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Masked men attack Palestinian TV station

2 February 2004


At around 4:00 a.m. on Monday, February 2, three masked Palestinian men carrying automatic rifles stormed the offices of the Ramallah-based Al-Quds Educational Television, according to staff. Assistant Manager Haroun Abu Arrah, one of two station employees present at the time, told CPJ that one of the men demanded a “tape,” and when Abu Arrah asked for clarification the assailants began beating the two staffers with rifle butts and fists. After the beating, two of the assailants went into another room and fired several rounds at some of the station’s equipment, destroying computer screens and video equipment. 

News supplement on rights of refugees reaches 30,000 households

27 January 2004


BADIL’s Arabic-language magazine, Haq Al-Awda (Right of Return), printed and distributed as a supplement to the Ramallah daily paper Al-Ayyam has been distributed to some 30,000 households in the occupied Palestinian Territories. This is the third such supplement prepared by BADIL and distributed via the local press. Begun as a pilot project in 2003, the newspaper supplements have been a success on every level.  Earlier editions have sold out and due to strong demand, additional copies have been reprinted. This issue covers a number of current topics and the conclusions of a visit to South Africa. 

Legality of Israel's Wall to be tested before the International Court of Justice

Shane Darcy 6 February 2004


In December of last year the United Nations General Assembly decided to request an Advisory Opinion from the International Court of Justice on one of the most controversial issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in recent years, Israel’s construction of a “security wall” in the Occupied Territories. The ICJ, often called the World Court, is based at the Peace Palace in The Hague and was established under the Charter of the United Nations, adopted in San Francisco in 1945. A judgement or an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice carries considerable weight. Shane Darcy explains the process and implications. 

What does Sharon's latest settlement move mean for Israel?

Ali Abunimah and Hussein Ibish 6 February 2004


Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s announcement that he plans to remove virtually all Israeli settlers from the occupied Gaza Strip has caused a shock wave in Israel. Has some sudden epiphany convinced Sharon that the settlements are the key obstacle to peace and that Israel’s future is jeopardized by the continued attempt to incorporate occupied Palestinian territories into a greater Israel? EI co-founder Ali Abunimah, and ADC Communications Director Hussein Ibish get to the bottom of the mystery in a Chicago Tribune commentary. 

Why the BBC Ducks the Palestinian Story

Tim Llewellyn 6 February 2004


Watching a peculiarly crass, inaccurate and condescending programme about the endangered historical sites of “Israel” - that is to say, the Israeli-occupied Palestinian Territories - on BBC2 in early June 2003,(1) I determined to try to work out, as a former BBC Middle East correspondent, why the Corporation has in the past two and a half years been failing to report fairly the most central and lasting reason for the troubles of the region: the Palestinians’ struggle for freedom. In this excerpt from a new book from Pluto Press, Tim Llewellyn looks at the BBC’s coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

The US Media and the Wall: Thomas Friedman and 60 Minutes

David Bloom, Patrick O'Connor and Tom Wallace 4 February 2004


The self-imposed US media blackout on the Wall’s construction finally began to lift last August when President Bush mentioned the problems created by Israel’s wall “snaking its way through the West Bank.” Last December, a year and half after bulldozers began cutting the Wall’s path through Palestinian villages, Thomas Friedman hosted a Discovery Channel program in association with The New York Times, and Bob Simon anchored a CBS 60 Minutes segment introducing the controversy surrounding one of the world’s largest construction projects. David Bloom, Patrick Connors, and Tom Wallace examine the two programs. 

Support Academic Freedom in International Studies

4 February 2004


Last year the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3077, the International Studies in Higher Education Act of 2003. The bill provides for government funding for international area studies and foreign language programs, known as Title VI; however, the bill also contains a troubling provision regarding academic freedom. If agreed to by the Senate, this bill would create a 7-person International Studies Advisory Board. This bill is being supported by conservative think tanks like the Hoover Institution and self-appointed campus watchdog groups like Daniel Pipes’ Campus Watch. 

British inquiry into Hurndall shooting to also investigate James Miller's death

4 February 2004


In a rare move Dr Knapman - the Coroner for Westminster, has agreed to transfer the jurisdiction of the inquest into the death of Tom Hurndall in Rafah, Gaza last April, to the jurisdiction of Dr. Reed - the Coroner for Camden. Dr Reed is currently responsible for the inquest into the death of James Miller — another British national who was killed just over a week after Tom in Gaza. The family of Tom Hurndall and of James Miller both welcomed the news yesterday and believe that this represents a major development in their attempts to get at the truth behind the killings. 

International Court refuses to disqualify judge

3 February 2004


By an Order of 30 January 2004 the International Court of Justice decided, by thirteen votes to one, that certain matters brought to the attention of the Court by letters of 31 December 2003 and 15 January 2004 from the Government of Israel, were “not such as to preclude Judge Elaraby from participating in the present case”. In its Order, the Court finds that in the present case the activities of Elaraby were performed in his capacity of a diplomatic representative of his country, most of them many years before the question of the wall, now submitted for advisory opinion, arose. 

Israeli forces kill 4 Palestinians, including a physically handicapped

2 February 2004


On Monday morning, the second day of the Eid, Israeli occupying forces killed 4 Palestinians during a military incursion into Tal al-Sultan neighborhood in the west of Rafah.  Israeli occupying forces claimed the reason for the incursion into the neighborhood was to arrest an allegedly wanted Palestinian.  Two of the victims were brothers, one of whom was physically handicapped and allegedly wanted by Israeli occupying authorities. Three Palestinian civilians were also wounded. PCHR believes that international silence encourages Israel to continue to perputuate war crimes and unlawful conduct.