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Prisoner swap closer as talks continue while Hamas secures rocket ceasefire

Sounds like a prisoner swap is getting closer - and possibly related is the news that Hamas as been able to come to an agreement with other resistance organisations to cease rocket attacks in retaliation for Israeli killings. JERUSALEM — There were growing indications on Monday that Israel and the Islamist group Hamas were close to a deal to exchange an abducted Israeli soldier for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, a move with far-reaching implications not only for stalled Middle East peace talks but for a range of strategic regional relations. more

Is Egypting stopping operations against Gaza's tunnels

I haven't come across this story on more mainstream sources but if this is true it is quite significant. Is it linked to Abbas saying the peace process is dead? Is Egypt having second thoughts about its cooperation with the Israelis and Americans? The report goes on to suggest that missiles are now moving freely through the tunnels system - perhaps partially explaining recent Israeli airstrikes on the tunnels. Tuesday, Nov. 18, Egypt's special forces and engineering units suddenly shut down operation against the smuggling tunnels to Gaza without warning to Washington or Jerusalem, DEBKAfile's military sources report. US and Israeli requests for clarifications from Cairo, which must have ordered the stoppage, were not answered. So the Obama administration signaled Egypt that if it continues to violate the international accords governing the status of the Egyptian-Gazan border, there will be consequences. Washington is put out particularly because Cairo did not bother to noti

Channel 4 Dispatches accused of anti-semitism after lobby investigation

The fallout from the Channel 4 Dispatches programme on the influence of the pro-Israel lobby continues. The programme accused zionists of buying conservative and Labour politicians and claims it was the most powerful lobby at Westminster. There has been much criticism of the investigative programme in Israel but not exactly much in the way of engagement with or rebuttal of the facts as presented. I haven't taken the time to watch the show but the predictable knee-jerk accusation of anti-semitism levelled at the programme makers sounds familiar and unconvincing. However, what these sort of programmes usually miss is the fact that the rulers of states such as the UK and US do not act as they do because of lobbyists but because of self-interest. Israel is the watchdog of western imperialism in the Middle East.

Israeli MP attacks Obama for being 'racist' over settlements

As usual the US will do nothing about Israel's flagrant breaches of international law with its latest announcement of the expansion of the Gilo settlement comlex - part of its plan to envelop and then strangle East Jerusalem. But the timidity of the Obama in the face of Israeli colonialism is still too much for the zionists hence the outburst from a member of parliament by the name of Danny Danon, accusing Obama of being 'racist'. Now where did he get that line from? Probably the right-wing nuts in the US who decided Obama was a racist because he chided a police dept. after one of its police officers wrongly arrested a black professor going into his own house. The rag bag bunch of neocons, racists and anti-semites that make up the so called Tea Party movement in the US are of course right behind the Israeli-sponsored criminality and oppression that is the hallmark of the occupation of Palestine. MK Danny Danon lashed out at U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday, as the l

Israel kills 32 children in attacks on tunnel lifelines

The Palestinian National Society for Democracy and Law has published a report on the effects of the relentless bombing of the tunnels by Israel and says 32 children have been killed over the past three years. Kids are being forced through poverty to work in the tunnels - a poverty created and maintained by the settler state. And of course the Israeli bombing undermines the structural integrity of the tunnels, leading to ever more frequent collapses. In its first report about children working in the Gaza-Egypt smuggling tunnels, the research unit National Society for Democracy and Law reported the prime factor in child labor in the tunnels was abject poverty. The report, released in early November, details the working conditions for children employed in the tunnel industry, and provides analysis on the impact child labor in the tunnels has on Palestinian society in Gaza.

Israeli airstrike on Khan Younis injures three

Israel has launched air strikes on 'manufacturing facilities and smuggling tunnels' today. Three people reported injured. Israel claims the attack is in retaliation for a rocket attack despite the fact that the rockets landed harmlessly in the Negev desert. The rocket attack, which took place last Friday, followed the murder by Israeli soldiers of 18-year-old Muhammad Wadi, shot while bird hunting.

Prisoner swap talks are back on

The off-on and so far fruitless talks on a prisoner swap are apparently back on according to a report on Ma'an. No firm details yet though although the Germans are mediating apparently. Bethlehem – Ma’an – German mediators are continuing to broker efforts to produce a prisoner swap deal for with the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, senior Hamas leader Usama Al-Muzeini said. Al-Muzeini, the official in charge of the talks within the Hamas movement, insisted that offering further details could jeopardize the negotiations’ success. Speaking to Ma’an, Al-Muzeini said talks are "ongoing with German mediation and are overcoming obstacles," adding that, “The movement’s [Hamas'] decision was not to give any details so as not to negatively affect the negotiating process.” more

Israel approves 900 settler homes despite world outcry

The land grab carries on relentlessly, regardless of what the rest of the world thinks. And of course Obama/Clinton might make some noises of protest - then again they might not - and the zionist project will continue with the destruction of Palestine and its people. The Israeli interior ministry has approved planning applications for 900 new housing units at a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem. The planning and construction committee authorised the expansion of Gilo, which is built on land captured in 1967 and annexed to the Jerusalem municipality. more

Pulling down Israel's Apartheid Wall

Posted on Stop the Wall 9 November 2009 This afternoon, exactly 20 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, popular committees struggling against the Apartheid Wall and the settlements destroyed part of the Wall near Qalandiya. Hundreds of people, with some 30 international supporters, used a truck to pull down part of the Wall in the area east of the Qalandiya refugee camp and beyond the UN Vocational College. They also destroyed iron gates and other pieces of concrete in the same area. After breaching the Wall, protesters approached the road on the other side where they burned car tires to slow the approach of Occupation forces, who quickly arrived in the area and began firing gas and rubber bullets. Protesters were wearing shirts upon which was written "We are going to Jerusalem", the name of the planned action. Today [9 Nov] is 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and marks the first day of a week of resistance to the Apartheid Wall in Palestine and around the

National Week of Supermarket Boycott Actions, November 7-15

Called by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign Phone-in Day Wednesday November 11 This coincides with a week of action called by the Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign www.stopthewall.org It is time to step up the supermarket boycott campaign which calls for consumers to reject Israeli goods for as long as Palestinian rights are denied by the apartheid regime. We must specially oppose the stocking of produce from the Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which is stolen land. The excellent motion passed by the TUC Congress gives added impetus. The settlements are illegal under international law and goods originating there should not be on sale in the UK. The label ‘West Bank’ is grossly misleading; some shoppers think they are buying Palestinian produce. From November 7 to 15, PSC and other organisations across the UK are targeting Waitrose and Morrisons supermarkets in particular, as both refuse to discuss the question of settlement goods. We aim to inundate the

Ashkenazi threatens Gaza with another 'little holocaust'

By Khalid Amayreh in Ramallah There seems to be a perfect conformity between Gabi Ashkenazi and his last name. The Israeli chief of staff is considered one of the main Israeli war criminals responsible for the virtual genocide against the Gaza Strip during the past winter. On his murderous hands, he carries tons of innocent blood, including that of more than 340 children, killed in Israel’s pornographic bombing of civilian neighborhood. Last week, Ashkenazi was quoted as saying that Israel was likely to wage another quasi holocaust on Gaza, adding that the Israeli occupation army would enter the innermost corners and streets of the coastal territory. As a nefarious mass murderer, Ashkenazi, like the rest of Israeli war criminals, ought to be in the Hague preparing his defense against charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. After all the crimes he perpetrated put him on equal footing with Nazi war criminals who had stood trial for their own crimes against humanity during

Palestinian Authority faces collapse

Israel and the US have overplayed their hand with the Palestinian leadership, leaving themselves in the position of having no partner to deal with in the non-existent peace process, assuming Abbas goes through with his threat to resign. RAMALLAH, West Bank — The collapse of the Palestinian Authority, Israel’s negotiating partner, was raised as a possibility on Monday, as several aides to its president, Mahmoud Abbas, said that he intended to resign and forecast that others would follow. If the Palestinian leader steps down, does this mean the peace negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians are over? “I think he is realizing that he came all this way with the peace process in order to create a Palestinian state, but he sees no state coming,” Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian peace negotiator, said in an interview. “So he really doesn’t think there is a need to be president or to have an Authority. This is not about who is going to replace him. This is about our leaving our

Sussex University students vote to boycott Israeli goods

LONDON, ( PIC )-- The students union in the British University of Sussex has decided to boycott Israeli products within the varsity campus, sources in the University said. They added that the decision was adopted with a majority of 65% of votes, and that it was taken in support for the Palestinian people. The decision also reflected the students' denunciation of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip and the continued siege on the Strip, the sources said. They noted that the university campus had witnessed during the war and until now solidarity and media campaigns and seminars in condemnation of the war.

UN General Assembly backs Goldstone report on Gaza war crimes

Israel's isolation was underlined at the UN yesterday when the General Assembly endorsed the Goldstone Report JERUSALEM (AP) Israel said on Friday that a U.N. General Assembly decision to endorse a report accusing the Jewish state of war crimes lacked the support of the world's "moral majority." In a vote Thursday, the General Assembly overwhelmingly approved an Arab-drafted resolution calling on Israel and the Palestinians to conduct "credible" investigations into alleged war crimes committed by both sides during the fighting in Gaza early this year. The motion, drafted by Arab countries, raised the possibility of Security Council action if the sides do not comply. more

Abbas caves in to critics and stands down from presidency

Rejoice - Abbas is standing down from the presidency of the Palestinian Authority next year and will not be standing for reelection. He is trying to restore his battered reputation following his attempt to sideline the Goldstone report at the behest of Israel and the US. So, by way of covering his tracks Abbas rails against the US and Israel for wanting to open negotiations while settlement building continues and of course to blame Hamas for his own failings.

A protest vigil will be held in Sheikh Jarrah following a settler takeover of a Palestinian home

Wednesday, 4 November 2009 at 7pm: A protest vigil will be held outside the al-Kurd home in Sheikh Jarrah. Following a settler takeover of a Palestinian home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, the al-Kurd family and international and Israeli solidarity groups will hold a vigil. International Solidarity Movement

Israel claims capture of anti-tank and rocket arms shipment from Iran

Israel Navy claims it has captured an arms shipment from Iran destined for Hezbollah. Israel says it seized anti-tank weapons and Katyusha rockets. Let's hope more shipments are getting through than are being intercepted by the settler state. JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli naval commandos seized an arms ship Wednesday near Cyprus that was carrying missiles and anti-tank weapons from Iran to Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, defense officials said. The pre-dawn seizure highlighted Israel's accusations that Iran is arming its enemies. Israel offered no evidence to back up its claim that the weapons were meant for Hezbollah. The arms cache, including anti-tank missiles and Katyusha rockets, was stashed aboard a commercial vessel operating under the guise of an aid boat, captained by a Pole and flying an Antiguan flag, Israeli defense officials said. more

Don't let them jail Gaza protesters

  by Siân Ruddick ( socialist worker ) Mass arrests of protesters on a scale not seen since the Poll Tax Riot of 1990 have been used against people demonstrating in London for Palestinian rights. Now 69 people arrested during and after the marches against the Israeli assault on Gaza that began at the end of last year face jail terms of up to five years. The Stop the War Coalition, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the Muslim Council of Britain were among the groups organising the demonstrations held on 28 December last year and 3, 10 and 24 January this year. The protests exploded onto the streets of London after people saw images of the horror and devastation that Israel inflicted on some of the poorest people in the world. Defendants appeared before West London Magistrates Court on Thursday and Friday of last week for plea entry hearings. Charges Some 61 of the defendants, mostly Muslim men aged between 17 and 20, are accused of violent disorder. The remaining eight are facing a

Settlers steal Palestinian family's home in Jerusalem

Today settlers in Jerusalem stole a palestinian family's home and threw them out on the streets along with their furniture. The police looked on, nodding with satisfaction as their ethnic cleansing of the city proceeds apace. Ma'an - Jerusalem – Ma’an – Israeli settlers arrogated the home of the Al-Kurd family in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem on Tuesday, residents of the area said. About 30 settlers were seen entering the house and throwing the family's furniture into the street. The settlers have refused to leave the building and Israeli police blocked members of the Al-Kurd family from entering the area. Witnesses also reported heated arguments between police and Palestinian residents. Residents said the settlers moved into the house in violation of an Israeli court order issued nine years ago when Jewish organizations put forward a claim that they in fact owned the property. Two other buildings belonging to the Al-Kurd and Al-Ghawi families were also

Israel claims missiles of Gaza resistance forces can now hit Tel Aviv

Israel's Gaza war was not just a strategic defeat, daily confirmed by the growing isolation of the country internationally, it was also a military defeat. None of the objectives were achieved - be it stopping rocket fire or 'liquidating' Hamas. Now Israel's military intelligence chief says Palestinian resistance groups now have longer ranger missiles capable of hitting Tel Aviv. JERUSALEM ( AP )— Hamas militants in Gaza have successfully test-fired in recent days an Iranian rocket able to reach metropolitan Tel Aviv, the country's military intelligence chief said Tuesday. Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin told parliament's foreign affairs and defense committee that the rocket could fly 37 miles (60 kilometers), which would put Israel's largest urban center at risk, Israeli media reported. Until now, rockets fired from Gaza have reached up to 25 miles (40 kilometers), putting one-eighth of Israel's population within rocket range. No further details were immediately

Israel arrests one settler killer but what about the rest?

Unusually for Israel, the land that's whole reason for existence is to terrorise Palestinians has for the first time ever arrested an American settler terrorist. no charges yet though... Israeli security services were today re-questioning an American-Israeli settler who they say has confessed to attacks including the killing of two Palestinians and wounding a professor with a pipe bomb. Yaakov "Jack" Teitel, an American who emigrated to Israel a decade ago, was arrested by police and undercover agents for Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency, as he handed out leaflets condemning homosexuals last month. Police said Teitel has a hardline rightwing ideology based on hatred of Palestinians, leftwingers, homosexuals and even the Israeli police. "He is a determined man with very deeply-rooted ideology," Eki Makmel, the deputy commander of an Israeli police Swat team, was quoted as saying. Micky Rosenfeld, an Israeli police spokesman, described Teitel as a &

Most water in Gaza unfit for consumption

A lot has happened over the past week or so. Abbas calls an election but Hamas says you must be joking. Israel tries to dissipate some of the Goldstone heat by making known its intention of reviewing the internal military inquiry into its Gaza war crimes. This Wednesday the UN General Assembly is due to to deliberate on the Goldstone report. In the real world beyond the make believe bubble of Abbas and his Israeli 'partner', the outrages at the al-Aqsa mosque continue as Clinton declares she sees no problem with peace talks going ahead in tandem with the continued building of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land; what further evidence is need that the peace process is dead. Echoing this sentiment Jordanian trade unionists recently marched in Amman, Jordan, demanding the ending of the peace treaty with Israel. Meanwhile, in Gaza the situation for residents deteriorates by the day. What passes for a sewage system is near collapse and the number of Gazans out of reach of cl

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