On the one-year anniversary of the killing of 23-year old American ISM activist Rachel Corrie, twenty international activists from ISM and CPT remembered their friend by performing a ‘die-in’ at the Erez checkpoint to protest the atrocities of the Israeli Occupation. The activists carried signs and wore T-shirts representing the many casualities of the Israeli Occupation. Representations of the power of Israel, the United States, and the Occupation symbolically ‘killed’ all the other participants. The victims included peace and justice, nonviolence, Palestinian homes, educational rights, water rights, farming, and innocent civilians among others. An ISM press release. Read more about One Year Later: Internationals honor Rachel Corrie and all the victims of Israeli occupation
In the early morning hours of March 11, the Israeli Ministry of Interior denied Christian Peacemaker Team member Greg Rollins (Surrey, BC) entry to Israel at Ben Gurion airport and returned him as far as Amsterdam. “I’m surprised, we have a very strong court order, it seems the Israeli security people at the airport made a mistake,” said Sani Khoury, with the law firm of Kuttab and Khoury. A settlement in writing said that there are no restrictions on Greg’s entering Israel. Read more about Israel denies entry Canadian peace activist
Olympia, Washington is the hometown of peace activist Rachel Corrie who was killed by the Israeli Defense Forces on March 16, 2003. This article looks at the impact of Rachel’s death on her community both in the period immediately following her death and in the year to come, focused on a peace camp which began its existence the day bombs started falling on Iraq. Camp Rachel was a bittersweet legacy of her death, one she would have both been proud of and proudly taken part of, most likely in a leadership role. It was a live and personal call to activists to rally in her name, to use her heroism as inspiration and strength for the actions, protests, petitions, letter writing and civil disobedience to come. candio. writes for EI. Read more about One Year Later: Olympia after Camp Rachel
March 16 is the sad one year anniversary of the killing of Rachel Corrie, a 23 year old American International Solidarity Movement (ISM) activist crushed to death at Rafah, Gaza Strip. IWPS commemorates the courageous spirit of Rachel Corrie, and calls for an end to the illegal and brutal Israeli military occupation of Palestine. More and more activists (Palestinian, Israeli and International) are having to put their bodies between bulldozers and trees and homes in an attempt to stop Israel’s massive destruction of homes and land for the Apartheid Wall. Read more about One Year Later: IWPS statement on the first anniversary of the death of Rachel Corrie
Israelis and Palestinians are discussing the direct link between the protection of Palestinian refugee rights and the establishment of a lasting peace at a conference in Haifa from 26 to 28 March, marking the 28th anniversary of “Land Day”. The conference brings together Israeli and Palestinian academics, supporters of human and civil rights groups to coordinate their efforts in advancing the rights of Palestinian refugees in general and internally displaced Palestinians in Israel. The three-day meeting will include lectures, debate, films and participants will visit six destroyed Palestinian villages in Israel. Read more about Israelis and Palestinians discuss protection of refugees
As Israel’s construction of the “wall” has renewed debate in the United States on impediments to peace in the region, Washington DC peace activists are organizing a memorial on March 16, 2004 to bring Israel’s Occupation to the forefront of American public consciousness. March 16 will mark one year since the first American peace activist was killed in the Occupation. Hence, event organizers, who represent over 20 national and local organizations, will hold a memorial for Rachel Corrie, as a timely issue in the debate on U.S. policy towards the Middle East. Rachel Corrie was killed on March 16, 2003 when an Israeli soldier ran over her with a US-made Caterpillar D9 bulldozer, as she tried to nonviolently prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home. Read more about D.C. area organizations hold memorial for Rachel Corrie
For the first time, Israeli refuseniks who reject service in a army of occupation will today attend a hearing in the European Parliament at Strasbourg, France - as will the parents of imprisoned refuseniks. The hearing will take place in the European Parliament Building at Strasbourg. The delegation includes Daniel Tsal, Alma Itshaky, Miri Maor, the mother of Adam Maor, one of the five refuseniks court martialed, and Doron Matar, the father of Haggai, another of the court-martialed refuseniks. Read more about Refusniks appear at the European Parliament
Defence for Children International-Palestine Section11 March 2004
On 27 January 2004, over 200 people gathered at the Brunei Gallery on the University of London campus for the launch of “Stolen Youth: The Politics of Israel’s Detention of Palestinian Children,” written by Adam Hanieh, Adah Kay and Catherine Cook. “Stolen Youth” argues that prison in general and the targeting of Palestinian children in particular, are powerful weapons used by Israel in an occupation that is a multifaceted and evolving system of control affecting every single aspect of Palestinian life. Read more about "Stolen Youth" launched in London
Palestine eNews, a service of Canadian Friends of Sabeel, interviewed Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative, during a Canada-wide tour, before carrying his message to the United States next week. Launched in 2002, Palestine National Initiative is a democratic Palestinian opposition movement that calls for a just and durable peace. It distinguishes itself from the current Palestinian Authority on key issues that touch the lives of Palestinians, not just in the Occupied Territories, but around the world. Read more about Hope, out of Ramallah: The rise of the Palestinian alternative
SANFRANCISCO, March 2, 2004 — A coalition of Jewish and Israeli groups- including Jewish Voice for Peace, The Tikkun Community and the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions -has issued the following statement demanding the resignation of Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Ze’ev Boim and Likud Knesset Member Yehiel Hazan in response to racist remarks made last week. As Jews conscious of the history of anti-Semitism and the ideas and rhetoric that have fueled it over the centuries, we deplore the recent racist public statements by Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Ze’ev Boim and Likud Knesset Member Yehiel Hazan and call for their immediate resignations. Read more about Jewish and Israeli groups demand immediate resignation of Israeli officials
