Posts tagged palestine
Global March To Jerusalem Turns Violent As Palestinians Attack
Mar 30th
Clashes continue at Kalandiya; protests and clashes break out in east Jerusalem, Bethlehem, West Bank villages; several Palestinians injured at Kalandiya, 14 arrested in J’lem; Lebanese forces prevent protesters from reaching Israeli border.
Palestinian youths hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at Israeli security forces, who responded by firing tear gas, stun grenades, sound weapons and foul-smelling water to disperse the protesters.
Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch visited the Kalandiya checkpoint on Friday, calling a rowdy Palestinian demonstration taking place there a “show.”
“They are throwing stones, and we are responding,” Aharonovitch said, adding that the protest at Kalandiya is the only demonstration still underway. Sporadic clashes were nonetheless reported in Jerusalem and throughout the West Bank.
Thousands of Palestinian protesters assembled at the Kalandiya checkpoint near Jerusalem in order to stage demonstrations marking the 36th annual Land Day.
Palestinian youths hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at Israeli security forces, who responded by firing tear gas, stun grenades, sound weapons and foul-smelling water to disperse the protesters.
A large number of protesters arrived at the checkpoint from Ramallah. A number of protesters were injured and taken to local hospitals for treatment. Israel Radio reported that those taken to hospital were lightly injured. Among the injured was Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Bargouti.
Lana Hamadeh, a Palestinian-Canadian from Ottowa, listed demands being made as part of the protest. One of nine delegates in the Canadian Global March to Jerusalem mission, Hamadeh said she and other protesters were demanding “the right of return for Palestinians and the protection of Jerusalem.”
“Non-Jewish holy sites are at risk and the city itself is being ethnically cleansed,” she told The Jerusalem Post. “We are asking for our right to re-enter Jerusalem and reclaim it for everyone, not just for Jews.”
Aharonovitch also said that protesters were throwing stones at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Jerusalem police said that 14 people had been arrested throughout the city, including in a protest at the Damascus Gate that police dispersed.
In Bethlehem, dozens of protesters were throwing stones at an IDF checkpoint after breaking through a line of Palestinian police. source – JPost
Israel On High Alert Ahead Of ‘Global March To Jerusalem’ Riots Planned By Palestinians
Mar 29th
Stealing Jerusalem from the Jews
The current media blitz from the liberal media is designed to make you think that someone God didn’t really give all of Israel to the Jews. That somehow the very capital of Israel – Jerusalem – belongs to the Arabs. If you believe that, I hear there is a bridge in Brooklyn for sale…cheap.
“For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.” Zechariah 14:2
RAMALLAH, West Bank – Palestinian organizers are calling for massive demonstrations on Friday to mark Land Day, an annual event that commemorates the killing of six Arabs who were protesting Israeli land policies on March 30, 1976.
Tens of thousands are expected to participate in what organizers have billed a “Global March to Jerusalem.” The plan is to have protesters from neighboring countries march up to the Israeli border to “demonstrate solidarity with Palestinians and to protect Jerusalem,” according to organizers.
The future status of Jerusalem is at the heart of the Palestinian movement and is the theme for the global Land Day. East Jerusalem is regarded as the likely capital of a future Palestinian state.
Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian activist, explained some of the reasoning for the march to NBC News during a recent interview in Ramallah.
“In light of the total failure of the peace talks, and given the Israeli destruction of the last potential two-state solution through settlement activities, we realize nothing will change unless we change the balance of power,” said Barghouti. He added that organizers are trying to achieve that through this “non-violent peaceful resistance.”
For many Palestinians, Land Day is an annual opportunity to demonstrate that Palestinians inside Israel, the West Bank and Gaza are united and share common goals.
This year will mark 36 years since Israel’s practice of expropriating Arab land to build Jewish settlements provoked protests by Arab residents in the Galilee and Negev. In addition to the six people who were killed, over 100 wounded during the ensuing violence. Since then Palestinians have commemorated March 30 as Land Day and have turned the day into a general protest against what they see as discriminatory practices by the Israeli government. So it seemed an appropriate date for activists to hold their march.
“The Global March to Jerusalem represents three things,” said Barghouti. “First of all, the unity of the Palestinian people, and their struggle to achieve freedom and end occupation, for Palestinians in and out of Palestine; second, it affirms the centrality of the issues of land and Jerusalem to achieving Palestinian freedom; and third, it provides international solidarity with the Palestinian cause.” source – MSNBC
Iran Flies Thousands Of Pro-Palestinian Activists To Syria As Israel Fortifies Borders
Mar 28th
Global March to Jerusalem
Israel boosted its Syrian and Lebanese border units as special flights carrying thousands of pro-Palestinian activists from Tehran touched down in Damascus Tuesday, March 27 for the international Global March to Jerusalem Friday, March 30.
GMJ organizers hypocritically claim their planned march is a nonviolent action. In fact, the march is a blatant provocation for violence. - standwithus.com
Before taking off, they were split into small groups and tutored by Iranian Al Qods Brigades officers in tactics for breaching Israeli border barriers, bursting through and challenging the Israeli military forces defending the border.
On arrival in Damascus, one group of activists was sent by special bus to Lebanon, where Hizballah officers stood by to lead them to villages close to the Israeli frontier; a second is assigned to face Israeli lines on the Golan.
These anti-Israeli activists from several countries are being planted at strategic points to carry out the plan hatched together by Iran, Syria and Hizballah to ignite Israel’s two northern borders in solidarity with the annual Israeli-Arab Earth Day next Friday.
Earlier reports from Damascus that the demonstrators would keep the Quneitra sector of the Golan and the Lebanese Beaufort were meant to put the Israeli command off its stroke by disguising the real scope of their plans and their objective: a mass assault on Israeli borders. They are programmed to coincide with the outbreaks the Palestinian Authority is preparing for Jerusalem and the West Bank and Israeli-Arab disturbances inside Israel – all on the same day, as DEBKAfile reported earlier Tuesday.
The Palestinian extremists of the Gaza Strip will certainly not stand aloof. source – DEBKA
Vatican Representative In Israel Declares That ‘Jews No Longer The Chosen People’
Mar 20th
Vatican says Israel’s existence as Jewish state has nothing to do with the Bible.
“And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Genesis 12:3
DISCLAIMER: When the Vatican uses phrases such as “we Christians”, NTEB goes on record as saying that we are not part of whatever group it is they are referring to. The bible says that real Christians are to love the Jewish people and to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. NTEB whole-heartedly supports the Jewish people and the literal, visible, physical, modern-day nation of Israel.
From YNET NEWS: In a special interview with Die Tagespost last week, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal, named by Pope Benedict to represent the Vatican in the Jewish State, declared that “Israel’s existence as such has nothing to do with the Bible.” He then compared Christians’ condition in today’s Jerusalem with Jesus’ Passion: “We Christians never forget that even our Lord himself suffered and was mocked in Jerusalem.”
“We Christians cannot speak about the Promised Land for the Jewish people”, the synod’s document said. “There is no longer a chosen people. The concept of the promised land cannot be used as a base for the justification of the return of Jews to Israel and the displacement of Palestinians.”
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal, named by Pope Benedict to represent the Vatican in the Jewish State, declared that “Israel’s existence as such has nothing to do with the Bible.”
Twal’s position on Israel and the Bible has been embraced at the highest levels in the Catholic Church. The Vatican synod in 2010 declared that Israel cannot use the Biblical concept of a promised land or a chosen people.
A few days ago, Patriarch Twal responded enthusiastically to the agreement reached between Hamas and Fatah. He also denounced “the Judaization of Jerusalem” and attacked Israel for “trying to transform it into an only Hebrew-Jewish city, excluding the other faiths.” Elsewhere, Iraq’s Archbishop, Louis Sako, asked to “separate between Judaism and Zionism.” Indeed, in the most influential quarters of Christianity, Jews are still regarded as an apostate group not entitled to a sovereign state of its own.
Jesus, the Palestinian prince of hope and peace?
Backed by the Catholic clergy, for the first time in history the Palestinians asked the United Nations’ cultural body to register Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity under the name of “Palestine.” According to Omar Awadallah, who heads the UN department in the PA Foreign Ministry,
“Jesus is the Palestinian prince of hope and peace and Christians all over the world want that church to be a World Heritage site.”
In a period when the Vatican’s anguish at the catastrophic decline of Arab Christianity should be palpable, the Catholic Church chooses to demonize Israel and to increase its collaboration with the PLO.
The confirmation comes from the intensity of high profile meetings in recent weeks and the participation of bishops not only from Arab countries, but from Europe and the United States as well.
Elimination of Jewish state has become a priority
Last January, eight Catholic bishops from Europe and North America, including UK Archbishop Patrick Kelly and French Archbishop Michel Dubost, visited Gaza. “I asked prisoners in the largest prison in Europe (in Evry) to pray for you,” Dubost told Gazans. The inference was clear: Palestinians are living in a big prison terrified by Israel. In the same period, Father Manuel Musalam, head of Gaza’s Catholics, met with Hamas leader, Mahmoud al Zahar, and declared that “Christians are not threatened by Muslims” but that everyone faces the same problem, that of Israel’s “humiliation.”
The Vatican’s criminalization of Zionism, which Arab Churches made a basic condition for Muslim-Christian rapprochement, grants the elimination of the Jewish State priority over defending the rights of their own beleaguered communities. After Arab nationalism failed to eliminate Israel, Arab Christianity and the Vatican are now building a Palestinian identity hostile to Israel and the Jews. source – YNET News
Hamas PM Haniyeh Says Palestinian Violence Against Israel Will NEVER Stop
Feb 11th
Iran fighting Israel by proxy
Hamas would never acknowledge the Israeli state, said Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of the Palestinian movement in Gaza, on Friday in Tehran.
Palestine does not want peace with Israel, according to Hamas PM Ismail Haniyeh
“They (West) want from us to stop resistance and acknowledge Israel but I herewith announce that this will never happen,” Haniyeh said though an interpreter at a ceremony marking the 33rd anniversary of the 1979 Iranian revolution.
“Our message and the message of all those who lost their blood in the Palestinian lands is that all occupied lands will eventually be liberated from Israeli occupation,” Haniyeh said.
He thanked Iran for its constant support for Palestinian resistance groups and called on maintaining unity in the Islamic world.
Haniyeh arrived in Tehran on Friday and is to meet President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran, which does not recognize the state of Israel, is a supporter of Hamas but has constantly denied providing any financial and military aid to the movement. Also on Friday, Iran reiterated its support for Palestinian resistance against Israel, saying that it would “use everything at its disposal” to support the Palestinians, according to an AFP report. source Haaretz
UN Tells Israel To Stop Building On Their Own Land
Feb 1st
JERUSALEM (AP) — U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon pressed Israel on Wednesday to do more to get flagging Mideast peace efforts back on track, calling for a halt in West Bank settlement construction and urging the Israelis to submit concrete proposals on the key issues of borders and security ties with a future Palestine.
UN Chief Ban Ki-Moon
Ban is visiting Israel and the Palestinian areas on a mission to salvage the latest efforts to restart peace talks. A month of low-level discussions between Israel and the Palestinians ended last week without any breakthroughs, and it remains unclear whether they will resume the dialogue.
“We are at a critical moment for Israel and the region,” Ban said. “I remain hopeful that the direct, frequent exchanges between the parties with continue.”
Formal peace talks have been stalled for more than three years, in large part over the settlement issue. The Palestinians say there is no point in negotiating as long as Israel continues to settle its population in the West Bank and east Jerusalem — captured areas that the Palestinians want for their future state.
Some 500,000 Israelis now live in these areas, and this week Netanyahu’s government approved new financial incentives meant to lure more Israelis to the West Bank.
Continued settlement “does not help the ongoing peace process,” Ban said. “They should refrain from further settlement for the sake of ongoing peace talks. This can be a way of expressing goodwill gestures.”
Netanyahu appeared to rebuff Ban’s request, saying the question of settlements “should be part of the final peace talks and final peace agreements.”
The Palestinians have demanded a halt in settlement construction before returning to the negotiating table. Last month’s low-level discussions, mediated by Jordan, ended without any Israeli commitment to freeze settlement building or progress on other issues, like proposed borders and security arrangements. The Palestinians have not yet decided whether to continue the talks.
The talks in Jordan were meant to clear the way for the resumption of full-fledged peace talks and a final peace agreement by the end of the year. They are taking place under the auspices of the international “Quartet” of Mideast mediators — the U.S., European Union, Russia and the United Nations.
The Quartet has asked both sides to promptly submit detailed proposals on borders and security. The Palestinians believe the deadline was on Jan. 26 and have already submitted their proposals. Israel believes the deadline is in April and has only submitted vague principles on border arrangements.
“I also hope that Israel will be forthcoming with its own concrete proposals on territory and security, as called for by the Quartet,” Ban said.
Responding to Ban’s comments, Netanyahu said he recognizes “there has to be an agreement, probably a painful agreement for us given our passion for these historic lands.” But he complained that “the real cause of this conflict” is the Palestinians refusal to recognize Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people.
Israel has also accused the state-run Palestinian media of broadcasting hatred and incitement against Israel and the Jews.
Asked about the alleged incitement, Ban said: “Hate speeches or provocations, they are not helpful, they are not acceptable.”
Later Wednesday, Ban was headed to the West Bank for talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and to visit the site of the first planned Palestinian city. Construction of the new city, called Rawabi, has been held up by Israeli security concerns about a planned access road. source – Yahoo News
Palestinian Leader Says Israel Must Retreat To Pre-1967 Borders
Jan 25th
The Middle East conflict will end only when Israel withdraws to the pre-1967 lines and a Palestinian state is established, jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghuti said Wednesday in a rare court appearance.
The Day is coming when Israel will indeed be restored to it's 'pre-1967 borders', and just take a look at how much MORE land that's going to be. Glory!
“The conflict will be finished the moment the Israeli occupation ends, and there is a full withdrawal to the 1967 borders and a Palestinian state is established,” he said in Hebrew at Jerusalem Magistrates Court.
Barghuti, who is serving five life sentences for his involvement in several deadly anti-Israeli attacks, was called to testify as part of a US civil lawsuit against the Palestinian leadership in connection with bloodshed during the second intifada (2000-2005).
On entering the courtroom, Barghuti, a senior official within the ruling Fatah party of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, immediately raised his hands to flash his trademark victory V-sign.
“I call on the great Palestinian people to embrace unity and cohesion and to establish a national unity government and also to embrace popular, peaceful resistance to end the occupation,” he said in Arabic.
Rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah last year pledged to work quickly towards elections and to form a unity government under the terms of a reconciliation deal which has yet to be implemented.
“Peace cannot happen without ending the occupation,” he said, adding a “salute” to those behind the popular revolutions in Tunisia and Libya, as well as in Egypt, which on Thursday marked the first anniversary since its uprising began.
“I don’t recognise this court,” Barghuti shouted to AFP as he was led out of the courthouse. “I call on the Palestinian people to continue their popular struggle.”
Before Barghuti entered the room, his lawyer Elias Sabbagh had told the court he would not be testifying.
“We are talking about a US lawsuit against the Palestinian Authority and not against Mr Barghuti. Mr Barghuti is not part of this lawsuit, that is why he is not going to say anything about this case or any other case,” he said.
“The case is against the PLO and the Palestinian Authority,” Sabbagh told AFP, referring to the Palestine Liberation Organisation.
“They brought Barghuti as a witness because he was in the PA and he refused to say anything in the court about this issue.”
An influential leader with widespread support among the Palestinian public, Barghuti is known for being a lifelong activist who supported the Oslo peace process in the 1990s. But Israel has accused him of masterminding the second intifada, or Palestinian uprising, which erupted in 2000. source – Yahoo News
