Bahrain police summon female activist
Press TV – June 2, 2011
The Manama police department in Bahrain has summoned a female human rights activist as intensified crackdown on peaceful anti-government protests continue in the Middle Eastern country.
Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) said Wednesday that Zainab al-Khawaja has been summoned to appear at the police department in the capital Manama on Thursday.
The daughter of a prominent Bahraini opposition figure, al-Khawaja went on a ten-day hunger strike in April to protest the detention of her close relatives amid the government’s brutal crackdown against anti-regime demonstrators.
The rights center also stated, “The summoning raises concern as her father, Abdulhadi al-Khawaj, told his family a few days ago that security forces inside the prison kept threatening that they had arrested and raped his daughter Zainab.”
Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, a former president of BCHR, was arrested on April 9 and put on trial with 20 other detained activists over allegations of attempting to topple the Bahraini government. He has also been threatened with rape by the prison guards after he refused to apologize to Bahrain’s king on camera. … Full article
Hezbollah Condemns Attack on UNIFIL
Al-Manar | May 28, 2011
Hezbollah condemned the attack which targeted United Nation Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrol, considering it as a “criminal act”.
Hezbollah Media Relations issued a statement, saying the party “ considers this a criminal act and calls on the Lebanese special services to investigate and uncover the perpetrators and hold them accountable”.
Six Italian peacekeepers were wounded, along with two civilians on Friday in a roadside bomb explosion targeting a UN patrol along Rmeileh highway leading to the coastal city of Saida, south of Lebanon.
According to Italian Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa, two of the peacekeepers were in serious condition.
A spokesman for the UNIFIL, Neeraj Singh, said: “this is a despicable act that is clearly directed at undermining UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and stability in Lebanon”, referring to the resolution that ended July war in 2006.
Report: Egypt working with Israel on Rafah policy
Ma’an – 27/05/2011
JERUSALEM — Egypt has explained to Israel that the Rafah crossing will not be used to transfer goods, and restrictions will be imposed on the movement of individuals, Israel radio reported Thursday.
According to political sources quoted in the report, Egyptian authorities are aware of the risk that “terrorist elements” could pass through Rafah, the sole non-Israeli entrance point, and Cairo will act accordingly.
Egypt said Wednesday it would open the crossing on a daily basis in a bid to ease the blockade.
The measure, which will come into force Saturday, will give Gazans a gateway to the world as Rafah is the only crossing which does not pass through Israel.
The frontier will now be opened for eight hours a day from 9:00 a.m., with the exception of Fridays and public holidays, Egypt’s official MENA news agency said.
Until now, it had been open only intermittently, mainly for Palestinians who can prove humanitarian need. … Full article
US holds up Smallpox stock eradication
Press TV – May 25, 2011
Despite opposition by many nations, the eradication of the world’s last smallpox stocks remaining in the US and Russian labs have been postponed for three more years.
After two long days of strong debate, UN members at the World Health Assembly in Geneva reached an agreement on the destruction of smallpox samples held in stockpile in the US Center for Disease Control labs in Atlanta, Georgia and a Russian-government sponsored lab in Siberia.
Washington and Moscow said that they want to keep their virus stocks for five more years to develop new vaccines for possible resurgence in future. The European Union, Canada, Israel, Monaco, Colombia and China are among countries that support the delay.
Many countries including the North African nations, Iran, Thailand, Zimbabwe and Malaysia, on the other hand, are in favor of the immediate destruction of the remaining samples of the virus.
The debate over the destruction of the stocks of the deadly smallpox virus, which was irradiated in 1979, has been recurring since 1986.
The supporters of the US and Russia’s program finally accepted to compromise with at most 3 years of delay in the destruction program.
Based on the final decision, there will be another meeting in 2014 in the World Health to decide on a more defined date of complete destruction of the stocks.
The supporters of the destruction program are satisfied with the decision. “The outcome shows destruction is imminent,” said Edward Hammond, a consultant for the Third World Network, a nongovernmental organization based in Malaysia that advocates for smallpox-virus destruction.
The US-led resolution for saving the stocks for five more years did not succeed despite the intense lobbying, Hammond said, adding that “I have never seen the US put more time and effort into trying to get a resolution passed.”
Israeli attaché warned before expulsion
Press TV – May 24, 2011
A Russian newspaper reports that Moscow has given three warnings to Israeli military attaché to Russia Colonel Vadim Leiderman before expelling him.
Liederman contacted Russian military officials without first coordinating with the Russian Foreign Ministry, Komsomolskaya Pravda daily said on Monday.
Russia warned the Israeli Embassy in Moscow several times that Leiderman has violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, according to the paper.
The Soviet-born Israeli Air Force Colonel was arrested during a May 12 meeting with Russian officials.
Following the warnings issued in November 2009, April 2010 and December 2010, Israeli diplomats have promised that all of the actions of the military attaché would be in strict compliance with the Vienna Convention.
However, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced that Leiderman was expelled because of his attempts to acquire secret information on military sales to Arab states.
The FSB said in a statement that it had “impregnable evidence” of the “illegal activities in our country, whose substance was to recruit a number of Russian civilians as possible information providers.”
Army Demolishes Ten Homes Near Hebron
By Saed Bannoura – IMEMC & Agencies – May 06, 2011
Israeli soldiers demolished on Thursday ten Palestinian homes in the Hebron district, in the southern part of the occupied West Bank.
The army invaded Um Nir village and Yatta town, near Hebron, and provided protection to army bulldozers that flattened the homes and damaged infrastructure and roads, local sources reported.
The sources added that the army declared the village of Um Nir as a closed military zone preventing the residents from entering or leaving it.
In related news, soldiers invaded Al Saray’a and Abu Hindi Bedouin villages near occupied East Jerusalem, and handed eviction orders to fifty families living in the area. The residents were granted ten days to leave the area before the army demolishes their homes.
The families live in a valley that is located between the Kidar illegal settlement and the Maali Adumim settlement bloc.
The villagers are subject to frequent attacks by Israeli soldiers and settlers, yet, have continuously expressed their rejection to being displaced and removed from their lands.
Home demolitions and eviction are direct violations to the International Law, and all laws and regulations that clearly stipulate the need to protect civilians in conflict zones.
Ex-Bahraini MP dies under detention
Press TV – May 5, 2011
A former Bahraini lawmaker and member of the country’s main opposition group has died in a hospital after being held in custody of the Manama regime.
Jawad Firouz who was a member of al-Wefaq political society, was recently arrested and detained by Bahraini police, local sources said on Thursday.
The development comes after rights group Amnesty International appealed to rulers in Manama on Wednesday to end the arrest of opposition members.
Manama regime has intensified its crackdown on the popular revolution against the decades-long ruling of al-Khalifa dynasty in the small Persian Gulf country, which has been continuing since Mid-February.
On Tuesday, the Bahraini parliament voted to extend the state of emergency for three more months, due to expire on June 15.
Human rights organizations have strongly criticized Saudi-backed Bahrain forces for their heavy-handed crackdown on peaceful protesters.
On March 13, Saudi-led forces were dispatched to the Persian Gulf island at Manama’s request to quell countrywide protests.
According to local sources, dozens of people have been killed and hundreds arrested so far during the government clampdown on peaceful demonstrations.
Bahrain is home to major military base of the US Navy Fifth Fleet.
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.
Osama Bin Laden has been dead for a while! Show me the body like Saddam Hussein’s two sons were put on display
LoneStarWatchDog | May 2, 2011
This smells to high heaven and seems like an act of political desperation. It has been confirmed by many sources Bin Laden could not survive in a cave because he needed kidney dialysis. The CIA asset died of natural causes many years ago. Every video and audio recording was a fake and a fraud concocted by our intelligence agencies to raise terrorist warnings for political purposes.
I want to see the body. What was the purpose to quickly bury Osama bin laden at sea. I want to see the body and then I will believe the news. I want to see the dialysis marks on his body. Then which Bin Laden is it. Was it the one smiling who was writing with his right hand when he is left handed? Was it the Bin Laden with the grey beard and the one with a regular brown beard? What ship buried Bin Laden at sea?
This seems like a political move because Barrack Obama the President is in trouble with very low approval ratings. If he really wants to prove it. At least President George W. Bush during the Iraq conflict had Saddam Hussein’s two sons on public display before they were laid to rest. There was no observance to Islamic law concerning burial of the bodies. They had no trouble hanging Saddam Hussein on video. Why so secretive if they really killed Osama Bin Laden. I want to see the body. Then I will believe the news.
This President is in hot water with the American people. The people no longer have confidence in his leadership and his ability to lead. Using the Osama Bin Laden card was an act of political desperation. Next there might be a false flag attack claiming to be in retaliation to killing Osama Bin Laden might be in the cards. I approach this breaking news with great skepticism because there is no evidence there was any operation took place. No video of burial at sea or the body. All we have to go on is the President’s words in which we have no confidence in what he says because the words he is speaking are coming from a teleprompter.
Israeli settler shot dead, 4 injured in Nablus
Ma’an – 24/04/2011
NABLUS — An Israeli settler was shot dead and four others were injured early Sunday after a group of Jewish worshippers snuck into Nablus without coordinating with Palestinian or Israeli security, officials said.
Settler sources named the man killed in the incident as Jerusalem resident Ben-Yosef Livnat, a 24-year-old father of four who is the nephew of hawkish culture minister Limor Livnat, and was born in the Nablus-area settlement Elon Moreh.
The shooting took place when dozens of armed ultra-Orthodox settlers entered the Joseph’s Tomb site without an Israeli military escort.
The Palestinian officers told the group that they were not allowed in the area and said that in response settlers pulled out their own guns and pointed them toward the officers. Israel’s military confirmed no coordination attempts had been made.
Security forces first fired warning shots into the air, according to Palestinian officials, while a statement from Israel’s army said Palestinian officials said shots were fired “after identifying suspicious movements.”
Yaakov David Ha’ivri, a settler leader in the northern West Bank, said the four were shot as they left the tomb after an unauthorized visit.
The incident put “a great question mark over the ability of the Palestinian Authority to protect the security of Jewish worshipers,” he said. “It could encourage the Israeli side to take more responsibility.”
Visits to the tomb, in the Nablus-area town of Balatta, have in the past years been conducted at night. Israeli forces enter the area and impose a military curfew, preventing civilians from leaving their homes from the hours of midnight to dawn.
Palestinian police operating in the area during an Israeli military operation are told to evacuate.
Palestinian Authority security services spokesman Adnan Dmeiri told Ma’an that officers on duty at the site had been summoned to give testimonies as witnesses to the incident, but said none had been detained.
Dmeiri said a committee had been formed to investigate the shooting but said it would not include Israeli officials. He denied media reports that the investigation would be under US supervision.
Mixed reactions
“This was an abnormal event which does not characterize the nature of the relationship,” an Israeli military official told Ynet, a news site based in Tel Aviv. “It is possible that the group’s failure to coordinate the visit caused a misunderstanding,” the official said.
The governor of Nablus, Jibril Al-Bakri, added that the shooting was unintentional and said it was still being investigated.
The army said its senior officials were expected to meet with Palestinian security officers Sunday to examine the incident.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak issued a statement “strongly condemning” the incident and calling on the army and Palestinian Authority to investigate.
“No breakdown in coordination can justify an event of this nature and firing at innocent people,” he said.
Following the incident, Israeli forces closed the Beit Furik checkpoint east of Nablus and intensified inspections at Za’tara and Huwwara checkpoints in the area.
Clashes erupted around Joseph’s Tomb as Israeli forces launched tear gas at young Palestinians protesting in the area.
After Israeli forces withdrew, Palestinians set fire to the site.
AFP contributed to this report
Bahrain fires 1,000 striking workers
Press TV – April 6, 2011
A number of major Bahraini companies have laid off over 1,000 workers as a punishment for taking part in the country’s general strikes that were planned for a show of solidarity with anti-government protesters.
Bahrain’s main opposition bloc says the firms include Bahrain Airport Services and APM Terminals Bahrain, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
The General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU) called for a nationwide strike first on February 20 and then from March 13 to 22 as protests continued due to the crackdown on anti-government demonstrators in the tiny Persian Gulf littoral state.
Officials at Batelco, Gulf Air, Bahrain Airport Services and APM Terminals Bahrain said they had laid off more than 200 workers due to absence during the strike.
“It’s illegal in Bahrain and anywhere else in the world to just strike. You have to give two weeks’ notice to your employer,” said one executive who did not wish to be named.
The strike followed a brutal crackdown on protesters by the government in the capital Manama. More lay-offs are expected at Bahrain Petroleum, which has fired the head of its workers’ union.
More than 25 people have been killed, hundreds arrested and thousands injured in the government-authorized violence in Bahrain since February 14, when the public started a popular revolution against the monarchy, which has been ruling the tiny island for more than 200 years.
In March, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait deployed their troops to Bahrain to reinforce a massive armed crackdown on the popular uprising.
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From the Archives
Politicians lie
By Mazin Qumsiyeh | Popular Resistance | August 18, 2013
There is no way to say this truth nicely: Politicians lie. That includes Japanese, American, Egyptian, Israeli, and Palestinian politicians! Is there something more common sense than that? Yet, so many citizens around the world believe their own politicians or wistfully acknowledge lies but think it is part of the job needed to run things. They believe even when politicians contradict themselves blatantly. This phenomenon is rather remarkable. It is a dissonance and disconnect from reality that many seem oblivious to. It is very dangerous because it can lead to accepting rationales for going to war. These can be deadly wars that lead to millions of lives lost as happened in what was called World War 1 and WW2. Even when incredible and declassified evidence abound, politicians continue to lie and old mythologies refuse to die. Here are just a few of the countless lies told to us over the past few decades… continue
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- Settler Kidnappings: Torture, Sexual Abuse and Terrorisation of Palestinian Abductees as Israel Deepens Annexation of West Bank
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- In UN Speech, Iran’s President Displays Pictures of Children Killed by US, Brings Attention to Israel’s Nuclear Arsenal
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- New Study: Earth And Venus Surface Warmth Largely Explained By Convection And Lapse Rate, Not CO2 Or Radiation
- 2025 Nature Paper Claiming Worsening Global Drought Gets RETRACTED …Heavily Flawed
- New Study: ‘Global Drought Shows No Detectable Recent Acceleration Under Climate Warming’
- Economic Masterminds: German Socialists Suggest Taxing Productivity Gains Stemming From Using AI
- The South China Sea Has Not Been Cooperating With The Climate Change Narrative
- Energy Crisis: Germany Enters Heating Season With Historically Low Gas Reserve Fill Levels
- New Study: The Antarctic Ice Sheet Gained Mass From 2020-2024 Due To Staggering Snow And Ice Accumulation
- Study: Ocean Heating Rates From Thousands Of Years Ago ‘Dwarf’ Modern Ocean Heating Rates
- Climate Extremists Target, Attack Large-Scale Power Grid Infrastructure In Germany!
- New Study: Antarctic Ice Melt Has Contributed Less Than 1 Centimeter To Sea Level Rise In The Last 30 Years
