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Photostory: Campaigning begins for Palestinian elections

5 January 2006


Palestinian parties launched their election campaign with banners, rallies and parades yesterday amid growing tensions between the Islamic militant group Hamas and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas over his suggestion to postpone the Jan. 25 parliamentary vote. Abbas said for the first time Monday the balloting could be put off if Israel bars Palestinians from voting in Jerusalem. Hamas, which is expected to make a strong showing in its first general election, insisted yesterday the vote take place on schedule. It is unlikely Abbas would postpone the election without Hamas’s consent. 

PA accused of obstructing Palestinian elections

5 January 2006


The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights is deeply concerned over the future of the electoral process in light of threats of resignation by members of the Central Elections Committee (CEC) as a result of continuous interference in their work by the Cabinet and Ministry of Interior. A number of CEC members asked President Mahmoud Abbas to relieve them of their duties. The move came in protest against the Palestinian Cabinet’s decision regarding voting procedures for members of Palestinian security forces. On Wednesday, 4 January 2006, the Palestinian Cabinet issued a decision allowing members of the Palestinian security forces to vote. 

Safe-play havens for Palestinian children living in conflict zones

Sabine Dolan 3 January 2006


Nestled in the golden hills surrounding Nablus in the West Bank, the little town of Till is home to 3,000 people. Like many population centres in this conflict-prone area, children’s access to safe-play and recreational facilities has been virtually non-existent…until recently. Just a few months ago, UNICEF helped create Till’s first-ever safe-play area for children. “For me, there’s a big difference between before the playground was built and after,” says nine-year-old Majdi Ramadan, a 4th grade student who lives in Till with his family. “I used to play in the streets, but we were always interrupted when people walked by. It was dangerous, too, with all the cars; one of my friends got hurt. Now I’m no longer afraid of the cars, I can just play.” 

Three wishes for the New Year

Hasan Abu Nimah 4 January 2006


New Year good wishes have taken on a customary character, which means it can be hard to attach real expectations to them. Yet the new year is a moment to wish and campaign for meaningful change in the way the world is. And despite the breathtaking enormity of human progress, there remains too much to wish for still in terms of ending violence, injustice and poverty. EI contributor Hasan Abu Nimah lays out his three wishes for peace in Palestine and Iraq, and the restoration of the authority of international law, so badly eroded by US unilateralism in the wake of the end of Cold War. 

Al Arabiya journalist barred in latest case of discrimination against Arab media

2 January 2006


Reporters Without Borders has said it shared the outrage of the pan-Arab satellite TV station Al Arabiya, which issued a statement on 27 December 2005 condemning an Israeli decision to ban one of its correspondents, British journalist Bassem El-Jamal, from entering the Palestinian Territories. The ban is the latest in a long series of press freedom violations by the Israeli army against the Arab media. “We call on the Israeli authorities to immediately lift the ban on Bassem El-Jamal, for which there are absolutely no grounds,” Reporters Without Borders said, adding that it was vital for journalists to be able to freely cover the run-up to the Palestinian legislative elections on 25 January 2006. 

Two Palestinians killed in Israeli air attack on Gaza

2 January 2006


On Monday evening, 2 January 2006, Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) extra-judicially executed a member of the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, and a taxi driver. Another member of the al-Quds Brigades was critically injured. Three civilian bystanders were also injured. In the meantime, IOF have continued to shell areas in the Gaza Strip, especially in the north. On Friday, 31 December 2005, two Palestinian civilians were killed by the IOF shelling that targeted Beit Lahia. At approximately 21:15 on Monday, 2 January 2006, an IOF aircraft launched a missile at a taxi that was traveling on the Sea road near the Municipality of Jabalya. On Friday, IOF killed two Palestinian civilians and injured a third one seriously when they were sitting on a field in Beit Lahia. 

Creation of "Death Zone" in northern Gaza Strip is illegal

2 January 2006


In response to the Qassam rockets fired from the northern Gaza Strip at Israeli communities and army bases in Israel , the army announced it was beginning Operation Blue Skies. As part of the operation, the army called on Palestinians living or present in the area to leave by 6:00 P.M. Wednesday. According to media reports, the army intends to open fire at any person who enters the area, regardless of the person’s identity or reason for being there. An order to open fire at any person present in a particular area in the northern Gaza Strip, would constitute a flagrant breach of International Humanitarian Law. Indiscriminate gunfire at every person who enters a particular area is patently illegal, and can lead to the commission of war crimes. 

Routing the Separation Barrier to enable the expansion of Israeli settlements

31 December 2005


In June 2002, the government of Israel approved the first stage of a physical barrier that will separate the West Bank and Israel. The official reason for the decision was the wave of suicide attacks carried out by Palestinians against Israeli citizens in the preceding months. Over the next three years, the government and the Political-Security Cabinet approved additional stages of the barrier, as well as changes in the route in previously approved sections. In accordance with the government’s last decision, in February 2005, the barrier is expected to be 680 kilometers in length. As of November 2005, one-third of the entire barrier has been built, one-third is under construction, and the construction of one-third of the barrier has not begun. 

EU and US disrupt Palestinian elections

Arjan El Fassed 4 January 2006


The word democracy originates from the Greek demokratia: the components of the word being aredemos (the people), kratein (to rule), and the suffix ia. The term means “rule by the people”. In other words, democracy in its ideal sense is the notion that “the people” — in this instance, the Palestinian people - should have control of the government ruling over them. Recent moves by the EU and the US to interfere with and influence the outcome of the upcoming Palestinian elections are counterproductive and an insult to large segments of Palestinian society. Moreover, statements made by the US and EU are inconsistent and tend to promote violations of basic human rights. 

Unidentified armed men target UN club in Gaza

2 January 2006


On Sunday morning, 1 January 2006, unknown armed persons blew up UNRWA Beach Club in Gaza City. The club and a nearby site of the Palestinian Civil Defense were severely damaged. A few hours later, another armed group kidnapped a member of a European Parliament delegation visiting Khan Yunis. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights is concerned that the ultimate goal of such crimes is to convulse the internal security and security to cancel or interrupt the upcoming elections or hold them under unfair conditions. The UN club, which was established in the 1950s, servers UNRWA international and local staff. International staff no longer visited the club at night due to the current security situation.