Israel wird tatsälich ein NATO Mitglieder geworden
Deutsche U-Boots , Korruption und Netanyahu ....
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended Israel's decision to buy three more submarines from Germany, in the face of a potential scandal over the sale involving his personal lawyer.
"Conflict of interest" stories have been rife in the media since Channel 10 television revealed that lawyer David Shimron also represents the Israeli agent of the German group ThyssenKrupp, which builds the submarines. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/netanyahu-defends-submarine-purchase-against-conflict-interest-charges-1573608552
Israels Mossad Implicated In Assassination Of Palestinian Political Prisoner In Bulgaria
Israels Mossad Implicated In Assassination Of Palestinian Political Prisoner In Bulgaria
Omar Nayef Zayed signed his death warrant in an Israeli courtroom in 1986. Thats when he and two young Palestinian accomplices pleaded guilty to the murder of Eliyahu Amedi. During a period when Israeli Orthodox schools, known as yeshivot in Hebrew, were moving into East Jerusalems Muslim Quarter and provoking violence against Palestinian residents, Zayed plotted an attack against them in retaliation. He organized a cell which traveled from their home in the West Bank village of Jenin, to the city. When they came upon Amedi, a yeshivot student, they stabbed him multiple times and killed him. They were apprehended a few hours later near the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
Speaking for himself and his two young Palestinian accomplices at a trial lasting all of five minutes, Zayed said:
We dont regret, nor do I apologize for killing him [Amedi]. This was done in the context of the struggle for the liberation of Palestine.
From that day forward, Israels intelligence agency, the Mossad, vowed to exact vengeance for the murder of Amedi. One agent, Yossi Cohen, took a particular interest in the case, and he waited 25 years for his revenge against Zayed.
That revenge came on the morning on Feb. 26, when Zayeds blood-soaked body was found in the garden of the Palestinian embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria. http://www.mintpressnews.com/mossad-implicated-assasination-bulgaria/221236/
1 killed, 3 injured by Israeli forces in Gaza clashes(18-11)
A Palestinian man was killed and three others were injured by Israeli forces during clashes on Friday east of al-Bureij refugee camp near the "buffer zone" in the central Gaza Strip, and near the Nahal Oz border crossing in eastern Gaza. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774028
More than 90 Palestinians killed by Israel this year(9-11)
Israeli occupation forces shot and critically wounded a Palestinian man in the northern West Bank village of Huwwara on Wednesday.
An army spokesperson claimed that the man, identified by the Palestine Red Crescent Society as 32-year-old Muhammad Amr from the city of Tulkarm, had attempted to stab a soldier, who responded to the immediate threat with live fire.
An eyewitness told the Maan News Agency that he saw Amr attempting to cross the road in Huwwara before being shot at by an Israeli soldier who then took out a knife and threw it next to the youth. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/maureen-clare-murphy/more-90-palestinians-killed-israel-year
News from within: Oct. 28 - Nov. 3 http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/245-news-from-within
Israeli forces detain 10 Palestinians, including 12 year old, in overnight raids(16-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=773990
Israeli forces detain Palestinian man in East Jerusalem on his wedding day(19-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774034
Israeli forces detain 11 in occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem raids(20-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774042
Israeli police detains 2 Jerusalem teens, charges 1 for 'social media incitement'(20-2)
Israel charged one Palestinian minor with incitement for posts on social media, Israeli police said on Sunday.
Israeli police spokesperson Luba al-Samri said in a statement that two young residents of occupied East Jerusalem had been detained for maintaining a Facebook page called Bahaa Elayyan news, named after a Palestinian who was killed by Israeli forces last year after carrying out a shooting and stabbing attack, for the past two weeks.
One of the two youths, who al-Samri said was 15 years old, was charged with incitement to violence and terrorism. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774056
Israeli forces detain 15 Palestinians in overnight raids across West Bank(21-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774068
Guten Morgen vom Twitter-Konto der israelischen Armee
Wie bezeichnet man ein Regime, das jede Nacht Menschen aus ihrem Bett reißt? Wie soll man Massenverhaftungen ohne Mandat bewerten?
Wie difiniert man brutale Hausdurchsuchungen mitten in der Nacht, von denen manche nur als Training gedacht sind?
Wie soll man solche nächtlichen Aktionen bezeichnen, die jede Nacht von der Armee, der Grenzpolizei, und dem israelischen Sicherheitsdienst, Shin Beth, ausgeführt werden?
Wie soll man einen Staat nennen, in dessen Namen sie handeln - eine Demokratie, die einzige im Nahen Osten? Erinnert sich jemand an die finsteren Zeiten lateinamerikanischer Militärjunten, oder wird jemand wegen der Türkei besorgt? Willkommen im israelischen Besatzungsgebiet Westjordanland, Nacht für Nacht, wenige Autominuten von Ihrem Zuhause!
Jeden Morgen berichtet die IDF (Tsahal) stolz über Twitter die Untaten der vergangenen Nacht: "Im Laufe der Nacht haben unsere Kräfte Männer verhaftet, die wegen terroristischer volkstümlicher (!) Aktivitäten und gewalttätiger Ausschreitungen verdächtigt werden. Sie wurden den Sicherheitskräften zwecks Verhörs übergeben". http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19286
Israeli forces open fire at fishing boats off Gaza coast(20-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774044
Israeli forces raid al-Quds University, damage contents of book fair for the needy(19-11)
Israeli forces stormed the campus of al-Quds University in the Jerusalem district village of Abu Dis on Saturday morning, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Education.
The ministry said in a statement on Saturday that large numbers of heavily armed Israeli troops stormed the university campus at dawn and damaged the "contents of a book fair," which students had been organizing to help their fellow students in need.
"All books, magazines, and stationery which are being sold to needy students at low prices have been either stolen or damaged [by Israeli forces]," the statement said. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774037
Israeli naval forces open live fire at Palestinian fishermen in Gaza(19-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774030
Israeli forces injure Palestinian in face with rubber-coated steel bullet near Bethlehem(18-11)http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774029
Israeli forces open live fire at Palestinian fishermen, shoot tear gas at youth in Gaza(18-11)http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774027
Israeli forces suppress weekly marches in Bilin, Kafr Qaddum(18-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774024
Israeli forces raid West Bank charcoal factory in Jenin district(17-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774013
Israel confiscates truck allegedly transporting rocket-building materials to Gaza(17-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774004
Amona: in service of the Judaization of Jerusalem
Israeli municipal authorities in Jerusalem on Wednesday demanded that Israel's High Court retract an order to delay the demolition of over a dozen Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem, and thus usher in a new policy of immediate dismantlement.
The impetus for the declaration was the High Courts rejection of a different request filed by the Israeli government. Last week, the Court refused a government petition to delay the demolition of Amona, an illegal Jewish outpost northeast of the West Bank city of Ramallah, for seven months.
Following the rejection, Israeli Jerusalem mayor Nir Barakat claimed that if Amona is demolished as planned, then [the citys] hands will be tied in regards to Palestinian homes built on land that may have been owned by Jews prior to 1948 in East Jerusalem.
"Unless Amona is legalized, we'll have to destroy hundreds or thousands of houses in Jerusalem too," Barkat clarified. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/263-amona-in-service-of-the-judaization-of-jerusalem
Israeli Supreme Court rejects Palestinian village's appeal over confiscated land(17-11)
The Israeli Supreme Court rejected an appeal filed by residents of the occupied West Bank village of al-Nabi Elyas over Israels confiscation of 100 dunams of Palestinian land, Israeli radio reported on Thursday.
According to the Arabic-language Voice of Israel station, the court ruled on Wednesday that residents of al-Nabi Elyas in the district of Qalqiliya could not prove ownership of land which had been seized to build a road.
The court claimed that the road, whose construction is expected to begin in January, would benefit both Palestinians and Israeli settlers in the area. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774007
Hebron area residents face multiple demolitions within a week(21-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774057
Knesset advances bill to legalize vigilante confiscation of Palestinian land
The so-called formalization bill, which would retroactively legalize illegal settlements built on privately owned Palestinian land, passed its first reading on Wednesday afternoon, Haaretz reports.
In essence, the bill rewards Israelis who settle on Palestinian land in the occupied territories by giving them the rights to it. The Palestinian victims of land confiscation are meant to stay quiet and hope for cash from the state.
Members of Knesset (MK) voted on three versions of the bill, all of which included provisions to retroactively legalize settlements. The first version of the bill passed the reading by 58 votes to 50; the second by 57-52 and the third by 58-51. The bill, in whichever version survives, must pass two additional readings in the Knesset before becoming law. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/262-knesset-advances-bill-to-legalize-vigilante-confiscation-of-palestinian-land
Pro-settler group returns to court to evict 9 Palestinian families in Jerusalem
Ateret Cohanim, a pro-settler Israeli organization, has asked Israeli courts to begin the evictions of nine Palestinian families in the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem, according to Israeli media.
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the total number of Palestinian families the settler group has attempted to evict has risen to 72, all of whom live in the Batan al-Hawa area of Silwan.
Ateret Cohanim is an Israeli pro-settlement nonprofit organization -- receiving tax-deductible donations from the United States through their financial intermediary American Friends of Ateret Cohanim -- which focuses on Judaizing East Jerusalem through a Jewish reclamation project working to expand illegal settlements and facilitate Jewish takeover of Palestinian properties across the Green Line into Palestinian territory. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=773999
Settlements aren't an obstacle to peace says top Trump advisor
Jason Greenblatt, prospective advisor to Donald Trump on Israel, emboldens Israeli hopes of annexing the West Bank. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/comment/255-settlements-are-not-an-obstacle-to-peace-says-top-trump-advisor
Lieberman calls on Trump to help coordinate development of Israeli settlements http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774015
Palestinian child prisoner Shadi Farrah, 13, to face sentencing on 29 November
Palestinian child prisoner Shadi Farrah, 13, one of the youngest children imprisoned by the Israeli state, will face a sentencing hearing on 29 November, at which Israeli prosecutors recommended two-year sentence in addition to the year he has spent imprisoned will be approved by the judge in the case.
Shadi and his friend Ahmad al-Zaatari were seized by Israeli occupation soldiers on 29 December in their village of Kufr Aqab as they walked through the village. They were seized and interrogated for days and accused of possession of a knife with the intended purpose of carrying out a resistance action against Israeli soldiers. The alleged knife was never used or pulled out by either boy; they are accused of having the knife inside their bag. Even this allegation is denied by Shadis family. http://samidoun.net/2016/11/palestinian-child-prisoner-shadi-farrah-13-to-face-sentencing-on-29-november/
Palestinian political leader on hunger strike
A Palestinian political leader long targeted by Israel is on hunger strike in protest of his solitary confinement and alleged mistreatment by Israeli prison authorities, his lawyer announced on Sunday.
Sheikh Raed Salah, leader of the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, a political party in Israel, refused all meals on Monday.
Guards raided his prison cell and removed food and electrical devices, including his television set and radio. Also confiscated were his writings, which Salah has said are part of a book he is working on.
In late October 2015, Salah was convicted of inciting violence and terrorism in a sermon he delivered in a mosque in occupied East Jerusalem in 2007. Salah allegedly called on Muslims to protect Jerusalems al-Aqsa mosque from infiltrating Jewish settlers and members of Israels parliament, the Knesset. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/charlotte-silver/palestinian-political-leader-hunger-strike
Five Palestinian political prisoners hunger strike for freedom, basic rights (16-11)
Ahmad Abu Fara and Anas Shadid hunger strike against incarceration without charges or trial. Raed Salah and three brothers refuse food in protest of solitary confinement. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/260-five-palestinian-political-prisoners-hunger-strike-for-freedom-basic-rights
ICRC expresses worry over deteriorating health of hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners(20-11)
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) expressed worry on Friday over the deteriorating health of two Palestinian hunger strikers, both of whom have now been on strike for more than 50 days in protest of being sentenced without charge or trial in Israeli prison.
An ICRC doctor who has regularly visited Anas Shadid, 20, and Ahmad Abu Farah, 29, who have been on hunger strike for 55 and 56 days respectively, called on the hunger strikers, their representatives, and authorities to find a solution before the detainees lose their lives or develop irreversible damages to their health. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774023
Israeli authorities transfer 14-year-old Ahmad Manasra to Megiddo prison
The Israel Prison Service (IPS) recently transferred 14-year-old Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Manasra to Israels Meggido prison, Manasras family told Maan on Saturday.
Manasra was sentenced to 12 years in Israeli prison earlier this month after he was charged with attempted murder for carrying out a stabbing attack on Oct. 12, 2015 that left two Israelis seriously injured. In addition, the court imposed a fine on his family of 180,000 shekels ($47,187).
Manasras family told Maan that IPS officials transferred the young prisoner from Israels Yarka closed institution -- where he has been held since October of last year -- to Israels Megiddo prison following his sentencing on Nov. 7. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774032
Palestinian freed to Mauritania after serving 20 years in US, 9 in Greek prison
A Palestinian man was released from custody in the United States on Friday after he served 20 years, in addition to nine years he served in Greece, on charges of resisting the Israeli occupation outside Palestinian soil, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said.
PPS said in a statement, released Saturday, that 76-year-old Rashid Hammad Zghari from al-Duheisha refugee camp in the southern occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem , was released from US custody after serving 20 years.
The statement added that Zghari, who is married with two children, had been jailed for nine years in Greece before he was moved to US prison. He was arrested in Greece in 1987.
Zghari was deported to Mauritania immediately after he was released. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774041
Ex-ambassador: Israel used my father to cover up ethnic cleansing
A former Dutch ambassador was due to plant 1,100 olive trees in the West Bank on Sunday to make amends, he said, for the fact that Israel had exploited his familys name to cover up an act of ethnic cleansing.
Erik Ader, a former ambassador to Norway, said the trees were his way of apologising for a similar number of pine trees planted in Israel in the 1960s to honour his father.
The Rev Bastiaan Jan Ader, who was executed by the Nazis in 1944, was named a Righteous among the Nations in 1967 by Israels Yad Vashem Holocaust museum. He had helped hundreds of Dutch Jews escape the extermination camps.
Ader said he had been shocked to discover a decade ago that under the small conifer forest dedicated to his father were concealed the ruins of a Palestinian village.
All of the 2,400 Palestinian inhabitants of Bayt Nattif, south-west of Jerusalem, were expelled in 1948, the year Israel was established. The Israeli army destroyed the 350 homes there; none of the villagers has ever been allowed to return. http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2016-11-20/ex-ambassador-israel-used-my-father-to-cover-up-ethnic-cleansing/
The dark side of Jewish consciousness: manufactured anti-Semitism
I dedicate this essay to Hajo Meyer (1924-2014) anti-Zionist, political activist, Auschwitz survivor and hero in the struggle for Palestinian freedom. His words continue to inform me and his actions comfort my sorrow.
An anti-Semite used to be a person who disliked Jews. I am not anti-Jew. I am anti-Zionist Zionism has nothing to do with Judaism.
Zionism has always equated any criticism with anti-Semitism, delegitimization or worse. It serves as propaganda to maintain the illusion of Jews as victims. Ultra Nationalists who believe in their moral superiority create political terror in order to silence and deny. http://mondoweiss.net/2016/10/consciousness-manufactured-semitism/
How Israel Became a Hub for Surveillance Technology
In 1948, the year Israel was founded, the Mer Group was established as a metal workshop.
Today its a much different company. It operates a dozen subsidiaries and employs 1,200 people in over 40 countries, selling wireless infrastructure, software for public transit ticketing systems, wastewater treatment, and more. But at the ISDEF Expo, an event held last June to show off Israeli technology to potential buyers from foreign security forces, the Mer Groups representatives were only promoting one thing: surveillance products sold by the companys security division. https://theintercept.com/2016/10/17/how-israel-became-a-hub-for-surveillance-technology/
In Gaza, we aren't mourning Clinton's loss
Bill Clinton, George Bush, Barack Obama, none of them tried to allay Palestine's misery. Hillary wouldn't have either. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2016/11/gaza-aren-mourning-clinton-loss-161117123959810.html
Israels new attack on Palestinian culture
A bill being put forward to Israels parliament, the Knesset, will, if passed, ban mosques from using loudspeakers to broadcast the call to prayer five times a day.
The bill has government backing and support from a significant number of legislators. And though it is currently being appealed, it is likely to pass should the vote take place.
The backers of the bill, which was originally intended to stop the broadcasting of nationalist messages, now claim that the goal is to curb noise pollution.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has stated that Israel is committed to freedom for all religions, and the proposed ban serves to protect [Israels] citizens from noise. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/jalal-abukhater/israels-new-attack-palestinian-culture
Divide and rule: How the school system sows division among Israel's Palestinians
The education system in Israel is one of the many areas where Arab Palestinian and Jewish citizens of Israel are segregated from each other as the schools are strictly divided into different sectors, based on both religion and ethnicity.
The system in its current form was established in 1953 with the State Education Law which provides the legal framework for the establishment of two sectors: a Jewish secular and a Jewish religious one. While the Palestinian minority is not mentioned in this law, the establishment of an Arab school sector that is separate from the two Jewish ones followed rather inevitably from it. http://www.middleeasteye.net/essays/divide-and-rule-how-school-system-sows-division-among-palestinian-citizens-israel-1534031059
Why Palestinians are unfazed by calls to cut off US aid
Mustafa Barghouti, an elected Palestinian legislator, told Al-Monitor that the United States has already reduced aid to the Palestinian government. In the past two years, we have seen a steady decline in financial support coming from Washington to the Palestinian government. Some of the remaining aid coming from the United States is going directly to local governments, and the rest is distributed to civil society organizations by USAID [US Agency for International Development]. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/11/us-aid-reduce-palestinian-government.html
Richard Falk: 'History is on the side of the Palestinians'
Apartheid, annexation, mass displacement and collective punishment have become core policies of the state of Israel. Such a clear and uncompromising statement may be unusual for a high-flying academic and former top UN official, but it is typical of Richard Falk.
With his tall, spare frame, neatly trimmed white beard and quiet, scholarly demeanour, Falk appears the epitome of a retired professor. He is indeed an Emeritus Professor of International Law at Princeton University, but "retired is not a word in his vocabulary, even at the age of 85.
His pages-long bibliography on issues as diverse and complex as racism, the Iraq war and climate change bears witness to his intellectual energy and the breadth of his political commitment. Still travelling the world speaking on a wide range of topics, his latest book Palestine Horizon: Toward a Just Peace will be published in a few months time. http://www.middleeasteye.net/in-depth/features/richard-falk-thirst-justice-Gaza-Palestine-Israel-Occupation-UN-2110362291
Pappé on apartheid, ideology, Chomsky, and the contradictions of liberal Zionism
Khalil Bendib (KB): Welcome. For Status Hour, this is Khalil Bendib. Renowned Israeli historian, Ilan Pappé, is the author of numerous books on the history of Zionism, including his seminal work, The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine: A History of Modern Palestine and the Israel-Palestine Question. In his new book on Palestine co-authored with Noam Chomsky, Ilan Pappé debates issues spanning from the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement to the one-state solution. I spoke with Professor Pappé about this new work.
Ilan, your most recent book, co-authored with Noam Chomsky, entitled, On Palestine, offers a nice contrast between the old and the new left perspectives on the question of Palestine, between two generations of thinking on this question. One of the most marked contrasts is the fundamental question of the so-called two-state solution, which much of the liberal left in this countryfollowing in the footsteps of the revered éminence grise of the American left, Doctor Chomskyessentially abandons the moral high ground of equal rights for all in the name of pragmatism. You speak of an old conversation versus a new conversation and talk of a paradigm shift. Tell us a little bit more about this. http://mondoweiss.net/2015/09/apartheid-ideology-contradictions/
Israeli Secret Security Sites Revealed
Many of you know one of my pet names for Israel is the national security state. Aside from the myriad obvious ways Ive documented this here in the past, theres a new one. Israel bans Google Earth and similar geo-location apps from documenting the sites of numerous secret installations. A member of the Israeli forum Rotter discovered that one service called OpenStreetMap, based on open source collaborative principles, somehow hasnt censored some key secret installations. In the interest of the free flow of knowledge and information Im offering screenshots of the various locations. I believe that almost everything that is currently secret in the Israeli military-intelligence field (with certain exceptions) should be transparent. These places and what they do should be known and accountable to the people, which they are not now. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2016/11/23/israeli-secret-security-sites-revealed/
Video Footage Contradicts Israeli Claims that Murdered Youth Attempted to Stab Soldiers
A Palestinian youth was killed by Israeli border police forces on Thursday morning in the northern occupied West Bank after he allegedly attempted to carry out a stabbing attack.
Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri alleged in a statement in Arabic that an 18-year-old Palestinian suspiciously approached Israeli border police officers in an attempt to stab them at the Zaatara junction south of the city of Nablus, prompting Israeli forces to shoot at him, killing him instantly. http://www.palestinechronicle.com/video-footage-contradicts-israeli-claims-that-murdered-youth-attempted-to-stab-soldiers/
November: Israeli forces shoot, kill four Palestinians
On November 3, 2016 Israeli forces shot and killed Maen Nassar al-Din Abu Qaraa, 23, at a bus stop in the Ramallah area of the West Bank, near Ofra settlement. Israeli forces claim Qaraa tired to stab an Israeli soldier. No Israelis were injured.
According to Maan News Agency, Qaraa was denied medical treatment and bled to death. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/277-november-israeli-forces-shoot-kill-four-palestinians-including-a-child
Israeli forces detain 16 Palestinians, including 7 minors, in overnight raids(30-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774197
Israeli forces detain 4 Palestinians during overnight West Bank raids(02-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774237
Israeli forces detain 5 in predawn West Bank raids(04-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774252
Israeli forces detain 12 Palestinians overnight across occupied West Bank(06-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774276
Israeli forces detain Gazan merchant at Erez border crossing(06-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774277
Israeli forces detain 21 Palestinians in military raids(07-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774298
Israeli forces detain 24 Palestinians and seize rifle in widespread overnight raids(08-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774321
Israeli forces close Ramallah-area road with cement block(30-11)
Israeli forces closed the road connecting the towns of Silwad and Ein Yabrud in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah with a large cement block early Wednesday, imposing a complete closure on the two Palestinian towns.
According to locals, residents were forced to use dirt roads or roads far out in the outskirts of the town in order to avoid the cement block, while others were forced to exit and enter on foot. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774196
Israeli forces open live fire on Palestinian fishing boats off coast of Gaza(30-11) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774198
Israeli ministry orders bus company to stop Arabic announcements in Beersheba(01-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774204
Israeli border police shoot, injure Palestinian worker near Bethlehem(01-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774222
Palestinian youth injured during clashes with Israeli forces on Gaza border(02-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774243
Undocumented Palestinian worker injured following Israeli police raid on construction site(02-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774249
Israeli forces target Palestinians over alleged 'incitement' in overnight raids(05-12)
Israeli forces detained at least 24 Palestinians overnight Sunday and early Monday morning during military and police raids carried out across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, a number of whom were targeted over alleged "incitement" on social media, as well as several minors as young as nine years old, according to Israeli and Palestinian sources. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774267
Israeli navy detains 4 Gaza fishermen, confiscates boat(06-12)
Israeli naval forces detained four Palestinian fishermen off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip and confiscated their fishing boat Tuesday morning, the head of the Gaza fishermen's union said.
Nizar Ayyash told Ma'an that Israeli gunboats obstructed a Palestinian fishing boat and detained all four fishermen who were on board.
The fishermen and their boat were taken to Israel's Ashdod port, where the boat was confiscated. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774282
Israel confiscates truck carrying iron into Gaza, claims material would be used against Israel(06-12)
Israeli authorities Tuesday confiscated a truck carrying pieces of iron en route to the besieged Gaza Strip, claiming the material would be used for anti-Israel activities.
Israeli sources told Maan that officials from COGAT, the Israeli agency responsible for implementing Israeli policies in the occupied Palestinian territory, in cooperation with Israeli intelligence and crossing authority prevented the truck from entering the Gaza Strip via the Kerem Shalom crossing for carrying iron pieces.
Sources added that the truck was supposed to be carrying shelves to be used in supermarkets but was instead carrying five-meter long iron pieces. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774290
Aid Watch Palestine raises awareness of failed reconstruction efforts in Gaza (30-11)
On Wednesday the November 23, Aid Watch Palestine (AIP) organized a photo exhibition in central Ramallah, West Bank, titled Gaza Incomplete. The event addressed reconstruction efforts in Gaza since the 51-day Israeli offensive against the besieged coastal enclave in the summer of 2014.
AIP is an independent Palestinian civil society initiative that stimulates and supports efforts to make international aid more accountable to Palestinians starting with reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/274-aid-watch-palestine-raises-awareness-on-failed-reconstruction-efforts-in-gaza
West Bank village turned into a 'prison' in the wake of arson accusations(07-10)
Dozens of Palestinians have been detained -- including a number of children -- and clashes have erupted daily in the occupied West Bank village of Deir Nidham since it was blockaded by the Israeli army three weeks ago, turning the lives of 1,600 into a prison, locals told Maan on Wednesday.
Deir Nidham, northwest of Ramallah city, was placed under a military closure after a fire erupted just a few kilometers away in the illegal Israeli settlement of Halamish, which is built on the lands of the village and on the lands of neighboring Nabi Saleh. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774292
Palestinian worker says Israeli deliberately ran him over in Tel Aviv(07-12)
An Israeli ran over a Palestinian worker from the Tulkarem district in the occupied West Bank while he was crossing the street in Tel Aviv, Israel on Wednesday, an incident that the victim claimed was not an accident.
Raja Muhammad Younis, a West Bank Palestinian working in Tel Aviv, suffered foot fractures after being struck by the vehicle, telling Maan that he and a group of Palestinian workers were crossing a street near their workplace when they saw an Israeli driving extremely fast toward them. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774309
Palestinian economy suffers due to Israeli custom officer strike at Allenby crossing(07-12)
The fragile Palestinian economy suffered serious losses in the past three weeks as Israeli custom officials at the Allenby Bridge crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan launched a strike, forcing imports and exports to a near standstill in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce in Hebron Muhammad Ghazi al-Hirbawi told Maan that Israeli custom officials started the general strike 20 days ago to demand a salary increase for what they called a risky job.
The strike has had a disastrous effect on the Palestinian economy, al-Hirbawi said, saying that several factories have suspended work, particularly plastic factories, due to lack of raw materials. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774312
Israeli forces violently suppress clashes in Shufat refugee camp(08-12)
Israeli forces violently suppressed clashes overnight Wednesday in Shufat refugee camp in occupied East Jerusalem, leaving several injured by rubber-coated steel bullets, while four Palestinian youths were assaulted and detained, locals sources said.
Fatah party spokesperson in Shufat refugee camp Thaer Fasfous told Maan that Israeli forces heavily deployed in the camp and took pictures of several buildings, causing clashes to erupt.
Israeli forces fired tear gas canisters, sound bombs, and rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian youth during the clashes, which Fasfous said lasted for hours on end. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774317
Clashes erupt in Hebron area, tens suffer tear gas inhalation(09-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774348
Israeli forces fire tear gas at memorial event of Fatah minister beaten to death by Israeli forces(09-12)
Israeli forces on Friday dispersed with tear gas canisters a memorial ceremony for slain Palestinian Ziad Abu Ein, 55, in the town of Turmusayya in the central occupied West Bank district of Ramallah.
Abu Eins family and the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission demonstrated in the town to commemorate the two year anniversary of Abu Eins death.
Abu Ein was a Palestinian politician, minister and a member of the Fatah movements revolutionary council. Abu Ein died after an Israeli border police officer beat him in the chest with his helmet and the butt of his rifle on December 10, 2014, following a 300 person march to plant olive trees in the town. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774346
Israeli forces target Jerusalem's Silwan for demolitions
On December 6, Israeli forces carried out three demolitions in Silwan, a Palestinian neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem.
Israeli forces demolished a shed used as a horse stable in the area of al-Thuri owned by Alaa Shweiki and confiscated a horse. Shweikis horse stable was also demolished in November. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/282-israeli-forces-target-jerusalem-s-silwan-for-demolitions
Israeli Jerusalem municipality demolishes structures in Palestinian neighborhoods(30-11)
Israeli forces demolished two Palestinian structures in neighborhoods of occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Banks Jerusalem district on Tuesday, according to a spokesperson from Israels Jerusalem municipality. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774186
'Formalization bill' would legalize 55 outposts, seize 8,000 dunams of Palestinian land
The eventual passage of the so-called formalization bill in Israels Knesset would lead to the retroactive legalization of 55 illegal settlement outposts in the occupied Palestinian territory and the confiscation of more than 8,000 dunams of land, rights group Peace Now said in a report released on Tuesday.
The bill would see the legalization of Israeli outposts which are deemed illegal by both Israeli and international law, and would cause what the Israeli NGO called grand land robbery.
All Israeli settlements and outposts in the occupied Palestinian territory are deemed illegal under international law.
According to Peace Now, should the bill pass into law, 55 outposts composed built on 3,067 dunams (758 acres) of Palestinian land would become legal under international law.http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774192
B'Tselem: 'Dispossession of Palestinians most consistent trend in Israeli policy'
As Israels Knesset considers a bill which would retroactively legalize settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank, Israeli authorities have used both official and unofficial means to expropriate Palestinian lands for decades which has "devastasted" the Palestinian territory, according to a report published on Monday by Israeli human rights group BTselem.
In its latest report, entitled Expel and Exploit: The Israeli practice of taking over rural Palestinian land, BTselem used a case study of Azmut, Deir al-Hatab, and Salem -- three Palestinian villages in the northern West Bank district of Nablus -- to illustrate a number of official and indirect ways used by the Israeli government over the years to slowly isolate Palestinian communities from their lands. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774178
Israeli authorities demolish 3 Palestinian structures in East Jerusalem(06-12)
Israeli authorities demolished three Palestinian-owned structures in the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem Tuesday morning, according to the owners.
Alaa Shweiki told Ma'an that bulldozers arrived on his property early Tuesday morning under armed military protection. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774279
Israeli bulldozers demolish Palestinian-owned structures in Jericho
sraeli forces Tuesday leveled a number of structures belonging to several Palestinian families in the Jordan Valley, north of Jericho city in the occupied West Bank.
According to the Palestinian government news agency Wafa, Israeli bulldozers and soldiers raided the village of Fasayil and destroyed several steel structures belonging to Abed al-Hadi Ali Hussein Obayyat, Adnan Ibrahim Abu Kharabish, and Zaid Mahmoud Ibrahim Abu Kharabish.
Israeli forces also demolished two healthcare facilities belonging to Adnan and Zaid Abu Kharabish, Wafa reported. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774286
Israeli bulldozers demolish houses in Negev, level agricultural land
Israeli bulldozers demolished two houses in Bedouin villages unrecognized by Israel in the southern Negev region Wednesday morning, locals told Maan.
Local sources said forces from the Yoav, the special Israeli police unit created to implement demolitions of Bedouin homes in the Negev, escorted by Israeli bulldozers demolished a house in the village of Atir, and another house that belongs to the al-Jamaaen family in the village of Sawah.
Israeli bulldozers also leveled an agricultural field that belongs to al-Atrash family in Maulida village.
An Israeli police spokesperson said they were looking into reports.
Sawah and Atir are among 35 Bedouin villages considered unrecognized by the Israeli state. Last month, the village of al-Araqib was demolished for the 105th time.
According to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), more than half of the approximately 160,000 Negev Bedouins reside in unrecognized villages. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774304
Israel demolishes car washes, building under construction in Area C http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774307
Israeli bulldozers level land in Umm al-Kheir to install sewer pipe for settlement
Israeli forces leveled privately-owned Palestinian lands in the village of Umm al-Kheir in the southern occupied West Bank on Thursday morning, in order to install a sewer pipe to service the illegal Israeli settlement of Karmel that lies some 500 meters away from Umm al-Kheir.
Meanwhile, Umm al-Kheir itself suffers from lack of infrastructure and has no sewage network, while the bulk of domestic wastewater is discharged and disposed in cesspits, according to the Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem (ARIJ). http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774325
Palestinian brothers from East Jerusalem forced to demolish their own homes
Two Palestinian brothers in the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem were forced to demolish their own homes on Saturday in compliance with an Israeli court order.
One of the owners, Said al-Abbasi, told Maan that he and his brother Nasser had built their homes in the Karm al-Sheikh area of Silwan two-and-a-half years ago. However, before construction could be completed, the Jerusalem municipality delivered demolition orders for their homes.
During the court hearings, the al-Abbasi brothers, who are the fathers 12 children combined, were forced to close the construction site with concrete until all legal proceedings had concluded.
Said told Maan that the Jerusalem municipality had threatened to imprison the two brothers if they tried to resume construction at the site. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774247
Israeli forces issue stop-work orders, confiscate garbage trucks, tractors in Jordan Valley
Israeli forces raided several areas in the Jordan Valley district of Tubas in the northern occupied West Bank on Thursday, where they confiscated a garbage truck, agricultural tractors, and delivered stop-work orders.
Palestinian official and local Tubas activist, Mutaz Bisharat told Maan that Israeli forces confiscated a garbage truck that belongs to the Tubas Joint Services Council for Solid Waste while the truck was working in the Beit Anon district. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774328
Palestinian prisoner declares 4th hunger strike in Israeli prison(30-11)
Palestinian prisoner Kifah Hattab, 53, entered the eighth day of a hunger strike on Wednesday in the latest of a series of hunger strikes launched by the prisoner who has demanded to be considered a prisoner of war in accordance with the Fourth Geneva Convention, according to a statement released by the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners Affairs. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774201
Islamic Jihad warns Israel over potential death of Palestinian hunger strikers(02-12)
The Islamic Jihad movement warned Israel on Friday that the potential death of hunger-striking prisoners Anas Shadid and Ahmad Abu Farah in Israeli prisons or hospitals would be the full responsibility of Israeli authorities.
The statements were made during a speech by Islamic Jihad leader Khalid al-Batsh during Friday prayers which were performed by hundreds of Palestinians in front of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) headquarters in the besieged Gaza Strip in support of Shadid and Abu Farah. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774239
Palestinian hunger strikers reject deal offered by Israeli prosecution(03-12)
Hunger strikers Anas Shadid and Ahmad Abu Farah rejected a deal offered by the Israeli prosecution that guaranteed the imprisoned Palestinians would be released after a renewed four months on their administrative detention, according to a statement released Friday by the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners Affairs. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774244
Tens of families from Gaza visit their relatives in Israeli prison
Dozens of relatives of Palestinian prisoners from the besieged Gaza Strip left the coastal enclave Monday morning through the Erez checkpoint after they were granted permission to visit their relatives being held in Israels Nafha prison.
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) spokesperson in Gaza Suheir Zaqout said that 72 Palestinian from Gaza visited 43 Palestinian prisoners held in Nafha prison, located in Israel's southern Negev desert, through facilitation from the ICRC. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774265
Balboul brothers to be released as 2 hunger strikers remain in critical condition(07-12)
After more than five months in Israeli prison and over 75 days on an open hunger strike, Muhammad and Mahmoud Balboul are set to be released back to their home in the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem on Thursday, as prisoners Anas Shadid and Ahmad Abu Farah remained in critical condition amid their ongoing hunger strikes.
Muhammad, 26, and Mahmoud, 23, were initially detained during an overnight raid on June 9, and were subsequently sentenced to six months of administrative detention -- an Israeli policy of internment without charge or trial based on undisclosed evidence. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774295
Former hunger-striking Balboul brothers released from Israeli prison(08-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774337
Palestinian committee: Israel 'deliberately' tries to kill Palestinian hunger strikers
Head of the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners Affairs, Issa Qaraqe accused Israeli authorities of deliberately attempting to kill Palestinian hunger strikers, while simultaneously employing several tactics to convince hunger strikers to break their strikes, according to statements released on Thursday.
The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said in a statement that Palestinian hunger striker Ammar Ibrahim Hamour, 28, who has been on hunger strike for 18 days in protest of being held in administrative detention -- the controversial Israeli policy of internment without charge or trial --told PPS lawyer Khalid Mahajna that the Israel Prison Service (IPS) has been attempting to pressure him to end his strike. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774323
Amid crackdown on Palestinian activism, Israel renews detention of Palestinian journalist(09-12)
Israeli authorities Thursday renewed the administrative detention order of Palestinian journalist, human rights activist, and the media coordinator of prisoners rights group Addameer Hasan Safadi for an additional six months.
According Addameer, Israeli forces initially detained Safadi as he crossed the Allenby bridge between the occupied West Bank and Jordan at the start of May, keeping him under Israeli military interrogation for forty days before sentencing him to six months of administrative detention -- the controversial Israeli policy of internment without trial or charge. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774339
Report: 32 disabled Palestinian prisoners face medical negligence in Israeli custody
32 Palestinian prisoners suffering from different disabilities are being held in Israeli detention centers without receiving suitable medical care, according to a report released by the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies (PPCS) on Sunday.
Center spokesperson Riyad al-Ashqar said in the statement that Israeli use of torture against Palestinian prisoners had dramatically increased the number of disabled prisoners, with many suffering from permanent disabilities due to injuries sustained during violent interrogations.
The statement noted that Israel Prison Service (IPS) authorities routinely did not provide disabled and injured prisoners with necessary equipment such as wheelchairs for those. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774254
Warum Israel brennt
Israels Landschaft ist überzogen mit Kiefernwäldern. Diese Bäume stammen nicht aus dieser Region. Die Kiefern wurden in den frühen 1930 in die palästinensische Landschaft vom Jüdischen Nationalfonds (KKL/JNF) eingeführt, in einem Versuch, "das Land zurück zu erobern". Bis 1935 hatte der JNF 1,7 Millionen Bäume über ein Gebiet von 1'750 Hektar gepflanzt. In den folgenden 50 Jahren pflanzte der JNF über 260 Millionen Bäume hauptsächlich auf konfisziertem palästinensischem Land. Dies wurde alles als verzweifelter Versuch unternommen, um die Ruinen der ethnisch gesäuberten palästinensischen Dörfer und ihrer Geschichte zu verstecken. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19386
Nur jene, denen das Land nicht gehört, sind in der Lage, es zu verbrennen!
Zu den Bränden im jüdischen Staat kann man Naftali Bennet, rechtsradikaler Bildungsminister und Vorsitzender der Partei Jüdisches Heim und Siedlerkönig, der die rassistische Siedlerpartei zu einem mächtigen Koalitionspartner innerhalb des Netanjahu Regimes aufgebaut hat, und der von einem Groß-Israel, Eretz-Israel, vom Mittelmeer bis zum Jordan träumt und zusätzlich große Teile des illegal besetzten Westjordanlandes annektieren will, eigentlich nur beipflichten, der getwittert hat: Nur jene, denen das Land nicht gehört, sind in der Lage, es zu verbrennen. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19405
Netanyahu 'toppled': Gold statue of Israeli PM taken down by protesters
A 13-foot-high golden effigy of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was secretly erected in the centre of Tel Aviv in protest against Israel's "culture war" on artistic expression on Tuesday, sparking online controversy and political debate.
The gilded statue was raised overnight in front of the Tel Aviv city hall in Yitzhak Rabin Square, named after the former PM who was assassinated by a right-wing Jewish militant in 1995. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/netanyahu-toppled-giant-gold-statue-israeli-pm-taken-down-protesters-1371459333
Gaza ship raid: Turkey considers dropping charges against Israelis
A Turkish prosecutor has called for charges to be withdrawn in relation to the Israeli raid on the Mavi Marmara flotilla carrying aid to Gaza in 2010 following a reconciliation deal between Turkey and Israel, state media reported on Friday.
The prosecutor told an Istanbul court that the case against the Israelis should be dropped because of the agreement between the two states, state-run news agency Anadolu said. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkey-calls-dropping-charges-against-israelis-deadly-raid-against-aid-ship-gaza-181775189
New Israeli envoy arrives in Turkey after rapprochement
Eitan Naeh dispatched as Israel's first ambassador to Ankara in six years after row over Gaza flotilla raid ended. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/12/israeli-envoy-arrives-turkey-rapprochement-161202083315668.html
Colonial misogynists
The Israeli military appoints a settler as chief rabbi who once said soldiers can rape enemy women and relieves a decorated war criminal of prison time for rape. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/comment/280-colonial-misogyny
U.K. Intelligence Called Israel 'True Threat' to Middle East
A 2008 document, leaked by whistleblower Edward Snowden, says the British were concerned about Israel's stance on Iran. GCHQ also spied on Israeli diplomats, and defense firms. http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.757541
Attorney General orders probe of German submarine deal
In what may pose a significant legal threat to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit on Thursday asked State Attorney Shai Nitzan to examine a major arms acquisition from Germany.
Mandelblit, the governments legal adviser, asked Nitzan, in charge of the state prosecution, to check whether Netanyahus trusted lawyer and right hand-man David Shimron violated a conflict-of-interest agreement. http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/A-G-orders-probe-of-German-submarine-deal-473002
Israel blocks Gaza women from breast cancer treatment
Khuloud Abu Qamar spoke quietly but her words still shocked. Israel is killing me slowly, she said. And it is killing my children, too.
After undergoing surgery for breast cancer last year, Abu Qamar requires further treatment which she has not been able to receive in Gaza. She has asked Israel for permission to travel. Her applications have so far been rejected. Aged 40, she has six children, the youngest of whom is still a baby.
Her plight is shared by many others in Gaza. Estimates from the local health ministry indicate that several hundred women with breast cancer have been obstructed from traveling by Israel so far this year.
Leaving Gaza for treatment is vital as the coastal strips hospitals are not properly equipped to provide such services as radiotherapy. https://electronicintifada.net/content/israel-blocks-gaza-women-breast-cancer-treatment/18761
The Frontline of Israels Settlement Regime by Salah Ajarma
Aida refugee camp, in which I live and work, is on the edge of the famous town of Bethlehem. Our families established the camp in 1950 after being forcibly expelled from their homes by Zionist militias in 1948. Palestinians from our camp originate from villages in the Jerusalem and Hebron districts, just a few miles down the road. Those born since, still live in the refugee camp, and continue to struggle for the right to return to our homes.
In April 2000, me and a number of friends established the Lajee Centre, a community-based cultural centre for young refugees living in the camp. Through it we have sought to provide opportunities for the cultural, educational and social development of our young people, despite the violent military occupation under which we live. As an occupied refugee people, we are aware of the duty to educate our youth about their history and their rights. Only in this way will our struggle for freedom be carried to the next generation. https://www.palestinecampaign.org/frontline-israels-settlement-regime-salah-ajarma/
Mossads Yossi Cohen Gets Away with Murder Again
Youve probably read the posts I wrote earlier this week about the Mossad assassination of Mohammed al-Zoari in Tunisia. Israeli politicians and journalists have strongly hinted at Mossads culpability. Tunisian authorities have been more forceful in blaming an Israeli assassination squad for the murder. This is at least the second such murder under Yossi Cohens watch as agency chief.
The first hit was last year in Bulgaria. There Cohen engineered the killing of Omar Nayef Zayed, who had murdered an Israeli settler in 1986 and later escaped Israel and found refuge in the eastern European nation. There he ran a grocery store, married and had children. As I reported earlier at Mint Press News, Yossi Cohen is reported to have been chief of European operations for Mossad during the period of Zayeds escape. I suggested that the murder was Cohens form of payback, warning both Palestinians and his own personnel that he is a tough son of a bitch who always gets his man. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2016/12/25/yossi-cohen-gets-away-murder/
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (08 14 December 2016) http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=8639
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (15 21 December 2016) http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=8653
British Citizen Tortured by Israels Secret Police: Report
Asa Winstanley, a London-based investigative journalist reported in Middle East Monitor today that a British citizen is being tortured in Israel to confess to apparently false charges.
Although Haaretz claimed last month that he had been released, Winstanley wrote, it appears that Faiz Sherari remains in the custody of a military court run by Israels illegal occupation regime that rules the fate of all Palestinians in the West Bank. http://www.palestinechronicle.com/british-citizen-tortured-by-israels-secret-police-report/
Closure, isolation and suffering for a second week
Israeli occupation forces have blocked civilians from entering and exiting their own villages and towns in the Ramallah district of the West Bank for two weeks.
Entryways to Deir Nzam village, northwest of Ramallah, were closed with military barriers. Locals must walk on foot to get into the village. Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint along the main road routinely stop passersby and check ID cards.
The Israeli occupation also closed Nabi Saleh village, north of Ramallah. Two weeks ago, a military checkpoint was erected at its main entrance. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/304-closure-isolation-and-suffering-for-a-second-week
Israeli officer threatens to kill Palestinian youth and his family
On 18 December, Israeli forces raided the homes of Ahmad al-Seifi and Khalil al-Banna, two youths in Dheisheh refugee camp, near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, and detained them.
According to a local source, al-Seifi and al-Banna are still in detention. The source, who is not being named for safety reasons, told The Electronic Intifada that al-Banna was shot in the knee and arrested earlier this year.
Residents of Dheisheh say they continue to be targeted with raids and arrests by an Israeli army unit under the command of a notoriously aggressive officer with Israels domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet.
The officer, who goes by the alias Captain Nidal, has previously threatened to make all youth in the camp disabled.
In several testimonies gathered by The Electronic Intifada earlier this year, youth in the camp say Captain Nidal has been provoking them during confrontations and threatening them or causing severe physical harm, especially to their lower limbs. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/nora-barrows-friedman/israeli-officer-threatens-kill-palestinian-youth-and-his-family
Ein trostloses Weihnachten ruft die Katastrophe wach, die Bethlehem heimsuchte
Als 2016 seinem Ende zuneigt, ist Bethlehem eine traurige Stadt. Die Melancholie ist allgegenwärtig: in den verschlossenen Souvenirläden, in den noch offenen aber leeren Läden, in den gästelosen Hotels, in den niedergeschlagenen Gesichtern der Einheimischen. Es stimmt, dass am Nachmittag der Obst- und Gemüsemarkt voller Leben ist und der Verkehr sich staut. Die Stadt ist für Weihnachten auch festlich geschmückt worden: seine bunten Lichter leuchten in der Nacht. Sonst ist hier nicht viel los.
Die örtliche Polizei, die den Verkehr in der Nähe des Marktes leitet gibt eine Illusion von Normalität und einen Anschein von Souveränität. Aber jede Illusion zerbricht beim Anblick der Mauer, die die Stadt am Ende der Hauptstraße erdrosselt und der Siedlung Har Homa, ein jüdischer Vorort, der der Stadt aufgezwungen wurde, rittlings auf dem naheliegenden Hügel.
Bethlehem ist besetzt und erstickt. Dies macht sich besonders in der Weihnachtszeit bemerkbar, wo man den Kontrast zwischen was diese schöne Stadt, Jesu Geburtsort, sein könnte und zu was sie reduziert wurde. Nächstes Jahr wird das Jubeljahr der Katastrophe sein, die sie heimsuchte. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19526
Video: Israeli soldiers tear gas Santa Claus
Israeli soldiers fired tear gas, pepper spray and stun grenades at Palestinians calling for free movement between Bethlehem and Jerusalem on Friday.
The Christmas-themed protest was held in front of Checkpoint 300, where Israeli soldiers control Palestinian movement between the occupied West Bank cities.
Approximately 100 protesters, some of them dressed in Santa Claus suits, chanted against Israels military occupation and for Palestinian freedom.
Jesus came with a message of peace, his city suffers oppression, one demonstrators sign read.
Santa Claus stands with the Palestinian people, stated another.
Half a dozen people were injured, including journalists, during the protest. https://electronicintifada.net/content/video-israeli-soldiers-tear-gas-santa/18991
Thousands attend funeral for Palestinian killed by Israeli soldiers(22-12)
Thousands of Palestinians in the city of al-Bireh in the central occupied West Bank took part in the funeral of 19-year-old Ahmad Nashat Othman al-Kharroubi, who was shot and killed by Israeli forces earlier on Thursday during clashes in Kafr Aqab north of Jerusalem. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774552
Teen slain during home demolition raid
An Israeli army spokesperson told media that soldiers had opened fire on al-Kharroubi after he and others threw improvised explosive devices at them.
The incident occurred after Israeli forces raided Kufr Aqab to partially demolish a house belonging to Misbah Abu Sbeih, who was slain by Israeli forces after carrying out a shooting attack in Jerusalem, killing an Israeli woman and a police officer, in October. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/maureen-clare-murphy/teen-slain-during-home-demolition-raid
Palestinian injured after Israeli forces shoot live ammunition during clashes in Gaza(23-13)
Israeli forces Friday injured a Palestinian youth when clashes erupted in the east of the besieged Gaza Strip.
Medical sources told Maan that the Palestinian youth was injured with live fire after Israeli forces opened live ammunition at protesters near the Nahel Oz crossing in Gaza city.
A Maan reporter witnessed Israeli forces stationed inside the crossing open fire on a Palestinian protester who had approached the security barrier between the besieged enclave and Israel.
Medical sources added that the Palestinian youths injury was medium. The identity of the youth was has not yet been released. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774589
Israel besieges Bethlehem villages in search of stabbing suspect(24-12)
Israeli forces continued to crackdown on Palestinian villages in the southern occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem on Saturday, in search for a man who allegedly stabbed and lightly injured a settler in the illegal Israeli settlement of Efrat southwest of Bethlehem Friday night.
According to the Israeli army, a Palestinian infiltrated a settler home in Efrat, stabbed an Israeli man, and fled from the scene. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774592
Israeli forces suppress Palestinian funeral with live ammunition, tear gas(24-12)
Palestinians in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron laid five Palestinians to rest on Saturday after their bodies were released by Israeli authorities the previous night, with mourners being met with live ammunition, tear gas, and rubber-coated steel bullets fired by Israeli forces.
After Israeli authorities returned the bodies of nine Palestinians who were killed while committing or allegedly committing attacks, a number of funerals were held Friday evening across the occupied West Bank.
In Hebron, preparations for the funerals of five Palestinians were still ongoing as of Saturday morning, and were held later in the afternoon.
In Beit Ummar, local activist Muhammad Ayyad Awad said Israeli soldiers stationed at the northern entrance to the town fired tear gas canisters at the crowds of mourners during the funeral for Khalid Ikhlayyil. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774594
Dozens of Palestinians injured on day of mourning in Hebron (25-12)
Saturday was a sad day in Hebron, a day of mourning and general strike. Five martyrs whose bodies the occupation authorities withheld for several months in Israeli morgues were finally laid to rest.
A funeral procession for the martyrs set off from Ahli Hospital in Hebron city. The deceased were then taken to their respective hometowns for burial. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/302-dozens-of-palestinians-injured-on-day-of-mourning-in-hebron
Israeli forces install road blocks on West Bank commuter road(25-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774608
Palestinian youth injured with live fire during clashes near Joseph's Tomb(25-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774614
Israeli bulldozers level lands in southern Gaza Strip(27-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774625
Israeli forces demolish agricultural water tank, structure in Hebron area(27-12)
Israeli authorities on Tuesday demolished an agricultural water tank and structure in the southern occupied West Bank Hebron-area town of Idhna, for building without a license in Area C -- the more than 60 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli civilian and security control.
The Idhna municipality said in a statement that Israeli bulldozers escorted by several military jeeps demolished a 500 square-meter space water tank used for agricultural purposes and an agricultural room belonging to Moussa Ahmad Muhammad Farajallah in the Uyoun al-Bass area of the town. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774627
Israeli forces raid Salfit-area village in response to alleged rock throwing(29-12) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774654
Umm Al-Hiran: Zionismus pur
Die Videos, die von der Hiran-Siedlergruppe produziert wurden, zeigen viele fröhliche Juden, wie sie singen und musizieren, Witze erzählen und Spaß haben. Sie werden bald noch fröhlicher sein, wenn sie an den Ort kommen, wo sie einen ständigen Wohnsitz im nordöstlichen Negev haben werden.
Das Land, das der Staat für sie bestimmt hat, heißt Atir/ Um al-Hiran und ist 60 Jahre lang der Wohnort für die Beduinen vom Al-Qian-Stamm gewesen. Mit andern Worten der Wohnort und Spielplatz für jüdische Kinder, der dort gebaut wird und die Gärten, die dort angepflanzt werden, werden über den Ruinen der Wohnsitze von etwa 1000 anderen Bewohnern, die auch Israelische Bürger sind, errichtet ( Einige von ihnen haben sogar beim Militär gedient, wenn sich jemand darum kümmert).
Jetzt können aber jeden Tag die Bulldozer der israelischen Landverwaltung kommen und die Häuser dieser Beduinen zerstören, um Platz für eine blühende Gemeinde fröhlicher jüdischer Bürger zu machen . Das ist Zionismus in einer Nussschale. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19477
Dispossession by the law: How the Israeli judicial system utilises Ottoman land law to expel and dispossess the Palestinian Bedouin
Much has been said about the role that the Israeli Supreme Court and the judiciary generally have played in Judaising the Palestinian space, by confirming Israeli governmental practices of dispossessing Palestinians of their land, major house demolitions and frequent displacement. This role was apparent in the first years of Israeli statehood when approving mass expropriation of Palestinian refugees property and the confiscation of lands that belonged to the remaining Palestinians who became Israeli citizens after 1948. Land dispossession continues until the present, and so does the role and position of the Israeli Supreme Court. This role probably has not been as clear as it was during the first two weeks of May 2015. The specific target this time were the Palestinian Bedouin communities in Israel and in the West Bank. In the West Bank the court approved the expulsion and house demolitions of a Palestinian village to allow for the expansion of an existing Jewish settlement; in the Negev the court approved the expulsion and house demolition of the Palestinian Bedouin village of Um Al-Hiran in order to make room for a new Jewish settlement; and finally the court approved the state position that the Bedouin have no land rights and in most cases they were trespassers on state land. https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161201-dispossession-by-the-law-how-the-israeli-judicial-system-utilises-ottoman-land-law-to-expel-and-dispossess-the-palestinian-bedouin/
Israel continues demolition campaign on Palestinian homes in Negev(27-12)
Israeli forces Tuesday demolished a Palestinian-owned home in the Bedouin village of Qasr al-Ser in the Negev of southern Israel in the continuation of what locals have said is retaliation for the impending demolition of the illegal Israeli Amona outpost in the occupied West Bank. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774629
Palestinians protest Israeli demolition campaign in the Negev(25-12)
Two marches organized by the Supreme Steering Committee of Negev Arabs set off Sunday in Israel's southern Negev region to protest the ongoing demolition campaign targettng Palestinian homes in the area.
Protesters held signs that condemned the Israeli policy of home demolitions in the Negev, especially during winter when families are left homeless in the cold weather.
On Thursday, Israeli forces demolished the "unrecognized" al-Araqib Bedouin village in the Negev for the 107th time. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774606
Israel confiscates land in Palestinian cemetery (20-12)
On Sunday, employees of Israels Nature and Parks Authority and armed Israeli forces raided al-Rahmah Cemetery and put up signs saying it is prohibited to bury bodies in certain areas.
The Islamic cemetery sits outside the eastern walls of the Old City in Jerusalem, abutting al-Aqsa Mosque. It is over 1,000 years old. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/298-israel-confiscates-land-in-palestinian-cemetery
Israels rule of annexation in West Bank
Israel is due to evacuate more than 300 settlers from the Amona outpost, a colony built on land belonging to Palestinians in three nearby villages near Ramallah in the central occupied West Bank.
The evacuation was ordered by Israels high court.
But legislators, backed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are pushing the so-called Regulation Bill through Israels parliament, the Knesset. If passed, it would retroactively legalize all of the approximately 100 unauthorized outposts built on privately owned Palestinian land throughout the West Bank.
The Israeli government meanwhile intends to relocate Amonas settlers to private Palestinian land replacing one land theft by another, as the anti-settlement group Peace Now has said. https://electronicintifada.net/content/watch-israels-rule-annexation-west-bank/18966
Israel approves settlement in heart of East Jerusalem (28-12)
The Israeli Jerusalem Local Planning Committee approved a plan on Wednesday to build a three-story building for Jewish settlers in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, Haaretz reports.
Alaa Mahajneh, an attorney representing the locals who stand to be affected by the colony, said that the settlers have still not proven that they own the land. Families in the area will continue to appeal the takeover.
Ateret Cohanim, an organization that combines religious study with confiscating Palestinian land in Jerusalem, spearheaded the plan. The Israeli General Custodian sold the property, without a tender, to Ateret Cohanim.
The settlement is planned to be in the heart of Silwan, a densely populated Palestinian neighborhood where there are already multiple settlements. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/306-israel-approves-settlement-in-heart-of-east-jerusalem
Israeli settlers raid village to visit shrine amid restrictions for Palestinian locals(29-12)
Israeli settlers escorted by Israeli forces raided the town of Kifl Haris in the central occupied West Bank district of Salfit to pray at shrines late Wednesday night, locals said.
Eyewitnesses told Maan that hundreds of Israeli settlers raided the town shouting slogans and singing songs after midnight and performed prayers at the shrines.
Israeli forces obstructed the movement of Palestinian residents in the town and installed flying checkpoints at roads to secure the settlers visit. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774653
Families of Palestinian prisoners protest against Israeli prison conditions
Several families of Palestinian prisoners organized on Monday a protest in front of the office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the Gaza Strip, protesting against the treatment of their family members by Israeli authorities in prison.
Among the policies the families protested, was the Israel Prison Services (IPS) procedures in winter time, during which time the families said IPS does not provide prisoners with adequate heating to shield prisoners from the cold. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774620
Israeli court sets deadline for administrative detention of Palestinian prisoner
The Israeli Supreme Court on Monday decided that Palestinian prisoner Ammar Ibrahim Hamour, 28, should not remain in administrative detention -- Israels widely condemned policy of detention without charge or trial -- after mid June 2017.
In a statement on Monday, The Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS) quoted one of its lawyers Ahmad Safiyya as saying that the court decided that it will keep Hamour in administrative detention for four more months after he completes his current six-month administrative detention order, which will end in February 2017. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774623
Israeli court extends detention of Palestinian member of Israeli parliament
An Israeli court Friday ordered the extension of Palestinian Member of the Knesset (Israel's parliament) Basal Ghattas detention until Tuesday for further interrogations, after the Joint List-affiliated politician was arrested on Thursday following the stripping of his parliamentary immunity.
According to Israeli media, Ghattas, a member of Joint List which represents parties led by Palestinian citizens of Israel in the Knesset, was arrested on suspicions of smuggling cellphones to Palestinian terrorists serving time in Israeli prisons, and is being charged with conspiring to commit a crime, fraud, breach of trust, and violations of Israel Prisons Service orders. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774582
Hell just froze over: the New York Times runs an article saying Zionism is racist
Trumps election is having fascinating consequences. Today the New York Times ran a long piece titled, Liberal Zionism in the Age of Trump, by Omri Boehm of the New School saying that liberal Zionism is a contradiction: liberal American Jews have identified themselves with Zionism, a political agenda rooted in the denial of liberal politics.
Boehms most startling point is that Zionism has anti-Semitic strains, witness its collaboration with Nazis. Hannah Arendt is happy today.
The piece will greatly increase the pressure on liberal Zionists to choose one idea or the other, and to stop denying the existence of apartheid.
Boehm says white nationalist Richard Spencer helped to blow up the liberal Zionist hypocrisy in his famous encounter with a Texas rabbi when he said he admires Israel for its ethnic purity and the rabbi had nothing to say. Some of Boehms hammer blows: http://mondoweiss.net/2016/12/article-saying-zionism/
When is anti-Semitism not anti-Semitism? When it's from a Trump-loving 'friend' of Israel
The only message of congratulations that Steve Bannon has received from abroad, apparently, since being named the senior strategic adviser in Donald Trump's White House, is one that arrived on official Israel government stationery and was signed by Israeli Minister of Agriculture Uri Ariel. http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/when-anti-semitism-not-anti-semitism-when-it-s-trump-loving-friend-israeli-509907827
Stephen Bannon and disarming Israel
What is the deadliest weapon at the disposal of the Israeli settler colony? No, it is not the 200-plus nuclear weapons that are all, according to former US Secretary of State Colin Powell, aimed at Iran - nor is it whatever other weapons of mass destruction it can continue to procure over the next 10 years and beyond with the $38bn US taxpayers' dollars that Barack Obama took away from hungry children in the US and sent with a lovely Hallmark greetings card to Benjamin Netanyahu.
The deadliest weapon at the disposal of Israel is not a weapon of mass destruction, of which it has plenty. It is in fact a weapon of mass deception that has long been at its disposal: the charge of "anti-Semitism" that its legion of propaganda officers readily level against anyone daring to question the armed robbery of Palestine. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2016/12/stephen-bannon-disarming-israel-161221121415851.html
Two Israelis Beat Sudanese Refugee to Death
The Israeli police has arrested two Israelis who attacked and beat to death a Sudanese migrant who arrived in the country a few years ago.
The Israeli daily newspaper, Haaretz, has revealed that the two Israelis attacked the Sudanese man and beat him to death at Bitah Tikva Square in Tel Aviv a week ago. http://www.palestinechronicle.com/two-israelis-beat-sudanese-refugee-to-death/
Avigdor Liberman: Israels National Security in a Turbulent Middle East
The dramatic turmoil that has seized the Middle East in recent years holds a number of important lessons for the international community, as policy options are considered regarding the ongoing regional crises. These lessons are particularly salient for Israel and for those concerned with ensuring its national security. http://www.defensenews.com/articles/avigdor-leiberman-israels-national-security-in-a-turbulent-middle-east
Israeli report alleges cover-up in 2015 death of Netanyahu employee in Mexico
Two bodyguards of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are suspected of being involved in a suspicious car accident in Mexico in 2015 that led to the death of an Israeli woman who also worked for Netanyahu, according to an investigative report broadcast by Israels Channel 2 on Monday.
According to the report, 21-year-old Tal Nahum, who worked for the security department of the prime ministers office, was on vacation in Mexico with a coworker in May 2015, when they encountered Israeli intelligence officers whom Nahum recognized as being elite members of Netanyahus security staff . http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774287
How social media is changing Israels approach to sexual harassment
There was a certain lack of sensitivity in the way that the family and friends of former president and convicted rapist Moshe Katsav celebrated his release from prison on Dec. 21. When he returned to his hometown of Kiryat Malachi, he was received with bouquets of flowers. Candy was thrown at him and there was singing and dancing. It was a display of joy completely out of sync with the enormous shift in Israeli attitudes toward sexual assault that has taken place over the last two years. Katsav's supporters seemed to ignor the fact that though his prison term was shortened from seven to five years, his release has several humiliating conditions. For instance, he is forbidden from taking any job that involves hierarchical relations with women. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/12/israel-president-moshe-katsav-yinon-magal-sexual-harassment.html
Whats behind Egypts New Political Position Towards Gaza?
After three years of open hostility, Egypt appears to be resetting its policy towards the Gaza Strip. Whereas in the recent past the Cairo administration has only opened the Rafah border crossing to deliver Palestinian corpses, the authorities have, in recent weeks, opened it more frequently to allow the passage of people to and from the besieged enclave. But this is not all.
Last month witnessed an unprecedented spate of official invitations from Egyptian state agencies to Palestinian businessmen, journalists and even jihadists. The first was extended to more than 30 businessmen and economists from Gaza to attend the second economic conference at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Ain Sokhna. http://www.palestinechronicle.com/whats-behind-egypts-new-political-position-towards-gaza/
VIDEO: Palestinian forces stop IDF entering West Bank city in rare stand-off http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/video-palestinian-forces-stop-idf-entering-jenin-rare-stand-1545646159
Oh du schreckliche illegale jüdische Besatzungszeit!
Allerdings würde ich heute meinen Satz über den Palästinenser Jesus anders formulieren, nämlich dass er heutzutage als besetzter Palästinenser sicher im Widerstand gegen die illegalen jüdischen Besatzer wäre, und seine Jünger wahrscheinlich keine neue Religion begründen würden, sondern eine palästinensische Widerstandsbewegung, angesichts der Folgen illegaler jüdischen Besatzung Palästinas. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19527
The cruel experiments of Israels arms industry
Round the back of Ramallahs main hospital lies the house of Iyad Haddad, a 52-year-old human rights investigator. His home office is the shopfront of a decrepit building and at first glance it looks like a bric-a-brac shop. But the objects placed out on the tables are not household trinkets. The surfaces are, in fact, cluttered with spent ammunition, tear gas canisters, sponge bullets and shell casings.
Haddad has spent the past three decades documenting the violence of the Israeli forces occupying his peoples land. These ugly little pieces of memorabilia are his testament to that process.
Many of these weapons have been fired on peaceful demonstrators protesting against Israels wall and settlements in the occupied West Bank. The villages of Nilin, Bilin and Nabi Saleh have been organizing regular protests for years. To my surprise, Haddad does not approve of those demonstrations.
Sometimes they are using us so they can know how to use each kind of weapon, he said. For me, these kinds of activities by the Palestinians become helpful to the Israelis because it makes this area into a laboratory to test their weapons, to develop them and make it a commercial industry in order to sell them to other countries.
The idea that the Israeli arms industry benefits from the occupation through having a captive population it can test new weaponry on is now widely accepted.
Israel tries out weapons in the West Bank and Gaza and then presents them as battle proven to the international market. https://electronicintifada.net/content/cruel-experiments-israels-arms-industry/19011
Netanyahu Falsely Claims Jerusalem Terror Attacker Affiliated with ISIS
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today claimed that the Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem who plowed a truck into a group of Israeli soldiers, was affiliated with Isis. Netanyahu offered no proof of the Isis claim and it should not be given any credit. He appears to seek to link Palestinian terror attacks with attacks in Europe by those inspired by ISIS. Such linkage would, he believes, inspire sympathy for Israel in the world community and link it to the general revulsion that the West feels towards such attacks.
However these assaults, as reprehensible as they are, are not inspired by ISIS. Rather, they are inspired by long-standing Palestinian grievances against Israeli Occupation. There is no known ISIS presence in either the West Bank or Gaza. There is rumored to be a Salafist group in Gaza engaging in attacks meant to compete with Hamas. However this group is marginal at best. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/01/08/netanyahu-falsely-claims-jerusalem-terror-attacker-affiliated-isis/
2016 'deadliest year' for West Bank children in decade
Israeli forces have killed more Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 2016 than any other year in the last decade, rights group Defence for Children International (DCI) has said.
The organisation's chapter in the occupied Palestinian territories recorded the killings of 32 Palestinian children (under 18), making 2016 "the deadliest year of the past decade" for them, the group said in a recent report.
Many of those killings happened during Israeli military raids on Palestinian towns in the occupied West Bank, confrontations with the Israeli army or during unarmed protests. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/2016-deadliest-year-west-bank-children-decade-170103145022165.html
Number of Palestinian minors in Israeli prisons doubles in 2016
Israeli forces are disproportionately incarcerating Palestinian children in occupied Jerusalem, says documentary short film by Addameer: Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/307-arrests-of-jerusalemite-children
Israeli officials back shoot-to-kill policy of Palestinian suspects, says Human Rights Watch
'No attacker, male or female, should make it out of any attack alive,' says defence minister http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-shoot-to-kill-policy-palestinian-suspects-human-rights-watch-idf-soldiers-west-bank-gaza-a7505486.html
Human Rights Watch: some senior Israeli officials encourage extrajudicial killing of Palestinians
The encouragement accompanies a climate of impunity: despite over 150 cases in which Israeli forces fatally shot a Palestinian in the last year, only one soldier has gone to trial. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/314-human-rights-watch-some-senior-israeli-officials-encourage-extrajudicial-killing-of-palestinians
Israeli military turns blind eye to attacks on Palestinians
An Israeli advocacy group on Tuesday criticized what it called an "exceptionally low" prosecution rate by the Israeli military in cases of violence committed by soldiers against Palestinians.
The report by Yesh Din, a human rights group that is often critical of the Israeli military, came a day before a military court's verdict is to be delivered in a high-profile manslaughter case against a soldier.
In its annual report, Yesh Din said the army opened 186 criminal investigations into suspected offenses against Palestinians in 2015, but just four of those investigations yielded indictments. The group said the 2015 figures, based on official army data, were the most recent available. http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2017/Jan-03/387701-report-israeli-military-turns-blind-eye-to-attacks-on-palestinians.ashx
Hebron shooter Elor Azaria is indeed the norm
Over the past year and a half, dozens of Palestinian men, women and children have been killed, even though they could have been overpowered while they were still alive. The difference between them and Azaria is that he was videotaped. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19617
Elor Azaria case: No hope of equality before the law
Trial exposed not just the rogue actions of one soldier but the dark underbelly of Israeli society and its citizens army http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2017-01-05/elor-azaria-case-no-hope-equality-before-law/
Azaria exposed the reality of Israel's colonial project
Elor Azaria is not a rotten apple. His killing of a Palestinian exposes the normalisation of Israel's colonial project. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2017/01/azaria-exposed-reality-israel-colonial-project-170105132616056.html
Elor Azaria and the army of the periphery
..... Azaria was born to a low-income Mizrahi family in Ramle, a working class mixed city in the heart of the country. He joined a brigade mostly made up of people who looked and spoke like him people who, merely because of their ethnic background and where they grew up would always belong to what Israeli sociologist Yagil Levy calls the army of the peripheries. As the demographic makeup of the country shifts, so too does the makeup of armys infantry those who are tasked with carrying out the day-to-day maintenance of Israels military dictatorship. This maintenance, which includes manning checkpoints, carrying out night raids, patrols, breaking up protests, etc. inevitably puts soldiers in situations that could easily turn into conflagrations, leading them to potentially commit immoral and illegal acts.
Thus the classic Israeli soldier brave, white, decent has been replaced with what photojournalist Mati Milstein and Mizrahi activist Tom Mehager term black labor soldiers who hail mostly from Israels poorer segments. They are Mizrahi, Ethiopian, Druze, Bedouin. Put bluntly: they are not Ashkenazi. https://972mag.com/elor-azaria-and-the-army-of-the-periphery/124155/
Activist who filmed Hebron shooting 'fears for his life' after Israeli soldier convicted
Imad Abu Shamsiyya, a Palestinian activist who filmed the point-blank shooting of Abd al-Fattah al-Sharif by an Israeli soldier in Hebron last March, said he feared for his life after the Israeli soldier was found guilty of manslaughter for the killing Wednesday.
One message written to Abu Shamsiyya said that his killing was "inevitable," while the activist also said members of the soldier's family had broken into his house. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774749
Israeli forces kill Palestinian man during predawn raid in al-Faraa(10-01)
A Palestinian man was shot and killed by Israeli forces during an overnight raid in the al-Faraa refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank district of Tubas on Tuesday, Israeli and Palestinian sources reported, although they widely diverged over the circumstances of the mans death.
A member of the politburo of the Palestinian People's Party (PPP), Khalid Mansour, told Ma'an that an Israeli intelligence officer "executed" Muhammad al-Salihi, 32, during a raid in his home.
Al-Salihi and his mother were surprised when Israeli forces entered and ransacked their homes, Mansour said.
"Muhammad started to shout at them because he thought they were thieves, and the soldiers immediately showered him with bullets at point-blank range, before the very eyes of his elderly mother," Mansour recounted. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774838
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (29 Dec. 2016 04 Jan 2017) http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=8676
Clashes break out as Israeli forces storm Shufat refugee camp, detain 25(03-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774750
Israeli forces detain 40 Palestinians in overnight raids(03-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774739
Israeli forces detain 14-year-old Palestinian following clashes in Beit Ummar(05-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774765
Israeli forces detain 9 Palestinians, interrogate children in West Bank raids(05-01)
Israeli forces detained at least nine Palestinians across the occupied West Bank during overnight raids carried out between Wednesday and Thursday, and interrogated several Palestinian children, according to Palestinian and Israeli sources.
In the West Bank district of Bethlehem, 22-year-old Muhammad Saleh was detained, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS). The exact location of the detention was not reported by PPS.
However, locals told Ma'an that Israeli forces raided the village of Wadi Rahhal south of Bethlehem for the second consecutive night, stating that tens of Israeli soldiers raided the small village and searched several homes in the area. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774761
Israeli forces raid Hebron-area village, detain 7 in West Bank raids(06-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774782
Israeli forces detain Palestinian near Hebron's Ibrahimi mosque(07-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774794
Israeli forces detain 5 Palestinians, including minors in predawn raids(08-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774798
Israeli forces detain 5 relatives of Palestinian killed carrying out deadly truck attack(08-01)
Israeli forces raided homes in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir on Sunday and detained at least five relatives of Fadi Ahmad Hamdan al-Qunbar, a Palestinian who was killed earlier in the day after carrying out a deadly vehicular attack.
Al-Qunbar, 28, was killed by Israeli forces and armed civilians after he drove his truck into a group of soldiers in the illegal settlement of East Talpiyyot, killing four Israeli soldiers and wounding 13 others.
Al-Qunbars sister Shadia told Maan that Israeli forces raided the Palestinians home, as well as his brothers and parents houses, holding the family members for more than three hours.
She said that Israeli forces had detained al-Qunbars wife Tahani, his parents Ahmad and Minwa, and two of his brothers, Muhammad and Munther. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774811
Israeli court extends the remand of slain attacker's family members(09-01)
Israels magistrate court in Jerusalem on Monday extended the remand of three family members of Fadi al-Qunbar, 28 -- who was killed on Saturday after driving a truck into a group of uniformed Israeli soldiers, killing four and injuring at least 13 others -- from the Jabal al-Mukabbir neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774835
Israeli minister decides to revoke Jerusalem IDs of slain attacker's family(10-01)
After facing imminent demolition of their home, with some being rounded up in Israeli detention centers, the relatives of the slain Palestinian who carried out a deadly truck attack in a Jerusalem-area settlement will now have their East Jerusalem residency status revoked.
Israeli Minister of Interior Aryeh Deri decided to revoke the residency status and the corresponding social benefits of 13 family members of Fadi al-Qunbar, including his mother. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774845
Israeli forces detain 20 Palestinians in overnight raids(09-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774818
Israeli forces detain 33 Palestinians, confiscate belongings in overnight raids(10-01)
Israeli forces detained at least 33 Palestinians, including at least six minors, during overnight raids in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank between Monday and Tuesday, Palestinian and Israeli sources said.
In East Jerusalem, the Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS) reported that Israeli forces detained three minors in the neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir, identifying them as Usama Uweisat, 12, his brother Bassim, 14, and their cousin Muhammad, 14. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774839
Israeli forces detain 25 Palestinians in raids(11-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774860
Israeli forces fire tear gas in elderly Palestinian woman's home during night raid(10-01)
sraeli forces injured an elderly Palestinian woman with tear gas during an overnight raid in the village of Kafr Qaddum in the occupied West Bank district of Qalqiliya, witnesses told Maan on Tuesday.
Israeli soldiers broke into the home of Shafiqa Ahmad Abd al-Qadir Jumaa late on Monday night and fired tear gas inside her house, causing her to suffer from tear gas inhalation. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774842
Palestinian teen undergoes leg amputation 'after being hit by Israeli jeep'(11-01)
A 16-year-old Palestinian detainee has had to undergo a below-the-knee amputation, due to a severe injuries he sustained after an Israeli jeep hit him at an Israeli military checkpoint in the northern occupied West Bank district of Jenin last week, according to Palestinian prisoners rights group Addameer.
Addameer wrote in a statement on Tuesday that an attorney representing Sharif Khanfar said the teen was with three of his friends riding a Vespa motorcycle when they were apprehended by Israeli forces for allegedly planning a vehicular attack on soldiers on Jan. 3, and were injured after an Israeli jeep hit them. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774856
Israeli forces open fire on Palestinian agricultural land in southern Gaza Strip(03-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774731
Gaza fisherman goes missing after encounter with Israeli navy(05-01)
A Palestinian fisherman went missing on Wednesday night after his boat was attacked by Israeli naval forces off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources said.
The head of the Gaza fishermens union, Nizar Ayyash, said that an Israeli navy ship attacked and sunk a boat belonging to Muhammad al-Hissi at around 10:30 p.m. off the coast of Beit Lahiya, and that al-Hissi went missing shortly afterwards.
Ayyash added that searches were being conducted to find the fisherman.
An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an that Israeli naval forces were escorting a Palestinian fishing boat which had deviated from the Israeli-designated fishing zone to a port on Wednesday evening when "the Israeli vessel collided with another Palestinian vessel which was not visible." http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774757
Gaza fishermen announce 2-day protest in wake of missing fisherman(05-01)
Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza Strip announced on Thursday the suspension of their work at sea for two days in protest of the attack and sinking of a Gaza fishermans boat by Israeli naval forces on Wednesday night.
Head of the Gaza Fishermen's Union, Zakariya Bakr, told Maan that Gazan fishermen will suspend their work off the coast of the Gaza Strip starting Friday in condemnation of Thursdays crime that caused Gaza fisherman Muhammad Ahmad al-Hassi, 33, to go missing.
Bakr said that the search for al-Hassi would continue on Friday, highlighting that fishermen had set up a sit-in tent in protest of continuous Israeli violations against them.
Gazan fishermen, whose numbers are estimated to be around 4,000, have suffered from a near decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip, which limits fishermen to just six nautical miles into the sea in accordance with the ceasefire agreement signed with Palestinian factions in 2014. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774773
As search for missing fisherman in Gaza continues, family announces his death(07-01)
The family of Palestinian fisherman Muhammad al-Hissi, who went missing Wednesday after an encounter with Israeli forces, announced his death on Friday, despite his body having yet to be recovered.
Locals told Maan at the time of the incident that Israeli forces purposely attacked and sunk al-Hissis boat. Palestinian authorities, reportedly with the help of Israeli authorities, launched a search of the 33-year-olds body that was still ongoing as of Thursday.
The family said in a statement that after consultations and after listening to witnesses who watched what had happened, we have decided to announce the death of Muhammad and declare him a martyr for Gods reward, using a common term used for any Palestinian killed by Israeli forces.
The family added that Israel was fully responsible for the death, since Israeli forces had deliberately sunk his boat.
The statement also urged the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other international human rights groups to put pressure on Israel to find and return al-Hissis body and to stop the routine attacks on Gaza fishermen. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774790
PA claims Israeli forces open fire at Palestinian deputy ministers car(05-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774755
Israeli forces set up checkpoint east of Qalqiliya(05-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774772
Israeli forces lift closure on two roads in Ramallah(06-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774781
Israeli forces open fire on Palestinian lands in southern Gaza(07-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774788
Israeli forces disperse protest in Qalqiliya against construction of new settler road(07-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774792
Israeli forces open fire at Palestinian farmland in Gaza(08-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774801
After attack, heavy presence of Israeli forces in East Jerusalem sparks clashes(08-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774817
Israeli police detains dozens of undocumented Palestinian workers across Israel(09-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774832
Israeli forces destroy water pipeline serving Bedouin villages in northern West Bank(10-01)
Israeli forces destroyed a pipeline supplying water to four Bedouin communities in the northern Jordan Valley, a Palestinian official said on Tuesday morning.
Muataz Bisharat, who monitors settlement-related activities in the Jordan Valley, told Ma'an that bulldozers under Israeli military protection destroyed part of an 11-kilometer water pipeline supplying the villages of al-Ras al-Ahmar, al-Hadidiya, Khirbet Makhul, and Khirbet Humsa.
Bisharat added that the pipeline was funded by international NGO Action Against Hunger four years ago. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774840
Israeli forces set up checkpoints in Qalqiliya following accident with military jeep(10-01) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774854
2016: A record in occupied East Jerusalem home demolitions
For decades, Israel has been accused of using home demolitions as a tool to control the Palestinian population in the occupied territories. Israel approves less than two percent of all requests for building permits submitted by Palestinians, and then razes the homes and shops that lack one. In recent months, Israel has also ramped up its policy of punitive demolitions - destroying the family homes of suspected Palestinian attackers - despite the practice being labelled a war crime. http://interactive.aljazeera.com/aje/2017/jerusalem-2016-home-demolitions/index.html#map2
UN: Israeli demolitions of Palestinian homes reach record high in 2016
Israel demolished more Palestinian homes in the occupied territory in 2016 than in any year since the United Nations began documenting demolitions in 2009, while Israel also increased restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the occupied territory in 2016.
The unprecedented demolition campaign left some 1,593 Palestinians homeless and affected the livelihoods of another 7,101, according to preliminary analysis of data collected by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774660
Israeli forces demolish 2 homes in Jerusalem, displacing 18 Palestinians(04-01)
Israeli bulldozers demolished Palestinian homes in the neighborhood of Shufat in occupied East Jerusalem, and delivered demolition orders in the village of Jinsafut in the Qalqiliya district of the occupied West Bank between Tuesday and Wednesday.
At 4 a.m. on Wednesday, Israeli bulldozers entered the Shufat neighborhood in northern Jerusalem and demolished two houses belong to Adnan Shweiki after evacuating the residents and some material contents inside the home, locals told Maan.
Shweiki said that two families lived in the houses on a rental lease, and pointed out that the demolition was carried out without any prior notice. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774737
Israeli authorities deliver 19 stop-construction orders in Salfit area(04-01)
Israeli authorities on Wednesday delivered 19 stop-work orders to Palestinian residents in the towns of Kafr al-Dik, Kifl Haris, and Deir Istiya in the northern occupied West Bank Salfit district.
Palestinian officials from the Salfit governorate told Maan that Israeli officials ordered Palestinian residents of the towns to immediately halt the construction of houses and buildings, claiming they were being built illegally in Area C -- the more than 60 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli security and civilian control.
Officials called the move punitive, and vowed to move forward with appropriate legal procedures to prevent the likely demolition of the 19 structures in question. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774745
Israel seizes apartment bloc in Silwan
On Friday, Israeli settlers seized a two story residential building in the Wadi Hilweh area of Silwan, a Palestinian neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem.
A group of about 20 settlers entered the building under the cover of heavily armed and masked Israeli forces, who raided the building. No Palestinian residents were in the building at the time.
The apartment sits just outside of the Old City, south of the al-Aqsa compound. It is now the first Jewish settlement in the Fakhouri area of Wadi Hilweh.
Elad, a settlement organization in Jerusalem, plans to open a tourist center there. Elad also oversees the City of David settlement in Silwan. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/309-israel-seizes-apartment-bloc-in-silwan
Israeli forces demolish 2 Palestinian homes in Beit Hanina(04-01)
Israeli forces on Wednesday demolished two Palestinian-owned homes in the neighborhood of Beit Hanina in occupied East Jerusalem, according to a statement by the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).
According to statements released on the PLOs Twitter account, Israeli forces demolished a Palestinian home in Beit Hanina, before making their way to demolish another home in the same neighborhood.
Amer Ubeido, the owner of the second home, told Maan that his family had tried to get the Israeli magistrate and central courts to postpone the demolition of the house where they had lived for 16 years since early Wednesday morning, in vain.
Ubeido said that the central court had approved a postponement in the afternoon on the condition that his family pay a 50,000-shekel ($12,948) fine within half an hour. Ubeido added that he rushed to obtain the large sum of money, only to find out upon reaching the court that the demolition was under way. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774741
Negev Bedouins protest against Israeli policy of home demolitions(09-01)
Palestinian residents of several unrecognized Bedouin villages in southern Israel protested on Sunday against Israeli policies of home demolitions in their area.
The Higher Guidance Committee for Arab Residents of Negev organized the protest, where demonstrators held signs condemning the escalation of demolitions in the past three weeks, during which time more than 60 homes were destroyed.
Protesters condemned the direct incitement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against their communities, and urged people to continue the fight against what they have called racist policies against them, and to refuse all incitements against Arab citizens [of Israel]. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774827
10 Palestinian homes demolished in Israeli city, prompting mayor to resign(10-01)
Israeli authorities demolished 10 homes belonging to Palestinian citizens of Israel in the city of Qalansawe in central Israel on Tuesday morning, prompting a defeated mayor to resign after Israeli authorities refused for decades to approve the citys master plan.
Local sources told Maan the devastating demolition campaign sparked clashes between Israeli police and residents.
Mayor Abd al-Basit Mansour visited the area along with members of the municipal council and announced he would resign from his post, as Israeli bulldozers razed the homes to ground.
Mansour told reporters that, "We have been waiting for approval of a master plan for twenty years, but our request fell on deaf ears. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774848
Israeli authorities deliver demolition notices in Salfit-area town(10-01)
Israeli authorities Tuesday delivered stop-construction and demolition notices to four Palestinians in the town of al-Zawiya in the western part of the occupied West Bank district of Salfit.
Mayor al-Zawiya, Naim Shuqeir, told Maan that Israeli forces, escorted by the Israeli civil administration, raided the town and delivered stop-construction and demolition notices to three Palestinian-owned homes and a printing company. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774851
Israeli settlers raid Palestinian village to pray at holy site, spark clashes(05-01)
Israeli settlers Wednesday night entered into the Palestinian village of Kifl Haris in the northern occupied West Bank district of Salfit, sparking clashes with locals youth, according to Hebrew media. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774767
Israeli stabs, injures Bedouin Palestinian in Ashdod(05-01)
An ultra-Orthodox Jewish Israeli stabbed and injured a Bedouin Palestinian in the Israeli city of Ashdod on Thursday morning, Israeli police reported.
According to Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri, the Bedouin Palestinian was lightly to moderately injured and taken to a hospital for treatment.
The suspect fled the scene, al-Samri added.
Israeli news outlet Ynet reported that the Bedouin man said he was assaulted after the ultra-Orthodox Israeli heard him speaking in Arabic.
However, al-Samri said that Israeli police believed for the time being that the incident was likely criminal and not "nationalistically" motivated. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774762
Israeli settler runs over, seriously injures Palestinian man south of Nablus(06-01)
A 40 year-old Palestinian man was seriously injured after he was run over by an Israeli settler car south of Nablus city in the northern occupied West Bank on Friday, according to Israeli police and Hebrew-language media. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774777
Israeli forces escort Israeli settlers to visit shrine in Palestinian village(08-01)
Israeli forces raided the Palestinian town of Kifl Haris in the Salfit district of the central occupied West Bank overnight Saturday to provide protection for Israeli settlers visiting a site believed to be a Jewish shrine.
Eyewitness Yousif Yaqoub told Ma'an that he counted about 30 Israeli military vehicles storming the center of the town to escort the settlers, with Israeli soldiers firing stun grenades.
Israeli forces then set up military checkpoints at the entrances to Kifl Haris and imposed curfew, according to Yaqoub. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774800
Israeli settler group takes over Palestinian building in East Jerusalem neighborhood(08-01)
Israeli settlement group Elad reportedly took over a Palestinian-owned property in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan on Sunday, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said. According to the local NGO, nearly a dozen Elad guards raided a two-story residential building on al-Ein Street in Silwan belonging to Hani Sarhan on Sunday morning while its owners were away in Jordan. Relatives of Sarhan who live in the area argued with the guards and brought out paperwork attesting to his ownership of the house. The relatives said that Elad had claimed ownership of the building several years ago after using a Palestinian as a proxy to buy the house from Sarhan then transfer it to the settlement group -- a common practice by settler groups wishing to expand their presence in Palestinian-majority areas of East Jerusalem. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774809
Israel indicts MK Basel Ghattas for smuggling phones to Palestinian prisoners
Israels attorney general approved on Thursday the indictment of Knesset member Basel Ghattas on charges of smuggling cellphones to Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli custody.
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Ghattas, a member of the Joint List political bloc which represents Palestinian-led parties in the Knesset, was charged with suspicions of illegally smuggling phones into a prison, prohibited use of property for terrorist purposes, and deceit and breach of trust by a public servant and aggravated fraud. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774760
Why Palestinian prisoners have the right to cell phones
Benjamin Netanyahu claimed not so long ago that Palestinian citizens of Israel have equal rights and equal duties. The markedly different way that he and a Palestinian lawmaker have been treated over the past few weeks exposes how dishonest that claim was.
Despite being under investigation for alleged corruption, Netanyahu has been able to continue serving as Israels prime minister. A bill aimed at protecting him from further probes has even been drafted by a representative of Likud, the largest government party.
Like Netanyahu, Basel Ghattas is a member of Israels parliament, the Knesset. Unlike Netanyahu, he has already been punished for accusations made against him.
The accusation that Ghattas smuggled cell phones to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails has led to him being suspended from the Knesset for six months. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/david-cronin/why-palestinian-prisoners-have-right-cell-phones
Israeli court sentences 17-year-old Palestinian girl to 8 years in prison
Israels central court in Jerusalem sentenced a Palestinian teenage girl to eight-and-a-half years in prison on Wednesday morning, convicting her of attempting to carry out a stabbing attack in occupied East Jerusalem in October 2015.
According to Amjad Abu Asab, head of the Jerusalem Committee for Families of Prisoners, the court sentenced Marah Jawdat Moussa Bakr, 17, from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina, to eight-and-a-half years of prison and imposed a fine of 10,000 shekels (approximately $2,595). http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774738
Israeli police questions imprisoned Islamic Movement leader over incitement
Israeli police summoned Sheikh Raed Salah, the leader of the northern branch of the outlawed Islamic Movement in Israel, for interrogation on Wednesday over alleged inciting statements, Israeli police said in a statement.
Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri said the interrogation of Salah, who has been imprisoned since May, was carried out with the approval of an Israeli prosecutor. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774752
Mossad Chief Investigated for Accepting Bribes from Australian Billionaire
....An Israeli source tells me that the scandal involves one of Israels major intelligence agencies (the Hebrew phrase guf bitchoni gadol is a Hebrew euphemism for one of these units). He ruled out Shabak as the suspected party. That leaves essentially the Mossad or the IDF military intelligence unit, AMAN. While AMAN has had corruption scandals in the past reported by Ronen Bergman, I understand that this scandal is not based in the same unit he reported on in the past. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/01/09/brewing-mossad-scandal-military-censorship/
UN vote tops Wiesenthal list of top 10 antisemitic, anti-Israel cases in 2016
The US abstention from a recent vote against Israeli settlements at the UN Security Council topped the Simon Wiesenthal Centers annual list released Tuesday of the 10 worst outbreaks of Jew-hatred and anti-Israel incidents.
The Jewish human rights organization ranked the Obama administrations move as the top case, charging that it erased Jewish history. http://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/UN-vote-tops-Wiesenthal-top-10-lit-of-antisemitic-anti-Israel-cases-476646
39% of Israelis support annexing the West Bank
A recent survey, conducted by the independent Israeli Rafi Smith Institute, have shown that 39 per cent of Israelis support the annexation of the occupied Palestinian West Bank.
Citing Israeli media sources, Turkeys state-run Anadolu Agency said that 39 per cent of Israelis support the annexation of the large Jewish settlement blocs in the West Bank, with a Palestinian state being established in the remaining areas, including East Jerusalem.
The survey showed that only 30 per cent of Israelis support the establishment of a Palestinian state on Palestinian lands that Israel occupied in 1967. https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161231-39-of-israelis-support-annexing-the-west-bank/
Number of Jewish immigrants to Israel declines
The number of Jewish immigrants to Israel has decreased in 2016 compared to 2015; a new report has revealed.
As many as 27,000 Jewish immigrants arrived in Israel this year compared to 31,000 in 2015; Israels Channel 2 reported citing a statistical report by the Jewish Agency for Israel and the Immigrant Absorption Ministry.
Russia and Brazil witnessed an increase in the number of Jewish immigrants to Israel while France and Ukraine witnessed a significant decline in the number of immigrants. https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161230-report-number-of-jewish-immigrants-to-israel-declines/
China-Israel Deal: 20,000 Chinese Workers to Solve Housing Crisis in Israel
China has agreed for thousands of migrant construction laborers to work in Israel in a bid to alleviate a housing crisis the Israeli government said yesterday.
Beijing and Jerusalem are in the final stage of forging a deal to let 20,000 Chinese construction workers come to Israel over the next few years. http://www.palestinechronicle.com/china-israel-deal-20000-chinese-workers-to-solve-housing-crisis-in-israel/
Justice minister claims Bible gives Israel legal right to Palestinian city
Israel has wasted no time accelerating Palestinian displacement during the first 10 days of 2017.
On Tuesday, Israels justice minister Ayelet Shaked invoked biblical mythology to advocate for expanded Israeli Jewish colonization in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron.
This place was bought by patriarch Abraham for its full price, the first deed of sale of its type in the world, so we have both historical and legal right to this place, she said in a short videotaped speech during a visit to the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/nora-barrows-friedman/justice-minister-claims-bible-gives-israel-legal-right-palestinian-city
Israel insists attack on soldiers in occupied territory is terror
Israel has begun to implement a series of draconian measures after a Palestinian ran a truck into a group of Israeli soldiers at the East Talpiot settlement near Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, killing four and injuring 13. The Palestinian man, identified as Fadi Ahmad Hamdan al-Qunbar, 28, was shot dead at the scene. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/maureen-clare-murphy/israel-insists-attack-soldiers-occupied-territory-terror
Netanyahu links Jerusalem attack to IS. Israeli media calls him out
Israeli commentators have blasted Benjamin Netanyahu for linking an attack in Jerusalem to the Islamic State group, saying the prime minister is deploying a narrative to fit Israel within the wave of attacks in the West and distracting from the occupation of Palestinian land. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israeli-commentators-criticize-netanyahu-linking-jeruslaem-attack-1002091771
Gaza residents face a cold winter with more than 12 hours of power cuts per day
A new chapter of embitterment has opened for those living in the besieged Gaza Strip, as residents scramble to sustain their daily lives under longer daily power cuts, leaving most of the coastal enclave with just a few hours of electricity a day amid the increasingly cold weather during winter months.
According to a statement released Saturday by Gazas electricity company, most districts of the small Palestinian territory will only receive power for three-hour intervals in between 12-hour power cuts, as one of the two generators of Gazas sole power plant stopped operating on Friday due to severe fuel shortages.
The statement added that out of the 600 megawatts of power needed in the besieged enclave, less than 150 megawatts are available. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774791
Fire destroys shop in Gaza, amid rise in accidents as electricity crisis deepens http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774859
Palestinians protest dire electricity crisis in Gaza amid 12-hour blackouts
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip took to the streets on Sunday and Monday to protest an ever-worsening electricity crisis in the besieged coastal enclave, where people have had to cope with only three hours of power in between 12-hour-long blackouts. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=774822
John Berger, storyteller and friend of Palestine, dies at 90
In exactly what arena do we speak when we speak of loved ones who have just died or been killed? Our words seem to us to resonate in a present moment more present than those we normally live.
John Berger, who died at the age of 90 on 2 January, wrote these words after visiting the great Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwishs grave in Ramallah, in a 2009 essay for Threepenny Review.
In the same year, Berger published a translation of Darwishs long poem Mural with Rema Hammami.
Berger a British writer who spent much of his adult life in France began his career as a painter, but it is for writing of an unusually diverse kind that he is best known. His published work includes art criticism, poetry, plays, essays and novels, although latterly he preferred to be known simply as a storyteller.
Bergers most famous book is Ways of Seeing (1972), adapted from a collaborative television series that he presented. https://electronicintifada.net/content/john-berger-storyteller-and-friend-palestine-dies-90/19071
The annexation of Palestine could be closer than you think
Senior Israeli government minister Naftali Bennett announced on Sunday that he will introduce legislation to effectively annex Israels third-largest settlement in the West Bank, Maale Adumim, by the end of January. It is safe to assume, that when Bennett says by the end of January, he means after the January 20 inauguration of Donald Trump. Bennetts desire to incrementally annex parts of the West Bank are neither new nor secret. The chairman of the Jewish Home party has run on a platform of annexation since he first ran for office in 2013 and in every election since. Through short videos and aggressive sound bites, the Israeli education minister has attempted shift the public discourse, in Israel and around the world, toward his annexationist aims. https://972mag.com/the-annexation-of-palestine-could-be-closer-than-you-think/124077/
Israeli Border Police Executed Bedouin at Um al Hiran, Doctored Video Footage
I wrote a post about the killing of Musa Abu Qilyan in which I presented both the claim of the Border Police that he killed a policeman in a deliberate terror attack; and also presented video which, as I wrote, failed to support the police claims (though it didnt refute them). Now, Ronnie Barkan has provided a close video analysis of two separate versions of the video, one distributed by the police and another slightly longer one which surfaced on Facebook. Ronnie shows (be patient in watching the various iterations of the video clips he presents) incontrovertibly that the Police video was subtly and slightly edited, both removing the first shot a Border Policeman fired at the car, and also speeding up the video to make the vehicle appear to be going faster than it was. You may read an alternate version, which essentially agrees with Ronnies work, at 972. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/01/20/israeli-border-police-executed-bedouin-um-al-hiran-doctored-video-footage/
Video: They came to conquer https://electronicintifada.net/content/video-they-came-conquer/19291
Despite media leak, Israeli forensic center hasn't given autopsy report to widow of Bedouin man killed by police https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9009
Palestinian home demolitions: Calls for general strike amid protest
Protests come after Israeli police killed Palestinian teacher during demonstrations over home demolitions in Umm al-Hiran village http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/palestinians-protest-over-home-demolitions-amid-calls-general-strike-468578247
Violent clashes in Israel as Palestinians protest against house demolitions
Israeli police on Saturday used tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon to disperse thousands of Palestinian citizens of Israel who had gathered to protest against a spate of recent house demolitions and the killing of a Palestinian teacher.
The clashes broke out close to the second city of Haifa in Wadi Ara, a district inside Israel that is mostly home to Palestinian citizens of Israel. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/violent-clashes-erupt-israel-palestinians-protest-house-demolitions-506357112
Palestinians protest Israeli house demolitions; the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens of Israel says more are to come. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/324-palestinian-popular-struggle-confronts-spike-in-israeli-house-demolitions
Committee to fund reconstruction of Palestinian homes demolished in Israel http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775042
Thousands attend funeral of Palestinian teacher after Israel returns his body http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/thousands-attend-qiyans-funeral-after-israel-returned-body-755378303
In Umm al-Hiran, it is 'a continuing Nakba'
Israel has advanced plans to raze the village of 150 homes and replace it with a town for Israeli Jews. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/01/umm-al-hiran-continuing-nakba-170122085822718.html
Half a million Palestinian citizens in Israel and East Jerusalem face displacement as a result of Israeli demolitions. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/palestinians-israel-strike-home-demolitions-170111093205406.html
Israeli forces kill Palestinian teen in southern West Bank village of Tuqu
Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian teenager during clashes in the Bethlehem-area village of Tuqu in the southern occupied West Bank on Monday evening, the Palestinian Red Crescent (PRC) ambulance service said. A PRC spokesperson told Maan that 17-year-old Qusay Hasan al-Umour was shot with live ammunition in the chest at least three times, and that Israeli forces had detained him for an unspecified period of time before handing over his body to the health organization. - http://mondoweiss.net/2017/01/israeli-palestinian-southern/
Video: Soldiers shot and killed teen as he ran away
Israeli soldiers shot and killed an unarmed Palestinian boy when he was running away from them last month, newly released video shows.
The security camera footage, published on Tuesday by the Israeli human rights group BTselem, shows Israeli forces firing on a group of youths during a night raid on Beit Rima, a village near the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah.
Ahmad Zeidani, 17, was killed and a 25-year-old resident of the village was also shot and injured during the raid. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/maureen-clare-murphy/video-soldiers-shot-and-killed-teen-he-ran-away
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (12 18 January 2017) http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=8722
Joint report estimates that 6440 Palestinians arrested in 2016
Palestinian prisoners affairs institutions the Palestinian Prisoners Society, Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association and Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights issued the following report on 1 January 2017, summarizing the statistics related to Palestinian prisoners over the year 2016. http://www.addameer.org/news/joint-report-estimates-6440-palestinians-arrested-2016
Israeli forces fire on Gaza fishermen, 1 injured with rubber bullet 20-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775016
Israeli forces detain 5 Palestinians in West Bank, clash with youth in Salfit 20-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775014
Palestinian child injured by Israeli bullet in northern Gaza 20-01
A Palestinian child was reportedly injured on Friday evening after being struck by an Israeli bullet in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip after Israeli forces opened live fire at homes in the area.
According to medical sources, the six-year-old girl was injured in her stomach, and described her injury as moderate. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775025
Israeli forces open fire on Palestinian lands in eastern Khan Yunis 21-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775032
Israeli forces raid Beit Ummar, deliver summonses to appear for questioning 21-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775033
Israeli forces shoot, injure 12-year-old boy in Kafr Qaddum clashes 21-01
Israeli forces shot a 12-year-old Palestinian boy with a rubber-coated steel bullet during clashes in the village of Kafr Qaddum west of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank on Saturday afternoon. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775037
Israeli forces fire at Gaza fishermen, force them to sail back to shore 22-01
Israeli gunboats opened heavy machine gun fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip in the early predawn hours Sunday morning, forcing fishermen to sail back to shore, with no injuries or damages reported, fishermen told Ma'an. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775041
Israeli naval forces open fire at Palestinian fishermen, leaving 1 injured 23-01
Israeli naval forces opened fire at Palestinian fishermen off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern besieged Gaza Strip in the early hours of Monday morning, with one fisherman being shot in the head with a rubber-coated steel bullet, a week after he was detained by Israeli forces while fishing. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775061
Israeli forces fire towards Gaza fishermen, farmers, bird hunters 24-01
Israeli forces fired towards Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip on at least three separate instances on Tuesday morning, witnesses said, without causing any injuries.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli troops stationed at the border fence between Gaza and Israel opened fire towards farmlands in the area of al-Umour on the outskirts of the town of al-Fukhari, in the southern Gaza Strip district of Khan Yunis. No casualties were reported. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775082
Israeli army carries out drills in Jordan Valley after expelling Palestinian residents 24-01
he Israeli army forced out dozens of Palestinians from their homes in the village of Khirbet al-Kurzaliya in the northern Jordan Valley on Tuesday morning to carry out military training exercises, a day after dozens of structures were demolished in the area.
Bilal Abd al-Hadi, the deputy mayor of Aqraba, a town located west of Khirbet al-Kurzaliya, told Ma'an that Israeli troops started military drills with live ammunition in the village early on Tuesday morning after evacuating residents. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775084
Israeli aircrafts on Tuesday flew over the border area between Israel and the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, spraying Palestinian farmlands with weed killers, according to local and official Palestinian sources.
One Gazan farmer called Abu Ahmad told Maan that Israeli aircrafts sprayed fields on the Palestinian side of the buffer zone in southern Gaza on the outskirts of the Khan Younis district. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775086
Israeli forces level lands, fire at fishermen in Gaza 25-01
Several Israeli military vehicles on Wednesday morning crossed the border fence with the Gaza Strip into Palestinian lands east of Rafah in the southern Gaza.
Witnesses told Ma'an that four Israeli bulldozers leveled lands near the border fence east of Rafah as military aircrafts hovered overhead during the incident.
Separately, Israeli naval forces fired gunshots at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip. No injuries have been reported. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775096
Israel continues 'policy of reprisal' against Palestinians in Jabal al-Mukabbir 23-01
Israeli authorities have reportedly continued a policy of reprisal in the Palestinian neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir in occupied East Jerusalem, in response to a deadly truck attack carried out by Fadi al-Qunbar, one of the neighborhoods residents, earlier this month that left four Israeli soldiers dead.
Palestinian state-run news agency Wafa reported on Monday that Israeli authorities, particularly from the Jerusalem municipality, have continued reprisal measures against Palestinian residents of Jabal al-Mukabbir in the form of intensified raids of homes and businesses, imposing taxes and giving orders for home demolitions under the pretext of building without a difficult-to-obtain permit issued by the municipality. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775070
'New tactics, same policy of forcible displacement' underway in Umm al-Hiran
In the wake of the demolition of dozens of homes belonging to Palestinian citizens of Israel in Umm al-Hiran and Qalansawe over the past two weeks, a Palestinian rights group has argued that the oppressive measures were part of the same Israeli policy of forcible displacement also carried out against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775038
Committee to fund reconstruction of Palestinian homes demolished in Israel
Leaders from the Palestinian citizens of Israel community have reportedly vowed to raise funds in order to rebuild dozens of homes which were demolished by Israeli authorities this month in the central Israeli city of Qalansawe and in Umm al-Hiran in the southern Negev region. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775042
Israel demolishes 9 Palestinian structures in Jordan Valley 23-01
Israeli forces demolished at least nine Palestinian structures in the occupied West Bank district of Jericho on Monday morning.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that the demolitions took place in the village of Khirbet al-Kurzaliya in the Jordan Valley, near the town of Jiftlik Abu al-Aajaj. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775069
Israeli army carries out drills in Jordan Valley after expelling Palestinian residents 24-01
The Israeli army forced out dozens of Palestinians from their homes in the village of Khirbet al-Kurzaliya in the northern Jordan Valley on Tuesday morning to carry out military training exercises, a day after dozens of structures were demolished in the area. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775084
Druze join protests against Israeli home demolition campaign 24-01
Druze villages in Israel launched a one-day general strike on Tuesday in protest of Israels policy of home demolitions, joining protest efforts by other Palestinian citizens of Israel in recent days.
State-run Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that that marches were planned for Tuesday afternoon in the northern Israel region of Galilee, under the slogans No to the policy of demolitions, No to the policy of humiliation, and No to the policy of discrimination. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775083
Israeli aircrafts on Tuesday flew over the border area between Israel and the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, spraying Palestinian farmlands with weed killers, according to local and official Palestinian sources.
One Gazan farmer called Abu Ahmad told Maan that Israeli aircrafts sprayed fields on the Palestinian side of the buffer zone in southern Gaza on the outskirts of the Khan Younis district. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775086
Israeli forces open fire on Palestinian lands in eastern Khan Yunis 21-01
On Friday, a six-year-old girl in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip was injured in the stomach by a bullet fired by Israeli forces deployed at watchtowers on the border area. While her injuries were initially reported as moderate, she was transferred to the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City after her condition became critical. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775032
Israeli forces deliver demolition notice for Palestinian-owned structure in Hizma 24-01
Israeli forces Tuesday delivered a demolition notice for an agricultural structure in the village of Hizma in the West Banks Jerusalem district.
The demolition notice was delivered just days following the demolition of structures used for selling crops and stores in the area after Israeli authorities accused Palestinian owners of lacking Israeli-issued permits. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775093
Israel approves construction of 2,500 houses in illegal West Bank settlements 24-01
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman approved plans for the construction of 2,500 housing units in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, Israeli media reported.
According to The Times of Israel, the vast majority of the new housing will be built in the settlement blocs of Ariel, Etzion, and Maale Adumim -- the latter being the focus of a Knesset bill seeking to annex it to Israel. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775089
Die wirklichen Grundherren Israels sind die Raubsiedler
Gideon Levy diskutiert, wie die Sorgen der Regierung mit einer kleinen Kolonie im besetzten Westjordanland die politische Macht der Siedlerlobby in Israel veranschaulicht. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19723
Dozens of Palestinians confront armed Israeli settlers in Nablus-area village 20-01
Dozens of Palestinians confronted four armed Israeli settlers in a village in the southern part of Nablus city in the northern occupied West Bank early Friday, allegedly preventing them from assaulting local Palestinian residents.
Abd al-Athim al-Wadi, the mayor of the village of Qusra where the incident took place, told Maan that four armed Israeli settlers had raided the village, prompting dozens of Palestinians to surround them and prevent them from hurting residents or damaging property. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775018
Masked settlers attack activists in South Hebron Hills
Settlers from Havat Maon outpost near At-Tuwani assault and throw rocks at activists monitoring Israeli violence in the occupied West Bank. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/320-israeli-soldiers-throw-stones-with-slingshot-during-school-patrol
Settler leaders find warm welcome in Trumps Washington
US President Donald Trump made clear at his poorly attended inauguration that despite his tough law-and-order message some forms of law-breaking will be rewarded during his administration.
Among those invited to watch the reality TV star take the oath of office in Washington on Friday were Oded Revivi, chair of the Yesha Council the body that represents Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank and Benny Kasriel, mayor of the mega-settlement Maaleh Adumim. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/michael-f-brown/settler-leaders-find-warm-welcome-trumps-washington
Activists set up tents at Maale Adumim settlement in protest of annexation bill 20-01
Dozens of supporters and activists on Friday set up tents in a park at the illegal Maale Adumim settlement in the occupied West Bank, establishing the Bab al-Shams village on lands surrounding the settlement near the controversial E-1 corridor. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775019
7,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails
The vast majority of Israelis are not interested in Palestinian prisoner statistics. After all, for them, Palestinians are not human beings but terrorists, and as such its perhaps preferable that as many as possible sit behind bars. But for the thousands of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails at any given moment, they are subject to a system of occupation and oppression that pursues, threatens and jails as a matter of daily routine. Journalists, scientists, human rights activists and even a clown are among the prisoners. https://972mag.com/report-7000-palestinians-held-in-israeli-jails/124317/
Statistics http://www.addameer.org/statistics
Israeli forces raid Ashkelon prison, transfer 56 Palestinian prisoners 23-01
sraeli forces from the Israel prison service (IPS) raided the "security section" in Ashkelon prison in central Israel on Sunday evening and transferred out all 56 Palestinian prisoners being held in the section.
According to a statement from the Palestinian Prisoner's Society, 12 of the prisoners were transferred to Ramla prison while the others were transferred to unknown destinations.
According to prisoners rights group Addameer, Askelon prison contains a special wing for the Israeli security services, the Shin Bet, to interrogate Palestinian political prisoners. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775056
Israeli court sentences Palestinian youth to 18 years in prison for stone-throwing
A Palestinian youth on Tuesday was sentenced to 18 years in an Israeli prison for manslaughter after allegedly throwing a rock at an Israeli vehicle that caused the death of an Israeli in 2015, representing the harshest sentence ever handed down for stone-throwing.
According to Israeli media outlet Ynet, the attorneys office stated that Abed Mahmoud Abed Rabbo Dawiya, from the neighborhood of Sur Baher in occupied East Jerusalem, was convicted of manslaughter for throwing stones at 64-year-old Alexander Levlovichs car, causing his death after he lost control of his vehicle. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775087
Israels shadowy role in Guatemalas dirty war
Last year was a busy one for Guatemalas criminal justice system.
January 2016 saw the arrests of 18 former military officers for their alleged part in the countrys dirty war of the 1980s. In February last year, two ex-soldiers were convicted in an unprecedented wartime sexual slavery case from the same era.
Such legal proceedings represent further openings in the judicial system following the 2013 trial and conviction of former head of state General Efraín Ríos Montt for genocide and crimes against humanity. Although the Guatemalan Constitutional Court very quickly annulled the trial (finally restarted in March after fitful stops and starts, but currently stalled again), a global precedent has been set for holding national leaders accountable in the country where their crimes took place. https://electronicintifada.net/content/israels-shadowy-role-guatemalas-dirty-war/19286
Gulf activists reject Saudi-Israeli flirtation at Davos
Activists in the Gulf states are strongly condemning a meeting between former Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni and a high-ranking representative of Saudi Arabias royal family last week.
Livni tweeted a photo of herself with former Saudi intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal at the World Economic Forum, the annual gathering of global elites at the Swiss resort of Davos. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/gulf-activists-reject-saudi-israeli-flirtation-davos
IDF May Fire Senior Officer After Encrypted Cell Phone Stolen
Ynet reports (Hebrew and English here) that a senior IDF commander was suspended for a week after his encrypted cell phone and other top-secret documents were stolen from his vehicle. The military censor prohibits reporting the name and position of the suspect. But I will do so: he is the chief engineering officer of the Northern Command, Col. Zecharia (Zaky) Yeffet. His photo also has been censored in Israel. But I display it here for all the Israelis who want to read and see what they should be entitled to, but cant. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/01/24/senior-idf-officer-relieved-command-encrypted-cell-phone-stolen/
Israeli far-right's new target: Arab bus drivers
The extremist right-wing organization Lehava has launched yet another racist hate campaign, this time against drivers from the Egged bus company, which operates in the West Bank settlements of Maale Adumim and Kiryat Arba, among other places. Putting the Steering Wheel in Mohammads Hands Is Not Good, a flyer distributed by Lehava activists, claims that more than 90% of employees of the Egged Transport Co-Operative are residents of Jabal Mukaber, the East Jerusalem neighborhood of the Palestinian who drove a truck into a group of Israel Defense Forces soldiers in Jerusalem on Jan. 8, killing four of them. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/01/israel-arab-bus-drivers-lehava-far-right-incitement-racism.html
Israel's education minister takes on role of political censor
The Israeli press revealed this week that the police suspect Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of cutting a deal with Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Arnon Mozes for favorable media treatment. But even as the storm was raging over the illicit contacts that would have made Netanyahu the censor of the nations most powerful media outlet, a small news item reported that Education Minister Naftali Bennett was on his way to becoming the chief censor of the school system. Under a unanimous Jan. 8 decision by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation, The minister of education will set out rules to prevent any activity in schools by any external person or organization whose activity severely and significantly contradicts the aims of the national education system. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/01/israel-naftali-bennett-education-occupation-human-rights-idf.html
Why FIFA paid close attention to UN anti-settlement resolution
When the global community was discussing an anti-settlement resolution in New York, officials at the FIFA headquarters in Zurich were watching the deliberation closely. When United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 was approved without a single opposition in the 15-member Security Council Dec. 23, the international governing body of soccer was provided a strong document to resolve the status of the areas in which six Israeli soccer clubs are playing. The clubs are located in West Bank settlements and FIFA bylaws clearly state that soccer associations need permission to play in the territories of another soccer association. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/01/fifa-unsc-resolution-2334-israel-settlement-clubs.html
A Racist Campaign Removed from Reality
Commanders for Israels Security (CIS) a group of retired ranking officers and members of the security establishment recently launched a well funded public campaign to convince Israeli citizens that the time to separate from the Palestinians is now or else, there will be a tangible threat of a Palestinian majority in an Israel that incorporates the West Bank. Other than the racist overtones of the campaign which are insulting to the 20% of citizens that constitute Israels Arab minority, the campaign is not based on facts on the ground excluding the Gaza strip, population growth among Jews and Palestinians is identical as just published by the Central Bureau of Statistics in Jerusalem so the likelihood of a Palestinian majority in the forseeable future is extremely remote. http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/a-racist-campaign-removed-from-reality/
Netanyahus media scandal: Who bribed whom?
The smell of scandal has swirled around the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for years. But only now is the smell starting to turn to a stench, say analysts.
Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, have long been known for cultivating close relations with Israels leading business families. Those ties, many Israelis assumed, explained why the famously parsimonious couple managed to indulge such expensive tastes.
Past investigations have looked into first-class transatlantic flights and stays at top hotels, but foundered on a lack of evidence that the Netanyahus had traded the high life for favours.
Until recently, most of the Israeli public had been amused, rather than outraged, by stories of astronomical bills at the prime ministers residence for wine, ice-cream and hairstyling. http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2017-01-15/netanyahus-media-scandal-who-bribed-whom/
Opposition to a Jewish state is a legitimate position
Jewish Labour activist who was suspended after being accused of anti-Semitism for criticising Israel tells her story. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2017/01/opposition-jewish-state-legitimate-position-170114091600833.html
Umm Al-Hiran, Freud, and the Zionists Original Sin
Very few had seen the massacring of Palestinians, the destruction of Palestine, and the expulsion of Palestinians en masse in 1948. One may have seen a documentary on or read about the tragedy, but it is never the same as seeing and bearing witness to it firsthand. http://www.palestinechronicle.com/umm-al-hiran-freud-and-the-zionists-original-sin/
How did Gazas economic elite become day laborers in Israel?
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman is currently considering allowing Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to once again work in Israel, particularly in agriculture. This was once a common practice, but it stopped about a decade ago after Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007. What makes today's situation unusual is that the economic crisis that Gazans face is not what will influence Libermans final decision. Rather, it is pressure from the leaders of the southern Israeli regional councils of Shaar HaNegev and Eshkol, where there is a severe shortage of laborers to work in agriculture, the primary source of income for the communities bordering the Gaza Strip. The heads of the regional councils met with Liberman in September to ask him to consider granting entry to workers from Gaza to save agricultural production in the area. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/01/israel-gaza-elite-entry-permits-odd-jobs-bli.html
Palestinian teen in Gaza dies after refusing to serve as a collaborator for Israel in exchange for medical care
A 17-year-old Palestinian died last week after Israeli authorities refused to allow him to leave the besieged Gaza Strip to undergo treatment for a congenital heart defect, the Gaza-based al-Mezan Center for Human Rights said in a report on Sunday.
Israeli authorities had denied Ahmad Hassan Shubeir from Gaza City, permission to cross into Israel to receive life-saving medical treatment from a hospital after the teen refused to serve as a collaborator for the Israeli authorities, a coercive measure regularly employed on Palestinian patients in need of permits, according to the center. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775049
Israelis haben vor, eine neue Mauer entlang der Grenze mit Gaza zu bauen
Der israelische Verteidigungsminister Avigdor Lieberman hat ein Budget von 812 Millionen gebilligt, um eine Mauer entlang der Grenze mit Gaza zu bauen, berichtete Ynet News am 9. Januar. Von dem Projekt wird gesagt, es sei eines der größten und teuersten, das jemals unternommen wurde. Es ist gedacht, sie mit einer Reihe anderer Sicherheitsmaßnahmen auf der 64 km langen De-facto-Grenze zu kombinieren. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19725
Palestinian protest sends message to Trump over US embassy move
Hundreds of Palestinians protested on Thursday in different city centres of the West Bank against Donald Trumps support for moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and in condemnation of the demolition of several Palestinian homes in the village of Umm al-Hieran in Negev. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/palestinians-protest-sends-message-trump-over-us-embassy-transfer-952308478
Al-Quds: the key to peace, the key to war
Under the slogan al-Quds is the key to peace and the key to war, thousands of Palestinians demonstrated on Thursday in the West Bank cities of Hebron, Nablus and Ramallah.
The Palestinian national parties organized the demonstrations in response to the pledge of recently inaugurated US President Donald Trump to transfer the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Establishing al-Quds, also known as Jerusalem, as the capitol of a Palestinian state is a goal shared by all Palestinian political parties. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/325-al-quds-the-key-to-peace-the-key-to-war
Enough Fearmongering: Only One Democratic State Is Possible in Palestine and Israel
Long before December 28, when Secretary of State, John Kerry took the podium at the Dean Acheson Auditorium in Washington DC to pontificate on the uncertain future of the two-state solution and the need to save Israel from itself, the subject of a Palestinian state has been paramount. http://original.antiwar.com/ramzy-baroud/2017/01/11/enough-fearmongering-only-one-democratic-state-is-possible-in-palestine-and-israel/
Palestinians need more than grudging unity to save them
Without fanfare, Palestinian arch-rivals Fatah and Hamas announced last week that they intended to set aside years of power struggles to begin in earnest the process of forming a unity government.
Palestinian officials said a disastrous international arena had underlined to both factions the pressing need to end divisions between the West Bank and Gaza. The statement was issued as a peace summit in Paris fizzled out ineffectually and Donald Trump prepared to enter the White House. Unity if it finally comes will reflect not a shared vision nor strategy, but a reluctant admission of the dire conditions facing Palestinian struggle over the next four years.
The warning signs for Hamas intensified this month, as winter deepened, with mass protests in Gaza over electricity shortages. Donations from Turkey and Qatar, combined with a crackdown from local security services, bought a little quiet. But the enclave is simmering and in desperate need of relief from the decade-long throttling of Israels siege. http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2017-01-22/palestinians-need-more-than-grudging-unity-to-save-them/
Folter im israelischen Stil, von den Vernehmern selbst beschrieben
Jahre lang hat das israelische Establishment versucht, das zu verbergen, was in den Verhörräumen geschieht. Wenn Verhörende Folter verwenden oder spezielle Mittel, um den Terminus des Establishments zu verwenden-, werden Verschleierungsanstrengungen verdoppelt. Selbst wenn Folterzeugnisse öffentlich werden, tut das System alles, was es kann, um die Rolle der Vernehmer im Dunklen zu lassen, einschließlich des Unterzeichnens nachsichtiger Verständigungen mit Verdächtigen, die gefoltert wurden, um abzusichern, dass das Komplott des Schweigens unversehrt bleibt.
Leute, die schon ein Verhör durchgemacht haben, haben verschiedene Methoden beschrieben: dass der Verhörende ins Ohr schreit, Schläge, gezwungen werden in schmerzhaften Positionen lange Zeit durchzuhalten. Bis jetzt aber kamen diese Beschreibungen von den Klägern. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19828
Israeli torture of Palestinian children 'institutional'
A recent article published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz has confirmed the extent to which Shin Bet interrogators subject their prisoners to torture.
Methods include slapping the head "to hurt sensitive organs like the nose, ears, brow and lips", forcing a handcuffed individual to squat against a wall for long periods of time, and placing the suspect bent backwards over a chair with his arms and legs cuffed. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/01/coercion-violence-threats-torture-israeli-style-170129092739964.html
Torture, Israeli-style - as described by the interrogators themselves
Slaps were the first method that N. listed. He said the force used is moderate, but the goal is to hurt sensitive organs like the nose, ears, brow and lips. http://www.haaretz.com/misc/article-print-page//.premium-1.767095
If Israeli Jews want change, they must refuse to be masters
A few hours before Saturday evenings Arab-Jewish protest in Tel Aviv, the town of Qalansuwa held a conference to mark the international day of solidarity with Palestinians in Israel. Yes, there is such a thing. This is the second year in a row that we mark this day, with events taking place in Gaza, Ramallah, and Beirut. I had the honor of speaking at the conference on Saturday, and as far as I could tell I was the only Jewish person in the room. The event ended early enough for me to head to the march in Tel Aviv. Yet somehow at the end of the event, the protest seemed less relevant. Qalansuwa is less than an hour from Tel Aviv, yet it exists in what feels like a parallel universe. It seems to me that we needed to invest a bit more energy in learning about this universe before we celebrate on the streets of Tel Aviv. https://972mag.com/if-israeli-jews-want-change-they-must-refuse-to-be-masters/125048/
Palestinian Israelis and Jews protest against house demolitions http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/palestinian-israelis-and-jews-protest-house-demolitions-1660178739
The Israeli right's 'flattery fest' for Amona
During the late afternoon of Feb. 2, as harsh images of the violent evictions from the Amona outpost and reports of wounded police officers flooded the media, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech in the West Bank settlement of Ariel, at a memorial for Ron Nahman, the towns former mayor. Having avoided the Amona eviction for a few weeks, Netanyahu took advantage of the forum to talk about it. During the eviction, activists threw cleaning liquids, acid, oil and glass bottles at the police, but anyone expecting to hear Netanyahu disavow their shameful actions, never mind condemn them, was soon disappointed. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-west-bank-benjamin-netanyahu-amona-settlement.html
Joint Report Estimates that 590 Palestinians Arrested in January 2017
Occupation authorities arrested 590 Palestinians from the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem in January 2017, including 128 children, 14 women, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and a journalist. http://www.addameer.org/news/joint-report-estimates-590-palestinians-arrested-january-2017
Palestinian teenager shot dead last month was fleeing scene
Israeli rights group BTselem released a report and video on Tuesday revealing that 17-year-old Ahmad Hazem Ata Zidani (al-Rimawi) was shot dead in December 2016 while fleeing from the scene of clashes with Israeli forces in the Ramallah-area village of Beit Rima in the central occupied West Bank. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775094
Palestinian killed near Ramallah-area settlement after alleged vehicular attack 25-01
...Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli soldiers left the Palestinian bleeding on the ground until he died, before putting him in a black body bag and putting him into a military vehicle headed towards Jerusalem.
According to Ma'an documentation, this is the seventh Palestinian to have been killed by Israeli forces since the beginning of the year. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775111
Israeli forces level lands, fire at fishermen in Gaza 25-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775096
Israeli forces raid Palestinian village after resident injured in altercation with soldiers 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775117
Israeli army vehicles make limited incursions in Gaza border areas 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775118
Israeli forces uproot 500 olive trees northwest of Hebron 26-01
Israeli bulldozers escorted by Israeli forces uprooted 500 olive trees in an area west of the village of Kharas in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron on Thursday, locals said.
The mayor of Kharas, Abed al-Fattah, told Maan that three Israeli bulldozers escorted by Israeli forces uprooted the olive trees, all more than 14 years old, planted on 25 dunams (six acres) of land. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775129
Clashes erupt as Israeli forces raid Ramallah-area village twice in one day 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775139
Israeli forces seal Nablus-area village in response to alleged stone-throwing 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775138
Clashes erupt as Israeli forces raid Ramallah-area village twice in one day http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775139
4 Palestinians injured by Israeli forces during clashes in Jenin refugee camp 27-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775143
Israeli forces chase Palestinian car following car accident with Israeli police vehicle 27-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775146
Israeli planes disperse possibly toxic products in Jenin district 06-02
Israeli planes reportedly dispersed toxic products on lands in the northern occupied West Bank district of Jenin, locals told Maan.
Residents of the Palestinian villages of Fandaqumiya, Ajja, Zababida, Raba, and Jabaa said that products resembling candy had been dispersed in the area.
Palestinian medical sources who tested the products said that the materials were poisonous and had negatively affected wild animals and livestock in the area. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775326
Israeli forces continue airstrikes in Gaza, 2 Palestinians injured 06-02
Israeli forces resumed attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip on Monday evening, injuring two Palestinians, after injuring a Palestinian earlier Monday in a series of Israeli army airstrikes in northern Gaza, in response to a rocket that landed in an open area in the Ashkelon region of southern Israel on Monday morning.
Witnesses told Ma'an that at least eight Israeli missiles were fired at several locations across the besieged coastal enclave. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775335
Israeli forces fire at fishermen, farmers in northern Gaza 07-02
Israeli naval forces opened fire towards Palestinian fishing boats sailing off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip early on Tuesday morning.
Fishermen told Ma'an that Israeli military ships fired heavily from machine guns towards them, forcing them to head back to shore. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775336
Palestinian family 'violently assaulted' by masked Israeli police in Jerusalem raid 07-02
In the wake of a large-scale raid Sunday night in occupied East Jerusalem that targeted the families of Palestinians who were either slain or incarcerated after carrying out or allegedly carrying out attacks, one of the families reported to a local monitoring group that masked Israeli police violently assaulted them while breaking into their homes during the predawn raid.
At least 14 Palestinians were detained and tens of thousands of dollars' worth of cash and property were confiscated in a number of East Jerusalem neighborhoods during Monday's predawn hours, with police alleging the families were receiving support and financing from the Hamas movement, based on intelligence gathered by the Israeli general security service and police. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775345
Israeli forces raided a community center in Aida refugee camp in the southern occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem early Tuesday evening, when they seized computers and security camera footage, according to locals and a Palestinian news outlet.
Palestinian News Network (PNN) captured footage of Israeli forces thoroughly searching the Lajee Center, a community organization for refugee youth that stands at the entrance to the camp. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775353
Israeli forces take over Palestinian home in Bethlehem-area town
Israeli forces raided the village of Tuqu southeast of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank early Wednesday morning, took over a Palestinian home, and turned it into a military post.
Coordinator of public relations for the Tuqu municipality Samer Abu Mefreh told Maan that Israeli soldiers took over a five-floor house belonging to Taysir Ahmad al-Shaer in the northwestern part of the town, and stationed snipers on the roof. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775359
Israel sentences Palestinian merchant from Gaza to 30 months in prison 07-02
An Israeli court in the Negev city of Beersheba sentenced a Palestinian merchant from the besieged Gaza Strip to 30 months in prison on Tuesday, local sources in Gaza said.
Israeli authorities detained Naji Shihada Zurub on May 2, 2015, while he was attempting to cross Israel's Erez border terminal that separates the blockaded territory from Israel. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775357
Israeli forces detained five Jerusalemite Palestinians from the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem on Wednesday, allegedly assaulting them during a raid in the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported that Israeli forces were heavily deployed in the neighborhood and raided the centers office and several houses. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775378
2 Palestinians killed, 5 injured in reported airstrike on southern Gaza tunnel 08-02
Two Palestinians were killed and five were injured during a reported airstrike on a smuggling tunnel between Egypt and Gaza on Wednesday night, official Palestinian sources said.
Gaza Ministry of Health spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said on Thursday that Hussam Hamid al-Sufi, 24, from the town of Rafah, and Muhammad Anwar al-Aqraa, a 38-year-old resident of Gaza City, were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Rafah, while five other Palestinians were injured. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775384
Palestinians denounce Amona 'distraction' as Israel approves settlement expansion
Israel unveiled plans for 3,000 new housing units for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank late on Tuesday, the fourth such announcement in the less than two weeks since US President Donald Trump took office.
The announcement came hours before Israeli security forces began evicting the occupants of a settlement post in line with a high court ruling two years ago that determined the homes were built on private Palestinian land.
International law does not recognise that distinction as all settlements are built on Palestinian territory.
The settlers will be relocated to a nearby site as part of a deal under which they had agreed to be evacuated peacefully, police said. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-approves-3000-illegal-settlement-homes-west-bank-260226935
Israels Regierung hat den Bau von weiteren 3.000 Siedlerwohnungen im besetzten Westjordanland genehmigt. Dies geht aus einer in der Nacht zum Mittwoch veröffentlichten Erklärung des Verteidigungsministeriums hervor.
Am Mittwoch räumte die israelische Polizei indes die nicht genehmigte Siedlung Amona nördlich von Ramallah. Das höchste Gericht Israels hatte dies bereits 2014 angeordnet. Amona-Sprecher Avichai Boaron sprach von einem »schwarzen Tag für den Zionismus«. https://www.jungewelt.de/2017/02-02/009.php?sstr=israel
Israeli forces deliver demolition notice for Palestinian-owned structure in Hizma 24-02
Israeli forces Tuesday delivered a demolition notice for an agricultural structure in the village of Hizma in the West Banks Jerusalem district.
The demolition notice was delivered just days following the demolition of structures used for selling crops and stores in the area after Israeli authorities accused Palestinian owners of lacking Israeli-issued permits. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775093
Israeli forces deliver demolition notices in the Negev 26-01
Israeli authorities escorted by Israeli police delivered demolition orders in a number of Palestinian villages in the Negev in southern Israel.
Locals told Maan that Israeli forces delivered demolition notices in the the villages of Khashim Zina, al-Zarnuq, and Umm Batin, as well as the al-Riwehi and Ghoural areas. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775123
Without bus stops, Bedouin children risk their lives to go to school 02-02
Adalah: the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel reports that it has filed a petition [Hebrew] with the Beer Sheva District Court on January 25, 2017. The petition asks the Israeli Ministry of Education and regional councils in the Naqab to build bus stops for Bedouin children as well as address other infrastructural safety issues. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/339-without-bus-stops-bedouin-children-risk-their-lives-everyday-to-go-to-school
VIDEO: 'Right now we are here without anything'
Eyewitness accounts and video footage contest the Israeli polices claim that Yaqoub attempted an attack prior to being shot. Nevertheless, Israeli forces initially confiscated his corpse, insisting its release was contingent on the Qian familys agreement to a heavily policed and limited funeral ceremony. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/340-video-right-now-we-are-here-without-anything
Israeli forces demolish Palestinian structures in the Jordan Valley 07-02
Israeli forces demolished Palestinian-owned structures in the Jordan Valley region of the occupied West Bank on Tuesday morning in two separate incidents, according to locals and a United Nations agency.
In the village of Kardala, located on the northeastern edge of the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces demolished tents and shacks used as a sheep barn, according to Muataz Bisharat, who monitors settlement-related activities in the Jordan Valley. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775338
Israeli forces demolish Palestinian building in East Jerusalem 07-02
Israeli authorities demolished a Palestinian-owned building that was under construction in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Israels Jerusalem municipality confirmed.
Witnesses told Maan on Tuesday morning that Israeli police officers stormed the building as police vehicles and bulldozers surrounded it, and later Monday afternoon, Jerusalem municipality spokesperson Rachel Greenspan confirmed to Maan in a written statement that court orders to dismantle the structure had been enforced." http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775340
Israeli forces demolish Bedouin village of al-Araqib for 109th time 08-02
Israeli bulldozers demolished the unrecognized Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the Negev region of southern Israel on Wednesday for the 109th time.
Israeli forces raided the village early Wednesday, surrounding the residents' makeshift tents, and proceeded to raze them to ground. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775360
Israeli forces seal house on Hebron's Shuhada Street 08-02
Israeli forces sealed a Palestinian home in the Old City of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank on Wednesday morning.
The home, located on Shuhada street, belongs to Izzat Yassin Abu Munshar.
Israeli forces put up a sign on the entrance of the house reading" house under security, and barred entry to the residents. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775361
100-year-old Bedouin woman left homeless as Israel continues Negev demolitions 08-02
In the latest instance of Israels demolition campaign in the Negev region of southern Israel, homes were demolished in two unrecognized Bedouin villages on Wednesday, while Israeli police surrounded the village of Umm al-Hiran.
Israeli bulldozers, escorted by Israeli police, demolished a house in the village of Wadi al-Naam in the western part of the Negev in southern Israel.
Locals told Maan that the demolished house was owned by an elderly woman and her daughter. A member of the local committee, Yousif Ziyadin, said that an emergency session would be held to discuss the Israeli demolition.
A relative of the elderly homeowner, Ahmad Zanoun, told Maan that 100-year-old Ghaytha Zanoun and her 60-year-old daughter Hilala were living in the house, both of whom suffer from various health issues. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775366
Israeli forces deliver evacuation notices to resident in Salfit 08-02
Israeli authorities delivered evacuation notices in the villages of Deir Istiya and Deir Ballut in the western part of the occupied West Bank district of Salfit on Wednesday.
Jamal al-Ahmad, coordinators of the land defense committee in Salfit, told Maan that Israeli forces delivered evacuation notices to Muqbil Awad and Abd al-Aziz Aqil from the village of Deir Istiya. The orders said they must vacate their lands, which are now part of an Israeli nature reserve. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775376
The day we were eaten like black goats
A Zionist blowhard once wrote an article recounting his woes in the Naqab (Negev) desert, describing the arduous path he took in growing Chardonnay grapes to make high-end wine. One day, some goats wandered into his vineyard and started grazing there. The author shooed the goats away but kept one hostage when the two Bedouin shepherd girls who came with them refused to obey his commands. The desert is ours and we will go in whenever we please, one of them said. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/comment/338-the-day-we-were-eaten-like-black-goats
Despicable terrorist? Bedouin village in Israel's south mourns a beloved teacher
No one in Umm al-Hiran believes Yakub Musa Abu al-Kiyan, a father of 13, intentionally ran over a police officer; residents remember his calls against violence: 'Let them demolish the house, only let no one be hurt.' http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19846
Israeli settlers take over storage unit in contested East Jerusalem home 26-01
Israeli settlers took over a storage unit formerly belonging to the Sub Laban family on the ground floor of their apartment building in the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem on Tuesday.
Ahmad Sub Laban told Maan that an Israeli family living below them drilled through the wall into the Sub Laban storage space, seemingly with the intention of expanding their apartment unit.
The settlers were given ownership of the storage unit following a controversial Israeli Supreme Court ruling in December which concluded a decades-long legal battle between the family and Israeli settlers. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775124
Palestinians in Nablus-area village say settlers cut down hundreds of olive, almond trees 06-02
Palestinian residents of the Nablus-area village of Burqa went to check on their farmlands on the outskirts of the village Monday to find some 700 olive and almond trees cut down, allegedly by Israeli settlers from a nearby illegal settlement.
Ghassan Daghlas, an official who monitors settlement related activities in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that the trees, which belonged to Khalid Salah, Mahmoud Daghlas, and Khalid Nasser, were planted nine years ago in the al-Qubeibat and al-Qusour areas east of Burqa. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775334
Israeli settlers assault Palestinian photojournalist near Ramallah 07-02
At least five Israeli settlers assaulted a Palestinian photojournalist with rocks and batons while he was driving on a road near the illegal Israeli settlement of Ofra in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah on Tuesday afternoon.
According to locals, after fleeing the scene Zaher Abu Hussein was taken to the Ramallah Governmental Hospital for treatment, where his injuries were reported as moderate. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775351
Elderly Palestinian dies after being run over by Israeli settler 08-02
An elderly Palestinian died after being run over by an Israeli settler on Wednesday near the illegal Israeli settlement of Neve Daniel in the occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem.
Suleiman Hamad Salah, an 85-year-old resident of the village of al-Khader, was killed after being run over on Route 60, an Israeli bypass road that cuts through the occupied Palestinian territory and connects illegal settlements to Israel.
The Israeli settler reportedly left his car in the area, and escaped before a Palestinian ambulance reached the scene, according to medical sources. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775373
Israel approves construction of 1,162 settlement units in West Bank 09-02
Israel reportedly approved the construction of 1,162 settlement units on Wednesday, to be built in the occupied West Bank, according to Hebrew news website Walla.
Walla reported that Israels higher planning council on settlement activity, which is affiliated to the Israeli civil administration, approved the new 1,162 settlement units, including units in a new settlement near the existing Shvut Rachel settlement in the northern West Bank district of Nablus.
The new settlement adjacent to Shvut Rachel was initially planned to be built to house residents of the now evacuated illegal Amona outpost -- an offer refused by the Amona setters. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775382
Inside a settler-run tour of an East Jerusalem tourist trap
The so-called City of David is a leafy promontory, running out from the southern wall of Jerusalems Old City to bisect the Palestinian community of Silwan. The tourist trap and archaeological site is moments from the Western Wall, the Haram al-Sharif and al-Aqsa mosque.
On a map near the site entrance, the City of David itself is picked out in bright colors. Surrounding Palestinian neighborhoods are faded by comparison. Another sign near the doorway, which was surrounded by Israeli school children gobbling packed lunches, claims tours are run by local volunteers. https://electronicintifada.net/content/inside-settler-run-tour-east-jerusalem-tourist-trap/19391
Israel legalisiert Landraub
Grünes Licht für Expansion der Siedlungen in besetzter Westbank https://www.jungewelt.de/2017/02-08/002.php?sstr=israel
Palestinian prisoner opens hunger strike as Israel extends her detention 27-01
Palestinian prisoner Randa al-Shahatit, a resident of the southern occupied West Bank Hebron-area village of Dura, began an open hunger strike on Thursday in protest of her ongoing detention in solitary confinement by Israeli forces, according to a lawyer from the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS). http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775137
Palestinian journalist Mohammad al-Qeeq declares open hunger strike 07-02
Mohammed al-Qeeq, the Palestinian activist and journalist, has declared an open hunger strike after being issued an administrative detention order by the occupation authorities on 6 February 2016. Israeli occupation forces rearrested al-Qeeq on the evening of 15 January 2017 at Beit El checkpoint, north of Ramallah. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/344-palestinian-journalist-mohammad-al-qeeq-declares-open-hunger-strike
Israel continues to hold 15 Hamas-affiliated prisoners in solitary confinement 07-02
The Israel Prison Service (IPS) continued to hold 15 Hamas-affiliated Palestinian prisoners in solitary confinement as of Tuesday, as a punitive measure following two stabbings that were allegedly carried out on IPS officials in the Nafha and Ktziot prisons last week. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775347
Israeli court sentences Palestinian mother to year in prison 09-02
An Israeli magistrate court in Jerusalem sentenced a Palestinian mother of six on Thursday to a year in prison and a fine of 12,000 shekels ($3,203) for depositing funds into a prison commissary belonging to a Hamas-affiliated Palestinian prisoner held in Israeli custody.
Lawyer Muhammad Mahmoud from prisoners rights group Addameer told Maan that Dalal Abu al-Hawa from Jerusalems Old City was sentenced for depsoiting the funds. Israel Prison Service (IPS) allows families of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody to deposit a fixed amount of money each month into a prisoner's commissary, which they can then use to purchase items from the prisons canteen. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775396
Unit 8200: First We Take Manhattan, Then We Take Berlin, and Tokyo, and London
The Mossad is known for exploiting every possible means of leveraging its power to penetrate target countries. Ive written in the past about how it co-opts local Jewish communal leaders to assist in intelligence operations. Its also known to employ successful Israeli entrepreneurs like Arnon Milchan and Haim Saban as agents of influence and more. Milchan in the 1960s was an active participant in a plot to steal U.S. uranium on behalf of Israels nuclear weapons program. Keep in mind that Iranians who engage in such activities today are arrested and thrown in prison. In 1960s America, Israeli agents acted with impunity and suffered no consequences. Due to the Lobbys power or the need to retain alliances, several U.S. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/04/unit-8200-first-take-manhattan-take-berlin-tokyo-london/
Could submarine scandal blow up in Netanyahus face?
The media may be focused on the pricey cigars and bottles of champagne that the Netanyahu family allegedly amassed from its benefactors over the years, but the police investigation into the submarine procurement scandal is gaining momentum. The scandal, which Al-Monitor reported on at the end of October, is about to become a huge international imbroglio. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-germany-iran-benjamin-netanyahu-submarine-idf.html
Netanyahu scandals reflect corruption at the heart of Israeli society
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in danger of being brought down, possibly soon, over what initially appears to be little more than an imprudent taste for Cuban cigars and pink champagne.
In truth, however, the allegations ensnaring Netanyahu reveal far more than his personal flaws or an infatuation with the high life. They shine a rare light on the corrupt nexus between Israels business, political and media worlds, compounded by the perverse influence of overseas Jewish money. http://mondoweiss.net/2017/02/netanyahu-scandals-corruption/
Netanyahu's road to Iran runs through North Korea
Forget for a moment about moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem, US recognition of the settlement blocs, a closed-eye policy on the pace of construction in the territories and the way the United States has been inspired, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, by the separation barriers that Israel built in the West Bank and along its southern border. The one truly important story is North Korea. The most senior sources in Israel claim that this is where US President Donald Trump will be tested. Once the dust settles, the eyes of the world will be watching Trump's steps to deal with North Koreas accelerated nuclear armaments program. Top Israeli Cabinet members believe that the outcome of Trump's dealing with the North Koreans will determine whether international efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities will be a success or whether they will be a resounding failure. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/01/israel-north-korea-us-iran-benjamin-netanyahu-donald-trump.html
PayPal allows Israelis in illegal settlements to open accounts so why not Palestinians?
PayPal has been condemned by pro-Palestine activists for refusing to allow Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip to open accounts. Though PayPal is refusing to take up Palestinian customers within the occupied Palestinian territories, Israelis living in illegal West Bank settlements have no problem about access to the service. This has sparked a lot of controversy on social media and amongst Palestinian entrepreneurs, who are finally speaking out against PayPals clearly discriminatory policy. https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161008-paypal-allows-israelis-in-illegal-settlements-to-open-accounts-so-why-not-palestinians/
Israel weaponizes rape culture against Palestinians
Lawmakers in Benjamin Netanyahus ruling coalition are trying to deflect attention from sex crime scandals involving the highest echelons of Israeli society by making false allegations against Palestinians and other non-Jews.
In recent months, a long list of senior Israeli officials, including members of Prime Minister Netanyahus inner circle, have been investigated and, in some cases, convicted for sex crimes against women and girls.
But rather than acknowledging the problem in their own ranks, right-wing members of the Knesset, Israels parliament, are renewing their efforts to paint Palestinians as the prime perpetrators. https://electronicintifada.net/content/israel-weaponizes-rape-culture-against-palestinians/19386
Shin Bet Detains New Israel Fund Official as Security Threat at Ben Gurion Airport
Israel is rapidly turning into a police state. One in which even liberal civil society NGOs are no longer tolerated. A state like Russia or China or North Korea in which strongmen rule and dissenting voices are suppressed through legalism, violence or even murder. The first two have happened in Israel, but not yet the third (but it will eventually). https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/08/shin-bet-detains-new-israel-fund-official-security-threat-ben-gurion-airport/
Jews stand up for Muslims, as Muslims once stood up for them
Muslims once protected Jews from Nazi persecution. Today, American Jews are standing up for Muslims in the face of President Trumps draconian ban. These are everyday stories of resistance even if they are hardly reported. https://972mag.com/jews-stand-up-for-muslims-as-muslims-once-stood-up-for-them/125014/
Right group warns Israel could lead up to 'wide-scale' military offensive in Gaza
In the wake of multiple airstrikes launched by the Israeli army inside the Gaza Strip on Monday, the Gaza-based al-Mezan Center for Human Rights expressed concern that Israel could be leading up to a wide-scale military offensive. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775364
Gaza's cancer patients: 'We are dying slowly'
I'm like a bird in a cage," Hind Shaheen told Al Jazeera as she lay in bed at Gaza City's Al-Rantisi hospital, surrounded by family members. "Outside of my cage I can see water and food, but I can't reach it. This is my condition right now."
Shahin, who suffers from breast cancer, says that her condition has been deteriorating ever since she was denied exit from Gaza for treatment.
The Gaza Strip does not have adequate resources to provide her with appropriate treatment, yet she cannot leave, as Israeli authorities at the Erez border crossing, known as Beit Hanoon to Palestinians, rejected her permit three times in a row without explanation. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/01/gaza-cancer-patients-dying-slowly-170115120725304.html
Gazas Infrastructure on Verge of Collapse, Time is Running out
A new report by an Israeli NGO has warned that the Gaza Strips infrastructure is on the verge of collapse and time is running out.
The report by Gisha, Hand on the Switch: Whos Responsible for Gazas Infrastructure Crisis?, claims to offer an extensive and sobering review of the state of Gazas energy, water and communications infrastructure http://www.palestinechronicle.com/gisha-gazas-infrastructure-on-verge-of-collapse-time-is-running-out/
Braving Israeli bullets in Gazas sea
Gazas fishermen have already endured regular Israeli attacks during the first few weeks of 2017.
On 4 January, Muhammad al-Hissi went missing after the Israeli navy sunk the vessel on which he worked. Although his body has not been recovered, members of his family have resigned themselves to the probability that al-Hissi was killed.
A memorial service was organized for al-Hissi a few days after he went missing, while his family issued a statement describing him as a martyr for Gods reward. Aged 33, he was the father of three children. https://electronicintifada.net/content/braving-israeli-bullets-gazas-sea/19346
Learning in the line of fire
The girl is a student at the Hayel Abdul Hamid secondary school in Beit Hanoun, a United Nations facility in the northern Gaza Strip. She has developed a phobia of sitting next to windows, afraid, she told The Electronic Intifada, of stray bullets.
Her fear is well-founded. Beit Hanoun lies close to Gazas boundaries with Israel, and the concrete wall that marks the boundary is visible from Walas school. In such boundary areas Israeli gunfire is common and fatalities frequent. Mere closeness is a mortal danger as Israeli soldiers endeavor to keep quite expansive areas clear of residents, farmers or anyone else trying to get close. https://electronicintifada.net/content/learning-line-fire/19476
60% der von Israel zerstörten Häuser in Gaza noch nicht wiederaufgebaut
Der palästinensische Abgeordnete Jamal Al Khoudary hat mitgeteilt, dass der Wiederaufbau der Häuser und anderen Gebäude in Gaza, die bei der israelischen Offensive 2014 zerstört wurden voran geht, wenn auch sehr langsam, berichtete die Zeitung Al Resalah am Sonntag. Nach Al-Khoudary sind nur 40% der Gebäude wieder aufgebaut worden. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19769
Land law is final nail in the two-state solution coffin
The Israeli parliament passed the legalisation law on Monday night a piece of legislation every bit as suspect as its title suggests. The law widens the powers of Israeli officials to seize the last fragments of Palestinian land in the West Bank that were supposed to be off-limits.
Palestinian leaders warned that the law hammered the last nail in the coffin of a two-state solution. Government ministers gleefully agreed. For them, this is the extension of Israeli law into the West Bank and the first step towards its formal annexation. http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2017-02-07/land-law-is-final-nail-in-the-two-state-solution-coffin/
Shocked by Donald Trump's 'travel ban'? Israel has had a similar policy for decades
An Israeli official admitted in 2010 that the Separation Wall was 'built for political and demographic reasons', while the man who designed it revealed how 'the main thing the government told me in giving me the job was to include as many Israelis inside the fence and leave as many Palestinians outside' http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/israel-netanyahu-donald-trump-travel-ban-muslim-ban-a7553141.html
Betreff: Folter im israelischen Stil, von den Vernehmern selbst beschrieben
Jahre lang hat das israelische Establishment versucht, das zu verbergen, was in den Verhörräumen geschieht. Wenn Verhörende Folter verwenden oder spezielle Mittel, um den Terminus des Establishments zu verwenden-, werden Verschleierungsanstrengungen verdoppelt. Selbst wenn Folterzeugnisse öffentlich werden, tut das System alles, was es kann, um die Rolle der Vernehmer im Dunklen zu lassen, einschließlich des Unterzeichnens nachsichtiger Verständigungen mit Verdächtigen, die gefoltert wurden, um abzusichern, dass das Komplott des Schweigens unversehrt bleibt.
Leute, die schon ein Verhör durchgemacht haben, haben verschiedene Methoden beschrieben: dass der Verhörende ins Ohr schreit, Schläge, gezwungen werden in schmerzhaften Positionen lange Zeit durchzuhalten. Bis jetzt aber kamen diese Beschreibungen von den Klägern. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19828
Israeli torture of Palestinian children 'institutional'
A recent article published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz has confirmed the extent to which Shin Bet interrogators subject their prisoners to torture.
Methods include slapping the head "to hurt sensitive organs like the nose, ears, brow and lips", forcing a handcuffed individual to squat against a wall for long periods of time, and placing the suspect bent backwards over a chair with his arms and legs cuffed. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/01/coercion-violence-threats-torture-israeli-style-170129092739964.html
Torture, Israeli-style - as described by the interrogators themselves
Slaps were the first method that N. listed. He said the force used is moderate, but the goal is to hurt sensitive organs like the nose, ears, brow and lips. http://www.haaretz.com/misc/article-print-page//.premium-1.767095
If Israeli Jews want change, they must refuse to be masters
A few hours before Saturday evenings Arab-Jewish protest in Tel Aviv, the town of Qalansuwa held a conference to mark the international day of solidarity with Palestinians in Israel. Yes, there is such a thing. This is the second year in a row that we mark this day, with events taking place in Gaza, Ramallah, and Beirut. I had the honor of speaking at the conference on Saturday, and as far as I could tell I was the only Jewish person in the room. The event ended early enough for me to head to the march in Tel Aviv. Yet somehow at the end of the event, the protest seemed less relevant. Qalansuwa is less than an hour from Tel Aviv, yet it exists in what feels like a parallel universe. It seems to me that we needed to invest a bit more energy in learning about this universe before we celebrate on the streets of Tel Aviv. https://972mag.com/if-israeli-jews-want-change-they-must-refuse-to-be-masters/125048/
Palestinian Israelis and Jews protest against house demolitions http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/palestinian-israelis-and-jews-protest-house-demolitions-1660178739
Palestinians denounce Amona 'distraction' as Israel approves settlement expansion
Relocation of settlers dubbed 'propaganda' as thousands of new settlement homes announced since Trump took office http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-approves-3000-illegal-settlement-homes-west-bank-260226935
The Israeli right's 'flattery fest' for Amona
During the late afternoon of Feb. 2, as harsh images of the violent evictions from the Amona outpost and reports of wounded police officers flooded the media, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech in the West Bank settlement of Ariel, at a memorial for Ron Nahman, the towns former mayor. Having avoided the Amona eviction for a few weeks, Netanyahu took advantage of the forum to talk about it. During the eviction, activists threw cleaning liquids, acid, oil and glass bottles at the police, but anyone expecting to hear Netanyahu disavow their shameful actions, never mind condemn them, was soon disappointed. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-west-bank-benjamin-netanyahu-amona-settlement.html
Joint Report Estimates that 590 Palestinians Arrested in January 2017
Occupation authorities arrested 590 Palestinians from the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem in January 2017, including 128 children, 14 women, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and a journalist. http://www.addameer.org/news/joint-report-estimates-590-palestinians-arrested-january-2017
Palestinian teenager shot dead last month was fleeing scene
Israeli rights group BTselem released a report and video on Tuesday revealing that 17-year-old Ahmad Hazem Ata Zidani (al-Rimawi) was shot dead in December 2016 while fleeing from the scene of clashes with Israeli forces in the Ramallah-area village of Beit Rima in the central occupied West Bank. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775094
Palestinian killed near Ramallah-area settlement after alleged vehicular attack 25-01
...Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli soldiers left the Palestinian bleeding on the ground until he died, before putting him in a black body bag and putting him into a military vehicle headed towards Jerusalem.
According to Ma'an documentation, this is the seventh Palestinian to have been killed by Israeli forces since the beginning of the year. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775111
Israeli forces level lands, fire at fishermen in Gaza 25-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775096
Israeli forces raid Palestinian village after resident injured in altercation with soldiers 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775117
Israeli army vehicles make limited incursions in Gaza border areas 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775118
Israeli forces uproot 500 olive trees northwest of Hebron 26-01
Israeli bulldozers escorted by Israeli forces uprooted 500 olive trees in an area west of the village of Kharas in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron on Thursday, locals said.
The mayor of Kharas, Abed al-Fattah, told Maan that three Israeli bulldozers escorted by Israeli forces uprooted the olive trees, all more than 14 years old, planted on 25 dunams (six acres) of land. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775129
Clashes erupt as Israeli forces raid Ramallah-area village twice in one day 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775139
Israeli forces seal Nablus-area village in response to alleged stone-throwing 26-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775138
Clashes erupt as Israeli forces raid Ramallah-area village twice in one day http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775139
4 Palestinians injured by Israeli forces during clashes in Jenin refugee camp 27-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775143
Israeli forces chase Palestinian car following car accident with Israeli police vehicle 27-01 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775146
Israeli planes disperse possibly toxic products in Jenin district 06-02
Israeli planes reportedly dispersed toxic products on lands in the northern occupied West Bank district of Jenin, locals told Maan.
Residents of the Palestinian villages of Fandaqumiya, Ajja, Zababida, Raba, and Jabaa said that products resembling candy had been dispersed in the area.
Palestinian medical sources who tested the products said that the materials were poisonous and had negatively affected wild animals and livestock in the area. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775326
Israeli forces continue airstrikes in Gaza, 2 Palestinians injured 06-02
Israeli forces resumed attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip on Monday evening, injuring two Palestinians, after injuring a Palestinian earlier Monday in a series of Israeli army airstrikes in northern Gaza, in response to a rocket that landed in an open area in the Ashkelon region of southern Israel on Monday morning.
Witnesses told Ma'an that at least eight Israeli missiles were fired at several locations across the besieged coastal enclave. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775335
Israeli forces fire at fishermen, farmers in northern Gaza 07-02
Israeli naval forces opened fire towards Palestinian fishing boats sailing off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip early on Tuesday morning.
Fishermen told Ma'an that Israeli military ships fired heavily from machine guns towards them, forcing them to head back to shore. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775336
Palestinian family 'violently assaulted' by masked Israeli police in Jerusalem raid 07-02
In the wake of a large-scale raid Sunday night in occupied East Jerusalem that targeted the families of Palestinians who were either slain or incarcerated after carrying out or allegedly carrying out attacks, one of the families reported to a local monitoring group that masked Israeli police violently assaulted them while breaking into their homes during the predawn raid.
At least 14 Palestinians were detained and tens of thousands of dollars' worth of cash and property were confiscated in a number of East Jerusalem neighborhoods during Monday's predawn hours, with police alleging the families were receiving support and financing from the Hamas movement, based on intelligence gathered by the Israeli general security service and police. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775345
Israeli forces raided a community center in Aida refugee camp in the southern occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem early Tuesday evening, when they seized computers and security camera footage, according to locals and a Palestinian news outlet.
Palestinian News Network (PNN) captured footage of Israeli forces thoroughly searching the Lajee Center, a community organization for refugee youth that stands at the entrance to the camp. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775353
Israeli forces take over Palestinian home in Bethlehem-area town
Israeli forces raided the village of Tuqu southeast of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank early Wednesday morning, took over a Palestinian home, and turned it into a military post.
Coordinator of public relations for the Tuqu municipality Samer Abu Mefreh told Maan that Israeli soldiers took over a five-floor house belonging to Taysir Ahmad al-Shaer in the northwestern part of the town, and stationed snipers on the roof. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775359
Israel sentences Palestinian merchant from Gaza to 30 months in prison 07-02
An Israeli court in the Negev city of Beersheba sentenced a Palestinian merchant from the besieged Gaza Strip to 30 months in prison on Tuesday, local sources in Gaza said.
Israeli authorities detained Naji Shihada Zurub on May 2, 2015, while he was attempting to cross Israel's Erez border terminal that separates the blockaded territory from Israel. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775357
Israeli forces detained five Jerusalemite Palestinians from the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem on Wednesday, allegedly assaulting them during a raid in the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported that Israeli forces were heavily deployed in the neighborhood and raided the centers office and several houses. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775378
2 Palestinians killed, 5 injured in reported airstrike on southern Gaza tunnel 08-02
Two Palestinians were killed and five were injured during a reported airstrike on a smuggling tunnel between Egypt and Gaza on Wednesday night, official Palestinian sources said.
Gaza Ministry of Health spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said on Thursday that Hussam Hamid al-Sufi, 24, from the town of Rafah, and Muhammad Anwar al-Aqraa, a 38-year-old resident of Gaza City, were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Rafah, while five other Palestinians were injured. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775384
Palestinians denounce Amona 'distraction' as Israel approves settlement expansion
Israel unveiled plans for 3,000 new housing units for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank late on Tuesday, the fourth such announcement in the less than two weeks since US President Donald Trump took office.
The announcement came hours before Israeli security forces began evicting the occupants of a settlement post in line with a high court ruling two years ago that determined the homes were built on private Palestinian land.
International law does not recognise that distinction as all settlements are built on Palestinian territory.
The settlers will be relocated to a nearby site as part of a deal under which they had agreed to be evacuated peacefully, police said. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-approves-3000-illegal-settlement-homes-west-bank-260226935
Israels Regierung hat den Bau von weiteren 3.000 Siedlerwohnungen im besetzten Westjordanland genehmigt. Dies geht aus einer in der Nacht zum Mittwoch veröffentlichten Erklärung des Verteidigungsministeriums hervor.
Am Mittwoch räumte die israelische Polizei indes die nicht genehmigte Siedlung Amona nördlich von Ramallah. Das höchste Gericht Israels hatte dies bereits 2014 angeordnet. Amona-Sprecher Avichai Boaron sprach von einem »schwarzen Tag für den Zionismus«. https://www.jungewelt.de/2017/02-02/009.php?sstr=israel
Israeli forces deliver demolition notice for Palestinian-owned structure in Hizma 24-02
Israeli forces Tuesday delivered a demolition notice for an agricultural structure in the village of Hizma in the West Banks Jerusalem district.
The demolition notice was delivered just days following the demolition of structures used for selling crops and stores in the area after Israeli authorities accused Palestinian owners of lacking Israeli-issued permits. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775093
Israeli forces deliver demolition notices in the Negev 26-01
Israeli authorities escorted by Israeli police delivered demolition orders in a number of Palestinian villages in the Negev in southern Israel.
Locals told Maan that Israeli forces delivered demolition notices in the the villages of Khashim Zina, al-Zarnuq, and Umm Batin, as well as the al-Riwehi and Ghoural areas. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775123
Without bus stops, Bedouin children risk their lives to go to school 02-02
Adalah: the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel reports that it has filed a petition [Hebrew] with the Beer Sheva District Court on January 25, 2017. The petition asks the Israeli Ministry of Education and regional councils in the Naqab to build bus stops for Bedouin children as well as address other infrastructural safety issues. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/339-without-bus-stops-bedouin-children-risk-their-lives-everyday-to-go-to-school
VIDEO: 'Right now we are here without anything'
Eyewitness accounts and video footage contest the Israeli polices claim that Yaqoub attempted an attack prior to being shot. Nevertheless, Israeli forces initially confiscated his corpse, insisting its release was contingent on the Qian familys agreement to a heavily policed and limited funeral ceremony. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/340-video-right-now-we-are-here-without-anything
Israeli forces demolish Palestinian structures in the Jordan Valley 07-02
Israeli forces demolished Palestinian-owned structures in the Jordan Valley region of the occupied West Bank on Tuesday morning in two separate incidents, according to locals and a United Nations agency.
In the village of Kardala, located on the northeastern edge of the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces demolished tents and shacks used as a sheep barn, according to Muataz Bisharat, who monitors settlement-related activities in the Jordan Valley. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775338
Israeli forces demolish Palestinian building in East Jerusalem 07-02
Israeli authorities demolished a Palestinian-owned building that was under construction in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Israels Jerusalem municipality confirmed.
Witnesses told Maan on Tuesday morning that Israeli police officers stormed the building as police vehicles and bulldozers surrounded it, and later Monday afternoon, Jerusalem municipality spokesperson Rachel Greenspan confirmed to Maan in a written statement that court orders to dismantle the structure had been enforced." http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775340
Israeli forces demolish Bedouin village of al-Araqib for 109th time 08-02
Israeli bulldozers demolished the unrecognized Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the Negev region of southern Israel on Wednesday for the 109th time.
Israeli forces raided the village early Wednesday, surrounding the residents' makeshift tents, and proceeded to raze them to ground. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775360
Israeli forces seal house on Hebron's Shuhada Street 08-02
Israeli forces sealed a Palestinian home in the Old City of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank on Wednesday morning.
The home, located on Shuhada street, belongs to Izzat Yassin Abu Munshar.
Israeli forces put up a sign on the entrance of the house reading" house under security, and barred entry to the residents. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775361
100-year-old Bedouin woman left homeless as Israel continues Negev demolitions 08-02
In the latest instance of Israels demolition campaign in the Negev region of southern Israel, homes were demolished in two unrecognized Bedouin villages on Wednesday, while Israeli police surrounded the village of Umm al-Hiran.
Israeli bulldozers, escorted by Israeli police, demolished a house in the village of Wadi al-Naam in the western part of the Negev in southern Israel.
Locals told Maan that the demolished house was owned by an elderly woman and her daughter. A member of the local committee, Yousif Ziyadin, said that an emergency session would be held to discuss the Israeli demolition.
A relative of the elderly homeowner, Ahmad Zanoun, told Maan that 100-year-old Ghaytha Zanoun and her 60-year-old daughter Hilala were living in the house, both of whom suffer from various health issues. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775366
Israeli forces deliver evacuation notices to resident in Salfit 08-02
Israeli authorities delivered evacuation notices in the villages of Deir Istiya and Deir Ballut in the western part of the occupied West Bank district of Salfit on Wednesday.
Jamal al-Ahmad, coordinators of the land defense committee in Salfit, told Maan that Israeli forces delivered evacuation notices to Muqbil Awad and Abd al-Aziz Aqil from the village of Deir Istiya. The orders said they must vacate their lands, which are now part of an Israeli nature reserve. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775376
The day we were eaten like black goats
A Zionist blowhard once wrote an article recounting his woes in the Naqab (Negev) desert, describing the arduous path he took in growing Chardonnay grapes to make high-end wine. One day, some goats wandered into his vineyard and started grazing there. The author shooed the goats away but kept one hostage when the two Bedouin shepherd girls who came with them refused to obey his commands. The desert is ours and we will go in whenever we please, one of them said. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/comment/338-the-day-we-were-eaten-like-black-goats
Despicable terrorist? Bedouin village in Israel's south mourns a beloved teacher
No one in Umm al-Hiran believes Yakub Musa Abu al-Kiyan, a father of 13, intentionally ran over a police officer; residents remember his calls against violence: 'Let them demolish the house, only let no one be hurt.' http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19846
Israeli settlers take over storage unit in contested East Jerusalem home 26-01
Israeli settlers took over a storage unit formerly belonging to the Sub Laban family on the ground floor of their apartment building in the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem on Tuesday.
Ahmad Sub Laban told Maan that an Israeli family living below them drilled through the wall into the Sub Laban storage space, seemingly with the intention of expanding their apartment unit.
The settlers were given ownership of the storage unit following a controversial Israeli Supreme Court ruling in December which concluded a decades-long legal battle between the family and Israeli settlers. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775124
Palestinians in Nablus-area village say settlers cut down hundreds of olive, almond trees 06-02
Palestinian residents of the Nablus-area village of Burqa went to check on their farmlands on the outskirts of the village Monday to find some 700 olive and almond trees cut down, allegedly by Israeli settlers from a nearby illegal settlement.
Ghassan Daghlas, an official who monitors settlement related activities in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that the trees, which belonged to Khalid Salah, Mahmoud Daghlas, and Khalid Nasser, were planted nine years ago in the al-Qubeibat and al-Qusour areas east of Burqa. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775334
Israeli settlers assault Palestinian photojournalist near Ramallah 07-02
At least five Israeli settlers assaulted a Palestinian photojournalist with rocks and batons while he was driving on a road near the illegal Israeli settlement of Ofra in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah on Tuesday afternoon.
According to locals, after fleeing the scene Zaher Abu Hussein was taken to the Ramallah Governmental Hospital for treatment, where his injuries were reported as moderate. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775351
Elderly Palestinian dies after being run over by Israeli settler 08-02
An elderly Palestinian died after being run over by an Israeli settler on Wednesday near the illegal Israeli settlement of Neve Daniel in the occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem.
Suleiman Hamad Salah, an 85-year-old resident of the village of al-Khader, was killed after being run over on Route 60, an Israeli bypass road that cuts through the occupied Palestinian territory and connects illegal settlements to Israel.
The Israeli settler reportedly left his car in the area, and escaped before a Palestinian ambulance reached the scene, according to medical sources. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775373
Israel approves construction of 1,162 settlement units in West Bank 09-02
Israel reportedly approved the construction of 1,162 settlement units on Wednesday, to be built in the occupied West Bank, according to Hebrew news website Walla.
Walla reported that Israels higher planning council on settlement activity, which is affiliated to the Israeli civil administration, approved the new 1,162 settlement units, including units in a new settlement near the existing Shvut Rachel settlement in the northern West Bank district of Nablus.
The new settlement adjacent to Shvut Rachel was initially planned to be built to house residents of the now evacuated illegal Amona outpost -- an offer refused by the Amona setters. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775382
Inside a settler-run tour of an East Jerusalem tourist trap
The so-called City of David is a leafy promontory, running out from the southern wall of Jerusalems Old City to bisect the Palestinian community of Silwan. The tourist trap and archaeological site is moments from the Western Wall, the Haram al-Sharif and al-Aqsa mosque.
On a map near the site entrance, the City of David itself is picked out in bright colors. Surrounding Palestinian neighborhoods are faded by comparison. Another sign near the doorway, which was surrounded by Israeli school children gobbling packed lunches, claims tours are run by local volunteers. https://electronicintifada.net/content/inside-settler-run-tour-east-jerusalem-tourist-trap/19391
Israel legalisiert Landraub
Grünes Licht für Expansion der Siedlungen in besetzter Westbank https://www.jungewelt.de/2017/02-08/002.php?sstr=israel
Palestinian prisoner opens hunger strike as Israel extends her detention 27-01
Palestinian prisoner Randa al-Shahatit, a resident of the southern occupied West Bank Hebron-area village of Dura, began an open hunger strike on Thursday in protest of her ongoing detention in solitary confinement by Israeli forces, according to a lawyer from the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS). http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775137
Palestinian journalist Mohammad al-Qeeq declares open hunger strike 07-02
Mohammed al-Qeeq, the Palestinian activist and journalist, has declared an open hunger strike after being issued an administrative detention order by the occupation authorities on 6 February 2016. Israeli occupation forces rearrested al-Qeeq on the evening of 15 January 2017 at Beit El checkpoint, north of Ramallah. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/344-palestinian-journalist-mohammad-al-qeeq-declares-open-hunger-strike
Israel continues to hold 15 Hamas-affiliated prisoners in solitary confinement 07-02
The Israel Prison Service (IPS) continued to hold 15 Hamas-affiliated Palestinian prisoners in solitary confinement as of Tuesday, as a punitive measure following two stabbings that were allegedly carried out on IPS officials in the Nafha and Ktziot prisons last week. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775347
Israeli court sentences Palestinian mother to year in prison 09-02
An Israeli magistrate court in Jerusalem sentenced a Palestinian mother of six on Thursday to a year in prison and a fine of 12,000 shekels ($3,203) for depositing funds into a prison commissary belonging to a Hamas-affiliated Palestinian prisoner held in Israeli custody.
Lawyer Muhammad Mahmoud from prisoners rights group Addameer told Maan that Dalal Abu al-Hawa from Jerusalems Old City was sentenced for depsoiting the funds. Israel Prison Service (IPS) allows families of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody to deposit a fixed amount of money each month into a prisoner's commissary, which they can then use to purchase items from the prisons canteen. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775396
Unit 8200: First We Take Manhattan, Then We Take Berlin, and Tokyo, and London
The Mossad is known for exploiting every possible means of leveraging its power to penetrate target countries. Ive written in the past about how it co-opts local Jewish communal leaders to assist in intelligence operations. Its also known to employ successful Israeli entrepreneurs like Arnon Milchan and Haim Saban as agents of influence and more. Milchan in the 1960s was an active participant in a plot to steal U.S. uranium on behalf of Israels nuclear weapons program. Keep in mind that Iranians who engage in such activities today are arrested and thrown in prison. In 1960s America, Israeli agents acted with impunity and suffered no consequences. Due to the Lobbys power or the need to retain alliances, several U.S. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/04/unit-8200-first-take-manhattan-take-berlin-tokyo-london/
Could submarine scandal blow up in Netanyahus face?
The media may be focused on the pricey cigars and bottles of champagne that the Netanyahu family allegedly amassed from its benefactors over the years, but the police investigation into the submarine procurement scandal is gaining momentum. The scandal, which Al-Monitor reported on at the end of October, is about to become a huge international imbroglio. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-germany-iran-benjamin-netanyahu-submarine-idf.html
Netanyahu scandals reflect corruption at the heart of Israeli society
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in danger of being brought down, possibly soon, over what initially appears to be little more than an imprudent taste for Cuban cigars and pink champagne.
In truth, however, the allegations ensnaring Netanyahu reveal far more than his personal flaws or an infatuation with the high life. They shine a rare light on the corrupt nexus between Israels business, political and media worlds, compounded by the perverse influence of overseas Jewish money. http://mondoweiss.net/2017/02/netanyahu-scandals-corruption/
Netanyahu's road to Iran runs through North Korea
Forget for a moment about moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem, US recognition of the settlement blocs, a closed-eye policy on the pace of construction in the territories and the way the United States has been inspired, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, by the separation barriers that Israel built in the West Bank and along its southern border. The one truly important story is North Korea. The most senior sources in Israel claim that this is where US President Donald Trump will be tested. Once the dust settles, the eyes of the world will be watching Trump's steps to deal with North Koreas accelerated nuclear armaments program. Top Israeli Cabinet members believe that the outcome of Trump's dealing with the North Koreans will determine whether international efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities will be a success or whether they will be a resounding failure. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/01/israel-north-korea-us-iran-benjamin-netanyahu-donald-trump.html
PayPal allows Israelis in illegal settlements to open accounts so why not Palestinians?
PayPal has been condemned by pro-Palestine activists for refusing to allow Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip to open accounts. Though PayPal is refusing to take up Palestinian customers within the occupied Palestinian territories, Israelis living in illegal West Bank settlements have no problem about access to the service. This has sparked a lot of controversy on social media and amongst Palestinian entrepreneurs, who are finally speaking out against PayPals clearly discriminatory policy. https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161008-paypal-allows-israelis-in-illegal-settlements-to-open-accounts-so-why-not-palestinians/
Israel weaponizes rape culture against Palestinians
Lawmakers in Benjamin Netanyahus ruling coalition are trying to deflect attention from sex crime scandals involving the highest echelons of Israeli society by making false allegations against Palestinians and other non-Jews.
In recent months, a long list of senior Israeli officials, including members of Prime Minister Netanyahus inner circle, have been investigated and, in some cases, convicted for sex crimes against women and girls.
But rather than acknowledging the problem in their own ranks, right-wing members of the Knesset, Israels parliament, are renewing their efforts to paint Palestinians as the prime perpetrators. https://electronicintifada.net/content/israel-weaponizes-rape-culture-against-palestinians/19386
Shin Bet Detains New Israel Fund Official as Security Threat at Ben Gurion Airport
Israel is rapidly turning into a police state. One in which even liberal civil society NGOs are no longer tolerated. A state like Russia or China or North Korea in which strongmen rule and dissenting voices are suppressed through legalism, violence or even murder. The first two have happened in Israel, but not yet the third (but it will eventually). https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/08/shin-bet-detains-new-israel-fund-official-security-threat-ben-gurion-airport/
Jews stand up for Muslims, as Muslims once stood up for them
Muslims once protected Jews from Nazi persecution. Today, American Jews are standing up for Muslims in the face of President Trumps draconian ban. These are everyday stories of resistance even if they are hardly reported. https://972mag.com/jews-stand-up-for-muslims-as-muslims-once-stood-up-for-them/125014/
Right group warns Israel could lead up to 'wide-scale' military offensive in Gaza
In the wake of multiple airstrikes launched by the Israeli army inside the Gaza Strip on Monday, the Gaza-based al-Mezan Center for Human Rights expressed concern that Israel could be leading up to a wide-scale military offensive. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775364
Gaza's cancer patients: 'We are dying slowly'
I'm like a bird in a cage," Hind Shaheen told Al Jazeera as she lay in bed at Gaza City's Al-Rantisi hospital, surrounded by family members. "Outside of my cage I can see water and food, but I can't reach it. This is my condition right now."
Shahin, who suffers from breast cancer, says that her condition has been deteriorating ever since she was denied exit from Gaza for treatment.
The Gaza Strip does not have adequate resources to provide her with appropriate treatment, yet she cannot leave, as Israeli authorities at the Erez border crossing, known as Beit Hanoon to Palestinians, rejected her permit three times in a row without explanation. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/01/gaza-cancer-patients-dying-slowly-170115120725304.html
Gazas Infrastructure on Verge of Collapse, Time is Running out
A new report by an Israeli NGO has warned that the Gaza Strips infrastructure is on the verge of collapse and time is running out.
The report by Gisha, Hand on the Switch: Whos Responsible for Gazas Infrastructure Crisis?, claims to offer an extensive and sobering review of the state of Gazas energy, water and communications infrastructure http://www.palestinechronicle.com/gisha-gazas-infrastructure-on-verge-of-collapse-time-is-running-out/
Braving Israeli bullets in Gazas sea
Gazas fishermen have already endured regular Israeli attacks during the first few weeks of 2017.
On 4 January, Muhammad al-Hissi went missing after the Israeli navy sunk the vessel on which he worked. Although his body has not been recovered, members of his family have resigned themselves to the probability that al-Hissi was killed.
A memorial service was organized for al-Hissi a few days after he went missing, while his family issued a statement describing him as a martyr for Gods reward. Aged 33, he was the father of three children. https://electronicintifada.net/content/braving-israeli-bullets-gazas-sea/19346
Learning in the line of fire
The girl is a student at the Hayel Abdul Hamid secondary school in Beit Hanoun, a United Nations facility in the northern Gaza Strip. She has developed a phobia of sitting next to windows, afraid, she told The Electronic Intifada, of stray bullets.
Her fear is well-founded. Beit Hanoun lies close to Gazas boundaries with Israel, and the concrete wall that marks the boundary is visible from Walas school. In such boundary areas Israeli gunfire is common and fatalities frequent. Mere closeness is a mortal danger as Israeli soldiers endeavor to keep quite expansive areas clear of residents, farmers or anyone else trying to get close. https://electronicintifada.net/content/learning-line-fire/19476
60% der von Israel zerstörten Häuser in Gaza noch nicht wiederaufgebaut
Der palästinensische Abgeordnete Jamal Al Khoudary hat mitgeteilt, dass der Wiederaufbau der Häuser und anderen Gebäude in Gaza, die bei der israelischen Offensive 2014 zerstört wurden voran geht, wenn auch sehr langsam, berichtete die Zeitung Al Resalah am Sonntag. Nach Al-Khoudary sind nur 40% der Gebäude wieder aufgebaut worden. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19769
Land law is final nail in the two-state solution coffin
The Israeli parliament passed the legalisation law on Monday night a piece of legislation every bit as suspect as its title suggests. The law widens the powers of Israeli officials to seize the last fragments of Palestinian land in the West Bank that were supposed to be off-limits.
Palestinian leaders warned that the law hammered the last nail in the coffin of a two-state solution. Government ministers gleefully agreed. For them, this is the extension of Israeli law into the West Bank and the first step towards its formal annexation. http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2017-02-07/land-law-is-final-nail-in-the-two-state-solution-coffin/
Shocked by Donald Trump's 'travel ban'? Israel has had a similar policy for decades
An Israeli official admitted in 2010 that the Separation Wall was 'built for political and demographic reasons', while the man who designed it revealed how 'the main thing the government told me in giving me the job was to include as many Israelis inside the fence and leave as many Palestinians outside' http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/israel-netanyahu-donald-trump-travel-ban-muslim-ban-a7553141.html
18 Monate Haft wegen Tötung eines verletzten Palästinensers
Ein israelischer Soldat muss wegen Totschlags an einem verletzten palästinensischen Attentäter für eineinhalb Jahre ins Gefängnis. Dies entschied ein Militärgericht in Tel Aviv am Dienstag. Der 21 Jahre alte Soldat war im vergangenen Monat schuldig gesprochen worden. Bis zu zwanzig Jahren Haft drohten Elor Azaria zuvor. Viele Israelis sahen den Soldaten hingegen als unschuldig an und feierten ihn als Volkshelden. Auch Ministerpräsident Benjamin Netanjahu sprach sich nach der Urteilsverkündung im Januar für eine Begnadigung aus. http://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/ausland/elor-azaria-muss-wegen-totschlag-an-attentaeter-in-haft-14888369.html
Five children who got longer sentences for throwing stones than Israeli soldier who shot incapacitated Palestinian dead - 'If [a Palestinian] kills an animal... he would have gotten more time,' family of deceased man says - Bethan McKernan http://www.palaestina-portal.eu/2016_Exekution_eines_verwundeten_Palaestinensers.htm
Elor Azaria sentence: No justice for Palestinians
Human rights groups and Palestinian leaders have condemned what they called the extremely lenient punishment of Elor Azaria, the Israeli army medic who was filmed executing a severely wounded Palestinian in Hebron last year.
On Tuesday, a military tribunal sentenced the soldier to 18 months in jail and a demotion, nearly a year after he shot a bullet from close range into the head of 21-year-old Abdel al-Fattah al-Sharif.
There has rarely been a trial in Israel where the judges have been under such relentless and mostly hostile scrutiny. That appeared to be reflected in their sentencing, more than a month after they found Azaria guilty of manslaughter. http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2017-02-21/elor-azaria-verdict-no-justice-for-palestinians/
Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (16 22 February 2017) http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=8838
Palestinian sentenced to 17 months in prison for Facebook 'incitement'(14-2)
A Jerusalem magistrate court sentenced a Palestinian to 17 months in Israeli prison on Tuesday for supporting terrorist organizations on Facebook.
Israeli news outlet Arutz Sheva reported that the Palestinian was a resident of the Shufat refugee camp, which is cut off from the rest of occupied East Jerusalem by Israels separation wall. He was reportedly convicted of 12 counts of incitement to violence and terrorism on Facebook. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775471
Palestinian teenage girl convicted of 'attempted murder' in Jerusalem court(14-02)
The Israeli magistrate's court in Jerusalem convicted an imprisoned Palestinian teenage girl on charges of attempted murder and possession of a knife on Tuesday.
According to defense lawyer Ramzi Kteilat, 17-year-old Malak Muhammad Salman was convicted for allegedly attempting to stab Israeli officers on Feb. 9, 2016 at the Damascus Gate entrance to occupied East Jerusalem's Old City. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775472
Israeli court sentences Palestinian teen to 12 years in prison over attempted stabbing(12-2)
An Israeli magistrate court sentenced a Palestinian teenager on Sunday to 12 years in prison over charges of attempting to carry out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem more than a year earlier. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775424
Israeli stabs 2 Palestinian street cleaners in Beersheba(12-2)
Two Palestinian street sweepers were stabbed in the city of Beersheba in southern Israel on Sunday morning, according to an Israeli police spokeswoman who said an Israeli in his twenties was detained for committing the attack.
Luba al-Samri said in a written statement in Arabic that the Palestinian workers were from the area, seeming to suggest the two held Israeli citizenship.
The two were evacuated to a hospital were they were treated for minor wounds. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775419
Israel delivers stop-work orders to Palestinians in northern Jordan Valley(12-2)
Israeli authorities issued stop-work orders for 16 Palestinian-owned structures in the northern Jordan Valley village of Khirbet Humsa al-Fuqa in the occupied West Bank on Sunday morning, according to a local official.
Muataz Bisharat, who monitors settlement-related activities in the Jordan Valley, told Ma'an that inspectors from the Israeli Civil Administration's planning and construction department stormed Khirbet Humsa al-Fuqa and delivered stop-work orders to 16 structures that belong to seven Palestinian families. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775422
13-year-old Palestinian awaits sentencing for throwing rocks at Rachel's Tomb(12-2)
Israeli police said Sunday that a 13-year-old Palestinian boy was awaiting indictment after he was detained in Aida refugee camp in the southern occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem last week for throwing stones. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775421
Israeli forces reportedly seize Palestinians car, water hoses near Tubas(12-2)
Israeli authorities reportedly seized a Palestinian-owned vehicle and water hoses used for irrigation in al-Baqiaa south of Tubas in the northern Jordan Valley region of the occupied West Bank on Saturday evening, official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775426
Israeli police assault Palestinians during raid into Jerusalem's Old City(13-2)
The head of the Jerusalem chapter of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), Nasser Qaws, said he was assaulted by Israeli police during a raid into occupied East Jerusalems Old City on Sunday night, when three other Palestinian youths were also detained. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775437
Palestinian fighter in Gaza injured by Israeli artillery shell, DFLP says(13-2)
The National Resistance Brigades, the military wing of the leftist Palestinian faction the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), said that one of their fighters was injured Sunday evening by shrapnel from an artillery shell fired by the Israeli army inside the besieged Gaza Strip. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775439
Israeli police detained two Al-Aqsa Mosque employees on Monday morning after dozens of Israelis toured the site. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775452
Israeli forces block off main road in Bethlehem area(13-29)
Israeli forces closed a main road in the southern occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem on Monday morning, blockading a route used every day by thousands of commuters from four Palestinian villages.
Israeli forces placed rocks and earth mounds in the middle of a road near the village of al-Khader. The road serves as a main route between Bethlehem city and the villages of Husan, Battir, Nahhalin, and Wadi Fukin. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775458
Israeli court increases sentence of Jerusalemite sheikh accused of incitement(13-2)
An Israeli magistrate court in Jerusalem ruled to increase the sentence of Sheikh Omar Abu Sara from eight to 14 months in prison, a lawyer from the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners Affairs said Monday, after Abu Sara was charged with inciting violence against Jews" during a religious lecture he gave at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in November 2014. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775441
Israeli forces detain employee of Turkish aid agency at Gaza border crossing(14-2)
Israeli forces detained an employee of a Turkish development agency at a border crossing between the besieged Gaza Strip and Israel on Monday.
Palestinian sources told Maan that Israeli forces detained Muhammad Murtaja, a coordinator for the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), and added that the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv was making calls to release him. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775459
Israel imposes punitive measures on Bethlehem-area village after stone-throwing(15-02)
Israeli forces imposed punitive measures on residents from the village of Husan in the occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem on Wednesday amid a crackdown on relatives of alleged Palestinian stone throwers. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775478
Israeli forces besiege Husan village for a third day
The Israeli army is collectively violating the rights of about 6,000 Palestinians who live in the Bethlehem area village of Husan. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/350-israeli-forces-besiege-husan-village-for-a-second-day
Israeli forces install checkpoint at main entrance of Salfit-area village(15-02)
Israeli forces installed a military checkpoint at the main entrance of a village in the central occupied West Bank on Wednesday evening, locals said. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775491
Israeli forces raid Nablus-area village, set up checkpoints, deploy snipers(15-2)
Israeli forces raided the village of Huwwara on Thursday evening, deploying heavily in the area and searching several houses after claims that a Molotov cocktail was thrown at an Israeli settlers car from the main road near the village, which is located just south of Nablus city in the northern occupied West Bank. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775511
Israeli forces raid Jerusalem-area town(17-2)
Israeli forces raided the village of Hizma early Friday morning in the central occupied West Bank district of Jerusalem.
Locals told Maan that Israeli vehicles, border guards, and soldiers raided several areas of Hizma from multiple entrances. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775513
Israeli forces 'attack' Palestinian activists near Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron(17-2)
Israeli forces allegedly attacked Palestinian activists following Friday prayers at the gates of the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron city in the occupied West Bank, as hundreds had gathered to perform prayers as part of a demonstration called for by the international campaign Dismantle the Ghetto, Take Settlers Out of Hebron. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775520
Weekly marches against Israeli settlements launched in Bilin, Nilin, and Kafr Qaddum(17-2)
Weekly marches were held on Friday in the villages of Bilin and Nilin in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah, while another was held in the village of Kafr Qaddum in the West Bank district of Qalqiliya, in protest of Israeli settlements and the separation wall. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775524
2 Palestinians, 1 Israeli soldier injured during clashes near Joseph's Tomb(23-2)
An Israeli soldier and two Palestinians were injured during clashes in the Balata refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank on Thursday morning when hundreds of Israeli settlers performed religious rituals at Josephs Tomb under military protection. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775621
Israeli forces set up checkpoint at entrance of Salfit-area town(23-2)
Israeli forces set up a military checkpoint on Thursday at the entrance of the village of Qarawat Bani Hassan in the northern occupied West Bank district of Salfit.
A Maan reporter on the scene said that Israeli forces were stopping and searching vehicles, and checking the ID cards of Palestinian passengers. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775625
Palestinians protest resentencing of longest-serving prisoner Nael Barghouthi(23-2)
A sit-in was organized on Wednesday evening in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah in solidarity with Nael Barghouthi, the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner who was sentenced on Wednesday by an Israeli military court to life in prison with an additional 18-year sentence.
The sit-in was organized by the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners Affairs and other faction leaders and officials, including secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative Mustafa Barghouthi and member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Abu Saleh Hisham. Families of Palestinian prisoners in Israel, former prisoners, and activists also joined the demonstration. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775627
Israel closes Jerusalem-area Palestinian boys school for incitement(23-2)
Israeli authorities on Thursday closed a Palestinian elementary school for boys in the town of Sur Bahir in occupied East Jerusalem district over alleged incitement.
Head of the school Luay Jamal Bkirat told Maan that Israeli intelligence officials summoned him and the schools financial manager Nasser Hamed for interrogation at an Israeli police station, where they were then told to their surprise that the Israeli police would be shutting down the school over incitement in the schools materials.
Bkirat denied the claims, saying that the al-Nukhba school is teaching the Palestinian curriculum used in all schools in Jerusalem and that no one of the faculty has ever been summoned for interrogation before over incitement. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775632
Israel transfers 2 East Jerusalem Palestinians to administrative detention(23-2)
Israeli authorities transferred on Thursday transferred two Palestinians from occupied East Jerusalem to administrative detention -- Israels widely-condemned policy of internment without charge or trial.
Head of the Jerusalem Committee for Families of Prisoners, Amjad Abu Asab, told Maan that Israeli authorities transferred Majd Darwish to administrative detention for six months and Muhammad Abed al-Latif for three months. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775640
Israeli forces suppress march in Hebron's Old City demanding reopening of Shuhada Street(24-2)
Israeli forces on Friday suppressed a crowded march in the Old City of the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, as local Palestinian residents and international activists demanded the reopening of closed streets and the removal of the illegal Israeli settlers from the city.
The march was launched in line with the 23rd anniversary of the Ibrahimi mosque massacre, when Jewish-American settler Baruch Goldstein entered the Ibrahimi mosque in Hebron and shot dead 29 Palestinian Muslims during worship. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775642
16-year-old Palestinian shot by Israeli forces in central Gaza Strip(24-2)
Israeli forces injured a 16-year-old Palestinian with live fire on Friday in the central Gaza Strip near the border between the besieged enclave and Israel.
Spokesperson of the Ministry of Health Ashraf al-Qadra said that the Palestinian was shot by Israeli forces and injured in his right leg. His wounds were described as medium.
Witnesses told Maan that Israeli forces stationed at the border fence east of Maghazi refugee camp opened live ammunition on a group of Palestinian youth in the area, causing the injury to the minor. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775647
Israeli forces suppress weekly marches in Kafr Qaddum, Bilin, and Nilin(24-2)
Israeli forces suppressed weekly marches in the occupied West Bank districts of Ramallah and Qalqiliya on Friday, as two Palestinians, including a child, were injured with rubber-coated steel bullets, while tens of Palestinians suffered tear gas inhalation. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775650
Israeli forces temporarily detain Palestinian minister at checkpoint(25-2)
Israeli forces temporarily detained the Palestinian Minister of Awaqf (the Islamic endowment) and Religious Affairs and those accompanying him at an Israeli checkpoint on Friday as the minister was attempting to enter Qalqiliya from Nablus. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775648
Palestinian child injured after remnant of Israeli military device explodes in Hebron(24-2)
A 13-year-old Palestinian was injured on Friday after a device left over by Israeli forces exploded in an area in the southern part of the occupied West Bank district of Hebron. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775651
Clashes erupt in Issawiya following funeral of former Palestinian prisoner(25-2)
Clashes erupted between Palestinian youth and Israeli forces in the neighborhood of Issawiya in occupied East Jerusalem late on Friday, as Israeli police raided the area following the funeral of a former Palestinian prisoner, 24-year-old Muhammad Kayid Mahmoud, who died in a car accident in Jericho on Friday. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775655
Israeli forces close entrance of Nablus-area village(26-2)
Israeli forces closed the entrance of the village of Osarin in the occupied West Bank district of Nablus on Saturday with large dirt mounds for alleged security reasons. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775657
Israeli forces storm Tuqu school, attack teachers with pepper spray(27-2)
Three Palestinian teachers suffered from pepper spray inflammation at the hands of Israeli forces, when the latter stormed a secondary school in the southern occupied West Bank village of Tuqu to remove posters commemorating 17-year-old Qusay Hassan al-Umour, who was shot dead by Israeli forces in the town in mid-January.
Israeli forces raided the school to remove photos of al-Umour which were posted to mark the 40 days since his killing. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775670
Israeli naval forces open fire at Palestinian fishermen in Gaza(13-2)
Israeli naval boats opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the besieged Gaza Strip on two separate occasions on Sunday night and Monday morning, with no injuries reported in either case. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775435
Israeli forces open fire towards Gaza fishermen(14-2)
Israeli naval forces opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning.
Fishermen told Ma'an that Israeli military ships fired at them off the coast of Beit Lahiya. No injuries were reported. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775462
Israeli forces open fire at fishermen in Gaza(18-2)
Israeli naval forces opened live fire at Palestinian fishermen off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip on Saturday morning.
Witnesses told Maan that Israeli naval ships opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of al-Sudaniya. No injuries were reported. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775531
Israeli Naval Forces Continue to Chase Palestinian Fishermen in Gaza Sea; 5 fishermen arrested, including a boy, 1 fisherman wounded and fishing boat confiscated
On Tuesday morning, 21 February 2017, Israeli gunboats chased and opened fire at a Palestinian fishing boat. As a result, 5 fishermen, including a boy, were arrested and the fishing boat was confiscated. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) noticed that Israeli forces have recently concentrated their attacks against fishermen in Gaza Sea, denying them access to their livelihood and free fishing in Gaza Sea. http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=8834
Palestinian children attend class in the street after Israel shuts down school(27-2)
After Israeli authorities shut down a Palestinian elementary school in the occupied East Jerusalem town of Sur Bahir last Thursday over alleged incitement in its study materials, students attended class in the street on Sunday and protested against Israels decision to close the school.
Children who were enrolled at al-Nukhba (the elite in Arabic) arrived to the campus with their parents in an action organized by the parent committees of Sur Bahirs schools, holding posters expressing support for al-Nukhba and denouncing Israel's closure of educational institutions as tyrannical. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775669
Protesters organize sit-in at Khan al-Ahmar school slated for demolition(25-2)
The Palestinian Ministry of Education organized a sit-in protest inside a school in the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, against the impending Israeli government order to demolish the school and the entire village.
Protesters condemned the Israeli order to demolish Khan al-Ahmar school -- which services 150 female and male students -- and expressed their anger towards the Israeli army for targeting a school for children and for trying to ban them from their right of education. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775633
Israeli Supreme Court rules in favor of punitive demolition of slain Palestinian's home(25-2)
The Israeli Supreme Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the punitive demolition of the home of slain Palestinian Fadi Ahmad al-Qunbar in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir, Hebrew-language news sites reported.
Al-Qunbar was shot dead by Israeli forces last month after he drove into a group of Israeli soldiers in an illegal Israeli settlement in occupied East Jerusalem, killing four soldiers.
Al-Qunbar's relatives, who have repeatedly denied having advanced knowledge of any plans to carry out an attack, were also delivered notices shortly after the attack that their Jerusalem residencies were being punitively revoked by the Israeli government. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775638
Israeli forces deliver 30 demolition orders in Hebron-area village(23-2)
Israeli forces delivered 30 demolition orders to several structures in the village of Yatta in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron on Thursday.
Popular and national committee coordinator in the southern West Bank Ratib al-Jbour told Maan that Israeli forces had placed the demolition orders on lands near the structures, which included a school, tents, water wells, barracks, homes, and stockyards. He said Israeli forces also took pictures of the structures. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775635
UN officials visit Bedouin village slated for demolition, call situation 'unacceptable'
UN officials visited the Palestinian Bedouin community of Khan al-Ahmar in the central occupied West Bank district of Jerusalem on Wednesday, which is under threat of forcible relocation by Israeli authorities who delivered demolition notices to every single house in the village on Sunday, and called the situation unacceptable.
Coordinator for Humanitarian Aid and UN Development Activities for the occupied Palestinian territory Robert Piper and Director of UNRWA Operations in the West Bank Scott Anderson visited the small village located in Area C -- the more than 60 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli control and the site of frequent Israeli demolitions. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775619
Israeli forces demolish house in Bedouin village, leave disabled woman homeless(15-2)
Israeli bulldozers escorted by the Israeli polices Yoav unit, the section created to implement demolitions of Bedouin homes in the Negev, demolished a house in the unrecognized Bedouin village of al-Zarora in the Negev of southern Israel on Wednesday morning, leaving a wheelchair-bound woman in her forties homeless.
Head of the regional council for unrecognized Bedouin villages Attiya al-Asam told Maan that the Israeli demolition campaign in the Negev had crossed all lines by targeting the homes of disabled residents, adding that the recent wave of demolitions were inhumane and were motivated by hatred for the Arabs. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775481
Palestinian family in East Jerusalem forced to demolish their own home(18-2)
A Palestinian family in the neighborhood of Silwan in occupied East Jerusalem was forced to demolish their own home on Saturday following orders from the Israeli municipality of Jerusalem.
The Qarrain family told Maan that they had recently received an order from the Jerusalem municipality stating that the house was lacking Israeli-issued building permits and would need to be demolished.
The family added that they had been given two weeks to carry out the demolition themselves, to avoid the exorbitant fees imposed by the municipality when their crews carry out home demolitions.
The house is 65 square meters and was built seven years ago, according to the family. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775535
Israeli authorities demolish 3 buildings in East Jerusalem neighborhood(13-2)
Israeli authorities demolished at least three houses, two of which were under construction, in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya on Tuesday, local sources said.
Homeowner Salih Turk told Maan that a large number of Israeli police officers, including special forces, stormed his home in the neighborhood on Tuesday morning and forcibly evacuated his family, preventing us from taking our belongings.
Bulldozers then demolished the house, Turk said, adding that 11 family members, including six minors, were left homeless by the demolition. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775461
Israeli forces order destruction of 39 homes and school in Khan al-Ahmar
Early Sunday morning, dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded Khan al-Ahmar, a Palestinian Bedouin community between Jerusalem and Jericho the West Bank.
The purpose of the raid was to serve demolition orders to the Tire school as well as 39 nearby homes.
During the raid, Israeli soldiers set up flying checkpoints throughout Khan al-Ahmar. The area around the school was declared a closed military zone. Students were sent home and alarmed residents, journalists and activists were ordered to stay away. http://www.alternativenews.org/index.php/headlines/356-israeli-forces-order-destruction-of-39-homes-and-school-in-khan-al-ahmar
Palestinian man injured after being struck by Israeli settler car near Hebron(16-2)
A Palestinian man was injured Thursday evening after being hit by an Israeli settlers vehicle at the entrance of the town of Beit Ummar in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron.
Local activist Muhammad Ayyad Awwad identified the injured man as 36-year-old Rafat Muhammad Shihada Abu Arar Masalma from the town of Deir Samit west of Hebron City. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775510
Palestinian homes to be demolished for settlments road
Hundreds of Palestinians in the Jabal al-Mukaber area of occupied East Jerusalem say they are living in a state of anxiety and fear as Israeli occupation authorities begin excavations for the "American road" project, set to be built on the ruins of their homes. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/02/israel-settlements-road-cut-east-jerusalem-170219102243614.html
Dismantle the ghetto, take the settlers out of Hebron!
Preparations by Palestinian political parties, civil society groups, local committees, and human rights organizations begin this week for the 23rd annual commemoration of the the 1994 Ibrahim Mosque Massacre.
The bodies organizing the event this year have united under the slogan dismantle the ghetto, take the settlers out of Hebron. The first statement issued by the coalition calls for widespread participation, including by international organizations and individuals in Hebron. http://alternativenews.org/index.php/features-02/341-dismantle-the-ghetto-take-the-settlers-out-of-hebron
2 Palestinians held in Israeli prison without charge or trial declare hunger strike(16-2)
Two Palestinians held in Israeli prison without charge or trial declared a hunger strike on Thursday.
The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said in a statement that Palestinian prisoners Jamal Abu al-Leil and Raed Fayez Mteir declared their hunger strike in protest of being held under administrative detention -- an Israeli policy of imprisonment without charge or trial based on undisclosed evidence, almost exclusively used against Palestinians. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775505
Protesters stage sit-in over administrative detention of 2 hunger-striking prisoners(17-2)
A sit-in protest was organized Friday morning in solidarity with two Palestinian prisoners from the Qalandiya refugee camp in the central occupied West Bank, just as the prisoners administrative detention orders were confirmed by Jerusalems central court.
The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said in a statement that protesters held pictures of the prisoners, Jamal Abu al-Leil and Raed Fayez Mteir, who began an open hunger strike on Thursday protesting their administrative detentions -- the widely-condemned Israeli policy of internment without charge or trial based on undisclosed evidence. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775519
Palestinian prisoner's health condition deteriorates in Israeli custody(18-2)
The health condition of Palestinian prisoner Walid Ghaith from the occupied West Bank district of Hebron has severely deteriorated recently, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said on Saturday.
PPS said in the statement that the 43-year-old was suffering from heart problems and was in need of a pacemaker implant. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775534
Israeli prosecution accuses 2 Palestinian prisoners of stabbing prison guards(14-2)
The Israeli general prosecution in the Beersheba filed charges Tuesday against two Palestinian prisoners accused of stabbing prison guards in separate incidents on the same day in Israels Nafha and Ktziot prisons earlier this month.
Officials representing the Beersheba prosecution told Ma'an that 22-year-old Mahmoud Amir Nasser was charged with stabbing Ktziot prison guard Tzvika Lahme in the face and the upper extremities.
According to the indictment, the incident came after Nasser, who is serving a 52-month sentence, was subjected to a search by Israel Prison Service (IPS) officers on Feb. 1. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775466
Israeli court increases prison sentence of tortured Palestinian detainee(12-2)
The Israeli Supreme Court has added two years to the prison sentence of a Palestinian detained during Israels 2014 ground invasion of the Gaza Strip, the Gaza-based al-Mezan Center for Human Rights said in a report on Sunday, which detailed the prisoners torture at the hands of Israeli prison authorities.
According to al-Mezan, last week on Feb. 7, the court decided to uphold a request by the Israeli prosecution to increase 28-year-old Jihad Khalid Abu Hadaids sentence from six to eight years in Israeli custody. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775428
Longest-serving Palestinian prisoner resentenced to life in prison plus 18 years(22-2)
Nael Barghouthi, the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner, was sentenced on Wednesday by an Israeli military court to life in prison with an additional 18-year sentence, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS).
PPS said in a statement that the court had ruled that Barghouthi, 59, was to serve the remainder of his previous sentence received prior to his short-lived release in 2011 as part of a prisoner swap deal between Israel and the Hamas movement.
Israeli forces first detained Barghouthi, who is from the village of Kobar in the central occupied West Bank district of Ramallah, in 1978 when he was 20 years old for alleged membership in an armed resistance group. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775604
Palestinians protest resentencing of longest-serving prisoner Nael Barghouthi(23-2)
A sit-in was organized on Wednesday evening in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah in solidarity with Nael Barghouthi, the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner who was sentenced on Wednesday by an Israeli military court to life in prison with an additional 18-year sentence. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775627
Palestinian lawyer signs plea bargain as NGO slams Israeli 'persecution of rights defenders'(24-2)
A Palestinian lawyer signed a plea deal earlier this week in order to avoid a prison sentence for his alleged involvement with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), as his organization called the case the latest example of Israels persecution of human rights defenders.
Anas Barghouthi, a lawyer for prisoners rights group Addameer, accepted a plea bargain on Sunday in order to forgo a prison sentence for allegedly being a member of PFLP and leading demonstrations against Israeli policies, NGO Amnesty International reported on Wednesday. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775626
Israel transfers 2 East Jerusalem Palestinians to administrative detention(24-2)
Israeli authorities transferred on Thursday transferred two Palestinians from occupied East Jerusalem to administrative detention -- Israels widely-condemned policy of internment without charge or trial.
Head of the Jerusalem Committee for Families of Prisoners, Amjad Abu Asab, told Maan that Israeli authorities transferred Majd Darwish to administrative detention for six months and Muhammad Abed al-Latif for three months. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775640
Muhammad al-Qiq loses ability to walk amid ongoing hunger strike(24-2)
Palestinian hunger striker Muhammad al-Qiq has lost his ability to walk due to extreme exhaustion after at least 18 days without food, his lawyer reported on Friday.
Khalid Zabarqa said that al-Qiq was on a wheelchair during a recent visit to Israels Ramla prison hospital where the hunger striker is being kept after Israeli authorities transferred al-Qiq from Israels Jalama prison due to the deterioration of his health.
Zabarqa noted that al-Qiq was suffering from constant coughing, weight loss, and a perpetual headache. He has also refused to undergo any medical checkups related to his hunger strike. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775644
Youth block roads demanding PA intervene in case of Palestinian hunger strikers(26-2)
Palestinian youth from Qalandiya refugee camp blocked off a main raid connecting Ramallah and Jerusalem in the central occupied West Bank as well as surrounding side streets Sunday morning to put pressure on the Palestinian Authority to intervene in the case of two hunger strikers from the camp imprisoned by Israel.
Protesters used dumpsters to close the roads, creating severe traffic congestion from the Semiramis neighborhood of Ramallah to Qalandiya. Dozens of children were unable to access their schools in the northern outskirts of Jerusalem, including in Qalandiya, Kafr Aqab, Semiramis, and the airport area. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775663
Qalandiya refugee camp activists continue protest measures against PA(27-2)
alestinian activists from Qalandiya refugee camp in the central occupied West Bank closed al-Quds Ramallah Street and all entrances of the camp that lead to Jerusalem for the second consecutive day on Monday morning, aiming to pressure the Palestinian Authority (PA) to help secure the release of two residents of the camp held in Israeli prison without trial or charge for more than a year.
Activists blocked the road with burning rubber tires and dumpsters lit on fire, sending black smoke billowing over the refugee camp as scores of commuters were stuck in traffic gridlock. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775684
U.S. Anti-Semitic Attacks: Wheres the Outrage, Bibi?
Several years ago, after a series of terror attacks by Islamists on French Jewish institutions, Bibi Netanyahu got on his bully pulpit to lecture Europe about their dereliction of duty in protecting for local Jewish communities. He even rose to the pulpit of Frances grand synagogue to tell the nations prime minister, in a bout of grand chutzpah, that the latter essentially didnt deserve his Jews. That they should all abandon him and return home. He urged them to make aliya where, he claimed, they would find the safety they lacked in Europe. Indeed, there was a temporary rise in aliyah from France that lasted a year. After the attacks subsided levels of aliyah receded to their former levels. I predicted this eventual outcome in the midst of the anti-Semitism attacks, while the Jewish Agency and other Zionist apparatchiks were crowing about the end of Jewish history in Europe. All of Bibis blandishments to come home amounted to nothing. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/27/u-s-anti-semitic-attacks-wheres-outrage-bibi/
Hanin Soabi: Israel ist das einzige Land, das weder von Trump schockiert ist noch vor ihm Angst hat
Hanin Soabi ist eine von 14 israelisch-palästinensischen Mitgliedern der Knesset, die 120 Abgeordnete zählt. Sie ist angespuckt, angerempelt und vom Parlament suspendiert worden. Ich hab mich daran gewöhnt, sagt sie, es ist zum Teil, weil ich eine Frau bin, vergesst das nicht (für einige Leute) ist dies normal, auf eine Frau zornig zu sein, die deren Erwartungen nicht entspricht, wie Frauen sich benehmen sollen. http://www.tlaxcala-int.org/article.asp?reference=19835
Bring the Family: Israeli Air Force Pinkwashing
In very few western countries are the armed forces used to promote the nation to the outside world. For decades, Israel has promoted its citizens army as emblematic of Israeli democracy. However, this hasnt been true of the IDF for many years. 30% of eligible males do not serve (many ultra-Orthodox receive yeshiva exemptions and it doesnt even summon Israeli Palestinians for military service). Less than 50% of women serve. By 2020, the IDF estimates that 60% of those eligible overall will receive exemptions or otherwise dodge service. Citizens Army? Not so much. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/27/bring-family-israeli-air-force-pinkwashing/
Israeli Supreme Court Sides with Security Apparatus, Corporate EliteShields Former Soviet Spy
Last year, the Israeli business publication, Globes, published a story based on my reporting the not-so-secret identity of former Soviet agent-turned Shabak spy, Boris Krasny. Since Krasny was instrumental in exposing one of the Soviets most valuable Israeli spies, Marcus Klingberg, hes been protected and enriched by the Israeli security apparatus. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/25/israeli-supreme-court-sides-security-apparatus-corporate-elite-shields-former-soviet-spy/
Shin Bet Has Bad Case of Transphobia
After scores of international flights passed without incident, suddenly in recent months an Israeli transgender traveler began to suffer systematic harassment at the hands of Shin Bet security agents. This included intrusive body and luggage searches at the airport and invasive questions having nothing to do with security matters. Interrogators asked Mor Vital about her sexual orientation including questions such as: What you have down there? https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/13/shin-bet-bad-case-transphobia/
Israeli military jeep stolen from army base in southern Israel
An Israeli military jeep was reportedly stolen from an army base on Tuesday in southern Israel. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775476
Did Berlin cancel Jerusalem summit amid anger at settlement law? http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/did-berlin-cancel-jerusalem-summit-amid-anger-settlement-law-1574037980
Israel vows no more visas to Human Rights Watch after years of activity
International NGO with operations in 90 countries is 'serving Palestinian propaganda,' Foreign Ministry says; governments never like what we publish, but they let us act, HRW official says. http://www.haaretz.com/misc/article-print-page//.premium-1.773567
Egypt destroyed 6 Gaza smuggling tunnels in the span of 2 weeks(09-2)
he Egyptian army claimed on Wednesday to have destroyed six tunnels between Egypt and the besieged Gaza Strip in the span of two weeks earlier this year.
Egyptian army spokesman Tamer al-Rifai said that six tunnels were uncovered and destroyed at the border between Gaza and the North Sinai between Jan. 17 and Feb. 4 http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775383.
3 Palestinians killed, 5 injured after suffocating inside Gaza tunnel(25-2)
Three Palestinians were killed and five others were injured after suffering from gas suffocation on Friday evening while working inside a tunnel between the border of the besieged Gaza Strip and Egypt, the Palestinian Civil Defense reported on Saturday. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775654
Israel, Hamas swap blame for failed prisoner exchange talks
Against the backdrop of a recent serious escalation of the security threat along Israel's southern border, Israeli media published reports on negotiations for a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas. Leaks about the negotiations, sourced to spokesmen from both sides, were intended to put pressure on the opposing side and to present their red lines regarding any potential deal. Both sides now share a desire to reach a deal. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-gaza-hamas-prisoner-exchange-shalit-prisoners.html
Why some in Israel are wary of Hamas new Gaza boss
It seems there has never been a leader of Hamas better known to Israel than Yahya Sinwar, who was chosen this week in an internal process to succeed Ismail Haniyeh as the head of the political wing of the organization in the Gaza Strip. And vice versa: Sinwar spent 22 years in an Israeli prison and was released in the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange deal in the fall of 2011. He speaks Hebrew, is familiar with the ways of Israeli society and knows everything about the Israeli mentality, abilities and sensitivities. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-gaza-new-hamas-leader-yahya-sinwar-security.html
Israeli government funded construction of Amona outpost by proxy
The recently dismantled illegal settlement outpost of Amona was funded through a million-dollar loan from the Israeli government, a report by Israeli newspaper Haaretz revealed on Monday, further blurring the distinction between settlements recognized and unrecognized by Israel.
According to Haaretz, settlement building organization Amana obtained a $1.05 million loan in 2002 to build in the outposts of Amona and Migron by mortgaging private Palestinian lands to which it falsely claimed rights, and upon which it built the outposts. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775457
Israeli Bedouin stigmatized by terrorist narrative
The Jan. 18 deaths of two men during home demolitions in the Bedouin village of Umm al-Hiran continue to send shock waves through Israeli society. During a police operation to evacuate and demolish homes built illegally, Yakub Abu al-Kiyan ran over Erez Levi, a police officer, with his car. Levi died from his injuries and Abu al-Kiyan from being shot by police. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/02/israel-bedouin-gilad-erdan-police-terror-attack.html
New video deals another blow to Israeli police's version of Umm al-Hiran raid http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775434
Shabak Apologizes for False Terror Claims Against Bedouin Murdered by Israeli Police
The official police-government version of the tragic deaths of an Israeli Bedouin and policeman at Umm al Hiran last month is now coming apart at the seams. The above video features a translation of a TV news panel in which Maariv journalist, Kalman Liebeskind, reveals the shocking dysfunction of the operation which led to the deaths. https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/23/shabak-apologizes-false-terror-claims- bedouin-murdered-israeli-police/
Israeli minister backtracks on claims of vehicular attack during Umm al-Hiran raid http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775595
Palestinians face intense online hate from Israelis, say campaigners
Israel's 1.7 million Palestinian citizens are facing a tidal wave of incitement and hate speech on social media, including from government ministers, community leaders have warned.
They say the increasingly hostile political climate in Israel is stoking violence from the police and street gangs and has laid the ground for a recent raft of legislative proposals many Palestinians consider racist. http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestinian-online-hatred-654572197
New Evidence: Police Units Fired on Each Other, Murdered Bedouin, then Minister Lied Claiming Victim was ISIS Terrorist https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2017/02/22/new-evidence-reveals-police-murdered-bedouin-minister-lied-claiming-isis-terrorist/
Gaza committee announces boycott of ICRC over NGO's 'failures'
The prisoners committee of the Palestinian National and Islamic Forces coalition in Gaza announced on Monday that it had decided it will boycott the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC).
In a statement, the prisoners committee admonished ICRC for its failure to fulfill its duties towards Palestinians held in Israeli custody, and said that it would continue to hold weekly protests in front of ICRCs headquarters in Gaza. http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775320
Palestinians seek unity as new threats, political bickering mar gathering
Around 4,000 Palestinians from 50 countries gather in Istanbul to claim an integral part in ending the Palestinian nations woes http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/palestinians-seek-unity-clouds-new-threats-and-political-bickering-mar-gathering-1340563227
PFLP demonstrates on anniversary of alleged assassination of Omar Nayif
Supporters of the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) organized rallies in the northern occupied West Bank district of Jenin and in the besieged Gaza Strip on Saturday, to mark the anniversary of the death of PFLP member Omar Nayif in the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria last year, which the group believes was an assassination carried out by the Mossad (Israels foreign intelligence agency). http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=775660
Love under siege in Gaza
To receive a permit to travel to and from Gaza via Erez Crossing, Israel must determine that your reason for travel is humanitarian in nature or that you meet a list of exceptional circumstances (like playing for the national football team or being a trader). Traveling to visit your mother you havent seen in 10 years isnt considered to be humanitarian in nature, unless, God forbid, shes ill with a fatal condition. https://972mag.com/love-under-siege-in-gaza/125229/
Joy and fear: a mothers lot in Gaza
The doctor studied the test results, raised her head and smiled.
Pregnant, she said. Congratulations, you are pregnant!
All I could muster in response was: Why?
Joy, excitement and fear knotted inside me. My husband and I would soon have a baby, filling our life with love and noise.
But a storm of questions raged in my head. I immediately began to fear that Israel would bomb us again.
How would we run away if that happened? How would we survive?
I was scared and nervous. The memories of all the wars I had lived through came alive and overpowered me. https://electronicintifada.net/content/joy-and-fear-mothers-lot-gaza/19606?utm_source=EI+readers&utm_campaign=202e8e7e97-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e802a7602d-202e8e7e97-290675021
Israel lobby resorting to censorship and blacklisting as it loses control of mainstream discourse
From Seattle to Kuala Lampur, via Khartoum, Osaka, and Hamburg, activists around the world participated last week in a Boycott Hewlett-Packard Week of Action, setting up mock checkpoints and apartheid walls, doing flash mobs, and cheerfully belting out BDS carols. In busy shopping centers, on Main Streets, at heavily-trafficked intersections, and university campuses, we were visible, we were loud, we were proud of our activism, our numbers, our global community. There was nothing hushed up about our actions. http://mondoweiss.net/2016/12/censorship-blacklisting-mainstream/