Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Calling for Prayer | Walled in Lebanon?| Palestine Book Awards Winners | Canada's Liberals & Israel | Crisis in Fatah | Our Goal: Update | More ..

The Palestine Chronicle -

Daily News and Commentary on Palestine. Your Trusted news agency since 1999.

Thanks to YOU,we are MUCH CLOSER to our goal. We should be able to make it with ONE MORE PUSH. Let's Make It Happen. Please DONATE and KEEP THIS PALESTINIAN VOICE ALIVE.

Dear Readers,

THANK YOU. We have raised a total of of $7659 to keep the Palestine Chronicle in operation. .

We are confident that you will continue to step up to the challenge so that we may raise the required amount of $12,000 in full.

If you have not pledged yet, please click here to donate. It is a very easy and simple process, but it makes a huge difference for us and for our work.

True, it has been a struggle to keep our independent publications alive, for we have no wealthy backers, no government or political party's sponsors; but we have you and our faith in you remains strong.

So, please make a donation now so that we may carry on with our important work for another six months interrupted; and keep supporting us in everyone possible.

With you, we will always be strong.

DONATE TODAY TO THE PALESTINE CHRONICLE

To make a contribution using your paypal account or credit card, please click HERE

Or kindly send your contribution to:

PO Box 196

Mountlake Terrace

WA, 98043

USA

We greatly appreciate your support. The Palestine Chronicle is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. All donations are tax deductible.

Thank you for your faith in us and your continued support.

The Palestine Chronicle Team

Israel Cannot Silence Prayer Calls

By Ramzy Baroud

In a succession of events that indicated major coordination between various Israeli government offices, Jewish settler groups and the municipality of Jerusalem, Israel recently moved to outlaw the Muslim call for prayer, first in Jerusalem, then in other Arab areas inside Israel.

This move was clearly aimed at literally and figuratively silencing Palestinian Muslims and would have been casually filed under yet a new Israeli attempt aimed at Judaizing Jerusalem and eradicating Palestinian heritage - Muslim and Christian alike - throughout Palestine.

But there is more to the story: The timing of these efforts.

True, the original bill to ban the call for prayer was presented by member of the Knesset Moti Yogev, last March, but has become more pressing in recent weeks, following a vote in the UNESCO, which was the subject of much annoyance by Israel.

Following its occupation and illegal annexation of Arab East Jerusalem, Israeli leaders have labored to claim the occupied city as their own, labeling it Israel's "enteral and undivided capital."

However, the reality is that aside from most Israelis and their friends in the Christian Right, the international community has never accepted or agreed to the occupation or annexation of Palestine, nor the Israeli designation.

On Oct. 26, following robust campaigning from various Arab and other countries, a UNESCO resolution, once more, emphasized the status of Jerusalem in international law as occupied and agreed to retain the UN designation of the Old City of Jerusalem as "endangered."

The resolution, which was passed after a vote by the organization's World Heritage Committee strongly criticized Israel's violations of the sanctity of Palestinian houses of worship, demanded access to the holy sites to determine their conservation status and, particularity significant to Israel, called Palestinian holy sites by their Arabic, not Hebrew names.

Israel was infuriated. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded angrily. His ministers alleged that the vote further demonstrated the UN's supposed anti-Semitism.

Israel's evangelical friends flooded UNESCO officials with bibles to "refresh diplomats' memory" on Judaism's ties to Jerusalem.

Israeli vengeance surpassed the realm of media rhetoric into aggressive action. First, Netanyahu moved to formalize the illegal annexation of hundreds of acres of Palestinian land in Jerusalem, and Jerusalem Mayor Nir Berkat threatened to demolish "hundreds or thousands" of Palestinian homes in the city.

In other words, Israel's response to UNESCO was a continuation of the illegal and criminal activities that pressed UNESCO to produce the resolution in the first place.

Israel went still further in trying to silence the call for prayer, first in Jerusalem, then in other cities.

Of course, the call for prayer in Islam carries a deep religious and spiritual meaning but, in Palestine, such religious traditions also carry a deep, symbolic meaning that is unique to Palestinians: The call for prayer means continuity, survival, unity and rebirth among a host of other meanings.

It is these very meanings that made Palestinians in Gaza pray on top of the ruins of their mosques, which were destroyed by Israeli bombs in the last, most devastating war of 2014.

According to government and media reports, a third of Gaza's mosques were destroyed in the last war on the Strip.

Israel's attempt to ban the call for prayer is a new low. Its pretext behind the move was termed "noise pollution" - a complaint repeatedly made by Jewish settlers, who moved to Jerusalem and the rest of the Occupied Territories from Europe, the US and other countries, to build homes atop illegally stolen Palestinian land.

On Nov. 3, a small crowd of settlers from the illegal settlement of Pisgat Zeev gathered in front of the home of Nir Berkat, demanding that the government end the "noise pollution," emanating from the city's mosques. The mayor readily and immediately obliged.

But it didn't stop there.

Read MORE ..

How Can You Identify a Canadian Liberal? Isolating Canada for the Sake of Israel

By Yves Engler

Under Justin Trudeau "Canada is back" to isolating itself from world opinion on Palestinian rights.

Two weeks ago Ottawa joined Israel, the US, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau in opposing motions titled "Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the occupied Syrian Golan" and "persons displaced as a result of the June 1967 and subsequent hostilities."

One hundred and fifty-six countries voted in favor of the motions while seven abstained on the first and six on the second.

Two among numerous resolutions upholding Palestinian rights Canada opposed, these votes follow on the heels of foreign minister Stéphane Dion attacking UNESCO for defending Palestinian rights. Last month the UN cultural body criticized Israel for restricting Muslim access to the Al Aqsa Mosque compound and recognized Israel as the occupying power.

"Canada strongly rejects UNESCO World Heritage singling out Israel & denying Judaism's link to the Old City + Western Wall," Dion tweeted.

A few months earlier Trudeau's minister criticized another arm of the UN. In March Dion denounced the UN Human Rights Council's appointment of University of Western Ontario law professor Michael Lynk as "Special Rapporteur on Palestine". Claiming the Canadian lawyer was hostile to Israel, Dion asked the UNHRC to review Lynk's appointment.

In addition to isolating Canada internationally, the Trudeau government has pursued various pro-Israel moves. At the start of the month Governor General David Johnston visited a Jewish National Fund Forest. An owner of 13 per cent of Israel's land, the JNF discriminates against Palestinian citizens of Israel (Arab Israelis) who make up a fifth of the population. According to a UN report, JNF lands are "chartered to benefit Jews exclusively," which has led to an "institutionalized form of discrimination."

While the GG recently visited a racist Israeli institution, the PM attended the "Butcher of Qana's" funeral at the end of September. In 1996 Shimon Peres ordered the shelling of a Lebanese village, which killed 106 civilians in Qana - half of whom were children. Through his long political career, reports Patrick Martin, Peres "was deeply implicated in many of the foulest historical crimes associated with the establishment, expansion and militarization of the state of Israel."

Peres' role in dispossessing Palestinians didn't stop the Trudeau government from gushing with praise after he passed away. "The whole country of Canada is supporting the whole country of Israel and the prime minister wanted that to be very clear," Dion told the press.

At the start of the year the Liberals condemned Canadians seeking to hold Israel accountable to international law. The Prime Minister and most Liberal MPs supported a Conservative Party call for the House of Commons to "reject the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which promotes the demonization and delegitimization of the State of Israel."

The February resolution also "condemned any and all attempts by Canadian organizations, groups or individuals to promote the BDS movement, both here at home and abroad."

The Trudeau government's efforts to undermine Palestinians liberation strengthens Canada's multifaceted contribution to Israeli expansionism.

Read MORE ..

Where is Fatah Heading: Liberation or Authoritarian Movement?

By Hani al-Masri

A week from now, on the 29th of this month, Fatah is set to hold its seventh conference, however there are still discussions underway as to whether or not it will be held or postponed. The only thing that will prevent the conference from being held on the scheduled date are major security incidents, such as assassinations, attacks on PA headquarters or Israeli forces (unlikely), or the prohibition of the attendance of members in Gaza or abroad.

The reason the discussion is on going is that this conference will most likely not, according to the data and preparations, result in the restoration of Fatah as a liberation movement. Instead, it may further turn Fatah into an authority movement in the West Bank (or the remnants of the West Bank, to be more correct).

Mohammad Dahlan and his group who are called the "criminals" will not return, despite the fact that their return is a demand insisted on by the Arab Quartet. The failure to fulfill this demand led to the anger of the concerned Arab capitals and to holding a series of meetings to discuss Egypt directly dealing with the Palestinians without their leaders and institutions.

The failure to meet the Quartet's demands also led to Jordan informing all those concerned that Palestinians holding Jordanian citizenship participating as Fatah members in the conference will be put at risk of having their national numbers being revoked as Jordan considers participation in the Fatah conference a dual nationality and loyalty. This is contrary to what had happened in the past, when the Jordanian authorities turned a blind eye to the matter. However, it is currently prohibiting this in light of the conflicts regarding the Arab Quartet's plan, including Jordan's allowance of the other conflict members to pass through Jordan to the West Bank, just as Hamas pledged to allow conference members from Gaza to pass through the Beit Hanoun crossing and Israel agreed to this, and the members have indeed started arriving in Ramallah.

I have written this before and I will reiterate in this article, if Dahlan and his group are rejected by Fatah because they stood with the president against their return, then the Arab pressure will not do Dahlan and his group any good. They must look for another way. The Arab intervention has hastened their dismissal from Fatah and now they must form a new movement and use all that they have up their sleeve, if they have anything new, and not repeat their talk of uniting Fatah without mentioning any basis for unification. Is it this same approach that brought us where we are today, or something worse?

Read MORE ..

The Challenges Facing Jerusalemites

By Zuher Majid

The call to prayer is a duty practiced by Muslims since Bilal Al-Habashi recited it for the first time. It is an internal voice that remains abuzz throughout the life of Muslims, and it an anthem the quenches their thirst for holiness and a spiritual relationship with their lord.

Who can ban the call to prayer and decide, by means of a resolution, the existence of absence of it from the lives of Muslims? It is true that Israel has banned it being broadcasted on loudspeakers so far, but this is a prelude to something worse. If the Jerusalemites accept the ban, then it is as if they are telling the occupation authorities that they will accept a new reality that will harm the essence of their existence.

Muslims do not merely remember the call to prayer, but rather it mingles in their thoughts and controls their souls. It is more than a habit or routine, it is a haven verging on the natural formation of Muslim beings. The call to prayer is not whispered, like prayer; the louder it is, the more the demand is for it. It is as if Muslims want to express a small snippet of the strong feeling that permeates their bodies, hearts and souls.

When the Jerusalemites challenged the Zionist decision, which some claim came about because the call to prayer disturbed Netanyahu's young son, they voiced their protest to the tune of the unblemished memory of the first call to prayer. The collective voices have an impact on the soul and are a combination of all balances, feelings and emotions in the body and soul. These voices and their echoes are a sign of the challenges that are repeated. Instead of the call of prayer being a normal routine for Muslims, and specifically for Jerusalemites, it is now a daily routine but also an act of defiance against the Israeli ban that is considered limitless craziness and an indescribable infringement on the sanctity of Muslim Jerusalemites.

We heard seconds of the voices of Jerusalemite men, women and children reciting the call to prayer on the news and my soul longed to hear more. I was enchanted by the voices that reached the ears of the Israelis; this was more than just news or a challenge, it their declaration, "you can take away our air and water, but you cannot touch the essence of our existence on this earth".