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Lieberman accuses Chavez of anti-semitism for backing Palestinian resistance

The fool and thug Lieberman, otherwise known as the foreign minister of Israel, is really losing it. This morning he is accusing Chavez of anti-semitism because of his support for the cause of Palestinian liberation. Israel claims there are Hezbollah cells in Venezuela. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has accused Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez of cooperating with "radical branches" of Islam and of anti-Semitism, according to media reports Thursday in Colombia. "I will not speak about intelligence specifics, but we have enough to be concerned about the collaboration between radical branches of Islam and Hugo Chavez," Lieberman told the El Tiempo newspaper at the conclusion of a 10-day South American visit which included stops in Argentina, Brazil, Peru and Colombia. Lieberman was responding to questions seeking evidence to support Israel's contention that Iranian-backed Hezbollah has cells in Venezuela. more at ynetnews

Gaza kids break kite-flying world record

Some good news from Gaza for a change... Thousands of Palestinian children gathered in the Gaza Strip in an attempt to break the world record on the number of kites flown at the same time, in the same place. Thursday's event was part of a UN initiative organised to restore hope and normality to the war-torn territory. Al Jazeera's Ayman Mohyeldin reports.

Just Journalism is an Israeli government front

An organisation called Just Journalism is taking issue with what it sees as the UK media's bias in favour of the Palestinians. I must say I haven't noticed this trait – if anything the media is pro-Israel, with resistance fighters routinely referred to as either 'terrorists' or 'gunmen' while Israeli killers are of course always 'soldiers'. Just Journalism, erroneously, describes itself as: "an independent research organisation focused on how Israel and Middle East issues are reported in the UK media. We produce analysis of print, broadcast and online media and regularly publish research on trends in the media’s coverage". So what is the evidence for this UK media bias? Well, it's pretty weak but I've reproduced the article in full below. In all the examples they quote, where they claim parts of quotes have been truncated/removed in order to hide the 'context' that the soldiers who gave testimony to Breaking the Silence were pro

Israel ramps up cyber war against Palestinians and their supporters

In another sign of the problems piling up for Israel the government is pouring money into trying to shape and distort any news, discussion or comment on Palestine. They're not very good at it as you can probably see from some of the comments on this blog. The main attribute of these posters seems to be arrogance and their main weapon abuse - as well as shock that there are so many people around the world that disagree with them and prefer to support the so-called terrorists that have the temerity to try and defend their people militarily against occupation and oppression. By Jonathan Cook in Nazareth July 22, 2009 " Information Clearing House " -- The passionate support for Israel expressed on talkback sections of websites, internet chat forums, blogs, Twitter and Facebook may not be all that it seems. Israel’s Foreign Ministry is reported to be establishing a special undercover team of paid workers whose job it will be to su

Jewish extremists launch attack on al-Aqsa mosque - third holiest is Islam

Israel plans to build up to 50 synagogues to surround the mosque, some in the grounds of the al-Aqsa itself. It's feared the constant tunneling under the mosque by the zionists is aimed at undermining its foundations. From Press TV More than 200 Jewish extremists have reportedly entered al-Aqsa Mosque, positioning themselves inside the holy site, allegedly to perform religious rituals. According to a statement released by the Al-Aqsa Foundation for Endowment and Heritage, the incursion was "significant". The foundation has called on Muslims, Arabs and all Palestinians to take action in support of the mosque. The attack comes amidst Tisha B'Av, also known as "The Ninth of Av" -- a Jewish fasting day in commemoration of the destruction of the two Temples. The occasion falls on the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av, which usually coincides with late July or mid-August.

Settlement 'freeze' move to please US changes nothing

Haartez reports that Netanyahu has ordered a freeze on a plan to build 900 apartments in East Jerusalem in a move presumably demanded by the US with Obama's envoy, Mitchell, in town. But this is a freeze on plans that have not yet been implemented so this announcement will change nothing on the ground. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has frozen a project for the construction of some 900 apartments in East Jerusalem, Channel 10 television reported late Wednesday. The report of Netanyahu's order to freeze the project came a day after he held talks in Jerusalem with U.S. President Barack Obama's special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell. Netanyahu has been under tremendous pressure from the United States to freeze all construction in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. According to Channel 10, The houses were planned to be built in Pisgat Ze'ev, one of several Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem built beyond the Green Line separating Israel from the West Bank. Pales

More die in struggle to keep open Gaza tunnel lifelines

Israel's aerial bombing of the tunnels hasn't stopped trade but it has certainly undermined the tunnels structurally, as the death of two more Palestinians today testifies - bringing the weekly total to at least nine. AFP - Two Palestinians were killed on Thursday when a smuggling tunnel linking the Gaza Strip to Egypt collapsed, medical sources said. At least nine people have been killed this week in cave-ins and other mishaps in the vast network of tunnels between Egypt and Gaza used to smuggle food, goods and, according to Israel, weapons and explosives. Over the past three years, 127 people have died in the tunnels, according to Iyad Abu Hujaier of the Palestinian Centre for Democracy and Conflict Resolution (PCDCR) which recently compiled a report on the tunnels. more

Go to Gaza Drink the Sea playwright trapped in Gaza

The Scotsman reports playwright Ahmed Masoud is unable to get out of Gaza. His play opens in the Assembly Hall at this year's Edinburgh Festival on 6 August. By TIM CORNWELL A PALESTINIAN playwright whose Fringe play tells of the Israeli assault on the Palestinian territory of Gaza has become trapped there on his first visit in seven years. Ahmed Masoud is a UK resident whose wife is expecting their first child in October. He went to Gaza to visit his mother after a cancer operation and has been unable to leave. His play, Go to Gaza, Drink the Sea , opened in London in February, just after the Israeli military operation in Gaza, blamed for the loss of more than 1,000 Palestinian lives. Masoud, who has a Palestinian passport, but is a legal British resident, got into Gaza when the Rafah border crossing from Egypt was briefly opened. When he tried to leave by the same route, he was turned away. He was due in Edinburgh for rehearsals this week. The play opens on 6 August. Book your

Israel calls in UK ambassador to 'discuss' boycott movement and aid to peace group

Hot on the heels of castigating the Dutch government, Israel is now demanding that the UK stop funding (£40k apparently, although Haaretz's report is not very clear) for the Breaking the Silence organisation of veteran and serving Israeli soldiers. Israel primarily summoned the UK ambassador in Tel Aviv to the talks to discuss boycott efforts by 'various British organisations'. The international solidarity movement has them worried. Israel continues to ratchet up diplomatic pressure against European Union funding of a group that exposed what it described as war crimes perpetrated by the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza. The deputy director-general of the Foreign Ministry, Rafi Barak, expressed "concern" last week over Britain's financial contributions to "Breaking the Silence," an organization founded by IDF veterans which collects testimonies from soldiers serving in the Palestinian territories. Barak communicated Israel's dissatisfaction over Brit

Reports Israel may allow some cement into Gaza

Cement and 'some steel' to be allowed into Gaza by Israel 'in the coming weeks'. AFP - Israel will allow a one-time transfer of cement into Gaza for the first time since its war in the Hamas-ruled enclave and amid a new US peace push in the region, officials said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak okayed the transfer of more than 310 tonnes of cement for rebuilding a flour mill, a sewage treatment facility and the British cemetery , one defence official said. The one-off consignment will also include some steel and is expected to be transferred "in the coming weeks," he said. Many buildings in Gaza remain in ruins since Israel's December-January offensive because of an acute shortage of construction materials that can only officially enter Gaza through Israel-controlled crossings. Israel recently authorised the monthly transfer of 104 million shekels (26 million dollars) into Gaza to pay the wages of Palestinia

YouTube comes to the rescue of Israel

The Palestine Telegraph has a copy of a video illustrating graphically the depth of racism and hatred in Israel. The video was originally posted on YouTube (owned by Google, as is Blogger) but has since been removed. Max Blumenthal and Jesse Rosenfeld interview young Tel Aviv residents about Iran, Obama and right-wing laws limiting the speech rights of their Palestinian-Israeli neighbors. The shocking responses reflect the deepening of racist and authoritarian trends in Israeli society. This is the sequel to "Feeling the Hate in Jerusalem," the video banned by YouTube, Vimeo and the Huffington Post after topping 400,000 hits. You can see a copy of the original here And see above the sequel to the video - still available on YouTube Complain about YouTube/Google's bias: P.O. Box 27837 Washington, DC 20038-7837 Phone: (202) 955-9070 Fax:(202) 955-9077 Please direct all general inquiries to memri@memri.org This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need Java

Thousands aim to break siege with new year march

Norman Finkelstein is helping to organise a non-violent march to break the siege on 1 January 2010. Details at links below: http://www.normanfinkelstein.com http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/committee The Coalition to End the Illegal Siege of Gaza aims to emulate Gandhi in India and Martin Luther King in the US Deep South by leveraging the tactic of non-violence, which of course continues to be a tactic employed on the ground by the occupied Palestinian people who usually have no other choice but to offer non-violent resistance. The key to the success of the Coalition, as in the struggle for Indian national liberation and for civil rights in the US, turns on whether a serious mass mobilisation of tens of thousands comes together. The attitude of the Israeli state will be predictably brutal but the international outcry would further isolate the madmen that run Israel.

International movement to break Gaza siege growing in strength

Suzanne Morrison writing for the Palestine Telegraph assesses the impact of the break the siege initiatives and concludes positively... Total success of any one group has been difficult, given the immense amount of opposition from the Israeli and Egyptian governments (and the powerful states that support them). Members of each group have suffered in various ways from bureaucratic hurdles, arrest, detention, deportation, etc. as the Egyptian and Israeli states hope to suppress and otherwise intimidate peoples of conscience. While breaking the siege on Gaza requires more than delivering humanitarian aid, collectively the international popular movements represent a very real threat to Israel's closure policy. The longer the siege lasts, the larger the popular resistance to it appears to become. Over two years after its implementation, the movements to end the siege are larger and stronger than ever before. What is clear by all these acts of popular resistance is that people of the wor

Israel lashes out at Netherlands for giving financial support to anti-war soldiers

The Netherlands has been criticised by Israel for funding the Breaking the Silence organisation, which recently published testimony by Israeli soldiers alleging war crimes in Gaza. According to the leading Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the Israeli embassy in The Hague has submitted a formal complaint to the Dutch government about the financing of Breaking the Silence , which recently published a controversial report which alleged that Israeli military personnel had committed war crimes during the recent conflict in the Gaza Strip. Following the release of that report, the names of the organisation's financial backers, including the British and Dutch embassies in Israel, were made public in various Israeli media. NRC Handelsblad

UK Soldier faces court martial for refusing to return to Afghanistan

Lance Corporal Joe Glenton has become the first serving British soldier to speak out publicly against the Afghan war. Joe faces court martial and a possible two-year prison term after going on the run rather than return to Afghanistan. Joe says he gradually became aware that justifications for occupying Afghanistan were ringing hollow. "The Afghan people were attacking us, even though our politicians said we were going in to help them. It came as a real shock" "That's when I became aware that there was something seriously wrong with the war," he says. Joe will attend a court martial hearing next Monday We are asking all our supporters to send messages of complaint, for forwarding to the Ministry of Defence, to joeisinnocent@hotmail.co.uk Watch Joe's speech at the Stop the War meeting here: http://bit.ly/1vyX7b

British MPs call for immediate lifting of siege

The European campaign for ending the siege welcomed Monday the report issued by the committee on foreign relations in the British House of Commons which condemned Israel for its persistence in imposing a blockade on the Gaza Strip and not allowing in humanitarian aid. The Brussels-based campaign said that this British parliamentary report is an important step in the right direction, but urgent action is needed to lift the siege on Gaza. The campaign also hailed the House of Commons for demanding in its report that the European Union links the improvement of its relations with Israel to the latter’s policies towards the Palestinians and its decision to ask openly whether Israel committed war crimes in Gaza. It also called on the British government to respond positively to the report through moving actively to end the Israeli siege. The European campaign for ending the siege had earlier warned that the continued blockade on Gaza is leading to a rising death toll for the imprisoned popul

Netanyahu wants submission not 'peace'

WEST BANK, (PIC)-- Palestinian lawmaker Ibrahim Abu Salem of Hamas's parliamentary bloc in the Palestinian legislature has derided the conditions put forward by Israeli premier Binyamin Netanyahu to make "peace" with the Palestinians. Before a special session held by the Israeli parliament on Wednesday, Netanyahu reiterated his conditions to resume the "peace process" with the Palestinians, including recognizing Palestine as Jewish homeland, withdrawing all litigations filed against Israel for its crimes against the Palestinian people, dropping of the RoR, and accepting a demilitarized Palestinian state. "How the Zionist entity could put such conditions while it doesn’t even recognize the simplest rights of the Palestinian people, confiscating their lands, and practices terrorism and oppression against them?", Abu Salem said. He also rejected the notion of a demilitarized state that Netanyahu is talking about especially that the Israeli occupation wou

Fatah units accuse of Abbas of treason

Abu Al-Reesh Brigades says what Qaddumi revealed is a drop in the ocean GAZA, (PIC)-- The Martyr Ahmad Abu al-Reesh Brigades (MARB), which is affiliated with the Fatah movement, said that what Qaddumi revealed lately is a drop in the ocean of the "treason of Mahmoud Abbas and [Muhammad] Dahlan," and called for putting them on trial. Amin al-Hassi, the general commander of the MARB said, in a statement on Saturday: "No one was surprised by the revelations made by brother Farouq al-Qaddumi, the secretary of Fatah, when he exposed the biggest conspiracy in the history of the Fatah leadership. He clarified matters and refreshed the memory of Fatah partisans on a matter that some tried to burry under the carpet with Zionist and American help." He added that many mercenaries inside Fatah tried to form a cover, by their silence, for the Abbas-Dahlan crime which led to the death of Yasir Arafat; "the enemy before the fried exposed their evil deeds. This momentous event

Call to end gas exports from Egypt to Israel

Under the slogan "We are not going to export our gas to Israel ", all the national forces will participate in a protest and a stand on July 26, 2009 at seven o'clock in the evening ,at the Press Syndicate to overthrow the black list, which held its convention with the Zionists for the export of gas, in betrayal of the national security not only of Egypt , not only did they export the Egyptian gas, but they also exported the gas at the price of one dollar and a quarter ,at the time which the world price of gas reached 16 $ ,so it's a loss of 12.5 million$ for Israel, equivalent to 120 million Egyptian pounds daily. This gang did not stop at the export of gas only, but also have gone on to mislead and cheat the Egyptian judiciary and the Egyptian people as well. As the Egyptian Gas is considered to be one of the most important sources of income for the country and the reserve is not enough to export it , as it's necessary for local consumption ,and for the future ge

Appeal to the world for the release of Ahmad Sa'adat

Ahmad Sa'adat, as a national leader of the Palestinian people, a hero of the prisoners' movement, and an international symbol of resistance and freedom, inspires many to write, organize, and take action to defend the lives and rights of Sa'adat and all Palestinian prisoners, and take up their struggle for freedom. The following article was written by Hussin Ramadan, a Palestinian youth activist from Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem. It was published on several leading Palestinian blogs and solidarity websites. Palestine Think Tank was first to publish the article, and has continually provided tremendous support to the Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa'adat, the cause of all Palestinian political prisoners and the Palestinian liberation struggle. The article is presented in full below. Please send your own articles about Ahmad Sa'adat and the Palestinian prisoners' movement to the Campaign at info@freeahmadsaadat.org . We look forward to reading more strong voices r

Israel won't stop stealing Palestinian land

Netanyahu has made it plain to the US that settlement building will continue. So why are operations funding millions of dollars worth of illegal settlements allowed free reign in the US? The Guardian reports on how unwitting Bingo players are helping to fund the stealing of Palestinian land. For the winning punters chancing their luck at Hawaiian Gardens' charity bingo hall in the heart of one of California's poorest towns, the big prize is $500. The losers walk away with little more than an assurance that their dollars are destined for a good cause. But the real winners and losers live many thousands of miles away, where the profits from the nightly ritual of numbers-calling fund what critics describe as a form of ethnic cleansing by extremist organisations. Each dollar spent on bingo by the mostly Latino residents of Hawaiian Gardens, on the outskirts of Los Angeles, helps fund Jewish settlements on Palestinian land in some of the most sensitive areas of occupied East Jerus

Palestinian Authority faces crisis as Abbas collaboration splits Fatah

The divisions in Fatah have gone beyond boiling point. The splits that emerged around the preparations for the Sixth Fatah Conference were reported on in May and the statement by 82 senior Fatah members issued in the same month accusing Abbas of attempting a coup . It was followed by the news this Wednesday that Al Jazeera was to be banned from the West Bank . Banning Al Jaazera is not going to help Abbas. And the accusation against Abbas amounts to the highest form of treason against the Palestinian people as embodied in President Yasser Arafat. No wonder Russian deputy foreign minister Alexander Saltanov sought out Hamas leader Mishaal (pictured above) to discuss latest political developments, as Fatah implodes... "The Palestinian Authority has stated its decisions are in response to Al Jazeera reporting the accusations made by secretary-general of the Fatah movement Mr Farouk Kaddoumi against the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and his adviser Mohammed Dahlan. "Mr Kad

Egyptian riot police attacks on Gazans at Rafah shows regime's fear

Micheline Garreau posted an announcement to the cause Palestinian & International Campaign - End the Siege & Lift Blockade of Gaza . ---------------- ...July 15, should have been a day of rejoicing here at Rafah Gate because the Viva Palestina convoy had finally been authorized to enter Gaza, but it turned into a nightmare for the many Palestinian families held up on the Egyptian side. Finally, at 10 pm we were smiling again when we saw Jenny Linnel and Nathalie Abu Chakra, two members of ISM-Gaza come through the Gate. The Egyptians had been denying them entry because they had arrived in Gaza on board the ships of the Free Gaza movement. For those who don’t know the Rafah Gate, the frontier between Egypt and Gaza is situated in the middle of nowhere-- 2 kilometers from Rafah. There is no hotel; the Egyptian police have closed the town to foreigners and have installed dozens of checkpoints—I would say one every 50 meters! And you can’t tell me it’s to stop contraband headed to

Palestinians wounded, foreign activists detained protesting settlers at Beit Ummar

AL-KHALIL, ( PIC )-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Saturday kidnapped nine foreign activists and wounded five Palestinians while quelling a peaceful march against settlement activity in Beit Ummar village, Al-Khalil district. Local sources in the village said that fistfights were reported between Palestinians and foreign activists on the one hand and IOF troops on the other, noting that the soldiers used force to break up the demonstration. The soldiers used batons and rifle butts to assault the marchers wounding five Palestinians, they added. Meanwhile, IOF soldiers detained a Palestinian youth in Qalqilia city late Saturday night and another from Bil'in, Ramallah district, at dawn Sunday. Furthermore, Israeli border guards rounded up 178 Palestinian workers over the weekend on charges of entering 1948 occupied Palestine without work permits while seven other persons were arrested for transporting the workers.

Viva Palestina US delivers despite Mubarak's threats

By Soozy Duncan. Allowed only 24 hours in Gaza under threat of not being allowed to return to Egypt, the Viva Palestina convoy has been a whirlwind of activity since crossing the border at Rafah Wednesday night. Organizers have attempted to compress 3 days of planned activities into a single day. Thursday started by watching a press conference featuring Gazan Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh with members of the Neturei Karta, an organization of anti-Zionist Rabbis from Munsey, New York, who traveled with the caravan. Haniyeh emphasized that the government and the people of Gaza take no issue with Jews, but rather with Zionism and the ongoing oppression and blockade by Israel. Rabbi Dovid Weissman concurred that Jews, Christians and Muslims had coexisted peacefully in Muslim countries for centuries prior to the birth of Zionism, and asked for the people of Gaza to join him in praying for the peaceful dismantlement of the state of Israel. The group then drove around the Gaza Strip in bus

Israel defence dept says naval movements preparation for war with Iran

More details on the movement of Israeli naval ships through the Suez canal. The ships concerned are the exact same ones the UK has refused to sell some spare parts for. Israel's recent deployment of warships across the Red Sea should be seen as serious preparation for an attack on Iran, an Israeli defense official told the Times of London on Thursday. "This is preparation that should be taken seriously. Israel is investing time in preparing itself for the complexity of an attack on Iran. These maneuvers are a message to Iran that Israel will follow up on its threats," the official was quoted as saying. Earlier this week, two Israel Navy gunboats openly sailed through the Suez Canal into the Red Sea. The ships that passed through the Suez Canal on Tuesday were two Sa'ar 5 gunboats, the Hanit and the Eilat. This follows a similar incident in late June, when an Israeli Dolphin-class submarine passed through the canal, later returning the same way. The move, apparently

Israel prevents French diplomatic visit to Gaza

JERUSALEM, July 15 (UPI) -- Israel prevented French diplomats from entering Gaza to celebrate Bastille Day, because of Gilad Shalit's ongoing captivity, Israeli security officials said. The diplomats should not be allowed to celebrate a holiday of freedom and human rights while the kidnapped soldier remains in captivity, an official told Haaretz Wednesday. More at UPI.com But what about the captivity of the other 1.5 million people in Gaza you may ask.

Viva Palestina US arrives in Gaza

WE ARE IN GAZA!!!!

UK hospitals raise funds for medical aid for Gaza

By Tyrone Marshall » Staff from local healthcare services have been organising concerts to raise money to buy medical supplies and aid for the people in the Gaza strip. John May, Paramedic, Kath Hill, Ambulance Technician and Karen Pennington, A and E Charge Nurse held two concerts to raise money for aid supplies to the poverty stricken Gaza strip. The concerts were well attended by staff from both the Royal Preston and Chorley and South Ribble Hospital sites. They managed to raise over £1,000 and were helped with the running of the events by Dr Younes Bazza, senior staff grade doctor who earlier in the year, travelled with Ventas Humanitarian Aid to administer medical aid following the most recent conflict. Dr Bazza, said: “I am delighted that the event was such a success, the money raised for medical aid will be greatly appreciated and is sorely needed. “Hospitals in Gaza struggle to cope with the number of patients they are asked to treat and the training of clinicians is certainly

Abbas bans Al-Jazzera from West Bank following Arafat killing charge

The Palestinian Authority said today it was suspending the West Bank operations of al-Jazeera, alleging incitement and unbalanced reporting by the Arab news station from the Palestinian territories. A Palestinian official says the decision was taken by President Mahmoud Abbas who was outraged by an al-Jazeera talkshow, broadcast yesterday, that dealt with harsh accusations against PA leader by a long-time rival in his Fatah movement. The rival, Farouk Kaddoumi, claimed – without presenting evidence – that Abbas had a role in the 2004 death of his predecessor, Yasser Arafat. More at the Guardian

Viva Palestina US receive permit for rafah crossing

The Viva Palestina US caravan has received a permit to allow the group passage through the Rafah gate and into Gaza after spending 10 days in Cairo trying to overcome a series of bureaucratic delays. The American convoy is mobilizing to carry busloads of supplies to the people of Gaza on Wednesday, July 15, and expects no further delays to their humanitarian mission because the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had already confirmed that all 200 delegates have satisfied all technical requirements required for travel. Weeks ago, the Viva Palestina US convoy received assurances from Egyptian diplomats that they would expedite the delivery of a convoy of trucks, medical and relief supplies and American human rights volunteers into Gaza, but restrictions were then imposed on the initial Viva Palestina plan. “We are now on our way to complete our humanitarian mission, more determined than ever and stronger in heart than when we entered Egypt,” says George Galloway, British Member of Parliament. “

Israeli soldiers admit to using Palestinian civilians as human shields

The first eye-witness accounts of the war by serving Israeli reservists and conscripts describes the Israeli use of Palestinian civilians as "human shields". They detail the killing of at least two civilians, the vandalism, looting and wholesale destruction of Palestinian houses, the use of deadly white phosphorus, bellicose religious advice from army rabbis and what another battalion commander described to his troops as "insane firepower with artillery and air force". The reports amount to the most formidable challenge by Israelis since the Gaza war to the military's own considered view that it conducted the operation according to international law.. more at the Independent

Egypt allows Israeli warships through Suez Canal to threaten Iran

While the Egyptian government is busy blocking aid to its Arab brothers and sisters in Gaza it is only too happy to assist Israel in its war plans against Iran. Egypt has allowed two Israeli warships to travel through the Suez canal to the Red Sea, the first time such movements have been allowed. We can safely assume that the two warships weren't flying the flag on the Suez leg of their voyage. Two Israel Navy warships made a rare crossing of Egypt's Suez Canal on Tuesday, heading from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, a port source told AFP, in a voyage that could be seen as a warning signal to Iran. One of the ships, the Hanit, had reportedly already crossed the canal both ways in June, in what the source was quoted as saying was the first case of a large Israeli warship using the strategic waterway. However, this was not possible to confirm officially. The other ship to cross on Tuesday, the Eilat, was named after a destroyer sunk by Egypt with the loss of 47 lives shortly a

UK stops sale of spare parts to Israel's navy but lets everything else through

Good to see the UK stopping the selling of spare parts for the Saar-class corvette missile ships used in the recent criminal bombardment of civilians in the Gaza Strip. The UK only provides about 1% of Israel's needs (US = 95%) but that one percent includes critical elements such as these parts for the navy and engines for its drones. But the bad news is that the UK approved for export around 150 other pieces of military equipment, highlighting the token nature of the UK gesture against this militarised state that regularly indulges in war crimes to maintain its oppressive occupation of Palestine. But it does show that the political pressure on Israel is mounting despite Lieberman's bluster and the boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign is gaining tractions.

Chavez may be joining convoy to break Gaza siege

The British MP George Galloway is expected to arrive in Gaza by Wednesday leading a convoy of 255 US citizens that are bringing humanitarian aid to the impoverished strip. The Gaza de facto government’s commission on delegations made known that Galloway’s convoy will try to enter the Strip through the Egyptian border crossing in Rafah. They will arrive to the border crossing on Tuesday evening. Galloway’s last visit to Gaza was in March. During that visit the British lawmaker donated a fleet of ambulances and 25,000 British pounds to the de facto government in Gaza.Former US Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney has travelled to Egypt to join Galloway’s convoy. McKinney had just been deported by Israel last week for her presence on the Free Gaza boats, that were sailing to Gaza with hard needed humanitarian aid. Thanks to the International Middle east Media Center Press TV reported today on a story at Ma'an agency that George Galloway is organising another convoy to the Strip, this time

Egyptian authorities block Viva Palestina US convoy entry to Gaza

The Viva Palestina members who spent the night in their buses at the Suez Crossing after being stopped by Egyptian authorities on July 11 have now rendezvoused in Cairo with British Member of Parliament George Galloway and former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, who has rushed to join the convoy following her deportation from Israel on Wednesday. Galloway, McKinney and the Viva Palestina leadership have been working with Egyptian and U.S. authorities to expedite the passage of the convoy over the Suez Canal and into Gaza. Egyptian authorities have held up the convoy claiming that it has not acquired the necessary travel permits from U.S. officials in order to cross into Gaza. But the convoy sent copious documentation, on request, to several Egyptian state officials before even setting foot in Cairo. More at Viva Palestina US

Video of Israeli Navy threatening and getting ready to board

>See link to video at the bottom of this post. Interview with Cynthia McKinney Cynthia McKinney is a former US Representative who served from 1993-2003 and from 2005-2008 . She was the 2008 Green Party presidential nominee and has been an active member of the Free Gaza Movement. In 2004, The Backbone Campaign awarded her the fifth annual Backbone Award "because she was willing to challenge the Bush administration and called for an investigation into 9/11 when few others dared to air their criticism and questions." Here, Ishmahil Blagrove, Jr. talks to McKinney about her experience with the situation in Gaza and her views on today's political landscape. Last year in the midst of the Israeli onslaught against the people of Gaza, you attempted to break the Israeli siege by entering by boat. What happened? We were rammed by the Israelis. There I got a chance to see the complicity of the media. We had CNN on board and the CNN reporter was literally arguing in the midst

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