Palestinian Plight: Updates & Discussions

[Falcon29]

How to come the whole world is whining about human rights but don't apply that to the Palestinians? It seems like the Palestinians belong to the zoo and not human beings.

I guess there must be something very special in Israel that average person will never know....

Only global governments do.

 

[xTinx]

Fancy the "chosen people" doing something as "honourable" as taking away strips of land upon which Palestinians have built their makeshift homes. I once thought that merging with Israel, creating ethnocentricism-free policies and working to coexist peacefully would solve this age-old problem. It seems Israel has not done their part as evidenced by their behaviour when they assaulted Gaza residents. As the bigger, more established nation, couldn't they display maturity and act as the "better people"? They have professed their faith in Christ for centuries now but would not hesitate to kill or bully Palestinians just because of some vague, ancient grudge. What a bunch of hypocrites!

 

[UAE]

Palestinian girl, 14, in Israel prison for throwing rocks

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Palestinian Ali Al-Khatib, father of 14-year old-daughter Malak Al-Khatib, detained in Israel, points at the place where his daughter was arrested, in the village of Beitin near the West Bank city of Ramallah.


BETIN, West Bank — The fate of a 14-year-old Palestinian girl, tried before an Israeli military court for hurling rocks at passing cars in the West Bank and sentenced to two months in prison, has gripped Palestinians who say her treatment demonstrates Israel’s excessive measures against stone-throwing youth.

Malak Al-Khatib, arrested last month, is one of only a rare few female Palestinian minors who have ever faced arrest and sentencing by Israeli authorities.

“A 14-year-old girl won’t pose any threat to soldiers’ lives,” said her father, Ali Al-Khatib. “They are well equipped and well trained so what kind of threat could she have posed to them?“

The Israeli military said Al-Khatib was charged with stone-throwing, attempted stone-throwing and possession of a knife and that under a plea bargain, she was sentenced to two months in prison and a $1,500 fine.

Having spent four weeks in detention, Al-Khatib has another four left weeks left at a central Israeli prison for women.

Out of a total of more than 5,500 Palestinians held by Israel, about 150 are minors, the vast majority of them male, according to official figures from November, provided by Israeli human rights group B’Tselem.

Malak Al-Khatib is among a handful of female minors ever held by Israel. Palestinian officials say she is the youngest girl ever detained and sentenced by Israel — a claim Israeli officials and rights groups said they were not able to confirm.

Palestinians and rights groups criticize Israel for its response to rock-throwing, either directed at its forces or civilians. Israel views rock-throwing as a dangerous tactic and at times a life-threatening attack, and claims it can be the first step toward militancy. Palestinians see it as a legitimate way to resist Israel’s occupation. – AP

Palestinian girl, 14, in Israel prison for throwing rocks | Mid-East | Saudi Gazette

 

[Falcon29]

Rights group chides Israel 'policy' of bombing Gaza homes | Maan News Agency

JERUSALEM (AFP) -- An Israeli rights group Wednesday criticized the government for what it called a deliberate policy of launching air strikes on homes that killed hundreds of civilians during last year's Gaza war.

In a report examining 70 raids on residential buildings in the besieged Palestinian territory, B'Tselem said Israeli officials were responsible for civilian casualties during the 50-day conflict that killed nearly 2,200 Palestinians.

"A hallmark of the fighting in Gaza this summer was the numerous strikes on residential buildings, destroying them while their occupants were still inside," the 49-page report said.

"This aspect of the fighting was particularly appalling" and was "the result of a policy formulated by government officials and the senior military command."

In the cases B'Tselem investigated, 606 people were killed, 70 percent of whom were under 18 or over 60.

The UN says the conflict's Palestinian death toll was almost 70 percent civilian.

The July-August conflict also killed 67 soldiers and six civilians on the Israeli side.

B'Tselem said Tuesday that it had not yet received a response from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office regarding the report.

The group questioned Israel's claims that it went out of its way during the conflict to respect international humanitarian law.

"You cannot say that the army didn't know or couldn't know how many civilians would get killed during those attacks," B'Tselem's head of research Yael Stein said.

"You can't maybe (know) on the first day or the second day. But on the 10th day or the 20th day, when you see how many civilians are getting killed ... these attacks shouldn't have happened," she said.

B'Tselem demanded explanations for possible Israeli violations of international law -- specifically in deciding whether a home constituted a legitimate military target, and whether its destruction gave a distinct military advantage outweighing collateral damage.

"They take international law and stretch it as far as they can, way beyond the acceptable interpretation by international lawyers," Stein said.

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[Falcon29]

South African student body wants plight of Palestinians taught in schools

A body representing South African students yesterday called on the Ministry of Basic Education to include the Palestinian struggle against the Israeli occupation in the school curriculum as an example of the "anti-colonial struggle", the Anadolu Agency reported.

President of the Congress of South African Students (COSAS), Sandra Baloyi told reporters at the headquarters of the ruling African National Congress Party that "COSAS has received a positive response from the Department of Basic Education and will be officially meeting with the Ministry of Basic Education next week."

Baloyi pointed out that during their meeting with the minister they will discuss a number of issue which include the compulsory inclusion of the Palestinian struggle against Israel into the school curriculum as an anti-colonial struggle.

"In particular, the comparison between South African apartheid and Israeli apartheid to be explained within the curriculum," Baloyi stressed.

COSAS also plans to demand the Ministry of Basic Education to send a student delegation to Palestinian schools to meet with their Palestinian counterparts to learn about their suffering.

COSAS Gauteng provincial secretary, Khulekani Skosana said: "We feel we cannot be South African students who are not feeling the pain of other students in the world."

"We refuse to accept tainted money from Israeli organisations, the Israeli government and other entities sympathetic to the Israeli government," he said.

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Billboard campaign launched in Ireland to recognize Palestine | Maan News Agency

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A Palestine solidarity group in Ireland on Wednesday launched a billboard campaign to urge the Irish government to support the recognition of Palestine.

Palestine solidarity group Sadaka said that former Irish minister for foreign affairs Micheál Martin, Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams, and PA ambassador to Ireland Ahmed Abdelrazek urged the Irish government to recognize Palestine based on the two state parameters as part of the campaign.

John Douglas, President of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions said: "The Dáil and Seanad have given the Government a clear mandate to recognize the state of Palestine."

"Ireland's stated policy is that it supports a two state solution in Palestine and Israel. Ireland already recognizes Israel – we should now recognize the State of Palestine."

Chair of Sadaka Marie Crawley said recognition of Palestine would put pressure on Israel to contribute constructively to the peace process.

"Israel, as an occupying power, continues to hold a veto over Palestinian statehood. No country should deny another nation its right to statehood. And, as the maps on these billboards powerfully demonstrate, time is running out for the establishment of a Palestinian state."

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Italian lawmakers urge recognition of Palestinian state | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

Middle East
Feb. 27, 2015 | 03:12 PM
Italian lawmakers urge recognition of Palestinian state
ROME: Italian lawmakers on Friday backed a non-binding resolution that encourages the government to recognize Palestine as a state, a move that underlines European frustration over stalled Middle East peace negotiations.

European countries have become increasingly critical of Israel, which since the collapse of the latest U.S.-sponsored talks last April has pressed on with building settlements on territory the Palestinians want for their state.

Italy's Chamber of Deputies voted by 300 to 45 to pass the motion presented by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's Democratic Party (PD).

While most developing countries recognize Palestine as a state, most Western European governments do not, supporting the Israeli and U.S. position that an independent Palestinian state should emerge from negotiations with Israel.

Friday's symbolic vote does not change the position of the Italian government which, like other European countries, still supports a negotiated two-state solution.

Ireland, Britain and France held similar votes in parliament toward the end of last year. Sweden went further, officially recognising Palestine.

The Palestinians want an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza, with its capital in east Jerusalem.

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Think on: Banksy's tour of a ruined Gaza | Art and design | The Guardian

The street artist, who previously created works on the wall of the West Bank, has made a series of new paintings across ruins in Palestine

A Rodin-riffing new work from Banksy amid devastation in Gaza. All photos: banksy.co.uk
Ben Beaumont-Thomas


@ben_bt

Thursday 26 February 2015 08.36 EST Last modified on Thursday 26 February 2015 13.16 EST

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The Bristolian street artist Banksy has returned to Palestine to create another series of works, following his famous 2005 series painted on the West Bank barrier wall.

The works, which he trailed on his Instagram account last night, include one piece which somewhat resembles Rodin’s sculpture The Thinker, with the figure’s hand gone from thoughtfully supporting his face to covering it in despair – or perhaps Niobe, the classical figure weeping for the loss of her children. Another features a kitten sprayed on the remains of a wall, posed playing with a coiled ball of rusted metal as if it were wool. A third features children swinging around a watchtower as though it were a fairground ride.

The artist made a film to go alongside the works, documenting the devastation wrought by Israeli militia and bombing campaigns. “Make this the year YOU discover a new destination,” he sarcastically writes in its captions, recalling the banal exhortations of holiday brochures. One local is recorded saying of the kitten painting: “This cat tells the whole world that she is missing joy in her life. The cat found something to play with. What about our children?” The camera then rests on text that reads: “If we wash our hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless we side with the powerful – we don’t remain neutral.”

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[Falcon29]

Solidarity with Palestine at Stanford | Tulio Ospina

The massive Palestinian civilian death toll of Operation Protective Edge last summer marked a watershed moment for the growth of sentiment in solidarity with Palestine in the United States. In an August Gallup poll, 51 percent of young adults in the U.S. said Israel's actions were unjustified, whereas just 25 percent said they approved of them. Jewish Voice for Peace experienced rapid growth across the country. The widely-shared images and videos of the horrors of the assault, which killed over 1,500 civilians and 500 children, gave a strong impetus to shifts in opinion that have been underwaysince Operation Cast Lead in 2008, the last time Israel attacked Gaza on this scale.

This turning tide has broken through at Stanford University. Out of Occupied Palestine -- a coalition of 19 student groups, including Students for Justice in Palestine, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán, the NAACP, and the Black Student Union -- is in the midst of an intense campaign to get the university to stop investing in companies that enable violations of international law and human rights abuses against Palestinians. As of Feb. 7, over 1,600 Stanford students had signed our petition, whereas the anti-divestment petition had received just a little over 300 student signatures.

As organizers of the divestment campaign, we have experienced firsthand a very positive reception as we canvass in dining areas and residences with our petition, as well as at our educational events. A decade ago, Palestine solidarity activists on campuses didn't get the benefit of the doubt when we talked about human rights for Palestinians. The most common responses were "it's too complicated," or "what about terrorism," or "I don't really know enough." That needle has moved. Progressive young people today identify the plight and recognize the struggle of the Palestinians. We see it in the context of empire, racism, and inequality.

Stanford students have organized a resurgence of political activism that highlights the intersections of exploitation and several forms of oppression in the world around us. The early "Black Lives Matter" demonstrations last year were the first time many students had engaged in civil disobedience demanding more from our government -- demanding justice. Since then, a number of young people across the country and at Stanford have become newly familiar with the camaraderie and adrenaline pulses of protests.

Their boldness grew over time. When the NYPD officer who killed Eric Garner was not indicted, more than one hundred Stanford students walked onto Highway 101 and shut it down in their red college sweaters. Then, on Martin Luther King Day, 68 students participated in an action on the San Mateo Bridge and chanted until they were all arrested, and then chanted some more. It was during this last protest that a massive Palestinian flag was unfurled onto the bridge for every local news helicopter to see.

"We proudly carry the Palestinian flag as we call on Stanford to divest from human rights violations in the occupation and related state violence in the US," stated the press release about the demonstration. "Combating the triplets of racism, militarism and materialism was one of the biggest legacies King left us."

Shared solidarity and struggle across communities at Stanford have mirrored what is currently happening across global communities. Students are piecing together that many of the same corporations facilitating human rights violations in Palestine also work within the US: providing tear gas canisters and rubber bullets used on protesters to police departments, constructing a concrete wall to enforce borders, and profiting off mass incarceration. A recent trip by Black Lives Matter leaders and Ferguson activists to Palestine further reveals how two communities threatened by state-sanctioned violence are acknowledging these connections between injustice abroad and injustice at home.

On Feb. 17, the Undergraduate Senate of the Associated Students of Stanford University passed Out of Occupied Palestine's resolution to divest from corporations facilitating the occupation of Palestine. The first senate vote a week prior had achieved a 9-5 majority, but at the re-vote, it achieved a 10-4 majority, passing the two-thirds threshold required. This victory comes on the heels of the passage of a similar resolution by the University of California Student Association, which represents the 233,000 students enrolled in the UC school system. Two months before that, United Auto Workers Local 2865, which represents 13,000 student-workers across the entire UC system, became the first US labor union tovote to support the Palestinian call for divestment.

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Can I Take a Tax-Deduction on My Donation to Israeli Settlements in Palestine? | Foreign Policy


Can I Take a Tax-Deduction on My Donation to Israeli Settlements in Palestine?

American charities funnel millions of dollars to support the building of illegal settlements in the occupied territories. It's time for this to end.

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th Israel’s campaign season in full swing, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will add a new stop to his campaign trail. At U.S. House Speaker John Boehner’s invitation, Netanyahu is slated to address Congress on March 3 to advocate for a tougher line against Iran, in particular regarding the ongoing negotiations over its nuclear program. If Congress gives Netanyahu a platform to address these issues, it should also begin a conversation with President Barack Obama’s administration about how the United States can strike a blow against Israel’s continued settlement construction.

Since Netanyahu took office in March 2009, the population of Israeli settlements has grown dramatically. According to recently released Israeli government data, from the beginning of 2009 until the beginning of 2014, the settlement population grew 23 percent — more than double the rate of the overall Israeli population, which expanded 9.6 percent. In late December, another 380 new housing units in East Jerusalem settlements were approved.

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This growth is partly being funded by millions of dollars from tax-exempt American charities, which help expand and support settlements.This growth is partly being funded by millions of dollars from tax-exempt American charities, which help expand and support settlements. Even though this revenue stream arguably violates Internal Revenue Service rules, neither Congress nor the Obama administration has done anything to stop it.


In late September, settlers moved into 25 housing units in Silwan, an East Jerusalem neighborhood that abuts the Old City to the south and is home to 50,000 Palestinians. The move prompted the Obama administration to condemn the organization that engineered the purchase — a reference, apparently, to an Israeli association known as Elad — as one “whose agenda, by definition, stokes tensions between Israelis and Palestinians.”

Elad’s name is an acronym for “To the City of David,” the name Israelis use for Silwan. The name reflects the organization’s mission to, in its own words, “strengthen the Jewish connection” in the neighborhood, in particular, and East Jerusalem more broadly “through settlement and environmental and touristic development.” Elad’s agenda coincides with Israel’s state policy of moving its citizens into occupied territory — a position that violates international law. The Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the International Criminal Court, provides that the court may prosecute government officials responsible for the “transfer, directly or indirectly, by the Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.”

American taxpayers indirectly subsidize Elad’s work. In 2011 and 2012, the two most recent years for which tax filingsare publicly available, Elad received around two-thirds of its donations through a New York-based charity, Friends of Ir David. The charity transferred $5.6 million in grants in 2012 and $6.9 million in grants in 2011 to Elad — almost its entire revenue stream. The founder of Elad, David Be’eri, is also a board member of the American charity.

In late October 2014, nine more Israeli families moved into Silwan. They wereassisted by Ateret Cohanim, another Israeli settlement association largely funded through its U.S.-based charity, which raises between $1 million and $2 million in tax-deductible contributions annually for Ateret Cohanim’s benefit.

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[Falcon29]

Israeli forces arrest 6 Palestinians, Israeli activist | Maan News Agency

JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli troops arrested six Palestinians and one Israeli solidarity activist during a rally east of Abu Dis protesting Israeli plans to displace Palestinian Bedouins living in the E1 corridor.

The rally was organized by local popular resistance committees and an Al-Quds University student bloc affiliated to the Fatah movement.

The rally kicked off from the main crossroads between Abu Dis and al-Ezariya, marching to the construction sites east of Abu Dis where Israeli excavators have been leveling land for first stage of the plan.

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Israeli forces open fire on farmers in Gaza | Maan News Agency

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces on Wednesday opened fire on farmers east of al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, witnesses said.

The farmers were forced to leave their fields in order to to avoid being hit by the heavy fire coming from Israeli watchtowers spread along the border, locals said.

Israeli military vehicles stationed opposite to the town of Khuzaa in the southern Gaza Strip also fired gunshots at farmers.

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[BLACKEAGLE]

U.S. ‘deeply concerned’ on new Israeli settlements

Young Israeli settlers watch the demolition of a building at the Jewish settlement of Beit El, near the West Bank town of Ramallah, Wednesday, July 29, 2015. (AP)

By AFP, Reuters
Wednesday, 29 July 2015

The United States said it was "deeply concerned" about Israel's decision to build 300 new homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

"Settlement expansion threatens the two-state solution and calls into question Israel's commitment to a negotiated resolution to the conflict," the State Department said in a statement.

Additionally, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday condemned Israel’s approval of new settler homes in the West Bank and called on the government to reverse its decision.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the “immediate” construction of the 300 homes in Beit El and planning for another 504 homes in annexed east Jerusalem, his office said.

Ban reiterated that “settlements are illegal under international law, an impediment to peace and cannot be reconciled” with Israel’s “stated intention to pursue a two-state solution,” his spokesman said in a statement released in New York.

Ban urged Israel “to halt and reverse such decisions in the interest of peace” his spokesman said.

The U.N. secretary general also expressed concern about the threat of demolitions in the West Bank village of Susiya ahead of an August court hearing.

“The destruction of private property in occupied territory is prohibited under international humanitarian law, and for which actions there must be accountability,” his spokesman said.

Last Update: Thursday, 30 July 2015 KSA 09:02 - GMT 06:02
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/07/29/Israel-approves-new-homes-in-settlement-after-demolishing-two-buildings.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Israel authorises force-feeding of hunger-striking prisoners

Israel has long been concerned that hunger strikes by Palestinians in its jails could end in death and trigger waves of protests in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. (File photo: Shutterstock)

By Reuters | Jerusalem
Thursday, 30 July 2015

Israel's parliament on Thursday passed into law the ability to force-feed prisoners on hunger strike, a move that has met vehement opposition from the country's medical association.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rightist coalition weathered a lengthy parliamentary debate and the law passed with 46 lawmakers in favour and 40 opposed in the 120-seat Knesset.

Israel has long been concerned that hunger strikes by Palestinians in its jails could end in death and trigger waves of protests in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

But Israel's Medical Association, which considers force- feeding a form of torture and medically risky, has urged Israeli doctors not to abide by the law

Last Update: Thursday, 30 July 2015 KSA 09:28 - GMT 06:28
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/07/30/Israel-authorises-force-feeding-of-hunger-striking-prisoners.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Palestinian killed by Israel gunfire on Gaza border

Israeli border police officers detain a Palestinian protester in Jerusalem’s Old City, on Tisha B’Av. (File photo: Reuters)


Friday, 31 July 2015

A Palestinian man was killed and another wounded by Israeli gunfire in the northern Gaza Strip Friday after they approached the border with Israel, a Palestinian medical official told AFP.

Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said 27-year-old Mohammad Al-Masri died of his wounds after being shot near the border fence west of the Beit Lahiya area.

Another man was in a moderate condition following the incident, Qudra said.

A spokeswoman for the Israeli army told AFP that “two suspects approached the security fence of the northern Gaza Strip.”

After one of the figures continued to advance even after they were ordered to halt and warning shots were fired, “the force fired toward the lower extremities of a suspect,” the spokeswoman said.

Israel maintains a security buffer zone along the inside of the Gaza border with limited access for farmers, and it is not uncommon for Palestinians to be shot after approaching the fence.

Earlier on Friday, a Palestinian toddler was burned to death in the West Bank village of Dura in an arson attack by suspected Israeli settlers.

Last Update: Friday, 31 July 2015 KSA 21:14 - GMT 18:14
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/07/31/Palestinian-killed-by-Israel-gunfire-on-Gaza-border-.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Palestinian teen shot dead in Israeli army clash

Israeli police stand by with riot gear, during the demolition of a building at the Jewish settlement of Beit El, near the West Bank town of Ramallah, Wednesday, July 29, 2015. (AP)

AFP, Al Arabiya News
Saturday, 1 August 2015

A Palestinian teen shot during clashes with the Israeli army in the West Bank died of his wounds early Saturday, Palestinian medical and security sources told Agence France Presse.

The sources said 14-year-old Laith Khaldi of the Jalazon refugee camp was shot in the chest during clashes with Israeli forces near the Atara checkpoint on Friday evening and died hours later in hospital.

A spokeswoman for the Israeli army told AFP that "a Palestinian suspect hurled a Molotov cocktail at an army post in Bir Zeit. In response to the immediate danger, the soldiers fired toward the assailant, identifying a hit".

Clashes had erupted in the West Bank on Friday after a Palestinian toddler was burnt to death as the result of an arson attack by suspected Israeli settlers.

Earlier on Friday, a Palestinian man was killed and another wounded by Israeli gunfire in the northern Gaza Strip after they approached the border with Israel, a Palestinian medical official told AFP.

Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said 27-year-old Mohammad Al-Masri died of his wounds after being shot near the border fence west of the Beit Lahiya area.

Israel maintains a security buffer zone along the inside of the Gaza border with limited access for farmers, and it is not uncommon for Palestinians to be shot after approaching the fence.


Last Update: Saturday, 1 August 2015 KSA 07:48 - GMT 04:48
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/08/01/Palestinian-teen-killed-in-Israel-army-clash.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Clashes erupt at Palestine’s al-Aqsa mosque

A Palestinian throws a stone towards a vehicle of Israeli security forces during clashes following a demonstration in support of Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque (File photo: AFP)

By AFP | Occupied Jerusalem
Sunday, 2 August 2015

Clashes have broken out on Sunday at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, one of Islam's holiest sites, two days after a Palestinian toddler was burned alive in a firebombing by suspected Jewish extremists.

Police said masked Palestinian youths at the mosque threw stones at security forces while protesters held aloft photographs of the 18-month-old child killed in Friday's arson attack in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli media reported that security forces later sought to create a barrier between the stone-throwers and tourists visiting the mosque complex, the third holiest site in Islam.

Calm began to return to the hilltop complex in Jerusalem's Old City later in the morning, an AFP photographer reported.

A wave of protests has swept the Palestinian territories since Friday's firebombing, which also critically wounded the toddler's four-year-old brother and parents.

There have also been demonstrations by Israelis and calls for a crackdown on Jewish extremists.

On Saturday, clashes broke out at Jalazon refugee camp in the West Bank, where the funeral took place for Laith Khaldi, 16, who the army said was shot by soldiers after hurling a Molotov cocktail.

Clashes had also rocked al-Aqsa a week ago when Palestinians were angered over Jews' access to the compound on an annual day of Jewish mourning. Visits are allowed to the complex, but Jewish prayer is prohibited.

Israeli police briefly entered the mosque during those clashes to shut the doors and lock rioters inside.

Israel seized east Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.


Last Update: Sunday, 2 August 2015 KSA 12:52 - GMT 09:52
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/08/02/Clashes-erupt-at-Palestine-s-al-Aqsa-mosque-.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Lawyer: Israel to force feed a hunger-striking Palestinian

A Palestinian boy takes part in a rally to show solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike in Israeli jails. (Reuters)

AFP, Jerusalem
Saturday, 8 August 2015

Israeli authorities have declared their intention to force feed a hunger-striking Palestinian, his lawyer said Saturday.

If carried out it would be the first case since the adoption last month of a new law permitting the practice.

The International Committee of the Red Cross warned Friday that alleged Islamic Jihad activist Mohammed Allaan, held without charge since November, was "at immediate risk" of death after fasting for 50 days.

Allaan's attorney Jamil al-Khatib told AFP Israeli judicial officials "informed me of the intention to proceed with the force feeding of Mr Allaan."

"I have informed him of this but it does not alter his intention to continue his strike," Khatib said, adding that his client had actually been refusing food for 55 days by Saturday.

He added that Allaan was placed in intensive hospital care when his body became unable to absorb drinking water.

Palestinian health minister warned Saturday that the force feeding procedure itself would endanger Allaan's life.

Allaan, himself a lawyer, is being held under a procedure allowing indefinite internment without charge.

Palestinians in Israeli prisons regularly go on hunger strike in protest at conditions, particularly those who, like him, are held in what Israel calls administrative detention.

On July 30, parliament approved a law allowing prisoners on hunger strike facing death to be force fed, sparking criticism from rights groups and doctors.

While the new law does not specifically mention Palestinians, Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who sponsored the legislation, said last week it was necessary since "hunger strikes of terrorists in prisons have become a means to threaten Israel."

Last month, Israel freed Islamic Jihad member Khader Adnan after a 56-day hunger strike that brought him near death.

Last Update: Saturday, 8 August 2015 KSA 18:47 - GMT 15:47
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/08/08/Lawyer-sraeli-to-force-feed-a-hunger-striking-Palestinian.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

U.N. warns of risk of Israeli-Palestinian escalation

A Palestinian girl sitting in a bus reacts as she waits with her family to cross into Egypt at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the southern Gaza Strip August 17, 2015. (Reuters)

The United Nations, AP
Wednesday, 19 August 2015

The U.N. political chief warned Wednesday that the risk of escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict “is palpable.”

Jeffrey Feltman told the U.N. Security Council the past month has seen “unconscionable crimes of hatred by extremist elements, reprehensible retaliatory violence, provocations at Jerusalem’s holy sites, and a worrying increase in rockets launched from Gaza towards Israel.”

With the first anniversary of last year’s Gaza conflict approaching, Feltman appealed to leaders on all sides to “prevent extremists from escalating the situation and hijacking the political agenda.”

His comments follow Tuesday’s warning by Israel’s opposition leader Isaac Herzog that a new Palestinian uprising could be looming after the recent violence. Herzog called on both sides to reduce tensions and restart peace talks.

Israel and the Palestinians have held on-again, off-again peace talks over the past two decades, and the latest round of U.S.-brokered negotiations broke down more than a year ago. Even if talks resume, the gaps between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders are so vast that a deal is unlikely.

Feltman said the failed negotiations “have bred mistrust and, worse, the slow and painful withering of hope.”


Last Update: Wednesday, 19 August 2015 KSA 21:22 - GMT 18:22
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/08/19/U-N-warns-of-risk-of-Israeli-Palestinian-escalation.html

 

[Falcon29]

Israel court lifts detention order against Palestinian hunger striker

JERUSALEM (AFP) -- Israel's High Court on Wednesday suspended a detention-without-trial order on hunger-striking Palestinian prisoner Muhammed Allan but said he must remain in hospital pending a decision on his future.

"Due to the petitioner's medical condition he will remain in intensive care," said the ruling, seen by AFP.

"This means that for now, owing to the hunger striker's medical condition, the administrative detention order is no longer operative."

The court said that for now he should be treated like other hospital patients.

"His family and friends will be able to visit him, not as a prisoner, subject to the usual medical instructions on visiting the sick," the ruling said.

"After his condition stabilizes, if Allan asks to be moved to another hospital he is to apply to the authorities and in the case of difficulty or disagreement it will be possible to turn to the court," it added.

Earlier, an MRI scan revealed that Allan had suffered brain damage as a result of his hunger strike.

Israel's High Court had said that if the hunger striker's brain damage is irreversible then it is likely the administrative order will be completely revoked.

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