|
|
Sept. 20, 2013
Daily summary -Friday, September 20, 2013
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Main News
THE NEW GOVERNMENT SWORN IN
The 16th Palestinian government under Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah was sworn in last night before President Mahmoud Abbas in the presidential headquarters in Ramallah. Presidential secretary general Tayyeb Abdel Rahim read out the decree for ratification of the cabinet makeup based on the amended Basic Law of 2003. The cabinet formation is the following:
1- Rami Hamdallah – Prime Minister
2- Ziad Abu Amr – Deputy Prime Minister
3- Saeed Abu Ali – interior minister
4- Shukri Bshara – finance minister
5- Ali Mhanna – justice minister
6- Ali Abu Zuhri – minister of education and higher education
7- Kamal Shrafi – Social affairs minister
8- Mahmoud Al Habbash – minister of Waqf and religious affairs
9- Rabiha Diab – minister of women’s affairs
10- Issa Qaraqe – minister of prisoner affairs
11- Maher Ghneim – minister of public works and housing
12- Adnan Husseini – minister of Jerusalem affairs
13- Jawad Al Naji – minister of national economy
14- Rula Ma’ayah – minister of tourism and archeology
15- Safa’ Nasser Al Deen – minister of IT and communications
16- Jawad Awwad – minister of health
17- Saed Al Kouni – minister of local governance
18- Nabil Dmeiri – minister of transport
19- Anwar Abu Aisheh – minister of culture
20- Mohammed Abu Ramadan – state minister for planning affairs
Also, Fawwaz Abdel Rahman Aqel was appointed as secretary general of the Cabinet at the level of minister.
The ministers who were not sworn in before President Abbas because they were out of the country but will be sworn in as soon as they return, are the following:
Mohammed Mustapha – deputy prime minister for economic affairs.
Riyad Al Malki – minister for foreign affairs
Ahmad Majdalani – labor minister
Waleed Assaf – agricultural minister
http://maannews.net/arb/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=631476
HAMDALLAH CALLS ON FRANCE TO SUPPORT THE GOVERNMENT BUDGET TO ALLOW INVESTMENTS, ESPECIALLY IN AREA C
Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah called on the French government yesterday to contribute to supporting the Palestinian government and its treasury in order to guarantee that the government can continue with its plans for building state institutions, which also includes investment in Area C. Hamdallah made his call in a meeting with the new French consul Herv Magro. For his part, Magro commended the Palestinian government’s plans for building up the economy, reiterating France’s position and support for the Palestinian people both politically and economically. (Al Quds)
TULMUDIC RITUALS AT THE DOORS OF AL AQSA; DEMOLITIONS IN KHIRBET MAKHOUL FOR THE THIRD TIME
Jews in Jerusalem celebrate Sukkot yesterday in the Old City, setting up the traditional umbrellas in front of houses taken over by settler and in the so-called Jewish Quarter. For the first time, the set up a wood awning in the Christian quarter as well. In related news, dozens of settlers broke into the historic Qataneen market that leads to the Aqsa Mosque compound and began conducting prayers and special Talmudic rituals for the first day of Sukkot under heavy Israeli police and army protection. Stores in the area were forced closed by Israeli police in order to allow the settlers to perform their rituals freely. Also, hundreds of settlers marched through the Old City, especially near the Moroccan and Jaffa gates, calling for break-ins to the Aqsa and holding prayers inside. According to Sheikh Azzam Al Khatib, head of the Waqf, the break-ins yesterday were minimal because it was the first day of Sukkot, but added that extremist Jewish groups were planning a massive break in on September 30.
In related news, Israeli occupation forces demolished last night homes in Khirbet Mak’houl in the Jordan Valley for the third time in a row. According to mayor of Maleh and the Bedouin communities in the northern Jordan Valley Aref Daraghmeh, Israeli troops besieged the village and tore down the tents set up by the Red Cross after the village was completely demolished three days ago. (Al Quds)
EXTREMIST SETTLERS ATTACK A JERUSALEM YOUTH WITH SPECIAL NEEDS
Hussein Jaber, 18 suffered cuts and bruises yesterday after being attacked by a group of extremist Israelis in front of his house in the Old City of Jerusalem. According to eyewitness Nasser Qous, who is the head of the Jerusalem Club in Jerusalem, a group of extremists attacked Jaber and his friend while they were in their neighborhood of “Iron Gate” using rocks and beating them with their fists and feet. Qous said Jaber fainted and suffered head injuries in addition to bruises and contusions all over his body, adding that he is a special needs young man. Qous also said that Israeli police arrested two of the extremists after clashes broke out in the area in protest of the attack. (http://maannews.net/arb/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=631490)
EREKAT: CONTINUING SETTLEMENT CONSTRUCTION THREATENS THE HALT OF NEGOTIATIONS; ISRAEL WANTS TO CONTINUE OCCUPATION OF THE JORDAN VALLEY FOR ECONOMIC PURPOSES
Head of the negotiating team Saeb Erekat said yesterday that continued settlement policies would lead to a halt in peace talks, saying there was a ‘certain pattern’ that had taken shape since the start of negotiations which is that each time talks are restarted there are announcements for settlement tenders. He also said that up until now, seven Palestinians had been killed and houses demolished. “Someone should tell the Israelis that they should give the peace process a chance,” he said. “Because if your approach is aimed at preventing the Palestinians from coming to the negotiations table, you have just about succeeded.” Erekat also said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s demand that Israel maintain control over the Jordan Valley for 40 years has nothing to do with security considerations but is because of the enormous economic returns that Israel receives from the Valley. He said the profits made by the settlement council in the Jordan Valley reached $612 million last year alone. “Look at the Jordan Valley settlements,” he told a group of diplomats he was touring the Valley with. “They are nothing like the settlements in the West Bank; they are purely investment projects.” He went on to say that the real negotiations Israel is conducting is not at the table with the Palestinians but on the ground through their daily measures of ethnic cleansing, demolitions and assassinations, saying Israel must choose between settlements and peace. (Al Ayyam)
BIRZEIT UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES RESUMPTION OF CLASHES; STUDENT COUNCIL CONTINUES ITS SIT-IN
The Birzeit University administration announced the resumption of clashes this Monday even though it said the university would be officially opened to all tomorrow in order to complete procedures and mad the necessary arrangements for resuming classes. The announcement comes after three weeks of closure, which resulted in the cancellation of summer courses for 2014. The university said it would continue efforts with the staff and workers’ union to continue its dialogue with the student council. Meanwhile, the student council announced that the dialogue had failed between it and the university administration, announcing that the strike would continue. (Al Ayyam)
HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN THE STRIP ESCALATING DUE TO THE SIEGE AND THE CLOSURE OF CROSSINGS
The government media office for the de facto Gaza government under Hamas said yesterday that the fuel crisis was still ongoing because of the measures being taken by Egyptian authorities to prevent its entry into the Strip. It also said that the main power station in Gaza was threatened with shutdown because of the lack of fuel to keep it in operation, which in turn would result in a huge humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Furthermore, the borders and crossing authority said the Rafah crossing has been closed for nine consecutive days with limited time slots when it is opened by Egyptian authorities. Gaza’s health ministry said medicine supplies had suffered a setback of 30% and that 145 types of medicines had been depleted along with 460 types of medical supplies. The ministry also said that around 1,000 cases of sick patients were still unable to reach Egyptian hospitals for treatment (Al Quds)
THE UN: AREA C IS CENTRAL FO GEOGRAPHIC CONTINUITY AND EXPANSION OF INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE WEST BANK
The UN reaffirmed that Area C, which is over 60% of the West Bank is fundamental to geographic contiguity in the West Bank and for the sustainability of a Palestinian state and its economy. The report, which will be presented on the 25th of this month to the donor meeting committee (AHLC) in New York, also said that Area C was necessary for the expansion of the infrastructure overall, such as water and electricity networks. The report was prepared by special UN envoy to the Middle East Robert Serry, who said that the occupied Palestinian territories have “tremendous potentials” and that developing Area C would also increase revenue returns for the PA. The report also addressed East Jerusalem, citing the Israeli restrictions on movement there and called on Israel to take more measures to ease the restrictions on Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territories. It called on expansion of economic activities including in the Gaza Strip and Area C to improve the living standards of Palestinians. (Al Ayyam)
IBRAHIMI MOSQUE CLOSED TO MUSLIMS ON SUNDAY AND MONDAY
The directorate of the Islamic Waqf in Hebron said yesterday that Israeli authorities had informed the director of the Ibrahimi Mosque Hijazi Abu Sneineh that the mosque would be completely closed to Muslim worshippers next Sunday and Monday in order to allow settlers to enter and pray there for the Sukkot holiday. (Al Quds)
10,000 PALESTINIAN REFUGEES FLED SYRIA TO EGYPT; INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS CALL ON CAIRO TO RESPECT THEIR RIGHTS AND HALT TARGETING THEM
Four international rights groups confirmed yesterday that the number of Palestinian refugees who fled from Syria to Egypt had reached 10,000 people. The organizations called on Egyptian authorities to respect their rights according to international law and to stop targeting them. The EuroMediterranean Monitor, the working group for Palestinians in Syria, the Center for Palestinian refugee rights in Istanbul and the Awda center in London all said Egyptian authorities were systematically targeting Palestinians coming from Syria including two refugees who were killed by Egyptian navy forces that opened fire at an illegal immigrant boat off of the Alexandria shores last Tuesday. (http://www.alquds.co.uk/?p=85787)
GAZA GOVERNMENT CALLS ON EGYPT TO RECONSIDER SENTENCES AGAINST FIVE GAZA FISHERMEN
Hamas government spokesperson Ihab Ghusein called yesterday on Egyptian authorities to reconsider sentences given to five Palestinian fishermen charged with entering Egyptian regional waters. Ghusein said this would only heighten tensions between Gaza and Egypt saying this was a ‘dangerous development’ from the Egyptian authorities towards the Palestinians. Egyptian authorities yesterday handed down sentences of one year in prison and a 500-pound fine for each of the five fishermen, charging them with illegally entering Egyptian regional waters. (http://alhayat.com/Details/553581)
|
Headlines
*Civil servants union announces suspension of protest activities (Al Quds)
*Campaign wages against sexual harassment inside the Green Line (Al Quds)
*Dead Sea expected to dry out (Al Quds)
*New in Palestine: medical treatment on the internet (Al Quds)
*Arab heritage conference for Muslims and Christians in the holy lands starts (Al Quds)
*10 bodies of Iraqis killed with their hands tied and blindfolded; eight killed in explosion west of Baghdad (Al Quds)
*Snake found in canteen at Negev prison (Al Hayat Al Jadida)
*Putin: Syria’s chemical arsenal as alternative for Israel’s nuclear one (Al Hayat Al Jadida)
*Hamas continues barring students from traveling via Rafah crossing (Al Hayat Al Jadida)
*President receives letter from Hollande (Al Quds)
*Settler runs over child in Hebron (Al Quds)
|
Front Page Photos
Al- QudsJerusalem: extremist Jews carry out Talmudic rituals in front of the doors of the Aqsa during Sukkot
Al-Ayyam:1) A child waits with her family to be allowed to enter Egypt after the Rafah crossing was partially opened yesterday; 2) Egyptian army forces in the town of Kirdasah
Al Hayat Al Jadida:1) The president heads the first cabinet meeting; 2) Jerusalemite passed by a settler shack yesterday; 3) Dozens of Gazans wait to be allowed to cross Rafah towards Egypt
|
|
|
More Headlines
Israeli eviction notices for hundreds of dunams of land in Kharas, west of Hebron
Israeli occupation authorities distributed eviction notices for hundreds of dunams of agricultural land for confiscation in the town of Kharas, west of Hebron under the pretext that this is state land. The land research center of the Arab Studies Society said in a report that shepherds in the western areas of the town found the notices along with aerial maps showing the area and pictures of the land targeted for eviction; the shepherds handed the notices over to the municipality. The notices were originally issued on the 10th of the month and stipulate that the residents must not further work the land and return it to its original state, giving them 45 days as of the date of the notice. If they do not implement the order, Israeli authorities said they would forcefully evict it and have the residents tow the bill. The municipality said a total of 304 dunams of land are being targeted. The land is planted with olive and almond trees and has a rainwater well for agricultural purposes built there. Some Bedouin families also live on the land. (http://qudsnet.com/arabic/news.php?maa=View&id=253315)
Settlers break into several areas in Hebron and Bethlehem
Dozens of settlers broke into Solomon’s Pools this morning south of Bethlehem and in Khellat Al Fahem and Beir Haram Al Rami in Hebron to carry out Talmudic prayers. Around 300 settlers barged into the area of Solomon’s Pools via the Efrat settlement road built on lands belonging to Al Khader. Locals say more settlers continue to flock into the area. The settlers prayed there under tight Israeli army security before leaving. Dozens of settlers also broke into the Hebron areas of Khellat Al Fahem and Bir Haram al Ra’e in Hebron to pray during the Sukkoth holiday. (http://safa.ps/details/news/112088/span-classevent-showمحدث-spanمستوطنون-يقتحمون-عدة-مناطق-بالخليل-وبيت-لحم.html)
A snake in the canteen of Negev prisoners
A report issued by the ministry of prisoner affairs yesterday said prisoners in the Negev desert discovered a 120-centimeter yellow snake in the canteen, said to be one of the most poisonous snakes in the Negev Desert. According to prisoner Amjad Abu Latifa, when the prisoners were receiving lunch, from the canteen they were shocked to see a snake in the food. He said if they were not quick at noticing it, they would have been bitten. The prisoners informed the police, who immediately caught it. They then filed a complaint with prison services about the snake, saying this was a threat to their lives. This is not the first time prisoners find snakes and scorpions in the desert prison were there about 1,200 prisoners being held (Al Hayat Al Jadida)
|
Arab Press
Hamas must put Gazans above opposition to Egypt’s generals
Arabic News Digest
There is no big discovery in saying that the basic needs of average Gazans will be dependent on Egypt unless somebody can force the Israeli government to lift its siege of the Gaza Strip, said Abdullah Iskandar, the managing editor of the pan-Arab newspaper Al Hayat.
“It is a simple truth that the leaders of Hamas, the rulers of the strip, have turned into a source for all sorts of confrontations with Cairo,” he said.
Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood branch in Gaza, has mixed geographical reality and interest with ideological affiliation. They didn’t heed the hefty price the residents of the strip would have to pay as a result of such lack of distinction, which counts as a serious political mistake on the part of the Hamas leadership, since they must be aware of the deeply negative repercussions on Gazans and on their ability to secure their basic daily needs.
It isn’t sufficient on the part of Hamas officials to deny the Egyptian government’s serious accusations that Hamas is interfering in internal Egyptian affairs by siding politically with the Muslim Brotherhood and its military wing by training Islamists how to set bombs and, in some cases, even taking part in military operations against government forces in Sinai.
“These are official accusations and they require that the Islamic movement, Hamas, provide Egyptian authorities with any documents and reports that could refute the claims beyond any reasonable doubt,” the writer added. “However, Hamas didn’t show any preparedness to even look into the matter.”
This suggests that the leadership of the Islamist movement in Gaza, or at least part of it, is plotting with extremist militias that are seeking revenge from the Egyptian authorities in Sinai.
It is also possible that Hamas officials aren’t aware of the exceptional importance the Egyptian authorities lay on stability and security in Sinai.
In both cases, Hamas is committing a grave error with Cairo.
Back in the day when Hamas could rely on the strategic depth it drew from the Syrian regime, Iran and Hizbollah, its leadership felt confident to show animosity to the Mubarak regime. Today however, their support system has weakened acutely with the ongoing situation in Syria and Iran’s abatement towards Syria.
Egypt accuses Hamas of causing the rift, which Cairo deems harmful to its interests.
“Regardless of the ideological relationship between Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, taking a biased position vis-à-vis the internal conflict in Egypt is no longer a political position.
“It is part of a bloody confrontation in Egypt. And this is what Hamas is doing at the moment,” the writer concluded.
Minimum wage call needs to be delayed
Many will be angered by the Egyptian interim government’s deferral of a decision to reassess minimum wage in the public and private sectors, but workers must accept this deferral because it makes sense, the Cairo-based newspaper Al Ahram said in its editorial.
“There are so many questions that have yet to be answered before a realistic plan can be pushed forward,” the newspaper said. “One huge question is: Where would the private sector have to dig for funds to cover an increase in minimum wage?”
Factories and businesses are going through hard economic times in Egypt, not to mention the political instability and general sense of insecurity that have affected the whole economic cycle, the paper noted.
“We all know that thousands of factories have closed down, and that the country no longer receives enough inflows of investments to bring life back to these factories,” Al Ahram said.
Faced with a decision to increase minimum wage, the factories that remain in operation will certainly consider laying off workers, if not stopping their businesses, the paper argued.
What about civil servants?
“Well, we are already suffering from a huge budget deficit, and there is no room whatsoever for new financial burdens.”
In this environment, raising minimum wage has to be studied with extra care, the paper concluded.
Time Israel admitted it has a nuclear arsenal
It is high time Israel has abandoned its policy of neither denying nor admitting that it has had a stockpile of nuclear weapons since the 1950s, wrote columnist Mazen Hammad in the Qatari newspaper Al Watan.
As analysts even within Israel argue, that policy of equivocation has exhausted all its purposes and, given the current regional context, the author said Israel can benefit from admitted it has dozens of nuclear warheads.
The columnist cited unidentified reports by American experts that Israel possesses 80 nuclear warheads, not 200 as previously thought. It also reportedly ceased producing nuclear weapons in 1984 but could double the stockpile within a short timeframe in needed.
“Almost no one in the world today buys Israel’s denial of its nuclear bombs, and everyone agrees that Israel is a nuclear power and that it has started the production of those bombs in 1948, the very year it has established itself on Palestinian land,” the columnist said.
Now the benefit for the international community in Israel admitting its possession of a nuclear arsenal is that it will be further pressured to abide by international conventions regulating the possession of weapons of mass destruction.(http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/comment/hamas-must-put-gazans-above-opposition-to-egypts-generals)
Stateless and in Exile: One Palestinian family’s story of being expelled from their Jerusalem home
By Suheir Azzouni
Far-fetched Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations began earlier this month. But in parallel process for my family, long-time residents of occupied East Jerusalem, we have been sent into exile by the same Israeli authorities that claim they want to establish peace.
Our infraction? We had the temerity to live outside of our homeland for several years and the naivety to think we could return to Palestine for a summer vacation. Israel, however, allows such certainty only for Jewish residents of Jerusalem and not for the Palestinians whose land it occupied in 1967 – and certainly not for those Palestinians exiled in 1948.
It’s as though a Native American went to study in Europe and was expelled if she returned for a visit or to re-establish her life in the United States. Imagine your agony if you traveled abroad for several years and then were told by an (occupying) government that your right to return home had been forfeited while people of a different religion were allowed to make similar long-term trips or immigrate after never living there at all.
The double standard is obvious and should be addressed by Secretary of State John Kerry. Instead, Prime Minister Netanyahu inveighs against alleged Palestinian incitement when Mohammed Assaf sings of the Palestinian desire to return to homes and land from which over 700,000 Palestinians were expelled in 1948.
My family’s personal experience with this miscarriage of justice came in July. Just days into our vacation, the Israeli Ministry of Interior (MoI) presented us documents expelling us from our country, leaving us to face statelessness and exile. We are now in France, appealing our case, still in sharp pain, indignant about this injustice, and fearful for our future.
Our attorney hopes to convince MoI to reverse its decision on revoking our “permanent resident” status in East Jerusalem, where my husband was raised and my children were born. Should the MoI insist on its decision, two of our three children would end up stateless and passport-less. This will also mean that our family will not be able to live in, or possibly visit, our homeland again.
Israel imposed the “permanent resident” status on the Palestinians in East Jerusalem when it occupied and illegally, unilaterally annexed the city in June 1967 – thus not observing its obligations as an occupying power with regards to the provisions of international law, according to which Palestinian East Jerusalemites are not merely “residents” but are also “protected persons” who are entitled to continue living in their country. Over 14,000 Palestinians have been expelled since 1967.
My husband’s roots run deep in Jerusalem. His ancestral family (Mahshi) has lived in the city for centuries. It is still recognized by the Greek Orthodox Church as one of 13 prominent families within its congregation in Jerusalem. On important occasions, like Holy Fire Saturday, the family is called upon to carry a banner in front of the Patriarch in processions through the city streets.
My husband grew up in the Old City and was living there when Israel occupied it. Until 1994, he was involved in joint Israeli-Palestinian activities to realize a two-state solution and a just and lasting peace based on UN resolutions. He contributed to Palestinian statehood through the development of educational institutions and was a member of the team which established the first Palestinian Ministry of Education. His work was recognized by many, including France, which decorated him with the “Palmes Academiques” in 1993 and granted him French nationality in 2010. In 2001, he was offered a job at UNESCO where he presently holds a senior management position.
In 2001, our three children and I joined my husband in Paris, where we still reside. Triggered by the fact that my husband was granted French nationality, Israel expelled our family based on its policy of “center of life,” which it consistently applies to Palestinian Jerusalemites living and working outside the city, thus rendering them stateless. Israel thereby denies us our human right to travel, pursue our professional development and careers, and return to our country. Needless to say, Jerusalem’s Jewish residents have no such fears. It’s discrimination at its clearest.
My own roots also run deep in Jerusalem. The families of my paternal and maternal grandmothers are two of the 13 Greek Orthodox families mentioned previously. Many of my years were spent struggling for gender equality in Palestinian society. In 1994, I established the executive offices of the Women’s Affairs Technical Committee, a coalition of women’s organizations which was effective in reversing a number of discriminatory regulations against women.
How ironic it is that despite my life’s work on women’s and human rights, I am presently subjected to the violation of my basic rights as a person and a woman: my human right to leave and return to my country, a right secured by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 13.2) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Israel has signed (Articles 12.2 and 12.4). This covenant also stipulates that all persons lawfully within the territory of a State shall have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose their place of residence. My children, who are pursuing their studies, are also denied their human right to a nationality and the choice to return to their country.
We hope that Israel will demonstrate its seriousness in the ongoing negotiations through halting its inhumane policies which threaten Palestinians’ existence and enjoyment of basic human rights. Like all the peoples of the world, we have the right to go back to our home and country. We yearn to continue to work for peace, to live in our homeland and retire in peace. But Israel’s willingness to talk peace while at the same time exiling vulnerable Palestinians speaks volumes about Prime Minister Netanyahu’s intention to secure as much land with as few Palestinians as possible.(http://mondoweiss.net/2013/09/stateless-and-in-exile-one-palestinian-familys-story-of-being-expelled-from-their-jerusalem-home.html)
|
Opinions
The Oslo trap
Al Khaleej Editorial
Twenty years have passed since the signing of the Oslo Accords, which were supposed to result in a final solution to the Palestinian cause within five years. The Palestinian Authority was only supposed to be a precursor for further steps pertaining to refugees, Jerusalem, settlements, security arrangements, borders and bilateral relations. However, Israel stripped the agreement of all its meaning. All of these issues previously mentioned are still pending but still, the option of a settlement remains central in official Palestinian policy in spite of its futility and miserable failure, which is translated by Israel on the ground as more aggression, expansion and Judaization.
The PA did not realize back then that the Oslo Accords were a trap set for them by Israel and the United States.. Their lack of understanding the enemy and believing the false promises coupled with its lack of real practice at good negotiations all led to the Palestinians falling into the trap. The national rights of the Palestinian people also fell to the side as a result with the Intifada offering a down payment for a toxic and corrupt agreement at Oslo’s alter.
Perhaps the worst part of the agreement is that the creation of the PA while the occupation remained over the land of Palestine put an end to Israel as the occupying power and exempted it from tis legal responsibilities towards the occupied people. That is, the PA agreed to commit itself to these responsibilities but which became a burden on itself and on the people, which the agreement turned into aid and donation seekers from Arab and foreign countries. Add to that, the people became independent on the tax returns collected for them by Israel. And all of these things are subject to political and economic conditions and pressures on the PA.
In spite of two decades passing since is signing and in spite of the horrible failure of this option of a settlement, the PA still insists on negotiating even though it knows it will be extorted into offering more concessions without anything in return.
In any case, this is not so surprising as long as the Palestinian cause, which used to be the ‘mother of all causes” has become just a passing statement in Arab positions. This will no doubt have a negative impact on the cause itself and play into the hands of the Zionist project. (http://www.alkhaleej.ae/portal/4a6aaa64-4b17-466a-92a0-801443033bcd.aspx)
The occupation encroaches further in spite of negotiations
Al Quds Editorial
During a state of negotiations, like what is currently taking place between the Palestinians and Israelis under American sponsorship, what is supposed to happen is Israel should be showing some sign of loosening its grip on Palestinians to show that the issue of ending the occupation is moving within the negotiating chambers at least a little. However, what is really happening on the ground in Palestine is completely contradictory to any concept of real negotiations based on a recognition of national and human rights of the Palestinian people.
In Jerusalem, for example, there are Israeli plans already far in the execution stage towards Judaizing the city through limiting the demographic and structural presence of Palestinians there. Within the context of this plan the ‘Israelization” of education in the eastern sector of the city is taking place by introducing the Israeli curriculum into Arab schools instead of the Palestinian one, which shapes and molds Palestinian identity within a framework of values, history and national aspirations.
Without considering this as an excuse or acceptance of this approach, we can also say that some schools accepting to teach the Israeli curriculum may be for material incentives for the schools and the individuals in them. It may be motivated by their desire for these schools’ continuity in light of the absence of Arab support in this aspect. It may also be because some of the parents want to secure jobs for their children after graduation after unemployment has soared and job opportunities dwindled in Jerusalem and outside of it as well.
What is happening now is a result of years of Israeli efforts using the ‘stick and carrot’ method to Israelize education in Arab schools in Jerusalem and also the result of the absence of Arab support for these schools or any provision of projects and institutions to absorb graduates from Palestinian universities whether in Jerusalem or in the West Bank. We see Arab money flowing over petty things so even if one percent of this goes to supporting Jerusalem in particular and the Palestinian people in general, Israel’s efforts would have failed and Palestinians could succeed in remaining steadfast on their land.
In the same context, there is a systematic process for taking control of the Aqsa Mosque; the efforts are no longer being kept secret with the media and information technology offering endless information and pictures by the minute. There is no longer an excuse for those from our nation to hide behind under the pretext that ‘they didn’t know.”
We can hardly believe that they just sit back and watch with nonchalance or fill international organizations and the world with protests at least. We all know that they have a limited ability to protest but even this little is not being used at a time when we need it the most.
The occupation is spreading and encroaching more and more in Jerusalem, the West Bank and of course in Gaza because this is the nature of occupation. What is strange and unacceptable is the silence towards these Israeli measures. Palestinian-wise, the least we can do is end the split so we can face the world and the Arabs with one voice. This is the beginning of the road which the Palestinians must put more effort into and then couple up with Arab and international efforts to put an end to Israel’s plans. We need to seriously work towards achieving our permanent goals of freedom, national sovereignty and human dignity for our people. (Al Quds)
|
|
WHAT'S NEW
BACKGROUND
POLLS
WAYS TO GET JMCC
CONTACT US
|
To subscribe to free newsletter submit your email |
|
|
|