Erased wiped off the map

We will pursue Middle East peace on many fronts, says Hillary Clinton

US secretary of state condemns 'violence and false choices' of extremists

Rory McCarthy in Jerusalem
guardian.co.uk, Monday 2 March 2009 14.17 GMT
Article history

The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton today made her first entry into Middle East diplomacy as the new US secretary of state, promising to pursue peace between Israel and the Arabs on "many fronts" and condemning the "violence and false choices" of extremists.

Clinton spoke at an international donors conference at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, where the Palestinian Authority hoped to raise $2.8bn in aid, part of which will go to the reconstruction of Gaza in the wake of Israel's three-week war.

She was due in Jerusalem for talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders later tonight.

The secretary of state said she would "vigorously" pursue a two-state peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, and her mention of peace on other fronts suggested that the Obama administration could also push for a peace agreement between Israel and Syria.

She said "we take inspiration from" the Arab peace initiative under which Arab states have proposed the diplomatic recognition of Israel in return for the creation of a Palestinian state with a capital in east Jerusalem and an agreed solution to the fate of Palestinian refugees.

Clinton said the US would pledge $900m to the Palestinians, subject to approval by congress, but warned that the money would not be allowed into the wrong hands.

Although she did not mention Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement that won elections three years ago and then seized control of Gaza, by name, she spoke forcefully against extremism and condemned the continuing firing of rockets into southern Israel.

"We have worked with the Palestinian Authority to install safeguards that will ensure our funding is only used where and for whom it is intended and does not end up in the wrong hands," she added.

"It is time to break the cycle of rejection and resistance, to cut the strings pulled by those who exploit the suffering of innocent people."

Although it seems likely that the Palestinians will secure their funding, it is still unclear how much reconstruction can take place in Gaza while Israel continues its blockade, which prevents the import of materials such as concrete, glass and metal.

Clinton made no reference to the closures or the issue of Jewish settlement growth in the occupied West Bank – a prime concern for the Palestinians.

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, said the situation at the Gaza crossings was "intolerable" and called for them to be opened.

He also said it was essential that illegal weapons did not enter Gaza.

Clinton held meetings with several Arab foreign ministers and was due to meet the Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, and the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, before flying to Israel.

Tomorrow, she will hold talks with Israeli leaders, including the foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, and Binyamin Netanyahu, the rightwing Likud leader who has been tasked with forming the next government.

On Wednesday, she will travel to Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, to meet the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas.

In a sign of the future difficulties she faces, the Israeli group Peace Now issued a report today which said the Israeli housing ministry was planning to build at least 73,000 housing units in West Bank settlements.

Israel's death squads: A soldier's story:
A former member of an Israeli assassination squad has broken his silence for the first time. He spoke to Donald Macintyre.

The Israeli military's policy of targeted killings has been described from the inside for the first time. In an interview with The Independent on Sunday, and in his testimony to an ex-soldiers' organisation, Breaking the Silence, a former member of an assassination squad has told of his role in a botched ambush that killed two Palestinian bystanders, as well as the two militants targeted.

The operation, which took place a little over eight years ago, at the start of the present intifada, or uprising, left the former sharpshooter with psychological scars. To this day he has not told his parents of his participation in what he called "the first face-to-face assassination of the intifada".

As the uprising unfolded, targeted assassinations became a regularly used weapon in the armoury of the Israel military, especially in Gaza, where arrests would later become less easy than in the West Bank. The highest-profile were those of Hamas leaders Ahmed Yassin and Abdel Aziz Rantisi in 2005, and of Said Siyam in the most recent offensive. But the targeting of lower-level militants, like the one killed in the operation described by the former soldier, became sufficiently common to attract little comment.
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Change? What Change?
U.S. Talks Tough on Gaza Aid:
Limits on Distribution of $300 Million Suggest Administration Is Hewing to Bush-Era Stance

Blair: Israeli siege on Gaza must be lifted immediately
Politics 3/1/2009 8:24:00 PM


GAZA, March 1 (KUNA) -- Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip must be lifted immediately in order for aid to reach the people who need it, Middle East Quartet Envoy Tony Blair said Sunday.
Blair's remarks came after he paid a brief visit to a UN school in the Gaza Strip on his first trip to the Hamas-controlled enclave since being appointed as the Quartet's envoy.
"We can supply Palestinians with money within the next few days, as we rely on the international conference on Gaza reconstruction in Egypt next Monday," Blair told reporters.
The Quartet -- the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and the United States -- is due to meet on the sidelines of a donor's conference in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh for the reconstruction of Gaza Strip.
"We are working on sustaining peace in the region, so that we make sure that none of the destruction or bloodshed would reoccur," Blair pointed out, noting that a two-state solution was the quartet's road map on that regard and its mission in Sharm el-Sheikh.
Blair, who used to be former British premier 1997-2007, had canceled his visit to Gaza last year upon Israeli security warnings.
His current visit to the strip coincided with a visit by a World Bank delegation before heading to Egypt to participate in the reconstruction conference. (end) mt.sam.hb KUNA 012024 Mar 09NNNN

Blair shocked at devastation on first Gaza visit as envoy

« Previous « PreviousNext » Next »View GalleryPublished Date: 02 March 2009
By Ben Padley and Ben Lynfield
FORMER Prime Minister Tony Blair last night described as "very shocking" the level of devastation he witnessed in Gaza following Israel's military offensive.

Mr Blair, envoy of the international Quartet on the Middle East peace process, said there had been a "huge amount of damage" inflicted by the Israelis.

But he said the debate about proportionality was "not really a sensible conversation" and said ADVERTISEMENThe had not met Hamas officials as he made his first trip to the territory since his appointment as envoy.

He said: "I wasn't greatly surprised at what I saw but, obviously, it's very shocking because the devastation is enormous."

He called on Israel to end what he called the blockade on the territory, which prevents fuel and construction materials getting in.

Mr Blair said: "There's no doubt at all that there has been a huge amount of damage done, including whole sectors of private-sector buildings which have been razed to the ground and, in any event, given the numbers of people that have died, I find the conversation about proportionality not really a sensible conversation to have.

"The fact is large numbers of civilians have died, but we've got to find a way of ensuring this doesn't happen again."

His comments came as the UK yesterday pledged £30 million for reconstruction of the battered Gaza Strip.

International development secretary Douglas Alexander announced the cash as he also visited Gaza, the first visit by a British minister since Hamas took control in 2007.

He said there was "continuing suffering" in Gaza and called on the Israeli government to "do the right thing" to allow people to begin to rebuild their lives. He was "horrified" by the level of suffering he had seen.

Mr Alexander said: "I've seen first hand the effect that the recent conflict has had on ordinary people. That is why we are making available £30 million to help kick-start a recovery. We want people to be able to go about their day-to-day lives, for schools to be open and for families to have a home once again.

"The continuing suffering in the area is very clear and we must provide more than just basic humanitarian support if we are to help rebuild people's lives."

However, continued Hamas rocket fire at southern Israel raised fears yesterday of a fresh eruption of hostilities, and hopes for rebuilding were also dogged by continued Israeli strictures at crossings into the Gaza Strip and Palestinian in-fighting.

The visits by Mr Blair and Mr Alexander come ahead of a high-level reconstruction conference on Gaza taking place in Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt today.

During the war in December and January, around 1,300 Palestinians were killed.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Israel may face Gaza war crimes trial

THE INTERNATIONAL criminal court is urgently considering whether the Palestinian Authority is “enough like a state” for it to bring a case alleging that Israeli troops committed war crimes in the recent assault on Gaza.

The deliberations would potentially open the way to putting Israeli military commanders in the dock at The Hague and set an important precedent for the court over what cases it can hear.

The court’s head of jurisdictions is examining every international agreement signed by the Palestinian Authority to decide whether it behaves – and is regarded by others – as a state, which would open the way for it to become a signatory to the court.

Sources at the ICC say that it is also looking at whether the court can consider war crimes allegations on the basis of the dual nationality of either victims or alleged perpetrators whose second passport is with a country party to the court. A decision is expected within months.

The issue arises because although the ICC potentially has “global jurisdiction”, Israel – despite having signed the Rome statute that founded the court – is not a party. The ICC, which has 108 member states, has not so far recognised Palestine as a sovereign state or as a member.

The latest moves in The Hague come amid mounting international pressure on Israel and a growing recognition in Israeli government circles that it may eventually have to defend itself against war crimes allegations.

A confidential inquiry by the International Committee of the Red Cross into the actions of Israel and Hamas during the conflict is expected to accuse Israel of using “excessive force” – prohibited by the fourth Geneva convention.

The Red Cross has been collecting information for two inquiries, one into the conduct of Israel and a
second into Hamas.

In the case of Israel, the Red Cross is expected to highlight three areas: the Israeli Defence Forces’ “choice of weapons in a complex and densely populated environment”; the issue of proportionality, and concerns over the IDF’s lack of distinction between combatants and non-combatants.

Hamas is likely to be challenged over its use of civilian facilities as cover for its fighters, its summary executions and kneecappings of Palestinians during the campaign and its indiscriminate firing of rockets into civilian areas. – (Guardian service)

CONTINUED:

Yasser Temeizi, a conscientious and hard-working laborer, lived in the village of Idna, west of Hebron. He was the husband of Haife and the father of 7-year-old Firas and 2-year-old Hala. For 15 years, he got up every morning and went to work in Israel. In recent months, he worked in Ashdod, for the Harash company, which builds cargo compartments for trucks. On his last pay slip, it says: "Type of worker: Autonomy" - in the language of the occupation. "Amount paid: NIS 3,935.73." Upon the outbreak of the military operation in Gaza, Temeizi's employers asked him not to come to work until things calmed down. But he still had to support the family, so Temeizi made his way to the "slave market" in Kiryat Gat, hoping to find odd jobs. This is what he was doing on the morning of January 13.

On that day, Ehud Barak was trying to promote a week-long "humanitarian cease-fire," the Paratroops advanced toward Gaza City and a seventh Palestinian medical worker was killed by Israeli fire. At 5:30 that morning, Temeizi set out for Kiryat Gat, his work permit in his pocket. He returned home about four hours later; he hadn't found work. His mother, Naife, made him a light breakfast and then Temeizi asked his 7-year-old son Firas if he'd like to come with him to the family olive grove about three kilometers west of their house, a few hundred meters east of the separation fence, in the territories. Father and son loaded water and food onto the family's donkey and began riding toward the grove. If there was no employment to be had in Israel, at least they could work on the olives, they thought.

They arrived at the grove and got to work. Suddenly, a military jeep appeared and four soldiers got out. Firas saw them approaching his father. There was a verbal exchange between them, but it was in Hebrew and Firas didn't understand what it was about. A minute later, he saw the soldiers shoving his father down to the ground and handcuffing him from behind. The soldiers ordered Firas to go home. His father also told him to go; the frightened little boy started running the long distance back toward home. On the way he was attacked by dogs, he says, and some shepherds, his neighbors, saved him from them. That was the last time Firas saw his father alive. Handcuffed and on the ground, but alive.

Eyewitnesses told Temeizi's father Saker they'd seen soldiers kicking his bound and blindfolded son. The witnesses tried to intervene, but the soldiers shooed them away, brandishing their rifles. Musa Abu Hashhash, a reputable field researcher for the B'Tselem human rights organization, heard similar testimonies. Eventually, according to the witnesses, the soldiers put Temeizi on a jeep and drove off. This was the last time the Palestinians saw him alive.

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What kind of training is needed for such situations? Do soldiers need to be trained not to shoot a handcuffed prisoner? Do they need to be trained to know to immediately summon medical care for someone who's wounded?

The IDF Spokesman told us officially this week, a month and a half after the incident: "The matter is under investigation by the criminal investigations division. Once the investigation is complete, the findings will be relayed to the military prosecutor." Firas enters the bereaved household in Idna, a blue UNICEF book bag on his back. In a soft, chirpy voice, he tells the story of his last day with his father. He recounts the donkey ride to the family's olive grove, the soldiers who knocked his father down as he watched and how he made his way home alone, scared by the barking dogs.

"Later on they told me that Daddy died," the boy says quietly, the trauma evident on his face. Just so the soldiers who kill a handcuffed man, and their commanders and investigators, should know.

"They Told Me Daddy Died'
By Gideon Levy
As the war in Gaza raged, Israel Defense Forces reservists apparently thought anything was permissible: It was possible, maybe even necessary, to kill innocents, in the West Bank, too. Under cover of war, they thought, they could also kill a handcuffed Palestinian.
After all, they could always claim he tried to steal their weapons - never mind that he was bound with plastic handcuffs practically impossible to get out of. A bullet in the stomach from close range finished him off. Thus ended the life of Yasser Temeizi, 35, who had a work permit and jobs in Israel all of his adult life; in the past year he had worked for the Harash company in Ashdod. He was a young father who'd never gotten in any trouble with the IDF before. The soldiers arrested him for no reason, beat him for no reason in front of one of his small children and finally executed him for no reason.

A month and a half has passed since this horrifying incident, and the army's criminal investigations division is still looking into the case. An investigation that could have been completed in an hour is going on without end. Not a single Palestinian was questioned, as usual; not a single soldier was arrested, and most likely none will be - also as usual. The reservist soldiers who killed Temeizi have likely already been sent back home; perhaps they returned feeling good about their experiences and about doing their national duty. Granted, they didn't take part in the war in Gaza, but they killed, too. Why not? Herewith, as a service to them, is the story of the consequences of their actions, which senior IDF officers have already termed "a grave incident," that involved "a series of serious failures."

CONTINUED BELOW

israel STILL THREATENING THE PALESTINIANS

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Calls for the arrest of Israeli PM, other leaders

(CNN) -- Iran is calling for the arrests of 15 Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, on charges of war crimes in Gaza.

Tehran's top prosecutor said Olmert, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and 12 other Israeli leaders violated international law and committed war crimes during Israel's recent offensive in Gaza, according to state-run news agency ISNA.

The prosecutor called on Interpol to issue arrest warrants for the "war criminals," the agency said Sunday.

Iran is investigating about 100 Israelis, calling them "war criminals," ISNA said.

The country has been engaged in an escalating war of words with Israel, which it accuses of trying to destabilize the republic.

Israel launched the attack on the militant group Hamas in Gaza on December 27 after repeated Palestinian rocket attacks on southern Israel

More than 1,300 Palestinians died and about 5,400 others were wounded. Thirteen Israelis, including 10 soldiers, were also killed in the fighting.
Since the two sides declared a cease-fire on January 21, militants have sporadically fired rockets into Israel. Israel has responded with airstrikes.

Since the two sides declared a cease-fire on January 21, militants have sporadically fired rockets into Israel. Israel has responded with airstrikes.

Israel will retaliate against Gaza with a "painful, sharp, strong and uncompromising response" if the rocket attacks do not stop, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday.

He warned "terrorists" that they would not be able to anticipate Israel's moves.

"The Israeli response will -- in no way -- be what the terrorist organizations expect. The state of Israel has a wide range of options that will be utilized in order to bring complete quiet to the south," he said Sunday at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.

The Case Against Israel
by Michael Neumann
Pub. Date: February 2006
ISBN-13: 9781904859468
200pp

Synopsis
The Case Against Israelargues that Zionism was responsible for the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians and that Israel is responsible for its perpetuation. The argument rests on widely accepted factual claims and impeccable sources. It avoids rhetoric and gratuitous moralizing. There is no attempt to blacken Israel through association with colonialism, imperialism, or racism. Instead, Neumann's argument emphasizes the fateful Zionist quest for Jewish sovereignty in Palestine. This quest-not the massacres or plans for transfer or other blots on Zionist history-made violence inevitable and compromise impossible. The prospect of Zionists gaining the power of life and death over all inhabitants of Palestine had to be seen by the Palestinians as a mortal threat. They responded accordingly.
The tragic consequences of the quest for sovereignty did not follow all at once, but in two stages. The Zionists established a sovereign Jewish state in 1948. Had they been content with that, peace might have followed the 1967 war, when Israel could have backed the creation of a Palestinian state in the occupied territories. Instead, Zionists pushed to extend Jewish sovereignty, this time through the settler movement. The settlements were a renewed mortal threat to the Palestinians and once again necessitated a violent response. The only solution is for Israel to withdraw, unilaterally, to its 1948 borders.
Michael Neumann was born in 1946, the son of German Jewish refugees. He graduated from Columbia University with degrees in European history and English literature, followed by a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Toronto. He teaches moral andpolitical philosophy at a Canadian university. He has written What's Left?, a critique of 1960s radicalism, and numerous articles relating to the Israel/Palestine conflict. His academic work includes The Rule of Law: Politicizing Ethics as well as articles on utilitarianism, rationality, and rights.