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NGO Exposes Eurovision Tourists to Israeli Occupation

Breaking the Silence invite Eurovision tourists to visit Hebron and ‘see the full picture’. (Photo: via Facebook)

Israeli NGO “Breaking the Silence” has called on Eurovision goers to experience “the full picture” of Israel’s occupation by taking a tour to the West Bank city of Hebron (Al-Khalil).

The group yesterday erected a giant billboard on a highway between Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport and Tel Aviv – where this year’s Eurovision Song Contest is being held – in a bid to highlight Israel’s now 52-year-old occupation of the Palestinian territories.

The poster is emblazoned with the words “dare to dream of freedom”, playing on Eurovision’s slogan and calling on concertgoers to “see the full picture” by joining a Breaking the Silence tour.

Executive Director of Breaking the Silence, Avner Gvaryahu, said of the poster:

“We invite Eurovision guests from all over the world to celebrate with us in Israel, and join a tour of Hebron to see the full picture.”

The same image was posted to Breaking the Silence’s Facebook page, where the organization wrote:

“Hey Eurovision, thanks for coming to party with us! Enjoy the sunny beaches and exciting nightlife, just don’t forget that there’s a lot more to this place than fun and games.”

The post continued:

“An hour away from your hotel, throughout the occupied territories, millions of Palestinians are still living under military rule. We know this because we were the soldiers sent to serve in the territories, and we would like to show you the full picture.”

The billboard shows two images of Israel; on the left, an idealized image of a Tel Aviv beach and the Mediterranean Sea, while on the right a concrete watchtower, Israel’s Separation Wall and illegal West Bank settlements can be seen.

(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)

12:17 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israeli Naval Forces Arrest 3 Fishermen off Gaza Coast

The Israeli army regularly detains and opens fire on Palestinian fishermen in Gaza. (Photo: via Social Media)

Israeli naval forces on Saturday detained three Palestinian fishermen off the coast of the blockaded Gaza Strip, according to a local official.

Israeli gunboats opened fire on Palestinian fishing boats west of Gaza City and arrested three fishermen, Nizar Ayyash, head of Gaza’s fishermen union, told Anadolu Agency.

The cause of the detention remains unclear and the Israeli military has yet to issue an official statement.

According to Palestinian figures, roughly 50,000 inhabitants of Gaza earn their living through fishing.

On Friday, the Israeli authorities allowed Gaza fishermen to resume fishing after a week-long hiatus in the wake of military escalation between Israel and Gaza-based resistance factions.

After Israel’s 2014 onslaught against the Gaza Strip (in which more than 2,150 Palestinians were killed), Israel began allowing Palestinian fishermen to ply their trade up to six nautical miles off Gaza’s coast before increasing the fishing zone to 12 nautical miles.

(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)

4:54 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israeli Forces Detain 10 Palestinians, Including Child

Israeli occupation forces arrest young Palestinian men. (Photo: via AJE)

Israeli forces detained at least ten Palestinians across the occupied West Bank, on predawn Sunday.

According to Palestine Prisoner’s Society (PPS), Israeli forces detained several Palestinians, including a child, in the southern West Bank district of Hebron (Al-Khalil).

The minor was identified as Muhammad Bajes al-Matour.

In the southern West Bank district of Bethlehem, another Palestinian was detained and identified as Khalaf Usama Shakarneh.

In the northern West Bank district of Jenin, PPS said that three Palestinians were detained. They were identified as Anas Awad Hamran, Wadah Khalil al-Shaer, and Fares Abed al-Rahman Awad.

In the central West Lender district of Jerusalem, two Palestinians were detained in close proximity to the Damascus Gate in the Outdated City. They were being recognized as Nour al-Ajlouni and Hassan Iyad

According to prisoners rights group Addameer, there are 5,450 Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli prisons, including 205 minors, 32 of whom under 16 years old.

(Ma’an, PC, Social Media)

10:03 am | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Thousands of People March for Palestine in London (VIDEO)

Thousands of people marched through central London on Saturday to mark the seventy-first anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba. (Photo_:via Social Media)

Thousands of people marched through central London on Saturday to mark the seventy-first anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba (Catastrophe), which coincides this year with plans for a new deal that will liquidate the Palestinian issue.

“Free Palestine”, and “End Siege in Gaza” protesters shouted, carrying pro-Palestinian placards.

The procession started in Portland Place and protesters marched through Oxford Circus and Trafalgar Square to reach Downing Street where the government offices are located.

Palestinian Ambassador to the UK, Husam Zomlot, affirmed the utter rejection of the Palestinian people and their leadership of all that has been leaked about the suspicious “deal of the century.”

Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn supported the march on Twitter.

Corbyn wrote:

“We cannot stand by or stay silent at the continuing denial of rights and justice to the Palestinian people …No peace plan can succeed at the expense of the rights of the Palestinian people.”

The demonstration was organized for by the Palestinian Forum in Britain (PFB), Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) and Stop the War Campaign (STW).

(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)

9:52 am | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Palestinian FM: US Seeking Contact with PA

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki. (Photo: via EU website)

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki yesterday revealed that US officials have sent messages that they want to resume contacts with the Palestinian Authority (PA).

However, Al-Maliki said that there has been no contact with the US Administration, stressing that any contact must be proceeded by US recognition of East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine, Al-Wattan Voice reported yesterday.

Al-Maliki – who is visiting New York to attend an unofficial meeting of UN Security Council member states on the Palestinian issue – said that the US thinks it can lure the Palestinians with money and they will concede Jerusalem or a future Palestinian state, Al-Wattan Voice reported, citing Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper.

Al-Maliki said:

“They are mistaken. The Palestinians are not ready to discuss any plan which does not include the Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders and East Jerusalem as its capital.”

He also called on US officials to cancel their decision regarding Jerusalem:

“They have to reiterate their respect for international legitimacy and the two-state solution. If this happens, we will have no problem sitting with them.”

Meanwhile, the foreign minister stressed that Arab states do not put pressure on the PA but “respect our positions and pass them to the US Administration”.

(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)

2:38 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Hamas Chief, UN Envoy Discuss Israeli Siege on Gaza

UN Special Envoy for the Middle East Peace Process, Nikolai Mladenov. (Photo: Mohammed Asad, via MEMO)

UN Envoy for the Middle East Process Nikolay Mladenov yesterday discussed with Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh the Israeli siege imposed on Gaza and the situation of prisoners inside Israeli prisons.

In a statement, Hamas said that Mladenov called Haniyeh to discuss the efforts being exerted by different sides to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, as well as to lift the Israeli siege which has been imposed on the Strip since 2007.

The latest Israeli offensive on Gaza and the human and material losses of this aggression also formed part of the discussions.

Hamas’ statement also noted that the pair discussed Israel’s procrastination in carrying out the terms of the deal which ended the latest hunger strike by Palestinians inside Israeli jails.

(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)

2:29 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israeli Forces Kill Palestinian Youth, Injure Others in Gaza Protests

Abdullah Jumaa Abdul-Al, 24, was killed by Israeli Army while protesting at the fence separating Gaza from Israel. (Photo: via Social Media)

At least one Palestinian was killed and 32 others, including four children, were injured by Israeli forces while demonstrating along the fence separating besieged Gaza Strip from Israel, according to medical sources.

Israeli troops fired live bullets and rubber-coated steel rounds at the protesters, killing Abdullah Jumaa Abdul-Al, 24, and injuring 32 other protesters.

More than 300 Palestinians have been killed and over 25,000 others injured by Israeli forces since the “Great March of Return” protests were launched, on March 30, 2018.

Protesters also demand the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.

They also demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.

(Wafa, PC, Social Media)

8:34 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israel Sets up Fake Eurovision Boycott Page to Counter BDS Campaign

BDS movement has been ramping up its efforts to encourage people to snub 2019 Eurovision in Tel Aviv. (Photo: File)

Sporting the URL boycotteurovision.net, Israel’s PR website masquerades as part of a campaign to boycott the Eurovision song contest in Tel Aviv but actually features pro-Israel narrative.

The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement aims to financially pressure Israel into improving treatment of Palestinians.

However, according to a new website promoted via ads on Google, it now stands for how Israel is “beautiful, diverse, sensational.”

Despite the deceptive URL and the fact that the page doesn’t identify itself as run by the Israeli government, Tel Aviv’s PR ministry confirmed to Reuters that they were behind the campaign.

Gilad Erdan (Minister of Strategic Affairs) said that the ads and website “show Israel as it really is, a diverse, beautiful and sensational place, while at the same time, successfully dispelling the lies BDS spreads.”

Meanwhile, with less than a week to go before the Eurovision takes place in Tel Aviv, the actual BDS movement has been ramping up its efforts to encourage people to snub the competition. They were none too pleased with the Israeli government’s latest counter-measure.

Alia Malak, of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), said:

“After its theft of Palestinian land and culture, Israel is now trying to appropriate a symbol of our nonviolent resistance.”

The music contest has been politicized a number of times.

Last year’s winner, Israel’s Netta Barzilai, yelled out “Next time in Jerusalem!” after receiving the trophy for her spirited chicken-themed song ‘Toy’.

The statement was seen as controversial given that not even the US had yet recognized Jerusalem as the country’s capital.

(RT, PC, Social Media)

3:53 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israel to Reopen Gaza Fishing Zone after Week-Long Closure

Under the Oslo Accords signed in 1993, Israel is obligated to permit fishing up to 37km, but it has never been implemented. (Photo: via Social Media)

Israeli authorities reportedly reopened a limited fishing zone off the coast of the Gaza Strip today, according to reports.

The Israeli government and fishermen both stated that a 12 nautical mile fishing zone was opened this morning, though in the north by Beit Lahia the zone would be restricted to six miles.

The easing of restrictions was anticipated following a ceasefire agreement which was signed on Monday, following 72 hours of escalation triggered by Israeli forces’ killing of two Palestinian protesters on Friday.

The Israeli defense ministry warned that the military forces would “handle any deviation” from the agreement.

Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip have warned in recent days of the consequences should Israel fail to abide by its side of the agreement, and implement humanitarian measures.

Israeli authorities have long imposed unilateral restrictions on Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza Strip, which are routinely enforced with violent attacks by naval vessels.

The Gaza Strip has been under an intense blockade since 2006-07, and under Israeli military occupation since 1967.

(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)

3:24 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israel Seals off Major Road Connecting Ramallah-Area Villages

Israeli forces sealed off a major and vital road connecting the northwest villages of the central occupied West Bank. (Photo: File)

Israeli forces sealed off a major and vital road connecting the northwest villages of the central occupied West Bank city of Ramallah and the town of Birzeit, on Thursday, in addition to imposing a general closure on the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Local sources told Ma’an that Israeli forces closed the metal gate, that is set up at the entrance of the village of Nabi Saleh, which residents of several Ramallah-area villages usually use to travel to Ramallah and other towns nearby, forcing them to look for alternative roads.

Sources pointed out that Israeli forces imposed this closure, in order to allow Israeli settlers to hold celebrations near the illegal Israeli settlement of Halamish, which was built on Palestinian lands, marking the 71st anniversary of the establishment of Israel, which is also known as the 1948 Nakba or “catastrophe” to the Palestinians.

Palestinians commemorate the Nakba or “catastrophe,” which is when an estimated 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes when the state of Israel was created.

Israeli authorities also imposed a general closure, including sealing off all border crossings across the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, for the entire day, on the occasion of Jewish settlers’ celebrations.

Such restrictions affect the livelihoods of the tens of thousands of Palestinians.

Debilitating poverty and lack of employment drive many workers in the occupied West Bank to enter Israel in search of work. Israel’s imposition of closures on the Palestinian territory has severely affected the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who depend on entering Israel, or its illegal settlements, for employment opportunities.

Meanwhile, the majority of the more than 2 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are sealed inside the coastal enclave due to a decade long military blockade imposed by Israel and upheld by Egypt on the southern border.

(Ma’an, PC, Social Media)

3:20 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »
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