Tag Archive for West Bank

| July 23, 2012
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Dr. Dore Gold: The Political Battle Over “Occupation” Narrative

Edmond Levy’s committee has restored Israel’s legal narrative about its rights in Judea and Samaria. There is a huge difference in how a compromise will look if Israel comes to the table as “foreign occupiers,” or as a party that has just territorial claims.

By Ambassador Dr. Dore Gold

 

In January 2012, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yaakov Neeman, the justice minister, turned to former Israeli supreme court justice Edmond Levy to head a panel of legal experts that would look into questions of land ownership in the “West Bank” (biblical Judea and Samaria, located west of the Jordan River, ed). Continue Reading »

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| July 23, 2012
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PA financial crisis brings more support for Hamas

Expenses rise for Ramadan but reserves are down.

By MOHAMMED NAJIB/THE MEDIA LINE

The Palestinian Authority (PA) is suffering an intensifying financial crisis that is threatening its stability and strengthening the rival Islamist Hamas. Palestinian security officials warn that if the international community fails to pay its pledges to the PA, it will not be able to pay salaries in the coming months.

Palestinian flags waving in West Bank - Photo: Reuters

Palestinian flags waving in West Bank – Photo: Reuters

In June, the PA paid the 149,000 teachers, policemen and civil servants 60 percent of their salaries on their regular payday, and made up the rest just one day before the month-long Ramadan fast began on July 21. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 4, 2012
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Ex-High Court Judge: Israel not ‘Occupier’ Under Int’l Law

A panel headed by a retired High Court judge concluded that there is no “occupation” and international law does not bar Jews from Yesha.

By Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu

 

A panel headed by a retired High Court judge concluded that there is no “occupation” and international law allows Jews to live in Judea and Samaria.

The conclusions of the committee represent a revolutionary turn of thought against the view widely accepted by the international community that Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria are part of an “occupation” prohibited by international law.

Edmund Levy, who served on the High Court from 2001 until his retirement, headed a three-man committee that concluded that from a historical and legal prospective, and considering agreements with the Palestinian Authority, the international law against ”occupation” does not apply to Judea and Samaria. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags:
| July 3, 2012
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After Arab Spring, Abbas discovers importance of Palestinian public opinion

A meeting between Palestinian president and Vice PM Shaul Mofaz was cancelled due to pressure from the Palestinian public, not because of Netanyahu.

By Avi Issacharof

 

Several hours after an official from Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud’s Abbas’ office leaked to the media that a planned meeting with Vice Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz would not take place, the latter’s aides claimed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was behind the move.

This reaction was both immature and condescending, reflecting a characteristic Israeli response to Abbas’ moves – as if the Palestinian leader has no will of his own, no independent interests and especially no public opinion to take into consideration. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| June 23, 2012
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Fayyad: Hamas losing support in Gaza, West Bank

PA PM says Gaza-based group avoiding elections because it is pessimistic about results; condemns Netanyahu over settlements.

By JPOST.COM STAFF

 

Hamas has been avoiding elections because it is pessimistic about their outcome, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said in an interview with The Washington Post published Friday.

“It is a well-known fact borne out by various opinion polls that there has been a steady erosion in Hamas’s standing, both in the West Bank and Gaza,” Fayyad said. “I believe that is why they have been dodging elections.”

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad - Photo: REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman

Fayyad said that it was unacceptable that elections have not been held recently in the Palestinian Authority, calling a vote “overdue” and saying that it is “something I believe is going to happen, and I hope sooner rather than later.”

Continue Reading »
Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , ,
| June 23, 2012
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Palestinians push UNESCO to make Bethlehem’s Nativity church a World Heritage site

 The effort by the Palestinian Authority is drawing resistance; World Heritage Committee meeting starts on Sunday.

 

 

The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is becoming the church of contention, with a bid by the Palestinians to use their position as the newest members of the UN’s cultural arm to obtain World Heritage status for the iconic Christian site – and perhaps boost their own campaign for legitimacy.

The effort by the Palestinian Authority, like its overall efforts for global recognition for an independent Palestinian state, is drawing resistance. And it may fail at the World Heritage Committee meeting that starts Sunday. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
| June 7, 2012
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Israeli soldiers use Palestinians to train army dogs, activist says

Report claims IDF troops order West Bank residents to exit cars and wait, as dogs seek training explosive devices; army spokesman: Soldiers conduct searches to increase Israelis’ safety.

Soldiers from an elite IDF canine unit have been confiscating Palestinian vehicles in order to train their explosive-detecting dogs, an activist monitoring the conduct of soldiers in checkpoints told Haaretz.

The unit in question is Oketz, directly subordinate to IDF command, and which, among other duties, trains dogs to locate weapons and explosives. Its training base is located in the Adam base west of Ramallah.

Oketz training - Breakin the Silence

Oketz soldiers inspecting a Palestinian cab in a West Bank checkpoint - Photo by Tamar Fleischman

According to Tamar Fleischman, Oketz soldiers have been randomly stopping Palestinian vehicles in the last few weeks as they pass through the Jaba checkpoint, near the city of Ramallah. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| June 6, 2012
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Netanyahu: I will fire any minister who votes to legalize Ulpana homes

PM’s office updates ministers that government position is to oppose a bill that would legalize settlement construction on privately-owned Palestinian land.

 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a sharp warning to government ministers on Tuesday, threatening that anyone who votes for a bill to legalize homes on the settlement of Ulpana Hill, which was built on privately-owned Palestinian land, will be fired.

Settlers at the start of a three-day march from Ulpana to Jerusalem, June 4, 2012.

Settlers at the start of a three-day march from Ulpana to Jerusalem - Photo by Emil Salman

The Prime Minister’s Office has begun updating ministers on Tuesday that Netanyahu decided that the government position is to oppose a bill that would authorize settlement construction on privately-owned Palestinian land. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| May 24, 2012
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Shin Bet exposes Hebron terror cells

Internal security service says recent arrest of several Palestinian terrorists thwarted attack on Kiryat Arba; indictments filed

The Shin Bet internal security service cleared for publication on Wednesday that over the past few weeks it has exposed, in cooperation with the IDF, a number of terror cells in the Hebron area, Ynet reported.

One of the cells, which is affiliated with Hamas, was involved in a bombing attack, while another planned to kidnap Israelis in Kiryat Arba.

Explosive device used by terrorists

Explosive device used by terrorists

According to the Shin Bet’s announcement, as art of its preparation to kidnap Israelis the Hamas terror cell examined the IDF’s alertness by hurling explosive devices at the fence surrounding Kiryat Arba. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , ,
| May 14, 2012
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PA arrests former top militant after attack on Palestinian official’s home

Zakaria Zubeidi, who Israel again listed as ‘wanted’ as of late 2011, is considered to be one of the most powerful people in Jenin’s refugee camp.

Palestinian Authority forces arrested former top militant Zakaria Zubeidi on Sunday, over his suspected link to a recent attack on the house of a top PA official.

Earlier this month Jenin District Governor Kadura Musa died of a heart attack, shortly after armed attackers opened fire on his home.

A number of assailants took positions outside Musa’s home, before opening fire. The governor’s bodyguards returned fire, and Musa himself came out of his house and fired a number of shots into the air. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
| May 13, 2012
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Netanyahu ordered evacuation of Hebron home over fears of war crimes suits

AG’s fear of legal action against Israeli officials at The Hague also reason for state’s hesitance regarding authorization of the Ulpana Hill West Bank outpost.

 

Senior officials in the prime minister’s office said at the time that the evacuation was carried out after careful coordination between the defense minister and the prime minister. Nevertheless, Netanyahu’s aides went on the defensive against right-wing criticism and said that the premier had no choice but to approve the evacuation out of security and legal consideration.

 

Hebron evacuation - Olivier Fitoussi - 4.4.2012
Border Police officials evacuating a Hebron house taken over by settlers, April 4, 2012. Photo by Olivier Fitoussi

The aides said that during the late night discussion prior to the evacuation no decisions were made regarding the immediate evacuation of the house. Continue Reading »

Category: Jewish News | Tags: , ,
| May 10, 2012
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New Hamas force in Gaza is foiling rocket attacks against Israel

The new 300 men anti-rocket force operates day and night, but will not act if Israel is the first to strike.

 

The Hamas government in Gaza has been operating a force over the past few months whose sole task is to prevent the firing of rockets into Israel.

Palestinians from Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements rallying in Gaza City, Friday, April 27, 2012.

Palestinians from Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements rallying in Gaza City - Photo by AP

Hamas, which has always championed jihad against Israel, is now using its authority to foil the firing efforts of cells from other organizations such as the Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees.

The new force was formed by and is under the direct command of Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad, who in the past has been considered an extremist in regard to Israel.

Continue Reading »
Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , ,
| May 7, 2012
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‘Undercover Israeli combatants threw stones at IDF soldiers in West Bank’

Testimony by commander of the Israeli Prison Service’s elite ‘Masada’ unit sheds light on IDF methods in countering demonstrations against barrier.

Undercover soldiers hurled stones in the “general direction” of IDF soldiers as part of their activity to counter weekly demonstrations in the Palestinian village of Bil’in, the commander of the Israeli Prison Service’s elite “Masada” unit revealed during his recent testimony in the trial of MK Mohammed Barakeh (Hadash).

MK Mohammed Barakeh confronting IDF soldiers in Bil’in in 2005.

MK Mohammed Barakeh confronting IDF soldiers in Bil’in in 2005. - Photo by Reuters

Barakeh has been charged with assaulting a border guard in Bil’in who was attempting to arrest a demonstrator.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| March 22, 2012
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Want to promote Israel in the U.K.? Recognize 1967 borders

Britain’s Advertising Standards Authority cancels ad by Israel’s tourism ministry in London after it promoted a book on northern Israel without properly demarcating the Golan Heights as a disputed area.

 

Britain’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) cancelled an advertisement by Israel’s Ministry of Tourism in London which attempted to promote a new book on northern Israel. The reason for the cancellation of the ad, which was first published in British newspapers in November 2011, was the fact that the map that was attached to it did not properly demarcate the 1967 borders in the Golan Heights and the West Bank.

The ASA received no less than 350 complaints against the advertisement, as it is the body that oversees advertisements in media outlets and billboards throughout the kingdom.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , ,
| March 20, 2012
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The devastating truth about water and Palestinian statehood

This article was first published by The Jerusalem Post on August 28th 2011 http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Columnists/Article.aspx?id=235772

On June 15th 2011 the Jerusalem Post published an article about the Palestinian water crisis, written by the head of the Palestinian Water Authority, Dr Shaddad Atilli.

In his article Atilli wrote that Israel’s ‘discriminatory policies’ are to blame for the lack of water in the Palestinian society. He claimed that Israel used the Joint Israeli Palestinian Water Committee (JWC) to veto and to delay Palestinian water projects. He also wrote that Israel illegally exploits 90% of the shared water sources, allocating only 10% for Palestinian use. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News, Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
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