- 20 mei 2010
Israelis stealing food from Palestinians on their way to work
(2:19) Israelis stealing food from Palestinians on their way to work
More evidence of ethnic cleansing this time by starvation which makes them weak for work. Through Irtah (Sha'ar Efrayim) checkpoint Palestinians from the West Bank who have work permits to work in Israel pass daily. The checkpoint is operated by a private security company called Modi'in Ezrachi. The company limits the types and amounts of food that the workers passing through the checkpoint can take with them. These limitations are a decision of this company and are not dictated by the GSS (the Shabak) or by the Ministry of Defense.
Filmed by Dalia Golomb and Raya Yaron.
Edited by Hadass Shuve.
6 juni 2010 East Jerusalem locals fear mass demolition imminent
7 juni 2010 23 nov 2010, 21:00 , Respect -
Maria 15 juni 2010
Israeli soldiers "steal around $3m from Gaza flotilla"
(2:58) Israeli soldiers "steal around $3m from Gaza flotilla" 23 nov 2010, 21:01 , Respect -
Maria 18 juni 2010
Stop work orders delivered to Beit Safafa family
Jerusalem – Ma’an – Staff of the Israeli municipality of Jerusalem accompanied by border guards entered the home of the Salah family in Beit Safafa on Thursday, and delivered stop work orders.
The orders, known locally as "demolition orders," demand that home owners appear before a magistrates court to defend allegations, in this case that the family built their homes without permits. Because legal action at the court rarely succeeds, the stop work orders essentially constitute a demolition order.
On Thursday, orders were delivered for the homes of Ismail Ali Salah, and his brothers Mahmoud and Mohammad, in addition to Tahani Mohammad Suleiman . All four were ordered to appear at the magistrates court on 29 June.
The principle family targeted in the orders, the Salah's, had another of their family's homes taken over by settlers in April, evicting an elderly couple of some 90 years who say they have lived in the same building for the duration of their 70-year marriage. Their home was seized and occupied by settlers according to a court order.
Ismail Salah said that when soldiers entered the home, "they threatened to expel us to Ramallah and Hebron for allegedly throwing stones at the settlers who stole my great aunt's home." Ismail said his own home had been build during the period of Jordanian rule over the West Bank, saying an eviction would see 43 people ousted, "people have no other place to go."
An Israeli representative of the Jerusalem municipality could not be reached by phone for comment.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=292872 23 nov 2010, 21:01 , Respect -
Maria 21 juni 2010
U.S.: E. Jerusalem demolitions undermine trust vital for Israel-PA talks
Jerusalem municipal planning committee approves plan to demolish 22 Palestinian homes in the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem to make room for a tourist center.
U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Israel's decision on Monday to raze 22 Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem is the kind of step that undermines trust fundamental to progress in the proximity talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
The Jerusalem municipal planning committee approved Monday a contentious plan to raze 22 Palestinian homes to make room for a tourist center that Palestinians fear would tighten Israel's grip on the city's contested eastern sector.
The plan, which affects the neighborhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem, risks more U.S.-Israeli friction just two weeks ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama.
Crowley said the United States was concerned about the project, though he said it was a preliminary step being taken by the Jerusalem municipality and not the Israeli government.
"We've had a number of conversations with the government of Israel about it," Crowley said. "This is expressly the kind of step that we think undermines trust that is fundamental to making progress in the proximity talks," referring to the indirect, U.S.-mediated peace negotiations.
The Palestinian government issued a statement on Monday in regards to the plan, in which it emphasized that "these dangerous steps require American and international intervention."
According to Israel Radio, chief negotiator Saeb Erekat commented on the plan as well and said the move shows Israel wants to destroy the indirect peace talks with the Palestinians.
Erekat called on the international community to "halt these dangerous steps" and said that the move "proves that Israel has decided to destroy the indirect talks with the Palestinians."
Tensions have already been raised in Jerusalem, when conflict erupted during the meeting between committee members and the residents of Silwan. Silwan residents starkly objected to the plan and demanded the committee discuss their alternative plan, which does not include razing homes.
Several lawyers representing the residents spoke out against the committee's decision.
"I also want to have a park in the neighborhood where I can sit on the weekends and dip my feet in the water, but if the committee has the courage to approve a plan against the will of the residents, and to raze their homes for it, then it should have the same courage to discuss their alternative plan as well," said one of the lawyers.
Barkat first floated the plan months ago, but agreed to a last-minute request from Israel's prime minister to consult Palestinian residents before breaking ground. Israeli demolition of Palestinian homes has in the past provoked harsh reaction from the United States.
Palestinians hope to build the capital of a future state in East Jerusalem and see any Israeli construction there as undercutting their claims to the land.
Although Israel claims it is simply enforcing the law by knocking down illegally built structures, many of the unapproved homes have gone up without authorization because Palestinians have a hard time obtaining construction permits in East Jerusalem.
Barkat says the plan gives a much-needed facelift to Jerusalem's decaying al-Bustan neighborhood, which Israel calls Gan Hamelech, or the King's Garden.
The plan calls for the construction of shops, restaurants, art galleries and a large community center on the site where some say the biblical King David wrote his psalms. The 22 displaced families would be allowed to build homes elsewhere in the neighborhood, though it's not clear who would pay for them.
Israel annexed East Jerusalem immediately after capturing it from Jordan during the Six-Day War in 1967.
Israeli sovereignty there has not been recognized by the Palestinians or the international community, and the fate of the city is one of the core issues dividing the two sides. Nearly 200,000 Jews have moved to East Jerusalem since Israel captured it, living in an uneasy coexistence with 250,000 Palestinians.
Activists in Al-Bustan, who had sought to block all demolitions, said in a statement that the plan comes in the general context of (the) fast-track Judaization of East Jerusalem.
It pre-empts "the possibility of Jerusalem ever being a shared city, or indeed capital of a Palestinian state," the statement said. "This in itself precludes peace."
The contested site is a section of a larger neighborhood called Silwan, which is home to some 50,000 Palestinians and 70 Jewish families. Demolitions elsewhere in Silwan have made the neighborhood a hub of tension between Palestinians fearful of eviction and Jews determined to keep the city Israel's undivided capital.
Apparently fearing stiff criticism from the U.S., Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pressured Barkat in March to hold up the plan to consult with Palestinians who stood to lose their homes.
"Now, after fine-tuning the plan and seeking more cooperation with the residents as far as their needs and improving the quality of their lives, the municipality is ready to submit the plans for the first stage of approval," Barkat spokesman Stephan Miller said Monday.
The prime minister's office said Netanyahu "hopes that since this project is only in a preliminary stage, that the dialogue can continue with those who have built homes on public land and it will be possible to find an agreed solution in accordance with the law."
The U.S. Embassy had no comment.
Since Netanyahu initially delayed the plan, he has found himself in deep conflict with the Obama administration over Jewish construction in East Jerusalem.
http://fwd4.me/0i9m
Israel OKs plan to destroy Quds homes
Israeli municipal authorities have approved a move to destroy 22 Palestinian homes in East al-Quds (Jerusalem) to make room for construction of a tourist center.
The proposal was ratified on Monday, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported. The residents have rejected the plan as it violates their rights and international law.
The site, called al-Bustan, is a section of the larger neighborhood of Silwan which is home to some 50,000 Palestinians and 70 Jewish families.
Palestinians say the project is another attempt by Tel Aviv to cement its claim to all of al-Quds, adding that it is impossible for Palestinians to obtain building permits.
Israel captured East al-Quds from Jordan in the 1967 Six-day War. Tel Aviv's annexation remains unrecognized by the international community.
http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/131387.html
22 juni 2010
US: Silwan demolitions mar peace talks
US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley
The US has expressed concern over a new Israeli plan to demolish Palestinian homes in East al-Quds (Jerusalem), saying the move undermines the Mideast peace process.
The Israeli al-Quds (Jerusalem) municipal planning committee on Monday approved plans to raze 22 Palestinian homes in the city's Silwan neighborhood to make room for the construction of a tourist center.
The demolitions are to take place in a site called al-Bustan, which is home to about 50,000 Palestinians and 70 Jewish families and also in central Silwana, where Israeli authorities claim almost half of the buildings are considered illegal and subject to demolition for breaching a height restriction of two stories.
"This is expressly the kind of step that we think undermines trust that is fundamental in making progress to the proximity talks and ultimately in direct negotiations," said US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley referring to US-sponsored indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA).
"We're concerned about it," he said, adding that Washington had passed on its concern to Tel Aviv in a number of conversations.
The demolition plans drew strong criticism from Palestinians, with top PA negotiator Saeb Erekat accusing Israel of efforts to sabotage the indirect peace talks.
Silwan residents also vehemently protested the decision, demanding the Israeli committee to discuss an alternative plan that does not include razing their homes. Meanwhile they are expected to call on international organization to intervene and overturn the demolition plans.
http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/131448.html 23 nov 2010, 21:02 , Respect -
Maria 24 juni 2010
UN concerned over Silwan demolitions
A general view of Silwan neighborhood in East al-Quds (Jerusalem)
The UN has expressed "deep concern" over Israel's "illegal" plan to demolish Palestinian homes in East al-Quds (Jerusalem) to make room for an archaeological park.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon "is deeply concerned about the decision by the Jerusalem municipality to advance planning for house demolitions and further settlement activity in the area of Silwan in East Jerusalem," his spokesman Martin Nesirky said in a statement on Wednesday.
"The planned moves are contrary to international law, and to the wishes of Palestinian residents," AFP quoted the statement as saying.
Ban further warned Tel Aviv against "provocative steps" that would heighten tensions in the annexed city. "The current moves are unhelpful, coming at a time when the goal must be to build trust to support political negotiations," the statement added.
Earlier on Monday, Israeli municipal authorities in al-Quds approved a plan to raze 22 houses in the Palestinian neighborhood of al-Bustan, arguing that they were built without Israeli permits.
The issue of Israeli construction permit comes despite the international community's refusal to recognize Israel's annexation of East al-Quds, which its army occupied in the six-day war of 1967.
http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/131776.html 23 nov 2010, 21:03 , Respect -
Maria 30 juni 2010
(3:44) Palestinian homes under threat
22 apr 2010
Israel Invades Palestine Destroys Crops in Front of Children Pt1
(9:25) Israel Invades Palestine Destroys Crops in Front of Children Pt1
(3:51) Israel Invades Palestine Destroys Crops in Front of Children Pt2
Filmed 22nd April 2010 Israeli invasion into Gaza Strip, Al Faraheen village, east Khna Younis, Gaza Strip
Israeli tanks and bulldozers invaded the strip, destroying acres of fields cultivated by Palestinian farmers giving further evidence of Israeli state terrorism.
Video Footage & Editing by Vittorio Utopia Arrigoni
Gaza villages Wiped off the map
(8:21) Gaza villages Wiped off the map
Israel Invades Palestine Destroys Crops in Front of Children Pt1
(9:25) Israel Invades Palestine Destroys Crops in Front of Children Pt1
(3:51) Israel Invades Palestine Destroys Crops in Front of Children Pt2
Filmed 22nd April 2010 Israeli invasion into Gaza Strip, Al Faraheen village, east Khna Younis, Gaza Strip
Israeli tanks and bulldozers invaded the strip, destroying acres of fields cultivated by Palestinian farmers giving further evidence of Israeli state terrorism.
Video Footage & Editing by Vittorio Utopia Arrigoni
Gaza villages Wiped off the map
(8:21) Gaza villages Wiped off the map