Hasbara

good luck with that….

Diplomacy Ministry seeks to boost settlers’ global image

Ynet 15 Oct — Ahead of elections, ministry announces battle against efforts to de-legitimize Israel; initiative to cost NIS 1 million. Peace Now: Gov’t has become settlers’ PR firm — The campaign, which will cost NIS 1 million (roughly $261,000), will be geared towards prominent bloggers and social network users both in Israel and abroad…

According to the application, the project’s primary goal is to “bolster the legitimacy” of the settlements in light of the criticism leveled at Israel over its settlement activity. The request further notes that that the settlers are misrepresented as “a violent, conquering and destructive group,” while Israel is considered an illegitimate state controlling disputed land.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4292169,00.html



Land, property theft & destruction / Ethnic cleansing

Israeli occupation attempts to impose new identity on the land

PNN — On Monday 15th October, The Islamic-Christian Committee for Defending Jerusalem and the Holy Sites, condemned the demolition of a house and a horse stable belonging to the Palestinian Sufian Taha in Wadi al-Dam in Beit Hanina in Jerusalem, and also condemned the Israeli law to transfer these properties to the Israeli Custodian of Absentee Property. Israeli authorities seized these properties on claims that their original owners are from the West Bank and in the Israeli law they are considered “absentees”. This decision came to confirm that Israel practices the demolition policy within a strategic vision which aims to expel the land’s original residents and put restrictions to force them migrate out of Palestine.

http://english.pnn.ps/index.php/human-rights/2878-israeli-occupation-attempts-to-impose-new-identity-on-the-land

30 Israeli occupation officers break into Al-Aqsa Mosque

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (PIC) 15 Oct — Al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and heritage confirmed in a statement that a group of 30 Israeli officers, in their military uniforms, stormed on Sunday al-Aqsa Mosque, from the Mughrabi Gate and remained there for over an hour. These groups received instructions and explanations in different parts of al-Aqsa Mosque, and they had deliberately taken collective and individual photos in the Mosque and its different buildings.

Meanwhile, about 11 Jewish settlers stormed al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday morning, led by a “rabbi” known for his activity calling for the demolition of al-Aqsa Mosque and the construction of the alleged temple on its ruins.

The foundation noted that about 2500 foreign tourists stormed al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday morning and afternoon.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7GqIWw6BA5Xqy%2fxMDj3p0XHhXqMa7kHbJ8QiRNadnA1%2bgvsYLL88hPx3d%2b2Lnc9d0VNbk0fcG8oZQ4h53OyOugY8OptTxNNmQYSnF34VmE2E%3d

Committee: Israeli forces level land for Tubas road

JENIN (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — Israeli bulldozers started work on a new road in the northern Jordan Valley earlier this week, a local committee said. Ahmad al-Asaad, head of the Tubas committee against settlements, told Ma‘an that a large number of Israeli forces deployed in the area to guard the bulldozers while they leveled land for the road. Israeli forces closed down the area to Palestinians without providing an explanation. The land being leveled for the road belongs to Palestinians from the town of Tammun, south of Tubas.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528869

Muslim cemetery in Ayn al-Mansi village excavated by the occupation

NAZARETH (PIC) 15 Oct — Al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and heritage revealed that the Israel Land Administration (ILA) started excavation works in the cemetery of the village of Ayn al-Mansi, depopulated in 1948, near the city of Haifa. The Foundation added, in a press statement on Sunday, that several graves were excavated in an attempt to plant trees in the site and to turn it into a grove. It condemned these excavations that violate the sanctity of the cemetery and the dead and show no respect to the feelings of Muslims,

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7Rd%2fVN6jWfe%2fH6Ew1lmjOx8wVq0bCdYZoEjN3jIj%2fg9zuItNfpN4%2bwR8GWYctldFaLLHdd%2fMpFv2OFiCN6LWDGiANV8372D%2bh1o8XAetSxq4%3d

IOA serves demolition notices in WB

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (PIC) 15 Oct — Israeli occupation forces escorted staffers of the civil administration in serving demolition notices to a number of citizens in Beit Ola village to the west of Al-Khalil on Monday. The village’s popular committee against the segregation wall said in a press statement that the notifications stipulated the destruction of three water wells and tanks mainly used for irrigation and domestic purposes.The committee said that the IOA was escalating harassment of Palestinian farmers living and working near the separation wall, urging international intervention to halt Israeli persecution.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7pdomN%2fxb6MiRskZnI6BtNesyxaUTbk9tExH6VnNZfhSFXQe3HkuYXILZmx79rS9fQj6Bn42SYfzRD3AiS7LffO2YwXcZW5zVHWdBz%2bGLpTU%3d



Newspapers review: Israel to confiscate hundreds of dunums focus of daily

RAMALLAH, 14 Oct (WAFA) – Al-Quds daily Sunday highlighted a military order to confiscate hundreds of dunums that belong to Palestinians in the village of Surif in Hebron.

Meanwhile, Israeli district committee for planning and building approved building 35 settlement units in Mount of Olives and 12,000 units that will be added to settlements in Jerusalem.

http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=20853

Settlers vandalize a land, uproot trees in Beit Ummar, Hebron

PNN — On Monday 15th October, dozens of Israeli settlers attacked an agricultural land in al-Qasma area located between the settlements of Efrat and Etzion, north of Beit Ummar in Hebron. The land belonged to the Palestinian Abdullah Abdul Mutaleb Bregheth and his brothers. The settlers uprooted 15 almond trees and vandalized the land. It’s worth noting that the land is located near the main entrance of Efrat settlement, where Israeli soldiers always exist and the Palestinian owner had filed several complaints to Israeli police station in Etzion, but to no avail.

http://english.pnn.ps/index.php/national/2879-settlers-vandalise-a-land-uproot-trees-in-beit-ummar-hebron

Arson attack on olive trees in Qaryut

ISM 14 Oct — Last night in the West Bank village of Qaryut, 12 Palestinian owned olive trees were irreparably destroyed in a late night arson attack by Israelis from the illegal West Bank settlement of Eli. The attack follows an incident last week, on the night of October 8th, in which settlers cut the branches from 130 trees with chainsaws. The branches will take some ten years to regrow, during which time the eight farmers who owned the trees will be without this crucial source of income.

The attacks seem to have been carried out so as to maximize economic impact. Many Palestinian olive farmers are financially dependent on the olive harvest, which begun earlier this week. In last night’s attack, the settlers seem to have targeted the oldest and most fruitful trees. They set fire to hollows in their trunks, which kills the tree. Growing a new one to their size takes hundreds of years. The timing, too, maximized the impact of the attack.

http://palsolidarity.org/2012/10/arson-attack-on-olive-trees-in-qaryut/

Ashrawi asks diplomats to protect olive harvest

BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — PLO leader Hanan Ashrawi wrote to foreign envoys on Sunday requesting they place observers with Palestinians harvesting olives to deter settler attacks. “Given Israel’s support for the settlers and its refusal to allow the Palestinian Authority to provide protection throughout the occupied territory, the Palestinian people require international intervention to ensure their security,” the letter reads. Palestinian security forces are restricted to urban centers of the West Bank, designated ‘Area A’ in the Oslo Accords, leaving most agricultural workers dependent on Israeli forces intervening in settler attacks.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528920

UN envoy ‘alarmed’ by settler attacks on olive harvest

BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — The UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process on Sunday called on Israel to protect the Palestinian olive harvest, which has been beset by daily settler attacks in its first weeks. Robert Serry said he was “alarmed” at the repeated attacks on farmers and destruction of hundreds of olive trees, a crucial source of income in the West Bank.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528760

Restriction of movement

IOA blocks travel of ex-prisoner for medical treatment

RAMALLAH (PIC) 15 Oct — The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) refused to allow the travel for medical treatment of Abdulqaher Surour, who was released from its jails only two months ago. Family members said that Surour, 40, was suffering from heart ailment for 25 years and was blocked by the IOA at Karame crossing from heading to Jordan to seek medical treatment. They said that Israeli intelligence agents at the crossing told Surrour, from Nilin village in Ramallah, that he was not allowed to travel for “security reasons” and that he should meet an intelligence officer near Ofer jail.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s73CXpyNtK%2fmkXvtnme%2fUUmceFN11f0Dn3WnmXht0bSXL%2fSlKUxSeUKgADO%2bkXdjuG9kNMxvMjRW%2f%2bcNmTxATmqYZlM1aFmvjlk%2b%2fzgQIc%2f3o%3d

IDF pledges to ease travel restrictions in Jordan Valley

Haaretz 15 Oct by Amira Hass — Defense Ministry informs the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, which has campaigned since 2006 for freedom of movement for Palestinians to and from the Jordan Valley, of its plan to ease restrictions … Since 2001, entry into the Jordan Valley has been banned for Palestinians whose ID card does not list an address in the Jordan Valley, or who do not hold an entry permit (as laborers in Jewish settlements do). The prohibition has been imposed via four checkpoints on major roads and barriers on approach roads. The travel ban also applies to goods, agricultural produce and animals … The travel-restriction procedures made food and water supply for communities not linked to the water network more difficult and expensive, as it did regarding access to medical treatment and schools. Meanwhile, residents on the western side of the checkpoints were effectively cut off from relatives and friends on the eastern side. Particularly difficult is the plight of around 15,000 Bedouin who are not registered as Jordan Valley residents but have lived there for many years in communities lacking infrastructure.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/idf-pledges-to-ease-travel-restrictions-in-jordan-valley.premium-1.469999

Palestinians seek work in Israel as crisis deepens

BEIT EL, West Bank (AP) 13 Oct — For Palestinians, the Israeli military coordination office on the outskirts of Jerusalem is a symbol of Israel’s decades-long control over their lives. Now it has also become an unlikely source of hope for employment. In response to an economic crisis gripping the West Bank, Israel has increased the number of permits for Palestinians to work in Israel. This has drawn large crowds of desperate men to the gray edifice each morning in chaotic scenes of long lines, frustrated faces and heated arguments as they try to secure a coveted permit. At a time of double-digit unemployment in the West Bank, Palestinian workers, particularly people working in manual jobs like furniture moving, gardening and maintenance work, have few other options. “It’s a dream to get a permit and work in Israel,” said Kayed Ashkar, 45, who is unemployed and a frequent visitor to the Israeli Civil Administration office. “I used to work there. I used to earn enough money for my family,”.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/palestinians-seek-work-israel-crisis-deepens-17469711#.UH0FxVGAaSo

Israeli official says will increase Palestinian permits

BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — An Israeli official said Sunday that the government plans to increase the number of permits for Palestinian workers in Israel. Guy Inbar, spokesman of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, said authorities will also issue a large number of permits on Eid al-Adha holiday on Oct. 26. However, he noted that the number of permits will be dependent on the security situation.

During the last Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr and the holy month of Ramadan, Palestinians marked a significant increase in the number of permits issued to visit Jerusalem. Some analysts saw the move as a political gesture, while others warned it would harm the already weak Palestinian economy during a period of high commercial activity.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529030

Raids / Attacks / Illegal arrests / Provocations

Israeli forces detain at least 15 Palestinians overnight

HEBRON (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — Israeli forces detained at least 15 Palestinians across the West Bank at dawn on Monday, according to local activists and the army. A military spokesman said the army detained five people in Nablus, three in Tulkarem, two in both Jenin village Bala and Ramallah village Saffa, and one person in Salfit.

Locals told Ma’an three youth were also detained overnight in Hebron-district town Beit Ummar, but the military said only two were taken in an Israeli police operation. Beit Ummar popular committee spokesman Muhammad Ayyad Awad said several homes in the town were searched before forces took 25-year-old Muhammad Sami Dabarnah, 18-year-old Muatazz Yousif al-Anani, and 15-year-old Rifaat Saadi al-Alami. He noted that a farmer from the town, Muhammad Abdul-Ghani Suleibi, had been released, a day after he was seized by forces tending his land near the Israeli Bat Ayin. His agricultural equipment was confiscated and he is banned from visiting his land more than twice a week, according to Awad.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529054

Hamas: PA detained 10 members in West Bank

BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — Hamas said on Monday that ten of its supporters were detained in the West Bank by Palestinian Authority security forces over the past 24 hours. Three others were summoned for questioning, the Hamas statement added.

Fatah, which dominates the West Bank government, also released a statement saying Hamas’ government in Gaza had summoned its spokesman in the territory.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529084

Israeli forces arrest a 12-year-old Palestinian, Jerusalem

PNN — On Monday 15th October, Israeli occupation forces arrested at dawn, Musalam Musa Odeh, 12, in al-Bustan neighborhood in the village of Silwan south of al-Aqsa mosque. Wadi Hilweh Information Center said that several armed soldiers from Israeli Intelligence and police surrounded the house of Musa Odeh, a Member of the Silwan and Al-Bustan Neighborhood Defense Committee, raided his house and arrested his son. The Center also said that Israeli forces spread out in Silwan streets and neighborhoods and broke into Odeh’s house. The soldiers were escorted by dogs during the storming and searching process.

It’s worth noting that Musalam Odeh was arrested several times, and was assaulted by Israeli Special Forces [undercover] “Arabists” and suffered multiple skull fractures. [WAFA: Israeli police also arrested 11-year-old Muhammad Zaytoun under the pretext of throwing stones, Molotov cocktails and paint at police and settlers.]

http://english.pnn.ps/index.php/politics/2876-israeli-forces-arrest-a-12-year-old-palestinian-jerusalem

Israeli forces arrest human rights researcher

RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — Israeli forces arrested a researcher from Addameer human rights organization overnight Sunday, the group said. Ayman Nasser, 42, was arrested at 1 a.m. from his home in the village of Saffa, west of Ramallah. The group is not aware of the reason for his arrest and has not yet managed to contact Nasser or arrange a visit. A large number of soldiers ransacked Nasser’s family home and confiscated his mobile phone and parts of his computer, his wife told Addameer.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529131

Kufr Qaddoum – trend of arrests continues

ISM 14 Oct — Three people — one Palestinian man, another man from Jordan and one Israeli activist — were arrested on Friday 12th October in the village of Kufr Qaddoum. Ahmad Badiya Amer, 21, from Jordan, was visiting his cousin, 28 year old Ahmad Abed Fatah Amer, who lives in Kufr Qaddoum. They were reportedly kidnapped from their home, during the regular Friday demonstration which they had not attended. The Israeli activist was arrested during the demonstration, during a time of Israeli military invasion of the village — the soldiers made repeated incursions into the village in an attempt to arrest demonstrators …

The occurrences of today continue a worrying trend of Palestinians arrested from their homes, facing accusations of having attended demonstrations. For example, Kufr Qaddoum villagers Majd and Abdelateef Obeid were arrested three weeks ago, from their home — where reportedly one of the men had been sleeping and the other had been eating lunch with his family.

http://palsolidarity.org/2012/10/kufr-qaddoum-trend-of-arrests-continue/

Committee: Soldiers, villagers clash at Beit Ummar funeral

HEBRON (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — Israeli soldiers and local residents clashed at a funeral in Beit Ummar on Monday, a local committee said. Committee spokesman Muhammad Ayad Awad told Ma‘an that an extensive armed presence by Israeli soldiers had angered mourners at the funeral, leading to clashes. Soldiers fired tear gas at homes in the village, Awad said. The funeral was for Taye al-Slaiby, who had died of natural causes.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529238

IOF soldiers storm Jenin villages, interrogate child

JENIN (PIC) 14 Oct — Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed a number of villages to the west and south of Jenin at dawn Sunday and questioned a 14-year-old boy in one of them. Local sources told the PIC reporter that IOF soldiers questioned the child Farid Qabaha in Tora Gharbiya village to the west of Jenin after taking him to an army camp and released him after a few hours. They said that the soldiers combed areas near to three villages to the west of Jenin and fired flare bombs in the process.

Other groups of soldiers broke into three homes in Arraba, south of Jenin, at noon Sunday, searched them, and interrogated their inhabitants, one of them a 62-year-old man.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7QIiSBfYAAXOjcjuHDN3wBs5vyK%2fPY2zgQrJ%2fd%2bQCmMdoz6uhm9VI4AmyB94xD%2fgiqimTQTm2fi5AlUk8uxjqv00SQgGS%2fsa0SH18WcWBogc%3d

Army invades Azzoun, imposes curfew

IMEMC 16 Oct — Israeli soldiers invaded, on Monday evening, Azzoun village, east of the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia, and imposed curfew on the village forcing its residents under house arrest. Local sources reported that dozens of military jeeps invaded the village before the soldiers broke into stores forcing the owners to close them. The sources added that the army violently broke into several shops and an olive press in the village, causing damage, and forced them to shut down. Soldiers then used loud speakers announcing curfew on the village until further notice.

http://www.imemc.org/article/64398

Jewish settlers attack Palestinian driver

NABLUS (PIC) 14 Oct — Jewish settlers attacked a Palestinian taxi driver near the evacuated Homesh settlement outpost, south of Jenin, on Saturday night. Eyewitnesses told the PIC reporter that around 20 settlers intercepted the car of Mohammed Abu Wahdan, 53, at the entrance to Homesh on Saturday night. They said that some of the settlers were armed and wearing masks and argued with the driver before one of them threw a rock at his rear window smashing it into pieces. The settlers then told the driver to move away and banged on the car prompting Abu Wahdan to speed away fearing they might fire at him, the sources said.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7wWmQHEEaf5fBO31hvZn7o1u597rtpLY5iVIr6EVlLAtD%2fPQfDQFB42FkygxgBl%2f6dO%2b3Vz2loKp6pve3YsaMXGsOfRccbnNf4O%2bBdQfzIfk%3d

Settlers seal southern entrance of Al-Khader village

IMEMC 16 Oct — Israeli sources reported Monday that dozens of Israeli settlers closed the southern entrance of the Al-Khader village, south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, and blocked all Palestinian traffic. The sources said that the settlers gathered at the entrance of Al-Khader, and closed it, after claiming that some Palestinians hurled stones at a settler’s vehicle wounding a settler woman.

http://www.imemc.org/article/64397

Gaza

Israeli strike kills 2 in central Gaza, 2 wounded

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — Two men were killed and two others seriously injured in an Israeli airstrike on central Gaza on Sunday afternoon, medics said. Israeli warplanes launched a deadly strike on a tuk-tuk vehicle in Deir al-Balah, Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra told Ma‘an. He said the casualties were all evacuated to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. Medics identified the victims as 23-year-old Izz Addin Abu Nuseira, and 22-year-old Ahmad Abu Fatayir who succumbed to his injuries upon arrival at hospital.

The two victims brought Gaza’s death toll from Israeli airstrikes to 5 within 24 hours.

Yasser al-Atakal, 24, was killed in an airstrike on Sunday morning as he rode his motorbike east of Khan Younis, and another person was seriously wounded. An Israeli military spokesman said the men had been preparing to fire rockets into Israel.

On Saturday evening, Israel killed two top Salafi militants in a similar attack in the northern town of Jabalia. The victims were identified as Hisham Al-Saedni and Ashraf al-Sabah, while a 10-year-old boy who was passing by the area was also wounded, a Ma’an correspondent said.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528905

Health ministry: IOF using incendiary bombs in raids on Gaza

GAZA (PIC) 15 Oct — The health ministry in Gaza charged the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) with using incendiary bombs in their raids on the Gaza Strip over the past few days. Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra, the ministry’s spokesman, said in a statement on Sunday evening that the Israeli forces were using internationally banned incendiary bombs against the unarmed people of Gaza.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7ufEqG6Gh9C%2bW%2bOWZ34nd%2bXd2tjfz6xSGiI4wxpn5LU4zzMjvxls4MSQyBVphgQMyJDeIt6B90eW2uPis3cOnyLhgaXHp19YIdf6BhepjFHo%3d

PRC says 2 members killed in airstrike, vows to retaliate

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — The Popular Resistance Committee vowed to retaliate against Israel on Sunday after announcing that two men killed earlier in an airstrike were members of the group’s military wing, a statement said. The group confirmed that Izz Addin Abu Nuseira, 23, and Ahmad Abu Fatayir, 22, were affiliated with the Nasser Saladin Brigades. Both men were killed when Israeli warplanes launched a deadly strike on a tuk-tuk vehicle in Deir al-Balah on Sunday afternoon … Abu Nuseira and Abu Fatayir fired five mortar shells at Kissufim Israeli military site east of Khan Younis on Saturday to respond to Israeli crimes, the statement added.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528971

Israel says it will intercept Estelle ship heading to Gaza

IMEMC 14 Oct — Israeli daily, Maariv, reported Sunday that Israel issued a warning informing Finland that its army will intercept and stop the Estelle solidarity ship heading to the Gaza Strip to deliver humanitarian supplies … Israel sent an official letter in this regard to the Finnish Foreign Ministry, but did not state what type of action it will be taking against the ship sailing under a Finnish flag. Israel said that the ship will not be allowed to reach Gaza, and will be stopped. Finland told Israel that the ship carries civilians from Finland, and several other countries, and called on the Israeli Government of Benjamin Netanyahu to show self-restraint.

http://www.imemc.org/article/64390

Salafis say Hamas security preventing new political party

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — The founders of a new Salafi political party said Monday that their official launch is being obstructed by Hamas security forces, not legal regulations as the government in Gaza has claimed. Last week, Salafis announced the Al-Nur party, or ‘party of the light’, would start officially operating in the coming days. It said it would work on similar lines to an Egyptian party of the same name, which follows an ultra-conservative Islamic ideology.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529069

Jihadist group in Gaza demands that Hamas release its detained operatives

IMEMC 15 Oct — A Salafist Jihadist group in the Gaza Strip demanded that the Palestinian government of its rival Islamic resistance movement, Hamas, release all of its detained operatives, and “allow the fighters to fight against the Jewish invaders of the land of Palestine.” The group, known as “Majlis Shura al-Mujahidin Fe Aknaf Beit al-Maqdis (Mujahideen Shura Council In The Environs of Jerusalem), held on Sunday a conference in al-Bureij refugee camp, in central Gaza, and demanded that the security forces of the Hamas-led government in Gaza release all of the detained fighters, and to stop targeting Jihadist Salafist groups in the coastal region.

http://www.imemc.org/article/64392

US drops Gaza scholarships after Israeli travel ban

JERUSALEM (AP) 15 Oct — Under Israeli pressure, U.S. officials have quietly canceled a two-year-old scholarship program for students in the Gaza Strip, undercutting a program that American diplomats say has been key in providing needed educational opportunities for students in the Palestinian territories.

http://www.boston.com/travel/destinations/2012/10/15/drops-gaza-scholarships-after-israel-travel-ban/hovEBmpkweZWO31ns2beoK/story.html

Cancer often death sentence in Gaza

Gaza (Gulf News) 14 Oct — People who can afford it seek treatment abroad due to inadequate treatment centres — Sitting on the Gaza beach Eman Shanoun, a breast cancer survivor, 45, is witnessing the procedures of measuring the biggest awareness ribbon in the world by the Guinness World Records. Eman said: “It was a normal day like any other. Thirteen years ago I went to the clinic assuming that I might have a small problem in my skin, but the doctor there transferred me to Al Shifa hospital, I felt there might be something and tried to check up myself and remained optimistic but after two weeks later my doctor informed me that I have breast cancer.” Eman said: “After the doctor mentioned cancer I didn’t hear anything else…”

http://gulfnews.com/news/region/palestinian-territories/cancer-often-death-sentence-in-gaza-1.1088983

Report: Emir of Qatar set to visit Gaza

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — The Emir of Qatar is set to visit the Gaza Strip in the coming few days, the first visit by an Arab leader since Hamas took power in the coastal enclave, a Gaza TV channel said on Sunday. Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and his wife Sheikha Mozah are slated to come to Gaza following the arrival of Qatari delegates on Sunday, al-Kitab satellite channel said … Qatar has pledged half a billion dollars in assistance to the Gaza Strip over the coming three years to rebuild infrastructure destroyed in Israeli attacks.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528807

Detainees

Israel allows return of 18 Shalit deal prisoners to West Bank

Ynet 15 Oct — One year after deal that brought IDF soldier back from Hamas captivity, clause stating that 18 prisoners be allowed back into West Bank goes into effect — Israel has agreed to allow the return of 18 prisoners who were released as part of the Shalit exchange deal back to the West Bank, media outlets affiliated with Hamas reported Monday. Israeli officials have confirmed the details. A Palestinian source told Ynet that Israel has agreed to the move, but that the identities of the prisoners who will be allowed back are being negotiated and are still unknown. Despite the official agreement, Palestinian sources said the prisoners fear they might be arrested if they reenter Israeli borders.

As part of the prisoner exchange deal reached between Israel and Hamas, 163 Palestinian prisoners were expelled to the Gaza Strip and 40 more were deported to Turkey, Qatar, Syria and other countries. According to the agreement, the prisoners will be gradually allowed back to their homes. The first stage is the return of 18 prisoners back into the West Bank one year after the deal was completed.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4292577,00.html

Ahrar Center calls for ending administrative detention of Natshe

NABLUS (PIC) 15 Oct — The Ahrar center for prisoners’ studies and human rights called on international organizations and human rights groups to immediately intervene to end the suffering of the longest serving administrative detainee Mazen Al-Natshe. Fuad Al-Khafsh, the director of the Ahrar center, said in a statement on Sunday that Natshe, 40, has been held in Israeli custody for 36 months without trial or charge … Khafsh said that Natshe has spent only 33 months, out of 11 years of marriage, with his wife, adding that she is deprived of visiting him.

http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7p9b%2firrypEatfYpJHxh1tZeclXON2mgisU4PuuQFkmQNakfRlpyBfdHGdv5v%2fFZlYTna%2bmQ4JcKTU9asltpI%2bZmgMZSLk5pTPo6MSAuEuWg%3d



Lawyer: Al-Barq resumes hunger strike to protest delayed release

RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — Samir al-Barq, a Palestinian jailed without charge in Israel, said he was resuming his hunger strike after a deal to release him to Egypt failed to come through, his lawyer told Ma‘an on Monday … Israeli prison service spokeswoman Sivan Weizman said while al-Barq was threatening to relaunch his protest, as of Monday he was not on hunger strike. Al-Barq ended a 125-day strike on Sept. 23 after learning Egypt and Israel had agreed he would be transferred from jail into exile in Egypt.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529091

UFree Network: Israeli military court system is ‘kangaroo court’, implements Israeli intelligence agenda

UFree 13 Oct — The family of, Abdulfattah Soubhi Dola, a Palestinian detained eight years ago and convicted for twelve years, appeals through UFree network to the International community and human rights organisations to intervene to stop injustice practiced by Israeli military courts. Israeli military courts sentenced, Dola, on the 11th of October 2007 for seven years. Later, he was tried again upon an order from Israeli military prosecutor, although the appeal period has ended. The new trial before Military Court of Appeals sentenced Dola for another extra 5 years on the 28th of February 2012, lengthening his sentence to 12 years in total. UFree Network pointed out that Israeli occupation authorities and military courts don’t abide by law, regulations or orders; although such laws and regulations violate the basic principles of human rights.

http://ufreenetwork.eu/Details.aspx?Type_ID=3&Rotator_ID=268

Gaza families visit relatives detained in Israel

GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — A group of families left the Gaza Strip on Monday to visit relatives detained in Israel, a Gaza spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross said. Ayman al-Shehabi told Ma’an that 36 people left Gaza via the Erez crossing to visit 27 family members being held in Israel’s Negev prison facility. In July, families in the Gaza Strip visited relatives detained in Israeli jails for the first time since 2007 … After a mass hunger strike in Israeli jails, prison authorities struck an agreement in May to allow family visits for prisoners from the Gaza Strip. In early September, the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Prisoners Affairs said some families had been barred from visiting prisoners in Israeli jails despite the deal.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529102

Israeli army dissent

Israeli protest song banned from Army Radio / Richard Silverstein

[includes song video and translated lyrics] Tikun Olam 15 Oct — The song, sung by Izhar Ashdot and written by Alona Kimche, speaks of how an Israeli soldier begins slowly to become degraded to his own humanity and that of the Palestinians among whom he patrols. It’s not only a powerful political and social statement, it has those infectious pop “hooks” that are the mark of a lasting hit. As we used to say way back in the 1960s when such music was popular here: it’s got a message and you can dance to it. The song’s popularity will no doubt be amplified by a ban that Galey Tzahal, Israeli armed forces radio, slapped on the song for “degrading” the IDF. I’m always amazed that whenever the misdeeds of the IDF are documented and criticized that doing so somehow in itself becomes an inhuman or degrading act. So goes the logic of the oppressor who never knows or understands his own power and oppressive acts.

http://www.richardsilverstein.com/2012/10/15/israeli-protest-song-banned-from-army-radio/

Army Radio asks musician not to perform song that ‘debases’ IDF soldiers

Haaretz 14 Oct — Izhar Ashdot’s song ‘A Matter of Habit’ was broadcast several times on the IDF’s Army Radio station despite being critical of the role the army plays in the occupied territories … Among the song’s lyrics, written by Alona Kimhi, are the lines “they are not men, nor women / They are mere objects, mere shadows / To learn to kill / It is a matter of habit … To learn cruelty / Is a matter of momentum / It starts small / And then it comes.” According to Ashdot, the song was written following Kimhi’s experiences on tours led by “Breaking the Silence,” an organization comprised of IDF veterans, who served at the start of the Second Intifada or alter, and have taken upon themselves the task of exposing the Israeli public to the reality of everyday life in the West Bank.

http://www.haaretz.com/culture/arts-leisure/army-radio-asks-musician-not-to-perform-song-that-debases-idf-soldiers.premium-1.469985

Political and economic news

Fayyad meets Brazilian FM in Ramallah

RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 15 Oct — Palestinian Authority prime minister Salam Fayyad met with the foreign minister of Brazil Antonio Patriota and a delegation of Brazilian officials in his Ramallah office on Monday morning … Fayyad applauded Brazil for recognition of the Palestinian right to have a state within the pre-1967 borders. For his part, Patriota reiterated that his country would continue to support the Palestinian rights. He praised the Palestinian Authority’s efforts to develop and maintain the institutions and infrastructure of a state, the statement said.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529194

Hamas, Islamic Jihad slam Abbas-Barak meeting in Jordan

IMEMC 16 Oct — Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, and the Islamic Jihad Movement, slammed the Thursday meeting that took place between Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, and Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, in Amman – Jordan, and said that this meeting proves “the political bankruptcy of Abbas”. The meeting took place away from the media, and was not officially sanctioned by the Israeli Government of Benjamin Netanyahu. King Abdullah of Jordan attended the meeting. It was meant to discuss the efforts to resume direct peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, and the Palestinian UN application for nonmember state.

http://www.imemc.org/article/64400

PA pledges to pay partial salaries before Eid

BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — Palestinian Authority government salaries for last month will be paid in part in the coming few days, the ministry of finance announced on Sunday. Ministry spokesman Rami Mahdawi said a portion of the salaries would be spent before the Eid al-Adha holiday on Oct. 26. He said Israeli transfer of customs revenues it collects on the PA’s behalf would not cover half the expenses of government salaries, noting that Israel withheld money to pay the Israeli electricity company because of unpaid debts by the Palestinian power provider.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528797

PCBS: Vegetable prices rise 15 percent in a month

RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 14 Oct — Data released by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics on Sunday showed prices overall had risen 1.42 percent in September, but costs are particularly high in staple foods. The PCBS report said that compared to August, the price of fresh vegetables has risen 15.49 percent, eggs by 13.36 percent and sugar by 8.25 percent.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=528706

US says Palestinian UN bid jeopardizes peace process

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) 15 Oct — A Palestinian bid to upgrade its UN status to a sovereign country would jeopardize the peace process with Israel and make it difficult to get the two sides to return to talks on a two-state solution, the United States said on Monday. But the diplomatic drive by President Mahmoud Abbas received support from Russia and Arab countries at a UN Security Council debate on the Middle East situation.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=529279

Abbas says Olmert was “two months” from peace deal

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) 14 Oct – In comments that may stir Israel’s election campaign, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday that he and Ehud Olmert were “two months” away from a peace deal before Olmert had to resign as Israeli prime minister.

http://news.yahoo.com/abbas-says-olmert-two-months-peace-deal-203831916.html

Other news

Video: Palestinian Airlines take off again

BBC 13 Oct — After more than seven years of being grounded, Palestinian Airlines is flying again. But with few destinations and restrictions on who can fly on their services, the carrier’s operations are severely limited. Howard Johnson reports.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-19935304

IDF steps up cyber-warfare efforts

Haaretz 16 Oct — The Israel Defense Forces is stepping up its cyber-warfare efforts with a new policy focused on recruiting soldiers for computer-oriented assignments, according to a senior figure in the defense establishment … Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Monday that Israel is under cyber-warfare attack. He claimed that “efforts to carry out a cyber attack on the state of Israel’s computer infrastructure are mounting. Each day, there are many attempts to penetrate Israel’s computer network.”

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/idf-steps-up-cyber-warfare-efforts.premium-1.470217

Haredi who assaulted reporters gets community service

Ynet 15 Oct — Moshe Friedman, who attacked media crew during 2011 Beit Shemesh rally, called journalists ‘Nazis’, sentenced to three months of community service

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4292337,00.html

Opinion / Analysis / Reviews

New film on unsolved terrorist attack that murdered Palestinian-American leader nearly three decades ago / Asa Winstanley

EI 15 Oct — The Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) last week marked 27 years since the murder by bombing of Alex Odeh with a minute of silence and a call to action. Odeh, a Palestinian originally from Jifna, a West Bank village near the university town of Birzeit, was the ADC’s leader in California. In a press release, the ADC promoted this new short film which gives a good overview of the case, which remains unsolved to this day. The ADC said in an email to EI that the film was made by an ADC activist. It’s well worth a watch as it contains contemporary TV news reports about this 1985 terrorist attack.

http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/asa-winstanley/new-film-unsolved-terrorist-attack-murdered-palestinian-american-leader-nearly

As Israeli elections near, Palestinians feel nothing but despair / Barak Ravid

Haaretz 15 Oct — Some 19 years after Oslo, both the PA leadership and the average Palestinian have lost hope in the peace process — …”Never have I felt more desperation in the Palestinian streets than I feel today,” said Yasser Abed Rabbo, the secretary of the active committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, and the frustration could be seen on his face as well. “When I talk today about the two state solution, people look at me like I’m crazy, like I’ve said that [Foreign Minister Avigdor] Lieberman is the Secretary General of the Geneva Convention,” continued Abed Rabbo. The head of the Palestinian negotiation team, Saeb Erekat, doesn’t stop smiling, but displays the same despair. He says that he recommended to Abbas that he return the keys to Netanyahu. “The Palestinian Authority is broken anyway, so we might as well make it official,” he said.

http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/diplomania/as-israeli-elections-near-palestinians-feel-nothing-but-despair.premium-1.470042

A malignancy called “Jewish settlers” / Khalid Amayreh

PIC 13 Oct — They murder in cold blood, steal in broad daylight and lie as often as they breathe the oxygen of life, all in the name of the Lord. They descend on poor and helpless Palestinian olive harvesters in the vicinity of their colonies, beating the farmers, stealing their crops and destroying their orchards. And when the poor Palestinians try to put up a resistance, the heavily-armed thugs train their guns at them. This is not the American Wild West. Welcome to the West Bank, where marauding Jewish settlers, who claim to be acting on instructions from God and that they are a light upon the rest of humanity, are tormenting Palestinian farmers day and night, seven days a week. Even on Saturdays, the Jewish Sabbath or day of rest, the ostensibly religious but manifestly immoral settlers waste no time allowing the Palestinians a moment of respite.

http://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com/2012/10/13/a-malignancy-called-jewish-settlers/

World powers will soon support our cause, says top Palestinians official / Amira Hass

Haaretz 15 Oct — PLO executive committee member Hanan Ashrawi says growing pro-Palestinian public opinion will soon force European governments to fend off ‘mean’ U.S. pressure and back the Palestinians’ UN statehood bid … As of now, the PLO is determined to go to the General Assembly after the U.S. elections. But there certainly are countries under pressure. “Not all of them,” says Ashrawi. “There are some (European states) that are saying we’ll stand by you no matter what, but there are many significant European countries who say you can’t upset the Americans, especially in these times. You can’t do these things; if you want us to support you in the UN, then you have to promise not to ask for retroactive accountability [for Israeli military actions]. And we say why, there is no statute of limitations on war crimes, and they say no, you have to promise that you won’t go (to The Hague ) …”

http://www.haaretz.com/news/features/world-powers-will-soon-support-our-cause-says-top-palestinian-official.premium-1.470031

Time to count the Arabs / Or Kashti

Haaretz 16 Oct — According to a study of the 2009 election, conducted by pollster Dr. Danny Geyra, the voting rate in the Arab sector was only about 52 percent (that includes Arabs, Druze and Bedouin in Arab communities and mixed Arab-Jewish cities ). Statistics published in the past also point to a continual decline in the voting rate in the Arab sector since 1996, when it was about 77 percent … Only about 17 percent of the Arab electorate chose to give their votes to Jewish parties in 2009. Between the two most recent election campaigns this number shrank by over one third. The unused reservoir of votes in the Arab sector – which includes almost half of those with the right to vote – should have led any politician from the left and the center who wants to survive to try to capture this hidden treasure. If the voting rate of Arab citizens increases and approaches the overall rate, it means an addition, according to various estimates, of over 100,000 voters – that’s three or four seats. The familiar map of Knesset blocs could change.

http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/time-to-count-the-arabs.premium-1.470228

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