“IACTA ALEA EST” – the die is cast – said Julius Caesar and crossed the River Rubicon on his way to conquer Rome...
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
An apolitical group of community activists, businessmen and academics in the Gaza Strip is worried that Fatah-Hamas rivalries will undermine the Strip's reconstruction.
Amira Hass / Gazans fear Fatah-Hamas split could sabotage Gaza reconstruction
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
More than 20 countries sold Israel weapons and munitions whose use during Operation Cast Lead could constitute war crimes and might pose serious infractions of international law, according to a report to be released by Amnesty International on Monday.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Another article from Amira (you need to log in in order to see the whole peice)
On Friday, 16 January, Mohammed Shurrab and his two sons, Kassab and Ibrahim, took advantage of the daily lull in the Israeli assault – the ‘three hours’ promised by the IDF – to travel from their plot of land in the eastern part of the Gaza Strip back to their home in Khan Younis. They were driving a red Land Rover. On the road, soldiers in a tank waved them on. Later, in the village of Al Fukhari, in a street lined with small houses and gardens, their vehicle was shot at by soldiers stationed on the roof of a local home. Kassab was killed instantly. Ibrahim lay bleeding beside his father; he died at midnight. Mohammed Shurrab had called for help on his cellphone, but the army prevented ambulances from entering the area until 23 hours after the shooting. The closest hospital was two minutes’ drive away.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Despite the generous donations expected to be promised at next month's Sharm el-Sheikh summit, money alone will not be enough to rebuild the Gaza Strip in the wake of Operation Cast Lead, stated the head of the United Nations Development Program in Gaza.
Israeli blockade, Palestinian strife hinder Gaza rebuilding
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
The Abu E'ida company for concrete and construction materials could stand a very good chance of winning any public tender issued during the Gaza reconstruction process - if it ever gets under way. This family business manufactured the concrete and carried out the concrete works in the construction of Gaza's power station (under joint American-Palestinian ownership). It also supplied the concrete used to build the sewage treatment facility in northern Gaza, known as the "Blair project" because of the former British prime minister's role in securing the funding. After June 2007, this was the only infrastructure project in the Gaza Strip whose construction Israel allowed to continue.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
979 DAYS HAVE passed since the soldier Gilad Shalit was taken prisoner. On any one of these days it would have been possible to free him for the price fixed by Hamas right from the beginning: 450 “important” Palestinian prisoners, in addition to hundreds of others, as well as all the women and juvenile prisoners.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
DAM, "Born Here", Hebrew/Arabic with English subtitles
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Soldiers refuse to serve in Gaza - Israel Social TV
------------------------- Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
The Palestinian Authority will ask for another $2.7 billion from donor nations Monday: $1.326 billion to rehabilitate the Gaza Strip in 2009-2010 and $1.415 billion to support the PA's annual budget.
PA seeks $2.7 billion from donor nations for Gaza recovery
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
The extent of the funding pledged to the Palestinian Authority by donor countries reflects the extent of their support for Israel and its policies. The American taxpayers' contribution to the Ramallah government's bank account is dwarfed by the large sums the U.S. government donates to Israel every year. It's impossible to get excited over the American pledge of $900 million (two-thirds of it for strengthening Salam Fayyad's government and the rest for Gaza's recovery) and forget the $30 billion the United States has promised Israel in defense aid by the end of 2017, as last week's Amnesty International report noted.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=1068553 The Israel donors conference 
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Pots of urine, feces in the refrigerator - how IDF troops vandalized Gaza homes
GAZA - We had already visited this house, belonging to the Abu Eida family. It is the only one of the family's nine large houses that remained standing at the eastern edge of the city of Jabalya following Operation Cast Lead. The demolition of the family's houses and its four cement factories spells the loss of 40 years of hard work.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
THIS WEEK I had a nostalgic experience. I met a parliamentary delegation from one of the European countries. What turned this meeting into a special occasion for me was its location.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
GAZA - A Gaza family that lost 29 relatives to Operation Cast Lead, which also left 45 family members injured and their home destroyed, on Tuesday asked that a lawsuit that had been filed in their name for NIS 851 million be withdrawn. The lawsuit names Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi as respondents.
Gaza family that lost 29 relatives drops lawsuit against Israel
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
On 29 August, two small fishing boats set sail with the aim of breaking Israel’s blockade of Gaza. An eclectic bunch of 46 individuals were on board, including an al-Jazeera journalist with an acute bout of seasickness, and an Israeli activist – Jeff Halper – who had decided to join the Palestinians’ fight for liberation against his homeland.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
GAZA - During the past 10 days, the Defense Ministry's claims and insurance division received a registered letter including an official document describing the damages suffered during Operation Cast Lead by Sabbah Abu Halima. Also in the envelope were 12 similar notices, detailing the damage sustained by members of her family (seven of whom were killed and six wounded). According to the short letter accompanying the forms, they were sent as per "the Civil Damages Regulations (State Responsibility) 2003." "Please fax us confirmation of receipt," added (in Hebrew) the signatory: Iyad al-Alami, attorney, Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) in Gaza. The center has to date sent about 500 such registered letters with forms enclosed to the claims and insurance unit in the last month, detailing the damage done during the Israel Defense Forces offensive from December 27, 2008 until January 10, 2009. Another 300 letters are expected to be sent in the coming weeks, referring to the period of January 11-18.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Leading Israeli Scholar: Israeli "State Terror" in Gaza Attack. Democracy Now 1/14/09 1 of 3
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
RETURNING HOME from a very short visit to London, I found the country in the grip of uncontrollable emotions.
No, it was not about the looming danger of the radical right gaining control. It is now almost certain that the next government will consist of an assorted bunch of settlers, explicit racists and perhaps even outright fascists. But that does not evoke any excitement.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Gaza families don't know who Israel will free for Shalit
GAZA - Some 750 local families with relatives in Israeli prisons are hanging on every word from the media regarding a prisoner-exchange deal that may be sealed within days, if not hours.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Israel Project vs Israeli Professor Neve Gordon on the crisis in Gaza Democracy Now 1/12/09 1 of 3
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
JEWS: stop sending money for these crimes
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Gaza mother campaigns for son's release in prisoner swap
Fifteen years ago, Umm Razi Nimes and other mothers of Palestinian prisoners began a weekly tradition of holding a protest vigil outside Red Cross offices in Gaza City to call for the release of their children from Israeli incarceration. Razi Nimes, a member of Fatah, has been in prison for 24 years, since he was 27. When visits were allowed, Umm Razi and her family rode Red Cross buses from 3 A.M. to the following evening for the opportunity to see Razi for 45 minutes. Three years ago, the authorities at Nafkha Prison allowed them to be photographed together, and to embrace and kiss, for the first time after years of being allowed to see each other only through a barrier.
The Israel Prison Service allows security prisoners to be photographed with their parents when the parents reach 65.
Since June 2007, when Hamas took over the Gaza Strip, Umm Razi and the other prisoners' families have not seen their family members or even heard their voices, since security prisoners are not allowed to use the phone.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
We came to annihilate you; Death to the Arabs; Kahane was right; No tolerance, we came to liquidate. This is a selection of graffiti Israeli soldiers left on the walls of Palestinians' homes in Gaza, which they turned into bivouacs and firing positions during Operation Cast Lead. Here and there, a soldier scribbled a line of mock poetry or biblical quote in the same sentiment. There were also curses on the Prophet Mohammed and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, along with shift schedules and favorite soccer teams.
The Writing on the Wall
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Israeli Conscientious Objectors, Shministim, Send letter www.december18th.org
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Sixteen judges and scholars who participated in war crimes commissions on the conflicts in Darfur and Rwanda sent an open letter calling on the United Nations to investigate alleged international law violations committed during the 22-day Cast Lead offensive in Gaza.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=1072504
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
THE MOST important sentence written in Israel this week was lost in the general tumult of exciting events.
Really exciting: In a final act of villainy, typical of his whole tenure as Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert abandoned the captive soldier, Gilad Shalit.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
GAZA STRIP - "Rules of Engagement: Open fire also upon rescue," was handwritten in Hebrew on a sheet of paper found in one of the Palestinian homes the Israel Defense Forces took over during Operation Cast Lead. A reservist officer who did not take part in the Gaza offensive believes that the note is part of orders a low-level commander wrote before giving his soldiers their daily briefing.
IDF soldiers ordered to shoot at Gaza rescuers, note says
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Part 1 Amira Hass - Israeli Peace Activist Interviewed on Danish TV
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi has difficulty believing the soldiers' testimonies that they intentionally harmed Palestinian civilians, because the Israel Defense Forces is a moral army, he said on Sunday.
Time to believe Gaza war crimes allegations
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
GAZA - During my second visit, the Dardone family understood when I said I did not want another tour of ruins. This time I had come to talk mostly about construction, and there was no one one better suited to talk about the subject than this extended family. Specifically, I wanted to know about the homes they built in "that settlement next to Ramallah - Maccabim," about the hundred, 10-story buildings they had constructed since 1991 in Arad and Ashdod, in Holon and Ashkelon, about the renovations they did in the Ashkelon villa of Yom Tov Samia - "who was a senior commander in Gaza" - and in the villa of Moshe and Gila Katsav in Kiryat Malakhi, as well as the work they did for another senior army officer, Rami Feldman, "whom we worked for in 1988, when he held the same rank as Ehud Barak," as Sami Dardone explained. But Ahmed, the uncle, pointed out that Feldman had died of cancer a long time ago.
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Takes more than combat gear to make a man Takes more than license for a gun Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can A gentleman will walk but never run -Sting, an englishman in new york
[url=http://www.counterpunch.org/safran03262009.html][color=mediumblue][u]The Israeli Resistance[/u][/color][/url]
by Hannah Safran
We belong to a growing public that does not buy into the Israeli propaganda of ‘there is nobody to talk with’ – the idea that we, Israelis, are eager to make peace but they, the Palestinians, are not interested. We have come of age during the past eight years of activism against all odds.
Many of us are long-time, dedicated peace activists. We come from organizations such as Women in Black (a 21-year-old vigil against the occupation), the Hadash party (a coalition of left-wing groups and the Communist Party), Ta’ayush (an Arab-Jewish activist group), the Haifa University Forum Smol (left wing lecturers and students), Isha L’Isha feminist centre and many other groups, all of them working in their own way for politics of social justice and peace.
We are Jewish and Palestinian Haifa residents, all citizens of Israel. But nobody in mainstream Israeli politics or even academia is ready to recognize that these alliances are the nucleus of the new left in Israel today. Even the (only) liberal daily newspaper Ha’aretz, which has claimed since the year 2000 that there is no left in Israel, refuses to recognise that something else has developed on the ruins of the old Zionist left.
Haifa is not unique in its grass-roots peace activism and its ability to bring people together beyond political differences. Many groups have been active for years and their numbers have increased a hundredfold since the beginning of the second intifada in 2000. Breaking the Silence (a group of ex-servicemen who are exposing what is happening in the occupied territories), the Anarchists Against the Wall (a group of dedicated brave, mainly young people, who are at the forefront of demonstrations against the wall), the Women’s Coalition for Peace (a coalition of nine women’s organizations), New Profile (which advocates de-militarisation of Israeli society) – these are only a few of the many different groups active around the country.
In addition, there are the human rights organisations that are doing an extremely important job despite the belligerent Israeli establishment. Organisations such as Physicians for Human Rights and B’Tselem have dedicated staff and volunteers who are part of the movement for peace. I should also mention the many groups of Palestinians in Israel, such as Mossawa (‘Equality’), Adalla (‘Justice’) and Women Against Violence, who campaign against war and racism and for the cultural and civil freedoms of their oppressed community. These organisations are mobilising growing numbers of young women and men who are dedicated to the struggle for civil rights, human and women’s rights for the Palestinians of Israel.
One remarkable phenomenon was the declaration against the war, circulated within five days of it beginning, by 24 women’s organizations. The declaration called for an end to the bombing and demanded that war should stop being an option. The organisations signing this statement went beyond women’s peace organisations such as the Women’s Coalition for Peace. This time, for the first time, it included a mixture of organizations promoting social, legal and financial rights for women.
I think it is wonderful that you have the luxury of living in a free country where you can express your opinions.
Why are you not working just a hard to make sure that the Palastinians living in Gaza also get to live under a freely elected government.
Hamas after being elected staged a military coup, and abandoned the parliament to which they were elected. How can you speak to them of peace.
They can not live in peace with their own people !!
How can you speak to them of peace ? After Israel left Gaza, they continued to fire rockets. When they speak of "the occupation", they are no longer speaking of Gaza because Israel no longer occupies it. They do not speak of the West Bank, they are speaking of Israel proper. They are speaking of Tel Aviv and Haifa. They still want "to throw the Jews into the sea."
Your approach is extremely naive.
It will get more Israelis killed.
The people who are getting killed are Palestinians, and for some reason you think that people should be more worried about Israelis getting killed? And for some reason you are spreading lies, when it is quite evident who wants to throw whom into the sea.
Maybe Hamas, their "democratically elected" government should stop shooting rockets, stop killing the democratically elected members of the opposition, and start concentrating on governing on behalf of the people.
No one wants to treat the Palestinians with the respect that would require holding them responsible for their own behaviour.
It is so easy to demonize outside powers.
.Maybe Hamas, their "democratically elected" government should stop shooting rockets, stop killing the democratically elected members of the opposition...
And here I thought it was the Israelis who killed Yassin, Rantisi and those hundreds of others in the opposition to the occupation. This is what's great about babble: you learn new facts every day.
