New book: "Global Depression & Regional Wars"

By James Petras

"These extraordinary times--unprecedented in modern history--are marked by a worldwide depression and regional wars involving all the major imperial powers. This book exposes the roots of the crisis in the unsustainability of the United States' military-driven empire building based on a volatile speculative economy, and influenced by Zionist policy makers committed to the colonialist state of Israel......."

TruthDig Video: Media Meltdown in a Time of Crisis

Part 2: Print Perfect: Goodman & Scheer on digital and the myth of print



Part 3: "Make Me Do It": Goodman & Hedges on Status Quo

What we Palestinians need

Irrespective of what political settlement is ultimately embraced, Palestinians need a unified strategy for confronting and overcoming Israeli racism, apartheid and oppression. Mustafa Barghouthi outlines the basis of such a strategy

Al-Ahram Weekly

"....
However, whether the aim is a truly independent sovereign state or a single democratic state, both of which Israel dismisses with equal vehemence, neither of these aims can be achieved without exposing and destroying the apartheid system. This requires a strategy. Therefore, instead of allowing ourselves to become divided prematurely over whether to go for the one-state or two-state solution, let us unify behind the common aim required to achieve either: the formulation and implementation of a strategy to fight the occupation, apartheid and racial discrimination. This will lead us to something that is absolutely necessary at this stage, which is to move from the world of slogans to the world of practical activism in accordance with viable strategic plans that mobilise demonstrators against the wall, intellectuals and politicians and other sectors of society. It is high time we realise that diplomatic endeavours and negotiations do not free us from the nuts and bolts of actual struggle. We have one road that leads to a single goal: the freedom of the Palestinian people. There is nothing nobler than to follow this road to its end. This is not a project for some point in the future; it is one that cannot wait. Indeed, we should probably adopt the slogan of the freedom fighters of South Africa: "Freedom in our lifetime!""

Cheney’s New Gambit

by Ray McGovern, August 15, 2009

".....
What to Expect

The bottom line for Cheney is this: Too much has gone wrong, and Cheney cannot afford to take any chances that there will not be more cracks in the wall protecting Bush-era secrets.

The good news, as far as Cheney is concerned, can be seen in the clear signs that neither Obama nor Holder have any stomach for holding Cheney to account — and still less for holding Bush accountable.

Perhaps there is something in the water here in Washington, but folks in power seem far more interested in circumventing the law than enforcing it — political expediency wins out over solemn oaths to protect and defend the Constitution.

At times this avoidance of accountability assumes ludicrous proportions, with the Obama administration going the extra mile and more to cover up its predecessors’ misconduct......

In Cheney’s view, this image of a former President in the dock is sure to deter dithering lawyers and politicos at the top of the White House and Justice Department, who are more interested in sniffing the political winds than in enforcing the rule law.

My worst fear is that Cheney may be right."

War talk stalks Beirut

The beaches are crowded, the restaurants full, but the Lebanese rumour mill talks of another war around the corner

James Denselow
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 15 August 2009

"...
An Israeli administration frustrated by the American attempts to rein in its settlement programme could find welcome distraction in an attempt to succeed where Kadima failed. Whether there is a war or not, the very fact that such potential still exists, only three years after a previous conflict wiped out the lives of so many, is testimony to the dangers of conflicts that are not resolved but rather simply put on ice."

Be a local organizer for the US campaign to end the Israeli occupation

The almost 3 billion U.S. tax dollars are sent to Israel every year in the form of military aid. This unconditional support enables Israel's illegal military occupation and aggression like the December - January attacks on the Gaza Strip. Visit the site to order all the resources you need to organize a stop military aid campaign in your community and to become a Congressional District Coordinator educating and lobbying to end U.S. military aid to Israel.

You can also join the group on facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/US-Campaign-to-End-the-Israeli-Occupation/108102704441?ref=nf

Real News Video: Homeless in East Jerusalem

On Aug 2nd Israeli police evicted Palestinian families from E. Jerusalem, but could the reverse happen?



"On August 2nd, Israeli riot and border police evicted two Palestinian families from their homes in East Jerusalem, claiming the land on which their houses were built belongs to Jews. The court ruling was the result of a Jewish settlers' association claiming there were Jewish inhabitants in the region in the 1930s. The Real News spoke to the evicted families, and to Stephen Lendman, Research Associate at the Center for Research on Globalization about whether the same could happen to Jewish families."

Al-Jazeera Video: Gaza gunbattle leaves several dead - 15 Aug 09

"Fighting between Hamas forces and al-Jamaa al-Salafiya al-Jihadya in Palestine has left at least 16 people dead, after a Sheikh called for the Gaza Strip to be ruled by Sharia (Islamic law). Al Jazeera's Ayman Mohyeldin reports."

Israel Threatens Lebanon and Obama

Along the ‘Blue Line’ with Palestine
Part I: Zeroing in on Israel’s existential threats

By Franklin Lamb
Al-Manar

".....It’s becoming tense again down along the ‘Blue Line’, three years after Israel’s 5th war against Lebanon. Israeli Brig. General. "Alon Friedman" told the Times of London in an interview this week that border tensions between Israel and Lebanon could "explode at any minute.".....

Further west, UNIFIL, which has suffered 272 fatalities since first setting foot in Lebanon on March 18, 1978 wants no part of what its leadership privately view as an impending explosion. UNIFIL has just completed a week long practice ‘pack up and depart Lebanon’ exercise according to the Kuwait’ daily, Al-Rai al-Aam. When the shooting starts the ‘Peace keeping force’ plans to be gone in 96 hours maximum, if Israel refrains that long from bombing Beirut’s Hariri airport......

Why the hysterics from Israel and why now?......

Barrack Obama: Israel’s main target

Israel’s political and psychological targeting of Lebanon and Hezbollah is less, according to Washington sources, than what is has in store for US President Barrack Obama. Weeks away from Obama going public with his middle east peace plan, some in Tel Aviv and the US Israel lobby are panicked and have just initiated a barrage of threats and political initiatives being aimed the White House.......

A month later in May of 2009, Obama “reaffirmed that Israel “is a stalwart ally of the United States. We have historical ties, emotional ties. As the only true democracy of the Middle East it is a source of admiration and inspiration for the American people...It is in U.S. national security interests to assure that Israel's security as an independent Jewish state is maintained.”

Some in Israel and its US lobby don’t believe a word of it.

Almost from the day he took office on March 31, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been on a collision course with the Obama administration. Washington's first goal was to wring acceptance of creation of a Palestinian state from the Israeli leader, who has supported Israeli control over the West Bank and expansion of Jewish settlements there for many years. Netanyahu eventually agreed, while posing tough conditions that meant that he did not agree at all."

Video of Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah's Speech on August 14, 2009 (1 hr, 15 min.)

السيد حسن نصر الله - 14/08/2009 - 14 آب

Afghan Election 2009: Freedom, Fraud, and Fornication

Remember 'Democracy, whiskey, sexy!'? Stay tuned for Part II

by Justin Raimondo, August 17, 2009

"In those heady days of 2003, when the War Party was really feeling its oats and the neocons, the "warbloggers," and the television talking heads were triumphantly hailing the invasion of Iraq as an unqualified success, one Iraqi pretty much summed up the Arab response to the "liberation," as reported by the New York Times:

"In the giddy spirit of the day, nothing could quite top the wish list bellowed out by one man in the throng of people greeting American troops from the 101st Airborne Division who marched into town today.

"What, the man was asked, did he hope to see now that the Ba’ath Party had been driven from power in his town? What would the Americans bring?

"‘Democracy,’ the man said, his voice rising to lift each word to greater prominence. ‘Whiskey. And sexy!’"

According to this reporter, the crowd shouted its approval, and, here at home, the warbloggers took up this cry as their signature slogan, celebrating this anonymous Iraqis’ apparent joy at the imposition of modernity on Iraq at gunpoint as decisive proof that the policies of the Bush administration were right and the "transformation" of the entire region was on the agenda........"

Tal Az-Za`tar: don't forget, don't forgive

By Angry Arab

Refugees flee Tal al Zaatar

"The anniversary of the massacre of Tal Az-Za`tar passes every year, with little remembrances or commemoration. The culprits are known: the right-wing militias of Lebanon (assisted by the Lebanese Army), the Israeli occupiers, and the Syrian regime which assisted the militias at the time. Comrade Rami salutes the martyrs of Tal Az-Za`tar. "

What Actually Happened in Fatah's Elections?

CIA-Trained Security Chiefs Elected to the Palestinian Leadership

An Excellent Article and Recommended Reading
By ESAM AL-AMIN
CounterPunch

“He is our guy.”

George W. Bush speaking of Palestinian security chief Muhammad Dahlan, June 4, 2003

"The U.S. government has been meddling in the Palestinian internal affairs since at least 2003. Its effort is to transform the Palestinian national movement for liberation and independence into a more compliant or quisling government, willing to accede to Israel’s political and security demands.

The tactics employed by the U.S. include military, security, diplomatic, and political components.
With the ascension of Hamas after the 2006 legislative election, U.S. strategy has been fixed on unraveling the election results. Its aim for a political comeback of the pro-American camp within the Palestinian body politic has been initiated with the convening of Fatah’s national conference this last week......

However, the administration soon abandoned its agenda of promoting democracy in the Arab world when Hamas won a landslide victory in the January 2006 legislative elections. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice expressed shock about the results saying, “No one saw it coming.” A Department of Defense official told David Rose of Vanity Fair in 2008, “Everyone blamed everyone else,” “We sat there in the Pentagon and said, ‘Who the f*@# recommended this?’?”.......

Meanwhile, as detailed by Vanity Fair, neo-con and NSC deputy director Elliot Abrams was plotting a coup in Gaza against Hamas with former Gaza security chief Muhammad Dahlan in the spring of 2007. It included coordination with Israel, several Arab countries such as UAE and Jordan, payments to Dahlan of over $30 million, the training of five hundred security personnel, a campaign to destabilize Gaza, and a torture program against Hamas members and other Islamists.......

But Dick Cheney’s Middle East advisor, David Wurmser, admitted the failed effort when he told the magazine, “It look(ed) to me that what happened wasn’t so much a coup by Hamas but an attempted coup by Fatah that was pre-empted (by Hamas) before it could happen.”......
The third effort, was mainly overseen by the Pentagon, and led by Lt. General Keith Dayton. In a speech before the pro-Israel think tank, the Washington Institute on Near East Policy (WINEP) in May 2009 (Was Posted Here at PP on May 11), he said that the Office of the U.S. Security Coordinator, which he has been leading since December 2005, is “an effort to assist the Palestinians in reforming their security services.” But according to the notes of a meeting between Dayton and a Palestinian security chief in Ramallah in early 2007, the real purpose of the mission was revealed when Dayton said, “[W]e also need to build up your forces in order to take on Hamas.”.......
The next phase in this effort is to reinvent Fatah and present it as a viable political alternative to Hamas and other resistance movements by improving the living conditions in the West Bank in contrast to Gaza’s devastating siege. But more important, the plan envisions a new Fatah that is considered a reliable partner willing to accomodate Israel’s conditions for a political settlement. The sixth Fatah conference and accompanying elections was thus convened to dispose of its corrupt and dysfunctional image.......

....The 18 individuals who were elected at the end of the week-long conference comprised four from the “old guard” who are considered close to Abbas, and 14 new members, three of whom are former security chiefs who’ve been close to the CIA. These include Dahlan, Rujoub, and Tawfiq Tirawi, a former intelligence chief, who is currently heading a security training academy in Jericho under the supervision of Gen. Dayton.......

As Palestinians watched this conference unfold, many were hoping that it would be the beginning of a national reconciliation and the establishment of a unity government. However, it seems that as a result of this conference Fatah itself may further disintegrate, as its Gaza leaders and Abu Alaa are threatening to launch a new faction called “Fatah Awakening,” further increasing division and tension within the Palestinian ranks.

The next step in the strategy of the pro-American camp is to hold presidential and legislative elections in the Palestinian territories next January, hoping to present a rejuvenated Fatah as an alternative to Hamas and other resistance movements. Jonathan Steele of the Guardian further exposed on June 22, 2007 the U.S. "hard coup" of June ’07, as well as its political strategy. He detailed US officials' conversations with several Arab regimes. These were, among others, “ ‘to maintain President Abbas and Fatah as the center of gravity on the Palestinian scene’, ‘avoid wasting time in accommodating Hamas,’ ‘undermining Hamas’s political status,’ and ‘calling for early elections.’”......

Simply put, the U.S. wants a Palestinian leadership that will answer these questions in a way that is satisfactory to Israel. As one State Department official said to Vanity Fair regarding American objectives in the Israeli-Palestinian struggle, “[W]e care about results, and [we support] whatever son of a bitch [w]e have to support. Dahlan was the son of a bitch we happened to know best.”"

Israeli Land Sale

Privatization to Subvert Palestinian Hopes of Restitution

By JONATHAN COOK
CounterPunch

"Amin Muhammad Ali, a 74-year-old refugee from a destroyed Palestinian village in northern Israel, says he only feels truly at peace when he stands among his ancestors’ graves.

The cemetery, surrounded on all sides by Jewish homes and farms, is a small time capsule, transporting Mr Muhammad Ali -- known to everyone as Abu Arab -- back to the days when this place was known by an Arabic name, Saffuriya, rather than its current Hebrew name, Tzipori.

Unlike most of the Palestinian refugees forced outside Israel’s borders by the 1948 war that led to the creation of the Jewish state, Abu Arab and his family fled nearby, to a neighbourhood of Nazareth......

But last week, in a violation of international law and the refugees’ property rights that went unnoticed both inside Israel and abroad, Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, forced through a revolutionary land reform.

The new law begins a process of creeping privatisation of much of Israel’s developed land, including refugee property, said Oren Yiftachel, a geographer at Ben Gurion University in Beersheva......

The privatisation of Tzipori’s refugee land will remove it from the control of an official known as the Custodian of Absentee Property, who is supposed to safeguard it for the refugees.

“Now the refugees will no longer have a single address -- Israel -- for our claims,” said Abu Arab. “We will have to make our case individually against many hundreds of thousands of private homeowners.”

He added: “Israel is like a thief who wants to hide his loot. Instead of putting the stolen goods in one box, he moves it to 700 different boxes so it cannot be found.”......."

“You Don’t Cut Deals with the System that Has to Be Replaced”: Ralph Nader on Secret White House Agreements with the Drug Industry

Democracy Now!
With Amy Goodman

"The Obama administration admitted last week it promised to oppose proposals to let the government negotiate drug prices and extract additional savings from drug companies. In return, drug companies reportedly pledged to reduce costs by up to $80 billion. The White House has tried to back off the reported agreements, but the drug industry says it expects the White House to uphold its pledge. We speak to former presidential candidate and longtime consumer advocate Ralph Nader......"

Evicted Jerusalem family refuses to give up

Jody McIntyre writing from occupied East Jerusalem, Live from Palestine, 12 August 2009

"At 5:15am on Sunday, 2 August, I woke up to the sound of the Hanoun family's front room windows being smashed in. I had just laid down to rest only 20 minutes earlier.

The Hanoun family is one of 27 families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem facing eviction from their homes as part of a plan to implant a new Jewish settlement in the area. They are refugees from 1948, after being displaced from their home in Haifa during the Nakba, or catastrophe. The family includes 18 members, six of whom are children. They have lived in Sheikh Jarrah since 1956 when the Jordanian government and the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) gave them their houses as part of a project to house Palestinians forced to flee their homes......."

JNF presence in S. America perpetuates Palestine injustice

Rahela Mizrahi, The Electronic Intifada, 13 August 2009

(left: The sign leading to Bolivar and San Martin courts. (Rahela Mizrahi) )

"Without any sense of irony, lands of destroyed Palestinian villages have been expropriated by the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and dedicated to revolutionary South American heroes of liberation. Despite its role in the ongoing dispossession of historic Palestine, JNF has offices in the capitals of Bolivia and Venezuela where they raise funds to further entrench a racist system and to erase the signs of Israel's double crime: the ethnic cleansing of Palestine and the demolition of the Arab Jewish communities all over the Arab world and the transfer of Jews of Arab origin to Palestine by means of deception and terror. Rahela Mizrahi comments for The Electronic Intifada....."

Video: Free Gaza on the right of Resistance

The Free Gaza Movement



"The video is based on the eloquent essay by Ramzi Kysia http://www.freegaza.org/en/home/56-news/1032-on-the-right-of-resistance and is one of a series of videos the Free Gaza Movement will produce every two weeks until we leave again for Gaza......."

Fatah: A New Beginning or an Imminent End?

A Good Comment
By Ramzy Baroud
Palestine Chronicle

"This is hardly the rational order of things. An overpowering military occupation was meant to be resisted by an equally determined, focused and unyielding national movement, hell-bent on liberation at any cost and by any means. This is the unwritten law that has governed and shielded successful national liberation projects throughout history. The Fatah movement, under Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, however, wants to alter that order, meeting Israeli colonialism with ill-defined ‘pragmatism’, extreme violence with press statements laden with endless clichés that mostly go unreported, and a determined Israeli attempt at squashing Palestinian aspirations with political tribalism, factional decay and internal divisions.

Indeed, the long delayed Fatah Congress, held in Bethlehem on August 4 has underscored the obvious: the all-encompassing movement which was meant to exact and safeguard Palestinian national rights has grown into a liability that, if anything, will continue to derail the Palestinian national project......

One of the movement’s founders once wrote: “It was not only the experiences and the errors of our predecessors which helped guide our first steps. The guerrilla war in Algeria, launched five years before the creation of Fatah, had a profound influence on us. We were impressed by the Algerian nationalists’ ability to form a solid front, wage war against an army a thousand times superior to their own, obtain many forms of aid from various Arab governments, and at the same time avoid becoming dependent on any of them.”.......

That is why “Palestinians (were) waiting”, perhaps with the hope that Fatah would once more revert to its founding principles, with a coherent national project, stipulating unity of purpose and clarity of aim. It was not that Palestinians were hungry for violent resistance and eager to blow things up, but they longed for a Fatah that would once more institute resistance as an idea, as a culture, with all of its manifestations, infused as necessary. They wanted Fatah to go back to the basics, own up to the struggle of its people, as opposed to the quisling rhetoric that turned Palestine into a collection of political tribes, each armed with NGO’s, newsletters and bloated bank accounts in various European capitals......."

فتح.. ضياع سياسي وسقوط كفاحي!

"مفاوضات بلا نهايةالمقاومة.. شعار يشطبه الواقع

حسمت فتح وجهتها السياسية واتجاهها الكفاحي رسميا عبر نصوص مكتوبة وبنود موثقة، وباتت أسيرة لنهج عملي وممارسة واقعية امتدت عقدين من الزمن لتُتوّج في نهاية المطاف بمصادقة رسمية والتزامات مكتوبة
.......
القراءة الفاحصة والمتأنية للبرنامج السياسي الجديد لفتح تكفي للجزم بأن الحركة قد حسمت توجهاتها سياسيا بشكل تام، وسقطت في فخ الانغلاق السياسي الذي يقود تلقائيا إلى الانغلاق الوطني
....
المرحلة المقبلة ستشهد حالة سياسية فلسطينية سلطوية بغطاء فتحاوي أكثر ألفة ووداعة مع الموقف الإسرائيلي، وأكثر استعدادا للتعاطي مع الحلول السياسية المجتزأة التي لم يكن بالإمكان تمريرها في الماضي
......
كانت مرحلة الراحل عرفات آخر محطة كفاحية في حياة فتح، وأكثر المفاصل تعقيدا في مسارات الحالة الفتحاوية منذ انطلاقتها، لكن لاحقا أنهى عباس وفريقه كل الظواهر المسلحة المرتبطة بفتح
.....
فتح دلفت إلى مرحلة تاريخية جديدة ذات مضامين خطيرة، طوت معها رسميا برنامج الحنكة والدهاء الذي اعتمده عرفات، واستبدلت به برنامجا جديدا يغلق الخيارات السياسية، مما يقود فتح إلى ضياع سياسي مُحقّق وسقوط كفاحي عميق
....."

Gaddafi's remarkable rehabilitation

The return of the Lockerbie bomber to Libya would boost Colonel Gaddafi's appetite for triumphalist showmanship

Simon Tisdall
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 13 August 2009

".....A key driving force behind this steady rapprochement is growing British business interest in Libya. BP has invested roughly $1bn in oil and gas exploration there while other oil majors and EU governments, notably France, are also in on the act. Britain is already supplying missiles and air defence systems to Tripoli under a 2007 agreement......

Leading a business delegation to Libya last year, Lord Digby Jones, Britain's then trade and investment minister, described the country as an exciting emerging market.

"The vital oil and gas sectors are the mainstay of Libya's economy. BG, Shell and BP are working hard and productively with Libya's National Oil Corporation," Digby Jones said. Business opportunities for British companies in key sectors including financial services, defence, aviation, ports and airports were also being explored, he said......"

Fayyad to Haaretz: Not our Business Whether Israel is Jewish!

Al-Manar

(left: Shimon Peres approves of the Palestinian House Negro)

"14/08/2009 Israel's character is it's own business. It is not up to the Palestinians to define it, Palestinian Prime Minister in Ramallah Salam Fayyad said Thursday, when asked about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's demand the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

"Israel's character is Israel's business and nobody else's," Fayyad says in an interview with Haaretz.......

Fayyad seems to prefer to talk about economic issues rather than politics. His critics say he gives tail wind to the "economic peace" touted by his Israeli counterpart, Netanyahu.

Oman, Qatar: We'll Renew Israel Ties if It Freezes Settlements

The United States told Israel last week that Gulf states Oman and Qatar are willing to renew their relations with Israel if it agrees to a moratorium on construction in the West Bank, Haaretz has learned......."

Ahmed Qurei: Massive Fraud in Fatah Central Committee Elections

Al-Manar

"14/08/2009 Fatah appeared to be in turmoil on Thursday as a large number of its top representatives questioned the credibility of the elections that were held earlier this week for the faction's Central Committee.

Former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei (Abu Ala) dropped a bombshell when he announced massive forgery in Fatah elections. Qurei, who failed to be reelected to the Central Committee, said that there was growing discontent in Fatah over the alleged fraud. "There are many big question marks about the election, the way it was conducted and the way the votes were counted," Qurei told the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper. "There were behind-the-scenes arrangements that removed some names and added others to the [winning] list."


Pointing out that three of the candidates who were elected were former security commanders who used to work closely with Israel, Qurei asked: "Was it by coincidence that these men won?" He said that the election of these candidates - Jibril Rajoub, Muhammad Dahlan and Tawfik Tirawi - showed that "someone wants to see rubber stamps" among the Fatah leadership. "This is a harsh and difficult phase and there are offers for a temporary state without Jerusalem and the refugees," Qurei said. "Apparently there are some people who have taken this into consideration."....."

Fath Circus: ballot counting

By Angry Arab

"The circus is really funny: the best part is the ballot counting. You know how they vote? First, the gang leaders (Abu Mazen and Dahlan) decide who is qualified to vote, and then people vote. And after they vote, Dahlan henchmen take the ballot boxes to a secret location and it takes them three days to count the ballots for the Central Committee and three days or more for the Revolutionary Council. In other words, it takes less time to count the ballots in US elections than to vote for the 21-odd members of the Fath's Central Committee of thugs and gangsters. But that is not all. So they announced the name of the winners to the Central Committee, and Tayyib `Abdur-Rahim (Abu Tayyib, who was known for his thuggish ways back in the Beirut days when he commanded the Force 17 praetorian guards), the scretary-general of the Palestinian Presidency (over a non-state), and a key enforcer for Abu Mazen, was not among the winners. So `Abdur-Rahim fretted and moped, and lo and behold just yesterday the secret counting committee of Fath announced that `Abdur-Rahim has indeed won after, notwithstanding the earlier announcement of winners and losers. And that is not it: another loser in the election, >.
Ahmad Quray` (Abu Al-`Ala'), also known for massive corruption when he ran Samid institution and also known for providing cement to Israeli settlement construction, spoke to Al-Quds Al-`Arabi. He suddenly talks about corruption in Fath and is suddeny opposed to the two-state solution. Kid you not. He said that there is widespread anger among Fath for the way this Congress--read circus--was run. He also exclaimed how four of the security chiefs who collaborate with Israel have won. And for the first time he revealed that there is something called Fath-Revival: almost of a beginning of a new schism or split within the lousiest movement to speak in the name of national liberation, EVER Even the head of the Election Committee resigned, but then was pressured to rescind his resignation. Appointments to the Shura Council of Saudi Arabia is less corrupt than "election" to the ruling bodies of Fath. This just in: Ehud Barak was just elected to the Central Committee of the Fath Movement. "

I Hate to Bother You

History Never Ends

By EDUARDO GALEANO
CounterPunch

"I’d like to share with you some questions--some flies that keep buzzing in my head.
Is justice right side up?

Has world justice been frozen in an upside-down position?

The shoe-thrower of Iraq, the man who hurled his shoes at Bush, was condemned to three years in prison. Doesn’t he deserve, instead, a medal?


Who is the terrorist? The hurler of shoes or their recipient? Is not the real terrorist the serial killer who, lying, fabricated the Iraq war, massacred a multitude, and legalized and ordered torture?......."

Al-Jazeera Video: Gaza's dangerous underground lifelines - 12 Aug 09

"While the Gaza Strip remains under Israel's blockade, underground passageways are seen as a lifeline to the people.

But digging the tunnels under the border to Egypt is a dangerous activity. At least 14 people have died in the past month after their tunnels collapsed.

Al Jazeera's Ayman Mohyeldin followed the desperate efforts to rescue three trapped men."

Ahhh.....The Only Place Where Jews Can Feel Safe? Livni: Hundreds of thousands of Israelis want to leave the country

"Israeli opposition leader of the Kadima Party, Tzipi Livni, stated Wednesday that hundreds of thousands of Israelis are trying to find ways to leave Israel due to what she described as bleak political situation and lack of vision of the current government.

Israeli Ynet News reported that hundreds of thousands of Israelis are trying to arrange foreign passports for themselves and their children in order to leave the country due to feelings of desperation....."

Syria pulls some strings in Iran

By Sami Moubayed

Asia Times

"France has praised Syria for helping secure the release this week of a French woman held in Iran on charges of encouraging opposition protests. Damascus clearly used its links to Iran's supreme leader, the only person who could have approved Nazak Afshar's freedom. United States President Barack Obama, when it comes to his problems with Iraq and Iran, is already tapping into these Syrian connections......"

First anniversary of breaking the Siege of Gaza, 13th August, Washington DC

The Free Gaza Movement

“When our governments fail to act, we –the citizens of the world- must stand up and make our voices heard” Free Gaza Movement

"On August 23 2008, 44 ordinary people from 17 different countries sailed to Gaza on two small wooden boats, the FREE GAZA and the LIBERTY. We did what our governments would not do - we broke the Siege of Gaza. For the first time in over 40 years, international ships docked at Gaza Port. For the first time in over 60 years, Palestinians freely entered and exited their own country.

SAVE THE DATE

Join the Free Gaza Movement as we mark our First Anniversary of Breaking the Siege of Gaza.

When: August 13th, 2009

Time: 9:00 – 11:00 PM

Where: Busboys and Poets (14th & V ST.) 2021 V St., NW Washington, DC 20009

An enchanting evening of Testimony from Gaza, Tears and Hope, Inspirational Poetry and Music, and Palestinian Dabkeh performance......"

Wag The Dog, Again

by Philip Giraldi, August 13, 2009

(Cartoon by Khalil Bendib)

"Israeli media reports that visiting National Security Adviser General Jim Jones and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates have told the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop complaining about Iran because the US is preparing to take action "in eight weeks" demonstrate that even when everything changes in Washington, nothing changes. President Barack Obama has claimed that a peaceful settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a high priority but the Israelis and their allies in congress and the media have been able to stonewall the issue. Israel has made no concessions on its settlement policy, which is rightly seen as the single biggest obstacle to eventual creation of a Palestinian state, and has instead pushed ahead with new building and confiscations of Arab homes. Obama has protested both Israeli actions but done nothing else, meaning that Israel has determined that the new US president’s policies are toothless, giving it a free hand to deal with the Arabs. Vice President Joe Biden’s comments that Israel is free to attack Iran if it sees fit was a warning that worse might be coming. If the Israeli reports are true, it would appear that the Obama Administration has now bought completely into the Israeli view of Iran and is indicating to Tel Aviv that it will fall into line to bring the Mullahs to their knees. In short, Israel gets what it wants and Washington yet again surrenders......."

Spectacular Heist, the Independent

The Honduras coup is a sign: the radical tide can be turned

If this were Burma or Iran the assault on democracy would be a global cause celebre. Instead, Obama is sitting on his hands

Seumas Milne
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 12 August 2009

"If Honduras were in another part of the world – or if it were, say, Iran or Burma – the global reaction to its current plight would be very different. Right now, in the heart of what the United States traditionally regarded as its backyard, thousands of pro-democracy activists are risking their lives to reverse the coup that ousted the country's elected president. Six weeks after the left-leaning Manuel Zelaya was kidnapped at dawn from the presidential palace in Tegucigalpa and expelled over the border, strikes are closing schools and grounding flights as farmers and trade unionists march in defiance of masked soldiers and military roadblocks........

That's why the overthrow of democratic government in Honduras has a significance that goes far beyond its own borders. If the takeover is allowed to stand, not only will it embolden coup-minded military officers in neighbouring countries such as Guatemala, act as a warning to weaker progressive governments and strengthen oligarchies across the continent. It would also send an unmistakable signal that the radical social and political process that has been unleashed in Latin America – the most hopeful development in global politics in the past two decades – can be halted and reversed. Relying on Obama clearly isn't an option: only Latin Americans can defend their own democracy."

Hero's homecoming for jailed sheikh

The shameful conviction of Yemeni Sheikh Mohammed al-Moayad during US post-9/11 hysteria has been overturned

Brian Whitaker
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 12 August 2009

" Tens of thousands turned out in Yemen yesterday to greet the arrival of Sheikh Mohammed al-Moayad and his assistant, Mohammed Zaid. Cabinet ministers, clerics, tribal leaders and other dignitaries were waiting for them at the airport. Crowds lined the airport road, drumming and dancing. After a brief check-up in hospital they were whisked off to the palace to shake hands with President Salih.

It was an extraordinary homecoming for two men who had just been deported from the US after seven years in jail and it brought to an end one of the more shameful episodes in America's post-9/11 hysteria........"

White Flag Deaths

Killings of Palestinian Civilians during Operation Cast Lead

Human Rights Watch

"I. Summary
Methodology
II. Recommendations
To the government of Israel
To UN Member States
III. Killings of Gazans Conveying Civilian Status
IV. Failure to Investigate
V. International Legal Standards
Acknowledgements
Appendix: Human Rights Watch Letter to the Israel Defense Forces......

.....In each of these incidents, the evidence strongly indicates that, at the least, Israeli soldiers failed to take feasible precautions to distinguish between civilians and combatants before carrying out the attack. At worst, the soldiers deliberately fired on persons known to be civilians.
Under the laws of war, parties to an armed conflict must take all feasible measures to distinguish between civilians and combatants, and they may target only combatants. Civilians lose their protection from attack only during the time they directly participate in hostilities. Deliberate attacks on civilians are violations of the laws of war, and individuals who commit or order such attacks are responsible for war crimes........"

Click Here to Download Report (63 pages, pdf)

IS FATAH SPLITTING UP? A SPECIAL INTERVIEW WITH AL-QUDS AL-'Arabi

احمد قريع (ابو العلاء) في حديث خاص لـ'القدس العربي':
اطعن بنزاهة الانتخابات. وانجاح 'الطيب' مخجل. واتصالات لتشكيل 'فتح الصحوة'

"أكد السيد احمد قريع (ابو العلاء) عضو اللجنة المركزية ورئيس وفد المفاوضات الفلسطيني السابق ان هناك حالة من الغضب في اوساط الكثير من اعضاء حركة 'فتح' بسبب 'عمليات التلاعب' التي جرت في انتخابات اللجنة المركزية الأخيرة.
وقال السيد قريع في حديث لـ'القدس العربي' 'ان هناك علامة استفهام كبيرة حول الانتخابات وطريقة اجرائها وفرز نتائجها وان ترتيبات حدثت خلف الستار وأدت الى استبعاد بعض الأسماء وفرض اسماء أخرى'.
وأكد 'ان الأسلوب الذي تقرر في لجنة الاشراف على الانتخابات لم يتبع'، وقال: 'لقد اتفقنا ان تكون اصوات انتخاب اعضاء اللجنة المركزية في صندوق واحد، واذا بها تجري في عشرة صناديق'.
وأشار الى 'ان هناك بعض التدخلات التي حدثت' وعلق مازحاً: 'يبدو ان ما جرى في طهران (من تزوير) اخف كثيراً مما جرى في فلسطين'.
وقال السيد قريع: 'المرحلة صعبة وقاسية، وهناك عروض لدولة مؤقتة وحل بلا لاجئين او قدس، وتقطيع اوصال، وكتل استيطانية باقية، ويبدو ان بعض الناس يضعون ذلك في الاعتبار'.
ولفت الى فوز اربعة من قادة الأمن ومنسقين مع الاحتلال، وتساءل هل تم ذلك بمحض الصدفة؟
وشدد السيد قريع انه تقدم بطعن رسمي 'ليس في نتائج الانتخابات فقط، وانما بالعملية الانتخابية برمتها' وقال 'انا تحفظت على عقد المؤتمر في الداخل، ولكن بعد ان تقرر عقده في بيت لحم عملت بجد لوضع المؤتمر على السكة، ولكن الأمور انقلبت رأساً على عقب بسبب وجود مجموعة ارادت شيئاً آخر غير الذي نريده'.
وأكد انه 'لن يكون هناك انسجام بين المجموعة المنتخبة'، وقال 'يبدو ان هناك بحثاً عن 'بصّيمة'، وسأخرج على الملأ غداً أو بعد غد واتحدث عن كل شيء بالتفصيل'.
ووصف ما حدث بالأمس من انجاح 19 عضواً، ومراجعة نتائج الانتخابات بحيث يفوز الطيب عبد الرحيم بأنه 'مخجل' كيف يحدث هذا 'شيل هذا وحط ذاك.. ثم حط الثلاثة.. ما هذا؟'.
وتحدث السيد قريع عن منع وصول اوراق تصويت من غزة، وتحكم فئة محددة بعملية التصويت عبر الهاتف. وقد استقال محمد الصياد رئيس لجنة الانتخابات احتجاجاً، لكنه عاد عن استقالته نتيجة ضغوط.
وعلمت 'القدس العربي' ان مجموعة كبيرة من اعضاء اللجنة المركزية السابقين وشخصيات كبرى في حركة 'فتح' تتواصل فيما بينها من اجل تشكيل ما يطلق عليه مبدئياً بـ'فتح الصحوة' ومن بين هؤلاء ابو شاكر النتشة، ونصر يوسف، ومحمد جهاد، وتنسق هذه المجموعة مع شخصيات قيادية في قطاع غزة والخارج.
وكشف السيد قريع بأنه لم يعد يؤمن مطلقاً بحل الدولتين، لأن هذا الحل بات شبه مستحيل، فأي دولة هذه التي لا تعرف لها حدود ولا تتمتع بأي سيادة، وتمزق تواصلها الجغرافي الكتل الاستيطانية، والقدس ربما لا تكون عاصمة حقيقية لها.
ويذكر ان السيد قريع حصل على الترتيب العشرين في الانتخابات وبفارق صوت واحد فقط عن الطيب عبد الرحيم في المركز التاسع عشر، وصوتين عن السيد محمد اشتيه في المركز الثامن عشر، قبل ان تتم اعادة فتح احد الصناديق وانجاح الاثنين اللذين سبقاه.
من جهتها اكدت ربيحة دياب المرشحة لعضوية اللجنة المركزية لـ 'القدس العربي' بأنها تقدمت بطعن في العملية الانتخابية، مطالبة باعادة فرز جميع صناديق الاقتراع.
وقالت دياب لـ'القدس العربي' 'اذا كان لا بد من اعادة الفرز فمن الضروري اعادة فرز كافة الصناديق لجميع الاعضاء وليس لشخص او شخصين'. وتابعت دياب حديثها لـ 'القدس العربي' قائلة 'ومن هنا اعتبر انه من الضروري اعادة النظر في النتائج التي اعلن عنها'.
وعلمت 'القدس العربي' ان استقالة أعضاء اللجنة القيادية العليا في غزة، وجميعهم أعضاء في المجلس الثوري لفتح، قبل الانتخابات الحالية، ويرأسهم الدكتور زكريا الأغا، عضو اللجنة المركزية لفتح، حتى قبل الانتخابات، جاءت عقب اتصالات أجراها الأغا مع هؤلاء المسؤولين، طوال ليل أول من أمس، واستمرت حتى صبيحة امس.
وقال أحمد أبو النصر عضو قيادة فتح في غزة لـ 'القدس العربي' ان جميع الأعضاء توافقوا على تقديم الاستقالة، وأنه تم تكليف الدكتور زكريا الأغا، بكتابة رسالة الاستقالة للرئيس محمود عباس.
وقال ابو النصر 'من الآن ليــــس لنا علاقـــة بقيادة فتح في قطاع غزة، واستقالتنا لا رجعـــة عنها'، مشيراً إلى أن قيادة الحركة في ساحة غزة ترفض نتائج الانتخابات التي قال انها 'لطخت سمعة فتح'، وطالب بتشكيل لجنة تحقيق على اعتبار ان النتائج الحالية لقيادة الحركة 'غير صحيحة، أفرزتها انتخابات غير سليمة'.
"

THE PHARAOH to THE RESCUE? النواب الأسرى يطالبون مصر بوقف مسلسل الإعدام في سجون ميليشيا الضفة

"رام الله - المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام

طالب النواب الأسرى في سجون الاحتلال من الحركة الإسلامية الرئيس حسني مبارك والحكومة المصرية بالتدخل الفوري لوقف مسلسل الإعدام الذي يتعرَّض لها أنصار "حماس" في سجون ميليشيا عباس التابعة لـ"فتح" في الضفة.

ودعا الأسرى في رسالةٍ لهم سرِّبت من معتقلاتهم، وصلت "المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام" نسخة منها الأربعاء (12-8)، الحكومة المصرية إلى التدخُّل الفوري لوقف هذا المسلسل الدموي، متمنين أن تلقى رسالتهم انتباه رئيس جمهورية مصر العربية؛ نظرًا لعُرى الدم والتاريخ والأخوة التي تربط بين الشعبين المصري والفلسطيني.

وقالوا إن ما يجري في الضفة الغربية من إراقةٍ للدماء، وإزهاقٍ لأرواح أبرياء، وتعرضٍ لتعذيبٍ مميتٍ؛ أمرٌ لا يمكن الصمت عن استمراره، مطالبين بتحركٍ رسميٍّ عربيٍّ لدى السلطة وأجهزتها لإلجام عمليات الإعدام التي اتخذت وتيرة متسارعة في الأسابيع الأخيرة. "

HAMAS MPs ARE ASKING FOR HELP FROM........THE PHARAOH!

COMMENT: This item gives us a glimpse of the Hamas "strategic" vision and gives us a clue as to why the movement is stuck at square one and can't seem to make any headway.

The imprisoned Hamas MPs have sent a letter to the Pharaoh asking him (in the name of brotherhood, of course) to intervene immediately to stop the torture to death of Hamas supporters in the dungeons of Dayton, nominally administered by the traitor Abbas.

Would you believe that! The Pharaoh, of all the USraeli stooges in the region, calls Netanyahu to coordinate with him before visiting Washington, for God's sake. The Pharaoh who is keeping 1.5 million Palestinians under siege, preventing even medicine to enter Gaza, and who coordinated with Israel the attacks on Gaza, and who is demolishing the tunnels (with the US Army's help) and killing scores of Palestinians in the tunnels!

Why not cut to the chase, Hamas MPs, and go directly to Netanyahu to see if he can influence Abbas to save the Hamas prisoners? You would have a better chance by doing that.

With "leaders" like those MPs, the Palestinians are doomed for sure.

Latin America: Social Movements in Times of Economic Crises

by Prof. James Petras
Global Research, August 12, 2009

"The most striking aspect of the prolonged and deepening world recession/depression is the relative and absolute passivity of the working and middle class in the face of massive job losses, big cuts in wages, health care and pension payments and mounting housing foreclosures. Never in the history of the 20-21st Century has an economic crisis caused so much loss to so many workers, employees, small businesses, farmers and professionals with so little large-scale public protest.

To explore some tentative hypotheses of why there is little organized protest, we need to examine the historical-structural antecedents to the world economic depression. More specifically, we will focus on the social and political organizations and leadership of the working class; the transformation of the structure of labor and its relationship to the state and market. These social changes have to be located in the context of the successful ruling class socio-political struggles from the 1980’s, the destruction of the Communist welfare state and the subsequent uncontested penetration of imperial capital in the former Communist countries. The conversion of Western Social Democratic parties to neo-liberalism, and the subordination of the trade unions to the neo-liberal state are seen as powerful contributing factors in diminishing working class representation and influence......."

Where are the Arabs to Stand Up for the Hanoun and Ghawi Families?

Homewreckers and Vultures

By BOUTHAINA SHAABAN
CounterPunch

"....Arab and Muslim readers could read in the dim eyes of the Arab Muslim mother, the feelings of disappointment, frustration and despair of all the millions of Arabs and Muslims and of all the ‘civilized’ world which never tires of talking about freedom, democracy and human rights. One could read a question on her innocent face: are not we, Arab Muslim Palestinians, human beings?! Where are all those hundreds of millions of Arabs and Muslims in the four corners of the world? Why do not they rush to our aid? Or are they like the scum of a turbulent stream?.....

Instead of being preoccupied with Israeli threats to the rights and sanctities of their brothers, particularly to the first of the holy Muslim shrines, part of Arab officialdom is busy calculating the extent of the power of Turkey and Iran and how it affects the Arab identity and the future of the region......

If Arabs continue on this course they will be no more significant than the scum and froth over a stream. Hundreds of millions of Arabs and Muslims failed to stand and defend Gaza, Mohammad al-Durra and the Hanoun and Ghawi families, while President Bill Clinton has gone to North Korea to bring back an American journalist. The millions of Arabs should stand and be counted because the enemies have gathered over our nation like hungry vultures."

Al-Jazeera Video: Egypt rejects Muslim Brothood's overtures - 11 Aug 09

"Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, the country's main opposition group, has endured years of government crackdowns.

Reports suggest the Brotherhood is now willing to enter a dialogue with the country's ruling party, but it is officially banned for its perceived 'radicalist' ideology and key leaders remain under arrest.

Al Jazeera's Amr El-Kahky reports on the possibility of a thaw between both sides. "

Cleaning up explosives in Gaza

Report, The Electronic Intifada, 11 August 2009

"GAZA CITY, occupied Gaza Strip (IRIN) - The UN Development Programme (UNDP) has begun removing 600,000 metric tons of rubble and debris left over from Israel's winter invasion of the Gaza Strip.

More than six months later, the most deadly threat to civilians emanates from unexploded ordnance (UXO) in rubble and underground. Falling rubble and hazardous material, including UXO, have killed 17 and injured at least 25 Palestinians, mostly children, since the invasion ended on 18 January, according to UNDP in Gaza.......

In addition to private homes, hundreds of other targets, including 700 private factories and more than 100 public buildings, were damaged or destroyed during the operation, said al-Kharouby."

Iraq, by Emad Hajjaj

Israel Gas Deal Inflames Opposition

By Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa Al-Omrani

"CAIRO, Aug 12 (IPS) - Opposition figures and political activists have slammed a new deal to sell Egyptian liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Israel at what they say are vastly reduced prices.

"Egyptian gas is being sold to Israel at prices far below the international average," Ibrahim Yosri, former head of legal affairs and treaties at the Egyptian Foreign Ministry told IPS. "This agreement is proof that the ruling regime is unconcerned with public opinion and is insistent on depriving the Egyptian public of its rightful national assets."....."

New Blood Invigorates Fatah Leadership

By Mel Frykberg

"BETHLEHEM, Aug 12 (IPS) - Despite internal divisions, much criticism and against enormous odds, the Fatah movement has emerged from its Sixth Revolutionary Council here with new blood in its leadership and hopes for a fresh agenda.....

.....Fatah may be showing some signs of revival but it faces many obstacles.

The election to the Central Committee of former Gaza Fatah leader Muhammad Dahlan from the younger guard is divisive for Fatah members.

Dahlan is accused of attempting to instigate a coup - allegedly armed and financed by the CIA and the Israelis - against Hamas in 2007. Hamas pre- empted this with a coup of its own which saw Fatah lose control of Gaza in the 2007 civil war.

Many Fatah members blame Dahlan for this loss. Others question how a poor Gazan became a millionaire overnight, owning wealthy residential property in Dubai.

Fatah's future leadership platform will be contingent, amongst other things, on its relationship with the PA......"

The Latest From Habila and Other Incompetents of Hamas

Haneyya calls for stopping torture in West Bank jails

"GAZA, (PIC)-- Palestinian premier Ismail Haneyya on Monday stressed the need for stopping the policy of torture taking place in West Bank jails which lead from time to time to the death of Hamas prisoners as a result of the torture inflicted on them.

Premier Haneyya told a group of journalists that such practices would escalate disputes and hatred between Palestinian families [Such revolutionary vision, such insight, such decisiveness, ......Barf!] and would destroy the national dialog efforts......."

Zahhar asks Arab League to demand immediate end to political detention


"CAIRO, (PIC)-- MP Dr. Mahmoud Al-Zahhar, political bureau member of Hamas Movement, has asked the Arab League to swiftly intervene to end the political detention phenomenon in the West Bank. [The "Arab" League? What Arab League? Why not ask Benjamin Netanyahu instead, Dr. Zahhar? What an incompetent fool!]

Zahhar told a press conference in Cairo on Monday after a meeting with Arab League secretary general Amr Mousa that his Movement asked Egypt to call for preliminary meetings with Fatah faction before the next round of dialog scheduled on 25/8/2009.[How is that "dialog" going Dr. Zahhar? Now that there is a "new" Fatah, you can carry on with that farce for another year! Hey, you get to go to Cairo and visit relatives while you are there.] ......"

Fadi Hamadneh

By Khalid Amayreh

"On Monday, 10 August, it was revealed that Fadi Hamadneh, died at the notorious Juneid lockup in Nablus . The circumstances of his death remain unclear as of the time of preparing this report, but his family and relatives are accusing security agents of the Western-backed Palestinian Authority (PA) of torturing him to death.

Hamadneh’s brother dismissed the official PA narrative that he committed suicide in his cell as “hogwash” and “blatant lies.”......

Hamadneh is the third Palestinian detainee to die as a result of alleged torture in PA custody this year......

The killing of detainees by way of torturing them to death is not done by mistake. It is rather a deliberate and sadistic policy aimed at exacting revenge on Hamas supporters in the West Bank.....

Having said that, it is important to point out that the PA leadership is not the only villain here. The European Union, the United States and others donors have a great share of the blame for these hideous crimes......

So, on behalf of the bulk of Palestinians who value freedom and human rights, especially the right to life, I want to communicate the following message to Europeans and Americans and others who keep the PA afloat:

Please don’t kill us by your money, don’t fund torture, and don’t bankroll human rights violations in our tormented country. Be true to your own declared values and ideals.

We already have had more than enough of Israeli savagery and barbarianism at the hands of the Israeli occupation army and the Nazi-like Jewish settlers.

So, must we be further tormented, tortured and killed by our own people who claim to be protecting us and safeguarding our vital interests?"

ست ملاحظات حول مؤتمر فتح

A Very Good Comment (Arabic)

"أولاً: في مدينة بيت لحم ولد السيد المسيح عليه السلام، وبعد مرور أكثر من ألفي عام على هذا الحدث التاريخي تتم في مدينة المهد عملية قيصرية لتوليد حركة فتح الجديدة، وتحويل فتح، حركة تحرير فلسطين، إلى حركة تصفية فلسطين.
.....
ستكون حركة فتح أوّل ثورة في العالم تبدأ بالكفاح المسلح وتنتهي بالمقاومة الشعبية، دون تحقيق أي شيء ملموس أو غير ملموس على أرض الواقع
.....
لا يمكننا التغاضي عن التصريحات الصادرة من أقطاب الدولة العبرية بأنّ سلطات الاحتلال، من المستويين الأمني والسياسي، عملت كل ما في وسعها من أجل إنجاح مؤتمر فتح السادس في بيت لحم
.....
نسي عباس أن يقول إنّ اتفاق أوسلو يجمع في طياته النكبة والنكسة سويةً، كما أغفل القول إنّ المفاوضات السرية بشأن الاتفاق تمّت من وراء ظهر الزعماء العرب، الذين أغدق عليهم المديح
......
ونحن نرد على اختزالنا من المعادلة ونؤكد للسيد عبّاس ولحركة فتح وللعرب والعجم، أننّا لسنا بحاجة إلى شهادات انتماء ولسنا بحاجة إلى صكوك غفران من كائن من كان لنواصل الانتماء إلى الأمّة العربية وإلى الشعب الفلسطيني، ونؤكد لكل من يريد أن يسمع على أننّا ولدنا في فلسطين وسنبقى متشبثين بالانتماء إلى شعبنا ولن نتحوّل إلى عرب إسرائيل، ولن نوافق ضمناً على أيّة اتفاقية تُوّقعها فتح، أو السلطة المنقوصة أو منظمة التحرير، ولسنا الرقم المضمون في المعادلة، كما جرت العادة، لأننّا من رحم هذا الشعب خرجنا إلى النور.

الخاتمة: وبما أنّ السيد عبّاس ذكر الرئيس الخالد، طيّب الذكر، جمال عبد الناصر في خطابه، لا ضير في أن نلفت انتباهه إلى مقولة عبد الناصر المأثورة "إنّ الشعوب التي تساوم المستعمر على حريتها، تُوقّع في نفس الوقت على وثيقة عبوديتها".
"

Al-Jazeera Cartoon

Former Adviser to Gen. Stanley McChrystal Calls for Moratorium on US Drone Strikes in Pakistan

Democracy Now!
With Amy Goodman

"Andrew Exum is a former Army captain who has been openly critical of the drone attacks inside Pakistan. Exum served on active duty in the US Army from 2000 until 2004, including two years leading a platoon of Army Rangers inside Iraq and Afghanistan. He recently returned from two months in Afghanistan, where he served as part of the advisory team of the commander of US troops there, General Stanley McChrystal....."

Real News Video: Who profits from Israeli occupation?

Boycotted by activists, the Israeli company AHAVA is backed by one of Israel's most powerful families



"After the Israeli attack on Gaza earlier this year, the international Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Campaing (BDS Movement) escalated all around the world. Now, activists are targetting AHAVA, an Israeli cosmetics company founded by and based in an Israeli settlement in the Occupied West Bank. The AHAVA company, as many others in Israel that are based in the Palestinian Territories or profit from their occupation are owned by the powerful Israel family - the Livnat family. The Real News investigates how the family's dynasty is invested in the economy of the occupation."