25 jan 2016
The director of the Palestinian Cultural Organization Malaysia (PCOM), Muslim Imran, confirmed that the Jerusalem intifada has been receiving a significant popular and official support in Southeast Asian countries, stressing that these countries are of the most pro-Palestinian cause states.
Imran said in an interview with NoonPost that the Malaysian people’s interaction with the Jerusalem intifada since its outbreak was remarkable, pointing to a series of demonstrations spporting the intifada, most notably the so-called "Day of Rage," in which more than 45 organizations and parties participated and thousands of people gathered.
During the demonstration speeches were delivered by leading figures of the "UMNO" Party, the largest party of the governing coalition, along with the leaders of the People's Justice Party (PKR) and National Trust Party (Amanah), the largest opposition parties, in addition to the participation of leaders of the Chinese and Indian minorities in this event.
Imran said that over the past four months, varied support campaigns were launched including: demonstrations, lectures, conferences, fund-raising, and many other events.
The Palestinian presence in the two countries
Imran pointed to the presence in Malaysia of nearly a thousand Palestinian refugees, more than half of them are those who fled war-torn Syria while others came from Iraq. Furthermore, there are more than three thousand Palestinian residents, mostly students, academics and their families.
He said: "Although Malaysia is not a signatory to the refugee reception agreements -which means that it is not legally binding for the country to receive them and provide for them- but the country usually turns a blind eye to the arrival and the increasing numbers of Palestinian refugees as it is aware of the complexities of their situation".
He pointed out that the Palestinian Cultural Organization sought over the previous years to provide support for the Palestinian community in Malaysia in collaboration with the government and Malaysian NGOs especially in the educational and human rights fields.
He said that "the organization efforts in supporting Palestinians in Malaysia are continuous so as to help alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian refugees."
With regard to Indonesia, he pointed out that there are nearly 300 Palestinian refugees, mostly Palestinians from Iraq, who need more care and support.
For the following reasons these countries advocate the Palestinian cause:
Imran said in the interview that among the most important reasons why these countries support the Palestinian cause are their people and their leaders' conviction of the justice of the Palestinian cause and the need to end the humanitarian suffering of the Palestinian people.
Another reason is that they understand the historical relationship between their struggle against colonialism in the past and the current struggle of the Palestinian people against the Israeli occupation.
He also pointed to another reason for the support by Muslims of this region, who constitute more than 40% of the population, which is their belief in the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque and the city of Jerusalem and the importance of the religious connections between them and the Palestinian people.
Special efforts to support the Gaza Strip
Imran pointed out that the largest delegations participating in convoys to break the siege on Gaza were from the countries in this region (Southeast Asia), adding that the peoples of the region have contributed, in spite of their simple resources, in a number of reconstruction projects in Gaza; the Indonesian hospital and Malaysian mosques, for example, among others.
He stressed, however, that all forms of support for the Palestinian struggle provided from all supporters of the Palestinian cause are in need of development.
The role of Malaysia and Indonesia
Imran pointed to the support of the Malaysian government led by Prime Minister Najib Razak, which was clear in various international forums.
He pointed to the various forms of support the government of Najib provides which include: the political, financial and moral support, explaining that the first issues raised by the Malaysian envoy to the UN Security Council immediately after the election of Malaysia for non-permanent membership of the UNSC in 2015 was the need to support the Palestinians and end the Israeli occupation of their land.
He also pointed to the Malaysian government's commitment to the contribution to the reconstruction projects of Gaza and the establishment of supportive projects in Jerusalem, some of which had been completed while others are under execution and follow-up.
He stated that the previous government in Indonesia has repeatedly declared its support for the Palestinian people, adding that the Palestinian cause was present in the electoral campaigns of the presidential candidates in 2014.
He pointed out that the Indonesian President Joko Widodo had pledged to make the Palestinian cause always present on his agenda. Despite the current internal challenges and regional issues his government is going through, the official position is still committed to supporting the Palestinian people in their struggle, a commitment based on the principles of the Indonesian Constitution calling for the support of colonized peoples.
He stressed that the Palestinian cause is still in need for more efforts, "Despite the importance of what the governments of these two countries provide, the challenge is big and the ability of these countries to double their efforts is available."
The need for efforts by the free people of the world
He stressed that the Palestinian cause needs all Arab, Islamic and international efforts, as "the Palestinian people cannot, in spite of their heroism and huge sacrifices, overpower the Israeli occupation alone."
He said: "The Israeli occupation of Arab territories is the spearhead of the Western colonial project supported by the great powers, especially the United States. It will not be easy to defeat a project of this size without concerted Palestinian, Arab, Islamic and international efforts against it."
Imran stressed that the Palestinian people’s resistance is of a great interest to the countries and peoples of the free world, saying that it is "the first line of defense against the Israeli danger to the world."
Imran said in an interview with NoonPost that the Malaysian people’s interaction with the Jerusalem intifada since its outbreak was remarkable, pointing to a series of demonstrations spporting the intifada, most notably the so-called "Day of Rage," in which more than 45 organizations and parties participated and thousands of people gathered.
During the demonstration speeches were delivered by leading figures of the "UMNO" Party, the largest party of the governing coalition, along with the leaders of the People's Justice Party (PKR) and National Trust Party (Amanah), the largest opposition parties, in addition to the participation of leaders of the Chinese and Indian minorities in this event.
Imran said that over the past four months, varied support campaigns were launched including: demonstrations, lectures, conferences, fund-raising, and many other events.
The Palestinian presence in the two countries
Imran pointed to the presence in Malaysia of nearly a thousand Palestinian refugees, more than half of them are those who fled war-torn Syria while others came from Iraq. Furthermore, there are more than three thousand Palestinian residents, mostly students, academics and their families.
He said: "Although Malaysia is not a signatory to the refugee reception agreements -which means that it is not legally binding for the country to receive them and provide for them- but the country usually turns a blind eye to the arrival and the increasing numbers of Palestinian refugees as it is aware of the complexities of their situation".
He pointed out that the Palestinian Cultural Organization sought over the previous years to provide support for the Palestinian community in Malaysia in collaboration with the government and Malaysian NGOs especially in the educational and human rights fields.
He said that "the organization efforts in supporting Palestinians in Malaysia are continuous so as to help alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian refugees."
With regard to Indonesia, he pointed out that there are nearly 300 Palestinian refugees, mostly Palestinians from Iraq, who need more care and support.
For the following reasons these countries advocate the Palestinian cause:
Imran said in the interview that among the most important reasons why these countries support the Palestinian cause are their people and their leaders' conviction of the justice of the Palestinian cause and the need to end the humanitarian suffering of the Palestinian people.
Another reason is that they understand the historical relationship between their struggle against colonialism in the past and the current struggle of the Palestinian people against the Israeli occupation.
He also pointed to another reason for the support by Muslims of this region, who constitute more than 40% of the population, which is their belief in the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque and the city of Jerusalem and the importance of the religious connections between them and the Palestinian people.
Special efforts to support the Gaza Strip
Imran pointed out that the largest delegations participating in convoys to break the siege on Gaza were from the countries in this region (Southeast Asia), adding that the peoples of the region have contributed, in spite of their simple resources, in a number of reconstruction projects in Gaza; the Indonesian hospital and Malaysian mosques, for example, among others.
He stressed, however, that all forms of support for the Palestinian struggle provided from all supporters of the Palestinian cause are in need of development.
The role of Malaysia and Indonesia
Imran pointed to the support of the Malaysian government led by Prime Minister Najib Razak, which was clear in various international forums.
He pointed to the various forms of support the government of Najib provides which include: the political, financial and moral support, explaining that the first issues raised by the Malaysian envoy to the UN Security Council immediately after the election of Malaysia for non-permanent membership of the UNSC in 2015 was the need to support the Palestinians and end the Israeli occupation of their land.
He also pointed to the Malaysian government's commitment to the contribution to the reconstruction projects of Gaza and the establishment of supportive projects in Jerusalem, some of which had been completed while others are under execution and follow-up.
He stated that the previous government in Indonesia has repeatedly declared its support for the Palestinian people, adding that the Palestinian cause was present in the electoral campaigns of the presidential candidates in 2014.
He pointed out that the Indonesian President Joko Widodo had pledged to make the Palestinian cause always present on his agenda. Despite the current internal challenges and regional issues his government is going through, the official position is still committed to supporting the Palestinian people in their struggle, a commitment based on the principles of the Indonesian Constitution calling for the support of colonized peoples.
He stressed that the Palestinian cause is still in need for more efforts, "Despite the importance of what the governments of these two countries provide, the challenge is big and the ability of these countries to double their efforts is available."
The need for efforts by the free people of the world
He stressed that the Palestinian cause needs all Arab, Islamic and international efforts, as "the Palestinian people cannot, in spite of their heroism and huge sacrifices, overpower the Israeli occupation alone."
He said: "The Israeli occupation of Arab territories is the spearhead of the Western colonial project supported by the great powers, especially the United States. It will not be easy to defeat a project of this size without concerted Palestinian, Arab, Islamic and international efforts against it."
Imran stressed that the Palestinian people’s resistance is of a great interest to the countries and peoples of the free world, saying that it is "the first line of defense against the Israeli danger to the world."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed, during the Sunday government meeting, to support settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and to seek "a legal process to allow the settlers to return" to the two Hebron buildings they were evicted from, Thursday.
His statements about the "evicted settlers in Hebron" refer to the two buildings they occupied, Thursday, near the Ibrahimi Mosque, in the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Israel said the two buildings will remain shut “until the court reaches a final decision regarding their ownership.”
The eviction caused Netanyahu's coalition partners, especially extreme right wing factions, to lash out on him and his Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who ordered the removal of the settlers.
Netanyahu said the eviction was a legal issue, and that he will always support all settlement activities in the occupied West Bank, including Jerusalem.
He added that the legality of the "purchase of the two homes is being examined," adding said once his government examines "the purchase documents", and approves it, the settlers will be allowed back, and reiterated his government's support of all settlement activities.
"Should the legal process take more than a week, it will be presented to the ministerial cabinet for deliberation," he said.
Netanyahu faced strong criticism from his extreme right-wing coalition partners, and ministers, after the army removed the settlers.
The settlers stormed and occupied the two Palestinian homes in Hebron, last Thursday, while throwing stones and hurling insults on the Palestinians.
The homes belong to Fawwaz Qafisha, Shams al-Zatari, and Hussein al-Zatari on al-Sahla Street, near the Ibrahimi mosque, in Hebron.
The army said the eviction came because the alleged purchase was never verified, and because the setters moved in without the approval of the military, the political and security leadership in the country.
Israel’s colonies in the occupied territories, including in East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law and the Fourth Geneva Conventions, to which Israel is a signatory.
They are largely built on private Palestinian property, while many are built on what Israel classifies as “state lands.”
Article 4, paragraph six, of the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention says, "the occupying power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies."
Article 85(4)(a) of the Additional Protocol of 1977, reiterates Article 4, and states that "the transfer by the occupying power of parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies is a grave breech of the protocol."
In addition, the ICC Statute (International Criminal Court) states that "the transfer, directly or indirectly, by the occupying power of parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies constitutes a war crime in international armed conflicts."
His statements about the "evicted settlers in Hebron" refer to the two buildings they occupied, Thursday, near the Ibrahimi Mosque, in the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Israel said the two buildings will remain shut “until the court reaches a final decision regarding their ownership.”
The eviction caused Netanyahu's coalition partners, especially extreme right wing factions, to lash out on him and his Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who ordered the removal of the settlers.
Netanyahu said the eviction was a legal issue, and that he will always support all settlement activities in the occupied West Bank, including Jerusalem.
He added that the legality of the "purchase of the two homes is being examined," adding said once his government examines "the purchase documents", and approves it, the settlers will be allowed back, and reiterated his government's support of all settlement activities.
"Should the legal process take more than a week, it will be presented to the ministerial cabinet for deliberation," he said.
Netanyahu faced strong criticism from his extreme right-wing coalition partners, and ministers, after the army removed the settlers.
The settlers stormed and occupied the two Palestinian homes in Hebron, last Thursday, while throwing stones and hurling insults on the Palestinians.
The homes belong to Fawwaz Qafisha, Shams al-Zatari, and Hussein al-Zatari on al-Sahla Street, near the Ibrahimi mosque, in Hebron.
The army said the eviction came because the alleged purchase was never verified, and because the setters moved in without the approval of the military, the political and security leadership in the country.
Israel’s colonies in the occupied territories, including in East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law and the Fourth Geneva Conventions, to which Israel is a signatory.
They are largely built on private Palestinian property, while many are built on what Israel classifies as “state lands.”
Article 4, paragraph six, of the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention says, "the occupying power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies."
Article 85(4)(a) of the Additional Protocol of 1977, reiterates Article 4, and states that "the transfer by the occupying power of parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies is a grave breech of the protocol."
In addition, the ICC Statute (International Criminal Court) states that "the transfer, directly or indirectly, by the occupying power of parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies constitutes a war crime in international armed conflicts."
Thousands of Palestinians in al-Khalil at noon Sunday bade farewell to the 13-year-old girl Rukaiya Abu Eid who was killed by Israeli gunfire on Saturday after an alleged stabbing attempt near Occupied Jerusalem.
Residents of al-Khalil organized a military funeral for the martyr girl Abu Eid, from al-Karmel village, amid popular and national participation.
Quds Press agency revealed that a general strike including universities and institutions prevailed in the town of Yatta in mourning for the murdered girl.
Minor Abu Eid was the third youngest martyr killed in the Jerusalem Intifada.
Residents of al-Khalil organized a military funeral for the martyr girl Abu Eid, from al-Karmel village, amid popular and national participation.
Quds Press agency revealed that a general strike including universities and institutions prevailed in the town of Yatta in mourning for the murdered girl.
Minor Abu Eid was the third youngest martyr killed in the Jerusalem Intifada.
24 jan 2016
Chief Israeli Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu announced Tuesday, on Facebook, that Palestinians should be executed in order to establish safety in Israel.
“Israeli army has to stop arresting Palestinians,” he posted on his Facebook wall, “but, it must execute them and leave no one alive.”
According to the PNN, Eliyahu is well known for his racist behavior and controversial statements about Arabs and Muslims. He has been calling on the government to carry out state-sanctioned revenge against Arabs in order to, in his words, "restore Israel’s deterrence."
The hard-right wing and bloodthirsty Chief Rabbi of Safed, and also a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council additionally declared that the Palestinians are the enemy of the Israeli occupation state and they “must be destroyed and crushed in order to end violence.”
In 2007, according to the Jerusalem Post, Eliyahu was quoted saying that “If they don’t stop after we kill 100, then we must kill a thousand. And if they do not stop after 1,000 then we must kill 10,000. If they still don’t stop we must kill 100.000, even a million.”
In 2012, Eliyahu was charged for racist statements. Among these were, according to Israel national news: “The Arab culture is very cruel,” and “The Arabs behave according to different codes, and violent norms that have turned into ideology.”
The rabbi allegedly stated that examples of this new Arab “ideology” now include stealing farm equipment from Jews and blackmailing farmers for protection against thefts. He also supposedly said that “the minute you make room for Arabs among Jews, it takes five minutes before they start to do whatever they want.” The justice ministry dropped the charges because the statements ‘may’ have been altered by reporters.
The Jerusalem Post reported him saying: “Should we leave them alive in order to then free them in another gesture to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas? The fact that they still have a desire to commit terrorist attacks shows that we are not operating strongly enough,” he said.
Explaining more about his fatwa, Eliyahu wrote, on his facebook, page that “the Israel Police officers who do keep terrorist Palestinians alive should be prosecuted under the law.”
He went on: “We must not allow a Palestinian to survive after he was arrested. If you leave him alive, there is a fear that he will be released and kill other people.” He added: “We must eradicate this evil from within our midst.”
“Israeli army has to stop arresting Palestinians,” he posted on his Facebook wall, “but, it must execute them and leave no one alive.”
According to the PNN, Eliyahu is well known for his racist behavior and controversial statements about Arabs and Muslims. He has been calling on the government to carry out state-sanctioned revenge against Arabs in order to, in his words, "restore Israel’s deterrence."
The hard-right wing and bloodthirsty Chief Rabbi of Safed, and also a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council additionally declared that the Palestinians are the enemy of the Israeli occupation state and they “must be destroyed and crushed in order to end violence.”
In 2007, according to the Jerusalem Post, Eliyahu was quoted saying that “If they don’t stop after we kill 100, then we must kill a thousand. And if they do not stop after 1,000 then we must kill 10,000. If they still don’t stop we must kill 100.000, even a million.”
In 2012, Eliyahu was charged for racist statements. Among these were, according to Israel national news: “The Arab culture is very cruel,” and “The Arabs behave according to different codes, and violent norms that have turned into ideology.”
The rabbi allegedly stated that examples of this new Arab “ideology” now include stealing farm equipment from Jews and blackmailing farmers for protection against thefts. He also supposedly said that “the minute you make room for Arabs among Jews, it takes five minutes before they start to do whatever they want.” The justice ministry dropped the charges because the statements ‘may’ have been altered by reporters.
The Jerusalem Post reported him saying: “Should we leave them alive in order to then free them in another gesture to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas? The fact that they still have a desire to commit terrorist attacks shows that we are not operating strongly enough,” he said.
Explaining more about his fatwa, Eliyahu wrote, on his facebook, page that “the Israel Police officers who do keep terrorist Palestinians alive should be prosecuted under the law.”
He went on: “We must not allow a Palestinian to survive after he was arrested. If you leave him alive, there is a fear that he will be released and kill other people.” He added: “We must eradicate this evil from within our midst.”
By Khalid Amayreh in Occupied Palestine
I don't want to irritate anyone, Jews or non-Jews. However, for those allergic to truth, I can't do much to help them avoid irritation.
We all condemn anti-Semitism in the strongest terms. We do so because hating a group of people because of their ethnicity, or religion, or because of the color of their skin, is inherently unacceptable. This is what civilized people call "racism."
In the final analysis, people may be more or less inclined to dislike certain people and certain regimes for their evil deeds, but not for what they are.
The list of evil doers is very long, indeed that is why, people like me, a late-comer, do hate the Nazis, who murdered millions of innocent people, the Soviet Communists who starved millions to death, most of the western powers which destroyed nations and exterminated countless human beings in the name of civility and democracy!!!!
And I don't forget the Bashar Assad regime, along with its Iranian and Russian supporters, who are carrying out a real holocaust in Syria for the purpose of extending the life-span of the criminal regime a few more months or a few more years.
For the same reason, I must also condemn the slow-motion genocide Zionist Jews have been carrying out for decades against the Palestinians for no reason other than the fact that the Palestinians don’t belong to the "Holy tribe." Yes, Israel may not be the worst evil doer under the sun. But it is an evil entity, none the less. And it would be dishonest to view the Zionist entity otherwise.
Let's return to the subject of anti-Semitism.
For many decades since WWII, Israeli and Zionist circles sought to blackmail the collective conscience of the West for the purpose of getting Western countries to support Nazi-like Israeli policies against the Palestinians.
And when some western nations voiced some objections or a measure of ambivalence over Israeli crimes, Israel screamed Nazis, Holocaust, Auschwitz Bergen Belen, etc. in the faces of these nations.
Unfortunately, some of these states were thoroughly intimidated and forced to shut up, even gravel at Israel's feet.
Now, Israel is trying once again to impose its own twisted understanding of anti-Semitism on the world community, especially Europe.
Hence, anti-Semitism, according to the Israeli version, is no longer about hating Jews for being Jews. Indeed, for the likes of Binyamin Netanyahu, the pathological liar and shameless propagandist who happens to be Israel's Prime Minster, anti-Semitism has acquired news far-fetched meanings and connotations including criticizing Israeli crimes and opposing ethnic cleansing of Palestinians as well as Israel’s Lebensraum policies in the West Bank.
Thus, if you criticize Israel's blanket bombings of civilian neighborhoods in Gaza, you become instantly an anti-Semite.!
And if you criticize the on-the-spot execution of Palestinian kids in the street of the West Bank, you are an emulator of the Nazis, pure and simple!
And if you argue that Israel ought to return to the borders of 1967 in implementation of UN resolution 242, then you are the ultimate enemy of the Jewish people, very much like Haman the Agagite!!!
Still, if you demand rather politely that Israel should halt the expansion of settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, then such demands are equated with pushing Israel to the brink of Auschwitz!!!
Frankly, I cannot think of a more scandalous abuse of anti-Semitism and the memories of Jews who perished because of their faith and ethnicity.
Today, the likes of Binyamin Netanyahu and Naftali Bennett are effectively embracing and encouraging brashly racist actions against Palestinians (Muslim and Christian alike), that have much in common with actions carried out against Jews in the 1920 and 1930-Germany.
We all remember that the Holocaust didn't really start with the concentration camps, but started much earlier with a book called Mein Kamph, with some anti-Jewish laws, the Nuremburg laws, and racist scattered attacks against Jewish properties, business, and places of worship, very much like what settler thugs are now doing to Palestinians.
Eventually came Krystalnacht. We know the rest of the story.
I can claim in all honesty that Netanyahu's anger over the burning of the Dawabsheh family at the hands of a member of Gush Emunim (a Jewish extremist group) had nothing to do with any genuine humanitarian concerns over the murder by way of burning of an entire family.
His anger is driven first and foremost by the fact that the gruesome crime portrayed Israel in bad light and seriously harmed Israeli Hasbara (propaganda efforts).
Today, nothing harms the legitimate cause of fighting anti-Semitism more than the criminally racist Israeli policies and practices in Palestine.
We, who live here in the West Bank, know more than anyone else the evil nature of Israeli crimes against our people, crimes that in many cases prompt Palestinian youngsters to carry out desperate acts that often end with death.
Israel doesn't stop trying to narrow our horizons, using every conceivable tactics. Hence, it is Israel that is really pushing the Palestinians to the brink of Auschwitz.
Now, Israel is trying to starve our people, by denying the bulk of Palestinians in the West Bank access to employment.
So, don't be surprised if you watch starving children in the West Bank a few months from now.
And don't you believe the Israelis if they tell you that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is to blame.
After all, the PA is itself languishing helplessly under the Israeli occupation and is responsible and answerable to Israel, not to the Palestinian people.
Khalid Amayreh is a veteran journalist and political commentator living in Dura in the Southern West Bank
I don't want to irritate anyone, Jews or non-Jews. However, for those allergic to truth, I can't do much to help them avoid irritation.
We all condemn anti-Semitism in the strongest terms. We do so because hating a group of people because of their ethnicity, or religion, or because of the color of their skin, is inherently unacceptable. This is what civilized people call "racism."
In the final analysis, people may be more or less inclined to dislike certain people and certain regimes for their evil deeds, but not for what they are.
The list of evil doers is very long, indeed that is why, people like me, a late-comer, do hate the Nazis, who murdered millions of innocent people, the Soviet Communists who starved millions to death, most of the western powers which destroyed nations and exterminated countless human beings in the name of civility and democracy!!!!
And I don't forget the Bashar Assad regime, along with its Iranian and Russian supporters, who are carrying out a real holocaust in Syria for the purpose of extending the life-span of the criminal regime a few more months or a few more years.
For the same reason, I must also condemn the slow-motion genocide Zionist Jews have been carrying out for decades against the Palestinians for no reason other than the fact that the Palestinians don’t belong to the "Holy tribe." Yes, Israel may not be the worst evil doer under the sun. But it is an evil entity, none the less. And it would be dishonest to view the Zionist entity otherwise.
Let's return to the subject of anti-Semitism.
For many decades since WWII, Israeli and Zionist circles sought to blackmail the collective conscience of the West for the purpose of getting Western countries to support Nazi-like Israeli policies against the Palestinians.
And when some western nations voiced some objections or a measure of ambivalence over Israeli crimes, Israel screamed Nazis, Holocaust, Auschwitz Bergen Belen, etc. in the faces of these nations.
Unfortunately, some of these states were thoroughly intimidated and forced to shut up, even gravel at Israel's feet.
Now, Israel is trying once again to impose its own twisted understanding of anti-Semitism on the world community, especially Europe.
Hence, anti-Semitism, according to the Israeli version, is no longer about hating Jews for being Jews. Indeed, for the likes of Binyamin Netanyahu, the pathological liar and shameless propagandist who happens to be Israel's Prime Minster, anti-Semitism has acquired news far-fetched meanings and connotations including criticizing Israeli crimes and opposing ethnic cleansing of Palestinians as well as Israel’s Lebensraum policies in the West Bank.
Thus, if you criticize Israel's blanket bombings of civilian neighborhoods in Gaza, you become instantly an anti-Semite.!
And if you criticize the on-the-spot execution of Palestinian kids in the street of the West Bank, you are an emulator of the Nazis, pure and simple!
And if you argue that Israel ought to return to the borders of 1967 in implementation of UN resolution 242, then you are the ultimate enemy of the Jewish people, very much like Haman the Agagite!!!
Still, if you demand rather politely that Israel should halt the expansion of settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, then such demands are equated with pushing Israel to the brink of Auschwitz!!!
Frankly, I cannot think of a more scandalous abuse of anti-Semitism and the memories of Jews who perished because of their faith and ethnicity.
Today, the likes of Binyamin Netanyahu and Naftali Bennett are effectively embracing and encouraging brashly racist actions against Palestinians (Muslim and Christian alike), that have much in common with actions carried out against Jews in the 1920 and 1930-Germany.
We all remember that the Holocaust didn't really start with the concentration camps, but started much earlier with a book called Mein Kamph, with some anti-Jewish laws, the Nuremburg laws, and racist scattered attacks against Jewish properties, business, and places of worship, very much like what settler thugs are now doing to Palestinians.
Eventually came Krystalnacht. We know the rest of the story.
I can claim in all honesty that Netanyahu's anger over the burning of the Dawabsheh family at the hands of a member of Gush Emunim (a Jewish extremist group) had nothing to do with any genuine humanitarian concerns over the murder by way of burning of an entire family.
His anger is driven first and foremost by the fact that the gruesome crime portrayed Israel in bad light and seriously harmed Israeli Hasbara (propaganda efforts).
Today, nothing harms the legitimate cause of fighting anti-Semitism more than the criminally racist Israeli policies and practices in Palestine.
We, who live here in the West Bank, know more than anyone else the evil nature of Israeli crimes against our people, crimes that in many cases prompt Palestinian youngsters to carry out desperate acts that often end with death.
Israel doesn't stop trying to narrow our horizons, using every conceivable tactics. Hence, it is Israel that is really pushing the Palestinians to the brink of Auschwitz.
Now, Israel is trying to starve our people, by denying the bulk of Palestinians in the West Bank access to employment.
So, don't be surprised if you watch starving children in the West Bank a few months from now.
And don't you believe the Israelis if they tell you that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is to blame.
After all, the PA is itself languishing helplessly under the Israeli occupation and is responsible and answerable to Israel, not to the Palestinian people.
Khalid Amayreh is a veteran journalist and political commentator living in Dura in the Southern West Bank
Hamas on Sunday slammed the Palestinian Authority (PA) President, Mahmoud Abbas, for propping up security coordination with the Israeli occupation, dubbing his self-proclaimed position a violation of national consensus.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said in a statement that Abbas’s remarks are “disappointing and represent a breach to national agreements on the prohibition of security coordination with the Israeli occupation.”
According to Abu Zuhri, such statements will never succeed in acquitting Majed Faraj, the PA intelligence chief, after he admitted that the PA had obstructed anti-occupation attacks during the ongoing Jerusalem Intifada.
Earlier, on Saturday evening, Abbas told reporters in his Ramallah-headquarted office that security coordination with the Israeli occupation was going on and that the PA is fulfilling its duty as best as it could to that very end.
At least 165 Palestinians, including 31 children and seven girls, were murdered by the Israeli occupation troops in the occupied Palestinian territories since the start of October 2015.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said in a statement that Abbas’s remarks are “disappointing and represent a breach to national agreements on the prohibition of security coordination with the Israeli occupation.”
According to Abu Zuhri, such statements will never succeed in acquitting Majed Faraj, the PA intelligence chief, after he admitted that the PA had obstructed anti-occupation attacks during the ongoing Jerusalem Intifada.
Earlier, on Saturday evening, Abbas told reporters in his Ramallah-headquarted office that security coordination with the Israeli occupation was going on and that the PA is fulfilling its duty as best as it could to that very end.
At least 165 Palestinians, including 31 children and seven girls, were murdered by the Israeli occupation troops in the occupied Palestinian territories since the start of October 2015.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has announced that the Indonesian capital Jakarta will be hosting an extraordinary Islamic summit on the seventh of March to discuss the developments in the Palestinian arena, especially in Occupied Jerusalem.
OIC secretary-general Iyad Madani held during the past two days lengthy discussions with Indonesian foreign minister Retno Marsudi and Palestinian foreign minister Riyadh al-Maliki on the arrangements for the upcoming summit on the Palestinian cause and Jerusalem.
The summit will be held in response to the request of Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas to explore avenues of moving at the international and Islamic levels to support the steadfastness of the Palestinian people and provide them with international protection.
OIC secretary-general Iyad Madani held during the past two days lengthy discussions with Indonesian foreign minister Retno Marsudi and Palestinian foreign minister Riyadh al-Maliki on the arrangements for the upcoming summit on the Palestinian cause and Jerusalem.
The summit will be held in response to the request of Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas to explore avenues of moving at the international and Islamic levels to support the steadfastness of the Palestinian people and provide them with international protection.
Christians are part and parcel of the Palestinian people and Arab nation and they will forever stand up for Palestinians’ right to freedom and independence, Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Sebastia, Atallah Hanna, said.
Speaking in exclusive statements to the PIC, Archbishop Atallah Hanna highlighted the importance of national unity and religious fraternity between Muslims and Christians.
“We’re entirely on the side of the Palestinian people and its legitimate resistance. We, the Palestinian people, are one and the same. We’re all standing up for a single cause. Palestinians and Muslims in the occupied territories are members of the same family. Their hopes, aspirations, dreams, and concerns, are like peas in a pod, just as their sufferings, wounds, and pains are.”
He spoke out against the racist statements released by Israeli fanatics and extremist leaders, who have been inciting against Muslims and Christians.
“Racial incitements will only make Christians stronger. We shall forever cling to our deep-rootedness in our motherland and defend our holy sites,” he vowed.
Archbishop Hanna slammed the attempts carried out by Israeli Price Tag gangs to desecrate Christian cemeteries and monasteries.
“Such violations are racist, barbaric, and unethical. They are proofs of the blindness contaminating the perpetrators’ sight and insight,” he added.
The Archbishop hailed the anti-occupation Jerusalem Intifada, saying: “Palestinians have the right to stand up for their freedom, dignity, and independence.”
“Whoever probes into the history of postcolonial nations will soon find out that freedom has never been offered on a golden plate. There have always been sacrifices and struggles,” Archbishop Hanna concluded.
Speaking in exclusive statements to the PIC, Archbishop Atallah Hanna highlighted the importance of national unity and religious fraternity between Muslims and Christians.
“We’re entirely on the side of the Palestinian people and its legitimate resistance. We, the Palestinian people, are one and the same. We’re all standing up for a single cause. Palestinians and Muslims in the occupied territories are members of the same family. Their hopes, aspirations, dreams, and concerns, are like peas in a pod, just as their sufferings, wounds, and pains are.”
He spoke out against the racist statements released by Israeli fanatics and extremist leaders, who have been inciting against Muslims and Christians.
“Racial incitements will only make Christians stronger. We shall forever cling to our deep-rootedness in our motherland and defend our holy sites,” he vowed.
Archbishop Hanna slammed the attempts carried out by Israeli Price Tag gangs to desecrate Christian cemeteries and monasteries.
“Such violations are racist, barbaric, and unethical. They are proofs of the blindness contaminating the perpetrators’ sight and insight,” he added.
The Archbishop hailed the anti-occupation Jerusalem Intifada, saying: “Palestinians have the right to stand up for their freedom, dignity, and independence.”
“Whoever probes into the history of postcolonial nations will soon find out that freedom has never been offered on a golden plate. There have always been sacrifices and struggles,” Archbishop Hanna concluded.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) at dawn Sunday kidnapped the Palestinian MP Hatem Qufeisheh and the former Palestinian minister Issa al-Jaabari, from their family homes in the southern occupied West Bank city of al-Khalil.
An Israeli army patrol rolled into al-Khalil city and kidnapped MP Qufeisheh along with the former Minister of Local Governance, Issa al-Jaabari.
Qufeisheh’s brother, Subhi, said Israeli army soldiers wreaked havoc on his brother’s home and kidnapped him shortly after undercover Israelis broke into the house and torched the MP’s car.
MP Qufeisheh was released 10 months ago from the occupation jails after he had served two years in administrative detention, with neither charge nor trial. He had reportedly been held administratively for a total of 141 months in nine separate occasions.
The IOF further kidnapped al-Jaabari after they stormed his family home in central al-Khalil.
Both Qufeisheh and al-Jaabari were kidnapped just a few hours after supporters of Majed Faraj, the head of the Palestinian Authority General Intelligence Service in Bethlehem, threatened to assassinate Hamas activists in the West Bank.
A few days earlier, Faraj admitted the PA security apparatuses foiled 200 anti-occupation attacks and arrested over 100 Palestinian activists since the start of the Jerusalem Uprising in early October.
Three prominent national resistance factions—Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine—slammed, in a joint statement Thursday, Faraj’s statements, dubbing them proofs of an intolerable disregard for Palestinians’ national liberation struggle.
An Israeli army patrol rolled into al-Khalil city and kidnapped MP Qufeisheh along with the former Minister of Local Governance, Issa al-Jaabari.
Qufeisheh’s brother, Subhi, said Israeli army soldiers wreaked havoc on his brother’s home and kidnapped him shortly after undercover Israelis broke into the house and torched the MP’s car.
MP Qufeisheh was released 10 months ago from the occupation jails after he had served two years in administrative detention, with neither charge nor trial. He had reportedly been held administratively for a total of 141 months in nine separate occasions.
The IOF further kidnapped al-Jaabari after they stormed his family home in central al-Khalil.
Both Qufeisheh and al-Jaabari were kidnapped just a few hours after supporters of Majed Faraj, the head of the Palestinian Authority General Intelligence Service in Bethlehem, threatened to assassinate Hamas activists in the West Bank.
A few days earlier, Faraj admitted the PA security apparatuses foiled 200 anti-occupation attacks and arrested over 100 Palestinian activists since the start of the Jerusalem Uprising in early October.
Three prominent national resistance factions—Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine—slammed, in a joint statement Thursday, Faraj’s statements, dubbing them proofs of an intolerable disregard for Palestinians’ national liberation struggle.
Mohammad Nabil Halabiyya 16
Israeli military sources have reported that a Palestinian teen was killed, on Saturday evening, in Abu Dis town east of occupied Jerusalem, when an explosive he allegedly was preparing to throw at an Israeli military outpost, detonated prematurely.
The sources said the explosion did not lead to any casualties among the soldiers.
The body of the slain Palestinian was severely mutilated due to the blast.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said its medics rushed to the scene, but Israeli soldiers prevented them from approaching the Palestinian, and declared the area a closed military zone.
The slain Palestinian was later identified Mohammad Nabil Halabiyya, 16 years of age, from Abu Dis town.
On Saturday evening, the Israeli army transferred the body of Roqayya Eid Abu Eid, 13 years of age, who was killed, earlier Saturday, by an armed guard of Anatot Israeli colony, built on Palestinian lands near Anata town, northeast of Jerusalem.
Palestinian teen killed overnight in an alleged attempt to throw Molotov cocktail
A Palestinian teen on Sunday overnight was announced dead of wounds he sustained when he allegedly tried to throw an explosive at an Israeli military outpost in Abu Dis town, east of Jerusalem, central West Bank.
Israeli media claimed that Mohammad Halabiyya, 16 attempted to plant explosives near the military outpost, when it prematurely exploded, causing him critical injuries. He was announced dead shortly after.
Other sources said that IOF have shot the boy when he was nearby the outpost, causing him critical wounds.
No soldiers were injured.
According to IMEMC, the Red Crescent sent medics rushed to the scene, but Israeli soldiers prevented them from approaching the Palestinian, and declared the area a closed military zone.
On Saturday evening, IOF returned the body of Roqayya Abu Eid (13) who was killed on Saturday by an armed Israeli guard of Anatot settlement northeast of Jerusalem.
Israeli military sources have reported that a Palestinian teen was killed, on Saturday evening, in Abu Dis town east of occupied Jerusalem, when an explosive he allegedly was preparing to throw at an Israeli military outpost, detonated prematurely.
The sources said the explosion did not lead to any casualties among the soldiers.
The body of the slain Palestinian was severely mutilated due to the blast.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said its medics rushed to the scene, but Israeli soldiers prevented them from approaching the Palestinian, and declared the area a closed military zone.
The slain Palestinian was later identified Mohammad Nabil Halabiyya, 16 years of age, from Abu Dis town.
On Saturday evening, the Israeli army transferred the body of Roqayya Eid Abu Eid, 13 years of age, who was killed, earlier Saturday, by an armed guard of Anatot Israeli colony, built on Palestinian lands near Anata town, northeast of Jerusalem.
Palestinian teen killed overnight in an alleged attempt to throw Molotov cocktail
A Palestinian teen on Sunday overnight was announced dead of wounds he sustained when he allegedly tried to throw an explosive at an Israeli military outpost in Abu Dis town, east of Jerusalem, central West Bank.
Israeli media claimed that Mohammad Halabiyya, 16 attempted to plant explosives near the military outpost, when it prematurely exploded, causing him critical injuries. He was announced dead shortly after.
Other sources said that IOF have shot the boy when he was nearby the outpost, causing him critical wounds.
No soldiers were injured.
According to IMEMC, the Red Crescent sent medics rushed to the scene, but Israeli soldiers prevented them from approaching the Palestinian, and declared the area a closed military zone.
On Saturday evening, IOF returned the body of Roqayya Abu Eid (13) who was killed on Saturday by an armed Israeli guard of Anatot settlement northeast of Jerusalem.