Photo used by the IDF rabbinate
Photo appears in army packet on Hanukkah describing the Jewish revolt against Hellenistic rule; IDF spokesman: Image meant to illustrate a period in which holy Muslim site did not exist.
link to www.haaretz.com
Trial of West Bank Civil Protester to Resume Sunday
RAMALLAH, January 5, 2012 (WAFA) – The trial of Bassem Tamimi, a resident of Nabi Saleh village, near Ramallah, and a known civil protester will resume Sunday, according to local activists. In the trial, Ofer military court near Ramallah will hear the testimony of an Israeli police inspector who took part in the interrogation of a Palestinian minor in order to incriminate Tamimi, arrested in March, said the sources. Inspector Jalal Aweida was one of the key interrogators of 14 year-old Islam Dar Ayyoub who claimed that Tamimi organized groups of youth into 'brigades' assigned with different responsibilities during the demonstrations including stone-throwing and blocking roads.
link to english.wafa.ps
IOA to confiscate 169 dunums of Salfit land
The IOA has notified the municipal council of Eskaka village, east of Salfit, that 169 dunums of the village’s land would be confiscated, the municipality chairman, Samir Haris, said.
link to www.palestine-info.co.uk
Israeli forces demolish 2 Jericho homes
JERICHO (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces demolished two homes belonging to Jerusalem families in a village near West Bank city Jericho on Thursday. Bulldozers accompanied by military patrols tore down the homes in al-Duyuk, west of Jericho, also destroying the electricity connection to the site, residents told Ma'an. Forces told the owners the houses were built without a permit in Area C, which Israel fully controls under the 1993 Oslo Accords. Encompassing 60 percent of the West Bank, Israel only allows Palestinians to build in 1 percent of Area C, on land which is already heavily built up.
link to www.maannews.net
Israel destroys storage containers in East Jerusalem
JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces destroyed storage containers and confiscated commercial goods belonging to Palestinians in East Jerusalem on Thursday, locals said. Israeli forces and bulldozers entered al-Eizariya and confiscated stone displayed for sale in the al-Mashtal neighborhood near Maale Adumin settlement. They handed residents demolition orders and requested store owners present licenses. The store owners told Ma'an they had licenses from al-Eizariya town council but their requests for permits from Israeli liaison officials were rejected.
link to www.maannews.net
Occupation authorities install cctv cameras inside the Aqsa Mosque
The Aqsa Foundation for Endowment and Heritage revealed that the Israeli occupation on Tuesday installed cctv cameras to monitor the Aqsa Mosque, especially from the side of the Maghareba Gate.
link to www.palestine-info.co.uk
Lebanese MPs: The Boogeyman of Tawteen Lebanese politicians habitually invoke the specter of permanent settlement of Palestinians in Lebanon (tawteen) at every political juncture to instill a fear of the other. The other, in this case, is the Palestinian refugee living in refugee camps.
link to english.al-akhbar.com
Violence / Aggression
Israeli Forces Raid Town near Bethlehem
BETHLEHEM, January 5, 2012 (WAFA) – Israeli Forces Thursday raided Takou’, a town east of Bethlehem, according to security sources. They told WAFA that after raiding the town, Israeli soldiers raided a house that belongs to a Palestinian and searched it. No arrests were reported.
link to english.wafa.ps
The Palestinian Journalist Assembly said that 2011 witnessed an escalation of violations by the Israeli occupation against Palestinian journalists.
Hundreds of Israelis visit religious site in Palestinian village
SALFIT (Ma'an) Israeli forces escorted hundreds of Israelis to a religious site in a Palestinian village in the northern West Bank early Thursday. Soldiers deployed along the streets and barricaded the entrances to Kifl Haris, near Salfit, to check villagers' identity cards, locals told Ma'an. Dozens of armored buses transferred the Israelis into the village at 12.30 a.m., where they shouted slogans against Arabs, resident Amjad Abu Yacoub said. An Israeli army spokeswoman said "1,400 Israelis entered Joshus Binun tomb in the village, there were no disturbances."
link to www.maannews.net
Israeli police issue restraining orders banning 12 settlers from entering the occupied West Bank for up to nine months
Systematic West Bank Settler Violence, Stephen Lendman
B'Tselem's been on the story for years. Settler violence is longstanding, troubling, and largely without accountability. Since September 2000 alone (the beginning of the second Intifada), the toll includes 50 Palestinians killed. Since December 1987 (the first Intifada's onset), it's 115, besides many more injured, including children. With few exceptions, settlers initiate unprovoked violence. More recently, those under the "Price Tag" slogan rampage out-of-control. B'Tselem documented numerous incidents, including blocking roads, stoning cars and homes, torching fields, uprooting trees and other crops, as well as other forms of violence and damage.
link to sjlendman.blogspot.com
No jail for Jewish extremists in "price tag" attacks
Twelve Jewish extremists involved in "price tag" arson attacks on Palestinians in recent weeks have escaped jail time, but will instead be barred from the West Bank for up to a year, Israel's military revealed in a statement on Tuesday. Referring to the men as "activists," the statement said that one man has been banned for one year, while the others will not be able to enter the occupied Palestinian territory for varied periods between three and nine months.
link to english.al-akhbar.com
IDF policy requires a criminal investigation be launched immediately when military operations in the occupied Palestinian territories cause death. But a defective system essentially ensures that the investigation will not be conducted in a fair and impartial manner, enabling soldiers to continue to act with impunity. This article was first published in The Jerusalem Post and is reprinted with permission.
French Court To Look Into File Of Child Shot In His Father’s Arms
A French court will be looking into the case of Mohammad Ad-Dorra, 12, who was killed after being repeatedly shot, on September 30, 2000, while seeking shelter from Israeli military fire in his father’s lap; the father was also shot by several rounds.
link to www.imemc.org
Detainees
Undercover Israeli security forces kidnapped a Palestinian child in Aisawiye, to the north east of occupied Jerusalem, on Tuesday evening, local sources said.
link to www.palestine-info.co.uk
Palestinian Children Detained Oppressively in Isolation, Stephen Lendman
DCI/Palestine "is a national section of the international non-government child rights organisation and movement (dedicated) to promoting and protecting the rights of Palestinian children," according to international law principles. On December 28, it submitted a complaint to several UN authorities titled, "The use of solitary confinement on Palestinian children held in Israeli detention." It's specifically for five children held at Al Jalame and Petah Tikva interrogation centers in Israel.
link to sjlendman.blogspot.com
link to www.maannews.net
Gaza man killed in tunnel collapse
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A man was killed and another injured when a tunnel collapsed under the border with Egypt in the southern Gaza Strip on Thursday morning. Bilal Shaat, 24, from Khan Younis, died while working in the underground passage near al-Salam neighborhood in southern Rafah, officials said. An injured colleague was transferred to Abu Yousef al Najar hospital in Rafah along with Shaat's body, they added.
link to www.maannews.net
Were 13-year-old Anwar and five-year-old Haneen terrorists? What could possibly explain the Israeli army’s targeting of children during its invasion of Gaza three years ago?
link to electronicintifada.net
5 January 2009: Amal al-Samouni
“I have constant pain in my head, eyes and ears. I have been having nose bleeds for the past three years. I can still feel the shrapnel move inside my brain” On 4 January 2009 at around 6:00 Israeli forces surrounded the house where Amal al-Samouni (11) and 18 members of her extended family were sheltering, in Zeitoun neighborhood east of Gaza City. Israeli soldiers ordered the owner of the house, Amal’s father Attia al-Samouni (37), to step outside with his hands up. Upon opening the door he was immediately killed by shots to the head and chest. Soldiers then started firing bullets into the house, killing Amal’s 4-year old brother Ahmad al-Samouni and injuring at least 4 other people, of whom 2 were children.
link to palsolidarity.org
Who remembers Gaza?
For the moment, the Arab revolutions have marginalized the Palestinian issue. For the first time in over half a century, the agenda of the Arab world--both that of governments and the people--is not determined by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict but by the social and political difficulties they are facing: poverty, economic development and democracy. And when the Palestinian issue is marginalized, the Gaza Strip is pushed to the margins of the margins.
link to www.alternativenews.org
Six Common Misconceptions about Gaza that are so 2011
In the sixth place: “The civilian closure has been lifted and only security restrictions remain”. Gaza is not as isolated from the rest of the world as it was a few years ago, but it is still cut off from the West Bank and it’s hard to find convincing security reasons why. For example, Israel prohibits students from traveling from Gaza to the West Bank – individual security checks are not even an option because the ban is sweeping. Israel does not allow goods from Gaza to be sold in the West Bank or Israel, while at the same time allowing exports from Gaza to Europe to be transferred through its own airports and seaports. It also imposes restrictions on the import of building materials into the Gaza Strip. The impact is felt mainly by international organizations rather than the local government, which gets all the cement, gravel, and steel it needs from the tunnels. Ongoing restrictions make it difficult for Gaza’s economy to recover, but they also split families apart and impede Gaza residents’ access to higher education and the opportunity to acquire training in a number of highly needed fields.
link to www.gazagateway.org
Video: 10 Years of Struggle for Justice
This year, contributions from supporters will allow us to plant 2,050 olive trees for Palestinian farming families in 2012. Thanks to your generosity, the US Campaign will be able to replace almost 25% of the olive trees destroyed by Israel this year. Your support will also allow us to capitalize on a decade of tireless work, and challenge U.S. support for Israeli occupation and apartheid on an unprecedented scale in 2012.
link to blog.endtheoccupation.org
Discrimination / Racism / Sexism
High Court rejects petition against Israel's controversial 'Nakba Law'
Arab, Jewish citizens submit petition against law granting finance minister power to reduce budget of state-funded bodies that reject Israel as Jewish state or mark the Palestinian Nakba.
link to www.haaretz.com
Israeli credit card firm leaves women out of Jerusalem billboards
Activists working to bring images of women back onto ads in the capital, start a protest on Isracard's Facebook page.
link to www.haaretz.com
Gynecology convention excludes female lecturers
PUAH Institute holds conference on female issues but only male experts are invited to speak; organizers claim rabbis prohibited participation of women doctors.
link to www.ynetnews.com
Report: Israel submitted 22-point document to Palestinians
Ramallah - Israel submitted a 22-point document to the Palestinians this week during their first face-to-face meeting in nearly 16 months, a London-based Arabic newspaper reported Thursday. Nimr Hammad, an advisor to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, confirmed to al-Quds al-Arabi that Israel had submitted the document, but declined to give details. The newspaper nonetheless reported it had 'learned' about the document's content. It reportedly states that Israel is willing to withdraw from some Arab neighbourhoods of East Jerusalem, but not to the lines that existed before 1967. It is also reportedly willing to evacuate some, but not all, West Bank settlements.
link to www.monstersandcritics.com
A Fatah leader confirms the failure of the Amman meeting
A senior leader of the Fatah movement said that the Israeli side disappointed the Palestinian and the Jordanian leadership during their meeting which was held in the Jordanian capital.
link to www.palestine-info.co.uk
Former PM, Jerusalem Mayor, Israel Lands Administration director, and 15 additional persons are suspected of giving or taking bribes to advance real estate ventures.
Al-Manar TV claims fluke arrest leads Nouakchott authorities to 'Mossad spy ring' in Mauritania.
Turkish media outlet claims fighter jets called up to intercept unmanned aerial vehicle circling over missile batteries, radar equipment.
Egypt charges telecom workers over Israel calls
CAIRO (Reuters) -- Egyptian prosecutors sent four telecom company employees to court on Thursday after charging them with passing phone calls that served the interests of Israel, an official at the prosecutor's office said. "The state security prosecutor referred four employees of Mobinil telecom company to the state security court on the charge of passing calls to the benefit of the state of Israel," he said.
Local newspaper says vendors denied knowledge of the products' origins; salesman from Algiers arrested.
Other Mideast News
Attacks on Shiites in Iraq Kill at Least 60
Attacks on two Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdad on Thursday killed at least 24 people, and 36 died in a bombing in the south, raising sectarian tensions.
link to feeds.nytimes.com
At least 10 Iraqis were killed and 23 others were wounded in new violence. Four of the victims were children and, as often is the case, most of the attacks targeted security personnel.
AP - Lawmakers from Iraq's largest Sunni-backed bloc stood by their boycott of parliament when the assembly reconvened Tuesday after a two-week break — another reminder of the deepening political crisis that has revived the country's sectarian tensions.
Prosecutors demand death penalty for Mubarak
Prosecution argues that Egypt's ex-president and aides "politically and legally" responsible for killing of protesters.
Amnesty International called on Egypt’s military rulers to uphold the right to peaceful demonstration as women human rights activists staged more protests today. Activists took to the streets to denounce violence used by the military against female and opposition protesters in demonstrations over the past week that have left 17 people dead, most of them reportedly from gunfire. "The shockingly violent scenes of recent days must not be repeated," said Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s interim Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
With the Muslim Brotherhood in reach of an outright majority in Egypt’s parliament, the Obama administration has begun to shift from decades of hostility toward it.
At least 18 members of President Bashar al-Assad's security forces are killed by army deserters in Syria, a human rights group says.
EU agrees 'in principle' on Iran oil embargo
The European Union has agreed to ban oil imports from Iran, pending a final decision to be made at the end of the month. Despite Iran's rejection of accusations by Western nations that its nuclear programme is in fact a weapons programme, the EU aims to cut off funding to it. Oil prices have risen on news of the possible EU embargo. But as Libyan oil is starting to flow again it could offset any shortages. Al Jazeera's Caroline Malone reports.
link to www.youtube.com
U.S.-Iran Tensions: Mideast Showdown Builds As United States Tightens Military Ties To Israel
WASHINGTON -- Storm clouds darkening over the Middle East suggest a growing peril for the United States and the possibility of a new war that could embroil the U.S., Israel, Iran and others in a bloody, costly fight. Behind this week's exchange of threats between Iran and the United States over access to the Persian Gulf, seasoned analysts see a perfect storm of factors that could trigger armed conflict.
US responds to Iranian warning to keep aircraft carriers out of Persian Gulf, but stresses it does not seek confrontation.
The Taliban, US, and Afghan officials have agreed to the let the Taliban set up an office in Qatar, providing a historic avenue for direct talks.
Libyan fighters reject new head of army
Two of Libya's former rebel groups have rejected the governments choice of a new head of the armed forces, Yousef Mangoush, which has raised fresh concerns over the security in the country. In his first international interview, Mangoush told Al Jazeera he understands the challenges he faces in his new role. Yet not everyone is convinced with his credentials, and convincing the rank and file that he is the man to lead them may be hard. Already brigades from the east of the country have rejected his appointment, preferring someone from their own city to represent them. Al Jazeera's Imran Khan reports from Tripoli, Libya.
link to www.youtube.com
Analysis / Op-ed
Several days ago the Obama administration and Congress sealed a deal with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to export $29.4 billion dollars worth of enhanced F-15 fighter jets, alongside the retrofitting of 70 older F-15s. Manufactured by Boeing, the F-15SA is “the most sophisticated and capable aircraft in the world," White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Joshua Earnest said. “The United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have signed a government-to-government agreement under the Foreign Military Sales program to provide advanced F-15SA combat aircraft to the Royal Saudi Air Force,” he added.
For the past two weeks, the entire mainstream American media homed in on newsletters published by Republican Rep. Ron Paul, an anti-imperialist, conservative libertarian who finished third in last night's Iowa caucuses.
Israel has constructed a wall in the West Bank. It is constructing a wall with Jordan and Egypt. And this week, it announced that it will construct a wall near the Lebanese border. And you still express doubts that Israeli years are numbered? Are you out of your minds? A state hiding behind walls has a future? In the Arab region?
I’ve been rolling around in the mud too much in the past week or so after exposing David Lange and Yeshayahu Rotter. It’s time to hear of heroes and human decency for a change. I hope you appreciate these courageous acts as much as I did in reading about them and writing this post. Anyone who knows anything about the Holocaust knows about the Righteous Gentiles, those heroic non-Jews recognized by Israel’s Yad Vashem museum for saving the lives of Jews at great peril to themselves. In almost every instance, these gentiles are Christian. It is a lesser known fact that a number of Muslims also saved Jews during World War II. In a number of cases, Israel has been unwilling to recognize their heroism by bestowing the designation on them.
How Iran Could Close Straits and Damage U.S. Navy, Richard Silverstein
The NY Times today departs from its usual cheerleading of U.S. hawkish foreign policy goals by in the event of a military conflict. It might do so at great cost to itself, but it could be done. Even if it couldn’t, the article estimates that even a minimal dustup there could raise the price of oil by $50 a barrel, thereby raising gas prices in the U.S. easily over $4 a gallon. Of course, this would cripple Iran’s oil production and shipping capacity, thereby sending its economy into a nosedive. So it would be a game of chicken as to which side could inflict the most damage militarily and economically and which side would say “Uncle” first. Just think about the terribly tender world economy teetering currently on the brink of recession. Those who predict it will be the Iranians might want to think again.
link to www.richardsilverstein.com
Wouldn't it be nice if the heads of our own national security agencies spoke truth to power like this? Tamir Pardo, head of Mossad, had this to say to a roomful of Israeli ambassadors last week: "What is the significance of the term existential threat?" the ambassadors quoted Pardo as asking. "Does Iran pose a threat to Israel? Absolutely. But if one said a nuclear bomb in Iranian hands was an existential threat, that would mean that we would have to close up shop and go home. That's not the situation. The term existential threat is used too freely."
“Photo appears in army packet on Hanukkah describing the Jewish revolt against Hellenistic rule; IDF spokesman: Image meant to illustrate a period in which holy Muslim site did not exist.”
can an “I”OF spokesperson say ANYTHING without lying?
The period before the Dome of the Rock was built was also before the liquidation of the Morrocan quarter, so why, then, is the Wailling Wall’s present-day courtyard depicted?
I can only imagine all the ay-s and vay-s if the western/wailing wall suddenly would , poof, “disappeared” from the photo.
BTW, this light cloud , in the middle of this badly photoshopped picture looks like The Cloud of God, who is sending Its protecitve Rays over the area.
IDF rabbinate edits out Dome of the Rock from picture of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount
Good thing, too! Not only was the Dome cluttering up the background view, but it was preventing the rays of gawd’s pure light from piercing the clouds and shining upon the Promised Land! :-)
Good thing, too! Not only was the Dome cluttering up the background view, but it was preventing the rays of gawd’s pure light from piercing the clouds and shining upon the Promised Land! :-)
FYI, reliable reports indicate that the last structure erected on the Temple Mount caused exactly the same trouble. Cyrus, who was of the sons of Japheth, built the Second Temple and the Divine Presence never rested on it:
Even if they had all come up in the time of Ezra, the Divine Presence would not have rested over the second Sanctuary, for it is written: God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem, [that means], although God has enlarged Japheth, the Divine Presence rests only in the tents of Shem. — Yoma, folio 9b, and 10a
..
and may He dwell in the tents of Shem: May He cause His Presence to rest in Israel. The interpretation of the Sages, however is: Although God will beautify Japheth, insofar as Cyrus, who was of the sons of Japheth, built the Second Temple, the Shechinah did not rest therein. But where did it rest? In the First Temple, built by Solomon, who was of the sons of Shem. — Rashi’s Commentary, Genesis 9:27
I remember before the US invaded Afghanistan, CNN was all over the Taliban blowing up the ancient Buddhist statues there, to make the point that these people “are not like us” and need to go…..
Israelistan is really no different.
it’s also reminiscent of hitler’s destroying everything jewish in the nations he invaded.
This is getting seriously Orwellian.
RE: “Poof, Dome of the Rock, gone…”
TODAY’S BIBLE VERSE: “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” ~ John 8:32
TODAY’S SERMON, by Phil Rockstroh, 01/05/12:
ENTIRE SERMON – link to commondreams.org
P.S. FOR A REALLY GOOD TIME, CLICK ON THIS – link to callistagingrichpeckedoutmyeyes.com
Aw, he forgot to add the Reconstructed Temple…
Is Joshus Binun possibly a typo for Joshua Bin-Nun (Hundreds of Israelis visit religious site in Palestinian village)?