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Let My People In

Rima Merriman 4 September 2006


An undeclared Israeli policy is currently in effect. The policy denies entry at Israeli borders to nationals of foreign countries, even those seeking to enter for a short period of time, but especially if they live with their Palestinian spouses and families or are Palestinian expatriate nationals or are working in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). Israel is arbitrarily turning away scores of such people on a daily basis at the Israeli unilaterally declared and controlled international border crossings to the oPt, separating families, causing unjustified hardships, and impeding development. 

Staple foods in short supply

4 September 2006


A United Nations aid agency has warned that Israel’s intermittent closure of crossings into Gaza is severely hampering its ability to bring in food. Every two months, UNRWA gives out food to Palestinian refugees living in the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian-administered area bordering Israel and Egypt. Its latest food delivery has been delayed by a lack of access. “Food distribution will not start until we can get our products into Gaza. The 830,000 refugees we feed will not have any food from us,” said John Ging, UNRWA’s Director of Operations in Gaza. UNRWA usually brings food supplies through the Karni Crossing, a cargo terminal on the eastern end. 

Father and son killed and nine homes destroyed in Beit Hanoun

3 September 2006


The IOF killed a Palestinian civilian and his son in cold blood in the town of Beit Hanoun in the predawn hours of Saturday, 2 September 2006. In addition, two of the slain man’s daughters were seriously injured. The raid by IOF undercover units also resulted in the injury of six civilians, including two parents and their three children, and the destruction of nine homes. The casualties and damages were inflicted in an operation aiming to detain two “wanted” activists. PCHR’s preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 02:30 on Saturday, 2 September 2006, an IOF undercover unit moved 2 kilometers inside the Gaza Strip into the town of Beit Hanoun. 

A Brief Introduction to Palestinian Cinema at the Film Society of Lincoln Center

4 September 2006


A number of provocative and insightful Palestinian films made in the last two decades have sought to capture the complexity of Palestinian history, culture and identity, using a wide variety of styles and genres. To celebrate the publication of Dreams of a Nation: On Palestinian Cinema, the first English-language study of this movement, Columbia University Professor Hamid Dabashi, who edited this volume, will introduce the screening of Michel Khleifi’s Wedding in Galilee on Wednesday, September 27 (6 pm), providing a context for this and other groundbreaking works to be included in this brief series. 

Students face challenges as new school year begins in Gaza and the West Bank

Jane O'Brien 4 September 2006


Ongoing violence in the West Bank and Gaza is threatening to disrupt the new school term as more than 1.6 million children prepare to return to classes. The situation is compounded by poverty; teachers haven’t been paid for six months and are threatening to strike while many families can’t afford the cost of fees or uniforms. UNICEF, the Ministry of Education and other partners are launching a Back to School campaign with aid for those most vulnerable. UNICEF’s Dan Rohrmann, says school is a vital lifeline to these children who are living in daily fear and danger – 39 were killed in July alone. 

UN aid chief urges action to stem suffering in Occupied Palestinian Territories

1 September 2006


Painting a grim picture of the current social climate in the Middle East, the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator today urged donors meeting in Stockholm to address the severe suffering of Palestinians living under occupation. Mr. Egeland, reflecting on more than two decades of travel to the region, said he had never felt such a sense of disillusionment, despair and hatred as on his last mission there in July. Calling the situation in Gaza severe, he said a cessation of hostilities and the release of the captured Israeli soldiers were needed. The humanitarian community also needed better access to Gaza, he added. 

Cinema Lebanon in Amsterdam

3 September 2006


With the media saturation of the recent war between Israel and Hizbullah still fresh, and the shaky promise of a brittle ceasefire, Lebanon once again risks to fall prey to stereotyping. In defiance of the war and in solidarity with the humanitarian crisis in Lebanon, De Balie organises an evening of films, documentaries and videos by Lebanese makers, in collaboration with the Lebanese production house and film festivalNe a Beyrouth. The selection of films are testimony to the resistance of Lebanese artists to a historical and cultural amnesia, and show that being rooted in contemporary Lebanon means is as much a commemoration of an untold past, as it is a reflection on and of the present. 

Oxfam calls on world leaders to lift Palestinian aid freeze at Stockholm conference

31 August 2006


International agency Oxfam is calling on donor governments, meeting in Stockholm Friday, to resume international aid to the Palestinian Authority in order to address the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian Territories. Oxfam believes that the Palestinian Authority stands to lose more than $1 billion following the suspension of aid earlier this year and Israel withholding Palestinian tax revenue, according to UN and World Bank estimates. Oxfam says that Palestinians are being pushed into deep poverty as a result. Hundreds of thousands of people have been left without an income. Rubbish is piling in the streets, sewage is overflowing. 

Palestinian Health Ministry in financial crisis, World Health Organization warns

1 September 2006


The Palestinian Health Ministry is facing a growing financial crisis as well as a humanitarian crisis, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned ahead of the Stockholm donor conference on the humanitarian situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The health component of the revised UN humanitarian appeal for the territory is critically underfunded despite growing humanitarian needs, especially in Gaza. The situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip has been deteriorating due to a severe funding crisis and the recent escalation of violence, on top of five years of the Intifada. Israel’s actions have had an extremely negative impact on the health of the Palestinian people. 

UK Headquarters of Israeli Company Blockaded to Gain Ruling on Legality of Trading with Settlements

Mary Nazzal-Batayneh 3 September 2006


Activists arrived at the UK headquarters of Carmel-Agrexco before sunrise on Wednesday morning for a day of uncompromising protest. The purpose underlying the protest was clear: to expose an Israeli company that is engaging in continuous unlawful and brutal activity by importing fresh produce originating from illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The method of protest chosen by the activists was to construct two large metal triangular cages at each entrance. Protestors secured their necks to the cages by using bicycle D-Locks for over 11 hours with several supporters close at hand.