Ahmadinejad en Chavez willen nauwer samenwerken

"Latin American countries should use Iran's valuable experiences in different fields for the progress of their nations," aldus Chavez, de socialistische president van Venezuela.

 

Zoals het ophangen van homosexuelen en minderjarigen die overspel hebben gepleegd (17 minderjarigen sinds 2004)? Zoals het stenigen van vrouwen met een buitenechtelijk kind? Verplicht stellen van de hoofddoek en verbieden van alchohol? Ontkenning van de Holocaust? Ontwikkeling van kernwapens?

 

Wat Iran met socialistische idealen te maken heeft is raadselachtig, maar de vijand van mijn vijand is mijn vriend, en dus staat men uiterst gebroederlijk op de foto, in de wetenschap (of hoop) dat er in het Witte Huis iemand wat slechter slaapt. De brede grijns van beide heren doet bijna kwajongens achtig aan, maar duidelijk is wel, dat beiden geen lieverdjes zijn.

 

Ratna

________________________________________________

 

Ahmadinejad, Chavez to Boost Cooperation

http://english.baztab.com/content/?cid=3400

Baztab, 2 juli 2007

 

"The pillars of imperialism are shaking and victory will materialize through resistance" - Ahmadinejad

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Sunday the pillars of imperialism are shaking and victory will materialize through resistance.

In a meeting with his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez, Ahmadinejad said Venezuela can pave the way for expansion of relations between Iran and Latin America's independent countries by enhancing relations, IRNA reported.

Emphasizing the necessity of expanding ties with independent countries, Ahmadinejad opined that independent countries can pave the way for development and welfare of their nations by increasing the level of collaboration among themselves.

Noting that the Latin America has huge potentials, the president said establishing a joint trade company, holding exhibition of products and strengthening the joint investment fund can boost the ties of Latin America with other countries.

Chavez, for his part, said cooperation among independent countries, particularly Iran and Venezuela, plays a crucial role in defeating the imperialist policies and saving nations.

"Latin American countries should use Iran's valuable experiences in different fields for the progress of their nations," he said.

Also on Sunday, the Venezuelan president met with the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the details of which were not available at the time of going to print.

The Venezuelan president's three-day trip to Iran comes after stops in Russia and Belarus where he discussed military and energy deals with his counterparts.
The delegation accompanying Chavez comprises Venezuelan ministers of oil, foreign affairs and industries as well as head of the presidential office.

 

Was er ooit een Palestijnse 'natie'?

In de betrekkelijk recente, kunstmatige grenzen van wat men pleegt "Palestina" te noemen, zijn de Arabische bewoners zich eigenlijk pas vanaf 1967 Palestijnen gaan noemen. Hun bindmiddel is hun gemeenschappelijke verzet tegen Israël, maar is dat voldoende basis om een natie te vormen?

 

Abby

______________________________

 

Opinion - Ynet News

 

Was there ever a Palestinian 'nation'?

Palestinians lack true national identity as theirs mostly characterized by hatred towards Israel

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3418074,00.html

Ofir Haivry

Published:

06.29.07, 06:54 / Israel Opinion

The growing political and cultural rift between the Arabs of the Gaza Strip and those residing in Judea and Samaria has stirred debate about the possibility of establishing two separate political entities and the future of Palestinian nationalism in general. Yet perhaps we should be asking whether there ever really was a Palestinian "nation"?

 

In many places in the world, arbitrary borders set by colonialist powers define a "nation" that do not exist in practice. Is there such thing as a Sudanese "nation" or Iraqi "nation"? Or are we talking about a collection of tribes, groups, and even nations possessing vastly different ways of life, religions, and values that has been gathered together by chance and who are paying a bloody price for this to this very day?

 

The borders of British Mandatory Palestine too were set, just like the case with its neighbors, on the basis of colonial interests. In

 

many areas, the border was drawn in a rather random manner. Had it been performed a little differently, would the Arabs of Marjayoun in southern Lebanon become Palestinian? Would the Arabs of Tarshiha in the Galilee be Lebanese? Are residents of Trans-Jordan, which was initially part of Mandatory Palestine and a few years later became the Kingdom of Jordan, Palestinian or Jordanian?

 

During the less than 30 years of the existence of this Mandate, from which the Palestinians draw their name, no significant indications were to be found of a united national identity of their own. The leader of Mandate Arabs was the Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini, who viewed himself as a pan-Arabic leader, imposed his rule through the persecution and assassination of his rivals, and headed a loose alliance of clans, tribes, and local interests that were mostly united by hatred towards the Jews, and to a lesser extent towards the British.

 

Illusion of national identity

 

Hence, in the bloody clashes of 1936-1939, where the Arabs seemingly fought the British (and of course massacred the Jews,) more people were killed in intra-Arab violence than at the hands of the British. Similarly, in 1947-1949, the Arabs fought against the establishment of the Jewish state in a disorganized and separate manner, in various locations, such as the Jerusalem mountains, the Galilee, Jaffa, and so forth.

 

Following the Mandate's end, it is even more difficult to find a united national activity or perception, aside from the hatred of Israel. Under Egyptian rule in Gaza and Jordanian rule in Judea and Samaria, there were neither substantial cultural development attempts nor national activity or a demand for the establishment of a state in those areas. The only objective that aroused support and stirred activity – and saw the establishment of Fatah and PLO to that end - was the establishment of an Arab country in place of Israel.

 

After 1967, the unification under Israeli rule created an illusion of national identity. Yet the characteristics of Arafat's leadership replicated those of the Mufti – one-man rule focused on hostility to Israel, and based on regional and clan calculations alongside the persecution and assassination of rivals.

 

Arafat's death and Israel's withdrawal from Arab population centers revealed that forced unification and hostility towards Israel are apparently the only characteristics of the Palestinian "nation." Perhaps when a state existing within superficial borders has been in place for a long period of time, there is a point in maintaining it without genuine national identity. Yet Mandatory Palestine ceased to exist about 60 years ago and hatred towards Israel is no substitute for national identity.

 

This conclusion should prompt us to ask new questions regarding the conflict's essence, ways of addressing it, and possible objectives.

 

Dr Haivry is a fellow at the Shalem Center's Institute for Philosophy, Politics, and Religion

Israël hater Lucas Catherine ontmaskerd (in 1988 al!)

http://lezersbrieven.wordpress.com/savasorda/ 

 

1 jOODS Actueel

 

MEDIA ONDER DE LOEP

Lucas Catherine ontmaskerd?

door Savasorda

 

De lezers van de Vlaamse "kwaliteitskranten" (De Morgen / De Standaard) kennen Lucas Catherine ongetwijfeld. Hij krijgt er om de haverklap een forum voor zijn ongenuanceerde anti- Israëlische standpunten. Rechtzettingen daarentegen of lezersbrieven die een repliek geven worden maar met mondjesmaat gepubliceerd en dan meestal nog drastisch ingekort. Lucas catherine is ook de auteur van het pamflet "Kanttekeningen bij het Midden-Oostenconflict".

 

Al zijn geschriften brengen dezelfde boodschap: Israël is zowat de meest monsterachtige staat in de wereld en wie het waagt er een positief woord over te schrijven wordt beschouwd als "idioot", of staat in dienst van de joodse lobby en handelt bijgevolg niet ter goeder trouw.

Maar wie is lucas catherine en waar haalt hij (soms) zijn mosterd?

 

LUCAS CATHERINE

Lucas Catherine is de schuilnaam van de heer Lucas Vereertbrugghen. Hij was werkzaam als archivaris bij de VRT en is gehuwd met Catherine Retsin. Beide voornamen van het koppel vormen zijn schrijversnaam. Goed gekozen, want zijn echtgenote speelt een niet-onbelangrijke rol in zijn activiteiten.

 

Als bediende op het Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken voerde ze al propaganda rond de derde wereld. toen ze in 1983 Belgisch consul werd in Khartoem (Soedan) en later in Rabat (Marokko) trok haar echtgenoot met haar mee. Met deze jarenlange ervaring in beide landen zou men toch verwachten dat Lucas Catherine zich zou toespitsen op de slachtpartij van 2 miljoen christenen en animisten in Zuid-Soedan of dat hij de huidige genocide in Darfoer met circa 400.000 doden en bijna 3 miljoen verdreven en gevluchte moslims aan de kaak zou stellen. Ook de decennia durende Marokkaanse bezetting van de westelijke Sahara had hij onder de loep kunnen nemen.

 

Maar niets daarvan. Zelfs de 2.700 km lange scheidingsmuur tussen Marokko en de westelijke Sahara is aan zijn speurzin ontsnapt. Dat aan de andere kant van deze muur de Saharoui's sterven als vliegen laat hem onberoerd. Hij heeft zich vastgebeten op het Israëlisch–Palestijns conflict en heeft de handen vol met Israël- en jodenbashing. Zijn denken ligt volledig in de lijn van de "politiek correcte" stijl van "le Monde Diplomatique". In dit maandblad stelde men in september 2006 de retorische vraag: "mag de onverschilligheid van quasi de ganse pers over Darfoer toelaten dat wij het Midden-Oostenconflict wegmoffelen?" Uiteraard was het antwoord op deze vraag neen!

 

Al wie het nieuws in onze media volgt kan met eigen ogen vaststellen dat dit sofisme overal gehuldigd wordt: Israël en de Palestijnen zijn "dagelijkse kost", over Darfoer komen we bitter weinig te weten.

 

Deze stelling berust op de "logica" dat het Midden-Oosten de bakermat is van de joods-christelijke beschaving van europa en daarom steeds onze aandacht verdient. Het zijn echter wel precies dezelfde kranten, journalisten en schrijvers die tezelfdertijd de beslissing toejuichten om elke verwijzing naar het joods-christelijke erfgoed uit de europese grondwet te weren. twee maten en twee gewichten dus.

 

ZIJN WERK

"De zonen van godfried van Bouillon" (1980) stuitte op heel wat kritiek. De bekende Nederlandse journalist, Martin van Amerongen noemde hem in 1988 naar aanleiding van dit boek reeds een antisemiet, barones Mia Doornaert (De Standaard) zat op dezelfde golflengte.

 

"Kanttekeningen bij het Midden-Oostenconflict" is een haatverwekkend pamflet dat hij zelfs opstelde met het Word- programma van zijn werkgever de VRT (toen nog BRTN). toenmalig minister Mieke Vogels subsidieerde hetzelfde pamflet via organisaties als 11.11.11, Oxfam, Pax christi e.d. en zo werd het omgetoverd tot een luxueuze brochure voor het onderwijs. Hier beperkt de auteur zich niet tot het over de hekel halen van Israël, maar worden ook eeuwenoude antisemitische clichés nog eens opgerakeld. Minister Vogels en haar opvolger ludo Sannen stoorden zich blijkbaar niet aan dat soort proza.

 

BOYCOT VAN ISRAëLISCHE PRODUCTEN

Ook in andere publicaties werkte Lucas Catherine samen met de vermelde NGO's, onder meer met Ludo de Brabander van "Vrede vzw" en Wim de Neuter, voormalig propagandist van Oxfam in België. Deze laatste is één van de belangrijkste promotors van de boycot van Israëlische producten. In de propaganda voor die boycotactie werd gebruik gemaakt van een bloedende sinaasappel, een verwijzing naar de legende van de bloedende hostie die in de middeleeuwen de aanzet waren tot zovele pogroms tegen de joden? er kwam toen ook een oproep van Oxfam tot de boycot van Israëlische producten in winkels "in de buurten waar veel joodse klanten wonen". Kan men zich in dit land omwille van de scheidingsmuur in de Westelijke Sahara een soortgelijke boycot voorstellen van Marokkaanse producten "in de buurten waar veel Marokkaanse klanten wonen"?

 

PERSOONLIJKE AANVALLEN

Lucas Catherine stoort er zich ook niet aan om in zijn geschriften de man en niet de bal te spelen. In een pamflet van oktober 2003 omschrijft hij een persoon als volgt: "een whiskyzuipende macho, met de arrogantie van Sharon, alleen de buik moet hij nog kweken." Zeer hoogstaand taalgebruik.

 

ARABIER "HONORIS CAUSA":

Staan de geschriften van lucas catherine bol van de aanvallen op Israël en de joden, hij heeft ook nog andere dada's. Hij presenteert zichzelf graag als Arabier "honoris causa". In die hoedanigheid laat hij zich kennen als een kritiekloze dweper van alles wat van ver of van dicht te maken heeft met de Arabieren. Zo was hij één van de drijvende krachten achter een tentoonstelling over de Arabische cultuur "Van Algebra tot Pyjama". Ongetwijfeld hebben geleerden in de door de Islam veroverde landen een grote rol gespeeld tijdens de late Middeleeuwen, maar dan voornamelijk omdat ze cultuur, wetenschap en techniek vanuit Byzantium en Azië naar europa overgebracht hebben. Sommige zaken waren lokale uitvindingen / verbeteringen. Maar dat was zeker niet het geval voor vele ontdekkingen waaronder bijvoorbeeld de uitvinding van het astrolabium, zoals catherine beweert. Het astrolabium was al bekend bij de oude grieken.

 

Ook in zijn boek "Islam voor ongelovigen" laat hij zich al te vaak leiden door zijn onkritische dweepzucht. De kers op de taart is het bijvoegsel "Arabisch voor germanisten" waarbij hij aan een aantal woorden een Arabische oorspong toekent terwijl minstens de helft ervan etymologisch van het latijn, grieks, Perzisch, Koptisch, Hindi of zelfs het Hebreeuws afkomstig zijn. Zo bijvoorbeeld stammen onze woorden zero en cijfer oorspronkelijk uit het Sanskriet "sunya-m" dat leeg betekent en niet uit het Arabisch. en zo zijn er nog vele andere voorbeelden die men uit zijn boeken kan halen. Nogal onzorgvuldig voor een "Arabier honoris causa"? Als hij met dergelijke eenvoudig te controleren feiten al volledig de mist ingaat dan kan men zich voorstellen wat zijn geloofwaardigheid voor de rest is.

 

NAZI-BRONNEN ALS BEWIJSMATERIAAL?

Ernstige geschiedenis wordt geschreven op basis van feiten, die de auteur in een bepaalde context plaatst, en interpreteert. Dat leert elke student geschiedenis in het eerste jaar. Historici moeten bijgevolg zeer zorgvuldig de geloofwaardigheid van de bronnen die ze gebruiken nagaan. Bij een doorlichting van catherine's boek "Palestina" EPO, 2002, blijkt dat hij foto's en cijfermateriaal gebruikt uit nazi bronnen als "le régime anglais en Palestine" (1939), van gert Winsch, een wel bekende nazi- auteur. In het boek "Palestijnen, een volk te veel" uitgegeven samen met Wim de Neuter, EPO, 1988, staat als commentaar bij de beschrijving van de Britse Palestinapolitiek

tijdens het interbellum, zonder enige bronverwijzing: "twintigduizend Palestijnen worden in 35 gevangenenkampen opgesloten"

 

In "Le régime anglais en Palestine" schrijft Gert Winsch op p 61: "20.000 Arabes, mais pas un seul juif, dans 35 camps de concentration" . Dit cijfer van 20.000 Arabische gevangenen in 35 (concentratie)kampen vindt men voor het overige bij geen enkele historicus, die naam waardig, terug. Alleen Wim de Neuter zal die Nazi-gegevens nog eens kopiëren in zijn artikel in het tijdschrift Vrede 2/2002 van ludo De Brabander. toch wel heel merkwaardig dat een auteur die ooit nog kandidaat was voor de Federale Verkiezingen, op de lijst van de Stalinistische PVDA, zijn bronnen zoekt in Nazi-publicaties?

 

BESLUIT: LUCAS CATHERINE: DE MIDDEN- OOSTEN SPECIALIST?

Dat Lucas Catherine resoluut de anti–Israël kaart trekt is zijn probleem. Het wordt echter een publieke zaak wanneer sommige Vlaamse kranten voor hem ongestoord de rode loper uitrollen en hem zonder enig wederwoord zijn extreme anti–Israëlische standpunten laten verkondigen. Is het feit dat de VRt meestal negatieve archiefbeelden over Israël aan de kijkers vertoont te verklaren door het werk van Lucas Catherine als archivaris bij de openbare omroep destijds? In hoeverre worden ook de Vlaamse "kwaliteitskranten" daardoor beïnvloed en dreigen ook zij af te glijden van het antizionisme naar veel erger het antisemitisme?

 

En, wie weet, grijpt men in de toekomst niet terug naar het origineel uit de jaren '30 in plaats van zich te bedienen van het werk van de kopieerder?

 

Getekend Savasorda (Savasorda is de pseudoniem van een kleine groep medewerkers van Joods Actueel die complementair de media onder de loep nemen. De uitleg van de naam verscheen in het eerste nummer)

________________________________________________________

 

Lucas Catherine is al vele jaren een fervente Israël-hater, zie hier de hoogtepunten van een artikel geschreven door Martin van Amerongen, bijna twintig jaar geleden. Op onze website vindt u het origineel terug.

 

De schimmel van het socialisme

zaterdag 21 mei 1988 -

door Martin van Amerongen

 

Waarom spreekt Lucas Catherine consequent over joden, waar toch overduidelijk van Israëli's sprake is? en waarom plaatst hij de naam 'Israël' tussen aanhalingstekens, een daad van onvriendelijkheid jegens de joodse staat, die zelfs het Palestinacomité zich niet permitteert...

Dat deze lucas catherine niet deugt weten wij sinds 1981, toen hij een boek publiceerde onder de titel 'De Zonen van godfried van Bouillon - De Zionistische lobby in België'...Alleen de titel al was een beginselverklaring. De joodse lobby in België, zo Verzekert lucas catherine ons, speelt een vooraanstaande rol. Overal, in Vlaanderen, als in Wallonië, hebben de joden zich genesteld, in de media, het bankwezen, de politiek en niet in de laatste plaats in de Antwerpse diamantindustrie.

joden worden door lucas catherine,'in zijn meest verfijnde Vlaams, jidden genoemd, terwijl de auteur tevens het begrip sjabbesgoj introduceert, dat een benaming schijnt te zijn van christenen, die zo dom zijn het voor die jidden op te nemen. Ook lucas catherine slaagt er niet in ons van het postume gelijk van Adolf Hitler te overtuigen, hoezeer hij ook zijn best doet. Het enige dat de auteur bewijst is het feit dat het antisemitisme niet, zoals een enkeling dacht, een specialiteit is van uiterst rechts, doch wel degelijk een linkse variant heeft.

Het boek over de 'zionistische lobby in België' was en werd een groot schandaal. Het leidde er uiteindelijk toe, dat de vierkoppige redactieraad van de zogenaamde EPO-dossiers, zich van de inhoud distantieerden.

 

Ook op Nederlandse bodem veroorzaakte de affaire-Catherine enige commotie. "Want", schreef de groene Amsterdammer, „dat is toch wel de meest klemmende vraag waarmee de lezer na het doornemen van dit onsmakelijke geschrift blijft zitten: Hoe is het mogelijk dat mensen die zichzelf als links beschouwen tot een dergelijk onverhuld antisemitisme vervallen?"

Het zusterblad Vrij Nederland deed een poging tot verklaring. „Beste collega, ik zal het u uitleggen: Omdat dit soort elementen helemaal niet 'links' is, hun vooruitstrevend ogende Arafat-draperieën ten spijt. Het zijn zogenaamde pseudo-linksen, het is loslopend vee, zonder enig gevoel voor geschiedenis en psychologie, het is de schimmel van het socialisme, van welks trotse, humanitaire, verlichte, anti-discriminatoire traditie zij niets hebben begrepen."

Hou deze lucas catherine in de gaten. Hij is een van de moordenaars van morgen.

 

70% Israeli's steunt 2-statenoplossing, 63% tegen terugtrekking van Golan hoogte

Een ruime meerderheid van de Israëlische Joden is voor een twee-staten oplossing, maar 55% denkt dat dit niet mogelijk is in de nabije toekomst, vooral omdat men denkt dat Abbas, ondanks westerse steun, een overname door Hamas van de Westelijke Jordaanoever niet zal kunnen verhinderen. Een meerderheid is ervoor dat Israël de Abbas regering steunt en de belastinggelden vrijgeeft, maar niet voor het verschaffen van wapens en weghalen van checkpoints.
Over Syrië is men nog pessimisitischer: 85% gelooft niet dat Syrië zijn banden met Iran en Hezbollah zal verbreken en is mede daarom tegen volledige teruggave van de Golan hoogvlakte in ruil voor vrede.

Uit de enquete blijkt dat men vooral weinig vertrouwen heeft in Abbas en in Syrië, en daarom de kansen voor vrede laag inschat en niet bereid is daarvoor veel risico's te nemen. Ook het vertrouwen in de eigen regering is laag: slechts 4% gelooft dat Olmert het beste de Israëlische veiligheid kan waarborgen en tegelijkertijd aan een oplossing van het conflict kan werken. Geen enkele leider krijgt een meerderheid wat dit betreft, maar men heeft nog het meeste vertrouwen in Netanyahu van de Likoed.

_______________________________________________

Poll: 70% of Israelis back 2-state pact, 63% oppose Golan pull-out
By Ephraim Yaar and Tamar Hermann Last update - 09:06 03/07/2007
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/877751.html

Seventy percent of the Israeli Jewish public presently supports a peace agreement with the Palestinians based on the "two states for two peoples" formula, but a clear majority believes that this is not achievable in the near future.

The Peace Index poll carried out last week showed that 26.5 percent of Israeli Jews oppose such an agreement.

Asked whether they believed it possible to reach an agreement based on this formula in the near future, 39 percent replied that it is possible and 55 percent that it is not.

More than 60 percent of respondents also said they opposed the concept of a full withdrawal from the Golan Heights in return for full peace treaty with Syria.

When respondents were asked who among the leaders of the three large parties could, in the public's view, best safeguard Israel's security interests while advancing the chances for peace, the findings showed 38 percent of the Israeli Jewish public favoring Benjamin Netanyahu, 24 percent Ehud Barak and 5.5 percent Ehud Olmert. Twenty-four percent of the public rejects all three and the rest (8.5 percent) have no clear position on the matter.

The prevailing pessimistic assessment of the chances of the two-state formula is apparently linked to the fact that about half the public thinks the Mahmoud Abbas government will be unable to prevent a Hamas takeover of the West Bank even if it receives assistance from Israel and other countries (43 percent of people think it will be able to prevent it and the rest do not know).

Despite and perhaps because of this, 54 percent support providing assistance to the Abbas government (compared to 41 percent who oppose it and 5 percent who do not know). The overwhelming majority (67 percent), however, would condition such assistance on the Abbas government fulfilling the Israeli government's prior demands such as recognizing Israel and putting a stop to terrorism. Only 22.5 percent support assistance without conditions, 4 percent oppose it under any conditions, and the rest do not know.

As for the types of assistance, a majority supports releasing the frozen Palestinian funds (54.5 percent in favor, 39 percent against) but a larger majority opposes providing weapons (79 percent) and removing checkpoints (71 percent).

Regarding prisoner releases as well, the rate of opponents (54 percent) is higher than that of supporters (39 percent). As for humanitarian assistance to the civilian population in Gaza by allowing the provision of medicine, foods, and other essential items, a clear majority of 58 percent thinks Israel should do so even on the assumption that such aid is likely to strengthen the Hamas government there, with 40 percent opposed.

On the Syrian issue, the occasional reports of Bashar Assad's readiness to reach a peace agreement with Israel apparently have not affected the Israeli Jewish public's consistent opposition to full withdrawal from the Golan Heights in return for a full peace treaty, with rates of opposition and support at 63 percent and 20 percent, respectively. Fourteen percent are ambivalent and the rest do not know. The opposition to an agreement seems to stem, at least in part, from the near-unanimous (85 percent) assessment that Syria would not be prepared, in return for the Golan, to cut off its relations with Iran and end its support for Hezbollah, Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations whose leaders are based in Damascus.

The Peace Index Project is conducted at the Tami Steinmetz Center for Peace Research and the Evens Program in Mediation and Conflict Resolution of Tel Aviv University, headed by Prof. Ephraim Yaar and Prof. Tamar Hermann. The telephone interviews were conducted by the B. I. Cohen Institute of Tel Aviv University on June 26-27, 2007, and included 580 interviewees who represent the adult Jewish and Arab population of Israel (including the territories and the kibbutzim). The sampling error for a sample of this size is 4.5%.

De beste Arabische kranten (Harald Doornbos)

Van de web log van Harald Doornbos, Midden-Oosten correspondent:

_____________________________________

 

Monday, July 02, 2007 - by Harald Doornbos

Arab Media (2) - And now for something positive

I feel in a positive mood, so hence the above title. As promised before, I'll sometimes post here something about the Arab Media.

But first this: There are NO good Arab newspapers. These are not my words - but of media specialists here in Beirut (who are all Arabs themselves).

Still - and that explains the positive mood - some papers are actually pretty ok.

Forget most stuff in Arabic, because it's all connected to a certain political party, royal family or some kind of loonie-toonie local sheik.

As mentioned a couple of days ago - one of the main problems is that most papers are made by unprofessional journalists. Result: don't waste your time.

Even a newspaper like the Daily Star (Lebanese daily) is actually a rather crappy paper. The only thing they basically do is publish AP and AFP stories. And everyday one extremely uninteresting culture-page and a sudoku. So only for people whose hobby is "collecting news wire stories one day after they were published for free on the Internet" it is advisable to read the Daily Star. Even better: Patients with serious insomnia can be cured by reading not less than five, bur for sure not more than seven Daily Star culture pages. According to medical reports: reading more than seven might be dangerous. At the other hand - Daily Star every now and then has a nice "own" story about some developments in Lebanon. More 'then' though than 'now'.

But let me not be to harsh on Arab papers. Because if you look at many newspapers in the West - my god, what the fuck is wrong with these reporters. The Sun, Bild, all this free junk...

Anyway, here are a couple of ok papers from the Middle East.

First of all - surprise surprise - a Saudi paper called Arab News. It is absolutely not independent (pro royal family), but the stories are nicely written and give some nice insides into Saudi life. (links follow below)

Second: The Asia Times. Very, very nice Internet only paper for people who really wanna know what's going on in the Middle East, South Asia and rest Asia. Really excellent stuff. Kind of always anti-Bush, but at least they've got a point.

And third (but for sure the best): Dawn, Pakistan's most influential newspaper (in English). Ok, Pakistan isn't the Arab world, but Dawn is a newspaper that Arabs can be jealous off. Highly critical of the Musharraf government, Jehadi groups etc, actually damn fair reporting. (the only thing I miss in Dawn are these little 'colour' articles - much of it is just news). But if you wanna follow developments in one of the worlds most crucial countries (I mean, almost every terror plot has a Pakistani link) you have to read Dawn. The Dawn guys manage everyday to produce an e-paper (an exact copy of the whole, print paper). And the best thing you can access it for FREE. Just register (takes a minute) and you can read Dawn on your laptop as if you were living in Islamabad. Dawn is great - even many Dutch newspapers don't provide this e-paper service. So: Pakistan Zindabad!

Ok'ish: Al Ahram from Egypt. But they tend to go on and on (and on of course) about Israel. (Another insomnia medicine?)

Very rarely ok'ish: Daily Star from Lebanon.

Am sure this list is far from complete, but anyway:

http://dawn.com/ (click on 'e-paper', up, left of screen)

http://www.atimes.com/

http://www.arabnews.com/

http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/index.htm

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/

And for all Iranian, Syrian, Jordanian, Iraqi, Lybian, Afghani and many other publications, the following link might be useful: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insomnia

 

Christelijke Palestijnen kwaad op Hamas (Harald Doornbos)

de Stentor, 29-06-2007

---

'Moslims en christenen, dat gaat niet samen'

HARALD DOORNBOS - DBAYE

Op de meeste balkons staan Mariabeeldjes, in de huizen hangen kruizen en afbeeldingen van Jezus.

"Iedere keer als we er langs lopen, slaan we een kruisje", vertelt een jong meisje. Welkom in Dbaye, net buiten de Libanese hoofdstad Beiroet.

Dit is het enige Palestijnse kamp ter wereld waar alleen maar christelijke Palestijnen wonen. Zeker hier wordt de recente overname van de Gaza-strook door de milities van Hamas nauwlettend in de gaten gehouden. Want officieel mogen alle Palestijnen dan 'broeders' zijn, in de praktijk botert het volstrekt niet tussen de overgrote meerderheid van moslim-Palestijnen en de ongeveer twee procent christelijke Palestijnen. Zo ongeveer het eerste wat Hamas na haar staatsgreep daar deed, was het in brand steken van een kerk en het vernietigen van Maria- en Christusbeelden. Iets wat keihard aankwam bij christelijke Palestijnen. Net als de meeste moslims in het Midden-Oosten nemen de christenen hier hun religie namelijk behoorlijk serieus.

"Ik wil eigenlijk niet over politiek praten", zegt een man die zich Bashir noemt. "Maar de daders van het vernielen van kerken en Mariabeelden zullen uiteindelijk hun straf wel krijgen - in het hiernamaals." Een andere christelijke Palestijn, een garagehouder, zegt: "Moslims en christenen zijn als zwart en wit - dat gaat niet samen."

De meeste Palestijnen in Libanon zijn enigszins bang om over politiek te praten. "Radicale Palestijnse moslims geven ons allemaal het imago van terroristen", meent een jonge vent, die anoniem wil blijven. "Maar wij steunen het Libanese leger in de strijd tegen de extremisten", vervolgt hij, "Het maakt ons niet uit dat dit Palestijnen zijn. Terreur is terreur."

Het Dbaye-kamp is een wereld van verschil met de andere tien Palestijnse kampen in Libanon, waar alleen maar moslims wonen. Verwacht hier niet de traditionele chaos en de totale armoede uit de andere kampen. Dbaye is een gemoedelijke wijk, niet ver verwijderd van de Middellandse Zee, met keurige huisjes en schone straten. Het is hier ook niet overbevolkt, omdat Christelijke gezinnen veel kleiner zijn dan Moslimgezinnen.

Via een paar straten kom je in het kamp terecht bij een wat groter Mariabeeld. Ernaast woont de familie Bayadi. De vader des huizes, Elias, roept: "Als mijn dochter met een moslim trouwt, vermoord ik haar". De serieuze manier waarop 21-jarige dochter Rosy knikt, lijkt te bevestigen dat vader Elias geen grap maakt.

Volgens Josephine, de moeder in het gezin, is het schandalig wat Hamas heeft gedaan op de Gaza-strook. "Ze hebben de kerk vernield en het huis van Jasser Arafat geplunderd", vertelt ze, terwijl ze tranen in haar ogen krijgt. "Dit is een schande, een totale schande."

Christelijke Palestijnen hebben over het algemeen goede relaties met de Fatah-organisatie van de Palestijnse president Abbas. "Ik krijg zelfs 40 dollar per maand van Fatah als onkosten voor mijn studie", vertelt Rosy. Maar Hamas heeft alles verpest, meent de familie. "Mij krijgen ze nooit meer terug naar Palestina, zelfs als het bevrijd wordt", beweert vader Elias, "Ook als ze me geld toegeven, blijf ik hier. Hamas heeft Palestina veranderd in Afghanistan."


"Mij krijgen ze nooit meer terug naar Palestina, zelfs als het bevrijd wordt."

---

http://www.destentor.nl/buitenlandstn/article1585888.ece

Premier Olmert zegt toe roadblocks te verwijderen en 250 Palestijnse gevangenen vrij te laten

Olmert lijkt president Abbas oprecht te willen versterken door middel van concessies. Tegen advies van leger- en veiligheidsfuncionarissen in heeft hij besloten om een aantal checkpoints op te heffen. Ook heeft Israël toegezegd al het geld dat voor de Palestijnen aan belastigen is geïnd, en ingehouden sinds de Hamas regering aantrad, te zullen overdragen aan de PA. Olmert heeft zich verder uitgesproken voor de vrijlating van 250 Fatah gevangenen. Probleem bij dit laatste is dat zij geen bloed aan hun handen mogen hebben, maar ook niet slechts voor kleine vergrijpen vastzitten. Men is de lijst van gevangenen momenteel aan het bestuderen.

 

Uiteraard stelt dit alles niks voor in de ogen van Israëls critici, en is slechts bedoeld om een wit voetje te halen bij de VS, de EU de VN of om de Palestijnen een rad voor ogen te draaien. Maar voor Israël is er een reëel veiligheidsrisico, en voor de slachtoffers van aanslagen is het moeilijk te verteren als de daders 'zomaar' - zonder iets in ruil - worden vrijgelaten. Het ligt ook niet lekker dat Shalit nog steeds gevangen wordt gehouden, al is dat niet Abbas' schuld.

Abbas heeft concessies van Israël nodig zodat de bevolking ziet dat zijn gematigder benadering werkt, maar Olmert heeft ook Palestijnse concessies nodig zodat de bevolking ziet dat Abbas een betrouwbare partner is die risico's waard is.

 

Ratna  

 

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PM says will remove roadblocks in West Bank, release 250 prisoners
By Shahar Ilan, Haaretz Correspondent

Last update - 15:15 02/07/2007
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/877376.html

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Monday that Israel intends to remove roadblocks between Palestinian towns in order to grant Palestinians "limited freedom of movement."

"The political clout we will gain is worth the increased risk," Olmert said during a briefing with the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.

The prime minister also said that he intends to release 250 prisoners in order to convey to the Palestinian people that "when they fight Hamas and accept the Quartet's conditions, they will receive something in exchange."

He emphasized that he was referring only to prisoners without "blood on their hands," who have not been involved in violent acts against Israelis.

Olmert noted that he had promised not to release prisoners if Hamas took part in the Palestinian Authority, but that things had changed since PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Hamas and formed an emergency government after the Islamic group seized control of the Gaza Strip last month.

"The minute that Abu Mazen resumes contacts with Hamas, Israel will cut off contacts with him," Olmert said, referring to Abbas.

However, he said, "I don't want to delude anyone into thinking there won't be attempted attacks from Judea and Samaria," using the Biblical name for the West Bank.

"There are terrorists there. We will fight them and they will attempt to carry out terror attacks," he added.

Olmert told the committee that United States President George Bush is determined to sign a ten-year agreement with Israel, which "will substantially increase foreign aid to Israel, as we requested."

He said that the intention to increase aid reflects the understanding demonstrated by the Americans regarding the increased threat to Israel and the need for Israel to equip itself against this threat.

Elf Hamas leden gearresteeerd in Jerusalem

Jerusalem, 2 July 2007
Leading Hamas members arrested in Jerusalem
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Terrorism+and+Islamic+Fundamentalism-/Leading+Hamas+members+arrested+in+Jerusalem+02-Jul-2007.htm

After a lengthy investigation, the ISA and Israel Police have arrested eleven senior Hamas members in Jerusalem. The purpose of their activities was to recruit support for Hamas and give the organization a foothold on the Temple Mount, in coordination with Sheikh Raad Salah's Islamic Movement.

 

(Communicated by the Government Press Office)

The ISA and the Israel Police have recently concluded a lengthy investigation during which eleven senior Hamas members - residents of eastern Jerusalem, ten of whom hold Israeli identity cards - were arrested. The State Prosecutor's Office is seeking to try them for various offenses including membership in a terrorist organization, financing terrorism and illegal use of property for terrorist purposes.

During the investigation, evidence was uncovered that indicated intensive Hamas activity in Jerusalem, especially the Temple Mount, financed by Hamas elements abroad. Several channels for transferring Hamas funds from abroad were discovered and NIS 400,000 was seized.  The Hamas headquarters abroad transferred funds to the "Union of Good", which then used money changers, bank accounts in Judea and Samaria, and couriers to send the money to a local charity organization which then transferred cash to the Hamas headquarters in Jerusalem.  In the last 18 months, Hamas' Jerusalem headquarters received over NIS 1 million in this fashion.

 (It should be noted that the "Union of Good" - a roof organization based in Saudi Arabia - is the main financing body through which Hamas headquarters abroad finances local Hamas activities. The "Union" operates sub-committees throughout the world.  It is chaired by Sheikh Yussuf Mustafa Al-Qardawi and was banned in Israel in 2002).

It arises that most of the aforementioned funds served Hamas activities on the Temple Mount, which were coordinated with Sheikh Raad Salah's Islamic Movement. These activities included organizing events during Ramadan such as large-scale post-fast evening meals, the purpose of which was to recruit support for Hamas and give the organization a foothold on the Temple Mount. The activities also included construction projects on the Temple Mount (that were not coordinated with Israel and which constituted a violation of the status quo) and organizing guided tours of the Temple Mount.

Principal Detainees

Amin Rushdi Shviki, b.1960, Beit Hanina, glass factory owner. Responsible for Hamas activities in Jerusalem. Initiated contact with the organization's charity committee and prepared a channel for the transfer of funds. Shviki sent an emissary to Hamas operatives abroad in order to organize money transfers to fund local operations.

Nasser Yakob Abu Saud, b. 1968, A-Tur, teacher.  Active over the years in several Hamas institutes in Jerusalem, which were subsequently closed by Israel.  Received transferred funds and was involved in organizing Hamas operations on the Temple Mount.

Halil Attia Gizawi, b. 1973, Abu Tur, graduate of Islamic University of Gaza. Active over the years in a number of Hamas institutes in Jerusalem, which were subsequently closed by Israel. Received transferred funds and was involved in organizing Hamas operations on the Temple Mount.

Mahmad Raduwan Farah, b. 1958, Shoafat refugee camp, Chairman of Dhahiet Al-Barid Al-Ram Charity Committee.  Managed the transfer of funds from Hamas operatives abroad to Hamas leaders in Jerusalem.  Also met with Hamas operatives abroad and participated in the actual smuggling.

Summary

The arrest of Hamas' Jerusalem leadership significantly harmed the organization's activities in the city and its attempts to strengthen itself and gain influence in Jerusalem and on the Temple Mount.

In addition to exposing the channels for funds transfers, the operation has had a major demoralizing effect on Hamas's Jerusalem infrastructure, especially on those members with Israeli ID cards, who had felt secure in their operations in the city.

During the operation close cooperation between Hamas and the Islamic Movement was uncovered in a number of fields:

· Initiation and implementation of joint projects at the Temple Mount

· The organizations operated jointly with financing from Hamas affiliates abroad even though senior Islamic Movement officials have been careful to avoid being directly associated with these affiliates.

· The Islamic Movement provides the legal cover for operations in Jerusalem and on the Temple Mount.

Sex, videotapes en de Palestijnse Authoriteit

Volgens onderstaand bericht heeft Hamas niet alleen gevoelig inlichtingen-materiaal en wapens geconfisceerd tijdens de coup in Gaza, maar ook bewijsmateriaal op een geheel ander en onverwacht gebied: het sexuele gedrag van Fatah leiders, waarvan in het geniep opnamen werden gemaakt.

The embarrassing tapes shot secretly were used as a means to extort and pressure various different targets, who necessarily feared any repercussions from both a personal and public angle. It appears that security officials also used the photos to procure benefits and recruit agents from among political rivals both in Fatah and Hamas.

Fatah leden filmden compromiterend materiaal van hun rivalen om als drukmiddel tegen hun te gebruiken. Het schijnt dat soms bewust vrouwen werden ingezet om zulk materiaal te verkrijgen.

"Many Fatah men who fled the Gaza Strip now have their lips sealed," said the Hamas man with satisfaction. "They don't dare attack us in the media, because they know what we've got. They are afraid that if they talk, we will reveal the materials in our possession."

Als het allemaal waar is, zullen we hier zeker nog van horen.
___________________________________________________

Ma'ariv 27 June, 2007 (Hebrew)

Amit Kohen:

"Sex and the PNA"

According to Fatah security apparatus orders, it was important to duly destroy any sensitive document or material before it fell into the hands of the Hamas. Now, however, it appears that not only intelligence material was stored at command headquarters and that not just weapons and documents have fallen into Hamas men's hands, but also a real treasure of a different kind: tens of sex tapes documenting the deeds of much of the senior Palestinian leadership.

Most of the tapes document Palestinian seniors cheating on their wives. Of course, these materials were regarded as explosive stuff in the Palestinian arena, which is particularly sensitive to moral violations. The embarrassing tapes shot secretly were used as a means to extort and pressure various different targets, who necessarily feared any repercussions from both a personal and public angle. It appears that security officials also used the photos to procure benefits and recruit agents from among political rivals both in Fatah and Hamas.

Internal disputes within Fatah led to a situation whereby every senior would try to collect damaging material on his opponent within the organization. This, for example, is the reason why a senior minister in one of the Fatah governments was among those taped. Another victim is a very senior officer from the Palestinian security mechanism, who was apparently taped by someone from a rival organization.

Targets within Hamas were also marked; for example, security officials taped a well known Hamas member in Gaza engaged in sexual intercourse with a young woman. Afterwards, he was presented with the tape and given two choices: cooperate with us, or we reveal the pictures. Having no choice, the Hamas man agreed to become an agent for the security mechanisms and to transfer them information on his organization.

An official of the Hamas military arm confirmed the existence of the tapes, and even admitted to watching a few of them. "Whatever is happening there doesn't make sense," he said, adding: "These are respected individuals, including even former ministers. We saw on tape people whom we never imagined would be duped this way." The victims were documented in various different places -in their homes, in hotels, and even in offices.

"I saw footage of a doctor taped in action in his office at the hospital," said the Hamas man. The fact that even doctors are documented attests to the scope of the extortion industry. "It was a real business," he said, adding that "very beautiful girls were involved; naturally, if one of them is brought to a senior, she will be of superior quality." He says that some of the girls are from Gaza or Palestinians who returned to the territories from abroad and "in some cases, professional girls were brought in from abroad especially."

Ironically, the means of extortion are now in Hamas's hands. Although the organization's members won't openly admit it, they benefit from the use of dubious means of pressure. "Many Fatah men who fled the Gaza Strip now have their lips sealed," said the Hamas man with satisfaction. "They don't dare attack us in the media, because they know what we've got. They are afraid that if they talk, we will reveal the materials in our possession."

All of the embarrassing tapes are now in the hands of the Izz-adeen al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's military arm, which values them hightly. "Who knows? Maybe one day we will make use of them," says the Hamas man smugly.

 

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Zes maanden cel voor bord "Expel the Arab enemy"

In Nederland mag je spandoeken uit je raam hangen waarop staat dat Verdonk een moordenaar is, maar in Israël wordt je veroordeeld als je op borden zet dat Arabische parlementsleden een vijfde kolonne zijn. Ik vind dit overigens prima, maar laten we dan wel ophouden met te beweren dat Israël een racistische staat is. Wij hebben geen Arabische partijen in het parlement.

Hou groot zou de aanhang van Geert Wilders zijn als we hier mensen als Abu Jahjah in de kamer hadden, die het openlijk voor onze vijanden zouden opnemen, zoals Arabische knessetleden herhaaldelijk doen?

 

Ratna

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Prosecution: Sentence extreme rightist to 6 months in prison
Efrat Weiss - YNET

Published: 07.02.07, 10:52 / Israel News
www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3419977,00.html

The Jerusalem District Prosecutor's Office told the capital's magistrates court that it will recommend sentencing right-wing activist Itamar Ben-Gvir to six months in prison for waving signs reading, "Expel the Arab enemy" and "Arab Knesset members - fifth column"

Ben Gvir said in response "the same prosecution that reached a plea bargain with Moshe Katsav is trying to silence me".

--------------------------------------------
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il

Gewapende vleugel Hamas vuurt weer Qassams af op Israël

Hoewel het Hamas leiderschap het hier niet mee eens is, heeft de gewapende vleugel weer qassams op Israël afgeschoten. Voor Israël maakt het overigens niet zo gek veel uit van wie de raketten komen, en of de leiding het ermee eens is. Pas als men ook andere groepen zou verhinderen ze af te vuren, iets wat Hamas ook gedurende de 'kalmte' nooit heeft gedaan, en zou stoppen met het fabriceren van wapens en de opruiing tegen Israël, zou er een basis voor onderhandelingen kunnen zijn.  

________________________________________

Hamas armed wing defies leaders, fires Qassams
By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent

Last update - 06:22 02/07/2007
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/877094.html

The Hamas military wing, under the leadership of Ahmed al-Ja'abari, is launching Qassam rockets from the Gaza Strip, contrary to the opinion of the political leadership of the organization.

After some weeks in which Hamas avoided launching Qassam rockets at Israel from the Gaza Strip, members of Iz a Din al-Kassam have resumed the attacks: During the past two days, at least three rockets were fired at Israel.

One of the likely reasons for the resumption of Hamas involvement in rocket launchings - which have primarily been conducted by Islamic Jihad, Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and members of local clans in the Gaza Strip - is recent activity by the Israel Defense Forces in the West Bank.

Fearing that a lack of response to the recent killings there of seven Palestinians by IDF forces would undermine their standing among the Palestinians in the strip, members of the Hamas' military wing decided to resume attacks.

Meanwhile, in opposition to the orders of Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas, some 150 members of the National Security organization, originally a Fatah-affiliated group, and some volunteers, were deployed along the Philadelphi Route, along the Gaza-Egypt frontier, "to keep order."

In practice these are troops that have deserted to the ranks of Hamas, and were joined by others - Hamas supporters wearing uniforms of the National Security organization.

The new force is commanded by an officer in the National Security, whose identity was not readily available, but who announced to his men that their role would be to maintain law and order along the border with Egypt.

This is an effort meant to reflect the return of stability to the area of the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah , which Hamas hopes will lead to the reopening of the border with Egypt.

At least 6,000 Palestinians have been stranded on the Egyptian side of the border since the Hamas-Fatah fighting in the strip last month.

Several days ago, the regular Palestinian police force - the "blue" police - was redeployed on the streets of Gaza. This is another force that was under Fatah control and whose rank-and-file chose to desert to Hamas. In this case, too, Hamas filled the force with its own loyalists in order to support efforts to restore law and order.

As Hamas is asserting its control over the Gaza Strip, in the West Bank, forces loyal to Abbas continued arrests of dozens of Hamas activists and the confiscation of arms.

Abbas loyalists say that during the interrogation of Hamas operatives, they learned that the Islamist organization had set in place a dormant Executive Force organization, similar to the group's paramilitary force, which vanquished Fatah in the Gaza Strip.

Haniyeh bezoek huis Arafat in Gaza

Volgens Hamas is het niet waar dat Arafats huis is geplunderd en spullen werden vernield tijdens de gevechten in Gaza.
___________________________________

Last update - 19:50 30/06/2007

Haniyeh tours Arafat's Gaza home in bid to disprove claims of raids
By The Associated Press
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/876646.html

Deposed Hamas prime minister Ismail Haniyeh toured the house of Yasser Arafat on Saturday and said he phoned the wife of the late Palestinian leader to assure her the property was not damaged during his group's takeover the Gaza Strip two weeks ago.

Haniyeh's tour was an attempt to counter allegations by the rival Fatah movement that Hamas gunmen had broken into Arafat's Gaza City home two days after the end of fighting.

Arafat led Fatah and the Palestinian people for four decades, until his death in 2004. He enjoys iconic status among the Palestinians and the looting allegations badly harmed Hamas' image.

During the visit, Haniyeh placed a phone call, and aides said it was to Arafat's widow, Suha, in Tunisia.

"I will send a video of my tour for you to be sure the house is safe and under protection," Haniyeh said on the phone, with reporters watching. "The house of Abu Ammar is one of the national symbols in Gaza... and will remain under protection."

Fatah spokesman Ahmed Abdel Rahman alleged that on June 17, two days after Hamas took control of Gaza, Hamas gunmen broke into the house, stepped on Arafat's photo and his military fatigues and damaged gifts from world leaders and the Nobel Peace Prize. In the upstairs bedrooms, the gunmen stole women's clothing, the statement said at the time.

During Saturday's tour, there was no apparent sign of damage.

One of Arafat's green military fatigues was spread on his bed on the ground floor. Furniture was pushed together in the middle of the room and covered with sheets. A gun, presumably belonging to Arafat, was visible in a display case.

In Arafat's office, a computer and office equipment were neatly organized on his wooden desk. Haniyeh reached inside another display case and inspected Arafat's dark brown glasses, waving them to the cameras.

An Arafat aide said the house was not inspected by its former custodian since it was looted. It was not clear if any of the Palestinian leader's belongings were missing.

In his tour, Haniyeh tried to harness Arafat's continued popularity, suggesting Arafat and Hamas founder Sheik Ahmed Yassin shared the same views. In fact, the two were political rivals.

"We will follow the same path of President Arafat and Sheik Ahmed Yassin to protect the unity of Palestinian people," Haniyeh said in the phone call. "We will protect this heritage."

Haniyeh was fired as prime minister by Arafat's successor, Mahmoud Abbas, after the Hamas takeover of Gaza. However, Hamas has refused to accept Abbas' decision to dismantle the Hamas-led government and replace it with an emergency Cabinet of moderates.

Hazem Abu Shanab, a Fatah spokesman in Gaza, dismissed the tour as part of the propaganda Hamas is using to try to burnish its image.

Een Academische Kaping - Alan Dershowitz over de Israël boycot

In Engeland hebben verschillende vakbonden, onder andere die van journalisten en die van academici resoluties aangenomen die ofwel tot een directe boycot van Israël of tot een nader onderzoek naar de mogelijkheid hiervan oproepen. Dershowitz betoogt dat deze ideeën in feite maar door een kleine groep worden gesteund, en de Britse academici met dergelijke acties zichzelf in een isolement plaatsen. Dit is erg optimistisch gedacht. Een toenemend aantal mensen denkt dat een of andere vorm van boycot nodig is om Israël zover te krijgen de bezetting op te geven.

Feit is echter dat dergelijke boycots juist averechts werken, vaak niet zozeer tegen de bezetting maar tegen Israëls bestaansrecht gericht zijn (sommige pro-boycot activisten zeggen dit openlijk), en veel Israëlische academici zelf juist felle tegenstanders van de bezetting zijn en zich inzetten voor een oplossing van het conflict. Bovendien getuigt het van dubbele maatstaven om alleen Israël te willen straffen voor een conflict dat (mede) door haar buren is begonnen en in stand gehouden, en is het op zijn zachtst gezegd paternalistisch dat Europeanen Israël op deze manier de les menen te moeten lezen.

 

Ratna
____________________________________________

Wall Street Journal -- June 28, 2007

An Academic Hijacking
By ALAN M. DERSHOWITZ

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118299766713051016.html?mod=opinion_main_commentaries

When a relatively small number of British academics tried to hijack the traditional trade union agenda of the British University and College Union by calling for an academic boycott of Israel, they expected little opposition. The union, after all, is British, and the nation whose academics were to be boycotted is Israel.

Anti-Israel sentiment among left-wing academics, journalists, and politicians in Britain is politically correct and relatively uncontroversial (as is anti-American sentiment). Several years earlier, a petition to boycott several Israeli universities initially passed but was later rescinded, and the British National Union of Journalists has also voted to boycott Israeli products. At about the same time, a British academic journal fired two of its board members apparently because they were Israeli Jews. Some popular British political leaders, most notoriously, London's Mayor "Red Ken" Livingstone, have made anti-Israel statements that border on anti-Semitism, in one instance comparing a Jewish journalist to a Nazi "war criminal."

Many of the academics who have been pushing the boycott most energetically are members of hard-left socialist-worker groups. These radicals devote more time and energy to international issues than to the domestic welfare of their own members, who have suffered a serious decline in salary and working conditions. Their pet peeve, sometimes it appears their only peeve, is the Israeli occupation -- not of the West Bank and, before its return, of Gaza but rather of all of Palestine, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. These are not advocates of the two-state solution, but of a one-state dissolution of Israel, with the resulting state being controlled by Hamas.

In a world in which dissident academics are murdered in Iran, tortured in Egypt, imprisoned in China and fired in many other parts of the world, the British Union decided to boycott only academics from a country with as much academic freedom as in Britain and far more academic freedom -- and more actual academic dissent -- than in any Arab or Muslim country. Indeed, Arabs have more academic (and journalistic) freedom in Israel, even in the West Bank, than in any Arab or Muslim nation.

But these union activists couldn't care less about academic freedom, or any other kind of freedom for that matter. Nor do they care much about the actual plight of the Palestinians. If they did, they would be supporting the Palestinian Authority in its efforts to make peace with Israel based on mutual compromise, rather than Hamas in its futile efforts to destroy Israel as well as the PA.

What they care about -- and all they seem to care about -- is Israel, which they despise, without regard to what the Jewish state actually does or fails to do. The fact that this boycott effort is being undertaken at precisely the time when Israel has ended the occupation of Gaza and is reaching out to the PA, and even to Syria, in an effort to make peace proves that the boycott is not intended to protest specific Israeli policies or actions, but rather to delegitimize and demonize Israel as a democratic Jewish nation. One union activist said on a BBC radio show that "Israel is worse than Stalinist Russia."

The boycotters know that Israel, without oil or other natural resources, lives by its universities, research centers and other academic institutions. After the U.S., Israeli scientists hold more patents than any nation in the world, have more start-up companies listed on Nasdaq, and export more life-saving medical technology.

Israelis have received more Nobel and other international science prizes than all the Arab and Muslim nations combined. Cutting Israel's academics off from collaboration with other academics would deal a death blow to the Israeli high-tech economy, but it would also set back research and academic collaboration throughout the world.

Moreover, many Israeli academics, precisely those who would be boycotted, are at the forefront in advocating peace efforts. They, perhaps more than others, understand the "peace dividend" the world would reap if Israeli military expenses could be cut and the money devoted to life-saving scientific research.

It is for these reasons that so many American academics, of all religious, ideological and political backgrounds, reacted so strongly to the threat of an academic boycott against Israel. As soon as it was reported, I helped to draft a simple petition in which signatories agreed to regard themselves as honorary Israeli academics for purposes of any boycott and "decline to participate in any activity from which Israeli academics are excluded."

Working with Prof. Steven Weinberg, a Nobel laureate in physics, and Ed Beck, the president of Scholars For Peace in the Middle East, we circulated the petition. I expected to gather several hundred signatures.

To my surprise, we have secured nearly 6,000 signatures, including those of 20 Nobel Prize winners, 14 university presidents as well as several heads of academic and professional societies. Three university presidents -- Lee Bollinger of Columbia, Robert Birgeneau of Berkeley and John Sexton of New York University -- have issued public statements declaring that if Israeli universities are boycotted, their American universities should be boycotted as well. Every day, I receive emails from other academics asking to be included as honorary Israeli academics for purposes of any boycott. We expect to reach at least 10,000 names on our petition.

It is fair to say, therefore, that the British boycott appears to be backfiring. British academics are on notice that if they try to isolate Israeli academics, it is they -- the British academics -- who will end up being isolated from some of the world's most prominent academics and scientists.

No one wants that to happen. Academics and scientists should collaborate with each other in the interests of promoting knowledge. The hope is that this ill-conceived boycott will be voted down by general membership of the university and college union, and that those radicals who are pushing it will be delegitimized in the eyes of the vast majority of British academics who will not want to see their union hijacked by single-issue bigots.

 

 

Mr. Dershowitz is a professor at Harvard University school of law and the author of "Blasphemy -- How The Religious Right Is Hijacking Our Declaration of Independence" (Wiley, 2007).

Palestijnse regering verbiedt opruiing in moskeeën

Een hoopvol initiatief, dat hopelijk geldt voor alle oproepen tot geweld, niet alleen die tegen de Fatah-regering. Het zou een mooi gebaar voor verzoening zijn als men eindelijk de opruiing tegen Israël en Joden vanuit de moskeeën aanpakt.

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Hamas preacher ignores edict
The Associated Press
Article Launched: 06/30/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
http://www.dailybulletin.com/news/ci_6264140

NABLUS, West Bank - A leading Hamas preacher on Friday defied an order by the moderate Palestinian government in the West Bank to stop talking about politics in mosques, instead taunting his Fatah rivals in his weekly sermon.

However, other clergy heeded the call to tone down their rhetoric, part of a campaign to stem Hamas' influence in the West Bank following the Islamic group's violent takeover of Gaza.

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad warned Islamic preachers on Thursday that he would not tolerate calls for violence delivered from mosque pulpits and would collect militants' weapons.

At a mosque in the West Bank city of Ramallah, the preacher stuck to generalities, without getting into politics; two police cars were parked outside. And in Jenin, a pro-Hamas preacher was replaced by a clergyman who spoke of the need to support the new Palestinian leadership.

However, Hamas leader Maher Kharas railed against the U.S., Israel and Palestinian moderates in a sermon at a mosque in the old city of Nablus, an area raided by Israeli troops seeking Palestinian militants earlier in the day.

"Israel soldiers invaded Nablus for two days. Where is the government to defend the old city? Where is the government that demanded the dismantling of the armed brigades?" he said. "America will be defeated in Iraq and the believing Muslims will come here victorious."

Earlier Friday, Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian militant near Nablus.

The army said soldiers saw two armed men getting into a taxi, followed the vehicle, then fired at one of the gunmen who jumped out of the car.

Ban Ki-Moon: schendingen van VN-resolutie 1701 betreffende Libanon

"The Syrian Arab Republic, other regional states and the Islamic
Republic of Iran have a particular responsibility to ensure that the
provisions related to the arms embargo of resolution 1701 ... are fully
respected," Ban said.

Aangezien Syrië en Iran de resolutie op grote schaal schenden, zullen zij waarschijnlijk wat sterker moeten worden 'aangemoedigd' om zich eraan te houden. 

According to the report, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
also reported increased violations of Lebanese airspace by the Israel
Air Force.

Via deze onbemande verkenningsvluchten komt Israël aan informatie over de schendingen. Of dacht Ban Ki Moon dat Syrië en Iran de hoeveelheden gesmokkelde wapens aan Israël melden? In plaats van Israël hierover te bekritiseren, zou de VN zelf zijn inlichtingen moeten verbeteren.

 

Ratna

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Last update - 04:15 30/06/2007
Ban: UN Resolution 1701 has been breached
By Shlomo Shamir, Haaretz Correspondent and News Agencies

Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon expressed "deep concern" Friday that Lebanon's continuing internal political instability will hinder its implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, the ceasefire agreement that ended the Second Lebanon War, which calls for the disarmament of all militant groups in the region near the country's border with Israel.

Ban issued a report to the UN Security Council on Friday saying that Syria and Iran are transferring anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons across the Syria-Lebanon border to militant group Hezbollah. The UN chief submitted the report after receiving information from both Israel and Lebanon regarding blatant violations of the resolution.

Israeli sources had informed Ban that Syria and Iran have been transferring sophisticated weaponry across the border on a weekly basis, including long-range rockets and anti-tank and anti-aircraft defence systems. Beirut briefed Ban on a sighting of four trucks laden with rockets heading for an outpost of the radical Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command in Lebanon.

"Weapons shipments on this scale would allow Hezbollah to reach a level of armament equal to that of last year," the report says, referring to the Second Lebanon War between Israel and Hezbollah in July 2006.

The report said Syria has denied any involvement in the arms transfers into Lebanon.

"The Lebanon government has stated to me that it has a vital interest in controlling its borders to prevent the smuggling of arms, munitions and personnel into its territory," Ban said in the report.

"The Syrian Arab Republic, other regional states and the Islamic Republic of Iran have a particular responsibility to ensure that the provisions related to the arms embargo of resolution 1701 ... are fully respected," Ban said.

"I urge the Syrian Arab Republic to do more to control its border with Lebanon and look forward to specific proposals from the Syrian authorities," he said.

According to the report, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon also reported increased violations of Lebanese airspace by the Israel Air Force.

Hizb ut-Tahrir, de pan-islamitische Partij van de Bevrijding

Nog een radikaal-islamistische beweging die aan populariteit wint onder moslims, ook in niet-islamitische landen. De pan-islamitische Partij van de Bevrijding telt nu circa 1 miljoen leden in Centraal-Azië, het Midden-Oosten en elders.

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Jerusalem Post

Background: Meet Hizb ut-Tahrir, the Islamic threat no one knows about
by Alex Kogan, posted June 27, 2007
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1182951029622&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

While Israelis are preoccupied with threats from Hamas, Iran, Hizbullah, Syria and even al-Qaida, they pay almost no attention to a large, widespread Islamist movement whose goal is to establish a caliphate on the lands "occupied by Zionists."

Hizb ut-Tahrir, or the Party of Liberation, is totally unknown to most Israelis. This Sunni pan-Islamic Party, which has more than a million members in at least 40 countries, is becoming increasingly popular in the Arab world.

The party, founded in Jerusalem 54 years ago, is now returning to its birthplace, presenting a revived caliphate as a viable solution to the problems of the Muslim world.

Hizb ut-Tahrir members are reserved about activities within their country of residence, occasionally condemning their own foreign offshoots. Thus, Britain has turned into a perfect base for Hizb ut-Tahrir operations abroad, whose goal is radicalization of Muslims all over the world, especially in the Palestinian Authority and in Central Asia.

Although Hizb ut-Tahrir does not admit to employing violent means of "persuasion" such as those used by Hamas and Osama Bin Laden, it does use terrorism as a tool, assisting other "holy warriors."

The British suicide bombers who killed three people and wounded more than 15 at Mike's Place in Tel Aviv in April 2003 were recruited by Hizb ut-Tahrir for Hamas, according to The New York Sun.

Despite being banned in Russia, Hizb ut-Tahrir is rapidly growing in the country's eastern areas. More than least 50 cells that were distributing radical literature, converting locals and preaching for jihad, were arrested by the Russian secret services in the past two years, the head of the Russia's Internal Affairs Department said last week. Hizb ut-Tahrir also planned to assassinate St. Petersburg's governor early last month.

Its activists are now spreading their influence to the north of the country, where relatively few Muslims live.

Central Asia is another important areas for Hizb ut-Tahrir. Its activities took off in this region in the mid-1990s, trying to replace then weak governments and frail national ideologies with Islamic fundamentalism. Its first cells were in Uzbekistan, later spreading to neighboring Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and southern Kazakhstan.

Initially, most of Hizb ut-Tahrir's members in these countries were ethnic Uzbeks, but they later recruited Tajiks, Kazakhis and Kyrgyzis. Hizb ut-Tahrir's missionaries targeted teachers, businessmen, and even police, attempting to spread their ideas at all levels of society.

Kazakhstan was the only state in the region that managed to neutralize this threat, thanks to the activities of the secret services and the low susceptibility of the Kazakh people to Islamic extremism. Most Hizb ut-Tahrir leaders in Kazakhstan are ethnic Russians who converted to Islam or ethnic Uzbeks. Kazakhstan also assisted Kyrgyz in preventing the Party from gaining power through elections.

Uzbekistan, in contrast, did not manage to stifle Hizb ut-Tahrir, albeit through no fault of the Uzbek government. According to the state security services, local Hizb ut-Tahrir members received support from Iran.

Teheran sheltered fugitive members of the party, according to these sources, and assisted "human rights associations" that protested "unlawful arrests" of "Islamic activist" Hizb ut-Tahrir members. In 2004, the Uzbek General Prosecutor's office said that over the previous four years, Iran had created training camps for the party's "activists."

Hizb ut-Tahrir has recently started boosting its activities in Middle Eastern countries such as Lebanon, Jordan and the PA. The organization's global leader, Sheikh Abu Yasin Ata ibn Khalil Abu Rashta, a Jordanian Palestinian, secretly resides in Lebanon, according to the Jamestown Foundation in Washington.

The party is becoming increasingly visible within the PA, mostly in Judea and Samaria. According to Israeli security services, there are close to 1,000 Hizb ut-Tahrir activists living in east Jerusalem. A few years ago, the security services raided Hizb ut-Tahrir's office in Ramallah and seized vast stores of radical literature in Arabic, Uzbek and other languages.

Hizb ut-Tahrir's activists organize demonstrations and meetings, competing with Hamas. The party called to boycott PA elections in which Hamas took part, distributing more than 10,000 leaflets at Al-Aksa alone. Today, as Hamas fights Fatah, Hizb ut-Tahrir's standing in the West Bank is on the rise.

Unlike many Islamist movements, whose funding from abroad can be cut off at any time, Hizb ut-Tahrir's support comes from Western countries, where their activities are monitored, but not banned. The Party of Liberation is waiting for the right opportunity to come out from the shadows and replace the current dominant Palestinian factions.

Hamas muis Farfoer gedood door "Israëliër"

Farfoer Muis, die Palestijnse kinderen leert dat de islam zal zegevieren en haar vijanden moeten worden bestreden, is in de laatste uitzending door een Israëli gedood.

In the final skit, "Farfour" was killed by an actor posing as an Israeli
official trying to buy Farfour's land. At one point, the mouse called
the Israeli a "terrorist."

"Farfour was martyred while defending his land," said Sara, the teen
presenter. He was killed "by the killers of children," she added.

Het zou mooi zijn als Palestijnse kinderen hier de onbedoelde les uit zouden leren dat, als je anderen met geweld bestrijdt, je zelf ook weleens het slachtoffer kunt worden, en Farfour als minder onschuldig zien dan Sara hem ziet. Dit is waarschijnlijk ijdele hoop, maar in het Midden-Oosten kun je niet zonder wat ijdele hoop op zijn tijd.... 

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Associated Press

Hamas TV Mouse Killed By "Israeli"
In Kids Program, A Mickey Mouse Look-Alike Is Beaten To Death By Actor Posing As Israeli Official
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/06/29/world/main2999181.shtml

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip, June 29, 2007

(AP) A Mickey Mouse look-alike who preached Islamic domination on a Hamas-affiliated children's television program was beaten to death in the show's final episode Friday.

In the final skit, "Farfour" was killed by an actor posing as an Israeli official trying to buy Farfour's land. At one point, the mouse called the Israeli a "terrorist."

"Farfour was martyred while defending his land," said Sara, the teen presenter. He was killed "by the killers of children," she added.

The weekly show, featuring a giant black-and-white rodent with a high-pitched voice, had attracted worldwide attention because the character urged Palestinian children to fight Israel. It was broadcast on Hamas-affiliated Al Aqsa TV.

Station officials said Friday that Farfour was taken off the air to make room for new programs. Station manager Mohammed Bilal said he did not know what would be shown instead.

Israeli officials have denounced the program, "Tomorrow's Pioneers," as incendiary and outrageous. The program was also opposed by the state-run Palestinian Broadcasting Corp., which is controlled by Fatah, Hamas' rival.

© MMVII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

Leidende Palestijnse dichter Mahmoud Darwish over de gebeurtenissen in Gaza

Special Dispatch-Palestinian Authority/Reform Project
June 29, 2007
No. 1639

Leading Palestinian Poet Mahmoud Darwish on the Events in Gaza

To view this Special Dispatch in HTML, visit:
http://www.memri.org/bin/opener_latest.cgi?ID=SD163907 .

On June 17, 2007, renowned Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish published his reflections on the internecine fighting in Gaza in the London daily Al-Hayat. Darwish is known both for his literary output and for his political activism; he was a member of the PLO Central Committee from 1987 until 1993, when he resigned in protest of the Oslo Accords.

The following are excerpts:(1)


"Did we have to fall from towering heights and see our blood on our hands, in order to grasp that we are not angels, as we used to believe? Did we also have to expose all our faults before everybody, so that our true nature should not remain virginal? How much did we lie when we said: 'We are an exception.' That you believe yourself is worse than to lie to another. To be friendly with those who hate us and cruel to those who love us – that is the baseness of one who aggrandizes himself and the arrogance of the lowly.

"Oh Past: Do not change us as we get farther from you. Oh Future: Do not ask us: 'Who are you? And what do you expect from me?' Because we too do not know. Oh Present: We have borne little, for we are but insufferable passers-by.

"Identity is that which we bequeath, and not that which is bequeathed us. What we invent and not what we recollect. Identity is the false mirror, which we should break whenever the image pleases us.

"He wore a mask, took courage, and murdered his mother, because she was an easy prey for him, and because a woman soldier stopped him and exposed her breasts to him, saying: 'Does your mother have such as these?'

"Were it not for shame and darkness, I would visit Gaza, without knowing the way to the house of the new Abu Sufyan, nor the name of the new prophet. And had not Muhammad been the Seal of the Prophets, each tribe would have had a prophet, and each Companion would have had a militia.

"June has astounded us on its fortieth anniversary. If we do not find one to defeat us again, we defeat ourselves with our own hands, lest we forget.

"No matter how much you look into my eyes, you would not find my sight there. Disgrace has snatched it away. My heart does not belong to me, nor to another. It has come to do without me, [but] without becoming a stone.

"Does he who cries over the corpse of his brother 'Allahu Akbar' – does he know that he is an infidel, because he sees Allah in his own image, smaller than a normal human being? The prisoner who aspires to inherit the prison concealed a smile of victory from the camera, but he did not succeed in suppressing the joy which spilled out of his eyes. Perhaps because the hasty text was more powerful than the actor. What do we need Narcissus for, so long as we are Palestinians, and so long as we do not know the difference between a mosque (jami') and a university (jami'a), because they both come from the same root. What do we need a state for, as long as it and [the passing] days have the same destiny?

"A sign on the door of a nightclub: Welcome Palestinians returning from battle. Entrance is free, and our wine does not intoxicate...

"'Me and the stranger against my cousin; me and my cousin against my brother; and me and my sheikh against myself.'(2) This is lesson number one in the new national education under the vaults of obscurity.

"Who will enter Paradise first? He who died by the bullets of the enemy, or he who died by the bullets of a brother? Some sages say: Sometimes your enemy is one born of your own mother.

"The fundamentalists do not make me angry, for they are believers in their own way. But I am angered by their secular supporters and by their atheist supporters who believe but in one religion – their own pictures on television.

"Someone asked me: Will a hungry guard defend a house whose owner traveled to spend his summer vacation on the French or Italian Riveria – whichever one of them. I said: He will not guard. He asked me: Does me + me = two? I said: You and you is less than one.

"I am not ashamed of my identity, because it is still [a work] in progress. I am, however, ashamed of some of the things mentioned in Ibn Khaldun's Prolegomena.(3)

"You are, from now on, another."


Endnotes:
(1)  Al-Hayat (London), June 17, 2007.
(2) This is an ironic inversion of a common Arab saying: "Me and my brother against my cousin; me and my cousin against a stranger."
(3) The Prolegomena (Al-Muqaddima) is a work by Ibn Khaldun (d. 1406) that analyzes Arab history and society.


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