Haaretz 23:26 10/06/2007
By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz Correspondent
The ultra-Orthodox rabbinical court, Haredi Badatz, placed a "curse" Sunday on the participants in the upcoming Gay Pride parade scheduled to take place next week in Jerusalem. The court also cursed the police officers who will be maintaining order during the parade. Badatz rabbis plastered warning posters on Jerusalem city walls saying "All those involved in the matter, those of impure souls and those helping them and guarding them, they will feel in their souls a curse, a bad spirit will come over them and haunt them, they will never be cleansed of their sins, from the judgment of God, in their bodies, their souls and their finances."
The ultra-Orthodox leaders plan to stage a "large demonstration which will shake the foundations for the sake of Jerusalem's holiness." The demonstration will likely take place next week, but the warning posters disseminated Sunday afternoon are perceived by the ultra-Orthodox community as a green light to begin protests even sooner. The rabbis decided to try to bring about the cancellation of the parade through protest after their "diplomatic efforts" to negotiate the cancellation with the Jerusalem police failed. The leader of the Haredi community, Rabbi Izhak Tuvia Weiss told the police that he was opposed to mass demonstrations, and asked senior police officials to rescind the authorization it had given to the gay and lesbian community to hold its Gay Pride parade in the streets of Jerusalem. According to some Haredi officials, Rabbi Weiss was disappointed by the meeting he had last week at his home with the chief of the Jerusalem district police force, Major General Aharon Franco, who refused to cancel the parade. In the wake of his diplomatic failure, Rabbi Weiss agreed to join the more militant members of the community in supporting the mass demonstration against the parade.
dimanche 10 juin 2007
mardi 5 juin 2007
25% of illegal W. Bank Jewish housing is on Arab-owned land
Haaretz 07:23 05/06/2007
By Uri Blau
At least 25 percent of the structures built by Israelis in the West Bank's Area C (full Israeli control) were built on private Arab-owned land, an internal report by the Civil Administration has found. According to the report, only 0.5 percent of the illegal structures were constructed on land registered to Jewish owners. The data also indicate that Israel is practicing a discriminatory policy: It is more lenient on illegal construction by Jews than by Palestinians.
Although the Jewish population in the area is four times bigger than the Arab population, the authorities have demolished triple the number of Palestinian structures compared to Jewish structures. The data, published here for the first time, appear in a comprehensive report prepared by the Civil Administration, a government body entrusted with administering all nonmilitary issues in the territories. The report, compiled late last year, determines that approximately one-third (900 structures) of illegal buildings in the territories were constructed within existing settlements. The veteran settlement of Ofra, for example, has 179 illegal buildings out of 600 homes. Most of these illegal structures were built on privately-owned Palestinian lands registered to West Bank residents. The administration has located 2,764 illegal structures, of which more than 650 were built on private-owned Palestinian lands. Another 900 were built on territory whose legal status has not yet been determined. Some 1,200 were built on land owned by the state. Only 15 were built on land registered to Jewish owners. The Civil Administration is responsible for locating illegal construction, issuing demolition orders and carrying them out. It has 270,000 settlers under its jurisdiction, as well as 70,000 Palestinians. The data reveal that from 1997 to 2006, the administration located twice as many illegal Palestinian structures - approximately 6,000 - as Jewish ones. Of these, approximately 2,000 buildings were demolished - 1,500 by the administration, and the rest by the Palestinians themselves at the administration's orders. The number of Jewish structures demolished by the administration totaled 150, with another 500 demolished by the settlers themselves. Dror Etkes, who coordinates the Peace Now movement's Settlement Watch project, reacted to the data by accusing the government of "criminally employing its agencies in order to minimize the number of Palestinians residing in Area C and push the Palestinian population into enclaves so as to allow Israel to maintain its control over most of the West Bank." The Civil Administration's spokesman, Zidki Maman, responded that "the number of structures that have been demolished reflect the number of structures that have been located." The Civil Administration was formed in 1981 "to manage the local population's civil affairs for its welfare." It was set up to free the army from attending to the needs of Palestinian residents of the territories, though its actions are subject to the approval of the Israel Defense Forces. Essentially, it is supposed to play the role of the Interior Ministry in the territories, and among other tasks, it is responsible for issuing entry permits into Israel. However, civil rights activists have long argued that the administration was more concerned with promoting the government's interests than with the welfare of the population under its jurisdiction.
By Uri Blau
At least 25 percent of the structures built by Israelis in the West Bank's Area C (full Israeli control) were built on private Arab-owned land, an internal report by the Civil Administration has found. According to the report, only 0.5 percent of the illegal structures were constructed on land registered to Jewish owners. The data also indicate that Israel is practicing a discriminatory policy: It is more lenient on illegal construction by Jews than by Palestinians.
Although the Jewish population in the area is four times bigger than the Arab population, the authorities have demolished triple the number of Palestinian structures compared to Jewish structures. The data, published here for the first time, appear in a comprehensive report prepared by the Civil Administration, a government body entrusted with administering all nonmilitary issues in the territories. The report, compiled late last year, determines that approximately one-third (900 structures) of illegal buildings in the territories were constructed within existing settlements. The veteran settlement of Ofra, for example, has 179 illegal buildings out of 600 homes. Most of these illegal structures were built on privately-owned Palestinian lands registered to West Bank residents. The administration has located 2,764 illegal structures, of which more than 650 were built on private-owned Palestinian lands. Another 900 were built on territory whose legal status has not yet been determined. Some 1,200 were built on land owned by the state. Only 15 were built on land registered to Jewish owners. The Civil Administration is responsible for locating illegal construction, issuing demolition orders and carrying them out. It has 270,000 settlers under its jurisdiction, as well as 70,000 Palestinians. The data reveal that from 1997 to 2006, the administration located twice as many illegal Palestinian structures - approximately 6,000 - as Jewish ones. Of these, approximately 2,000 buildings were demolished - 1,500 by the administration, and the rest by the Palestinians themselves at the administration's orders. The number of Jewish structures demolished by the administration totaled 150, with another 500 demolished by the settlers themselves. Dror Etkes, who coordinates the Peace Now movement's Settlement Watch project, reacted to the data by accusing the government of "criminally employing its agencies in order to minimize the number of Palestinians residing in Area C and push the Palestinian population into enclaves so as to allow Israel to maintain its control over most of the West Bank." The Civil Administration's spokesman, Zidki Maman, responded that "the number of structures that have been demolished reflect the number of structures that have been located." The Civil Administration was formed in 1981 "to manage the local population's civil affairs for its welfare." It was set up to free the army from attending to the needs of Palestinian residents of the territories, though its actions are subject to the approval of the Israel Defense Forces. Essentially, it is supposed to play the role of the Interior Ministry in the territories, and among other tasks, it is responsible for issuing entry permits into Israel. However, civil rights activists have long argued that the administration was more concerned with promoting the government's interests than with the welfare of the population under its jurisdiction.
lundi 28 mai 2007
Arab association to recruit for National Service
An Arab association will recruit Jewish, Arab volunteers for Sherut Leumi, for the first time ever in Israel. Volunteers will be eligible for same benefits as IDF soldiers
David Regev
Ynetnews.com 05.28.07, 12:07
In an unprecedented decision, Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog certified Sunday the "Association for Social Equality and National Service for Arabs" to recruit Jewish and Arab volunteers for Sherut Leumi (the National Service).
Many of those unable to serve in the Israeli army choose to join Sherut Leumi. Recruits, including Arabs, and religious men and women, volunteer for a two-year service, making them eligible for all the benefits reserved for IDF soldiers.
Nowadays, Sherut Leumi has some 10,000 volunteers in its ranks, 400 of them of Arabs.
The new association's activities were approved after careful examination by the ministry of social affairs.
"This association has a great challenge ahead of it," said Herzog Sunday. "This is an important step in integrating all sectors of Israeli society."
"This is a big opportunity for us to become a real part of Israeli society," said Ataf al-Krenawi, the association's chairman.
The Association stands to enjoy the same license as any of the other recognized volunteers associations, and plans to offer those who join it their choice of placement, be it in hospitals, public facilities etc.
David Regev
Ynetnews.com 05.28.07, 12:07
In an unprecedented decision, Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog certified Sunday the "Association for Social Equality and National Service for Arabs" to recruit Jewish and Arab volunteers for Sherut Leumi (the National Service).
Many of those unable to serve in the Israeli army choose to join Sherut Leumi. Recruits, including Arabs, and religious men and women, volunteer for a two-year service, making them eligible for all the benefits reserved for IDF soldiers.
Nowadays, Sherut Leumi has some 10,000 volunteers in its ranks, 400 of them of Arabs.
The new association's activities were approved after careful examination by the ministry of social affairs.
"This association has a great challenge ahead of it," said Herzog Sunday. "This is an important step in integrating all sectors of Israeli society."
"This is a big opportunity for us to become a real part of Israeli society," said Ataf al-Krenawi, the association's chairman.
The Association stands to enjoy the same license as any of the other recognized volunteers associations, and plans to offer those who join it their choice of placement, be it in hospitals, public facilities etc.
jeudi 3 mai 2007
Yeshiva boys barred from combat units
Religious leaders clash with IDF's Human Resources chief, himself one of Israel's highest ranking religious officers, after army cancels segregated combat units within top brigades. National Union MK urges chief of staff to 'rein in' his officer but Stern unfazed, insists army must integrate all its soldiers
Hanan Greenberg Yedioth Ahranoth Published: 05.03.07, 20:55
Hesder Yeshivas have long since been considered one of the strongest core groups within the IDF. Hesder, or arrangement, is a unique Israeli creation that allows religious young men to pursue Talmudic studies and later serve in the armed forces.
But their contribution is not without preconditions, and they so far have been allowed to serve in homogenous units comprised of only their fellow yeshiva recruits. Now Human Resources Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Elazar Stern, himself one of the army's top religious officers, aims to put an end to the practice.
New orders issued by Stern will bar hesder yeshiva students from joining the Golani and Paratrooper brigades, two of the most popular combat choices for religious recruits. The army will also change the manner in which it accepts hesder students to elite units.
Combat soldier prays (Photo: AP)
Yeshiva educators accused Stern of having a vendetta against the program. Stern has spoken out against homogenous units in the past. The IDF denied the allegations and said that the hesder recruits "have received preferential treatment for many years and from time to time there are changes that stem from the army's changing needs."
'No room for segregation in army'
A senior Human Resources officer said that the original understanding with the hesder yeshivas stipulated that there be a set number of mixed combat units that their students would join, the rest could go to homogenous ones. But the yeshivas demanded that there only be two mixed units, saying that the vast majority of their students only wanted to serve in segregated ones.
The IDF decided in response to cancel all homogenous units in the Golani and Paratrooper brigades since those divisions are in high demand amongst the rest of the army's recruits and there is no need for a hesder unit to fill in the ranks.
"We respect and appreciate the students of the hesder yeshivas and recognize their great contribution to the IDF. If they are willing to serve in mixed units, we will open the Golani and paratrooper divisions to them as well," said the senior officer. "There's a lot of importance to integrating religious and secular soldiers and we must remember that this is a people's army and a melting pot for Israeli society – everyone should work together and there is no reason to have homogenous units."
MK Ariel lashes out at Stern "Rein in Maj. Gen. Stern," wrote National Union-NRP faction chairman MK Uri Ariel to Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi on Thursday following the groundbreaking decision.
"Stern's behavior continues to be aggressive and callous, he establishes facts on the ground, provokes unnecessary strife and continues to force his opinions on the general public and the army.
"Stern has forgotten that he is no longer chief education officer and even as such – it is not his role to teach citizens how they should act and what they should think."
In addition to writing Ashkenazi, Ariel has also asked the chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to discuss the subject in a special meeting.
"Maj. Gen. Stern must be put in his place and allow the recruits to join hesder only units, there is no room for this arrangement to change," said Ariel.
Hanan Greenberg Yedioth Ahranoth Published: 05.03.07, 20:55
Hesder Yeshivas have long since been considered one of the strongest core groups within the IDF. Hesder, or arrangement, is a unique Israeli creation that allows religious young men to pursue Talmudic studies and later serve in the armed forces.
But their contribution is not without preconditions, and they so far have been allowed to serve in homogenous units comprised of only their fellow yeshiva recruits. Now Human Resources Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Elazar Stern, himself one of the army's top religious officers, aims to put an end to the practice.
New orders issued by Stern will bar hesder yeshiva students from joining the Golani and Paratrooper brigades, two of the most popular combat choices for religious recruits. The army will also change the manner in which it accepts hesder students to elite units.
Combat soldier prays (Photo: AP)
Yeshiva educators accused Stern of having a vendetta against the program. Stern has spoken out against homogenous units in the past. The IDF denied the allegations and said that the hesder recruits "have received preferential treatment for many years and from time to time there are changes that stem from the army's changing needs."
'No room for segregation in army'
A senior Human Resources officer said that the original understanding with the hesder yeshivas stipulated that there be a set number of mixed combat units that their students would join, the rest could go to homogenous ones. But the yeshivas demanded that there only be two mixed units, saying that the vast majority of their students only wanted to serve in segregated ones.
The IDF decided in response to cancel all homogenous units in the Golani and Paratrooper brigades since those divisions are in high demand amongst the rest of the army's recruits and there is no need for a hesder unit to fill in the ranks.
"We respect and appreciate the students of the hesder yeshivas and recognize their great contribution to the IDF. If they are willing to serve in mixed units, we will open the Golani and paratrooper divisions to them as well," said the senior officer. "There's a lot of importance to integrating religious and secular soldiers and we must remember that this is a people's army and a melting pot for Israeli society – everyone should work together and there is no reason to have homogenous units."
MK Ariel lashes out at Stern "Rein in Maj. Gen. Stern," wrote National Union-NRP faction chairman MK Uri Ariel to Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi on Thursday following the groundbreaking decision.
"Stern's behavior continues to be aggressive and callous, he establishes facts on the ground, provokes unnecessary strife and continues to force his opinions on the general public and the army.
"Stern has forgotten that he is no longer chief education officer and even as such – it is not his role to teach citizens how they should act and what they should think."
In addition to writing Ashkenazi, Ariel has also asked the chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to discuss the subject in a special meeting.
"Maj. Gen. Stern must be put in his place and allow the recruits to join hesder only units, there is no room for this arrangement to change," said Ariel.
Robert Fisk: Olmert undone by the militia he said he could destroy
The Independent Thursday, 3 May 2007
So it has come to this. All those bodies, all those photographs of dead children - more than 1,400 cadavers (we are not including the 230 or so Hizbollah fighters and the Israeli soldiers who died) - are to be commemorated with the possible resignation of an Israeli prime minister who knew, and who cared, many Israelis suspect, little about war. Yes, Hizbollah provoked last summer's folly by capturing two Israeli soldiers on the Lebanese-Israel border, but Israel's response - so totally out of proportion to the sin - produced another debacle for the Israeli army and, presumably now, for its Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert.
Looking back at this terrifying, futile war, with its grotesque ambitions to "destroy" the Iranian-supported Hizbollah militia, it is incredible Mr Olmert did not realise within days that his grandiose demands would founder. Insisting the two captured Israeli soldiers should be released and the militarily powerless Lebanese government should be held responsible for their capture was never going to produce political or military results favourable to Israel. One would have to add that Tzipi Livni's demand for the Prime Mnister's resignation sits oddly with her support for this preposterous war.
A close reading of the interim report of Judge Eliahou Winograd's report on the summer war - to which Mr Olmert himself only granted the title the "Second Lebanon War" a month after it had happened - shows clearly that it was the Israeli army which ran the military, strategic and political campaign. Again and again in Winograd's report it is clear that Mr Olmert and his Defence Minister failed to challenge "in a competent way" (in the commission's devastating phrase) the plans of the Israeli army.
Day after day, for 34 days after 12 July, the Israeli air force systematically destroyed the major infrastructure of Lebanon, repeatedly claiming it was trying to avoid civilian casualties while the world's press watched its aircraft blasting men, women and children to pieces in Lebanon. Israelis, too, were savagely killed in this war by Hizbollah's Iranian-provided missiles. But it only proved the Israeli army, famous in legend and song but not in reality, could not protect their own people. Hizbollah fighters were told by their own leadership that if they would just withstand the air attacks, they could bite the Israeli land forces when they invaded.
And bite they did. In the final 24 hours of the war, 30 Israeli soldiers were killed by Hizbollah fighters and their land offensive, so loudly trumpeted by Mr Olmert, came to an end. During the conflict, a Hizbollah missile almost sank an Israeli corvette - it burnt for 24 hours and was towed back to Haifa before it was able to sink - and struck Israel's top secret military air traffic control centre at Miron. The soldiers captured on the border were never returned - pictures of them, still alive, are flaunted across the border at Israeli troops to this day - and Hizbollah, far from being destroyed, remain as powerful as ever;
And so one of Washington's last "pro-American" cabinets in the Middle East is now threatened by the very militia which Mr Olmert claimed he could destroy.
So it has come to this. All those bodies, all those photographs of dead children - more than 1,400 cadavers (we are not including the 230 or so Hizbollah fighters and the Israeli soldiers who died) - are to be commemorated with the possible resignation of an Israeli prime minister who knew, and who cared, many Israelis suspect, little about war. Yes, Hizbollah provoked last summer's folly by capturing two Israeli soldiers on the Lebanese-Israel border, but Israel's response - so totally out of proportion to the sin - produced another debacle for the Israeli army and, presumably now, for its Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert.
Looking back at this terrifying, futile war, with its grotesque ambitions to "destroy" the Iranian-supported Hizbollah militia, it is incredible Mr Olmert did not realise within days that his grandiose demands would founder. Insisting the two captured Israeli soldiers should be released and the militarily powerless Lebanese government should be held responsible for their capture was never going to produce political or military results favourable to Israel. One would have to add that Tzipi Livni's demand for the Prime Mnister's resignation sits oddly with her support for this preposterous war.
A close reading of the interim report of Judge Eliahou Winograd's report on the summer war - to which Mr Olmert himself only granted the title the "Second Lebanon War" a month after it had happened - shows clearly that it was the Israeli army which ran the military, strategic and political campaign. Again and again in Winograd's report it is clear that Mr Olmert and his Defence Minister failed to challenge "in a competent way" (in the commission's devastating phrase) the plans of the Israeli army.
Day after day, for 34 days after 12 July, the Israeli air force systematically destroyed the major infrastructure of Lebanon, repeatedly claiming it was trying to avoid civilian casualties while the world's press watched its aircraft blasting men, women and children to pieces in Lebanon. Israelis, too, were savagely killed in this war by Hizbollah's Iranian-provided missiles. But it only proved the Israeli army, famous in legend and song but not in reality, could not protect their own people. Hizbollah fighters were told by their own leadership that if they would just withstand the air attacks, they could bite the Israeli land forces when they invaded.
And bite they did. In the final 24 hours of the war, 30 Israeli soldiers were killed by Hizbollah fighters and their land offensive, so loudly trumpeted by Mr Olmert, came to an end. During the conflict, a Hizbollah missile almost sank an Israeli corvette - it burnt for 24 hours and was towed back to Haifa before it was able to sink - and struck Israel's top secret military air traffic control centre at Miron. The soldiers captured on the border were never returned - pictures of them, still alive, are flaunted across the border at Israeli troops to this day - and Hizbollah, far from being destroyed, remain as powerful as ever;
And so one of Washington's last "pro-American" cabinets in the Middle East is now threatened by the very militia which Mr Olmert claimed he could destroy.
jeudi 12 avril 2007
4 Ethiopian immigrants put in separate classroom
In a move more reminiscent of apartheid era South Africa than modern day Israel, four Ethiopian students at the Lamerchav Elementary School in Petah Tikva were segregated in a separate classroom because they were 'not observant enough'. Shocked father states: ‘We are being discriminated against for being black and powerless’
Ynetnews.com 12.04.07, 09:44
After prior report of ‘separate’ kindergartens for Ethiopian youngsters, it now sadly appears that racism can strike at all and any academic institutions. At the Lamerchav Elementary in Petah Tikva, four female Ethiopian students were separated from their peers and placed in their own segregated classroom.
As reported Tuesday by Yediot Ahronoth, the Ethiopian girls and their family had just moved from Haifa to Petah Tikva, where they enrolled in “Lamerchav”. As far as Principal Yishayahu Granwich was concerned, however, these new students could not be fully integrated into the school community. Ostensibly—as noted by municipality officials—this was because the girl were not observant enough, and did not belong to the Religious Zionist Movement as do all of the students at the school.
These Ethiopian immigrants were consequently placed in a separate classroom at the very end of the school corridor. One teacher alone was allotted for teaching them all of the various academic subjects. Moreover, the girls were assigned different recess hours to their peers, and given cab fare home so that they would not “overly socialize” with the rest of the girls.
Education officials 'shocked and appaled'
The girls' parents immediately noticed that their children were lonely, depressed and less than eager to go to school. “We do not understand what we did wrong, what crime we’re guilty of. Is this only because we are black?” they asked Ethiopian activist Daniel Uriah, who tried to speak to the principal on their behalf and was unceremoniously kicked out of the school building. Uriah then met with the director of the education administration, who told him that “the school in question is elitist and the girls must learn how to behave if they would like to fit in.”
Uriah next turned to Deputy Mayor of Petach Tikva, Paltiel Aisenthal of the National Union-National Religious Party. At a joint meeting with the girls’ parents, Aidenthal glibly stated: “Don’t worry about it. We know what is best for the girls. It is no big deal if they are separated from their peers.”
Education Minister Yuli Tamir said in response to this incident: “I was shocked an appalled at what happened to these girls. None of this was reported to the Ministry of Education. This is blatant racism and those responsible will suffer the appropriate consequences.”
Officials at the Education Ministry expressed shock and disgust at the incident, and strongly condemned these blatantly racist actions.
“Discrimination and racism have no place in the education system,” they noted. Ministry of Education Director General Shlomit Amichai reported that an inspector will be sent to the school Tuesday morning to investigate the matter, and that the school will be penalized accordingly.
Schools officials did not make formal comment, but noted that the school is elitist both in terms of academics and religious observance, and, for religious purposes, reserves the right not to admit students who have a television or internet access in their home.
Furthermore, as a religious institution, the school had full right to refuse admission to the aforementioned students, because they could not live up to its academic standards.
School officials also note that due the school only agreed to admit these Ethiopian students at the municipality’s insistence, and therefore was forced to relegate them to special classrooms where they could catch up academically .Furthermore, the students in question also attended many lessons in regular classrooms along with their peers.
The school staunchly denies the claims that the girls had separate recess hours, labeling them “utterly false”. Furthermore, school officials describe the cab rides home as a “perk” given to the Ethiopian students by the local municipality. “Who wouldn’t want to be chauffeured home in a cab?” they remarked.
Ynetnews.com 12.04.07, 09:44
After prior report of ‘separate’ kindergartens for Ethiopian youngsters, it now sadly appears that racism can strike at all and any academic institutions. At the Lamerchav Elementary in Petah Tikva, four female Ethiopian students were separated from their peers and placed in their own segregated classroom.
As reported Tuesday by Yediot Ahronoth, the Ethiopian girls and their family had just moved from Haifa to Petah Tikva, where they enrolled in “Lamerchav”. As far as Principal Yishayahu Granwich was concerned, however, these new students could not be fully integrated into the school community. Ostensibly—as noted by municipality officials—this was because the girl were not observant enough, and did not belong to the Religious Zionist Movement as do all of the students at the school.
These Ethiopian immigrants were consequently placed in a separate classroom at the very end of the school corridor. One teacher alone was allotted for teaching them all of the various academic subjects. Moreover, the girls were assigned different recess hours to their peers, and given cab fare home so that they would not “overly socialize” with the rest of the girls.
Education officials 'shocked and appaled'
The girls' parents immediately noticed that their children were lonely, depressed and less than eager to go to school. “We do not understand what we did wrong, what crime we’re guilty of. Is this only because we are black?” they asked Ethiopian activist Daniel Uriah, who tried to speak to the principal on their behalf and was unceremoniously kicked out of the school building. Uriah then met with the director of the education administration, who told him that “the school in question is elitist and the girls must learn how to behave if they would like to fit in.”
Uriah next turned to Deputy Mayor of Petach Tikva, Paltiel Aisenthal of the National Union-National Religious Party. At a joint meeting with the girls’ parents, Aidenthal glibly stated: “Don’t worry about it. We know what is best for the girls. It is no big deal if they are separated from their peers.”
Education Minister Yuli Tamir said in response to this incident: “I was shocked an appalled at what happened to these girls. None of this was reported to the Ministry of Education. This is blatant racism and those responsible will suffer the appropriate consequences.”
Officials at the Education Ministry expressed shock and disgust at the incident, and strongly condemned these blatantly racist actions.
“Discrimination and racism have no place in the education system,” they noted. Ministry of Education Director General Shlomit Amichai reported that an inspector will be sent to the school Tuesday morning to investigate the matter, and that the school will be penalized accordingly.
Schools officials did not make formal comment, but noted that the school is elitist both in terms of academics and religious observance, and, for religious purposes, reserves the right not to admit students who have a television or internet access in their home.
Furthermore, as a religious institution, the school had full right to refuse admission to the aforementioned students, because they could not live up to its academic standards.
School officials also note that due the school only agreed to admit these Ethiopian students at the municipality’s insistence, and therefore was forced to relegate them to special classrooms where they could catch up academically .Furthermore, the students in question also attended many lessons in regular classrooms along with their peers.
The school staunchly denies the claims that the girls had separate recess hours, labeling them “utterly false”. Furthermore, school officials describe the cab rides home as a “perk” given to the Ethiopian students by the local municipality. “Who wouldn’t want to be chauffeured home in a cab?” they remarked.
mardi 27 mars 2007
‘Marriage to an Arab is national treason’
‘Marriage to an Arab is national treason’
Recent poll reveals steep rise in racist views against Arabs in Israel; many participants feel hatred, fear when overhearing Arabic, 75 percent don’t approve of shared apartment buildings
Roee Nahmias
Yedioth Ahranoth Published: 03.27.07, 19:55
Over half of the Jewish population in Israel believes the marriage of a Jewish woman to an Arab man is equal to national treason, according to a recent survey by the Geocartography Institute.
The survey, which was conducted for the Center Against Racism, also found that over 75 percent of participants did not approve of apartment buildings being shared between Arabs and Jews. Sixty percent of participants said they would not allow an Arab to visit their home.
Five hundred Jewish men and women participated in the poll, which was published Tuesday.
According to the survey, racism against Arabs in Israel has seen a sharp rise since a similar survey was conducted two years ago.
In 2006, 247 racist acts against Arabs were reported, as opposed to 225 one year prior.
About 40 percent of participants agreed that “Arabs should have their right to vote for Knesset revoked”. The number was 55 percent lower in the previous survey. Also, over half of the participants agreed that Israel should encourage its Arab citizens to immigrate from the country.
Over half of the participants said they would not want to work under the direct management of an Arab, and 55 percent said “Arabs and Jews should be separated at entertainment sites”.
‘Arab culture inferior’
Participants were asked what they felt when they overheard someone speaking Arabic. Thirty-one percent said they felt hatred, while 50 percent said they felt fear.
Over 56 percent of participants said they believed that Israel’s Arab citizens posed both a security and a demographic threat to the country.
When asked what they thought of Arab culture, over 37 percent replied, “The Arab culture is inferior.”
“The Center Against Racism has set itself a goal to monitor all racial incidents against Arab citizens, and to fight racism as much as possible under the law through public action,” the center’s annual report said.
Bachar Ouda, the center's director, said the survey’s findings were worrisome, and urged the government to intervene in the situation.
“We call on the education minister to take the gloves off and deal with the issue seriously, because it is dangerous to coexistence. We call on the state prosecutions office, and the attorney general to take action,” Ouda said.
Recent poll reveals steep rise in racist views against Arabs in Israel; many participants feel hatred, fear when overhearing Arabic, 75 percent don’t approve of shared apartment buildings
Roee Nahmias
Yedioth Ahranoth Published: 03.27.07, 19:55
Over half of the Jewish population in Israel believes the marriage of a Jewish woman to an Arab man is equal to national treason, according to a recent survey by the Geocartography Institute.
The survey, which was conducted for the Center Against Racism, also found that over 75 percent of participants did not approve of apartment buildings being shared between Arabs and Jews. Sixty percent of participants said they would not allow an Arab to visit their home.
Five hundred Jewish men and women participated in the poll, which was published Tuesday.
According to the survey, racism against Arabs in Israel has seen a sharp rise since a similar survey was conducted two years ago.
In 2006, 247 racist acts against Arabs were reported, as opposed to 225 one year prior.
About 40 percent of participants agreed that “Arabs should have their right to vote for Knesset revoked”. The number was 55 percent lower in the previous survey. Also, over half of the participants agreed that Israel should encourage its Arab citizens to immigrate from the country.
Over half of the participants said they would not want to work under the direct management of an Arab, and 55 percent said “Arabs and Jews should be separated at entertainment sites”.
‘Arab culture inferior’
Participants were asked what they felt when they overheard someone speaking Arabic. Thirty-one percent said they felt hatred, while 50 percent said they felt fear.
Over 56 percent of participants said they believed that Israel’s Arab citizens posed both a security and a demographic threat to the country.
When asked what they thought of Arab culture, over 37 percent replied, “The Arab culture is inferior.”
“The Center Against Racism has set itself a goal to monitor all racial incidents against Arab citizens, and to fight racism as much as possible under the law through public action,” the center’s annual report said.
Bachar Ouda, the center's director, said the survey’s findings were worrisome, and urged the government to intervene in the situation.
“We call on the education minister to take the gloves off and deal with the issue seriously, because it is dangerous to coexistence. We call on the state prosecutions office, and the attorney general to take action,” Ouda said.
mercredi 28 février 2007
Gov't promoting plan for new ultra-Orthodox East Jerusalem neighborhood
Haaretz 17:15 28/02/2007
By Meron Rapoport, Haaretz Correspondent
Government bodies have been promoting a preliminary plan over the past few weeks to build a neighborhood of 11,000 units for the ultra-Orthodox near the East Jerusalem airport.The plan also calls for the construction of a tunnel under a Palestinian neighborhood to connect the new quarter to one of the settlements in the Beit El area east of Ramallah.MK Otniel Schneller (Kadima) said Tuesday that the Housing Ministry is the body that developed a plan to erect a massive new ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in East Jerusalem. The ministry denied any knowledge of the project.
Schneller also said Tuesday that the Jerusalem municipality was "happy with the idea."In response to Schneller's claims that the housing ministry hatched the plan, they said, "the ministry has no knowledge of this plan. At most, only the Jerusalem district of the ministry knew about it."The plan has not yet been submitted to the various planning committees since, according to Schneller, "it is only in the idea and feasibility stage." The new neighborhood is to be built close to the separation fence near the Qalandiyah road block, which separates the Palestinian neighborhoods of north Jerusalem from Ramallah. If approved, it would be the largest building project over the Green Line in Jerusalem since the 1967 Six-Day War. The neighborhood, which will apparently be built on state or Jewish National Fund land would sit in the heart of one of the most crowded urban Palestinian areas in the West Bank. The architectural firm planning the project, Reches Eshkol, refused to divulge which government body had commissioned the plans. Despite the Housing Ministry's response, Haaretz has learned that the plan was presented a number of times to various official bodies, and that the director of the Housing Ministry's Jerusalem district, Moshe Merhavya, was present at least at one such instance. Schneller said of the project: "I saw the plans in the programs division of the Housing Ministry and I very much enjoyed seeing them." Schneller explained that even though the Safdie Plan to construct housing in the western part of Jerusalem has been shelved, the need to build in Jerusalem still exists. "The ultra-Orthodox public needs its solutions," he said. "There is the possibility that it will conquer the inner city, and that this city will then become an ultra-Orthodox-Arab city, which I would not want to happen." Schneller, who is the former head of the Yesha settlement council and now serves as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's liaison to the settlers, said he has not yet spoken to the prime minister about the plan. "But from what I know of the government's position, there is an Israeli interest in establishing a neighborhood in Atarot. The plan proposes connecting the new neighborhood to the ultra-Orthodox settlement of Kokhav Yaakov east of Ramallah, which is at present outside the planned route of the separation fence. To this end, a tunnel a few hundred meters long would be dug beneath the Palestinian village of Aqab and under the separation fence. The idea to build an "eastern fence" to separate the settlements of the Jordan Valley and the mountains from large Palestinian communities like Ramallah had been raised in the past. The construction of the tunnel might be the first step in this direction. "If it is someday decided that Kokhav Yaakov will be part of the 'Jerusalem envelope' it would be logical to create such a link, but it has not yet been decided," Schneller said. The municipality said that "when the plan is officially presented to the municipality, it will be discussed and a decision will be made about it." Some of the neighborhoods built around Jerusalem after the Six-Day War were planned by the Housing Ministry and were established over the objections of then-mayor Teddy Kollek. Meron Benvenisti, who served as deputy mayor at that time, said that the area has complex problems: prior to the Six-Day war some of its land belonged to municipalities like al-Bireh, which are today in the Palestinian territories. "It is complete insanity to place tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews in the heart of a densely populated Arab area," he said. "No one thinks about how they will live there. It's like living in the middle of Ramallah." Attorney Danny Zindman of the Ir Amim association says such a plan will lead to the "balkanization" of Jerusalem.
By Meron Rapoport, Haaretz Correspondent
Government bodies have been promoting a preliminary plan over the past few weeks to build a neighborhood of 11,000 units for the ultra-Orthodox near the East Jerusalem airport.The plan also calls for the construction of a tunnel under a Palestinian neighborhood to connect the new quarter to one of the settlements in the Beit El area east of Ramallah.MK Otniel Schneller (Kadima) said Tuesday that the Housing Ministry is the body that developed a plan to erect a massive new ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in East Jerusalem. The ministry denied any knowledge of the project.
Schneller also said Tuesday that the Jerusalem municipality was "happy with the idea."In response to Schneller's claims that the housing ministry hatched the plan, they said, "the ministry has no knowledge of this plan. At most, only the Jerusalem district of the ministry knew about it."The plan has not yet been submitted to the various planning committees since, according to Schneller, "it is only in the idea and feasibility stage." The new neighborhood is to be built close to the separation fence near the Qalandiyah road block, which separates the Palestinian neighborhoods of north Jerusalem from Ramallah. If approved, it would be the largest building project over the Green Line in Jerusalem since the 1967 Six-Day War. The neighborhood, which will apparently be built on state or Jewish National Fund land would sit in the heart of one of the most crowded urban Palestinian areas in the West Bank. The architectural firm planning the project, Reches Eshkol, refused to divulge which government body had commissioned the plans. Despite the Housing Ministry's response, Haaretz has learned that the plan was presented a number of times to various official bodies, and that the director of the Housing Ministry's Jerusalem district, Moshe Merhavya, was present at least at one such instance. Schneller said of the project: "I saw the plans in the programs division of the Housing Ministry and I very much enjoyed seeing them." Schneller explained that even though the Safdie Plan to construct housing in the western part of Jerusalem has been shelved, the need to build in Jerusalem still exists. "The ultra-Orthodox public needs its solutions," he said. "There is the possibility that it will conquer the inner city, and that this city will then become an ultra-Orthodox-Arab city, which I would not want to happen." Schneller, who is the former head of the Yesha settlement council and now serves as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's liaison to the settlers, said he has not yet spoken to the prime minister about the plan. "But from what I know of the government's position, there is an Israeli interest in establishing a neighborhood in Atarot. The plan proposes connecting the new neighborhood to the ultra-Orthodox settlement of Kokhav Yaakov east of Ramallah, which is at present outside the planned route of the separation fence. To this end, a tunnel a few hundred meters long would be dug beneath the Palestinian village of Aqab and under the separation fence. The idea to build an "eastern fence" to separate the settlements of the Jordan Valley and the mountains from large Palestinian communities like Ramallah had been raised in the past. The construction of the tunnel might be the first step in this direction. "If it is someday decided that Kokhav Yaakov will be part of the 'Jerusalem envelope' it would be logical to create such a link, but it has not yet been decided," Schneller said. The municipality said that "when the plan is officially presented to the municipality, it will be discussed and a decision will be made about it." Some of the neighborhoods built around Jerusalem after the Six-Day War were planned by the Housing Ministry and were established over the objections of then-mayor Teddy Kollek. Meron Benvenisti, who served as deputy mayor at that time, said that the area has complex problems: prior to the Six-Day war some of its land belonged to municipalities like al-Bireh, which are today in the Palestinian territories. "It is complete insanity to place tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews in the heart of a densely populated Arab area," he said. "No one thinks about how they will live there. It's like living in the middle of Ramallah." Attorney Danny Zindman of the Ir Amim association says such a plan will lead to the "balkanization" of Jerusalem.
lundi 19 février 2007
UN anti-racism panel questions Israel over non-Jewish holy sites
Haaretz Last update - 15:25 19/02/2007
By The Associated Press
A United Nations anti-racism panel is scheduled to hold a hearing later this week over Israel's attitude toward sites considered holy by its Arab population. Israel's government has also been asked to explain if it discriminates between Jewish citizens and its Arab citizens in how it provides housing, education, public services, land rights and legal protection against acts of violence, according to a list of issues released by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The panel of 18 independent experts overseeing compliance with the United Nations' 38-year-old anti-racism treaty has submitted questions in writing on Israel's policy for preserving holy sites and asked the government to explain why it only grants special protection for places considered sacred by Jews.
The committee asked for a clarification over the fact that to date, 120 places have been declared holy sites, all of which are Jewish. The list of questions was formulated before the recent furor over a construction project in Jerusalem that some Muslims have charged could damage the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israel - whose quadrennial review was postponed in August because of the Lebanon war - is to appear before the panel on Thursday and Friday to answer the questions, which include whether it has set forth regulations in relation to holy sites of both the Jewish and non-Jewish population. Two weeks ago, Israeli archaeologists began a salvage dig ahead of the construction of a new pedestrian walkway up to Jerusalem's Temple Mount. On Sunday, the dig sparked renewed Muslim condemnation after an Israeli archaeologist said the site might contain a Muslim prayer room. Most holy places are also considered antiquities sites, Israel said in 2005 submission to the panel, arguing that Muslim sites are still protected under its law. The Jewish state referred in the 124-page report to a pending High Court decision over whether the government was required to offer Muslim holy places the same status as Jewish religious sites. Nevertheless, it said several existing statutes protect holy places by requiring excavation, drainage, sewage and demolition projects near holy sites, Jewish or non-Jewish, to first gain special government permission. The archaeological dig is taking place about 60 meters away from the Al Aqsa mosque ? a site considered the third-holiest in Islam.
By The Associated Press
A United Nations anti-racism panel is scheduled to hold a hearing later this week over Israel's attitude toward sites considered holy by its Arab population. Israel's government has also been asked to explain if it discriminates between Jewish citizens and its Arab citizens in how it provides housing, education, public services, land rights and legal protection against acts of violence, according to a list of issues released by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The panel of 18 independent experts overseeing compliance with the United Nations' 38-year-old anti-racism treaty has submitted questions in writing on Israel's policy for preserving holy sites and asked the government to explain why it only grants special protection for places considered sacred by Jews.
The committee asked for a clarification over the fact that to date, 120 places have been declared holy sites, all of which are Jewish. The list of questions was formulated before the recent furor over a construction project in Jerusalem that some Muslims have charged could damage the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israel - whose quadrennial review was postponed in August because of the Lebanon war - is to appear before the panel on Thursday and Friday to answer the questions, which include whether it has set forth regulations in relation to holy sites of both the Jewish and non-Jewish population. Two weeks ago, Israeli archaeologists began a salvage dig ahead of the construction of a new pedestrian walkway up to Jerusalem's Temple Mount. On Sunday, the dig sparked renewed Muslim condemnation after an Israeli archaeologist said the site might contain a Muslim prayer room. Most holy places are also considered antiquities sites, Israel said in 2005 submission to the panel, arguing that Muslim sites are still protected under its law. The Jewish state referred in the 124-page report to a pending High Court decision over whether the government was required to offer Muslim holy places the same status as Jewish religious sites. Nevertheless, it said several existing statutes protect holy places by requiring excavation, drainage, sewage and demolition projects near holy sites, Jewish or non-Jewish, to first gain special government permission. The archaeological dig is taking place about 60 meters away from the Al Aqsa mosque ? a site considered the third-holiest in Islam.
UN anti-racism panel questions Israel over non-Jewish holy sites
Haaretz 15:25 19/02/2007
By The Associated Press
A United Nations anti-racism panel is scheduled to hold a hearing later this week over Israel's attitude toward sites considered holy by its Arab population. Israel's government has also been asked to explain if it discriminates between Jewish citizens and its Arab citizens in how it provides housing, education, public services, land rights and legal protection against acts of violence, according to a list of issues released by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The panel of 18 independent experts overseeing compliance with the United Nations' 38-year-old anti-racism treaty has submitted questions in writing on Israel's policy for preserving holy sites and asked the government to explain why it only grants special protection for places considered sacred by Jews.
The committee asked for a clarification over the fact that to date, 120 places have been declared holy sites, all of which are Jewish. The list of questions was formulated before the recent furor over a construction project in Jerusalem that some Muslims have charged could damage the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israel - whose quadrennial review was postponed in August because of the Lebanon war - is to appear before the panel on Thursday and Friday to answer the questions, which include whether it has set forth regulations in relation to holy sites of both the Jewish and non-Jewish population. Two weeks ago, Israeli archaeologists began a salvage dig ahead of the construction of a new pedestrian walkway up to Jerusalem's Temple Mount. On Sunday, the dig sparked renewed Muslim condemnation after an Israeli archaeologist said the site might contain a Muslim prayer room.
Most holy places are also considered antiquities sites, Israel said in 2005 submission to the panel, arguing that Muslim sites are still protected under its law. The Jewish state referred in the 124-page report to a pending High Court decision over whether the government was required to offer Muslim holy places the same status as Jewish religious sites. Nevertheless, it said several existing statutes protect holy places by requiring excavation, drainage, sewage and demolition projects near holy sites, Jewish or non-Jewish, to first gain special government permission. The archaeological dig is taking place about 60 meters away from the Al Aqsa mosque - a site considered the third-holiest in Islam.
By The Associated Press
A United Nations anti-racism panel is scheduled to hold a hearing later this week over Israel's attitude toward sites considered holy by its Arab population. Israel's government has also been asked to explain if it discriminates between Jewish citizens and its Arab citizens in how it provides housing, education, public services, land rights and legal protection against acts of violence, according to a list of issues released by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The panel of 18 independent experts overseeing compliance with the United Nations' 38-year-old anti-racism treaty has submitted questions in writing on Israel's policy for preserving holy sites and asked the government to explain why it only grants special protection for places considered sacred by Jews.
The committee asked for a clarification over the fact that to date, 120 places have been declared holy sites, all of which are Jewish. The list of questions was formulated before the recent furor over a construction project in Jerusalem that some Muslims have charged could damage the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israel - whose quadrennial review was postponed in August because of the Lebanon war - is to appear before the panel on Thursday and Friday to answer the questions, which include whether it has set forth regulations in relation to holy sites of both the Jewish and non-Jewish population. Two weeks ago, Israeli archaeologists began a salvage dig ahead of the construction of a new pedestrian walkway up to Jerusalem's Temple Mount. On Sunday, the dig sparked renewed Muslim condemnation after an Israeli archaeologist said the site might contain a Muslim prayer room.
Most holy places are also considered antiquities sites, Israel said in 2005 submission to the panel, arguing that Muslim sites are still protected under its law. The Jewish state referred in the 124-page report to a pending High Court decision over whether the government was required to offer Muslim holy places the same status as Jewish religious sites. Nevertheless, it said several existing statutes protect holy places by requiring excavation, drainage, sewage and demolition projects near holy sites, Jewish or non-Jewish, to first gain special government permission. The archaeological dig is taking place about 60 meters away from the Al Aqsa mosque - a site considered the third-holiest in Islam.
samedi 6 janvier 2007
El Al: We are not surrendering to ultra-Orthodox pressure
Haaretz 19:25 06/01/2007
By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz Correspondent
In an interviewed with Haaretz on Saturday, an El Al excecutive said the company is not 'surrendering to the Haredim' and will maintain its current policy barring flights on Shabbat and holidays except in emergency situations. The statement came a day after El Al CEO Haim Romano and attorney Yaakov Weinrot, representing the ultra-Orthodox rabbinical committee for Shabbat, signed a deal to end a dispute over Shabbat flights. The agreement signals an end to an unofficial boycott of El Al, which has led to losses of about NIS 1 million a day, according to an official at Israel's national carrier.
The agreement stipulates that El Al will appoint a rabbi to rule on instances of a perceived need for flights on Shabbat. El Al has also committed to adhere to its general policy of not flying on Shabbat. The rabbi, Sephardi Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, is described in the agreement as an "adviser," and El Al noted that he will not have veto power. However, if the airline does not heed his ruling, it will be considered in violation of the agreement itself. According to the agreement, if El Al decides there is a need for flights on Shabbat - as happened nearly a month ago, in the incident that spurred the dispute - the issue will be referred to Amar. He will approve a flight only if he determines that doing so would be a life-saving measure, thereby overriding Shabbat. El Al rejected the ultra-Orthodox demand that the airline pay the cancellation fee of Shabbat-observant passengers if El Al decided to fly despite Amar's ruling to the contrary. The parties agreed that in such a case, the cancellation fee would go to the Health Ministry's budget for its health basket of medications and medical treatments.
Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger praised the deal and said, "I am very pleased with the company's understanding of the ultra-Orthodox public's sensitivity [to the issue] and that they agreed to keep the Shabbat." Metzger called for all businesses that do not keep Shabbat to follow El-Al's lead. A source at El Al stated on Saturday, 'both sides bit off more than they could chew, but have now come to an agreement that is comfortable for both sides. The religious will not initiate a boycott on El Al." In light of the role of Rabbi Amar, the source at El Al added 'the rabbi will serve only as an advisor, not a decision-maker. He won't be part of El Al management.
By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz Correspondent
In an interviewed with Haaretz on Saturday, an El Al excecutive said the company is not 'surrendering to the Haredim' and will maintain its current policy barring flights on Shabbat and holidays except in emergency situations. The statement came a day after El Al CEO Haim Romano and attorney Yaakov Weinrot, representing the ultra-Orthodox rabbinical committee for Shabbat, signed a deal to end a dispute over Shabbat flights. The agreement signals an end to an unofficial boycott of El Al, which has led to losses of about NIS 1 million a day, according to an official at Israel's national carrier.
The agreement stipulates that El Al will appoint a rabbi to rule on instances of a perceived need for flights on Shabbat. El Al has also committed to adhere to its general policy of not flying on Shabbat. The rabbi, Sephardi Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, is described in the agreement as an "adviser," and El Al noted that he will not have veto power. However, if the airline does not heed his ruling, it will be considered in violation of the agreement itself. According to the agreement, if El Al decides there is a need for flights on Shabbat - as happened nearly a month ago, in the incident that spurred the dispute - the issue will be referred to Amar. He will approve a flight only if he determines that doing so would be a life-saving measure, thereby overriding Shabbat. El Al rejected the ultra-Orthodox demand that the airline pay the cancellation fee of Shabbat-observant passengers if El Al decided to fly despite Amar's ruling to the contrary. The parties agreed that in such a case, the cancellation fee would go to the Health Ministry's budget for its health basket of medications and medical treatments.
Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger praised the deal and said, "I am very pleased with the company's understanding of the ultra-Orthodox public's sensitivity [to the issue] and that they agreed to keep the Shabbat." Metzger called for all businesses that do not keep Shabbat to follow El-Al's lead. A source at El Al stated on Saturday, 'both sides bit off more than they could chew, but have now come to an agreement that is comfortable for both sides. The religious will not initiate a boycott on El Al." In light of the role of Rabbi Amar, the source at El Al added 'the rabbi will serve only as an advisor, not a decision-maker. He won't be part of El Al management.
vendredi 15 décembre 2006
El Al losing NIS 1 million daily to unofficial ultra-Orthodox boycott
Haaretz 07:18 15/12/2006
By Zohar Blumenkrantz, Haaretz Correspondent
The crisis that broke out between the ultra-Orthodox and El Al two weeks ago is beginning to affect the company. An El Al source said Thursday that the company estimates it is losing NIS 1 million per day, which may worsen if the ultra-Orthodox community declares an official boycott of the carrier. Meanwhile, the company is trying to minimize its losses with a more energetic marketing campaign among the secular public, with emphasis on weekend packages for couples. Haaretz has learned that the airline allotted 3,500 tickets for the special offers aimed at secular couples interested in a weekend vacation abroad. A Wednesday meeting between El Al CEO Haim Romano and the rabbinic committee on safeguarding Shabbat did not bring a solution any closer.
The crisis erupted two weeks ago, following an El Al decision to allow a number of its flights to take off after the beginning of Shabbat. The flight schedule had been disrupted when airport workers participated in a nationwide strike two days earlier. The rabbinic committee on Shabbat represents all ultra-Orthodox groups, and would like El Al to appoint a rabbi to decide whether the carrier may schedule flights in exceptional circumstances on Shabbat. Both sides reported that the meeting Wednesday was held in a "very positive atmosphere" following instructions by leading rabbinic leaders to "do everything possible" to reach an agreement. At the meeting, Romano said El Al considers its Haredi customers important clients, and vowed to "do everything so that they would continue to fly" with the carrier.
The ultra-Orthodox community has imposed a de facto boycott on El Al, even though one has not been officially declared by community leaders. Nonetheless, when the Haredi public seeks the advice of rabbis on the matter, their view is unequivocal: stay off El Al. The Haredi press is also stating that leading rabbis, both in Israel and abroad, have chosen to use other airlines. Other carriers appear to have taken advantage of the opportunity to tap into the Haredi market. Air Canada advertised Wednesday in a Haredi newspaper, promising benefits to passengers and Glatt Kosher meals. In its efforts to counter its losses, El Al is offering packages of $399 per couple for flights to Athens and Istanbul, while similar packages to Western Europe are on offer for $599. According to company sources, the package is tailored to suit the Israeli public, which likes taking short winter vacations.
By Zohar Blumenkrantz, Haaretz Correspondent
The crisis that broke out between the ultra-Orthodox and El Al two weeks ago is beginning to affect the company. An El Al source said Thursday that the company estimates it is losing NIS 1 million per day, which may worsen if the ultra-Orthodox community declares an official boycott of the carrier. Meanwhile, the company is trying to minimize its losses with a more energetic marketing campaign among the secular public, with emphasis on weekend packages for couples. Haaretz has learned that the airline allotted 3,500 tickets for the special offers aimed at secular couples interested in a weekend vacation abroad. A Wednesday meeting between El Al CEO Haim Romano and the rabbinic committee on safeguarding Shabbat did not bring a solution any closer.
The crisis erupted two weeks ago, following an El Al decision to allow a number of its flights to take off after the beginning of Shabbat. The flight schedule had been disrupted when airport workers participated in a nationwide strike two days earlier. The rabbinic committee on Shabbat represents all ultra-Orthodox groups, and would like El Al to appoint a rabbi to decide whether the carrier may schedule flights in exceptional circumstances on Shabbat. Both sides reported that the meeting Wednesday was held in a "very positive atmosphere" following instructions by leading rabbinic leaders to "do everything possible" to reach an agreement. At the meeting, Romano said El Al considers its Haredi customers important clients, and vowed to "do everything so that they would continue to fly" with the carrier.
The ultra-Orthodox community has imposed a de facto boycott on El Al, even though one has not been officially declared by community leaders. Nonetheless, when the Haredi public seeks the advice of rabbis on the matter, their view is unequivocal: stay off El Al. The Haredi press is also stating that leading rabbis, both in Israel and abroad, have chosen to use other airlines. Other carriers appear to have taken advantage of the opportunity to tap into the Haredi market. Air Canada advertised Wednesday in a Haredi newspaper, promising benefits to passengers and Glatt Kosher meals. In its efforts to counter its losses, El Al is offering packages of $399 per couple for flights to Athens and Istanbul, while similar packages to Western Europe are on offer for $599. According to company sources, the package is tailored to suit the Israeli public, which likes taking short winter vacations.
lundi 11 septembre 2006
Bar-On wants passports of Arab MKs who visited Syria revoked
Haaretz Last update - 08:35 11/09/2006
By Yuval Yoaz and Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondents and Haaretz Service
Interior Minister Roni Bar-On on Sunday called on Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to recall the passports of three Arabs lawmakers who visited Syria without seeking permission from the government.At Bar-On's request, Attorney General Menachem Mazuz ordered a criminal investigation be opened against Balad MKs Azmi Bashara, Jamal Zahalka and Wassel Taha over their recent visit to Syria.Bar-On called the trip a criminal offense and said all steps should be taken to try the MKs and stop "this shamelful phenomenon." He also asked Mazuz to allow him to restrict the international travels of the three MKs.
This was the first time in five years Balad MKs have organized a trip to Syria. After Bashara's last trip in 2001, the Knesset passed a law forbidding MKs from visiting any enemy state.The MKs said their trip had been an expression of the importance of maintaining positive ties between Arabs in Israel with Syria, especially during periods of war.Zahalka said the visit had been "for the sake of the rights of Arabs in Israel to maintain relations with Arab nations," and had been intended to show solidarity with the Lebanese people. "We are friends of Syria and we will continue to maintain ties with her on a national level, as is our known stance," Bashara told the Syrian news agency Sana.
By Yuval Yoaz and Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondents and Haaretz Service
Interior Minister Roni Bar-On on Sunday called on Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to recall the passports of three Arabs lawmakers who visited Syria without seeking permission from the government.At Bar-On's request, Attorney General Menachem Mazuz ordered a criminal investigation be opened against Balad MKs Azmi Bashara, Jamal Zahalka and Wassel Taha over their recent visit to Syria.Bar-On called the trip a criminal offense and said all steps should be taken to try the MKs and stop "this shamelful phenomenon." He also asked Mazuz to allow him to restrict the international travels of the three MKs.
This was the first time in five years Balad MKs have organized a trip to Syria. After Bashara's last trip in 2001, the Knesset passed a law forbidding MKs from visiting any enemy state.The MKs said their trip had been an expression of the importance of maintaining positive ties between Arabs in Israel with Syria, especially during periods of war.Zahalka said the visit had been "for the sake of the rights of Arabs in Israel to maintain relations with Arab nations," and had been intended to show solidarity with the Lebanese people. "We are friends of Syria and we will continue to maintain ties with her on a national level, as is our known stance," Bashara told the Syrian news agency Sana.
Leftist MKs blast Eitam's statements on Arabs, urge AG to investigate
Haaretz 15:53 11/09/2006
By Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondent, and Haaretz Service
Left-wing lawmakers reacted furiously Monday to statements made by rightist Knesset Member Effi Eitam against Israeli Arab politicians and Palestinians in the West Bank, and called for attorney general Menachem Mazuz to open an investigation into Eitam's comments on grounds of incitement to racism. Eitam, a member of the right-wing National Union-National Religious Party sparked a political firestorm Monday when he said that the great majority of Palestinians in the West Bank should be expelled, and that Arabs should be ousted from Israeli politics as a fifth column and "a league of traitors." The remarks, broadcast Monday on Army Radio, were made during a Sunday speech at a memorial service for a soldier killed in Lebanon during the recent war.
It was the first time that Eitam, who heads the Religious Zionism faction within the National Union, has publicly supported deportation of Palestinians, a concept espoused by assassinated National Union founder Rehavam Ze'evi as "transfer." "We will have to expel the great majority of the Arabs of Judea and Samaria," Eitam urged, referring to the whole of the West Bank. According to Eitam, experience showed that Israel cannot give up the area of the West Bank. "It is impossible with all of these Arabs, and it is impossible to give up the territory. We've already seen what they're doing there." Turning to the subject of Israeli Arabs, Eitam said, "We will have to take another decision, and that is to sweep the Israeli Arabs from the political system. Here, too, the issues are clear and simple. "We've raised a fifth column, a league of traitors of the first rank. Therefore, we cannot continue to enable so large and so hostile a presense within the political system of Israel." Beilin: Bring Eitam to trial Yossi Beilin, the leader of the left-wing Meretz party, urged Attorney General Menachem Mazuz Monday to bring Eitam to trial on charges of incitement to racism. Beilin's call was based on an amendment to the law which grants lawmakers immunity from prosecution. The amendment lifts the immunity from legislators who incite to racism or ethnic prejudice. Earlier in the day, Meretz MK Avshalom Vilan called on Mazuz to open an investigation against Eitam, on suspicion of incitement and sedition. Arab MK Ahmed Tibi (Ra'am-Ta'al) said Monday that "Eitam's remarks would have been more authentic, had they been delivered in German." "These are irresponsible statements," Tibi told the radio, "directed at the lowest level of the racism surging within Israeli society." "A long time ago the racists and fascists moved from the Israeli street to the Israeli government and the halls of power" added Tibi. Peace Now leader Yariv Oppenheimer said that the words of Eitam "show that the dogma of [slain extreme right-wing Rabbi Meir] Kahane is alive and well. In a moment of candor, the mask was removed from Eitam's face, exposing him as a leader of fantasy and racism." Arab MK Mohammed Barakeh said that the attack on the representatives of Arab citizens of Israel was an attempt to "delegitimize the Arab population entirely and to negate their right to voice their opinions and participate in the political process." According to Barakeh, the measures proposed by Eitam are already being implemented, as the Palestinians, "are witness to many steps to push them aside and expel them from their homeland, among them the security fence in Jerusalem and the West Bank. The policies of siege, starvation, and negation of the basic right of human dignity are a means of extremely dangerous ethnic expulsion. "You don't need trucks to transfer Palestinians.
By Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondent, and Haaretz Service
Left-wing lawmakers reacted furiously Monday to statements made by rightist Knesset Member Effi Eitam against Israeli Arab politicians and Palestinians in the West Bank, and called for attorney general Menachem Mazuz to open an investigation into Eitam's comments on grounds of incitement to racism. Eitam, a member of the right-wing National Union-National Religious Party sparked a political firestorm Monday when he said that the great majority of Palestinians in the West Bank should be expelled, and that Arabs should be ousted from Israeli politics as a fifth column and "a league of traitors." The remarks, broadcast Monday on Army Radio, were made during a Sunday speech at a memorial service for a soldier killed in Lebanon during the recent war.
It was the first time that Eitam, who heads the Religious Zionism faction within the National Union, has publicly supported deportation of Palestinians, a concept espoused by assassinated National Union founder Rehavam Ze'evi as "transfer." "We will have to expel the great majority of the Arabs of Judea and Samaria," Eitam urged, referring to the whole of the West Bank. According to Eitam, experience showed that Israel cannot give up the area of the West Bank. "It is impossible with all of these Arabs, and it is impossible to give up the territory. We've already seen what they're doing there." Turning to the subject of Israeli Arabs, Eitam said, "We will have to take another decision, and that is to sweep the Israeli Arabs from the political system. Here, too, the issues are clear and simple. "We've raised a fifth column, a league of traitors of the first rank. Therefore, we cannot continue to enable so large and so hostile a presense within the political system of Israel." Beilin: Bring Eitam to trial Yossi Beilin, the leader of the left-wing Meretz party, urged Attorney General Menachem Mazuz Monday to bring Eitam to trial on charges of incitement to racism. Beilin's call was based on an amendment to the law which grants lawmakers immunity from prosecution. The amendment lifts the immunity from legislators who incite to racism or ethnic prejudice. Earlier in the day, Meretz MK Avshalom Vilan called on Mazuz to open an investigation against Eitam, on suspicion of incitement and sedition. Arab MK Ahmed Tibi (Ra'am-Ta'al) said Monday that "Eitam's remarks would have been more authentic, had they been delivered in German." "These are irresponsible statements," Tibi told the radio, "directed at the lowest level of the racism surging within Israeli society." "A long time ago the racists and fascists moved from the Israeli street to the Israeli government and the halls of power" added Tibi. Peace Now leader Yariv Oppenheimer said that the words of Eitam "show that the dogma of [slain extreme right-wing Rabbi Meir] Kahane is alive and well. In a moment of candor, the mask was removed from Eitam's face, exposing him as a leader of fantasy and racism." Arab MK Mohammed Barakeh said that the attack on the representatives of Arab citizens of Israel was an attempt to "delegitimize the Arab population entirely and to negate their right to voice their opinions and participate in the political process." According to Barakeh, the measures proposed by Eitam are already being implemented, as the Palestinians, "are witness to many steps to push them aside and expel them from their homeland, among them the security fence in Jerusalem and the West Bank. The policies of siege, starvation, and negation of the basic right of human dignity are a means of extremely dangerous ethnic expulsion. "You don't need trucks to transfer Palestinians.
lundi 28 août 2006
Vision: Arab volunteers in national service
Education minister launches new project in which she aspires to integrate Arab sector into national service, which usually serves as an alternative volunteer framework for religious sector instead of military service
Moran Zelikovich
Ynetnews.com 08.28.06, 11:28
Education Minister Yuli Tamir said Sunday that in her vision she sees "an Arab girl next to a religious girl, volunteering together in a Nahariyan hospital. If I succeed in this then I have accomplished all of my aspirations in public life."
Speaking during the City for Education conference in Holon, Minister Tamir referred in her statements to a new project she had begun to implement, with the main goal of encouraging students from the Arab sector to volunteer in the national service.
"We can offer the Arab sector a partnership," she explained. "Let's see if we can recruit them and divide properly what we have. I have decided to open a path and give them the opportunity to participate in the national service".
Today, the national service serves as an alternative volunteer framework for the military service and many of the volunteers are from the national-religious sector. The State has allocated 10,000 positions for national service volunteers, and the Education Ministry holds almost a third of them.
More than 3,000 volunteers are recruited each year to help in various institutions like schools for special education, community centers, daycare centers, dormitories and youth movements, in a variety of duties such as professional assistants and tutors. The duration of the service is between one and two years.
Worried by ultra-Orthodox sector
According to the minister, a trial has recently been conducted in the Arab sector in which positions have been allocated for national service volunteers. The positions have been filled instantly and therefore Minister Tamir has decided to conduct and implement the project on a wider scale.
For the first time, the Education Ministry of will offer 74 volunteer positions for the national service from the Arab sector in the coming year. The youngsters will be trained through the usual centers which also qualify the other volunteers without any special courses being set up for them.
It is important to point out that in order to encourage volunteers in the Arab sector to volunteer for national service and in order to vacate positions for them, the minister needs to cooperate both with the Israel Defense Forces and the local authorities.
At the convention, the minister also referred to the public and official education.
"The ultra-Orthodox sector worries me. In 20 years, 25 percent of all the pupils will be ultra-Orthodox and an additional 30 percent will be from the Arab sector. Both do not identify with the country. The solution found for the ultra-orthodox sector is according to the best Israeli tradition of 'known yet not official.' This is becoming a great part of the system and we do not know what is going on there. I will find a legal way to shut down private schools".
Moran Zelikovich
Ynetnews.com 08.28.06, 11:28
Education Minister Yuli Tamir said Sunday that in her vision she sees "an Arab girl next to a religious girl, volunteering together in a Nahariyan hospital. If I succeed in this then I have accomplished all of my aspirations in public life."
Speaking during the City for Education conference in Holon, Minister Tamir referred in her statements to a new project she had begun to implement, with the main goal of encouraging students from the Arab sector to volunteer in the national service.
"We can offer the Arab sector a partnership," she explained. "Let's see if we can recruit them and divide properly what we have. I have decided to open a path and give them the opportunity to participate in the national service".
Today, the national service serves as an alternative volunteer framework for the military service and many of the volunteers are from the national-religious sector. The State has allocated 10,000 positions for national service volunteers, and the Education Ministry holds almost a third of them.
More than 3,000 volunteers are recruited each year to help in various institutions like schools for special education, community centers, daycare centers, dormitories and youth movements, in a variety of duties such as professional assistants and tutors. The duration of the service is between one and two years.
Worried by ultra-Orthodox sector
According to the minister, a trial has recently been conducted in the Arab sector in which positions have been allocated for national service volunteers. The positions have been filled instantly and therefore Minister Tamir has decided to conduct and implement the project on a wider scale.
For the first time, the Education Ministry of will offer 74 volunteer positions for the national service from the Arab sector in the coming year. The youngsters will be trained through the usual centers which also qualify the other volunteers without any special courses being set up for them.
It is important to point out that in order to encourage volunteers in the Arab sector to volunteer for national service and in order to vacate positions for them, the minister needs to cooperate both with the Israel Defense Forces and the local authorities.
At the convention, the minister also referred to the public and official education.
"The ultra-Orthodox sector worries me. In 20 years, 25 percent of all the pupils will be ultra-Orthodox and an additional 30 percent will be from the Arab sector. Both do not identify with the country. The solution found for the ultra-orthodox sector is according to the best Israeli tradition of 'known yet not official.' This is becoming a great part of the system and we do not know what is going on there. I will find a legal way to shut down private schools".
mercredi 26 juillet 2006
Annan accuses Israel over attack on UN post
AP Wednesday, 26 July 2006
The UN secretary general Kofi Annan says an Israeli attack on a UN observation post was "apparently deliberate". Four unarmed military observers were killed in the air strike in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, spoke by phone to Mr Annan. Mr Olmert expressed his "deep regret" and said the peacekeepers were killed mistakenly. He expressed dismay over Mr Annan's accusation and promised a thorough investigation , saying the results would be presented to Mr Annan.
Mr Annan later called for participants at a Mideast conference to push for an immediate ceasefire to end fighting between Israel and Hizbollah guerrillas.
Hizbollah must stop its "deliberate targeting of Israeli population centers". And Israel must put an end to all bombing, ground operations and blockades of Lebanese ports.
In a statement in Rome, Mr Annan said: "A key stipulation for such a halt in fighting would be that the parties must not, I repeat, must not take advantage of such a pause to conduct offense operations, redeploy or resupply." And he added that an international force will be vital to keeping peace.
Since fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militants began two weeks ago, there had been several dozen incidents of firing close to UN peacekeepers and observers, including direct hits on nine positions, some of them repeatedly, a UN official said.
As a result of these attacks, 12 UN personnel have been killed or injured, the official said.
Last night's bomb made a direct hit on the building and shelter of the observer post in the town of Khiam, near the eastern end of the border with Israel, said Milos Struger, spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon known as Unifil.
Four unarmed military observers were in a bunker and the bunker collapsed as a result of the bombing, the UN official said.
Rescue workers were trying to clear the rubble, but Israeli firing " continued even during the rescue operation", Struger said.
Annan said two UN military observers were killed with two more feared dead. Later, the UN official confirmed that a third body was recovered from the rubble.
The victims included observers from Austria, Canada, China and Finland, UN and Lebanese military officials said.
Chinese foreign minister Li Zhaoxing said he was saddened by the news and that it showed "we should try harder to call on the parties to be restrained and to be calm and restore the peace process of the Middle East immediately".
China's official Xinhua News Agency identified the Chinese victim as Du Zhaoyu.
It was not immediately known which of the others were confirmed dead.
Annan said the "co-ordinated artillery and aerial attack on a long-established and clearly marked UN post at Khiam occurred despite personal assurances given to me by prime minister Ehud Olmert that UN positions would be spared Israeli fire."
Furthermore, he said, General Alain Pelligrini, the UN force commander in south Lebanon, had been in repeated contact with Israeli officers throughout yesterday "stressing the need to protect that particular UN position from attack".
But Gillerman said he was "shocked and deeply distressed by the hasty statement of the secretary general, insinuating that Israel has deliberately targeted the UN post", calling the assertions "premature and erroneous".
He said Olmert's assurances to the secretary-general were "a clear indication" of Israel's commitment to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel.
As reports of the attack emerged, Annan rushed out of a hotel in Rome following a dinner with US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice and Lebanese prime minister Fuad Saniora.
"I am shocked and deeply distressed by the apparently deliberate targeting by Israeli Defence Forces of a UN observer post in southern Lebanon," Annan said in a statement later.
"I call on the government of Israel to conduct a full investigation into this very disturbing incident and demand that any further attack on UN positions and personnel must stop."
Gillerman said "Israel is carrying out a thorough inquiry into this tragic incident and will inform the UN of its results as soon as possible".
The UN Security Council is expected to receive a briefing on the bombing today.
Since Israel launched a massive military offensive against Lebanon and Hezbollah guerillas on July 12, a Nigerian civilian employee working with Unifil and his wife had been killed in the crossfire in the southern port city of Tyre.
Five Unifil soldiers and one military observer had also been wounded, Struger said. They included four Ghanaians injured by artillery fire on Monday and a peacekeeper shot through the back on July 23.
The UN secretary general Kofi Annan says an Israeli attack on a UN observation post was "apparently deliberate". Four unarmed military observers were killed in the air strike in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, spoke by phone to Mr Annan. Mr Olmert expressed his "deep regret" and said the peacekeepers were killed mistakenly. He expressed dismay over Mr Annan's accusation and promised a thorough investigation , saying the results would be presented to Mr Annan.
Mr Annan later called for participants at a Mideast conference to push for an immediate ceasefire to end fighting between Israel and Hizbollah guerrillas.
Hizbollah must stop its "deliberate targeting of Israeli population centers". And Israel must put an end to all bombing, ground operations and blockades of Lebanese ports.
In a statement in Rome, Mr Annan said: "A key stipulation for such a halt in fighting would be that the parties must not, I repeat, must not take advantage of such a pause to conduct offense operations, redeploy or resupply." And he added that an international force will be vital to keeping peace.
Since fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militants began two weeks ago, there had been several dozen incidents of firing close to UN peacekeepers and observers, including direct hits on nine positions, some of them repeatedly, a UN official said.
As a result of these attacks, 12 UN personnel have been killed or injured, the official said.
Last night's bomb made a direct hit on the building and shelter of the observer post in the town of Khiam, near the eastern end of the border with Israel, said Milos Struger, spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon known as Unifil.
Four unarmed military observers were in a bunker and the bunker collapsed as a result of the bombing, the UN official said.
Rescue workers were trying to clear the rubble, but Israeli firing " continued even during the rescue operation", Struger said.
Annan said two UN military observers were killed with two more feared dead. Later, the UN official confirmed that a third body was recovered from the rubble.
The victims included observers from Austria, Canada, China and Finland, UN and Lebanese military officials said.
Chinese foreign minister Li Zhaoxing said he was saddened by the news and that it showed "we should try harder to call on the parties to be restrained and to be calm and restore the peace process of the Middle East immediately".
China's official Xinhua News Agency identified the Chinese victim as Du Zhaoyu.
It was not immediately known which of the others were confirmed dead.
Annan said the "co-ordinated artillery and aerial attack on a long-established and clearly marked UN post at Khiam occurred despite personal assurances given to me by prime minister Ehud Olmert that UN positions would be spared Israeli fire."
Furthermore, he said, General Alain Pelligrini, the UN force commander in south Lebanon, had been in repeated contact with Israeli officers throughout yesterday "stressing the need to protect that particular UN position from attack".
But Gillerman said he was "shocked and deeply distressed by the hasty statement of the secretary general, insinuating that Israel has deliberately targeted the UN post", calling the assertions "premature and erroneous".
He said Olmert's assurances to the secretary-general were "a clear indication" of Israel's commitment to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel.
As reports of the attack emerged, Annan rushed out of a hotel in Rome following a dinner with US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice and Lebanese prime minister Fuad Saniora.
"I am shocked and deeply distressed by the apparently deliberate targeting by Israeli Defence Forces of a UN observer post in southern Lebanon," Annan said in a statement later.
"I call on the government of Israel to conduct a full investigation into this very disturbing incident and demand that any further attack on UN positions and personnel must stop."
Gillerman said "Israel is carrying out a thorough inquiry into this tragic incident and will inform the UN of its results as soon as possible".
The UN Security Council is expected to receive a briefing on the bombing today.
Since Israel launched a massive military offensive against Lebanon and Hezbollah guerillas on July 12, a Nigerian civilian employee working with Unifil and his wife had been killed in the crossfire in the southern port city of Tyre.
Five Unifil soldiers and one military observer had also been wounded, Struger said. They included four Ghanaians injured by artillery fire on Monday and a peacekeeper shot through the back on July 23.
Four UN observers die in Israeli air strike as heavy fighting continues in Lebanon
By Donald Macintyre in Avivim, northern Israel
The Independent Wednesday, 26 July 2006
Four United Nations observers were killed last night in an Israeli raid on their post at the border town of Khiam in south Lebanon. The UN secretary general suggested last night that it had been deliberately targeted.
The observers, said by Lebanese officials to have been an Austrian, a Canadian, a Chinese and a Finn, were killed when the post's building and shelter were bombed.
Milos Struger, the spokesman for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil), the 28-year old-year old peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, said rescue workers had to dig through the rubble but that Israeli fire " continued even during the rescue operation".
In Rome, where he had been discussing the 14-day-old conflict with Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, and Fouad Siniora, the Lebanese Prime Minister Mr Annan protested at what he called the "apparently deliberate targeting" by the Israel Defence Forces of the post and demanded a full investigation. There was no immediate comment from the IDF.
Israel has long criticised Unifil for being "innefective" and not standing up to Hizbollah. Beside triggering a probable wave of international protest, the deaths of the four observers may complicate further the search for a ceaefire agreement under which a multinational force would take over control of the southern border areas of Lebanon.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian President, also warned that the conflict between Lebanon and Israel could trigger "a hurricane" of broader fighting in the Middle East. Iran is a major backer of Hizbollah and a sworn enemy of Israel. In his comments, he referred to a proverb that says: " He who raises the wind will get a hurricane." He added: "That proverb fully relates to the Middle East, which is a very volatile region. And it will be a strong hurricane which will strike really hard."
Egypt and Saudi Arabia, facing popular anger over Israel's offensive, toughened their stance yesterday warning the US that Israeli militarism could lead to a wider conflict in the region.
Meanwhile, Da'aa Abbas, 15, became the fourth Arab Israeli to die in the conflict killed in the Galilee village of Maghar as Hizbollah launched 90 to 100 rockets at northern Israel.
Amir Peretz, the Israeli Defence Minister, said Israel will enforce a " security zone" in southern Lebanon until such time as a multinational force moves in to control the Lebanese border area. The remarks by Mr Peretz appeared to set the seal on Israel's conversion to the idea of a Western-led international military deployment to keep Hizbollah guerrillas from threatening Israel, if and when the still slow-moving diplomatic efforts to broker a ceasefire succeed.
Beirut was heavily bombarded from the air yesterday after Israeli military aircraft killed six people in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh, and Israeli troops sealed off the town of Bint Jbeil, 15 miles farther south, which it regards as a Hizbollah stronghold.
Ms Rice said yesterday, after meeting Ehud Olmert, the Israeli Prime Minister, in Israel that any Lebanon ceasefire would have to be " enduring" as well as urgent, and that the US was seeking a "new Middle East".
Ms Rice, who arrived in Rome last night to meet European and Arab leaders, supposedly to thrash out terms of a putative ceasefire, said there was " no desire" on the part of US officials to come back weeks or months after a ceasefire because, she implied, Hizbollah had again found a way to undermine it.
Her remarks came as Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign affairs envoy, said he would be calling for a "ceasefire process" at the summit, and added that European countries would have to take part. " Without European, without some Europeans, the force will not exist," he said.
There have been suggestions in Israel that such a force, which it would prefer to be under the aegis of Nato, would require 20,000 troops twice as many as the deployment being talked about in Western capitals. While Mr Solana did not say so, France has been seen as a potential contributor.
Mr Solana refrained from saying he would call for an "immediate ceasefire" apparently out of deference to Britain, which has joined the US in refraining from such a demand.
Israeli officials have suggested that the US has informally given licence to Israel to maintain its assault in Lebanon until at least the beginning of next week.
The death of the Arab Israel girl came amid continuing indications from Israeli officers, and troops at the border, of the stiff resistance put up by Hizbollah to the tank and infantry incursions into southern Lebanon over the past few days. Heavy fighting around the village of Maroun ar-Ras cost the lives of seven Israeli soldiers at the end of last week.
Brigadier General Shuki Shachar, the deputy head of the Israeli Defence Forces northern command, said the army had taken the "high positions" around Beit Jbeil to pursue its operations against Hizbollah rather than occupying the town itself after persuading most of its 20,000 civilians to leave. He said the civilians would not be allowed back as long as Hizbollah threatened Israel. Major Eran Carraso, who served in Lebanon before the Israeli withdrawal in 2000, said the effectiveness of Hizbollah forces had notably improved.
A 21-year-old tank commander who had just spent 80 hours in Lebanon and gave only his first name, Erez, said the operation had been very different from his service in the West Bank. But he insisted that Hizbollah fighters were "cowards" because they fired missiles and then went into hiding.
One of the more remarkable sights on the border yesterday was the return of a foot patrol with llamas, which the Israeli army recently decided were especially suitable beasts of burden for operations inside the hilly terrain of southern Lebanon.
The mounting toll
* Number of Lebanese people killed in the two-week conflict: 422, of whom 375 were civilians.
* A further 27 Hizbollah guerrillas have been killed and 20 Lebanese soldiers.
* Number of Israeli dead since the conflict began: 42, of whom 18 were civilians and 24 soldiers.
* Number of Palestinians killed by Israel in the Gaza Strip since the capture of Cpl Gilad Shalit: 121.
* Number of Israeli air strikes on Lebanon yesterday: 100.
* Hizbollah rockets fired yesterday: 80.
* The Israel Defence Force claimed yesterday to have hit 10 Hizbollah buildings.
* That adds up to an estimated $1bn ($600m) in damage to infrastructure.
* Number of Lebanese bridges destroyed: 105
* The number of Israeli bridges destroyed: 0.
* Number of Lebanese ports bombed: 3.
* Estimate of the number of Lebanese people displaced in the fighting: 750,000.
* Lebanon has 2,000 UN troops who have been in the south since 1978.
* The value of arms exported to Israel from the UK in the past 18 months: £25m.
* The number of Britons evacuated from Lebanon by yesterday evening: 2,526.
* Israel's military spending: $9.45bn (in 1995); Lebanon: $540
The Independent Wednesday, 26 July 2006
Four United Nations observers were killed last night in an Israeli raid on their post at the border town of Khiam in south Lebanon. The UN secretary general suggested last night that it had been deliberately targeted.
The observers, said by Lebanese officials to have been an Austrian, a Canadian, a Chinese and a Finn, were killed when the post's building and shelter were bombed.
Milos Struger, the spokesman for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil), the 28-year old-year old peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, said rescue workers had to dig through the rubble but that Israeli fire " continued even during the rescue operation".
In Rome, where he had been discussing the 14-day-old conflict with Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, and Fouad Siniora, the Lebanese Prime Minister Mr Annan protested at what he called the "apparently deliberate targeting" by the Israel Defence Forces of the post and demanded a full investigation. There was no immediate comment from the IDF.
Israel has long criticised Unifil for being "innefective" and not standing up to Hizbollah. Beside triggering a probable wave of international protest, the deaths of the four observers may complicate further the search for a ceaefire agreement under which a multinational force would take over control of the southern border areas of Lebanon.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian President, also warned that the conflict between Lebanon and Israel could trigger "a hurricane" of broader fighting in the Middle East. Iran is a major backer of Hizbollah and a sworn enemy of Israel. In his comments, he referred to a proverb that says: " He who raises the wind will get a hurricane." He added: "That proverb fully relates to the Middle East, which is a very volatile region. And it will be a strong hurricane which will strike really hard."
Egypt and Saudi Arabia, facing popular anger over Israel's offensive, toughened their stance yesterday warning the US that Israeli militarism could lead to a wider conflict in the region.
Meanwhile, Da'aa Abbas, 15, became the fourth Arab Israeli to die in the conflict killed in the Galilee village of Maghar as Hizbollah launched 90 to 100 rockets at northern Israel.
Amir Peretz, the Israeli Defence Minister, said Israel will enforce a " security zone" in southern Lebanon until such time as a multinational force moves in to control the Lebanese border area. The remarks by Mr Peretz appeared to set the seal on Israel's conversion to the idea of a Western-led international military deployment to keep Hizbollah guerrillas from threatening Israel, if and when the still slow-moving diplomatic efforts to broker a ceasefire succeed.
Beirut was heavily bombarded from the air yesterday after Israeli military aircraft killed six people in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh, and Israeli troops sealed off the town of Bint Jbeil, 15 miles farther south, which it regards as a Hizbollah stronghold.
Ms Rice said yesterday, after meeting Ehud Olmert, the Israeli Prime Minister, in Israel that any Lebanon ceasefire would have to be " enduring" as well as urgent, and that the US was seeking a "new Middle East".
Ms Rice, who arrived in Rome last night to meet European and Arab leaders, supposedly to thrash out terms of a putative ceasefire, said there was " no desire" on the part of US officials to come back weeks or months after a ceasefire because, she implied, Hizbollah had again found a way to undermine it.
Her remarks came as Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign affairs envoy, said he would be calling for a "ceasefire process" at the summit, and added that European countries would have to take part. " Without European, without some Europeans, the force will not exist," he said.
There have been suggestions in Israel that such a force, which it would prefer to be under the aegis of Nato, would require 20,000 troops twice as many as the deployment being talked about in Western capitals. While Mr Solana did not say so, France has been seen as a potential contributor.
Mr Solana refrained from saying he would call for an "immediate ceasefire" apparently out of deference to Britain, which has joined the US in refraining from such a demand.
Israeli officials have suggested that the US has informally given licence to Israel to maintain its assault in Lebanon until at least the beginning of next week.
The death of the Arab Israel girl came amid continuing indications from Israeli officers, and troops at the border, of the stiff resistance put up by Hizbollah to the tank and infantry incursions into southern Lebanon over the past few days. Heavy fighting around the village of Maroun ar-Ras cost the lives of seven Israeli soldiers at the end of last week.
Brigadier General Shuki Shachar, the deputy head of the Israeli Defence Forces northern command, said the army had taken the "high positions" around Beit Jbeil to pursue its operations against Hizbollah rather than occupying the town itself after persuading most of its 20,000 civilians to leave. He said the civilians would not be allowed back as long as Hizbollah threatened Israel. Major Eran Carraso, who served in Lebanon before the Israeli withdrawal in 2000, said the effectiveness of Hizbollah forces had notably improved.
A 21-year-old tank commander who had just spent 80 hours in Lebanon and gave only his first name, Erez, said the operation had been very different from his service in the West Bank. But he insisted that Hizbollah fighters were "cowards" because they fired missiles and then went into hiding.
One of the more remarkable sights on the border yesterday was the return of a foot patrol with llamas, which the Israeli army recently decided were especially suitable beasts of burden for operations inside the hilly terrain of southern Lebanon.
The mounting toll
* Number of Lebanese people killed in the two-week conflict: 422, of whom 375 were civilians.
* A further 27 Hizbollah guerrillas have been killed and 20 Lebanese soldiers.
* Number of Israeli dead since the conflict began: 42, of whom 18 were civilians and 24 soldiers.
* Number of Palestinians killed by Israel in the Gaza Strip since the capture of Cpl Gilad Shalit: 121.
* Number of Israeli air strikes on Lebanon yesterday: 100.
* Hizbollah rockets fired yesterday: 80.
* The Israel Defence Force claimed yesterday to have hit 10 Hizbollah buildings.
* That adds up to an estimated $1bn ($600m) in damage to infrastructure.
* Number of Lebanese bridges destroyed: 105
* The number of Israeli bridges destroyed: 0.
* Number of Lebanese ports bombed: 3.
* Estimate of the number of Lebanese people displaced in the fighting: 750,000.
* Lebanon has 2,000 UN troops who have been in the south since 1978.
* The value of arms exported to Israel from the UK in the past 18 months: £25m.
* The number of Britons evacuated from Lebanon by yesterday evening: 2,526.
* Israel's military spending: $9.45bn (in 1995); Lebanon: $540
Robert Fisk: Israeli missiles had clearly pierced the very centre of the red cross on the roof of each ambulance
From Qlaya, Southern Lebanon
The Independent Wednesday, 26 July 2006
The battle for Southern Lebanon is on an epic scale but from the heights above Khiam, the Israelis appear to be in deep trouble. Their F-16s turn in the high bright sun - small silver fish whose whispers gain in volume as they dive - and their bombs burst over the old prison where the Hizbollah are still holding out; but beyond the frontier, I can see livid fires burning across the Israeli hillside and the Jewish settlement of Metullah billowing smoke.
It was not meant to be like this, 13 days into Israel's assault on Lebanon. The Katyushas still streak in pairs out of Khiam, white contrails that thump into Israel's hillsides and border towns. So is it frustration or revenge that also keeps Israel's bombs falling on the innocent? In the early hours of yesterday morning, a tremendous explosion woke me up, rattling the windows and shaking the trees outside and a single flash suffused the western sky over Nabatea. The lives of an entire family of seven had just been extinguished.
And how come - since this now obsesses the humanitarian organisations working in Lebanon - that the Israelis bombed two ambulances in Qana, killing two of the wounded inside and wounding the third civilian for the second time in a day. All the crews were injured - one with a piece of shrapnel in his neck - but what worried the Lebanese Red Cross was that the Israeli missiles had clearly pierced the very centre of the red cross painted on the roof of each vehicle. Did the pilots use the cross as their aiming point?
The bombardment of Khiam has set off its own brushfires on the hillside below Qlaya, whose Maronite Christian inhabitants now stand on the high road above like spectators at a 19th century battle. Khiam is - or was - a pretty village of cut stone doorways and tracery windows but Israel's target is the notorious prison in which - before its retreat from Lebanon in 2000 - hundreds of Hizbollah members and in some cases their families were held and tortured with electricity by Israel's proxy South Lebanon Army militia.
This was the same prison complex - turned into a 'Museum of Torture' by the Hizbollah after the Israeli retreat that was visited by the late Edward Said shortly before his death. More important, however, is that many of the Hizbollah men originally held prisoner here were captives in cells built deep underground below the old French mandate fort. These same men are now fighting the Israelis, almost certainly sheltering from their firepower in the same underground cells in which they once languished, perhaps even storing some of their missiles there.
In Marjayoun next to Qlaya - once the SLA's headquarters - Lebanese troops are desperately trying to present Hizbollah guerrillas using the streets of the Greek Catholic town to fire yet more missiles at Israel. Seven-man army patrols are moving through the darkened alleyways of both towns at night in case Hizbollah brings yet more Israel bombs down on our heads.
In war, all one's senses are quickened. Dawn, birds, music, flowers acquire a new meaning. A family is still living in the little villa opposite my house and I watched a woman at dusk, picking vegetables in her garden for supper, ignoring the howl of Israeli aircraft in the sky above her and the sinister changes in air pressure from their bombs.
In Beirut, one observes the folly of western nations with amusement as well as horror but sitting in these hill villages and listening to how US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to reshape Lebanon is clearly a lesson in human self-delusion.
According to American correspondents accompanying Ms Rice on her visit to the Middle East, she is proposing the intervention of a NATO-led force along the Lebanese-Israeli border for between 60 and 90 days to assure that a ceasefire exists, the deployment after this of an enlarged NATO-led force throughout Lebanon to ensure the disarmament of Hezbollah, and then the retraining of the Lebanese Army before it too deploys to the border. This plan - which like all American proposals on Lebanon is exactly the same as Israel's demands - carries the same depth of delusional conceit as that of the Israeli consul-general in New York who said last week that 'most Lebanese appreciate what we are doing.'
Does Ms Rice think the Hizbollah want to be disarmed, albeit it under the terms of UN Security Council resolution 1559? By NATO? Wasn't there a NATO force in Beirut which fled Lebanon after a group close to the Hizbollah bombed the US marine base at Beirut airport in 1983, killing 241 US servicemen, and dozens more French troops a few seconds later? Does anyone believe that Shiite Muslim forces will not do the same again to any NATO 'intervention' force. The Hizbollah have been waiting and training and dreaming of this war for years, however ruthless we may regard their actions. They are not going to surrender the territory they liberated from the Israeli Army in an 18-year guerrilla war, least of all to NATO at Israel's bidding.
The problem, surely, is that the United States sees this bloodbath as an 'opportunity' rather than a tragedy, a chance to humble Hizbollah's supporters in Tehran and help to shape the 'new Middle East' of which Ms Rice spoke so blandly yesterday. In fact it will more likely to prove to be Syria's attempt to humble Israel and the United States in Lebanon.
Of course, the Hizbollah have brought catastrophe to their coreligionists. All the way down the Beka'a Valley to Southern Lebanon, the long, dangerous, bomb-cratered roads I had to travel to reach Qlaya were deserted save for cars driven by panicking men, crammed with families, trailing white sheets out of the windows in the forlorn hope - after all the Israeli air attacks on civilians - that this would provide them with protection.
The only civilian walking these frightening roads was a goatherd, shepherding his animals around the huge craters. Talking to him, it emerged that he was almost stone deaf and could not hear the bombs. In this, it seemed, he had a lot in common with Condoleezza Rice.
The Independent Wednesday, 26 July 2006
The battle for Southern Lebanon is on an epic scale but from the heights above Khiam, the Israelis appear to be in deep trouble. Their F-16s turn in the high bright sun - small silver fish whose whispers gain in volume as they dive - and their bombs burst over the old prison where the Hizbollah are still holding out; but beyond the frontier, I can see livid fires burning across the Israeli hillside and the Jewish settlement of Metullah billowing smoke.
It was not meant to be like this, 13 days into Israel's assault on Lebanon. The Katyushas still streak in pairs out of Khiam, white contrails that thump into Israel's hillsides and border towns. So is it frustration or revenge that also keeps Israel's bombs falling on the innocent? In the early hours of yesterday morning, a tremendous explosion woke me up, rattling the windows and shaking the trees outside and a single flash suffused the western sky over Nabatea. The lives of an entire family of seven had just been extinguished.
And how come - since this now obsesses the humanitarian organisations working in Lebanon - that the Israelis bombed two ambulances in Qana, killing two of the wounded inside and wounding the third civilian for the second time in a day. All the crews were injured - one with a piece of shrapnel in his neck - but what worried the Lebanese Red Cross was that the Israeli missiles had clearly pierced the very centre of the red cross painted on the roof of each vehicle. Did the pilots use the cross as their aiming point?
The bombardment of Khiam has set off its own brushfires on the hillside below Qlaya, whose Maronite Christian inhabitants now stand on the high road above like spectators at a 19th century battle. Khiam is - or was - a pretty village of cut stone doorways and tracery windows but Israel's target is the notorious prison in which - before its retreat from Lebanon in 2000 - hundreds of Hizbollah members and in some cases their families were held and tortured with electricity by Israel's proxy South Lebanon Army militia.
This was the same prison complex - turned into a 'Museum of Torture' by the Hizbollah after the Israeli retreat that was visited by the late Edward Said shortly before his death. More important, however, is that many of the Hizbollah men originally held prisoner here were captives in cells built deep underground below the old French mandate fort. These same men are now fighting the Israelis, almost certainly sheltering from their firepower in the same underground cells in which they once languished, perhaps even storing some of their missiles there.
In Marjayoun next to Qlaya - once the SLA's headquarters - Lebanese troops are desperately trying to present Hizbollah guerrillas using the streets of the Greek Catholic town to fire yet more missiles at Israel. Seven-man army patrols are moving through the darkened alleyways of both towns at night in case Hizbollah brings yet more Israel bombs down on our heads.
In war, all one's senses are quickened. Dawn, birds, music, flowers acquire a new meaning. A family is still living in the little villa opposite my house and I watched a woman at dusk, picking vegetables in her garden for supper, ignoring the howl of Israeli aircraft in the sky above her and the sinister changes in air pressure from their bombs.
In Beirut, one observes the folly of western nations with amusement as well as horror but sitting in these hill villages and listening to how US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to reshape Lebanon is clearly a lesson in human self-delusion.
According to American correspondents accompanying Ms Rice on her visit to the Middle East, she is proposing the intervention of a NATO-led force along the Lebanese-Israeli border for between 60 and 90 days to assure that a ceasefire exists, the deployment after this of an enlarged NATO-led force throughout Lebanon to ensure the disarmament of Hezbollah, and then the retraining of the Lebanese Army before it too deploys to the border. This plan - which like all American proposals on Lebanon is exactly the same as Israel's demands - carries the same depth of delusional conceit as that of the Israeli consul-general in New York who said last week that 'most Lebanese appreciate what we are doing.'
Does Ms Rice think the Hizbollah want to be disarmed, albeit it under the terms of UN Security Council resolution 1559? By NATO? Wasn't there a NATO force in Beirut which fled Lebanon after a group close to the Hizbollah bombed the US marine base at Beirut airport in 1983, killing 241 US servicemen, and dozens more French troops a few seconds later? Does anyone believe that Shiite Muslim forces will not do the same again to any NATO 'intervention' force. The Hizbollah have been waiting and training and dreaming of this war for years, however ruthless we may regard their actions. They are not going to surrender the territory they liberated from the Israeli Army in an 18-year guerrilla war, least of all to NATO at Israel's bidding.
The problem, surely, is that the United States sees this bloodbath as an 'opportunity' rather than a tragedy, a chance to humble Hizbollah's supporters in Tehran and help to shape the 'new Middle East' of which Ms Rice spoke so blandly yesterday. In fact it will more likely to prove to be Syria's attempt to humble Israel and the United States in Lebanon.
Of course, the Hizbollah have brought catastrophe to their coreligionists. All the way down the Beka'a Valley to Southern Lebanon, the long, dangerous, bomb-cratered roads I had to travel to reach Qlaya were deserted save for cars driven by panicking men, crammed with families, trailing white sheets out of the windows in the forlorn hope - after all the Israeli air attacks on civilians - that this would provide them with protection.
The only civilian walking these frightening roads was a goatherd, shepherding his animals around the huge craters. Talking to him, it emerged that he was almost stone deaf and could not hear the bombs. In this, it seemed, he had a lot in common with Condoleezza Rice.
Oren Ben-Dor: Who are the real terrorists in the Middle East?
What exactly is being defended? Is it the citizens of Israel or the nature of the Israeli state?
The Independent Wednesday, 26 July 2006
As its citizens are being killed, Israel is, yet again, inflicting death and destruction on Lebanon. It tries to portray this horror as necessary for its self-defence. Indeed, the casual observer might regard the rocket attacks on Israeli cities such as Haifa and my own home town, Nahariya, as justifying this claim.
While states should defend their citizens, states which fail this duty should be questioned and, if necessary, reconfigured. Israel is a state which, instead of defending its citizens, puts all of them, Jews as well as non-Jews, in danger.
What exactly is being defended by the violence in Gaza and Lebanon? Is it the citizens of Israel or the nature of the Israeli state? I suggest the latter. Israel's statehood is based on an unjust ideology which causes indignity and suffering for those who are classified as non-Jewish by either a religious or ethnic test. To hide this primordial immorality, Israel fosters an image of victimhood. Provoking violence, consciously or unconsciously, against which one must defend oneself is a key feature of the victim-mentality. By perpetuating such a tragic cycle, Israel is a terrorist state like no other.
Many who wish to hide the immorality of the Israeli state do so by restricting attention to the horrors of the post-1967 occupation and talking about a two-state solution, since endorsing a Palestinian state implicitly endorses the ideology behind a Jewish one.
The very creation of Israel required an act of terror. In 1948, most of the non-Jewish indigenous people were ethnically cleansed from the part of Palestine which became Israel. This action was carefully planned. Without it, no state with a Jewish majority and character would have been possible. Since 1948, the "Israeli Arabs", those Palestinians who avoided expulsion, have suffered continuous discrimination. Indeed, many have been internally displaced, ostensibly for "security reasons", but really to acquire their lands for Jews.
Surely Holocaust memory and Jewish longing for Eretz Israel would not be sufficient to justify ethnic cleansing and ethnocracy? To avoid the destabilisation that would result from ethical inquiry, the Israeli state must hide the core problem, by nourishing a victim mentality among Israeli Jews.
To sustain that mentality and to preserve an impression of victimhood among outsiders, Israel must breed conditions for violence. Whenever prospects of violence against it subside, Israel must do its utmost to regenerate them: the myth that it is a peace-seeking victim which has "no partner for peace" is a key panel in the screen with which Israel hides its primordial and continuing immorality.
Israel's successful campaign to silence criticism of its initial and continuing dispossession of the indigenous Palestinians leaves the latter no option but to resort to violent resistance. In the wake of electing Hamas - the only party which, in the eyes of Palestinians, has not yet given up their cause - the Palestinian population of Gaza and the West Bank were subjected to an Israeli campaign of starvation, humiliation and violence.
The insincere "withdrawal" from Gaza, and the subsequent blockade, ensured a chronicle of violence which, so far, includes Palestinian firing of Kasem rockets, the capture of an Israeli soldier and the Israeli near re-occupation of Gaza. What we witness is more hatred, more violence from Palestinians, more humiliation and collective punishments from Israelis - all useful reinforcement for the Israeli victim mentality and for the sacred cow status of Israeli statehood.
The truth is that there never could have been a partition of Palestine by ethically acceptable means. Israel was created through terror and it needs terror to cover-up its core immorality. Whenever there is a glimmer of stability, the state orders a targeted assassination, such as that in Sidon which preceded the current Lebanon crisis, knowing well that this brings not security but more violence. Israel's unilateralism and the cycle of violence nourish one another.
Amidst the violence and despite the conventional discourse which hides the root of this violence, actuality calls upon us to think. The more we silence its voice, the more violently actuality is sure to speak.
In Hebrew, the word elem (a stunned silence resulting from oppression or shock) is etymologically linked to the word almut (violence). Silence about the immoral core of Israeli statehood makes us all complicit in breeding the terrorism that threatens a catastrophe which could tear the world apart.
okbendor@yahoo.com
The writer teaches the philosophy of law and political philosophy at University of Southampton
The Independent Wednesday, 26 July 2006
As its citizens are being killed, Israel is, yet again, inflicting death and destruction on Lebanon. It tries to portray this horror as necessary for its self-defence. Indeed, the casual observer might regard the rocket attacks on Israeli cities such as Haifa and my own home town, Nahariya, as justifying this claim.
While states should defend their citizens, states which fail this duty should be questioned and, if necessary, reconfigured. Israel is a state which, instead of defending its citizens, puts all of them, Jews as well as non-Jews, in danger.
What exactly is being defended by the violence in Gaza and Lebanon? Is it the citizens of Israel or the nature of the Israeli state? I suggest the latter. Israel's statehood is based on an unjust ideology which causes indignity and suffering for those who are classified as non-Jewish by either a religious or ethnic test. To hide this primordial immorality, Israel fosters an image of victimhood. Provoking violence, consciously or unconsciously, against which one must defend oneself is a key feature of the victim-mentality. By perpetuating such a tragic cycle, Israel is a terrorist state like no other.
Many who wish to hide the immorality of the Israeli state do so by restricting attention to the horrors of the post-1967 occupation and talking about a two-state solution, since endorsing a Palestinian state implicitly endorses the ideology behind a Jewish one.
The very creation of Israel required an act of terror. In 1948, most of the non-Jewish indigenous people were ethnically cleansed from the part of Palestine which became Israel. This action was carefully planned. Without it, no state with a Jewish majority and character would have been possible. Since 1948, the "Israeli Arabs", those Palestinians who avoided expulsion, have suffered continuous discrimination. Indeed, many have been internally displaced, ostensibly for "security reasons", but really to acquire their lands for Jews.
Surely Holocaust memory and Jewish longing for Eretz Israel would not be sufficient to justify ethnic cleansing and ethnocracy? To avoid the destabilisation that would result from ethical inquiry, the Israeli state must hide the core problem, by nourishing a victim mentality among Israeli Jews.
To sustain that mentality and to preserve an impression of victimhood among outsiders, Israel must breed conditions for violence. Whenever prospects of violence against it subside, Israel must do its utmost to regenerate them: the myth that it is a peace-seeking victim which has "no partner for peace" is a key panel in the screen with which Israel hides its primordial and continuing immorality.
Israel's successful campaign to silence criticism of its initial and continuing dispossession of the indigenous Palestinians leaves the latter no option but to resort to violent resistance. In the wake of electing Hamas - the only party which, in the eyes of Palestinians, has not yet given up their cause - the Palestinian population of Gaza and the West Bank were subjected to an Israeli campaign of starvation, humiliation and violence.
The insincere "withdrawal" from Gaza, and the subsequent blockade, ensured a chronicle of violence which, so far, includes Palestinian firing of Kasem rockets, the capture of an Israeli soldier and the Israeli near re-occupation of Gaza. What we witness is more hatred, more violence from Palestinians, more humiliation and collective punishments from Israelis - all useful reinforcement for the Israeli victim mentality and for the sacred cow status of Israeli statehood.
The truth is that there never could have been a partition of Palestine by ethically acceptable means. Israel was created through terror and it needs terror to cover-up its core immorality. Whenever there is a glimmer of stability, the state orders a targeted assassination, such as that in Sidon which preceded the current Lebanon crisis, knowing well that this brings not security but more violence. Israel's unilateralism and the cycle of violence nourish one another.
Amidst the violence and despite the conventional discourse which hides the root of this violence, actuality calls upon us to think. The more we silence its voice, the more violently actuality is sure to speak.
In Hebrew, the word elem (a stunned silence resulting from oppression or shock) is etymologically linked to the word almut (violence). Silence about the immoral core of Israeli statehood makes us all complicit in breeding the terrorism that threatens a catastrophe which could tear the world apart.
okbendor@yahoo.com
The writer teaches the philosophy of law and political philosophy at University of Southampton
lundi 26 juin 2006
Israel may provide counsel to officials in war crimes trials overseas
Haaretz 08:57 26/06/2006
By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent
The state will provide the legal defense for state and defense establishment employees prosecuted in foreign countries or international courts for action they took as representatives of the State of Israel, according to a regulation approved Sunday by the ministerial committee for legislation. The decision comes in the wake of arrest warrants issued in Britain against senior Israel Defense Forces officials. About nine months ago, Major General Doron Almog (res.) returned from London without disembarking an El Al flight when he found out there was an arrest warrant for him in England related to the IDF's demolition of 60 homes in Rafah. Haaretz later reported that complaints were also filed in Britain against IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz and his predecessor, Moshe Ya'alon, for their involvement in the deaths of 14 Palestinian civilians when Israel assassinated Salah Shehada in July 2002. T
he chairman of the legislation committee, Justice Minister Haim Ramon, said it was essential to defend Israelis facing prosecution for carrying out their duties. "This is crucial regulation to defend to the highest office-holders who were carrying out the state's instructions - first and foremost heads of the security establishment - from hostile elements that want to harm the State of Israel by putting these office-holders on the defendant's bench." The regulation calls for the establishment of a committee to determine the extent of the state's involvement in the legal defense. In addition, the state has reserved the right to reject certain legal arguments that could be used in the individual's defense but might hamper the state's desire "to safeguard the national interest of the state in any way it deems correct."
By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent
The state will provide the legal defense for state and defense establishment employees prosecuted in foreign countries or international courts for action they took as representatives of the State of Israel, according to a regulation approved Sunday by the ministerial committee for legislation. The decision comes in the wake of arrest warrants issued in Britain against senior Israel Defense Forces officials. About nine months ago, Major General Doron Almog (res.) returned from London without disembarking an El Al flight when he found out there was an arrest warrant for him in England related to the IDF's demolition of 60 homes in Rafah. Haaretz later reported that complaints were also filed in Britain against IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz and his predecessor, Moshe Ya'alon, for their involvement in the deaths of 14 Palestinian civilians when Israel assassinated Salah Shehada in July 2002. T
he chairman of the legislation committee, Justice Minister Haim Ramon, said it was essential to defend Israelis facing prosecution for carrying out their duties. "This is crucial regulation to defend to the highest office-holders who were carrying out the state's instructions - first and foremost heads of the security establishment - from hostile elements that want to harm the State of Israel by putting these office-holders on the defendant's bench." The regulation calls for the establishment of a committee to determine the extent of the state's involvement in the legal defense. In addition, the state has reserved the right to reject certain legal arguments that could be used in the individual's defense but might hamper the state's desire "to safeguard the national interest of the state in any way it deems correct."
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