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Jewish "refugee" lobby seeks to eclipse Palestinian losses

Jonathan Cook 3 December 2008


A broad coalition of Jewish lobby groups has made a series of breakthroughs this year in its campaign to link the question of justice for millions of Palestinian refugees with justice for Jews who left Arab states in the wake of Israel’s establishment 60 years ago. Referring to these Jews as the “forgotten refugees” and claiming that their plight is worse than that of exiled Palestinians, the campaign has scored political successes in recent months in Washington, London and Brussels. Jonathan Cook reports. 

Rights org: Gaza flour stocks sufficent for less than three more days

2 December 2008


On the 27th consecutive day of closure, the Gaza power plant has been forced to shut down due to lack of fuel, and Gazans are now totally dependent on electricity generated from Israel, and to a lesser extent, Egypt. There are also chronic severe shortages of domestic cooking gas. Regarding essential food items, IOF have not permitted any consignments of flour to enter the Gaza Strip for one week, and current stocks are sufficient for just less than three days. 

Power cuts, fuel shortages affect health and water supplies

2 December 2008


WEST BANK/GAZA (IRIN) - Adel Abu Sido, 31, a taxi driver from Gaza City, stands over his two-week old premature baby, Hadil, dreading her air supply may abruptly stop. Hadil’s incubator is not reliably providing enough oxygen due to the inconsistent power supply at al-Shifa Hospital, the main healthcare center in the Gaza Strip. The fuel for hospital generators has nearly run out and a shortage of basic medical supplies has left al-Shifa with only 20 percent of the oxygen supply it needs. 

More transnational companies divest from illegal industrial settlements

Adri Nieuwhof 2 December 2008


The movement in Europe to put pressure on companies that benefit from the occupation is growing. Over the last few months, European, Palestinian and Israeli activists have won significant victories toward the 2005 call by Palestinian civil society for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel. In early October, Barkan Wineries, a subsidiary of Tempo Beer Industry Ltd., decided to divest from an illegal settlement in the Barkan Industrial Park. Adri Nieuwhof reports. 

Will Palestinians hit Hillary's glass ceiling?

Marcy Newman 2 December 2008


It is difficult to recall a US secretary of state who embodied the ideals of the position: the promotion of dialogue and privileging of diplomacy. Unfortunately, US President-elect Barack Obama’s nominee, Hillary Clinton, is not likely to restore these ideals to the office. Clinton has long championed military action against the former Yugoslavia, Iraq and has promised to “obliterate” Iran if the state launched a nuclear strike against Israel. Dr. Marcy Newman comments for The Electronic Intifada. 

Humanitarian appeal focuses on food

1 December 2008


JERUSALEM (IRIN) - Food aid accounts for over two thirds of the 2009 $462 million requested by United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations to fund humanitarian aid programs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Food accounts for $209.4 million; next comes cash assistance ($133.3 million), followed by protection, emergency jobs, water and sanitation. 

Nobel Laureate: There is a way toward peace for Palestine

Mairead Corrigan Maguire 29 November 2008


The following is a speech delivered by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire at the seventh International Sabeel Conference in Jerusalem on 19 November 2008: I am very happy to be here with you and to be invited to speak to you. I am deeply grateful to have the freedom to come here to East Jerusalem and the freedom to speak and meet with you. 

Gaza's death throes, and no one's listening

Sonja Karkar 27 November 2008


The slow death that is being visited on the Palestinians in Gaza is finding its first victims in more than 400 critically ill patients who are being prevented from leaving Gaza for urgent medical attention in Israeli or Arab hospitals. Thousands of other patients are being turned away from hospitals suffering from a severe shortage of 300 different kinds of medicines. Sonja Karkar comments. 

Gazan bakers cope under siege

Rami Almeghari Gaza Strip 26 November 2008


Israel’s 17-month siege, tightened over the past three weeks, has forced Palestinians to find other ways to meet their basic needs. Because Israel has closed border crossings into Gaza, the 1.5 million residents lack many essential supplies including food, medicines, fuel, cooking gas, and now, electricity. Rami Almeghari writes from the Gaza Strip. 

A psychological siege

Safa Joudeh Gaza Strip 3 December 2008


Israel’s siege on Gaza, now in its 19th month, has wreaked havoc on all aspects of life and significant attention has been paid in particular to the economic consequences of border closures and blockade. However, an overlooked epidemic threatens the social and familial ties that bond the 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza. Living under a constant state of crisis in which their livelihoods have been denied, the people of Gaza’s once exemplary resilience and determination are giving way to an unfathomable sea of depression and psychological illnesses. EI contributor Safa Joudeh reports on one Gaza family’s story.