Jewish settlers storm Aqsa mosque

  OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)– Jewish settlers stormed the holy Aqsa mosque in occupied Jerusalem on Monday morning in an attempt to offer Talmudic rituals. Local sources said that Israeli policemen arrested one of the guards inside the mosque for trying to stop the settlers from performing those rituals inside the Islamic holy shrine. They said that the policemen took away Tarek Abu Subaih for trying to disrupt the settlers’ attempt. (occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com / 31.12.2012) Continue reading Jewish settlers storm Aqsa mosque

Israeli forces order Jordan Valley evacuation for training

File photo of a Palestinian village in the Jordan Valley after an Israeli demolition in March 2012. NABLUS (Ma’an) — Israeli forces have delivered evacuation orders to around 100 Palestinian families in the northern Jordan Valley ahead of a military training exercise, a local official said Monday. The evacuation affects around 1,000 Palestinians living in rural communities around Wadi al-Maleh, local mayor Arif Daraghma told Ma’an. They must leave their homes by Wednesday for 48 hours, or they will be subject to penalties, he said. The orders explain that Israeli troops will be holding military drills in the area. “To ensure … Continue reading Israeli forces order Jordan Valley evacuation for training

2013, year of Palestinian state: Mahmoud Abbas

Palestinians in Ramallah watch on a giant screen Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas speaking at the UN on November 29, 2012. “We have a birth certificate… and we want to complete the march toward full independence.” Acting Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas” Acting Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas has pledged that 2013 would be the year for the Palestinian independence. In a speech to Palestinians on the eve of the 48th anniversary of the formation of the Fatah movement, Abbas said that last month’s UN General Assembly vote to upgrade the Palestinian status was a “certificate” of a Palestinian state. … Continue reading 2013, year of Palestinian state: Mahmoud Abbas

Could Saudi Arabia be next?

Nobody can predict which way the ‘Arab Awakening’ will turn this year. But Robert Fisk has ventured a very tentative punt or two… Syria ‘Yes, Assad will go. One day. He says as much. But don’t expect it to happen in the immediate future.  Or Gaddafi-style.’ Israel and the  Palestinian territories ‘Hamas and Khaled Meshaal will go on denying Israel’s right to exist – thus allowing Israel to falsely claim that it has “no one to talk to” – until the next Gaza war.’ Iran ‘Israel has no stomach for an all-out war against Iran – it would lose – … Continue reading Could Saudi Arabia be next?

Peres: praten met Hamas mogelijk

De Israëlische president Shimon Peres. De Israëlische president Shimon Peres heeft maandag beklemtoond dat er geen fundamentele reden is om níet met de Palestijnse beweging Hamas te praten. Als Hamas een opbouwende relatie met Israël wil, wil Israël dat ze succes heeft. We willen niemand in de Gazastrook zien lijden, jong of oud, zei Peres tegen christelijke voormannen in Jeruzalem op een nieuwjaarsreceptie. Hamas, een Palestijnse variant op de Egyptische Moslim Broederschap, erkent Israël niet en beschouwt de Israëliërs als indringers in en bezetters van Palestina. Voor Israël is Hamas een terroristische organisatie. Bij de laatste Palestijnse verkiezingen, 6 jaar … Continue reading Peres: praten met Hamas mogelijk

Israel to seize Jerusalem village land to construct wall

A section of the Israeli separation wall is seen between the Shufat refugee camp and Pisgat Zeev in an area Israel illegally annexed after capturing it in 1967. BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli authorities issued notices on Friday to annex 456 dunams of land from a Jerusalem village in order to build part of its separation wall, local officials said. Head of Beit Iksa village council Kamal Hababa said villagers were shocked when they saw the notices detailing plans to seize agricultural land, officials news agency Wafa reported. The notices invited residents to participate in a tour with Israeli military officers along the … Continue reading Israel to seize Jerusalem village land to construct wall

Almost 90 percent of Syria dead killed in 2012 conflict: NGO

More than 45,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011. Nearly 90 percent of those who have died in Syria’s 21-month conflict were killed in 2012, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Monday. More than 45,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011, but 39,362 of those perished during the past 12 months, the majority civilians, said the Britain-based watchdog. The civilian toll of 28,113 includes those who have taken up arms against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, it said. Government troops suffered heavy losses, with 9,482 … Continue reading Almost 90 percent of Syria dead killed in 2012 conflict: NGO

Over 20 SEALs Who Killed Osama Bin Laden Now Dead

– US Navy Commander who killed Bin Laden, commits suicide (The Siasat Daily, Dec 25, 2012): Hyderabad – SEAL Team 4 Commanding Officer Job W. Price commit suicide. He was best known for finding and then killing Osama bin Laden. Cmdr. Job W. Price, 42, died Saturday, Dec. 22, of a non-combat-related injury while supporting stability operations in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. Suicide of the Officer of this grade raises many questions among the media, as the team was best known for killing Osama Bin Laden that assaulted his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan on May 1, 2011. Military officials are looking into the death of Cmdr. Job W. Price as a possible suicide, … Continue reading Over 20 SEALs Who Killed Osama Bin Laden Now Dead

Two thirds of Israelis support formation of Palestinian state: Polls

People wave Palestinian flags. The results of recent opinion polls have shown that two thirds of Israelis support the establishment of a Palestinian state. The polls, carried out in December and commissioned by the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace in Washington DC, reveal that most supporters of Israel’s Likud-Beiteinu party and Habayit Hayehudi party would favor a peace agreement aimed at the formation of a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, Israel’s retention of major settlement blocs and a division of al-Quds (Jerusalem). The Israeli regime has persistently continued constructing illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian … Continue reading Two thirds of Israelis support formation of Palestinian state: Polls

Dissolve the PA today, not tomorrow ~ by Khalid Amayreh

    Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is repeating earlier threats to dissolve the Ramallah regime. In a recent interview with the Haaretz newspaper, Abbas warned that he would “throw the keys” of the authority to the Israelis if Israel didn’t stop building settlements and if no progress in the already moribund peace process was reached by the time a new Israeli government is formed. Israel is scheduled to hold general elections on 22 January and right wing parties, both religious and secular, are forecast to win a landslide victory. This means that the next Israeli government is likely … Continue reading Dissolve the PA today, not tomorrow ~ by Khalid Amayreh