tagged w/ Palestinians
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Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says an Israeli investigation into Israel’s deadly raid on a convoy of Gaza-bound aid ships is not valuable to Turkey even if the panel includes foreign observers.Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says an Israeli investigation into... more
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McClatchy newspapers has obtained an Israeli government document that describes its blockade of the Gaza Strip not as a security measure but as "economic warfare" against Hamas, which rules the Palestinian territory.McClatchy newspapers has obtained an Israeli government document that describes its... more
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The International Committee of the Red Cross has described Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip as a violation of the Geneva Conventions and is calling on the Israeli government to lift it.The International Committee of the Red Cross has described Israel's blockade of... more
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THE brutal raid on the freedom flotilla carrying humanitarian supplies that was trying to break the blockade of Gaza was bound to provoke outrage—and rightly so.
The Israeli government arrogantly declared that Israel had the right to defend itself, in justification of the massacre of unarmed humanitarians.
And this ” right to defend itself ” jazz seemed as some kind of ” reverse logic”, to almost everybody who were following the updates of this terrible incident on TV screens, including the people with impartial view on the Arab – Israeli conflict, but this Israeli raid somehow helped them to take sides.
The Israeli statement failed to gain any worldwide sympathy this time, it failed to delude people.
This time, Israel looked as the aggressor, and only an act of god could convince people otherwise. And actually this is what the Israelis needed, a divine intervention, maybe another parting of the sea, which would have swallowed up the aid flotilla and spared the Israeli commandos the trouble of confronting enemies in international waters.
Anyhow, the Israeli commandos must have killed those civilians with a clear conscience, for they were assured that God was on their side, at least that how the Rabbis must have brainwashed them beforehand, the same way that happened in the inhumane Israeli war on Gaza2008- 2009.
To those commandos, they were not engaged in a military mission but in holy war. And speaking of holiness, let’s go back in time and take a look at the Israeli conflicts in the bible.
The holy conflict scenario
Scholars failed to trace the Jews to any affinity to an ancient cultural tradition other than the Ibraheimic tale. And agreed that being Jewish is solely a religious affiliation?
Remove the old bible with all its fancy tales of the Israelites and you’ll be literally left with nothing, absolutely nothing worth mentioning regarding the Jews or their heritage as if they never existed outside the narrative of the Old Testament. Or maybe they did, but in a far different manner from the biblical story.
That’s why most scholars of ancient near eastern history relied primarily on the bible to study the ancient history of the Israelites but that is no longer the case. In the last quarter century or so, archaeologists have seen one settled assumption after another concerning who the ancient Israelites were and where they came from proved false.
If you examined the history of the Israelites in the ancient near east, from a biblical perspective, you would be surprised by the fact that Israel had always been depicted as the one nation exclusively chosen by their God, but on the contrary to that unjustified and weird divine attitude, the Israelites had commonly been persecuted by their neighbors.
Intolerance of the Jews has always been the most commonly shared feature of every tribe or culture or even kingdom that came to deal with Israel as far as the old bible is concerned.
Conflict due to intolerance of Israel has been a biblical reality whenever Israel has existed as a nation in the old testament. Whether it was the Egyptians, Amalekites, Midianites, Moabites, Ammonites, Amorites, Philistines, Assyrians, Persians, or Romans, the nation of Israel has always been surrounded by and persecuted by its neighbors. Why is this?
There are two possible answers to this question;
1 – The biblical narrative could be correct, and all the above cultures, authorities and monarchies acted antagonistically to the Jews.
2 – The biblical narrative could be corrected and refuted by another and more solid vision of the ancient Israelites era, namely modern archaeology.
Early biblical archaeology was conducted in “bible and spade “approach with the presumption that the bible must be true, finds only being considered as illustrations for the biblical narrative, and interpreting evidence to fit the bible.
The first biblical archaeologists were thus guilty of one of the most elementary of scientific blunders: rather than allowing the facts to speak for themselves, they had tried to fit them into a preconceived theoretical framework. Another layer of political mystification was added in the twentieth century by Zionist pioneers eager for evidence that the Jewish claim to the Holy Land was every bit as ancient as the Old Testament said it was.
But since the 1970s most archaeologists have begun instead to interpret the evidence only in the light of other archaeology, treating the bible as an artifact to be examined, rather than as an unquestioned truth.
Israeli archeologist, Ze’ev Herzog born 1941, professor of archaeology at The Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures at Tel Aviv University , is considered one of the leading figures in that modern field archeology along with his colleague archeologist, Israel Finkelstein.
In 1999 Herzog’s cover page article in the weekly magazine Haaretz “Deconstructing the walls of Jericho” attracted considerable public attention and debates. In this article Herzog cites evidence supporting that “the Israelites were never in Egypt, did not wander in the desert, did not conquer the land in a military campaign and did not pass it on to the 12 tribes of Israel. Perhaps even harder to swallow is the fact that the united monarchy of David and Solomon, which is described by the Bible as a regional power, was at most a small tribal kingdom.
And archaeologists noticed that ancient chronicles and records of all the above mentioned authorities and kingdoms were silent and devoid of any record of a conflict with the ancient Israelites.
And if modern scientific history and archaeology managed to refute the bible claims to history, and showed that Jewish bible scribes were keen on portraying Israel as the nation surrounded by imaginary enemies,who held them in enslavement and captivity, In an attempt to keep the conflict scenario going, and keep the sympathy with Israel going. But what does that say of the legitimacy of the holy war that the Israeli military is now waging on alleged enemies, especially that the pro-Palestinian sympathy is considerably gaining momentum worldwide.
For Israel, this aid flotilla tragedy should be the starting point for deeper questions—about the Israeli list of potential and alleged enemies, about the Jewish state’s increasing loneliness
Israel is caught in a vicious circle. The more it tends to shoot opponents first and ask questions later, the more it finds that the world is indeed full of enemies.THE brutal raid on the freedom flotilla carrying humanitarian supplies that was trying... more
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NYC Jewish events: Tuesday 6/15: summer camp movie & Mumbai Jewish teen; Wednesday 6/16: Atlantic's Jeffrey GoldbergNYC Jewish events: Tuesday 6/15: summer camp movie & Mumbai Jewish teen; Wednesday... more
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British activists say they were legally justified in causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to an arms factory because they were seeking to stop what they believed were Israeli war crimes in Gaza.British activists say they were legally justified in causing hundreds of thousands of... more
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Attempts by media to interview some of the hundreds of Free Gaza members, who were being deported from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport this past week have been continually thwarted by Israeli authorities.Attempts by media to interview some of the hundreds of Free Gaza members, who were... more
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Thousands of demonstrators around the world hit the streets this past week — from Canada to Asia and beyond — to denounce the Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla.Thousands of demonstrators around the world hit the streets this past week —... more
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The United States has blocked demands at the UN Security Council for an international inquiry into Israel's assault on the Turkish ship carrying aid to Gaza that killed at least nine pro-Palestinian activists.The United States has blocked demands at the UN Security Council for an international... more
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An Irish-American pro-Palestinian activist Ken O'Keefe arrived in Istanbul this past week after being deported by Israel. Appearing in front of cameras with blood marks on his face and clothes, O'Keefe said he was threatened and beaten by Israeli soldiers.An Irish-American pro-Palestinian activist Ken O'Keefe arrived in Istanbul this... more
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Israel is under pressure to allow an independent inquiry into its assault on the Gaza aid flotilla after autopsy results on the bodies of those killed, obtained by British newspaper The Guardian, revealed they were peppered with 9mm bullets, many fired at close range.Israel is under pressure to allow an independent inquiry into its assault on the Gaza... more
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Iran's Red Crescent Society will try to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza by sending food and medical supplies to the besieged Palestinian territory, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Monday.
Red Crescent official Abdul Rauf Adibzadeh said one shipment of relief goods will arrive in Gaza via Egypt by the end of the week, Iranian media reported.
The aid group is also preparing to send two relief ships to the coast of Gaza, including a hospital ship with doctors, nurses and operating rooms and another vessel with more relief goods like food and medication, the IRNA and Mehr news agencies reported.
Israel stopped a convoy of six ships trying to deliver aid to Gaza last week in defiance of an Israeli blockade, killing at least nine people in the course of boarding one of the vessels.
Adibzadeh said there is a possibility that Iranian Red Crescent ships may be attacked but added that, despite the danger, if the Iranian authorities approve, the shipments will be sent to Gaza.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said the Iranian ships will be part of a new aid flotilla organized by several Islamic countries, though he declined to say which countries are involved.
He called it "strictly a humanitarian effort for the people of Gaza."
"We are preparing two ships to head for Gaza that will provide humanitarian aid," Mehmanparast said. "Their departure depends on how soon we coordinate with other countries that are also sending aid ships. The process of organizing the operation is under way."
Separately, a "Jewish boat" is planning to try to reach Gaza, two pro-Palestinian European Jewish groups announced Monday.
"Our purpose is to call an end to the siege of Gaza, to this illegal collective punishment of the whole civilian population," Edith Lutz said on behalf of European Jews for a Just Peace in the Near East and Jews for Justice for Palestinians.
The group is not saying when the boat is sailing or where it is leaving from "in order to avoid sabotage," Lutz said.
continuedIran's Red Crescent Society will try to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza by... more
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In the wake of continued tension, can you think of a way to find peace between both parties?
(Image via Aziz Abu Sarah http://bit.ly/cfWDov)In the wake of continued tension, can you think of a way to find peace between both... more
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At least three Palestinian journalists have been physically attacked by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank in the past few weeks while a Palestinian journalist and an Israeli journalist have been arrested.At least three Palestinian journalists have been physically attacked by Israeli... more
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Ami Ayalon, retired Israeli Navy chief, former Secret Service chief, former Knesset member and cabinet minister, and co-author with Palestinian professor Sari Nusseibeh of a peace proposal that many believe will form the basis of an eventual two-state peace agreement, will speak on the topic "Achieving two states: ensuring real peace and security for Israel" in a conversation with JStreet founder and executive director Jeremy Ben-Ami tonight at a cocktail reception and fund-raiser for JStreet.Ami Ayalon, retired Israeli Navy chief, former Secret Service chief, former Knesset... more
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This young man is a symbol of Jewish isolation in the face of what is now gathering pace and venom across the world, as it goes progressively mad.
His single-minded act of bravery has made him an icon in the world of decency. This video was picked up by a major media outlet and has since gone viral.
Daniel is a symbol of the Jewish People : through him, the world can understand how David vanquished Goliath, how little Israel vanquished the arab nations surrounding it in 1967. Undeterred, he marched unflinchingly among the screaming, enraged, murderous crowd.
HE WON.
May his example be a beacon of light in a sea of violence, ignorance and hatred. I salute him, just as I salute the brave soldiers who dared face the murderous Muslim thugs, armed only with paintball guns and small pistols.This young man is a symbol of Jewish isolation in the face of what is now gathering... more
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The ongoing interrogation of passengers who were aboard the Marmara – the Gaza aid flotilla's flagship – revealed that the majority of those who attacked the Israeli Naval Commandos boarding the ship have direct and indirect Global Jihad ties.
Israel's investigation has revealed some 100 people infiltrated the peace and humanitarian aid activists making their way to Gaza, with the explicit design to attack Israeli soldiers using cold arms.
The majority of suspects are Turks, but some are Yemenites and Indonesian. One
Yemenite Islamist was photographed with a dagger in his belt prior to the raid. Some of the suspects were found to be carrying large sums of money. Others had Kevlar vests and gas masks; and all were found to be carrying weapons such as knives, metal clubs and slingshots.The ongoing interrogation of passengers who were aboard the Marmara – the Gaza... more
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American linguist and political activist Professor Noam Chomsky was denied entry into Israel and the West Bank last week.American linguist and political activist Professor Noam Chomsky was denied entry into... more
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