Haneyya delivers first speech as Hamas’s leader
Palestine Information Center – July 5, 2017
GAZA – The newly-elected head of Hamas’s political bureau, Ismail Haneyya, delivered on Wednesday his first speech since taking office in which he addressed all Palestinian issues.
Held in Gaza city, the speech was attended by a large number of officials from different Palestinian factions as well as other political, media and religious figures.
Haneyya stressed that the escalation waged against the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails must stop, describing the administrative detention policy targeting both Palestinian citizens and MPs in the occupied West Bank as “terrorism”.
He expressed his pride of the Palestinian resistance, especially the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas Movement, and denounced labeling it as a form of terrorism, explaining that the real terrorism is embodied in the Israeli occupation.
Haneyya pointed to a US-Israeli project that is aimed at liquidating the Palestinian cause, stressing that the Palestinian people will never accept any settlements that contradict their rights of return and establishing a Palestinian state.
As for Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque, Hamas’s leader asserted that the attempts exerted by the Israeli occupation to obliterate the Islamic identity of al-Aqsa Mosque through the repeated settlers’ incursions and the temporal and spatial division of the mosque will fail.
Haneyya praised in his speech the steadfastness of the Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, “the center of conflict”, as he put it, and those in the 1948 occupied territories who are constantly subjected to Israeli terrorism and racial discrimination.
On the issue of the Palestinian refugees in the diaspora, he underlined that the right of return is sacred and inalienable, appealing to the Arab countries hosting Palestinian refugees to provide them decent living conditions.
Speaking about the situation in Gaza, he strongly condemned the latest decisions imposed by the Palestinian Authority on the Gaza Strip which led to furthering the suffering of the Gazan citizens living under an 11-year blockade.
Haneyya pointed out that efforts are ongoing with the Egyptian authorities to reach solutions for Gaza’s crises, appreciating at the same time the role Qatar has played in the past years in supporting Gaza by all means.
He proposed a political initiative that stipulates the formulation of a unified political program and the formation of a national unity government that assumes its obligations toward the Palestinian people in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
The initiative also includes preparing for free and fair legislative and presidential elections with the participation of all parties, ending security coordination between the Palestinian Authority and Israel, and removing all obstacles to achieving the initiative, the foremost of which is reversing all punitive measures taken against Gaza.
Haneyya stated that Hamas seeks to maintain good relations with all Arab countries without interfering in their internal conflicts.
At the international level, Hamas’s leader asked the international community not to believe the “black propaganda” waged by Israel against his movement, emphasizing that Hamas is a national liberation movement and a genuine part of the Palestinian people.
Ecuador’s Public Healthcare System Named Most Innovative by UN
teleSUR | July 3, 2017
Public health care in Ecuador was internationally recognized as the most innovative and progressive in the world when they were awarded the United Nations Public Service Award.
The prestigious award, presented on June 23, praised the South American country’s delivery of health services which Ecuadoreans have access to through the Public Health Network (RPIS), from which stem other branches of state medical aid such as the Ministry of Public Health (MSP), Ecuadorean Institute of Social Security (ISSFA), and the National Police Social Security Institute (ISSPOL).
Ecuadoreans will receive medical attention from any one of these institutions at any location, irrespective of their member status or their economic situation per the country’s constitution which guarantees free health care.
Additionally, Ecuador’s public health takes a step further, breaking convention and putting the welfare of its citizens first. In the case that a medical procedure is not available in the country, the patient in sent outside the country to undergo medical aid, free of charge.
One such case was that of Sofia Echeverria, a young woman who had suffered from biliary atresia, a sickness of the liver, since birth. As liver transplant is impossible in Ecuador, she was sent to the Austral Hospital in Argentina to undergo surgery.
Since its initiation, RPIS has treated more than 8 million patients and members the state medical institutions as well as transferred 40,000 to outside private services.
“This has implied great changes in our institutions and state officials attitude since the system was divided and full of barriers that did not allow citizens to benefit from hospital services due to the lack of funds,” Minister of Health, Veronica Espinosa stated.
Espinosa said that despite the progress made, there is still much left to do.
The minister explained the need for a legislative framework which will guarantee universal medical care for future generations – a proposal that will be discussed at the National Assembly.
What I Hear in Every European Country I Visit: The Politicians Are All in Bed with the Israeli Government
By Miko Peled | American Herald Tribune | July 3, 2017
I recently returned from a ten – day speaking tour in Europe, to launch the German language translation of “The General’s Son, Journey of an Israeli in Palestine.” I had lectures to German speaking audiences and even and interviews with main stream media outlets. The tour also included two lectures in Italy, one in Milan and one in the small town of Biella, which of course were not related to the German edition. All the lectures were well attended and people did not mind sitting through the extreme hot weather plaguing Europe this summer or the lengthy process of translation – indeed the audiences sat for hours and listened and then remained for lengthy discussions and Q&A sessions.
This was the latest of many speaking tours I have had in Europe and there is a line that I hear and that is repeated in every European country I visit: “Here in (fill in the blank) the Zionist lobby is very strong, the politicians are all in bed with the Israeli government and media will not report on Palestine.” This stands in contrast to the prevailing opinion which is, that in Europe there is a strong Palestine solidarity movement. That people in general are sympathetic to the cause of justice for Palestine and the BDS movement has recorded serious accomplishments in Europe. And yet, it is true that European governments and mainstream media and the EU as a body are fully supportive of Israel and collaborate with Israel on every level which means that there is an enormous gap between the politicians and their constituents on this issue.
One example of the official and perhaps true attitude of the European Union to Israel and the issue of “illegal settlements” is the following: In the spring of 2016 a conference was held in Jerusalem under the title of “How to Fight the BDS.” I was in Jerusalem at the time and decided to attend. After all, Israeli television news channel 10 described me as a leader of the BDS movement and “the nightmare of the Israeli Hasbara,” two claims in which there is very little truth. The event was very well attended and among the many panels there was one that included the European Union ambassador to Tel Aviv, his Excellency, Lars Faaborg-Andersen. The ambassador was asked about the EU law demanding that products made in the Israeli settlements in the West Bank be labeled indicating that they are not made in Israel but in the West Bank. “We welcome the products from the Settlements” the ambassador responded, “the labeling is merely for accuracy.”
There have been several attempts by the European states and the EU to pacify the pro-Palestinian sentiment and surprisingly, they seem to have worked. One such attempt is the recognition by several European governments and parliaments of a Palestinian state. This recognition is received by many supporters of the Palestinian cause as a reason to rejoice, a reason to feel that justice is being served. But the recognition of a state that does not exist does nothing to promote justice for Palestinians or change the reality in Palestine. The recognition of a fictional Palestinian state does not change the fact that for seven decades Palestine is occupied, Palestinians are subjected to genocide, ethnic cleansing and are forced to live in an apartheid regime. In fact, even the name Palestine has all but been erased off the map and the area recognized as what may one day be a Palestinian state, i.e., the West Bank, is now Judea and Samaria and has – much like all other parts of Palestine – been settled by Jews and, with the exception of some three million Palestinians living there, has been fully integrated into the state of Israel.
So what has this recognition done? Nothing but placate, sedate and allow the Zionist regime to go on with its policies of extermination and dispossession. Instead of recognizing and declaring that Palestine is occupied and should be freed from the regime that has been on a mission to destroy it and its people, the Europeans have recognized a state that has no defined boundaries, no capital, no citizenry and certainly no sovereignty. But as former colonizers themselves, the European states are quite accustomed to the practice of imposing puppet regimes that have no authority or real legitimacy, recognizing a so called state and then doing with it as they will. This is what they are now allowing Israel – a settler colonial project – to do.
The other placating measure was the law that prohibits the labeling of products made in Jewish settlements in the West Bank as made in Israel. This law, as it happens exists in the US as well since the Clinton Administration. It was reiterated by the Obama administration in 2016, and as JPost reported, “The move signals the Obama administration’s continued resistance to folding recognition of settlement products into goods made within Israel’s pre-1967 borders.” but US government officials claimed this was only for providing guidance and is in no way a boycott “or anything like that.”
This ridiculous demand for labeling forces all involved to put forward enormous efforts to define what is “Israeli proper,” or “Legal Israel” as opposed to the expanded or “greater” Israel which includes the West Bank and the Gaza strip. Where do the occupied territories begin and which of the illegal settlements are to be labeled? Are the settlements that are attached to East Jerusalem legal or illegal? What about products that are grown in other areas but get their water from the West Bank which has an enormous water reservoir from which Israel gets much of its water? But in reality there is no West Bank and there is no “Israel proper.” Whichever way we choose to look at it, all of Israel is occupied Palestine, and all of Palestine is occupied. There is no more a line that defines any single area within Palestine that is not part of the State of Israel. So, its either all legal and acceptable or all illegal and unacceptable.
If we take a moment to discuss the US, in what is a bizarre chain of events, we should thank Donald Trump’s ignorance and his close advisors’ hawkish stance on Israel for changing the conversation on Israel and bringing its apartheid nature of the state into the forefront. In his ignorance Trump suggested that any solution is fine with him, one state, two state – whatever. His advisors, the son-in-law Jared Kushner and his ambassador to Israel David Friedman who have funded and supported settlements and even the notorious IDF, have allowed the conversation to move far away from a two-state solution. This can only mean one thing: Is it going to be a democracy which will require equal rights for Palestinians or an apartheid state with a US stamp of approval? Arguably Kushner and Friedman have no problem with the latter, but now the truth is out and clearly there is no third option.
But the European approach is a more subtle one. Labeling the products of Jewish settlements and pretending that there is such a place as the West Bank, and that Israel must not settle Jews in that West Bank while pretending there is a Palestinian state and at the same time arming and funding Israel as it continues to execute its policies of genocide, ethnic cleansing and apartheid. It is what you might call win-win except that Israel is always winning and the Palestinians keep losing. The US – for comparison sake – wouldn’t dream of recognizing a Palestinian state and blatantly and unapologetically arms and supports Israel even though this violates US law.
The spineless attitude towards Israel and the lack of regard for human rights and human lives that are expressed both by the US and the EU create a reality in which anyone who does not stand clearly in opposition to Israel is in fact complicit with Israeli crimes. And while the European approach is somewhat different than that of the US, the result is the same – in both cases the governments work closely with Israel and ignore the plight of the Palestinian people. This places greater demands on people of conscience who need to act, to organize until the political climate is such that supporting Israel is political suicide.
The nuclear bomb is a weapon of crime and mass destruction
Roland Oldham, head of the nuclear test veterans organization Mururoa e tatou, addresses UN conference to negotiate the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on 21 June.
By Roland Oldham – International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War – July 3, 2017
Moruroa e Tatou, Tahiti – The nuclear bomb is a weapon of crime and mass destruction.
We should all be well aware of the examples of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where the consequences still today have effects across generations.
Like those in other places, nuclear tests in the Pacific by France, America and Britain were a crime towards indigenous people, and the defenceless people of the Pacific. It is a racist crime—nuclear racism. This destroyed and contaminated their environment, the natural resources that they depend on to live. The damages are irreversible.
Look at Moruroa for example—137 nuclear blasts underneath the coral atoll have severely fractured the atoll which is sinking down into the rising ocean, leaking radioactive gases and plutonium into the sea, risking disastrous damage for marine life. French authorities have assessed that there is a danger of a landslide of 670 million cubic meters of rock at Moruroa, creating a 15-20 meter tsunami.
The responsible governments used the Pacific as a dumping ground for nuclear waste—in the Marshall Islands, Moruroa, Fangataufa, Christmas Island, and elsewhere. Plutonium is in the lagoon of Moruroa and leaking from the 147 underground test explosion holes in Moruroa and Fangataufa. Not to mention the widespread radioactive fallout from atmospheric nuclear explosions.
There are thousands, millions of victims out there around the world—former test and weapons production site workers, military staff, civilians; women and children. They are invisible. They are voiceless. They have cancers: leukemia, thyroid, others…. Women in French Polynesia now have the highest rates of thyroid cancer and myeloid leukemia in the world. Their children through many generations will be affected by genetic mutations and damage.
It is a poisonous heritage that is left to humanity and future generations.
It is a crime against humanity.
I don’t see much of the word “crime” in the ban treaty: crime against our planet, crime against our environment, crime against humanity. The aim of the treaty is to stop all these crimes.
Why is there no word about these crimes.
Is there pressure from somewhere? Is there censorship?
Have we lost our morality?
But as victims we are not begging for favour, we are just standing up for our rights and our dignity.
There exists an obligation for the nuclear-armed states to compensate their victims, and to make reparation for the damage done to the environment.
There must be no more mushroom clouds producing untold numbers of new victims.
Roland Oldham, the head of the nuclear test veterans organization Mururoa e tatou, addressed the UN conference to negotiate the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on 21 June. The above piece is based upon his remarks, which he delivered in French on behalf of IPPNW and ICAN Australia.
US Raqqa offensive killing more civilians than claimed – airstrike monitor
RT | July 3, 2017
UN warnings of the “staggering” number of civilian casualties in Raqqa, Syria that were denied by coalition commanders are no exaggeration, a monitoring group insists.
Airwars, a UK-based group that monitors airstrikes and civilian casualties in Iraq, Libya and Syria, reports it has tracked 119 alleged civilian casualty events at Raqqa, claiming up to 770 deaths, between June 6-29.
The coalition began its assault on the so-called capital of the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) caliphate, Raqqa, on June 6. It has been accused of having no plan in place for civilian evacuations, and Airwars reports a number of civilians have been killed attempting to flee in boats.
The United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights warned at least 173 civilians have been killed by air and ground strikes in Raqqa since June 1, saying this is “likely a conservative estimate and the real death toll may be much higher.”
The coalition’s Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR) – denies the coalition isn’t being careful enough, with coalition commander General Stephen Townsend saying, “show me some evidence of civilian casualties.”
In June, the UN’s chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, Paulo Pinheiro, warned the UN Human Rights Council that the fight in Raqqa shouldn’t be “at the expense of civilians,” saying it is “gravely concerned with the mounting number of civilians who perish during airstrikes.”
Pinheiro said the airstrikes had resulted in a “staggering loss of life.”
Townsend called the UN’s concerns “hyperbolic,” saying the coalition is being, “careful as we need to be and as we can be.”
“I would challenge anyone to find a more precise and careful campaign in the history of warfare on this planet,” he told the BBC last week.
“The UN’s Commission of Inquiry is one of a number of international agencies, NGOs and monitors which have expressed significant concern in recent weeks at high numbers of reported civilian fatalities around Raqqa from Coalition actions,” Airwars’ Chris Woods told RT.
“Rather than attacking the messengers, the US and allies should urgently examine their tactics at Raqqa, improving where necessary protections for civilians on the ground.”
“Our present estimate is that around 370-450 civilians have been killed by Coalition airstrikes and artillery at Raqqa in just three weeks,” Airwars said. The group is still working through a significant number of cases to garner a final number of civilian casualties for the month.
“All local monitors, plus UN agencies, reporting high civilian casualties at Raqqa for months. Gen Townsend comments smack of complacency,” Airwars said in tweet, pointing to the additional 132 civilian casualties in both Iraq and Syria that the coalition itself reported in June.
According to Airwars and its sources, the coalition has been targeting boats which are carrying civilians fleeing the battle. The coalition refers to such strikes as hitting “ISIS boats.”
“Four June cases where (mostly named) civilians reportedly bombed as they fled Raqqa by boat. Cars also being bombed as civilians flee,” Airwars said in a Tweet.
The coalition says it has nearly sealed off Raqqa, as the Syrian Democratic forces fight on the ground. Two bridges on the northern bank of the Euphates River have been destroyed by the coalition, “and we shoot every boat we find,” Townsend told the New York Times.
“If you want to get out of Raqqa right now, you’ve got to build a poncho raft,” he added.
Townsend’s comments don’t bode well for civilians desperate to flee the battleground. Between 50,000-100,000 civilians are believed to be trapped in the city.
Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently (RIBSS), a group of journalists with alleged ties to Turkish authorities, says people have been trying to flee the bombardment with help from local smugglers, but that IS have already planted hundreds of landmines and banned people from leaving. It has reported 358 civilian casualties in Raqqa in June, with 177 coming from ‘warplane attacks’.
Between June 21-26 specifically, 88 civilians have died or are missing after coalition shelling or bombing. At least 18 of these were fleeing via car or boat, according to RIBSS, as cited by the Daily Beast.
Human rights groups have also criticized the coalition for its use of white phosphorus near civilians, which is against international law.
READ MORE:
Civilian death toll rises to 484 from US-led coalition strikes in Iraq & Syria
Israel abducts Palestinian lawmaker on security allegations
Press TV – July 2, 2017
Israeli military forces have abducted a Palestinian legislator and a senior member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) during separate raids across the occupied West Bank.
On Sunday morning, a large number of Israeli troopers raided the home of 55-year-old Khalida Jarrar in the central West Bank city of Ramallah, located 10 kilometers (six miles) north of Jerusalem al-Quds, and arrested her.
Her husband, Ghassan said Israeli forces seized computers during the raid.
Israel’s internal spy agency, Shin Bet, announced in a statement that Jarrar was arrested along with a Palestinian activist for “promoting terror activities,” without providing any further information.
Jarrar is one of the most outspoken critics of the Israeli occupation and has repeatedly slammed the Tel Aviv regime’s atrocities against Palestinians.
The Israeli regime has been denying the lawmaker the right to travel outside the occupied Palestinian territories since 1988. She campaigned for months in 2010 before receiving the permission to travel to Jordan for medical treatment.
In August 2014, Jarrar received a “special supervision order” from the Israeli military, instructing her to leave Ramallah to the West Bank city of Ariha (Jericho).
However, she set up a protest tent outside the Palestinian Legislative Council in Ramallah, where she lived and worked, until the controversial order was overturned later in September that year.
Israeli soldiers last arrested the Palestinian lawmaker on April 2, 2015 after storming her house in Ramallah. She was released from prison on June 3, 2016 on a suspended sentence of 12 months within a five-year period.
According to reports, a total of 13 Palestinian lawmakers are currently imprisoned in Israeli detention facilities.
Nine of them are being held without trial under the so-called administrative detention, which is a policy according to which Palestinian inmates are kept in Israeli detention facilities without trial or charge. Some Palestinian prisoners have been held in administrative detention for up to 11 years.
Palestinian MK enters prison with “pride”
Meanwhile, a Palestinian member of the Knesset (parliament) has headed to prison with “pride” as he began a two-year sentence on charges of giving cellphones and SIM cards to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Basel Ghattas of the Joint List, a political alliance of four Arab-dominated parties in Israel, said he was entering prison with his “head held high” and with “support from my people.”
File photo shows Palestinian member of Knesset (Israel’s parliament) Basel Ghattas at his office at the Knesset in Jerusalem al-Quds
More than 6,500 Palestinians are reportedly held at Israeli jails. Hundreds of the inmates have apparently been incarcerated under the practice of administrative detention.
The Palestinian inmates regularly go on hunger strike in protest against the administrative detention policy and their harsh prison conditions.
Instead of Taylor Force Act, Congress should consider Rachel Corrie Act, Orwah Hammad Act
From top left: Emily Henoschowitz, Tariq Abukhdair, Brian Avery, Tristan Anderson, Rachel Corrie, Orwah Hammad.
By Kathryn Shihadah | If Americans Knew | June 30, 2017
Sometimes it takes a tragedy to bring about change. The story of Taylor Force is one such tragedy. A young American in the prime of his life was stabbed to death in an unnecessary, unprovoked act of terrorism while in Israel on a Vanderbilt University study program. Perhaps the only good that can come of such a dreadful event is in learning a lesson to ensure that it never happen again.
Our government wants to protect its citizens wherever they are in the world, so enacting some constructive legislation would be a smart move. Unfortunately, that’s not what Congress is currently contemplating.
The US Senate is debating a bill right now—the Taylor Force Act—that would prohibit foreign aid to the Occupied Palestinian Territories unless the Palestinian Authority ends stipends to the families of those who have been killed, injured, or imprisoned. Congressional reasoning is that the so-called “Martyrs’ Fund” encourages terrorism.
The United States currently gives The Palestinian Authority a relatively small amount of aid each year (in 2016 about $300 million, roughly 8 percent of what Israel receives); the Taylor Force Act would withhold about $230 million until the Fund disappears.
It is important to understand that this fund is not an incentive for Palestinians to commit terrorism. It is a social program to provide for the families of those killed, injured, or held prisoner by hostile forces.
Most of the fund provides for those killed or injured while peacefully demonstrating, defending their property, or going about their business, and the thousands wrongly imprisoned or detained without charge. This is the program that would be shut down by the Taylor Force Act.
The fund also supports Palestinians killed by Israel while using armed resistance – in the case of Taylor Force, a knife – against a country that has one of the most powerful, advanced militaries on earth.
It is customary for members of an oppressed population to resist. In fact, it is an internationally recognized right, as stated by the UN in 1982:
The General Assembly…reaffirms the legitimacy of the struggle of all peoples for independence….and liberation from…foreign occupation by all available means, including armed struggle.
Palestinians have engaged in this struggle for independence from foreign occupation since 1967, only to find themselves losing more lives, land, and rights every day.
Undeniably, the killing of Taylor Force and other civilians is a war crime, and it is legitimate to abhor such a crime–no matter the nationality of the criminal. All countries that engage in war have killed large numbers of civilians–nevertheless, all governments provide for the families of soldiers who have died in the line of duty. This includes the Palestinian government. Enabling these families to put food on the table is not an endorsement of any act of terrorism but a humane, compassionate act. No country should be required to withhold such support.
It must also be said that the shutdown of this social program would likely result in the opposite of the intended outcome: it may lead to yet more resentment and extremism.
Proposed legislation that could make things better, not worse
Perhaps instead of the Taylor Force Act, Congress should bring some other bills to the floor—bills that would begin to address the real problems in Israel/Palestine.
Here are a few suggestions.
We could start with the Rachel Corrie Act, prohibiting the U.S. from giving aid to countries that practice home demolitions. Rachel Corrie was killed in 2003 as she worked in Palestine with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM). Rachel, clearly visible with a neon vest and bullhorn, confronted an IDF soldier on a bulldozer, about to demolish the home of a Palestinian pharmacist, when she was run over in what is widely believed to be a deliberate act.
The incident was investigated by the Israeli army and deemed “a regrettable accident” (as is often the case when Israelis are violent). An IDF spokesman explained that the group of protesters that day were “acting very irresponsibly, putting everyone in danger.” Interestingly, peacekeepers were the danger, not the demolition team at the home of an innocent man and his family.
The Rachel Corrie Act might discourage Israel from this ongoing, illegal practice. (Over 48,000 homes and other structures have been destroyed since the occupation began in 1967.) Rachel Corrie was from Washington, so Senators Patty Murray (D) and Maria Cantwell (D) from Washington should consider sponsoring such a bill. It might encourage Israel to desist from the collective punishment practice of demolishing homes.
Another idea for legislation would be the Brian Avery Act. This bill would prohibit
the U.S. from giving aid to countries that use curfews as a form of collective punishment. Brian Avery was shot in the face in an unprovoked attack by Israeli soldiers during a curfew in the West Bank city of Jenin.
Curfews often last for days or weeks, sometimes even months, with only brief respites to obtain food. Sometimes the interludes are cut short without warning, and then enforced punitively. Palestinians have often been killed or injured during curfews; many more have their education disrupted, lose their jobs, or go out of business; the health of others suffers due to lack of medication or medical treatment. In addition, curfews often include home invasions and detentions.
Brian Avery, an American, was acting as an international observer during the curfew as he, like Rachel Corrie, worked for the ISM. He was wearing a reflective vest and had his hands up, but he was shot and seriously injured. His injuries were too severe to handle in the local hospital, but Israel spent several hours in negotiation before allowing him to be transported to an Israeli hospital. Even still, the ambulance was stopped at the border for an hour.
The investigation into this incident was completely botched and Brian’s injury was deemed “an unfortunate incident” because according to IDF Colonel Dan Hefetz, ISM activists “knowingly endanger themselves.” The Brian Avery Anti-Curfew Act might stop this dangerous form of collective punishment from causing any more tragedies. Brian came to Palestine from New Mexico, so Martin Heinrich (D) and Tom Udall (D) should consider sponsoring the bill. It could save the lives, careers, businesses, and health of many Palestinians.
Another possible piece of legislation would be the Emily Henoschowitz Act, which would limit aid to countries that illegally besiege another country or practice piracy on the high seas. Emily Henoschowitz is an Israeli-American who got involved with ISM in 2010 when she found the Palestinian situation too compelling to ignore.
While Emily was in Palestine, the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, loaded with humanitarian aid and construction materials for Gaza, was attacked by Israel. Nine Turkish citizens (one also an American citizen) were killed. When Emily heard about this incident, she joined in a demonstration. She was hit in the face with a tear gas canister.
Emily resents the attention she has gotten over her injury, compared to hordes of Palestinians who are injured or killed daily without notice. “I’m white, I’m Jewish, I’m an Israeli citizen and American,” she points out. “When I’m hit by tear gas there are articles, the Israeli government gets involved. When Palestinians are hit, who gives a s***?”
The root of this issue is not Emily’s presence at a demonstration or even the act of piracy against the Freedom Flotilla. The root is the siege of Gaza—now in its tenth year—that necessitated international intervention. The siege by Israel has sealed off Gaza by land, sea, and air, and destroyed the region’s economy. Combined with “wars” against the people of Gaza, contaminated water, and electricity shortages—all perpetrated by Israel—the siege is the real problem. The Emily Henoschowitz Act might cause Israel to finally pull back its brutal blockade. Emily is from Maryland, so Senators Ben Cardin (D) and Chris Van Hollen (D) should bring some accountability by sponsoring this bill.
The Tristan Anderson Act would limit U.S. aid to countries that restrict other countries’ freedom of movement by building barriers. In 2009, Tristan Anderson was in the town of Ni’lin, at one of the weekly demonstrations against the West Bank Barrier. Most of Ni’lin’s residents get their income from agriculture, and the wall was set to cut farmers off from 1/3 of their land. 
Israeli Border Police rarely allow such protests occur without reprisal. ISM describes the incident: “Tristan was shot in the face from about 60 meters away, crushing his skull, blinding him in one of his eyes, and sending shards of bone penetrating deep into his brain.” This occurred after the demonstration had finished.
Investigation showed that at the time of the incident, Tristan was half a mile from the wall and had not been near it for hours. Why he was shot with a tear gas canister is not clear—no one has given an explanation. Meanwhile, eight years later, “Tristan continues to require around the clock care because of cognitive impairment and physical disability. He is also paralyzed on half his body and uses a wheelchair.”
The “good” news is that Israel has since begun using a less lethal method of crowd control in Ni’lin. It is nicknamed “skunk water,” [see this video] and Reuters paints a vivid picture of the practice: “Imagine taking a chunk of rotting corpse from a stagnant sewer, placing it in a blender and spraying the filthy liquid in your face. Your gag reflex goes off the charts and you can’t escape, because the nauseating stench persists for days.”
In an official statement that denies freedom of speech and assembly to both Palestinians and visitors, the IDF announced its regret that “foreign nationals co-operate with violent rioters against the building of the security fence, whose purpose is saving the lives of Israeli citizens. [Anyone] who illegally participates in a violent demonstration takes upon himself the risk of personal harm during the dispersal of these disturbances.” The Tristan Anderson Anti-Barrier Act could give Israel the motivation to tear down that wall and so that Palestinians can enjoy the freedom that all people deserve. Tristan is from California, and his senators, Dianne Feinstein (D) and Kamala Harris (D) ought to sponsor this bill in order to encourage the deconstruction of the Wall.
Congress might also consider a Tariq Abukhdeir Act, which would limit U.S. funding of countries that imprison and/or detain minors. Tariq Abukhdeir is an American citizen who was visiting his family in Palestine for the summer. His cousin Mohammed had been burned alive in a horrific act just a day earlier by Israeli settlers.
In the summer of 2014 Tariq, then 15 years old, was severely beaten by two Israeli police, then dragged and repeatedly kicked before being arrested for allegedly throwing stones. He adamantly denied the charge, but remained in prison for several days. In spite of a video of the assault, “showing at least two Israelis methodically delivering blows to Tariq’s limp body,” only one officer was prosecuted. He was found guilty and sentenced to 45 days of community service.
This case got wide attention because Tariq is an American citizen. At least 8,000 Palestinian children have been arrested since 2000 and placed in a military detention system “notorious for the systematic ill-treatment and torture of Palestinian children.” Most are accused of throwing stones, which carries a potential maximum sentence of 10 to 20 years.
As for adults, If Americans Knew reports, “Since the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory in 1967, more than 800,000 Palestinians have been detained under Israeli military orders in the occupied Palestinian territory. This number constitutes approximately 20 percent of the total Palestinian population in the oPt and as much as 40 percent of the total male Palestinian population.”
The United States should not tolerate this excessive incarceration–especially of minors. The Tariq Abukhdeir Act might cause Israel to think twice before imprisoning children. Bill Nelson (D) and Marco Rubio (R) of Florida, Tariq’s home state, need to lead the way by sponsoring this bill.
And finally, Congress should propose the Orwah Hammad Act, which would cut off funding to any country that encourages the practice of building of settlements inside other countries. Orwah Hammad, an American citizen, was 14 years old in 2014 when he participated in a weekly demonstration in the town of Silwad. He was shot in the neck with a live bullet, and died that night. During his funeral, IDF soldiers fired rubber-coated steel bullets and tear gas.
Silwad residents have been fighting for their property and livelihood for 20 years, since Israel confiscated much of their farmland to build a settlement. This is an illegal act under international law.
International law hasn’t stopped Israel from building over 250 settlements all over the West Bank, with approximately 500,000 Israeli settlers. In addition to the built-up areas, Jewish-only roads and closed military zones—also illegal—give Israel control of fully fifty percent of the West Bank. The Orwah Hammad Anti-Settlement Act might cause Israel to rethink the wisdom of breaking yet another international law. Senators John N. Kennedy (R) and Bill Cassidy (R) of Orwah’s home state of Louisiana should sponsor the bill.
The stories of Rachel, Brian, Emily, Tristan, Tariq, and Orwah have been heard around the world because they are—or were—American citizens. A handful of European advocates for Palestinians have also been killed or injured, and have also made the papers. A number of Israelis have also tragically died or been hurt. But thousands of Palestinian children, women, and men have died; tens of thousands have been injured; hundreds of thousands live in poverty; millions are without hope and without help.
The Taylor Force Act would lead to more suffering for Palestinians, and more boldness on the part of Israel, as US complicity would only reinforce Israel’s current actions. Home demolitions, detention of minors, the West Bank barrier, settlements, curfews, and skunk water would all continue unchecked.
These illegal practices and collective punishment methods only make Palestinians angrier and more hopeless, resulting in an ever-escalating cycle of violence.
The Foreign Assistance Act, which “prohibits…assistance to any country which engages in a consistent pattern of gross violation of internationally recognized human rights,” sounds like it can be applied to Israel. Why are we forking over $10 million a day, $3.5 billion a year, to the Israeli government?
The answer is in the fine print: “except when extraordinary circumstances exist which necessitate continuation of such assistance or the national interest of the United States requires such assistance.” Our leaders seem to think Israel’s continued human rights abuses are in our best interest.
How is a system of oppression and illegal occupation, that births resentment and violence, good for America? Or Israel? Or anyone?
Kathryn Shihadah is a staff writer for If Americans Knew.
Germany approves bill to fine social media up to €50mn over online hate speech, fake news
RT | June 30, 2017
The German parliament has voted to fine social media networks up to €50 million ($56 million) if they fail to remove hateful content or fake news. The networks will be given 24 hours to block or delete any inappropriate content.
“Freedom of speech ends where criminal law begins,” Justice Minister Heiko Maas said, adding that the measure “end[s] the internet law of the jungle.”
The law gives social media 24 hours to remove or block the illegal content. If a case is more complicated, the platform will be given a week to deal with it. The networks also obliged to report back to those who filed the complaint about the case details and how they dealt with it.
The measure won’t be imposed after only one violation, but only after a company systematically refuses to delete or block illegal content, the bill suggests.
The companies will have to publish a report every six months, describing in detail how they have dealt with complaints of hate speech on their platforms, the bill suggests.
According to Maas, who proposed the bill back in March, the number of hate crimes in Germany jumped by over 300 percent in the last two years.
“This law is the logical next step for effectively tackling hate speech since all voluntary agreements with the platform providers have been virtually unsuccessful,” the Central Council of Jews in Germany said, praising the measure, as cited by Reuters.
However, the companies affected, including Facebook, did not welcome the bill, saying it could crack down on free speech.
“This law as it stands now will not improve efforts to tackle this important social problem,” a Facebook statement said.
“We feel that the lack of scrutiny and consultation do not do justice to the importance of the subject. We will continue to do everything we can to ensure safety for the people on our platform.”
A Facebook spokesperson told RT in an emailed statement that the company has always viewed hate speech as a serious issue, but does not believe that the German law can “improve efforts to tackle this important societal problem.”
“We share the goal of the German government to fight hate speech. We have been working hard on this problem and have made substantial progress in removing illegal content,” the statement read.
Facebook said it was adding 3,000 people to its community operations team, on top of the 4,500 it already has, and was “building better tools to keep our community safe.”
“We believe the best solutions will be found when government, civil society and industry work together and that this law as it stands now will not improve efforts to tackle this important societal problem. We feel that the lack of scrutiny and consultation do not do justice to the importance of the subject,” it added.
In the “background points” provided with the statement, Facebook said that the law was criticized by legal experts for being rushed through parliament despite contradicting the German constitution and EU laws.
According to the company, the legislation would allow deleting “content that is not clearly illegal” and shift complex legal decision-making from the government to tech firms.
In May Reporters Without Borders said the group “fears censorship resulting from German law on online hate content.”
“RSF opposes this bill, which would just contribute to the trend to privatize censorship by delegating the duties of judges to commercial online platforms and making them decide where or not content should be deleted, as if the Internet giants can replace independent and impartial courts,” said Elodie Vialle, the head of RSF’s Journalism and Technology desk.
US court verdict allows seizure of tower owned by Alavi Foundation
Press TV – June 29, 2017
A US court verdict has allowed the American government to seize an office tower in New York City owned largely by an Iranian charity organization, the Alavi Foundation.
A jury on Wednesday claimed that the charity was controlled by the Iranian government and the rent generated from the tower constituted a violation of US sanctions against Iran.
The verdict means that federal prosecutors can move ahead with their attempt to seize the building at 650 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. The Alavi Foundation is likely to appeal the verdict.
The government plans to sell the property, which is valued at more than $500 million, and distribute much of the proceeds to victims of terrorist attacks.
The finding “represents the largest civil forfeiture jury verdict and the largest terrorism-related civil forfeiture in US history,” Joon H. Kim, the acting US Attorney in Manhattan, said in a statement.
The Iranian government has said it has no links with the Alavi Foundation.
Prosecutors first sought to seize the tower in 2008.
In 2014, US District Judge Katherine Forrest granted authority to federal prosecutors to confiscate the building. However, an appeals court reversed that ruling last year.
The assets of the Alavi Foundation included the building in Manhattan, as well as Islamic centers consisting of schools and mosques in New York City, Maryland, California, Texas and Virginia.
American Legal scholars said they know of only a few cases in US history in which law enforcement authorities have seized a house of worship. Without rent from the office building, the Alavi Foundation would have almost no way to continue supporting the Islamic centers.
The Alavi Foundation, a non-profit organization established in 1978, works to advance the Islamic and Persian culture in the US.
In the last four decades, the organization has also given millions of dollars to American schools, universities and charitable organizations; among them Harvard, Columbia and Rutgers university.
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From the Archives
The Balfour Declaration – A Century of Jewish Power
By Gilad Atzmon | May 17, 2017
This year, Palestinians and their supporters mark the 100th anniversary of The Balfour Declaration, a written statement from the United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary, Arthur James Balfour, to Walter Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community, in favour of the establishment of a Jewish national home in Palestine.
For Palestinians, The Balfour Declaration was the beginning of their plight: a century of ethnic cleansing at the hands of European newcomers who claim Palestine as their historic home. Yet, for some reason, supporters of the Palestinians are desperate to suppress discussion of the motivation for the Balfour Declaration – how and why did it come about? … continue
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