kolonagaza7
AL-AWDA-News
Land, culture theft and destruction / Ethnic cleansing / Apartheid
Court OK's new section of separation fenceAP/Ynet 23 Aug -- Supreme Court rejects Palestinian villagers' appeal, but promises to allow farmers access to land -- The Supreme Court has rejected requests by Palestinian villagers to reroute a section of the West Bank separation barrier straddling the Jerusalem municipal border. Residents of the Walajeh village say the section, which is under construction, would cut them off from their farmlands, cemetery and a water source. A panel of three justices, which included Supreme Court President Dorit Beinish, explained that "the fence's damage to the petitioners is in fair proportion to the security advantages produced by the fence". A 2010 injunction against the barrier's construction was thus lifted.The government says the barrier, which at multiple points dips inside the West Bank, is crucial to keep out terrorists. Palestinians accuse Israel of using the fence to grab West Bank land. Although the court dismissed the request to completely reroute the barrier section, Israel agreed to adjust its path to keep the natural spring on the village's side of the barrier. The cemetery and farmlands will remain on the other side, but Israel promised to construct an underground passageway so villagers could reach the cemetery without advance military coordination. It also promised to erect access points in the barrier for Walajeh's farmers to work their lands under the army's supervision. Villager Mazin Qumsiyeh, a leader of the anti-barrier protests, said the access points wouldn't help because only landowners, and not farmhands, would be allowed through. "This is the kind of thing that comes from Israeli courts," Qumsiyeh said. "They usually try to find some sort of compromise, so to speak, but the end result is that the military establishment has the final word." http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4112801,00.htmlIsrael digging new tunnels in Muslim Quarter of J'lem's Old CityOCCUPIED JERUSALEM (PIC) 23 Aug -- Israel has recently begun digging new tunnels in the depths of Migharat al-Kitan (the Cotton Cave), a quarry in the Old City of Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Foundation reported. One of those tunnels runs south to below the Omari school to the northern wall of the mosque, and the other stretches northwest to the area near Bab a-Sahera, known by Jews as Herod’s Gate, on the Old City’s northern wall. According to data collected by Al-Aqsa Foundation, Israeli authorities are planning on linking the tunnels with a network of tunnels extending from the city’s Silwan district, which lies south of the mosque and under Al-Aqsa Mosque and its vicinity. When finished, the network is slated to total 1.6 km of tunnel. The foundation discovered that the tunnels were being excavated during a field tour of the area ... According to available data, one of these tunnels runs south towards Al-Aqsa Mosque and even runs under the homes of locals in East Jerusalem’s Old City. It is planned to end at the Jebusite tunnel and can be exited from the northern gate of wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque with another tunnel, conjoining several tunnel systems. In a statement, Al-Aqsa Foundation said the construction and excavations are aimed at claiming Migharat al-Kitan as Jewish and converting it to a Jewish tourist site using names from the Torah. Just recently, Israel destroyed Islamic features across from the cave.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7WcNhM9Q034y5yerppAQv5S%2fbqHUon2mte1vHWAfCdm4FkLxecega%2ftJwTnd3aWkKRDsD1mINWO%2fXDUA7judbjBO89xppJUZbRqxHGAXrvOw%3dWadi Helwa Information Center warns of Israeli plan to expand settlements in JerusalemJERUSALEM (WAFA) 23 Aug -- The Information Center of Wadi Helwa, in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, Tuesday warned of new intensive efforts carried out by associations of Jewish settlements to control more Palestinian properties in Jerusalem in the coming months to expand settlements ... It added that they received information that settlers are seeking to take over a seven-storey building in Al Farouk, a neighborhood near Silwan, pointing out that the 'Elad' settlement association has previously taken over a building in the same area. In a related matter, a new settlement outpost that consists of eight units will be built in Ras al- Amud, a neighborhood in East Jerusalem, in order to establish an entire settlement neighborhood, said the committee for the defense of Silwan.http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17108Activist group opposes cultural events in City of DavidUnder the misleading title “Israeli Culture at Heritage Sites" a series of musical performances sponsored by Israel's Ministry of Culture commenced on August 11 at The City of David, a controversial 'archaeological site' located in the heart of the Palestinian village of Silwan in East Jerusalem. These concerts are but another ploy in a long line of actions on behalf of the extreme-right private organization ELAD, which assumed control of the sites' administration from the National Antiquities Authority after the state decided to outsource it. ELAD, which has been establishing Jewish settlement within the Palestinian village, strategically obfuscates the deep political conflict that is behind the “Judaization” of East Jerusalem by marketing their activities as cultural and touristic. It is no wonder then that ELAD is enjoying the services of Culture and Sport Minister Limor Livnat, who repeatedly expressed her support for using cultural events as means for political ends. An outstanding example of this practice can be seen in Livnat’s threats on performers who have refused to perform in the cultural center in the settlement of Ariel.http://972mag.com/activist-group-opposes-cultural-events-in-city-of-david/SettlersSettlers cut down 50 trees in Beit UmmarHEBRON (WAFA) 23 Aug -- Jewish settlers from Beit Ein settlement near Beit Ummar, a town north of Hebron in the southern West Bank, Tuesday cut down 50 productive trees on Palestinian land in Wadi Abu Rish area in the town, said a local official. Muhammad Awad, spokesman of the National Committee Against the Wall and Settlements, said Jewish settlers cut down 25 grape trees and 25 plum trees over 40 dunums (1 dunum = 1000 square feet) that belong to Hamad Salebi. Salebi said that settlers targeted his land four times and he would re-cultivate it every time, despite the setters' assaults on him and his brothers. In a related matter, the Israeli army prevented Palestinian farmers from working in their land in the nearby Khirbet Safa area for the past few weeks.http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17099Israeli forcesNight of Israeli violence: Al Aqsa Mosque barricade, house demolition, gang beating, arrestsInternational Solidarity Movement, West Bank 22 Aug -- Just after midnight on Monday, August 22 the IDF took the opportunity to trap 1500 Palestinian youth inside al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, blow up a house in Hebron (injuring 30 people in the ensuing riots), and arrested a member of the Freedom Theatre in Jenin.http://palsolidarity.org/2011/08/19911/Many injured in Hebron house demolitionISM 22 Aug -- At 10pm Sunday August 21st the Hasan Ali Darwish Al-Qawasmi house in the Abo Ktelah district was raided and later destroyed by IDF soldiers. Around eight armoured vehicles surrounded the house and at least 40 soldiers were blocking every entrance. The IDF had arrived at the house at 8 pm. They told family members that it would take 20 minutes but three and a half hours later they remained in occupation of the house. A row of 14 soldiers blocked the main entrance to the house. Female family members stood in front of them and demanded that they be allowed back into their home. A family member accounted that Israeli soldiers had already arrested their husbands and were also guilty of the imprisonment of seven brothers and the death of two other brothers of one particular woman. This woman arrived at the house with her baby in her arms to defy and stand up to the Israeli soldiers. After a while the army emerged from the house with a blindfolded and handcuffed man who looked as though he had been beaten. The soldiers took him away in a jeep. The IDF informed the family and other bystanders that a suspected “suspicious object” was in the home that needed to be disposed of, which coincidentally meant exploding a section of the house.http://palsolidarity.org/2011/08/19914/Snapshots of Al-Qawasmi house, ripped apart by Israeli military.International Solidarity Movement, West Bank 22 Aug -- Hussein Al-Qawasmi was arrested 10 days ago. Yesterday Qawasmi was escorted back to his home by Israeli soldiers, who claimed there were explosives as well as a memory stick and other forms of information. The family home was ransacked and a section of it was destroyed. Two sons have been arrested, 2 have been killed, and one is exiled.http://palsolidarity.org/2011/08/19929/Pedestrian caught between H1, H2, and Israeli militaryInternational Solidarity Movement 22 Aug -- In Al Khalil, commonly referred to as Hebron, international observers received a call about a man being beaten by Israeli military between the H1 and H2 areas of Hebron. H1 is an area densely populated by about 120,000 Palestinians, while H2 has been taken over through military violence by illegal Israeli settlers. Witnesses say the man had been detained for about an hour and was pushed against the wall repeatedly. When international observers showed up, the soldiers claimed that the man had refused to be searched although he carried no items on him except a small coin pouch and a cell phone. The following is a video account of the soldier’s and man following the arrival of international observers.http://palsolidarity.org/2011/08/19918/IOF troops arrest Palestinian shepherd, beat merchantTOBAS (PIC) 23 Aug -- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) beat up a Palestinian businessman and detained his Mercedes car to the east of Tobas on Tuesday, eyewitnesses told the PIC reporter. They said that the soldiers detained Samih Al-Aw for a while before releasing him, adding that Aw trades in scrap iron.In another incident, IOF soldiers arrested a Palestinian shepherd from Tobas in the northern Jordan Valley on Monday evening. Local sources said that the shepherd, Mahmoud Araysha, was watching as his sheep were grazing near the Mihola settlement when the soldiers nabbed him at the pretext of presence in a military zone. The sources said that the soldiers routinely ambush shepherds and farmers in this area and prevent them from tending to their land in a bid to force them desert their land.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s78DOmQSSG8lj1iMK70er6myw3aIIXmEwICLxaKwFkmgvpNutPMB33A4wsl29yl4y3JB7A2ytC0dUsugJSaj0LwG4o4ZzrykAFR9YUmd7cDwc%3dBethlehem mayor: New checkpoints show Israeli 'contempt'PNN 23 Aug -- A new checkpoint at Ma’ale Adumim on the road to Ramallah forced Palestinians to wait for up to four hours on Sunday. The move comes during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims traditionally avoid eating and drinking during the hours of daylight. As a consequence, long queues at checkpoints in summer can cause additional distress. Long queues were also reported at the Container checkpoint, between Bethlehem and Jericho. Drivers claimed that they were stopped for hours for no apparent reason, with no inspection or ID check taking place.Abd Fatah Hamayal, the Mayor of Bethlehem, was one of the drivers detained at the new Ma’ale Adumim checkpoint and waited for three and half hours. He claimed that the checkpoint ‘had no security justification whatsoever’ describing it as ‘contempt for human dignity’. http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10630&Itemid=63Report: Israel used excessive force against worshipers in OJOCCUPIED JERUSALEM (PIC) 23 Aug -- The Quds center for social and economic rights accused Israel of using excessive force against thousands of worshipers while heading to attend the Friday congregation in the Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem. A report by the center’s research and documentation department published on Monday said that the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) used teargas, stun grenades, and hot polluted water against the masses. It said that horse-mounted police charged against worshipers while whipping them with batons injuring at least seven of them while dozens suffered breathing difficulty as a result of the use of teargas canisters by the IOF.against worshipers while whipping them with batons injuring at least seven of them while dozens suffered breathing difficulty as a result of the use of teargas canisters by the IOF. The IOF measure of barring hundreds of Old City citizens from attending the congregation led to confrontations that ended with the arrest of four citizens, it said. The center described the Israeli ban on entry of worshipers into the Aqsa and using force against those protesting the step as brazen violation of the freedom of worship.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7Ju9QeOFUGmXlkVsXj5pbHhhPTw0qezX6Sf3mGZE00N8IDS1ycbfRWJheQ3l7iw0XAP5KPPCcHSJYFMdq5YT6%2fRSkRzfosZa6R2meOLenHCc%3dSoldier who opposed outpost's razing jailedA soldier with the Kfir Brigade who refused orders pertaining to the razing of buildings in the illegal West Bank outpost of Migron, was sentenced to 20 days in jail on Tuesday. This was not the first time in which Kfir Brigade soldiers have been involved in refusing orders pertaining to settlements and outposts.http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4113040,00.htmlGazaCalm prevails along Gaza border as truce holdsJERUSALEM (AFP) 23 Aug -- An Egyptian-brokered halt to Palestinian rocket fire from the Gaza Strip appeared to be holding on Tuesday, with the Israeli military saying that calm had prevailed along the border overnight. The truce was announced Sunday evening following four days of violence sparked by a series of shooting ambushes near Eilat in southern Israel on Thursday in which eight Israelis died. "There has been nothing today, compared to 11 yesterday," an Israeli military spokesman said Tuesday, referring to the number of rockets and mortar rounds fired at Israel a day earlier.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415680Israel strikes in Gaza despite cease-fireGAZA (PIC) 23 Aug 10:46 -- Israeli warplanes carried out an air strike in central Gaza city Tuesday morning a day after Israel and the government in Gaza agreed to a cease-fire. In the attack, a single missile was fired at vacant land near a gas station in the city’s Daraj district. Although no injuries were reported, the impact smashed windows of nearby homes, and a state of fear prevailed among locals preparing for the next day’s fast. It was the first rocket Israel launched after a truce was declared Monday afternoon.Meanwhile, in a statement, Deputy Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Ahmed Bahar called on Palestinian factions to maintain national consensus, preserve the calm, and not to allow Israel drag the Palestinians into an escalationhttp://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7rLNgQcQXdd9wqpkr4Zie8J6cfubNxZoajLiAbNaCpspG2mKrnk2VIas%2ft8Nlgtp%2byUm3f7NlnVO6%2bqxBQ9mpPVl4GJvtKIFu5cs1XpuJpPY%3dMedics: 1 dead in strike on south GazaGAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 24 Aug 01:12 -- Israeli aircraft opened fire on the southern Gaza Strip late Tuesday killing one person and wounding another west of Rafah, Palestinian medical officials said.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415699PFLP military wing not part of Gaza ceasefireGAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 23 Aug 05:02 -- The military wing of the PFLP, the Abu Ali Mustafa brigades, said Monday that they were not part of the ceasefire agreement between Palestinian factions and Israel. The group claimed responsibility for firing two projectiles at southern Israel on Monday night, a statement from the group said. “We will continue with resistance using all means to retaliate to all crimes the enemy commits against the Palestinian people.” http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415484Rafah crossing to open WednesdayGAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 24 Aug 00:50 -- The Rafah border between Gaza and Egypt will reopen Wednesday, the interior ministry in Gaza announced. The ministry said Tuesday the terminal would be open Wednesday for students, foreign nationals and patients needing medical treatment abroad who registered to travel on Aug. 15 and 20. Travelers should proceed to the Abu Yousef An-Najjer hall in Khan Younis at 6 a.m.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415647Netanyahu tells cabinet Israel lacks legitimacy for major Gaza operationHaaretz 23 Aug -- At four-hour cabinet meeting, Netanyahu and Barak offer arguments for restraint: international isolation, limitations of Iron Dome, diplomatic crisis with Egypt ... Prior to the cabinet meeting, several ministers had called for a harsher Israeli response to the rocket fire; and that is largely what prompted Netanyahu to convene the cabinet Sunday night: By having the full cabinet approve the decision to refrain from further military action, he hoped to block criticism from within the government. What emerged most clearly from Netanyahu's and Barak's statements to the cabinet was that Israel lacks the international legitimacy needed for a large-scale operation in Gaza.http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/netanyahu-tells-cabinet-israel-lacks-legitimacy-for-major-gaza-operation-1.380121Gaza pays the price - again / Mohammed OmerAl Jazeera 23 Aug --...Al Jazeera asked a number of Palestinians in Gaza Strip for their reactions to the ongoing attacks on Gaza. This is what they said: Ahmed Al Najjar, 27-year-old documentary film producer: I see these attacks as the first Israeli nail in the coffin of our bid for UN state recognition in September. What is happening in Gaza right now is a message from Israel to the world that no political force can impose anything on Israel, including the US administration. All in all, what we are going through, from violations of rights, is the accumulation of international silence since the birth of our plight until today's Israeli bombing. Moreover, on the timing of the Israel attacks, everyone notes that Israel is targeting us, a civil population, even in the holy month of fasting and worshipping ... this brings Israel's claim of religious sanctity and rituals into question.Palestinians in Gaza share their reactions to the recent Israeli attacks with Al Jazeera.http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/08/2011822124125551829.htmlIsraeli 'retaliation' / Max Ajl[with horrifying video] 22 Aug -- The Haaretz editorial board referred to the killing of IDF soldiers as a “terror attack.” Much remains unclear about the attack on the buses: crucially, who died and what the attackers knew. I have seen some speculation that the bus which was attacked is basically used for ferrying soldiers to and fro. In any case, a “terror attack” is not how most in the region see it. When your army targets civilians and your country has no borders, only armistice lines, killing your soldiers will never be understood as terror. But killing theirs will be, which is why a crowd of thousands of Egyptians cheered wildly as a lone climber ascended the 20 stories to the top of the building in which the Israeli embassy in Cairo is bunkered, and put an Egyptian flag in place of the Israeli flag. Consider it a portent. Consider the video below what Israel and those Americans who support its actions consider an acceptable price to pay before Israel ends its occupation and discrimination. And if you are able to even describe what happened to the second pile of flesh that used to be a human being, let me know. I watched the video three times and couldn’t figure it out.http://www.maxajl.com/Egypt identifies 3 believed to be behind Eilat attackThe Egyptian authorities stated that three of the men believed to be behind the Thursday attack in Eilat coastal city have been identified, and that one of them is a fugitive who owns an ammunition factory in Sinai, the Qatar-based Al Jazeera reported ... The three detained persons are fugitives wanted by the Egyptian security forces for illegal activities and attacks, Al Jazeera added. http://www.imemc.org/article/61871Human Rights Watch urges Hamas to end harassmentBETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 23 Aug -- Authorities in Gaza should halt interrogations, detentions, and harassment apparently aimed at intimidating civil society activists, Human Rights Watch said Monday. "Hamas should respect their rights to freedom of expression and assembly, Human Rights Watch said in a report noting the arrest of youth activist Abu Yazan, who campaigned for Palestinian unity in March. http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415648Libyan arms expected to continue flowing into Sinai / Anshel PfefferHaaretz 23 Aug -- For months, the Sinai Peninsula has been flooded with arms and ammunition looted from Libyan army; much of the weaponry, has made its way into the Gaza Strip via the smuggling tunnels on the Gaza-Egypt border.http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/libyan-arms-expected-to-continue-flowing-into-sinai-1.380125?localLinksEnabled=falsePalestinians farming creatively to overcome the 'buffer zone' / Hama WaqumIslamOnline 21 Aug -- On Nakba Day in May, thousands of Palestinians edged towards Israel’s borders with Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Gaza, demanding their Right of Return, and an end to the Israeli occupation ... A major demand put forth by the Gazan demonstrators was the elimination of the ‘buffer zone’, which forbids Palestinians from stepping within three hundred meters of the cement wall that separates Gaza from the outside world. Gaza’s farmers face dangers in tending to their land, even if it lies beyond the ‘buffer zone’. For this reason, Palestinians and internationals arrange and attend mass farming events where they harvest and plant en masse.http://www.islamonline.net/en/IOLArticle_C/1278408939893/1278406708816/IOLArticle_CResentment toward Hamas grows among Gaza's budding middle classAP 23 Aug -- A budding middle class in the impoverished Gaza Strip is flaunting its wealth, sipping coffee at gleaming new cafes, shopping for shoes at the new tiny shopping malls, and fueling perhaps the most acrimonious grass roots resentment yet toward the ruling Hamas movement. This middle class, which has become visible at the same time as a mini-construction boom in this blockaded territory, is celebrating its weddings in opulent halls and vacationing in newly built beach bungalows. That level of consumption may be modest by Western standards, but it's in startling contrast to the grinding poverty of most Gazans, who rely on UN food handouts to get by. Some of the well-off are Hamas loyalists. That rankles many Gaza residents because the conservative Islamic movement gained popularity by tending to the poor, through charitable aid, education and medical care - along with its armed struggle against Israel ... Gaza's Hamas government denies its loyalists have gotten wealthy since the group came to power. Corruption "doesn't touch us," said Hamas official Yusef Rizka. But others - even those close to Hamas - say the militant group must pay attention.http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/resentment-toward-hamas-grows-among-gaza-s-budding-middle-class-1.380193ActivismPalestinians 'to march on Jerusalem'JERUSALEM (Ma‘an) 23 Aug -- Palestinians will march on Jerusalem from four directions in a coordinated protest organized by the "Olive Revolution" movement on the last Friday of Ramadan, activists said Tuesday. Activists accompanied by Israeli and international supporters will convene to launch the campaign by marching on Jerusalem from north, west, south and east, the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee stated. The demonstrations will "emphasize the fact that Palestinians are systematically denied entry to the city by Israel, despite it being part of the territory occupied in 1967," the popular committee said.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415642RefugeesRush to cover up bloodshed in Palestinian campBETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) update 23 Aug -- Syrian forces scrambled Saturday to destroy evidence of last week's bloody crackdown in Latakia that killed dozens of Palestinians and sent refugees fleeing, activists said as UN officials arrived in Damascus. Security forces were seen scrubbing blood off the streets and walls of al-Ramel refugee camp ahead of the cross-agency mission’s anticipated arrival in the port city, which has been partly evacuated amid the attacks. The delegation was dispatched from Geneva in response to a damning report to the Security Council on Syrian leader Bashar Assad's "apparent shoot-to-kill" policy. That report had urged an end to excessive use of force and the killing of protestors, torture and ill-treatment of detainees and enforced disappearances. A European diplomat says the last-minute cleanup in Latakia only confirms existing suspicions and appears timed to coincide with the arrival of UN officials.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=414764UNRWA to resume operations in JeninJENIN (Ma‘an) 23 Aug -- UNRWA announced Monday that it would resume operations in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, a statement said. "UNRWA is pleased to announce the resumption of its full services in Jenin city and Jenin camp, as of today, 22 August 2011. This follows positive interventions by the notables, heads of CBOs, and officials in Jenin City and the camp, who emphasized the importance of co-operation with UNRWA staff, the safety and security of UNRWA facilities and our beneficiaries who use them." The UN refugee agency suspended operations in Jenin in early August after stating that it could not offer services to refugees amidst an atmosphere of "violence and threats," stating that employees and facilities had become unsafe. http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415490DetentionIsraeli court imprisons wife of detaineeRAMALLAH (PIC) 23 Aug -- The Israeli Ofer military court issued a harsh sentence against the wife of a Palestinian prisoner who was detained while en route to visit her husband along with her baby. The Palestinian prisoner’s society said in a statement on Monday that the court sentenced Suha Abu Munshar the wife of Tarek Al-Duyais to one month and a day imprisonment term in addition to a 25000 Shekels fine. Abu Munshar was taken to Hasharon jail after charging her with trying to smuggle a mobile phone to her husband. The society described the court verdict as “arbitrary”.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s7YzqZXHNP0btlFnaUfLUDGgQN%2f3Dk2zLkXY3%2bfbSX35WHHAj7uFlA7SpSoQRdhSwT7a4g%2bvobQUO5YUhmnGT1tPrM%2fLaggfzZqH4Xr2ZozcE%3dPPC: Howara detainees suffer from intolerable health, living conditionsRAMALLAH (WAFA) 23 Aug -- Palestinian Prisoners detained at Harawa Detention center suffer from difficult health and living conditions, which lack all basic necessities as guaranteed by international law and regulations, said the Palestinian Prisoners' Club (PPC) Tuesday. One of the prisoners detained at Howara told PPC lawyer that he suffers from a severe exhaustion; he is unable to continue to eat from food they are given at prison and that he has not eaten anything other than eggs, yogurt, in addition to dry and not fully cooked rice during the whole period of his detention. He added that those kind of meals are given to prisoners after fasting all day, as for liquids and drinks they are missing; the only source of water is from a sink tap near bathrooms inside prisoners' rooms, where the water is hot, thus only few prisoners drink water.http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17105PA security agencies kidnap many Hamas members from their homesRAMALLAH (PIC) 23 Aug -- The Palestinian authority security apparatuses stepped up its political arrest campaign in the West Bank detaining 12 Palestinians affiliated with Hamas Movement and summoning dozens for interrogation.In Al-Khalil, the preventive security forces carried out raids on homes during which they kidnapped a number of Hamas members including the brother of political prisoner Zein Shabana who is being held in Daheriya jail. The preventive security also kidnapped ex-detainee in Israeli jails Issa Al-Mashni from his home in Al-Shuyukh town, northeast of Al-Khalil. Three young men from Dura town in the same city were also kidnapped a few days ago from their homes by the same security apparatus.In Nablus city, the PA intelligence apparatus detained a Palestinian young man called Ayman Qu'warik, a bother of a martyr, after they summoned him for interrogation. The family of a political prisoner, for its part, reported that its son Anas Awwad, from Awarta village east of Nablus, is exposed to excruciating torture in Juneid jail.The PA security forces also detained a male nurse called Adnan Subeh working for Jenin hospital after summing him for interrogation.The preventive security in Qalqiliya city kidnapped two young men, Mohamed Shatat and Ahmed Afana, from their homes. Both of them were detained many times before by different PA security apparatuses.In Ramallah city, the preventive security extended the detention of Ra'ed Al-Yazouri for 15 days in Beitunia jail.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MDI46m9rUxJEpMO%2bi1s79fdgzDFBpVDWoLCOdGDGu0AMZVEqdiT2lYhVk%2f1BkNBgzl%2bX6enqezi%2fNu24OHaU8F3OhPWUQ21ETgVJJl2OMvTWHWozD%2bVMi1MKPolCW10%3dFatah chief in Gaza: Police abusing prisonersGAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 23 Aug -- Fatah’s leadership in Gaza on Tuesday accused the territory's Hamas-dominated police force of attacking Fatah prisoners in its jails, the party's local secretary said. Abdullah Abu Samhadana said the police's actions, which he did not specify, were akin to Israel's treatment of prisoners and placed the rivals' May reconciliation agreement in jeopardy.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415616International assassinationsIranian confesses to aiding Mossad in assassination of nuclear scientistdpa 23 Aug -- Majid Jamali-Fashi pleads guilty to charges that he killed an Iranian physicist in 2010, in what Tehran said was an attempt by Israel and the U.S. to derail its nuclear program, according to state television ... Ali-Mohammadi, an elementary-particle physicist, was leaving his Tehran home to go to work on Jan. 12, 2010, when a bomb hidden in a motorcycle exploded and killed him. Two similar attacks on one morning in November killed nuclear scientist Majid Shahriyari and wounded another, Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani, who has since become Iran's atomic energy chief.http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/iranian-confesses-to-aiding-mossad-in-assassination-of-nuclear-scientist-1.380249Political / Diplomatic / InternationalAbbas 'to meet top US official in Doha'DOHA, Qatar (AFP) 23 Aug -- President Mahmoud Abbas will meet Tuesday the US assistant secretary for Near East affairs, Jeffrey Feltman, in Doha as Washington presses the Palestinians to abandon plans to seek UN membership next month, an Arab diplomat says.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415629The flying chairRamallah (PNN) 23 Aug - Fadi Abu Sa’da -- In September, leaders from the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) will ask the UN to grant Palestine full member status -- and a chair of its own. But that’s something a new group of Palestinian activists aren’t leaving to chance. ‘Palestine Deserves’, a collection of young businessmen and women from all over the West Bank, are set to travel the world with their very own chair to drum up support for the PLO’s bid. Coloured in traditional UN blue, the chair was designed and made in such a way that it can even be packed away and carried in a suitcase.http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10624&Itemid=59DFLP official: Elections delay 'illegal'RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 23 Aug -- The decision to postpone local West Bank elections scheduled for October 2011 is illegal, Palestinian lawmaker Qays Abdul-Karim said Tuesday. Abdul-Karim, a member of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, said the president had the right to amend local elections' law. But, "in such case, the president will be responsible before the Palestinian Legislative Council and public opinion. Since the election law has not been amended, the decision to postpone elections is illegal," he said. [not to mention that the president himself holds office illegally]http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=415542EU Commission grants PA €115 millionIMEMC 23 Aug -- The European Commission announced Monday that it granted the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank additional €115 Million ($165.11M) to help in development projects in the Palestinian territories. The Commission stated that these projects are related to the health sector, education, and water distilling projects. Some of the money is also meant to be used to finance institutions in an effort to provide jobs.€40 Million of the allocated amount will be paid to the UNRWA to support its projects and services. EU Commissioner Stephen Foley stated that the aid money is meant to boost the efforts to establish an independent Palestinian State, and added that this financial support clearly proves that the European Union is fully committed to a peace effort based on the two-state solution. http://www.imemc.org/article/61873Two Israeli pilots freed after being held in Eritrea for arms smugglingHaaretz 23 Aug -- Pilots detained on suspicion of smuggling spare weapons parts, return to Israel after one month detention in Eritrean capital Asmara.http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/two-israeli-pilots-freed-after-being-held-in-eritrea-for-arms-smuggling-1.380281--
