The Institute for Middle East Understanding : All site additions (global feed)

Father of soccer player on hunger strike appeals for solidarity (Ma'an News Agency)

Fri, 25 May 2012 05:21:55 PST

The father of a Palestinian soccer player on hunger strike for 67 days in an Israeli jail urged the sporting community to "show solidarity" with his son. Mahmoud al-Sarsak, a forward in Palestine's national soccer team, has been detained without charge or trial since July 2009 when he was arrested while leaving Gaza for a match in the West Bank. He went on hunger strike on March 19 demanding to be informed of the reasons for his detention or released. He is being held in Ramle prison clinic.

'Where is my children's democracy?' The Jilani family speaks out two years after the execution of Ziad (Alex Kane, Mondoweiss)

Thu, 24 May 2012 19:00:56 PST

Two years ago, Ziad Jilani was executed at point-blank range by an Israeli border police officer who had gone after Jilani after he was involved in a car accident. Normally, a case like this would disappear into obscurity, one of many incidents where innocent Palestinians are killed. But after Israeli authorities deemed the case closed, the Jilani family fought back.

Gaza fleet leashed by Israel, starved for fuel (Nidal al-Mughrabi, Reuters)

Thu, 24 May 2012 07:41:41 PST

Israeli gunboats and an Egyptian clampdown on fuel smuggling into the Gaza Strip are strangling the enclave's little fishing fleet, slowly turning a generation of fishermen into fishmongers. Since 2009, they have been unable to sail out beyond three miles because of Israel's strictly enforced blockade. This year they can hardly afford to go out at all because diesel has nearly tripled in price.

Paper: Turkey indicts Israeli commanders over Mavi Marmara raid (Ma'an News Agency)

Thu, 24 May 2012 07:37:45 PST

A Turkish prosecutor has prepared an indictment seeking life sentences for four former Israeli military commanders over their alleged involvement in the 2010 killing of nine Turks on a Gaza-bound aid ship, Turkish newspaper Sabah reported on Wednesday. Relations between the regional powers deteriorated sharply after Israeli commandos raided the Mavi Marmara aid vessel in May 2010 to enforce a naval blockade of the Gaza Strip and killed nine Turks in clashes with activists on board the ship.

Not All Israeli Citizens Are Equal (Yousef Munayyer, The New York Times)

Thu, 24 May 2012 07:07:08 PST

I'm a Palestinian who was born in the Israeli town of Lod, and thus I am an Israeli citizen. My wife is not; she is a Palestinian from Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Despite our towns being just 30 miles apart, we met almost 6,000 miles away in Massachusetts, where we attended neighboring colleges. A series of walls, checkpoints, settlements and soldiers fill the 30-mile gap between our hometowns, making it more likely for us to have met on the other side of the planet than in our own backyard. Never is this reality more profound than on our trips home from our current residence outside Washington.

Gaza Paralympians determined to succeed in London (Ma'an News Agency)

Wed, 23 May 2012 07:16:56 PST

Palestinian Paralympic athletes preparing for the international games in London this summer are determined to overcome the extra obstacles they face to sporting glory. Four athletes from the all-Gaza team visited Jerusalem on Monday, some for the first time in decades, to mark 100 days until the Paralympic games.

2 in Israeli jail still on hunger strike (Ma'an News Agency)

Wed, 23 May 2012 07:11:06 PST

Mahmoud al-Sarsak, a 25-year-old forward in Palestine's national soccer team, has been on hunger strike in an Israeli jail for over two months, officials said Tuesday. Al-Sarsak and Akram al-Rekhawi, a diabetic who has refused food since April 17, are both being held in Ramle prison clinic. Israeli Prison Service spokeswoman Sivan Weizman told Ma'an they were both in a stable condition and receiving all necessary medical treatment.

March of the Flags (Sahar Vardi, Mondoweiss)

Wed, 23 May 2012 07:05:38 PST

The Jerusalem day march is more appropriately also called "the march of flags", and that's exactly what I witnessed last Sunday when thousands of Israeli flags swept the streets of the old city of Jerusalem. Flags represent national identity, independence and sovereignty. For those who are still fighting for their freedom and rights flags represent the hope that these will be achieved, and they represent victory for those who have achieved it.

Palestinians "act out" in Finland (Uutiset )

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:42:18 PST

The Jenin refugee camp is one of the bleakest places on the West Bank, and for the past six years the Freedom Theatre group has attempted to breathe some life into the settlement experience. The group suffered a major setback last year when its Israeli-born director Juliano Mer-Khamis, who dreamed of a joint Israeli-Palestinian state, was gunned down.

Activist prevents Israeli officer from arresting Palestinian child (Lisa Goldman, +972 Blog)

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:16:50 PST

During Sunday's Jerusalem Day events, a Palestinian boy, perhaps 10 years old, was chased down an East Jerusalem street by a very angry officer of the Border Police. The boy tripped and fell, then picked himself up just as the Border Police officer reached him and tried to grab him. But a 22 year-old female Israeli activist prevented the boy's arrest by throwing herself between the two, allowing the Palestinian boy to flee.

Palestinian Paralympians visit Jerusalem holy site (Harriet Sherwood, The Guardian)

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:04:57 PST

In al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, Moussa Qadoom sank to the floor and wept into the gold and red carpet. As swallows swooped between the white marble columns of the vast edifice, the athletics coach from Gaza City surrendered to the emotion of the moment. "I'm 31 years old, and I have only ever seen this place in newspapers and on television," he said a few minutes later. "I never imagined in my whole life that I would come and pray in al-Aqsa."

Israeli settler violence caught on camera (Al Jazeera)

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:04:48 PST

The Israeli human rights group B'tselem has released a video showing Israeli settlers shooting at Palestinians in the West Bank. Residents of Yitzhar and the residents of the El Kabalia hurled rocks at each other during Saturday's violent confrontation, which resulted in residents using live ammunition.

Fayyad: Water crisis due to Israel's control of resources (Ma'an News Agency)

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:03:43 PST

Israel's control of Palestinian water resources in the West Bank is responsible for the water crisis, PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said Monday. Opening a conference on water and the prospects for agricultural development in Palestine, Fayyed said strategic vision and a long-term plan were needed to resolve the crisis. The two-day conference was organized by the Palestine Technical University, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Palestinian Water Authority.

Israeli forces demolish East Jerusalem home (Ma'an News Agency)

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:02:52 PST

Israeli forces demolished a home in East Jerusalem on Monday on the pretext that it was being built without a permit, Wafa news agency reported. The house in the Mount of Olives was under construction, owner Samih Idris told Wafa, adding that bulldozers arrived without any prior warning and destroyed the structure. Idris said he was also fined by the Jerusalem municipality.

Settlers shoot Palestinian in head while soldiers stand by (Haggai Matar, +972 Blog)

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:35:41 PST

A 24 year-old Palestinian was hit in the head from a live round of bullets Saturday in the village of Asira al-Qibliya. B'Tselem footage of the event shows the settlers shooting at the young man, and Israeli soldiers standing by them - doing nothing to prevent it. According to B'Tselem, the incident started at around 16:30 Saturday, when a group of settlers descended from the extremist settlement Itzhar towards the Palestinian village (as seen in the first video below). According to eye witnesses the settlers - some of them masked and some armed - started fires in the fields near the village and threw stones at Palestinians who moved towards them, who also started throwing stones at the settlers.

Settler shooting Palestinians, 'Asira al-Qibliya, 19.5.2012, raw footage, 1st camera (B'Tselem)

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:14:22 PST

Settler shooting Palestinian, 'Asira al-Qibliya, 19.5.2012, raw footage, 2nd camera (B'Tselem)

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:11:40 PST

Beginning of 'Asira al-Qibliya event, 19.5.2012 (B'Tselem)

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:08:41 PST

Palestinian protester cleared of incitement charge (Harriet Sherwood, The Guardian)

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:06:14 PST

A Palestinian grassroots activist who was declared a human rights defender by the EU has been cleared of the central charge of incitement, at the end of an 11-month military trial that focused on weekly protests by villagers against a nearby Israeli settlement. Bassem Tamimi was also cleared of perverting the course of justice, but convicted of taking part in illegal demonstrations and of soliciting protesters to throw stones. Sentencing will begin on Thursday.

Settlers, amongst soldiers, fire on Palestinians (Ma'an News Agency)

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:01:38 PST

An Israeli human rights group released footage on Sunday of settlers firing on Nablus-village a day earlier, and called on Israel's military to investigate the assailants, as well as the army's role. Settlers entered Asira al-Qibliya on Saturday and threw rocks at properties in the village, which borders Yitzhar settlement, before the arrival of Israeli forces, a Ma'an correspondent said.