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Occupation forces injure mourners following funeral of slain infant Mohammad Tamimi 6/6/2023, Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine Today, the people of the village of Nabi Saleh bid farewell to the slain infant Muhammad Tamimi, who died after being shot in the head by an Israeli soldier. The villagers of Nabi Saleh welcomed the child with flowers as they paid their respects. His mother, brother, sister, and father shared a final farewell look with baby Muhammad, and his mother embraced him, kissing him for the last time. According to Israeli Human rights organization B'tselem two and a half year old Mohammed is the 150th Palestinian killed by Israel since the beginning of 2023. This includes 27 Palestinian children that have been killed this year, according to documentation collected by Defence for Children International Palestine. During the funeral, confrontations broke out between the village youth and the occupying military that surrounded the village. Later that afternoon, while mourners were gathered at the grandparents' home, the occupation forces forcefully entered the village. Six of the villagers were injured. Among the injured is Maher Tamimi, whose brother Qusai was tragically shot dead by the occupation forces last September. Maher sustained a gunshot wound in the pelvis, with the bullet entering his intestines. Renowned human rights defender Neriman Tamimi was targeted by a soldier, who struck her in the face with a rifle, and another mourner was hit in the face with a rubber-coated steel bullet. “Unlawful killings of Palestinian children have become the norm as Israeli forces become increasingly empowered to use intentional lethal force in situations that are not justified. This is a war crime with no consequence.” stated Ayed Abu Eqtaish, accountability program director at DCIP. As a response to the killing of Mohammed Tamimi South African MO Nkosi ZMD Mandela, the grandson of the late Nelson Mandela released a statement demanding accountability in which he stated: “We are appalled by this level of inhumanity and the ongoing crimes against humanity and call for immediate charges to be brought by the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu. For more information: Manal Tamimi +970 592 457 185 or Yonatan Pollak +972 503 010 160 For video photo and sources see: https://palsolidarity.org/2023/06/the-occupation-forces-that-shot-infant-mohammad-tamimi-in-the-head-invade-and-injure-mourners-at-his-funeral/ Nabi Saleh village assaulted - toddler shot in the head died in hospital June 5, 2023 Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine: The Israeli occupation forces have escalated their assaults on the West Bank Palestinian village of Nabi Saleh targeting civilians, including a toddler, with live ammunition. On Thursday June 1, 2023, the occupation forces placed a military checkpoint at the entrance to the village and prevented cars from passing. They forced some young men to get out of their cars and began to attack them physically, without reason. At approximately 7:30 pm one of the soldiers stationed near the military tower shot Haitham al-Tamimi, 40, in the shoulder, and his son, Mohammed al-Tamimi, 21/2, in the head, as they were about to get into their car. Haitham was operated on in Ramallah Hospital, but his son, Mohammed, was found to be inoperable with a bullet lodged in his brain. After several days in critical condition, the toddler today (June 5 th ) succumbed to his wounds and died today. At around 8:00 pm, a military jeep stormed the village and started firing live bullets directly at the homes, which led to broken windows in some houses. As a result, Wissam al-Tamimi 17 was injured by a so-called "sponge" bullet (actually, a metal bullet inside the sponge casing) in his head while he was standing on the roof of the house, which fractured his skull. After that, three snipers positioned themselves on the roof of one of the shops opposite the residents’ homes and fired live bullets and sponge bullets at anyone who moved, whether inside the houses or on the roof tops. The journalist (and B’Tselem volunteer) Bilal al-Tamimi, wearing a press uniform, helmet, and protective clothing, was wounded after a soldier fired a sponge bullet at him directly, from close range, breaking his wrist, which required surgery to insert a titanium plate. The house of journalist Bilal al-Tamimi continued to be targeted with live bullets, gas canisters and sponge bullets, as a result of which his mother, who suffers from kidney failure, suffocated. On Friday, June 2 , at approximately 4:30 pm, Noura al-Tamimi was hit in her stomach by a sponge canister, causing severe convulsions, requiring her to be taken to the hospital. Kafa al-Tamimi, who is seven months pregnant, suffocated from the gas after a tear gas canister broke the glass of her bedroom window. Many of the village residents, including children, women, and the elderly, were detained outside their homes and not allowed to return until the withdrawal of the occupation forces at dawn. On Saturday night, June 3, 2023 the occupying military invaded the village once again, entering homes. During the incursion, the occupying soldiers took one young man from his home, beat him up and then released him. This morning (June 4 th ) the children of Nabi Saleh went to school to sit their final exams for Tawjihi after yet another sleepless night. Manal Tamimi of Nabi Saleh stated: “The incitement for this attack stems from the settlers' repeated attempts to intimidate the villagers, with the most recent incident occurring just last week. In light of these distressing events, we urgently call on the international community to ensure protection to this small village, with a population not exceeding 650 people. It is imperative that international humanitarian law and international treaties are upheld, and immediate action be taken to halt the repeated attacks by both the occupation forces and the settlers. Over the past decade alone, these aggressions have tragically resulted in the martyrdom of five young individuals from the village.” For more information: Manal Tamimi: +970 592 457 185 Or Yonatan Pollak +972 503 010 16 For photos see: https://palsolidarity.org/2023/06/israel-continues-its-assault-on-Nabi-Salah-after-shooting-toddler-in-the-head/ No pasarán! Fascism will not pass — Opposing the march, seeking a free Jerusalem Thursday // 18.5 // Protest // Center City—Khatulot Square // 16:30 In recent months, we’ve been demonstrating for democracy in Israel, while in East Jerusalem live over 350,000 Palestinian residents with no Israeli citizenship, who are blocked from voting and from political representation in the parliament and government, and who are subject to institutionalized violence. On the upcoming Jerusalem Day, we will all stand in solidarity with the residents of East Jerusalem, and call for justice, equality, and freedom for all residents of the city. Opposite the violent March of Flags, which celebrates Jewish supremacy, and severely harms the residents of East Jerusalem, we present an anti-occupation alternative. The March of Flags, which in past years has crossed through the heart of the Muslim Quarter, is a march of hatred and racism. On the day of the march, the merchants of the Old City are required to close up their shops at an early hour, and the Palestinian residents in the streets and their homes are exposed to extreme violence from this racist mob — calls of “Mohammad is dead” and “may your villages burn,” along with physical violence that endangers Palestinian lives. On this day, we are obligated to resist these dark and violent forces that sweep the city. Join us on Thursday in calling for a different future—one of equality, justice, and freedom. Thursday // 18.5 // Protest // Center City—Khatulot Square // 16:30 https://bit.ly/42yzUbF. Stop the insane Gaza War! Emergency protest tonight Stop the insane Gaza War! Emergency protest tonight (Wed) at Defence Ministry, Tel Aviv Tonight, Wednesday May 10, at 19:30 - an emergency protest at the Defence Ministry on Kaplan Street, Tel Aviv. CEASE THE FIRE! THE WAR'S ONLY PURPOSE IS PRESERVING NETANYAHU'S COLLAPSING GOVERNMEMT - SAY NO! Tonight, Wednesday May 10, at 19:30 - an emergency protest at the Defence Ministry on Kaplan Street, Tel Aviv. CEASE THE FIRE! THE WAR'S ONLY PURPOSE IS PRESERVING NETANYAHU'S COLLAPSING GOVERNMEMT - SAY NO TO THE ASSAULT ON GAZA! The right wing government is lighting.a big fire. It is bombing Gaza and killing civlians and children, and sends the citizens if Israel to the bomb shelters. In face of the massive protest against the government's anti-democratic "reforms",Netanyahu and hus extreme right partner Ben Gvir are trying to drag all of us into war: violence against Muslim worshippers at Al Aqsa Mosque, provocations in the north, and now bombings in Gaza which prefipitate missile attacks on south and central Israel. The only ones benefitting from the escalation are the Fascists in power. The price is paid by all of us. We demand an end to the escalation. We demand a ceadsation of the fire. We demand imolementation of the only viable solution - a just peace including an end to the occuoation, an end to the siege of Gaza, and the creation of a Palestinan state with its capital in East Jerusalem. Come one, come all! Tonight at 19:30 opposite the Ministry of Defence! Israelis and Palestinians remember together their loved ones Joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day Ceremony today, April 24 The largest Israeli-Palestinian peace event in history! This evening, April 24, 2023, we will gather to call for peace, freedom, and human rights for all. Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day, is a solemn day on which Israelis remember those they have lost in the years of war and conflict. Traditionally, the Palestinian narrative is erased. The Joint Memorial Day Ceremony is different. It provides a unique opportunity for Israelis and Palestinians to grieve and heal together. In mourning side by side, we seek not to equate narratives but to transform despair into hope and build bridges of deep compassion that can change reality. By unifying our pain and longing for peace, we demonstrate to the world our power to co-create a safe and free future. The Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day reminds everyone that war is not a predetermined fate, but only a human choice. The ceremony takes place every year on the eve of the official Memorial Day for Israeli fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism. The ceremony was initiated by Buma Inbar, whose son was killed in Lebanon in 1995, and other peace activists, together with the Combatants For Peace movement. For some years the PCFF has joined in organising and producing the event, and it is now a full collaboration between the PCFF and the CFP movement. Internationally, the Jewish American group Unity is Strength is also promoting it. Since the first ceremony, in 2006, the number of people who attend has gradually grown, and today counts thousands of people, bereaved Israeli and Palestinian family members. The choice to hold the event on the same day as Israel’s Memorial Day, aims to relay a message to both sides, calling them to recognize the joint pain and hope, and to try and prevent the next victims from this fate. Throughout the years, participating guests included leading intellectuals, among them musician Yoni Rechter, Israel Prize winner Professor Yehuda (Judd) Ne’eman, singers Alon Oleartchik, Achinoam Nini and Mira Awad, Professor Eva Illouz, journalist Eliezer Yaari, Dr. Amal Abu Said, the author David Grossman, the author and Doctor Sami Shalom Shitrit, Richard Gere, Mubarak Awad and others. The event has a growing media exposure. In recent years, we have had to deal with demonstrations and attempts of right-wing politicians and people to disrupt the event. In the past three years, the ceremony was very much restricted due to then COVID restrictions. Only a few could actively participate in the physical ceremony, and the event was mainly online, spread very far and watched by very many via zoom. This year, there are no restrictions and a record attendance is expected at the mass ceremony tonight at Ganey Yesohua Park in north Tel Aviv - and still, it will also be transmitted online for those who can't be there. Defence Minister Galant refused to grant permission for the bereaved Palestinian families to enter Israel and take part - but the Supreme Court ordered him to grant that permission. Which is one more small proof why we need to defend the independence of the Israeli judiciary. Https://www.theparentscircle.org/en/pcff-activities_eng/memorial-ceremony_eng/ Israelis in Berlin gather at the Brandenburger Tor, to protest the visit of PM Netanyahu Netanyahu is today in Berlin - and Israelis resident in Berlin are gathering to demonstrate for Israeli democracy and remind the PM he cannot escape the mounting protest Gather at 15:00, Brandenburger Tor, today Thursday 16.3.23 Start of the demonstration: 15:30 We will raise our voice for democracy, loud and clear, and we'll be heard through the media - in Israel and worldwide! Bring noise making instruments - drums, or whistles, or just pots and pans - anything to make a very strong sound which Netanyahu and the Kanzler will have to hear during their meeting! We all stand together to save Israel's democracy!!! Contact: +49 1573 1687039 The settler government is setting the country on fire! Today! Emergency demonstrations across the country: The settler government is setting the country on fire! Tel Aviv - 18:00 - Meet in Habima Square, march to the Ministry of Defence Beit Hakranot Jerusalem - 20:00 - Old Mishbir Square Be'er Sheva - 19:30 Teachers Center Ra'anana Junction - 17:00 Extremist settlers perpetrated a pogrom in the Palestinian town of Hawara, on the West Bank, and in villages around Nablus. They set fire to dozens of houms and cars, and sowed destruction and devastation. One Palestinian was shot dead and over a hundred were injured. All happened with the open connivance and encouragement by the Fascist right-wing in the government: Minister Ben-Gvir who headed an effort to resettle the illegal Avitar outpost, evacuated last year, and Minister Smotrich who endoresed a statment by the leader of the "Samaria" settlers: "Hawara should be razed and wiped out - no room for mercy!". We must not stand by and allow the government to set the country on fire. The bloodshed must be stopped. The way to prevent another loss of human life, the way to live in security and dignity for all of us, is to progress towards Israeli-Palestinian peace, which alone can guarantee freedom, justice and independence for both peoples. We demonstate today calling for an end to the occupation, to the the violence and the cycle of bloodshed. President Biden, open the US Consulate in East Jerusalem! Gush Shalom calls on President Biden to immediately open the US Consulate in East Jerusalem - as an appropriate response to Netanyahu's settlement expansion. "Verbal protests and expressions of concern make no impression on the far-right government that now rules Israel" wrote Adam Keller, Gush Shalom spokeserson, in letters sent to the foreign ministers of the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany and Italy. "In both the 'reform' intended to destroy the Israeli judicial system, and in the construction of West Bank settlements and the deepening of the occupation and oppression, the government is relentlesly determined to ignore oppositionand go on "creatining facts on the ground". To make Netanyhau and his far right partners stop the settlement expansion campaign, the United States and Western European countries must take concrete and real steps, far beyond verbal protests. An immediate such step could be the re-opening, without further delay, of the American consulate in East Jerusalem. Until it was closed by order of President Trump, this Consulate actually functioned as a de facto American embassy to the future Palestinian state. In his 2000 elections campaign, Joe Biden promised to reopen the Consulate. However, Yair Lapid, in his term as Israel's Foreign Minister and then Prime Minister, managed to convince the Americans to avoid this meaure, on the arguernt that it might have destabilized Lapid's short-lived "Government of Change". But that argument hardy applies to the aggressive, rapacious government which replaced Lapid's. Now is a right and appropriate time to re-open, without further delay, the US Consulate in East Jerusalem. With the Governmenhen of Israel making unilateral settlement measures with the aim of intensifying occupation and driving further away any chance of peace, the United States could and should make unilateral measures of its own - diplomatic measures opposing the occupation and bolstering the ability of the Palestinians to eventually stablish their state with East Jerusalem as its capital. Contact: Adam Keller, Gush Shalom Spokesperson +972-(0)54-2340749 The occupation kills! Israelis and Palestinians pay with their lives! The occupation kills! Israelis and Palestinians pay with their lives! Join the struggle - in Tel Aviv tonight! In a terribe reality with no hope on the horizon, when despair and violence dominate people's lives, innocents often pay the price. The daily killing of Palestinians by Israeli troops goes on virtually unnoticed by the Israeli media and general public. The killing of Israelis by Palestinians gets enormous attention, with all the gory details - but without any mention to the underlying causes. Yesterday's attack in Jerusalem left two Israelis dead, a 6-year-old boy and a 20-year-old young man, five others being hospitalized. The Palestinian assailant was killed by police on the spot. His children and family will likely get their home drmolished in retaliation to an act they did not committ. The occupation kills! The struggle against the occupation and the gvernment' legal coup is gaining support! Come One, Come All - to Tel Aviv tonigh The anti-democratic norms that the right wing promotes have their origin in the Occupation. Denial of Human Rights, suppression of protests, unbridled dictatorial conduct where miitary orders becme unquestionable law - that is the daily reality in the Territories for over fifty years. The Kahnist extreme right, which sets the tone in the government, is an outgrowth of the Occupation, flourishing in the settlement outposts that Israel has been cultivating for decades. It is impossible to maintain a military regime over a civilian population beyond the Green Line and expect that at the same time Israel within the Green Line will remain a balanced democracy. Immediately upon its establishment, the extreme right government launched an attack on the democratic space in Israel. Crushing the legal system serves to crush the veru idea of the Rule of Lsw. The expansion of the police and its transformation into a political police threatens personal safety in the streets. The threats to education, to culture, to the right of workerd to strike and organize, the promotion of de facto annexation in the occupied territories are accompanied by threats of making it difficul to hold demonstrations against the government and of disqualifying the Arab parties from being elected to the Knesset. The campaign agsinst the government's legal coup is gaining huge support! The Black Flags Movementb calls upon YOU to comr to Tel Aviv tonight, Sat. Feb 11. 18:00: Giant march from 1 Rothschild Boulevard. 19:00 rally at Kaplan St. A joint bloc of Hadash and Looking the Occupation In The Eye will also this weekend join the demonstration against the government and its evil decrees - and we will introduce our left wing content into it. No to the Fascist Government! Yes to a joint Jewish-Arab Struggle for Real Democracy! 5:45 p.m. Meet at the fountain on the cornet of Rothschild anf Nachalat Binyamin, where signs against the Occupation will be distributed. . Or come ditectly to the rally, where the anti-Occupation Bloc will stand starting 19:00 at the corner of Leonardo da Vinci and Kaplan. Contact: Omri +972 (0)54-948-0666 Adam Keller in the Netherlands - Feb. 6 to 22 Hi, this is Adam Keller of Gush Shalom. I write to let you know that I will be in the Netherlands from tomorrow, February 6, 2023 until Feb. 22. This is primarily a private visit, I am going there mainly in order to visit the children and grandchildren of my beloved and unforgettable Beate, my wife, companion and fellow activist for 35 years of the most happy marriage imaginable, who died exactly a year and half ago, on August 6, 2021. Beate was originally Dutch, and we were in the habit of going to Holland at least once a year and usually more than once. During these years her three children got married and started having children of their own. I have known these eight grandchildren since they were born and saw them grow up, most of them are already adults with their own lives - thirty five years is a long time. I am glad that Beate's children and grandchildren consider me as part of their family, and intend to go visiting regularly. And in addition I have made quite a few good Dutch friends which I intend to meet during my stay. Anyway, while in the Netherlands I will be happy to meet anybody who wants to meet me and talk either about politics, personal things or both. I will have with me my computer and have paid a bit to make sure my Israeli mobile phone will work while I am there, so I should be accessible either by mail (write to 1453ak@gmail.com, with the subject line in capitals RE MEETING IN THE NETHERLANDS) or by phone and Whatsapp to +972-54-2340749. As you must have heard by now, Israel has been in a big turmoil since the disastrous elections of last November, which brought to power the worst government in Israel's history (and we already had quite a few bad ones...). It is a combination of Netanyahu's Likud Party, which was right-wing nationalist to begin with and in recent years shifted considerably further to the right, with a collection of extreme-right, ultra-nationalist and openly racist parties. People who were not so long ago dismissed as "lunatic fringe" are now holding senior ministerial positions. From the perspective of this nasty government holding power for about two months, there had so far been no strategic change in policies towards the Palestinians. To be sure, there is a clear escalation in the Occupied Territories, an ever mounting death toll. But this is not primarily due to the new Israeli government, and in fact started already under the previous government, the so-called "Government of Change". It is primarily due to young Palestinians having had enough of living under an oppressive occupaion and being ready to openly defy it - at very great risk to life and limb. The powerless Palestinian Authority, which according to the text of the original Oslo Accords should have been merely a transitional stage towards full independence, is fast losing the last shreds of credibility among its people, and might not survive the passing of Prfesident Abbas (Abu Mazen), now 87 years old. To maintain its rule, the Israeli Army is conducting ever more raids into Palestinian towns and villages, which often end with the killing of one or more Palestinian. Rather than "restoring calm", this causes ever more unrest, to which the army responds with more raids, and so on and on. This continues in more or less the same way under the new government. For example, the deadly raid on the Jenin Refugee Camp in which nine Palestinians were killed on the same day, precipitating a bloody Palestinian retaliation in Jerusalem on the next day, might have happened in much the same way even had Yair Lapid still been Prime Minister. The new government so far did little more than add icing to the rotten cake. For example the order of the notorious Itamar Ben Gvir, now "Minister of National Security", to concentrate in a single week the demolitions of Palestinian "illegal homes" in East Jerusalem which were scheduled for a whole month. This can change - the new government is full of extreme, Messianic Nationalists who hatch dreams of far-reaching assaults on the Palestinians - and they may yet get a chance to try implementing them. So far, the main thrust of the new Netanyahu government has been to conduct an all-out attack on the Israeli judicial system, with the manifest aim of breaking down the power of the Supreme Court, totally deprive it of the ability to stop violations of human and civil rights, and completely pack the court with obedient government appointees. The record of the Supreme Court in Jerusalem is far from unblemished, and in recent years it issued some very shameful verdicts. Still, it is clear that with its power completely broken the government could act completely unrestrained in other spheres - which might be the exact reason why the government chose to start with this measure. As many observers noted, Israel might follow Poland and Hungary, European countries where democracy was eroded and authoritarian governments hold sway, paying only lip service to democratic norms. Netanyhau is indeed known to have close cordial relations with Hungary's quasi-dictator Viktor Orbán. It was this clear and manifest danger which precipitated an enormous and growing protest. For more than a month, every weekend tens of thousands of protesters are flooding the streets of Tel Aviv, and considerable protests take place in many other locations throughout the country. Yesterday night I took some moments off from packing warm clothes for the Dutch winter to join yet again the protest. For hours we marched along kilometers of the city's main streets, ceaselessly chanting and hooting: "Israel will not be a dictatorship! No pasarán! Fascism will not pass! De-mo-cra-cy! De-mo-cra-cy! De-mo-cra-cy! What do we say to Netanyahu? De-mo-cra-cy! De-mo-cra-cy! De-mo-cra-cy! What do we say to Ben Gvir? De-mo-cra-cy! De-mo-cra-cy! De-mo-cra-cy! Either democracy or rebellion - no third choice!" There was constant drumming, the young volunteer drummers did not stop for a single moment. The drumming had a kind of hypnotic effect on the marchers. For hundreds of years, soldiers marched into battle to the sound of drums. In modern warfare, this would be complete suicide - but drums are still highly effective in the political struggle of unarmed civil protesters. Of course, I know that only a minority of these protesters are ready to acknowledge the inherent link between the threat to democracy inside Israel and the constant oppression in Israel's backyard on the West Bank, where there had never been any democracy at any time of Israel's 55 years of rule. The radical faction in the protest, in which I of course took part, held aloft the signs "No Democracy with Occupation!" and waved the Red-Green-White-Black Palestinian flag, in solidarity with the oppressed Palestinians whose flag this is. Throughout the march I very much missed Beate, who had so often marched at my side in earlier marches through these same streets. I wish I could believe that she is still somewhere high up in the sky, someplace from where she could watch and listen and invisibly wave her hand. I am nor religious and I am not sure there is anything at all after death (if there is, we will all find out sooner or later...). But imagining her watching the Tel Aviv march from heaven was a bit comforting. I had been hesitating whether this was the right time to be away from the country - but this crisis will not be resolved in anything like two weeks, there are more than enough activists to carry on the protest even without my presence - and it might do me some good to be a little bit outside this pressure cooker of a country. So, to repeat - I will be in the Netherlands from Feb. 6 to 22, and anyone wanting to meet me is most welcome to make contact.
Israel red alert: Weekend of emergency demonstrations The following calls for action were hastily translated from Hebrew, We tried to edit the automatic translation, apologies of grammatical errors still remain. Adam Keller for the Gush Shalom team Friday (today) at Rahat in the Negev - Jews and Bedouins stand together facing Police Minister Ben Gvir. During his rabble rousing campaign, which catapulted him to control of the Israel police, Ben Gvir asked: "Whose home is this?" meaning that the country belongs to Jews only. Our answer is loud and clear: "This is the home of all of us!" This country belongs to all who live in it. On Friday at 12:30 we will gather for an Arab-Jewish rally at the plaza outside Rhat Community Center. This rally is very important. After trying to intimidate the anti-government demonstrators in Tel Aviv and threating police violence of Palestinian flags are flown, Ben Gvir came to the Negev to promote the "restoration of law and order", meaning that it is Bedouins who "threaten public order" and must be "restrained". And Ben Gvir talks openly and explicitly openly of "The Judaisation of the Negev". Not for him the euphemisms used by more mainstream politicans. An all-out police assault on the Negev Bedouins is clearly what he plans. It is very important that Jewish activists devote the time and effort to come to the Negev and stand in solidarity with the Bedouins. This is no less important than the demonstrations in Tel Aviv! For the event on Facebook For the event on Facebook: https://fb.me/e/3aBtV3uuF The residents of Sheikh Jarrah continue to resist eviction from their homes - we come to show solidarity A demonstration in Sheikh Jarrah - today, Friday at 3.00 PM. The main and immediate victims of this evil government are the Palestinians. The order to ban Palestinian flags is a clear call for the police to suppress the protest. We must show broad solidarity! This Friday we will protest, as every week, together with the residents of the neighborhood against the expulsion of families from their homes, the trampling on rights, the Judaization of Jerusalem, police violence, Apartheid, Fascism and occupation. Do you want to defend democracy? Democracy is for everyone! Join Sheikh Jarrah struggle - because there is no better time for resistance and solidarity! shorturl.at/egZ45 Saturday night in Tel Aviv: Mass march against the government - and the police riot control units, alrerdy placed in readiness, will not deter us! This government is bad for everyone. It appears to be headed towards an open dictatorship that will continue the oppression of the Palestinians, increase settlement construction and expose Palestinian residents to settler terrorism and seek to expel hem from their homes. Some say this is not the time to talk about the occupation, becuase the government is also threaenting the basic rights of Jewish Israelis. We say every time is a right time to talk of the occupation and now is the best time for it. For decades there was an attempt to ignore the occupation and exclude it from the discourse. Now the oppression is seeping from the West Bank and threatens also the residents of Tel Aviv who thought themselves imune and turned away their gaze from the oppression of the Palestinians! Come fight for democracy, Saturday night at 19:00, mass rally at the Government Tower on Kaplan St., Tel Aviv. Shake up the country! Knesset Member Zvika Fogel of the Jewish Power Party (the party whose leader now controls the police!) called for the opposition leaders to be arrested and charged with High Treson - which in Israeli law carries the capital punishement, never (yet?) enforced. These are the dark days in the history of Israel. The hallmarks of Fascism are already visible: an attempt to take over the judiciary, calls to imprison opposition leaders and use police violence against pro-democracy demonstrators. We call on citizens to take to the streets on Saturday to fight for democracy before it is too late! We call on the police to remember they are supposed to serve the public, not Ben Gvir's racist agenda. But Whatever happens, police violence or no police violence, we are coming! We take to the streets, we do not hesitate, we are not intimidated! The program of this governnment amounts to a coup d'état - the crushing of the judiciary, making all officials totally subservient, suppression of the media. In face of this, it the right and duty of the people to get out and revolt! Citizens, don't be intimidated by Netanyahu and Ben Gvir. This is the time to come out and be counted. This is no time to stay home, no time to say "I have other plans for this evening, I will come next time". There might be no next time - if we don't stop them NOW! All, all, all - Come and fight for democracy. All gather on Saturday night 19:00 to Kaplan Street in Tel Aviv! Gush Shalom: The UN decision is a very necessary message to Israel’s extreme right-wing government Gush Shalom, the Israeli Peace Bloc wrote tonight to the United Nations Secretary-General, welcoming the General Assembly’s decision to refer to the review of the International Court the issue of Israel’s occupation rule over millions of Palestinians. This conveys a correct and message to the extreme right-wing government that has emerged in Israel. Let this government know that the International Community is not indifferent to wrongdoings committed by the State of Israel. Since 1967, and for 55 years already, the State of Israel maintains a brutal military rule over millions of Palestinian residents and imposes its rule on them against their will. For fifty-five years, successive Israeli governments asserted that this is a "temporary" situation, pending negotiations at some misty future date. But this argument sounds more and more hollow and empty - especially when the government that has now been installed in Israel intends to act with all its might to perpetuate Israeli rule in these territories and increase and expand the construction of settlements. As Israeli citizens anxious for the future of our country, we in Gush Shalom wholeheartedly welcome the decision of the Assembly General and the comprehensive judicial review that will take place at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. One can wish and hope that this process will force the State of Israel to take at last the decision it has been trying to avoid for so many years. If these territories are "our country" as Prime Minister Netanyahu claims, and if the State of Israel is a democratic country, then Israel should grant its citizenship to all residents living in "our country" and allow them to participate in the elections which determine the government that rules over them – and then there will be a completely different government in Israel. If the State of Israel does not want this, it must withdraw its army from these territories and allow the Palestinians to establish their independent state there. And should the State of Israel refuse to grant citizenship to the Palestinians and also insist on maintaining military rule over them and shooting to death young Palestinians who oppose this rule, Israel will no longer be able to claim that it is "the only democracy in the Middle East". Rather, Israel will become heir to the former Apartheid regime in South Africa, where the right to vote was limited to whites and denied to blacks. We strongly uphold the judges of the International Court of Justice, who will now deal in depth with the issues that the judges of the Supreme Court in Jerusalem avoid. Contact: Adam Keller, Gush Shalom spokesperson +972-(0)54-2340749 Hebron: “No one walked away not feeling outraged” Dear All, Every year, the J Street Education Fund takes Members of Congress and their staff to Israel and the West Bank on experiences that participants have called “life-changing”. We aim to deliver a comprehensive, no-holds-barred examination of Israel’s security challenges, the occupation and the settlement movement -- and the impact all this has on the lives and freedoms of everyday Israelis and Palestinians. Today, with their permission, I’m sharing a piece of feedback from a congressional staffer who joined our most recent trip which included a tour of the divided, occupied city of Hebron. I think it demonstrates the profound impact these trips can have: “Hebron was the most emotionally intense moment that I’ve had in this job. No one walked away not feeling outraged, no matter their personal politics before the trip or the orientation of their office.” We must make sure that leaders in Washington -- even those who can’t join us in the region -- understand the reality on the ground and the threat that indefinite occupation poses to Palestinian freedoms, our values and Israel’s democratic future. Our visits to the city of Hebron -- home to 200,000 Palestinians, and in their midst 800 settlers and over 1,000 soldiers -- are among the most emotionally taxing moments for me as well. For myself and many other Jews, Muslims and Christians, Hebron is one of the holiest cities in the Middle East. It’s the resting place of important Jewish patriarchs and matriarchs and carries a tremendous amount of religious significance, which is why it’s so painful to see what it has become. With checkpoints, razor-wire, gates and guns, the very sharpest edges of the occupation, injustice and hostility are on full display. It carries the painful, recent history of horrific massacres inflicted by Jewish and Arab perpetrators. On our trips we’re often shadowed, yelled at and intimidated. Last trip, a settler hit me square in the chest with a full cup of coffee. Photos of Hebron showing the occupation While some would rather hide the occupation and ignore the settlement movement, at J Street we know that those who are truly pro-Israel cannot afford to look away. “One of my greatest takeaways is that to be pro-Israel is to be in favor of recognizing, understanding and dealing with the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians,” Rep. Madeleine Dean told Jewish Insider after joining one of our trips earlier this year. “A failure to deal with that only jeopardizes the security of Israel.” Indeed, Hebron demonstrates not only the injustice and humiliation that the occupation inflicts on Palestinians, but the danger faced by thousands of young Israelis who are sent to guard settlements, checkpoints and outposts and uphold a deeply unjust, unequal system of military control. Perpetual conflict, perpetual settlement construction and perpetual occupation bring misery and pain to both Israeli and Palestinian families. Yours sincerely, Cooper Boyar Associate Director for Congressional Education, J Street Palestinian farmers are under attack Dear All My name is Rafa, and I lead the Palestinian youth group at Combatants for Peace. I am proud to share that in the midst of violence and occupation, our brave youth continue the nonviolent struggle for equality and human rights. Over the past few months, we have planted olive trees to help families stay on their land, organized powerful nonviolent demonstrations, and advocated for equal water access. Recently, our youth group supported Palestinian families by helping to harvest olives: using their own bodies to protect the farmers from settler and military violence. Below is a note from Razan Mohamed, one of our young activists: There is no doubt that the situation is deteriorating rapidly right now: Less than four weeks ago, a Jewish Israeli woman named Hagar Geffen was accompanying a Palestinian farmer in his olive harvest just south of Bethlehem. A group of masked settlers approached and sprayed toxic chemicals on the elderly farmer's 180 olive trees. Hagar was documenting the incident on camera, when she was attacked by the settlers. They carried machetes, knives, and axes. They held her down, brutally beat her head with clubs and dropped large rocks on her until she bled. Hagar is 70 years old. It takes tremendous courage for our activists to do what they do. In the face of acute violence, we hold fast to hope, and continue to use nonviolence to resist brutality. Together we are taking action to dismantle systems of oppression. Together we are working for dignity, equality, and justice. For every act of violence, we strive for a greater show of peace. Now is the time to act! Donate https://tinyurl.com/y8uhcv7p Rafa Mismar Palestinian Youth Group Coordinator Combatants for Peace American Friends of Combatants for Peace 48 Wall Street Suite 1100 New York, NY 10005 United States Ganz, stop pereceuting Human Rights organizations! Defence Minister Ganz: Stop persecution of Palestinian civil society and Human Rights groups! On Friday September 9, at 9:00 am, we will arrive at the home of Defence Minister Benny Ganz at 9 Talalim St., in Rosh Ha'Ain, east of Tel Aviv - to deliver a wake up call and tell the Defence Minister that he had overreached himself and should turn back. Gantz is responsible for the ongoing harassment and the closing of the offices of six Palestinian civil organizations, without anything resembling due process . This is an anti-democratic step that tramples on the rights of the Palestinians and also causes damage to Israel. With every passing day it becomes even more clear that the closure of the six Palestinian civil society organizations (and one other organization, in a separate procedure) by Benni Gantz, with the arrogant posture "Trust me, they are terrorists!" is entirely baseless, a violation of human rights reminiscent of the highly dubious acts of such regimes as those that dominate Russia, China or Turkey. On the other hand, Israel's most prominent allies, the US, Britain, the European Union as well as individual European countries, submitted Ganz's "evidence" to their intelligence services - all of which rejected it out of hand. None of the Western countries, which all too often take Israel's side, was impressed by that "evidence". So far, even faced with this severe public relations damage to Israel, Gantz did not change his stance. But we do not despair. Gantz is trying to court various sections of Israeli and international public opinion, including liberal people who care for Human Rights. This makes him vulnerable to pressure, and we intend to apply maximum pressure and cry out as loudly as we can about Human Rights violations and about the suppression of Human Rights organizations. We will cry out loudly - also outside Ganz's own home - and call on him to show real courage - admit that he had made a mistake, and rectify it! The protest outside Ganz's home - and more actions to follow - is orgaizned by a coalition of organizations and activists (among them Standing Together, Amnesty International Israel and others). See article in The Guardian: "CIA unable to corroborate Israel’s ‘terror’ label for Palestinian rights groups" https://tinyurl.com/bdzhdr5y Four refuse service in an occupation army On Sunday the 4/9 Shahar, Einat, Nave and Evyatar are going to refuse to join the Israeli Occupation Army! After they refuse it is very likely that they will be held in military prison. We will of course be there to support them! join us at 9:00 Sunday the 4/9 next to the entrance of the Tel Hashomer military recruitment Base Gaza Ceasefire in the offing? Let it be! August 6 was going to be for me a private day of mourning. It was last year, on August 6, 2021, that I said goodbye forever to my dear wife Beate - the final end of 35 years of the most successful and happy marriage imaginable. But Yair Lapid, the "Center Left" Prime Minister of Israel's caretaker government, had other plans. The Prime Minister provided me with a spectacular diversion, to have much else on my mind except for sad memories. So yesterday afternoon I had no time to pine in sad memories, I was busy sending out action alerts and press releases about Mr. Lapid's military assault on the Gaza Strip. First sending out the Hebrew text, then translating it to English and sending that out. While I was doing all that, the air raid alarm sounded in my city of Holon. I did not seek shelter, I just remained at my computer and continued working. I do not claim any special heroism - the statistical chance of a rocket from Gaza landing directly on my home was very small. Indeed, it did not happen - I and my computer are completely intact. When it was done, I caught a taxi to attend the Tel Aviv demo myself. We were at the Defence Ministry gate, several hundred strong, chanting "Stop the War! Stop the Bloodshed! On both sides of the border, children want to live!" So many times, Beate had been with me at such emergency protests in the same place. It was a fitting memorial for her. Tonight there will be a further protest at Lapid's private home, initiated by a very industrious group of young Feminists, and in some other locations. Meanwhile, very welcome news of a possible ceasefire at 8.00 PM - the exact hour scheduled for the protest of the "Broom-Riding Witches" as they call themselves. Hopefully it will come true, and this madness will end after three days, which is three days too many, with a death toll "only" in the dozens rather than thousands as in earlier Gaza assaults. And a five year old girl whose death was certainly caused by an Israeli Air Force bomb, and four other children for whom the responsibility will temain disputed (but they are cetainly dead...). But oh, let it end tonight! Adam Keller - Gush Shalom Out on the streets: Stop the Gaza war now! Demonstrations throughout Israel: Stop the bloodshed! Stop the Gaza war now! Only peace will bring security! While I was sending out the following in Hebrew and then translating it to English the air raid alarm sounded in my city of Holon. I did not seek shelter, I just remained at my computer and continued working. I do not claim any special heroism - the statistical chance of a rocket from Gaza landing directly on my home was very small. Indeed, it did not happen - I and my computer are completely intact. So, I will send this to you, and then I am going to catch a taxi to attend the Tel Aviv demo myself. Adam Keller - Gush Shalom Stop the bloodshed! Stop the Gaza war now! Only peace will bring security! Sat. night Aug. 6 - protest demonstrations throughout the country Tel Aviv 19:00 in front of the Defense Ministry Jaffa 19:00 Clock Square Haifa 17:00 Emil Habibi Square (entrance to Wadi Nisnas) Jerusalem: 20:30 Old Mashbir Square Umm El Fahm: 18:00 at the entrance to the city Yeshiva Bridge in Sde Ya'akov: 17:30 Press Release Aug. 6. 2022 The Ezracheiha ('All Citizens') Movement, new Jewish-Arab civil movement, today calls on the government of Israeli to immediately stop an armed election campaign soaked in the blood of innocents, cynically aimed at giving the caretaker government of Yair lapid a warlike imgae towards the November general elections. The time has come to realize that there is no military solution to the conflict. The there is one and only one way to ensure the sustainable security of all the people of this country. The way is putting an end to the occupation and achieving a peace agreement acceptable to all. We, Jews and Arabs, want a different future for ourselves and for our children. So, Mr. Prime Minister, stop bombing and start talking! Contact: Avraham Burg +972-(0)50-900-2222 Prof. Faisal Azeize +972-(0)50-530-9365 Vigil at Australian Embassy in Tel Aviv, calling for Australia to recognize State of Palestine Recognition of Palestinian Independence – The Way to Peace Between Countries Call for action: On Friday, July 22, 2022 we will meet at 11:00 am in front of the Australian Embassy to Israel, 23 Yehuda Halevi St., Tel Aviv, and call for recognition of Palestinian independence The Labor Party's victory in the Australian elections and the appointment of Anthony Albanese as Prime Minister have raised hopes among Palestinians as among Israelis seeking to end the occupation and promoting the creation of an independen |
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