A terrifying massacre happened, with memories that hardly exist in our minds a massacre was forgotten by people who tried to describe those horrified days.
In the early morning of 30.10.1948 which started as every morning, the sun shining over the world turning that day to a deep red day in the memory of everyone.
The people refused to leave in spite of the horrible news about the Israeli army that was about to invade the village in any moment.
The army entered the village and found the people inside the church holding white flags. The army took the people out of the church and killed 14 young men and the rest were kicked out towards the north heading to Lebanon, and in order to terrify the people and erg them to leave as quickly as possible they shot another person turning the number of victims to 15 added to tens of injured people who survived miraculously.
The return
After 50 days out of Palestine people started to return from the refugee camp towards the village.
People of Eilaboun were allowed to return after great efforts that were made by a local priest called Morcous Mouallem. He sent many letters to many generals and different ministries asking to let the people of his village to return he also was helped by the mandate of Lebanon in the United Nations.
As a result, a committee of observers from the United Nations arrived to the village in order to see the remains of the massacre.
In the 20th.11.1948 the priest sent two men to Lebanon to ask the people to return.
The massacre of the Mawassi
The Mawassi tribe lived nearby Eilaboun and it had good relations with the people of Eilaboun.
On the massacre day (2.11.1948) some soliers met two of the mawassi who were looking after their cows so they were shot, one of them was 13 and the second was 16.
In the next day the army invaded the tribe and chose 14 men to be shot down, one man called Saaed Mouhamed Eldeeb saw everything and told the story to other people most of the tribe escaped to Syria.
Eilaboun was like other Palestinian villages that were put under the Jewish authority, those villages suffered from ethnic cleansing.
My grandmother told me this story with tearful eyes:-
" on the black day we all gathered inside the church when we knew about the coming of the Israeli army with his blooded hands. By entering the village and forcing all people to gather in neighborhood yard which was used to celebrate weddings and it turned it into the yard of martyrs.
One of the soldiers named " Hayem Batata" chose 12 young men randomly by pointing at them with one hand while the other hand was holding a rifle, which was used to shoot those guys.
Meanwhile tens of men were arrested including my husband and the other people old men, women children , were moved in front of the tanks towards Mag'ar village.
At the entrance of the village two men tried to escape so they were shot immediately.
People were hungry and thirsty passing the village of Mag'ar reaching KufrEnan junction another man from the village was shot and many were injured and 40 men were arrested. The Israeli army intended to kill 50 men but one man named Ebrahim Hawa paid the army 100 Palestinian Liras as a ransom.
I walked holding my new born baby in one hand and a two year old baby in the other hand and followed by my two daughters. I was desperate and helpless for a minute I thought that I should leave the baby behind in order to save the other children, but my mother held the baby while she was dragging her injured mother at the same time , so she held the baby in her teeth by her diaper.
Those were hard days, we looked for food in the cow dung and drank dirty water which was put for pigs it drink in the village of Elberthiaa.
I saw many women leaving their newborn babies behind under the trees in order to save the other children in the family. The ones who survived reached the refugee camp ELmeyee Wemyee in Lebanon with no shelter or food they started a new life away form home. We stayed without a shelter for 70 days suffering and starving. So some families decided to give in their kids to Monasteries and orphanages.
Finally we were allowed to return home an we did, but our properties were gone, clothing, food, cattle, nothing was left.
But we over came those hard days with our strong will and determination.
The victims of Eilaboun
Fadel Fadlo Eilabouni
Foad Nofal Zureik
Melad Fayad Sliman
Michyel Mitri Shami
Naeem Gantous Zureik
Mouhamed Khaled Asaad
Abdullah Simaan Shoufani
Badee Jeries Zureik
Raja Michyel Haleel Nakhly
Jeries Shibli Hayek
Ziki Moussa Nakhly Skafi
Hanna Ibraheem Khouri Ashkar
Azar Salem Mousalam
Simaan Jeries Shoufani
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Impressions of Israeli Executions in the West Bank
January 7, 2009
Vijay Raghavan
Source: If Americans Knew
Much planning had gone into our family vacation in Israel-Palestine. We could spare only the last two weeks of 2009, and so had developed an uncompromising itinerary for each day, allowing a mere half-day to recover from jet lag from our trip from California. After devoting most of the first week to visiting holy places in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Hebron and Jericho, we were, in the words of our 17-year-old, quite “churched out.” We are a typical American family in at least one regard: we have two other children (ages five and two), and we are all blessed with limited attention span. Absorbing detailed references to the Old and New Testaments in the places we visited was beyond our capabilities. Our hired tour guide and driver, Issa Habash1, had long ago taken notice of our monumental ignorance and had given up on reciting chapter and verse from the Bible
On December 26, 2009 we headed north from Bethlehem, where we had celebrated Christmas. Entering the city of Nablus, we stopped briefly at Jacob’s Well, just enough time to use the facilities and for a photo-op of my wife drawing water from the fabled well. Our plans for the rest of Nablus were somewhat vague; Issa suggested we take in an ancient Samaritan synagogue, but everyone else rebelled against this idea. My wife was more interested in seeing a soap factory or a store with the legendary spices of Nablus. As a former academic, I was keen on touring the an-Najah National University, which is the largest one in Palestine. I had even made a tentative arrangement with a local, Ala Abdessalam, to show us around. Ala is affiliated with the university but also functions as a coordinator for human rights groups and youth exchange programs operating in Nablus.
When we left Jacob’s Well, it was a little after eleven in the morning. We called Ala on his cell-phone and were told that he was no longer available for the tour. Apparently the Israeli Special Forces had killed some people in a pre-dawn operation in the Old City, and Ala was busy taking pictures and interviewing people. However, if we were up to the challenge, we could tag along while he went about his business. He said that it might even help him to have international observers with him.
We agreed to this proposal, albeit with some nervousness. Until that point we had not encountered any trouble in the Palestine Territories—to the contrary, the people we had met were extremely friendly and ready to debate political issues involving Israel, Palestine, and the United States quite openly. Still, we were uneasy about visiting the neighborhood where people had been killed that very day.
Ala met us at the outskirts of the Old City. He was accompanied by two other volunteers. All of us, including Issa, got down from the van and set off on foot. Our intrepid five-year-old led the way, taking his stuffed toy cat along for security (see Figure 1). Soon, a mentally challenged man joined the group and started yelling at us. Ala assured me that the man was harmless (“Isn’t there someone like this in every village?” was his comment.) Noticing my wife’s anxiety, one of the volunteers linked arms with our five-year-old and the two marched along happily.
Ala explained that there had been three distinct “termination” operations conducted by the Israeli Special Forces. The operations had been well coordinated, taking place between 2:00 and 4:00 AM, in three different houses within 2 kilometers of each other. Ala had already taken down preliminary testimony from the neighbors. In accordance with Muslim customs, the funerals had to be done promptly, and so Ala had to break off his interviews. He warned us that there would be a lot of mourners in each house that we visited.
At the first house, we were met by two neighbors, a young man and an older woman. Ala rattled off questions and translated briskly from Arabic to English for the benefit of my wife, our 17-year-old and myself. I asked an occasional question.
The man who had been killed was named Ghasan Abu Sharakh. He had been living in the house with his mother. At around 3:00 AM, the neighborhood was awakened by commotion in the streets. A convoy of about 30 jeeps had appeared suddenly, along with a Hummer and a bulldozer. Some 70 soldiers and at least one dog had spread around and a few soldiers had quickly entered the house.
“Nobody took pictures?” I asked. It seemed remarkable to me, in this age of ubiquitous cell-phone cameras, that it had not occurred to anyone to film the whole thing.
Ala explained patiently to me that if you were anywhere near an Israeli raid you did two things. First, you made sure that you did not have a camera; if the Israelis found one on you they would beat you senseless. Second, you visited a toilet as soon as you could—if you were rounded up you might not get to use the potty for a long time.
The old lady continued the story. Ghasan had been sleeping upstairs when the door of his house had been blasted open (see Figure 2). When he came downstairs to the door, he was immediately shot in the face. His mother, who was right behind him, had watched her son’s head explode and spill blood all over the room (see Figure 3). The old lady was sure that the Israelis would have shot the mother too if she had been the one to come to the door first.
I took some pictures and tried to think of meaningful questions to ask. My wife held on tightly to the two-year-old. The old lady asked us to enter the house and go upstairs to the living area. Ala assured my wife that it was alright for her as a foreigner to not wear a hijab; he told her to simply pay her respects to Ghasan’s mother when we met her.
There were many people inside the house. A local TV station was interviewing the mother. A groan emanated from the assembly when the mother related something (see Figure 4). Ala translated for us: “... the soldiers kept putting bullets into my son’s body even though his face was completely gone.”
Somehow a path opened up as people made way for us to reach Ghasan’s mother. Holding on to the two-year-old, my wife kneeled down and held the woman’s hand. Ala moved up to translate, but my wife was having difficulty forming words. It did not matter—grief has a universal language and whatever needed to be said by one woman to another in this situation had already been communicated.
Outside the house, Ala informed us that the mother had also lost her elder son in a similar way three years ago.
“Will there be an investigation?” I asked. “An autopsy?”
Ala shrugged. “What’s the point? Everyone knows the cause of death and who did the killing.”
“Still—”
“In any case Muslims do not like autopsies and embalming. Martyrs are to be buried in their own clothes soon after death.”
I took out my notebook and scribbled in all the details I could remember. A Scottish youth volunteer joined us at this point. He already knew Ala and also seemed to be familiar with the neighborhood. He said that he had been living in Nablus for a month. I asked him if he kept a diary or a journal. He glanced at my notebook said that it was best not to keep a written record: “The Israelis will read it at the airport and put you on a black list if they see any pro-Palestine sentiments.” Really?
Only a few details differed in the second killing. Raed Surkaji had been an activist some seven years before, and had been sent to an Israeli prison. He had been released eleven months ago, as part of a negotiated arrangement between the Palestine Authority and Israel. Since that time he had been living in Nablus. This fateful morning he had been sleeping with his pregnant wife when the Israeli soldiers arrived and knocked down the door of his house. He too had been shot in the face through the glass (see Figure 5) when he went up to the door.
Raed’s wife told Ala that she had pleaded with the soldiers to stop, but they kept shooting her husband long after he had died. They told her that she should be happy that they were letting her live. The commander came running up from the alley and pumped more bullets into the chest of the corpse. Then they had all left, laughing and shouting victorious slogans. Ala said that he had come to the house earlier that morning. At that time, the room had not been cleaned and there was flesh and brain substance all over the place. He pointed to two soap bars that still had some grisly matter on them (see Figure 6).
When I approached Raed’s wife, she pointed to her foot. Ala told me that when she walked out of the room glass shards had pierced her foot. She was unable to walk and had to be carried to the hospital for treatment. I had composed something to say to her, but when I looked into her eyes, I too found that I could not speak, just like my wife in the previous house. I touched her foot silently. But this time my wife managed to get out some words: she told Raed’s wife that she was sorry for her loss. Ala translated and the woman said “she was honored that we cared.” We were quite overcome with sadness when we left.
Outside, Ala wanted to go to the third house right away. He told us that this case was different—the man who was killed had worked in the Palestine Authority security service. Therefore he had had a pistol with him. He had hidden himself in the cellar when he heard the noise outside, but it had mattered little; he too was killed as swiftly as the others.
“How far is the house?” I asked Ala.
“Only a kilometer away.”
I looked at my wife, and she shook her head. We had seen enough.
We discussed the day’s events over a late lunch. The first and most obvious question was why the three men had been killed. On this question, Issa and Ala had different opinions.
Issa thought that the operation was Israeli retaliation for some crime that the three men had committed. An Israeli settler, Meir Avshalom Hai, from the nearby settlement of Shavei Shomron had been killed in his car on Christmas Eve. The al-Aqsa Martyr Brigade had already claimed responsibility for the killing. Issa was positive that the Israelis would have had evidence connecting the three people to the killing of the settler.
Ala was skeptical. He said that neither Ghasan nor Raed was armed, and even the Israelis would not claim that they possessed deadly weapons. According to the family and the neighbors, the men did have active links to al-Aqsa. “These killings were random,” Ala declared. “These guys were simply no use alive to the Israelis,” he said.
I could not accept the idea of random killings by the Israeli government. Since December 26, I have read all I could find on the Nablus operation, though I am handicapped by having to limit myself to English sources. News reports in Israel and Palestine are susceptible to the spin from the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority, which makes it difficult to piece together even simple aspects of the truth. For example, Ala had told us that a “large number of people” had attended the funeral of the three people on December 26, but estimates of this large number varied from “a few thousand” to “about 10,000” to “well over 20,000,” depending on whether you read the Jerusalem Post, Haaretz, Al Jazeera, or the Ma’an News Agency. (The first one is pro-Israel, the last is pro-Palestine, and the other two are somewhere in-between.) Another detail on which there is no agreement is the spelling of the names of the people killed. This may well be a problem of transliterating Arabic names; I myself have rendered the names the way Ala spelled them out for me.
Much more disconcerting than these discrepancies in inessential details is the wholesale disagreement among the news sources on crucial facts, such as: the location where the men were killed (inside the house, upstairs, downstairs), whether they had been armed, whether they had been given a chance to surrender, whether taking prisoners was an option, etc. The following is a small selection of key points in the news reports I read.
The Ma’an News Agency2 mentions that the second man, Raed, was shot not only in front of his wife but also in front of his two children. This detail did not emerge in our meeting with Raed’s wife, but perhaps it was true and she did not consider it important to mention her children. The new report also indicates that the first man, Ghasan, was taken outside his house and shot. This does not match the physical evidence we saw in the house and I have puzzled over how the report could have gotten it so wrong. Perhaps it’s a cultural thing; could it be that the downstairs area where Ghasan was killed is not considered to be part of the house proper?
Al Jazeera3 notes that “the three men targeted by the Israelis had been disarmed under security measures taken by [the Palestinian Authority President] Abbas's police force.” The inference we are asked to make is that this was a cold-blooded execution of unarmed men.
The Jerusalem Post states4 that the Israelis soldiers came from the Judea and Samaria Division’s Special Forces unit and the Kfir Brigade’s battalion under the command of Col. Itzik Bar. The Post is unequivocal that the three men killed were Al-Aqsa Martyr Brigade operatives, and claims that the Israelis recovered two M-16’s and two pistols in the third man’s hideout, contradicting the Al Jazeera version. It also claims that Raed “left his house holding his wife in front of him” and the IDF troops “acting on information that he was armed, opened fire, killing [Raed] and wounding his wife in the leg.” This certainly does not match the physical evidence of destruction in the house that we saw ourselves, nor does it match Raed’s wife’s testimony. If I had to guess, I would say that this version of events is an Israeli attempt to spin the killing as an operational decision rather than a pre-meditated execution. Also according to the Jerusalem Post, “the troops entered Ghasan’s home, which was filled with other family members, located him and shot him dead as well. No one else was hurt.” In these sentences one can see only the mildest form of retrospective rationalization—it seems more humane than the account we ourselves had heard of Ghasan being shot dead in front of a single person: his mother.
Western sources such as BBC5 are disappointing; they simply stitch together reports based on what the Israeli forces or the Palestinian Authority said, without any attempt at independent verification. Fox News6 is an exception: it gives a revised Israeli version offered for American consumption: “The forces surrounded the homes of the three ... Lerner, the army major, said all three turned down a chance to surrender. Lerner confirmed that none of the wanted men returned fire, including Subeh [the third man], who had two pistols and two assault rifles on him ... Asked why soldiers opened fire, Lerner said troops "had to operate under the assumption that they (the suspects) are dangerous."” However, Fox makes it clear that it has not bought this explanation. It notes that “the relatives of [Ghasan] and [Raed] said they were killed without warning.”
Where does this leave us? My wife and I have talked about this experience over and over, and have been led to a modest but inexorable conclusion: whatever we heard in translation in the two houses was the simple truth. We may be gullible American tourists, but there is a different, more compelling reason for our conclusion—real grief is difficult to fake. We cannot conceive of a reality in which Raed’s wife and Ghasan’s mother would be so depraved as to portray the deaths of their loved ones other than how they actually happened, just in order to suit some twisted ideology. Therefore we believe that the Israeli forces did execute two unarmed men in cold blood and keep putting bullets into them long after they had died.
This conclusion is troubling when combined with what the news sources actually agree on. All reports generally accept that the “termination” operation had been authorized at the highest levels of the Israeli government. Indeed, Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, had praised the commando operation in Nablus, and said that Israel would “continue to defend aggressively and respond to every attack against Israeli citizens and every rocket strike.”7 This high-level sanction makes the operation more chilling. Even if Netanyahu had conclusive evidence linking the three men to the killing of the Israeli settler, there should be better accountability and due process in a law-abiding nation. The three men could easily have been arrested, given the overwhelming force that the Israelis had against them. Why was it necessary to raid the houses and kill unarmed men with great brutality in front of their family, and then walk away with impunity? Surely this cannot be the way of civilized countries.
As we continued our travels through other cities in Israel, I discussed the Nablus killings with various people. When I brought up the disturbing question mentioned above, I was surprised by the similar answer that I got independently from two persons who occupy relatively high positions. Disclosing their job description will be tantamount to disclosing who they are, so I will avoid that; in any case, it is their response that is revealing. One of them put it this way: “It’s important for the Israeli government to show that it’s always in control. It’s not so important to be right. It’s not so important to kill the real perpetrators, but it’s very important to send a message. The message is that retaliation for any aggression will be swift, overwhelming, and precise. It’s irrelevant if the real culprits in the killing of the Shavei Shomron settler got away.”
Al Jazeera and Haaretz mentioned that the US government has “questioned” Israel over the operation. As American citizens, my wife and I intend to offer our account to the State Department and to our Congressman, along with the photographs I took. We will do this as a matter of civic duty, but we are not good witnesses. What we saw and heard came after the fact, and may have lost many details in translation. The best witnesses are people like Raed’s wife and Ghasan’s mother. If the US government or UN observers or human rights organizations wish to interview them, they will find a compelling story. From our experience, they are not afraid to talk. Whether it will help in bringing about peace is a different matter.
Vijay Raghavan
Source: If Americans Knew
Much planning had gone into our family vacation in Israel-Palestine. We could spare only the last two weeks of 2009, and so had developed an uncompromising itinerary for each day, allowing a mere half-day to recover from jet lag from our trip from California. After devoting most of the first week to visiting holy places in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Hebron and Jericho, we were, in the words of our 17-year-old, quite “churched out.” We are a typical American family in at least one regard: we have two other children (ages five and two), and we are all blessed with limited attention span. Absorbing detailed references to the Old and New Testaments in the places we visited was beyond our capabilities. Our hired tour guide and driver, Issa Habash1, had long ago taken notice of our monumental ignorance and had given up on reciting chapter and verse from the Bible
On December 26, 2009 we headed north from Bethlehem, where we had celebrated Christmas. Entering the city of Nablus, we stopped briefly at Jacob’s Well, just enough time to use the facilities and for a photo-op of my wife drawing water from the fabled well. Our plans for the rest of Nablus were somewhat vague; Issa suggested we take in an ancient Samaritan synagogue, but everyone else rebelled against this idea. My wife was more interested in seeing a soap factory or a store with the legendary spices of Nablus. As a former academic, I was keen on touring the an-Najah National University, which is the largest one in Palestine. I had even made a tentative arrangement with a local, Ala Abdessalam, to show us around. Ala is affiliated with the university but also functions as a coordinator for human rights groups and youth exchange programs operating in Nablus.
When we left Jacob’s Well, it was a little after eleven in the morning. We called Ala on his cell-phone and were told that he was no longer available for the tour. Apparently the Israeli Special Forces had killed some people in a pre-dawn operation in the Old City, and Ala was busy taking pictures and interviewing people. However, if we were up to the challenge, we could tag along while he went about his business. He said that it might even help him to have international observers with him.
We agreed to this proposal, albeit with some nervousness. Until that point we had not encountered any trouble in the Palestine Territories—to the contrary, the people we had met were extremely friendly and ready to debate political issues involving Israel, Palestine, and the United States quite openly. Still, we were uneasy about visiting the neighborhood where people had been killed that very day.
Ala met us at the outskirts of the Old City. He was accompanied by two other volunteers. All of us, including Issa, got down from the van and set off on foot. Our intrepid five-year-old led the way, taking his stuffed toy cat along for security (see Figure 1). Soon, a mentally challenged man joined the group and started yelling at us. Ala assured me that the man was harmless (“Isn’t there someone like this in every village?” was his comment.) Noticing my wife’s anxiety, one of the volunteers linked arms with our five-year-old and the two marched along happily.
Ala explained that there had been three distinct “termination” operations conducted by the Israeli Special Forces. The operations had been well coordinated, taking place between 2:00 and 4:00 AM, in three different houses within 2 kilometers of each other. Ala had already taken down preliminary testimony from the neighbors. In accordance with Muslim customs, the funerals had to be done promptly, and so Ala had to break off his interviews. He warned us that there would be a lot of mourners in each house that we visited.
At the first house, we were met by two neighbors, a young man and an older woman. Ala rattled off questions and translated briskly from Arabic to English for the benefit of my wife, our 17-year-old and myself. I asked an occasional question.
The man who had been killed was named Ghasan Abu Sharakh. He had been living in the house with his mother. At around 3:00 AM, the neighborhood was awakened by commotion in the streets. A convoy of about 30 jeeps had appeared suddenly, along with a Hummer and a bulldozer. Some 70 soldiers and at least one dog had spread around and a few soldiers had quickly entered the house.
“Nobody took pictures?” I asked. It seemed remarkable to me, in this age of ubiquitous cell-phone cameras, that it had not occurred to anyone to film the whole thing.
Ala explained patiently to me that if you were anywhere near an Israeli raid you did two things. First, you made sure that you did not have a camera; if the Israelis found one on you they would beat you senseless. Second, you visited a toilet as soon as you could—if you were rounded up you might not get to use the potty for a long time.
The old lady continued the story. Ghasan had been sleeping upstairs when the door of his house had been blasted open (see Figure 2). When he came downstairs to the door, he was immediately shot in the face. His mother, who was right behind him, had watched her son’s head explode and spill blood all over the room (see Figure 3). The old lady was sure that the Israelis would have shot the mother too if she had been the one to come to the door first.
I took some pictures and tried to think of meaningful questions to ask. My wife held on tightly to the two-year-old. The old lady asked us to enter the house and go upstairs to the living area. Ala assured my wife that it was alright for her as a foreigner to not wear a hijab; he told her to simply pay her respects to Ghasan’s mother when we met her.
There were many people inside the house. A local TV station was interviewing the mother. A groan emanated from the assembly when the mother related something (see Figure 4). Ala translated for us: “... the soldiers kept putting bullets into my son’s body even though his face was completely gone.”
Somehow a path opened up as people made way for us to reach Ghasan’s mother. Holding on to the two-year-old, my wife kneeled down and held the woman’s hand. Ala moved up to translate, but my wife was having difficulty forming words. It did not matter—grief has a universal language and whatever needed to be said by one woman to another in this situation had already been communicated.
Outside the house, Ala informed us that the mother had also lost her elder son in a similar way three years ago.
“Will there be an investigation?” I asked. “An autopsy?”
Ala shrugged. “What’s the point? Everyone knows the cause of death and who did the killing.”
“Still—”
“In any case Muslims do not like autopsies and embalming. Martyrs are to be buried in their own clothes soon after death.”
I took out my notebook and scribbled in all the details I could remember. A Scottish youth volunteer joined us at this point. He already knew Ala and also seemed to be familiar with the neighborhood. He said that he had been living in Nablus for a month. I asked him if he kept a diary or a journal. He glanced at my notebook said that it was best not to keep a written record: “The Israelis will read it at the airport and put you on a black list if they see any pro-Palestine sentiments.” Really?
Only a few details differed in the second killing. Raed Surkaji had been an activist some seven years before, and had been sent to an Israeli prison. He had been released eleven months ago, as part of a negotiated arrangement between the Palestine Authority and Israel. Since that time he had been living in Nablus. This fateful morning he had been sleeping with his pregnant wife when the Israeli soldiers arrived and knocked down the door of his house. He too had been shot in the face through the glass (see Figure 5) when he went up to the door.
Raed’s wife told Ala that she had pleaded with the soldiers to stop, but they kept shooting her husband long after he had died. They told her that she should be happy that they were letting her live. The commander came running up from the alley and pumped more bullets into the chest of the corpse. Then they had all left, laughing and shouting victorious slogans. Ala said that he had come to the house earlier that morning. At that time, the room had not been cleaned and there was flesh and brain substance all over the place. He pointed to two soap bars that still had some grisly matter on them (see Figure 6).
When I approached Raed’s wife, she pointed to her foot. Ala told me that when she walked out of the room glass shards had pierced her foot. She was unable to walk and had to be carried to the hospital for treatment. I had composed something to say to her, but when I looked into her eyes, I too found that I could not speak, just like my wife in the previous house. I touched her foot silently. But this time my wife managed to get out some words: she told Raed’s wife that she was sorry for her loss. Ala translated and the woman said “she was honored that we cared.” We were quite overcome with sadness when we left.
Outside, Ala wanted to go to the third house right away. He told us that this case was different—the man who was killed had worked in the Palestine Authority security service. Therefore he had had a pistol with him. He had hidden himself in the cellar when he heard the noise outside, but it had mattered little; he too was killed as swiftly as the others.
“How far is the house?” I asked Ala.
“Only a kilometer away.”
I looked at my wife, and she shook her head. We had seen enough.
We discussed the day’s events over a late lunch. The first and most obvious question was why the three men had been killed. On this question, Issa and Ala had different opinions.
Issa thought that the operation was Israeli retaliation for some crime that the three men had committed. An Israeli settler, Meir Avshalom Hai, from the nearby settlement of Shavei Shomron had been killed in his car on Christmas Eve. The al-Aqsa Martyr Brigade had already claimed responsibility for the killing. Issa was positive that the Israelis would have had evidence connecting the three people to the killing of the settler.
Ala was skeptical. He said that neither Ghasan nor Raed was armed, and even the Israelis would not claim that they possessed deadly weapons. According to the family and the neighbors, the men did have active links to al-Aqsa. “These killings were random,” Ala declared. “These guys were simply no use alive to the Israelis,” he said.
I could not accept the idea of random killings by the Israeli government. Since December 26, I have read all I could find on the Nablus operation, though I am handicapped by having to limit myself to English sources. News reports in Israel and Palestine are susceptible to the spin from the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority, which makes it difficult to piece together even simple aspects of the truth. For example, Ala had told us that a “large number of people” had attended the funeral of the three people on December 26, but estimates of this large number varied from “a few thousand” to “about 10,000” to “well over 20,000,” depending on whether you read the Jerusalem Post, Haaretz, Al Jazeera, or the Ma’an News Agency. (The first one is pro-Israel, the last is pro-Palestine, and the other two are somewhere in-between.) Another detail on which there is no agreement is the spelling of the names of the people killed. This may well be a problem of transliterating Arabic names; I myself have rendered the names the way Ala spelled them out for me.
Much more disconcerting than these discrepancies in inessential details is the wholesale disagreement among the news sources on crucial facts, such as: the location where the men were killed (inside the house, upstairs, downstairs), whether they had been armed, whether they had been given a chance to surrender, whether taking prisoners was an option, etc. The following is a small selection of key points in the news reports I read.
The Ma’an News Agency2 mentions that the second man, Raed, was shot not only in front of his wife but also in front of his two children. This detail did not emerge in our meeting with Raed’s wife, but perhaps it was true and she did not consider it important to mention her children. The new report also indicates that the first man, Ghasan, was taken outside his house and shot. This does not match the physical evidence we saw in the house and I have puzzled over how the report could have gotten it so wrong. Perhaps it’s a cultural thing; could it be that the downstairs area where Ghasan was killed is not considered to be part of the house proper?
Al Jazeera3 notes that “the three men targeted by the Israelis had been disarmed under security measures taken by [the Palestinian Authority President] Abbas's police force.” The inference we are asked to make is that this was a cold-blooded execution of unarmed men.
The Jerusalem Post states4 that the Israelis soldiers came from the Judea and Samaria Division’s Special Forces unit and the Kfir Brigade’s battalion under the command of Col. Itzik Bar. The Post is unequivocal that the three men killed were Al-Aqsa Martyr Brigade operatives, and claims that the Israelis recovered two M-16’s and two pistols in the third man’s hideout, contradicting the Al Jazeera version. It also claims that Raed “left his house holding his wife in front of him” and the IDF troops “acting on information that he was armed, opened fire, killing [Raed] and wounding his wife in the leg.” This certainly does not match the physical evidence of destruction in the house that we saw ourselves, nor does it match Raed’s wife’s testimony. If I had to guess, I would say that this version of events is an Israeli attempt to spin the killing as an operational decision rather than a pre-meditated execution. Also according to the Jerusalem Post, “the troops entered Ghasan’s home, which was filled with other family members, located him and shot him dead as well. No one else was hurt.” In these sentences one can see only the mildest form of retrospective rationalization—it seems more humane than the account we ourselves had heard of Ghasan being shot dead in front of a single person: his mother.
Western sources such as BBC5 are disappointing; they simply stitch together reports based on what the Israeli forces or the Palestinian Authority said, without any attempt at independent verification. Fox News6 is an exception: it gives a revised Israeli version offered for American consumption: “The forces surrounded the homes of the three ... Lerner, the army major, said all three turned down a chance to surrender. Lerner confirmed that none of the wanted men returned fire, including Subeh [the third man], who had two pistols and two assault rifles on him ... Asked why soldiers opened fire, Lerner said troops "had to operate under the assumption that they (the suspects) are dangerous."” However, Fox makes it clear that it has not bought this explanation. It notes that “the relatives of [Ghasan] and [Raed] said they were killed without warning.”
Where does this leave us? My wife and I have talked about this experience over and over, and have been led to a modest but inexorable conclusion: whatever we heard in translation in the two houses was the simple truth. We may be gullible American tourists, but there is a different, more compelling reason for our conclusion—real grief is difficult to fake. We cannot conceive of a reality in which Raed’s wife and Ghasan’s mother would be so depraved as to portray the deaths of their loved ones other than how they actually happened, just in order to suit some twisted ideology. Therefore we believe that the Israeli forces did execute two unarmed men in cold blood and keep putting bullets into them long after they had died.
This conclusion is troubling when combined with what the news sources actually agree on. All reports generally accept that the “termination” operation had been authorized at the highest levels of the Israeli government. Indeed, Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, had praised the commando operation in Nablus, and said that Israel would “continue to defend aggressively and respond to every attack against Israeli citizens and every rocket strike.”7 This high-level sanction makes the operation more chilling. Even if Netanyahu had conclusive evidence linking the three men to the killing of the Israeli settler, there should be better accountability and due process in a law-abiding nation. The three men could easily have been arrested, given the overwhelming force that the Israelis had against them. Why was it necessary to raid the houses and kill unarmed men with great brutality in front of their family, and then walk away with impunity? Surely this cannot be the way of civilized countries.
As we continued our travels through other cities in Israel, I discussed the Nablus killings with various people. When I brought up the disturbing question mentioned above, I was surprised by the similar answer that I got independently from two persons who occupy relatively high positions. Disclosing their job description will be tantamount to disclosing who they are, so I will avoid that; in any case, it is their response that is revealing. One of them put it this way: “It’s important for the Israeli government to show that it’s always in control. It’s not so important to be right. It’s not so important to kill the real perpetrators, but it’s very important to send a message. The message is that retaliation for any aggression will be swift, overwhelming, and precise. It’s irrelevant if the real culprits in the killing of the Shavei Shomron settler got away.”
Al Jazeera and Haaretz mentioned that the US government has “questioned” Israel over the operation. As American citizens, my wife and I intend to offer our account to the State Department and to our Congressman, along with the photographs I took. We will do this as a matter of civic duty, but we are not good witnesses. What we saw and heard came after the fact, and may have lost many details in translation. The best witnesses are people like Raed’s wife and Ghasan’s mother. If the US government or UN observers or human rights organizations wish to interview them, they will find a compelling story. From our experience, they are not afraid to talk. Whether it will help in bringing about peace is a different matter.
Israel to extend Ahmad Saadat’s solitary confinement, breaking agreement with Palestinian prisoners
October 29, 2011
by Adam Horowitz
Source:Mondoweiss
Shahd Abusalama reports that Israel has extended the solidarity confinement of Ahmad Saadat. Saadat, the secretary-general of the PFLP, was rumored to be included in the recent prisoner swap, but Israel nixed it. The fact that Saadat is going to be kept in solidarity confinement breaks the agreement Israel just reached with Palestinian prisoners in order to end their recent three-week hunger strike.
Abusalama writes:
A friend of mine who had the sit-in tent as a shelter during the hunger strike of our prisoners and who himself joined the hunger strike in solidarity texted me that Ahmad Saadat, the PFLP secretary-general, is bound to serve one more full year of pain in isolation. They have ignored the worrying health condition of Saadat as a result of the carelessness of medical care along with his solitary confinement which started since March 16, 2009. Saadat was not allowed any visitations and even denied his right to write or receive letters from his family during his solitary confinement.
Saadat was sent to court ignoring his lawyer, who never received a notice regarding this court session. The Ad-Dameer, one of the human rights organizations, stated that by sentencing Saadat to solitary confinement for an additional year, the court violated promises by the Israeli Prison Administration to receive treatment that is guaranteed by the International law. No justification for this criminal and illegal decision has been provided.
My internal conflict and my worries reached its peak as I remembered when I was sitting with Loai Odeh, one of the released prisoners in Shalit’s swap deal and who participated in the hunger strike, and said that “the mental health of the prisoners who are in isolation should be expected to be in jeopardy after two or three years of isolation and that was the first motif for us to take that step; hunger striking till solitary confinement is no more.”
“It would be difficult for a prisoner in a normal jail to pass through his imprisonment without suffering psychological problems or at least depression, so imagine how difficult it would be for a prisoner in the solitary confinement for long time.” Loai continued. No wonder that is true; the mankind is a sociable creature, and if one is totally isolated from the outer world in a very narrow cell in which light could barely sneak, psychological and mental problems are hardly avoidable.
by Adam Horowitz
Source:Mondoweiss
Shahd Abusalama reports that Israel has extended the solidarity confinement of Ahmad Saadat. Saadat, the secretary-general of the PFLP, was rumored to be included in the recent prisoner swap, but Israel nixed it. The fact that Saadat is going to be kept in solidarity confinement breaks the agreement Israel just reached with Palestinian prisoners in order to end their recent three-week hunger strike.
Abusalama writes:
A friend of mine who had the sit-in tent as a shelter during the hunger strike of our prisoners and who himself joined the hunger strike in solidarity texted me that Ahmad Saadat, the PFLP secretary-general, is bound to serve one more full year of pain in isolation. They have ignored the worrying health condition of Saadat as a result of the carelessness of medical care along with his solitary confinement which started since March 16, 2009. Saadat was not allowed any visitations and even denied his right to write or receive letters from his family during his solitary confinement.
Saadat was sent to court ignoring his lawyer, who never received a notice regarding this court session. The Ad-Dameer, one of the human rights organizations, stated that by sentencing Saadat to solitary confinement for an additional year, the court violated promises by the Israeli Prison Administration to receive treatment that is guaranteed by the International law. No justification for this criminal and illegal decision has been provided.
My internal conflict and my worries reached its peak as I remembered when I was sitting with Loai Odeh, one of the released prisoners in Shalit’s swap deal and who participated in the hunger strike, and said that “the mental health of the prisoners who are in isolation should be expected to be in jeopardy after two or three years of isolation and that was the first motif for us to take that step; hunger striking till solitary confinement is no more.”
“It would be difficult for a prisoner in a normal jail to pass through his imprisonment without suffering psychological problems or at least depression, so imagine how difficult it would be for a prisoner in the solitary confinement for long time.” Loai continued. No wonder that is true; the mankind is a sociable creature, and if one is totally isolated from the outer world in a very narrow cell in which light could barely sneak, psychological and mental problems are hardly avoidable.
Don’t tell my mother that I have become blind
October 26, 2011
Source; Palestine From My Eyes
Mohammad Barash is a disabled political prisoner inside Nafha Prison; one of 85 prisoners who are either physically or mentally disabled. On the 17th of February, 2003, he was arrested after he was badly injured, and despite his disability, which resulted from his injuries, he was given three life sentences plus 35 years. He is still continuing his struggle with pride inside a cell paying a double price; his precious years of prime and the consequences of zionist entity’s crimes.
Mohammed Barash wrote a letter to his mother from Eichel prison in Beersheba, in title “Don’t tell my mother that I have become blind”:
‘Don’t tell my mother that I can no longer see. She can see me but I can’t see. I fake my smiles when she shows me the photographs of my siblings, friends, and neighbors as she doesn’t know, that I have become blind after illness spread in my eyes till the darkness filled me.
Don’t tell her that I waited for several years to have a surgery to plant a cornea. But the Israeli Prison Service kept on procrastinating and procrastinating providing my eyes all reasons to leave me.
Don’t tell my mother that the shrapnel of bullets and the bombs which managed to hit me is still settling in my body, and that my left leg had been mutilated and replaced by a plastic one. Don’t tell her that the other leg rotted and dried of blood and life.
Don’t tell my mother that the prisoner’s emotions got stripped of the most basic elements of human life as he is sentenced to see only ashes and iron, lightless life and hopelessness.
Tell her that I am alive and safe. Tell her that I can see, walk, run, play, jump, write and read. Don’t tell her that I am shouldering my pains on my walking stick, and I can picture every martyr as a moon souring in the sky and calling me with the power of lightning, thunder and clouds.
Don’t tell her that I suffer from sleepless nights, and that I live under the mercy of the pain killers till it drugs my body. Don’t tell her that I keep twiddling my stuff till I barge into the iron beds or another prisoner sleeping close to me, to wake him up to help me reach the bathroom. Don’t tell her that wakefulness always hurts me and sleep never visits me.
Don’t tell her that a piece of lead entered my eye in that bloody day in the camp streets. They aggressively shot me until my leg was cut off, and my eye was gone. And before I fainted I saw a little kid running toward me waving the Palestinian flag while screaming: a martyr, a martyr.
Tell her that my dream is not enough. My nostalgia for her is too much and her soul never leaves me. I still have from her my language, my purity, my symbols stuck on the wall, all of which heal my pain every time the light disappears around me.
Tell her that I always embrace her holy prayers, to survive from the dark cloud that surrounds me after my body has tortured me. I might get back to her or I might not, but I left the answer to this question open, although I’ve chosen spiritually to be close to her heart, as if I chose my future, of which I have officially no control.
Don’t tell her that Israel, a country in the 21st century, has turned the prisons into places where diseases are planted and bodies are ruined slowly; and slowly, it turned to be fields of trial for living people whose death is inevitable sooner or later.
Don’t tell her that I have become knowledgeable of all names of horrible illnesses and strange medications, along with all types of pain killers, while I’m witnessing my friend Zakariyya diving into a coma, with an ending unknown to me.
Don’t tell my mother about the sick prisoners whose diseases launched an insane war against their bodies: Ahmad Abu Errab, Khaled Ashawish, Ahmad El-Najjar, Mansour Mowqeda, Akram Mansour, Ahmad Samara, Wafaa El-Bis, Reema Daraghma, Tareq Asi, Mo’tasim Radad, Riyad Al-Amour, Yasir Nazzal, Ashraf Abu-Thare’, Jihad Abu-Haniyy. The merciless Israeli prisons slaughter them; illness and carelessness of a country that enjoys slow death sentences and funerals for others.
Tell her that I am still 30 doors away from you and I get closer every time a bird flies and a fire flames up my eye, and barbed wires wound me, carrying me to your arms and to your prayers.’
his was Mohammad’s letter to his mother which unveils the inhumane nature of Israel which claims to be the only democracy in the Middle East while violating the most fundamental human values. I meant to share with you those powerful words he wrote in Arabic to help you picture the torturous conditions that the prisoners endure inside the Israeli cells, especially the disabled.
The core of their shameful crimes which offend any sense of propriety in any heart with any shred of conscience, were done under the banner of maintaining security. However, in this case where those disabled prisoners can hardly threaten their holy safety, how would they justify this?
Source; Palestine From My Eyes
Mohammad Barash is a disabled political prisoner inside Nafha Prison; one of 85 prisoners who are either physically or mentally disabled. On the 17th of February, 2003, he was arrested after he was badly injured, and despite his disability, which resulted from his injuries, he was given three life sentences plus 35 years. He is still continuing his struggle with pride inside a cell paying a double price; his precious years of prime and the consequences of zionist entity’s crimes.
Mohammed Barash wrote a letter to his mother from Eichel prison in Beersheba, in title “Don’t tell my mother that I have become blind”:
‘Don’t tell my mother that I can no longer see. She can see me but I can’t see. I fake my smiles when she shows me the photographs of my siblings, friends, and neighbors as she doesn’t know, that I have become blind after illness spread in my eyes till the darkness filled me.
Don’t tell her that I waited for several years to have a surgery to plant a cornea. But the Israeli Prison Service kept on procrastinating and procrastinating providing my eyes all reasons to leave me.
Don’t tell my mother that the shrapnel of bullets and the bombs which managed to hit me is still settling in my body, and that my left leg had been mutilated and replaced by a plastic one. Don’t tell her that the other leg rotted and dried of blood and life.
Don’t tell my mother that the prisoner’s emotions got stripped of the most basic elements of human life as he is sentenced to see only ashes and iron, lightless life and hopelessness.
Tell her that I am alive and safe. Tell her that I can see, walk, run, play, jump, write and read. Don’t tell her that I am shouldering my pains on my walking stick, and I can picture every martyr as a moon souring in the sky and calling me with the power of lightning, thunder and clouds.
Don’t tell her that I suffer from sleepless nights, and that I live under the mercy of the pain killers till it drugs my body. Don’t tell her that I keep twiddling my stuff till I barge into the iron beds or another prisoner sleeping close to me, to wake him up to help me reach the bathroom. Don’t tell her that wakefulness always hurts me and sleep never visits me.
Don’t tell her that a piece of lead entered my eye in that bloody day in the camp streets. They aggressively shot me until my leg was cut off, and my eye was gone. And before I fainted I saw a little kid running toward me waving the Palestinian flag while screaming: a martyr, a martyr.
Tell her that my dream is not enough. My nostalgia for her is too much and her soul never leaves me. I still have from her my language, my purity, my symbols stuck on the wall, all of which heal my pain every time the light disappears around me.
Tell her that I always embrace her holy prayers, to survive from the dark cloud that surrounds me after my body has tortured me. I might get back to her or I might not, but I left the answer to this question open, although I’ve chosen spiritually to be close to her heart, as if I chose my future, of which I have officially no control.
Don’t tell her that Israel, a country in the 21st century, has turned the prisons into places where diseases are planted and bodies are ruined slowly; and slowly, it turned to be fields of trial for living people whose death is inevitable sooner or later.
Don’t tell her that I have become knowledgeable of all names of horrible illnesses and strange medications, along with all types of pain killers, while I’m witnessing my friend Zakariyya diving into a coma, with an ending unknown to me.
Don’t tell my mother about the sick prisoners whose diseases launched an insane war against their bodies: Ahmad Abu Errab, Khaled Ashawish, Ahmad El-Najjar, Mansour Mowqeda, Akram Mansour, Ahmad Samara, Wafaa El-Bis, Reema Daraghma, Tareq Asi, Mo’tasim Radad, Riyad Al-Amour, Yasir Nazzal, Ashraf Abu-Thare’, Jihad Abu-Haniyy. The merciless Israeli prisons slaughter them; illness and carelessness of a country that enjoys slow death sentences and funerals for others.
Tell her that I am still 30 doors away from you and I get closer every time a bird flies and a fire flames up my eye, and barbed wires wound me, carrying me to your arms and to your prayers.’
his was Mohammad’s letter to his mother which unveils the inhumane nature of Israel which claims to be the only democracy in the Middle East while violating the most fundamental human values. I meant to share with you those powerful words he wrote in Arabic to help you picture the torturous conditions that the prisoners endure inside the Israeli cells, especially the disabled.
The core of their shameful crimes which offend any sense of propriety in any heart with any shred of conscience, were done under the banner of maintaining security. However, in this case where those disabled prisoners can hardly threaten their holy safety, how would they justify this?
Israel censors Palestinian textbooks in East Jerusalem
10/25/2011
by Jalal Abukhater
Source: Electronic Intifada
In this article previously published on +972 magazine, I discuss the censorship of material in Palestinian textbooks in East Jerusalem schools — a clearly illegal and dangerous move by the Jerusalem Education Adminstration (JEA).
Israeli authorities are attempting to impose new censored textbooks in Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem. Jalal Abukhater provides a sample of the changes and argues that censorship of Palestinian heritage and history is illegal, ineffective and dangerous. Students and parents are mounting protests.
While the mainstream media has been dominated by big stories, others are not getting enough attention. For example, Israel’s Jerusalem Education Administration (JEA) recently decided to enforce the use of new, censored textbooks in all private schools in East Jerusalem. The JEA is a joint body of the Jerusalem municipality and the Israeli Ministry of Education. At present, public Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem administrated by the JEA are already forced to use Israel-issued censored textbooks, and the JEA is trying to force private schools to use them too, despite the fact that it has no authority over them.
The decision was an initiative of Knesset Member Alex Miller from Yisrael Beiteinu, who is also head of the Knesset’s education committee. Miller stated (Hebrew) that in East Jerusalem “the whole curriculum should and must be Israeli.”
At the start of the 2011-2012 academic year, students and parents protested against the decision to impose the new censored curricula upon their schools. Students and parents have threatened to escalate their protests if the JEA keeps up its pressure and have said they will not attend the schools if the school administrations comply with the JEA decision. This action by the Israeli Education Ministry is completely illegal under international law, which considers East Jerusalem to be occupied territory; as such the move is yet another direct violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, specifically Article 13 of the ICESCR. The move aims to deform Palestinian identity; the changes in the textbooks are dangerous and cannot be ignored.
I have obtained a copy of a report that highlights the modifications made by the JEA to the Palestinian textbooks that have been used since the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords in 1993. The report lists most of the changes made to textbooks used from first to tenth grade.
1. The logo of the Palestinian Authority that has been printed on all book covers has been removed and replaced with the logo of Jerusalem Municipality.
2. In the censored textbooks, every mention and picture of a Palestinian flag has been removed, even in the coloring books for six-year olds.
3. Also in the first grade textbooks, a story about a female prisoner returning home, and a poem about the “dawn of freedom” were deleted from the censored versions.
4. All mention of the terms Nakba (meaning “catastrophe,” referring to Palestinian dispersion/exodus in 1948) and Palestinian right of return have been removed, including poems by exiled Palestinian poets expressing their longing for their beautiful homeland. Poems and songs about the beauty of Palestinian landscapes or poems that mention Israeli checkpoints have also been deleted.
5. Earlier history – from hundreds of years ago – is being equally censored. In the fourth-grade textbook, a story about Saladin and the Battle of Hattin was deleted from existence for no apparent reason. Similarly a story about the Siege of Acre during the Napoleonic invasion has been deleted.
6. In fact, all mentions of the city of Acre have been removed including a poem which calls Acre “the bride of the sea” and a story about students visiting the city for the first time. Additionally, all mentions of Jerusalem as “Al Quds” have been removed; a story in the second-grade textbook about a field trip to the Old City of Jerusalem has also been removed.
7. Any mention of Israel as an occupying force or East Jerusalem as an occupied city have been removed. This aims to assert Israeli control over occupied Palestinian lands behind the 1967 armistice lines. Furthermore, Palestinians inside Israel are not referred to as Palestinians anymore, anywhere.
8. Stories, songs, and poems about of the first and second Palestinian uprisings have all been deleted. Here is a sample the report cites from a deleted song that the JEA accuses of inciting to violence, translated: “Jerusalem is waiting for the dark occupation to wither away and for the bright day of freedom to arrive.” This is the only part of the song cited in the report.
9. In the geography textbooks of eight-grade students, the issue of pollution in the Palestinian environment addresses the waste sewage water dumped by settlements in the West Bank onto Palestinian villages; this whole lesson has been deleted. Also in all geography textbooks, facts about the Palestinian water crisis – such as in the Jordan Valley where roughly 8,000 settlers receive 20 times more water than almost 2.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank – are entirely deleted, in the newly censored textbooks.
10. In ninth and tenth grade history textbooks, almost the whole book has been deleted. Whole units that address the Palestinian issue from the time of the Balfour declaration (1917) until the Nakba (1948) have been deleted, leaving blank white pages for students to stare at.
David Ben-Gurion once said in a conversation with Nahum Goldman: “That is natural: we have taken their country […] Why should they accept that? They may perhaps forget in one or two generations’ time, but for the moment there is no chance.”
We have not forgotten, and we will never be forced to forget.
This issue is dangerous beyond description, and such illegal acts must not be allowed to pass unnoticed. People must act quickly and support the schools that have refused to deal with such misleading textbooks. The JEA has now threatened to cut funding to those schools, which are in need of support.
Everyone has the right to preserve his or her identity, heritage and history. All people have the right to receive proper education at schools they attend; no one deserves to receive censored, politicized propaganda that aims to control the minds of young people in any way. We will not be forced to forget nor will we be forced into ignorance about our own identity.
by Jalal Abukhater
Source: Electronic Intifada
In this article previously published on +972 magazine, I discuss the censorship of material in Palestinian textbooks in East Jerusalem schools — a clearly illegal and dangerous move by the Jerusalem Education Adminstration (JEA).
Israeli authorities are attempting to impose new censored textbooks in Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem. Jalal Abukhater provides a sample of the changes and argues that censorship of Palestinian heritage and history is illegal, ineffective and dangerous. Students and parents are mounting protests.
While the mainstream media has been dominated by big stories, others are not getting enough attention. For example, Israel’s Jerusalem Education Administration (JEA) recently decided to enforce the use of new, censored textbooks in all private schools in East Jerusalem. The JEA is a joint body of the Jerusalem municipality and the Israeli Ministry of Education. At present, public Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem administrated by the JEA are already forced to use Israel-issued censored textbooks, and the JEA is trying to force private schools to use them too, despite the fact that it has no authority over them.
The decision was an initiative of Knesset Member Alex Miller from Yisrael Beiteinu, who is also head of the Knesset’s education committee. Miller stated (Hebrew) that in East Jerusalem “the whole curriculum should and must be Israeli.”
At the start of the 2011-2012 academic year, students and parents protested against the decision to impose the new censored curricula upon their schools. Students and parents have threatened to escalate their protests if the JEA keeps up its pressure and have said they will not attend the schools if the school administrations comply with the JEA decision. This action by the Israeli Education Ministry is completely illegal under international law, which considers East Jerusalem to be occupied territory; as such the move is yet another direct violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, specifically Article 13 of the ICESCR. The move aims to deform Palestinian identity; the changes in the textbooks are dangerous and cannot be ignored.
I have obtained a copy of a report that highlights the modifications made by the JEA to the Palestinian textbooks that have been used since the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords in 1993. The report lists most of the changes made to textbooks used from first to tenth grade.
1. The logo of the Palestinian Authority that has been printed on all book covers has been removed and replaced with the logo of Jerusalem Municipality.
2. In the censored textbooks, every mention and picture of a Palestinian flag has been removed, even in the coloring books for six-year olds.
3. Also in the first grade textbooks, a story about a female prisoner returning home, and a poem about the “dawn of freedom” were deleted from the censored versions.
4. All mention of the terms Nakba (meaning “catastrophe,” referring to Palestinian dispersion/exodus in 1948) and Palestinian right of return have been removed, including poems by exiled Palestinian poets expressing their longing for their beautiful homeland. Poems and songs about the beauty of Palestinian landscapes or poems that mention Israeli checkpoints have also been deleted.
5. Earlier history – from hundreds of years ago – is being equally censored. In the fourth-grade textbook, a story about Saladin and the Battle of Hattin was deleted from existence for no apparent reason. Similarly a story about the Siege of Acre during the Napoleonic invasion has been deleted.
6. In fact, all mentions of the city of Acre have been removed including a poem which calls Acre “the bride of the sea” and a story about students visiting the city for the first time. Additionally, all mentions of Jerusalem as “Al Quds” have been removed; a story in the second-grade textbook about a field trip to the Old City of Jerusalem has also been removed.
7. Any mention of Israel as an occupying force or East Jerusalem as an occupied city have been removed. This aims to assert Israeli control over occupied Palestinian lands behind the 1967 armistice lines. Furthermore, Palestinians inside Israel are not referred to as Palestinians anymore, anywhere.
8. Stories, songs, and poems about of the first and second Palestinian uprisings have all been deleted. Here is a sample the report cites from a deleted song that the JEA accuses of inciting to violence, translated: “Jerusalem is waiting for the dark occupation to wither away and for the bright day of freedom to arrive.” This is the only part of the song cited in the report.
9. In the geography textbooks of eight-grade students, the issue of pollution in the Palestinian environment addresses the waste sewage water dumped by settlements in the West Bank onto Palestinian villages; this whole lesson has been deleted. Also in all geography textbooks, facts about the Palestinian water crisis – such as in the Jordan Valley where roughly 8,000 settlers receive 20 times more water than almost 2.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank – are entirely deleted, in the newly censored textbooks.
10. In ninth and tenth grade history textbooks, almost the whole book has been deleted. Whole units that address the Palestinian issue from the time of the Balfour declaration (1917) until the Nakba (1948) have been deleted, leaving blank white pages for students to stare at.
David Ben-Gurion once said in a conversation with Nahum Goldman: “That is natural: we have taken their country […] Why should they accept that? They may perhaps forget in one or two generations’ time, but for the moment there is no chance.”
We have not forgotten, and we will never be forced to forget.
This issue is dangerous beyond description, and such illegal acts must not be allowed to pass unnoticed. People must act quickly and support the schools that have refused to deal with such misleading textbooks. The JEA has now threatened to cut funding to those schools, which are in need of support.
Everyone has the right to preserve his or her identity, heritage and history. All people have the right to receive proper education at schools they attend; no one deserves to receive censored, politicized propaganda that aims to control the minds of young people in any way. We will not be forced to forget nor will we be forced into ignorance about our own identity.
Al-Aqsa Foundation Warns against Demolishing Mosque Passage
26/10/2011
Source: Palestine News & Information Agency - WAFA
JERUSALEM, October 26, 2011 (WAFA) – The al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and Heritage in Jerusalem Wednesday warned of dangerous repercussions if the Israeli municipality proceeds to demolish Magharbe Gate passage to al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City.
If implemented, it said, it would lead to the demolition of a section of the Mosque itself.
The Foundation called in a press release on the Arab and Islamic world to take immediate action to save al-Aqsa mosque from the Israeli occupation plans.
It said the Israeli decision to demolish the passage, which is in the shape of a wooden overpass that connects the yard of the Western Wall below to al-Aqsa compound, clearly shows Israeli determination to demolish a section of the mosque rather than what it claims that it is simply demolishing a temporary wooden bridge.
“We have repeatedly unveiled through maps, documents and pictures the dimension of the Israeli plan to demolish Magharbe Gate and to build another one in its place as it aims to build a fortified bridge for military reasons to facilitate large scale incursions of fully equipped Israeli forces, settlers and Jewish groups into the Mosque area,” it said.
It considered implementing such a decision as part of targeting al-Aqsa Mosque to assume full control over it through building tunnels and synagogues, which are part of a comprehensive plan to turn it into a Jewish site.
It added that the demolition of the gate could cause damage and cracks in the structure of al-Aqsa Mosque, especially in its western wall, similar to what happened several years ago.
The mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, also warned of the consequences of demolishing the passage.
“This Israeli aggression aims to control all entrances to al-Aqsa Mosque thus allowing the occupation forces and herds of settlers to break into the Mosque as they want, leading to serious complications which affects the security of the Mosque and the Muslim worshipers,” he said.
He added that the passage, which the Israeli authorities have tampered with several years ago, would not have become in danger of collapse if it was not for the ongoing Israeli digging underneath the Mosque.
“Al-Aqsa Mosque belongs to Muslims in all parts of the world and no one else has the right to manage, supervise and take care of its affairs,” he said.
The Israeli municipality of Jerusalem claimed that Magharbe Gate passage was in danger of collapse or fire and must be demolished within 30 days.
T.R./M.S.
Source: Palestine News & Information Agency - WAFA
JERUSALEM, October 26, 2011 (WAFA) – The al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and Heritage in Jerusalem Wednesday warned of dangerous repercussions if the Israeli municipality proceeds to demolish Magharbe Gate passage to al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City.
If implemented, it said, it would lead to the demolition of a section of the Mosque itself.
The Foundation called in a press release on the Arab and Islamic world to take immediate action to save al-Aqsa mosque from the Israeli occupation plans.
It said the Israeli decision to demolish the passage, which is in the shape of a wooden overpass that connects the yard of the Western Wall below to al-Aqsa compound, clearly shows Israeli determination to demolish a section of the mosque rather than what it claims that it is simply demolishing a temporary wooden bridge.
“We have repeatedly unveiled through maps, documents and pictures the dimension of the Israeli plan to demolish Magharbe Gate and to build another one in its place as it aims to build a fortified bridge for military reasons to facilitate large scale incursions of fully equipped Israeli forces, settlers and Jewish groups into the Mosque area,” it said.
It considered implementing such a decision as part of targeting al-Aqsa Mosque to assume full control over it through building tunnels and synagogues, which are part of a comprehensive plan to turn it into a Jewish site.
It added that the demolition of the gate could cause damage and cracks in the structure of al-Aqsa Mosque, especially in its western wall, similar to what happened several years ago.
The mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, also warned of the consequences of demolishing the passage.
“This Israeli aggression aims to control all entrances to al-Aqsa Mosque thus allowing the occupation forces and herds of settlers to break into the Mosque as they want, leading to serious complications which affects the security of the Mosque and the Muslim worshipers,” he said.
He added that the passage, which the Israeli authorities have tampered with several years ago, would not have become in danger of collapse if it was not for the ongoing Israeli digging underneath the Mosque.
“Al-Aqsa Mosque belongs to Muslims in all parts of the world and no one else has the right to manage, supervise and take care of its affairs,” he said.
The Israeli municipality of Jerusalem claimed that Magharbe Gate passage was in danger of collapse or fire and must be demolished within 30 days.
T.R./M.S.
Tenn. protesters defy curfew a 3rd time
10 mins ago
By KRISTIN M. HALL - Associated Press
Source:Yahoo News
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Occupy Wall Street protesters chanted slogans, danced to stay warm and defiantly protested into the early hours Sunday near Tennessee's Capitol building, squaring off for the third consecutive night against state authorities.
"Whose plaza? Our plaza!" about 50 demonstrators chanted early Sunday in defiance of an official curfew.
Capitol police sporadically made their rounds and a state trooper occasionally walked past the protest in the pre-dawn hours, but authorities signaled no immediate attempt to make arrests as law enforcement agents had done on the two previous nights.
Elizabeth Sharpe, 20, took part Sunday and said she was inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement after seeing a 2003 documentary called "The Corporation." She said she felt the need to be an activist in the movement that expresses opposition to perceived greed on Wall Street and across corporate America.
"How can I as an individual change this?" she asked, speaking with an Associated Press reporter. With the Occupy moment's far-flung reach across American cities, she said she felt there was strength in numbers, adding, ""I got for the first time a glimpse of hope."
Some danced to keep warm on a chilly morning and others shivered in the frosty air, huddling under blankets.
The protesters have been galvanized by the friction between state officials and the local magistrate. Several new demonstrators showed up at the state-owned plaza near the Capitol for the first time earlier in the day.
As many as 75 people initially remained after the curfew that started at 10 p.m. CDT and runs until 6 a.m. But by early morning only about 50 people remained and police did not make any immediate attempt to disband the protest.
On previous nights, the defiance had triggered arrests. Earlier Nashville arrests came after a week of police crackdowns nationwide on Occupy Wall Street activists. Clashes have occurred in other cities, including Oakland, Calif., Denver and Atlanta.
In Oakland, Calif., an Iraq War veteran was seriously injured during a protest clash with police Tuesday night. In Atlanta, helicopters hovered overhead Wednesday as officers in riot gear arrested more than 50 protesters at a downtown park. In San Diego, police arrested a similar number of people who occupied the Civic Center Plaza and Children's Park for three weeks. And in Denver on Saturday evening, authorities moved into an encampment of protesters and began arresting demonstrators just hours after a standoff near the steps of the Colorado Capitol turned into a skirmish that ended in police force, including pepper spray and reports of rubber bullets.
Nashville magistrate Tom Nelson has said recently that there's no legal reason in his city to keep the demonstrators behind bars and he has released them after each arrest. He has refused each night to sign off on arrest warrants for more than two dozen people taken into custody.
Some legal experts agreed with the judge.
The arrests appeared to be a violation of First Amendment rights that allow for people to peacefully assemble, said attorney David Raybin, a former prosecutor. He and others said the nature of the arrests, coupled with the judge's refusal to sign off on the warrants, could become ammunition for lawsuits.
"The government is exposing itself to serious liability here by doing this," Raybin said.
Nelson did not return an email seeking and a phone number for him could not be found.
State troopers had begun enforcing the curfew at the Legislative Plaza on Thursday night.
Others questioned the timing of the curfew. The protesters had been demonstrating for about three weeks before it took effect, a point that Nelson said he factored into his decision.
"You can't pass a curfew mid-protest because you disagree with this group of protesters," said criminal defense attorney Patrick Frogge, who is representing some of those arrested.
The state Department of Safety has been carrying out the arrests. Commissioner Bill Gibbons, who until he joined the Haslam administration was the district attorney in Memphis, said he didn't have a role in developing the curfew but assured Haslam his department could enforce it.
Gibbons developed a reputation as an able and tough prosecutor in Memphis, where gang and drug violence have been problems for years. He ran against Haslam for governor in the GOP primary, touting his law-and-order credential and sharply attacking his multi-million-dollar opponent for refusing to divulge how much income he gets from the family-owned chain of Pilot truck stops.
By KRISTIN M. HALL - Associated Press
Source:Yahoo News
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Occupy Wall Street protesters chanted slogans, danced to stay warm and defiantly protested into the early hours Sunday near Tennessee's Capitol building, squaring off for the third consecutive night against state authorities.
"Whose plaza? Our plaza!" about 50 demonstrators chanted early Sunday in defiance of an official curfew.
Capitol police sporadically made their rounds and a state trooper occasionally walked past the protest in the pre-dawn hours, but authorities signaled no immediate attempt to make arrests as law enforcement agents had done on the two previous nights.
Elizabeth Sharpe, 20, took part Sunday and said she was inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement after seeing a 2003 documentary called "The Corporation." She said she felt the need to be an activist in the movement that expresses opposition to perceived greed on Wall Street and across corporate America.
"How can I as an individual change this?" she asked, speaking with an Associated Press reporter. With the Occupy moment's far-flung reach across American cities, she said she felt there was strength in numbers, adding, ""I got for the first time a glimpse of hope."
Some danced to keep warm on a chilly morning and others shivered in the frosty air, huddling under blankets.
The protesters have been galvanized by the friction between state officials and the local magistrate. Several new demonstrators showed up at the state-owned plaza near the Capitol for the first time earlier in the day.
As many as 75 people initially remained after the curfew that started at 10 p.m. CDT and runs until 6 a.m. But by early morning only about 50 people remained and police did not make any immediate attempt to disband the protest.
On previous nights, the defiance had triggered arrests. Earlier Nashville arrests came after a week of police crackdowns nationwide on Occupy Wall Street activists. Clashes have occurred in other cities, including Oakland, Calif., Denver and Atlanta.
In Oakland, Calif., an Iraq War veteran was seriously injured during a protest clash with police Tuesday night. In Atlanta, helicopters hovered overhead Wednesday as officers in riot gear arrested more than 50 protesters at a downtown park. In San Diego, police arrested a similar number of people who occupied the Civic Center Plaza and Children's Park for three weeks. And in Denver on Saturday evening, authorities moved into an encampment of protesters and began arresting demonstrators just hours after a standoff near the steps of the Colorado Capitol turned into a skirmish that ended in police force, including pepper spray and reports of rubber bullets.
Nashville magistrate Tom Nelson has said recently that there's no legal reason in his city to keep the demonstrators behind bars and he has released them after each arrest. He has refused each night to sign off on arrest warrants for more than two dozen people taken into custody.
Some legal experts agreed with the judge.
The arrests appeared to be a violation of First Amendment rights that allow for people to peacefully assemble, said attorney David Raybin, a former prosecutor. He and others said the nature of the arrests, coupled with the judge's refusal to sign off on the warrants, could become ammunition for lawsuits.
"The government is exposing itself to serious liability here by doing this," Raybin said.
Nelson did not return an email seeking and a phone number for him could not be found.
State troopers had begun enforcing the curfew at the Legislative Plaza on Thursday night.
Others questioned the timing of the curfew. The protesters had been demonstrating for about three weeks before it took effect, a point that Nelson said he factored into his decision.
"You can't pass a curfew mid-protest because you disagree with this group of protesters," said criminal defense attorney Patrick Frogge, who is representing some of those arrested.
The state Department of Safety has been carrying out the arrests. Commissioner Bill Gibbons, who until he joined the Haslam administration was the district attorney in Memphis, said he didn't have a role in developing the curfew but assured Haslam his department could enforce it.
Gibbons developed a reputation as an able and tough prosecutor in Memphis, where gang and drug violence have been problems for years. He ran against Haslam for governor in the GOP primary, touting his law-and-order credential and sharply attacking his multi-million-dollar opponent for refusing to divulge how much income he gets from the family-owned chain of Pilot truck stops.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Sharia law declaration raises concerns in new Libya
Oct 24, 2011
By Simon Martelli, AFP
TRIPOLI (AFP) - The announcement that Islamic sharia law will be the basis of legislation in newly liberated Libya has raised concerns, especially among women, despite Islamists insisting moderation will prevail.
Interim leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil said on Sunday, during his speech to the nation in Benghazi to formally declare the country's liberation from the ousted regime of Moammer Kadhafi, that sharia would be Libya's principal law.
"Any law that violates sharia is null and void legally," he said, citing as an example the law on marriage passed during the slain dictator's 42-year tenure that imposed restrictions on polygamy, which is permitted in Islam.
"The law of divorce and marriage... This law is contrary to sharia and it is stopped," Abdel Jalil said.
His comments have provoked criticism and calls for restraint both in Libya and in Europe, amid fears that the Arab Spring may give rise to a potentially intolerant Islamist resurgence.
Many Libyans awaiting Sunday's historic speech expressed surprise at the decision by the National Transitional Council leader to mention the role of sharia law in the new country before addressing such important issues as security and education.
"It's shocking and insulting to state, after thousands of Libyans have paid for freedom with their lives, that the priority of the new leadership is to allow men to marry in secret," said Rim, 40, a Libyan feminist who requested anonymity.
"We did not slay Goliath so that we now live under the Inquisition," she told AFP.
In his speech, Abdel Jalil also announced the introduction of Islamic banking in Libya in keeping with sharia which prohibits the earning of interest, or riba in Arabic, that is considered a form of usury.
Adelrahman al-Shatr, one of the founders of the centre-right Party of National Solidarity, launched just last week, said it was premature for the NTC leader to speak about the policies of the new state.
"It is a subject that should be discussed with the different political groups and with the Libyan people," he said.
"These declarations create feelings of pain and bitterness among women who sacrificed so many martyrs," in the eight-month battle against Kadhafi loyalists, he added.
"By abolishing the marriage law, women lose the right to keep the family home if they divorce. It is a disaster for Libyan women."
Western leaders also responded swiftly to Abdel Jalil's comments, with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton saying on Monday Libya's introduction of sharia law must respect human rights and democratic principles.
Abdel Jalil, a respected former justice minister of Kadhafi who distanced himself from the old regime, is seen as a pious man and a Sufi follower of Islam who is at odds with extremism.
He has already said that the new Libya would not adopt any extremist ideology, and sought to reassure the international community by stating on Monday that Libyans were moderate Muslims.
Nevertheless, Libya's Islamists are a rising force in the country's political arena, some of whom, such as Abdelhakim Belhaj, the founder of the Al-Qaeda linked but now-disbanded Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), are expected to hold prominent positions.
After suffering decades of persecution by Kadhafi, they are also working hard to present themselves as proponents of tolerant, democratic values and policies.
"The rules and laws (in new Libya) should take Islam as a basic reference," Islamist leader Sheikh Ali Sallabi, a supporter of Belhaj, told AFP.
He insisted that freedom, justice, equality and respect for human dignity should be enshrined in the new constitution, along with the peaceful rotation of power.
"We believe in the rights of others to show their programmes to the people, and to let the people decide," said Sallabi, who was jailed for eight years during the 1980s in Tripoli's notorious Abu Salim prison.
"We also believe in the freedom of the press and the right to self expression. We believe that our religion accommodates these rights," he added.
By Simon Martelli, AFP
TRIPOLI (AFP) - The announcement that Islamic sharia law will be the basis of legislation in newly liberated Libya has raised concerns, especially among women, despite Islamists insisting moderation will prevail.
Interim leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil said on Sunday, during his speech to the nation in Benghazi to formally declare the country's liberation from the ousted regime of Moammer Kadhafi, that sharia would be Libya's principal law.
"Any law that violates sharia is null and void legally," he said, citing as an example the law on marriage passed during the slain dictator's 42-year tenure that imposed restrictions on polygamy, which is permitted in Islam.
"The law of divorce and marriage... This law is contrary to sharia and it is stopped," Abdel Jalil said.
His comments have provoked criticism and calls for restraint both in Libya and in Europe, amid fears that the Arab Spring may give rise to a potentially intolerant Islamist resurgence.
Many Libyans awaiting Sunday's historic speech expressed surprise at the decision by the National Transitional Council leader to mention the role of sharia law in the new country before addressing such important issues as security and education.
"It's shocking and insulting to state, after thousands of Libyans have paid for freedom with their lives, that the priority of the new leadership is to allow men to marry in secret," said Rim, 40, a Libyan feminist who requested anonymity.
"We did not slay Goliath so that we now live under the Inquisition," she told AFP.
In his speech, Abdel Jalil also announced the introduction of Islamic banking in Libya in keeping with sharia which prohibits the earning of interest, or riba in Arabic, that is considered a form of usury.
Adelrahman al-Shatr, one of the founders of the centre-right Party of National Solidarity, launched just last week, said it was premature for the NTC leader to speak about the policies of the new state.
"It is a subject that should be discussed with the different political groups and with the Libyan people," he said.
"These declarations create feelings of pain and bitterness among women who sacrificed so many martyrs," in the eight-month battle against Kadhafi loyalists, he added.
"By abolishing the marriage law, women lose the right to keep the family home if they divorce. It is a disaster for Libyan women."
Western leaders also responded swiftly to Abdel Jalil's comments, with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton saying on Monday Libya's introduction of sharia law must respect human rights and democratic principles.
Abdel Jalil, a respected former justice minister of Kadhafi who distanced himself from the old regime, is seen as a pious man and a Sufi follower of Islam who is at odds with extremism.
He has already said that the new Libya would not adopt any extremist ideology, and sought to reassure the international community by stating on Monday that Libyans were moderate Muslims.
Nevertheless, Libya's Islamists are a rising force in the country's political arena, some of whom, such as Abdelhakim Belhaj, the founder of the Al-Qaeda linked but now-disbanded Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), are expected to hold prominent positions.
After suffering decades of persecution by Kadhafi, they are also working hard to present themselves as proponents of tolerant, democratic values and policies.
"The rules and laws (in new Libya) should take Islam as a basic reference," Islamist leader Sheikh Ali Sallabi, a supporter of Belhaj, told AFP.
He insisted that freedom, justice, equality and respect for human dignity should be enshrined in the new constitution, along with the peaceful rotation of power.
"We believe in the rights of others to show their programmes to the people, and to let the people decide," said Sallabi, who was jailed for eight years during the 1980s in Tripoli's notorious Abu Salim prison.
"We also believe in the freedom of the press and the right to self expression. We believe that our religion accommodates these rights," he added.
The second American revolution has begun
October 25, 2011
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
Source: Natural News
(NaturalNews) There's a sense of desperation in America today. Their jobs are being exported out of the country, their health insurance is being dropped by employers, their dollars are becoming increasingly worthless with each passing day and their futures don't look very promising. They're angry, frustrated and desperate, so they take to the streets and protest. Occupy Wall Street! Occupy The Fed! Take to the streets!
It's the right thing to do, but what most protesters -- and nearly all Americans -- don't fully grasp is that nearly every powerful institution is a criminal racket. It's not just Wall Street that's operated like a criminal mob, folks: It's the U.S. Congress. It's the health care industry. It's conventional agriculture, the mainstream media, the processed food manufacturers, the government regulators and of course the entire military industrial complex.
Nearly everything around you is a criminal operation. The banks openly steal your homes while laundering money for global drug lords. The U.S. government runs illegal guns into Mexico while allowing cocaine and heroin back into the USA to be sold at pumped-up black market prices. The mainstream media broadcasts outright lies and complete fabrications as if they were fact. Much of modern medical "science" is complete quackery or fiction, funded by corporations for the purpose of expanding corporate power. The local water supply is intentionally contaminated with toxic poisons known as "fluoride," and the local food supply is tainted with other dangerous chemicals like aspartame, MSG and BPA.
Your local hospital is almost certainly involved in a medical racket that seeks to insert high-profit medical procedure charges onto patient bills, and your local nursing home most likely throws granny in the hospital for a few days in order to get triple billing from Medicare upon their return. Doctors prescribe antibiotics because they get kickbacks from the drug companies, and the medical journals are little more than science whores who have been bought and paid for by the pharmaceutical industry. And don't forget vaccines, which have become the pathway through which infectious disease is actually spread among the population using live viruses injected into innocent children (http://www.naturalnews.com/033447_I...).
Wake the heck up, people! Most of modern society is a giant con. Nearly every institution, every mega corporation, every government and nearly every politician or bureaucrat is really just a criminal mobster trying to steal your wealth or gain control over your actions and thoughts. Most institutions actually cause the very things they claim to be fighting against!
Why does the cancer industry promote cancer?
The cancer industry actually promotes cancer, didn't you know? The DEA runs drugs! The ATF runs guns (http://www.naturalnews.com/032934_A...). The FDA keeps deadly drugs legal while trying to outlaw safe, affordable natural remedies.
The EPA openly allows deadly toxic chemicals to be dumped into the environment (like mercury fillings from dental offices). The CDC actually promotes complete falsehoods about infectious disease in order to scare people into thinking everybody needs to get vaccinated. And then the vaccines are intentionally contaminated with live viruses in order to spread disease and make the CDC look even more important! (http://www.naturalnews.com/025760.html)
Meanwhile, the President is actively destroying the economic base of America, aided by feds who threaten business owners like Gibson Guitars which are only trying to manufacture quality American-made products. The purpose of all this? To destroy America's economy from the inside out. It is intentional. It is being engineered. The U.S. economy is supposed to collapse by design, get it?
Beyond the economy alone, the entire "war on terror" is a complete and utter hoax, having been fabricated from the very start by government insiders. From 9/11 to present-day terror, it has all been a pathetic and cowardly string of fabrications and staged events for the sole purpose of destroying freedom in America.
Most of what you're told from "official" sources is flat-out false
Are you getting this? Nearly everything you've been told is a lie. Everything you hear on the mainstream news is either a complete fabrication or a wild distortion of reality. And the things you don't hear on the evening news are the things that really matter -- things like the fact that your money is being quietly stolen from you by the Federal Reserve.
Nearly everything you are told by the White House, or the FDA, or the EPA -- or any government regulator -- is a complete and total lie. There is no room for truth in a system of outright tyrannical lawbreaking. That's what we have today instead of government: A cabal of criminal thugs who operate with impunity while violating laws with complete disregard for human rights or the Bill of Rights.
Did you know, for example, that the Obama administration runs a secret death panel that decides which Americans to add to a "kill list?" This kill list is then handed over to the President who decides which Americans to simply assassinate or murder. Think I'm making this up? Then why was it openly reported by Reuters? (http://www.naturalnews.com/033835_W...)
Watch this astonishing interaction between ABC News reporter
Jake Trapper and White House Spokesperson Carney, who completely excuses the Obama administration's outright murder of an American citizen with absolutely zero evidence, no due process, no trial and no proper legal justification whatsoever:
http://naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=1E3C8...
Why things are the way they are - the honest truth
Do you wonder why so many people are sick and diseased today? Because the health care system is designed to make you sick!
Do you wonder why so many people are bankrupt today? Because the financial system is designed to keep you bankrupt!
Do you wonder why voters have so little power versus the corporations today? Because the political system is designed to keep the corporations in power while keeping you enslaved.
Do you wonder why you are still paying $3 or $4 per gallon of gas? Because the energy industry is designed to keep you enslaved to high-profit energy sources while oppressing free energy technology.
Do you ever wonder why the best innovations in medicine, free energy and human consciousness are always suppressed? Because the system is designed to destroy or censor any technologies that would lend themselves to longevity, freedom or increased awareness.
Do you wonder why America remains in perpetual war with an unseen enemy? Because the whole system is designed to operate in a state of perpetual warfare so that the people can be kept in a state of constant fear while being denied their freedoms.
Join the revolution
This is why I invite you to join the revolution in whatever constructive way you can. Now is the time to make your voice heard, just as all those protesting right now are doing.
My only bit of wisdom to pass along in this regard is to make sure it's your OWN voice and don't let yourself be played by some organized globalist agenda that now wants to hijack the protests for their own nefarious purposes.
The essence of freedom is LIBERTY, honest money, private property rights and a system of law that applies to everyone.
YES, the globalist bankers are crooks. They probably deserve to be strung up in a public square somewhere, but even such actions should never be taken without due process and a proper trial. What's really wrong with America today is that the criminal elements are running the show, from the White House to Wall Street. And it's time the People demanded that EVERYONE abide by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. After all, didn't the President swear to protect it when he became President? So why does he now selectively ignore it?
The revolution happening right now is a revolution borne out of frustration, and although it seems to lack focus in the mixed messages heard on the street right now, it will soon coalesce into a call for justice and an end to the systems of tyranny that dominate the American landscape today.
The transition out of freedom and justice will be fraught with violence, I fear, and there will soon be Martial Law declared across our land. Be prepared for what's coming, and have no illusions that the second American revolution is now at our doorstep. I only ask: What will you do with this opportunity? Will you stand for liberty and justice when it really counts?
Keep reading NaturalNews for more coverage of all this. And if you want to learn the latest preparedness information, I've just released a new course with Daniel Vitalis called The Surthrival Series (http://premium.naturalnews.tv/Surth...).
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/033974_American_revolution_Occupy_Wall_Street.html#ixzz1bnzAJT6b
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
Source: Natural News
(NaturalNews) There's a sense of desperation in America today. Their jobs are being exported out of the country, their health insurance is being dropped by employers, their dollars are becoming increasingly worthless with each passing day and their futures don't look very promising. They're angry, frustrated and desperate, so they take to the streets and protest. Occupy Wall Street! Occupy The Fed! Take to the streets!
It's the right thing to do, but what most protesters -- and nearly all Americans -- don't fully grasp is that nearly every powerful institution is a criminal racket. It's not just Wall Street that's operated like a criminal mob, folks: It's the U.S. Congress. It's the health care industry. It's conventional agriculture, the mainstream media, the processed food manufacturers, the government regulators and of course the entire military industrial complex.
Nearly everything around you is a criminal operation. The banks openly steal your homes while laundering money for global drug lords. The U.S. government runs illegal guns into Mexico while allowing cocaine and heroin back into the USA to be sold at pumped-up black market prices. The mainstream media broadcasts outright lies and complete fabrications as if they were fact. Much of modern medical "science" is complete quackery or fiction, funded by corporations for the purpose of expanding corporate power. The local water supply is intentionally contaminated with toxic poisons known as "fluoride," and the local food supply is tainted with other dangerous chemicals like aspartame, MSG and BPA.
Your local hospital is almost certainly involved in a medical racket that seeks to insert high-profit medical procedure charges onto patient bills, and your local nursing home most likely throws granny in the hospital for a few days in order to get triple billing from Medicare upon their return. Doctors prescribe antibiotics because they get kickbacks from the drug companies, and the medical journals are little more than science whores who have been bought and paid for by the pharmaceutical industry. And don't forget vaccines, which have become the pathway through which infectious disease is actually spread among the population using live viruses injected into innocent children (http://www.naturalnews.com/033447_I...).
Wake the heck up, people! Most of modern society is a giant con. Nearly every institution, every mega corporation, every government and nearly every politician or bureaucrat is really just a criminal mobster trying to steal your wealth or gain control over your actions and thoughts. Most institutions actually cause the very things they claim to be fighting against!
Why does the cancer industry promote cancer?
The cancer industry actually promotes cancer, didn't you know? The DEA runs drugs! The ATF runs guns (http://www.naturalnews.com/032934_A...). The FDA keeps deadly drugs legal while trying to outlaw safe, affordable natural remedies.
The EPA openly allows deadly toxic chemicals to be dumped into the environment (like mercury fillings from dental offices). The CDC actually promotes complete falsehoods about infectious disease in order to scare people into thinking everybody needs to get vaccinated. And then the vaccines are intentionally contaminated with live viruses in order to spread disease and make the CDC look even more important! (http://www.naturalnews.com/025760.html)
Meanwhile, the President is actively destroying the economic base of America, aided by feds who threaten business owners like Gibson Guitars which are only trying to manufacture quality American-made products. The purpose of all this? To destroy America's economy from the inside out. It is intentional. It is being engineered. The U.S. economy is supposed to collapse by design, get it?
Beyond the economy alone, the entire "war on terror" is a complete and utter hoax, having been fabricated from the very start by government insiders. From 9/11 to present-day terror, it has all been a pathetic and cowardly string of fabrications and staged events for the sole purpose of destroying freedom in America.
Most of what you're told from "official" sources is flat-out false
Are you getting this? Nearly everything you've been told is a lie. Everything you hear on the mainstream news is either a complete fabrication or a wild distortion of reality. And the things you don't hear on the evening news are the things that really matter -- things like the fact that your money is being quietly stolen from you by the Federal Reserve.
Nearly everything you are told by the White House, or the FDA, or the EPA -- or any government regulator -- is a complete and total lie. There is no room for truth in a system of outright tyrannical lawbreaking. That's what we have today instead of government: A cabal of criminal thugs who operate with impunity while violating laws with complete disregard for human rights or the Bill of Rights.
Did you know, for example, that the Obama administration runs a secret death panel that decides which Americans to add to a "kill list?" This kill list is then handed over to the President who decides which Americans to simply assassinate or murder. Think I'm making this up? Then why was it openly reported by Reuters? (http://www.naturalnews.com/033835_W...)
Watch this astonishing interaction between ABC News reporter
Jake Trapper and White House Spokesperson Carney, who completely excuses the Obama administration's outright murder of an American citizen with absolutely zero evidence, no due process, no trial and no proper legal justification whatsoever:
http://naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=1E3C8...
Why things are the way they are - the honest truth
Do you wonder why so many people are sick and diseased today? Because the health care system is designed to make you sick!
Do you wonder why so many people are bankrupt today? Because the financial system is designed to keep you bankrupt!
Do you wonder why voters have so little power versus the corporations today? Because the political system is designed to keep the corporations in power while keeping you enslaved.
Do you wonder why you are still paying $3 or $4 per gallon of gas? Because the energy industry is designed to keep you enslaved to high-profit energy sources while oppressing free energy technology.
Do you ever wonder why the best innovations in medicine, free energy and human consciousness are always suppressed? Because the system is designed to destroy or censor any technologies that would lend themselves to longevity, freedom or increased awareness.
Do you wonder why America remains in perpetual war with an unseen enemy? Because the whole system is designed to operate in a state of perpetual warfare so that the people can be kept in a state of constant fear while being denied their freedoms.
Join the revolution
This is why I invite you to join the revolution in whatever constructive way you can. Now is the time to make your voice heard, just as all those protesting right now are doing.
My only bit of wisdom to pass along in this regard is to make sure it's your OWN voice and don't let yourself be played by some organized globalist agenda that now wants to hijack the protests for their own nefarious purposes.
The essence of freedom is LIBERTY, honest money, private property rights and a system of law that applies to everyone.
YES, the globalist bankers are crooks. They probably deserve to be strung up in a public square somewhere, but even such actions should never be taken without due process and a proper trial. What's really wrong with America today is that the criminal elements are running the show, from the White House to Wall Street. And it's time the People demanded that EVERYONE abide by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. After all, didn't the President swear to protect it when he became President? So why does he now selectively ignore it?
The revolution happening right now is a revolution borne out of frustration, and although it seems to lack focus in the mixed messages heard on the street right now, it will soon coalesce into a call for justice and an end to the systems of tyranny that dominate the American landscape today.
The transition out of freedom and justice will be fraught with violence, I fear, and there will soon be Martial Law declared across our land. Be prepared for what's coming, and have no illusions that the second American revolution is now at our doorstep. I only ask: What will you do with this opportunity? Will you stand for liberty and justice when it really counts?
Keep reading NaturalNews for more coverage of all this. And if you want to learn the latest preparedness information, I've just released a new course with Daniel Vitalis called The Surthrival Series (http://premium.naturalnews.tv/Surth...).
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/033974_American_revolution_Occupy_Wall_Street.html#ixzz1bnzAJT6b
OCHA: Israel Cuts Access to 85% of Gaza Fishing Waters [ 82423 ] -
October 19, 2011
(WAFA) – A recent report published Tuesday by the Untied Nation Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) showed that 35% of Gaza’s farmland and 85% of its fishing waters are totally or partially inaccessible due to Israeli military measures.
The report said that the population of Gaza is 1.6 million, with over 50% under 18, and 38% of the population live in poverty.
OCHA showed that the average wage in the Gaza Strip declined by over 20% in the past six years, while 26% of the Gazan workforce, including 38% of youths, is unemployed, leading to 54% of Palestinians in Gaza are food insecure while over 75% are aid dependent.
The report showed that 50-80 million litres of partially treated sewage are dumped in the sea each day, while over 90% of the water from the Gaza aquifer is undrinkable.
About one-third of the items in the essential drug list are out of stock, as well as 85% of schools in Gaza run on double shifts.
Since the beginning of 2010, 64 Palestinian civilians have been killed and 621 injured by Israeli forces; over 60% of casualties occurred in the access-restricted areas. Another 60 civilians were killed and 137 were injured in tunnel-related accidents.
The report said that the Israeli blockade on Gaza (through the land, air and sea) is a denial of basic human rights in contravention of international law and amounts to collective punishment. It severely restricts imports and exports, as well as the movement of people in and out of Gaza, and access to agricultural land and fishing waters.
Gazans are unable to provide for their families and the quality of infrastructure and vital services has deteriorated.
Despite measures taken to ease the blockade in June 2010 the humanitarian situation has remained extremely fragile. While imports have increased, they are still at less than 40% of the pre-2007 levels. Exports remain tightly restricted and are limited to agricultural produce to Europe, and Gazan businesses cannot access their traditional markets in Israel and the West Bank. Access to land and sea remains highly restricted.
Only a minority of the projects aimed at improving housing and vital services in Gaza, submitted for approval by the international community, have been approved by the Israeli authorities, said OCHA.
Implementation of approved projects is impeded by funding shortages affecting the operating agencies, as well as by the limited capacity at the single crossing for goods. The internal Palestinian divide is an additional factor undermining the quality of vital services.
Lack of respect for international humanitarian law has continued to result in civilian casualties, particularly during escalations in armed clashes and while enforcing access restrictions to border areas.
"Thousands of people, many of them children, risk their lives smuggling goods through the tunnels under the border with Egypt every day. The thriving tunnel industry is a direct result of ongoing restrictions on the import of construction materials, the lack of employment opportunities, and the huge reconstruction needs in Gaza," said the report.
Gazans remain isolated and cut off from the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory. Entry into the West Bank, either via the Israeli Erez crossing or via Jordan, is prohibited for all Gazans. The volume of people allowed through the Egyptian Rafah Crossing remains limited, with hundreds denied passage each week.
R.Q./F.R.
(WAFA) – A recent report published Tuesday by the Untied Nation Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) showed that 35% of Gaza’s farmland and 85% of its fishing waters are totally or partially inaccessible due to Israeli military measures.
The report said that the population of Gaza is 1.6 million, with over 50% under 18, and 38% of the population live in poverty.
OCHA showed that the average wage in the Gaza Strip declined by over 20% in the past six years, while 26% of the Gazan workforce, including 38% of youths, is unemployed, leading to 54% of Palestinians in Gaza are food insecure while over 75% are aid dependent.
The report showed that 50-80 million litres of partially treated sewage are dumped in the sea each day, while over 90% of the water from the Gaza aquifer is undrinkable.
About one-third of the items in the essential drug list are out of stock, as well as 85% of schools in Gaza run on double shifts.
Since the beginning of 2010, 64 Palestinian civilians have been killed and 621 injured by Israeli forces; over 60% of casualties occurred in the access-restricted areas. Another 60 civilians were killed and 137 were injured in tunnel-related accidents.
The report said that the Israeli blockade on Gaza (through the land, air and sea) is a denial of basic human rights in contravention of international law and amounts to collective punishment. It severely restricts imports and exports, as well as the movement of people in and out of Gaza, and access to agricultural land and fishing waters.
Gazans are unable to provide for their families and the quality of infrastructure and vital services has deteriorated.
Despite measures taken to ease the blockade in June 2010 the humanitarian situation has remained extremely fragile. While imports have increased, they are still at less than 40% of the pre-2007 levels. Exports remain tightly restricted and are limited to agricultural produce to Europe, and Gazan businesses cannot access their traditional markets in Israel and the West Bank. Access to land and sea remains highly restricted.
Only a minority of the projects aimed at improving housing and vital services in Gaza, submitted for approval by the international community, have been approved by the Israeli authorities, said OCHA.
Implementation of approved projects is impeded by funding shortages affecting the operating agencies, as well as by the limited capacity at the single crossing for goods. The internal Palestinian divide is an additional factor undermining the quality of vital services.
Lack of respect for international humanitarian law has continued to result in civilian casualties, particularly during escalations in armed clashes and while enforcing access restrictions to border areas.
"Thousands of people, many of them children, risk their lives smuggling goods through the tunnels under the border with Egypt every day. The thriving tunnel industry is a direct result of ongoing restrictions on the import of construction materials, the lack of employment opportunities, and the huge reconstruction needs in Gaza," said the report.
Gazans remain isolated and cut off from the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory. Entry into the West Bank, either via the Israeli Erez crossing or via Jordan, is prohibited for all Gazans. The volume of people allowed through the Egyptian Rafah Crossing remains limited, with hundreds denied passage each week.
R.Q./F.R.
Iraq rejects US request to maintain bases after troop withdrawal
21 October 2011
by Ewen MacAskill
Source: The Guardian
Obama announces the full withdrawal of troops from Iraq but fails to persuade Nouri al-Maliki to allow US to keep bases there
Obama presented the troop withdrawal as the fulfilment of one of his election promises Link to this video
The US suffered a major diplomatic and military rebuff on Friday when Iraq finally rejected its pleas to maintain bases in the country beyond this year.
Barack Obama announced at a White House press conference that all American troops will leave Iraq by the end of December, a decision forced by the final collapse of lengthy talks between the US and the Iraqi government on the issue.
The Iraqi decision is a boost to Iran, which has close ties with many members of the Iraqi government and which had been battling against the establishment of permanent American bases.
Obama attempted to make the most of it by presenting the withdrawal as the fulfilment of one of his election promises.
"Today I can report that, as promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year. After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," he told reporters.
But he had already announced this earlier this year, and the real significance today was in the failure of Obama, in spite of the cost to the US in dollars and deaths, to persuade the Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki to allow one or more American bases to be kept in the country.
Obama was formally told of Maliki's final decision on Friday morning in a video conference.
Speaking later to reporters, Obama glossed over the rejection, describing it as Iraq shaping its own future.
He told reporters that the "tide of war is receding", not only in Iraq but in Afghanistan and in Libya.
"The United States is moving forward to a position of strength. The long war in Iraq will come to an end by the end of this year. The transition in Afghanistan is moving forward and our troops are finally coming home," he said.
Obama rose to political prominence on the back of his opposition to the Iraq war.
"Over the next two months, our troops in Iraq, tens of thousands of them, will pack up their gear and board convoys for the journey home," he said.
"The last American soldier will cross the border out of Iraq with their heads held high, proud of their success, and knowing that the American people stand united in our support for our troops," he said. "That is how America's military efforts in Iraq will end."
But Republicans criticised the failure to secure a deal with the Iraqis, describing it as a setback for the US.
John McCain, one of the leading foreign affairs specialists in the Senate and Obama's Republican opponent in the 2008 White House race, said: "Today marks a harmful and sad setback for the United States in the world. I respectfully disagree with the president: this decision will be viewed as a strategic victory for our enemies in the Middle East, especially the Iranian regime, which has worked relentlessly to ensure a full withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq."
Mitt Romney, front-runner in the race to take on Obama in the 2012 White House race, said: "The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government."
One of the sticking points in the negotiations with Iraq was a US demand that American forces remaining in the country after December would enjoy the same immunity from prosecution as they do now. The Iraqi government, conscious of public anger over many controversial incidents involving US troops and defence contractors over the last decade, refused.
The Pentagon had wanted the bases to help counter growing Iranian influence in the Middle East. Just a few years ago, the US had plans for leaving behind four large bases but, in the face of Iraqi resistance, this plan had to be scaled down this year to a force of 10,000. But even this proved too much for the Iraqis.
Denis McDonough, the White House deputy national security adviser, speaking to reporters after Obama's press conference, denied that the withdrawal was a sign of growing Iranian influence.
"You see an Iran that is weaker and more isolated," he said, noting various incidents such as a sense of international outrage over an alleged plot by Iran to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington.
Although the US is pulling out all troops, it will keep its embassy in Baghdad and two consulates. There will also be about 4,000-5,000 defence contractors, White House aides said.
Since the invasion in 2003, 1 million members of the US military have been deployed to Iraq, of whom 4,482 have been killed and 32,200 wounded.
Obama said there were 180,000 troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan when he took office in January 2009, and that number has been halved and will continue to fall.
A few US military personnel will be based in Iraq temporarily from time to time, just as they are in other countries with links to the US such as Egypt and Jordan, White House aides said. These would primarily be trainers helping out with new equipment bought from the US, such as F-16 fighters Iraq purchased last month.
Maliki, though he has been criticised in the past for being too close to Iran, had wanted to keep some US troops in Iraq to help train Iraqi security forces and to help in the event of a resurgence of sectarian violence. But he had to bow to pressure from pro-Iranian politicians and others in his coaliton government who wanted all US troops out.
Obama was ambivalent on the issue, seeing a total withdrawal as a good sell to a US public tired of war. But the Pentagon had wanted the bases, and the president reluctantly sided with the military staff.
It will be a major logistical exercise, moving not only the remaining 39,000 US troops but mountains of equipment from bases that are the size of small American suburbs, complete with coffee-shops, bowling alleys and cinemas.
The Pentagon is wary of a final attack as the final pullout gets under way.
• This article was corrected on 23 October 2011 because it described Nouri al-Maliki as Iraqi's president instead of as its prime minister, and at one point said he had wanted to keep some US troops "in Iran".
by Ewen MacAskill
Source: The Guardian
Obama announces the full withdrawal of troops from Iraq but fails to persuade Nouri al-Maliki to allow US to keep bases there
Obama presented the troop withdrawal as the fulfilment of one of his election promises Link to this video
The US suffered a major diplomatic and military rebuff on Friday when Iraq finally rejected its pleas to maintain bases in the country beyond this year.
Barack Obama announced at a White House press conference that all American troops will leave Iraq by the end of December, a decision forced by the final collapse of lengthy talks between the US and the Iraqi government on the issue.
The Iraqi decision is a boost to Iran, which has close ties with many members of the Iraqi government and which had been battling against the establishment of permanent American bases.
Obama attempted to make the most of it by presenting the withdrawal as the fulfilment of one of his election promises.
"Today I can report that, as promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year. After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," he told reporters.
But he had already announced this earlier this year, and the real significance today was in the failure of Obama, in spite of the cost to the US in dollars and deaths, to persuade the Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki to allow one or more American bases to be kept in the country.
Obama was formally told of Maliki's final decision on Friday morning in a video conference.
Speaking later to reporters, Obama glossed over the rejection, describing it as Iraq shaping its own future.
He told reporters that the "tide of war is receding", not only in Iraq but in Afghanistan and in Libya.
"The United States is moving forward to a position of strength. The long war in Iraq will come to an end by the end of this year. The transition in Afghanistan is moving forward and our troops are finally coming home," he said.
Obama rose to political prominence on the back of his opposition to the Iraq war.
"Over the next two months, our troops in Iraq, tens of thousands of them, will pack up their gear and board convoys for the journey home," he said.
"The last American soldier will cross the border out of Iraq with their heads held high, proud of their success, and knowing that the American people stand united in our support for our troops," he said. "That is how America's military efforts in Iraq will end."
But Republicans criticised the failure to secure a deal with the Iraqis, describing it as a setback for the US.
John McCain, one of the leading foreign affairs specialists in the Senate and Obama's Republican opponent in the 2008 White House race, said: "Today marks a harmful and sad setback for the United States in the world. I respectfully disagree with the president: this decision will be viewed as a strategic victory for our enemies in the Middle East, especially the Iranian regime, which has worked relentlessly to ensure a full withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq."
Mitt Romney, front-runner in the race to take on Obama in the 2012 White House race, said: "The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government."
One of the sticking points in the negotiations with Iraq was a US demand that American forces remaining in the country after December would enjoy the same immunity from prosecution as they do now. The Iraqi government, conscious of public anger over many controversial incidents involving US troops and defence contractors over the last decade, refused.
The Pentagon had wanted the bases to help counter growing Iranian influence in the Middle East. Just a few years ago, the US had plans for leaving behind four large bases but, in the face of Iraqi resistance, this plan had to be scaled down this year to a force of 10,000. But even this proved too much for the Iraqis.
Denis McDonough, the White House deputy national security adviser, speaking to reporters after Obama's press conference, denied that the withdrawal was a sign of growing Iranian influence.
"You see an Iran that is weaker and more isolated," he said, noting various incidents such as a sense of international outrage over an alleged plot by Iran to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington.
Although the US is pulling out all troops, it will keep its embassy in Baghdad and two consulates. There will also be about 4,000-5,000 defence contractors, White House aides said.
Since the invasion in 2003, 1 million members of the US military have been deployed to Iraq, of whom 4,482 have been killed and 32,200 wounded.
Obama said there were 180,000 troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan when he took office in January 2009, and that number has been halved and will continue to fall.
A few US military personnel will be based in Iraq temporarily from time to time, just as they are in other countries with links to the US such as Egypt and Jordan, White House aides said. These would primarily be trainers helping out with new equipment bought from the US, such as F-16 fighters Iraq purchased last month.
Maliki, though he has been criticised in the past for being too close to Iran, had wanted to keep some US troops in Iraq to help train Iraqi security forces and to help in the event of a resurgence of sectarian violence. But he had to bow to pressure from pro-Iranian politicians and others in his coaliton government who wanted all US troops out.
Obama was ambivalent on the issue, seeing a total withdrawal as a good sell to a US public tired of war. But the Pentagon had wanted the bases, and the president reluctantly sided with the military staff.
It will be a major logistical exercise, moving not only the remaining 39,000 US troops but mountains of equipment from bases that are the size of small American suburbs, complete with coffee-shops, bowling alleys and cinemas.
The Pentagon is wary of a final attack as the final pullout gets under way.
• This article was corrected on 23 October 2011 because it described Nouri al-Maliki as Iraqi's president instead of as its prime minister, and at one point said he had wanted to keep some US troops "in Iran".
Friday, October 21, 2011
The Relationship Between: Taqleed, Mathahab (Madthabs), and Fatwa
October 20, 2011
written by: Sheila Quinn
Source: The Ummah Times
Qur’an:
“Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures), in the Taurat and the Gospel:-for he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil: he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure);: he releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So it is those who believe in him, honour him, help him, and follow the Light which is sent down with him,- it is they who will prosper.”
(Sura: A’raaf (The Heights); ayah #157).
“…This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as you religion.” (5:3)
“Say who hath forbidden the beautiful (gifts) of Allah, which He hath produced for His servants, and the things, clean and pure (which He hath provided) for sustenance?...”
(Sura: A’raaf (The Heights); ayah # 32.
“Oh ye who believe! Make not unlawful the good things which Allah hath made lawful for you,…”
(Sura: Maida (The Table Spread); ayah # 87.
Hadeeth
“Verily, I have left amongst you the Book of Allah and the Sunnah (Traditions) of His Messenger which if you hold fast, you shall never go astray.” (Sahih Muslim)
(Source: “Ar- Raheeq Al – Makhtum” (The Sealed Nectar; chapter: “The Farewell Pilgrimage”)
What is the relationship between these three? All three are contrary to The Qur’an and the Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad, and all three are misguidance. What is haram or forbidden in Islam? What is haram is that which The Creator, Himself, has forbidden in The Qur’an or in the Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad. Everything else is halal. Islam is the guidance of The Creator. It was completed during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad.
What is Taqleed? What is Mathahab? What is Fatwa?
Taqleed is a Muslim form of personality cults. Anyone who is involved in taqleed perceive and treat a scholar/or a group of scholars as if he/they were a Prophet(s) of God. And therefore they follow that scholar or group of scholars. Anyone who is involved in taqleed is following a certain scholar/or scholars, and therefore is not following Prophet Muhammad.
Mathahab is plural for Madthab. Madthab is a certain "school" of Islamic Jurisprudence. There are four well known and accepted "schools of jurisprudence". Their function is to say if something is lawful or forbidden. Yet, it is Allah, Himself, who makes things lawful or unlawful. He made things clear in The Qur'an and in The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad what is unlawful. He also made it clear in The Qur'an and The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad that everything that He didn't make unlawful is in fact lawful. There is no need for the Mathahab. Allah knows everything. He knows what is in the future, as well as, what issues would come up in the future. Mathahab is a product of Taqleed-and therefore like Taqleed-it is a form of Shirk (giving partners to the One God).
Fatwa is the personal opinion of an Islamic Scholar as to the lawfulness of an item or behavior. Allah, Himself, is The One who makes things lawful and unlawful. He made it clear in both The Qur'an and The Sunneh what is unlawful(forbidden). Only Allah makes things unlawful. It is totally unacceptable for anyone else to say that something is unlawful when Allah did not make it unlawful.
Why are these three contrary to The Qur’an and The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad? The Islamic Faith consists only of The Qur’an and The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad. Anything else is not part of the Islamic Faith. Neither the personal opinions of this Sahabee or that Sahabee, nor the opinions of the Ulema (Scholars), are part of The Islamic Faith.
All three of them are misguidance. Every time that Allah sends guidance to humanity, He allows misguidance to follow. The misguidance that He allowed to follow after the death of Prophet Muhammad includes: Taqleed, Mathahab, and Fatwa.
Such statements are contrary to what is taught to Muslims by many scholars. But, why am I making such statements? Because, they are the truth! As slaves of Allah, we are obligated to speak the truth no matter what others might think or say. Such statements are based on The Qur’an and the Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad.
“ ‘And if you were asked about me , what wanted you to say?’ They replied: ‘We bear witness that you have conveyed the message and discharged your ministry.’ He then raised his forefinger skywards and then moved it down towards people while saying: ‘O Allah, bear witness.’ He said that phrase thrice….As soon as the Prophet had accomplished delivering the speech, the following Qur’anic verse was revealed to him:
‘…This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.’ (5:3) Upon hearing this verse ‘Umar cried . “ What makes you cry?, he was asked. His answer was: ‘Nothing succeeds perfection but imperfection.’ “ (Source: “Ar-Raheeq Al Makhtum” (The Sealed Nectar) chapter: “The Farewell Pilgrimage”)
Guidance is perfection, whereas misguidance is imperfection. ‘Umar obviously was aware that after guidance from Allah was completed that misguidance would be allowed to come. Taqleed, Mathahab, and Fatwa is amongst the misguidance that came. The guidance of Allah was completed before the death of Prophet Muhammad- and misguidance was allowed to come after his death.
The following is some of the evidence from The Qur’an and the Sunneh:
“Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures), in the Taurat and the Gospel:-for he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil: he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure);: he releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So it is those who believe in him, honour him, help him, and follow the Light which is sent down with him,- it is they who will prosper.”
(Sura: A’raaf (The Heights); ayah #157).
“…This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as you religion.” (5:3)
“Verily, I have left amongst you the Book of Allah and the Sunnah (Traditions) of His Messenger which if you hold fast, you shall never go astray.” (Sahih Muslim)
(Source: “Ar- Raheeq Al – Makhtum” (The Sealed Nectar); chapter: “The Farewell Pilgrimage”)
written by: Sheila Quinn
Source: The Ummah Times
Qur’an:
“Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures), in the Taurat and the Gospel:-for he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil: he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure);: he releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So it is those who believe in him, honour him, help him, and follow the Light which is sent down with him,- it is they who will prosper.”
(Sura: A’raaf (The Heights); ayah #157).
“…This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as you religion.” (5:3)
“Say who hath forbidden the beautiful (gifts) of Allah, which He hath produced for His servants, and the things, clean and pure (which He hath provided) for sustenance?...”
(Sura: A’raaf (The Heights); ayah # 32.
“Oh ye who believe! Make not unlawful the good things which Allah hath made lawful for you,…”
(Sura: Maida (The Table Spread); ayah # 87.
Hadeeth
“Verily, I have left amongst you the Book of Allah and the Sunnah (Traditions) of His Messenger which if you hold fast, you shall never go astray.” (Sahih Muslim)
(Source: “Ar- Raheeq Al – Makhtum” (The Sealed Nectar; chapter: “The Farewell Pilgrimage”)
What is the relationship between these three? All three are contrary to The Qur’an and the Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad, and all three are misguidance. What is haram or forbidden in Islam? What is haram is that which The Creator, Himself, has forbidden in The Qur’an or in the Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad. Everything else is halal. Islam is the guidance of The Creator. It was completed during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad.
What is Taqleed? What is Mathahab? What is Fatwa?
Taqleed is a Muslim form of personality cults. Anyone who is involved in taqleed perceive and treat a scholar/or a group of scholars as if he/they were a Prophet(s) of God. And therefore they follow that scholar or group of scholars. Anyone who is involved in taqleed is following a certain scholar/or scholars, and therefore is not following Prophet Muhammad.
Mathahab is plural for Madthab. Madthab is a certain "school" of Islamic Jurisprudence. There are four well known and accepted "schools of jurisprudence". Their function is to say if something is lawful or forbidden. Yet, it is Allah, Himself, who makes things lawful or unlawful. He made things clear in The Qur'an and in The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad what is unlawful. He also made it clear in The Qur'an and The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad that everything that He didn't make unlawful is in fact lawful. There is no need for the Mathahab. Allah knows everything. He knows what is in the future, as well as, what issues would come up in the future. Mathahab is a product of Taqleed-and therefore like Taqleed-it is a form of Shirk (giving partners to the One God).
Fatwa is the personal opinion of an Islamic Scholar as to the lawfulness of an item or behavior. Allah, Himself, is The One who makes things lawful and unlawful. He made it clear in both The Qur'an and The Sunneh what is unlawful(forbidden). Only Allah makes things unlawful. It is totally unacceptable for anyone else to say that something is unlawful when Allah did not make it unlawful.
Why are these three contrary to The Qur’an and The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad? The Islamic Faith consists only of The Qur’an and The Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad. Anything else is not part of the Islamic Faith. Neither the personal opinions of this Sahabee or that Sahabee, nor the opinions of the Ulema (Scholars), are part of The Islamic Faith.
All three of them are misguidance. Every time that Allah sends guidance to humanity, He allows misguidance to follow. The misguidance that He allowed to follow after the death of Prophet Muhammad includes: Taqleed, Mathahab, and Fatwa.
Such statements are contrary to what is taught to Muslims by many scholars. But, why am I making such statements? Because, they are the truth! As slaves of Allah, we are obligated to speak the truth no matter what others might think or say. Such statements are based on The Qur’an and the Sunneh of Prophet Muhammad.
“ ‘And if you were asked about me , what wanted you to say?’ They replied: ‘We bear witness that you have conveyed the message and discharged your ministry.’ He then raised his forefinger skywards and then moved it down towards people while saying: ‘O Allah, bear witness.’ He said that phrase thrice….As soon as the Prophet had accomplished delivering the speech, the following Qur’anic verse was revealed to him:
‘…This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.’ (5:3) Upon hearing this verse ‘Umar cried . “ What makes you cry?, he was asked. His answer was: ‘Nothing succeeds perfection but imperfection.’ “ (Source: “Ar-Raheeq Al Makhtum” (The Sealed Nectar) chapter: “The Farewell Pilgrimage”)
Guidance is perfection, whereas misguidance is imperfection. ‘Umar obviously was aware that after guidance from Allah was completed that misguidance would be allowed to come. Taqleed, Mathahab, and Fatwa is amongst the misguidance that came. The guidance of Allah was completed before the death of Prophet Muhammad- and misguidance was allowed to come after his death.
The following is some of the evidence from The Qur’an and the Sunneh:
“Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures), in the Taurat and the Gospel:-for he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil: he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure);: he releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So it is those who believe in him, honour him, help him, and follow the Light which is sent down with him,- it is they who will prosper.”
(Sura: A’raaf (The Heights); ayah #157).
“…This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as you religion.” (5:3)
“Verily, I have left amongst you the Book of Allah and the Sunnah (Traditions) of His Messenger which if you hold fast, you shall never go astray.” (Sahih Muslim)
(Source: “Ar- Raheeq Al – Makhtum” (The Sealed Nectar); chapter: “The Farewell Pilgrimage”)
Monday, October 10, 2011
Egyptian PM: Deadly riots a setback to transition
53 mins ago
By MAGGIE MICHAEL - Associated Press
Source: Yahoo News
CAIRO (AP) — Deadly clashes between angry Christians, Muslims and security forces have dealt a serious setback to Egypt's transition to civilian rule, the country's prime minister said Monday, hours after 24 people were killed in the worst violence since the February ouster of Hosni Mubarak.
Prime Minister Essam Sharaf said the violence, which also left 272 wounded, was part of a "dirty conspiracy" and called on Egyptians to unite in the face of what he called meddling by foreign and domestic hands in their nation's affairs.
"These events have taken us back several steps," Sharaf said in a televised address. "Instead of moving forward to build a modern state on democratic principles, we are back to seeking stability and searching for hidden hands — domestic and foreign — that meddle with the country's security and safety."
A military council led by Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, defense minister of 20 years under the former regime, took over after an 18-day popular uprising forced Mubarak to step down. The military initially pledged to hand back power to a civilian administration in six months, but that deadline has gone by, with parliamentary elections now scheduled to start in late November. According to a timetable floated by the generals, presidential elections could be held late next year.
Christians, who make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 80 million people, blame the country's ruling military council for being too lenient on those behind a spate of anti-Christian attacks since Mubarak's ouster. As Egypt undergoes a chaotic power transition and security vacuum in the wake of the uprising, the Coptic Christian minority is particularly worried about the show of force by ultraconservative Islamists.
Sunday's violence will likely prompt the military to further tighten its grip on power. Already, it said it had no intention to lift the widely hated emergency laws in place since Mubarak first took office in 1981. Tension also has been growing between the military and the youth groups that engineered the uprising, with activists blaming the generals for mishandling the transition period, human rights violations and driving a wedge between them and ordinary Egyptians.
The European Union condemned the violence, with EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton saying it was for Egypt "to protect your people, whoever they are, wherever they come from or whatever belief or faith they have."
Egypt's official news agency, meanwhile, reported that dozens of "instigators of chaos" have been arrested following Sunday's violence, sparked by a recent attack on a church in southern Egypt.
The MENA news agency did not say whether those arrested were Christians or Muslims, but security officials said most of the 24 killed were Christians and that they may have included one or two Muslims. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Egypt's state television said authorities on Monday stepped up security at vital installations in anticipation of renewed unrest, deploying additional troops outside parliament and the Cabinet. Riot police were also stationed outside the Coptic hospital where most of the victims' bodies are kept. Funeral services are due in the afternoon at the main Coptic Cathedral in Cairo.
The rioting in downtown Cairo had lasted until late into the night, bringing out more than 1,000 security forces and armored vehicles to defend the Nile-side state television building where the trouble began.
The clashes spread from outside the TV building to nearby Tahrir Square, drawing thousands of people to the vast plaza that served as the epicenter of the protests that ousted Mubarak. On Sunday night, they battled each other with rocks and firebombs, some tearing up pavement for ammunition and others collecting stones in boxes.
The clashes did not appear to be exclusively sectarian.
State TV, which has increasingly become loyal to the military, appealed on "honorable" Egyptians to protect the army against attacks as news spread of clashes between the Christian protesters and the troops outside the TV building. Soon afterward, bands of young men armed with sticks, rocks, swords and firebombs began to roam central Cairo, attacking Christians. Troops and riot police did not intervene to stop the attacks on Christians.
Throughout the night, the station cast the Christian protesters as a violent mob attacking the army and public property. At one point, Information Minister Osama Heikal went on the air to deny that the station's coverage had a sectarian slant, but acknowledged that its presenters acted "emotionally."
At one point, an armored army van sped into the crowd, striking several protesters and throwing some into the air. Protesters retaliated by setting fire to military vehicles, a bus and private cars, sending flames rising into the night sky.
The Christian protesters said their demonstration began as a peaceful attempt to sit in at the TV building. Then, the protesters said, they came under attack by thugs in plainclothes who rained stones down on them and fired pellets.
"The protest was peaceful. We wanted to hold a sit-in, as usual," said Essam Khalili, a protester wearing a white shirt with a cross on it. "Thugs attacked us and a military vehicle jumped over a sidewalk and ran over at least 10 people. I saw them."
Khalili said protesters set fire to army vehicles when they saw them hitting the protesters.
Ahmed Yahia, a Muslim resident who lives near the TV building, said he saw the military vehicle plow into protesters. "I saw a man's head split into two halves and a second body flattened when the armored vehicle ran over it. When some Muslims saw the blood they joined the Christians against the army," he said.
Television footage showed the military vehicle slamming into the crowd. Coptic protesters were shown attacking a soldier, while a priest tried to protect him.
In the past weeks, riots have broken out at two churches in southern Egypt, prompted by Muslim crowds angry over church construction. One riot broke out near the city of Aswan, even after church officials agreed to a demand by ultraconservative Muslims known as Salafis that a cross and bells be removed from the building.
Aswan's governor, Gen. Mustafa Kamel al-Sayyed, further raised tensions by suggesting to the media that the church construction was illegal.
Protesters said the Copts are demanding the ouster of the governor, reconstruction of the church, compensation for people whose houses were set on fire and prosecution of those behind the riots and attacks on the church.
By MAGGIE MICHAEL - Associated Press
Source: Yahoo News
CAIRO (AP) — Deadly clashes between angry Christians, Muslims and security forces have dealt a serious setback to Egypt's transition to civilian rule, the country's prime minister said Monday, hours after 24 people were killed in the worst violence since the February ouster of Hosni Mubarak.
Prime Minister Essam Sharaf said the violence, which also left 272 wounded, was part of a "dirty conspiracy" and called on Egyptians to unite in the face of what he called meddling by foreign and domestic hands in their nation's affairs.
"These events have taken us back several steps," Sharaf said in a televised address. "Instead of moving forward to build a modern state on democratic principles, we are back to seeking stability and searching for hidden hands — domestic and foreign — that meddle with the country's security and safety."
A military council led by Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, defense minister of 20 years under the former regime, took over after an 18-day popular uprising forced Mubarak to step down. The military initially pledged to hand back power to a civilian administration in six months, but that deadline has gone by, with parliamentary elections now scheduled to start in late November. According to a timetable floated by the generals, presidential elections could be held late next year.
Christians, who make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 80 million people, blame the country's ruling military council for being too lenient on those behind a spate of anti-Christian attacks since Mubarak's ouster. As Egypt undergoes a chaotic power transition and security vacuum in the wake of the uprising, the Coptic Christian minority is particularly worried about the show of force by ultraconservative Islamists.
Sunday's violence will likely prompt the military to further tighten its grip on power. Already, it said it had no intention to lift the widely hated emergency laws in place since Mubarak first took office in 1981. Tension also has been growing between the military and the youth groups that engineered the uprising, with activists blaming the generals for mishandling the transition period, human rights violations and driving a wedge between them and ordinary Egyptians.
The European Union condemned the violence, with EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton saying it was for Egypt "to protect your people, whoever they are, wherever they come from or whatever belief or faith they have."
Egypt's official news agency, meanwhile, reported that dozens of "instigators of chaos" have been arrested following Sunday's violence, sparked by a recent attack on a church in southern Egypt.
The MENA news agency did not say whether those arrested were Christians or Muslims, but security officials said most of the 24 killed were Christians and that they may have included one or two Muslims. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Egypt's state television said authorities on Monday stepped up security at vital installations in anticipation of renewed unrest, deploying additional troops outside parliament and the Cabinet. Riot police were also stationed outside the Coptic hospital where most of the victims' bodies are kept. Funeral services are due in the afternoon at the main Coptic Cathedral in Cairo.
The rioting in downtown Cairo had lasted until late into the night, bringing out more than 1,000 security forces and armored vehicles to defend the Nile-side state television building where the trouble began.
The clashes spread from outside the TV building to nearby Tahrir Square, drawing thousands of people to the vast plaza that served as the epicenter of the protests that ousted Mubarak. On Sunday night, they battled each other with rocks and firebombs, some tearing up pavement for ammunition and others collecting stones in boxes.
The clashes did not appear to be exclusively sectarian.
State TV, which has increasingly become loyal to the military, appealed on "honorable" Egyptians to protect the army against attacks as news spread of clashes between the Christian protesters and the troops outside the TV building. Soon afterward, bands of young men armed with sticks, rocks, swords and firebombs began to roam central Cairo, attacking Christians. Troops and riot police did not intervene to stop the attacks on Christians.
Throughout the night, the station cast the Christian protesters as a violent mob attacking the army and public property. At one point, Information Minister Osama Heikal went on the air to deny that the station's coverage had a sectarian slant, but acknowledged that its presenters acted "emotionally."
At one point, an armored army van sped into the crowd, striking several protesters and throwing some into the air. Protesters retaliated by setting fire to military vehicles, a bus and private cars, sending flames rising into the night sky.
The Christian protesters said their demonstration began as a peaceful attempt to sit in at the TV building. Then, the protesters said, they came under attack by thugs in plainclothes who rained stones down on them and fired pellets.
"The protest was peaceful. We wanted to hold a sit-in, as usual," said Essam Khalili, a protester wearing a white shirt with a cross on it. "Thugs attacked us and a military vehicle jumped over a sidewalk and ran over at least 10 people. I saw them."
Khalili said protesters set fire to army vehicles when they saw them hitting the protesters.
Ahmed Yahia, a Muslim resident who lives near the TV building, said he saw the military vehicle plow into protesters. "I saw a man's head split into two halves and a second body flattened when the armored vehicle ran over it. When some Muslims saw the blood they joined the Christians against the army," he said.
Television footage showed the military vehicle slamming into the crowd. Coptic protesters were shown attacking a soldier, while a priest tried to protect him.
In the past weeks, riots have broken out at two churches in southern Egypt, prompted by Muslim crowds angry over church construction. One riot broke out near the city of Aswan, even after church officials agreed to a demand by ultraconservative Muslims known as Salafis that a cross and bells be removed from the building.
Aswan's governor, Gen. Mustafa Kamel al-Sayyed, further raised tensions by suggesting to the media that the church construction was illegal.
Protesters said the Copts are demanding the ouster of the governor, reconstruction of the church, compensation for people whose houses were set on fire and prosecution of those behind the riots and attacks on the church.
Egypt cabinet in crisis talks as 24 die in unrest
Oct 10, 2011
By Jailan Zayan, AFP
Source: Yahoo News
CAIRO (AFP) - The Egyptian government was set for crisis talks on Monday after clashes left 24 people dead, raising fears of widespread sectarian unrest that threatens to widen the cracks in an already fragile transition from Hosni Mubarak's regime.
Prime Minister Essam Sharaf was to convene an emergency cabinet meeting on Monday afternoon, state television reported.
The meeting came as at least 40 people were arrested in central Cairo overnight after a demonstration by Copts in the Maspero district degenerated into deadly clashes that left more than 200 people wounded, a security official told AFP.
It was not immediately clear how many of those detained were Muslim or Christian.
A curfew was imposed overnight in parts of the Egyptian capital following the clashes.
Coptic Christians had been holding a demonstration to protest against a recent attack on a church in the southern Egyptian city of Aswan when the clashes started, sparking further fighting later near the hospital housing the mortuary.
In a late night address, Sharaf called on Egyptians "not to give in to sedition", warning that Egypt is "in danger."
At least five of the dead were mown down by a speeding army vehicle, a priest from the minority Coptic community said, while an AFP correspondent saw other bodies with gunshot wounds.
Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed Tayyeb called for crisis talks between Muslim and Christian leaders later on Monday "in a bid to contain the crisis", state television said.
"A black night for Egypt's revolution," thundered the independent daily al-Shorouk in its front-page headline.
The independent Al-Masry al-Youm simply wrote "Egypt", with the letters bleeding into pictures of clashes and destruction in central Cairo.
Some warned of an all-out civil war if the root causes of the clashes were not addressed.
"There needs to be serious action from the leaders to resolve the root causes. Otherwise this could lead to civil war," said Fuad Allam, who headed Egypt's security services for two decades.
He told Al-Arabiya satellite television that discriminatory religious laws had to be amended.
But others say the clashes were not merely sectarian in nature, but fuelled by the anger towards security services and the ruling military council.
Some activists blamed government-backed provocation for the bloodshed which has triggered fears of worsening sectarian strife.
Users of social networking sites such as Twitter said the earlier clashes were provoked by "thugs" at the scene, while state television was accused of fanning anti-Coptic sentiment.
As the military police gave assurances that calm had returned to the capital, Sharaf warned on public television that Egypt was "in danger" following the most serious clashes since Mubarak was ousted in February.
Sharaf, appointed by the military council that took power after mass protests led to Mubarak's downfall, heads a caretaker government ahead of elections the council has pledged will be democratic.
A 2:00 am (0000 GMT) to 7:00 am curfew was declared in the area from Maspero to Abbassiya Square, while security was stepped up around parliament and other official buildings in central Cairo.
"These events have brought us backwards... instead of moving forward to construct a modern state on a healthy democratic basis," Sharaf said.
The protesters clashed with anti-riot police and soldiers guarding the state television building, after thousands took part in a protest march from the Shobra district.
A standoff degenerated as the demonstrators started hurling stones and set fire to two cars, an AFP correspondent said. The television channel said that an army vehicle was burnt.
Security forces fired into the air to disperse the crowd, and dozens of people fled.
"Down with the marshal," the demonstrators chanted on the march to Maspero, referring to Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who heads the military council.
On Sunday night, amid scenes of mayhem at the hospital which was filled with grieving relatives, a priest named Daud told AFP at least five of those killed were mowed down by an army vehicle.
Other bodies bore gunshot wounds.
State television reported that three soldiers were shot dead and dozens of their comrades wounded.
Later on Sunday night, hundreds of Muslims and Coptic Christians exchanged blows and threw stones at the hospital treating the wounded from the earlier clashes, an AFP journalist witnessed.
The hospital mortuary housed the bodies of those killed.
Copts complain of systematic discrimination, but since Mubarak's fall, tensions have also mounted between the military -- initially hailed for not siding with Mubarak -- and groups that spearheaded the revolt, which say the army is reluctant to carry out genuine reforms.
By Jailan Zayan, AFP
Source: Yahoo News
CAIRO (AFP) - The Egyptian government was set for crisis talks on Monday after clashes left 24 people dead, raising fears of widespread sectarian unrest that threatens to widen the cracks in an already fragile transition from Hosni Mubarak's regime.
Prime Minister Essam Sharaf was to convene an emergency cabinet meeting on Monday afternoon, state television reported.
The meeting came as at least 40 people were arrested in central Cairo overnight after a demonstration by Copts in the Maspero district degenerated into deadly clashes that left more than 200 people wounded, a security official told AFP.
It was not immediately clear how many of those detained were Muslim or Christian.
A curfew was imposed overnight in parts of the Egyptian capital following the clashes.
Coptic Christians had been holding a demonstration to protest against a recent attack on a church in the southern Egyptian city of Aswan when the clashes started, sparking further fighting later near the hospital housing the mortuary.
In a late night address, Sharaf called on Egyptians "not to give in to sedition", warning that Egypt is "in danger."
At least five of the dead were mown down by a speeding army vehicle, a priest from the minority Coptic community said, while an AFP correspondent saw other bodies with gunshot wounds.
Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed Tayyeb called for crisis talks between Muslim and Christian leaders later on Monday "in a bid to contain the crisis", state television said.
"A black night for Egypt's revolution," thundered the independent daily al-Shorouk in its front-page headline.
The independent Al-Masry al-Youm simply wrote "Egypt", with the letters bleeding into pictures of clashes and destruction in central Cairo.
Some warned of an all-out civil war if the root causes of the clashes were not addressed.
"There needs to be serious action from the leaders to resolve the root causes. Otherwise this could lead to civil war," said Fuad Allam, who headed Egypt's security services for two decades.
He told Al-Arabiya satellite television that discriminatory religious laws had to be amended.
But others say the clashes were not merely sectarian in nature, but fuelled by the anger towards security services and the ruling military council.
Some activists blamed government-backed provocation for the bloodshed which has triggered fears of worsening sectarian strife.
Users of social networking sites such as Twitter said the earlier clashes were provoked by "thugs" at the scene, while state television was accused of fanning anti-Coptic sentiment.
As the military police gave assurances that calm had returned to the capital, Sharaf warned on public television that Egypt was "in danger" following the most serious clashes since Mubarak was ousted in February.
Sharaf, appointed by the military council that took power after mass protests led to Mubarak's downfall, heads a caretaker government ahead of elections the council has pledged will be democratic.
A 2:00 am (0000 GMT) to 7:00 am curfew was declared in the area from Maspero to Abbassiya Square, while security was stepped up around parliament and other official buildings in central Cairo.
"These events have brought us backwards... instead of moving forward to construct a modern state on a healthy democratic basis," Sharaf said.
The protesters clashed with anti-riot police and soldiers guarding the state television building, after thousands took part in a protest march from the Shobra district.
A standoff degenerated as the demonstrators started hurling stones and set fire to two cars, an AFP correspondent said. The television channel said that an army vehicle was burnt.
Security forces fired into the air to disperse the crowd, and dozens of people fled.
"Down with the marshal," the demonstrators chanted on the march to Maspero, referring to Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who heads the military council.
On Sunday night, amid scenes of mayhem at the hospital which was filled with grieving relatives, a priest named Daud told AFP at least five of those killed were mowed down by an army vehicle.
Other bodies bore gunshot wounds.
State television reported that three soldiers were shot dead and dozens of their comrades wounded.
Later on Sunday night, hundreds of Muslims and Coptic Christians exchanged blows and threw stones at the hospital treating the wounded from the earlier clashes, an AFP journalist witnessed.
The hospital mortuary housed the bodies of those killed.
Copts complain of systematic discrimination, but since Mubarak's fall, tensions have also mounted between the military -- initially hailed for not siding with Mubarak -- and groups that spearheaded the revolt, which say the army is reluctant to carry out genuine reforms.
Jordan opposition: Govt ‘unserious’ about reforms
Oct 4, 2011
By ABDUL JALIL MUSTAFA | ARAB NEWS
AMMAN: A coalition of Jordanian opposition parties on Tuesday accused the government of Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit of being “not serious” about political reform and pledged to continue struggle to achieve the required change.
“There is clear slowdown and lack of seriousness on the part of the government toward the accomplishment of real political reform that ensures the required transition of society,” the Higher Coordination Committee of National Opposition Parties said in a statement.
The panel, which comprises the Islamic Action Front (IAF) and seven other Pan-Arab and left-leaning political parties, detected the government’s “lack of will for reform” that found expression in the new election law and the municipalities law due to govern the municipal elections set for the second half of December.
The Muslim Brotherhood movement, the country’s main opposition group, has decided to “suspend” participation in the municipal polls pending the government’s meeting of several demands, including a constitutional amendment that limits the king’s powers, foremost his appointment of prime ministers.
The Jordanian opposition parties also held the government responsible for recent attacks on opposition figures, including Saturday’s attack on prominent activist Leith Shbeilat, who was stoned as he addressed a rally in the Jerash area, 30 km north of Amman.
By ABDUL JALIL MUSTAFA | ARAB NEWS
AMMAN: A coalition of Jordanian opposition parties on Tuesday accused the government of Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit of being “not serious” about political reform and pledged to continue struggle to achieve the required change.
“There is clear slowdown and lack of seriousness on the part of the government toward the accomplishment of real political reform that ensures the required transition of society,” the Higher Coordination Committee of National Opposition Parties said in a statement.
The panel, which comprises the Islamic Action Front (IAF) and seven other Pan-Arab and left-leaning political parties, detected the government’s “lack of will for reform” that found expression in the new election law and the municipalities law due to govern the municipal elections set for the second half of December.
The Muslim Brotherhood movement, the country’s main opposition group, has decided to “suspend” participation in the municipal polls pending the government’s meeting of several demands, including a constitutional amendment that limits the king’s powers, foremost his appointment of prime ministers.
The Jordanian opposition parties also held the government responsible for recent attacks on opposition figures, including Saturday’s attack on prominent activist Leith Shbeilat, who was stoned as he addressed a rally in the Jerash area, 30 km north of Amman.
Sources In Washington Say IMF’s Pot Of Cash Could Be Expanded From $350 Billion To $3.5 Trillion
Oct 5, 2011
Source:The Daily Bail
It is no secret that IMF head Christine Lagarde wants a massive increase in the size of the IMF's bailout fund. She's been lobbying publicly along those lines for the past month. What is new is the dollar figure now being floated. Keep in mind as you read this story that U.S. taxpayers contribute roughly 18% of all IMF funds, so the $3.5 trillion headline figure means $700 billion from the United States.
Any IMF funding increase would have to be approved by Congress, and judging by the blistering response below from Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rogers (the leading U.S. anti-IMF advocate), it will not be an easy sell.
---
NOTE - In the excerpt below we have changed all figures to U.S. dollars.
Source - Daily Mail
Sources in Washington said the IMF’s pot of cash could be expanded to $3.5 trillion.
Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF, said the current war chest of around $350 billion ‘pales in comparison with the potential financing needs of vulnerable countries’ and needs to be expanded to deal with ‘worst-case scenarios’.
Following crisis talks in Washington at the weekend, Mrs Lagarde said: ‘The Fund’s credibility, and hence effectiveness, rests on its perceived capacity to cope with worst-case scenarios. Our lending capacity looks comfortable today but pales in comparison with the potential financing needs of vulnerable countries and crisis bystanders. It will be useful to discuss, soon, the needs and contingency options.’
---
Now for some sanity on this issue:
U.S. Has Already Contributed $100 Billion + to Bailouts
“We Cannot Take the ‘Too Big to Fail’ Philosophy to a Global Level”
Washington, D.C. – Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference, released the following statement today after International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director Christine Lagarde distributed a document at an IMF steering committee meeting warning that the IMF’s growing participation in European bailouts means the organization will likely need to increase its global bailout fund – a fund to which U.S. taxpayers have already contributed over $100 billion:
“At a time when the federal government is borrowing $5 billion every day on top of a $14 trillion national debt, we should not be funneling billions of dollars through the IMF to bail out Greece, Portugal, Ireland, and other European countries. The European Union was set up to be an economic competitor to the United States, and therefore, any bailout funds should come from the E.U., not the U.S.
The global debt crisis was caused by too much spending and borrowing and that crisis will not be solved by more spending and borrowing. We cannot take the ‘too big to fail’ philosophy to a global level. The only thing ‘too big to fail’ is America itself.”
The U.S. is the leading contributor to the IMF, providing the organization with 17.3 percent of its funding.
Source:The Daily Bail
It is no secret that IMF head Christine Lagarde wants a massive increase in the size of the IMF's bailout fund. She's been lobbying publicly along those lines for the past month. What is new is the dollar figure now being floated. Keep in mind as you read this story that U.S. taxpayers contribute roughly 18% of all IMF funds, so the $3.5 trillion headline figure means $700 billion from the United States.
Any IMF funding increase would have to be approved by Congress, and judging by the blistering response below from Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rogers (the leading U.S. anti-IMF advocate), it will not be an easy sell.
---
NOTE - In the excerpt below we have changed all figures to U.S. dollars.
Source - Daily Mail
Sources in Washington said the IMF’s pot of cash could be expanded to $3.5 trillion.
Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF, said the current war chest of around $350 billion ‘pales in comparison with the potential financing needs of vulnerable countries’ and needs to be expanded to deal with ‘worst-case scenarios’.
Following crisis talks in Washington at the weekend, Mrs Lagarde said: ‘The Fund’s credibility, and hence effectiveness, rests on its perceived capacity to cope with worst-case scenarios. Our lending capacity looks comfortable today but pales in comparison with the potential financing needs of vulnerable countries and crisis bystanders. It will be useful to discuss, soon, the needs and contingency options.’
---
Now for some sanity on this issue:
U.S. Has Already Contributed $100 Billion + to Bailouts
“We Cannot Take the ‘Too Big to Fail’ Philosophy to a Global Level”
Washington, D.C. – Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference, released the following statement today after International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director Christine Lagarde distributed a document at an IMF steering committee meeting warning that the IMF’s growing participation in European bailouts means the organization will likely need to increase its global bailout fund – a fund to which U.S. taxpayers have already contributed over $100 billion:
“At a time when the federal government is borrowing $5 billion every day on top of a $14 trillion national debt, we should not be funneling billions of dollars through the IMF to bail out Greece, Portugal, Ireland, and other European countries. The European Union was set up to be an economic competitor to the United States, and therefore, any bailout funds should come from the E.U., not the U.S.
The global debt crisis was caused by too much spending and borrowing and that crisis will not be solved by more spending and borrowing. We cannot take the ‘too big to fail’ philosophy to a global level. The only thing ‘too big to fail’ is America itself.”
The U.S. is the leading contributor to the IMF, providing the organization with 17.3 percent of its funding.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Ralph Nader, Ron Paul, Kucinich & Chomsky: "End The Left-Right Delusion, Corporatism Is The TRUE Enemy"
Oct 3, 2011
Source: The Daily Bail
Kucinich:
* "Wars cost the U.S. $30 million per hour..."
Excellent short clip with comments from leaders across the political spectrum. Interesting that in the past week, Ralph Nader has announced his support for Ron Paul, who himself announced in a recent speech that he would consider Kucinich for his cabinet as Secretary of Peace. The brightest and best thinkers are starting to understand that corporate control over Washington and both parties is the real enemy, a point which Dylan Ratigan has been making for months.
Ralph Nader seems to understand the endemic corporate cronyism better than any recent candidate outside of Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich.
Republican special interests include corporations, wars, and the wealthy.
Democrat special interests include corporations, wars, and the wealthy.
At least we have political choice.
Source: The Daily Bail
Kucinich:
* "Wars cost the U.S. $30 million per hour..."
Excellent short clip with comments from leaders across the political spectrum. Interesting that in the past week, Ralph Nader has announced his support for Ron Paul, who himself announced in a recent speech that he would consider Kucinich for his cabinet as Secretary of Peace. The brightest and best thinkers are starting to understand that corporate control over Washington and both parties is the real enemy, a point which Dylan Ratigan has been making for months.
Ralph Nader seems to understand the endemic corporate cronyism better than any recent candidate outside of Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich.
Republican special interests include corporations, wars, and the wealthy.
Democrat special interests include corporations, wars, and the wealthy.
At least we have political choice.
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