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Palestine admitted to UNESCO as full member despite US vote against

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The UN's cultural agency voted to admit Palestine as a full member on Monday, weeks before the Security Council is due to report on Palestine's bid for full membership of the United Nations. Palestine overcame US and Israeli opposition to join the cultural body, with UNESCO saying that 107 member states voted in favor, 14 states voted against, with 52 abstentions. The resolution needed 81 votes to pass, as abstentions are not counted, UNESCO said. The United States, Canada, Germany and Holland voted against Palestinian membership. Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa and France voted in favour. Britain and Italy abstained. more

Take Action - Isolation of Ahmad Sa'adat continued in violation of promise to prisoners

Only one week after promising Palestinian political prisoners that isolation would end and that all prisoners in isolation would be returned to the general population, in order to convince those prisoners to end their hunger strike, Israeli authorities have announced their intention to continue the isolation of Ahmad Sa'adat for at least one more year. As reported by the Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, an Israeli court in Bir Saba issued a ruling on October 27, 2011 to extend the isolation of Ahmad Sa'adat for an additional year. Ahmad Sa'adat has already been held in isolation for over two and one-half years. His release from isolation was a key demand of Palestinian prisoners' recent hunger strike - and was promised to them one week ago. The ruling, which was based on secret evidence like all such rulings, dates back to August 8 but was not released until today; Ahmad Sa'adat was not accompanied by lawyers in the hearing. The prison adminis

Airstrike kills two Al Ansar Brigades fighters despite ceasefire efforts - 12 dead over three days

( Image By saraya.ps ) Palestinian Medical sources reported that the Israeli Air Force (IAF) bombarded an area in the southern part of the Gaza Strip on Sunday, killing two Palestinian fighters. The latest escalation raises the number of Palestinians killed in Gaza since Saturday to twelve. The Israeli Army stated that its military jets fired missiles at a group of fighters shortly after they launched shells into the Western Negev, scoring a direct hit. The army added that the fighters fired six mortar-shells into Israel on Sunday, and accused the resistance in Gaza of seeking further escalation and tension. Medical sources in Gaza confirmed that two fighters from an area in the southern part of the Gaza Strip were killed after being targeted by Israeli missiles. They were identified them as Yousef Abu Abdo and Ali Al Aqqad; both from Khan Younis. The Al Ansar Brigades, the armed wing of the Al Ahrar Movement, issued a press release stating that the two slain fighters are members of th

Israel breaks ceasefire - kills another Palestinian fighter

( Relatives of Islamic Jihad militant Muhammad Ashour mourn during his funeral in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Oct. 30, 2011. - REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa ) GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- A fighter from the armed wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine was killed, and another critically injured, as Israel launched an airstrike on the Gaza Strip hours after a ceasefire truce was agreed upon by Gaza militants. Medical spokesman in the Gaza Strip Adham Abu Salmiya said that one man was killed in the airstrike on Rafah. The victim was identified as Ahmad Jarkhoun. Another man was critically wounded and rushed to hospital, he added. more

One Israeli killed as rockets hit Ashkelon while Egypt tries to broker ceasefire

One Israeli man died on Saturday from shrapnel wounds following rocket fire on Ashkelon by Palestinian fighters. Egypt is reported to be trying to organise a ceasefire as panic spread in southern Israel. So far nine Palestinians have been killed by Israel. Egyptian officials said on Sunday that efforts were still being made to persuade Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip to hold their fire on Israel, after more than two dozen rockets and mortars were launched over the course of the weekend. The officials denied earlier reports that their efforts to secure an overnight cease-fire had failed. At least 11 rockets were fired at Israel overnight, in addition to the 20 launched on Saturday toward the southern cities of Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gan Yavne, and around Be'er Sheva. more

Saudi prince puts up $900,000 reward for capture of Israeli soldier

RIYADH, (PIC)-- Saudi prince Khaled Al-Saud declared a financial reward of $900,000 for anyone capturing one Israeli soldier in order to swap him with Palestinian prisoners. The prince told Daleel satellite channel over the phone that his reward was a response to Israeli death threats received by Saudi preacher Awad Al-Qarni who previously announced a $100, 000 reward for the capture of one Israeli soldier. "Qarni offered 100 thousands dollars for anyone who can capture a soldier and they responded by earmarking one million bounty on his head, but I say to Qarni I am with you and I will pay 900 thousands dollars so that the total can be one million dollars for the capture of one Israeli soldier in order to have Palestinian prisoners freed," the prince stated to the channel. Prince Khaled is the third son of prince Talal bin-Abdul Aziz Al-Saud and the brother of prince Al-Waleed bin-Talal. more

Second Israeli airstrike sees two more Islamic Jihad fighters killed

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- An Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip killed two more fighters from the Islamic Jihad's armed wing on Saturday evening, after earlier airstrikes on the coastal enclave had killed five members from the group. Medical spokesman in Gaza Adham Abu Salmiya said that two fighters from the al-Quds Brigades were killed in the strike on Rafah, south Gaza. more

Muslim Brotherhood makes first ever visit to Gaza as Egypt relaxes restrictions

GAZA CITY (Reuters) -- Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood visited the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip for the first time on Saturday, signaling a shift in Cairo's posture toward the Palestinian Islamists since the fall of President Hosni Mubarak. A delegation led by deputy Brotherhood chief Goma Amin met Gaza prime minister Ismail Haniyeh in celebration of a major prisoner swap between Hamas and Israel brokered by Egypt last week. "We came to participate in the joy at the release of brothers. We are proud of them," Amin told reporters. "Resistance proved itself." The Brotherhood, a political party which, like Hamas, regards relations with Israel as anathema, had been curbed by the US-aligned Mubarak. He was ousted by a popular revolt in February. more

Islamic Jihad retaliates for deaths with seven rockets fired into Israel, one injured

Seven rockets were fired at southern Israel on Saturday, exploding in Ashdod, Gan Yavne, and west of Be'er Sheva, lightly wounding one man and hitting a residential building in Ashdod. The rocket barrage followed an IDF strike on the Gaza Strip which resulted in the deaths of five Islamic Jihad militants. One rocket exploded in Gan Yavne, lightly wounding a 40-year-old man who sustained shrapnel wounds to his legs. Several trauma victims were also reported. Two rockets exploded in Ashdod, one hitting a school but caused no casualties. A short time later, a mortar shell landed in an open area in the Eshkol Regional Council, causing no casualties or damage. After several hours, a fourth rocket exploded in an open area west of Be'er Sheva, and no casualties were reported. An alarm sounded throughout Ashdod prior to the explosions, just hours after Israel Defense Forces soldiers killed a commander of the Palestinian faction and four of its munitions experts. more

Israeli air strike on Islamic Jihad in Gaza kills five

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli war planes shelled the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday, killing five members of Islamic Jihad's armed wing, and injuring fifteen others. Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli forces fired two shells at a site used by Islamic Jihad's armed wing near Tal al-Sultan, northeast of Rafah city. Medical official in Gaza Adham Abu Salmiya said five were killed and fifteen injured, four critically, in the strike, and transferred to Abu Yousef al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah. One of the deceased has been identified as Ahmad al-Sheikh Khalil, a prominent leader in the Islamist movement's al-Quds Brigades. Medics and Islamic Jihad officials identified the other four brigades members killed as Muhammad Ashour, Abdul Karim Shabat, Basem Abol Ata and Muhammad al-Khudari. Al-Quds brigades said in a statement received by Ma’an that one of their military sites in Rafah was attacked and a number of fighters were killed and injured. Brigades' spokesman Abu Ahmad

UNESCO to vote on Palestine membership on Monday, US threatens to cut funding

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) will be holding a vote on Monday on the Palestinian request to become a full member. The move is part of the Palestinian demands of international recognition as a state. On October 6th, The Executive Council of the UNESCO decided to allow the 193 member states to vote on the Palestinian application. The decision angered Tel Aviv and the United States, while the White House is threatening to cut its funding to the organization. The U.S. provides %22 of all UNESCO funding. more

Russian aid convoy arrives in Gaza loaded with medical supplies

Palestinian sources in the Gaza Strip reported that a Russian convoy, loaded with medical supplies, arrived in the Gaza Strip, Thursday, via the Rafah Border Terminal, between Gaza and Egypt. The convoy, the first from Russia, embarked on its journey last Tuesday under the slogan “Russia Stands With You Gaza”. Several Russian reporters accompanied the convoy, the Palestinian Information Center reported. The convoy was organized by the, Solidarity Association Foundation, an Islamic charitable society in Russia that collected, during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, donations used to buy medical supplies and equipment from Egypt. The purchased supplies were based on a list of urgently needed medications and supplies provided by the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza. Head of the Foundation, Lilia Mohammad Yarova, Journalist Maxim Shevchenko and his wife Nadezhda Kifrckova, known for their support to the Palestinian cause, accompanied the convoy among other activists. more

Alstom loses $10 billion contract in victory for boycott campaign against companies aiding Israel

The BDS National Committee (BNC) has declared a long sought-after victory as Alstom lost the bid for the second phase of the Saudi Haramain Railway project, worth $10 billion US dollars, after pressure from the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign, including effective campaigning from the newly launched KARAMA, a European campaign to Keep Alstom Rail And Metro Away. In 2008 the BNC, the largest Palestinian civil society coalition, with partners in Europe and Israel, launched the Derail Veolia and Alstom campaign, due to the two companies’ involvement in Israel’s illegal Jerusalem Light Rail (JLR) project, which explicitly aims to “Judaize Jerusalem,” according to official Israeli statements, by cementing Israel’s hold on the illegal colonial settlements built on occupied Palestinian land in and around Jerusalem. Since then, Veolia has lost more than $12B worth of contracts following boycott activism in Sweden, the UK, Ireland and elsewhere. Alstom, too, suffered subs

Four airstrikes hit central and southern Gaza, no injuries reported

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli war planes launched four airstrikes in central and southern Gaza early Thursday morning, witnesses and the army said. No injuries were reported. Locals told Ma'an that Israeli fighter jets shelled three open areas and a site used by Hamas' armed wing the al-Qassam Brigades in Khan Younis in the south and Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. The Israeli army said its forces targeted "three terror activity sites" in central Gaza and a weapons storage facility in the southern Gaza Strip. "Direct hits were confirmed," the military said in a statement. The army said the strikes were in response to a grad rocket which landed near the city of Ashdod in southern Israel on Wednesday. An Israeli military spokeswoman said Wednesday that the rocket had caused no injury or damage. more

Demolitions on rise in Jerusalem with 95% of Palestinian building applications refused

Israel is continuing with its policy of demolishing the homes of Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem on the pretext that the properties do not have official permits. In at least one case, the home owner was forced to demolish his home himself; failure to do so would have landed the man with demolition by the authorities and a heavy fine. A staggering 95 percent of building permit applications submitted by Palestinians are refused by the Israeli authorities. Jerusalem resident Ahmed Abdul Rahim Al-Bilbeisi told Quds Press that staff from the Israeli occupation municipality handed him an order to stop working on his house which, it was claimed, is built on "unauthorized" ground. The local court then issued an order to demolish the house located in Yakoute El-Hamawi Street, in the Gouze Valley. Mr Al-Bilbeisi said that he had to demolish his house with his own hands in order to avoid a fine of 50,000 shekels (around £8,500) which the court said it would impose if he didn’t abide

Saudi aid convoy on schedule to enter Gaza this week with 175 tons of rice

The Saudi Campaign of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for the Relief of the Palestinian People of Gaza is sending 175 tons of rice to Gaza this week, according to a statement issued Tuesday by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). The shipment is the third installment of a major donation of food dispatched under the direction of Saudi Prince Nayef, the supervisor of the Saudi committee for the support of the Palestinian people, said the statement. It added that the shipment is being arranged jointly by the Jordanian Royal Hashemite Organization (JHCO) and UNRWA. A send-off ceremony was held at the warehouses of the JHCO to mark the departure of the food convoy, attended by Executive Director of the Saudi Committee, Mubarak Al Bakr; Representative of the Saudi Embassy in Amman, Abdel-Rahman bin Saleh Al-Subyani; Secretary General of the JHCO, Ahmad Mohammad Al-Imyan, and the Representative of the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Peter Ford. more

Another Gazan dies in tunnel collapse on Rafah-Egypt border

Gaza Strip, (Pal Telegraph)-One Palestinian citizen was killed yesterday during his work in a tunnel collapse beneath the Rafah-Egypt border. According to local sources, the victim identified as Ahmed Irbai, 29, died when a smuggling tunnel collapsed on him. Medical teams evacuated the man to Abu Yousef al-Najjar but he was already dead. more

Gaza child artist responds to the censoring of his work by US gallery

From The Electronic Intifada Following last month’s decision by the Museum of Children’s Art (MOCHA) in Oakland, California, to shut down an art exhibition of drawings by Palestinian children in Gaza, one of the child artists included in the exhibit has illustrated his response to being censored. The Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA) has posted this new drawing by 12-year-old Ali Hassan al Baba of Deir el Balah in the Gaza Strip, as well as a short interview with him: Translated from Arabic in Ali’s picture: “The Exhibit is Closed” written across top. “It’s my right to draw” in child’s speech bubble. What is your name? Ali Hassan Al-Baba How old are you? 12 years old Where do you live? Deir El-Balah, Gaza How many siblings do you have? Four sisters and three brothers Please tell us about your drawing: I’ve drawn the gallery featuring Palestinian children’s artwork. The art shows the bad things that Zionists do to Palestinians, but then the Zionists came and shut it down. Pl

Kerem Shalom crossing reopened after week-long closure by Israel

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli authorities reopened Gaza's sole goods crossing on Sunday following a week-long closure as Israel used the Kerem Shalom terminal for a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas. Palestinian Authority crossings official Raed Fattouh said Israeli officials cleared between 260 and 270 trucks to cross into Gaza from Israel through the southern crossing on Sunday, after the prisoner swap and a Jewish holiday had caused its closure a week prior. Fourteen trucks of cement and steel, and 44 trucks of gravel for UN projects will pass, in addition to a truck carrying wooden pillars for Gaza's energy authority, Fattouh said. more

Palestinian reconciliation moves closer to implementation - Egypt makes it top priority

( President Mahmoud Abbas arrives in Egypt for talks with Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawi, head of Egypt's ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, in Cairo on Oct. 22, 2011. - Reuters/Khaled El Fiqi/Pool ) BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Egyptian ambassador to the Palestinian Authority Yasser Othman said Sunday that reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah is a top priority for the Egyptian leadership. President Mahmoud Abbas arrived in Egypt on Friday to discuss implementation of the deal reached on May 4 and brokered by Egypt, but which has yet to be carried out. The Egyptian leadership is willing to focus its efforts on carrying out the reconciliation deal, Othman said, noting that the leadership places great importance on its implementation. In addition to the issue of political unity, President Abbas was in Egypt to discuss the latest developments on the UN bid, including how to garner more Arab support for the move, Othman told Ma'an. more

Peaceful Bil'in anti-Wall demo sees dozens treated after tear gas attack, one detained

( Image By Rani Burnat - bilin-ffj.org ) Israeli soldiers attacked the weekly nonviolent protest against the Annexation Wall and settlements, in Bil'in village, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, and kidnapped one resident; dozens were treated for the effects of teargas inhalation. The Popular Committee Against the Wall, in Bil'in, reported that soldiers kidnapped Ashraf Ibrahim Abu Rahma, 30. The Committee added that the protest was attended by dozens of locals, along with Israeli and international peace activists. The protest started after local residents conducted Friday prayers at the village's mosque, then headed towards Palestinian orchards that the residents managed to liberate after a lengthy legal battle at the Israeli High Court that eventually ordered the army to reroute a section of the wall. The protesters carried Palestinian and Libyan flags, pictures of Palestinian detainees imprisoned by Israel, and chanted against the occupation and the illega

Egypt lobbying European countries to open communications with Hamas

( Fatah supporters take part in a rally in the West Bank city of Nablus as unity talks with Hamas take place in Cairo on Feb. 25, 2009 - MaanImages/Rami Swidan ) CAIRO (Ma'an) -- Egypt is working to establish communications between Hamas and European nations in the wake of their brokering of a prisoner swap deal between the Gaza rulers and Israel, Egyptian daily Al-Mesryoon said Thursday. Officials hope to build on European contacts with Hamas during the swap negotiations, including by German and French mediators, to convince European states to deal with the faction governing Gaza, the report said. more

Video: schoolchildren and teachers protest against Hebron checkpoint, IDF attacks with tear gas

Thanks to the International Solidarity Movement On the 4th day of demonstrations outside of a checkpoint in Hebron, on October 16 2011, IDF soldiers shot tear gas and projected ‘The Scream’ at a group of young schoolchildren and female teachers, who were attempting to hold a lesson outside of the checkpoint as an act of protest. Since Tuesday, October 11, the group of children and teachers have been gathering outside of Checkpoint 56 in Hebron, which blocks off the Israeli settlement from the rest of the city, to protest increased security measures at the checkpoint. For the past seven years, teachers at the Qurtuba School have been allowed to bypass the usual metal detectors and cross the checkpoint through a separate gate in order to reach their school, which lies in the treacherous area beyond the checkpoint, in between the aggressive Israeli settlements of Tel Rumeida and Admot Yishai. For no apparent reason, the army announced that it had suspended this allowance on Tuesday, and t

Weekly report on Israeli human rights violations in occupied Palestine (13–19 Oct 2011)

(pic: A Palestinian woman checks an olive farm that was destroyed by Israeli settlers in Qasra village near Nablus -pchr) Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) IOF continued to use force against peaceful protests in the West Bank. Dozens of Palestinian civilians and international human rights defenders suffered from tear gas inhalation. 6 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children, sustained bruises in Hebron. IOF conducted 47 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. IOF arrested 12 Palestinians, including two children. Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the OPT and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world. Israeli soldiers arrested 3 Palestinian civilians, including a child, at various checkpoints in the West Bank. Israel has continued measures aimed at creating a Jewish majority in East Jerusalem. The Israeli government plans to

PFLP leader Ahmad Sa'adat suspends hunger strike for three days

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- The secretary-general of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine has suspended his hunger strike for three days amid consultations with leaders of the campaign. Ahmad Saadat was informed of the decision in his prison hospital in Ramle jail, an Addameer society attorney said. The attorney met with Saadat in Ramle along with a doctor from the International Committee of the Red Cross, who visited the hospital and described the PFLP leader's condition as stable. Fares Qaddura, head of the Palestinian prisoners society, had said Tuesday that Saadat lost 10 kilos as his hunger strike entered its 23rd day. Prisoners started their strike on Sept. 27 to protest ill treatment. Prisoners in Israel’s Ohalei Kedar jail, meanwhile, have agreed to suspend their hunger strike for three days after Israel stopped using isolation as a policy, representatives of the detainees said Tuesday. more

A call from Palestinian civil society to European universities, academics, students and people of conscience

The State of Israel practices a system of occupation, colonialism and apartheid over the Palestinian people, but it does not do so unaided. Israeli military companies are the main enablers of Israel’s persistent and grave violations of international law. They provide the weaponry and technology that allow Israel to commit atrocities and daily violations of human rights, and they directly participate in the construction of Israel’s Apartheid Wall, declared illegal by the International Court of Justice on 9 July 2004.[1] Israeli universities and research institutes are deeply involved in military research and weapons development projects that put them at the heart of planning and implementing Israeli war crimes.[2] Palestinian academics, students and civil society organisations therefore deplore the extensive research collaboration that takes place between European universities and Israeli military companies, universities and research institutes that are complicit with Israeli violations

Second phase of prisoner release will number 550 and include the old and sick

Abu Obaida (pictured above), spokesperson of the Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, stated that the second phase of the prisoner-swap deal will include the release of security detainees who are old, and sick, in addition to several detainees sentenced to 20 years of more. “Besides releasing ailing detainees, the priority will be given to those who spent 20 years or more in Israeli prisons”, Abu Obaida said. The second phase of the prisoner-swap deal would include the release of 550 detainees." “The nine remaining female detainees held by Israel would be release in the coming days”, the Al Qassam spokesperson added. Israel released 27 female detainees despite the fact that during indirect talks with Israel, Hamas insisted that all female detainees must be freed. This mix-up left nine female detainees behind bars. Abu Obaida further stated that Egypt, as a mediator and sponsor of the deal, vowed to ensure that Israel fully implements the second half of the deal, and added

Thirsting for Justice - European campaign to protect Palestinian water rights appeal for support

(pic: Maram O. Owda is a student in business administration in Al Azhar University in the Gaza Strip. She is also one of several ambassadors for the campaign) About the campaign Welcome to the Thirsting for Justice campaign! Launched in May 2011, the aim of the campaign is to mobilise European citizens to demand that their governments pressure Israel to change its policies and practices in order to comply with international law and respect Palestinians’ human rights. The main objectives are: - To ensure that Israel respects Palestinians' rights to water and sanitation. - That Palestinians be allowed to develop infrastructure - Greater accountability for violations of international law To learn more about the campaign and its objectives, please visit our website . Take action Interested in joining the campaign? Here are several ways to support it: - On Facebook : donate your status for one hour, by pasting the following message: "Palestinians are Thirsting for Justice!" I

Viva Palestina convoy to purchase vehicles and aid in Egypt for Gaza mission - register now

The Viva Palestina will not be travelling overland from London and elsewhere to Gaza but will instead be purchasing vehicles and aid in Egypt and travelling from there. Latest details are here REGISTER NOW FOR VIVA PALESTINA 6 - THE RETURN CONVOY Almost three years after the Israeli Operation Cast Lead killed over 1,400 Palestinians, the situation for most Gazans remains dire, with unemployment, shortages of medical supplies and much else essential to secure minimum living standards. The sixth aid convoy organised by Viva Palestina is aiming to enter Gaza in time to commemorate the onslaught on the people of Gaza represented by Operation Cast Lead. It is our intention with this convoy to try to increase the aid element and we also want to reduce the total time those on the convoy will need to take off work whilst increasing the time they can spend in Gaza. We are also taking into account the fluid situation that has developed since the start of Arab Spring and the fall of Mubarak. We a

Video: Victory rally of 200,000 in Gaza welcomes home Palestinian freedom fighters

Qassam Brigades contrast torture of Palestinians with humane treatment of Shalit, vows fight continues

GAZA, (PIC)-- The Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said that it will not rest until occupation jails are closed behind the last Palestinian captive. In a statement by its spokesman, Abu Obaida, on Tuesday after the completion of the first stage of the prisoner exchange deal: "One chapter of this epic [fight for freedom] which we pledged we would complete. There are however other chapters which we intend to complete." “Our heroic negotiators spent strenuous efforts, but the complications that accompanied these negotiations from the start meant that some captives who spent long years in occupation jails were left behind in the cells of the Zionist executioner." The Brigades said in a strong message the Israeli people that their government has burdened them when it decided to refuse to release some captives who spent long years behind bars and are suffering various illnesses as a result. The Brigades said that the capture of the soldier which was dubbed (the dissip

Haniyeh addresses rally of tens of thousands as he welcomes home resistance fighters

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- The Palestinian leader in Gaza praised the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners as a "historic moment," in an address late Tuesday to thousands of supporters. Ismail Haniyeh said the resistance refused to back down on two demands - to include leaders of all factions, and to include Palestinians from "the whole of Palestine," not just the West Bank and Gaza. The deal included Christians, women and 320 detainees with life terms, he said. "We kiss the hands and foreheads of the Palestinian resistance" for their heroic role, he said, adding that the Islamic world and free people everywhere shared in the joy Palestinians were feeling. Haniyeh thanked Egypt for its role and said more detainees "will be released soon." He spoke to a densely-packed sprawl of low-rise concrete on the Mediterranean coast in sight of Israel, as tens of thousands rallied before a stage decorated by a mural bearing portraits of top militants who w

First buses with released Palestinian freedom fighters arrive in Gaza and West Bank

RAFAH (AFP) -- The first Palestinian prisoners freed in the West Bank and Gaza Strip as part of a landmark deal for the return of a captured Israeli soldier arrived home on Tuesday, an AFP reporter said. Israel freed 477 Palestinian prisoners, most of them to the Gaza Strip, where Hamas leaders greeted former prisoners piling off buses bearing Red Cross insignia. Three cars belonging to the ruling Hamas movement followed by a Red Cross vehicle accompanied a convoy of eight buses carrying the prisoners to their waiting relatives in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah. Buses carrying the first Palestinian prisoners to be freed in the West Bank headed towards the city of Ramallah on Tuesday, an AFP reporter said. A convoy of several buses was heading to the seat of the Palestinian presidency, the Muqataa, in Ramallah, where the detainees were expected to be greeted by President Mahmoud Abbas. Gaza's Hamas government had earlier released captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who in

Hamas leader Zahar: “Swap-deal Includes Lifting The Siege On Gaza”

Hamas political leader, Mahmoud Zahhar, told Israeli daily, Haaretz, that the prisoner-swap deal reached indirectly reached between Hamas and Israel includes lifting the Israeli siege on the Gaza Strip. Zahhar added that this issue was agreed upon when the German mediator started his role in the swap talks. “This is still valid under the current agreement”, he said. The Hamas leader further stated that the deal to release prisoner-of-war Gilad Shalit, in return for releasing more than a thousand Palestinian detainees, also includes a section obliging Israel to improve the living conditions of the Palestinian detainees, adding that Gaza Strip families of the detainees will be allow to visit their beloved one. After Shalit was captured on June 26, 2006, Israel canceled all visitation rights to Gaza Strip families of political prisoners. Zahhar also said that Israel will also have to ease the restrictions on border terminals leading to Gaza, including travel from Gaza to the West Bank

Israel meets hunger strikers demands by agreeing to end solitary confinement of prisoners

RAMALLAH, October 17, 2011 (WAFA) – Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails on hunger strike for three weeks Monday suspended their strike after reaching an agreement with the prison administration to end the solitary confinement punishment, according to Minister of Prisoners Issa Qaraqi. He said the Israeli prison administration agreed to the prisoners’ demands and will end the solitary confinement, which was the reason the prisoners have went on hunger strike on September 27, immediately after the release of the 1027 prisoners planned for Tuesday. more

Women's growing role in the Gaza economy fails to overcome entrenched inequalities

RAMALLAH, October 17, 2011 ( WAFA ) – A UN Women report discussed the varying coping strategies Gaza women have employed to compensate for their household’s income collapse under the combined impact of Israeli siege, internal political strife, military destruction and ongoing economic blockade, authors of the report said on Monday. Launched in Ramallah on the occasion of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, the report, “Who Answers to Gazan Women?”, focuses on women in the three main areas of economic activity in which they are predominantly engaged -- public sector employment, agriculture and self-employment in the informal sector. It shows how crucial their economic contributions are in maintaining Gazan households’ survival. The report is the first UN Women research in the occupied Palestinian Territory looking at Gaza Women’s economic survival strategies on behalf of their households in the context of Gaza’s protracted crisis. The research highlights that, despite

PFLP warns Israel of retaliation if condition of its imprisoned leader on hunger strike deteriorates

( Palestinians participate in a protest in support of Ahmed Saadat, jailed leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, in the West Bank city of Nablus, on December 25, 2008. - MaanImages/Rami Swidan ) GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- PFLP central committee member Jamil Mizhir warned on Monday that the movement will take action against Israel if the health of their imprisoned leader deteriorates. Ahmad Saadat is on hunger strike as part of a mass prisoner protest against worsening Israeli prison policies launched on Sept. 27. The Popular Front leader had been held in solitary confinement for three years. Mizhir said in a statement that the group blamed Israel for his health condition, after receiving reports that Saadat had been transferred to hospital. "If Saadat's condition is at risk, the PFLP response will be very harsh," Mizhir warned. The PFLP official said the deal agreed last week for the release of over 1,000 prisoners in exchange for captured soldier Gilad S

Hamas leaders in Cairo to meet 40 released prisoners to be exiled as part of swap deal

( Image By Arabs48 ) Vice president of the Political Bureau of the Hamas movement in Gaza, Mousa Abu Marzouq, will be heading to Cairo Monday as part of a Hamas delegation to welcome 40 detainees who will be forced into exile as part of the prisoner-swap deal. Khaled Mashal, head of the Hamas Political Bureau in Syria, will be heading the delegation. Hamas sources reported that Qatar and Turkey will be hosting the exiled detainees, while Syria also expressed willingness to host some of them, the Al Hayat Arabic paper in London reported. Contrary to initial reports by Hamas officials and media agencies, not all female detainees will be released from Israeli prisons. Abu Marzouq commented on the issue stating that the mediated swap-deal signed with Israel states that all female detainees will be released, while Israel interpreted the issue in a different way; all female detainees will be released, except those arrested and imprisoned by Israel after the prisoner-swap talks stated. This l

Video: what do ordinary Gazans think about the prisoner exchange deal?

The prisoner swap is sure to improve Hamas's standing among Palestinians, but the people of Gaza have suffered greatly for the capture of Shalit. So what ordinary Gazans think of the deal? Al Jazeera's Nicole Johnston reports from Gaza.

Gaza wife to welcome home husband she hardly knows after his 24 years in prison

From the Los Angeles Times REPORTING FROM SHIJAEYA, GAZA STRIP — She was still practically a newlywed when Raeda Omjamal watched Israeli security forces arrest her husband, Rawhi Mushtaha, and sentence him to 124 years in prison. Israel called him a murderer for his role in helping to run Hamas' military operations. In Gaza, he was hailed as a freedom fighter and hero. Mushtaha is expected to be among the 1,027 Palestinian prisoners who will be released Tuesday in exchange for captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Omjamal was 23 years old, a freshly transplanted Palestinian refugee from Jordan who only met her husband two months before their wedding. They had another six months after the marriage. Now, at 47, Omjamal is preparing to welcome her husband back home after seeing him only once during 24 years of incarceration. Though they exchanged occasional messages and letters through attorneys, personal visits were mostly prohibited. Today, the young, bearded fighter she married in

Dodging bullets is all in a day's work bringing in the Gaza olive harvest

From the International Solidarity Movement Gaza doesn’t have very much farmland left. The expanding no go zone imposed by Israeli bullets and bulldozers constantly erode the amount of land left for Palestinians to farm in Gaza. Mohamed Ashure Shimbari lives on the edge of the no-go zone. If you look east from his land you see the no go zone, what Israel euphemistically refers to as “the buffer zone.” Little grows there. Israeli bulldozers regularly come to kill anything which has managed to find a life there. You can see the destroyed well which once provided water for the orchards that used to cover the no-go zone. Now, there is no water, and no life, only a zone of death. Israel claims that the buffer zone is “only” 300 meters wide, but Mohamed’s land is about 800 meters from the border, and still he is afraid. The Israelis often shoot into this area, especially at night. The olive harvest has begun in Gaza. The Beit Hanoun Local Initiative and the International Solidarity Mo

Gaza prepares heroes welcome for Palestinian freedom fighters

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories — Palestinian groups are planning celebrations to mark Israel's imminent release of hundreds of prisoner "heroes" in exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Israeli President Shimon Peres received late Saturday the files of Palestinians prisoners to be pardoned as part of the deal for Shalit's release, his office said. On Tuesday, 477 Palestinian prisoners, including 27 women, are expected to be freed in the first stage of a deal for the return of Sergeant Shalit, who has been held for more than five years by Palestinian militants in Gaza. Gaza's Hamas rulers plan to release Shalit, captured in a cross-border raid in 2006, with the understanding that another 550 Palestinian prisoners will walk free within two months. A spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees told a news conference in Gaza that "all organisations have agreed to begin preparations for the reception of the prisoners, to receive them like heroes with

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