Category: Israel

How Does Hamas Acquire Its Weapons? – YouTube

İsrail propagandası yapan video için Danışma Kurulu üyemiz Sn. Rafael Sadi’ye gönderilen enteresan bir yorum :

Armagan YilmazRafael abi bunları neden paylaşıyorsun ki ne anlamı var. Hamas benim için bir teröristtir ama Filistin’de seçim kazanarak iktidara gelmiştir. dolayısıyla seçim yapan bir yerin yani bir ülkenin silahı olmasından daha doğal bir şey yoktur. Artık birşeye karar verin bence. Ya filistinin bir devlet olduğunu kabul edip iki devlet arasındaki savaştan bahsedin. Ya fa kabul etmiyorsanız size atılan roketlere kızmayın. Zira terör örgütlerinin amacı budur zaten. Nasıl PKK’yı Türkiye’nin derin devleti yarattıysa haması da İsrail’in derin devleti yaratmıştır. Düşmanın olacak ki halkını uyutabilesin.

One of the main ways that Hamas acquires weapons is via an extensive network of tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border. Since Hamas seized power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, the terrorist group’s smuggling efforts have increased. With funding from Iran, Hamas has improved its stockpile of weapons.

via How Does Hamas Acquire Its Weapons? – YouTube.

November 19, 2012
IHH Calls People Around the World for Help for Palestinians

It is time for the world to stand up for what is right.

Gaza murders protest

People from all walks of life protesting Israel’s war crimes against Palestine in Downtown Chicago. 11/15/12 Protests took place in front of Obama’s headquarters and the Israeli Consulate. Photo by Exposing The Truth team member Dana S Hamed

(Istanbul, TR) – Gaza is under Israeli attack since last Wednesday. As death toll rises hour by hour the humanitarian crisis is also increasing in Gaza Strip.

The Istanbul-based Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (İHH) makes a call for people around the world to urgently take action against Israeli attacks targeting civilians and to supply humanitarian aid for Gazan people.

Israeli Occupation Forces has escalated military attacks on the Gaza since Wednesday evening, 14 November 2012.

They first extra-judicially executed the leader of the Izziddin alQassam Brigades (the armed wing of Hamas) and his bodyguard. This attack was followed by a series of aerial, ground and sea attacks on civilian and paramilitary targets throughout the Gaza Strip.

As a result of these attacks, so far 39 Palestinians including 9 children have been killed and more than 345 injured. Beside, a number of houses and schools have been extensively damaged and the rest of the schools closed for days.

Gazan people are now living without electricity and deprived of right to communication.

The people of Gaza who have already been facing tremendous hardship now need more help. With the increasing number of wounded, hospitals which already have inadequate resources are in drastic need of emergency medical supplies including antibiotics, anesthetics and disposable sterile supplies such as tubing, surgical gloves, needles and syringes.

IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation which has been carrying out relief efforts for Palestinians for 20 years caring more than ten thousands Palestinian orphans primarily sends a team to Gaza with relief items which include mainly drastic need of emergency medical supplies and food (1 million Turkish Lira in value).

IHH calls upon people around the world urgently to take action to prevent Israeli attacks targeting civilians and to supply humanitarian aid for Gazan people.

via IHH Calls People Around the World for Help for Palestinians – Salem-News.Com.

November 19, 2012
Obama urges Egypt and Turkey to play key Gaza role as death toll mounts

Palestinian youths clash with Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus. Photograph: Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP/Getty Images

President Barack Obama has personally urged leaders in Turkey and Egypt to engage with Hamas over a “de-escalation” of hostilities in Gaza, while continuing to support Israeli strikes despite mounting Palestinian civilian casualties.

Speaking on board Air Force One en route to Asia, White House national security adviser Ben Rhodes blamed Hamas for the current round of violence, stating that the “precipitating factor” for Israeli air strikes were rockets fired into civilian territories from Gaza.

It comes as the Palestinian death toll continues to rise. Up to 41 Gazans, including 13 civilians, and three Israelis have been killed since the Israeli operation began. Palestinian authorities have said their dead included at least eight children and a pregnant woman.

Asked about the bombing of government buildings – including prime minister Ismail Haniyeh’s offices – the US official said he wouldn’t comment on “specific targeting choices” other than to say that the administration would “always underscore the importance of avoiding civilian casualties”.

But Rhodes reiterated the White House view that Hamas was responsible for the latest outburst of violence.

“Just to be clear on the precipitating factor: these rockets had been fired into Israeli civilian areas and territory for some time now. So Israelis have endured far too much of a threat from these rocket for far too long, and that is what led the Israelis to take the action that they did in Gaza,” he said.

He added that the US wanted the same thing as Israelis: “an end to the rocket fire coming out of Gaza”.

The comments come as the White House increased its diplomatic efforts to end the violence in Gaza.

Obama has spoken to Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, it emerged on Saturday, along with Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi.

Both men have the “ability to play a constructive role in engaging Hamas and encouraging a process of de-escalation”, Rhodes said.

However, on Saturday, Erdogan appeared to take a different side in the conflict, despite the call from Obama. The Turkish leader on Saturday vowed support for Gaza’s Palestinians in a speech at Cairo University in Egypt. He also met Morsi for the first time since the Eggyptian Islamist leader was elected in late June, with Erdogan saying that that win at the polls offered hope to Palestinians.

The US has been reaching out to leaders across the Middle East as Israel and Hamas trade volleys of fire.

Secretary of state Hillary Clinton has spoken to the foreign ministers if Israel, Turkey and Egypt in the past few days, as well as Jordan’s King Abdullah.

But the US has been clear in pledging its support for Israel, its staunch ally.

Obama, who was on Saturday making his way to south-east Asia for a three day trip, has spoken to prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu every day since the current round of Israeli air strikes in Gaza commenced.

At a briefing on Friday, a State Department spokeswoman summed up the US position: “We are urging a de-escalation of this conflict. We are urging those countries with influence on Hamas and other groups in Gaza to use that influence to get a de-escalation,” the spokeswoman said.

“We support … Israel’s right to self-defence, and we obviously express our regret and sadness for the loss of life on all sides.”

Israel has seen the US stance as a clear signal that it has a virtually free hand.

On Friday, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, said during a visit to Capitol Hill: “The United States has given us the full backing to take whatever measures are necessary to defend our citizens from Hamas terror.” Meanwhile, the Palestinian delegation to Washington has condemned the US response to the crisis as “biased and weak”.

Despite diplomatic efforts, the violence continued on Saturday.

Israeli air strikes hit the office building of the Hamas prime minister in Gaza, amid warnings of a dangerous escalation in the conflict with up to 75,000 Israeli reservists mobilised for a possible ground invasion.

An explosion and air raid sirens were also heard over the Israeli port city of Tel Aviv as Palestinian militants in Gaza continued to fire rocket salvoes across the border four days after Israel launched an air offensive. So far Israel has struck more than 800 targets in Gaza while Gaza officials there said about 500 rockets had been launched so far at Israel.

via Obama urges Egypt and Turkey to play key Gaza role as death toll mounts | World news | guardian.co.uk.

November 19, 2012
Israel discuss plans to assassinate Syrian president

Israel discuss plans to assassinate Syrian president : Report

Nov 10, 2012

A Lebanese newspaper has disclosed that Qatar and Israel have held a secret meeting to review plans to assassinate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Arabic-language Ad-Diyar newspaper said the meeting which was held in the occupied lands included Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani, Qatari intelligence chief Ahmed Nasser bin Jassim al-Thani, head of Israeli spy agency the Mossad Tamir Pardo and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The report added that Mossad chief also offered several proposals for assassination of the Syrian president.

The Qatari premier also said that his country is ready to supply Israel with free natural gas and very low-priced gasoline for two years after the assassination is carried out.

Netanyahu also asked the Qatari officials whether the [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council ([P]GCC) is ready to recognize Israel after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad.

Syria accuses Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey as well as some Western countries of fanning the flames of violence that have erupted in the country since mid-March 2011.

Saudi Arabia and Qatar also publicity announced that they are supporting and arming the insurgents in Syria.

November 12, 2012
Turkey begins trial of Israeli military men over killings

ISTANBUL (Agencies): Hundreds of protesters chanting \”Murderer Israel!\” gathered outside an Istanbul court on Tuesday at the start of a trial of a group of former Israeli military commanders charged over the 2010 killing of nine Turks aboard a Gaza-bound aid ship.

The trial in absentia of four of Israel\’s most senior retired commanders, including the head of the army, has been dismissed by Israel as a politically motivated \”show trial\” and threatens to further strain already fraught relations.

Ties between the Jewish state and what was once its only Muslim ally crumbled after Israeli marines stormed the Mavi Marmara aid ship in May 2010 to enforce a naval blockade of the Palestinian-run Gaza Strip.

Nine Turks were killed in clashes with activists on board.

The ensuing rift remains raw despite U.S. efforts to encourage a rapprochement between the two regional powers whose alliance was a mainstay of Washington\’s influence in an unstable region.

Israel and NATO member Turkey, which both border Syria, once shared intelligence information and conducted joint military exercises, cooperation which has since been cancelled.

Several hundred people, many wearing the Arab keffiyeh headscarf around their necks adorned with the Turkish and Palestinian flags, crowded outside the courthouse as witnesses and relatives of those killed in the raid began to arrive.

\”Murderer Israel, get out of Palestine!\” the crowd chanted as others held up a banner with the words: \”What is the difference? Hitler = Israel.\”

On a board erected outside the courthouse by IHH, the Islamic humanitarian agency that owns theMavi Marmara, protesters scribbled the slogans: \”Israel, your end is near\”, \”Down with Israel\”, \”The revenge of our martyrs will be bitter\”.

\”We want nothing more than for those who are responsible to be punished. We want them to be brought to account for the violation of Palestinian people\’s rights,\” said Ummugulsum Yazici, one of the protesters.

Inside the courtroom, the presiding judge began hearing testimony from those who were aboard the flotilla during the 2010 raid. A total of 490 people, including activists and journalists, are expected to give evidence.

Ann Wright, a former colonel in the U.S. army, who was on one of the smaller ships, described how Israeli troops had boarded their vessel, firing paint bullets and tossing stun grenades.

\”After serving 29 years in the U.S. army, I retired in 2003 in opposition to the Iraq war,\” she told the court.

\”One of the reasons I went on the flotilla is that I felt compelled to challenge Israeli policy to impose an illegal blockade on Palestine and the U.S. policy to support Israel\’s illegal actions,\” she said.

The indictment prepared by a state prosecutor is seeking multiple life sentences for the now retired Israeli officers over their involvement in the nine killings and in the wounding of more than 50 others. The 144-page indictment names Israel\’s former Chief-of-Staff Gabi Ashkenazi, and three other senior commanders. It lists \”inciting murder through cruelty or torture\” and \”inciting injury with firearms\” among the charges.

Israel has dismissed the case as a \”show trial\” and \”political theatre\”, saying the accused had not even been notified of the charges.

\”This is not a trial, this is a show trial with a kangaroo court. This is a trial taken right out of a Kafka novel, a grotesque political show that has nothing to do with law and justice,\” Yigal Palmor, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman, told Reuters TV.

Turkey expelled Israel\’s ambassador and froze military cooperation after a U.N. report into the 2010 incident released in September last year largely exonerated the Jewish state.

That report was meant to encourage a rapprochement between the two countries but ultimately deepened the rift when it concluded that Israel had used unreasonable force but that its blockade on Gaza was legal.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in July that Israel and Turkey needed to repair their relationship, but attempts to rekindle the strategic relationship have failed.

Turkey has demanded a formal apology, compensation for victims and the families of the dead, and for the Gaza blockade to be lifted.

Israel has voiced \”regret\”, falling short of the full apology demanded, and has offered to pay into what it called a \”humanitarian fund\” through which casualties and relatives could be compensated.

via Turkey begins trial of Israeli military men over killings.

November 8, 2012
UEFA President Michel Platini: Remove UEFA 2013 European Under-21 Championship from Israel

It took three months of hunger strike and the near death of a Palestinian footballer, Mahmoud Sarsak, held for three years without charge or trial under the ‘Unlawful Combatants Law’, which is itself illegal under international law, for the Israeli authorities to agree to a release deal in July 2012. We continue to be alarmed that Olympic squad goalkeeper Omar Abu Rois and Ramallah player Mohammed Nimr are also being held by Israel without charge. We maintain that a state which holds sportsmen as political prisoners is unfit to host an international sporting event. We, therefore, call on UEFA to withdraw the honour of hosting the 2013 European Under-21 championship from Israel.

Petition Letter

I’ve just signed the following petition addressed to: UEFA President Michel Platini.

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Remove UEFA Under-21 Championship 2013 from Israel

An earlier letter to you signed by eminent figures including former football legend Éric Cantona, filmmaker Ken Loach, Michael Mansfield, QC, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and writer Alice Walker (1), addressed racist oppression in Israel as exemplified by the treatment of Palestinian footballer, Mahmoud Sarsak, and called for an end to Israel’s impunity. We are grateful for any interventions you made on Sarsak’s behalf, and welcome news of a deal that saw the footballer released on 10 July 2012.

It took huge international pressure and condemnation in response to three months of hunger strike by Mahmoud Sarsak to force the Israeli authorities to agree to this deal. This is a sportsman who has been held for over three years without charge or trial under the ‘Unlawful Combatants Law’, which is illegal under international laws (2). Sarsak felt so strongly about the injustice of his case that he was willing to die to highlight Israel’s ongoing human rights abuses.

As pointed out to you in a June 2012 letter from Palestinian Football Association President Jibril Rajoub, in addition to Sarsak, Olympic squad goalkeeper Omar Abu Rois and Ramallah player Mohammed Nimr are also being held by Israel without charge. Rajoub makes clear in his letter the importance of UEFA not giving Israel the honour of hosting the next UEFA European Under-21 Championship in June 2013, when “For athletes in Palestine, there is no real freedom of movement and the risks of being detained or even killed are always looming before their eyes”.

UEFA’s response to this urgent plea by Palestinians and their supporters is that “football – and sport in general – are building bridges between nations and communities and that political matters should not interfere with the practice of the game.”

UEFA should understand that this argument rings hollow in the ears of Palestinians, footballers and others, who are victims of Israel’s discriminatory regime. Sport cannot build bridges when a government wields state power to imprison and oppress a specific community. The idea that politics can be separated from sport in this situation is clearly untenable. For Israel, sport, and culture generally, are tools to be used to divert attention away from the state’s persecution of the Palestinian population of Israel and the occupied territories – a population equal in numbers and just as passionate about football as their Israeli counterparts but denied access both as participants and spectators.

Have you considered how the besieged 1.2 million Palestinians in Gaza will gain entry to the four Israeli stadia earmarked for the Under-21 games next year? Or how the population of the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem will negotiate their way through checkpoints and across Israel’s apartheid wall to watch the games?

You stated in your response to Rajoub: “We cannot hold the Israel FA responsible for the political situation in the region or for legal procedures in place in its country.”

We cannot accept the contention that a national football association that has tolerated years of discrimination and suffering on the part of Palestinian players and football-lovers can be acquitted of its share of responsibility. Not only are prominent Palestinian players held as political prisoners, but on 20 June, a 12-year-old boy kicking a football around near his family home in Gaza became the latest in a sad catalogue of child victims of the Israeli military (3).

Where are the IFA’s public denunciations of such crimes? There are none.

We join Palestinians and people of conscience all over the world in calling on UEFA to withdraw the European under-21 Championship from Israel next year, and to deny it such privileges until such time as the State of Israel complies with international law and ceases its human rights violations.

1.

2.

3.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

Change.org

November 1, 2012