Thursday, November 3, 2016

Dire Need | Suing Britain | Colonel: US Weapons Killing Palestinians | Ronaldo No. 1 | More ..



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editorial.

Why Palestinians Want to Sue Britain


By Ramzy Baroud

Last July, the Palestinian Authority took the unexpected, although belated step of seeking Arab backing in suing Britain over the Balfour Declaration. That "declaration" was the first ever explicit commitment made by Britain, and the West in general, to establish a Jewish homeland atop an existing Palestinian homeland.
It is too early to tell whether the Arab League will heed the Palestinian call, or if the PA will even follow through, especially considering the latter has the habit of making too many proclamations backed by little or no action.
However, it seems that the next year will witness a significant tug of war regarding the Balfour Declaration, the 100th anniversary of which will be commemorated on 2 November 2017.
But who is Balfour, what is the Balfour Declaration and why does all of this matter today?
Britain's Foreign Secretary from late 1916, Arthur James Balfour, pledged Palestine to another people. That promise was made on 2 November 1917 on behalf of the British government in the form of a letter sent to the leader of the Jewish community in Britain, Walter Rothschild.
At the time, Britain was not even in control of Palestine, which was still part of the Ottoman Empire. Either way, Palestine was never Balfour's to so casually transfer to anyone else. His letter read:
"His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country."
He concluded: "I should be grateful if you would bring this declaration to the knowledge of the Zionist Federation."
Balfour was hardly acting on his own. True, the declaration bears his name, yet, in reality, he was a loyal agent of an Empire with massive geopolitical designs, not only concerning Palestine alone, but with Palestine as part of a larger Arab landscape.
Only a year earlier, another sinister document was introduced, albeit secretly. It was endorsed by another top British diplomat, Mark Sykes and, on behalf of France, by François Georges-Picot. The Russians were informed of the agreement, as they too had received a piece of the Ottoman cake.
The document indicated that .. 
[...]

commentary.

Netanyahu's Logic Prevails: Western Leaders Grow Deaf to Israeli Abuses


By Jonathan Cook - Nazareth 
Israel has just emerged from its extended, three-week high holidays, a period that in recent years has been marked by extremist religious Jews making provocative visits to the al-Aqsa mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem.
Many go to pray, in violation of Israel's international obligations. Most belong to groups that seek the mosque's destruction and replacement with a Jewish temple - and now enjoy support from within the parliament, including from prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's party.
A rash of such visits last autumn outraged Palestinians and triggered a wave of so-called "lone-wolf" attacks on Israelis. The attacks only recently abated.
Taking advantage of the renewed quiet, Israel allowed a record number of ultra-nationalists to visit the mosque, figures released last week show. Parties of Israeli soldiers are also now entering the site.
The police, whose recently appointed commander is himself from the extremist settler community, has recommended too that restrictions be ended on visits by Jewish legislators who demand Israel's sovereignty over the mosque.
Israel's treatment of this supremely important Islamic holy site symbolizes for Palestinians their powerlessness, oppression and routine humiliation. Conversely, a sense of impunity has left Israel greedy for even more control over Palestinians.
The gaping power imbalance was detailed last month at special hearing of the United Nations security council. Hagai El-Ad, head of B'tselem, which monitors the occupation, termed Israel's abuses as "invisible, bureaucratic, daily violence" against Palestinians exercised from "cradle to grave".
He appealed to the international community to end its five decades of inaction. "We need your help. ... The occupation must end. The UN Security Council must act. And the time is now," he said.
Israeli politicians were incensed. El-Ad had broken one of Israel's cardinal rules: you do not wash the country's dirty linen abroad. Most Israelis consider the occupation and Palestinian suffering as purely an internal matter, to be decided by them alone.
Netanyahu accused B'tselem's director of conspiring with outsiders to subject Israel to "international coercion".
With the US limply defending El-Ad's freedom of speech, Netanyahu found a proxy to relaunch the attack.David Bitan, chair of his party, both demanded that El-Ad be stripped of his citizenship and proposed legislation to outlaw calls for sanctions against Israel in international forums.
Unsurprisingly, El-Ad has faced a flood of death threats.
[...]

news.

Retired US Colonel Detained on Freedom Boat Slams US Aid to Israel


Ann Wright, an American activist who was arrested earlier this month among 13 women activists sailing to Gaza to protest Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip, slammed Washington's military aid to Israel in an interview with Anadolu Agency last Saturday.
"It is outrageous that the US government has decided that over the next 10 years we will be giving $38 billion to the state of Israel," said Wright, a retired US army colonel, former diplomat, and human rights activist.
Wright was on the Zaytouna-Oliva, the Women's Boat to Gaza which sailed from Barcelona, Spain to Gaza on September 15, attempting to break Israel's ten-year siege on the enclave.
Saying that the Israeli military is already well-funded and the country has a dynamic economy, Wright argued: "The United States is giving money to Israel for the specific purpose of killing Palestinians because that is essentially what the Israeli military does."
She added that the Israeli military is using Gaza as a staging ground for military exercises.
Wright said that the US government is also tracking her activities ..
headlines. 
A music concert in Gaza. (Photo: Palestine Chronicle)
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