Uglavnom linkovi, neke vijesti – Palestina/Izrael, uhićenje Raeda Salaha u Londonu, flotila (početak srpnja 2011.)

(Slika: Anne Paq/ActiveStills)

Palestinian activist beaten, dumped on road by Israeli soldiers in Beit Ommar
Izraelski vojnici brutalno pretukli palestinskog aktivista u Beit Ommaru (2. srpanj 2011.)
Nakon tjednog prosvjeda protiv izraelskih kolonističkih naselja u selu Beit Ommar na Zapadnoj obali, u kojem su 2. srpnja sudjelovali lokalni mještani i međunarodni mirovni aktivisti, izraelski su vojnici člana Palestinskog narodnog odbora i lokalnog mještanina Yousefa Abu Mariju brutalno pretukli, uhitili i zatim ostavili da leži na cesti u polusvjesnom stanju. U prosvjedu je sudjelovalo 60 palestinskih, izraelskih i međunarodnih prosvjednika koji su mirno hodali prema ogradi ilegalnog kolonističkog naselja Karmei Tsur, gdje ih je dočekalo desetak izraelskih vojnika koji su ubrzo bez ikakvog razloga uhitili Abu Mariju. Nakon što su ga uhitili, vojnici (uključujući i jednog višeg časnika i jednog potpukovnika) su Abu Mariju predali izraelskoj pograničnoj policiji koja ga je počela brutalno tući. Potom su ga ostavili na ulazu u selo Beit Ommar u polusvjesnom stanju, nakon čega je, zbog sumnji da su mu slomljena rebra i da je zadobio unutarnje povrede, hospitaliziran u bolnici Aliya u Hebronu. Abu Mariji su izraelski vojnici već 7. svibnja ove godine na sličnom prosvjedu kod ilegalnog kolonističkog naselja Karmei Tsur prilikom pokušaja uhićenja slomili ruku. U Beit Ommaru su brutalni napadi izraelske vojske i kolonista učestala pojava, no ta zajednica ustraje u pružanju nenasilnog otpora izraelskoj okupaciji i kolonizaciji. Selo se nalazi između nekoliko ilegalnih izraelskih kolonističkih naselja na jugu Zapadne obale, a Palestincima se rutinski uskraćuje pristup njihovom poljoprivrednom zemljištu zbog širenja izraelskih kolonističkih naselja. Prije nekoliko mjeseci, cijelo je selo bilo odsječeno od ostatka svijeta i iz ili u njega nisu mogli izaći ni ući ni ljudi, ni roba, pa čak ni kola hitne pomoći.
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PACBI statement: On BDS bashers and their search for fig leaves
Leonard Cohen i Shakira na svoju su se sramotu odbili odazvati na poziv palestinskog civilnog društva i umjetnika na kulturni bojkot Izraela, a kasnije bezuspješno tražili palestinske partnere s kojima bi pokušali sa sebe sprati ljagu zbog sudjelovanja u izraelskim propagandnim manifestacijama i prezentaciji Izraela kao „normalne“, a ne aparthejdske države. Cohenu je glavni sponzor bila jedna izraelska banka duboko upletena u izgradnju ilegalnih izraelskih kolonističkih naselja na okupiranoj palestinskoj zemlji (pa je, nakon što Cohen nije mogao privoliti niti jednu palestinsku organizaciju da s njim surađuje, te zahvaljujući kampanjama koje su protiv njega pokrenute u raznim zemljama, donaciju za udruge za „ljudska prava“ iz prihoda od njegovog koncerta odbio primiti čak i Amnesty International), a Shakira je nastupila u službenoj izraelskoj propagandnoj manifestaciji na poziv izraelskog predsjednika Shimona Peresa, čija je uloga u bezbrojnim zločinima i izraelskim kršenjima međunarodnog prava na okupiranom palestinskom području i u južnom Libanonu vrlo dobro dokumentirana.
One classic example was Leonard Cohen, who despite being repeatedly appealed to by PACBI and its partners everywhere to cancel his gig in Tel Aviv, insisted on going ahead with it and even accepted as a main sponsor of the gig an Israeli bank deeply implicated in the construction of illegal Israeli colonies on occupied Palestinian land. After being widely criticized for this blatant violation of the Palestinian-led boycott, Cohen sought just about any Palestinian interlocutor, venue or organization that he could use for “balance” and to fend off the critics. However, by wearing a mantle of “healing” and “peace” without uttering a word about justice or about Israel’s violations of international law, Cohen failed to convince any Palestinian organization to cooperate with him, leaving him without the frantically coveted fig leaf. This, in conjunction with concerted pressure campaigns waged in many countries, ultimately convinced Amnesty International to abandon the idea of cooperating with Cohen to channel proceeds from his concert to “human rights” groups. ... More recently, Shakira tried to do the same, using her UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador status to arrange a visit to a Palestinian NGO in occupied Jerusalem to “balance” her shameful participation in an official Israeli propaganda event at the invitation of the Israeli president, Shimon Peres. Peres’s well documented role in the myriad crimes and international law infringements committed by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory and in South Lebanon is undeniable. The targeted Palestinian NGO canceled Shakira’s visit at the last moment when it realized how she had violated the boycott, and that providing her with a Palestinian alibi could damage the BDS movement’s peaceful struggle for freedom, justice and equality.
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Jonathan Cook: Why was Salah muzzled for preaching peace in London?
This approach threatens the very values it claims to be protecting. It silences those who are best placed to critique Western policies — the victims of them; and it refuses to allow the West's most cherished assumptions to be questioned, rightfully fearing that in some cases they will be exposed as nothing more than bigotry. It is worth highlighting a point British commentators overlooked in their coverage of Salah. He was coming to the parliament, the cradle of British democracy, to talk not about jihad or infidels but about “building peace and justice in Jerusalem.” His message is one the Western public desperately needs to hear but one that Israel and its supporters keenly want silenced. Thanks to the British media and government, Britons will be shielded from a real discussion for a while longer.
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Tutu boosts Murdoch-battered BDS campaign in Sydney
Marrickville councillors voted in December last year to respect the boycott call against Israeli products. Council officers were tasked with identifying specific products which might fall under the BDS call and to prepare a report specifying the likely costs and impacts of boycotting those goods. The initial council decision attracted little attention for a few weeks afterwards. By the end of 2010, however, Australian anti-Islamic groups had stirred up some controversy, issuing personal attacks on and even threats against supporters of the BDS motion. ... Under pressure from the media and with threats of dissolution from the Liberal-controlled New South Wales administration, Marrickville council was forced into a second vote. Several of the councillors who had initially supported a BDS purchasing policy backed down and, after three hours of debate, the majority voted for an apparently contradictory motion which resolved “not to pursue the Global BDS against Israel in any shape or form.” The council also stated that it remained “concerned about Palestinian human rights and calls on Israel to end the occupation of all Arab lands and dismantle the [West Bank] Wall; ensure the fundamental rights of Palestinians to full equality; and respect, protect and promote the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties.”
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UK deportation order against Palestinian leader to be appealed
Salah has been in the UK speaking to the public and politicians about the Arab uprisings, and to help the Palestine Solidarity Campaign launch a new campaign on Jerusalem. Before the arrest he spoke at public meetings in London and Leicester, as well as a roundtable in Parliament with MPs and researchers organized by Liberal Democrat Baroness Jenny Tonge. Organizers were given no notice from authorities there was any problem, said Marsawa. The arrest came after a campaign this week by pro-Israel bloggers and right-wing tabloids such as the Daily Mail accusing Salah of anti-Semitism, a charge he strongly denies. MEMO said the charges were an “absolute lie and a malicious fabrication” and that Salah's lawyers had begun libel proceedings against journalists in three British newspapers, including Evening Standard London editor Andrew Gilligan. Gilligan then claimed on his blog he had received no such legal papers, but the offices of Farooq Bajwa & Co countered Friday by releasing a copy of the letter they had written to Gilligan on behalf of Salah demanding a retraction (“Who is lying?,” 1 July). According to Adalah- the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, Salah has never been charged with incitement or anti-Semitism in Israel. The accusations of anti-Semitism in the British press cited unreliable sources such as MEMRI, a discredited translation service run by a former member of Israeli intelligence.
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Fighting 'hate speech' smears on Sheikh Salah
In truth, the pro-Israel, neo-conservative architects of the war on terror in Washington will be celebrating their ongoing success in falsely conflating a war against Palestinian resistance with what might otherwise have been a legitimate counter-terrorism strategy against al-Qaeda terrorists. A key ingredient in this success has been to adopt the powerful and pejorative term 'hate-preacher' to describe leaders of Palestinian resistance against Israeli oppression and to put them in the same category as al-Qaeda terrorists. Although taking their cue from sister think-tanks like Middle East Forum in Washington, Westminster based lobby groups and their media acolytes including Policy Exchange, Henry Jackson Society and the Centre for Social Cohesion, have been at the forefront of a decade long campaign to reduce Palestinian resistance leaders to the same status as al-Qaeda terrorists. … Regrettably Westminster politicians like Ken Livingstone and Jeremy Corbyn, who was due to share a platform with Sheikh Raed Salah in London this week, are few and far between. Whether Labour, Conservative or Liberal Democrat, those politicians with their hands on the levers of power in Westminster have consistently adopted pro-Israeli recommendations to denigrate Palestinian support as anti-Semitic 'hate speech'.
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TO GAZA WITH LOVE_THE AUDACITY OF HOPE (video)

Le baroud d’honneur des « flottilleurs » français
Bitka za spas obraza i časti francuskih sudionika flotile (5. srpanj 2011.)
Alain Connan, kapetan francuskog broda „Louise Michel“, nije se htio oglušiti na zabranu isplovljavanja od strane grčkih vlasti jer se, nakon uhićenja kapetana američkog broda, bojao da bi mu se moglo dogoditi da u grčkom zatvoru provede godinu dana. Senatorica Alima Boumediene, predložila je da, budući da ona uživa zastupnički imunitet, zamjeni kapetana, no putnici su to odbili. Komunistički zastupnik iz Le Havrea, Jean-Paul Lecoq, izjasnio se za vođenje pravne bitke, pa su aktivisti zaključili da je potrebno uložiti žalbe zbog ometanja kretanja europskih građana unutar schengenskog prostora i žaliti se na Europskom sudu pravde. Aktivisti su najavili da će se pod svaku cijenu vratiti, te da je u pripremi 3. flotila, no da je prije nje potrebno izvući pouke iz dosadašnjih uspjeha i pogrešaka i pronaći način kako ostati vidljiv, a istovremeno manje otvoren javnosti. Bez obzira na neuspjeh broda „Louise Michel“ da isplovi za Gazu i probije blokadu, palestinski zastupnik Mustafa Barghouti zahvalio je aktivistima u ime svih Palestinaca naglasivši da njihovi časni napori nikada neće biti zaboravljeni.
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Lettre à Catherine Ashton : "Laissez-les partir"
En invoquant « les préoccupations légitimes en matière de sécurité qui doivent être garanties à Israël » et s'agissant de Gaza, vous vous rendez complice du blocus contre Gaza et vous déniez aux peuples d'Europe le droit d'agir conformément aux conventions de Genève, au droit humanitaire et à la résolution 1860 du Conseil de sécurité des Nations Unies. En invoquant à propos de la flottille de paix contre le blocus de possibles « trafics illicites d'armes » de même qu’en acceptant que l'aide soit acheminée via « les canaux établis vers Gaza » sous contrôle israélien, vous vous alignez sur l'occupant et l'oppresseur des populations palestiniennes. Vous n'ignorez pas que tous les capitaines des bateaux de la flottille ont demandé officiellement le contrôle de leur cargaison et de leurs bateaux par des inspecteurs tant grecs que de l'Union européenne ou des Nations unies. Votre position est contraire à la vision que nous entendons défendre d'une Europe promotrice des droits de l'Homme, du droit humanitaire et du droit international.
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Lettre à Alain Juppé
Ce blocage illégal est de toute évidence de nature politique. Cela ne le rend pas plus acceptable car cela est tout autant contraire au droit. En effet, au nom de quoi un Etat européen peut-il considérer, dès lors que le danger qu'il redoute est le fait d’une autre partie qui se mettrait du même coup hors la loi, qu'il convient d'arrêter l'agressé éventuel et non pas de prendre toute disposition pour empêcher une agression évoquée de la part de la partie désignée comme étant capable de violences possibles, en l'occurrence l'Etat israélien ? On ne peut pas mettre les victimes éventuelles d'une agression en « prison » et laisser libre cours aux agissements anticipés de l'agresseur désigné : le gouvernement israélien ! Depuis quand les voleurs ou les tueurs sont-ils libres d'agir et les victimes qui œuvrent pacifiquement, et ici selon les termes de la résolution 1860 de l'ONU, sont-elles privées de leur liberté d'aller et de venir, d'être emprisonnés en quelque sorte ? Tout cela – qui rejoint l'illégalité du blocus de Gaza que les passagers de ce bateau entendent dénoncer concrètement et pacifiquement – fait le jeu de ceux qui, constamment, sont hors la loi. C'est le cas des dirigeants israéliens.
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