agents to enter the Islamic Republic to carry out secret operations, American blogger Richard Silverstein claimed on Wednesday. Silverstein recounted that Israeli secret service agents who were allegedly involved in the assassination of senior Hamas operative Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai last year escaped the emirate to Iran using ferries. “That always struck me as odd given Iran’s animosity toward Israel,” he wrote. “But if there was an Ofer Brothers ship waiting to take them home it wouldn’t be strange at all.”
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077015,00.html
Political / Diplomatic / International news
US to give Israel millions for missile defense
Ynet 2 June — WASHINGTON – The US pledged record-breaking funding for Israeli defense programs Wednesday as Congress voted to add $235.7 million dollars in aid for the David’s Sling and Arrow 3 missile defense systems. The additional funding will also go towards additional Arrow 2 batteries, as well as the development of a system to defend Israel from outer space, against Iranian missiles.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077314,00.html
France presents plan to relaunch Israeli-Palestinian peace talks
dpa 2 June — During Ramallah visit, France FM says plan largely based on Barack Obama’s speech last month calling for 1967 borders with agreed land swaps; Juppe proposes world peace conference in France in July.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/france-presents-plan-to-relaunch-israeli-palestinian-peace-talks-1.365538
Hamas in Gaza, Damascus spar over unity deal
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 2 June — Senior Hamas figures are trying to play down a public spat between leaders in the Gaza Strip and Damascus over which base makes decisions on negotiating with Israel. Mahmoud Zahhar, a senior official in Gaza, and Izzat Ar-Rishiq, a high-ranking politburo member in Damascus, have spent years as party delegation members in and out of Cairo, trying to broker unity with rival movement Fatah.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=392847
Report: Clinton refuses to meet with Israeli FM
JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 2 June — An Israeli television station reported Wednesday that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had refused to meet with Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman during last week’s OECD meeting in Paris … Channel 10 said Clinton refused the meeting because of her frustration with the Israeli government over the stalemate in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, saying she holds Israel accountable. Lieberman, who lives deep in the West Bank in an illegal Israeli settlement, is against an end to settlement construction, or a return of lands housing settlements to Palestinians under a peace deal.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393242
AIPAC praises US for boycotting UN racism conference
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 2 June — The pro-Israel group AIPAC praised the Obama administration Thursday for its decision not to participate in the UN’s commemoration of the Durban World Conference Against Racism. The event, scheduled to take place in New York in September, “unfairly singled out Israel” and “displays intolerance and anti-Semitism,” a US senator’s letter circulated in an AIPAC statement explained.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393359
Israel spurs work on Egypt border fence
Ynet 2 June — The Defense Ministry vowed Thursday to spur construction on the border fence between Israel and Egypt, saying Israel hopes to complete it by 2012, a year ahead of schedule. The decision was made just days after Egypt opened the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Sinai.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077368,00.html
Egypt reviewing timetable to resume gas exports to Israel
Haaretz 2 June — Gas flows from Egypt to Israel halted in April after gang attack on metering station in North Sinai; Egypt oil minister says working to achieve ‘fair, sustainable relationship between sellers and buyers’.
http://english.themarker.com/egypt-reviewing-timetable-to-resume-gas-exports-to-israel-1.365530
Other news
Knesset rebukes Israeli Arab MK for attending Hamas-Fatah unity ceremony
Haaretz 2 June — Ahmed Tibi rebuked for failing to obtain Knesset Ethics Committee consent before traveling to Cairo with funding from a Palestinian foundation.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/knesset-rebukes-israeli-arab-mk-for-attending-hamas-fatah-unity-ceremony-1.365418
Israel to use trees as missile defense
Ynet 2 June — The Defense Ministry said Thursday it was working on paving a “secret road” between Gaza vicinity towns in order to make it more difficult for terrorists to fire at vehicles … The new road passes between trees, which block it from view. Currently being paved with asphalt, it is 3.5 km long and has been estimated to cost around $1.3 million.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077534,00.html
Closing Gaza gap, Israel posts Iron Dome in Sderot
SDEROT, Israel (Reuters) 2 June – Israel has deployed an Iron Dome rocket interceptor outside a Gaza border town that has borne the brunt of Palestinian shelling attacks, posing a new test for the fledgling system underwritten by Washington … Noting the recent ebb in violence along the frontier of Islamist Hamas-ruled Gaza, Rubin said: “Let’s hope action by Iron Dome is not required. But as a rule, Israel does not bring systems that are not operational into a war zone.”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110602/wl_nm/us_palestinians_israel_irondome_2
42%: Rabbis worsen conflict with Arabs
Ynet 2 June — Poll finds differences in perception of religion’s influence on relations between Jews, Israeli Arabs and Palestinians. Forty-five percent believe religion pushes nations apart
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4075335,00.html
Gaza official: Progress on smoking ban
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 2 June — As World No Tobacco Day was marked in Gaza, the Hamas lawmaker responsible for health policy said progress would be made in banning smoking in public places in the coastal enclave. The Palestinian legislative council passed a law forbidding smoking in public space in 2005, but it has yet to be fully implemented.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393151
Foreign ministry, IDF at odds over Russia military attaché expulsion
Haaretz 2 June — …While the Foreign Ministry says Leiderman was responsible for getting himself booted out of Russia, senior Israel Defense Forces officials contend that the decision to expel the attaché was made at the highest levels of the Russian government and that its purpose was to send a message to Jerusalem.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/foreign-ministry-idf-at-odds-over-russia-military-attache-expulsion-1.365412
Analysis / Opinion
Fear is driving Israelis to obtain foreign passports / Gideon Levy
Haaretz 2 June — More and more Israelis apply for a foreign passport, not for easier travel but because something has gone terribly wrong here ... The foreign passport has become an insurance policy against a rainy day. It turns out there are more and more Israelis who are thinking that day may eventually come … Passports? If the Palestinian people already had one real passport, maybe the Israelis wouldn’t need two. If Israel were to try at long last to be accepted in its region, with all that entails, then maybe the region would open to it by means of a single, blue and white passport.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/fear-is-driving-israelis-to-obtain-foreign-passports-1.365454
Pro & Con: Should the 1967 borders guide Israeli-Palestinian peace plan? / Mustafa Barghouthi
Yes. But the details matter: no conditions, no ‘swaps,’ no settlements … Our best West Bank land and aquifers would go to Israeli settlements in exchange for sub-standard land elsewhere. Already, Israel uses 80 percent of West Bank water resources and on a per capita basis Israeli settlers use approximately 48 times more water than Palestinians. The current unjust water distribution is likely to be made permanent if Israel keeps settlements, all of which are illegal under international law. Israel’s retention of settlement blocs and a military presence in the Jordan Valley will make our state noncontiguous and nonviable. Our state would be little more than disconnected Bantustans.
http://www.ajc.com/opinion/pro-con-should-the-962693.html
A Palestinian call to engage with the ‘Jewish question’ / Marzouq El-Halabi
972blog 2 June — The Palestinian discourse must leave denial behind and engage seriously with the Jewish and Zionist questions. No more talk of the victorious and the defeated, victims and victimizers, but a new narrative shared by both sides of the conflict … I believe the Palestinians have avoided engaging with the Holocaust and its implications for fear it would detract from their right over the land and shake a central tenet of their narrative — that the Jews are not a people, that their arrival in Palestine was a purely colonialist development and that they, the Jews, are not the ultimate victim they believe themselves to be.
http://972mag.com/making-history-a-call-for-a-shared-narrative-of-the-conflict/
Time running out for two-state solution / Mel Frykberg
RAMALLAH (IPS) 2 June — Time is of the essence if the implementation of a two-state solution to end the protracted Israeli-Palestinian conflict is to succeed. Changing demographics both within Israeli and Palestinian society could render this impossible, with a one-state solution the only feasible outcome. An eventual one-state solution, however, would lead to two possible scenarios. Either Israel would extend the franchise to all Palestinians in the occupied territories, which would lead to the end of Israel’s Jewish character, or Palestinians would be denied the vote and Israel would be officially pronounced an apartheid state.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=55895
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