Israel cutting Palestinian water!
Israel is denying Palestinians access to clean, safe water while allowing unlimited supplies to Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank!
Swimming pools, well-watered lawns and large irrigated farms in Israeli settlements… stand in contrast next to Palestinian villages whose inhabitants struggle even to meet their domestic water needs
between 180,000 and 200,000 Palestinians in West Bank rural communities have no access to running water
Israel’s daily water consumption per capita is four times higher than the 20 liters per capita consumed in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (by Palestinians)
Israel, controls much of the West Bank’s supplies, and uses more than 80% of water drawn!
Israel’s war on Gaza early this year left water reservoirs, wells, sewage networks and pumping stations severely damaged.
The water situation in Gaza had now reached a “crisis point,” with 90 to 95 percent of the water supply contaminated and unfit for human consumption.
Palestinians suffer severely of water shortage
Since hundreds of years, and till some years ago, all these lands, and water resources, were totally Palestinian, but everything was taken from them through unfair wars and massacres over the years…
~Source: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/10/20091026132714361238.html
Peanuts vs. Hamas missiles?
An american saw an ad on tv. describing Israeli’s suffering from Hamas missiles. He was outraged and called the foundation that made the ad, check out what happened?
How to “Make” a Zebra?!
Mohammed Al Bargouthi, A zoo owner in Gaza, came up with a way to add a new specie of animals to his zoo, Farah Land zoo in Gaza, without needing any animals!
The Zebra, is the animal he wants to add to his zoo. Instead of importing them at a cost of 40,000$ and moving them to Gaza through Gaza tunnels, he decided to make them. He got two donkeys, painted them with white painting, and then drew black stripes on them, and that’s it. A great looking Zebra’s ready for children amusement:)
This is a real Zebra
This is Farah Land’s Zebra, the only of it’s kind in the world:)
Mohammed Al Bargouthi said that the transformation operation didn’t succeed from the first time, and they had to repeat it again.
He also said that Farah Land zoo used to own Zebras among their animal groups. But All the Zebras died. They were among the victims that were killed during the recent Israeli attack on Gaza strip.
The Phony Zebra
Children riding the phony Zebras
Under Israeli siege on Gaza strip, Gaza children were deprived from many of happy things normal children enjoy. Even if these animals look fake, but they succeeded to enter the joy to the heart of children, and to draw a smile on their faces.
This is a new form of resistance, and copyrights are reserved to Gaza.
Israel holding hundreds of Palestinians illegally
Her brother is one of hundreds being detained by Israeli authorities without charge...
Israel is violating international law by detaining hundreds of Palestinians, some of them for years without charge or trial.
Israel holds hundreds of Palestinians in prolonged detention based on undisclosed suspicions, without informing them what these suspicions are, without giving them an opportunity to defend themselves, and without notifying them when they will be released
The prisoners find it “impossible” to challenge their detention because the evidence against them is often kept secret by the Israeli judges who review the cases!
Source: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/10/20091014135748382585.html
UK activists push for Barak arrest
Ehud Barak - Israel's defence minister
A group of Palestinian families is seeking the arrest of Ehud Barak, Israel’s defence minister, during his two-day trip to Britain.
Lawyers acting for 16 Palestinians, who accuse Barak of war crimes for atrocities committed during the Gaza war, sought on Tuesday to have their case heard at a magistrates court in central London.
The families have accused Barak of committing war crimes including the assassination of a senior Palestinian minister and unlawful killing of civilians during the Gaza war at the beginning of this year.
More than 1,400 Palestinians, at least one-third of them women and children, were killed in Israel’s December-January offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Happened Before !
In 2005, human rights groups criticised the British authorities for failing to arrest Doron Almog, an Israeli army general for whom an arrest warrant for alleged war crimes had been issued, when his aircraft landed in London.
Almog stayed on the aeroplane at Heathrow airport after apparently being informed that he could face arrest. He was allowed to return to Israel !
~refrence: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/09/2009929154053730432.html
Palestine’s storyteller
 Naji al-Ali |
 Handala |
On August 29, 1987, Naji al-Ali, one of the Arab World’s most renowned political cartoonists, was shot dead in London by unknown assailants. The murder case has never been solved.
Al-Ali, who was born in Palestine in 1938 and became a refugee when Israel was created 10 years later, is perhaps best remembered for his iconic cartoon character of Handala, a ten year-old shoe-less urchin who bears witness to the grim realities of a region torn by war, corruption, inequality and cynicism.
Here you can see a full interview with his son…
And here you can see a gallery of his cartoons…
We All Live in America – 2/5
In the previous post of this series, I said that the US is like a lion, which rules a big jungle, this lion has to protect his throne from other lions’ greed.
The US started lately two wars, one in Afghanistan as a reaction for the September 11 attacks. Another in Iraq, which was meant to free the Iraqi people from the rule of America’s enemy Saddam Hussein (knowing that Iraqi people didn’t ask for it).
The question I asked last post was: what would the US directly benefit from fighting in Mideast, and What is the relation between the US and Palestine?
-
But, to answer this question we need to know what is Mideast?
It’s a big area which is inhabited by 400+ million persons, 95% of them are Muslims, and most of them are Arabs.
It contains the Arab/Persian Gulf, which is the biggest source of Oil (black gold) around the world.
It contains Mecca, the holy land of Islam.
It contains Egypt, the strongest Arabic army (which Israel fought for many times, till they reached a peace treaty)
It contains many calls for unification, which means a new lion to be created!
Mideast is an area of millions who share the same: religion, language, ethnicity, politics, financial state, etc…
That’s because since 1300 years ago and till the 19 century, these countries were united in one big empire (Islamic Empire) but, one by one, they were separated, as England, France, and other European countries converted parts of this big empire into territories, which later became independent countries.
European Colonization in 1945
Globalization, which is a big American-supported idea, isn’t accepted by most of the Muslims around the world (especially in Mideast), that’s because they think differently than Americans do, they don’t like Secularism, or some of the unfair (as seen by Muslims) freedoms of the western world.
Muslims and Arabs people refuse the way US thinks and acts, also the US refuses the way they think.
This means that if the Arab world is united, a very big threat would appear to the US and its allies (a powerful lion with different ideas, which means a second cold war, or worst)…
So it’s very important for the US to be sure, that Mideast is united if and only if Muslims accept the US way of thinking and living…
-
The question now: what does the US benefit directly from supporting Israel in the Arab-Israeli conflict, and why would it be pro-Israeli even if it knows it’s the bad one?
That’s what we answer next post isA.
-
Older posts:
We All Live in America – 1/5
Quarter of a million on the 3rd friday of Ramadan in Alqsa
On the third Friday of the holy month, Ramadan, the ninth month of lunar year and the month of fasting to Muslims, Many palestinians from all over Palestine went to Alqsa mosque in Jerusalem to attend friday prayer and speech. The number of Palestinians is said to be nearly quarter of a million, and this is a small number because many Palestinians can’t get to the mosque because of Isreali barriers.
Al Aqsa mosque, one of three mosques around the world Muslims are urged to visit and pray in. It is in the blessed Jerusalem, and under control of Israeli state.
It was built 2000 years b.c. and is the second mosque built in the world for worshipping Allah. Nowadays, it is attacked by extremist Jewish groups, who are tolerated by the Israeli government. They consistantly digg tunnels underneath the mosque which affects its foundations. Many Islamic figures in Jerualem warned that the continual of these excavations might lead to the collapse of Al Aqsa mosque, which is the goal of extremist Jewish groups and Israeli authoroties.
Now leaving you with photos of quarter a million Palestinian praying in Alqsa mosque, enjoy =)
These two images show “Qubbat Al Sakhra” or in english “The Dome of the rock” mosque. It was built in Alqsa mosque yard.
A part of Al Aqsa Mosque
However, many Muslims around the world wish to visit AlAqsa mosque to pray. Al Aqsa mosque is under Israeli occupation that makes it hard for Palestinians in Palestine to pray in the mosque, and impossible for Muslims out of Palestine. Muslims put this in their wishlist and ask Allah to grant them this great chance to visit the mosque and make worship.
A cartoon about Gaza tunnels
This cartoon shows Gaza tunnels, the only open source Palestinians living in Gaza can get food and medicine through. Gaza has only two borders, one is Rafah with Egypt and the other is to Israel. They are both closed because of Israeli siege to Gaza. So, Palestinians go to digging tunnels to move secretly to Egypt to buy goods they need for living. Gaza tunnels link Gaza to egypt, and egyptian authorities under Israeli pressure tracks these tunnels and try to block it.
The cartoon is made by Umayyah Juha, a famous cartoonist whose husband was murdered by Israeli’s and is working hard to raise her children in Palestine.
Tunnels.. The life-vessel of Gaza
Song: Palestine Will be Free
This great song for the wonderful Artist Maher Zain. Wonderful cartoon and song. Check it out!
Very Sad American cartoon
This cartoon was nominated to be the number-1 American cartoon considering the Palestinian strugle against Israel.
The youngest spokesman in the world
Ahmad from Gaza, an 8 year-old boy, he was asked by a reporter during Israeli 2008 Brutal Attack on Gaza. The repoter asked him: What would you say to the UN official during his visit to Gaza? See his answer, on behalf of the people of Gaza.
Happy Ramadan
Ramadan.. The ninth month of the lunar year, is the month when all Muslims around the world enjoy one of the greatest pillars of Islam, Fasting.
For many families, they enjoy the gathering around the dining table for “Iftar”, the time when they break their fasting. But for Palestinians, this gathering brings up their pains, as many of them have prisoners in Israeli jails. Israel has 11,000 Palestinians in their jails. Also, many Palestinians in Gaza are experiencing for the first time to have this meal without their loved ones, especially after 2008 Israeli war on Gaza, known as Gaza Massacre.
Dalal, the only member left from her family (mom, dad, 2 brothers, and a sister) after the recent Israeli Attack on Gaza.
A girl lefting a photo of her captive father.
A gathering of Palestinian women to call for freedom of their loved ones in Israeli jail.
It is a ritual for Muslisms to break their fasting with dates. However, many Palestinians break their fasting with water, as dates aren’t availabe in Gaza or with high prices in other Palestinian territories.
Dates, the first thing a Muslim eats to break his fasting.
In Ramadan, Muslims have an additional prayer called “Tarawih” which they hold in their mosques. However, people in Gaza pray over ruins or in streets, as the recent Israeli Attack on Gaza ruined about 100 mosques in Gaza.
A man holding the Holy Quran torn from a mosque ruined by Israeli army.
People in Gaza, praying outdoors after losing many of Gaza’s mosques in the Israeli 2008 Attck on Gaza.
And people from Palestine wish the Islamic Nation a Happy Ramadan, and ask them to pray for their sake.
Israel: ‘White Flag’ Shootings of Gaza Civilians
During Israel’s recent Gaza offensive, Israeli soldiers unlawfully shot and killed 11 Palestinian civilians, including five women and four children, who were in groups waving white flags to convey their civilian status.
Human Rights Watch said in a report released today: The Israeli military should conduct thorough, credible investigations into these deaths to tackle the prevailing culture of impunity, Human Rights Watch said.
The 11 civilians killed and at least eight wounded comprise a small fraction of the more than 1,100 Palestinian civilians and combatants killed during what Israel called Operation Cast Lead in December 2008 and January 2009. However, these deaths stand out because the civilians were in groups waving a white cloth, T-shirt, or scarf, and no Palestinian fighters were in the area at the time, Human Rights Watch said..
In one case documented in the report, on January 7 in eastern Jabalya, two women and three children from the family of Khalid ‘Abd Rabbo were standing in front of their home after an Israeli soldier ordered them outside – at least three of them holding pieces of white cloth – when a soldier near a tank opened fire, killing two girls, ages 2 and 7, and wounding the third girl and their grandmother.
“We spent seven to nine minutes waving the flags, and our faces were looking at them [the soldiers],” said the grandmother, who was shot twice. “And suddenly they opened fire and the girls fell to the ground.
In each of the incidents, the evidence strongly indicates that, at the least, Israeli soldiers failed to take all feasible precautions to distinguish between civilians and combatants before opening fire, as required by the laws of war. At worst, the soldiers deliberately shot at persons known to be civilians.
~source: Human Rights Watch http://www.hrw.org/node/85113
United States and the UN condemn Israel
| Outrage at East Jerusalem evictions | |||
The United States and the UN have condemned Israel’s forcible eviction of two Palestinian families from their homes in East Jerusalem. Washington sent a letter to the Israeli foreign ministry in Jerusalem, stressing the move went against the country’s obligations under the so-called ”road map” to resolve the Israel-Palestinian conflict. US diplomats said a high-level protest will be communicated to Israel later on Monday. Speaking after the al-Ghawi and al-Hanoun families were evicted on Sunday, Robert Serry, the United Nations special co-ordinator for the Middle East peace process, said: “I deplore today’s totally unacceptable actions by Israel. “These actions are contrary to the provisions of the Geneva Conventions related to occupied territory. |
“These actions are contrary to the provisions of the Geneva Conventions related to occupied territory.
“These actions heighten tensions and undermine international efforts to create conditions for fruitful negotiations to achieve peace.”
The homes from where the Palestinians were evicted would reportedly give way to a hotel project believed to have been sanctioned by Israel.
In 1982, Israeli settler organisations began demanding rent from the Palestinian families of Sheikh Jarrah, who at that point had been living in the neighbourhood for almost 30 years – and when many of the families refused to pay this rent, the first eviction orders were issued.
The legal proceedings continued over the years, and in 2006 it was ruled by court that the settler organisations did not have rights to the land, and the Israeli land registration department agreed to revoke the settler associations’ ownership.
Despite pending appeals and the lack of legal ownership of land in the neighbourhood, the settler organisations sold their property claim in 2008 to an investment company.
‘Extremist agenda’
The British consulate which, along with other foreign missions, is located in Sheikh Jarrah where the Palestinian families had been living for more than half a century, said it was “appalled”.
The consulate said in a statement: “The Israelis’ claim that the imposition of extremist Jewish settlers into this ancient Arab neighbourhood is a matter for the courts … is unacceptable.
“These actions are incompatible with the Israeli professed desire for peace.
“We urge Israel not to allow the extremists to set the agenda.”
Saeb Erekat, a senior Palestinian negotiator, said: “Tonight, while these new settlers from abroad will be accommodating themselves and their belongings in these Palestinian houses, 19 newly homeless children will have nowhere to sleep.
“If the Israeli prime minister continues with settlement activities, he will undermine the efforts to revive the peace process.”
‘Civil dispute’
But Yakir Segev, a member of Jerusalem’s municipal council, told Al Jazeera: “These are not actions made by Israel or the Israeli government. This is a matter of the court.
“It is a civil dispute between Palestinian families and those of Israeli settlers, regarding who is the rightful owner of this property … Israeli law is the only law we are obliged to obey.
“This is not part of an Israeli consipiracy … The court decided that the Arab families are not the rightful owners of the property and this is why they had to be evicted.
“Jerusalem is one united city, in the same way that Arabs can purchase houses and land in the west part of Jerusalem, it’s the same for Jews.”
The eviction on Sunday comes amid international calls for Israel to halt settlement activity on occupied Palestinian land.
Muhammad Saeed
arabicgirl
