Monday, May 26, 2008
Citizens, but second-class
The bedouins of the Negev desert carry Israeli ID, but they've been treated appallingly by the state of which they form a part
By Seth Freedman
The Guardian
"A group of Arab families, who have ample proof of their historic claim to a tract of land, are evicted by the Israeli army. Whilst they attempt to challenge their forced removal from the area via legal process, a Jewish settlement is established on the site overnight. The settlement grows and grows until it is just one more, immovable "fact on the ground", leaving the uprooted families little or no chance of returning to their ancestral home, nor of achieving even a modicum of justice from the courts.
A familiar enough story, of course, but made all the more intolerable given that the land in question is well inside the Green Line, and the families involved are all fully-fledged Israeli citizens. Or, to be precise, they are fully-fledged Israeli citizens on paper. Since they are bedouins, rather than Jews, their rights are by no means assured simply because they possess blue Israeli ID cards, as history has proved time and again to their cost......."
By Seth Freedman
The Guardian
"A group of Arab families, who have ample proof of their historic claim to a tract of land, are evicted by the Israeli army. Whilst they attempt to challenge their forced removal from the area via legal process, a Jewish settlement is established on the site overnight. The settlement grows and grows until it is just one more, immovable "fact on the ground", leaving the uprooted families little or no chance of returning to their ancestral home, nor of achieving even a modicum of justice from the courts.
A familiar enough story, of course, but made all the more intolerable given that the land in question is well inside the Green Line, and the families involved are all fully-fledged Israeli citizens. Or, to be precise, they are fully-fledged Israeli citizens on paper. Since they are bedouins, rather than Jews, their rights are by no means assured simply because they possess blue Israeli ID cards, as history has proved time and again to their cost......."
Clinton has run her campaign the same way Bush has run the country
By Gary Younge
The Guardian, Monday May 26 2008
"We all saw it. Indeed, that was the whole point. In the US, the networks stopped regular programming so we had little choice. The White House wanted to make sure we caught the full dramatic impact of the US president landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln in a navy jet against a backdrop of a clear sky and the sign "Mission Accomplished". America the beautiful. America the invincible.
The soundtrack to this most flamboyant and flawed of photo opportunities was similarly unequivocal. "Major combat operations in Iraq have ended," said President George Bush. "The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on September 11 2001 and still goes on."
"We are all capable of believing things which we know to be untrue," wrote George Orwell in his essay In Front of Your Nose. "And then, when we are finally proved wrong, impudently twisting the facts so as to show that we were right. Intellectually, it is possible to carry on this process for an indefinite time: the only check on it is that sooner or later a false belief bumps up against solid reality, usually on a battlefield."
And so it was, this month, that on the fifth anniversary of that stunt the White House spokeswoman, Dana Perino, insisted we did not see what we thought we saw. Indeed, we were all mistaken. The president wasn't referring to the Iraq war as such. Instead, claimed Perino, he made all that effort and secured all that airtime to congratulate just that "particular" crew on having accomplished its "particular" 10-month mission.
"President Bush is well aware that the banner should have been much more specific and said 'mission accomplished' for these sailors who are on this ship on their mission," she explained. "And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner."
This kind of thing gives chutzpah a bad name. And yet, with this administration it is a practice with which we have become all too familiar. As median wages fall, Bush tells Americans they are better off; as the torture continues at Guantánamo Bay - the only part of Cuba Bush actually controls - he calls on Raul Castro to honour human rights; as he cuts taxes and starts wars, he calls on Congress to practise fiscal rectitude. Not content with pissing on your leg and telling you it's raining, he tries to convince you that your leg has been dry all along.
As the primary season draws to a close it has become increasingly apparent that Hillary Clinton has run her campaign with the same contempt for intelligence, decency and democracy that Bush has run the country. Like the Bush administration, her campaign has been sustained by cynicism, divisiveness and fear-mongering, leaving a toxic and rancorous rift in its wake. Like the White House, her aim has been to win at all costs. And like the White House, it has produced the same result. Failure........"
The Guardian, Monday May 26 2008
"We all saw it. Indeed, that was the whole point. In the US, the networks stopped regular programming so we had little choice. The White House wanted to make sure we caught the full dramatic impact of the US president landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln in a navy jet against a backdrop of a clear sky and the sign "Mission Accomplished". America the beautiful. America the invincible.
The soundtrack to this most flamboyant and flawed of photo opportunities was similarly unequivocal. "Major combat operations in Iraq have ended," said President George Bush. "The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on September 11 2001 and still goes on."
"We are all capable of believing things which we know to be untrue," wrote George Orwell in his essay In Front of Your Nose. "And then, when we are finally proved wrong, impudently twisting the facts so as to show that we were right. Intellectually, it is possible to carry on this process for an indefinite time: the only check on it is that sooner or later a false belief bumps up against solid reality, usually on a battlefield."
And so it was, this month, that on the fifth anniversary of that stunt the White House spokeswoman, Dana Perino, insisted we did not see what we thought we saw. Indeed, we were all mistaken. The president wasn't referring to the Iraq war as such. Instead, claimed Perino, he made all that effort and secured all that airtime to congratulate just that "particular" crew on having accomplished its "particular" 10-month mission.
"President Bush is well aware that the banner should have been much more specific and said 'mission accomplished' for these sailors who are on this ship on their mission," she explained. "And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner."
This kind of thing gives chutzpah a bad name. And yet, with this administration it is a practice with which we have become all too familiar. As median wages fall, Bush tells Americans they are better off; as the torture continues at Guantánamo Bay - the only part of Cuba Bush actually controls - he calls on Raul Castro to honour human rights; as he cuts taxes and starts wars, he calls on Congress to practise fiscal rectitude. Not content with pissing on your leg and telling you it's raining, he tries to convince you that your leg has been dry all along.
As the primary season draws to a close it has become increasingly apparent that Hillary Clinton has run her campaign with the same contempt for intelligence, decency and democracy that Bush has run the country. Like the Bush administration, her campaign has been sustained by cynicism, divisiveness and fear-mongering, leaving a toxic and rancorous rift in its wake. Like the White House, her aim has been to win at all costs. And like the White House, it has produced the same result. Failure........"
Michel Sleiman Making Sure That The Tea Servers Are Ready....
Celebrate The Best Tea Service to The IOF in The Middle East!
Despite The Brave Pronouncements, Iran is Getting Cold Feet About Bashar Assad
Ahmadinejad Sure Syria Will Press Struggle on Israel
Al-Manar
"26/05/2008 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Monday that he remains confident Iran's close ally Syria will keep up the struggle against Israel [What struggle??]despite its announcement of renewed peace negotiations. "I am sure that the Syrian leadership will manage the situation with wisdom and will not abandon the front line [I have news for you Mr. Ahmadinejad: The Syrian leadership abandoned the front line on the Golan back in 1973! Not a single shot has been fired from Syria since then. Hell, Syria did not fire a shot when its facility in Deir El-Zur was recently obliterated by Israel! Where was your "military alliance" then? So, please stop the empty rhetoric and deal with the reality; we know what is going on. Soon, your "ally" Assad will be addressing the Israeli Knesset from the podium in Jerusalem, as a part of his resistance, no doubt.] until the complete removal of the Zionist threats," Ahmadinejad told visiting Syrian Defense Minister Hassan Turkmani.
"So far the cooperation between Iran and Syria in different areas has been beneficial for both sides and our defense ties should be expanded as far as possible," the official IRNA news agency quoted the president as saying.
Al-Manar
"26/05/2008 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Monday that he remains confident Iran's close ally Syria will keep up the struggle against Israel [What struggle??]despite its announcement of renewed peace negotiations. "I am sure that the Syrian leadership will manage the situation with wisdom and will not abandon the front line [I have news for you Mr. Ahmadinejad: The Syrian leadership abandoned the front line on the Golan back in 1973! Not a single shot has been fired from Syria since then. Hell, Syria did not fire a shot when its facility in Deir El-Zur was recently obliterated by Israel! Where was your "military alliance" then? So, please stop the empty rhetoric and deal with the reality; we know what is going on. Soon, your "ally" Assad will be addressing the Israeli Knesset from the podium in Jerusalem, as a part of his resistance, no doubt.] until the complete removal of the Zionist threats," Ahmadinejad told visiting Syrian Defense Minister Hassan Turkmani.
"So far the cooperation between Iran and Syria in different areas has been beneficial for both sides and our defense ties should be expanded as far as possible," the official IRNA news agency quoted the president as saying.
Turkmani's visit is the first to Iran by a Syrian official since Syria and Israel announced last Wednesday that they had resumed indirect peace negotiations through Turkish mediators, ending an eight-year freeze.
Turkmani held talks on Sunday with his Iranian counterpart Mostafa Mohammad Najjar, during which the Iranian side underlined the importance of "collective security". On Saturday, Syria rejected any preconditions to the new peace negotiations with Israel involving either breaking its three-decade alliance with Iran or its support for Lebanese and Palestinian resistance groups. Israeli officials have in the past conditioned any peace deal with Syria on its agreement to end both."
Turkmani held talks on Sunday with his Iranian counterpart Mostafa Mohammad Najjar, during which the Iranian side underlined the importance of "collective security". On Saturday, Syria rejected any preconditions to the new peace negotiations with Israel involving either breaking its three-decade alliance with Iran or its support for Lebanese and Palestinian resistance groups. Israeli officials have in the past conditioned any peace deal with Syria on its agreement to end both."
Sayyed Nasrallah to Hold Speech on Resistance Day
Al-Manar
"26/05/2008 Eight years on the liberation of most of south Lebanon from Israeli occupation, the Lebanese remember their Resistance and the great victory it accomplished with pride, glory and honor. They find in it an opportunity to vow once again their adherence to the resistance choice until the complete liberation of the land as well as the detainees in Israeli prisons.
Hezbollah organizes on Monday afternoon a festival in the southern suburb of Beirut to commemorate the Resistance and Liberation day. Everything was prepared for the rally, from flags, pictures, sound systems and thousands of chairs.
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah is expected to give a comprehensive political speech that would tackle the latest events internally in light of the Doha agreement and the election of Gen. Michel Suleiman as head of the State.
During the last few hours, Sayyed Nasrallah was discussing with Hezbollah leadership the main speech points. Sources noted that it will concentrate on everything that serves the internal situation." Sayyed Nasrallah will basically address the Sunni community in Lebanon and the Arab World. He will also launch a collection of stances concerning the resistance movements in Lebanon, Palestine and Iraq. "
Hamas: Liberation of south Lebanon proved success of resistance
"GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Monday said that the liberation of south Lebanon from Israeli occupation in May 2000 at the hands of Lebanese resistance proved success of the resistance option.
Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said in a press release that the successful Lebanese resistance had preserved higher interests and expelled Israeli occupiers from almost all occupied lands.
He said that the Israeli occupation government's repeated aggressions on Lebanon were meant to uproot resistance and weaken the Lebanese people's determination but the Lebanese resistance proved its strength in protecting the country's national interests and in defeating occupation.
The anniversary of the Lebanese success affirms to the Palestinian people and resistance that all settlement projects and negotiations with occupation would not bring about any positive result, Barhoum underlined.
He stressed that unity and determination of the people alongside resistance would be able to achieve the Palestinian people's goals in cleansing their lands of occupation."
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Carter urges 'supine' Europe to break with US over Gaza blockade
Ex-president says EU is colluding in a human rights crime
By Jonathan Steele and Jonathan Freedland
The Guardian, Monday May 26 2008
"Britain and other European governments should break from the US over the international embargo on Gaza, former US president Jimmy Carter told the Guardian yesterday. Carter, visiting the Welsh border town of Hay for the Guardian literary festival, described the EU's position on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute as "supine" and its failure to criticise the Israeli blockade of Gaza as "embarrassing".
Referring to the possibility of Europe breaking with the US in an interview with the Guardian, he said: "Why not? They're not our vassals. They occupy an equal position with the US."
The blockade on Hamas-ruled Gaza, imposed by the US, EU, UN and Russia - the so-called Quartet - after the organisation's election victory in 2006, was "one of the greatest human rights crimes on Earth," since it meant the "imprisonment of 1.6 million people, 1 million of whom are refugees". "Most families in Gaza are eating only one meal per day. To see Europeans going along with this is embarrassing," Carter said.....
While being scrupulously polite to the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, and prime minister, Salam Fayyad, who represent the Fatah movement, he was scathing about their exclusion of Hamas. He described the Fatah-only government as a "subterfuge" aimed at getting round Hamas's election victory two years ago. "The top opinion pollster in Ramallah told me the other day that opinion on the West Bank is shifting to Hamas, because people believe Fatah has sold out to Israel and the US," he said.
Carter said the Quartet's policy of not talking to Hamas unless it recognised Israel and fulfilled two other conditions had been drafted by Elliot Abrams, an official in the national security council at the White House. He called Abrams "a very militant supporter of Israel"......"The Quartet's final document had been drafted in Washington in advance, and not a line was changed," he said......"
When it comes to Israel , Europe is hypocritical, submissive and obsequious
Comment by Khalid Amayreh in Occupied Ramallah
"In comparison to the madman in the White House, Europe may look less bellicose, less confrontational and less unreasonable in its overall approach to contentious international issues.
However, when the issue is the Palestinian plight, the US and Europe look very much like tweedledee and tweedledum.
In recent months and years, European leaders from Germany’s Merkel, to France’s Sarkozy, to Britain’s Brown and Italy’s Berlusconi were shamelessly pandering to Israeli savagery to the extent of embracing relentless Israeli criminality against the Palestinian people , including the ongoing genocidal ethnic cleansing in the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly in the Gaza Strip.
True, the European tone of speech often sounds less odious especially when compared with the unmitigated saber-rattling coming from Washington. But, in the final analysis, the outcome in both cases is similar. In fact, the US and Europe collaborate and even collude to effect the same unethical goals often by playing the old game of Mutt and Jeff (good cop and bad cop), with their persecuted victims, whether in Palestine, Sudan or Iran.......
Hence, European inaction or reluctance to call the spade a spade so long as Israel is concerned is not due to ignorance of reality in Palestine, but rather to a willful European decision to play blind, deaf and dumb and look the other way, thus effectively leaving the Palestinians alone to face their fate at the hands of a state that is very much a crime against humanity.......
Needless to say, a morally-inconsistent European approach toward the Palestinian plight doesn’t auger well, neither for Europe nor for the world at large.
Indeed, if Europe, along with the US, continues to allow the “forces of the jungle” to determine the rule of the game (international politics), then all states will have to draw their conclusions because survival is paramount for nations as well as individuals. And if strength only respects strength, then everyone will have to be strong or risk extinction or at least enslavement by the powerful.
I am saying this because what America and Europe seem to be telling the Palestinians is that as long as you are weak, you will continue to be killed, raped, persecuted and starved to death, otherwise you’ve got to settle for a life of perpetual enslavement by the “chosen people.”
Some states, such as Iran, have already got and internalized the message, and sooner or later, other states will follow suit.
Is this the ideal world Europe would want to see?"
"In comparison to the madman in the White House, Europe may look less bellicose, less confrontational and less unreasonable in its overall approach to contentious international issues.
However, when the issue is the Palestinian plight, the US and Europe look very much like tweedledee and tweedledum.
In recent months and years, European leaders from Germany’s Merkel, to France’s Sarkozy, to Britain’s Brown and Italy’s Berlusconi were shamelessly pandering to Israeli savagery to the extent of embracing relentless Israeli criminality against the Palestinian people , including the ongoing genocidal ethnic cleansing in the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly in the Gaza Strip.
True, the European tone of speech often sounds less odious especially when compared with the unmitigated saber-rattling coming from Washington. But, in the final analysis, the outcome in both cases is similar. In fact, the US and Europe collaborate and even collude to effect the same unethical goals often by playing the old game of Mutt and Jeff (good cop and bad cop), with their persecuted victims, whether in Palestine, Sudan or Iran.......
Hence, European inaction or reluctance to call the spade a spade so long as Israel is concerned is not due to ignorance of reality in Palestine, but rather to a willful European decision to play blind, deaf and dumb and look the other way, thus effectively leaving the Palestinians alone to face their fate at the hands of a state that is very much a crime against humanity.......
Needless to say, a morally-inconsistent European approach toward the Palestinian plight doesn’t auger well, neither for Europe nor for the world at large.
Indeed, if Europe, along with the US, continues to allow the “forces of the jungle” to determine the rule of the game (international politics), then all states will have to draw their conclusions because survival is paramount for nations as well as individuals. And if strength only respects strength, then everyone will have to be strong or risk extinction or at least enslavement by the powerful.
I am saying this because what America and Europe seem to be telling the Palestinians is that as long as you are weak, you will continue to be killed, raped, persecuted and starved to death, otherwise you’ve got to settle for a life of perpetual enslavement by the “chosen people.”
Some states, such as Iran, have already got and internalized the message, and sooner or later, other states will follow suit.
Is this the ideal world Europe would want to see?"
Provocations as Pretexts for Imperial War: From Pearl Harbor to 9/11
By James Petras
"Wars in an imperialist democracy cannot simply be dictated by executive fiat, they require the consent of highly motivated masses who will make the human and material sacrifices.
Imperialist leaders have to create a visible and highly charged emotional sense of injustice and righteousness to secure national cohesion and overcome the natural opposition to early death, destruction and disruption of civilian life and to the brutal regimentation that goes with submission to absolutist rule by the military.
The need to invent a cause is especially the case with imperialist countries because their national territory is not under threat. There is no visible occupation army oppressing the mass of the people in their everyday life. The ‘enemy’ does not disrupt everyday normal life – as forced conscription would and does. Under normal peaceful time, who would be willing to sacrifice their constitutional rights and their participation in civil society to subject themselves to martial rule that precludes the exercise of all their civil freedoms?
The task of imperial rulers is to fabricate a world in which the enemy to be attacked (an emerging imperial power like Japan) is portrayed as an ‘invader’ or an ‘aggressor’ in the case of revolutionary movements (Korean and Indo-Chinese communists) engaged in a civil war against an imperial client ruler or a ‘terrorist conspiracy’ linked to an anti-imperialist, anti-colonial Islamic movements and secular states. Imperialist-democracies in the past did not need to consult or secure mass support for their expansionist wars; they relied on volunteer armies, mercenaries and colonial subjects led and directed by colonial officers. Only with the confluence of imperialism, electoral politics and total war did the need arise to secure not only consent, but also enthusiasm, to facilitate mass recruitment and obligatory conscription......
Professor Zelikow – Where do we go from here?
The key figure in and around the Bush Administration who actively promoted a ‘new Pearl Harbor’ and was at least in part responsible for the policy of complicity with the 9/11 terrorists was Philip Zelikow. Zelikow, a prominent Israel-Firster, is a government academic, whose expertise was in the nebulous area of ‘catastrophic terrorism’ – events which enabled US political leaders to concentrate executive powers and violate constitutional freedoms in pursuit of offensive imperial wars and in developing the ‘public myth’. Philip Shenon’s book, The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation pinpoints Zelikow’s strategic role in the Bush Administration in the lead up to 9/11, the period of ‘complicit neglect’, in its aftermath, the offensive global war period, and in the government’s cover-up of its complicity in the terror attack.
Prior to 9/11 Zelikow provided a‘blueprint’ for the process of an executive seizing extreme power for global warfare. He outlined a sequence in which a ‘catastrophic terrorist event’ could facilitate the absolute concentration of power, followed by the launching of offensive wars for Israel (as he publicly admitted). In the run-up to 9/11 and the multiple wars, he served as a member of National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice’s National Security Council transition team (2000-2001), which had intimate knowledge of terrorist plans to seize US commercial flights, as Rice herself publicly admitted (‘conventional hijackings’ was her term). Zelikow was instrumental in demoting and disabling the counter-terrorism expert Richard Clark from the National Security Council, the one agency tracking the terrorist operation. Between 2001-2003, Zelikow was a member of the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. This was the agency, which had failed to follow-up and failed to pursue the key intelligence reports identifying terrorist plans. Zelikow, after playing a major role in undermining intelligence efforts to prevent the terrorist attack, became the principle author of the 2002 National Security Strategy of the United States, which prescribed Bush’s policy of military invasion of Iraq and targeted Syria, Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and other independent Arab and Muslim countries and political entities. Zelikow’s ‘National Security Strategy’ paper was the most influential directive shaping the global state terrorist policies of the Bush regime. It also brought US war policies in the closest alignment with the regional military aspirations of the Israeli state since the founding of Israel. Indeed, this was why the former Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated at Bar Ilan University that the 9/11 attack and the US invasion of Iraq were ‘good for Israel’ (see Haaretz, April 16, 2008).
Finally Zelikow, as Bush’s personal appointee as the Executive Director of the 9/11 Commission, coordinated the cover-up of the Administration policy of complicity in 9/11 with the Vice President’s office. While Zelikow is not considered an academic heavyweight, his ubiquitous role in the design, execution and cover-up of the world-shattering events surrounding 9/11 and its aftermath mark him as one of the most dangerous and destructive political ‘influentials’ in the shaping and launching of Washington’s past, present and future catastrophic wars."
"Wars in an imperialist democracy cannot simply be dictated by executive fiat, they require the consent of highly motivated masses who will make the human and material sacrifices.
Imperialist leaders have to create a visible and highly charged emotional sense of injustice and righteousness to secure national cohesion and overcome the natural opposition to early death, destruction and disruption of civilian life and to the brutal regimentation that goes with submission to absolutist rule by the military.
The need to invent a cause is especially the case with imperialist countries because their national territory is not under threat. There is no visible occupation army oppressing the mass of the people in their everyday life. The ‘enemy’ does not disrupt everyday normal life – as forced conscription would and does. Under normal peaceful time, who would be willing to sacrifice their constitutional rights and their participation in civil society to subject themselves to martial rule that precludes the exercise of all their civil freedoms?
The task of imperial rulers is to fabricate a world in which the enemy to be attacked (an emerging imperial power like Japan) is portrayed as an ‘invader’ or an ‘aggressor’ in the case of revolutionary movements (Korean and Indo-Chinese communists) engaged in a civil war against an imperial client ruler or a ‘terrorist conspiracy’ linked to an anti-imperialist, anti-colonial Islamic movements and secular states. Imperialist-democracies in the past did not need to consult or secure mass support for their expansionist wars; they relied on volunteer armies, mercenaries and colonial subjects led and directed by colonial officers. Only with the confluence of imperialism, electoral politics and total war did the need arise to secure not only consent, but also enthusiasm, to facilitate mass recruitment and obligatory conscription......
Professor Zelikow – Where do we go from here?
The key figure in and around the Bush Administration who actively promoted a ‘new Pearl Harbor’ and was at least in part responsible for the policy of complicity with the 9/11 terrorists was Philip Zelikow. Zelikow, a prominent Israel-Firster, is a government academic, whose expertise was in the nebulous area of ‘catastrophic terrorism’ – events which enabled US political leaders to concentrate executive powers and violate constitutional freedoms in pursuit of offensive imperial wars and in developing the ‘public myth’. Philip Shenon’s book, The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation pinpoints Zelikow’s strategic role in the Bush Administration in the lead up to 9/11, the period of ‘complicit neglect’, in its aftermath, the offensive global war period, and in the government’s cover-up of its complicity in the terror attack.
Prior to 9/11 Zelikow provided a‘blueprint’ for the process of an executive seizing extreme power for global warfare. He outlined a sequence in which a ‘catastrophic terrorist event’ could facilitate the absolute concentration of power, followed by the launching of offensive wars for Israel (as he publicly admitted). In the run-up to 9/11 and the multiple wars, he served as a member of National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice’s National Security Council transition team (2000-2001), which had intimate knowledge of terrorist plans to seize US commercial flights, as Rice herself publicly admitted (‘conventional hijackings’ was her term). Zelikow was instrumental in demoting and disabling the counter-terrorism expert Richard Clark from the National Security Council, the one agency tracking the terrorist operation. Between 2001-2003, Zelikow was a member of the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. This was the agency, which had failed to follow-up and failed to pursue the key intelligence reports identifying terrorist plans. Zelikow, after playing a major role in undermining intelligence efforts to prevent the terrorist attack, became the principle author of the 2002 National Security Strategy of the United States, which prescribed Bush’s policy of military invasion of Iraq and targeted Syria, Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and other independent Arab and Muslim countries and political entities. Zelikow’s ‘National Security Strategy’ paper was the most influential directive shaping the global state terrorist policies of the Bush regime. It also brought US war policies in the closest alignment with the regional military aspirations of the Israeli state since the founding of Israel. Indeed, this was why the former Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated at Bar Ilan University that the 9/11 attack and the US invasion of Iraq were ‘good for Israel’ (see Haaretz, April 16, 2008).
Finally Zelikow, as Bush’s personal appointee as the Executive Director of the 9/11 Commission, coordinated the cover-up of the Administration policy of complicity in 9/11 with the Vice President’s office. While Zelikow is not considered an academic heavyweight, his ubiquitous role in the design, execution and cover-up of the world-shattering events surrounding 9/11 and its aftermath mark him as one of the most dangerous and destructive political ‘influentials’ in the shaping and launching of Washington’s past, present and future catastrophic wars."
Happy "Liberation and Resistance Day" to all those who resist!
From The Vineyard of The Saker
"On May 25th Lebanon, at least that part of Lebanon which cares about its freedom, marks "Liberation and Resistance Day": the day when Hezbollah defeated Israel after a brutal 22 year long occupation and expelled the Zionists out of Lebanon.
This day, however, should be celebrated by all those who believe "that resistance is life and life is resistance" because what happened 8 years ago was the first (post-Cold War) victory by a popular resistance movement against the Empire. Not only did May 25th, 2000, mark a huge imperial defeat, but it proved to be the opening battle in a long war for the liberation of the entire Middle-East and, hopefully, the rest of the planet from the oppression and exploitation of the USraelian Empire.......
"On May 25th Lebanon, at least that part of Lebanon which cares about its freedom, marks "Liberation and Resistance Day": the day when Hezbollah defeated Israel after a brutal 22 year long occupation and expelled the Zionists out of Lebanon.
This day, however, should be celebrated by all those who believe "that resistance is life and life is resistance" because what happened 8 years ago was the first (post-Cold War) victory by a popular resistance movement against the Empire. Not only did May 25th, 2000, mark a huge imperial defeat, but it proved to be the opening battle in a long war for the liberation of the entire Middle-East and, hopefully, the rest of the planet from the oppression and exploitation of the USraelian Empire.......
Here below is the story of May 25 as told by Hezbollah's al-Manar TV.
Happy Liberation and Resistance Day!
The Saker"
Jews for Jesus' in Israel demand inquiry into burning of bibles by Orthodox Jews
"After a massive 'bible burning' by the deputy mayor and orthodox Jewish students in the town of Or Yehuda, in Israel, a group of Messianic Jews, or 'Jews for Jesus' as they are known, have called for an inquiry into the incident.
Apparently the Ethiopian Jews living in the town were visited by Messianic Jewish missionaries, who believe in Jesus as their saviour. The missionaries dropped off bibles and pamphlets for the residents to peruse. Several days later, the deputy mayor of the town went through the town shouting through a loudspeaker for everyone to hand over the bibles to a group of Orthodox Jewish students who were going around and collecting them. The students then piled up the bibles and burned them.
The incident brings out an increasing tension between Orthodox and Messianic Jews in Israel. Orthodox Jewish groups have cheered the book burning, while Messianic Jews have criticized the town and the students for burning the holy books.
Proselytizing to Ethiopian Jews is a sensitive issue, as some Ethiopians claim that they were forced to convert to Christianity while in Ethiopia. Some Israelis have voiced concern that many of the Ethiopians who came to Israel in recent years claiming to be Jewish may in fact be Christian, thus adding to the tension."
Lebanese army chief Michel Sleiman, responsible for the destruction of Nahr Al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp, the killing of more than 47 Palestinians and making 30,000 Palestinians refugees again, is "elected" president.....
Celebrate now!
"...However, for most of the 30,000 Palestinians who once populated Nahr al-Bared, their return to the camp is still far off. As of late April, only between 1,500 and 2,000 families have been allowed to return to the so-called "new" camp that is located outside the core of Nahr al-Bared. The "old'" camp refers to the original site of Nahr al-Bared which is now completely destroyed and sealed off by the Lebanese army for, it states, "de-mining" purposes...."
تل أبيب طالبت القاهرة باعتقال 250 مصريًا بتهمة تهريب الأسلحة لغزة
اللوبي الإسرائيلي يطالب بزيادة التعاون الاستخباراتي مع مصر
"تسعى منظمات تابعة للوبي الإسرائيلي بالولايات المتحدة في الوقت الراهن إلى دفع الكونجرس الأمريكي للضغط على مصر من أجل مزيد من التعاون الاستخباراتي في سيناء وعلى الحدود مع غزة للحد من تدفق الأسلحة إلى غزة عبر الحدود المصرية.
وذكرت وكالة أنباء "أمريكا إن أرابيك" أن إسرائيل سلمت مصر أسماء 250 مصريا تتهمهم بالمساعدة في تهريب الأسلحة إلى غزة، وطلبت اعتقالهم فورا، وأشارت في ذات الوقت إلى ضغوط يقوم بها اللوبي الإسرائيلي في واشنطن من أجل الإسراع بإرسال مهندسين أمريكيين تابعين لسلاح المهندسين الأمريكي ومعدات يتحكم فيها عن بعد لإغلاق حوالي 40 نفقا بين مصر وغزة.
وأفادت الوكالة أنها حصلت على وثيقة تقدم بها مركز أبحاث مرتبط باللوبي الإسرائيلي إلى اللجنة الفرعية لشئون الشرق الأوسط، التابعة للجنة العلاقات الخارجية الأمريكية، زعم فيها إن إسرائيل تمكنت من الحصول على معلومات استخباراتية تفيد تورط 250 مصريا، معظمهم من سيناء، في عمليات تهريب مزعومة إلى غزة.
وجاء في الوثيقة التي قام بكتابتها الباحث المخضرم ديفيد ماكوفسكي، التابع لمعهد واشنطن لدراسات الشرق الأدنى، وهو المعهد المتفرع عن لجنة العلاقات الأمريكية - الإسرائيلية العامة (إيباك) وهي أكبر منظمات اللوبي الإسرائيلي وأكثرها تنظيما، ان إسرائيل قامت بتسليم مصر قائمة بها 250 أسما لأشخاص مصريين، معظمهم من سيناء، وطالبت بسرعة اعتقالهم لدورهم المزعوم في تهريب الأسلحة والصواريخ إلى غزة، الأمر الذي لم تنفذ مصر حتى الآن.
غير أن الوثيقة التي تم تقديمها للكونجرس في 21 مايو لا تشرح كيفية ولا توقيت حصول إسرائيل على أسماء المصريين، أو إذا ما كان هناك لإسرائيل عملاء داخل سيناء تمكنوا من رصد هؤلاء المهربين وحصلوا على أسمائهم.
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"تسعى منظمات تابعة للوبي الإسرائيلي بالولايات المتحدة في الوقت الراهن إلى دفع الكونجرس الأمريكي للضغط على مصر من أجل مزيد من التعاون الاستخباراتي في سيناء وعلى الحدود مع غزة للحد من تدفق الأسلحة إلى غزة عبر الحدود المصرية.
وذكرت وكالة أنباء "أمريكا إن أرابيك" أن إسرائيل سلمت مصر أسماء 250 مصريا تتهمهم بالمساعدة في تهريب الأسلحة إلى غزة، وطلبت اعتقالهم فورا، وأشارت في ذات الوقت إلى ضغوط يقوم بها اللوبي الإسرائيلي في واشنطن من أجل الإسراع بإرسال مهندسين أمريكيين تابعين لسلاح المهندسين الأمريكي ومعدات يتحكم فيها عن بعد لإغلاق حوالي 40 نفقا بين مصر وغزة.
وأفادت الوكالة أنها حصلت على وثيقة تقدم بها مركز أبحاث مرتبط باللوبي الإسرائيلي إلى اللجنة الفرعية لشئون الشرق الأوسط، التابعة للجنة العلاقات الخارجية الأمريكية، زعم فيها إن إسرائيل تمكنت من الحصول على معلومات استخباراتية تفيد تورط 250 مصريا، معظمهم من سيناء، في عمليات تهريب مزعومة إلى غزة.
وجاء في الوثيقة التي قام بكتابتها الباحث المخضرم ديفيد ماكوفسكي، التابع لمعهد واشنطن لدراسات الشرق الأدنى، وهو المعهد المتفرع عن لجنة العلاقات الأمريكية - الإسرائيلية العامة (إيباك) وهي أكبر منظمات اللوبي الإسرائيلي وأكثرها تنظيما، ان إسرائيل قامت بتسليم مصر قائمة بها 250 أسما لأشخاص مصريين، معظمهم من سيناء، وطالبت بسرعة اعتقالهم لدورهم المزعوم في تهريب الأسلحة والصواريخ إلى غزة، الأمر الذي لم تنفذ مصر حتى الآن.
غير أن الوثيقة التي تم تقديمها للكونجرس في 21 مايو لا تشرح كيفية ولا توقيت حصول إسرائيل على أسماء المصريين، أو إذا ما كان هناك لإسرائيل عملاء داخل سيناء تمكنوا من رصد هؤلاء المهربين وحصلوا على أسمائهم.
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American Israel critic denied entry to country
(Click on cartoon by Carlos Latuff to enlarge)
"American political scientist and fierce critic of Israel, Prof. Norman Finkelstein, was denied entry to Israel and deported from the country early Saturday morning. Officials said that the decision to deport Finkelstein was connected to his anti-Zionist opinions and fierce public criticism of Israel around the world......."
Fearing Gaza rockets, IDF moves troops, civilian staff from Erez
"Israel will transfer dozens of Israel Defense Forces soldiers and civilian employees stationed at the Erez crossing's Coordination and Liaison Administration to a base removed from the range of rockets and mortars being launched from the Gaza Strip, it was announced Sunday.
Defense officials opted for the move following Thursday's attempted bomb attack in which a truck carrying significant amounts of explosives blew up on the Palestinian side of the Erez crossing.
Last year, a public outcry ensued after a Qassam rocket struck the Zikim inductee base, prompting parents to demand that the army move the soldiers to a base outside of rocket and mortar range. IDF officers were strenuous in resisting the calls, insisting that "wherever there are civilians present, soldiers will not be evacuated." ....."
Escaping Forwards
By Uri Avnery
".......A PERTINENT question: if Olmert has indeed decided to "escape forwards"' why escape forwards towards peace and not towards war? This is what usually happens: leaders on the threshold of disaster prefer to start a little (or sometimes big) war. There is nothing like war to divert attention, and waging war is almost always more popular, at least at the beginning, than making peace.
Here there are also two possibilities:
The first: like Paul, Olmert had a revelation, and has really become a man of peace. The nationalist demagogue has matured and now understands that the national interest demands peace. A cynic will laugh out loud. But stranger things have happened on the road to Damascus.
The second: Olmert believes that the Israeli public prefers peace with Syria to war with Syria, and hopes to gain some popularity as a peace-maker. (I believe this to be true.)
The third: Olmert knows that all the chiefs of the Security Establishment (with the notable exception of the Mossad boss) support peace with Syria out of cold strategic calculation. In the eyes of the army General Staff, the loss of the Golan Heights is a reasonable price to pay for breaking Syria loose from Iran and lessening its support for Hizbullah and Hamas, especially if an international force is stationed there after they revert to being the "Syrian Heights".
Syria is a Sunni country, even if it is ruled by members of the small Alawite sect, which is closer to the Shia. (The Alawis derive their name from Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet, who the Shiites consider his rightful heir.) The alliance between secular Sunni Syria and orthodox Shiite Iran is a marriage of convenience, without an ideological basis. The alliance with Shiite Hizbullah is also based on interests: since Syria does not dare to attack Israel in order to get the Golan back, it supports Hizbullah as a proxy......
During his visit to Jerusalem a few days ago, Bush railed against talking with enemies. This was understood to be a rebuke aimed at Barack Obama, who has announced his willingness to speak with the leaders of Iran. Perhaps Olmert is already betting on Obama's entering the White House.
But Bush is not finished yet. He has got eight more months to go, and he, too, may come to the conclusion that he should "escape forwards". In his case: by attacking Iran.
HOW IS all this going to affect the mother of all problems, the core of the Israeli-Arab conflict: the question of Palestine?
Menachem Begin made a separate peace with Egypt and gave back the whole of the Sinai Peninsula in order to concentrate on the war with the Palestinians. Undoubtedly, Begin was ready to do the same on the Syrian front. According to the map used by Vladimir (Ze'ev) Jabotinsky, which Olmert was brought up on, the Golan, like Sinai, is not a part of Eretz Israel.
A separate peace harbors great dangers for the Palestinians. If the Israeli government reaches a peace agreement with Syria (and then Lebanon), it will have peace with all the neighboring states. The Palestinians will be isolated and the Israeli government will be able to deal with them as it wishes......"
".......A PERTINENT question: if Olmert has indeed decided to "escape forwards"' why escape forwards towards peace and not towards war? This is what usually happens: leaders on the threshold of disaster prefer to start a little (or sometimes big) war. There is nothing like war to divert attention, and waging war is almost always more popular, at least at the beginning, than making peace.
Here there are also two possibilities:
The first: like Paul, Olmert had a revelation, and has really become a man of peace. The nationalist demagogue has matured and now understands that the national interest demands peace. A cynic will laugh out loud. But stranger things have happened on the road to Damascus.
The second: Olmert believes that the Israeli public prefers peace with Syria to war with Syria, and hopes to gain some popularity as a peace-maker. (I believe this to be true.)
The third: Olmert knows that all the chiefs of the Security Establishment (with the notable exception of the Mossad boss) support peace with Syria out of cold strategic calculation. In the eyes of the army General Staff, the loss of the Golan Heights is a reasonable price to pay for breaking Syria loose from Iran and lessening its support for Hizbullah and Hamas, especially if an international force is stationed there after they revert to being the "Syrian Heights".
Syria is a Sunni country, even if it is ruled by members of the small Alawite sect, which is closer to the Shia. (The Alawis derive their name from Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet, who the Shiites consider his rightful heir.) The alliance between secular Sunni Syria and orthodox Shiite Iran is a marriage of convenience, without an ideological basis. The alliance with Shiite Hizbullah is also based on interests: since Syria does not dare to attack Israel in order to get the Golan back, it supports Hizbullah as a proxy......
During his visit to Jerusalem a few days ago, Bush railed against talking with enemies. This was understood to be a rebuke aimed at Barack Obama, who has announced his willingness to speak with the leaders of Iran. Perhaps Olmert is already betting on Obama's entering the White House.
But Bush is not finished yet. He has got eight more months to go, and he, too, may come to the conclusion that he should "escape forwards". In his case: by attacking Iran.
HOW IS all this going to affect the mother of all problems, the core of the Israeli-Arab conflict: the question of Palestine?
Menachem Begin made a separate peace with Egypt and gave back the whole of the Sinai Peninsula in order to concentrate on the war with the Palestinians. Undoubtedly, Begin was ready to do the same on the Syrian front. According to the map used by Vladimir (Ze'ev) Jabotinsky, which Olmert was brought up on, the Golan, like Sinai, is not a part of Eretz Israel.
A separate peace harbors great dangers for the Palestinians. If the Israeli government reaches a peace agreement with Syria (and then Lebanon), it will have peace with all the neighboring states. The Palestinians will be isolated and the Israeli government will be able to deal with them as it wishes......"
One State: Coexistence, Not Apartheid
By Ramzy Baroud
Palestine Chronicle
"For the last 60 years, all those who have sought a genuinely peaceful and fair solution for Israel and Palestine have faced the same obstacle — Israel's sense of invincibility and military arrogance, abetted by the US and other Western governments' unwavering support.
Despite recent setbacks on the military front, the Israeli government is yet to awaken to the reality that Israel is simply not invincible. The wheel of history, which has seen the rise and fall of many great powers, won't grind to a halt. Experiences have also repeatedly shown that neither Israel's nuclear arms nor Washington's billions of dollars in annual funds could create 'security' for the former.......
If Israel is indeed interested in a peaceful resolution to this bloody conflict, one that is based on equal human and legal rights, justice, security and lasting peace, then it must add a new word to its lexicon: coexistence. Jews and Arabs coexisted peacefully prior to the rise of Zionism, and they are capable of doing so in the future. Any other solution would simply institutionalise racism and apartheid, undermine democracy and human rights and thus further perpetuate violence.
It's time for a secular, democratic state to cease being part of a removed academic discussion, and instead be integrated into mainstream debate, if not dialogue in Palestine and Israel. This is the right, moral and indeed urgent course of action required now. "
"For the last 60 years, all those who have sought a genuinely peaceful and fair solution for Israel and Palestine have faced the same obstacle — Israel's sense of invincibility and military arrogance, abetted by the US and other Western governments' unwavering support.
Despite recent setbacks on the military front, the Israeli government is yet to awaken to the reality that Israel is simply not invincible. The wheel of history, which has seen the rise and fall of many great powers, won't grind to a halt. Experiences have also repeatedly shown that neither Israel's nuclear arms nor Washington's billions of dollars in annual funds could create 'security' for the former.......
If Israel is indeed interested in a peaceful resolution to this bloody conflict, one that is based on equal human and legal rights, justice, security and lasting peace, then it must add a new word to its lexicon: coexistence. Jews and Arabs coexisted peacefully prior to the rise of Zionism, and they are capable of doing so in the future. Any other solution would simply institutionalise racism and apartheid, undermine democracy and human rights and thus further perpetuate violence.
It's time for a secular, democratic state to cease being part of a removed academic discussion, and instead be integrated into mainstream debate, if not dialogue in Palestine and Israel. This is the right, moral and indeed urgent course of action required now. "
Manufacturing Consent For The Attack on Iran And Greasing The Skids For War
Iran 'paid Iraq insurgents to kill UK soldiers'
The Telegraph
"Iran has secretly paid Iraqi insurgents hundreds of thousands of American dollars to kill British soldiers, according to a leaked government document obtained by The Telegraph.
The allegations are contained in a confidential "field report" written by a British officer who served in Basra during one of the most dangerous periods of the conflict. The report, which has never been made public, shows the full level of Iran's involvement in the insurgency for the first time.
The document states that the Jaish al-Mahdi (JAM) – also known as the Mahdi Army – one of the most violent insurgent groups operating in Basra, used money from Iran to recruit and pay young unemployed men up to $300 (£150) a month to carry out attacks against the British. The findings have been passed to the highest levels in the military........"
"Iran has secretly paid Iraqi insurgents hundreds of thousands of American dollars to kill British soldiers, according to a leaked government document obtained by The Telegraph.
The allegations are contained in a confidential "field report" written by a British officer who served in Basra during one of the most dangerous periods of the conflict. The report, which has never been made public, shows the full level of Iran's involvement in the insurgency for the first time.
The document states that the Jaish al-Mahdi (JAM) – also known as the Mahdi Army – one of the most violent insurgent groups operating in Basra, used money from Iran to recruit and pay young unemployed men up to $300 (£150) a month to carry out attacks against the British. The findings have been passed to the highest levels in the military........"
Al-Jazeera Video: The Continuing Catastrophe - 24 May 08
A Very Good Video
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
"To conclude Al Jazeera's special coverage of the 60th anniversary of the creation of Israel - an event known to Palestinians as 'al Nakba' (the catastrophe) - senior political analyst Marwan Bishara hosts a debate examining why the events of 1948 still have wide-ranging political ramifications today. "
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
"To conclude Al Jazeera's special coverage of the 60th anniversary of the creation of Israel - an event known to Palestinians as 'al Nakba' (the catastrophe) - senior political analyst Marwan Bishara hosts a debate examining why the events of 1948 still have wide-ranging political ramifications today. "
Syria's Contribution to Restoring Palestinian National Rights?
A Palestinian Flag....
But Not Just Like Any Other Flag.....
This One is The Largest in The World!
It Covers 28,000 Square Meters, and Cost Only $28,000
Go Bashar!
فلسطيني يفوز بجائزة صحفية أميركية
"حقق الصحفي الفلسطيني الشاب محمد عمر المغيَّر، من سكان مخيم بدر للاجئين برفح جنوبي قطاع غزة فوزًا جديدًا، أضيف إلى سلسلة إنجازاته الصحفية، بحصوله على جائزة مارثا غيلبورن 'Martha Gelhorn Journalism Prize 2008' الأميركية عن أفضل مجموعة قصص صحفية على مستوى العالم.
وجاء فوز المغير بالجائزة عن مجموعة من القصص الإخبارية نشرها في مجلة "تقرير واشنطن لشؤون الشرق الأوسط" الأميركية (باللغة الإنجليزية) تناولت فصول المعاناة التي يعيشها الشعب الفلسطيني في ظل الحصار، من بينها قصة بعنوان "أريد أن أعيش"، وأخرى بعنوان "أولمرت: أريد أبي".
ولم يكن الفوز الذي حققه المغير الوحيد فقد حظي العام الماضي بجائزة إثنيك ميديا Ethnic Media Award بالولايات المتحدة لأفضل قصة صحفية على مستوى العالم عن قصته "شارون.. لماذا هدمت منزلي".
ما يميز فوز المغير هذه المرة أنه لامس الواقع الإنساني للفلسطينيين في غزة، ومثل فوزه نجاحاً لأول صحفي فلسطيني شاب استطاع انتزاع مكان له إلى جانب عمالقة الصحافة المكتوبة في العالم.
ويقول المغير إن أهم ما يميز القصص الصحفية التي يكتبها "اتصافها بعمقها الإنساني وملامستها للواقع ومتابعتها لأدق تفاصيل المعاناة اليومية التي يمر بها الإنسان الفلسطيني
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وجاء فوز المغير بالجائزة عن مجموعة من القصص الإخبارية نشرها في مجلة "تقرير واشنطن لشؤون الشرق الأوسط" الأميركية (باللغة الإنجليزية) تناولت فصول المعاناة التي يعيشها الشعب الفلسطيني في ظل الحصار، من بينها قصة بعنوان "أريد أن أعيش"، وأخرى بعنوان "أولمرت: أريد أبي".
ولم يكن الفوز الذي حققه المغير الوحيد فقد حظي العام الماضي بجائزة إثنيك ميديا Ethnic Media Award بالولايات المتحدة لأفضل قصة صحفية على مستوى العالم عن قصته "شارون.. لماذا هدمت منزلي".
ما يميز فوز المغير هذه المرة أنه لامس الواقع الإنساني للفلسطينيين في غزة، ومثل فوزه نجاحاً لأول صحفي فلسطيني شاب استطاع انتزاع مكان له إلى جانب عمالقة الصحافة المكتوبة في العالم.
ويقول المغير إن أهم ما يميز القصص الصحفية التي يكتبها "اتصافها بعمقها الإنساني وملامستها للواقع ومتابعتها لأدق تفاصيل المعاناة اليومية التي يمر بها الإنسان الفلسطيني
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Current Al-Jazeera (Arabic) Online Poll
The question is:
Do you support Hamas taking any measure to break the Gaza siege?
With about 800 responding so far (it is early), 90% said yes.
Do you support Hamas taking any measure to break the Gaza siege?
With about 800 responding so far (it is early), 90% said yes.
Barghouthi: Israel lies when it talks about easing movement in WB
"GAZA, (PIC)-- Dr. Mustafa Al-Barghouthi, a Palestinian lawmaker, stated Saturday that the IOA is persisting in its policy of deception through its allegation that it eased the movement of Palestinian citizens in the West Bank.
He affirmed that Israel is stalling to gain time and use negotiations to cover up its crimes against the Palestinians and to impose the status quo.
He affirmed that Israel is stalling to gain time and use negotiations to cover up its crimes against the Palestinians and to impose the status quo.
Commenting on the UN report on the 7% increase in Israeli roadblocks in the West Bank, Dr. Barghouthi said that the number of Israeli military checkpoints had increased from 521 to 607 roadblocks since the Annapolis conference.
In a written statement, the Palestinian lawmaker underlined that the UN report "confirmed what we had earlier mentioned about Israel's misleading policy and the increase of the West Bank checkpoints by seven per cent since September 2007".
The lawmaker recalled that Israel placed weeks ago barriers in the Balaa area in Tulkarem and invited journalists to cover their removal in an attempt to mislead the international public opinion.
In another context, the PLC presidency strongly denounced the Israeli military court for extending the administrative detention of a number of kidnapped MPs, considering such trials aimed to undermine the steadfastness of the Palestinian representatives and humiliate them through the way the Israeli wardens brings them to court.
The Israeli military court in the Salem area in the West Bank decided Saturday to postpone the trial of four detained MPs at the pretext that the Israeli prosecution was not able to bring its witnesses.
The PLC held the Israeli occupation fully responsible for the safety of the Palestinian MPs in its jails especially since many of those detained MPs suffer from diseases in addition to maltreatment."
In a written statement, the Palestinian lawmaker underlined that the UN report "confirmed what we had earlier mentioned about Israel's misleading policy and the increase of the West Bank checkpoints by seven per cent since September 2007".
The lawmaker recalled that Israel placed weeks ago barriers in the Balaa area in Tulkarem and invited journalists to cover their removal in an attempt to mislead the international public opinion.
In another context, the PLC presidency strongly denounced the Israeli military court for extending the administrative detention of a number of kidnapped MPs, considering such trials aimed to undermine the steadfastness of the Palestinian representatives and humiliate them through the way the Israeli wardens brings them to court.
The Israeli military court in the Salem area in the West Bank decided Saturday to postpone the trial of four detained MPs at the pretext that the Israeli prosecution was not able to bring its witnesses.
The PLC held the Israeli occupation fully responsible for the safety of the Palestinian MPs in its jails especially since many of those detained MPs suffer from diseases in addition to maltreatment."
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Real News Video: Iran's role as a regional power
"The Real News Network's Paul Jay talks to Gareth Porter about Iran's goals in supporting Hamas and Hezbollah. Hezbollah may have started with the help of Iran but it has evolved into something that is quite independent. Iran's position in relation to Hamas and Hezbollah are as "bargaining chips" in a negotiated settlement with the US to be recognized as a regional power in the Middle East."
Video: The Easiest Targets
No sign of Sistani image-refurbishment in Iraq
From Missing Links
".......Speaking of Sistani, the evidence so far is that there isn't any basis at all for thinking that the Najaf authorities were responding to domestic pressure and trying to distance themselves from the oppressive policies represented by the Sadr City campaign. On the contrary, they seem to have made no meaningful effort to have any part of the AP story reflected in Iraqi news accounts. On the Sistani.org official website, the only reference to the meeting is a few lines from the AFP story, which merely quoted Maliki on the theme of Sistani's "support for the government in general". And Aswat al Iraq, which would be the natural place to launch something into the Iraqi media, dismisses the whole dustup this way:
A source close to [Sistani] denied reports circulated by global [meaning foreign] news agencies about Sistani having issued a fatwa permitting the use of arms to oust the foreign forces from Iraq, stressing that [Sistani] has been calling for peaceful resistance since the fall of the prior regime.
The "not at the present time" phrase, so far, seems to have occurred only in a couple of lines at the end of a story in AlSharq al-Awsat this morning; and on the obscure website I cited yesterday. (By contrast, the big proponent of refurbishing his image, and holding out the prospect of an eventual turn against the foreign forces by Najaf (and by Maliki and Hakim too!) was none other than Juan Cole himself. Whether refurbishment of the Najaf/Maliki image in America via Cole was in any way behind the whole AP kerfuffle or not, of course one cannot say. But the fact it didn't have that effect at all in Iraq does make one wonder...)"
More on Finkelstein: Israel denies entry to high-profile critic Norman Finkelstein
"The Shin Bet security service detained and deported an American Jewish professor who is a prominent critic of the Israeli occupation when he landed at Ben-Gurion International Airport on Friday.
Professor Norman Finkelstein was interrogated for several hours and held in an airport cell before being put on a plane back to Amsterdam, his point of departure. Finkelstein said he was told he could not return to Israel for 10 years......
Finkelstein visited Lebanon a few months ago and met with Hezbollah operatives there, and subsequently published articles.
Finkelstein, 55, has accused Israel of exploiting the Holocaust for political ends. He recently left DePaul University following pressure by Jewish organizations and individuals, including Professor Alan Dershowitz.
He also said in the interview that he was "en route to Palestine to see one of my oldest and dearest friends, Musa Abu-Hashhash."
Finkelstein said he was asked whether he had met with Al Qaida operatives, whether he had been sent to Israel by Hezbollah and how he intended to finance his stay in Israel.
"I was kept in a holding cell at the airport for approximately 24 hours. It wasn't a Belgian bed-and-breakfast, but it wasn't Auschwitz either. I had several unpleasant moments with the guards at the airport and in the holding cell, but since martyrdom is not my cup of tea, I'll spare you the details," Finkelstein said.
He said he eventually used a cellphone belonging to another detainee and called another friend he was scheduled to see in Israel, the journalist Allan Nairn, who called attorney Michael Sfard. Sfard met with Finkelstein and told him he could appeal the ban; however, Finkelstein said he has been to Israel at least 15 times and declined to appeal.
Sfard on Saturday said banning Finkelstein from entering the country "recalls the behavior of the Soviet bloc countries." "
Celebrating Ethnic Cleansing
An Open Letter to Nancy Pelosi on Israel
By KATHLEEN M. BARRY
CounterPunch
"Dear Nancy Pelosi,
Check your history books.
Celebration of the 60th Anniversary of the State of Israel is celebration of the Zionist ethnic cleansing of Arabs from Palestine, the celebration of the expulsion of 750,000 Arabs who generations later still people the refugee camps of Lebanon, Syria, Jordon, who still mourn their families slaughtered by Zionists as they completely destroyed Arab villages in Palestine, who still hold k
By KATHLEEN M. BARRY
CounterPunch
"Dear Nancy Pelosi,
Check your history books.
Celebration of the 60th Anniversary of the State of Israel is celebration of the Zionist ethnic cleansing of Arabs from Palestine, the celebration of the expulsion of 750,000 Arabs who generations later still people the refugee camps of Lebanon, Syria, Jordon, who still mourn their families slaughtered by Zionists as they completely destroyed Arab villages in Palestine, who still hold k