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Palestinians doubtful of camp improvement initiatives

14 November 2006


BEIRUT - Residents of overcrowded Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon have told IRIN that they were doubtful that a government and United Nations joint Camps Improvement Initiative to improve their living conditions will bring them any benefits. “None of this will happen. No one here helps the Palestinians,” said Ahmed Hassan, an unemployed Palestinian refugee who lives in Chatila camp on the outskirts of Beirut. Hassan is one of more than 400,000 Palestinian refugees officially registered with the UN agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Lebanon. Just over half of the Palestinian refugees live in 12 ‘camps’ - specially set up residential areas that are controlled by Palestinian authorities. 

Photostory: Palestinian Youth at Yasser Arafat's Memorial

Rima Merriman 13 November 2006


National unity was a theme of the commemoration of Yaser Arafat’s death on November 11, 2006. Many people came from various parts of the occupied Palestinian territories for the commemoration, those who were able to get past the checkpoints. Predictably, there were bottlenecks at Huwwara (Nablus) and Qalandiya (Jerusalem). Nevertheless, busloads of school children were ferried in and several scout groups had prepared to march. The main ceremony took place in Al Muqata’a, close to where Arafat is buried. The photographs in this photostory illustrate the commemoration and youth at the site in the days following. 

Photostory: How to Harvest Olives In Palestine

Bill Dienst Qarawat Bani Zeid 13 November 2006


Omar is about 10 years old, and the eldest son of Khaled, the regional coordinator for the Salfit Mobile Health Clinic, which is local outreach primary care health project sponsored by Palestine Medical Relief Society. PMRS is a Non Governmental Organization (NGO) funded by the European Union (EU) to deliver services to rural and other under-served populations in Palestine. In this photostory, Omar presents the story of the olive harvest in his village, Qraawa Beny-Zed, between Ramallah and Salfit in Palestine, and the involvement of his family and the community in the village’s harvest and processing of olives. 

Political change in the United States? As in Israel, just different faces

Agustin Velloso 13 November 2006


When the former Israeli prime minister Sharon, was taken to the hospital almost one year ago, and his successor Olmert invited Peretz to head the ministry of defence, political commentators made money once again with their articles in support of the powerful leaders. They foresaw an almost rosy future for Israel under the auspices of Peretz, “Peace Now” forerunner and notable Labour member who promised increases in social services and advances in negotiations with the Palestinians. None of the comments make the Israeli government less guilty of crimes against humanity and the commentators less accountable for their support of that government. Rumsfeld yesterday left the ministry of defence of a government as genocidal as Israel’s, but as happened with Sharon, this change, or the wider ones brought by elections, is insufficient to achieve justice. 

"Your heads will be on the stones" - Settler and military violence in South Hebron

Joel Gulledge At-Tuwani, Palestine 13 November 2006


“Your heads will be on the stones if you don’t leave this place”, threatened an Israeli settler from illegal outpost Havot Ma’on (Hill 833), to members of Christian Peacemaker Teams in the Palestinian village of At-Tuwani. Captured on video, but ignored by district Israeli police, the threat is part and parcel of daily life for Palestinians - and the reason for the continuous presence of international human rights workers here since 2004. A few days later, during a “routine check”, I witness my neighbor being physically abused by Israeli soldiers. Such abuse often ceases when soldiers become aware that internationals are present, filming their actions. 

Cultural diplomacy

Jessica Robertson Wright 13 November 2006


It never crossed my mind during my undergraduate years in Princeton’s art history department that I would have the job that I do now, and frankly, it is a real conversation killer. I dread Sunday nights the most, when during the meet-and-greet time at the church that my husband and I attend in Washington, D.C., I tell people what I do. My explanation does not quite fit with the usual variations on the theme of “I moved up from the South and am working for Representative/Senator So-and-So.” When the question comes up, I take a deep breath and say, “I work for a Palestinian non-profit organization.” This is usually followed by a head snap from the person asking the question and a narrow-eyed “Hmmm, that’s in-ter-est-ing.” 

New Yorkers Resist the Apartheid Walls from Palestine to Mexico

13 November 2006


On Saturday, November 11th, the Ad-Hoc Coalition for Justice in the Middle East and DRUM (Desis Rising Up & Moving) held a workshop in Manhattan highlighting the parallels between the wall on the US-Mexico border and the Apartheid Wall in Palestine. The workshop was immediately followed by a spirited march through Manhattan with protesters carrying a long black cloth “wall” as they snaked through the crowded New York City streets. Dena Qaddumi of the Ad Hoc Coalition introduced the workshop by noting that the event was being carried out in conjunction with the International Week Against the Apartheid Wall called by Stop the Wall: Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign. 

Lebanese activists: UN past time to disarm Israel

13 November 2006


Following the recent massacre in Beit Hanoun, a group of citizens, united by sense of outrage at the silence of western and Arab governments, will be engaging in a four day hunger strike, outside of the UNIFIL office in Tyre in solidarity with the besieged people of Gaza. Nationalities participating include Lebanese, Palestinian, US, and Irish activists. The participants have worked for the past months in humanitarian and community projects in villages in the South. This symbolic hunger strike will take place from Tuesday 14th November till Friday 18th November 2006. We are choosing to be hungry in solidarity with those who have no choice. As a result of continual economic and military siege the majority of Palestinians now live in extreme poverty. 

UN expert urges Israel to stop destruction in Gaza, calls for military sanctions

13 November 2006


As Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, I condemn in the strongest possible terms the artillery shelling of Palestinian homes by the Israeli defence force in Beit Hanoun that killed 19 innocent civilians and injured 60, including women and children. The explanation by Israeli authorities that this wantonly criminal act was a mistake is unacceptable. The shelling and subsequent killing of civilians indicates a premeditated military tactic constituting a form of collective punishment against the Palestinian people. Since 25 June 2006, the most recent Israeli incursion into the Gaza Strip, I continue to receive alarming reports about deliberate attacks by Israeli forces… 

UNSC fails to adopt draft resolution, owing to US veto

11 November 2006


The Security Council this afternoon failed to adopt a resolution condemning Israeli military operations in Gaza “which have caused loss of civilian life”, as well as Palestinian rocket fire into Israel, while calling for an immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip and a cessation of violence from both parties in the conflict. The draft, which was not adopted owing to the negative vote of the United States, a permanent Member of the Council, would have also requested Secretary-General Kofi Annan to establish a fact-finding mission within 30 days on the 8 November incident in Beit Hanoun, which resulted in the deaths of at least 18 civilians and sparked a day-long Council meeting on Thursday.