Pulse Media
30.11.09
25.11.09
9.11.09
Bringing down walls
Ma'an
Question: looking at the flimsy nature of the wall, why haven't Palestinians already pulled down slabs, and why don't they continue?
Possible answer: they value their lives.
We are constantly fed the lie that the east-european 'revolutions' of twenty years ago were spontaneous uprisings. The time was right, permission was in effect granted. Most importantly, on the other side of the wall were powerful armies ready to protect the 'revolutionaries'.
Another case springs to mind: what happened when Iraqis stood up to Sadaam Hussein following the first 'Gulf War'? Naively, they had thought Bush Sr. was going to support them in their uprising. Silly little people. They were massacred.
Israel's separation barrier is simply an other obstacle in the lives of the Palestinians who with or without the wall, have been trampled on, humiliated, murdered for decades. And no-one with any power will protect them against their agressor. Quite the contrary: the powerful armies continue to arm the agressor so it can carry on pounding.
5.11.09
How the IAEA views Iran's 'threat'
I am pleased; this is a positive development. I have always been of the view that the Iranian nuclear issue is an issue that can only be resolved through dialogue, through diplomacy. I have been saying for a number of years that we need transparency on the part of Iran, we need cooperation on the part of the international community. I feel that we are at a critical moment. I see that we are shifting gears, from confrontation into transparency and cooperation. I continue, of course, to call on Iran to be as transparent as possible. I indicated that because Iran has a comprehensive programme, has a fuel cycle, sensitive fuel cycle activities, it would help the Agency to have Iran subscribing, again, to our regulations that allow us to be informed of the construction of nuclear facilities as early as possible. It also would be of great help to us to have Iran reapply the Additional Protocol, which would give us the authority for more information, access to more locations. That would enable the Agency to start to provide assurances, not only about declared nuclear activities in Iran, but also about possible nuclear, undeclared activities in Iran. I believe we are on the right track. I believe that we have to continue to work together -- the Agency, Iran and the rest of the international community -- to move in the right direction, to assure the international community about Iran's nuclear programme, to open the dialogue about the broad range of issues that we need to address between Iran and the international community. As you have seen, there was a Six-Parties talk that has taken place in Geneva last week.
The reaction from both sides has been quite positive. President Obama said "This is a constructive beginning." President Ahmadinejad said that he expresses satisfaction with the initial results. So it is a critical moment; it is a moment when all of the parties should put their heads together, should start to build confidence and trust. This is the way we need to go both on the nuclear issue and on the broad range of issues that Iran and the international community need to work out, so that hopefully we reach a point when Iran is fully integrated with the international community.
15.10.09
Is a gay soldier worth more than a gay non-combatant?
Obama has said, that 'patriotic Americans' (gays in the military) should not be punished, especially when two wars are being fought. My question is this : should unpatriotic Americans be punished in a time of a war? Are gays only important when they are a part of the military in a time of war?
6.10.09
Israeli minister spells out the government's occupation plan
Copyright J.M.M.
Arutz Sheva
(IsraelNN.com) Minister Silvan Shalom (Likud) sent a letter Tuesday to Government Secretary Tzvi Hauser and asked that the government session devote time to an “urgent” discussion of the riots in Jerusalem.
"The Palestinian takeover in Jerusalem must be blocked and we must act swiftly to restore Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem in general and on the Temple Mount in particular,” Shalom wrote. He claimed that the PA and the Islamic Movement are colluding to undermine Jewish sovereignty.
5.10.09
Palestinians should lie down and roll over, says Haaretz journalist
Haaretz
What is the PA expected to do? Crush palestinian protest against the occupation?
At present, the PA is not doing enough to ease tensions, while the Islamic Movement's northern faction is apparently working in concert with a number of Palestinian figures in an effort to spark an escalation of hostilities on the mount.
28.9.09
Headlines of the day
Zelaya has remained in the Brazilian embassy since defiantly returning to Honduras one week ago. Coup leaders have now given Brazil a ten-day deadline to hand over Zelaya or face the embassy’s closure. Brazil has rejected the ultimatum and says Zelaya will stay as long as he needs. The coup regime issued the threat as its soldiers continued to surround the embassy and limit the delivery of supplies. On Friday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution condemning the embassy siege.
UN Ambassador Susan Rice: “They condemned acts of intimidation against the Brazilian embassy and called upon the de facto government of Honduras to cease harassing the Brazilian embassy and to provide all necessary utilities and services, including water, electricity, food and continuity of communications.”
(...)
The US is threatening to tighten sanctions on Iran over a newly disclosed uranium enrichment site near the Iranian holy cit of Qom. On Friday, Iran acknowledged the site’s existence but said no nuclear enrichment had taken place. The Iranian government says it hasn’t violated its international commitments because it’s only required to disclose a nuclear site six months before it becomes operational. The Obama administration has warned of “severe” sanctions unless Iran suspends work on the site and allows international inspectors. In his weekly radio address, President Obama said he remains open to dialogue with Iran but warned of punitive action.
President Obama: “This is a serious challenge to the global nonproliferation regime and continues a disturbing pattern of Iranian evasion… My offer of a serious, meaningful dialogue to resolve this issue remains open. But Iran must now cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency and take action to demonstrate its peaceful intentions.”
(...)
Israeli Troops Fire on Palestinian Protests
In Israel and the Occupied Territories, four Palestinians were wounded Sunday near the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem. Israeli police fired rubber bullets and stun grenades at Palestinians who were trying to block a group of militant Israeli settlers from entering the mosque compound. Another seven Palestinians were arrested. The attack comes two days after Israeli troops disrupted a series of protests against the West Bank separation wall. Israeli police fired tear gas at demonstrations near at least three Palestinian villages: Burin, Nil’in and Bil’in. The demonstrators had tried to remove barbed wire placed around the wall when Israeli troops fired the tear gas.
Report: Israel Conditions Palestinian Cellular Network on War Crimes Probe
In other news, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz is reporting Israel has threatened the Palestinian Authority with revoking a vital cell phone network unless the PA drops a request for an International Criminal Court probe of alleged Israeli war crimes. The PA submitted the request after a UN inquiry found Israel had committed war crimes in its attack on the Gaza Strip and recommended a potential ICC investigation. Israel has reportedly warned it could judge the PA’s request for a second cellular provider based on its willingness to withdraw the ICC demand.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez: “We can say that we are beginning this mechanism, this mechanism that seems vital, which is the union of South America with Africa. Within this newly born structure, the twenty-first century won’t be a bipolar world, it won’t be unipolar. It will be multipolar. Africa will be an important geographic, economic and social pole. And South America will be, too. We will become real powers.”
27.9.09
Yom Kippour invasion of Haram Al-Sharif
Military closure The police entered after Israeli settlers and Zionist groups attempted to force entry to a part of the complex they call Temple Mount. 
Al JazeeraIsraeli security forces on Sunday fired rubber bullets and stun grenades at Palestinians who attempted to prevent a Zionist rally from entering the al-Haram al-Sharif courtyard within the compound on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur.
(...)
Confrontations broke out after a group of about 150 Israelis entered the Al-Aqsa compound on Sunday morning, reportedly under the guard of local authorities, who also escorted the group away from the area when worshipers began to protest.
15.9.09
The 'dovish' singer who justifies the murderous regime
YnetBut, now, today, I know that deep in your hearts YOU WISH for the demise of this beast called Hamas who has terrorized and murdered you, who has turned Gaza into a trash heap of poverty, disease and misery. Who in the name of "allah” has sacrificed you on the bloody alter of pride and greed.
I am privileged to live in a democracy where women are not objects but presidents, where a singer can say and do as she pleases! I know you do not have this privilege (yet…but you will, inshallah, you will…)
...
I can only wish for you that Israel will do the job we all know needs to be done, and finally RID YOU of this cancer, this virus, this monster called fanaticism, today, called Hamas. And that these killers will find what little compassion may still exist in their hearts and STOP using you and your children as human shields for their cowardice and crimes.
Are we to believe this woman can be so ignorant of the political situation a few kilometers away from her 'seaside home'? On the other hand, if she is a willing propagandist for the Israeli régime, could she have so little self-pride as to risk such ridicule? Does she really believe one single Gazan will thank her for her compassion? Or could it be, that she knows the world (or indeed Israel) either couldn't care less or couldn't know less about her sickening disdain for Palestinian lives?
And here's a little jewel in Miss Nini's letter:
I see through your veil of fear my brothers, through your burka!Did Dubya come out of the shadows to write Miss Nini's "moving letter" to her Palestinian "brothers"?
14.9.09
Re-branding Israel through culture
Medlink (NYT)"We will send well-known novelists and writers overseas, theater companies, exhibits," said Arye Mekel, the ministry´s deputy director general for cultural affairs. "This way you show Israel´s prettier face, so we are not thought of purely in the context of war."
13.9.09
According to Israel Manufacturers Association, the boycott works.
Jerusaelm Post"In addition to the problems and difficulties arising from the global economic crisis, 21 percent of local exporters report that they are facing problems in selling Israeli goods because of an anti-Israel boycott, mainly from the UK and Scandinavian countries," said Yair Rotloi, chairman of the association's foreign-trade committee.
9.9.09
Spin the bottle - Mother Jones
Mother JonesNowhere in Fiji Water's glossy marketing materials will you find reference to the typhoid outbreaks that plague Fijians because of the island's faulty water supplies; the corporate entities that Fiji Water has—despite the owners' talk of financial transparency—set up in tax havens like the Cayman Islands and Luxembourg; or the fact that its signature bottle is made from Chinese plastic in a diesel-fueled plant and hauled thousands of miles to its ecoconscious consumers. And, of course, you won't find mention of the military junta for which Fiji Water is a major source of global recognition and legitimacy. (Gilmour has described the square bottles as "little ambassadors" for the poverty-stricken nation.)
3.9.09
General outlines of Obama's Peace Plan
1. International presence in the Jordan Valley, Palestinian Plaines area, and other areas in the West Bank.
2. Annexing some parts of East Jerusalem to remain under Israeli control, while Muslim holy site would be under Arab control.
3. All Palestinian factions would be dissolved and transformed into political parties.
4. Large settlement blocs in the West Bank would remain under Israeli control, while negotiations would be conducted within three months of the plan, to discuss the future of smaller settlements.
5. Several areas in the West Bank would be disarmed, and Israeli would maintain aerial control.
6. Intensifying the Palestinian-Israeli security coordination.
7. The Palestinian Authority would not be allowed to have military alliances with regional countries.
8. The United States would guarantee the establishment of a Palestinian State in the summer of 2011.
9. Allowing an agreed upon number of refugees to return, and to be settled in the Plaines area and other areas in the West Bank, particularly in the cities of Ramallah and Nablus. A special fund for supporting the refugees would also be established.
10. Israel starts releasing the Palestinian political detainees immediately after the peace deal is signed. Three years would be allocated for the release of the detainees.
Why Israel is after my son (Fouad Sultani)
Electronic IntifadaThe Israeli media rushed to spin the story and it became even juicier with claims that the purpose of these activities is a plot to hurt the chief of staff. Yet, the inflated indictment itself does not go that far. The indictment does not accuse Rawi of being a Hizballah agent or operative but merely being in contact with one. Although the indictment does not show criminal intent (mens rea) on Rawi's part, the Israeli media assumed its existence. Rawi's national and political affiliation seems to be behind this assumption.
25.8.09
EI : The pitfalls of Palestinian national consciousness
A national liberation movement that started with such slogans as "the only way to liberation is through the barrel of the gun," and "liberation from the Jordan river to the Mediterranean," and "the right of return is sacrosanct," has moved into the post-colonial condition without achieving independence. The specter of the Oslo accords was everywhere at the conference, but no one wanted to refer to it. All those ex-fighters-turned-politicians would not have been granted an Israeli permit to enter Israeli-controlled territory had it not been for the Oslo accords.
(...)
What we saw in Bethlehem is the embodiment of Frantz Fanon's "pitfalls of national consciousness" -- albeit with a Palestinian gown. The irony, of course, is that Fanon was theorizing about the future post-colonial states after independence. He wrote of neo-colonial subjugation of the native elites. Black cars, fashionable suits, bodyguards, are some of the characteristics of the rising nouveaux riches of (occupied) Palestine. Fanon wrote scornfully that "[t]he national middle class which takes over power at the end of the colonial regime is an underdeveloped middle class. It has practically no economic power, and in any case it is in no way commensurate with the bourgeoisie of the mother country which it hopes to replace" (emphasis added).
