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Dear friends: Gaza is in darkness

Cherifa Sirry Cairo 12 July 2006


Its nearly 4 a.m. here and I decided to go back to my computer to communicate to my friends around the world what every single mainstream media channel, whether American, European or Arab, is failing to in regards to what is happening right now in Gaza, Palestine. I have been in front of the television for the past few hours, monitoring the news and I was shocked to see nothing on Gaza except for on two local Arab channels and one Arab satellite channel. Even Al-Jazeera, to my utter shock, didn’t so much as mention Gaza in its last two news broadcasts! 

Israel's latest bureaucratic obscenity

Jonathan Cook 12 July 2006


The same malign intent by Israel towards the Palestinians is stamped through its history like the lettering in a children’s stick of seaside rock. But despite the consistent aim of Israeli policy, generation after generation of Western politicians, diplomats and journalists has shown a repeated inability to grasp what is happening before its very eyes. The Palestinian historian Rashid Khalidi once noted that the first goal of Israel’s founders as they prepared to establish their Jewish state on a large swath of the Palestinian homeland in 1948 was to empty Palestine’s urban heartlands of their educated elites. 

IOF Bomb a House in Gaza City, Killing Two Parents and Their 7 Children; 34 Civilians Injured

12 July 2006


Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have committed a new war crime against Palestinian civilians, flagrantly breaching the Fourth Geneva Convention. IOF fighter jets dropped two bombs at a two-storey house in a crowded neighborhood in the town of Jabalia. The house belonged to a Hamas leader. The house owner was killed, and so were his wife and seven of their children. The house was completely destroyed. In addition, 34 civilians were injured, including five children and six women. Extensive damage was inflicted on 15 houses surrounding the targeted house. 

Six human rights groups to Israeli High Court: Stop the harm to the civilian population in Gaza

12 July 2006


On July 11, 2006, six human rights groups petitioned the Israeli High Court demanding that the crossings in Gaza be opened to allow for the steady and regular supply of fuel, food, medicine, and equipment, including spare parts needed to operate generators. The groups also asked for an urgent hearing in order to prevent serious harm to the health of the civilian population, especially patients in hospital, and to prevent the breakdown of the water and sewage system in Gaza. 

Response to petition to Israeli high court: 48 hours for Rafah crisis solution

12 July 2006


The Israeli High Court decided in a session held 10 July 2006 to give the State of Israel a deadline of 48 hours to come up with a mechanism to allow patients, in the least, who are stuck on the Egyptian side of the Rafah International Crossing Point, to return to their homes in the Gaza Strip. The Court decision came in reply to a petition filed by Physicians for Human Rights-Israel, Gaza Community Mental Health Programme, Mezan Centre for Human Rights, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights on 7 July 2006. 

Action not words are needed to change Israel's behaviour

Adri Nieuwhof and Jeff Handmaker 11 July 2006


The capture of a French-Israeli gunner on a tank during military operations on Palestinian territory triggered an extreme and illegal response from the Israeli government. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza are paying an unacceptably high price as a consequence of Israel’s ongoing attacks and border closures. Israel’s performance shows a total disregard for the rules of international humanitarian law. They have lost sight of the human value and dignity of the Palestinian people. If Europe recognises that the lives of Palestinians are as valuable as the life of the French-Israeli soldier, it should act immediately to stop the tragedy that is unfolding. 

Two Weeks, and Counting

Yumi Terahata Rafah, Gaza Strip 11 July 2006


Heavy artillery shelling along the border. Tank gunfire. Scenes of fierce clashes between the IDF and Palestinian fighters. Friends watching the daily news reports on Gaza call my cell phone during the day, expecting me to be staying at home, and are surprised when I tell them it’s business as usual, I’m in the middle of today’s program with the kids (Haneen! Get your butt back in your seat!) and could they please call back in a couple of hours? You can only put life on hold for so long. After the first two days of the Israeli incursion, we all got tired of just waiting around with our ears stuck to the radio, listening to minute-by-minute reports yo-yoing between imminent truce and a full-blown invasion. 

Photo of the Day: Entry Denied

Najeeb Al-Anbarri 11 July 2006


Photo of the Day is a BNN feature which offers a photograph on a day, and calls it “Photo of the Day”. This is not to imply that this is a regular feature, nor that this photo is truly the mother of all photos for the day in question. Usual disclaimers apply. In this day’s photo, we hit on the theme of Israel’s recent announcements to ban foreign passport holders from entering the West Bank and Gaza Strip. If it’s not one thing, with these folks, it’s another. 

Reem Kelani: Telling the Palestinian narrative through song

Susannah Tarbush 11 July 2006


The debut CD of Palestinian singer Reem Kelani - “Sprinting Gazelle: Palestinian Songs from the Motherland and the Diaspora” - is a major contribution from this remarkable singer, musical researcher and broadcaster towards reviving and spreading Palestinian culture. In the weeks since “Sprinting Gazelle” was released in the UK it has been acclaimed by critics and journalists, and has received excellent reviews in nearly every serious British newspaper. Critics have praised the quality, range and emotional depth of Kelani’s voice. 

Palestinian injuries suggest Israel is using chemical weapons in Gaza

11 July 2006


The Palestinian ministry of health revealed on Monday that the Israeli army has used a new type of explosive in its offensive on the Gaza Strip. These explosives contain toxics and radioactive materials which burn and tear the victim’s body from the inside and leave long term deformations. The ministry called upon the international community and the humanitarian organizations to send an international medical community to examine the victims and confirm the truth about these banned weapons that Israel appears to be using.