Haaretz Last update - 08:25 29/08/2007
By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz Correspondent
The beginning of the Jewish sabbatical year is just two weeks away, but the kashrut certification bureaucrats are breaking new records for the absurd: Kashrut supervisors from the Chief Rabbinate are forcing Israeli Arabs to sign a document that gives the Israel Lands Administration and the Chief Rabbinate the right to sell the land to a non-Jew as a condition for continued kosher certification for their produce. If they refuse to sign, they were told that the wholesalers to whom they sell their goods will also lose their kashrut certification. The loss of the certificate would mean that the farmers and wholesalers would be unable to sell their produce in Jewish towns and stores. MK Ahmed Tibi (Ra'am-Ta'al) called on Arab farmers not to sign the forms, saying that it was an illegal demand.
Distributors in the wholesale fruit and vegetable market at Tzrifin have recently received the documents they were requested to distribute to every farmer they buy from. The form gives the ILA and the Chief Rabbinate, or their agents, power of attorney to sell the land on which they grow produce to non-Jews during the sabbatical year, which occurs every seven years according to Jewish law and during which the land is required to lie fallow, and which begins on Rosh Hashanah in two weeks. The document is the legal basis for symbolicly selling the land to a non-Jew for the year-long period, known as "Heiter Mechira."
This sale is a legal fiction that allows the land to be farmed and the produce sold to Jews during the sabbatical year. The Chief Rabbinate and the ILA will serve as the go-betweens who will "sell" the land to a non-Jew on the eve of Rosh Hashanah. According to halakha, Jewish religious law, during the sabbatical year Jews may eat produce grown in the Land of Israel only if it was grown on land owned by non-Jews.
However, kashrut supervisors in the center of the country, acting on the orders of Rabbi Avraham Yosef, the Chief Rabbi of Holon, are also demanding that Arab farmers sign the document. One Arab farmer who was given the document said that he was terrified to find out that he was required to sell his land as a condition to continue selling his produce with rabbinical supervision. "For 30 years, I have been in agriculture, and I have seen five or six sabbatical years," he said. "Suddenly, they are telling us that they will remove the kashrut [certification] from our wholesalers if we do not agree to sell the land.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/898515.htmlPeople are scared, since our produce is sold to Jews all over the country." A kashrut supervisor from the rabbinate explained that they wanted "to be sure that all of the land is sold to a non-Jew. The problem is that some of the Arab farmers are [leasing] ILA land, and are farming what is in fact Jewish land. [Any non-Jew who] presents us with a land registry deed that proves that the land is his will be exempted from signing the forms," said the supervisor. The head of the Chief Rabbinate's committee on the sabbatical year, Rabbi Zeev Witman, promised that "All the agricultural produce grown by Arabs will be accepted. They can ignore this document." On the other hand, Rabbi Yosef insisted that "Arab farmers must sign, since there are many go-betweens among Arab farmers and we want to discourage them."
mercredi 29 août 2007
lundi 20 août 2007
ILA leasing Arab-owned land in Jerusalem to Ateret Cohanim
Haaretz 08:57 20/08/2007
By Meron Rapoport, Haaretz Correspondent
The Israel Lands Administration (ILA) is working together with the Ateret Cohanim association to wrest from Palestinian landowners control of 30 dunams (7.5 acres) of land in East Jerusalem and to transfer it to the association without a tender. Such is the claim outlined in a petition submitted two weeks ago to the High Court of Justice, and appearing in documents which Haaretz has received. Ateret Cohanim promotes settlement of Jews in and around the Old City, and at times takes over Palestinian assets in East Jerusalem so as to "Judaize" that area. The land in question, an olive grove called Kerem Hamufti, is in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. From the documents received, it emerges that the ILA has signed a contract with Ateret Cohanim for "the agricultural cultivation" of the land, even though the association has no experience in such work.
The documents indicate that the contract was signed even though the land that the ILA leased apparently does not belong to it and the Interior Ministry recognizes that the Palestinian landowners "have an interest" in it. A senior source at the ILA has said the contract was signed in order "to keep the territory in Jewish hands." In the petition it is claimed that an authorized official at the ILA "acted to advance the interests of Ateret Cohanim," to prevent the Palestinians who claim ownership of the land from developing it. The petitioners define the ILA action as "corrupt" and are asking the attorney general to investigate "the involvement of Ateret Cohanim in governmental decision-making." In March, 40 years after declaring its intentions to do so, the state formally expropriated the land, at the request of the ILA. Former finance minister Abraham Hirchson signed on the plan to expropriate the property under the rubric of "acquisition for public needs." In its petition to the High Court, the Palestinian landowners, the Arab Hotels Company, asks for the expropriation to be prohibited because it was done "for an extraneous, illegitimate, racist and discriminatory purpose ... An illegitimate and corrupt hand has worked hand in glove with the authorities or other elements to harm the petitioner's rights, and to disinherit the petitioner for purposes of leasing the land to Ateret Cohanim." Kerem Hamufti is named for its former owner, Haj Amin al-Husseini, the mufti of Jerusalem. According to Israeli and Jordanian documents, in the 1960s it was purchased by the Arab Hotels Company of East Jerusalem. After the area was annexed to Israel after the Six-Day War, the Finance Ministry stated its intention to expropriate the land "for public purposes," but this was never carried out and the Palestinian owners continued to cultivate it. Several times over the years an Israeli court confirmed that the company is indeed owner of the property. About seven years ago the Palestinian owners submitted to the planning authorities a request to build a hotel, a conference center and a cultural center on the land. Architect Moshe Margalit, who drew up the plan, relates that at the time the District Planning Commission confirmed that the East Jerusalem company has ownership rights to the land. The Interior Ministry confirmed to Haaretz that the company has been allowed to continue the planning as it has been proved that it "has an interest in the land." Municipal blessing From the summaries of meetings concerning the property at the Interior Ministry, it emerges that representatives of the ILA were present, but did not mention they had leased the land to Ateret Cohanim or that it belongs to the ILA. Margalit relates that the Palestinian landowners' plan was presented "to the most senior people at the Jerusalem Municipality" and received their blessing. The petition also states that the mayor of Jerusalem at the time, Ehud Olmert, and his deputy, Yehuda Pollack, the chairman of the Local Planning and Building Committee, supported it. However, at a certain stage, relates Margalit, it seemed that Ateret Cohanim also submitted a plan for this parcel of land: Two years beforehand, the ILA had granted permission to Irving Moskowitz, the American Jewish millionaire who supports Ateret Cohanim, to plan a neighborhood on Kerem Hamufti. A person close to the association aims to build 250 housing units there, and pressured ministers in former prime minister Ariel Sharon's first government to approve it. In June, 2000, immediately after the plan by Moskowitz and Ateret Cohanim was revealed, the landowners' attorneys applied to Jerusalem's Local Planning and Building Committee with a request to dismiss the scheme because "those who submitted it are not the owners of the land." The committee told the attorneys that the plan had been "shelved." A few months ago the Arab Hotels Company received notice from the Magistrates Court, allowing it to evict a Palestinian who was squatting on the land. However, on the day of the eviction, the Amidar company, on behalf of the ILA, filed a demand to stop it. While the ILA and Amidar acknowledge this was indeed a matter of a squatter, a senior source at the ILA has told Haaretz that the Palestinian "was working with Ateret Cohanim." The source explains his presence was necessary "to prevent theft of land by Palestinians." The current petition says the state owns about 20 percent of Kerem Hamufti under the Absentee Property Law, as it belonged to Al-Husseini, who collaborated with the Nazis during World War II. However, the Palestinian landowners' lawyers insist that the law does not apply to the property because it was purchased from the Al-Husseini family before Israeli rule began in East Jerusalem in 1967. Attorney Danny Kramer, the representative of the official guardian of absentee property, is also a signatory to the petition, which states that the guardian has no connection to the land, and also that the ILA has been leasing it to Ateret Cohanim "for some years now." In its petition, the Arab Hotels Company argues that the low lease being paid by Ateret Cohanim is proof that this is an "artificial contract." The association is paying NIS 42.5 per dunam (which comes to NIS 1,278 for the entire parcel of land), although it is in a prestigious location. The ILA's official response to Haaretz states that the contract with the Jewish association was signed "more than five years ago"; a senior ILA source says the contract was signed "at the beginning of the 1990s." At the ILA they were not able to explain how the entire plot of land was leased to Ateret Cohanim, despite the fact that even the ILA itself says the state owns only 20 percent of it. The ILA explains the fact that they dealt with the association without a tender by saying "it was the only applicant." Concerning Ateret Cohanim's lack of experience in agriculture, the ILA says: "It is not stipulated anywhere that the minimal condition for submitting an application for cultivation is prior experience." Based on past High Court of Justice rulings saying that if the state does not implement an expropriation order for many years, it's possible to annul it, the Palestinian landowners are asking the court to issue a show cause order, requiring the state to explain why it should not prohibit the expropriation in this case.
By Meron Rapoport, Haaretz Correspondent
The Israel Lands Administration (ILA) is working together with the Ateret Cohanim association to wrest from Palestinian landowners control of 30 dunams (7.5 acres) of land in East Jerusalem and to transfer it to the association without a tender. Such is the claim outlined in a petition submitted two weeks ago to the High Court of Justice, and appearing in documents which Haaretz has received. Ateret Cohanim promotes settlement of Jews in and around the Old City, and at times takes over Palestinian assets in East Jerusalem so as to "Judaize" that area. The land in question, an olive grove called Kerem Hamufti, is in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. From the documents received, it emerges that the ILA has signed a contract with Ateret Cohanim for "the agricultural cultivation" of the land, even though the association has no experience in such work.
The documents indicate that the contract was signed even though the land that the ILA leased apparently does not belong to it and the Interior Ministry recognizes that the Palestinian landowners "have an interest" in it. A senior source at the ILA has said the contract was signed in order "to keep the territory in Jewish hands." In the petition it is claimed that an authorized official at the ILA "acted to advance the interests of Ateret Cohanim," to prevent the Palestinians who claim ownership of the land from developing it. The petitioners define the ILA action as "corrupt" and are asking the attorney general to investigate "the involvement of Ateret Cohanim in governmental decision-making." In March, 40 years after declaring its intentions to do so, the state formally expropriated the land, at the request of the ILA. Former finance minister Abraham Hirchson signed on the plan to expropriate the property under the rubric of "acquisition for public needs." In its petition to the High Court, the Palestinian landowners, the Arab Hotels Company, asks for the expropriation to be prohibited because it was done "for an extraneous, illegitimate, racist and discriminatory purpose ... An illegitimate and corrupt hand has worked hand in glove with the authorities or other elements to harm the petitioner's rights, and to disinherit the petitioner for purposes of leasing the land to Ateret Cohanim." Kerem Hamufti is named for its former owner, Haj Amin al-Husseini, the mufti of Jerusalem. According to Israeli and Jordanian documents, in the 1960s it was purchased by the Arab Hotels Company of East Jerusalem. After the area was annexed to Israel after the Six-Day War, the Finance Ministry stated its intention to expropriate the land "for public purposes," but this was never carried out and the Palestinian owners continued to cultivate it. Several times over the years an Israeli court confirmed that the company is indeed owner of the property. About seven years ago the Palestinian owners submitted to the planning authorities a request to build a hotel, a conference center and a cultural center on the land. Architect Moshe Margalit, who drew up the plan, relates that at the time the District Planning Commission confirmed that the East Jerusalem company has ownership rights to the land. The Interior Ministry confirmed to Haaretz that the company has been allowed to continue the planning as it has been proved that it "has an interest in the land." Municipal blessing From the summaries of meetings concerning the property at the Interior Ministry, it emerges that representatives of the ILA were present, but did not mention they had leased the land to Ateret Cohanim or that it belongs to the ILA. Margalit relates that the Palestinian landowners' plan was presented "to the most senior people at the Jerusalem Municipality" and received their blessing. The petition also states that the mayor of Jerusalem at the time, Ehud Olmert, and his deputy, Yehuda Pollack, the chairman of the Local Planning and Building Committee, supported it. However, at a certain stage, relates Margalit, it seemed that Ateret Cohanim also submitted a plan for this parcel of land: Two years beforehand, the ILA had granted permission to Irving Moskowitz, the American Jewish millionaire who supports Ateret Cohanim, to plan a neighborhood on Kerem Hamufti. A person close to the association aims to build 250 housing units there, and pressured ministers in former prime minister Ariel Sharon's first government to approve it. In June, 2000, immediately after the plan by Moskowitz and Ateret Cohanim was revealed, the landowners' attorneys applied to Jerusalem's Local Planning and Building Committee with a request to dismiss the scheme because "those who submitted it are not the owners of the land." The committee told the attorneys that the plan had been "shelved." A few months ago the Arab Hotels Company received notice from the Magistrates Court, allowing it to evict a Palestinian who was squatting on the land. However, on the day of the eviction, the Amidar company, on behalf of the ILA, filed a demand to stop it. While the ILA and Amidar acknowledge this was indeed a matter of a squatter, a senior source at the ILA has told Haaretz that the Palestinian "was working with Ateret Cohanim." The source explains his presence was necessary "to prevent theft of land by Palestinians." The current petition says the state owns about 20 percent of Kerem Hamufti under the Absentee Property Law, as it belonged to Al-Husseini, who collaborated with the Nazis during World War II. However, the Palestinian landowners' lawyers insist that the law does not apply to the property because it was purchased from the Al-Husseini family before Israeli rule began in East Jerusalem in 1967. Attorney Danny Kramer, the representative of the official guardian of absentee property, is also a signatory to the petition, which states that the guardian has no connection to the land, and also that the ILA has been leasing it to Ateret Cohanim "for some years now." In its petition, the Arab Hotels Company argues that the low lease being paid by Ateret Cohanim is proof that this is an "artificial contract." The association is paying NIS 42.5 per dunam (which comes to NIS 1,278 for the entire parcel of land), although it is in a prestigious location. The ILA's official response to Haaretz states that the contract with the Jewish association was signed "more than five years ago"; a senior ILA source says the contract was signed "at the beginning of the 1990s." At the ILA they were not able to explain how the entire plot of land was leased to Ateret Cohanim, despite the fact that even the ILA itself says the state owns only 20 percent of it. The ILA explains the fact that they dealt with the association without a tender by saying "it was the only applicant." Concerning Ateret Cohanim's lack of experience in agriculture, the ILA says: "It is not stipulated anywhere that the minimal condition for submitting an application for cultivation is prior experience." Based on past High Court of Justice rulings saying that if the state does not implement an expropriation order for many years, it's possible to annul it, the Palestinian landowners are asking the court to issue a show cause order, requiring the state to explain why it should not prohibit the expropriation in this case.
Dalia Itzik: State must apologize to Israel's Holocaust survivors
Haaretz 20:47 20/08/2007
By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz Correspondent
Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik said Monday that the State of Israel must apologize to Holocaust survivors for all the funds that the state has withheld from them over the years. Itzik spoke during a special Knesset discussion on the topic of monetary assistance to impoverished survivors. "The State of Israel demanded the reparation money that was transferred from Germany, but wasn't wise enough to channel the funds correctly for the benefit of those who needed and deserved it," Itzik said at the discussion. "Today we are here to repair that mistake, so that we are able to look the survivors in the eye, and with humility, tell them on behalf of the State of Israel, and on behalf of Israeli society, that we are sorry."
Last week, State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss published a special report which concluded that the Finance Ministry had delayed and canceled financial support for institutions that assist survivors. The report found that funds that were designated for survivors were not used for that purpose, nor is the primary body charged with coordinating the activities of survivors' organizations funded at all. According to the report, the problem is a result of mismanagement in the Finance Ministry. Lindenstrauss further determined that survivors experience years of delays in processing their claims due to bureaucratic obstacles and the lack of adequate manpower. During Monday's discussion, several MKs criticized Itzik for deferring the discussion until after a deal was struck Sunday between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the survivors' groups over the amount of monthly assistance they would be eligible to receive. Meretz Party Chair Zahava Gal-On criticized Olmert for failing to attend the special discussion. She added that the government mustn't discriminate between types of survivors, referring the distinction the prime minister had made between survivors who endured the camps, and those who escaped the Nazi-controlled areas and ended up in Soviet territories. The agreement reached between the Olmert and the survivors stipulated a monthly stipend for those who had survived the camps, but not the "second circle" survivors. "There is no difference between people who experienced pain, suffering, humiliation, were tortured and fled," Gal-On said. MK Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor) said that "Israel cannot conduct another selection," referring to the selection the survivors underwent on their way to the camps. However, government representative and Pensioners' Minister Rafi Eitan said that the large number of survivors requires such a sub-division. MK Collette Avital (Labor) warned against the possibility that the treasury would undermine the planned assistance by dragging its feet. "Israel's government must take organizational decisions in addition to budgetary decisions. If we don't make the bureaucratic system more efficient, repair those failures the state comptroller referred to in his report, and ensure that the survivors receive appropriate and respectable treatment, the money allocated to them will continue to get stuck in the depths of bureaucracy and one day soon we will discover that the pretty decisions made yesterday (Sunday) won't be worth more than the paper they are written on." MK Sarah Marom Shalev (Pensioners), a Holocaust survivor herself, urged the Knesset not to approve the 2008 budget until the financial aid to survivors is finalized. She said "yesterday I was at the funeral of one of my closest friends, a Holocaust survivor. He died at age 72 with nothing." On Sunday, Olmert agreed, during his meeting with representatives of Holocaust survivors, to allocate NIS 100 million next year for medical and nursing-care benefits to survivors living in Israel. In addition, he said the survivors would enjoy municipal tax discounts, an exemption from the television tax, and NIS 30 million in vacation and convalescence benefits. The funds allotted for convalescence and for medical and nursing-care benefits, which will be distributed by the Holocaust Survivors' Welfare Fund, will double in 2009. Olmert refused, however, to grant benefits to survivors who fled Nazi-controlled territory and were not placed in concentration camps or ghettos, saying that to do so would be to create an "ethnic gap" between European Holocaust survivors and elderly Israelis who fled persecution in other countries, such as Iraq. "I don't doubt for even one moment the distress of those who fled from countries where the Nazis were, and they are survivors of the Nazi occupation," Olmert said, adding, on the other hand, that "I am not disregarding those who fled from the enemies of Israel - the Persians, the Moroccans, the Tunisians and the Syrians." Noah Flug, who heads the Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors in Israel, which represented the survivors in negotiations, told Olmert that two-thirds of Holocaust survivors from Poland managed to flee eastward during the Nazi occupation. He said most international groups and foreign governments - and previously, the Israeli government - recognized such refugees as survivors in every way. The government negotiators were initially leaning toward granting benefits to those who fled Nazi-controlled territory, but changed their position due to the opposition of the Finance Ministry's budget division. The ministry said financial problems relating to such survivors should instead be resolved within the context of a solution for all needy elderly Israelis. The National Economics Council is due to come up with such a solution by the Rosh Hashanah holiday in mid-September. The Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors is aiming to help those who have fallen through the cracks, and who receive little government support in the form of the benefits received by most survivors that were in concentration camps or ghettos. Some 8,000 survivors who have yet to receive a special government allotment for various bureaucratic reasons will be receiving NIS 1,200 a month for the next two years. The government will try to convince Germany to provide the funds for the payout. If it does not succeed, it will increase the benefits paid by Israel to NIS 1,600 a month after the two years have passed. In addition, some 7,000 survivors who receive reparations from a German fund established in the 1990s, and who subsist thanks to income supplements, will receive an annual grant of NIS 3,000. The government will also fund a center that will inform survivors concerning their financial rights and help them receive the money that is due them. The government, whose negotiating team was led by Prime Minister's Office director general Raanan Dinur, also agreed to symbolic gestures such as granting survivors a badge of appreciation on the occasion of Israel's upcoming 60th birthday. It will also establish a committee - half of whose members are survivors, and half ministerial directors - which will meet twice a year to discuss survivors' benefits and any related problems that might arise. The government also committee to promote legislation recognizing the Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors as the representative group in any future negotiations with the government.
By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz Correspondent
Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik said Monday that the State of Israel must apologize to Holocaust survivors for all the funds that the state has withheld from them over the years. Itzik spoke during a special Knesset discussion on the topic of monetary assistance to impoverished survivors. "The State of Israel demanded the reparation money that was transferred from Germany, but wasn't wise enough to channel the funds correctly for the benefit of those who needed and deserved it," Itzik said at the discussion. "Today we are here to repair that mistake, so that we are able to look the survivors in the eye, and with humility, tell them on behalf of the State of Israel, and on behalf of Israeli society, that we are sorry."
Last week, State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss published a special report which concluded that the Finance Ministry had delayed and canceled financial support for institutions that assist survivors. The report found that funds that were designated for survivors were not used for that purpose, nor is the primary body charged with coordinating the activities of survivors' organizations funded at all. According to the report, the problem is a result of mismanagement in the Finance Ministry. Lindenstrauss further determined that survivors experience years of delays in processing their claims due to bureaucratic obstacles and the lack of adequate manpower. During Monday's discussion, several MKs criticized Itzik for deferring the discussion until after a deal was struck Sunday between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the survivors' groups over the amount of monthly assistance they would be eligible to receive. Meretz Party Chair Zahava Gal-On criticized Olmert for failing to attend the special discussion. She added that the government mustn't discriminate between types of survivors, referring the distinction the prime minister had made between survivors who endured the camps, and those who escaped the Nazi-controlled areas and ended up in Soviet territories. The agreement reached between the Olmert and the survivors stipulated a monthly stipend for those who had survived the camps, but not the "second circle" survivors. "There is no difference between people who experienced pain, suffering, humiliation, were tortured and fled," Gal-On said. MK Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor) said that "Israel cannot conduct another selection," referring to the selection the survivors underwent on their way to the camps. However, government representative and Pensioners' Minister Rafi Eitan said that the large number of survivors requires such a sub-division. MK Collette Avital (Labor) warned against the possibility that the treasury would undermine the planned assistance by dragging its feet. "Israel's government must take organizational decisions in addition to budgetary decisions. If we don't make the bureaucratic system more efficient, repair those failures the state comptroller referred to in his report, and ensure that the survivors receive appropriate and respectable treatment, the money allocated to them will continue to get stuck in the depths of bureaucracy and one day soon we will discover that the pretty decisions made yesterday (Sunday) won't be worth more than the paper they are written on." MK Sarah Marom Shalev (Pensioners), a Holocaust survivor herself, urged the Knesset not to approve the 2008 budget until the financial aid to survivors is finalized. She said "yesterday I was at the funeral of one of my closest friends, a Holocaust survivor. He died at age 72 with nothing." On Sunday, Olmert agreed, during his meeting with representatives of Holocaust survivors, to allocate NIS 100 million next year for medical and nursing-care benefits to survivors living in Israel. In addition, he said the survivors would enjoy municipal tax discounts, an exemption from the television tax, and NIS 30 million in vacation and convalescence benefits. The funds allotted for convalescence and for medical and nursing-care benefits, which will be distributed by the Holocaust Survivors' Welfare Fund, will double in 2009. Olmert refused, however, to grant benefits to survivors who fled Nazi-controlled territory and were not placed in concentration camps or ghettos, saying that to do so would be to create an "ethnic gap" between European Holocaust survivors and elderly Israelis who fled persecution in other countries, such as Iraq. "I don't doubt for even one moment the distress of those who fled from countries where the Nazis were, and they are survivors of the Nazi occupation," Olmert said, adding, on the other hand, that "I am not disregarding those who fled from the enemies of Israel - the Persians, the Moroccans, the Tunisians and the Syrians." Noah Flug, who heads the Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors in Israel, which represented the survivors in negotiations, told Olmert that two-thirds of Holocaust survivors from Poland managed to flee eastward during the Nazi occupation. He said most international groups and foreign governments - and previously, the Israeli government - recognized such refugees as survivors in every way. The government negotiators were initially leaning toward granting benefits to those who fled Nazi-controlled territory, but changed their position due to the opposition of the Finance Ministry's budget division. The ministry said financial problems relating to such survivors should instead be resolved within the context of a solution for all needy elderly Israelis. The National Economics Council is due to come up with such a solution by the Rosh Hashanah holiday in mid-September. The Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors is aiming to help those who have fallen through the cracks, and who receive little government support in the form of the benefits received by most survivors that were in concentration camps or ghettos. Some 8,000 survivors who have yet to receive a special government allotment for various bureaucratic reasons will be receiving NIS 1,200 a month for the next two years. The government will try to convince Germany to provide the funds for the payout. If it does not succeed, it will increase the benefits paid by Israel to NIS 1,600 a month after the two years have passed. In addition, some 7,000 survivors who receive reparations from a German fund established in the 1990s, and who subsist thanks to income supplements, will receive an annual grant of NIS 3,000. The government will also fund a center that will inform survivors concerning their financial rights and help them receive the money that is due them. The government, whose negotiating team was led by Prime Minister's Office director general Raanan Dinur, also agreed to symbolic gestures such as granting survivors a badge of appreciation on the occasion of Israel's upcoming 60th birthday. It will also establish a committee - half of whose members are survivors, and half ministerial directors - which will meet twice a year to discuss survivors' benefits and any related problems that might arise. The government also committee to promote legislation recognizing the Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors as the representative group in any future negotiations with the government.
jeudi 16 août 2007
Rights group protests death of Bethlehem teen at checkpoint
Haaretz 01:49 16/08/2007
By Lily Galili
A gigantic inscription stretches across the separation wall behind the roadblock cutting Bethlehem off from Jerusalem. Put up by the Tourism Ministry, it reads "Jerusalem-Bethlehem - love and peace." It's nice to see that the government ministries have a sense of humor, even if a chilling one. Radi Alwahash, 18, died at the roadblock, after a traffic accident, while his body systems failed, and it took an hour and a half to get him from Bethlehem to the hospital in Jerusalem.
Here's a first in the history of deaths at roadblocks: Physicians for Human Rights has filed a criminal complaint with the Tel Aviv police against the Civil Administration's health coordinator, Dalia Basa, accusing her of negligent homicide. In a small room in the Bethlehem Red Crescent offices, Abdelhalim Ja'afra, director of emergency services for the Bethlehem area, pulled out a thick file containing its records of roadblocks and ambulances. Each patient's name and address are inscribed in hand-written columns, along with the time of the call and the time of going to and from the roadblock. The file also records the dichotomy of the occupation, noting that an Israel Defense Forces doctor and Magen David Adom emergency service staff worked tirelessly to save the life of the young Palestinian, who had been run over right after completing his last matriculation exam; an army helicopter was called, before it was decided that an ambulance would be quicker. But Alwahash died in the ambulance, which was denied permission to cross into Israel. The chronology what happened in the hour and a half between the moment Alwahash was run over until he died is also included in a comprehensive report compiled by PHR on the entrance to Israel of ambulances from the West Bank. The incident occurred on June 29. The report states that at around 9 P.M. Mohammed Abu-Ajaima, the Red Crescent liaison officer, was informed of the accident and dispatched an ambulance to the scene, which met the army ambulance and the IDF doctor, who began life-saving procedures on Alwahash. An MDA ambulance also arrived on the scene and and at 9:46 P.M., it began to transport Alwahash to the roadblock on the way to the hospital. According to testimony in the PHR report and conversations with Bethlehem Red Crescent personnel, Basa called the Red Crescent emergency line twice. The first time, the police complaint states, she wanted to know why the injured man had not been evacuated in a Red Crescent ambulance. The second time, she shouted at the liaison officer that she would appoint an investigative committee to find out why the Red Crescent personnel had refused to evacuate Alwahash. Despite the Red Crescent officer's explanations, she is quoted as saying, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, the injured man is prevented for security reasons from entering Israel." Abu-Ajaima responded that Alwahash was being treated by MDA, and Basa would be responsible if anything happened to him. The police complaint states that at this point, Basa answered, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, my name is Dalia Basa and I am not afraid of you or bigger people than you." The police complaint states that Basa claimed she had instructed MDA not to transfer Alwahash to Jerusalem, and had ordered Abu-Ajaima to send a Red Crescent ambulance to pick up the injured man. Mohammed Abu-Riyan, a medic and ambulance driver, set out for the roadblock. "I found the patient in critical condition, with the MDA treating him as best it could," he told Haaretz this week at the Red Crescent offices. "I was told I had to rush him to the trauma unit at Hadassah [University] Hospital in Ein Karem. But the MDA man took me aside and told me that the soldiers and Dalia did not agree, and he could not be brought into Israel." At 10:25 P.M. Alwahash died in the MDA ambulance. The Civil Administration and the Defense Ministry have so far not elucidated the nature of Alwahash's "security past." The Civil Administration responded: "The Civil Administration is unaware at this time of an official complaint against the health coordinator, Dalia Basa. The Civil Administration is aware of the tendentious claims against Basa by the Physicians for Human Rights, both in this and in other cases, and rejects them. The circumstances of the case have been checked following the organization's inquiry of the Civil Administration, and Basa's actions were found to be blameless." The Civil Administration accused PHR of damaging Basa's good name and "releasing false information." An aide to Defense Minister Ehud Barak, attorney Ruth Bar, told Haaretz that the case was still under investigation. A source in the Red Crescent offices in Bethlehem said: "In this work, Dalia is God."
By Lily Galili
A gigantic inscription stretches across the separation wall behind the roadblock cutting Bethlehem off from Jerusalem. Put up by the Tourism Ministry, it reads "Jerusalem-Bethlehem - love and peace." It's nice to see that the government ministries have a sense of humor, even if a chilling one. Radi Alwahash, 18, died at the roadblock, after a traffic accident, while his body systems failed, and it took an hour and a half to get him from Bethlehem to the hospital in Jerusalem.
Here's a first in the history of deaths at roadblocks: Physicians for Human Rights has filed a criminal complaint with the Tel Aviv police against the Civil Administration's health coordinator, Dalia Basa, accusing her of negligent homicide. In a small room in the Bethlehem Red Crescent offices, Abdelhalim Ja'afra, director of emergency services for the Bethlehem area, pulled out a thick file containing its records of roadblocks and ambulances. Each patient's name and address are inscribed in hand-written columns, along with the time of the call and the time of going to and from the roadblock. The file also records the dichotomy of the occupation, noting that an Israel Defense Forces doctor and Magen David Adom emergency service staff worked tirelessly to save the life of the young Palestinian, who had been run over right after completing his last matriculation exam; an army helicopter was called, before it was decided that an ambulance would be quicker. But Alwahash died in the ambulance, which was denied permission to cross into Israel. The chronology what happened in the hour and a half between the moment Alwahash was run over until he died is also included in a comprehensive report compiled by PHR on the entrance to Israel of ambulances from the West Bank. The incident occurred on June 29. The report states that at around 9 P.M. Mohammed Abu-Ajaima, the Red Crescent liaison officer, was informed of the accident and dispatched an ambulance to the scene, which met the army ambulance and the IDF doctor, who began life-saving procedures on Alwahash. An MDA ambulance also arrived on the scene and and at 9:46 P.M., it began to transport Alwahash to the roadblock on the way to the hospital. According to testimony in the PHR report and conversations with Bethlehem Red Crescent personnel, Basa called the Red Crescent emergency line twice. The first time, the police complaint states, she wanted to know why the injured man had not been evacuated in a Red Crescent ambulance. The second time, she shouted at the liaison officer that she would appoint an investigative committee to find out why the Red Crescent personnel had refused to evacuate Alwahash. Despite the Red Crescent officer's explanations, she is quoted as saying, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, the injured man is prevented for security reasons from entering Israel." Abu-Ajaima responded that Alwahash was being treated by MDA, and Basa would be responsible if anything happened to him. The police complaint states that at this point, Basa answered, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, my name is Dalia Basa and I am not afraid of you or bigger people than you." The police complaint states that Basa claimed she had instructed MDA not to transfer Alwahash to Jerusalem, and had ordered Abu-Ajaima to send a Red Crescent ambulance to pick up the injured man. Mohammed Abu-Riyan, a medic and ambulance driver, set out for the roadblock. "I found the patient in critical condition, with the MDA treating him as best it could," he told Haaretz this week at the Red Crescent offices. "I was told I had to rush him to the trauma unit at Hadassah [University] Hospital in Ein Karem. But the MDA man took me aside and told me that the soldiers and Dalia did not agree, and he could not be brought into Israel." At 10:25 P.M. Alwahash died in the MDA ambulance. The Civil Administration and the Defense Ministry have so far not elucidated the nature of Alwahash's "security past." The Civil Administration responded: "The Civil Administration is unaware at this time of an official complaint against the health coordinator, Dalia Basa. The Civil Administration is aware of the tendentious claims against Basa by the Physicians for Human Rights, both in this and in other cases, and rejects them. The circumstances of the case have been checked following the organization's inquiry of the Civil Administration, and Basa's actions were found to be blameless." The Civil Administration accused PHR of damaging Basa's good name and "releasing false information." An aide to Defense Minister Ehud Barak, attorney Ruth Bar, told Haaretz that the case was still under investigation. A source in the Red Crescent offices in Bethlehem said: "In this work, Dalia is God."
Balad MK blames Barak for death of Palestinian at roadblock
Haaretz 21:15 16/08/2007
By Lily Galili and Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondents
MK Said Nafa (Balad) on Thursday held Defense Minister Ehud Barak personally responsible for the death of Radi Alwahash, an 18-year-old Palestinian who died roughly six weeks ago at an Israel Defense Forces checkpoint. Alwahash was involved in a traffic accident which left him in a critical condition, and it took an hour and a half to transfer him from Bethlehem to hospital in Jerusalem. Physicians for Human Rights filed a criminal complaint on Wednesday with the Tel Aviv police against the Civil Administration's health coordinator, Dalia Basa, accusing her of negligent homicide. This is the first such complaint, though numerous Palestinians have died due to roadblock delays.
After the complaint was reported in Haaretz on Thursday, Nafa sent a letter to Barak stating, "The responsibility for this killing lies solely on your soldiers, as head of the establishment... what happened is not only a criminal crime. It is a crime against humanity." MK Nafa also wrote that he expects the defense minister to provide a response on steps he intends to take to ensure these "crimes" are not repeated. Abdelhalim Ja'afra, director of emergency services for the Bethlehem area, showed Haaretz a thick file containing records of roadblocks and ambulances. Each patient's name and address are inscribed in hand-written columns, along with the time of the call and the time of going to and from the roadblock. The file notes that an Israel Defense Forces doctor and Magen David Adom emergency service staff worked tirelessly to save the life of the young Palestinian, who had been run over right after completing his last matriculation exam. An army helicopter was called, before it was decided that an ambulance would be quicker. But Alwahash died in the ambulance, which was denied permission to cross into Israel.
The chronology what happened in the hour and a half between the moment Alwahash was run over until he died is also included in a comprehensive report compiled by PHR on the entrance to Israel of ambulances from the West Bank. The incident occurred on June 29. The report states that at around 9 P.M., Mohammed Abu-Ajaima, the Red Crescent liaison officer, was informed of the accident and dispatched an ambulance to the scene, which met the army ambulance and the IDF doctor, who began life-saving procedures on Alwahash. An MDA ambulance also arrived on the scene and and at 9:46 P.M., it began to transport Alwahash to the roadblock on the way to the hospital. According to testimony in the PHR report and conversations with Bethlehem Red Crescent personnel, Basa called the Red Crescent emergency line twice. The first time, the police complaint states, she wanted to know why the injured man had not been evacuated in a Red Crescent ambulance. The second time, she shouted at the liaison officer that she would appoint an investigative committee to find out why the Red Crescent personnel had refused to evacuate Alwahash. Despite the Red Crescent officer's explanations, she is quoted as saying, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, the injured man is prevented for security reasons from entering Israel." Abu-Ajaima responded that Alwahash was being treated by MDA, and Basa would be responsible if anything happened to him. The police complaint states that at this point, Basa answered, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, my name is Dalia Basa and I am not afraid of you or bigger people than you." The police complaint states that Basa claimed she had instructed MDA not to transfer Alwahash to Jerusalem, and had ordered Abu-Ajaima to send a Red Crescent ambulance to pick up the injured man. Mohammed Abu-Riyan, a medic and ambulance driver, set out for the roadblock. "I found the patient in critical condition, with the MDA treating him as best it could," he told Haaretz this week at the Red Crescent offices. "I was told I had to rush him to the trauma unit at Hadassah [University] Hospital in Ein Karem. But the MDA man took me aside and told me that the soldiers and Dalia did not agree, and he could not be brought into Israel." At 10:25 P.M., Alwahash died in the MDA ambulance.
The Civil Administration and the Defense Ministry have so far not elucidated the nature of Alwahash's "security past." The Civil Administration responded: "The Civil Administration is unaware at this time of an official complaint against the health coordinator, Dalia Basa. The Civil Administration is aware of the tendentious claims against Basa by the Physicians for Human Rights, both in this and in other cases, and rejects them. The circumstances of the case have been checked following the organization's inquiry of the Civil Administration, and Basa's actions were found to be blameless." The Civil Administration accused PHR of damaging Basa's good name and "releasing false information." An aide to Barak, attorney Ruth Bar, told Haaretz that the case was still under investigation.
By Lily Galili and Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondents
MK Said Nafa (Balad) on Thursday held Defense Minister Ehud Barak personally responsible for the death of Radi Alwahash, an 18-year-old Palestinian who died roughly six weeks ago at an Israel Defense Forces checkpoint. Alwahash was involved in a traffic accident which left him in a critical condition, and it took an hour and a half to transfer him from Bethlehem to hospital in Jerusalem. Physicians for Human Rights filed a criminal complaint on Wednesday with the Tel Aviv police against the Civil Administration's health coordinator, Dalia Basa, accusing her of negligent homicide. This is the first such complaint, though numerous Palestinians have died due to roadblock delays.
After the complaint was reported in Haaretz on Thursday, Nafa sent a letter to Barak stating, "The responsibility for this killing lies solely on your soldiers, as head of the establishment... what happened is not only a criminal crime. It is a crime against humanity." MK Nafa also wrote that he expects the defense minister to provide a response on steps he intends to take to ensure these "crimes" are not repeated. Abdelhalim Ja'afra, director of emergency services for the Bethlehem area, showed Haaretz a thick file containing records of roadblocks and ambulances. Each patient's name and address are inscribed in hand-written columns, along with the time of the call and the time of going to and from the roadblock. The file notes that an Israel Defense Forces doctor and Magen David Adom emergency service staff worked tirelessly to save the life of the young Palestinian, who had been run over right after completing his last matriculation exam. An army helicopter was called, before it was decided that an ambulance would be quicker. But Alwahash died in the ambulance, which was denied permission to cross into Israel.
The chronology what happened in the hour and a half between the moment Alwahash was run over until he died is also included in a comprehensive report compiled by PHR on the entrance to Israel of ambulances from the West Bank. The incident occurred on June 29. The report states that at around 9 P.M., Mohammed Abu-Ajaima, the Red Crescent liaison officer, was informed of the accident and dispatched an ambulance to the scene, which met the army ambulance and the IDF doctor, who began life-saving procedures on Alwahash. An MDA ambulance also arrived on the scene and and at 9:46 P.M., it began to transport Alwahash to the roadblock on the way to the hospital. According to testimony in the PHR report and conversations with Bethlehem Red Crescent personnel, Basa called the Red Crescent emergency line twice. The first time, the police complaint states, she wanted to know why the injured man had not been evacuated in a Red Crescent ambulance. The second time, she shouted at the liaison officer that she would appoint an investigative committee to find out why the Red Crescent personnel had refused to evacuate Alwahash. Despite the Red Crescent officer's explanations, she is quoted as saying, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, the injured man is prevented for security reasons from entering Israel." Abu-Ajaima responded that Alwahash was being treated by MDA, and Basa would be responsible if anything happened to him. The police complaint states that at this point, Basa answered, "My dear Abu-Ajaima, my name is Dalia Basa and I am not afraid of you or bigger people than you." The police complaint states that Basa claimed she had instructed MDA not to transfer Alwahash to Jerusalem, and had ordered Abu-Ajaima to send a Red Crescent ambulance to pick up the injured man. Mohammed Abu-Riyan, a medic and ambulance driver, set out for the roadblock. "I found the patient in critical condition, with the MDA treating him as best it could," he told Haaretz this week at the Red Crescent offices. "I was told I had to rush him to the trauma unit at Hadassah [University] Hospital in Ein Karem. But the MDA man took me aside and told me that the soldiers and Dalia did not agree, and he could not be brought into Israel." At 10:25 P.M., Alwahash died in the MDA ambulance.
The Civil Administration and the Defense Ministry have so far not elucidated the nature of Alwahash's "security past." The Civil Administration responded: "The Civil Administration is unaware at this time of an official complaint against the health coordinator, Dalia Basa. The Civil Administration is aware of the tendentious claims against Basa by the Physicians for Human Rights, both in this and in other cases, and rejects them. The circumstances of the case have been checked following the organization's inquiry of the Civil Administration, and Basa's actions were found to be blameless." The Civil Administration accused PHR of damaging Basa's good name and "releasing false information." An aide to Barak, attorney Ruth Bar, told Haaretz that the case was still under investigation.
mardi 14 août 2007
Ultra-Orthodox Jews deliver a population boom to the West Bank
Haaretz Last update - 20:18 14/08/2007
By Nadav Shragai, Haaretz Correspondent
The settler population is growing twice as fast as the rest of the country every year, and the ultra-Orthodox community is responsible for approximately half its annual growth, according to Haaretz's analysis of Interior Ministry figures for 2006. In the last year, the settler population has grown by 5.45 percent, from 260,932 to 275,156. Without the ultra-Orthodox community the West Bank settlements' growth is 3.7 percent, only a little more than the natural growth the settlements would see, which stands at 3.5 percent. The growth rate in the ultra-Orthodox Beitar Ilit and Modi'in Ilit is higher than most places in Israel. Modi'in Ilit's population, some 40,000, grows annually by about 11 percent (this year it has grown by 12.5 percent).
Beitar Ilit's population, some 35,000, grows annually by some 10 percent - five to six times more than Jerusalem and Tel Aviv's population growth respectively and twice as much as the growth of many other settlements. By the end of June, 72,106 people - more than a quarter of the West Bank settlers - were concentrated in Beitar Ilit, Modi'in Ilit and Kochav Yaakov, another ultra-Orthodox settlement, according to Interior Ministry figures.
Most of the ultra-Orthodox settlers - young couples or young families with numerous children - do not live in the West Bank for ideological reasons. They moved to the settlements due to the soaring real estate prices in the ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods of Jerusalem and Bnei Brak, which created an acute housing shortage. The local authorities predict that in 10 to 15 years Betar Ilit's population may consist of some 17,500 families totaling some 100,000 residents. Today the town has 5,828 occupied housing units, 1,102 units are under construction and another 5,800 are being planned. Modi'in Ilit has 6,800 occupied housing units and its population is expected to reach 150,000 in the near future.
The ultra-Orthodox rabbis sanctioned living in these settlements in view of the housing shortage, but they also assumed these territories would be annexed to Israel sometime in the future. Yankel, about 30 years old, was born in Jerusalem and lives in Beitar Ilit with his six children. When he reached marrying age, he could not afford an apartment in Jerusalem. A few years ago, with the help of his parents and a mortgage, he purchased a four-room apartment in the town for $115,000. A few months ago his brother also married, left Jerusalem and moved next door to Yankel. Their parents are now considering moving to Beitar Ilit as well. Yankel is a teacher. His wife and sister-in-law found high-tech jobs, as have many ultra-Orthodox women in recent years. His brother found work driving children to school.
Every year 60 new classrooms open in Beitar Ilit, where the children make up 63 percent of the population. In Jerusalem, by comparison, the children make up 45 percent of the population. Some 48 babies are born in Modi'in Ilit weekly - some 2,700 a year - and every year an average of 57 new first-grade classes open. Between the end of June 2006 and June 2007, the number of settlers in the West Bank grew by 5.45 percent. Last year the growth of the ultra-Orthodox population made up 40 percent of the increase in the settlers' numbers, and this year its contribution is bigger.
Beitar Ilit and Modi'in Ilit are in the settlement bloc earmarked to be annexed to Israel, according to this government and the plans of previous ones. Before retiring, former GOC Central Command Yair Naveh signed an order joining Beitar Ilit's area with Jerusalem's municipal area. Ilit, the region's busiest transport company, makes some 400 trips to and from Jerusalem daily. Modi'in Ilit, which is on Highway 443 between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, is also near Highway 6 and will be on the future Tel Aviv-Modi'in-Jerusalem railway line.
By Nadav Shragai, Haaretz Correspondent
The settler population is growing twice as fast as the rest of the country every year, and the ultra-Orthodox community is responsible for approximately half its annual growth, according to Haaretz's analysis of Interior Ministry figures for 2006. In the last year, the settler population has grown by 5.45 percent, from 260,932 to 275,156. Without the ultra-Orthodox community the West Bank settlements' growth is 3.7 percent, only a little more than the natural growth the settlements would see, which stands at 3.5 percent. The growth rate in the ultra-Orthodox Beitar Ilit and Modi'in Ilit is higher than most places in Israel. Modi'in Ilit's population, some 40,000, grows annually by about 11 percent (this year it has grown by 12.5 percent).
Beitar Ilit's population, some 35,000, grows annually by some 10 percent - five to six times more than Jerusalem and Tel Aviv's population growth respectively and twice as much as the growth of many other settlements. By the end of June, 72,106 people - more than a quarter of the West Bank settlers - were concentrated in Beitar Ilit, Modi'in Ilit and Kochav Yaakov, another ultra-Orthodox settlement, according to Interior Ministry figures.
Most of the ultra-Orthodox settlers - young couples or young families with numerous children - do not live in the West Bank for ideological reasons. They moved to the settlements due to the soaring real estate prices in the ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods of Jerusalem and Bnei Brak, which created an acute housing shortage. The local authorities predict that in 10 to 15 years Betar Ilit's population may consist of some 17,500 families totaling some 100,000 residents. Today the town has 5,828 occupied housing units, 1,102 units are under construction and another 5,800 are being planned. Modi'in Ilit has 6,800 occupied housing units and its population is expected to reach 150,000 in the near future.
The ultra-Orthodox rabbis sanctioned living in these settlements in view of the housing shortage, but they also assumed these territories would be annexed to Israel sometime in the future. Yankel, about 30 years old, was born in Jerusalem and lives in Beitar Ilit with his six children. When he reached marrying age, he could not afford an apartment in Jerusalem. A few years ago, with the help of his parents and a mortgage, he purchased a four-room apartment in the town for $115,000. A few months ago his brother also married, left Jerusalem and moved next door to Yankel. Their parents are now considering moving to Beitar Ilit as well. Yankel is a teacher. His wife and sister-in-law found high-tech jobs, as have many ultra-Orthodox women in recent years. His brother found work driving children to school.
Every year 60 new classrooms open in Beitar Ilit, where the children make up 63 percent of the population. In Jerusalem, by comparison, the children make up 45 percent of the population. Some 48 babies are born in Modi'in Ilit weekly - some 2,700 a year - and every year an average of 57 new first-grade classes open. Between the end of June 2006 and June 2007, the number of settlers in the West Bank grew by 5.45 percent. Last year the growth of the ultra-Orthodox population made up 40 percent of the increase in the settlers' numbers, and this year its contribution is bigger.
Beitar Ilit and Modi'in Ilit are in the settlement bloc earmarked to be annexed to Israel, according to this government and the plans of previous ones. Before retiring, former GOC Central Command Yair Naveh signed an order joining Beitar Ilit's area with Jerusalem's municipal area. Ilit, the region's busiest transport company, makes some 400 trips to and from Jerusalem daily. Modi'in Ilit, which is on Highway 443 between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, is also near Highway 6 and will be on the future Tel Aviv-Modi'in-Jerusalem railway line.
For J'lem's mixed Jewish areas, cooperation may be the thing
Haaretz Last update - 02:08 14/08/2007
By Jonathan Lis
One of the most loaded questions about Jerusalem's future revolves around the exodus of the secular and Modern Orthodox communities from the city's neighborhoods. In recent years, ultra-Orthodox communities gained control over a number of neighborhoods in the capital that were once bastions of the secular or Modern Orthodox. Since the construction of the separation fence, we have also seen Arab families move into Jewish neighborhoods, particularly in the northern parts of the city where rents are relatively low.
A new study by the Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies offers a glimpse into the future of Jerusalem neighborhoods. According to its authors, most people in the capital are not Zionists, being either Arab or ultra-Orthodox. Furthermore, for the first time, there are signs that the city's secular middle class is moving to the suburbs. The study points out that the rapid growth of the Haredi population is pushing the ultra-Orthodox communities into secular neighborhoods of the city.
The study, funded by the Jerusalem Association of Community Centers, seeks to understand if there is a need to alter the character of the community administrations, dispersed throughout the city, due to the expected demographic changes in these communities over the next decade or so. The community administrations are a unique Jerusalem initiative to allow local people to manage their own affairs, and have been in operation for the past 14 years. "The administrations were meant to serve as a tool in the hands of the residents so that they can have a real influence on all aspects of life inside the neighborhood, and on citywide issues, in social as well as urban-economic issues," said Zvika Chernikhovsky, director of the Jerusalem Association of Community Centers.
The report's authors recommend that the city's community administrations be rearranged, especially in neighborhoods where the ultra-Orthodox have settled in recent years. For example, it is recommended that the community administration in Romema, where the ultra-Orthodox are now the majority, be unified with Givat Shaul nearby.
The authors, Israel Kimche and Maya Hushan, believe that only through a parallel administrative structure, Haredi and secular, will it be possible to prevent the massive exodus of secular and Modern Orthodox from the city's neighborhoods.
The report warns that the rapid growth of the Haredi population in the city may result in tensions with the secular communities in Jerusalem. "The more the residents are given the opportunity to affect the events in their neighborhoods, the more they are satisfied and willing to work in favor of the community."
However, the city's Association of Community Centers regards the Haredi and Arab communities as insular and not tolerant of other communities. Secular and Modern Orthodox communities, on the other hand, are considered to be residents who are capable of benefiting together from urban and neighborhood-based services. If the municipality will not allow the operation of two administrations in the same neighborhood, the study warns that the position of the ultra-Orthodox will become more dominant in mixed neighborhoods.
"In certain neighborhoods, if the municipality declares that the administration will shift from being secular to Haredi, the position of the ultra-Orthodox will become more dominant and the secular residents will simply leave," said a source involved in the community administrations project. "The problem is that the Haredi leadership is interested in precisely this type of exodus: The municipality is expected to give in to Haredi pressure and argue there is no justification for holding parallel administrations in the same neighborhood."
By Jonathan Lis
One of the most loaded questions about Jerusalem's future revolves around the exodus of the secular and Modern Orthodox communities from the city's neighborhoods. In recent years, ultra-Orthodox communities gained control over a number of neighborhoods in the capital that were once bastions of the secular or Modern Orthodox. Since the construction of the separation fence, we have also seen Arab families move into Jewish neighborhoods, particularly in the northern parts of the city where rents are relatively low.
A new study by the Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies offers a glimpse into the future of Jerusalem neighborhoods. According to its authors, most people in the capital are not Zionists, being either Arab or ultra-Orthodox. Furthermore, for the first time, there are signs that the city's secular middle class is moving to the suburbs. The study points out that the rapid growth of the Haredi population is pushing the ultra-Orthodox communities into secular neighborhoods of the city.
The study, funded by the Jerusalem Association of Community Centers, seeks to understand if there is a need to alter the character of the community administrations, dispersed throughout the city, due to the expected demographic changes in these communities over the next decade or so. The community administrations are a unique Jerusalem initiative to allow local people to manage their own affairs, and have been in operation for the past 14 years. "The administrations were meant to serve as a tool in the hands of the residents so that they can have a real influence on all aspects of life inside the neighborhood, and on citywide issues, in social as well as urban-economic issues," said Zvika Chernikhovsky, director of the Jerusalem Association of Community Centers.
The report's authors recommend that the city's community administrations be rearranged, especially in neighborhoods where the ultra-Orthodox have settled in recent years. For example, it is recommended that the community administration in Romema, where the ultra-Orthodox are now the majority, be unified with Givat Shaul nearby.
The authors, Israel Kimche and Maya Hushan, believe that only through a parallel administrative structure, Haredi and secular, will it be possible to prevent the massive exodus of secular and Modern Orthodox from the city's neighborhoods.
The report warns that the rapid growth of the Haredi population in the city may result in tensions with the secular communities in Jerusalem. "The more the residents are given the opportunity to affect the events in their neighborhoods, the more they are satisfied and willing to work in favor of the community."
However, the city's Association of Community Centers regards the Haredi and Arab communities as insular and not tolerant of other communities. Secular and Modern Orthodox communities, on the other hand, are considered to be residents who are capable of benefiting together from urban and neighborhood-based services. If the municipality will not allow the operation of two administrations in the same neighborhood, the study warns that the position of the ultra-Orthodox will become more dominant in mixed neighborhoods.
"In certain neighborhoods, if the municipality declares that the administration will shift from being secular to Haredi, the position of the ultra-Orthodox will become more dominant and the secular residents will simply leave," said a source involved in the community administrations project. "The problem is that the Haredi leadership is interested in precisely this type of exodus: The municipality is expected to give in to Haredi pressure and argue there is no justification for holding parallel administrations in the same neighborhood."
lundi 6 août 2007
AG mulls U.K. call to charge IDF troops with photographer's death
Haaretz 09:03 06/08/2007
By Akiva Eldar and Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondents
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz will thoroughly examine the British government's demand that Israeli soldiers be indicted for murder, in the killing of photographer James Miller in Gaza in 2003, Israel promised London over the weekend. However, in his conversation with Mark Lyall Grant, political director of the British Foreign Office, Israeli Ambassador Zvi Hefetz warned that Mazuz may not be able to complete his investigations by Tuesday, as London has demanded. Peter Goldsmith, Britain's attorney general at the time of the incident, wrote Mazuz on June 26 requesting he clarify what he termed new information. He said that if Mazuz did not respond within six weeks, legal proceedings would be launched in Britain against the commander of the force that shot Miller, and who was cleared in a disciplinary hearing, as well as other soldiers and officers. This would necessitate seeking the soldiers' extradition under the Israel-Britain extradition treaty.
The British Foreign Office told Miller's family that Israel thinks the dispute can be resolved by payment of compensation to Miller's widow. However, Lyall Grant told Prosor, the proposed compensation will have to be increased substantially from the sum on offer until now. Miller's brother, John, told Haaretz on Sunday that the sum Israel is currently offering is "insulting," equal to only two years of the slain photographer's earnings. He also said that he doubted Israel would either extradite the soldiers or try them itself, and even if it did try them, he doubted that justice would be done in an Israeli court. In response, the Justice Ministry said that Mazuz thoroughly examined the case when Britain first protested the military advocate general's decision not to indict the soldiers, but has agreed to do so again in response to the new British appeal, and will respond "promptly, according to the Israeli authorities' timetable." Miller was killed while filming a documentary in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, on the border with Egypt. According to Alrahman Abdallah, a freelance journalist who accompanied Miller as his translator, the photographer was shot as he tried to exit a Rafah house while holding a white flag. A British inquiry, in part based on evidence from the video recording of the incident, showed that Miller was shot in the neck by an IDF patrol. At the time the IDF expressed its sorrow for Miller's death and said that "the entry of photographers into war zones during exchanges of fire endangers both sides." However, according to eyewitnesses, there had been calm in the area at the time of the shooting. Initially, the IDF suggested that Miller had been killed by Palestinians. Ballistic tests carried out on behalf of Miller's family showed that IDF troops killed Miller, and the Military Advocate General ordered an investigation into the killing. Following a lengthy investigation, it was decided in March 2005 not to press criminal charges against those involved because of insufficient evidence. The commander of the Israeli force that shot and killed Miller faced disciplinary proceedings for illegal use of firearms, but was exonerated. Miller's family filed a suit against the State of Israel for murder, and in 2006 a British jury ruled the killing a murder.
By Akiva Eldar and Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondents
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz will thoroughly examine the British government's demand that Israeli soldiers be indicted for murder, in the killing of photographer James Miller in Gaza in 2003, Israel promised London over the weekend. However, in his conversation with Mark Lyall Grant, political director of the British Foreign Office, Israeli Ambassador Zvi Hefetz warned that Mazuz may not be able to complete his investigations by Tuesday, as London has demanded. Peter Goldsmith, Britain's attorney general at the time of the incident, wrote Mazuz on June 26 requesting he clarify what he termed new information. He said that if Mazuz did not respond within six weeks, legal proceedings would be launched in Britain against the commander of the force that shot Miller, and who was cleared in a disciplinary hearing, as well as other soldiers and officers. This would necessitate seeking the soldiers' extradition under the Israel-Britain extradition treaty.
The British Foreign Office told Miller's family that Israel thinks the dispute can be resolved by payment of compensation to Miller's widow. However, Lyall Grant told Prosor, the proposed compensation will have to be increased substantially from the sum on offer until now. Miller's brother, John, told Haaretz on Sunday that the sum Israel is currently offering is "insulting," equal to only two years of the slain photographer's earnings. He also said that he doubted Israel would either extradite the soldiers or try them itself, and even if it did try them, he doubted that justice would be done in an Israeli court. In response, the Justice Ministry said that Mazuz thoroughly examined the case when Britain first protested the military advocate general's decision not to indict the soldiers, but has agreed to do so again in response to the new British appeal, and will respond "promptly, according to the Israeli authorities' timetable." Miller was killed while filming a documentary in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, on the border with Egypt. According to Alrahman Abdallah, a freelance journalist who accompanied Miller as his translator, the photographer was shot as he tried to exit a Rafah house while holding a white flag. A British inquiry, in part based on evidence from the video recording of the incident, showed that Miller was shot in the neck by an IDF patrol. At the time the IDF expressed its sorrow for Miller's death and said that "the entry of photographers into war zones during exchanges of fire endangers both sides." However, according to eyewitnesses, there had been calm in the area at the time of the shooting. Initially, the IDF suggested that Miller had been killed by Palestinians. Ballistic tests carried out on behalf of Miller's family showed that IDF troops killed Miller, and the Military Advocate General ordered an investigation into the killing. Following a lengthy investigation, it was decided in March 2005 not to press criminal charges against those involved because of insufficient evidence. The commander of the Israeli force that shot and killed Miller faced disciplinary proceedings for illegal use of firearms, but was exonerated. Miller's family filed a suit against the State of Israel for murder, and in 2006 a British jury ruled the killing a murder.
Israeli Arab group calls on Abbas to renew dialogue with Hamas
Haaretz 04:11 06/08/2007
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
A top Israeli Arab group on Sunday urged Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement to renew ties with Hamas, severed last June when the Islamic group forcibly took over the Gaza Strip. In a Ramallah meeting with Abbas, the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee called on Abbas to create the conditions that will bring about the cessation of open hostilities between Palestinian factions.The committee's chairman, Shawki Khatib, and other members expressed the "pain of the Palestinian public in Israel" over the infighting in the Palestinian territories.
In response, Abbas reiterated his stance that Hamas must first apologize for its actions in Gaza and restore the status quo that existed in the Strip prior to its takeover. The Fatah leader described in detail events in the PA since the last general elections, and emphasized his demand at the time for the international community to respect the choice of the Palestinian electorate that elected Hamas. Those who eventually did not respect the Palestinian voters was Hamas who staged a coup against PA institutions, he said.Chairman of the Arab-Jewish Hadash party, MK Mohammed Barakeh, expressed his support of Abbas and said that the deterioration of relations within Palestinian society must end. "We support those who back a national plan to create a Palestinian state and a solution for the refugee problem," Barakeh said."If someone thinks he must redraw the face of Palestinian society before the creation of a state, he is making a mistake and committing a sin," he added.
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
A top Israeli Arab group on Sunday urged Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement to renew ties with Hamas, severed last June when the Islamic group forcibly took over the Gaza Strip. In a Ramallah meeting with Abbas, the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee called on Abbas to create the conditions that will bring about the cessation of open hostilities between Palestinian factions.The committee's chairman, Shawki Khatib, and other members expressed the "pain of the Palestinian public in Israel" over the infighting in the Palestinian territories.
In response, Abbas reiterated his stance that Hamas must first apologize for its actions in Gaza and restore the status quo that existed in the Strip prior to its takeover. The Fatah leader described in detail events in the PA since the last general elections, and emphasized his demand at the time for the international community to respect the choice of the Palestinian electorate that elected Hamas. Those who eventually did not respect the Palestinian voters was Hamas who staged a coup against PA institutions, he said.Chairman of the Arab-Jewish Hadash party, MK Mohammed Barakeh, expressed his support of Abbas and said that the deterioration of relations within Palestinian society must end. "We support those who back a national plan to create a Palestinian state and a solution for the refugee problem," Barakeh said."If someone thinks he must redraw the face of Palestinian society before the creation of a state, he is making a mistake and committing a sin," he added.
jeudi 2 août 2007
IDF to confine soldier who shot innocent Palestinian to his base
Haaretz 21:48 02/08/2007
By Yuval Azoulay and Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondents
An Israel Defense Forces soldier who apparently shot a Palestinian civilian without justification near Hebron last week will be released to an "open remand" on his base until Tuesday, according to a Jaffa Military Court ruling issued Thursday.The lieutenant who commanded the force, however, will remain in full remand until Tuesday. The other four soldiers involved in the incident, in which they hijacked a Palestinian taxi in the village of Dahariya and shot and seriously wounded an innocent bystander, have already been released.The soldier to be sent to "open remand" on his base is the one suspected of actually pulling the trigger.
On Friday a military court extended the remand of the lieutenant and the soldier suspected of pulling the trigger, while the military police continued its investigation, ordered by GOC Central Command, Major General Gadi Shamni. A central command inquiry is being conducted concurrently. The suspects had originally claimed that one of the platoon's soldiers had sprained his ankle during a morning patrol in the village and was no longer able to walk. According to their testimony, the officer then decided to stop and commandeer a Palestinian taxi. The soldiers, belonging to the Lavi Battalion of the Kfir Infantry Brigade, went on to claim that after they had tied up the driver and taken control of the vehicle, another Palestinian approached the car. The soldiers decided he was acting "suspiciously" and one of them fired shots in his direction, wounding him in the neck. According to the IDF sources, the initial investigation revealed that the soldiers had lied, and that none of them had sprained an ankle. Instead, the platoon had decided on its own accord to carry out an undercover operation, without coordinating the operation with their superiors. They allegedly removed their uniforms, donned civilian clothing and then commandeered the taxi. One of the senior officers conducting the inquiry referred to the soldiers' actions as "stupidity stemming from over-motivation." The investigation into the soldiers' action revealed that they had not stopped to treat the wounded Palestinian, who was reportedly severely hurt, and had in fact left him behind bleeding. The soldiers also failed to report the incident. The affair only came to light after the media reported about the wounded man.
By Yuval Azoulay and Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondents
An Israel Defense Forces soldier who apparently shot a Palestinian civilian without justification near Hebron last week will be released to an "open remand" on his base until Tuesday, according to a Jaffa Military Court ruling issued Thursday.The lieutenant who commanded the force, however, will remain in full remand until Tuesday. The other four soldiers involved in the incident, in which they hijacked a Palestinian taxi in the village of Dahariya and shot and seriously wounded an innocent bystander, have already been released.The soldier to be sent to "open remand" on his base is the one suspected of actually pulling the trigger.
On Friday a military court extended the remand of the lieutenant and the soldier suspected of pulling the trigger, while the military police continued its investigation, ordered by GOC Central Command, Major General Gadi Shamni. A central command inquiry is being conducted concurrently. The suspects had originally claimed that one of the platoon's soldiers had sprained his ankle during a morning patrol in the village and was no longer able to walk. According to their testimony, the officer then decided to stop and commandeer a Palestinian taxi. The soldiers, belonging to the Lavi Battalion of the Kfir Infantry Brigade, went on to claim that after they had tied up the driver and taken control of the vehicle, another Palestinian approached the car. The soldiers decided he was acting "suspiciously" and one of them fired shots in his direction, wounding him in the neck. According to the IDF sources, the initial investigation revealed that the soldiers had lied, and that none of them had sprained an ankle. Instead, the platoon had decided on its own accord to carry out an undercover operation, without coordinating the operation with their superiors. They allegedly removed their uniforms, donned civilian clothing and then commandeered the taxi. One of the senior officers conducting the inquiry referred to the soldiers' actions as "stupidity stemming from over-motivation." The investigation into the soldiers' action revealed that they had not stopped to treat the wounded Palestinian, who was reportedly severely hurt, and had in fact left him behind bleeding. The soldiers also failed to report the incident. The affair only came to light after the media reported about the wounded man.
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