A weekend of terror in Occupied Palestine

IDF thugs attack Palestinian and International activists in June; though this video is months old, it merits all the exposure we can give it.

Land, property theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Restriction of Movement

Bedouin oppose Israeli plans to relocate communities
Bedouin in the occupied West Bank and in Israel’s Negev desert say they fear for their future as new reports circulate that the Israeli authorities plan to relocate them. International aid and Bedouin groups say tens of thousands of people could ultimately be affected.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15024958

Israel stalling release of damning report on West Bank outpost
The outpost, Derekh Ha’avot, established early 2001 and is home to about 35 families; according to report 60 percent of the community is on Palestinian farmland.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israel-stalling-release-of-damning-report-on-west-bank-outpost-1.395218?localLinksEnabled=false

West Bank settlement is outdoing its neighboring Bedouin village
Dozens of people in Umm al-Khayr live in grinding poverty, next to a few hundred people to whom Israel has generously supplied, in the heart of the desert, the amenities for leading a comfortable modern life.

http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/magazine/west-bank-settlement-is-outdoing-its-neighboring-bedouin-village-1.395014

Arabs squeezed as Jerusalem expands
Geographically, Beit Safafa – one of Jerusalem’s more middle-class Arab districts with a large minority of its residents, like Mr Akel, Israeli-Arab migrants from northern Israel – is not in east but south Jerusalem. But politically the neighbourhood is clearly on the Palestinian side of the “green line” that divided the city between 1948 and Israel’s conquest of the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967. This means the plan for Givat Hamatos, a large tract of open land with a temporary cluster of prefabs housing a small group of Ethiopian Jews, is not only illegal in international law but also a “provocative action” of just the sort the United Nations, European Union and United States warned against in September when they were trying to revive the peace process. And it is part of a wider policy that may help to explain the frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Barack Obama vented in his now famous G20 meeting with Nicolas Sarkozy.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/arabs-squeezed-as-jerusalem-expands-6261622.html

Palestinian gov’t urges UNESCO to protect holy sites from Jewish settlers
The Palestinian government in Gaza appealed to the UNESCO to necessarily protect the Palestinian holy sites and heritage from ongoing acts of sabotage and destruction by Jewish settlers.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s76bPZatOSMklU9bzCCjwwA987zt5vn63ysOQZAgMrKlgyKmS4LjT3IbJC689jxCMttiHzu59bY4iHMdb7HGSvnrFQNLEIN3ohp2oxLK%2bdpFo%3d

Raed Salah wins permission to appeal against deportation decision
A press statement issued Friday by Irvine Thanvi Natas Solicitors, the law firm representing Sheikh Raed Salah, said that he won permission to appeal the ruling of the First-tier Immigration Tribunal.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7NLRt5Wr%2fGmiQUUEZfKJBfTKlopLBDTZ%2f5prx0Z%2bYvCTRaX1uoqRlLn3VDO2HantaMp2gFG%2fVFCDiJrSELIw1DEDof7voV5CQ2mi54m1oSTY%3d

New Sheikh Jarrah Video from Just Vision
Just Vision, the folks I interned for last spring, are out with, “Home Front is a new series of four video portraits chronicling the resolve of a neighborhood, and the support it receives from the most unexpected of places.” It documents different Israelis and Palestinians involved in the Sheikh Jarrah movement, including a Palestinian teenager whose family who was evicted. TOD’s own Amir Terkel worked on the film. It is a wonderful primer on the movement, well worth the half hour or so to watch all four.
http://theonlydemocracy.org/2011/11/new-sheikh-jarrah-video-from-just-vision/

Israeli Regime Violence Against Palestinians and International Activists 

Israeli occupation gunboats fire at fishing boats opposite Gaza
Israeli occupation gunboats on Friday morning opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats opposite Gaza City coast, no casualties were reported.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7iscv7hlRq25k1Fu4wt%2fFeMWLXs7RmHmf9DOP7iHwpkLCB70P5eoYQFKTfe3I2CWGkMUbGY3LNcjYydlReStESPPVPJztJT3BE%2b4xeUrpYfo%3d

IOF troops open machinegun fire at Palestinian farms in southern Gaza on Saturday
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) opened their heavy machineguns from military watchtowers at Palestinian farms and homes on Saturday.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7I%2fvIS2kiDZS2bYIP8e8u5p6IO3ZmC1D11styRhirRtL2wd6od5nwH39zgL9aLIGrWHpWgBHNi6LZYpVDvmtGgldX3U9A%2bxtmmU973TTmhg4%3d

Nabi Saleh Protest Organizer Shot in Face at Weekly Protest
In the village of an-Nabi Salah, in the district of Ramallah, an organizer of the weekly non-violent protest, Abu Hussam Tamimi, was shot in the face by the Israeli military, at a distance of approximately 20 meters, according the the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee, on Friday.
http://www.imemc.org/article/62490

As B’TSelem documents shooting of man, employee is arrested
A 55 year old Palestinian man was taken to hospital from Nabi Saleh due to an injury from a rubber coated steel bullet.  After two hours of demonstrating the Israeli Occupation Forces invaded Nabi Saleh and arrested one Palestinian, 36 year old Bilal Tamimi, who works for B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights organization.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/11/21483/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29

Injuries Reported at Five Non-Violent Protests; Multiple Arrests
Non-violent protests took place in five locations on Friday, in different parts of the West Bank, resulting in injuries at all five locations and arrests in the village of al-Ma’sara, near Bethlehem, Kafr Qaddum, near Qalqilya, and an-Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah.
http://www.imemc.org/article/62491

Violent clashes following Israeli violent raid on Silwan
Violent clashes erupted Friday evening in Silwan district between Jerusalemite young men and Israeli soldiers after the latter kidnapped young man Hamed Jaber from his home in the area.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7yR2IHUq2%2fVCjFPBybDyKK7XG2sewNfVndJZw2Oyzp9KtuKdh0JOtX3OE%2byrZuKU12BBZbks76P5jeLYBEu9eJ%2fxr7FC3xtvFASjblf%2bHMb8%3d

Palestinians, foreign activists hurt in IOF crackdown
Palestinian citizens and foreign solidarity activists were treated for teargas suffocation after Israeli occupation forces (IOF) used teargas to quell a peaceful anti wall march in Bilin village.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7LqwoYqHmM6fd6mH%2fI%2b2KHN6eMKocjax84EJAyeYURRzGxowC0p%2bI8rKGYhHNCjC3m6C%2bdi6fiFIGSMSf5LX%2brq2uDEur3MfI9KLZMMxcrRs%3d

Settler Terrorism Against Palestinians 

22 Palestinians Injured, 100 Trees Damaged in Settler Attacks in Week, says OCHA
JERUSALEM, November 12, 2011 (WAFA) – A total of 22 Palestinians  were injured and over 100 olive trees damaged in clashes and settler attacks between October 26 and November 1st, according to the Protection of Civilians Weekly Report issued Saturday by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). During the week, when the Israeli government announced plans to  construct 2,000 new settlement housing units in the Jerusalem area, Palestinian injuries and property losses continued to occur in protests against access restrictions aimed at protecting existing settlements, as well as in settler attacks.  OCHA documented six settler attacks leading to casualties or property damage, all of which took place in the context of the olive harvest.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17985

OCHA: Settler Attacks against Palestinians Increased by 40% in 2011
JERUSALEM, November 12, 2011 (WAFA) – The weekly average settler attacks resulting in Palestinian casualties and property damage has increased by 40% in 2011 compared to 2010, and by over 165% compared to 2009, according to a report issued Saturday by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). In 2011, three Palestinians were killed and 167 injured by Israeli settlers, whereas one Palestinian was killed and 101 others injured by Israeli soldiers during clashes between Israeli settlers and Palestinians, said the report. Eight Israeli settlers were killed and 30 others injured by Palestinians in 2011, compared to five killed and 43 injured in 2010.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17984

Gaza Siege  

Egypt detains 4 Palestinians in Rafah
EL-ARISH (Ma’an) — Egyptian forces on Friday detained four Palestinians suspected of trying to enter Egypt through underground tunnels from Gaza, security sources said.  Egyptian security officials said three students and a merchant were seized exiting a tunnel in Rafah, a city straddling the Egypt-Gaza border. They have been detained for questioning, the officials added.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=435988

Int’l delegation in Gaza soon to issue declaration against blockade
About 200 parliamentary and political figures from different countries are expected to arrive in the besieged Gaza Strip on 21 November.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7O2Fiu%2bgGjLyjPCKakuyyC2A7mf7ASW%2fRWqE8QsDvjWPhGJBdfLa2K%2bl%2fA%2bkdtoQkJ%2bZVG0ybhw3v0uTsiKkc%2f%2bbYd8P3cBUiSYo9Ee9tI6w%3d

Child Arrests / Political Detainees / Prisoner Swap 

Israeli navy kidnaps two Palestinian children and uncle fishing in Gazan waters
Seventeen-year-old Abdul Qader Baker still has no idea why the Israeli navy surrounded his small fishing boat at 4 a.m. Thursday morning, ordered him, his 17-year-old cousin Mohamed Baker, and his uncle, Arafat Baker, to strip off their clothes, stand shivering in their underwear for an hour and a half and ultimately forced the group to Ashod.  The two high school students were released approximately twelve hours later, but their uncle remains in Israeli detention. “I was so scared and it was so cold,” Abdul Qader reported.  After the Israeli navy ordered the group to take off their clothes, Abdul Qader stated that “for two hours I had to stand, not moving, while [Israeli] snipers pointed their guns at me.”
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/11/israeli-navy-kidnaps-two-palestinian-children-and-uncle-fishing-in-gazan-waters/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29

Two youth arrested in Silwan, another detained
 Israeli forces arrested two young teens and detained a third on Thursday, 3 November in the district Al-Ein, Silwan. Hamza Jawad Jaber, 14, was accused of throwing stones at Israeli forces. Muhammad Mahmoud Shwayat, 17, was arrested the same day. Jaber’s 13-year old brother Fareed was also detained and taken for interrogation. Fareed’s father, present at the interrogation as his guardian, was assaulted by investigators and forced to leave the room. Investigators accused Fareed father of attempting to speak with his son. The father later told Silwanic that “the interrogators’ merely wanted to be alone with my son, to exert pressure on him more easily.” This is a common occurrence in interrogation of Palestinian minors, wherein parents or guardians are ejected from the investigation room by officers, who claim that the guardian is disrupting investigation. Shwayat appeared in court the same day, and was sentenced to house arrest outside Silwan in Shuafat Camp. He is not permitted to return to Silwan until the sentence is over.
http://silwanic.net/?p=21820

Youth arrested in Bir Ayyub
Haitham Quadir, 20, was arrested by Israeli forces in Bir Ayyub district of Silwan on Thursday, 3 November. On-lookers attempted to inform Israeli troops that Quadir suffers from multiple health issues and that they should reconsider the arrest, a request ignored by troops.
http://silwanic.net/?p=21823 

Family says students detained while picking olives in Salfit
SALFIT (Ma’an) — Israeli forces detained two men on Saturday while they were picking olives near the separation wall north of Salfit in the northern West Bank, family members said.  Islam Afana, a high school student and Saed Afana, a university student, were detained by Israeli soldiers while they were picking olives in the family’s field behind the separation wall, relatives said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=436154

Israeli forces ‘stop funeral’ near Hebron, make arrests
HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israeli forces intervened in the funeral of a Palestinian woman in Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, on Friday, Palestinian activists in the West Bank village said.  Muhammad Ayyad Awad of the local popular committee said soldiers stopped the funeral from reaching a cemetery on the main road. The people had to go through a bypass road to reach the cemetery.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=436010

Kufr Qaddoum: In the footsteps of an unwarranted arrest
Following the first barrage of tear gas during November 11th’s peaceful demonstration in Kufr Qaddoum , some Israeli soldiers began to make their way into the village. The soldiers picked up one villager, 30 year old Hazzem Barham, who was lying down unconscious from the tear gas and arrested him; carrying him into their jeep. Minutes later, after documenting the arrest of Barham, soldiers targeted an activist from the United States, handcuffed him and took him into a second jeep. Whilst arrested, soldiers took turns beating him, presumably for his solidarity with the non-violent Palestinian resistance.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/11/kufr-qaddoum-in-the-footsteps-of-an-unwarranted-arrest/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29

Alternative Information Center academic arrested
Alternative Information Center academic and activist Yakub Abu Assab was arrested in a night raid on his home by Israeli forces on Friday morning, 4 November. Forces stormed his home at 2am on Friday, arresting Assab. In addition to his work with the AIC, Assab serves as a member of the National Committee for Resisting Exile. He has been targeted for arrest many times by Israeli forces over the past seven years, and is now accused by Israeli officials of being an Islamic labor leader in Jerusalem. Many such figures have been arrested in the wake of the Israel-Hamas prisoner swap agreement.
http://silwanic.net/?p=21818

Occupation renews administrative detention of Asfour for eighth time
The Israeli occupation authorities renewed on Thursday the administrative detention of Hamas leader Adnan Asfour, 47, for another three months.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7uhDCAQvIK%2bTl0KHI%2b7VP6qJ%2b44oM1%2ftgt8JbsTd7avAxoGzwXcswYoQwRYxSc%2bSUdf5XkJkqHg19b85D3vpYcaG%2bUDfuXYyNg42qfPt5V8w%3d

Palestinian captives transferred to hospital as his health deteriorates
Palestinian sources said that the Eishel prison administration moved Reyad al-Ammour to Ramlah prison hospital because of the deterioration in his health, pointing out that he suffers heart problems.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7NavMIewLDNcaukchSuu84q7iK%2fM0cUQncFKA9IEpXaAw3Pum7I8qAJ1A9gQZnL6FzmcZn7VoCEGoBZ9ooqHvULPbluIGWbU9b2euY3H5%2bCE%3d

Israel in breach of prisoner swap deal, report
Ramallah, Nov 12 (Petra) — Israel did not live up to a prisoner swap deal reached with Hamas group last month and continued arbitrary measures against Palestinian detainees, according to a Palestinian Authority report issued Saturday. The report, released by the Ministry of Prisoners’ Affairs, said Israel had not made good on a pledge to end collective punishment against thousands of prisoners, including allowing visits by relatives, after the deal under which more than one thousand Palestinians held in Israeli jails won their freedom in return for the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. ”The Israeli government has not committed to what has been agreed, particularly a waiver of arbitrary measures against the prisoners after the deal was implemented as a ban on university education for the detainees still stands and the money paid for that purpose withheld along with police raids on prisoners’ quarters,” it added. ”Those measures escalated in a punitive fashion with the introduction of new penalties, that had not existed before the deal,” added the document. It said relatives of prisoners from the Gaza Strip had been barred from seeing their loved ones for the fifth year in a row.
http://www.petra.gov.jo/Public_News/Nws_NewsDetails.aspx?Site_Id=1&lang=2&NewsID=48981&CatID=13&Type=Home&GType=1

Solidarity / Activism / Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions

Occupation releases the last of solidarity activists of the Freedom Waves
Israeli occupation authorities released the rest of the international solidarity activists who were detained by the occupation authorities when their aid boats were hijacked.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7iyRg8sNfpk1xoMVC1jbce2n8A43tigxdYnGT%2bbnE1OAzabMtiWlVvCNQf2QrWCtL7bo4qw5cWpUtXJXBhT9X8tEQJUJbg5UwqevsaoKKV7E%3d

Proceedings in US National’s Civil Suit Over West Bank Injury to Begin on Thursday
Tristan Anderson, a US National, suffered a life-threatening injury after being shot in the head with a high velocity tear-gasprojectile during an anti-Wall demonstration on March 13th, 2009. On 13 March 2009, Israeli Border Police officers shot US activist from California,Tristan Anderson, in the head with a high velocity tear-gas projectile during a demonstration in the West Bank Village of Ni’ilin. He was shot from a distance of about 40 meters away, at a time when no clashes or protesters were in his immediate vicinity. As a result of the shooting, Anderson suffered serious brain damage and the loss of his eye, as well as being paralyzed on half of his body. His injuries prevent him from functioning as an independent adult. A criminal investigation into the incident by the Israeli police is still pending.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/11/proceedings-in-us-nationals-civil-suit-over-west-bank-injury-to-begin-on-thursday/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29

Bill in Congress seeks to investigate US Boat to Gaza for “terrorist” ties, Ali Abunimah
A bill introduced in the United States Congress last month would require the State Department to investigate “The sources of any logistical, technical, or financial support for the Gaza flotilla ships, including the Audacity of Hope, that were set to set sail from Greece on July 1, 2011.”
http://electronicintifada.net/blog/ali-abunimah/bill-congress-seeks-investigate-us-boat-gaza-terrorist-ties

Return to Anatot, Pogrom Redux, Richard Silverstein
In a few hours, the courageous activists of Sheikh Jarrah will return to Anatot (English here), the site of a horrific pogrom several weeks ago which involved a knife assault by a settler hooligan-resident, a sexual assault, and broken ribs and noses suffered by the protesters.  I only wish I could join them myself.  But if you are in Israel and see this in time and can join the hevra, please do so.  It is critical to rally in support of the Palestinian farmer denied access to his fields by the Anatot settlement.  It is critical to support the right to protest in a free country.
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011/11/10/return-to-anatot-pogrom-redux/

Fact Check!: DePaul students disrupt ‘Israel 101′; Northwestern students walk out on Israel propagandist
On the evening of November 10th, students and community members staged two simultaneous walkouts at events promoting Israel’s narrative of its history and  politics. At Northwestern University’s Evanston campus, demonstrators held a silent walkout during a presentation by Gil Hoffman, an Israeli military reservist and journalist. Meanwhile, on DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus, students and community members used the “People’s Mic” technique – popularized by Occupy Wall Street – to disrupt a presentation sponsored by the organization Stand With Us. Organizers say that they protested because the presentations omitted the disturbing reality of Israel’s repeated  violations of international law and countless human rights abuses against the Palestinian people.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/fact-check-depaul-students-disrupt-israel-101.html

Palestine comes to Atlanta: Linking the US and Palestinian civil rights movements, Jesse Benjamin
As the Civil Rights Mecca, Atlanta played a huge role in the global divestment campaign to bring down South African apartheid in the Seventies and Eighties. Now Atlanta is becoming a major site in the growing struggle for justice in Palestine.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/palestine-comes-to-atlanta-linking-the-us-and-palestinian-civil-rights-movements.html

Palestinian Freedom Riders to ride settler buses to Jerusalem
Inspired by the Freedom Rides of the US Civil Rights Movement Palestinian activists will attempt to board segregated Israeli settler buses to occupied East Jerusalem. Groups of Palestinian Freedom Riders will attempt to board segregated settler buses heading to Jerusalem through the occupied West Bank this Tuesday November 15, in an act of civil disobedience that takes its inspiration from the US Civil Rights Movement Freedom Riders aim to challenge Israel’s apartheid policies, the ban on Palestinians’ access to Jerusalem, and the overall segregated reality created by a military and settler occupation that is the cornerstone of Israel’s colonial regime. While parallels exist between occupied Palestine and the segregated U.S. South in terms of the underlying racism and the humiliating treatment suffered then by blacks and now by Palestinians, there are also significant differences. In the 1960s U.S. South, black people had to sit in the back of the bus; in occupied Palestine, Palestinians are not even allowed ON the bus nor on the roads that the buses travel on, which are built on stolen Palestinian land.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/11/palestinian-freedom-riders-to-ride-settler-buses-to-jerusalem/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+palsolidarity+%28International+Solidarity+Movement%29

The story of one young person’s decision to quit his job in the Jewish community over Israel, Michael Deheeger
On October 26, I resigned from my position as Chicago Program Director for AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps. Each day I have spent in this job has been a blessing, but I have no choice in light of AVODAH’s decision to co-sponsor a 10-day “service-learning” trip to Israel with the American Jewish World Service through their joint initiative Pursue: Action for a Just World.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/the-story-of-one-young-persons-decision-to-quit-his-job-in-the-jewish-community-over-israel.html

Sexism 

As ultra-Orthodox flex muscle, Israel feminists see a backsliding
Women who thought Israel’s battle for gender equality was mostly won warn of a new assault from the fast-growing ultra-Orthodox, seeking to expand religious-based segregation into the public realm. When public buses rumble to a stop in some of Jerusalem’s religious neighborhoods, women often dutifully enter by the rear door and sit in the back, leaving the front for men.
http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/latimes/middleeast/~3/WEKvwdXzgfQ/la-fg-israel-women-20111113,0,1442937.story

 Political Developments / Diplomacy / Other News

 Zahhar: No negotiations with Israel
Political bureau member of Hamas Dr. Mahmoud Al-Zahhar has affirmed that his movement had not and would not hold any negotiations with Israel.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7WZeuFtdecENQ3g9ZLtN1C%2foSj7qSyJVCL5n41oX2tLYCP%2bFHHkWfSUc53dWZ1OEF5ENuJ8s4GMlhnYZPr67KDEL2xkHOjJ%2f7cJ1CYjg8thc%3d

Abbas announces meeting with Mishaal within 10 days
Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas announced on Friday that he would meet with Hamas political bureau chairman Khaled Mishaal within the next ten days to iron out reconciliation differences.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7iOFGp%2f7hsKCYEQ%2bWO1e%2fOAz8v0ZG6gXPsKac%2bWl%2flUTkSCubqP%2foRWwTZ2iOeIG%2fQ3kKLJJMY4q5QWQmQTX0nnq14sxPPrvvkP%2f1%2bH%2f6GoU%3d

Palestinian-UN Bid Rejected
UN Admission Committee, specialized for recognizing new states’ applications, submitted its report to the UN Security Council on Friday, reading that the Palestinian-UN full membership has been rejected after discussions regarding the Palestinian bid.
http://www.imemc.org/article/62493

Palestinians ponder next step in their statehood bid
After their successful bid to join UNESCO, they now seem uncertain about how best to win full U.N. membership. Leaders have acknowledged they don’t have the votes needed in the Security Council. After gaining momentum with their successful bid to join UNESCO, Palestinians now seem uncertain about their next move to win full membership in the United Nations and frustrated with their progress.
http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/latimes/middleeast/~3/yffAArVliXE/la-fg-palestinians-un-20111112,0,3910288.story

Philippine: Time for Palestine to Gain Full UN Membership
RAMALLAH, November 12, 2011 (WAFA) – Philippine non-resident Ambassador to the Palestinian Authority, Julius Torres Saturday said it’s time for Palestine to fully exercise its rights and gain full membership in the United Nations, according to a press release issued by the foreign ministry. Torres, who is also the Pilipino ambassador to Jordan, in a meeting with the Assistant Foreign Minister for Asian and African Affairs, Mohammad Tarshehani, in Ramallah, stressed his country’s supporting position of the Palestinian cause up to establishing the Palestinian independent state. Torres also congratulated the Palestinian people for gaining a full membership in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Tarshehani and Torres discussed the political relations between Philippine and Palestine, as well as worked on a framework for economic, cultural, educational, tourist and athletic cooperation between the two sides.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17989

Rick Perry: Israel Foreign Aid Starts ‘At Zero’ [UPDATED]
Rick Perry called for a radical new approach to American foreign aid spending in the GOP debate Saturday night, proposing that all aid be reduced “to zero,” and then be re-implemented only once the country made a good case for their aid. Asked later in the night if he included Israel in that plan, Perry said he did. ”Obviously Israel is a special ally, and my guess is we would be funding them at a high level,” Perry said, “but everyone should come in at zero.” It wasn’t quite calling for the end of foreign aid to Israel — Perry was quite clear he supported it — but the tricky question demonstrated the difficulty of the proposition he made earlier in the night.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/12/rick-perry-cut-foreign-aid-israel_n_1090535.html

Bachmann: Obama Favors American Protesters Over Israel, Ali Gharib
During tonight’s national security and foreign policy GOP presidential debate on CBS, Rep. Michele Bachmann (MN) said that President Obama favors Americans protesting against income inequality over Israel, the U.S.’s chief ally in the Middle East. Bachmann said: President Obama has been more than willing to stand with Occupy Wall Street, but he hasn’t been willing to stand with Israel. Israel looks at President Obama, and they do not see a friend.
http://thinkprogress.org/security/2011/11/12/367165/bachmann-obama-favors-american-protesters-over-israel/

PA marks Arafat’s death: ‘He was poisoned’
Ceremonies marking 7th anniversary of Palestinian leader’s death held in West Bank and abroad. Wife: Secret of Yasser’s death went with him to the grave.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4147072,00.html

Even when Palestinians have nothing to do with Israeli crimes, terrorism is invoked: Rabbi killed by IDF fire to receive terror victim status
Defense Ministry decides to recognize Mount Hebron shooting incident as act of terror so that victim’s families will be eligible for National Insurance aid.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4146965,00.html

U.S. / Other Mideast News 

Arab-American man arrested by mistake in Michigan (Reuters)
Reuters – The Arab-American head of a Dearborn, Michigan community center was arrested by local police on suspicion of being wanted for funneling money to Lebanon’s Hezbollah, but was later found to be the wrong man and released, the FBI said on Saturday.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111113/us_nm/us_mistaken_arrest_michigan

Nasrallah: Military Intervention in Syria Will Spiral into Regional War
In his latest televised speech, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned that military intervention in Syria will lead to a regional war. He also chastised the US for cutting funding to UNESCO for the latter’s recognition of a Palestinian state.
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/nasrallah-military-intervention-syria-will-spiral-regional-war?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AlAkhbarEnglish+%28Al+Akhbar+English%29

Arab League sanctions for Syria
The Arab League votes to suspend Syria from its meetings and impose other sanctions over its failure to end a government crackdown on protesters.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-middle-east-15706851

Pro-Assad protesters storm diplomatic missions in Syria
‘We sacrifice our blood and our soul for you, Bashar,’ the crowd shouted, according to neighborhood residents.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/pro-assad-protesters-storm-diplomatic-missions-in-syria-1.395260?localLinksEnabled=false

Iraq Violence Kills 7, Including Iranian Pilgrims
Over the last two days, at least four Iraqis were killed and 14 more were wounded in poorly covered attacks. Three Iranian pilgrims were killed as well, along with seven more who were injured during one bombing in Samarra. Due to the Eid al-Adha observances, reports were scant this week.
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2011/11/11/iraq-violence-kills-7-including-iranian-pilgrims/

Police say kidnappings on rise in Iraqi city (AP)
AP – An Iraqi police commander says rival gangs seeking ransom money to fund terror attacks are behind the recent abductions of four people in a volatile northern city.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111112/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq

Egypt court bars former NDP members from vote; U.N. rights body warns of dwindling freedom of speech
An Egyptian court has ruled that members of ousted President Hosni Mubarak’s former party should be barred from running in a parliamentary election that starts this month, possibly opening the way to a host of legal challenges to candidate lists, as the U.N. human rights body warned that the space for freedom of expression was shrinking in Egypt.
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/11/11/176623.html

Niger to grant Gaddafi son asylum
Saadi Gaddafi to be given refuge on humanitarian grounds, as he is sought in Libya for murder-related charges.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/11/20111112145258177589.html

World’s poor to wait ‘200 years’ for sanitation
A global plan to halve by 2015 the number of people without access to sanitation is failing so badly that some of the world’s poorest countries will not have this basic necessity for another 200 years.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/worlds-poor-to-wait-200-years-for-sanitation-6261623.html

Iran

Obama: US, Russia seek ‘common response’ on Iran
HONOLULU, Hawaii (AFP) — President Barack Obama said the United States and Russia would seek a “common response” to Iran’s nuclear challenge, despite strong reservations about new sanctions expressed by Moscow. After meeting Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Obama said both sides “reaffirmed our intention to work to shape a common response so we can move Iran to follow its international obligations when it comes to its nuclear program.”
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=436268

Military strike against Iran Unlikely
Defence officials from both Israel and the US have publicly hosed down speculation that an attack on Iran’s nuclear program is imminent.
http://www.imemc.org/article/62488

Israel allegedly refuses to disclose its plans to U.S. regarding Iran
Israel has “rebuffed” President Obama’s request that it disclose any plans to attack Iraq, according to an anonymously sourced article in the U.K. newspaper The Daily Telegraph. Allegedly Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta was told in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel would offer no guarantees that it would consult the U.S. before making a military strike against Iran.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/11/12/israel-allegedly-refuses-to-disclose-its-plans-to-u-s-regarding-iran/

U.S. to Sell Bunker Buster Bombs to UAE for Use Against Iran, Richard Silverstein
It’s a sly and devious approach to promoting Middle East arms proliferation and saber rattling against Iran: the Obama administration (unlike the Bush administration which refused to do so) has already supplied Israel with the bunker buster bombs which they would need to (try to) take out Iran’s nuclear facilities.  But this makes us look like Israel’s weapons pimp.  So what better way to defuse that claim than by arming an Arab country that hates Iran almost as much as Israel, with the same weapons?  Now, if only Israel can persuade UAE to launch a joint attack on Iran you’d have an Israeli-Arab Coalition of the Willing, even if it’s only two.
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011/11/11/u-s-to-sell-bunker-buster-bombs-to-uae-for-use-against-iran/

Bahrain joins Israeli/U.S. drumbeats of war against Iran in an attempt to delegitimize dissent: Cell ‘plotting attacks on Bahrain’ busted
Spokesman says five arrested planned to target interior ministry, Saudi embassy and a causeway.
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2011/11/20111112173937249352.html

Shin Bet Withheld Iran Secrets from Lieberman as Security Risk, Richard Silverstein
Israel Defense, the publication which covers the Israeli defense industry, reports that when Avigdor Lieberman was Minister for Strategic Affairs, in an earlier iteration of the Netnayahu government, the Shin Bet, which determines security clearances, refused to approve access to some of the nation’s secret information about Iran.  In contrast, the current minister filling that portfolio, Moshe Yaalon, has full access.
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011/11/10/shin-bet-withheld-iran-secrets-from-lieberman-as-security-risk/

Reality Withdrawal:The Iran Nuclear Scare™ Cycle Continues, Nima Shirazi
A report from the semi-official Fars News Agency in Iran is sure to send the Bomb Iran crowd into a frenzy. But it shouldn’t. ”Parliamentary sources revealed on Saturday that Iran’s legislature is due to discuss the country’s withdrawal from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director-general released a biased report against Iran,” Fars reported. The Vice-Chairman of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Mohammad Kowsari said a commission would consider withdrawing from the NPT in response to “a relevant demand by a major political faction of the Iranian university students.”
http://www.wideasleepinamerica.com/2011/11/reality-withdrawal-iran-nuclear-scare.html

The Little Iran Nuclear Report that Couldn’t, Juan Cole
A key allegation in the IAEA report on Iranian nuclear activities has fallen apart. Gareth Porter has been able to use interviews and other material to demonstrate that Vyacheslav Danilenko, a Russian scientist referred to without being identified in the report, is not a nuclear weapons expert. His field is nanotechnology (making tiny machines), and Iran has been looking into making diamonds with nanotechnology, bypassing the middle man.
http://www.juancole.com/2011/11/the-little-iran-nuclear-report-that-couldnt.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+juancole%2Fymbn+%28Informed+Comment%29

Striking Iran: Israel’s War Wager, Jonathan Cook 
Israel is trying to exploit the international community’s uncertainty about how to respond to this week’s report by the UN nuclear watchdog on Iran’s nuclear program to justify a possible military strike against Iran. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s report indicated Iran has secretly worked for years on developing a nuclear warhead and might still be doing so. The IAEA report is certain to lead to demands by the US and Europe for stiffer sanctions on the Iranian regime. Russia and China, meanwhile, have urged dialogue and cooperation with Iran. Amid the divisions, British government officials said this week that Israel was preparing to launch a military attack on Iran’s suspected nuclear sites within the next two months, probably with logistical support from the United States.
http://www.jkcook.net/Articles3/0580.htm#Top

Iran’s “Soviet Nuclear Scientist” Never Worked on Weapons, GARETH PORTER
The report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) published by a Washington think tank Tuesday repeated the sensational claim previously reported by news media all over the world that a former Soviet nuclear weapons scientist had helped Iran construct a detonation system that could be used for a nuclear weapon.  But it turns out that the foreign expert, who is not named in the IAEA report but was identified in news reports as Vyacheslav Danilenko, is not a nuclear weapons scientist but one of the top specialists in the world in the production of nanodiamonds by explosives.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/10/irans-soviet-nuclear-scientist-never-worked-on-weapons/

Analysis / Op-ed 

On relations between Hamas and Europe
It is well known that Europe has been divided over what to do about Hamas over the past five years. At no point has there been a consensus on how to manage communications or build relationships with the Islamic Resistance Movement; it’s been a controversial issue, with some European capitals opening secret communication channels between leading Hamas figures and government officials. Such initiatives have all been instigated by European countries individually, not collectively.
http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/news/middle-east/3061-on-relations-between-hamas-and-europe

 ’Washington Post’ runs long prominent piece on young Palestinians who reject ‘shriveled’ state and emulate civil, Philip Weiss
Let’s celebrate the brilliant journalism of Joel Greenberg in the Washington Post last weekend, a profile of young Palestinian activist Hurriya Ziada that deploys all a reporter’s tools to convey the thinking of someone new and important who is Palestinian. I believe Greenberg or his Conservative rabbi father moved to Israel from the U.S., and I have probably accused him of being a Zionist at some time (I have a popgun), but this is fabulous reporting. It is a simple effort to convey the shifting consciousness of Palestinians and the growing hatred of the two-state Bantustan solution to American readers. The piece has 446 comments, a reflection of its importance. This is how Americans will learn about the true dimensions of this conflict, from brave reporters who are more interested in what the world looks like than in tired American assumptions about the world.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/washington-post-runs-long-prominent-piece-on-young-palestinian-activist-who-reject-shriveled-state-and-emulate-civil-rights-movement.html

Occupy Wall Street Stifled Solidarity With Gaza Flotilla at Dan Sieradski’s Urging, Richard Silverstein
At first I thought this issue was much ado about very little, but the various ways in which Dan Sieradski, co-founder of Occupy Judaism, has attempted to deflate or deflect the controversy he started, and thedisingenuousness of the arguments he’s used to defend his actions, have made it a very important one.  As the Gaza flotilla boats were steaming toward Palestine, someone tweeted on the @OWS Twitter feed.
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011/11/12/occupy-wall-street-stifled-solidarity-with-gaza-flotilla-at-dan-sieradskis-urging/

Why we Occupy Wall Street, not Palestine, by CAROLYN KLAASEN, LIZA BEHRENDT, AND JESSE BACON
The virtual ink was barely dry on our “Occupy the Occupiers” declaration when Marc Tracy weighed in on Tablet’s Scroll blog. At the end of an article where he defends Occupy Wall Street (OWS) from charges of Anti-Semitism, he gets to our declaration and reverses course. Suddenly he displays nothing but defensiveness regarding the Jewish institutions that repress the very sentiment of dissent that OWS expresses.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/why-we-occupy-wall-street-not-palestine.html

The Seizure of the Gaza Boats, RAMZY BAROUD
Another mission accomplished, or so it seems. Israeli navy ships have managed to thwart yet another civil society ‘provocation’ (as described by a spokesman for the Israel Embassy in Dublin, Irish Times, November 4). Thus the 27 activists from nine countries aboard two boats were rounded up and hauled, along with their ‘provocative’ medical supplies, to the Israeli port of Ashdod. It was a successful operation conducted by a well-equipped navy, one that is credited for sinking numerous Gaza fishing boats, while forcing fishermen to swim naked back to shore. Of course, one can hardly address such valor without mention of the May 2010 attack on the Mavi Marmara, which killed nine Turkish activists and wounded many more.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/11/the-seizure-of-the-gaza-boats/

Max Blumenthal on Jennifer Rubin
“On October 25, here at Al-Akhbar, I drew attention to Washington Post ”Right Turn” columnist Jennifer Rubin’s re-tweet of a call by professional neocon Rachel Abrams for the mass murder of Palestinians. In my post, I urged readers to write Washington Post ombudsman Patrick Pexton and inquire if the Post has a policy regarding staffers who promote mass murder, ethnic violence, and hate speech. Yesterday, Pexton weighed in on the matter in his “Post Roast” column, crediting my post at Al-Akhbar with exposing Rubin’s re-tweet. Pexton asked Rubin if her re-tweet was simply an innocent gesture intended to direct her followers to a widely discussed piece of inflammatory writing, or if it was an explicit endorsement of Abrams’ call for murdering Palestinians, whom she described as “unmanned animals” and “child-sacrificing savages.” Rubin replied matter-of-factly that it was the latter: she supported Abrams’ message. According to Pexton, “But in this case Rubin told me that she did agree with Abrams. Rubin said that she admires Abrams, has quoted her a lot, thinks she’s an excellent writer and endorsed the sentiment behind the Abrams blog post.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/11/max-blumenthal-on-jennifer-rubin.html

‘Post’ ombudsman secretly admits that a writer who attacked Israelis as Rubin attacked Palestinians would lose her job, Philip Weiss
Glenn Greenwald asks a lot of the right questions about the staying power of neoconservative blogger Jennifer Rubin (right) in “Why the Washington Post won’t fire Jennifer Rubin.”
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/post-ombudsman-secretly-admits-that-a-writer-who-attacked-israelis-as-rubin-attacked-palestinians-would-lose-her-job.html

Lookin’ for love in all the wrong places — Why is JDate advertising in the Gaza Strip? , RADHIKA SAINATH
Whether I’m reading the New York Times, perusing Facebook or checking my gmail account, Israeli companies bombard me with deals on manicures and massages beckoning me to “meet Jewish singles in my area.”  But I live in the besieged Gaza Strip, where 77% of the population lives below the poverty line of $2 a day, where 15% of children are stunted from malnutrition and the Israeli blockade has caused 163 key medicines to go out of a stock. The only Jewish singles in my area are those routinely flying F-16s above my apartment, firing at Palestinian fishermen off the coast, driving tanks through bulldozed orchards or shooting at me when I’m taking a Friday evening stroll. I really don’t want to meet them in my area “for dating and romance” or any other purpose.  And, given those bullets that passed eerily close to my head two weeks ago, I’m pretty sure they don’t want to meet me.
https://mondoweiss.net/2011/11/jdate-gaza-strip.html 

Ray Hanania Doesn’t Know Nancy Ajram, “Bettered” Than Abba Eban
Ray Hanania’s best humor is always unintentional.  During his Radio Show today, November 11, he misunderstood a reference to Nancy Ajram, a popular Arab singer, and the Arab world’s version of a talentless, cultural “pop-tart”.  His gaffe occurred during a discussion of a local election in Michigan and Arab-American political apathy.  A caller into the show wanted to express his view that Arab-Americans are not politically active, and would be more interested in coming out to see a concert than to come out and vote in elections (44:25).
http://ikhras.com/2011/11/ray-hanania-doesnt-know-nancy-ajram-bettered-than-abba-eban/

Right of Return – Book Review, Ludwig Watzal
(Francis A. Boyle, The Palestinian Right of Return under International Law, Clarity Press, Atlanta, GA, 2011, 134 pp.) According to U. N. General Assembly Resolution 194 (III) of December 11, 1948, the Palestinian refugees have the right to return and receive financial compensation for lost property. “Refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbors should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property…”  The same body admitted in resolution 273 Israel as a member state to the U. N. on May 11, 1949 after Israel implements other U. N.  Resolutions including resolution 194 and 181. Up till now, Israel has fallen short of its pledge.
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=17241

Robert Fisk: Will computers make extinct the last of Islam’s proud and honourable calligraphers?
Dr Jamal Naja meets me in a coffee shop just down the road from his home in Alamuddin Street, a quiet almost mischievous face, greying hair, and he lays – with great care – a black packet on the table in front of him.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-will-computers-make-extinct-the-last-of-islams-proud-and-honourable-calligraphers-6261049.html

www.TheHeadlines.Org