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Israel Warns Against Global March to Jerusalem

Israel forgets the fact that the United Nations declared Jerusalem to be an “International City” not owned by any one nation in 1947 due to its cultural importance to Christians, Jews, and Muslims. – Window Into Palestine

23 March 2012 / PNN

Israel issued a warning to the nearby Arab states if they allowed the global march to take place next Friday 30th March. Israel also stated that if anyone neared their borders, they would be accused of trespassing.

It claimed that the march is organized by “anti-Israeli parties” and said that this march won’t be allowed to reach Israel’s borders.

Political sources said that the Israeli government sent warning letters to governments including; Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan and Hamas’ in the West Bank and to the Palestinian authority, asking them to put a stop to the possible escalation of tension as a result of these marches.

Israeli military authorities put a “security plan” in place, to face the risk of the flow of protesters to the borders. The plan will be presented in a meeting of the Israeli government on Sunday, 25th March to implement it.

According to the Israeli correspondent of the Israeli official TV, this plan contains strategies to suppress the masses, which the Israeli military units in the Army and border guards have trained for.

Two months ago, the international committee of the Global March to Jerusalem began organizing the global march under the logo “Freedom for Jerusalem, No Occupation, No Ethnic Cleansing and Segregation, No for Judaising of Palestine, its land and holy sites.”

The committee chose 30th March to coincide with the anniversary of Palestinian “land day”; Palestine Land Day is a day celebrated by Palestinians on 30th March each year. The event marks the events of March, 1976, following the Israeli authority’s confiscation of thousands of dunums of private and public land in the majority of Palestinian areas, especially the Galilee. Following these events the Arab masses inside Palestine declared a general strike, confronting the Israeli authorities for the first time since the occupation of Palestine in 1948. The Israeli response was militant and violent, as the Israeli troops, backed up by tanks, entered Palestinian villages and re-occupied them, causing a number of martyrs and many wounded and detainees among the civilians.

The march will unite the efforts of Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims, Christians, Jews, and all citizens of conscience in the world to put an end to Israel’s disregard for international law through the continuing occupation of Jerusalem and Palestinian land.

Massive marches will be organized in Palestine, as well as from Asia, Africa and Europe to and in neighbouring countries to Palestine (Jordan, Egypt, Syria and Lebanon) and towards Jerusalem or to the nearest point possible according to the circumstances of each country and through the coordination between all groups and institutions of civil society taking part in the march, in coordination with the official and national bodies concerned.
Mass protests will also be organized in front of Israeli embassies in the capitals of different countries and in the main public squares in the big cities of the world, including the Arab and Muslim capitals and large cities.

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March 25, 2012 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Illegal Occupation, Solidarity and Activism | , , , | Leave a comment

Police attack Portuguese people protesting austerity measures


A policeman strikes a photojournalist of AFP during the Portuguese general strike in Lisbon March 22, 2012.
Press TV – March 22, 2012

Portuguese police have attacked demonstrators protesting nationwide against the government’s austerity measures.

Demonstrations were held on Thursday in 38 cities and towns across Portugal, including the capital city of Lisbon, Oporto – the second largest city after Lisbon — and Coimbra, AFP reported.

In Lisbon, police resorted to baton charge and arrests to disperse the protesters.

At least one demonstrator was arrested in Oporto as protesters expressed outrage at Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho during a visit to the northern city’s university.

The nationwide protests were part of a 24-hour strike against austerity measures adopted by the government in return for an international bailout. During the Thursday strike which was led by Portugal’s biggest union — the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP) – public services across the country ground to a halt.

The trains and subways in Lisbon and Oporto, and the majority of ports, including the port of Lisbon and Viana do Castelo in the north, were shut down.

The strike is aimed at opposing changes to labor laws that make it easier to fire workers, reduce holidays and cut layoff compensation. The government argues that these changes will revive the economy.

Some European economies have introduced strict austerity plans to tackle their debt crises. The spending cuts have caused deep discontent among people in those countries.

Angel Gurria, secretary general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, said in a Thursday interview that the eurozone needs a bailout fund of at least 1 trillion euros ($1.3 trillion) to prevent its debt crisis from expanding to other European states.

March 24, 2012 Posted by | Economics, Solidarity and Activism | , , , , | Leave a comment

5 injured in West Bank demonstrations

Ma’an – 23/03/2012

(MaanImages/reuters)

RAMALLAH – Five people were injured on Friday in weekly West Bank demonstrations, a local group said.

Three women sustained bruises after Israeli soldiers assaulted them in a weekly demonstration in al-Masara village, Bethlehem, the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements said.

The demonstration began at a cultural center in the village, before heading towards Israel’s separation wall.

In Nabi Saleh, Izz al-Abdul Hazfith Tamimi, 15, suffered facial injuries after being hit by a rubber bullet, the Popular Committee said.

Usama Bilal Tamimi, 16, was hit by a rubber bullet in the leg.

Palestinian and international activists gathered in the village for the weekly protest, which was also dedicated to hunger striking detainee Hana Shalabi, as well as other Palestinians in Israeli jails.

The protest was held on the first anniversary of the arrest of anti-wall activist Bassem Tamimi.

In March, Amnesty International said Tamimi should be released immediately, calling him a prisoner of conscience.

In December, 28-year-old Nabi Saleh resident Mustafa Tamimi died after he was struck in the face by a tear gas canister fired by Israeli forces.

On Tuesday, Israeli troops raided the village, ransacking several homes and confiscating computers and cell phones, according to the local popular resistance movement.

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March 23, 2012 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Solidarity and Activism, Subjugation - Torture | , , | Leave a comment

Human Rights Groups Call on B’Tselem to Withdraw from Conference Featuring Olmert

PCHR Gaza | March 21, 2012

As organizations dedicated to the protection and promotion of human rights—including those acting as legal representatives for war crimes victims— we are disappointed by B’Tselem’s active participation in an upcoming event at which former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will be featured as a keynote speaker.

Olmert has been implicated in the commission of war crimes and other serious violations of international law for his role in Operation ‘Cast Lead’, Israel’s winter 2008-2009 onslaught on the Gaza Strip. A court in the U.K. has already issued an arrest warrant for one of Olmert’s alleged co-conspirators in these acts, former foreign minister Tzipi Livni.

Olmert will speak at a gala dinner on Monday hosted by J Street, a self-described “pro-Israel, pro-peace” lobby group in Washington, DC. Olmert’s speech will be the keynote for J Street’s annual conference. Last week, B’Tselem sent an email to its supporters announcing that it was “proud” of its role in the conference, explicitly mentioning Olmert as a featured speaker.

B’Tselem’s active participation in this event sends a dangerous message. It undermines the fundamental importance of accountability for international crimes, disregards victims’ right to dignity and justice, and implies that political processes may override human rights standards. B’Tselem should be protesting, not celebrating, an event welcoming Olmert.

The decision to release this statement was not taken lightly. We highly value the relationship between Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights organizations, and can look back on many years of successful professional cooperation.

For some Palestinian organizations – particularly those from the Gaza Strip – the relationship with Israeli counterparts is often the last remaining link with Israeli society. This is a link which we all wish to see strengthened and developed.

However, as human rights defenders, we are united by our standards: by our belief in the universality of human rights and the rule of international law. Our legitimacy derives from our unwavering commitment to these principles, and our obligations to act in the best interests of the victims we represent.

We call upon B’Tselem to withdraw from this event, and to use this opportunity to highlight the need for accountability, justice, and the enforcement of the rule of law.

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights

Al Dameer Association for Human Rights

The Palestinian NGO Network (representative of 132 Palestinian ngo’s)

March 22, 2012 Posted by | Solidarity and Activism, War Crimes | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pakistan parties warn against reopening of NATO supply lines

Press TV – March 21, 2012

Pakistan’s main religious parties, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Difa-e-Pakistani Council (DPC), have warned the country against reopening NATO supply routes into Afghanistan, Press TV reports.

Addressing a large crowd in the Bat Khela area of the Malakand division in northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, JI Chief Amir Syed Munawar Hassan said the members of the party along with Pakistani people would close all the routes if the parliament decided to reopen the passageways.

“The leaders and government are following a US agenda,” he said.

Meanwhile, DPC Chairman Maulana Samiul Haq said reopening the routes was unacceptable.

“Democratic tactics would be used for blockade of supply to NATO forces in Afghanistan,” he added.

Samiul Haq announced that a related protest rally would be held in front of Pakistan’s parliament on March 27.

The gathering comes days after a meeting between high-ranking Pakistani officials, including President Asif Ali Zardari, Amy Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lieutenant-General Ahmed Shuja Pasha, and Premier Yousuf Raza Gilani along with his senior ministers.

The meeting was held to discuss channels to normalize the relations with the US-led forces in Afghanistan and restore the supply routes.

In November 2011, Islamabad closed the routes to the supplies headed for the US-led foreign forces deployed in Afghanistan in reaction to the Western military alliance of NATO’s airstrikes that killed 26 Pakistani soldiers near the Afghan border earlier in that month.

The relations between Pakistan and the US have also significantly soured in the past year over the unsanctioned US drone strikes against the former’s northwestern tribal belt.

There have been large-scale protests in Pakistan against the drone strikes, which might force Islamabad to condition the reopening of the supply lines to the halting of the attacks.

March 21, 2012 Posted by | Illegal Occupation, Militarism, Solidarity and Activism, War Crimes | , , , | Leave a comment

Gaza to be connected to Egypt’s power grid: Egyptian envoy

Press TV – March 21, 2012

The Egyptian Ambassador to Occupied Palestinian Territories Yasser Othman has announced that the Israel-blockaded Gaza Strip will be connected to Egypt’s power grid within the next four to five months.

In a Wednesday interview with Saudi Arabian newspaper, Al-Sharq, Othman said that Egypt and Gaza would start work on connecting their power grids within a few weeks.

“This will lead to a real relief for the deepening crisis in the Gaza Strip,” he said.

He explained that the plan to end Gaza’s power crisis was a two-phased one.

During the first phase, Egypt will supply diesel to Gaza’s sole power plant and in the next one, which will take 18 months to complete, Gaza will be connected to a regional power grid in Egypt.

Gaza has been blockaded since 2007, causing a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.

The full-scale land, aerial, and naval siege has turned the enclave into the world’s largest open-air prison.

In mid-February, Egypt blocked the flow of diesel through the tunnels lying beneath its border with Gaza, which are used to transfer supplies into the impoverished coastal sliver amid the siege.

The stoppage forced the territory’s sole electricity power plant out of work, causing the enclave to start experiencing blackouts of up to 18 hours a day.

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March 21, 2012 Posted by | Solidarity and Activism, Wars for Israel | , , | Leave a comment

Palestinian hunger striker Hana Shalabi hospitalized


Palestinian protesters hold posters of Hana Shalabi in 2011. (file photo)
Press TV –  March 20, 2012

Female Palestinian prisoner Hana Shalabi, who has been on a hunger strike since February 16, has been hospitalized.

“Hana Shalabi was transferred this evening to Israel’s Meir hospital after her state of health deteriorated,” Palestinian Prisoner Affairs Minister Issa Qaraqaa said on Monday.

An independent doctor from Physicians for Human Rights-Israel who examined Shalabi said her life was at risk. The doctor described a weakening of her muscles, weight loss of 14 kilograms, and a very weak pulse.

She has been on a hunger strike since her arrest in the northern West Bank on February 16. She was originally ordered to be detained without trial for six months.

Although Shalabi was among more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners released in October 2011 in exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, she was later re-arrested and sent back to prison.

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March 19, 2012 Posted by | Solidarity and Activism | , , | Leave a comment

Palestinian Detainees To Hold Hunger Strike

By Saed Bannoura | IMEMC & Agencies | March 15, 2012

The Media Office of the Waed Society for Detainees and Ex-Detainees reported that Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons and detention camps intend to declare, in April, one of the largest open-ended hunger strikes.

The society said that the detainees will declare the exact day that would mark the beginning of their strike shortly before starting it as they anticipate that Israeli soldiers will be conducting counter measures and attacks in order to foil the strike.

Some of the anticipated, and previously experienced measures, include transferring dozens of detainees from one facility to another, and placing others in solitary confinement.

Head of the media office of the Waed Society, Abdullah Qandeel, stated that the detainees confirmed to the Society that the strike will be decisive and has several main goals topped by demanding an end to the illegal solitary confinement policies, medical negligence, and all Administrative Detention orders, the Maan News Agency reported.

Qandeel added that this strike requires extensive solidarity from the Palestinian people in order to expose the Israeli violations and support the detainees in their open-ended “battle”.

He further stated that media coverage of the strike, and highlighting the plight of the detainees in Israeli prisons, detention and interrogation facilities, is very essential, especially in the Arab world and Europe.

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March 15, 2012 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Solidarity and Activism | , , , , | Leave a comment

“Diamonds Crafted in Israel Should be Banned”

Al-Manar | March 15, 2012

The International diamond-regulatory system, the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, set up to end the trade in blood diamonds is under pressure to ban diamonds from Israel because human rights activists state they are funding the Israeli military, which stands accused of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity by the UN Human Rights Council.

A statement issued by a coalition of human rights groups including Jews for “Boycotting Israel Goods,” the Alternative Information Centre – a Bethlehem-based Israeli/Palestinian group – and a number of Palestine solidarity groups from Ireland and Britain calls on the new KPSC chair, US Ambassador, Gillian Milovanovic and members of the KPSC to ban the export of diamonds crafted in the Zionist entity.

The groups expressed “great concern about the recent escalation of military attacks by Israeli forces against the defenseless, besieged residents of the Gaza strip which have killed at least 23 Palestinians, including two children.”

“Scores of people have been injured, while thousands more have been terrorized and traumatized. With this horrific backdrop, we believe the time for action is now.  The jewellery industry is facilitating Israeli war crimes by allowing the trade in diamonds from Israel which generates around $1 billion per annum in funding for the Israeli military [1]. The international community must act in a meaningful manner to end Israeli violations of international law; banning the export of Israeli diamonds would be a very important step in that direction,” the Kimberley’s statement read.

The statement calls on jewelers “not to sell diamonds from Israel which should be regarded as blood diamonds and to end the false and grossly misleading practice of claiming that diamonds which fund gross human rights violations by government forces are ‘conflict free’.”

It also called for support for this initiative from other organizations: “We ask human rights groups worldwide to pressure the diamond industry to isolate diamonds processed in Israel and not to allow the legitimate diamond market to be used as an economic shield to fund Israeli apartheid, occupation and war crimes,” the statement concluded.

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March 15, 2012 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Illegal Occupation, Solidarity and Activism, Timeless or most popular, War Crimes | , , | Leave a comment

Brits protest against government nuclear plans

Press TV – March 10, 2012

Anti-nuclear activists from across Britain are surrounding EDF Energy-owned power station to stop the development of Hinkley Point and to urge the government to put an end to its nuclear power.

In a bid to mark the nuclear disaster at Japan’s Fukushima power plant, hundreds of British campaigners have formed a symbolic chain around Hinkley Point to voice their determined opposition to new nuclear, and to call on the coalition government to suspend its plan for seven other new nuclear plants across the UK.

The human chain is planned to continue for 24 hours, with the activists blocking the main entrance of Hinkley Point.

Despite the rising concerns over the severity of atomic accidents, UK government has announced that it was planning to have eight new nuclear plants by 2025. Hinkley Point in Somerset is the first of eight proposed sites for building new nuclear plant.

Nancy Birch, spokeswoman for the Boycott EDF group campaigning against the UK’s addiction to nuclear power, said, “The disaster at Fukushima is only just beginning. A whole new generation will now live under the shadow of radiation contamination for the rest of their lives. Do we really want to put our own children under the same kind of threat?”

Zoe Smith, spokesperson for South West Against Nuclear, stressed that it was very important for the communities in Wales and the South West to understand the risk of a Fukushima-style accident.

“Bristol, Exeter, Taunton, Yeovil, Cardiff and Swansea are all within the 50 mile evacuation zone recommended by the US and France. The threat from a leakage of radiation or a full-blown disaster are very real,” she said.

Smith also declared that Hinkley protest would be a wake-up call, and that Britain should take a new approach to energy provision. Adding, “The reality is that we have to start reducing our energy consumption and making modern life more energy-efficient. We then need to spend the £60bn earmarked for ‘new nuclear’ on truly renewables forms of energy and research.”

Similar protests are taking place against new nuclear plants at Wylfa in North Wales and Heysham in Lancashire.

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March 11, 2012 Posted by | Nuclear Power, Solidarity and Activism | , , | Leave a comment

Hana Shalabi to continue hunger strike despite sentence reduction

Ma’an – 04/03/2012

RAMALLAH – Hana Shalabi said Sunday that she will continue her hunger strike despite an announcement by Israel’s Ofer military court that her prison time will be reduced by two months.

Lawyer Fadi Qawasmi visited Shalabi on Sunday at Hasharon prison and informed her of the court’s decision to reduce her imprisonment time by two months.

Shalabi told him that she would continue her hunger strike protest in order to achieve her demands to end administrative detention.

She has been on hunger strike for 18 days and her condition is said to have worsened recently.

Addameer prisoners society says that Shalabi was issued a 6-month administrative detention order on Feb. 23.

Ofer military court refused Qawasmi’s request to call witnesses to speak about the assault of Shalabi during her interrogation, he said.

Qawasmi also requested that a Shin Bet representative, the military commander who led the arrest and the soldier who carried out the strip search on Shalabi be called to the stand.

The court refused his demands.

Lawyer from the prisoners society Jawad Boulos said on Tuesday that Israeli court officials claimed that the reason for Shalabi’s administrative detention is because she is considered a threat to Israel’s security and safety of its people.

They also claimed that she planned military actions right after she was released.

Hana Shalabi, from the northern West Bank village Burqin, is being held without charge since her detention on Feb. 16. She announced her hunger strike immediately after soldiers seized her from the family’s Jenin-district home.

Shalabi was freed in October 2011 when Hamas secured the release of more than 1,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails in exchange for a captured Israeli soldier.

She had spent 25 months in administrative detention, under procedures that allow Israel to detain Palestinians for renewable terms of six months without pressing charges, using laws dating back to the British Mandate period.

Israel is holding 309 Palestinians in administrative detention, according to figures by prisoners rights group Addameer. There are currently six Palestinian woman in Israeli custody.

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March 4, 2012 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Solidarity and Activism | , , , , , | Leave a comment

UK student movement takes huge step forward during Israeli Apartheid Week

By Michael Deas – The Electronic Intifada – 03/01/2012

Student solidarity groups from more than twenty UK universities held Israeli Apartheid Week events last week, raising awareness of the apartheid analysis and building boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) on campus. Coming towards the end of an academic year that has seen students’ unions across the country and the National Union of Students move to support BDS initiatives and many successful BDS campaigns, the week has been hailed as having taken the UK student movement for Palestine to new heights.

The week kicked off on the Monday with a national day of action, with campuses across the country organising mock checkpoints, street theatre and supermarket actions.

Focus on youth

Organisers chose to bring young activists from Palestine and South Africa as visiting speakers, resulting in energetic and action-focused panel discussions and providing students with the opportunity to hear about the latest developments in the Palestinian and South African youth movements.

In Scotland, five universities hosted talks by Adameer activist Murad Jadallah and Wassim Ghantous, a Palestinian youth activist currently active in the Belgian BDS movement. With students in Scotland especially active in organising solidarity for Khader Adnan, Murad’s talks on the work Adameer had been doing to support him were particularly well timed. The announcement that Adnan was to be released came shortly before one of the biggest public events was due to start.

Yara Sadi from the Who Profits from the Occupation? project spoke alongside local activists in Leicester, Leeds and Sheffield and Israeli BDS activist Leehee Rothschild visited the universities of Sussex, Warwick and Essex.

In London, the main panel discussion featured film maker Eyal Sivan, Palestinian BDS National Committee secretariat member Rafeef Ziadah, journalist Ben White and South African student leader Mbuyiseni Ndlozi. Mbuyiseni spoke passionately of the “potent gift of international solidarity” that contributed to the downfall of South African apartheid and must be developed further to support the Palestinian struggle against Israeli apartheid.

Mbuyiseni also spoke in Nottingham and alongside Ewa Jasiewicz at a meeting at Manchester Metropolitan University that launched a campaign against the university’s ties with Veolia, the French multinational that provides services to Israel’s illegal settlements.

At the University of Liverpool, the Guild of Students voted to adopt a range of policy motions in support of campaigns following presentations earlier in the week by the Corporate Watch research group about their newly released BDS book Targeting Israeli Apartheid.

On Friday, the week was rounded up with a series of social events. In London, a Beats Against Apartheid event was attended by over 600 students. It was the perfect energetic ending to an inspiring week with performances from hip-hop artists Lowkey, Mic Righteous, Awate and spoken word performers Rafeef Ziadah and Jody Mcintyre among many others.

Opposition and repression

Despite much fanfare in the Israeli media, the official ‘Voices for Israel’ delegation made little impact. Bizarrely, meetings at which they spoke were poorly publicised and there was almost no visible presence on campuses from the official delegation.

In contrast, local pro-Israel student activists attempted to intimidate IAW organisers, with students at LSE being pelted with water balloons as they staged a mock check point on campus and there were reports of confrontational behaviour in Birmingham, Nottingham and elsewhere.

Regardless of these attempts at intimidation, Israeli Apartheid Week has been widely successful and has continued its consistent growth across the UK. Indeed, the failure of pro-Israel activists to detract from our activities in any meaningful should be seen as a further sign that the debate on UK campuses is now happening very much on our terms.

For information on the Israeli Apartheid Week events that will take place elsewhere in the world in the coming weeks, check out the official Israeli Apartheid Week website.

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February 29, 2012 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Solidarity and Activism, Video | , , , , | Leave a comment

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