Report: The impact of closure and attacks on the Gaza Strip28 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rThe Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) has released a report highlighting the reality of life in the occupied Gaza Strip, and illustrating the dramatic deterioration in the human rights situation brought about by 928 days of continuous illegal closure, as well as numerous offensives, incursions and attacks.
Egypt blocks travel of Gaza Freedom March activists28 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rCAIRO (IRIN) – More than 1,000 persons from 42 countries who have vowed to travel from Cairo to the Gaza Strip on 31 December in a bid to highlight and break the Israeli economic blockade, will be prevented from carrying out their mission, according to the Egyptian authorities. The protesters hope to bring aid to the 1.5 million residents of Gaza a year after Israel’s 23-day offensive ended on 18 January 2009.
Portuguese activists fight state water company deal with Israel’s Mekorot28 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rIn October, EPAL, Portugal’s state water company, announced a deal with Mekorot, Israel’s state water company. An intern who responded to the news by informing colleagues of Mekorot’s role in Israel’s discriminatory water policies and assistance in its violation of international law was immediately sacked. News of the firing has inspired Palestine solidarity activists to campaign to end the deal. Similarly, the EPAL workers’ committee has denounced management’s decision.
Israeli forces kill six Palestinians in West Bank, Gaza27 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rOn Saturday morning, 26 December 2009, Israeli occupation forces killed six Palestinians in two separate attacks in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In the northern Gaza Strip, Israeli occupation forces employed excessive lethal force and killed three Palestinians, and Israeli undercover units extrajudicially executed three members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades (the armed wing of Fatah movement) in Nablus.
Israel resembles a failed state27 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rA year after Israel’s attack and after more than two-and-a-half years of blockade, the Palestinian people in Gaza have not surrendered. Instead they have offered the world lessons in steadfastness and dignity, even at an appalling, unimaginable cost. Ali Abunimah comments.
Villages challenge occupation on human rights day24 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rAs tortuous as the occupation is for the people of al-Tuwani, on 10 December—International Human Rights Day—they decided to offer support to other Palestinians by highlighting the discrimination faced by schoolchildren from the neighboring villages. The focus of Human Rights Day 2009 was on non-discrimination, a topic that is particularly appropriate in occupied Palestine where Palestinians face daily discrimination by Israel. Jo Ehrlich writes for The Electronic Intifada.
US campaign for academic boycott gaining strength24 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rThe United States Campaign for an Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel was formed in the immediate aftermath of Operation Cast Lead, bringing together educators of conscience who were unable to stand by and watch in silence Israel’s indiscriminate assault on the Gaza Strip and its educational institutions. Today, over 500 US-based academics, authors, artists, musicians, poets and other arts professionals have endorsed our call.
Labor for Palestine comes under attack24 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rLabor for Palestine’s 14 December Open Letter from US Trade Unionists to AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka: Boycott Apartheid Israel has been met with an overwhelmingly positive response. However, it has also become clear that growing support for boycott, divestment and sanctions is seen as a threat by those who would continue US labor officialdom’s support for the apartheid state of Israel, as evidenced by new attacks on Labor for Palestine.
US government’s hard line on Hizballah clashes with political reality24 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rWASHINGTON (IPS) – Lebanese President Michel Suleiman visited Washington last week, for his first visit with President Barack Obama. The meeting was a quick one, tucked in amongst the myriad of domestic issues that are demanding Obama’s attention. Yet despite its brevity, the meeting touched upon issues that strike at the heart of the US-Lebanon relationship.
Gaza march puts spotlight on ongoing siege23 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rUNITED NATIONS (IPS) – More than 50,000 people are expected to take to the streets of Gaza on 31 December for a mass march designed to send a message to the United States, a key supporter of Israel’s army, that the situation in Gaza violates international human rights laws. The idea behind the “Gaza Freedom March” comes from CODEPINK, a women’s peace group committed to drawing attention to the humanitarian crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, among other campaigns.
Why I want to march in Gaza23 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rOn 29 December, I will attempt to cross into the Gaza Strip along with 1,300 other peace and justice activists from 43 countries. Some of us have traveled to Gaza previously. It will be my third visit since the Israeli invasion, which destroyed or damaged more than 50,000 homes and 90 percent of private industry. Pam Rasmussen comments for The Electronic Intifada.
Palestinians celebrate Arab film at Gaza festival23 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rLast Thursday marked the end of a one-week film festival in Gaza City. The Palestinian Film Forum, an independent Palestinian community organization, sponsored the event with 33 films produced in six Arab Gulf states. Rami Almeghari reports from the occupied Gaza Strip.
Humanitarian, rights orgs. decry “international community’s betrayal” of Gaza22 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rThe international community has betrayed the people of Gaza by failing to back their words with effective action to secure the ending of the Israeli blockade which is preventing reconstruction and recovery, say a group of 16 leading humanitarian and human rights groups in a new report released today.
Palestinian refugees in Jordan stuck in a no man’s land22 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rAMMAN (IPS) – According to the records of the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), Jordan is home to 1.9 million displaced Palestinians. “Jordan hosts about 42 percent of the total refugee population,” says Mattar Sakr, director of public relations for UNRWA in Jordan. Sakr adds that most refugees reside in 13 camps, three of them considered unofficial dwellings because they were not assigned by the government.
Addameer: No peace agreement until political prisoners released22 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr r”Reaching the ‘No-Peace’ Agreement: The Role of Palestinian Prisoner Releases in Permanent Status Negotiations,” a briefing paper from Addameer, examines Israel’s failure to comply with the bilateral agreements regarding the release of Palestinian political prisoners held in Israeli detention for their involvement in activities related to the ongoing belligerent Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory.
Grassroots activist and human rights defender Jamal Juma’ arrested21 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rThe arrest of Jamal Juma’ is the most high-profile case within an intensifying campaign of repression of grassroots mobilization against the wall and the settlements. Initially only arresting local activists from the villages affected by the wall, the Israeli authorities have recently begun to shift their attention to the detention of internationally-known human rights defenders.
Audio: “For us, olive trees are a matter of resistance”21 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rPlanting olive trees is a matter of resistance for the Arab Group for the Protection of Nature, a non-profit organization based in Amman, Jordan. The organization began in 2003 with the goal of replanting one million trees on Palestinian land. By 2008, they achieved this goal and now hope to plant one million more trees in Palestine. Gretchen King reports.
EU remains cozy with Israel, despite the headlines21 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rBRUSSELS (IPS) – Israel’s relations with the European Union were tense for most of 2009—if newspaper headlines are to be believed. In the past week, a British court drew fierce criticism from Israeli politicians after it issued an arrest warrant for Tzipi Livni, the former Israeli foreign minister, following a complaint that she had authorized war crimes in Gaza.
“It is time for us to put an end to this occupation”18 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rSituated just west of Ramallah, the Palestinian village of Nilin has lost huge swathes of land to Israel’s settlements and its wall in the occupied West Bank. In a year and a half of resisting construction of the wall, five villagers have been murdered by the Israeli military while demonstrating. The Electronic Intifada contributor Jody McIntyre interviewed Hassan Mousa, a coordinator of the Nilin Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements and the uncle of Ahmed Mousa, an 11-year-old boy who was the first villager from Nilin to be killed by the Israeli army.
Net around Israeli war crimes suspects tightens18 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rEfforts by human rights organizations, lawyers and activists in Palestine and Europe to hold Israeli war crimes suspects to account have gained momentum over the past few years. Last week, former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni cancelled a visit to the UK over threats of a lawsuit under the country’s universal jurisdiction laws. Adri Nieuwhof and Ziyaad Lunat comment for The Electronic Intifada.
The price of peace: Interview with detained activist18 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rTwenty-three-year-old Sami from al-Essawaya village near Nablus has always believed in peaceful coexistence with Israelis. However, he and his family have paid a dear price for his convictions. Kieron Monks writes.
EI reader appeal: Your support makes our work on Palestine possible17 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rWhat was the most inspiring, informative, motivating article you read on The Electronic Intifada in 2009? Take a look at some of our highlights. Thousands of people read EI every day in almost every country around the world, finding the information they can’t get elsewhere. In its annual appeal, EI asks its readers for the financial support that will enable us to continue our groundbreaking, fearless and independent reporting on Palestine in 2010
Australian activists give Olmert an unwelcome reception17 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rGiven Ehud Olmert’s role as Prime Minister during the attacks on Gaza, he is seen by many as guilty of war crimes; it is perhaps no surprise that the Australian media seemed keen to bury the fact that Olmert was in the country and being welcomed by our government. Pro-Palestinian activists on the other hand were intent on holding him to account and letting him know he is not welcome here in our town. Frances Lewis writes for The Electronic Intifada.
Israeli feminists decry militarization of Israeli education system16 Dec 2009rr r r r rr r rr r rr r rr rr rrr rNew Profile, the feminist movement to civilize Israeli society, wrote Minister of Education Gideon Saar strongly condemning his recent instructions to prohibit its members’ participation in high school debates convened by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel on questions of human rights and freedom of expression.
Steel walls cannot contain the struggle for freedom16 Dec 2009rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rAs if the siege of Gaza were not already bad enough, Israel and Egypt are working even harder to tighten the prison which holds Gaza’s 1.5 million people. Egypt is building a steel wall along its 10-kilometer-long border with the Gaza Strip, according to recent media reports. This wall apparently extends not only above ground, but deep into the ground in an attempt to prevent Palestinians digging the tunnels that have become a lifeline for the territory. Hasan Abu Nimah comments.
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