Category Archives: Palestine

A woman among three arrested on suspicion of attacking IOF soldiers

FalastiNews reported that the Israeli Occupation Forces on Wednesday arrested Aida Jabareen (30) after stopping her vehicle at a makeshift checkpoint east of Hebron, and accusing her of planning to carry out hit-and-run attack against soldiers.

Aida was then arrested and taken to an unknown detention center.

via A woman among three arrested on suspicion of attacking IOF soldiers.

Israeli forces order arrest of a 2-year-old child from Jerusalem

Zidani family from Silwan neighborhood South the old city of Jerusalem, was shocked to hear the order of Israeli forces arresting their 2-year-old son, Hamza Zidani on Monday.

The family denied the order, when an Israeli occupation intelligence officer stormed into their house, kidnapped another son of the Family, Mohammad, and stole three computers.

Later, Israeli intelligence told the family that their youngest son, Hamza, was also ordered for kidnap, while the family rejected the order.

According to Defence for Children International Palestine, the number of Palestinian children in Israeli prisons reached 230 during the year of 2014, and children between the ages of 12-15 years reached about 36.

Israel has kidnapped Palestinian adults and minors, either for throwing stones, or for no charge at all.

Each year, occupation tightens the screws on Palestinians, and exerts pressure on them to leave their homes, especially in Silwan area in Jerusalem, to extend the building of Israeli settlements in the area.

The kidnap campaigns are getting wider and including two-year-olds, to exert pressure on Palestinian families.

via Israeli forces order arrest of a 2-year-old child from Jerusalem.

Is Jerusalem the Palestinians’ last battle? | Opinion , Columnist | THE DAILY STAR

Jerusalem today for Palestinians is about the battle between Israel’s attempts to Judaize the city after formally “annexing” it (which virtually the whole world does not recognize) and the Palestinian insistence on resisting the Zionist efforts to control and own the land of mandated Palestine. This battle has been taking place for nearly a century now. Israeli settlers have been trying for years to move into Arab areas of Jerusalem, like Silwan and Sheikh Jarrah, either by buying homes surreptitiously or forcibly by inhabiting real estate that Israel declares to be state-owned. Because the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization (the two overlapping but moribund leadership agencies for Palestinians) are not present in Jerusalem, the Arab residents of the city are on their own in defending their homes and lands.

via Is Jerusalem the Palestinians’ last battle? | Opinion , Columnist | THE DAILY STAR.

Jerusalem: Historical Illiteracy And Political Exploitation. | Nervana

First, it is rather pointless for Arabs and Muslims to deny the ancient history of the Temple Mount. It is not up to us to decide where Jews should have their holy site. If Jews view the Temple Mount compound as holy to them, so be it. Acknowledging the religious importance of the site to the Jews would be a smart move, as it will strip right-wing Israelis from their fundamental portrayal of Arabs as thieves of history.

In addition, although Muslims label the Western wall of the Temple Mount as the “Buraq wall,” where the Prophet Mohamed landed during his night visit to the city, there is no need to ignore the ancient history of the wall. Jews believe it is the remaining part of their destroyed Temple. The Prophet did not build the wall, it existed before him, and there are many reliable historical sources that prove how Jews used to pray at that site, even after the destruction of the Temple, and well before the rise of Islam.

On the other hand, Israelis needs to remember that their ancient history was not a perfect example of religious tolerance. Following their return from exile in Babylon, Jews excluded foreign wives and children from the membership of Israel, a harsh reminder how the holy city was in many occasions, a city of intolerance, just as in her current, modern time.

Second, acknowledging history does not necessarily mean conceding to demands for prayers at the holy site. Arabs should highlight to the world their part of the story. The Romans destroyed the second Temple hundreds of years before the Arab conquest of the city ___ a fact that Arabs should continue to elaborate and emphasize to the world after showing empathy and sympathy to Jewish claim. Christian rulers, whether in the Byzantine or crusader era, were much more unkind to the Jews than Muslims. According to the Jewish virtual library, the whole Temple Mount area was badly desecrated and was only cleared and restored after Muslim conquest.

Third, while it is smart to acknowledge the ancient Jewish history of the compound, it is also crucial to highlight the current misery of Jerusalem and the failure to achieve peace. East Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount, has technically been occupied land since 1967. Israel bars Palestinians below the age of 50 from praying in al-Aqsa. Security barriers in the West Bank prevent more Palestinians from reaching the holy compound. How can Israelis expect Palestinians to be more understanding while they live under such occupation? Arabs should remind the world how under their rule, the great Jewish scholar Maimonides visited the Temple Mount in 1165. That was an era of harmony and peace, unlike today’s tension and injustice. Israel must understand that the political deadlock compounds tension and does not leave any room for religious tolerance. Peace would strip radicals on both sides from abusing religion for political gains.

As such, I did not follow my colleague’s advice, and started reading the book as it should be read, from page one. It was an eye-opener. As Armstrong poignantly pointed out, “the history of Jerusalem reminds us that nothing ___ not even mortal hatred ___ is permanent.”

via Jerusalem: Historical Illiteracy And Political Exploitation. | Nervana.

The third intifada is here – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

“Temple Mount Faithful” members and right-wing activists in Israel maintain that Jews have the right to ascend to the Temple Mount, similar to the Muslim right to do so. Even if we assume that their claim is just and that Jews do indeed have the historic right to ascend and pray on the Mount as Muslims do, the choice is between a religiously motivated intifada, and distancing right-wing activists from the center of conflict — the Temple Mount.

Perhaps in the past understandings could have been reached with the Palestinians to allow Jewish groups to ascend to the Mount and pray. But that was not accomplished. Solutions were not obtained, not even in the course of peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians, talks that have collapsed in the meantime.

What was not accomplished in the past through dialogue and understandings cannot, so it seems, be created now, when the earth in Jerusalem is burning under our feet and there is concern that a “second Al-Aqsa intifada” may well spill over into the West Bank. At that point, no security coordination will be able to stop it. Apparently, there is only one way to try to halt the downward spiral, before we again use a million bullets and transform the bus stations in the capital city into shelters: To close the Temple Mount to Jews.

On the advice of Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch and the Jerusalem police, it was decided to place concrete railings around bus stations and underground train stations to protect pedestrians. While these may give some local protection to travelers, they ostensibly won’t be able to stop assailants from among the residents of East Jerusalem who believe that they are engaged in a religious war.

via The third intifada is here – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East.

Ned Link Resources

If you would like to dip into the sources, I looked at each day, the Links below will take you to my resource bundles:

Human Rights: http://www.inoreader.com/bundle/0014cd635acc

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Viva-Innovators-Creatives: http://www.inoreader.com/bundle/0014cd635a84

Feministas: http://www.inoreader.com/bundle/0014cd635a9b

Anti-war/for peace: http://www.inoreader.com/bundle/0014cd635acb

Settlers burn 100 olive trees near Nablus in the occupied West Bank

Extremist settlers set fire on Wednesday to agricultural lands in the town of Huwara, south of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank, Al-Resalah newspaper reported.

According to Al-Resalah, the mayor of the town said that a group of masked settlers had sneaked onto the land in western Huwara and then poured incendiary fluids on the trees, setting them on fire, which led to the burning of at least one hundred olive trees.

The mayor also pointed out that Israeli occupation forces prevented Palestinian citizens from reaching the lands in order to extinguish the fire. Later on, the Israeli forces allowed the civil defence, existing in the adjacent Palestinian village of Burin, to access the fire and extinguish it, but only after it had expanded to an even larger area of land.

via Settlers burn 100 olive trees near Nablus in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli “teabag” and racist rightists hold anti-Palestinian demo at light rail station | Maan News Agency

Dozens of Israeli rightists late Thursday protested at the site of a suspected attack which left a three-month-old baby dead, witnesses said.

Protesters held aloft signs reading “Death to Arabs!” and “Revenge” by the Ammunition Hill light rail station in Sheikh Jarrah.

There were reports of attempted assaults on Palestinians as they crossed the road in the area, with Israeli forces deploying to prevent such incidents.

Israel immediately labeled the incident on Wednesday as a “terrorist” attack, while the Palestinian suspect’s family denied that it was intentional.

via Israeli rightists hold anti-Palestinian demo at light rail station | Maan News Agency.

Olive Harvests Become Campaign Cornerstone for OVP — Medium

“Olive trees are a big part of our culture,” said OneVoice youth leader Raya Fatayer to Wattan News. “The harvest season is a national event to celebrate our Palestinian traditions. We see Israeli violations against the olive trees in many areas in Palestine, but we will continue to work with local farmers to display solidarity; this land will remain Palestinian.”

via Olive Harvests Become Campaign Cornerstone for OVP — Medium.