Announcing a Poetry Festival for the Mamilla Cemetery in Jerusalem

ARCH presents

Mamilla Poetry Festival

“A Dialogue with Memory”

7-9 September 2013

In cooperation with
Mahmoud Darwish Foundation and Museum, Ramallah
And
Campaign to Preserve Mamilla Jerusalem Cemetery

Guidelines & Submission Form (PDF download)

In Jerusalem, and I mean within the ancient walls,
I walk from one epoch to another without a memory
to guide me.

- Mahmoud Darwish

Resting just west of the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, Mamilla Cemetery—necropolis of shrines, distinguished mausoleums, modest graves, and the ancient Mamilla Pool—is facing final desecration and destruction.

Mamilla’s venerable history is as rich as it is layered. Having been adopted first by the Byzantines, whose 4^th century church and cemetery marked it as holy ground, Mamilla was then designated an Islamic burial site as early as the 7^th century, when the remains of the very first Muslims—the Sahabah, companions of the Prophet Muhammad—were reputedly laid to rest in its sacred soil. Aside from a brief period as a Christian cemetery during the Crusades, Mamilla served without interruption as Muslim burial grounds over the course of a 1,400 year-period of Islamic rule over Jerusalem. Growing to become the largest Islamic cemetery in the city, it housed a diverse community of Muslims, from the respected soldiers of ruler Saladin to generations of Jerusalemites spanning a wide socio-economic spectrum. Tombs of emirs, muftis, Sufi shrines and Mamluk-era mausoleums—amongst other ancient monuments and gravestones—further attest to its hallowed history. Indeed, so holy was Mamilla that in the 14^th century A’lam, interment there was likened to being buried in heaven.

Today, Mamilla stands not only as a symbol and vestige of Palestinian—and Muslim—religious and cultural heritage but also as a site of exceptional universal value.  In light of its sacred significance, the plan to build a so-called “Museum of Dignity and Tolerance” on its soil is an affront to memory and identity.

Encouraged by a renewed hope for the preservation of Mamilla, ARCH (Alliance to Restore Cultural Heritage in the Holy City of Jerusalem) joins hands with the Mahmoud Darwish Foundation and Museum and the Campaign to Preserve Mamilla Jerusalem Cemetery to organise an International Poetry Festival.

With the aim of protecting and preserving the cemetery as a place of living memory and of eternal sanctity, we welcome poetry that celebrates Mamilla as a resting place for generations of Palestinian families.  Likewise, we welcome submissions that meditate upon and imagine the lives of notables and ordinary people alike who have been buried in its holy grounds.

Inspired by Seamus Heaney’s claim that every poet has double citizenship—one of locality, one of conscience—we invite poets to reflect upon locality to explore universal themes that transcend geographical boundaries.

Poetry’s crucial role in the formation of cultural identity is undeniable, especially when it provides agency in the protection and preservation of memory.  As Mahmoud Darwish affirmed, “Poems can’t establish a state.  But they can establish a metaphorical homeland in the minds of the people.  I think my poems have built some houses in this landscape.”

This land absorbs the skins of martyrs
This land promises wheat and stars
Worship it!
We are its salt and its water
We are its wound, but a wound that fights.

- Mahmoud Darwish

A distinguished panel of six literary figures from around the world will review all content received to select twenty final submissions, which will then be performed live (or digitally broadcast) between the 7^th and 9^th of September at the Mamilla Poetry Festival, hosted by the Mahmoud Darwish Foundation and Museum in Ramallah. The festival will be recorded, and then streamed online; finally, an anthology will be published. Circumstances permitting, the festival will conclude with a candlelight reading of Mahmoud Darwish’s poetry in Mamilla Cemetery and/or at other vulnerable cultural sites in the Holy City of Jerusalem.

In addition to conducting widespread outreach to generate global awareness and solicit international involvement, we are committed to galvanizing nearby communities and engaging local youth. Not only will a special prize be offered for the best poem submitted by a secondary-school student, but local schools will also be invited to attend and students will be encouraged to participate.

We invite all interested parties to visit the cemetery—albeit virtually—by reviewing the biographical details of some of the earliest-recorded deceased; these can be accessed via an online petition to protect the cemetery from further encroachment that was signed by 60 descendants of those same deceased.

For further information:

Petition to preserve Mamilla

“The Mamilla Cemetery; A Buried History” by Asem Khalidi

Download the PDF file of “Mamluk Epitaphs from Mamilla Cemetery” by Tawfiq Da‘ādli

(Source / 11.05.2013)

Abu Subbah and Belgian Delegation Discuss Prosecuting Israel Internationally

The Palestinian Minister of Prisoners Dr. Atallah Abu Subbah received on Thursday a Belgian delegation to discuss ways to prosecute the Israeli occupation officials internationally.

The delegation was headed by Judge Philip Pavar, head of the Al-Aqsa Foundation Mohammed Al-Hajjaji and Coordinator of the Committee Mohammed Baroud.

The two sides discussed effective ways to prosecute the Israeli war criminals before the Belgian judiciary and the need to proceed with filing lawsuits despite the continued Israeli pressure.

Abu Subbah hailed the delegation’s efforts in supporting the Palestinian cause through filing lawsuits against the occupation crimes before international courts.

“You are international human rights activists and we hope that you will defend the oppressed in the world,” the Palestinian minster said.

He pointed out that the legal delegations are ready to provide all the necessary assistance so that the war criminals will appear before international courts.

He also stressed that the documentation of the occupation crimes, conducted by his ministry, does not only include crimes committed during the war on Gaza, but it rather documents all the crimes the occupation has been committing.

(Source / 03.03.2013)

Palestine goodness

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Palestine Goodness Organization is working for ensuring humanitarian protection and assistance for victims of war and other situations of violenceو the poor, refugees and the category of youth unemployment in Palestine ( Gaza/West Bank/East Jerusalem )

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We’re an impartial, neutral and independent organization that works to prevent suffering by promoting and strengthening universal humanitarian principles and trying to eliminate poverty and unemployment in Palestine.

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We strive to protect the poor by preventing or putting a stop to violations committed against them, and defending their rights under international humanitarian law.

We’re part of a big family that helps people across the globe.

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Please: donate to relief for poor families in Palestine.
Ways to Help:

Donate online
Monthly giving
Fundraise to save lives.

you can do that by www.paypal.com
This is our account email: palestinegoodness@gmail.com

من فضلك : تبرع لإغاثة الأسر الفقيرة في فلسطين .
طرق المساعدة :

تبرع مباشر
تبرع شهري
جمع الاموال لانقاذ الارواح

Save The Children Gaza Crisis Appeal

 

all enquires, please call Adam or Indy on 01903 88 44 11

or email adam@ukfpi.org

Jerry Garcia, Andy Warhol & Ringo Starr, for Gaza!

Between now and Christmas Adam is to donate 100% of all the proceeds from his personal collection of limited edition Andy Warhol, Ringo Starr & Jerry Garcia rugs to Save The Children’s Gaza fund.

If you aren’t in the market for one of our lovely rugs, you could still make a donation to help the children of Gaza.  If you are a UK taxpayer you can click on GIFT AID then the government will be forced to add 25p to every £1 you donate, even though it appears they would rather spend our taxes killing people abroad.

Please click HERE for a direct link to SAVE THE CHILDREN Gaza Crisis Appeal.

89p in every £ they receive will go direct to helping the children of Gaza

11p in the £ is used to advertise for more donations.

Adam’s rugs coming out of storage today, Thursday 29th November 2012,

on their way to the Save The Children Gaza Appeal rug sale in Arundel.

Andy Warhol: Diamond Dust Shoes 1980

Ink, diamond dust on polymer paint on canvas.  From a private collection Copyright: !996 The Andy Warhol Foundation/MMI NYC

335 x 250 cm  11′ x 8’3″ Limited Edition ~ signed

100% Pure New Zealand Wool:

Usual price £5,800 Special offer £4,800

100% of this sale will go to Save The Children, Gaza Crisis Appeal.

 

 

Andy Warhol: US Dollar

335 x 250 cm  11′ x 8’3″ Limited Edition ~ signed

100% Pure New Zealand Wool:

Usual price £5,500 Special offer £4,500

100% of the TOTAL SALE VALUE will now go to Save The Children‘s Gaza Crisis Appeal.

 

 

  

Andy Warhol: Flowers 1967

335 x 250 cm  11′ x 8’3″ Limited Edition ~ signed

100% Pure New Zealand Wool:

Usual price £5,500 Special offer £4,500

100% of the TOTAL SALE VALUE will now go to Save The Children‘s Gaza Crisis Appeal.

Also 200 x 140 cm  6’7″ x 4’7″ was £1,250 NOW £250  EX-DISPLAY, SOME WEAR.

 

 

Ringo Starr: RING O 1988

335 x 250 cm  11′ x 8’3″ Limited Edition ~ signed

100% Pure New Zealand Wool:

Usual price £5,500 Special offer £4,500

100% of the TOTAL SALE VALUE will now go to Save The Children‘s Gaza Crisis Appeal.

Also 274 x 182 cm  9′ x 6′ was £2,500 NOW £1,800 (I currently have TWO 9 x 6 RingOs)

Also 200 x 140 cm  6’7″ x 4’7″ was £1,250 NOW £600

 

 

floor or wall hanging: ANDY WARHOL: Red Elvis 1962: £200

about 2’8 x 2’10

ANDY WARHOL: BARBIE DOLL £200

 

Jerry Garcia: New York, New York 1968

335 x 250 cm  11′ x 8’3″ Limited Edition

100% Pure New Zealand Wool:

Usual price £5,500 Special offer £4,500

100% of the TOTAL SALE VALUE will now go to Save The Children‘s Gaza Crisis Appeal.

Also 274 x 182 cm  9′ x 6′ was £2,500 NOW £1,200

(www.adamsrugs.co.uk / 13.12.2012)

 

Turkish food aid arrives in Gaza

Seventy percent of Palestinians in Gaza are dependent on UNRWA.

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — A shipment of flour from Turkey arrived in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, a statement from the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said.The first shipment from Turkey will feed more than 129,000 families supporting 687,000 dependents. Around 12,500 metric tonnes of wheat flour worth $6.6 million will arrive in Gaza over the next eight weeks.

“The need for this aid is clear with food insecurity currently threatening 60 percent of Gazans,” saidFilippo Grandi, commissioner-general of the Palestine refugee agency UNRWA.

“Turkey’s support for UNRWA is a reflection of our support for Palestine refugees, especially those living in the impoverished Gaza Strip,” said Sakir Ozkan Torunlar, consul general of Turkey in Jerusalem.

“We are committed to aiding the international effort to help them achieve a decent standard of living despite the difficult circumstances under which they live.”

Since Israel tightened the blockade on Gaza in 2007 unemployment has skyrocketed as imports and job opportunities decreased, UNRWA said.

Around 34 percent of Gazans are unemployed and 70 percent of refugees are reliant on UNRWA aid, the agency added.

(www.ikners.com / 02.08.2012)

Gaza health ministry denies bacteria discovery

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Gaza’s Ministry of Health on Monday denied reports of a new strain of bacteria found by medical researchers in the Gaza Strip.

Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qedreh told Ma’an there was no deadly bacteria or virus in the Gaza Strip, and Israeli reports to the contrary were designed to destroy health security in Gaza.

The Israeli daily Haaretz reported Monday that a joint Palestinian-Israeli medical research group, including renowned Gaza doctor Ezzeldeen Abu al-Aish, believe they have identified a unique strain of the MRSA bacterium to be common in Gaza City.

The project tested 600 Gaza residents and found the bacterium present in 15 percent of participants, noting that it tends to cause skin abscesses and infections.

Researchers will next work to identify the wider health impact on infected patients, the Haaretz report said.

(www.maannews.net / 07.07.2012)

Israeli scientists find new strain of MRSA bacteria spreading in Gaza City

Antibiotic-resistant bug may spread through cats, say researchers.

Dr. Gili Regev-Yochay in her lab at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer.

A joint initiative by Israeli and Palestinian scientists has identified that what is thought to be a unique strain of the MRSA bacterium is becoming common in Gaza City.

Dr. Gili Regev-Yochay, a physician participating in the project and a researcher at the infectious disease unit at Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, said: “We found that the bacterium is transmitted very rapidly in Gaza. At first we thought it came from a European volunteer and spread because of the overcrowding, but genetic markers of the Gaza bacterium make us believe that it’s a different strain. We assume it developed resistance to antibiotics in some unique process that occurred in Gaza.”

In recent years, the international medical establishment has become increasingly preoccupied with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, like MRSA. It is not enough that medical institutions take preventive measures against antibiotic-resistant bacteria, because it has become clear that they no longer attack only in the hospital setting but are also liable to spread in the general community.

The MRSA bacterium, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is liable to become very aggressive. In September 1999, four children in the Chicago area allegedly died suddenly of toxic shock after coming into contact with MRSA in the community, without having been hospitalized. The virulent strain called USA300, which has become one of the most aggressive bacteria and is known as a “superbug,” has been identified in several individuals in Israel but there have been no outbreaks like those reported in the United States.

‘Not the virulent strain’

In the course of the Israeli-Palestinian research some 600 Gaza residents were tested – 300 children and 300 of their parents. Nose swabs were collected and the specimens transported to Sheba Medical Center. Scientists identified the MRSA bacterium in 15 percent of those tested, but also noted that it was not the virulent USA300 strain. It was, rather, a strain that has been identified in European hospitals, but in Gaza it is present in the general community. This strain, which tend to cause skin abscesses and infections was not identified in the West Bank in subsequent testing.

The researchers also noted a connection between the risk of contagion and having a pet cat. “The bacterium is liable to be transmitted from person to person via animals, and our findings raise the suspicion that there’s a connection between the spread of the bacterium and the many cats in Gaza,” said Regev-Yochay, who is also the director of infectious diseases at the Gertner Institute for Epidemiology and Health Policy Research.

In the next stage, research will be carried out among families to explore the long-term ramifications for people who tested positive, specifically to discover whether they are at greater risk of skin infections and hospitalizations. At the same time, the scientists are working to map the genetics of the Gaza strain of MRSA together with researchers from Harvard University.

The joint Palestinian-Israeli research group was established in January 2009 during Operation Cast Lead with the help of Dr. Meir Raz of Maccabi Health Services and Dr. Mohanad Daana, a Maccabi and Hadassah University Hospital physician, with assistance from Prof. Mordechai Shani, the founder of the Gertner Institute and a 2009 Israel Prize winner.

It consists of 30 members, including family physicians and pediatricians, and infectious disease specialists from central Israel, East Jerusalem and clinics in Bethlehem, Ramallah, Nablus and Gaza. Dr. Ezzeldeen Abu al-Aish of the University of Toronto, whose three daughters were killed during Operation Cast Lead by a missile fired at his home, is also a member of the project.

(www.shoah.org.uk / 07.07.2012)

Indonesia Hospital in Gaza to Be Completed

Gaza, Palestine

VIVAnews – The construction of Indonesia Hospital (RSI) in Gaza, Palestine is nearing to be completed. Chairman of MER-C’s Presidium, Jose Rizal Jurnalis, said the first work is almost 80% completed.

“The first stage of RSI Gaza construction is almost done,” he told VIVAnews, Thursday, Jan 26.

He said that if no significant hurdles get in the way, then the structural work will be completed in 2 months. Jose Rizal acknowledged that while some sections are complete, the first-stage construction of  RSI Gaza should have been worked out by February..

“However, we dealt with many obstacles in the field which had delayed the construction project,” he said. “It is very normal, as doing construction work in a conflicting zone is not easy.”

Since the beginning of the hospital’s construction, problems seemed to have surrounded the project. “The difficulties vary from getting volunteers to enter Gaza to start the construction and to getting the needed materials collected as they must be supplied through tunnels,” he said.

“Moreover, the Gaza is not secure because of the non-stop attacks from the Israelis that caused the construction work to be temporarily halted many times.”

However, he said, the volunteers didn’t give up.

“It is really unimaginable that the work which felt like a dream in the beginning is progressing so far,” said Jose Rizal.

He said that from a far, the RSI Gaza has an octagonal shape similar to Qubbah Sakhra in Masjid Al-Aqsha. “The building can be seen standing upright.”

The Indonesia hospital was built with the assistance of the Medical Emergency Rescue Committee (MER-C) on a piece of waqf land located in Bayt Lahiya, North Gaza.

The cornerstone was laid by the Chairman of the House of Representatives on June 29, 2010. The Rp13 billion fund to build this 60×60 meter hospital was provided by Indonesians.

(us.en.vivanews.com / 30.01.2012)

Urgent Appeal: 10-year-old girl in need of life-saving brain surgery

Please help us to save the life of 10-year-old Samar Maree from Ramallah. In early December, she was discovered with a tumor in her brain through a visiting mission led by pediatric neurosurgeon, Prof. Lorenzo Genitori at the Kuwaiti Hospital in Ramallah.   Unfortunately, the tumor could not be operated on in Palestine, so we are asking your kind help to donate so we can send her urgently to the Meyer Pediatric Hospital in Florence, Italy, where Dr. Genitori will operate on her in an effort to save her life.   In 2010, Dr. Genitori performed a similar surgery at his hospital for 4-year-old Ola Abu Jamous, who was also found to have a brain tumor through a PCRF mission. In November 2010, she had surgery and radiation therapy and is now fully recovered. The costs to send Samar with her aunt to Italy for life-saving care is roughly 16,000 Euros, so we’re asking for your kind and generous support this holiday season to help us save her life by donating any amount that you can, and spreading the word of this appeal.  Your  donation will go towards the costs of the her surgery, airfare, and travel expenses for Samar and her aunt. Please make a contribution today and help us save Samar’s life.

 

Additional Donation options:
Note: If you would like info on alternate donation options such as bank wire transfer and donation by mail, please visit our donation page here. When making a payment please indicate that you are donating towards this Urgent Appeal for Samar Maree. 

(www.pcrf.net / 22.12.2011)