Refrains from Bahrain describe growing menace to activists
By Dan Lieberman | Alternative Insight | May 4th, 2011
The media and world bodies have ignored the Bahrain protests, making it difficult to know what is happening. Emails from an activist in Bahrain illuminate some of the occurrences and highlight how the struggle has grown from seeking equality in life to receiving a punishing death.
Apr 6
Dear Friends,
Hope this email finds you well.
To update you on recent events in Bahrain:
Report by the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights: Thousands are subjected to dismissal of work as part of severe clampdown on all who joined or openly supported the protest movement. King’s son says: No escape for opponents of his father:
ILO Director-General sounds alarm on situation of workers in Bahrain:
“Policemen Murder Suspects Go On Trial before the Lower State Safety Court”
“Bahrain University Fires College Dean, 7 Teachers, 25Administrators and 62 Students”
“It has also sacked 25 administrators, 62 students and suspended 8 others for a whole academic year. Five other students enrolled at foreign universities for their PhD degrees had their state scholarships stopped.” It is important to note that the incident of the University of Bahrain was mentioned in the BCHR report on “Unfounded stories of sectarian clashes and violence by protesters”:
“Ministry of Social Affairs has decided to dissolve the Bahrain Teacher’s Society and suspend the Bahrain Medical Society today.” President of the Bahrain Teacher’s Society, was arrested today.
“The US officials expressed thanks and respect to HRH the Crown Prince praising the kingdom’s ongoing development march for the past tenors as well as Bahrain’s pioneering regional and international role.”
Apr 8
Dear Friends,
URGENT NEWS; A prominent human rights defender and former Mena director at Frontline defenders, Abdulhadi Alhkawaja has just been arrested along with two of his son-in-laws- Wafi Almajid and Hussein Ahmed. They broke the front door to the house and then beat them severely along with Mohammad Almasqati, the president of the Bahrain youth society of human rights. But they through Mohammad into a room and told him not to come out and then closed the door. Abdulhadi Alkhawaja was beaten so severely that the blood stain is still visible on the stair case. And when his oldest daughter, Zainab, tried to intervene she was beaten as well.
On their search for Abdulhadi Alkhawaja they went to his apartment first and didn’t find him there. They then went to his cousin’s house and he wasn’t there either but his cousin, Habib Alhalwachi, was and they arrested him. They finally went to the home of his daughter, Zainab Alkhawaja, and found him, arrested him and two others as mentioned above. Urgent pleas for intervention as all three are under arrest, high risk of torture, and their lives may be in danger.
Apr 9
Dear Friends,
Today the Ministry of Interior released news that two detainees died while in custody. The first, Ali Isa Saqer, who was charged with allegedly running over a policeman and killing him, was said to have “created chaos at the detention center and that led to the interference of security forces to bring situation to normal, but he resisted them and sustained various injuries in the process. He was referred to the hospital and died later.”
The second man, Zakariya Rashid Hassan, was allegedly “found dead on Saturday morning at the Detention Center.” The MOI alleges that he died due to sickle cell anemia. This is the second case of death allegedly due to sickle cell anemia in detention centers by Bahraini Authorities.All detainees (currently numbered at around 600, amongst them 25 women two of whom are pregnant) are at very high risk of torture, and their lives are at threat. I will be sending the updated list as soon as it is translated in English.
In an update on the Al-Khawaja case, Minister of foreign affairs wrote on twitter: “He (Alkhawaja) was arrested for charges to be brought against him legally . He violently resisted the arrest and had to be subdued” and then went on to say: “He (Alkhawaja) is not a reformer. He called for the overthrow of the legitimate regime”
You can read the details of Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja’s arrest as told by his daughter who was present at the time to Human Rights Watch:
There are still ongoing protests and candlelit vigils which get attacked every night in different villages in Bahrain causing more injuries. Tens of people are staying at home despite serious injuries, some with shrapnel in their eyes, out of fear of going to the hospitals which are still under the control of the security forces.
Again, we call for urgent intervention as many lives are under threat.
Apr 10
Dear Friends,
I am writing to you in urgency as we have pictures which now show that Isa Saqer, who’s death the Ministry of Interior announced yesterday, show torture marks on his body. The pictures are graphic. It is important to note that Zakaria alAsheri, who’s death was also announced yesterday, is a blogger who was arrested because of his responsibility for www.al-dair.net. Al Asheri’s family has informed us that Zakaria never had sickle cell anemia, which the authorities said was the cause of death. Again, all detainees are under high risk of torture and their lives are at threat.
There is still no news about Abdulhadi Alkhawaja or his sons-in-law. Their whereabouts are still unknown and lawyers have not been able to reach them. There is grave concern for his well-being and and his life. There is concern for Abdulhadi’s eldest daughter, Zainab, who has been talking to the media about her father’s arrest and has been working on documenting cases. She has already received death threats and threats of arrest from members of the royal family due to her speaking out. Zahra Alsingace, Abduljalil AlSingace’s 23 year old daughter, was arrested and interrogated today for a few hours then released. They made her open her facebook page and went through it. Her older brother Hussain remains in detainment as does her father, and her brother Hassan is in hiding as the authorities are looking for him.
Apr 10
Dear Friends,
After broadcasting the pictures I sent you of Isa Saqer and a video of him, the Ministry of Interior put news on their formal website that Nabeel Rajab was to be referred to the Military Public Prosecutor for allegedly having “published in his twitter account a fabricated image of “Ali Isa Saqer” who died on 9 April 2011″ We have reason to believe that he is at high risk of arrest. If Nabeel does get arrested, and after the arrest of Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, Mohammed AlMasqati and Sayed Yousif AlMuhafdah (who is in hiding) will be the only human rights activists left inside Bahrain.
Apr 17
Dear Friends,
Hope this email finds you well.
Defense lawyer Mohammed AlTajer was arrested by Bahraini authorities on the 15th of April. You can read the Human Rights Watch report about it here.
Zainab Alkhawaja’s health has deteriorated immensely and she was moved to a hospital where her family was told that if they give her IV they would have to inform the Ministry of Interior. She went home without receiving the IV. Thereabouts of her father Abdulhadi Alkhawaja and her family members are still unknown. Groups are launching a mass hunger strike starting tomorrow in Bahrain. There are also people around the world who have said that they will join the hunger strike as well.
Detained Women / Detained Men / Disappeared
# 30 women are being detained, 3 of them are reportedly pregnant;
# 571 men have been detained;
# An estimated 20-25% of those detained are under the age of 18 years old, with the youngest being 12 years old, Ahmed Ali Abbas Yahya Thamer;
# 40 people are listed as “missing” and not included in the numbers above;
# 17 doctors have been detained;
# Some of those detained were taken from their hospital beds worthy were being treated for injuries received;# Others were taken in the pre-dawn hours from their homes by masked and armed security forces who produced no ID’s, warrants or official charges;
# Most of those detained have been without contact with their familiar with legal counsel of any sort;
# At least 4 people have died during detention, and the govt claims they died from kidney failure or sickle cell disease, but families deny health conditions and clear indications of torture are present on their bodies; and
# The whereabouts of most of the detainees are not known.
Mr Fadhel Abbasof the National Democratic Assembly was not allowed to travel on the 15thof April when he tried to leave to Tunisia for a conference. No reason was given for his travel ban. I have attached copy of the letter sent to the Oxford Aviation Academy asking them to immediately send back certain Bahraini students.
Apr 20
Dear Friends,
Abdulhadi Alkhawaja called his wife today to let her know that he will be appearing before a military court tomorrow (21st April) at 8am (Bahrain time). He also asked for some clothes. No official charges have been declared against him yet. His sons in law also requested clothes to be brought to what is known as the “Qala’a”, the ministry of interior. His daughter Zainab ended her hunger strike today. Yesterday: “Seven people accused of murdering policemen Kashef Ahmed Mandhour and Mohammed Farooq Abdulsamad have today appeared before the Lower National Safety Court.”
University of Bahrain dismisses 200 students, academicians, admins, employees and security guards:
Amnesty International puts out an urgent appeal on detained defense lawyer Mohammed AlTajer who’s brother has now also been detained, Mohsin AlTajer. Several more arrests have taken place, amongst them a few women. The number of detainees until yesterday was 802, amongst them 52 women, not counting the arrests that took place today. There is still an ongoing campaign of demolishing Shiaa mosques and vandalizing “Matams” which belong to the Shia’a sect.
Apr 23
Dear Friends,
Hope this email finds you well.
Amnesty International: Ebrahim Sharif feared tortured
OMCT: Ongoing incommunicado and arbitrary detention of Mr. Abdulhadi Al Khawaja.
Alkhawaja’s family fears he is being subjected to torture as his voice was very weak when he called and he kept repeating “the oppression is great“. There is fear that Alkhawaja may be undergoing military trial without allowing him lawyers or contact with his family.
Important report by Physicians for Human Rights
A group of female students and teachers were rounded up at a governmental high school, interrogated and beaten, please read more at the bottom of this email. After Nasser bin Hamad promised on national television that “a wall will fall on the heads of all those who called for the fall of the regime”, and that they knew who was with them and who was against them; a loyalty campaign was started under his patronage telling people to sign a pledge of allegiance for the King.
Presence of security forces inside villages to terrorize residents.
27 Shia’a mosques have been demolished by security forces in Bahrain. Some of these mosques have important historical and religious context.
This is a video someone put together documenting the demolitions and some of the vandalizing acts against other religious Shia’a institutions .
More than 100 “Mudhayefat” (stands that are built usually for distribution of food and drink during Shia’a religious events) have also been taken down.
Video documenting some of the human rights violations in Bahrain:
I am alarmed that many governments around the world continue to stay silent about the massive human rights violations taking place in Bahrain. It is especially alarming to see those considered allies to Bahrain to continue to say nothing to their ally which is terrorizing it’s own people on a daily basis, and with 800+ detainees under high risk of torture. I urge all of you to do what you can to pressure your governments to take a stronger stand on the violations taking place in Bahrain. Silence about the violations in Bahrain will also give a green light to other oppressive regimes in far they can go in suppressing protests in their countries before international community will take a strong stand.
Apr 27
Dear Friends,
In alarming news, the military general prosecutor has called for the death sentence for 7 men charged with killing police officers.
More arrests are taking place on an almost daily basis. Authorities have announced today that they will be releasing 312 detainees, updated list of detainees will be sent out as soon as it is ready.
Apr 28
Dear Friends,
Death Sentence:
Ali Hassan AlSingace: 19 years old
Qasim Hasan Matar: 20 years old
Saeed Abduljalil Saeed: 19 years old
AbdulAziz AbdulRidha: 24 years old
Life Sentences:
Isa Abdulla Kadhem: 19 years old
Sayed Sadiq Ali: 19 years old
Hussain Jaffar: 19 years old
As taken from the Bahrain News Agency:
On the website (video 2) the “confessions” have been broadcasted, which seem to be the only “evidence” provided by the prosecution.
Manama, April 28 (BNA) — The National Safety Lower Court on Thursday condemned Ali Abdullah Hassan Al Singees, Qasim Hasan Matar Ahmad, Saeed Abduljalil Saeed and Abdulaziz Abdulridha Ibrahim Husain to death for their role in the killing of Policemen Kashef Ahmed Madhoor and Mohammed Farooq Abdulsamad.
The court also condemned Isa Abdullah Kadhem Ali, Sayyed Sadiq Ali Mahdi and Husain Jaafar Abdulkareem to life in prison for their role in the twin murders. The case of the murders by the seven men was referred to the court following an intensive investigation by the competent authorities. Lawyers have the right to appeal the verdict before the National Safety Court of Appeals. Present at the session during which the verdict was pronounced were journalists from the local media, representative from human rights organisations, relatives of the defendants, lawyers and the defendants. Kashef Ahmed Mandhoor and Mohammed Farooq Abdulsamad were murdered last month when they were deliberately hit by vans and run over in one of the most gruesome murders in Bahrain. The killing was captured on camera and displayed on TV networks and on social networks Facebook and You Tube. The defendants had all their legal rights in line with human rights standards and had lawyers representing them during the trial. They were also allowed to contact their families. The trial sessions were attended by representative from human rights organisations and relatives of the defendants.
~
Dan Lieberman can be reached at: alternativeinsight@earthlink.net
Venezuelan Government Demands End to U.S. Occupations Following Supposed bin Laden Killing
By Tamara Pearson – Venezuelanalysis.com – May 3rd 2011
Mérida – Following the announcement by the U.S. government that its forces had supposedly killed Osama bin Laden, leader of al-Qaeda, in Pakistan, the Venezuelan government released an official statement, rejecting the use of “terror to fight terrorism”.
The statement criticises the “military operation carried out by U.S. forces in Pakistan without the knowledge of Pakistani authorities” and reminds the public that bin Laden was trained by U.S. intelligence before becoming a “pretext for the current wars against Iraq and Afghanistan.”
“The government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, assuming bin Laden’s announced death is true, demands an immediate stop to the occupation and violence provoked by the U.S. in Central Asia with the alleged intention of neutralizing bin Laden.”
“Considering the atrocities and illegal nature of the methods used by the U.S. government, the Venezuelan government is still convinced – as it warned in 2001 – that terrorism cannot be fought with more terror, nor can violence be fought with more violence. The Venezuelan government is convinced that respect for the people’s dignity and sovereignty is an indispensable condition to consolidate global peace and security,” the statement continued.
Venezuelan vice-president Elias Jaua criticised the celebration of the killing of bin Laden, as has been happening in the United States, and said, “I never cease to be surprised by how crime and murder has been naturalised, and how it’s celebrated.”
Legislator Celia Flores, speaking on behalf of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) at a press conference, agreed, saying her party “celebrates life not death,” and the party wanted to reaffirm its position against terrorism and for peace and an ending of all military aggression, globally.
Venezuelan Communist Party (PCV) legislator Carolus Wimmer also commented that “[U.S. President Barack] Obama is legitimising execution without trial as an imperialist policy”.
“This practice delegitimises…institutions that they [the U.S.] themselves created within the system of the United Nations…such as the International Criminal Court. What do such institutions exist for if execution is applied and the opposing party isn’t permitted any kind of defence,” he said.
“I think the peoples of the Middle East and of Northern Africa should request that the U.S. troops leave their territory…because this [bin Laden] was their main excuse for being there,” Wimmer concluded.
Flores also condemned the killing of the son and three grandchildren of Libyan head of state Muammar El Gaddafi after a bombing by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO).
Through a press release, the Venezuelan ministry of foreign affairs also commented on the Libyan events, saying, “This vile crime is particularly serious as it was preceded by the illegal bombing of the national Libyan television headquarters…just a few hours after the Libyan leader [Gaddafi] had put together a proposal for a negotiated solution to the crisis, clearly showing who wants war and who wants peace.”
The statement called the bombings “cruel and cowardly, that day after day massacres civilians of that sister African nation” and communicated Chavez’s condolences to Libya and the family of the victims.
The statement concluded affirming that “the Bolivarian government demands the United Nations condemn this act of war.”
Palestinian Source: “Hamas And Fateh Agree Fayyad Won’t Be Heading New Interim Government”
By Saed Bannoura – IMEMC & Agencies – May 04, 2011
A senior Palestinian source reported that the Hamas and Fateh movements agreed that the current Prime Minister in the West Bank, Dr. Salaam Fayyad, will not be heading the new interim unity government that would be formed after the unity deal is officially signed.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source told UPI that both Hamas and Fateh movements agreed on removing Fayyad, and added that this decision does not mean totally removing him from the government as some officials are calling for appointing him as a Minister of Finance for his ability to obtain international and financial support due to his good relations with donor countries.
The new head of the interim government will likely be from the Gaza Strip.
The government will not carry a political agenda, and will have certain tasks headed by ensuring a positive atmosphere for a lasting reconciliation, preparing for the new general and presidential elections, and to supervise the reconstruction of Gaza.
Other tasks of the government include resolving the social and administrative effects of the internal rifts and conflict, and to reform all Palestinian institutions, including the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).
All political prisoners held by Fateh in the West Bank and by Hamas in Gaza will be released following the official ceremony of signing the deal, while the Legislative Council will be resuming its duties in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
The security forces will be controlled and run by the unity government.
The general, presidential and National Council elections will be consecutively held one year after the deal is signed.
The elections will be held under Arab and International supervision, and an elections court headed by a judge, and eight supervising judges, will be formed to ensure fair and transparent elections.
Bahrain Charges Shi’ite Doctors for Treating Protesters
By Jason Ditz | Anti-war.com | May 03, 2011
The Bahraini regime has announced today that it intends to charge as many as 50 medical workers, including dozens of doctors, with “promoting efforts to bring down the government” and general charges of being involved in an “anti-state conspiracy.”
The Justice Ministry confirmed the charges included efforts to “create sedition within the kingdom” by providing medical treatment to protesters wounded in the regime’s crackdown. The doctors will be charged in the same secretive military court which sentenced four protesters to death last week.
Some of the doctors also face charges for reporting on the killings in the international media, and sending medicine out to wounded protesters who were unable to reach the hospital. The Bahraini state media insisted that the doctors “violated all humanitarian, religious, ethnical and genuine citizenship values and norms” in treating dissidents. … Full article
From Press TV:
… Physicians for Human Rights say doctors and nurses have been detained, tortured, or disappeared because they have “evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces, and riot police” in the crackdown on anti-government protesters. …
Massachusetts Democrats vote to strip public unions of bargaining rights
By Stephen C. Webster | Raw Story | April 29th, 2011
Weren’t Democrats supposed to be in favor of collective bargaining rights? Well, maybe not.
Welcome to bizarro world.
The Democratic-controlled Statehouse in Massachusetts voted earlier this week to strip public employee unions of their collective bargaining rights, as part of the state’s budget measure. It passed by a vote of 157 to 1.
That’s precisely the same action taken by Republicans in Wisconsin, where it sparked a massive democratic outcry and weeks of rowdy protests.
The Massachusetts legislation would allow local municipalities to make unilateral changes to agreed-upon benefits, like health care, bypassing the need for union approval. It would, however, leave open a 30-day window where unions may be consulted on changes to benefits.
According to The Associated Press, the budget also cuts $800 million from the state’s Medicare-like program MassHealth, and strips more than $65 million in aid to state agencies and municipalities. Another $200 million would be withdrawn from the state’s “rainy-day fund” to help close their spending gap for this fiscal year.
“These are the same Democrats that all these labor unions elected,” Massachusetts AFL-CIO president Robert J. Haynes said in a media advisory. “The same Democrats who we contributed to in their campaigns. The same Democrats who tell us over and over again that they’re with us, that they believe in collective bargaining, that they believe in unions.”
He also pledged that the unions would fight this arrangement “to the bitter end.”
“We deserve better in Massachusetts. Working families lost collective bargaining rights in Game 1 of this budget process. It’s on to the Senate, then conference, then the Governor. Working people need to know who is for our right to collectively bargain and who is not.”
It was unclear if state Senate President Therese Murray would allow the budget to proceed.
Corporate Crime of the Century Portrayed as Conspiracy Theory
NPR Ombudsman Says No Response Allowed to Mass Transit Mess Up
By RUSSELL MOKHIBER | May 3, 2011
The NPR Ombudsman says that no response will be allowed to a story about mass transit in Los Angeles.
On April 21, 2011, NPR’s All Things Considered ran a story about how – after a fifty year absence – light rail is coming back to Los Angeles.
NPR reporter Mandalit Del Barco reported that eighty years ago, electric mass transit dominated the city.
“By the roaring 1920’s, more than 1,000 miles of electric trolley lines and train rails ran through the ever-expanding Los Angeles,” Del Barco reported.
But then in the middle of the century, the electric trolley cars disappeared.
Why?
“LA replaced the last of its streetcars with a web of freeways and bus lines,” Del Barco reported. “That led to conspiracy theories that the streetcars were dismantled by private companies who stood to profit – General Motors, Standard Oil and tire companies. That villainous plot figured into the 1988 movie ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit.'”
In fact, it was more than just conspiracy theories.
It was an actual federal crime that led to the destruction of the nation’s electric mass transit.
The companies involved were indicted, convicted, and fined for destroying the nation’s electric mass transit systems.
Del Barco says she was familiar with the criminal history of the case, but didn’t report it.
We asked the NPR Ombudsman’s office to investigate and issue a clarification – at least tell NPR’s listeners that it wasn’t just a conspiracy theory – that it was an indicted and convicted federal crime.
The Ombudsman office said they would look into it.
Then, late last week, we got an e-mail from the NPR Ombudsman’s office.
“Our office talked to the reporter and editor of the piece,” wrote Lori Grisham of the NPR Ombudsman’s office. “They understand your concerns, but do not believe a correction is warranted. Time is one of the main constraints when it comes to producing a radio story and they were trying to condense a great deal of history into a small amount of time.”
Grisham passed along this from Jason DeRose, NPR’s Western Bureau Chief:
“The piece makes clear there had been better public transit in LA and that it was dismantled. We chose not to describe that demise in detail. There were many, many unproven allegations of conspiracy and two official fines. We chose to characterize the numerous unproven allegations as conspiracy theories to lead into the Roger Rabbit tape.”
Grisham ends her e-mail: “I apologize that NPR will not run a correction. Thank you again for taking time to contact us.”
And thank you Lori Grisham for looking into this.
But that’s just bad form – and one reason why America is angry with NPR.
We sent you the documented proven history of the criminal activity.
And still, Jason DeRose says that there were “many, many unproven allegations of conspiracy and two official fines.”
What gives?
This was proven and convicted criminal conduct.
There was nothing unproven about it.
In fact, the destruction of the nation’s electric mass transit system was perhaps one of the most egregious – and underreported – corporate crimes of the century.
Brad Snell is also not happy with the NPR Ombudsman’s decision.
Snell is in the final stages of writing a history of General Motors.
It will be published in 2013 by Knopf.
“Under our celebrated system of laws, the US Justice Department’s allegation of conspiracy by defendants General Motors, Standard Oil of California, and Firestone Tire to monopolize the sale of buses, fuel, and tires by eliminating electric transit was transformed from theory to fact upon their conviction by a Chicago jury in US District Court on March 19, 1949,” Snell told Corporate Crime Reporter. “That judgment was affirmed on appeal (186 F.2 562 (7th Cir. 1951)) and a further appeal by defendants to the US Supreme Court was denied (cert den. 341 US 916), leaving the judgment and convictions in National City Lines as final matters of settled fact and law.”
“In 1990, the Honorable George E. MacKinnon, Senior Judge of the US Court of Appeals in Washington DC, had occasion to review the entire trial record in the National City Lines case,” Snell said.
His conclusion appeared in the Washington Legal Times on May 7, 1990.
“That Chicago trial resulted in criminal conspiracy convictions of the General Motors Corp., Standard Oil of California, and the Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. for their concerted effort to replace electric streetcars with buses in numerous large and small cities,” Judge MacKinnon wrote.
“It is not a theory,” Snell said. “These are not ‘unproven allegations of conspiracy.’ It has been settled judicial fact for more than half a century. Beyond a reasonable doubt, as affirmed by the federal courts, and after denial of further review by the Supreme Court of the United States, it is an established and incontrovertible fact that General Motors, Standard Oil of California, and Firestone Tire conspired to replace electric transit in cities throughout America in order to effect a monopoly in the sale of buses and related products.”
“To suggest otherwise is to debase and mock our revered and time-honored system of American jurisprudence,” Snell said.
It is unconscionable that the NPR Ombudsman will not even consider running a response.
Russell Mokhiber edits the Corporate Crime Reporter.
Al-Aqsa spokesman denies bin Laden statement
Ma’an – 03/05/2011
GAZA CITY — The spokesman of Fatah’s military wing on Tuesday denied issuing a statement marking Osama bin Laden’s death.
Abu Uday of the Al-Aqsa Brigades said the group did not and had no plans to comment because bin Laden’s death was unrelated to Palestine.
He said a statement received by Ma’an’s Gaza City office must have been forced as the armed group “doesn’t know anything about it.”
The statement issued in Al-Aqsa’s name said the group was “shocked with the news that bin Laden had been killed by the non-believers.” “The fighters in Palestine and around the world … did not stop their mission,” it said.
Palestinian reactions to the death of bin Laden have been mixed.
Salam Fayyad, the premier in Ramallah, said it increased chances for peace, while Gaza-based prime minister Ismail Haniyeh condemned it as an extension of American’s foreign policy based on killing.
Hebron settlers attack construction workers
Ma’an – 03/05/2011
HEBRON — Dozens of Israeli settlers assaulted a group of Palestinian construction workers in Hebron’s city center on Tuesday, residents said.
Nayef Da’na told Ma’an that settlers attacked him and other workers as they restored a home near Ash-Shuhuda street, an area long closed down due to settler violence and military patrols.
The owner of the home, Mufeed Ash-Sharabati, said the altercation began with insults being thrown by settlers at the workers, who responded in kind, and escalated into physical violence.
Ash-Sharabati said Israeli forces intervened and ordered the builders to stop work.
It was not the first time the workers repairing the home had been harassed, Da’na said, noting Israeli forces constantly bothered them in an attempt to prevent the home reclamation.
Ash-Shuhada street in Hebron runs between two communities of ultra-Zionist settler groups, who have moved into areas of the Palestinian city, guarded by some 1,500 Israeli soldiers.
The street has been shut down since the 1990s, and was once the center of commerce for city residents.
Protests have been ongoing, and demand Israeli officials permit shops on the street to re-open.
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From the Archives
Truth Telling, Whistle Blowing and the American Way
By Prof. Tony Hall | American Herald Tribune | July 15, 2016
The Kevin Barrett-Chomsky dispute in historical perspective – 3rd part of the series “9/11 and the Zionist Question”
Over decades Chomsky has moved towards the center of formidable networks of academic associations, publishing enterprises, activist groups, speakers forums and New Media operations. The fact that the senior professor is so well wired into such an effective communication grid of activist interaction has hugely amplified his voice and his influence.
Chomsky’s ideas have been broadcast to the far corners of the world in every conceivable format. His work is translated into many languages as the MIT professor goes from honor to honor, distinction to distinction, all the while seeming to combat the expansionary impulses emanating from some of the world’s leading centers of power including those in Israel. The phenomenal success of Chomsky’s career would seem to prove and illustrate that there is still some substance in the conception of America as the land of the free, home of the brave. … continue
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