Israeli Apartheid

Police state in the making

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

By Samah Jabr

(source: Ma’an News Agency)

Although United States-sponsored security coordination with the Palestinian Authority started in the nineties, the scale and nature of US intervention in Palestinian affairs intensified through the program headed by Lt. Gen. Keith Dayton that was launched by the Bush administration in 2005.

When Hamas ousted Fateh from the Gaza Strip in June 2007, the atmosphere then became ripe to escalate the growth of this political mutation that transformed former “national heroes” into “terrorists”. While Hamas security forces in Gaza are considered illegal, governments in Europe and North America provide generous financial support to the PA and its security forces.

In an address at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Dayton said (as if this were a compliment) that his program had created a “new kind of Palestinian man.” Three battalions of 500 men each have graduated from the program, and more are currently in training to engage in a series of offensives against members of the resistance groups in the West Bank.

Israel harms palestinians but also itself

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

By Mike Gravel

(source: MiddleEast Monitor)

My concern for the Israeli-Arab conflict is a personal one. I was raised in a Jewish neighborhood — three synagogues within three blocks of our home in Springfield, Mass. — which sensitized me to Jewish culture and history. As a young student of world affairs, I closely followed the history of the Holocaust and Israel’s birth in Palestine.

On the other hand, I also had a close boyhood friend whose family had roots in Syria and Lebanon; they exposed me to the local Lebanese community. The Middle East conflict was part of my global political awakening

During my 12 years in the U.S. Senate I enjoyed the support of a number of Jewish organizations, most notably the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the preeminent “pro-Israel” lobbying organization. For a time, I had a perfect voting record in support of Israel.

On several trips to Israel and the Middle East, I developed contacts at the highest levels of the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). These trips were discouraging; the possibility of peace seemed unattainable — until the courageous leadership of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat emerged.

My political rupture with AIPAC occurred over a vote for military aid to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Israel. This legislative package of aid was put together by the White House primarily to shore up support for Sadat in the Middle East. AIPAC opposed the package and hoped to muster enough congressional opposition to pressure the White House to stop the military aid package to Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

But on this occasion, Sadat’s overture to Israel was too significant a factor. This was a rare instance in which AIPAC didn’t “win” on an issue.

Bradford Gaza Protest 2012

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

Israel hand over 65 demolition orders to palestinian families in jerusalem

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

Israel hand over 65 demolition orders to Palestinian families in Jerusalem

by Ghassan Bannoura – IMEMC News & Agencies

The Israeli municipality of Jerusalem handed out on Sunday evening more demolition orders to 65 Palestinian families all over east Jerusalem.

Palestinian owned home demolished in Jerusalem – file 2008

According to local sources some of these families had received the same notices before.

The orders were issued under new legislation, Israeli law 212. Law 212 allows homes to be demolished or evacuated without any formal legal charges being brought forth or any party to be convicted of any alleged violation of the Israeli Planning and Building Law. Hateem Abed al Kader, the Minister of Jerusalem Affairs in the Palestinian Government said the demolition orders were political.

"The high number of demolition orders indicates they are political, their objective is to force Palestinians out and tip the demographic balance towards the settlers. The number of homes that are set for demolition in Jerusalem is now 1,200 homes." Abed al Kader told IMEMC over the phone.

According to the Israeli municipality, the homes were built without required building permits. Since Israel occupied East Jerusalem in 1967, it has rarely given Palestinian residents permission to build homes or to modify existing ones. Meanwhile, Israeli settlements in and around Jerusalem continue to be built, an act that is illegal under international law.

last week At lest a dozen Palestinian families in various parts of East Jerusalem have received demolition orders issued by the Jerusalem Municipality.

ghassanb at imemc dot org