Category: News

Posted on

Human Rights Watch director says Israel booting him to “muzzle dissent”

Human Rights Watch Israel and Palestine Director Omar Shakir. (photo: Human Rights Watch)

The human rights organization has written several reports critical of the military occupation of the Palestinian territories.

By AFP via CBS | May 9, 2018

“Human Rights Watch is a credible human rights organization. Even though we do not agree with all of their assertions or conclusions, given the seriousness of their efforts, we support the importance of the work they do.”
— Mark Toner, US State Department spokesman

Israel has given a Human Rights Watch director two weeks to leave the country, accusing him of promoting a boycott, in a move the rights group said sought to muzzle criticism. The interior ministry said Tuesday it had terminated the residency permit of HRW’s Israel and Palestine director Omar Shakir, a US citizen, over accusations that he supported a boycott of Israel.

“Following the recommendations of the Ministry of Strategic Affairs, containing information that Shakir has been a BDS activist for years supporting the boycott of Israel in an active way, the ministry has decided to terminate (his) residence permit,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Continue reading “Human Rights Watch director says Israel booting him to “muzzle dissent””

Posted on

Why is the US moving its embassy to Jerusalem?

FILE PHOTO: A worker holds a road sign directing to the U.S. embassy, in the area of the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem
A worker holds a road sign directing to the US embassy in Jerusalem, May 7, 2081. (photo: Ronen Zvulun / Reuters)

The United States opens its new embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, a move that has delighted Israel and infuriated Palestinians.

By Stephen Farrell | Farrell | May 7, 2018

In 1947 the UN recognized that Jerusalem had special status and proposed international rule for the city, along with nearby Bethlehem, as a “corpus separatum” to be administered by the United Nations. That never happened.

On Monday, road signs directing traffic there went up around the neighborhood where the US Embassy will be situated, and next week’s opening ceremony is timed to coincide with Israel’s 70th anniversary. The initiative was driven by President Donald Trump, after he broke last year with decades of US policy by recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Trump said his administration has a peace proposal in the works, and recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of America’s closest ally had “taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table.”

Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, celebrated Trump’s decision, but the move upset the Arab world and Western allies. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called it a “slap in the face” and said Washington could no longer be regarded as an honest broker in any peace talks with Israel.

Continue reading “Why is the US moving its embassy to Jerusalem?”

Posted on

Netanyahu serves Japan’s Abe dessert in a shoe

Celebrity Israeli chef Segev Moshe leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth with his culinary creativity run amok.

By Ruth Eglash | The Washington Post | May 7, 2018

“There’s no culture in the world in which you put shoes on the table. What was the distinguished chef thinking? If it was humor, we don’t think it is funny; we were offended on behalf of our prime minister.”
— Anonymous Japanese diplomat

There aren’t that many cultures where putting a shoe on the dining room table is acceptable behavior, but for the Japanese there is clear etiquette against allowing outdoor shoes inside.

That might explain the furor following a visit by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife, Akie Abe, to Israel last week.

After a day of high-level meetings on May 2, the Japanese leader was treated to a festive meal at the official residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara Netanyahu. It was their second time in Israel, and the visiting couple were served a top-notch meal by celebrity Israeli chef Segev Moshe.

But then came dessert. A selection of delectable chocolate pralines — artistically arranged inside a shiny leather shoe.

Continue reading “Netanyahu serves Japan’s Abe dessert in a shoe”

Posted on

Israel reportedly testing new weapons in Gaza — “exploding” bullets

An example of an “exploding” bullet that expands on impact, creating a massive exit wound. (photo: Black Butterfly Ammunition / Clark Armory)

Demonstrators suffer wounds of “unusual severity” as Israeli forces introduce deadlier weapons in Gaza protests.

By Mersiha Gadzo | Al Jazeera | May 3, 2018

“Normally, a regular bullet breaks the leg [upon impact]. But these bullets create massive wounds, indicating that an explosion happened inside the body. It’s an expanding bullet. It pulverizes the leg, and the leg gets cut off [as a result].”
— Ashraf al-Qedra, Gaza Health Ministry spokesman

“Half of the more than 500 patients we have admitted in our clinics have injuries where the bullet has literally destroyed tissue after having pulverized the bone.”
— Marie-Elisabeth Ingres, Head of Mission of MSF in Palestine

When he was hit by a bullet fired by Israeli forces during demonstrations in Gaza on April 6, Mohammed al-Zaieem lost so much blood, and his left leg was so deformed, he feared he wouldn’t survive. His arteries, veins and a large piece of bone were destroyed. His right leg wasn’t spared either as the round created a massive exit wound and then hit it as well.

By the time he was transferred to Istishari Arab Hospital in Ramallah after undergoing seven surgeries in Gaza, there was nothing doctors could do to save his left leg. It had to be amputated, unbeknown to al-Zaieem, 22, who was unconscious at the time.

“No one dared to tell him [when he woke up from the surgery]. I couldn’t,” said his cousin of the same name, who lives in the occupied West Bank.

Continue reading “Israel reportedly testing new weapons in Gaza — “exploding” bullets”

Posted on

As Israel turns 70, young American Jews turn away

A member of Jewish Voice for Peace wears “another Jew supporting divestment” shirt. (photo: Jewish Voice for Peace)

For many, the problem with Israel is not just its prime minister, its policies, or its occupation of the West Bank — it is also its identity as a Jewish state.

By Dov Waxman | Mint Press News | May 4, 2018

If, in their eyes, a Jewish state is discriminatory and no longer really necessary, then many younger American Jews struggle with supporting it. They feel ambivalent about Israel, if not altogether alienated from it. This is particularly true for the children of interfaith marriages — now almost half the population of young American Jews — whose Jewish identities tend to be less ethnic and more cultural.

Natalie Portman, the Oscar-winning actress, recently kicked off a massive storm of controversy when she pulled out of a prestigious award ceremony in Israel because, she said, she “did not want to appear as endorsing Benjamin Netanyahu.”

The response to Portman’s refusal to appear alongside Israel’s prime minister was intense. She was denounced by right-wing Israeli politicians. One labeled Portman’s decision as borderline anti-Semitic. Another suggested that her Israeli citizenship should be stripped. Born in Israel, Portman is a dual American-Israeli citizen.

The reaction within the American Jewish community was more divided. Some assailed her for being disloyal, deluded, or, at best, misguided. Others hailed her as a hero for publicly voicing her opposition to Netanyahu and his government’s hard-line policies.

Continue reading “As Israel turns 70, young American Jews turn away”

Posted on

The end of Palestinian “exclusivity”

Students for Justice in Palestine and the African Students’ Association at John Jay College in collaboration with Students for Justice in Palestine at Hunter and City Colleges and CUNY RSCC hold a Die-In/Vigil to protest injustice against people of color. (photo: John Jay / SJP)

Israel has been distancing itself from democracy, a credit to the awareness brought about by BDS, which is asking for nothing more “radical” than human rights.

By Nadia Elia | Mondoweiss | Apr 30, 2018

It is worthwhile to recall the objectives of BDS, so as to grasp how basic they are:

  1. Equal rights for all citizens, something Israel does not currently grant;
  2. Ending the occupation, and dismantling the wall, both of which are illegal according to international law;
  3. Granting Palestinian refugees the Right of Return, guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

If BDS is indeed a “threat” to Israel, if it “delegitimizes” it in in any way, it is because Israel is in violation of international law. Justice is only a threat to injustice.

When a majority of Palestinian civil society organizations picked BDS as the strategy for their liberation struggle, modeling it upon the South African anti-apartheid struggle, they were sending a clear message to the world that our circumstances are not unique, they are comparable to those experienced by the indigenous black Africans under the official segregation rules of the white South African government. Apartheid is officially designated a “crime against humanity,” and the comparison with apartheid, indeed the mere use of that term to describe the country that had long claimed to be a democracy, set into motion a series of seismic shocks that forever changed the discourse around Israel.

Many Palestinians and their allies had long maintained that the Palestine predicament was absolutely unique. Some will still passionately argue that no other people has suffered so long, been so vilified, so dispossessed, so misrepresented. And even though nobody truly wins at Oppression Olympics, they would claim first prize.

Continue reading “The end of Palestinian “exclusivity””

Posted on

Despite outrage, Jerusalem museum vows to keep censoring evolution exhibit

An exhibit on evolution at the Natural History Museum in Jerusalem, blocked from view with a pink sheet, in April 2018. (photo: Michael Bachner / Times of Israel)

Natural History Museum justifies covering up displays during visits by ultra-Orthodox groups, as many in Israel and abroad slam institution as betraying science.

By Michael Bachner | The Times of Israel | May 2, 2018

“Science and knowledge are not a joke. The museum should decide whether it is a scientific museum presenting the truth or an institution with self-censorship that seeks to tell its visitors half-truths and complete lies.”
— Uri Keidar, Executive Director of Be Free Israel, a non-profit which promotes religious pluralism

The Natural History Museum in Jerusalem has vowed to continue its policy of hiding an evolution exhibit from view, along with other displays on dinosaurs and the human body, during visits by ultra-Orthodox groups in order to avoid offending their religious beliefs. The announcement came despite an outrage caused in Israel and abroad by its decision to self-censor displays on evolution, dinosaurs and the human body.

“Of course,” the museum’s educational director, Dr. Evgeny Reznitsky, told The Times of Israel on Tuesday when asked whether he will carry on with the practice, citing the institution’s dire financial situation and saying it was better to have ultra-Orthodox schoolkids visit on their terms than have them not come at all.

As people protested outside the building with a megaphone and demanded that the museum reject the demands set by Haredi schools, Reznitsky said he would only reconsider his position if ordered to stop by municipal authorities.

Continue reading “Despite outrage, Jerusalem museum vows to keep censoring evolution exhibit”

Posted on

Christians in Jerusalem’s Old City “under threat” from settlers

3500
The Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophilos III, speaks in front of the closed doors of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem’s Old City. (photo: Amir Cohen / Reuters)

Church leaders claim priests are being verbally abused and spat at while property is being vandalized in ancient walled city.

By Harriet Sherwood | The Guardian | May 1, 2018

“Today the church faces a most severe threat at the hands of certain settler groups. The settlers are persistent in their attempts to erode the presence of the Christian community in Jerusalem. These radical settler groups are highly organized. Over the last years we have witnessed the desecration and vandalism of an unprecedented number of churches and holy sites and receive growing numbers of reports from priests and local worshippers who have been assaulted and attacked. Where the authorities are concerned, this behavior goes largely unchecked and unpunished.”
— Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem

Christians in Jerusalem’s Old City say their presence at the geographical heart of their faith is under threat from intimidation and aggressive property acquisition by hardline Jewish settlers.

According to church leaders, priests are being verbally abused and spat at, and property vandalized.

Tensions have risen this year in the Christian and Armenian quarters of the one square kilometer ancient walled city, which includes the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the holiest place in Christianity where Jesus was believed to be crucified and resurrected. The Old City is also home to places of critical religious importance to Jews and Muslims.

Continue reading “Christians in Jerusalem’s Old City “under threat” from settlers”

Posted on

Philadelphia Orchestra support threatened over planned Israel tour

Activists in downtown Philadelphia protesting the Philadelphia Orchestra’s upcoming Israel tour. (photo: Adalah-NY / Twitter)

Opposition to the tour has spawned the “Philly, Don’t Orchestrate Apartheid” campaign, whose protests are now in their fifth week.

By Susan Landau | Mondoweiss | May 1, 2018

“We are longtime subscribers and donors to The Philadelphia Orchestra. We are human rights advocates, and we support a just peace in Israel-Palestine. We urge the Philadelphia Orchestra to cancel their tour in Israel, scheduled for June 2018, and to refuse to entertain Israeli apartheid. We strongly oppose this trip, knowing it is used to mask egregious Israeli policies of occupation, apartheid, and the dispossession of the Palestinian people.”
— Letter to the Philadelphia Orchestra from supporters and patrons

The Philadelphia Orchestra’s announcement of a Israel trip in June 2018 sparked a tsunami of letters and protests by human rights advocates demanding the cancellation of the trip. Touted as a cultural mission, the trip was immediately clear as a “Brand Israel” propaganda tour — celebrating Israel’s 70th anniversary, while whitewashing the Israel’s expulsion of over 750,000 Palestinians from their homes between 1947 and 1949.

Culture is inseparable from politics. Artists performing in Israel obscure the reality of the lived Palestinian experience of occupation and apartheid. The itinerary, prominently featuring the orchestra’s name and logo, lists visits to notables responsible for the implementation of Israeli policies which violate Palestinian human rights on a daily basis. For example, the Orchestra will have a “VIP visit” to an Israeli army base, plus a June 4 performance with Israeli army musicians. The orchestra also feted the tour at a gala event, led by Israeli Consul Dani Dayan, a longtime leader of Israel’s right-wing settlement movement.

Continue reading “Philadelphia Orchestra support threatened over planned Israel tour”

Posted on

Columbia University law professor denied entry into Israel

katherine_franke_courtesy_co
Katherine Franke,  Sulzbacher Professor of Law, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Columbia University. (photo: Columbia Law School)

Professor Franke and another human rights worker were detained and interrogated for 14 hours before being deported.

By Press Release | Center for Constitutional Rights | May 1, 2018

“My interrogation in Tel Aviv made it clear that I was banned from entering Israel because of my work in the U.S. on behalf of Palestinian rights. No government is immune from criticism for its human rights record. The abusive treatment Vince Warren and I received at Ben Gurion airport ironically illustrates how the state of Israel refuses to respect the political and civil rights of its own citizens, of Palestinians, and of human rights defenders globally.”
— Professor Franke

Vincent Warren, executive director of the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), and Katherine Franke, chair of CCR’s board and Sulzbacher Professor of Law, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Columbia University, were detained Sunday, April 29, for 14 hours and interrogated at Ben Gurion International Airport, then denied entry into Israel and deported, arriving back in New York early Monday morning. Warren and Franke were questioned about their political association with human rights groups that have been critical of Israel’s human rights record.

“The Israeli government denied us entry, apparently because it feared letting in people who might challenge its policies. This is something that we should neither accept nor condone from a country that calls itself a democracy,” Warren said. “Our trip sought to explore the intersection of Black and Brown people’s experiences in the U.S. with the situation of Palestinians, and Israel could not have made that connection clearer.”

Continue reading “Columbia University law professor denied entry into Israel”