and other news from Today in Palestine:
Land, property, resources theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Deportation / Settlers
Palestinians silently transferred from East Jerusalem / Jillian Kestler- D’Amours
EI 19 Apr — For Mahmoud Qaraeen, the Israeli government’s revocation of residency rights from Palestinian residents of occupied East Jerusalem is more than just a troublesome policy; it’s a concrete threat that impacts his ability to study, work or even just travel abroad. “People feel that they are under siege,” Qaraeen, a 25-year-old resident of Silwan in East Jerusalem, told The Electronic Intifada. “I cannot do anything to risk the possibility of not coming back [to Jerusalem].”
http://electronicintifada.net/content/palestinians-silently-transferred-east-jerusalem/9851
Jewish settlers order families in OJ to evacuate their homes
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 19 Apr — A group of Jewish settlers affiliated with settlement institutions delivered evacuation notifications to ten Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah suburb in occupied Jerusalem. Local sources said on Tuesday that the settlers claimed that those houses were owned by them. They noted that some of those settlers broke into one of those homes and tried to force the family members out of it but were expelled out of it. They added that the settlers took photos of a number of nearby houses.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd
UK sends observer to Jerusalem zoning cmte. meeting
Ynet 14 Apr — Committee members enraged to discover British representative attending meeting of panel that has power to okay construction beyond Green Line … Sources familiar with the subject said this was not the first time a British delegate was present at committee meetings, which are open to the public; adding that that is often the case when zoning plans protruding [beyond] the Green Line are involved.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4057212,00.html
British trade unionists visit Jerusalemite officials at Red Cross
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 19 Apr — The three Palestinian officials threatened with eviction from occupied Jerusalem met on Tuesday morning at the Red Cross headquarters a British delegation of trade unionists … The Jerusalemite officials, two lawmakers and one former minister, briefed the delegation about their issue, especially the Arab and international moves being made to confront Israel’s intents to expel them from the holy city after it exiled MP Mohamed Abu Atteir.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcO
Views from the Jordan Valley / Jack Curry
ISM 19 Apr — The cluster of Jordan Valley villages located around Fasayil offer a twisted microcosm of the fickle barbarity of Israel’s illegal occupation. Families who seemingly share land, live side by side with no separation except the invisible borders enshrined in Israel’s military law. Yet, as you tread amongst the stones between the close lying villages it is clear where the limited rights afforded to Palestinians ends and the increased terror of the occupation begins.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/04/17837/
Israel appropriating historical sites for colonial ends / Sarah Irving
EI 18 Apr — As The Electronic Intifada has reported since, the State of Israel seems to have two approaches to Palestine’s ancient sites. If, like the sites Netanyahu claimed or the remains at Sebastia, they fit into Israeli narratives about the Jewish history of the region, they are appropriated, renovated and incorporated into “archaeological parks.” If, like excavated finds and important buildings in Gaza, they highlight ancient Philistine or more recent Islamic periods of history, they can be bombed along with Gaza’s residents, or simply allowed to decay as vital conservation chemicals are excluded by the blockade … It’s against this setting that in October 2010, while researching a guidebook to Palestine, I found myself increasingly confused about a number of historical sites scattered around the occupied West Bank. None of them had the religious and historical importance of the Ibrahimi Mosque or Rachel’s Tomb, but they had their own place in Palestinian history and architecture.
http://electronicintifada.net/content/israel-appropriating-historical-sites-colonial-ends/9850
Israel to move army commands to Negev desert
JERUSALEM (AFP) 17 Apr — Israel’s government on Sunday approved a plan to move key military installations to the Negev desert, in a bid to boost development in its arid south and free up valuable land in the centre … Netanyahu said the move would provide “strong momentum to the development of the Negev, assisted by the thousands of quality people who will go there, affecting industry, construction, culture in all its aspects.” [not including Bedouins, most probably]
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379724
Jewish settlers injure 4 Palestinians in Nablus
NABLUS, April 19, 2011 (WAFA) – A group of Jewish settlers raided Bourin, a Palestinian village south of Nablus, and shot at the residences, injuring four Palestinians, including a journalist who was severely beaten. Ghassan Daghlas, the Palestinian official responsible for the settlement file in the northern West Bank, said that armed settlers from the nearby settlement ‘Brakha’ attacked the village and attempted to take over a house in order to raise a flag on top of it. The Palestinian wounded was transferred to a hospital in Nablus city. Israeli forces, meanwhile, raided the village, shot and launched tear gas at residents, causing the suffocation of dozens, including four journalists who were covering the attacks.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=15931
US Treasury: Nothing to see on tax exempt support for illegal settlements / Alex Kane
19 Apr — … the Treasury Department is doing nothing about the (at least) hundreds of millions of tax-exempt dollars that flow to illegal settlements on occupied land. It is doing nothing about the New York-based Hebron Fund, which openly raises money for racist, extremist Israeli settlers who make the lives of Palestinians in Hebron hell. It is doing nothing about Friends of the Ateret Cohanim and Friends of Ir David, who are actively engaged in the colonization of Palestinian land in occupied Jerusalem.
http://alexbkane.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/u-s-treasury-nothing-to-see-on-tax-exempt-support-for-illegal-settlements/
Passover closures / Restriction of movement
PA: Jewish freedom holiday restricts Palestinians
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 18 Apr — Palestinian Authority officials criticized Israel’s decision to close the West Bank Monday, saying that as the Jewish faithful celebrated the Passover “holiday of freedom,” it was wrong to restrict the freedom of Palestinians.
“Freedom should be a value that every human being believes in and prays for, and not only a nice holiday name…” … Israel’s Ministry of Defense issued the orders to put the West Bank under lockdown for 10 days less than 12 hours in advance of the closure, prompting the PA to stress that “while Israelis celebrate their holidays, Palestinian Christians face restrictions on their freedom of movement and right to worship.”
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379829
IOA closes down Ibrahimi mosque for two days
AL-KHALIL, (PIC) 18 Apr — The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) ordered the closure of the Ibrahimi mosque in Al-Khalil next Wednesday and Thursday to allow the Jews to celebrate Passover in it. The IOA decision meant that the mosque would be closed before Muslim worshipers on those two days and opened in full for the Jews. The ministry of Awqaf and religious affairs denounced the decision, saying it fell in line with the constant violations of the mosque’s sanctity such banning the call for prayers and searching worshipers while on their way to pray in it.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
Jewish settlers storm Aqsa plazas
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 19 Apr — Jewish settlers escorted by Israeli occupation police stormed the holy Aqsa Mosque on Monday and strolled in its plazas. Eyewitnesses said that the Israeli policemen allowed entry of Jews in big numbers and provided protection for them while imposing restrictions on movement of Muslim worshipers … The Israeli security forces turned Jerusalem into military barracks, deploying police forces in its streets and alleys, closing streets to allow free movement for Jewish settlers, and isolating it from the West Bank.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
IOF seizes Palestinian homes for military use
AL-KHALIL, (PIC) 19 Apr — The Israeli occupation force (IOF) has transformed several Palestinian homes in Al-Khalil province in the south West Bank into military posts and observation points. The IOF turned the home of Palestinian man Issa al-Farroukh located on the intersection of Beit Anoun and Saeer overlooking Highway 60 into a military post, locals told the Palestinian Information Center. Several soldiers in full gear stationed themselves on the roof and restricted the zone to secure Passover celebrations of Jewish settlers.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd8
Incursions, blockades of villages
Army blocks entrances to Khirbet a-Deir
B’Tselem 14 Apr — The village of Khirbet a-Deir, which lies next to the village of Tuqu’, is built on both sides of Route 356 that connects Bethlehem and Hebron. On 9 February 2011, a bulldozer accompanied by two army jeeps laid dirt piles and boulders at the two entrances to the Abu Ghassan neighborhood, which is the northern section of the village, and at the entrance to the nearby village of al-Halqum, thus blocking access by car through these entrances. The action was taken without informing the residents in advance and without explanation … The entrances to the Abu Ghassan neighborhood remain closed. As a result, 150 people have been left with no ability to access their neighborhood by car … For more than a month now, residents of Abu Ghassan have had to leave their cars on the main road and climb over the dirt piles and boulders to reach home. They have to carry all shopping products, including gas canisters and animal feed, on their backs. As the village has no medical services whatsoever, residents have carry persons needing medical care over the piles and boulders to reach the main road.
http://www.btselem.org/English/Freedom_of_Movement/20110414_Army_blocks_entrances_to_Khirbat_a_Deir.asp
Beit Ummar residents say town under siege
HEBRON (Ma‘an) — Israeli forces erected checkpoints around the town of Beit Ummar Sunday afternoon, and carried out several home invasions, delivering summonses to appear for questioning to at least one resident, locals said. Town activist Mohammad Ayyad Awwad told Ma‘an that the measures came as part of an increase in restrictions and harassment against residents, and following the construction of a fence along the southern side of the village, restricting movement of residents and caging them into the town center. Beit Ummar, north of Hebron in the southern West Bank, has been increasingly targeted by Israeli forces in the past weeks, Awwad said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379669
Gaza
Gaza crossings closed for Passover; exports halt
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) — Only days after crossings re-opened following a week-long Israeli decision to halt imports into the Gaza Strip, all crossing terminals were again closed on Monday, as Jewish citizens of Israel mark Passover. Crossings official in Gaza Raed Fattouh said he was informed Sunday evening that import terminals would be closed Monday and Tuesday, but were expected to re-open on Wednesday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379755
Forensic reports show white phosphorus use in Gaza attacks
GAZA, (PIC) 18 Apr — Ihab Kahil, who was appointed director of the Gaza Ministry of Justice forensic medicine department, said the bodies retrieved in Israel’s recent attack on the Gaza Strip have been examined to identify the weapons used in the onslaught … “During examinations, evidence has been found that Israel used white phosphorus and internationally banned weapons,” Kahil concluded.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcO
Egyptian foreign minister to visit Gaza ‘in solidarity’
MEMO 18 Apr — The Palestinian Quds Press has reported that Egypt’s new Foreign Minister, Nabil El-‘Arabi, is to visit the Gaza Strip. Preparations are being made for his visit, claims Egyptian journalist Ibrahim El-Darrawy, the head of the Cairo-based Palestinian Studies Centre. According to Al-Darrawy, Mr El-‘Arabi’s visit to besieged Gaza has been scheduled for some time; the intention is to support Palestinian reconciliation efforts and express solidarity with Gaza following recent Israeli attacks.
http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/news/middle-east/2253-egyptian-foreign-minister-to-visit-gaza-qin-solidarityq
Ireland to press Israel on Gaza aid
UKPA 18 Apr — Ireland will press Israel to let activists bring humanitarian goods into Gaza, Foreign Affairs Minister Eamon Gilmore has said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5jLjgVaIEYfL95vbtdwVGC-whgc-Q?docId=N0655231303132566294A
‘Arabi fully prepared to allow aid into Gaza
CAIRO, (PIC) 18 Apr — Egyptian FM Nabil al-‘Arabi has confirmed during a visit by the Egyptian-international coalition to end the Gaza siege that Egypt is fully prepared to help bring humanitarian aid and construction supplies into the Gaza Strip, said Manha Bakhoum, spokeswoman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry. The FM had made an apparent political agreement to get the goods in through the Rafah border crossing after the issue is brought to the President of the Egyptian government in order to take necessary and appropriate measures.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd8
Qassam rocket hits western Negev
Ynet 18 Apr — A Qassam rocket fired from northern Gaza exploded Monday in an open area near a Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council kibbutz.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4058374,00.html
Operation Cast Lead II
16 Apr — Scrapping Hamas’ offered cease-fire, influential Yisrael Beiteinu politicians are promoting another invasion of Palestine’s worn-torn, besieged land of Gaza. While President Benajim Netanyahu thanked in Washington, DC for another US$205 million for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon called for the forced removal of Hamas. “Only the collapse of Hamas rule in Gaza will stop the firing,” Ayalon said, according to Jpost. “There is no other solution.:”
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1758
Detention / Deportation
Channel 2 reveals killing, abuse of Palestinian prisoners / Noam Sheizaf
972mag 18 Apr — This is really hard to watch: A search in prisoners cells and tents in Ktziot, a huge prison for Palestinians near the Egyptian border, ended up with the guards shooting prisoners in their quarters, killing one and injuring others. The whole operation was unnecessary, intended to promote self-confidence and to “boost morale” among the guards. As can be seen near the end of the video, some guards are clearly enjoying themselves (not everyone – others are trying to prevent the situation from getting out of hand) … UPDATE: As part of its training, “Metzada” prisons unit, which is seen in the video above, was sent to confront unarmed protesters in Bil’in. Metzada’s members operated undercover among the demonstrators; according to reports in the Israeli media, the provocations they caused resulted in several injuries to protesters.
(For English subtitles, press arrow, then “CC” on the lower-right corner of the player)
http://972mag.com/channel-2-reveals-killing-abuse-of-palestinian-prisoners/
Legal victory for detainee threatened with deportation
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 17 Apr — The Israeli military court at the Ofer base ordered the release of two Palestinian men, following a legal battle to prevent their deportation, lawyers said. Taleb Bani Odeh was released on the condition that he remains under house arrest in his family home, with an imposed fine of 10,000 shekels ($3,000), while and Mahmoud Abu Zuweiyed was released without prejudice, lawyer Jawad Bulos from the Prisoner’s Society told Ma‘an. Bulos said the victory came as a partial one, adding that six other Palestinian prisoners whose release dates have passed, have also been threatened with deportation, either to the Gaza Strip or abroad. The men, detained before the creation of the Palestinian Authority and the registration of residents with new identity cards, do not – according to Israel – have the right to reside in the West Bank or Gaza. An offer was made to deport the men to Jordan, but the suggestion was refused by Jordanian officials.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379652
Injured Palestinian worker arrested when trying to raise complaint against soldiers who used dogs to attack him
AIC 17 Apr — During the morning hours of Sunday 10 April, three Palestinian workers were attacked by Israeli soldiers, southwest of Hebron. The three men were walking to work when the army stopped them near Ramadin, a village in Area C adjacent to the Green Line. The soldiers attacked the workers with the dogs. One of them, ‘Ala Adel Hawwarin, a 21-year-old resident in the village of Dahirriya, was seriously injured in his left hand by a dog … Three days later, on Wednesday 13 April, ‘Ala Adel Hawwarin went to the police station in the settlement of Kiryat Arba to make an official complaint against the soldiers. The Military Police denied the complaint, treating ‘Ala as a criminal. The police arrested the young man, accusing him of attempting to enter the Israeli State illegally … The worker was in prison for two days. He was just released by the police after paying 1000 shekels.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/hebron/3530-injured-palestinian-worker-arrested-when-trying-to-raise-complaint-against-soldiers-who-used-dogs-to-attack-him
Prisoners Day protests see 1 detained near Ofer
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) — One Palestinian was detained Sunday and others injured when Israeli forces dispersed a sit-in protest outside the Ofer prison, where tens were marking Prisoners Day north of Ramallah. A youth coalition had organized the protests, in conjunction with the families of prisoners in the Ramallah area. The group held photos of imprisoned loved ones, and chanted slogans demanding their release.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379626
Six Palestinians kidnapped in West Bank raids
WEST BANK, (PIC) 18 Apr — The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) kidnapped at dawn Monday six Palestinians from different West Bank areas. The Hebrew radio said the Israeli army stormed at an earlier hour the cities of Al-Khalil, Bethlehem, Nablus and Ramallah and ransacked homes before detaining six Palestinians claimed to be wanted by the intelligence. Local sources from Dura and Surif towns in Al-Khalil told the Palestinian information center (PIC) that two Hamas-affiliated Palestinians from Awawdeh family were kidnapped separately today.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd8
Salah said IOF soldiers used ‘stupid and racist behavior’ during Allenby arrest
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) 19 Apr — Leader of the Islamic Movement in 1948-occupied Palestine Raed Salah said that Israeli occupation forces soldiers used “stupid and racist behavior” when they arrested him and his wife at the Allenby Bridge border crossing after they refused to comply with a provocative strip search targeting his wife.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
UN official calls for protecting Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons
IMEMC 19 Apr — United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Territories called for providing the Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons with protecting due to repeated Israeli military attacks and constant violations against them. Maxwell Gaylard stated that Palestinian detainees, especially detained women and children, need urgent protection. Gaylard stated Monday that International Law and human rights principles must be applied regardless of the reasons behind their detention. He also stated that preventing the families of the detainees from visiting them contradicts the international law, adding that isolating the detainees from their families breaks up family ties.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61088
PA militias kidnap three Hamas members in West Bank
WEST BANK, (PIC) 19 Apr — The Palestinian authority security militias kidnapped three Palestinian citizens thought to be affiliated with Hamas Movement in Al-Khalil and Nablus cities in the context of the security cooperation with the Israeli occupation forces (IOF). Local sources reported that the militias in Nablus kidnapped an ex-detainee called Ammar Zuhair, who was released a week ago from an Israeli jail as well as a teacher working for the Islamic school … In another incident, a PA military court postponed the trial of five prominent Hamas figures in Al-Khalil until May 19. Many military trials were held against them, but they were arbitrarily delayed.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc
Six citizens from Hamas taken prisoner by W. Bank militias
WEST BANK, (PIC) 18 Apr — The Fatah-affiliated security militias in the West Bank are still persistent in their divisive acts and their security cooperation with Israel culminating their latest raids with the kidnapping of two Hamas-affiliated citizens in Nablus and Qalqiliya cities. According to local sources on Monday, the militias kidnapped an ex-detainee called Khaled Assussa from Nablus. He previously spent two years in a Palestinian authority jail….
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2
Week 4: Fuad Qasim Al Razim, Palestinian political prisoner
MEMO 18 Apr — Fuad Al Razim is the doyen of the Palestinian prisoners who hail from Jerusalem. He is a strong man who withstands torture and remains faithful to the Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa, where he was raised. He was imprisoned on 30th January 1981 for carrying out two military operations which resulted in the deaths of two Israeli soldiers in occupied Jerusalem. Fuad has never given up hope and has never confessed,
http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/resources/reports-and-publications/2255-week-4-fuad-qasim-al-razim-palestinian-political-prisoner
Court indicts three Israeli Arabs for creating Nazareth terror cell
Haaretz 17 Apr — The Nazareth District Court indicted three youths from the northern Israel Arab town for allegedly creating a terror cell that was conspiring attacks in Israel. The three Nazareth youth allegedly conspired to create pipe bombs and purchase weapons to harm Israeli soldiers, police and civilians.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/court-indicts-three-israeli-arabs-for-creating-nazareth-terror-cell-1.356405
Murder of Vittorio Arrigoni
Arrigoni killer pursuit ends after suspect takes life
GAZA, (PIC) 19 Apr — The Gaza Ministry of Interior and National Security has confirmed that the pursuit of dangerous suspects wanted for the murder of Italian peace activist Vittorio Arrigoni in Gaza ended after one of the men threw a grenade injuring both of his accomplices. The suspect Abdurrahman al-Bureizat, a Jordanian citizen, then opened fire on himself taking his own life. Three Gaza security service men were moderately injured in the operation. Palestinian police had demanded that the suspects surrender as they had surrounded the Abu Ghoula residence where the men were taking cover, a PIC correspondent reported. They had declared that they wanted to take them into custody alive. The suspects were identified as Mahmoud al-Salfiti, Bilal al-Omari, and Abdurrahman al-Bureizat, also known as Mohammed Hassan. Faris Abu Ghoula, one of the residents, had joined the men as they took refuge in the home west of the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza Strip, our correspondent said. [A Salafi committed suicide? Very odd. Suicide absolutely forbidden by the Qur’an, by the Prophet].
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bc
Lifeline for Gaza: Berizat did not enter Gaza through our convoys
AMMAN, (PIC) 19 Apr — The Jordanian committee of “Lifeline for Gaza” aid convoys denied that Abdulrahman Al-Berizat who is accused of killing Italian Vittorio Arrigoni had entered the Gaza Strip through one of its convoys. Quds Press quoted head of the committee Wa‘el Al-Saka as saying that there was no one by that name on any lists of the Lifeline convoys that crossed into Gaza for humanitarian purposes.
Lawyer of the Islamic organizations in Jordan Mussa Al-Abdalat told Quds Press that Berizat, hailing from the Jordanian city of Madaba, was a member of the Lifeline aid convoy which joined the first Freedom Flotilla that was attacked by the Israeli navy last year. Abdalat said the accused, according to his acquaintances, stayed in Gaza working as a driver for a charity, affirming that Berizat was not known as a supporter of the Salafi trend.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2b
Gaza police identify murder suspects
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 18 Apr — Gaza police on Monday released the photos of four men identified as the prime suspects in the murder of Italian activist and journalist Vittorio Arrigoni. Police said the four were currently fugitives, and apparently in hiding. The four were identified as Abdul-Rahman Al-Breizat, Mahmoud Muhammad Nimir Salfiti, Muhammad Al-Breizat, and Bilal Al-Umari. Police did not say whether any of the men were affiliated with a political, religious or military group in the coastal enclave. Two men detained earlier were not directly involved in the murder, police said. Police gave no indication as to who identified the four, or whether they were suspected to be behind the hanging of Arrigoni, or connected to his abduction last week … Arrigoni’s mother told the Italian newspaper Agenzia Giornalistica Italia that she would not allow her son’s body to return from Gaza via Israel. “Israel did not want him when he was alive and won’t have him when he is dead,” she told AGI.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379833
State funeral for slain Italian activist
News24 18 Apr — Rafah – Palestinian civilians joined members of the Hamas police and security forces on Monday for a funeral to mourn the death of an Italian activist killed by a Salafist group last week. Hundreds of people gathered in Gaza City and at the Rafah border crossing to pay to their respects to Vittorio Arrigoni, 36 … His body was carried from Gaza City’s Shifa hospital in a wooden coffin draped in a Palestinian flag and strewn with rose petals. Mourners carrying signs bearing his motto: “Stay human” surrounded the coffin, as Hamas police and security officials saluted during the state funeral ceremony given in his honour. A procession of mourners in cars, waving Palestinian flags from their vehicles, accompanied Arrigoni’s body from the hospital, south along Gaza’s main road to Rafah. Others lined the route, holding pictures of Arrigoni … At Rafah, pallbearers carrying the coffin wept as Palestinians waved banners reading “No, no to militancy and terrorism, yes, yes to freedom.”
http://www.news24.com/World/News/State-funeral-for-slain-Italian-activist-20110418
VIDEO: Hundreds in Gaza honour Italian activist
EURONEWS 18 Apr – funeral procession from hospital through Rafah
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VLHni2ymwA
Al-Jadeed TV video tribute to Vittorio, son of Gaza
In Arabic, but emotions are clear, nice, short video clips of Vittorio also. Funeral procession, but not the same as other videos of it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vatzOECvFy4
Tribute video for Vittorio Arrigoni by Mohammed Al Majdalawi
including interviews with grieving Gazans
http://vimeo.com/22504253
Al Jazeera video: Gaza bids farewell to slain Arrigoni
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apNgSuHD7Rc&feature=youtube_gdata
Photo tribute: Vittorio Arrigoni at a wedding party in Gaza 2010
by Ahmad Hamad
http://ahmadfromgaza.wordpress.com/2011/04/15/vittorio-arrigoni-at-a-wedding-party-in-gaza-2010/
Carlos Latuff: Divided, Palestinians are weak
Bethlehem — C. Martin/PNN Exclusive 17 Apr — Carlos Latuff is a Brazilian political cartoonist, much of whose work focuses on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His critical approach towards Israel´s policies has raised a great deal of controversy … What is your stance about the latest development in the area, in particular the killing of Juliano Mer Khamis and Vittorio Arrigoni? I can’t imagine an armed Palestinian group, from Islamic Jihad to Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, kidnapping an activist of a respected support organization like ISM and killing him. I’m sure that the only ones who will rejoice in Vittorio’s death are settlers, the military and Netanyahu.
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9914
Vittorio never was as much alive as he is now / Egidia Beretta Arrigoni
17 Apr — Words from Vik’s mom who is heading to Gaza with the next Flotilla…
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/april172011/viks-mom-eba.php
MP Mansour: World should follow in footsteps of foreign solidarity activists
NABLUS, (PIC)– Hamas MP in Nablus Mona Mansour highly appreciated the Italian solidarity activists for their insistence on supporting the besieged Gaza Strip. She said in a statement that the Italian supporters including the family of slain activist Vittorio Arrigoni said that they came to break the siege on Gaza and would not give up this demand and would remain there despite the murder of Arrigoni at the hands of a deviated group. The MP urged the world to follow the path of those foreign activists in backing Gaza and to take lessons from their “honorable stands towards this just cause”.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd
Who is targeting and killing Palestinian supporters? / Nahida Izzat
Salem-News 17 Apr — A hate group that stands against peace activists called for Vik Arrigoni’s murder. (LONDON) – Lee Kaplan – founder of “Stop the ISM” website, who has for long campaigned for the murder of peace activist and supporters of Palestine- celebrates the success of his criminal campaign and the murder of the two much-loved activists, Juliano Mer-Khamis and Vittorio Arrigoni, most likely at the hands of Mossad agents. Lee Kaplan rejoices: “I confess that most years, after the first cup of wine at the Passover Seder, I drink grape juice for the remaining three glasses. But not this year! Four glasses of wine it will be!”
please notice that the pages in which he was calling for the murder of the peace activists has been removed (in their usual method of getting rid of the evidence), their criminal website of today is very different than that of 2009, fortunately, many activists (including myself) have saved the original page in which … Lee Kaplan was calling for the killing of many activists, please check, spread and save the attached file of the page that has now been removed) Quotes from STOP THE ISM website:
http://salem-news.com/articles/april172011/palestine-targets-ni.php
In the dark over murder of peace activists / Mel Frykberg
RAMALLAH, Apr 19, 2011 (IPS) – Palestinians are reeling from the double-murder of two pro-Palestinian peace activists over the last few weeks, one in the West Bank and one in Gaza, with many believing that Israeli intelligence had a hand in the grisly killings, even if indirectly. While ubiquitous conspiracy theories regularly circulate in the Mideast, political duplicity and dirty- dealings by intelligence agencies and governments are par for the course in the region. Furthermore, a significant number of conspiracy theories have eventually been backed up by concrete facts.
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=55308
International Solidarity Movement committed to staying in Gaza
18 April 2011 | ISM GAZA Arabic follows English البيان مترجم للغة العربية
Following the murder of our comrade and friend Viktor, we, activists of the International Solidarity Movement, would like to reiterate our commitment to remaining in Gaza. We will continue to work with and live among the Palestinian population as we continue the work which Vik was so committed too. In these days of mourning, Palestinians have organized numerous memorials for Vik; they constantly remind us how sorry they are to have lost him, of how they loved him, his closeness, his affection, and his indignation at what is happening here in Gaza. We know that the group that perpetrated this horrible crime does not in any way represent the Palestinian society. The Palestinians of Gaza are our friends, our colleagues, and our reason for being here; we will continue to stand by their side.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/04/17825/
Reflections on the death of Vittorio Arrigoni – Eva Bartlett
a big hug
stay human
Your Vik
This is how Vittorio “Vik” Arrigoni always signed off in his emails … Vik had worked with the ISM in the occupied West Bank, was arrested and deported for his non-violent activism, and had documented the tragedies and injustices Palestinians in Lebanese refugee camps face. He was no lightweight, in heart nor in size, and was not politically naïve. He stood for Palestinian justice, self-determination, the right to resist, the release of the over 10,000 Palestinian political prisoners languishing in Israeli jails, and the return of Palestinian refugees. Accordingly, one of his tattoos was Handala, the cartoon character drawn by Palestinian Resistance Artist Naji Ali.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379719
Juliano Mer-Khamis murder
Killer of Israeli-Palestinian director still at large
IMEMC 19 Apr — A Palestinian security official stated Tuesday that the murderer of Israeli-Palestinian director, Juliano Mer-Khamis, is still at large as DNA tests exonerated a suspect who was detained by the security forces following the murder. Adnan Dameery, spokesperson of the Palestinian Security Forces, stated that the investigation is still ongoing.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61090
Itamar murders / Awarta
Teen detained from Awarta overnight
NABLUS (Ma‘an) 18 Apr — Israeli forces raided the northern West Bank village of Awarta early morning Monday, ransacked a home and detained a 16-year-old teenager, the mayor of the village Qays Awwad told Ma‘an. Tawfiq Hindawi Qawareiq was taken from his home at 1:30 a.m., and appears to be the latest detained in connection with an investigation into the murder of a settler family in March.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379776
Itamar killers found?
KabobFest 18 Apr — Itamar is a heavily fortified settlement overlooking the surrounding Palestinian villages on whose land it is illegally built. The colony is notoriously well fortified to ensure intruders do not enter; it is completely surrounded by 8 foot high electrified wire fence with 2 feet of razor wire on top, sensors to determine if the fence has been cut, automatic cameras that cover the entire perimeter, 24 hour security guard presence and protection provided by the Israeli military. All of its inhabitants are heavily armed, and like almost all Israeli settlements it is surrounded by hundreds of meters of empty buffer land that Palestinians cannot step foot in. The fact that Itamar probably has more security than the White House led many to conclude that whoever killed the Fogels could not have simply snuck in and snuck back out again. But now the Israeli security authorities, that bastion of transparency and human rights, say they’ve extracted confessions from Amjad Awad, 19, and Hakim Awad, 18, both from Awarta
http://www.kabobfest.com/2011/04/itamar-killers-found.html
Itamar ‘breakthrough’ still unclear
Palestine Monitor 18 Apr 2011 –Israeli army report relies on confessions of “tortured” teenagers and does not excuse Awarta’s collective punishment … The IOF’s report, picked up by Haaretz, the New York Times and Arutz Sheva without scrutiny, offers a play-by-play accounting of the murders … Their confessions took place after prolonged interrogations, however, and may be the result of coercion.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1762
Activism / Solidarity
2 videos of Apr 15 demo in Bil‘in
http://www.bilin-village.org/english/videos/8596-April-15-2011-Demonstration
Nabi Saleh: A tiny village’s struggle against the occupation / Idan Landau
[with video & photos] +972 blog 19 Apr — In just over one year of unarmed demonstrations in Nabi Saleh, a small Palestinian community in the West Bank, 155 Of the village’s 500 residents were wounded (about 60 of them children); 35 homes were damaged and dozens of the village’s people were detained. Yet even after the protest’s leader was put behind bars by the army, the struggle for the Nabi Saleh’s land continues — The objects seen in the picture: a magazine (known as a “tampon”) attached to a Tavor gun, and a human skull, attacked to a neck. The gun is vertical; the neck is horizontal. You could say they’ve made contact. Inside the magazine: 12 to 16 rubber-coated metal pellets. Inside the skull: soft, gray brain tissue. Thoughts and memories. A soul. The purpose of the weapon: dispersing demonstrations at a minimal range of forty meters. The purpose of the brain: to live. To remember such moments.
This post originally appeared in Hebrew on Idan’s blog.
http://972mag.com/nabi-saleh-a-tiny-villages-struggle-againt-the-occupation/
BBC film on Gaza aid flotilla praised by trust despite breaching guidelines
Guardian 19 Apr — BBC Trust clears Panorama documentary on Mavi Marmara over majority of complaints, but upholds three out of 51 points … The accuracy breaches related to the failure to include preliminary autopsy reports into how activists died and more details of the exact nature of the aid for Gaza being carried by the flotilla. Panorama was also found by the BBC Trust to have breached impartiality guidelines by not verifying that the Israelis took proper care of the badly wounded following allegations of mistreatment of some of the casualties.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/apr/19/bbc-film-gaza-aid-flotilla
Ready. Aim. Inspire. / Lena Bjornsen
[with photos] The room buzzed with anticipation as the hosts, comedian Jamil Abu Wardeh and International Solidarity Movement co-founder Huwaida Arraf entered the stage to welcome the audience to the first TEDxRamallah this last Saturday in Bethlehem … Moviemakers, authors, engineers, singers, architects and others took the stage to spread ideas and inspiration to the people in the audience physically or digitally, watching live via the web.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1761
Australian city faces attacks for supporting BDS
AIC 14 Apr — In December 2010 the local council in the Australian city of Marrickville became the first municipality in Australia to support the Palestinian initiated Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign, and “boycott all goods made in Israel and any sporting, institutional academic, government or institutional cultural exchanges.” The city is now under attack, following the publication of a report saying that support for BDS could end up costing taxpayers $4 million. Marrickville Mayor Fiona Byrne has denied that would be the case.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/news/3529-australian-city-faces-attacks-for-supporting-bds
Political/Diplomatic/International news
Obama to Netanyahu: Happy Passover to the people of Israel
Haaretz 18 Apr — …Obama expresses gratitude for Israel’s manner of handling recent escalation with Gaza.
http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/obama-to-netanyahu-happy-passover-to-the-people-of-israel-1.356687
Hamas accepts Arab offer to mediate reconciliation talks
IMEMC 19 Apr — Member of the Political Bureau of the Hamas Movement, Izzat Al Rishiq, stated that the movement has agreed to the Arab offer to host and mediate Palestinian reconciliation and national unity talks. Al Rishiq said that the state that is willing to host the talks must first present the offer to President Mahmoud Abbas of the rival Fateh movement. The Hamas official did not name a certain Arab state that would be the host of unity talks.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61089
‘Quartet may recognize Palestinian state’
Ynet 19 Apr — American and European diplomats warned that if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fails to present a new peace initiative soon, the Quartet may be compelled to recognize a Palestinian State in the 1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital, the Los Angeles Times reported on Tuesday. According to the report, Netanyahu is under mounting pressure to unveil a new plan that would jump-start the deadlocked negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4058472,00.html
Palestinian UN diplomat: Palestinians prefer peace treaty with Israel by September
AP 19 Apr — Palestinians say if peace treaty not reached by September, they will go to UN Security Council with enough support that it would recommend admission of Palestine as new member of UN.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/palestinian-un-diplomat-palestinians-prefer-peace-treaty-with-israel-by-september-1.356731
Egyptian FM to visit West Bank
CAIRO (Ma‘an) 18 Apr — The Egyptian Foreign Minister was invited to visit the West Bank, the country’s ambassador to the Palestinian Authority Yaser Othman said Sunday, and will accept the invitation with arrangements to be made in the coming weeks. Minister Nabil Al-Arabi’s visit will follow President Mahmoud Abbas’ extended visit to Cairo … The visit to Palestine will not likely include a stop in Gaza, the spokesman said, citing continued issues with the unity file.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379728
‘US led major efforts to help Israel at UN after Cast Lead’
JPost 19 Apr — US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice spearheaded major efforts to thwart an independent UN investigation into possible war crimes committed by Israel and Hamas in Operation Cast Lead, said a Foreign Policy report published Monday.
http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=217170
Other news
Abbas appoints son of Hamas PM to PA sports council
JPost 19 Apr — In a move that is seen as a goodwill gesture toward Hamas, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday issued a “presidential decree” appointing the son of Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh as member of the Palestinian Higher Council for Youths and Sport … Hamas did not say whether Haniyeh’s son had accepted the appointment. A Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip said he did not rule out the possibility that Abbas was trying to send a conciliatory message to the Islamist movement in order to pave the way for reconciliation between the two parties.
http://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=217185
The hives and honey of Palestine
[with photos] Beekeeping is a Palestinian tradition nearly seven millennia old – the oldest archaeological remnants shows mud beekeeping in the Canaanite era in the Babb El Wad area, now called West Jerusalem. In the modern century, two Christian brothers from Bethlehem, Emeel and Philip, quoted beekeeping activity in Palestine in 1881 … In 2009, there were about 1,500 beekeepers, fifteen percent of which owned three to ten hives, sixty percent owned ten to thirty. A quarter of them operate professionally with fifty or more hives. At ten kilos of honey per hive, Palestine produces 500 tons of honey every year from over 60,000 hives.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1763
Cinema Palestine / Chloé Op de Beeck
[with trailer for The Time That Remains/Le Temps qu’il reste by Elia Suleiman] 16 Apr — Despite the absence of an established film industry in Palestine, local film-makers succeed in making high-quality fiction films … Most Palestinian fiction films are not being watched by the Palestinians: people living in Europe or the US are more likely to watch these movies. Limited access has in part created this disconnect: cinemas in the occupied Palestinian territory are rare.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1759
Other Israel news
Arab MKs launch anti-chametz campaign
Ynet 19 Apr — Lawmakers urge Israel’s Arabs to avoid selling bread at main intersections during Passover holiday so as not to offend Jewish public … In return, the Arab lawmakers are asking the Jewish public to honor their holidays, for example the month of Ramadan, during which they fast every day.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4058387,00.html
Security failure emerges at Ben Gurion Airport after gun found in bag of IAF officer
Haaretz 17 Apr — An Israeli air force officer has been detained at Budapest Airport since Friday after a gun was found in his baggage, casting doubts on security procedures at Ben-Gurion Airport where he boarded a plane to the United States, via Hungary. Security authorities in the U.S. and Hungary are said to be furious with the breakdown in security, which only came to light when the officer was arrested in Budapest with a pistol, clip and bullets in his bags. The incident has undermined Israel’s reputation, especially among U.S. authorities, for having tight airport security. It is also probable that had such an incident occurred in reverse, the authorities in Israel would react strongly against the airline and airport involved.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/security-failure-emerges-at-ben-gurion-airport-after-gun-found-in-bag-of-iaf-officer-1.356521
IDF leaders learn to be humanitarian officers in battle
Haaretz 18 Apr — After military careers lasting two decades, 30 officers are learning a new role that combines civilian and military duties … In the course’s final exercise, the officers stay with their maps and boards in class, where they try to develop the equivalent of a battalion-level war room. The officers must prepare their battalion to meet the humanitarian needs of 2,000 civilians in a Shi’ite village in southern Lebanon that has been occupied by the Israel Defense Forces.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/idf-leaders-learn-to-be-humanitarian-officers-in-battle-1.356528
Yedioth: Soviet Jews were swindled into immigrating to Israel / Yossi Gurvitz
972mag 16 Apr — The idea that Soviet Jews would be able to emigrate to the West was unacceptable to Israel. So the state carried out a covert operation in the early nineties to get them to Israel instead
http://972mag.com/how-israel-swindled-soviet-jews/
Holocaust survivors flock to soup kitchen
Ynet 18 Apr – Soup kitchens owned by Colel Chabad have been busy these past few days, with a constant line of some 300 senior citizens – with an average age of 85 – forming outside its Jerusalem location. The clientele, mainly Holocaust survivors who come equipped with carts and baskets, help each other select products and then load them onto buses for the ride home … “It’s hard to live off of this,” says 85-year old Anna, from Belarus. “During the war I lost nine family members in concentration camps, and now I live here alone and make due with my pension. After rent and other expenses I have NIS 160 ($47) left over for food.”
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4058294,00.html
Analysis / Opinion
Missing home / Karma Nabulsi
NS 14 Apr — The Palestinian people’s right of return is at the heart of their struggle — Syria’s official spokesperson recently went on television to blame the Palestinian refugees resident in her country as the “foreign elements” directly responsible for the current protests for freedom and the rule of law. These pronouncements have encouraged Arab regimes’ secret police, the mukhabarat, to crack down on Palestinian rights activists everywhere, heightening the atmosphere of violent intimidation and fear within refugee communities.
http://www.newstatesman.com/middle-east/2011/04/palestinian-refugees-arab
European complicity in the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories / Clare Short
MEMO 18 Apr — It is generally assumed that there can be no progress in resolving the Israel – Palestine conflict without leadership from the US. As Brent Snowcroft, the former US National Security Adviser, said in his article in the Financial Times on April 14, in which he called for Obama to risk all for a Middle East peace deal, “The Palestinian question stands out as the one issue in the Middle East where nothing can be accomplished without active American leadership”. This claim is repeated by all sides and accepted by most commentators and critics; but given that US politics is so dominated by pro-Israel interests, and Congress contains very few dissenting voices, this is a cause of great pessimism … However, this assumption that nothing can change without a shift in US policy needs to be challenged. The EU actually has enormous potential leverage and influence which it fails to exercise. Given that the people of the EU are increasingly critical of Israel, it is important that European campaigners should exert more pressure for a change in EU policy.
http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/articles/guest-writers/2251-european-union-complicity-in-the-israeli-occupation-of-the-palestinian-territories
Iraq
Sunday: 9 Iraqis killed, 43 wounded
At least nine Iraqis were killed and 43 were wounded in the latest attacks. Meanwhile, U.S. House Speaker John Boehner met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki during a surprise visit to Baghdad. Also, with a U.S. military withdrawal looming, remaining U.S. diplomats are wondering about their future safety. Police fired on protesters in Suleimaniya, where near daily protests have vexed Kurdish authorities for weeks. At least 35 were wounded in the attack … In Baghdad, gunmen stormed a home where they killed four people, including two teenagers; three victims were women….
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2011/04/17/sunday-9-iraqis-killed-43-wounded/
