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Today in Palestine! ~ Headlines ~ |
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Land, property, resources theft and destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Deportation
Israeli military to deport Jerusalem Palestinian
JERUSALEM
(AFP) -- The Israeli military has ordered an East Jerusalem Palestinian
out of the city for four months for allegedly organizing protests
against Israeli settlement there, the army and media said Thursday ...
The banishment order is based on a rarely used emergency statute from
1945, when Britain ruled Palestine prior to the establishment of Israel
in 1948. It was often used against clandestine Jewish groups battling
the British.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344937
Israel uses arcane law to try to expel Palestinian
JERUSALEM
(AP) – Israel is invoking an arcane military law to try to temporarily
expel a Palestinian protest leader from his native east Jerusalem and if
successful, Palestinians warn the measure could further hobble efforts
to salvage moribund peace process ... Gheith has protested against 350
Israeli settlers living in heavily guarded enclaves in his
overwhelmingly Arab neighborhood of Silwan, just south of Jerusalem's
Old City ... Gheith is also a leading opponent of Jerusalem Mayor Nir
Barkat's plan to raze 22 Palestinian homes in another neighborhood to
make way for an Israeli tourist center. That plan is on hold. "They are
trying to make look it like I am the one threatening the security, as if
saying no to oppression and to house demolitions is an assault," he
said.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101223/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinian_expulsion
Nativity deportees miss Bethlehem on Christmas
GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- Palestinians deported after the 2002 siege of the
Nativity Church were sad during Christmas to be away from Bethlehem and
the church, which sheltered them for 39 days ... Fahmi Kan’an, a
spokesman for the Gaza deportees, said Friday that they grieved to be
away from the festivities ... “Nine years have passed, and we are
burning and yearning to see each alley, tree, and stone in the city. We
would never give up on Bethlehem even if they give us the whole world.
It is our right to return to Bethlehem just as all other Palestinians
displaced from their homes have
the right to return.”
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345171
UN envoys criticize Israel home demolitions
JERUSALEM (AFP) -- Two United Nations representatives have criticized
Israel for demolishing Palestinian homes in occupied East Jerusalem,
with a senior envoy saying the actions could violate international law.
On
Thursday, a field worker for the UN Relief and Works Agency, which cares
for Palestinian refugees, decried the "trauma and indignity" of two
home demolitions in East Jerusalem.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344936
Violence / Incursions
Farmer injured in northern Gaza
GAZA
CITY (AFP) -- A Palestinian farmer was shot and wounded Friday in the
legs by Israeli army fire in the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian medics
said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344956
Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza after rocket attack
JERUSALEM
(AFP) -- Israeli warplanes hit four targets in the Gaza Strip early
Saturday, wounding at least two people, officials and witnesses said and
knocking out power in a large swathe of the strip. The strikes came
after militants fired a mortar and rocket into Israel on Friday,
according to the army. One of the strikes in central Gaza targeted a car
as it was pulling up near a site used by Hamas' military wing. Two of
the occupants were wounded and taken to hospital, medics said. The other
three air raids hit smuggling tunnels along the border with Egypt
without causing any casualties. Earlier, Palestinians fired a mortar
shell and a rocket into
Israel, also without causing casualties, the army said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345093
1 hurt in clashes in Nabi Saleh
A young Palestinian man was injured Friday when Israeli forces raided
the village of Nabi Saleh. Dozens of Palestinian youths confronted the
forces and clashes erupted. A young man identified as Adi At-Tamimi was
hospitalized with breathing difficulties. The army also invaded the
village on Thursday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344958
Hamas wing takes credit for past attacks
Hamas' military wing said Saturday that the Israelis were “playing with
fire” by escalating tensions in the Gaza Strip. The
Al-Qassam Brigades said they were observing a previously declared
ceasefire with Israel not out of weakness or fear, but to protect lives
of Palestinian people and to prevent them from being drawn into a second
war ... The official also claimed responsibility, for the first time,
for a series of operations conducted between 2005 and 2010 that killed
15 Israeli soldiers and injured 47. The operations, according to Abu
Ubayda, were in the Hebron area near Hagay settlement in the southern
West Bank, in Etzion, in mount Sindas and in the Old City of Jerusalem.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345228
Activism / Solidarity / Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions
Palestinian and Israeli demonstrators take to the streets of Silwan
(with
photos) Silwan, Jerusalem (SILWANIC) -- A demonstration was held today
in Silwan in protest to the Israeli government’s attempts to exile
Palestinians from Jerusalem. The demonstration commenced at 2pm, with a
large number of both Palestinian and Israeli activists marching from
Wadi Hilweh neighborhood to the threatened el-Bustan protest tent.
Activists who spoke at the tent denounced the Israeli government’s
latest attempts to crack down on Palestinian political activity in
Jerusalem, namely the attempt to impose a four-month ban on community
leader Adnan Ghaith from the Jerusalem area.
http://silwanic.net/?p=9439
Santa Claus brings rubber bullets, gas, and arrests
An
Nabi Saleh – While the media's attention was focused on the Christmas
spectacle in Bethlehem and people were celebrating Christmas eve, the
village of An Nabi Saleh, located in the Ramallah region and in the
direct neighborhood of the illegal settlement Halamish, faced another
reality. Yesterday's demonstration was met by excessive violence on
behalf of the Israeli military ... Two people – a 60 year old villager
and his 50 year old wife – were hit in the head by rubber bullets shot
through the window, while being inside their house. They were brought to
hospital. Several more demonstrators suffered from the effects of
inhaling massive amounts of tear gas. One elderly man had to be treated
by an ambulance after tear gas canisters entered his house
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9314&Itemid=59
Weekly anti-wall rally commemorates Christmas
RAMALLAH
(Ma’an) – Two Palestinians and an Israeli journalist were injured
Friday as confrontations erupted after Friday prayer in Bil'in, west of
Ramallah in the central West Bank ... As protestors progressed toward
the wall, an Israeli force behind cement
barriers fired stun grenades, tear gas canisters, and rubber-coated
bullets when the protestors attempted to cross behind the wall. The
soldiers chased the protestors through the olive grove. Palestinian
cameraman Auda Abu Rahma, 22, was hit by a tear gas canister in his leg.
Another person, 27-year-old Tariq Al-Khateib, was hit by a canister
in his leg and an Israeli journalist was also hit in his leg. Dozens
inhaled tear gas.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345028
We have received complaints about the words on your T-shirt so we have called the police - Gagosian Gallery / Laurie Arbeiter
I am writing to alert people about an incident that happened at the
Gagosian gallery [in New York] Saturday, December 18, 2010, on the last
day of the Anselm Kiefer exhibition, Next Year In Jerusalem.
In response to the title of the exhibition and the content of the work
[occupations/historical memory] a small group of artists and activists
decided to view the show wearing a shirt with the words Next Year In
Jerusalem in the three languages Arabic, Hebrew and English.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/we-have-received-
complaints-about-the-words-on-your-t-shirt-so-we-have-called-the-police-gagosian-gallery.html
IHH to host welcome party for Marmara
(Ynet) Thousands expected to cheer flotilla ship back to home port in Istanbul after lengthy stay in Haifa ... The
Marmara, which has been docking in Haifa port, will arrive in Istanbul
through the sea after which it was named. On board are family members of
the nine activists who were killed during
the IDF raid on the vessel.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4004217,00.html
Asia convoy waiting for Egypt visa to reach Gaza
"Asia
to Gaza" convoy activists say Egypt is not cooperating and has yet to
issue
permits. Egyptian officials say the paper work is incomplete ... The
convoy started off in New Delhi, passed through Iran, Turkey, and Syria
and arrived in Lebanon on Friday. It is planning to reach Gaza by end of
December, in time for the second
anniversary of Israel's 22-day war on the Strip that started on 28
December 2008.
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/2602/Egypt/Politics-/
Asia-convoy-waiting-for-Egypt-visa-to-reach-Gaza--.aspx
Anti
Israel monitors aid convoy heading to Gaza
JERUSALEM, Dec. 24 (UPI) ...Israeli officials said the progress of the
convoy is being monitored,
and the Israeli Meir Amit and Intelligence and Terrorism Information
Center said the APSP is hostile to Israel. The majority of participants
in the convoy are from India but the possibility that al-Qaida
affiliated groups may infiltrate activists cannot be excluded, the
center said.
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2010/12/24/
Israel-monitors-aid-convoy-heading-to-Gaza/UPI-69071293193721/
Siege / Restriction on movement / Rights violations
Allenby: PA detains 16, Israel denies 37 exit
Palestinian Authority police officers stationed at the Allenby crossing
between the West Bank and Jordan detained 16 Palestinians wanted for
fraud and other crimes ... Israeli officials at the crossing denied 37
Palestinians permission to leave the country for unspecified "security
concerns."
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345244
if you're a Druze, the humanitarian exception actually operates:
Patient transferred from Syria to Israel
Young Druze man studying dentistry in Damascus suffers brain hemorrhage,
rushed to Haifa hospital through Quneitra Crossing ... IDF officials
stressed that even though the border crossing closes at 6 pm daily, the
post is manned 24-hours-a-day and could be opened for an authorized
humanitarian crossing in a relatively short period of time.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4003931,00.html
Egypt completes initial building of security towers along Gaza border
Egyptian
security officials say the government is building several 100-foot
observation towers to improve security along the border with the Gaza
Strip, stopping infiltration and sniper attacks. The officials said
Saturday the first of the steel and concrete towers near the Rafah
border crossing is almost completed.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/international/
egypt-completes-initial-building-of-security-towers-along-gaza-border-1.332914
Israel stalls on promised Gaza exports
RAMALLAH
(Ma'an)
-- Two days after Israeli authorities approved the transport of Gaza
strawberries into the West Bank, Dutch officials behind the project said
foot dragging had delayed the first delivery ...
The program facilitated by the consulate had already shipped hundreds of
tons of berries and flowers to Europe, and Ziad said the deal with
Israel was to allow 250 tons of strawberries to reach the West Bank
market.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344546
Gaza exports to increase Sunday
Reports
on Radio Israel said the coming week of crossings operations would see
some 15 tons of agricultural exports leave the Strip .. Since 2007, some
800 trucks of strawberries and carnations grown in Gaza
have been exported from the coastal enclave. They have constituted the
only export from the blockaded region, and have been transported because
the goods are part of a Dutch government program to support Gaza
farmers.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344675
Gaza crossings closed for weekend
GAZA
CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli authorities decided to close all the crossings
with Gaza Friday and Saturday ... Israeli authorities allowed 177
truckloads via Karem Shalom, 130 of them
for commerce, 35 for agriculture, four for aid, and eight for transport
including 20 new vehicles. Meanwhile, six truckloads of strawberries
and flowers were exported while 159,500 kilograms of cooking gas were
pumped in. No industrial fuel was transferred into Gaza.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344943
Gaza pupils study in iron-made classrooms
It was freezing for tens of Gaza schoolchildren, who
overstocked in iron-made classrooms, basically containers used for
storing goods, at an elementary school run by the United Nations Relief
and Works Agency (UNRWA) in the Gaza Strip, ruled by the Islamic Hamas
movement ... UNRWA officials in Gaza said they
were obliged to use those goods containers to cover the severe shortage
of classrooms at Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza Strip amid an
ongoing ban of construction materials into the enclave.
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90782/90873/7242302.html
Detention
Youth arrest in Nabi Saleh
Three
days before the first anniversary of the weekly demonstration held
in An Nabi Saleh, on December the 22nd, Israeli forces arrested
23-year-old Bahaa Tamimi, a member of the community. He will face a
trial in an Israeli Military court within the following week. The
military has been searching for him for the past few weeks, frequently
entering the village and asking for him. He was on his way to his work
in Ramallah in the morning, when he was stopped by an apparently private
car. Police asked for his ID and arrested him.
http://palsolidarity.org/2010/12/16194/
After hunger strike, PA moves Hamas prisoners
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Mediation between rights groups and the Palestinian
Authority prison service brought to an end the hunger strike of two
prisoners affiliated with Hamas, and a decision to move the men to
prisons closer to their families ... Hamas officials said moving
detainees close to their families was not enough, and said more pressure
must be put on PA security commanders and
ensure that the prisoners are released.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344360
Initiative seeks end to politically motivated arrests
GAZA CITY -- The association of independent Palestinian figures in the
West Bank and the Gaza Strip announced Friday an initiative sponsored by
Egypt to end politically motivated arrests, which Fatah and
Hamas practice reciprocally ... The committee is to receive lists of
detainees held for their political affiliation from Palestinian factions
and should have access to detention centers in the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip to check files of each detainee and decide whether they have
been detained over political affiliation or violation of the law. After
that, according to the new initiative, the committee will request the
release of all detainees who were not proved guilty of any breach of
Palestinian law.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345136
Racism / Discrimination
Wave of ethnic rage sparks concern in Israel
JERUSALEM
(AFP) -- A wave of protests and discriminatory acts by Jewish Israelis
against Palestinians and Africans is worrying rights activists and has
prompted an unprecedented appeal for calm from Israel's prime minister.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344934
Refugees: We're not Israel's diseases
Some 1,300 people rally in Tel Aviv against plan to set up detention
facility for infiltrators near Israel-Egypt border. 'Netanyahu, don't be
a racist,' they chant. Schoolchildren join march, say 'refugees have
rights too'
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4003935,00.html
African immigrants caught between Israeli government and society
...All non-Jewish foreigners challenge Israel's aspirations for a Jewish
majority and character while treating others fairly. But the African
issue offers a test of humanitarianism and international law -- and
social tolerance too.
Largely lumped together as "infiltrators," many of the Africans come
from war-torn regions. Most come from Eritrea; Sudan is a close second,
with a number from Ivory Coast and other countries ... All asylum
seekers undergo a process of "refugee status determination, "
or RSD, except for Sudanese and Eritreans, who enjoy a temporary
sweeping protection ... Out of 4,000 asylum seekers interviewed this
past year, only two met the criteria
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2010/12/
israel-african-immigrants-caught-between-israeli-government-and-society.html
Please don't hate us / Haile Mengisteab et al.
...We
assure the Israeli public that we are not a
threat to Israel or to its Jewish character. We have been labeled with
so many names so far, such as economic migrants, infiltrators and so on,
expressing in a contradictory way our true reasons for being here ... We
want to make it clear that we are not infiltrators or economic
migrants. Rather, we are people with real political problems and we are
at the top of the global ranking in terms of asylum seekers in need. In
fact, some 88% of Eritrean asylum seekers in other countries are granted
refugee status.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4003542,00.html
Racism has reared its head and the public is apathetic / Gideon Levy
...The
obsequious populism of Lapid, the conscientious patron of his city's
indigent residents, cannot cover up the disgrace: If the dark-skinned
people were blue-eyed blonds, there would be no problem here. The proof?
Israel absorbed hundreds of thousands of non-Jewish Russians, blue-eyed
blonds, and nobody protested, nobody muttered a word of complaint. Ask
the Ethiopians, ask Israeli Arabs, including Bedouin and Druze who serve
in the Israel Defense Forces, and then decide whether we're talking
about pure, unadulterated racism, and not anything else.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/
racism-has-reared-its-head-and-the-public-is-apathetic-1.332365
'The darkness to expel' / Uri Avnery
IT
IS
easy to despair before the filthy wave of racism that is engulfing us.
The remedy for this despair: the growing number of young people, sons
and daughters of the new Israeli generation, who are joining the fight
against racism and occupation ... Young volunteers for each of these
fights - and for all of them together - are needed today more than ever,
in face of the racism that is raising its ugly head all over Israel –
an open racism, shameless and
indeed proud of itself. The phenomenon by itself is not new. What is new
is the loss of any vestige of shame. The racists shout their message on
every street corner
and earn applause from politicians and rabbis.
http://zope.gush-shalom.org/home/en/channels/avnery/1293276148/
Academy of hatred / Ziv Lenchner
Op-ed: Silence not an option in face of growing hatred, racism on Israel's streets ... Against
the
backdrop of the polished productions courtesy of the radical, inciting
Right, and certainly under
the spell of its malignant inspiration, a special elite unit was
operating in Israel's capital as of late. This gang of young
Jerusalemites and settlers, most of them teenagers, pulverized random
Arabs in God's name. This devilish group,
some of whose members already confessed, even employed a temptress, in the spirit of Mossad.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4004009,00.html
Only a strong political center will halt Israel's racist frenzy / Ari Shavit
As
it is turning into a multicultural and multicommunal society, Israel
does not know how to organize relations among the various minorities;
the result is repulsive outbursts of hatred.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/
only-a-strong-political-center-will-halt-israel-s-racist-frenzy-1.332636
War crimes
Report: Bereaved doctor to sue Israel
TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma'an) -- Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, who lost three
daughters when the Israeli army fired shells at his home during
Operation Cast Lead, will file on Sunday a massive damages claim, an
Israeli newspaper reported. "I didn't want to file the lawsuit, and
until now I didn't want to discuss it," he told Yedioth Ahronoth in a
phone interview from Toronto, Canada, where he immigrated following the
tragedy. "I tried to take every step that would allow me to close this
with love and goodwill, but they didn't leave me a choice.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344941
Gaza: Two years after the horror / Haidar Eid
This week marks the second anniversary of the horror inflicted on the
people of the Gaza Strip. Nothing has changed! Gaza has returned to its
pre-invasion state of siege, confronted with the usual international
indifference. Two years after the Israeli assault that lasted 22 long
days and dark nights, during which its brave people were left alone to
face one of the strongest armies in the world, Gaza no longer makes the
news. Its people die slowly, its children are malnourished, its water
contaminated, and yet it is deprived even of a word of sympathy from the
President the United States and the leaders of Europe.
http://www.palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=16509
Olmert in book: Barak tried to prevent Gaza op
(Ynet)
Former
prime minister's autobiography filled with harsh criticism of defense
minister in both military and political arenas. 'Complete and utter
nonsense,' says Barak
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4003879,00.html
IDF officers finish course on reducing civilian casualties
(JPost) The first-ever training course is aimed at helping Israel prevent another Goldstone Report in future ops in Gaza, Lebanon.
http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=200837
Political/Diplomatic news
Ecuador formally recognizes Palestinian state
QUITO, Ecuador (AFP) -- Ecuador formally recognized Palestine as an
independent state on Friday, following the lead of its neighbors
Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay earlier this month.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345111
Hamas: Committed to truce
Hamas committed to mutual ceasefire in Gaza 'as long as there is no
oppression and no aggression,' group leader al-Zahar tells crowd of
supporters; truce no sign of weakness, he says
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4004011,00.html
Abbas: No Israeli presence in future state
(Ynet)
During tour of Ramallah, PA leader says will not agree to IDF positions
along borders of Palestinian state and will not accept Israeli troops as part of international force.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4004200,00.html
UN to commemorate Durban conference (AP)
UN
to hold summit honoring contentious 2000 anti-racism meeting that
singled out Israel; US votes against proposal to celebrate event, envoy
Rice says it 'included ugly displays of intolerance, anti-Semitism'
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4004063,00.html
Haniyeh to reshuffle cabinet
Hamas spokesman Taher An-Nunu said Haniyeh formed a special committee to
meet with factions and national figures to offer them positions in the new government.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345027
Haniyeh files complaint with UN
Hamas spokesman Taher An-Nunu said Thursday that Prime Minister Ismail
Haniyeh filed a complaint to the United Nations via a letter to UN
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon against Israeli army activity.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344914
Turkey set on improving Israel ties but insists on apology for Gaza flotilla raid
Turkey's foreign minister said on Saturday that his country wants
improved ties with Israel but that Israel must apologize and offer
compensation for its raid on a Gaza Strip-bound aid flotilla in May in
which nine Turkish citizens were killed.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/
turkey-set-on-improving-israel-ties-but-insists-on-apology-for-gaza-flotilla-raid-1.332909
Turkey ties frayed, Israel turns to the Balkans
JERUSALEM (AFP) -- Israel is boosting its ties with Balkan nations after
a deep freeze in relations with Turkey, formerly its closest and strongest regional ally.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344992
Christmas in Palestine
'Christmas for all' appears on new postage stamp
(with
photo) President Mahmoud Abbas approved Saturday the issuance of a new
Palestinian postage stamp on the occasion of Christmas. The phrase
“Christmas For All” will appear on the stamp. The
Palestinian postal service took part in Friday's Christmas celebrations
in Manger Square and announced the stamp. Hundreds of international
visitors got to see the design in a tent where it was exhibited.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345144
Tens of thousands turn out for Christmas in Bethlehem
The
West Bank city where Christians believe Jesus was born welcomed an
unprecedented number of foreign guests on Christmas
eve, Palestinian Authority officials said Friday. PA minister of tourism
Khaloud Deibis told Ma’an that this year's estimates showed that about
90,000 would arrive by the end of the season compared to 60,000 last
year.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345072
Photos of the midnight Christmas Mass in Bethlehem 2010
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9313&Itemid=56
Voices of Christmas
Bethlehem
- PNN - Manger Square is a melting pot unheard of in the West Bank on
Christmas Eve, hosting old and young, boys and girls, travelers from far
and near. Here are some of the voices from Bethlehem:
http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9312&Itemid=1
Patriarch arrives in Bethlehem
24
Dec
- The West Bank city of Bethlehem welcomed Jerusalem's Latin Patriarch
Fuad Tawwal on Friday afternoon, accompanied by senior officials of the
Catholic Church. The delegation was received at the northern entrance of
the city by the mayors of Bethlehem and nearby Beit Sahour and Beit Jala
... Abbas and other Palestinian Authority officials and foreign
dignitaries will attend midnight mass led by Tawwal at the Nativity
Church, built on
the site where Christians believe Jesus was born.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344994
Gaza Christians off to Bethlehem
Hundreds given chance to leave blockaded area for Christmas --
Erez Crossing, Israel - More than 500 members of the Gaza Strip's tiny
Christian community left the blockaded territory on Thursday to
participate in Christmas celebrations in Jesus' traditional birthplace
of Bethlehem. The Israeli military coordinated the rare passage to the
West Bank ahead of the holiday ... Residents
leaving Gaza on Thursday played down any differences with Hamas, saying
they were in solidarity as Palestinians in the struggle against Israel.
West Bank: Bethlehem glows on Christmas Eve
(with photos) In the West Bank city of Bethlehem,
the birthplace of Jesus Christ, thousands of Palestinians and visitors
from all over the world gathered at Manger Square on Christmas Eve to
watch Jerusalem's Catholic patriarch, Fouad Twal,
lead a procession of priests to the Church of the Nativity and to listen
to his midnight Mass sermon. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud
Abbas, who regularly attends the midnight Mass, was among them.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2010/12/
west-bank-bethlehem-glows-on-christmas-eve.html
Christmas with Arafat in Bethlehem / Nabil Sha'ath
...On
the 24th of December 1995, I entered Bethlehem with my bride and my
brother, and friends, accompanying Arafat to our joy and that of
thousands of Palestinians who celebrated Christmas that year in
Bethlehem. Raja and I were seated upfront inside the Nativity Church,
just behind Arafat and his [Christian] wife. The square was jammed with
thousands celebrating Christmas. Arafat was finally here. From that day
until Christmas of the year 2000, Arafat lived in the monastery of the
Church of Holy Nativity from the 23rd of December to the 19th of January
every year, attending Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, and Armenian
Christmas celebrations ... On the 24th of December 2001, the Israeli
siege prevented him from going
to his beloved city. He was never able to go there again.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345025
Other news
Gaza's fallen women: doing time for 'moral' crime
GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories (AFP) - Najwa Abu Amra cries inside a
Gaza jail as she explains how she got here. Struggling to care for two
sons and a drug-addicted husband, she agreed to sleep with a man for
about 50 dollars. She had resisted prostitution in the past, but she was
getting desperate. "My husband isn't normal, he was telling me to sleep
with men because they would give him money," she told AFP. "He did what
he liked and he didn't give me anything. I didn't know what to do."
http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/entertainment/a/-/entertainment/8563643/
gazas-fallen-women-doing-time-for-moral-crime/
Squabbling hinders repairs to Bethlehem Nativity Church
As
thousands of Christian pilgrims and tourists visit Bethlehem, the site
where it is believed Jesus was born, the local authorities are warning
that unless urgent repairs are carried out to the centuries-old Church
of the Nativity, they may have to restrict visitor numbers in future.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12074765
As tensions on its borders grow, so do rivalries among Israel's defense industries
Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi disclosed this week
that for the first time, Hamas fired advanced Russian-made Kornet
missiles from the Gaza Strip, earlier this month, and damaged an IDF
Merkava tank. Such anti-tank capability has, up to now, belonged only to
Syria and Hezbollah.
In view of this new threat, the IDF has decided to deploy along the Gaza
border the one tank battalion that is equipped with the Windbreaker, a
special system used against anti-tank weapons
http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/mess-report/
as-tensions-on-its-borders-grow-so-do-rivalries-among-israel-s-defense-industries-1.332673
Analysis / Opinion
Abulhawa: Delegitimization? We are merely drawing back the curtain on child arrests and confiscation of water
Nothing scares supporters of Israel so much as the delegitimization
issue, which boils down to this fear: writers/activists are successfully
changing the image of Israel in the eyes of the world, and officials are
sure to take note. Yes, we are. We are showing what Israel is. Susan
Abulhawa has been offensively labeled as anti-Semitic by Bernard-Henri
Levy for her novel, Mornings in Jenin. She responds at Huffpo:
"He simply slaps on the word "antisemitism" to discredit any negative
portrayal of Israel. This word -- with its profound gravity of
marginalization, humiliation, dispossession, oppression, and ultimately,
genocide of human beings for no other reason but their religion -- is so
irresponsibly used by the likes of Levy that it truly besmirches the
memory of those who were murdered in death camps solely for being
Jewish. ..."
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/12/
abulhawa-delegitimization-we-are-merely-drawing-back-the-curtain.html
Security and Defense: Avoiding Cast Lead II / Yaakov Katz
Hamas
has
long-range rockets, and Israel’s deterrence may have eroded, but
neither side is interested in another large-scale conflict ... The
current round of clashes and escalating violence is also being fought
primarily along the border. This time, though, it is not because Hamas
or Islamic Jihad are lacking missiles that can hit deep into Israel – on
the contrary, they have the Iranian-made Fajr-5, which can strike Tel
Aviv – but because, at the moment, they prefer not to use them.
http://www.jpost.com/Features/FrontLines/Article.aspx?id=200809
Iraq
Friday: 10 Iraqis killed, 9 wounded
Despite a much-publicized "withdrawal" of U.S.
troops last summer, American soldiers are still celebrating
Christmas in Baghdad, but attacks have not stopped. At least 10 Iraqis
were killed and nine more were wounded in the latest violence.
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2010/12/24/friday-10-iraqis-killed-9-wounded/
For Christians in Iraq, a Christmas of mourning and fear
...Nearly
two months after a shocking assault by Islamist militants, Our Lady of
Salvation Catholic Church will commemorate Christmas quietly, with
daytime mass and prayers for the dead, under security fit more for a
prison than a house of worship. It is the same at Christian churches
across Baghdad and northern Iraq, where what's left of one of the
world's oldest Christian communities prepares to mark perhaps the most
somber Christmas since the start of the Iraq war.
http://www.truth-out.org/for-christians-iraq-a-christmas-mourning-and-fear66253
Lebanon
Lebanon: Israeli jets breached our airspace
Tensions
high:
At least 12 Israel Air Force fighter jets breached Lebanon's airspace
Thursday morning, the Lebanon Army says. According to the Lebanese
military, the jets flew over the town of Naqoura, among other sites,
starting at 9:10 am, leaving Lebanon about an hour and 25 minutes
after first entering the country's airspace.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4004037,00.html
Islamist leader found dead in Lebanese refugee camp
BEIRUT
(Ma’an) -- The head of Fatah in Lebanon, Muneer Maqdah, said Saturday
that Ghandi Sahmarani, who was found dead this morning, was the
leader of what remained of the Islamist Soldiers of Levant group. Maqdah
told Radio Lebanon that the motive behind the killing was not clear but
that no gunshots were heard recently.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345202
Hizballah fears 'Qaeda' type attacks from Lebanese Sunnis (TIME)
A
day after the radical "Salafist" Sunni preacher Sheikh Omar Bakri was
arrested last month, having been sentenced in absentia by a Lebanese
court to life imprisonment on terrorism charges, he received an
unexpected visitor in his holding cell at Beirut's police headquarters.
Nawar Sahili, an MP from Lebanon's militant Shi'ite Hizballah movement —
the Salafists' most powerful local enemy — and a lawyer by training,
offered Bakri his legal services ... Now
I'm working to bring Sunnis and Shi'ites together on certain issues,
such as confronting Israel," Bakri said in his home in Tripoli,
Lebanon's religiously conservative second largest city.
Other Mideast
Video: Ancient Christian site opens in UAE
The
only
known pre-Islamic Christian site at the southern end of the Arabian
Peninsula, located at Sir Bani Yas Island, off the coast of the United
Arab Emirates, has opened to tourists for the first time. A Christian
church is the latest attraction in this conservative Muslim nation.
Christian monasteries have already been discovered in nearby Saudi
Arabia, though rarely publicised due to reluctance to embrace
pre-Islamic religions in the region. Al Jazeera's Dan Nolan reports.
http://english.aljazeera.net/video/middleeast/2010/12/2010122461522484740.html
Yemen says anti-terrorism forces sent to south
ADEN,
Yemen (AFP) – Yemen has deployed new anti-terrorism forces in the
country's restive south, the interior ministry announced on Saturday, as
Washington urged Sanaa to step up its fight against Al-Qaeda.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101225/pl_afp/yemensouthunrestqaeda
Report: Dubai men molested Palestinian boy
DUBAI,
United Arab Emirates -- A court in Dubai has sentenced two Emirati men
to six months in jail for molesting a 13-year-old Palestinian boy, local
media reports said Friday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=345180
WikiLeaks
Egypt FM: We are not seeking to acquire nuclear weapons
Egyptian
foreign minister refutes a May 2008 U.S. cable released by WikiLeaks
which said that Egypt might develop nuclear weapons if Iran obtained
them.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/international/
egypt-fm-we-are-not-seeking-to-acquire-nuclear-weapons-1.332917
WIkiLeaks to 'prove' Mossad behind Dubai murder
DUBAI
(AFP) -- Dubai's police chief said WikiLeaks will confirm his charge
that Israel's Mossad secret service was behind the Jan. 20 murder
of a Hamas commander visiting the emirate, in a newspaper report Friday
... WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, quoted on the website of
Al-Jazeera television, has vowed to release "sensitive" documents on the
Israel-Hezbollah war of 2006 and on Mahmud Al-Mabhuh's murder in his
Dubai hotel room.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=344990
Army opens probe into how Bradley Manning stole files
Washington
- The U.S. Army has launched a wide-ranging investigation into how a
private suspected of downloading thousands of secret reports and
diplomatic cables and handing them over to WikiLeaks was able to do so
and whether other soldiers should face criminal charges in the case,
McClatchy has learned. The Army confirmed the investigation, but
wouldn't release details.
http://www.truth-out.org/
wikileaks-army-opens-probe-into-how-bradley-manning-stole-files66238
U.S. news
Guantanamo closure recedes into distance
Washington
- President Barack Obama's hopes of closing the Guantanamo Bay detention
facility appear as far from being realised as ever in the wake
of new legislation approved by Congress this week. Wednesday's approval
by the Senate of an amendment banning the use of Pentagon funds for 2011
to transfer detainees at Guantanamo, the U.S. naval base on Cuba, to
the United States or its territories appears to guarantee that the
facility will remain open for business at least through next September.
http://www.truth-out.org/guantanamo-closure-recedes-into-distance66254 |
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