Issue No: 23
11th Sep, 2012
23
11th Sep, 2012
Issue No: 23
Palestinian Weekly Report is a periodical insight into the latest developments of the Palestinian Issue. It’s issued by The Palestinian Cultural Organization Malaysia and iti focuses on the most important news and analysis about the happenings of the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation in the Holy Lands of Palestine. The views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect PCOM's editorial policy.
Contents Article of the week It's spring time in Palestine ................................................................................................ ................................ ................................................. 3
News Tour Israel dismisses calls to modify Paris Economic Protocol ................................................................ ................................... 5 Israelis crack down on Palestinian protest against price rises............................................................ ................................ 5 Israelis kill six Palestinians in Gaza ................................................................................................ ...................................... 6 Jewish settlers storm Aqsa Mosque plazas................................................................ ......................................................... 6 Arson attack on Jerusalem monastery denounced ................................................................ ............................................ 7 Apartheid wall encircles Jerusalem; 120 Palestinians expelled .......................................................... ................................ 8 Israeli campaign aims to undermine Palestinian Right of Return....................................................... ................................ 8 Israel demolished 467 buildings and displaced 700 Palestinians in 2012 .......................................... ................................ 9
Caricature Escalation of the attack on Al--Quds ................................................................................................ .................................. 10
11th Sep, 2012
Issue No: 23
Article of the week
It's spring time in Palestine
By: Dr. Daud Abdullah "The Palestine spring has begun and we are with what the people say and demand." These were the words of President Mahmoud Abbas as he addressed an Arab League meeting on Wednesday. He conceded that the demands of protesters across the West Bank are legitimate, but can he deliver? Mr Abbas knows very well that he who does not possess something cannot give it away. This is his dilemma. Conditions in the West Bank today are a far cry from the idyllic picture painted by New York Times columnist Thomas L Friedman three years ago. "Things are truly getting better in the West Bank, thanks to a combination of Fayyadism, improved Palestinian security and a lifting of checkpoints by Israel," he wrote from Ramallah on 4 August 2009. Citing IMF projections, Friedman asserted that "Fayyadism" is "the most exciting new idea in Arab governance ever." All this rings a familiar bell. Tunisia was also celebrated as an economic success story; then Muhammad Bouazizi set himself on fire in December 2010. There were similar desperate acts of self-immolation in the West Bank this week, so what has gone so dreadfully wrong? The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) offers a revealing answer. In a report due to be discussed later this month it describes the impact of Israel's
occupation on Palestine's agricultural sector as "devastating". Today, food insecurity in the West Bank affects 66 per cent of the population; many can ill afford to buy vegetables. Consumers are called upon to offset the mounting costs of agriculture. When farmers have difficulties gaining access to their land; when Israeli settlers burn their crops with impunity; and when delays at check points cause produce to spoil, someone has to pay. The protests across the West Bank are showing no signs of letting up. From Hebron in the south to Jenin in the north, people are turning out to send a message to the PA; their patience is running out. If the cost of food is high, the cost of medical care is dangerously prohibitive. Even without a comprehensive blockade, as in the Gaza Strip, there are acute shortages of medicine. The PA, it is reported, now owes Jordan $45 million for the treatment of cancer patients. As it stands, the PA is attempting to do the impossible. On the one hand it cannot influence economic policies in Israel to which its economy is tied; and on the other, it cannot meet the basic needs of its people. The systemic problems have now reached the terminal stage. Under the Paris Protocol signed between the PA and Israel in 1994, a 'customs union' was formed. While it purported, on paper, to remove economic borders, in practice it allowed Israel to preserve the relationship as it
Issue No: 23 was, with the Palestinian economy linked to Israel's and thus totally dependent on the occupier. Back then, the PA was unable to provide employment for its people and the Protocol seemed attractive because it allowed for free movement of trade, workers and goods in both directions. That never happened. Israel exploited its sole control over the borders and the collection of import taxes to blackmail and punish the PA. At present, the value of Israeli trade to the Palestinian territories far outstrips the value of Palestinian products sold in Israel. Worse still, the PA is not allowed to trade freely with other countries, including the EU. What finally pushed Palestinians over the edge was the recent hike in petrol prices in Israel. That led to a similar rise in the West Bank. Impoverished Palestinians could not see the logic or justice in this since there is no comparison between the average income of an Israeli citizen and a Palestinian. But there were signs of a deeper undercurrent of discontent. In July, the PA was forced to crush two days of protests in Ramallah against a visit by Shaul Mofaz to the city. Several protesters had their limbs broken by plain clothes operatives who infiltrated their ranks. This latest eruption has continued longer and is much more widespread. Bread and butter issues, it seems, will ultimately determine the PA's fate. To most observers, the eventuality of Palestine's spring was never in doubt. It was not a case of if, but when. For internal political reasons, much of the popular anger is directed at Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
11th Sep, 2012 Demonstrators burnt effigies of him in Hebron this week. And, like in Tunisia and Egypt, they cried, "let us live with dignity". Fayyad has become the fall guy for the PA's failure. His rivals from within Fatah, of which he is not a member, have seized the opportunity to undermine his presidential aspirations. It is ironic that while they don't want to live with him, they don't believe they can survive without him. It's no secret that both Abbas and Fatah view Fayyad as the banking wizard who can fetch international aid. More tellingly, he is the darling of the Americans and Israelis. When similar protests erupted in Jordan a few weeks ago, King Abdullah II intervened personally to undo the price rises. Mahmoud Abbas is in no such position to do the same without financial backing. On his part, Fayyad has pleaded for more time as he awaits US Congress approval of a $200 million bail-out package. If this is the outcome of "the most exciting new idea in Arab governance ever", as Tom Friedman claimed, no one should blame the Palestinians for rejecting it. There is nothing dignified about living on hand-outs. For sure, Palestine's spring will require enormous sacrifice. Whether the Palestinian people's legitimate demands are met will not be decided in Ramallah but in Tel Aviv. Sadly, Israeli governments, of all persuasions, view everything through the prism of security; hence they may opt for a violent crackdown. Although the Israelis may dislike Abbas and his cronies, they will always rescue them because they hate the alternative even more.
11th Sep, 2012
Issue No: 23
News Tour
Israel dismisses calls to modify Paris Economic Protocol Speaking on Voice of Israel radio, Ayalon said that the PEP is connected to other political agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinians. It is because the Palestinians have taken certain stances, he claimed, that the agreements were not put in place.
10/09/2012 OCCUPIED PALESTINE, (MEMO) - Deputy Israeli Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said on Monday that Israel would not accept any modification of the Paris Economic Protocol (PEP), Israeli sources have reported.
Nor, he insisted, is there room to modify the protocol as long as there is a political impasse and accumulated PA debts owed to Israel for, among other things, electricity and fuel. In addition, alleged Ayalon, the Palestinians are carrying out anti-Israeli campaigns in international organisations. All make it out of the question for changes to be made to the PEP which might be beneficial to the Palestinians.
Israelis crack down on Palestinian protest against price rises A spokesman for the Popular Committee to Resist Settlements and the Separation Wall, Ahmed Abu-Hashim, said that he had told the Israeli commander that the demonstration was not aimed at Israelis. "That is why we were surprised when the Israelis attacked us," he said. "They came at us from all sides."
10/09/2012 OCCUPIED PALESTINE, (MEMO) - Israeli forces have cracked down on a Palestinian protest in Beit Amer, in the occupied West Bank. Protesters were demanding the resignation of Salam Fayyad's Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority in the wake of massive price rises of essential goods. According to Quds Press, Israeli soldiers attacked the protesters with tear-gas and rubber bullets.
Abu-Hashim added that a number of people came together to organise the protest against the sharp price rises in the West Bank and managed to close the main entrance of the town. The drivers of public vehicles blocked the main road connecting the Hebron area with other Palestinian governorates. The Israeli response was predictable. "Sadly, Israeli governments, of all persuasions, view everything through the prism of security; hence they may opt for a violent crackdown," wrote Daud Abdullah of MEMO last week. It looks as if the drive to protect Salam Fayyad and the increasingly feeble Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority has begun.
Issue No: 23
Israelis kill six Palestinians in Gaza
06/09/2012 GAZA, (MEMO) - Israeli forces have killed six Palestinians and wounded two others in two separate attacks in the Gaza Strip in less than 12 hours, Palestinian paramedics said on Thursday morning. Four Palestinians were attacked by an Israeli drone while they were driving at Al-Burij refugee camp in the middle of the Gaza Strip on Wednesday night. Three were killed and the fourth sustained severe injuries. Although they belonged to a Palestinian faction, witnesses confirmed that they were not carrying arms at the time of the attack. The
Jewish settlers storm Aqsa Mosque plazas 09/09/2012 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC) - Dozens of settlers and intelligence agents, at noon Sunday, stormed the Aqsa Mosque plazas in occupied Jerusalem, according to the Aqsa Foundation for Endowment and Heritage (AFEH).
11th Sep, 2012 media reported a spokesman of the Israeli army saying that the men "were intending to fire rockets" at Israeli settlements near the beleaguered territory. In another incident, three other Palestinians were shot dead in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun on Thursday morning and a fourth suffered serious injuries. An official from the Ministry of Health in Gaza said that one of the casualties had called the Palestinian Red Crescent Ambulance Services (PRCAS) asking for help before he died. Heavy fire from the Israelis made it difficult for the Red Crescent to reach the casualties. Ambulances were fired on by Israeli tanks, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Health. "The Palestinian Red Crescent Society asked the International Red Cross to intervene with the Israelis but they were too late to save those who were killed," he said. Israel claimed that the four Palestinians targeted were intending to plant explosive devices near the Green (Armistice) Line; however, witnesses said that they were civilians and did not belong to any Palestinian faction. Meanwhile, Israeli ground forces carried out several limited incursions in the border areas of the Gaza Strip, but no additional casualties were reported.
AFEH said in a statement that about 30 settlers accompanied by a number of intelligence agents along with 1200 tourists raided the Mosque at noon Sunday. The statement also pointed out that the occupation will hold Talmudic rites on Monday at Al-Buraq wall with the participation of Rabbis from the main settlements in the West Bank. Thousands are expected to participate in these rites. The organisation also said that the settler organisation Elad plans to organise religious tours in the Silwan district and the tunnels under the Aqsa Mosque. This is in addition to night parties between 9-13 September.
Issue No: 23
11th Sep, 2012
Arson attack on Jerusalem monastery denounced Several Israeli media outlets reported extreme right-wing activist Barokh Barzel as saying: "I said that evicting Jews from Migron would spark a fire by people who felt bitter about it. I hope that the government and police will not do such provocative acts in the future."
04/09/2012 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (MEMO) - Jewish vandals attacked and set fire to Al-Latrun Monastery in Jerusalem in the early hours of Tuesday morning, writing anti-Christian graffiti on its walls. Muslims and Christians have denounced the incident. The main gate of the Monastery was completely burnt and the vandals sprayed obscenities about Jesus, Christians and Christianity on the walls. A monastery guard commented: "Whoever did this has no God." The name of the Migron settlement in Ramallah was also scrawled on the monastery walls. It was evacuated following the issue of a legal warrant at the end of last week. The slogan "Price Tag", which has been written on vandalised mosque walls, was also painted at the monastery.
The Palestinian Islamic-Christian Committee, which described the perpetrators of the monastery attack as "extremists", denounced the incident. "The continuous desecration of Islamic and Christian sites in Palestine, especially in Jerusalem, hints at an extremist and racist Israeli plan aiming for a religious war," the Committee said. "All places of worship, be they Islamic, Christian or Jewish, must be respected. The Israeli government and Jewish Rabbis hold complete responsibility for today's criminal acts." The Committee pointed out that some Rabbis have made inflammatory statements calling for the killing of Arabs in Palestine which, it claims, incites people to commit such attacks. It called for the World Council of Churches, the Pope, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and all related institutions to protect all holy places in Palestine. Meanwhile, Israeli police said that they had arrested a Jew who desecrated a Christian cemetery and destroyed several headstones in the occupied Negev, last night. A number of attacks on Christian sites have taken place this year, the most prominent of which was vandalism at the Church of the Cross in Jerusalem in February.
Issue No: 23
11th Sep, 2012
Apartheid wall encircles Jerusalem; 120 Palestinians expelled
Palestinian Land, the Israelis have confiscated the remaining areas of West Jerusalem and erased all barriers between the western and eastern sectors of the city. "They have also confiscated land in the Jordan Valley, including Maale Adumim settlement, and reached the Dead Sea,� said Abdul-Hadi Hantash. “To the south, Jerusalem is blocked by a settlement belt."
04/09/2012 OCCUPIED PALESTINE, (MEMO) - The Israeli occupation authorities have completed the apartheid wall around Jerusalem, cutting it off from its West Bank hinterland. The final 130km section brings the total length of the illegal wall to 784 km. The city is now ringed by electrified wire and cement blocks to a height of 5-6m on three sides, while the fourth is plagued with illegal settlements, which are in the process of being connected to others outside the city by a light railway system. According to the head of the General Committee for the Defence of
Israeli campaign aims to undermine Palestinian Right of Return 30/08/2012 OCCUPIED PALESTINE, (MEMO) - The Israeli Foreign Ministry has launched a campaign to persuade Arab Jews to tell the story of their migration from Arab countries. "I am a Jewish refugee" aims to equate their situation with that of Palestinian refugees. According to newspaper reports, the campaign calls on those Israelis born in Arab countries to upload video testimonials telling the story
The idea, said Hantash, is to separate Jerusalem from the occupied West Bank to create "facts on the ground, which poses huge questions about the future of Palestinians living inside the Israeli barriers, inside the city, as well as the future of their land." Around 120,000 Palestinians have been displaced from the city of their birth by the Israelis as a result of these measures, he added. The Israelis encourage illegal Jewish settlers to move in when Palestinians are evicted and forced out of Jerusalem. Hantash called for Islamic and Arab countermeasures to save the city of Jerusalem from the hands of the Israelis and their brutal occupation, and give support to the Palestinians as they struggle to hold on to their land.
of their "deportation" from those countries. The initiative springs from Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, who is a son of an Algerian-born immigrant. "The campaign aims to promote recognition and compensation for the 'refugees' and their families and raise the issue on the international agenda," he told Yedioth Ahronoth. "Some 856,000 Arab Jews were 'expelled' or left their homes penniless and arrived in Israel as refugees," alleged Ayalon. "Unfortunately, the story of their 'expulsion' has never won recognition by the international community or any of the Israeli governments."
Issue No: 23
11th Sep, 2012
Israel demolished 467 buildings and displaced 700 Palestinians in 2012 by the UN office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs (OCHA). In a report covering the Israeli violations from august 29 to September 4, OCHA noted that Israel has demolished since the start of the current year 467 residential buildings and displaced 702 Palestinians during the same period. During the reporting week, 17 Palestinians, including four children, were injured by the IOF, mostly during protests. 08/09/2012 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) demolished 10 Palestinian-owned structures in Area C of the West Bank this week, including five residential structures, displacing 32 Palestinians, including 14 children, according to a weekly report issued
The settlers also carried out a number of attacks on Palestinian citizens and their property in the West Bank. Their attacks included racist slurs, arson attacks on agricultural lands and cars, throwing stones on vehicles.
11th Sep, 2012
Issue No: 23
Caricature
Escalation of the attack on Al-Quds