Israel approves solid-waste landfill on occupied Jerusalem land to serve E-1 settlement

Land, property, resources theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Judaization / Restrictions on movement

Israeli authorities approve landfill project in East Jerusalem
JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — Israeli authorities on Monday approved a solid waste landfill project on over 500 kilometers of land in occupied East Jerusalem. Israeli settlement researcher Ahmad Sublaban told Ma‘an that the district planning and construction committee approved the plan to build a landfill on over 546 kilometers of land between the villages of al-‘Issawiya and ‘Anata, over 13 km of which will be used for a road network leading to the landfill. Sublaban said that several objections by Palestinians, as well as residents of the French Hill settlement, were declined by the committee. The landfill will be built in a valley in Wadi Qasim and Wadi Kabina on the lands of al-‘Issawiya and ‘Anata, where solid waste will be buried under construction remains, before a public park is built over it, the plan says. The landfill will be built close to the E1 planned settlement bloc which is planned to hold 4,000 settlement houses. Monitoring committee member in al-‘Issawiya village Mohammad Abu al-Homos said the committee will appeal the decision. He told Ma‘an that the project does not serve Palestinians, but serves settlements in Jerusalem, adding that it is the start of the implementation of the E1 project. Abu al-Homos added that 30 Bedouin families have been living in that area for over 50 years, and their wishes were disregarded by the Israeli occupation.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759472

Economy ministry: Israel monopolizes Dead Sea natural wealth
RAMALLAH (PIC) 16 Feb — The Palestinian ministry of economy has accused Israel of depriving the Palestinians of using the natural resources of the Dead Sea near Ariha (Jericho). In a press release on Sunday, the ministry stated that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) has monopolized the available resources of the Dead Sea for itself and denied the Palestinian access to them. The ministry noted that the Dead Sea is rich in unique minerals, especially potash and bromine, which are utilized by Israeli companies to generate billions of dollars every year.  A report issued by the World Bank in 2013 affirmed that Israel alone generates about three billion dollars annually from the sale of Dead Sea minerals, while Jordan makes annual sales of 1.2 billion dollars, according to the ministry … The ministry also pointed out that Israel had allowed a number of companies to establish factories manufacturing Dead Sea products on Palestinian-owned land. The ministry expressed its belief that if the Palestinians had access to the Dead Sea mineral resources and power sources, and was able to establish investment projects in the region, they could create a sustainable economic development for themselves.
http://english.palinfo.com/site/pages/details.aspx?itemid=70187

Rawabi’s dried-up pipe could land Israel in deep water / Nahum Barnea
Ynet Op-Ed 17 Feb — Op-ed: There are quite a few ways to explain to the world why uninvolved people were killed in Gaza or why Jews are allowed to settle in an occupied territory; but there is no way to explain why Israel is preventing a Palestinian city from receiving water — North of Ramallah, near the Ateret settlement, a city is being built. Its name is Rawabi. The diligent reader likely remembers press reports about the progress in the city’s construction, newspaper reports which stretched over two pages and long television and radio reports … The first stage of the project was completed last May. The buyers were supposed to receive the keys. The keys were not delivered. The construction company couldn’t house the buyers because there was no water flowing out of the taps in their apartments. The water didn’t flow because Israel refused to connect them to the joint pipe. Israel refused to connect them because its government is involved in a conflict with the Palestinian Authority … The PA, which is looking for issues to use in the “diplomatic intifada” it is waging against Israel, has enthusiastically jumped on Rawabi: In this case, water is thicker than blood. And there are already colleges in the United States and Europe in which anti-Israel activists are going on about the city which was not joined together, the Palestinian thirst and the Israeli pharaoh.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4627501,00.html

Israeli forces uproot Tubas olive trees
TUBAS (Ma‘an) 17 Feb – Israeli forces uprooted with bulldozers dozens of olive trees in the northern West Bank village of Tayasir east of Tubas on Tuesday, locals said. Several Israeli military vehicles stormed an outskirt of Tayasir called Safayih in the early morning hours with officers of the Israeli ministry of environmental protection and the Civil Administration. Then, a bulldozer they brought with them leveled the area uprooting olive trees and changing the surface of the ground in the area. The attacked fields belong to Adnan Daraghmah. He was notified by the Israelis that the area was a military zone and that he couldn’t plant or build any structures without obtaining permission from the Civil Administration.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?id=759477

Soldiers prevent farmers from entering their lands near Hebron
IMEMC/Agencies 17 Feb by Saed Bannoura — Israeli soldiers prevented, Tuesday, Palestinian farmers from entering their agricultural lands east of Yatta town, in the southern West Bank district of Hebron. Coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements in southern Hebron, Rateb Jabour, said the soldiers prevented the Abu ‘Obeid, Abu ‘Ali and Smeirat families from entering their lands. Jabour said the residents were prevented from entering dozens of dunams of farmlands, despite an Israeli court decision, issued a few years ago, allowing the villagers to enter and plant their lands. However, the army repeatedly prevented the Palestinians from entering their lands, especially after the soldiers fenced them with barbed wires due to their close proximity to the Beit Yatir illegal colony, built on Palestinian lands east of Yatta.
http://www.imemc.org/article/70625

Arab flock seeks reform, challenging Greek Orthodox leader
AMMAN, Jordan (AP) 17 Feb by Karin Laub & Mohammed Daraghmeh — At a recent Sunday mass, Arab Christians enthusiastically joined in the ancient chants and prayers of their faith — until the name of their spiritual leader was invoked. “Unworthy, unworthy, unworthy,” some called out in unison, their disdain aimed at Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem and leader of some 220,000 Arab Christians in Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories. In recent weeks, such chants repeatedly erupted during services, the latest sign of trouble for a secretive church hierarchy whose previous leader was ousted a decade ago over allegations that he sold prime church property to Jews trying to increase their presence in traditionally Arab east Jerusalem. The church’s vast real estate holdings in the Holy Land also play a role in the current unrest, as part of demands by Arab Christians to have a greater say. The unlikely rebels — many of them devout, middle-class professionals — want the church to promote Arab clergy, invest more in Arab congregations and open the books on secret property deals … The church refuses to say how much property it owns. Haddadin said he has been told by church officials the holdings are worth between $64 billion and $70 billion. Issa Musleh, a spokesman for the patriarchate, said the church owns roughly 40 percent of properties in the Old City, but that he didn’t know the value of all the holdings. Musleh denied that Theophilos has given Israel sweetheart deals on land leases in Jerusalem, saying the patriarch is working hard to reclaim properties allegedly sold by his predecessor.
http://news.yahoo.com/arab-flock-seeks-reform-challenging-greek-orthodox-leader-070112344.html

Israeli settlers protest W. Bank demolitions
World Bulletin 17 Feb — Dozens of Jewish settlers on Tuesday tried to prevent Israeli police from demolishing several unlicensed structures built in the occupied West Bank. “Police have begun clearing unlicensed buildings in the Benjamin district near Ramallah,” Israeli police spokesperson Luba Samri said Tuesday. “Around 40 people [settlers] blocked a road leading to the Ami’ad settlement bloc to prevent police from carrying out demolitions there,” she added, going on to note that additional forces had been deployed in the area. Over the years, Israel has continued to build illegal Jewish-only settlements on confiscated Palestinian land in the West Bank. Some Israeli organizations, however, have complained that settlers were building structures in the area without first obtaining licenses. Last year alone, more than 15,000 Israelis moved into Jewish-only settlements in the occupied West Bank, according to Israel’s Yesha Council, an umbrella organization for the municipal councils of West Bank settlement blocs.
http://www.worldbulletin.net/news/155209/israeli-settlers-protest-w-bank-demolitions

Violence / Raids / Clashes / Arrests

Israeli forces raid E1 protest camp, 3 detained
JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — Israeli forces raided the “Jerusalem Gate” protest camp near Abu Dis on Monday and detained three Palestinian activists during clashes, a spokesperson said. Hani Halabiya told Ma‘an that Hassan Matar, Rafat Shihada, and another unidentified activist were detained as Israeli forces fired tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and stun grenades during the raid. Several other people were assaulted with batons. The raid took place as dozens of activists had started building concrete rooms inside the protest camp, which was originally set up in early February but has since been demolished five times. At least three bulldozers had surrounded the camp, Halabiya said, with activists determined to prevent the destruction of the area. The camp was built in protest against an Israeli plan to build Jewish-only settlements in the E1 corridor east of Jerusalem on the way to Jericho where Palestinian Bedouins have been living for decades.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759464

Israeli troops apprehend 11 Palestinians in Hebron, Bethlehem, Nablus
HEBRON (Ma‘an) 17 Feb – Israeli forces apprehended seven young Palestinian men in their 20s from the southern West Bank districts of Bethlehem and Hebron during dawn raids on Tuesday, the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society reported. In a statement,the group said Israeli forces detained six young men after storming several neighborhoods in Hebron … The sixth detainee was arrested in the town of Surif. In Bethlehem, Israeli forces arrested Yahya Jado from ‘Ayda refugee camp. Additionally, Israeli forces apprehended four young Palestinians in the Nablus district village of Asira al-Shamaliya including a Palestinian Authority security officer. Palestinian security sources told Ma‘an that Israeli troops apprehended Adham Wael Sawalma, 20, and Muhammad Husam Jawabra, 21, at the checkpoint in the northern entrance to the village on Monday night. The soldiers then shut down the checkpoint overnight denying residents movement in and out. They then ransacked several homes before they detained a Palestinian security officer named Ahmad Abd al-Fattah Yasin, 24, along with Diyaa Muhammad Said, 21.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759479

Israeli forces to question young East Jerusalem brothers
JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 17 Feb — Israeli troops broke into a Palestinian home in the al-Tur neighborhood of East Jerusalem and handed a warrant to the owner demanding that he send two of his boys to the Russian Compound police station for questioning. The boys’ father Arafat Abu Sbeitan told Ma‘an in Jerusalem that Israeli troops wanted at the beginning to arrest his sons Muhammad, 12, and Ibrahim, 10. However, he refused to turn the boys in. He told the soldiers that Muhammad had an appointment at the doctor after he was bitten by a dog and Ibrahim has recently underwent eye surgery. The soldiers then ordered Abu Sbeitan to bring his sons to Israeli police station for questioning. “The occupation soldiers forced me to wake my sons up so they can make sure that there was a sign of a dog bite on Muhammad’s hand. They then took photos of the boys and handed me a summons demanding that I bring them to the Russian Compound police station for questioning.” Israeli forces have detained more than 20 teens and youths from al-Tur since the beginning of February accusing them of different charges including manufacturing improvised weapons and devices to be used against Israeli forces. Furthermore, Israeli troops and police officers deploy in the neighborhood almost every day inspecting vehicles and pedestrians especially near schools.
Separately, bulldozers escorted by Israeli military vehicles tore down a wall in a tract of land owned by Muhammad Abu al-Hawa in the al-Tur neighborhood under the pretext that the land is designated as green space. The family told Ma‘an that the three-year-old wall was demolished without prior notice. Similarly, Israeli forces demolished on Tuesday morning the protest camp Bawwabat al-Quds (the Gate to Jerusalem) which Palestinian activists built on Monday evening for the eighth time in a span of a month.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759478

Israeli troops detain 4 youths from Jerusalem
JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — Israeli troops carried out dawn raids in the Sheikh Jarrah and al-Tur neighborhoods of East Jerusalem detaining two young men and two teenagers on Monday. Locals told Ma‘an in Jerusalem that special forces and intelligence officers accompanied the Israeli troops during the raids. A lawyer for the Addameer prisoners rights group Muhammad Mahmoud identified the detainees as Muhammad Abu Sbeitan, Ahmad Abu Fuli, Majdi Hadra and Luay al-Sayyad. They were taken to the Russian Compound interrogation center in Jerusalem.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759455

Israeli troops arrest young Palestinian woman at checkpoint
NABLUS (Ma‘an) 17 Feb — Israeli forces apprehended on Tuesday at noon a young Palestinian woman at Zaatara (Tappuah) military checkpoint south of Nablus in the northern West Bank. Witnesses told Ma‘an that Eiman Amarnah, 25, was traveling on a bus from Nablus to Ramallah when Israeli troops took her into custody after inspecting buses at Zaatara checkpoint.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759483

Deadlines and red lines: Why are IDF attacks against Palestinian journalists on the rise? / Amira Hass
Haaretz 17 Feb — Palestinian journalists are slow in understanding. They have yet to get the message that they are forbidden to cover the protests — What can we say about the Israeli soldiers who shot a live bullet directly at the leg of television cameraman Bashar Saleh on December 5, 2014, in Kafr Qadoum? That they are good shots? That they are excellent soldiers carrying out their duties faithfully, the pride of every mother, father and commander? Saleh did not endanger their lives, being armed and armored to the tip of their heads as they were. If there was the slightest possibility whatsoever that they claimed so in their defense (if anyone in the army even bothered to clarify it with them), their claims would have already made their way into the response provided by the Israel Defense Forces Spokesman to Haaretz. Saleh’s wound did not make the headlines in our Israeli media, and because of that I am actually writing about it once again … Since the wounding of a Palestinian cameraman by an Israeli soldier does not interest us, the question of why soldiers should shoot a Palestinian cameraman who was covering the weekly demonstration in Kafr Qadoum is also not asked … Why do soldiers harm the freedom of Palestinian journalists to work? The answer is simple and does not need any learned casuistry: The role of the IDF is to safeguard the freedom of the settlers to prosper. Therefore, its role is to repress the popular Palestinian demonstrations against the settlements. The role of the IDF is to scare and deter the demonstrators, and to scare and deter those covering the demonstrations. Why is the number of physical attacks on the rise? Because the Palestinian journalists are slow in understanding. They have yet to get the message that they are forbidden to cover the protests.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.642636

Toddler dies two years after stone-throwing incident left her critically injured
Haaretz 17 Feb by Chaim Levinson — Adele Biton, the 4-year-old child who was critically injured in a stone-throwing incident near the settlement of Ariel two years ago, died in Petach Tikva’s Schneider Hospital on Tuesday evening from complications following pneumonia. Biton and her family were driving from their home in the settlement of Yakir to the center of Israel in March 2013 when a stone thrown at the vehicle caused it to go out of control and crash into a truck that was parked at the side of the road – also due to stone-throwing. Her mother and two sisters were moderately injured in the attack, but Biton was taken to Schneider Hospital in critical condition with a serious head wound, and never fully recovered … Five youths from the neighboring village of Kifl Haris were indicted for throwing the stones that struck the Biton car. Their case is currently being heard in a military court.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/.premium-1.642948

Al-Aqsa

Israeli intelligence raids al-Aqsa compound
JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — Israeli intelligence forces raided and toured the al-Aqsa mosque compound Monday morning, onlookers told Ma‘an. They added that two Israeli intelligence members escorted by two police officers raided the al-Aqsa compound and toured it. Witnesses said that 15 right-wing Israelis also entered the compound. The Israeli police continue to impose restrictions on the entrance of women and youths to the al-Aqsa by holding their ID cards on the al-Aqsa gates and interrogating them. An al-Aqsa mosque guard has turned himself in to the Israeli police to spend a 3-month sentence after being accused of disrupting the Israeli police’s work inside the al-Aqsa compound. Muhannad Idris was assaulted and detained in late 2014 from the inside of the compound.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759463

Prisoners / Court actions

Report: Lina Khattab sentenced to six months in Israeli prison
Samidoun 16 Feb — Lina Khattab, Palestinian student at Bir Zeit University and folkloric dancer with El Funoun, was sentenced by an Israeli military court at Ofer to six months imprisonment on Monday, 16 February after it convicted her on charges of “throwing stones” and “participating in an unlawful demonstration.” She was also sentenced to a 6000 NIS ($1500 USD) fine and three years probation. Sahar Francis, executive director of Addameer, earlier told the Electronic Intifada that “they treated Lina as if she is so dangerous, such a serious security threat — this is what makes us believe that they are using her case in order to frighten students from being involved in activism.” Samidoun will provide updates and actions to continue the demand to free Lina immediately and unconditionally. Please continue to take action and demand Lina’s immediate release.
http://samidoun.ca/2015/02/report-lina-khattab-sentenced-to-six-months-in-israeli-prison/

93 Gazans visit relatives in Israel jails
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — A group of 93 Palestinians from Gaza visited relatives jailed in Israel on Monday, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. Spokesperson Suhair Zaqqut told Ma‘an that the group included 28 Palestinians under the age of 14 who visited 43 Palestinians held in Rimon jail. There are around 450 Palestinians from Gaza in Israeli prison custody. Israel stopped prison visits for Palestinians in Gaza when Hamas took control of the coastal territory, before reinstating them in July 2012.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759459

Gaza

Three children injured in north Gaza
IMEMC/Agencies 17 Feb — Palestinian medical sources have reported, on Tuesday evening, that three children were injured when an explosive object dropped by the army during the offensive on Gaza last summer detonated near them in northern Gaza. The sources said the children suffered very serious injuries, and were moved to the Kamal ‘Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. The incident took place near the al-Huda mosque, in the Tuam area. The children were playing when they apparently found the object that detonated near them causing serious injuries. During the Israeli aggression on Gaza in the summer of 2014, the army dropped thousands of missiles and shells into different parts of the Gaza Strip, while many of those shells did not explode upon impact.
http://www.imemc.org/article/70630

Ministry to rebuild tower block destroyed during Gaza war
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 17 Feb — The Palestinian minister of public works and housing said Tuesday that the ministry has laid a cornerstone for the reconstruction of a residential tower block in Gaza City. Mufid al-Hasayneh said: “The rebuilding of this tower is a significant event and is the start of the rebuilding of all towers destroyed during the war. The ministry is continuing its efforts to distribute aid money to people whose houses were partially damaged, and hand out mobile homes and construction materials.” Several multistory residential buildings in Gaza City were targeted by Israeli forces during the war, killing dozens of civilians.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759487

Israeli soldiers target shepherds and fishermen in Khan Younis, Jabaliya
IMEMC/Agencies 17 Feb — Israeli forces opened fire, on Tuesday morning, towards Palestinian shepherds near the cemetery in Jabaliya, in the northern Gaza Strip, while Israeli gunboats targeted fishing boats in Khan Younis, last night, in Gaza’s southern region. According to Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency, security forces reported that a number of soldiers exited military jeeps and shot toward shepherds near the eastern cemetery; no injuries were reported. Eyewitnesses additionally stated that Israeli naval gunboats fired heavily towards Palestinian fishing boats off Khan Younis shores, Monday night. No casualties were reported.
http://www.imemc.org/article/70629

Israel increases Gaza exports and exit permits for merchants
Jerusalem Post 17 Feb by Tovah Lazaroff — Israel on Tuesday announced that it would increase the number of exit permits for Gaza merchants and expand agricultural and industrial exports from the Strip. The moves were part of a package of steps taken by the coordinator of government activities in the territories, Maj.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai, to help ease conditions for Gaza residents and assist in the reconstruction of the Strip following last summer’s Operation Protective Edge. Israel announced the measures just two days after the Quartet’s envoy to the Middle East, Tony Blair, visited Gaza and spoke of the importance of improving conditions for its residents in the aftermath of the summer’s conflict between Hamas and Israel. COGAT said it would allow the transfer of 45 tractors for Gaza farmers through the Kerem Shalom crossing. The monthly quota for Gaza merchants to travel to the Palestinian territories and Israel was increased from 3,000 to 5,000.  COGAT said that it would expand “the agricultural and industrial exports from Gaza, such as textile products and furniture.”
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Israel-increases-Gaza-exports-and-exit-permits-for-merchants-391358

Do Israelis have any idea how bad it is in Gaza? / Haggai Matar
+972mag 17 Feb — Nearly two million Gazans are living in a state of poverty and shortages, with few options of leaving and even fewer options for work. Nearly two million people who live in a giant prison, and Israelis cannot even begin to fathom how terrible their situation is — “I’m extremely concerned that if you leave Gaza in the state it’s currently in, you’ll have another eruption, and violence, and then we’re back in a further catastrophe, so we’ve got to stop that,” warned Quartet envoy Tony Blair during a visit to the Gaza Strip on Sunday. It was his first trip to the Gaza since the last war, and Blair spent his time meeting with ministers and surveying the progress – or lack thereof – toward rehabilitating the Strip. The scope of destruction in Gaza remains enormous. According to the UN, over 96,000 homes were either damaged or destroyed by Israeli air strikes. The donor states that have pledged to transfer money have yet to do so, re-building is going nowhere, many are still seeking refuge in UNRWA schools and the winter storms have only increased the damage to the homes and neighborhoods that survived. The Israeli blockade, which prevents exports, economic development and importing building materials not previously approved by Israel, and which includes firing at fishermen, continues to choke the Strip. Furthermore, the Egyptian government has only tightened the blockade on its end over the past months.
http://972mag.com/do-israelis-have-any-idea-how-bad-it-is-in-gaza/102883/

Gazans protest over US killings
GAZA CITY (AFP) 16 Feb — Dozens of young Gazans forced a temporary shutdown of several aid organisations Monday in protest at the killings of three American Muslims of Palestinian origin in North Carolina last week. “We came here today to close the US institutions for two hours. This event aims to denounce the policy of media blackout that occurred and the US media silence and the US official silence,” said activist Jamal Yaghi. The activists said they forced the temporary closure of CARE, Mercy Corps, Amideast and three other aid organisations operating in the Gaza Strip that they associated with US interests, although Mercy Corps later denied that it closed. “The blood of all victims is important, whatever their religion or their nationality,” Yaghi said in an address to the demonstrators who carried “Hate Crime” banners denouncing the February 10 killings. The Palestinian Authority has condemned the murder of sisters Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19, and Yusor Mohammad, 21, along with Yusor’s husband Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, as a “dangerous sign of racism and religious extremism”. The sisters were Jordanian Americans of Palestinian origin, and Barakat’s parents are immigrants from Syria of Palestinian descent … Amid outrage among Muslims across the world, demonstrations have been staged throughout the Palestinian territories, especially Gaza.
http://news.yahoo.com/gazans-protest-over-us-killings-150255974.html

Egypt security forces discover longest Gaza smuggling tunnel
EL-ARISH, Egypt (AP) 15 Feb by Ashraf Sweilam —  Egyptian security officials say they have found a 2.5-kilometer (1.5-mile) smuggling tunnel leading into the Gaza Strip, the longest such passageway discovered in their crackdown on cross-border smuggling. They say the tunnel was operated by the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas movement, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, which Egypt says is a terrorist organization that played a role in recent attacks against Egyptian security forces. Detonators and communications devices were among the devices found in the tunnel, which will be destroyed, officials say, speaking on condition of anonymity because they aren’t authorized to brief reporters.
http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-security-forces-discover-longest-gaza-smuggling-tunnel-175122358.html

Hamas prevents Arabic fiction award finalist from leaving Gaza
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (Al-Monitor) 17 Feb by Asmaa al-Ghoul — A Suspended Life, a novel by Gazan writer Atef Abu Saif, has made it to the finals for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction. The news was announced during the Casablanca International Publishing and Book Fair on Feb. 13. Despite the prominence of the cultural and literary products of the Gaza Strip, the security apparatus in Gaza does not seem to appreciate this richness. The Hamas-affiliated security services stopped Abu Saif at the Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing Feb. 4, preventing him from making it to the book fair in Morocco. Abu Saif wrote about it in an article titled “About Hamas and Culture” for the Palestinian Al-Ayyam newspaper.  “Last week, on my way to the West Bank heading to Morocco, I was surprised by Hamas-affiliated security forces preventing me from traveling. What happened is an unjustifiable act that cannot be explained or warranted on any ground,” he wrote.
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/02/gaza-writers-culture-hamas-clampdown-arab-prize.html

Gunmen open fire at Fatah official in Gaza
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — A Fatah official said Monday that masked gunmen opened fire at him in Gaza City, injuring two bodyguards. Mamoon Sweidan, a Fatah official in the Gaza office for foreign relations, told Ma‘an that two masked gunmen driving a Subaru car opened fire at him as he attempted to enter his vehicle outside of the al-Saadi building where he lives. Two of his bodyguards exchanged shots with the gunmen and were hit during the attack, he added. Sweidan said that the shooting was a clear assassination attempt. The incident is the latest in a string of tit-for-tat attacks between Fatah and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759465

Palestinian refugees – Syria

Syrian refugees swell ranks of Lebanon street children
BEIRUT (AFP) 16 Feb — Syrian refugees make up the majority of children living and working on the streets of Lebanon, with many of them illiterate and surviving by begging, a study released Monday said. The survey of 18 areas in Lebanon identified more than 1,500 children living and working on the street, although its authors said the real number nationwide could be three times higher. The study comes as Syrian refugees in Lebanon struggle to make ends meet, nearly four years into the bloody conflict in their home country. Lebanon has also been stretched by the influx of Syrians, who are competing with its four million citizens for limited resources. Of the 1,510 children identified by the study, 73 percent were from Syria, including Palestinians who had been living in the war-torn country, the study found … Nearly 45 percent of the children were involved in begging, with another 37 percent sell items such as chewing gum, flowers and tissues. Working an average of more than eight hours daily, the children reported earning just over $11 a day. Most of those surveyed, 54 percent, were between 10 and 14 years old, but more than 25 percent were under the age of nine.
http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-refugees-swell-ranks-lebanon-street-children-141646604.html

UNRWA distributes food parcels to over 93,000 in first round of assistance
ABU DHABI (ReliefWeb) 17 Feb — The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) started distributing food parcels to over 93,000 Palestinian refugees in the Damascus area of Syria. This much-needed aid was made possible by the generous support and funding of the United Arab Emirates, which donated AED 55 million (US$15 million) in July 2014 to provide food assistance to conflict affected Palestinian refugees in Syria. The agreement between the UAE and UNRWA provides two rounds of critical food assistance to some of the 460,000 affected Palestinian refugees in Syria. With funding from the UAE, UNRWA has been able to procure and distribute over 630 metric tons of food to refugees thus far, with an upcoming round of distribution planned for this month. It is a timely reminder of the deep and continuous suffering of the Palestinian refugees remaining in Syria, the vast majority whom now rely on UNRWA for their basic nutritional needs. More than half of the Palestinian refugee population in Syria has been internally displaced, and most have lost family members, homes, incomes and livelihood. Unemployment across the country has reached 54 percent and most refugees have exhausted any savings they may have previously had. Palestinian refugees in Syria are now in their fourth winter of hardship.
http://reliefweb.int/report/syrian-arab-republic/uae-funded-food-aid-reaches-palestine-refugees-syria

Activism / Solidarity

PHOTOS: Palestinian village demands end to restrictions on movement
Activestills 17 Feb by Ahmad al-Bazz — Palestinians from the West Bank village of ‘Azzun protested last Saturday, against the closing of the eastern gate to the village, due to requests by the nearby settlement of Karnei Shomron. The gate, which has been closed since 1990, previously served as a crossing into the city of Nablus. Accompanied by leaders of the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee, the protesters tried to reach the gate but were stopped by Israeli soldiers who dispersed the demonstration with rubble-coated bullets and tear gas. One was wounded.
http://972mag.com/photos-palestinian-village-demands-end-to-restrictions-on-movement/102778/

‘Complicit in Gaza’s misery’: Pro-Palestine activists shut down UK arms factory
RT 17 Feb — An arms factory in southeast England was occupied by activists on Tuesday morning in protest against its sales to Israel and Afghanistan. Protesters say the company is complicit in “Gaza’s misery,” where 2,137 Palestinians were killed last summer. Instro Precision Ltd in Kent was besieged by activists at 5am on Tuesday, who occupied and shut down the factory. Taking to the roof, campaigners unfurled a banner demanding Instro “stop arming Israel.” Four protesters remained on the building’s roof, while 10 stood at ground level. The firm manufactures high-tech camera systems used in drones that have been deployed in Israel and Afghanistan. Located near the coastal town of Broadstairs, Kent, it is a subsidiary of Israeli arms company Elbit Systems … Despite the bloodshed its products have wrought, the arms giant’s business continues to boom. According to CAAT, it’s currently making its way through a $6.2-billion backlog of orders. UK campaign group London Palestine Action said Instro was shut down on Tuesday because the British government sold “£500,000 [worth] of weapons” to Israel during the state’s military bombardment of Gaza last summer.
http://rt.com/uk/233107-arms-protest-kent-israel/

Funding of €4.7 million for the Palestinian people announced
Ireland Dept of Foreign Affairs Press Release 16 Feb — The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charlie Flanagan, TD, today announced funding of €4.7 million to UN agencies as part of Ireland’s programme of assistance to the Palestinian people. The funding will go to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the UN’s Emergency Response Fund. The funding will help UNRWA provide vital support and assistance to some five million registered Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip, including schools, health care, social services, infrastructure and camp improvement, microfinance and emergency response … Minister Flanagan highlighted the longstanding cooperation between Ireland and UNRWA saying: “Ireland will continue to support UNRWA as it provides a range of social services including health and education services, to some 5 million Palestine refugees. “The funding today brings our total support to UNRWA to over €48 million since 2005.
https://www.dfa.ie/news-and-media/press-releases/press-release-archive/2015/february/funding-for-the-palestinians-announced/

Other news, opinion

UN: $700m needed for ‘protracted protection crisis’ in Gaza and West Bank
Middle East Monitor 16 Feb — The UN has launched an appeal for $700m to meet the humanitarian needs of 1.6 million vulnerable Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. At a press conference last Thursday, the UN’s Humanitarian Coordinator James W. Rawley urged donors to back the 2015 Strategic Response Plan, which would fund more than 200 projects covering housing, water, sanitation, and healthcare needs. According to Rawley, “approximately 100,000 people are still unable to return to their homes in Gaza” while in the West Bank, “thousands more live in chronic insecurity, at risk of losing their homes and livelihoods as a result of demolitions.” 80% of the funding sought by the UN “is to provide shelter and non-food items and to enhance food security.” More than 75% of the requested funds target needs in Gaza. Rawley added that “alongside the humanitarian response”, there is a need for “fundamental changes, particularly in Gaza.” Describing the territory as “teetering on the brink of another major crisis”, Rawley said that “the fragile ceasefire needs to be solidified, the blockade lifted, human rights respected, and a political solution reached for the entire Palestinian territory.” In a factsheet on the Strategic Response Plan, the UN says that the context in the OPT “is a protracted protection crisis with humanitarian consequences.”
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/16992-un-700m-needed-for-qprotracted-protection-crisisq-in-gaza-and-west-bank

Indyk: Get ready for UNSC resolution proposed not by Palestinians, but int’l community
Jerusalem Post 16 Feb by Herb Keinon — Former envoy to peace talks hints that US would be part of such a resolution that would “lay out and preserve the principles of a two-state solution in the future.” —  Israel will likely face a UN Security Council resolution proposed by all its permanent members, designed to “lay out the principles of a two-state solution,” if the post-election government does not launch a diplomatic initiative, Martin Indyk said Monday. Indyk, who was the US special envoy to last year’s failed Israeli- Palestinian talks and a former ambassador to Israel, said at the annual Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) conference in Tel Aviv that he expects this initiative would be “against Israel’s will.” Indyk, currently vice president and director of the Foreign Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, has been involved in the diplomatic process since the Oslo era. After he stepped down over the summer following the collapse of the negotiations, he did little to hide his opinion that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was largely responsible for the breakdown of the talks. “If there is a government in Israel after these elections that decides to pursue a two-state solution, then there is a way forward,” Indyk said. “It begins with coordinating an initiative with the United States. And then, together with the US, looking to Egypt and Jordan and the resurrection of the Arab Peace Initiative, to find a way to provide the Palestinians both with an Egyptian-Jordanian anchor, and the political cover of the Arab Peace Initiative.” He said that under this arrangement there would have to be a “freeze for a freeze”: an Israeli freeze of settlement activity and a freeze of Palestinian international activity against Israel.
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Indyk-Get-ready-for-UNSC-resolution-proposed-not-by-Palestinians-but-intl-community-391188

PA: Palestine free of IS cells
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 16 Feb — A spokesman of the Palestinian Authority’s security services insisted Monday that Palestine is free from any cells affiliated to the Islamic State militant group. Adnan Dameiri said in a news conference in Ramallah that Israel had “baselessly” suggested ISIS-affiliated groups were in the occupied Palestinian territory. “We are obviously adamant not to have ISIS or umbrellas for them in Palestine. Those who have been trying to create the ISIS phenomenon are Israel and Hamas given that the Muslim Brotherhood movement is the incubator which created al-Qaeda, ISIS, the Nusra Front and other Jihadist and Takfiri organizations,” he said … The PA security services, added the spokesman, have interrogated several suspects over affiliation to ISIS, but they were all set free after they proved their innocence. Asked about budget allocated to security services, which according to a recent report from the Ministry of Finance amounts to about 28 percent of the general PA budget, Dameiri that the budget in the report included monthly salaries of all security officers. The number of PA security service personnel is around 64,000 of whom 34,000 are Gaza-based and 30,000 are based in the West Bank, according to Dameiri. Speaking of the ongoing security crackdown in Nablus district in the northern West Bank, Dameiri said that it would continue until all outlaws and fugitives are arrested. So far, he said, 21 suspects have been arrested and will have fair trials in Palestinian courts. “The Israeli occupation is interested in creating chaos in Palestine … to tell the world that the Palestinians do not deserve to have a state. Thus, tranquility and stability will embarrass the Israeli occupation.”
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759468

Plea bargain in works for MK Zoabi, accused of incitement
Haaretz 18 Feb by Revital Hovel — A plea bargain is apparently in the offing between the prosecution and MK Haneen Zoabi, by which Zoabi will be tried for insulting a public servant and not for incitement to violence. Zoabi’s attorney, Hassan Jabareen of the human rights group Adalah, informed the Supreme Court Tuesday of the impending plea bargain during a Supreme Court hearing of Zoabi’s appeal against her disqualification from running for the Knesset. Addressing the July incident at the Nazareth Magistrate’s Court where Zoabi allegedly called Arab policemen traitors, Jabareen told the court, “Zoabi explained that it is not her style and conceded that she had made a mistake. There were cases of other MKs in the past who in the passion of their political activity committed acts and they were not indicted.”
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/.premium-1.642982

Facebook removes Hamas-affiliated news agency page
RAMALLAH (WAFA) 18 Feb  – The online social networking website Facebook has removed the page of the Hamas-affiliated Shehab news agency, after its followers had reached about 2.5 million users. Followers of the page have reported their inability to view its content. Shehab is one of the widely spread social networking websites in the Palestinian territories, and reports on daily news related to the West Bank and Gaza. Facebook administration cited graphic violence as the reason behind deleting the page.  There have been several moves by Facebook against Palestinian-run pages, citing hate and violence pretenses. In March 2011, Facebook removed a group run by Palestinian activists calling for a third Palestinian uprising.According to Israeli media, then Minister of Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Yuli Edelstein sent a letter to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, demanding that the page be shut down immediately. The page was later removed after it had gathered more than 1.2 million participants.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=27888

Divers find record trove of gold coins in Mediterranean
Jerusalem (AFP) 18 Feb — Scuba divers have discovered the largest trove of gold coins ever found off Israel’s Mediterranean coast — about 2,000 pieces dating back more than 1,000 years, the country’s antiquities authority said Tuesday. “The largest treasure of gold coins discovered in Israel was found in recent weeks on the seabed in the ancient harbour in Caesarea,” the authority said in a statement … Experts from the authority called to the site uncovered “almost 2,000 gold coins in different denominations” circulated by the Fatimid Caliphate, which ruled much of the Middle East and North Africa from 909 to 1171 … “There is probably a shipwreck there of an official treasury boat which was on its way to the central government in Egypt with taxes that had been collected,” said Sharvit. “Perhaps the treasure of coins was meant to pay the salaries of the Fatimid military garrison which was stationed in Caesarea and protected the city … The Israeli Antiquities Authority declined to put a cash value on the coins, which it said had been exposed as a result of winter storms. The find was “so valuable that its priceless,” spokeswoman Yoli Schwartz told AFP, adding the haul was now the property of the state, and that there was no finder’s fee.
http://news.yahoo.com/divers-record-trove-gold-coins-mediterranean-000244620.html

Israel’s Dahiya doctrine general becomes new chief of staff
Alternative News 17 Feb –In the heart of Tel Aviv, inside Israel’s military headquarters known as Hakiyra, Israel’s 21st chief of staff was sworn in on Monday. Gadi Eisenkot replaced the outgoing Benny Ganz. Eisenkot, the new chief of staff, is associated more than anyone else with the notorious Dahiya doctrine, which advocates disproportionate use of force as part of Israel’s campaign against guerrilla warfare. When he was still the chief of the northern command back in 2008, Eisenkot revealed in an interview with Israel’s mass circulation Hebrew language daily, Yedioth Ahronoth, that Israel would use “disproportionate” force to destroy Lebanese villages from which Hizbollah fighters launched rockets at its cities in any future war. “What happened in the Dahiya quarter of Beirut in 2006 will happen in every village from which Israel is fired on,” he said, referring to the area of Beirut which the Israeli military flattened in sustained air raids during the summer offensive against Lebanon known in Israel as the “Second Lebanon War”.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/other-opinions/508-israel-s-dahiya-doctrine-general-new-chief-of-staff

Netanyahu visit to Hebron ‘a time bomb’
HEBRON (Ma‘an) 17 Feb — Palestinian officials say the Israeli prime minister’s plan to visit the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron is a “time bomb” that could drag the area into more violence and disorder. Hebron’s mayor, Kamel Hmeid, called upon the foreign ministers of six member countries in the Temporary International Presence in Hebron to hold an emergency meeting to protect residents from Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans. The visit to the Ibrahimi mosque, known to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs, will take place March 3, one week before the Israeli Knesset elections and close to the anniversary of the massacre in which 29 Palestinians were killed and dozens were injured when an Israeli settler opened fire at worshipers. A Palestinian security source told Ma’an that “Netanyahu lit the wick of a big bomb in Hebron, and we do not know when or where it will explode.” “Residents of Hebron are preparing to commemorate the 21st memory of the Ibrahimi Mosque’s massacre on Friday between the H1 and H2 parts of the Hebron,” he added.  “Clashes with Israeli soldiers will surely erupt on contact points following the marches.”
http://www.maannews.com/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=759469

Israeli election chief puts curbs on Netanyahu speech to Congress
JERUSALEM (Reuters) 16 Feb by Luke Baker — The head of Israel’s election commission acted on Monday to limit any pre-election boost Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may get from a March 3 speech to the U.S. Congress, in which he will warn of the threat from Iran’s nuclear programme … Following complaints from opposition parties, election chief Salim Joubran decided that Netanyahu’s address should be broadcast with a five-minute delay in Israel, giving news editors time to cut any statements deemed partisan. “Editors-in-chief of broadcast channels will watch and make sure that nothing the prime minister says can be construed as election campaigning,” Joubran said in a statement. “Any campaigning will be omitted from the broadcast.”
http://news.yahoo.com/israeli-election-chief-puts-curbs-netanyahus-speech-u-151134551.html

Palestinians behind cyber attacks on Israel army and government targets
Haaretz 16 Feb by Oded Yaron — Hackers working primarily from Gaza, Egypt, Morocco responsible for attacks on Israeli government, military and infrastructure systems — Palestinian hackers were behind a series of cyber-attacks on Israeli targets, according to a new report published by the Trend Micro company. The slew of attacks, which began in 2013, were directed at government, Israel Defense Forces, academia and infrastructure websites, and were meant to collect information for the purpose of conducting further cyber-attacks in the future. The report, entitled Arid Viper, and compiled with cooperation from the U.S. Air Force, reveals that the hackers were working primarily from the Gaza Strip, but also from Egypt and Morocco, and used contaminated emails in order to get harmful programs into Israeli organizations’ computer networks. The company did not reveal which companies were attacked, or how much information was stolen. The hackers’ used the tactic, known as Spear Phishing, primarily against employees at Israeli companies. It is a common method among hackers, both those who work for intelligence organizations, as well as hackers with criminal motives.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.642800

Jordan signs letter of intent to import gas from Gaza marine field
RAMALLAH (WAFA) 16 Feb – Jordan will sign Monday a letter of intent to import natural gas from Palestine, stated a Jordanian minister. Jordan’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Muhammad Hamed said his country would sign a letter of intent to import natural gas from the offshore Gaza Marine field. Hamed made his remarks on the margins of a meeting with Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister  and Minister of National Economy Muhammad Mustafa as well as Minister of Energy Omar Kittaneh in Ramallah to discuss the details of a deal. Responding to a question on whether his country has substituted Palestinian gas for Israeli gas, Hamed noted that his country has several options to import natural gas to provide Jordan with much-needed energy, including importing it from Palestine. According to Interfax Natural Gas Daily (Interfax Energy), a news outlet that provides a natural perspective on natural gas news and events, Jordan is hoping to close a deal to import up to 4.25 million cubic metres per day of gas from the 32 billion cubic meter offshore Gaza Marine field, which lies 36 kilometers off the coast of Gaza, by the end of February. Jordan has halted negotiations to purchase natural gas from Leviathan, the largest offshore Israeli gas reserve, after the deal sparked controversy and triggered protests in November 2014. Seventy five Jordanian parliamentarians signed onto a petition expressing their opposition to the deal.  The Gaza Marine reserve was discovered eighteen years ago. It contains over 32 billion cubic meters and is owned by British Gas Group (60%), which also operates the reserve, Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) (30%), and the Palestinian Authority (10%).
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=27868

Obama plays hardball with Israel … for once / Mark H. Gaffney
Counterpunch 17 Feb — Exposing Israel’s secret nuclear program — Finally. After many years of official hypocrisy, a US president appears to be playing hardball with Israel. The other day, the US government declassified a 1987 report documenting Israel’s secret nuclear weapons program. I have been a critic of President Obama, but one has to admire the timing of the release which I suspect was ordered by the White House. Next month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to speak before Congress, at the behest of House speaker Boehner, and the topic of Netanyahu’s address reportedly will be Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons program …  Israeli PM Netanyahu is a smooth talker, but he is in no position to lecture Iran or any other state about nuclear weapons. The just-declassified report shows up Netanyahu for what he is, a liar.  All sixteen US intelligence agencies agree there is no hard evidence that Iran is attempting to develop nuclear weapons. As a signatory of the nuclear non proliferation treaty, Iran’s nuclear power program is fully safeguarded by IAEA inspections. Israel by contrast is a rogue state that secretly developed nukes while thumbing its nose at the world. Israel has long refused to sign the NPT.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/02/17/obama-plays-hardball-with-israelfor-once/

Extortion, blackmail and exploitation in Palestine / Noura Mansour
Middle East Monitor 16 Feb — Extortion and blackmail are systematic Israeli procedures in Palestine. Extortion, defined as coercion into giving up certain things (be it property or information) against one’s free will, has been around for decades. These policies however intensified in 2007 after the Palestinian political split. A Palestinian film, “Omar”, which was nominated for an Oscar for the best foreign language film in 2014, portrayed some aspects of these practices … Once targeted for collaboration, Palestinians are interrogated, tortured and subjected to cruel and inhumane treatment. They have to spy on their friends, neighbours or families, or else have their secrets exposed or be denied a service they depend on. They have no choice and, whichever way they choose, they suffer psychologically, socially and often even physically … There are a number of strategies used by the Israelis. For example, people are drawn into collaboration whilst in detention. Any reason is good enough to arrest someone or detain them for interrogation. Detainees are exposed to numerous strategies to extract information, including threats of violence, harsh prison conditions and spies who try to befriend you in prison. Refusing to collaborate could mean life in prison, even if there is no evidence against you …  People are also forced to collaborate in the face of threats to expose secrets. If you are gay or engaged in extramarital or premarital sex, then it will be used against you. In some instances, the suggestion of these claims might be enough to destroy your life and relationship with your spouse and family, regardless of the truth of the claims made. Palestinians are often forced to collaborate if they want to travel within or get out of Israel. Given that there are hundreds of checkpoints, separating villages, towns and cities, this could happen to anyone … Collaboration is also enforced by threats of physical harm or death. In cases where the target is a patient who has applied for a permit to enter Israel for medical treatment (the majority of cases in Gaza), he or she faces the risk of the application being rejected which could have detrimental effects on their health and even lead to death.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/16988-extortion-blackmail-and-exploitation-in-palestine

European Jews moving to Israel are trading anti-Semitism for racism / Zvi Bar’el
Haaretz 18 Feb — French and Danish immigrants will find that Israel swallows its immigrants, but it doesn’t digest them — Everyone is ready to welcome the big wave of immigrants expected to move to Israel following the terrorist attacks in France and Denmark. No country in Europe is safe for Jews anymore, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says, not forgetting of course to remind these future refugees that the continent remains “that same old Europe.” Actually, not only the Jews of Europe aren’t safe. The Jews of Israel have a hard time being convinced that their haven can face up to the threats in the region that Netanyahu warns them of daily. But let’s assume that thousands of Jews do decide to abandon their businesses, studies, homes and livelihoods and board rescue flights to Ben-Gurion International Airport. What will they find here? They’ll see right-wing videos portraying the Israeli left as Nazi collaborators out to destroy the country. They’ll learn how fortunate they are not to have come here as refugees from Eritrea or Sudan, or even as Jewish immigrants from Ethiopia. Jews who have suffered European anti-Semitism will trade it in for Israeli racism. They’ll discover they’ve become citizens of an occupying country, the occupation that has contributed to that same anti-Semitism that made them pack their bags in the first place.
http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.642945

When IDF conscription begins at age three / Orly Noy
+972mag16 Feb — An education system that brings an inherently violent organization in through the front door is failing at its most basic obligation. This policy is the first injection of militarism, ultimately meant to prevent our children from becoming critical citizens — Ten years ago, when my oldest daughter was five years old, I already had the honor of being the mother of a draft refuser. One day, when she was in kindergarten, my young daughter came home with a notice from the kindergarten teacher asking parents to help their children prepare care packages for a soldier. The notice included a list of suggested items, and requested that the package include a drawing and letter from the child to the soldier. I immediately called the kindergarten teacher and asked her if she didn’t think that four- and five-year-old children were a bit too young to be drafted into the Home Front Command. “What do you mean,” she responded, “It’s the most basic civic act!” After a few seconds I realized that the conversation was futile. My little draft refuser didn’t go to kindergarten the next day and the next year, we moved her to a bi-lingual (read: integrated with Jews and Arabs) school, which solved the problem. It turns out that indoctrinating children at a young age has become so deeply rooted in the education system that today, such notices are sent not by gung-ho kindergarten teachers but by the authorities themselves.
http://972mag.com/when-idf-conscription-begins-at-age-three/102852/

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