Palestina/Izrael:
Sand houses defy Gaza shortages
Lauren Booth: Blair cannot be an impartial Mideast negotiator
Intervju s britanskom aktivisticom za ljudska prava i šogoricom bivšeg britanskog premijera Blaira Lauren Booth koja upozorava da Tony Blair ne može biti nepristrani pregovarač između Palestinaca i Izraelaca jer je ekstremno pristran u korist Izraela, a protiv muslimana, sudeći između ostalog i po onome što je svojim riječima napisao u svojoj knjizi. Lauren Booth, koja je sudjelovala u prvom proboju blokade Pojasa Gaze u kolovozu 2008, se nada da će sudjelovati i u međunarodnoj humanitarnoj flotili koja će slijedeći mjesec ponovo pokušati probiti izraelsku ilegalnu blokadu.
I'm optimistic because never before in history has there been such contact between human beings from each country, activists around the world trying to bring peace, trying to change the dialogue and trying to sail boats for freedom, and doing wonderful actions without their governments' permission. I think it is a wonderful thing and can change the world in a good way.
Canadian Gaza aid flotilla survivor tells story of deadly raid
"... There was blood running down the stairs. There was blood running down the stairs. Yeah. You can see it there on the walls ... There were pools of blood. They weren't shooting to wound. They were shooting to kill. They were shooting in the chest and in the head." ... Neish said three of those killed by Israel were shot before Israel even boarded the Mavi Marmara. Initially Israel shot percussion bombs, rubber bullets and a chemical-filled bullet which was similar to a pepper spray. After the first attempt at boarding was unsuccessful, however, the Israelis began to shoot at the Mavi with live ammunition.
Israel's evidence questioned as Corrie trial resumes
Earlier this year, Israeli daily Haaretz reported that it obtained classified military documents that revealed that Oded's superior, Major General Doron Almog, who was head of Southern Command at the time of Rachel Corrie's death, demanded that the investigations cease ("Did IDF general cut short probe into US activist Corrie's death?" 26 March 2010). In court, Oded stated that he did not question Maj. Almog's intervention. He also testified that as an investigator, he never Palestinian eyewitnesses, including the paramedics and doctors who treated Corrie immediately after she was crushed. In addition, the witness admitted that he did not request the army's video or radio transmissions -- which were shown to the court during his testimony -- during his limited investigations.
Making History: Support for Israeli Artists Who Say NO to Normalizing Settlements
Izraelski umjetnici odbijaju nastupati u ilegalnim kolonističkim naseljima na Zapadnoj obali
Oko 60 izraelskih glumaca i dramatičara potpisalo je pismo u kojem izjavljuju da ne žele nastupiti u novom kazalištu u jednom od najvećih izraelskih kolonističkih naselja na Zapadnoj obali, Arielu. Umjetnici su time željeli izraelskom društvu ukazati na problem židovskih naselja na okupiranom palestinskom teritoriju koja su protuzakonita prema međunarodnom pravu, doprinose svakodnevnom kršenju ljudskih prava Palestinaca i predstavljaju jednu od glavnih prepreka pravednom miru na Bliskom istoku. Pismo je izazvalo žestoke napade izraelskog premijera, ministra kulture i sporta i brojnih drugih na hrabre umjetnike, no istovremeno je u njihovu obranu stalo više od 150 vodećih izraelskih intelektualaca i pisaca, uključujući Amosa Oza i Davida Grossmana. Također, više od 150 američkih filmskih i kazališnih umjetnika, uključujući brojne Židove, podržalo je ovaj hrabar čin izraelskih umjetnika, među njima i Ed Asner, Roseanne Barr, Julianne Moore, Cynthia Nixon, Vanessa Redgrave i Wallace Shawn.
The Punishment of Gaza
An Interview with Gideon Levy
I’ve noticed a shift in your own writings, which seem to have become increasingly radical in their criticism. I’m thinking in particular of a recent column in which you argued that “[d]efining Israel as a Jewish state condemns us to living in a racist state”, and urged people to “recognize the racist nature of the state”. Has there been a shift in your writings, do you think, and if so, what’s behind it?
It's not a shift, it's a process. My views became more and more radical throughout the years, in contrast to the opposite stream of the entire society – the more Israel becomes nationalistic, the more the government becomes violent and aggressive, like in ‘Cast Lead’, like in the Second Lebanese War, like with the flotilla, all those developments put me in a much more radical position, obviously, because there is much more to protest against. So yes, I am becoming more and more radical, but you can’t put a finger to say one day I became a radical. It's an ongoing process.
Would you accept the label 'anti-Zionist' to characterise your views?
It depends what is 'Zionism'. Because Zionism is a very fluid concept – who can define what is Zionism? If Zionism means the right of the Jews to have a state, I am a Zionist. If Zionism means occupation, I'm an anti-Zionist. So I never know how to answer this question. If Zionism means to have a Jewish state at the expense of being a democratic state, then I am anti-Zionist, because I truly believe those two definitions are contradictory – 'Jewish' and 'democratic'. For me, Israel should be a democratic state.
So would it be right to say that you support a state for Jews, but not a 'Jewish state' in the sense of a state that artificially maintains a Jewish majority?
Absolutely. It should be a state for Jews that will be a just state, a democratic state, and if there will be a Palestinian majority, there will be a Palestinian majority. The idea is that Jews have to have their place, but it can't be exclusively theirs, because this land is not exclusively theirs.
[...]
You can add [Israeli President] Shimon Peres and Labor to this. This is the typical Israeli hypocrisy, and I in many ways appreciate [Israel's far-right Foreign Minister Avigdor] Lieberman more than Shimon Peres, because with Lieberman, at least, what you see is what you get. It's very clear what he stands for. With people like Shimon Peres or Meretz – and I don't say they are identical – or Oz and Yehoshua and Grossman, they want to eat the cake and leave it complete, as we say in Hebrew. This doesn't work. I think they lack courage, some of them. Others, like Shimon Peres, are hypocrites who talk about peace and do the opposite. I think that Oz and Yehoshua and Grossman, who I know very well personally, mean well. But in many ways they are still chained in the Zionistic ideology. They haven't released themselves from the old Zionistic ideology, which basically hasn't changed since '48 – namely, that the Jews have the right to this land, almost the exclusive right. They are trying to find their way to be Zionistic, and to be for peace, and to be for justice. The problem is that Zionism in its present meaning, in its common meaning, is contradictory to human rights, to equality, to democracy, and they don't recognise it. It's too hard for them to recognise it, to realise it. And therefore their position is an impossible position, because they want everything: they want Zionism, they want democracy, they want a Jewish state, but they want also rights for the Palestinians… it's very nice to want everything, but you have to make your choice and they are not courageous enough to make the choice.
Humanitarni konvoj Viva Palestina uskoro kreće za Gazu
Humanitarni konvoj Viva Palestina 5 krenut će na put za Gazu iz Londona 18. rujna i priključiti se ostalim sudionicima konvoja iz Europe, Azije, Australije, Afrike, Srednjeg istoka, Turske, Kanade i SAD-a. Humanitarni konvoj, koji su organizirali građani 5 kontinenata, u Pojas Gaze prevozi lijekove, te obrazovne i građevinske materijale. Cilj akcije je zauvijek okončati nemoralnu i ilegalnu opsadu Pojasa Gaze.
Izvor: Viva Palestina
Join the 2010 Olive Harvest Campaign
Poziv na sudjelovanje u ovogodišnjoj berbi maslina na Zapadnoj obali i drugim aktivnostima Međunarodnog pokreta solidarnosti.
THE ISRAEL DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN
Kampanja za povlačenje ulaganja kalifornijskih državnih mirovinskih fondova iz najmanje 8 tvrtki (uključujući Caterpillar, Motorolu, Elbit systems, General Electric i druge) koje zarađuju na izraelskoj okupaciji i kršenjima ljudskih prava Palestinaca
Los Angeles Launches Nation's First Israel Divestment Campaign
For over four decades, since the 1967 Six Day War, propagandized as a victorious miracle on par with David v. Goliath, Americans have ingested a distorted media diet of Israelis portrayed as victims and Palestinians portrayed as villains. But with the launch of domestic and international outlets for independent journalism and new media, the truth is now accessible. More and more Americans have come to realize that Israelis are the oppressors and Palestinians are the oppressed. In addition, more and more Americans are learning that the relationship between the United States and Israel is not really in America's best interests – a previously untenable concept.
Letter to Pete Seeger
Participation in “With Earth and Each Other” undermines the call for BDS until Israel meets the basic requirements of human rights and international law by ending its occupation, ensuring equal rights for Palestinian citizens of Israel, and respecting the rights of Palestinian refugees. “With Earth and Each Other” is a “peace” event. But as you know so well, peace without justice is not peace at all. The event will benefit the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies in the Negev or Naqab desert. But elsewhere in the Negev, Palestinian Bedouin communities are being displaced daily. The Arava Institute has said nothing this summer as the unrecognized village of Al-Araqib has been destroyed – and re-built by residents – four times in order to make way for a Jewish National Fund (JNF) park. This destruction and blatant disregard of human communities in the name of the environment is nothing new. The JNF, a partner organization in “With Earth and Each Other,” has been engaged in the “Judaization” of Palestine for more than 100 years. After the 1948 expulsion of two thirds of the Palestinian people from their lands, the JNF planted fast-growing non-native trees on the ruins of Palestinian villages in a deliberate attempt to prevent refugees from returning to their land. The JNF continues to plant trees in Al-Araqib village and throughout the Negev and the Galilee, working with the Israeli government to displace Palestinian people – who have Israeli citizenship but are not treated equally to Jewish citizens of the state – and steal their land on an ongoing basis. Today, the JNF directly controls 13% of the land in Israel and effectively controls more than 93% of the land, renting and leasing only to Jewish citizens of the state in violation of the rights of the Palestinian minority. Clearly, this is not an organization to partner with in a “peace” event. “With Earth and Each Other” claims that the event's “purpose is not to take a side [or] say who is right or wrong.” This implies that participation in the event is a neutral act, promoting “peace” while devoid of any political message. However, as the late Howard Zinn famously said, you can't be neutral on a moving train. By joining this event, you would be inadvertently supporting the “Brand Israel” campaign, which has been launched by the Israeli government and promoted by institutions throughout the country in order to whitewash Israel's violations of international law and project a false image of normalcy. Any statement that you wish to make by participating in this event would be overshadowed by the fact that you are crossing an international picket line established by the vast majority of civil society organizations in Palestine. In fact, a message of a just peace would reach far more people, including Israelis, if you were to cancel your appearance.
Lauren Booth: Letter to Israel
BBC Bias: The Gaza Freedom Flotilla
Free Gaza group refuses to pay 'Rachel Corrie' fees
Izrael od aktivista Pokreta za slobodnu Gazu traži da plate pristojbe u iznosu od oko 3 000 eura zbog toga što je Izrael, nakon njegove otmice, brod Rachel Corrie držao u ašdodskoj luci. Aktivisti to naravno odbijaju i najavljuju da će podići tužbe za eventualne štete na brodu, dok su druge tužbe, vezano uz krađu imovine aktivista, uključujući opremu i gotovinu u vrijednosti od milijun američkih dolara, već podnesene. Irski građani žele u sklopu slijedeće flotile koja će ove godine ploviti u Pojas Gaze sudjelovati s 2 broda s humanitarnom pomoći, a brodovi i aktivisti se pripremaju u tajnosti zbog straha od izraelske sabotaže.
Israel accused of mistreating kids
200 tons of steel enter Gaza for CMWU
Izrael je u ponedjeljak, 13. rujna u Pojas Gaze kroz granični prijelaz Kerem Abu Salem pustio 200 tona čelika, što je prvi put da izraelska strana taj građevinski materijal pušta u Pojas Gaze. Čelik je namijenjen za projekt izgradnje kanalizacije u gradu Gazi koji financira njemačka razvojna banka KFW.
National Jewish State: Not a Good Idea, for Palestinian and Jews Alike
Still, just for the case that the Palestinians should accept too many Israeli security demands and expect some gesture in return, a real effort was made by the Israeli delegation to secure the breakdown of the negotiations with null results. Benjamin Netanyahu inserted a trump card with an old-new mantra to take the center stage: "we expect you to be prepared to recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people", Netanyahu reportedly told President Abbas in Washington, making headlines and rallying supporters to the customary indignant Israeli complain: what about our right for self-determination? What most supporters will not see, and the majority of supposedly impartial observers fail to notice, is that this demand has nothing to do with self-determination; In fact it represents the opposite of this very idea. The basic right of every person to choose and declare his or her own national identity is denied to Israeli citizen and residents alike. ... there is no reason in the world why a Palestinian leader should endorse this taboo and not regard it for what it really is: a basic fault of the Israeli political entity. Perhaps he should remind his Israeli interlocutors that they would certainly recoil were he to present them with a parallel demand to recognize a future Palestine as a "National Moslem State". Advocates of a Two States Solution should think twice before accepting that one of the desired future political entities would be allowed to be fully identified with any version of an ancient religion. If anything, Middle East pundits would be well advised to ask Israel to move towards secularity and real democracy.
Washington peace talks: democracy need not apply
At the forefront is the supposed representative of the Palestinian people, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. In recent years, the PA's most notable governing role has been its repression of an already oppressed people in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. To quell any popular protest by Palestinians against the Israeli occupier, the PA has used its American-supplied and Israeli-approved weaponry and riot gear, and arrested and beaten Palestinians who voice their dissent. This was most clear during Israel's brutal assault on Gaza in the winter of 2008-09 and after the more recent attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla when Palestinian protestors in Ramallah and elsewhere were prevented from taking to the streets. Only two weeks ago, after a car full of Israeli settlers were killed in the occupied West Bank, the PA waged an arrest campaign rounding up hundreds of Palestinians in the occupied territory in a move that has been condemned by numerous Palestinian human rights organizations. ... In a move out of the autocratic ruler playbook, Abbas' term was extended by the PA's "emergency powers" out of fear that he would be replaced by someone from a rival party -- most likely from the more popular Hamas movement -- should new elections be held. Ironically, the most recent "free" and "democratic" elections held in Palestine were in 2006, when Hamas defeated Fatah, taking the majority of seats in parliamentary elections. ... On one end is Hosni Mubarak who has ruled Egypt under suffocating "emergency laws" (sound familiar?) since 1981 when he became president. Although friendly with the US and Israel, Mubarak runs one of the most brutal and corrupt dictatorships in the region. With a leadership dependent on -- and one of the main beneficiaries of -- US aid, Mubarak's mukhabarat (intelligence service) tolerates no dissent. Many of those who have tried to challenge his rule have joined the tens of thousands of political prisoners in Egypt's jails, where torture and abuse are well-documented and commonplace. Pictured opposite Mubarak is Jordan's King Abdullah II bin al-Hussein. Although Jordan is often hailed in the US as a "modern" and "moderate" state, there is little democracy to speak of there. Parliament, which has very little power, was dissolved last year half way through its term without any explanation, and elections delayed until this November will be held under a law widely criticized by opponents and passed by cabinet decree under "emergency provisions." Draconian laws on the press and nongovernmental organizations severely limit freedom of speech and association, and political activists carry out their work in the ubiquitous shadow of the country's security services. It's no coincidence that both of these men are considered two of the US' strongest allies in the Middle East. Both continue a US-backed policy of "peace" with Israel despite that policy having little to no support from their populations.
Homes For 27,000 Constructed During Israeli Settlements Freeze
The so-called settlement freeze in the Palestinian territories is a myth. No freeze has ever been implemented, in fact the settlements have been expanding dramatically during the moratorium. Additionally, another 13,000 homes have been approved for the West Bank, together with two new colonies near Nablus and the Jordan Valley. Israelis never actually ceased construction on the West Bank or in East Jerusalem and the number of home units in these areas has grown dramatically during the so-called moratorium.
Mohammed Omer: Dreaming of Fish, and Flowers
UN-ov Ured za koordinaciju humanitarnih poslova (UNOCHA) je izradio zajednički izvještaj u suradnji sa Svjetskim programom za hranu (WFP) u kojem između ostalog stoji da je palestinskim ribarima zabranjen pristup na 85% palestinskog pomorskog teritorija na koji imaju pravo prema Sporazumu iz Osla iz 1993. između Izraela i PLO-a. Izvještaj se također bavi tampon zonom između Izraela i Pojasa Gaze u kojoj Izrael puca na poljoprivrednike koji obrađuju svoju zemlju. Od siječnja 2009. u takvim je incidentima ubijeno 22 Palestinaca, a ranjeno 146 osoba.
Europska kampanja za okončanje opsade Gaze je u srpnju objavila da se više od 9000 ljudi prijavilo da želi na brodovima slijedeće flotile ploviti u Gazu. Organizatori prikupljaju 100 000 eura kako bi poslali irski brod u Gazu u jesen ove godine.
Galway to host Irish Ship to Gaza information day
Nekoliko irskih izrabranih narodnih zastupnika je izrazilo namjeru da sudjeluje u humanitarnoj flotili koja će na jesen ploviti u Gazu, uključujući senatora Marka Dalyja iz republikanske stranke Fianna Fáil i parlamentarnog zastupnika Aengusa Ó Snodaigha iz Sinn Féina. Više informacija o irskom brodu za Gazu možete pronaći na www.irishshiptogaza.org.
Ostalo:
Šušak prikrivao zločine u Šibeniku
Jedini koji su snosili ozbiljnije posljedice su trojica 'glasnika', a uhićena četvorka i još neki pripadnici SIS-a i vojne policije ostali su pod zaštitom ministra Gojka Šuška. Barišić je po Šuškovoj zapovijedi smijenjen. A upravo je Barišić predsjednika Tuđmana izvijestio da je uz zarobljene srpske vojnike u Kulinama zlostavljano i više civila, te da postoje osnovane sumnje kako je jedan od civila, Marko Mađar, i ubijen. Marko Mađar i ostali srpski civili su, izjavio nam je Barišić, u Kuline dovedeni iz sela Ubli u zaleđu Splita, u kojem su živjeli pretežito Srbi. Njih je stanoviti P.N. iz sela Broćanac optužio da su naoružani i opasni. Temeljem njegovih optužbi vojna je policija nesretne ljude privela u Kuline. Nedugo potom P.N. je, tvrdi Barišić, priznao da je žitelje sela Ubli lažno optužio jer je bio zaljubljen u sestru Marka Mađara, a kako se djevojčina obitelj usprotivila toj vezi iz osvete ih je optužio da su teroristi. ... Privedenu četvorku sumnjiči se i za zlostavljanje vojnih zatočenika spajanjem na struju, tjeranjem na homoseksualni spolni čin i ostale opačine.
Republic of Fear
Since September 11, 2001, fear has been the main engine of change in the United States. Who would have thought that across the US, where people boast that it is the home of the free and the land of the brave, people would gladly surrender their freedom and liberty because they so fear terrorism?
Krijesnica
Krijesnica je udruga koja se bavi pružanjem pomoći djeci i obiteljima suočenim s malignim bolestima ... Svaki drugi dan u RH od neke maligne bolesti oboli jedno dijete. Ne zna se kako i zašto dolazi do razvoja raka kod djece. Sigurno je jedno - broj oboljelih u stalnom je laganom rastu za oko 1% godišnje. Od troje oboljele djece jedno neće uspjeti preživjeti. Oni koji će (zahvaljujući našim liječnicima i medicinskim sestrama) ozdraviti, proći će kroz velike patnje, vrlo zahtjevno liječenje (kemoterapije, zračenja, operacije, bolne pretrage,...), odvojenost od roditelja i obitelji, ... Kako liječenje traje u prosjeku godinu dana, a nerijetko i 4-5 godina, cijela obitelj oboljelog djeteta kroz to razdoblje dolazi na rub svojih psihičkih, fizičkih i materijalnih snaga.
Vegas Drone Trial Makes History
Each witness spoke eloquently, and at length, about the need for nonviolent civil disobedience in the face of criminal actions by the U.S. government — which is how most in today's anti-war movement and many international observers have characterized America's drone war. “[People] are allowed to trespass if it's for the greater good — and there are certainly exceptions [to the law] when there is an emerging, urgent need,” said Quigley, while on the stand.
