Philly Remembers Al-Nakba... 60 Days for 60 Years

Settlers making their way to build a new outpost. Hebron and southern West Bank -On 3 May, settlers from Negohot settlement in the western Hebron District placed new mobile houses 600 meters to the southwest of the settlement, with the intention to build a new outpost in the area. The land on which they placed these homes belongs to families from the Dora village. Abed al-Hadi Hantash from the Land Defense Committee noted that “this is part of a project from above to expand Negohot on confiscated Palestinian land. - On 10 May, settlers from Efrat and additional settlements in the south of Bethlehem took over a Palestinian house which belongs to the Arts Church located in the south of the city. Khaled al-Azza, Chairman of the Committee against the Settlements and Separation Wall in the Bethlehem District, said that “the settlers came by bus and carried out their aggression in front of the Israeli soldiers, who did nothing to stop them. Beyond aggression for aggression’s sake against the Palestinians, this is a way to expand the Efrat settlement.” - On 15 May, during Palestinian commemorations of the Nakba, approximately 60 settlers, some bearing weapons, from the Har Homa and Gush Etzion settlements located between Bethlehem and Jerusalem, entered eastern Beit Sahour. A majority originally from the United States and France, the settlers came by bus to Oush Ghrab, an area that previously hosted an Israeli military base and where the Beit Sahour Municipality, with the help of international NGOs, has now built a children’s park and barbecue site for families of the village. The site is situated near the residents’ houses and is extremely popular on Sundays, being one of the very few open spaces for Palestinian children and families in the Bethlehem area. The settlers arrived with journalists and began drawing Jewish stars and racist slogans everywhere. They claimed the place is part of Israel and that Jews must therefore remain in Oush Ghrab. The settlers wrote in various websites that the Beit Sahour Municipality is threatening to make Oush Ghrab a Palestinian neighborhood, an option unacceptable to them as the site is too close to their settlements. The Beit Sahour Municipality has applied to the Israeli Civil Administration for a permit to build a children hospital in Oush Ghrab, but this request has been rejected several times. A group of international activists from different organizations working in the area began to include the now abandoned military base in their activities. They painted the buildings in bright colors and painted messages of peace, while further organizing games and cultural events in the area. The settlers came an additional three times and were surprised to find the Palestinian and international activities in the area. Confused, the settlers began to draw new racist graffiti and each time they called on the Israeli soldiers to stand at the entrance of the military base and check Palestinians in the area.

Canadian corporations have been involved in constructing, marketing and selling residential units in the illegal Jewish-Israeli settlement of Modi’in Illit in the occupied West Bank, on the land of the Palestinian village of Bil’in. In a continuation of their struggle for justice in the face of unlawful appropriation of their land, the people of Bil’in village yesterday commenced legal proceedings before the Superior Court of Quebec against Green Park International Inc. and Green Mount International Inc. The defendants are Canadian corporations registered in the Province of Quebec who have been involved in constructing, marketing and selling residential units in the illegal Jewish-Israeli settlement of Modi’in Illit in the occupied West Bank, on the land of the village of Bil’in. The land in question has been appropriated by the Israeli military authorities in violation of the laws of occupation. The defendants, on their own behalf and as de facto agents of the State of Israel, are constructing residential units on this Palestinian land for the purpose of housing Israeli settlers. The petition (http://www.alhaq.org/pdfs/Bilin-Green%20Park.pdf), filed by the Village Council’s lawyer in Canada, Mark Arnold, demonstrates that in so doing, the defendants are aiding, abetting, assisting and conspiring with Israel, the Occupying Power in the West Bank, in carrying out an illegal act. Under the Fourth Geneva Convention, an Occupying Power is prohibited from transferring part of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies. Such transfer of settlers into occupied territory is a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, as well as under Canada’s Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act of 2000. The petition thus argues that through their actions, the defendant companies have wilfully or negligently participated in the violation of international humanitarian and criminal law, as well as domestic Canadian law. As such, Bil’in Village Council is entitled to obtain the cessation of the illegal activities of the defendants, and to reparation for injury caused, under both the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and the Civil Code of Quebec.

Palestinian protesters from the village of Ni’lin, in front of an Israeli military bulldozer. As of today, Tuesday 8th of July 2008, the military curfew in Ni'lin has been lifted. In response to statements released earlier today by an Israeli army spokeswoman claiming that There were discussions between the villagers and the army commanders and they decided to lift the curfew, and that The villagers promised not to protest and to keep the village quiet (Reuters 7/8/08), the Ni'lin Popular Committee Against the Apartheid Wall wants to clarify the following: The Popular Committee, who is representing the Ni'lin municipality, political parties, institutions and organizations in Ni'lin, has not been in any discussions with any Israeli army commanders and has not made a promise to the Israeli army that there will be no more protests. No such discussions have taken place with the village. The Popular Committee wants to stress that the people of Ni'lin village will not give up their right to defend their basic human, economic, and social rights and therefore will not relinquish their right to protest against the confiscation of their land. The people of Ni'lin are also not willing to give up their right to stand up against the construction of a Wall that has been declared illegal by the International Court of Justice. The village will not be quiet! The demonstrations organized in Ni'lin were always of a peaceful, nonviolent nature. Each time, the unarmed demonstrators were met with severe force and heavy violence from the side of the Israeli army (often before even reaching the construction site), injuring many Palestinian, international and Israeli participants, even attacking and injuring journalists and medical workers.

Unlike most archaeological sites in Israel, which are funded and managed by the Israeli government, the City of David excavations in Silwan are the exclusive property of the ultra-rightwing settler organization, the Elad Group.

The Islamic Charitable Society sewing workshop in Hebron was among the buildings raided by the Israeli military, causing losses amounting altogether to US$418,000. The international campaign to save the schools and orphanages in the city of Hebron which are affiliated with the Islamic Charitable Society (ICS) has had a strong impact, forcing Israeli embassies around the world to respond to requests for information and answers. Relying on information obtained from the Israeli military, embassies are working to create a climate of terror against the ICS, thereby justifying Israel’s actions (For more on the ICS, click here (http://www.hebronorphans.blogspot.com/)). Israeli embassies claim that the military never closed any school or institute operated by what they referred to as “the Hamas movement,” even though, according to the Israeli authorities, these schools were used by Hamas to promote its goals and strengthen its power through force and terrorism. Embassies noted that the Israeli military indeed closed schools built for the children of Hebron, but that the schools had not yet been functional. However, the schools had been fully equipped and supplied, such that this distinction is meaningless, as there are also closure orders for the remaining fully functioning schools and orphanages, orders that may be executed at any moment. Only last week, the Israeli military raided and closed two additional branches of the ICS, in the Shyukh and Beit Ula villages near Hebron. The military confiscated almost everything in the buildings, which hosted a school, kitchen, kindergarten and administrative offices. The estimated cost of the confiscated material is US$18,000, which is in addition to the previous US$400,000 lost from the confiscation of equipment and damages from the last month. According to the Israeli embassies, the Israeli military has proof that the ICS in Hebron is involved in recruiting activists for the organization and in collecting funds for terrorist activities, all undertaken under the cover of civilian networks. In this way, the Israeli embassies contend, the ICS is trying to increase support for Hamas and disseminate its radical ideology, which includes encouragement of Islamic Jihad against the “Zionist enemy.”

A recent and worrying judgement of the Israeli High Court, headed by Dorit Beinish, upholds the legality of the legislative framework governing the imprisonment of unlawful combatants from the Gaza Strip. A recent judgment of the Israeli High Court of Justice (HCJ) turned more than a few heads when it upheld, in one of the most difficult and hollow decisions in recent years, the legality of the legislative framework governing the imprisonment of unlawful combatants from the Gaza Strip. This legislation, drafted in response to the 2006 war in Lebanon, is intended to govern the arrests of unlawful combatants in conflict situations.[i] This judgment was rendered in the case of HCJ 3261/08 Anonymous v. The State of Israel[ii] following a petition lodged by Adv. Abu Shchada on behalf of the Israeli human rights organization Hamoked: Center for the Defence of the Individual. Whilst examining the constitutionality of the law, the Court's judgment also checks the law's compliance with basic structures of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). It then very abruptly refuses to admit that the detention of non-nationals in the context of a conflict can occur only under the laws of war, and that the law therefore must explicitly comply with relevant humanitarian and human rights guarantees in order to be legal. The continuous deprivation of detainees' basic due process guarantees and the refusal to release detainees who are held as bargaining chips for the purpose of blackmail and prisoner exchange, was sidestepped altogether, and mention thereof limited to laconic comments of virtually no direct normative force. This appalling legislation, has, whether directly or indirectly, received the Court's seal of approval and is bound to surprise all of us as its provisions are employed in the future.

The (Spanish) Audiencia Nacional (National Court dealing with special crimes) will consider for the first time a lawsuit brought against top Israeli military officials in order to determine their liability regarding a bombing incident that killed 15 people and caused injuries to other 150 in Gaza (Palestine). In recent days, hundreds of thousands of supporters of the Spanish State’s soccer team have been shouting “Viva España!” following the well-deserved victory of their team in the European Cup. They definitely played better than any other team, and were at times even reminiscent of the unforgettable Dutch team of the 1980’s. I highly enjoyed the Spanish game and am happy for their victory. This is not, however, sufficient reason to dedicate my weekly blog to soccer. Last week I shouted “Viva España” when I received the following message: The (Spanish) Audienca Nacional (National Court dealing with special crimes) will consider for the first time a lawsuit brought against top Israeli military officials in order to determine their liability regarding a bombing incident that killed 15 people and caused injuries to other 150 in Gaza (Palestine). The lawsuit, brought to the court by six relatives of the victims and survivors of the bombing, requests an investigation be done into whether this “incident” may be considered a war crime and, as a result, be brought to a Spanish Court.

Jerusalem, 2 July 2008, Israeli rescue workers at the scene of an attack in which Hossam Dawyyat rammed a bulldozer into an Israeli commuter bus, cars and pedestrians on one of Jerusalem's busiest streets, killing at three people and wounding 70. At midday on Wednesday, 2 July, Hossam Dawyyat, a Palestinian from the Sur Baher neighbourhood of Jerusalem, took a Caterpillar bulldozer used for the construction of the tram in central Jerusalem and ran amok, killing three Israelis and injuring more than 70 by crashing into passing cars and buses. Immediately the news reports began about a terrorist attack and the Galilee Freedom Battalions-the Martyrs of Imad Mughniyeh, a small resistance organization based in Jerusalem, claimed responsibility. This same organization claimed responsibility for the attack carried out against the Merkaz Harav yeshiva in March, earlier this year. As time passed, the original and knee-jerk assumption that this incident in central Jerusalem was a terror attack began to weaken. According to Hassib Nashashibi, a field worker with the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), Hossam Dawyyat was a drug addict and yesterday’s events were the terrible result of his personal problems. Dawyyat’s lawyer, Shimon Kokush, contends that according to Israeli law, there exists no legal basis for the categorization of Dawyyat’s actions as terror. His brother, Issam Dawyyat, noted that “my brother did not belong to any organization. He was not even a religious person. After terror attacks, he always used to say, 'What is this nonsense? Why do we need this?'

Shawan Jabarin, General Director of the Palestinian human rights organization Al-Haq has had an ongoing travel ban placed on him by the Israeli authorities. The Alternative Information Center (AIC) demands that the Israeli authorities allow Shawan Jabarin, a leading human rights activist and General Director of the Palestinian human rights organization Al-Haq (www.alhaq.org), to travel outside the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), and to unconditionally and immediately rescind the travel ban currently in place against him. Jabarin, a long-time human rights activist, has not been permitted to leave the OPT since March 2006. Israel maintains that “security reasons” preclude Jabarin from leaving the West Bank, although Jabarin has not been charged with any offence and no information about the “security reasons” has been provided to Jabarin or his legal team, making it impossible to legally challenge this ban. For over two decades, Jabarin has acted to protect and promote the human rights of the Palestinian people. He began as a fieldworker in the southern West Bank for Al-Haq, later acquiring an MA in human rights from Galway University in Ireland before becoming the General Director of Al-Haq. Jabarin is also a veteran activist for a just peace and joint Palestinian-Israeli-international struggle for an end to the occupation in accordance with international law. Jabarin, like thousands of other Palestinians, was on several occasions placed in administrative detention—without charges or trial—by the Israeli authorities. Jabarin has petitioned the Israeli High Court to lift the travel ban, and a hearing on this is scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, 3 July. To date the High Court has rejected two previous petitions in 2006 and 2007 in this matter.

Palestinian refugees from the Galilee fleeing towards the Lebanon border in October, 1948 The following is a talk given by Michael Warschawski at The Haifa Conference for the Right of Return (June 20-21, 2008) Before dealing with the topic of the Palestinian refugees and the Right of Return, I would like to say a few words following the interesting remarks of my friend Omar Barghouti on the issue of “one democratic state.” In my opinion, the core of our discussions should not be about solutions and models, but values and rights. In that perspective, one has to unequivocally reject the very idea (and existence) of a Jewish state, whatever will be its borders. For a Jewish state (in the demographic sense of the concept) necessarily implies the drive for exclusion and expulsion. Any ethnic (or confessional) state considers the non-dominant ethnicity as a threat, and aspires to its disappearance through more or less violent means. As former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have tragically shown, ethnic states are always both the cause and the result of mass-expulsions and massacres, and the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1947-1949 is one among many examples of that historical phenomenon.

July 2008 Communications Coordinator The Alternative Information Center (AIC) (www.alternativenews.org (/)), a joint Palestinian-Israeli organization engaged in dissemination of information, political advocacy, grassroots activism and critical analysis, has an opening for the position of Communications Coordinator. Responsibilities Compiling project and organizational reports for internal monitoring procedures and international partners; Assisting in drafting, editing and proofreading of news articles, political analyses, activity reports and public relations materials; Preparing information and materials for discussions, alternative tours and meetings; Additional tasks as agreed upon; Person Specifications Commitment to AIC values and joint Palestinian-Israeli-international work; Native language English (mandatory) Good communications and interpersonal skills, comfortable working with a wide variety of people; Well organised and able to work effectively both independently and with others; Highly motivated and with a sense of humour; Minimum commitment: one year Location and hours: The position is full-time and may be based in either AIC office (Beit Sahour, Jerusalem), although work will be between and encompass both offices. Hours are flexible and will be determined together with the candidate. Please send your cv and a brief letter outlining why you are interested in this position to: connie@alt-info.org (mailto:connie@alt-info.org) Questions about this position may also be directed to this email.

The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, by Naomi Klein Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine in the Israeli Context On Thursday, the 26th of June, 2008, Shir Hever, economist with the Alternative Information Center (AIC) spoke with Canadian journalist, author and activist, Naomi Klein. Naomi is the author of No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies and Fences and Windows: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Globalization Debate and a frequent contributor to The Nation, In These Times, The Globe and Mail, and The Guardian. Her most recent work is, The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism (September 2007). In this book, she undertakes to show how “disaster capitalism,” which she defines as “orchestrated raids on the public sphere in the wake of catastrophic events, combined with the treatment of disasters as exciting market opportunities,” did not begin in the wake of September 11, 2001. Instead, its origins can be traced back fifty years, to the University of Chicago under Milton Friedman, which produced many of the leading neoconservative and neoliberal thinkers, whose influence is still profound in Washington today. Shir spoke with Naomi about Israel’s role in the disaster capitalism phenomenon, the contradictions in Israeli society, which both profits and suffers from the burdens of being a fortress state in constant conflict, and on the discourse among Israeli economists about the role of peace vs. war in the Israeli economy.

On Thursday, 26 June, some 3,000 people turned out to take part in the Jerusalem Gay Pride parade.

Results of the massive Israeli bombing of Gaza City in July 2002 in which 15 Palestinians were killed. Six Palestinian survivors and relatives of the victims of a massive Israeli bombing of Gaza City in July 2002 have submitted a lawsuit in Spain against top Israeli military officials to determine their liability in this incident. The lawsuit, initiated and prepared by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/PressR/English/2008/60-2008.html), represents the first time that Palestinian survivors of Israeli military attacks have directly petitioned the Audiencia Nacional, the Spanish National Court that deals with special crimes. The lawsuit requests that the Audiencia Nacional investigate whether the 22 July 2002 incident, in which the Israeli air force dropped a one tonne bomb on the Al Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City in order to demolish the home of suspected Hamas commander Salah Shehadeh, can be considered a crime against people and goods protected during armed conflict. During this incident, 15 Palestinians were killed, mostly infants and children, while150 others were injured. If the court finds this to be the case, the Israeli military officials could be prosecuted in Spain due to the peninsula’s universal jurisdiction for crimes against humanity. The military officials named in the petition: former Israeli Minister of Defence Benjamin Ben Eliezer; Military Secretary Michael Herzog;; former Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon; former Commander of the Israeli Air Force Dan Halutz; General Doron Almog; former President of the National Security Council Gioria Eiland; and former General Director of the General Security Services (GSS) Abraham Dichter. The United Nations, the European Union, the United States and Britain criticized Israel at the time for this “heavy handed” action that “does not contribute to peace,” as the US White House spokesperson noted in its statement. An estimated 100,000 Palestinians attended the funerals of the 15 victims.

Despite the Israeli High Court decision on 6 September 1999, outlawing the use of arbitrary torture as an interrogation method, methods of torture are still applied by Israeli interrogators of Palestinian detainees (photo by TRC). The United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture (26 June) is an occasion when human rights organizations, torture survivors and concerned individuals raise public awareness of the continued prevalence of torture around the world and discuss methods of eradicating this evil. This year, the Treatment and Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture (TRC) and United against Torture (UAT) organized a conference in Ramallah titled “Monitoring Human Rights Compliance in Places of Detention.” This series of lectures by national and international organizations and experts examined torture in Palestine and Israel, and discussed the best practices for prevention. Dr. Mahmud Sehwail, General Director and Consultant Psychiatrist at the TRC stressed the importance of this day when he said it is an opportunity to support victims of torture, remember those who are suffering, and show international concern to eradicate this crime. According to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), of which Israel is a signatory, torture is defined as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity” (Article 1). The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) summarizes this definition as “the intentional infliction of severe mental or physical pain or suffering by or with the consent of the state authorities for a specific purpose.” Unfortunately, torture is used as a routine method of interrogation and punishment in more than half of the world’s countries, including Israel, despite being prohibited by international human rights and humanitarian law. The TRC defines torture as “the purposeful and systematic annihilation of a human being’s physical and psychological well-being.” This sentiment is echoed by Palestinians who have survived torture at the hands of Israeli security forces.

On 16 June, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni was in Luxembourg for a meeting of meeting of the EU-Israel Association Council, during which the EU voted unanimously to upgrade its relationship with Israel. Implications of the European Union's Decision to Upgrade its Relationship With Israel On Thursday, the 19th of June, 2008, we spoke with Professor Yossi Schwartz in the offices of the Alternative Information Center (AIC) in West Jerusalem. Yossi, a professor of history at Tel Aviv University, is founder and current chairperson of the Israeli human rights organization, Hamoked: Center for the Defense of the Individual. He is also co-chairperson on the board of directors of the AIC. We discussed the wider implications of the European Union’s decision to upgrade its political and economic relationship with Israel.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana in Berlin on Tuesday, 24 June. The international community pledged US$242 million yesterday (24 June) to strengthen the Palestinian Authority’s police and legal systems. The pledges, made at the German-initiated Berlin Conference in Support of Palestinian Civil Security and the Rule of Law, will be channeled to the Palestinian Authority (PA) over the next three years to finance development of the Palestinian security and judicial systems in the West Bank. These funds, part of the US$ 7.4 billion pledged by the international community for the PA at the 17 December 2007 International Donors’ Conference for the Palestinian State in Paris, will also finance an expansion of the European Union Police Mission in the Palestinian Territories (http://www.consilium.europa.eu/cms3_fo/showPage.asp?id=974 mode=g lang=en). The one-day Berlin conference, touted as “a clear signal of support” by German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and others for the building of a Palestinian state, was premised on the idea that strengthening the civilian security infrastructure of the PA is essential to the creation of a Palestinian state. As the German Foreign Ministry noted in a press release, “The Federal Government knew from the outset that it was key to bolster the Palestinian people's will for peace by strengthening the Palestinian economy. And there can be no economic development without functioning state structures as well as legal certainty for investors.”

Housing in the City of David (Ir David) Jewish settlement in Silwan, East Jerusalem

While Israel allowed dozens of trucks to deliver basic goods to the Gaza Strip on 22 June, following implementatoin of the Hamas/Israel ceasefire agreement the situation for the Gaza population is still precarious. The Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire in Gaza, which took effect at 6am on 19 June, is designed to last for six months. According to the terms of this agreement, Hamas and other Palestinian political factions are to immediately halt their attacks on Israel, and Israel is to cease its military raids on the Gaza Strip. During the first stage of implementation, Israel is required to ease its blockade of the Gaza Strip and allow resumption of some supply shipments. A week later, Israel is to loosen restrictions at cargo crossings. During the final stage of implementation, the sides are expected to discuss the opening of a major border passage between Gaza and Egypt, in addition to the release of an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, whom Hamas has held prisoner for two years. In Israel, public controversy exists around the fact that Shalit’s release will be discussed only during the final stage of the ceasefire implementation, which further includes the opening of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt. For its side, Hamas has conditioned the release of Shalit on the freeing of 450 Palestinian prisoners, of whom Israel has so far stated that it is prepared to release only 70. However, Hamas is in a no-lose situation when it demands the release of its more active cadre, i.e. activists the movement never expected Israel would release anyway. It would be a major victory for the movement if Israel releases even a portion of these prisoners. Otherwise, Hamas may arrive at an independent agreement with Egypt regarding the Rafah crossing, an agreement that would not involve Israel, and Gilad Shalit would remain in Palestinian hands indefinitely.

UNICEF has rejected all partnerships with, or financial support from Russian/Israeli Billionaire, Lev Leviev, due to human rights violations tied to him and his companies. UNICEF Rejects Support From Israeli Billionaire Known for Constructing Settlements on Palestinian Lands A senior advisor to UNICEF’s Director said in a letter today that UNICEF will reject all partnerships with, or financial support from Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev. Leviev had previously provided UNICEF with support by sponsoring fundraising events in France. Leviev’s past support for UNICEF is featured in a number of places on his company’s website (www.leviev.com (http://www.leviev.com/)). UNICEF’s rejection of Leviev’s support followed meetings with Adalah-NY, letters from organizations and Palestinian communities advocating a boycott of Leviev’s companies, and a visit by UNICEF officials to Jayyous, one of the Palestinian communities where a Leviev company is building Israeli settlements. Leviev’s diamond-mining companies in Angola have also been accused of serious human rights abuses. Abdullah Abu Rahme, a community leader from the West Bank village of Bil’in, said, “We welcome UNICEF’s decision to hold one of the companies that has been building Mattityahu East settlement accountable for attempting to destroy our community. Our village has engaged in a three year nonviolent campaign to save our land, and an international boycott is an important complement to our weekly protests. This is a victory, but we need many more like it.” Leviev’s companies have also recently built homes in the settlements of Ma’ale Adumim and Har Homa, both of which cut off East Jerusalem from the West Bank.