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Obama loses ground in vital campaign rally

Ewen MacAskill 13 March 2007


A week ago they were competing for African-American votes in the Deep South. But late on Monday Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama went head to head for another key demographic group: Jewish voters. In one of the most important campaign stops yet, supporters from the Clinton and Obama camps, as well as other presidential hopefuls, flooded the hallways of the Washington Convention Centre distributing fliers and shouting through loudhailers in their bid to draw people in. Mr Obama made his pitch in room 150, and a few minutes later, in room 152, it was the turn of Mrs Clinton. 

The UN Anti-Racism Committee questions Israel's policy of apartheid

13 March 2007


On 22-23 February 2007, after nearly 10 years of evading its responsibility, Israel finally met with the Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) to discuss its report on the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. A number of Palestinian, Israeli and international NGOs attended, including Adalah, ACRI, Al Haq, Amnesty International, Badil, B’Tselem, Habitat Coalition International, and National Lawyers Guild. Summarized are some of the issues raised by the members of the Committee during their discussion with the Israeli delegation and in their Concluding Observations. 

Palo Dutch Concept Factory returns to Ramallah

Arjan El Fassed 13 March 2007


The Palo-Dutch Concept Factory has a clear core business: generating ideas, for campaigning in the broadest sense. These ideas are born in Ramallah, Palestine. Generating ideas such as “Send a Friend” (connecting schoolkids in Palestine and the Netherlands), “Sell the Wall” (how to create awareness and involvement of mainstream Dutch with the Wall) and “Palovision”, the Palestinian entry for the Eurovision Song Competition in 2008, a mix of humor, irony, implicit politics and smart use of Dutch media, the Palo Dutch Concept Factory organizes its next workshop in Ramallah on May 4, 5 and 6, 2007. For this workshop PDCF is looking for Palestinian creative minds. 

Audio Download: "Palestine" from rapper Patriarch's debut album

13 March 2007


As an Arab-American rap artist living in a post 9-11 world, Patriarch speaks to the masses about the stereotypes, fear and anger towards the Arab world. He flawlessly delivers his message of political activism to relatively untouched US market of over four million Arab-Americans. With a blend of massive beats, politically charged lyrics, and a gift of determination, Son of a Refugee is sure to grab your attention, as well as make you think twice about the world you live in. 

Al Mezan condemns the kidnapping of BBC journalist

13 March 2007


Unknown persons kidnapped the BBC’s correspondent in the Gaza Strip. This incident brings to the fore the issue of the kidnapping of foreigners in Gaza and exerts a negative impact on the freedom of speech and access to information. According to Al Mezan’s field information, at approximately 14.45pm on 12 March 2007, four gunmen in a white Subaru blocked the way of the British journalist Alan Johnston, while he was driving down in Al Wehda Street, and forced him out of his car. No information on his whereabouts has yet been released. 

Olmert's leaked testimony reveals real goal of summer war

Jonathan Cook 13 March 2007


Israel’s supposedly “defensive” assault on Hizbullah last summer, in which more than 1,000 Lebanese civilians were killed in a massive aerial bombardment that ended with Israel littering the country’s south with cluster bombs, was cast in a definitively different light last week by Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert. His leaked testimony to the Winograd Committee — investigating the government’s failures during the month-long attack — suggests that he had been preparing for such a war at least four months before the official casus belli: the capture by Hizbullah of two Israeli soldiers from a border post on 12 July 2006. 

BBC's Alan Johnston second reporter kidnapped in Gaza this year

12 March 2007


Reporters Without Borders voiced concern today after British journalist Alan Johnston, who has been the BBC’s correspondent in Gaza for more than three years, was kidnapped by gunmen near his office this afternoon as he was returning from the Erez Crossing between the Gaza Strip and Israel. “We call for the immediate release of this journalist, who has lived and worked in the Palestinian territories for years,” the press freedom organisation said. “We urge both President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh to react at once to speed up his release. A response from all of us is essential.” 

Water supply is priority issue for the south

12 March 2007


KHIYAM, 12 March 2007 (IRIN) - Water supply to hundreds of thousands of people across southern Lebanon remains the priority development issue, say officials, seven months after Israel’s bombardment of the area severely damaged an already inadequate water and sanitation system. The UN Children’s Agency, UNICEF, is implementing a series of projects across Lebanon to improve water supply, through its Water, Environment, Sanitation and Hygiene (WESH) unit. According to WESH figures, only 56 percent of Lebanese are connected to the mains water supply, which in poorer rural areas sometimes only works one day a week. 

Report: The continued closure of Rafah Crossing Point

12 March 2007


In its continued occupation of Gaza, the Israeli government and armed forces have repeatedly and routinely violated both international humanitarian law and the non-derogable human rights of the 1.4 million residents of Gaza. The almost continued closure of Rafah Crossing Point is one of the most insidious examples of this, and, as one of the biggest disappointments following the ‘disengagement’. Israel has consistently shown that the opening of Rafah Crossing Point relies wholly on its own whims. 

Clashes between Fatah and Hamas renewed in Beit Hanoun

11 March 2007


Violent clashes broke out between Fatah and Hamas in Beit Hanoun before midnight on 10 March 2007. Clashes erupted in the area close to Omar Abdul Aziz Mosque in the town and spread to different neighborhoods at night. The clashes have continued until today, 11 March 2007. The clashes resulted in the killing of 26-year-old Hussein Al Kafarnah, a member of the Executive Force, and the injury of eight others. One of them is in a critical condition.