today in Palestine

Jewish West Bank settlers grab more land - report
Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank have annexed tens of thousands of acres of land, some of it privately owned by Palestinians, an Israeli human rights group said on Thursday. A report issued by Israel's B'Tselem human rights organisation said some settlements had grabbed land up to two and a half times greater than their own designated area either by fencing it off or by intimidation. It said settlers should return to Israel.
http://www.alertnet .org/thenews/ newsdesk/ LA343392. htm

Settlements Rise on Shiloh's Hills as Israel Peace Talks Falter
From the ancient hilltop of Shiloh, the future for Jewish settlers in the West Bank is getting brighter as the prospect for a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians is fading. Fearing eviction five years ago as a part of a proposed peace deal, Shiloh's 1,200 residents are building new houses, synagogues and schools, including a 13-domed rabbinical seminary, or yeshiva. After barring new homes for years, the Israeli government doubled the number of permits for the West Bank this year, triggering U.S. criticism and Palestinian threats to break off talks.
http://www.bloomber g.com/apps/ news?pid= 20601087&sid=aBF2Wr7O7Dj8&refer=home

OPT: Forced displacement continues
Forced displacement has a long history in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), as both a consequence and root cause of the Israeli-Palestinian /Arab conflict over resources and land. Certain patterns of displacement in their severity and consistency attest to a policy of forced displacement for the purpose of acquiring land, redefining demographic boundaries, and divesting Palestinians of ownership guaranteed under international law. In other instances internal displacement is the direct result of violence stemming from incursions and human rights violations.
http://www.reliefwe b.int/rw/ rwb.nsf/db900SID /VDUX-7JCQLP? OpenDocument&RSS20=02-P

Israel imposes more severe permit regime
In the past year Israel has escalated its policy of separating the Palestinian populations of the Gaza Strip and West Bank from each other. The separation regime tears families apart, puts thousands at risk of expulsion to the Gaza Strip and turns Palestinians into "illegal aliens" in their own home. This policy is revealed in a position paper published today (Wednesday 10 September) by human rights organizations HaMoked and B'Tselem.
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9820. shtml

Boy killed by Israeli forces Nablus
Boy shot in legs, died as Isrealis' prevented ambulance from reaching him Boy shot in legs by Israeli forces at around 19.50, he died as the forces prevented the ambualnce from reaching him in time.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 56921

Report: IDF kills Palestinian in Nablus
Palestinians say army raided home during attempt to arrest wanted Fatah operative, who had previously been given amnesty. They say troops fired 'all over the place,' killed bystander.
http://www.ynetnews .com/articles/ 0,7340,L- 3595023,00. html

IDF soldier allegedly struck bound Palestinian held at Gaza crossing
An Israel Defense Forces soldier struck a bound Palestinian man who had been detained by the army at a Gaza Strip crossing, Channel 10 reported on Tuesday. Following the incident, the soldier's commander sentenced him to 21 days at a military lockup, but the Military Police then overturned the sentence, claiming it was too lenient.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1019851. html

An Israeli soldier severely beats a Palestinian man
An Israeli soldier was reported Wednesday as severely beating a Palestinian resident at the Israeli commercial crossing of Kissufim, south of the Gaza Strip.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 56918

Israeli forces abduct minors from Ni'lin
Israeli forces abducted 9 residents of Ni'lin last night, including at least 3 minors. Israeli forces invaded the village in the early hours of the morning, firing live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets, tear-gas and sound bombs. They entered many houses, arresting 9 residents. Among those arrested were at least 3 minors, including a 12 year old and 13 year old.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/11/israeli- forces-abduct- minors-from- nilin/

Pro-Abbas forces arrest ten Hamas members in West Bank on Tuesday
The Palestinian security forces of President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday arrested ten members of Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the West Bank, Hamas said in a statement. The detentions took place in the West Bank cities of Nablus, Qalqilya, Jenin and Tulkarem, said the statement, adding that two teachers and an Imam of a mosque were among those arrested.
http://news. xinhuanet. com/english/ 2008-09/09/ content_9887143. htm

Pro-Abbas forces arrest 11 Hamas members in West Bank on Thursday
Palestinian security forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas have arrested 11 members of Islamic Hamas movement in the West Bank, Hamas said on Thursday. A Hamas statement said the pro-Abbas forces continued their crackdown against the Islamic movement supporters in the West Bankand the detentions were conducted in Hebron, Nablus and Ramallah.
http://news. xinhuanet. com/english/ 2008-09/11/ content_9926502. htm

Israeli troops invade a West Bank village
The Israeli troops invaded early on Thursday morning the West Bank village of Abu Enjaim, to the south of Bethlehem city in the occupied West Bank.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 56927

An Israeli naval vessel crashes a Palestinian fishing boat
Palestinian sources said yesterday night that an Israeli naval vessel crashed a Palestinian fishing boat while on board on Gaza shores.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 56926

ISM Rafah: Israeli navy vessels again open fire on Gazan fishermen
On Monday 8th September at least ten fishing vessels left Gaza City port and traveled out into the Mediterranean Sea up to 10 miles offshore. ISM volunteers were onboard three of the boats. They were equipped with video cameras to record and document the aggressive actions of the Israeli naval gunboats towards the fishing vessels. As per the volunteers' experiences on all previous outings, many of the boats were harassed and shot at by the Israeli gunboats. The soldiers on these gunboats are committing war crimes by shooting at unarmed fishermen who are just trying to earn a living and feed their families.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/11/ism- rafah-israeli- navy-vessels- again-open- fire-on-gazan- fishermen/

Two killed in Rafah tunnel system in 24 hours
Two Palestinians have been killed in 24 hours in the tunnel system underneath the Rafah border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt. Sources in Gaza said on Thursday that 22-year-old Hani Mahmoud Khalaf, from Khan Younis, fell to his death in one tunnel, and 22-year-old Faysal Sulaiman Abu Sultan, from Rafah, who died from an electric shock. Both were working in the tunnel system.
http://www.maannews .net/en/index. php?opr=ShowDeta ils&ID=31866

PA military prosecution refuses court decision to release journalist Sabri
The PA military prosecutor rejected the decision taken by the higher Palestinian court to release journalist Mustafa Sabri who has been detained in the PA intelligence jails for 84 days in Qalqilya.
http://www.palestin e-info.co. uk/En/default. aspx?xyz= U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MD I46m9rUxJEpMO% 2bi1s7mIrFcrhJBj OpkDGpoRy9fCkPlo 7Nh7%2byvkjFtxtH sGTAP5Jy1C% 2blOVWJvjtweDgDx ZIFdkCGon0lmzYyl ZP%2fwjOrQlzfz22 03G%2bzn6j1J54% 3d

Palestinian police make a difference in Hebron
Hebron's Israeli-controlled section, where about 650 Jewish settlers protected by Israeli soldiers live in the midst of around 30,000 Palestinians, is off-limits to Palestinian police. Under a 1997 Hebron agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians, they can enter only after coordination with Israeli authorities that is difficult to obtain. The Israeli response was always no, Awad said. "The Israeli soldiers care less about our complaints. Our conditions have worsened as a result of attacks by settlers. There's no-one to protect us here," said 72-year-old Ragheb Jaber.
http://news. yahoo.com/ s/nm/20080911/ wl_nm/palestinia ns_security_ dc

Right-wing activists attack, sic dog on IDF soldiers in West Bank
Some 90 right-wing activists on Thursday besieged an Israel Defense Forces post north of Ramallah, in protest against the civil administration's decision to remove construction supplies from an illegal outpost in the West Bank. The settlers rallied around the civil administration officials, pierced the tires of a supervisor's car, and sicked a dog on one of the soldiers.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1020325. html

Cobra Choppers Grounded after Crash Kills 2 IAF Airmen
IAF commander Ido Nehushtan grounded all Cobra helicopters Wednesday night until an investigation into a crash in the Galilee that killed two IAF airmen is completed. Nehushtan ordered a team of technical experts to study the accident, in which an attack helicopter went down near Kibbutz Ginegar, apparently due to a technical failure.
http://almanar. com.lb/NewsSite/ NewsDetails. aspx?id=56331&language=en

Report: U.S. envoy says Israel, PA discussed future of J'lem
Israel has agreed to place the future status of Jerusalem on the negotiating table in its peace talks with the Palestinians, the head of the American consulate in Jerusalem is reported as saying on Thursday.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1020303. html

Blair sister-in-law: Gaza world's largest concentration camp
British left-wing activist Lauren Booth remains stuck in Strip after journey to 'break' Israeli naval blockade, equates situation to Holocaust, Darfur.
http://www.ynetnews .com/articles/ 0,7340,L- 3595097,00. html

Daniel Barenboim provided with bodyguards after rightist threats
The renowned conductor Daniel Barenboim was seen in Jerusalem on Tuesday accompanied by bodyguards. The Jerusalem International Chamber Music Festival, in which he is participating, has decided to step up measures to protect the high-profile musician, known for his harsh criticism of Israel's policies toward the Palestinians, after right-wing activists rallied outside his Jerusalem residence on Monday and threatened to hurt him.
http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1019898. html

IDF launches car ID system to speed up roadblocks for settlers
Due to growing discontent among West Bank settlers over waits at checkpoints, the IDF Central Command has launched a pilot program to test a car-identification system aimed at reducing the travel time for Israelis crossing the Green Line. Due to increasing Palestinian attempts to infiltrate Israel through the crossings along the Green Line - sometimes in cars with Israeli license plates - IDF soldiers at checkpoints are under orders to inspect all vehicles, without exception.
http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=122103488376 0&pagename=JPost% 2FJPArticle% 2FShowFull

U.S. approves $330 million in arms deals for Israel
The U.S. government on Tuesday said it had approved up to $330 million in three separate arms deals for Israel, and sources tracking a much bigger deal for 25 Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets said that agreement could be approved later this month.
http://www.reuters. com/article/ marketsNews/ idUSN09325687200 80909

'Iranian nukes mean end of Zionism'
Iran's success in obtaining a nuclear capability will deter Jews from immigrating to Israel, cause many Israelis to leave and will be the end of the "Zionist dream," former deputy defense minister Ephraim Sneh said Tuesday.
http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=122080229749 9&pagename=JPost% 2FJPArticle% 2FShowFull

Gaza needs Arab support not troops
"Gaza needs effective Arab role not Arab troops. This support is needed to lift the Israeli siege and defy the American-Israeli arrogance," Ismail Haniya said. "Gaza is now free, secure and stable, therefore, it is determined to restore the national unity on correct basis, away from any American dictations or Veto" he said during a celebration ceremony of 2500 memorizers of the Islamic holy book of Qur"an.
http://www.moqavema t.com/?lang= en&state=showbody_ news&row_id=33197

Egyptian authorities block 10th of Ramadan caravan from proceeding to Gaza
The Egyptian authorities have stopped Wednesday an Egyptian caravan comprising many activists and political parties' members from proceeding to the besieged Gaza Strip, participants in the caravan confirmed. The caravan was organized by the Egyptian popular committee for breaking the Gaza siege, but the Egyptian authorities stopped the four buses of the caravan at a custom checkpoint at the Egyptian city of Ismaeleyya.
http://www.palestin e-info.co. uk/En/default. aspx?xyz= U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MD I46m9rUxJEpMO% 2bi1s7Gh% 2beYOy%2bAIboxD5 3vTC3%2bBPX3nUH0 yRrk19GWncWNkErw ylQBRp4xGA8XZ9YU 5%2bmJWVZEzOtx0v PHy5bytxxwz7HmMV tmrfOYxM% 2bowx8kc8% 3d

Egyptian activists in Ismailia : "Police is still stopping us and we attend to stay there till tomorrow"
Egyptian Committee Against the Gaza Siege: At 8am this morning (10th September), a first group from the Egyptian Committee Against the Gaza Siege, mainly Labor Party's members, left Cairo in 4 micro-buses with food and medicine to go and try to break the criminal siege of Gaza.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/11/egyptian- activists- in-ismailia- police-is- still-stopping- us-and-we- attend-to- stay-there- till-tomorrow/

Hamas praises Egyptians for efforts to end Gaza seige
The Hamas movement on Thursday praised efforts by Egyptian citizens to end the siege in Gaza. Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum told Ma'an that Hamas appreciates "activities of solidarity that will help to break the siege."
http://www.maannews .net/en/index. php?opr=ShowDeta ils&ID=31867

Hamas a powerful 'cancer,' says Israeli general
The retired Israeli general responsible for indirect talks with Hamas described the radical Islamic group, which controls Gaza, as "a cancer" and said Wednesday it had become more powerful than the Palestinian Authority.
http://www.canada. com/ottawacitize n/story.html? id=c6b15642- af9a-4c60- b696-4fc3b41e536 a

Report: Hamas Wants Egypt Out of Shalit Talks
Are the stalled negotiations for the release of captured Israeli army soldier Gilad Shalit about to take a new turn? London-based Arabic newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi quoted a Hamas source Thursday as saying the organization's leaders have decided to find a new mediator.
http://almanar. com.lb/NewsSite/ NewsDetails. aspx?id=56339&language=en

European campaign asks UNESCO to save academic future of Gaza students
The European campaign to lift the siege on Gaza has called on UNESCO to save the academic future of tens of Gaza students who are deprived for the third year running from joining their universities.
http://www.palestin e-info.co. uk/En/default. aspx?xyz= U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MD I46m9rUxJEpMO% 2bi1s7mmUT% 2bOslvVoy4JnT% 2ffFW22BaiLHilG% 2bR9euE1fqy5% 2fkUQB9BOSffegpF l9JZEq6rXVMg% 2bmbX8KvZuZo58BX aXX8VD0PUdS6Qk8k 0s6O2AUc% 3d

Death of Palestinian boy highlights dangers at Iraq border refugee camp
The death of a nine-year-old boy in a road accident on the Iraq-Syria border has focused attention once more on the extremely dangerous and harsh living of hundreds of Palestinian refugees stranded at a makeshift desert camp.
http://www.reliefwe b.int/rw/ rwb.nsf/db900SID /EGUA-7JCNMX? OpenDocument&RSS20=02-P

Bardawil: Abbas unconcerned with dialog and tries to declare Gaza a rebel zone
Dr. Salah A-Bardawil stated that PA chief Mahmoud Abbas is not concerned with the national dialog and instead he is trying to persuade Arab states to declare Gaza a mutinous territory.
http://www.palestin e-info.co. uk/En/default. aspx?xyz= U6Qq7k%2bcOd87MD I46m9rUxJEpMO% 2bi1s7BgZfZGLZcZ NSYK0Kcn7WyyMu6U fgB1fbI7ZFj0d5Yk MmRTB2Ovu59K4TEj IOr0sDgvXXG5eEDY %2bOj2Fe8s01BDom R1%2bNRmTSzE% 2frVNqMxrc% 3d

Egypt, Israel and United States cooperating to suffocate Gaza Strip
The only pharmaceutical factory in the Gaza Strip, the Al-Sharq al-Awsat company, is forced to shut down its production altogether due to the Israeli occupation authority's blockade. As the company's chairman of board of directors, Marwan al-Astal explained to Bethlehem-based news agency Maan, since the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip in June last year, the company, that previously provided five different types of medicine, had been forced to cut down production by 80 percent, but due to lack of materials is now on the verge of closing down altogether.
http://www.arabmoni tor.info/ news/dettaglio. php?idnews= 24603&lang=en

Where Is The Rage?
Where is the rage? Where is the Arab chivalry (nakhwa)? Where is the Islamic passion (Rahmah)? Where are the Arab human rights organizations? Where are Abu Mazin and the rest of the Palestinian leadership? The UN refugee agency says there are about 2,500 Palestinians mostly widows and orphans, victims of the violence in Iraq, languishing for the past two years under canvas tents in the Iraqi desert at the Syrian border. These refugee camps lack basic services or medical facilities and the temperature exceeds 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) in summer and dips below zero degrees in winter. Syria and Jordan have accepted more than two million refugees from Iraq but they have denied entry for Palestinian refugees who have been trying to escape the attacks and persecution in Iraq.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14148

Israeli navy to Gazan fishermen: "When the internationals leave Gaza, you will all be made to pay"
Gazan coastal waters, Gaza, 17:00 Wednesday 10th September 2008 – At high speed an Israeli gunboat rammed a Palestinian fishing vessel. The gunboat smashed through the upper hull, careened over the top of the fishing boat, and landed on the other side.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/11/israeli- navy-to-gazan- fishermen- when-the- internationals- leave-gaza- you-will- all-be-made- to-pay/

ISM Rafah: Fishing in Gaza
Saturday 6th September, it was just 09:30 and we were only 4 miles out to sea, having barely left Gaza's coastline behind, when the gunboat's heavy machine gun opened up, spraying the wake around our hull with bullets. There was no surprise. We'd just spent the previous 10 minutes watching as this Israeli gunboat harried another vessel from our fishing fleet. It would accelerate into an attack run, only to veer off at the last moment before collision, battering the fishing boat with its wake. It would pull alongside screeching threats and commands to stop over the megaphone. Throughout, its machine barked menacingly, peppering the air and water around the boat with bullets.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/10/fishing- in-gaza/

Omak doctor leaves Gaza after being held
After a successful entry into Gaza to bring aid to people living there, Dr. Bill Dienst, an Omak physician, and at least three other aid workers and activists were trapped for a week within the 27-foot walls surrounding the area. On Sept. 7, Dienst finally was able to leave through the Rafah exit to Egypt, according to Marianne Torres, part of the Committee to Free Dr. Dienst.
http://www.omakchro nicle.com/ nws/n080910b. shtml

Free Gaza Movement calls for alleviating the suffering of Gaza
In a session of the European Parliament's Delegation to the Palestinian Legislative Council (DPLC), the Free Gaza Movement (FGM), called upon the international community to join the Movement's efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian population of Gaza, due to a 'strangulating' Israeli blockade.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 56928

FREE GAZA MOVEMENT MEETS WITH EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND CALLS FOR WIDE INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPATION TO BREAK THE SIEGE OF GAZA
http://www.freegaza .org/index. php?module= latest_news&id=2a2a59256c56f88c 3107d490c241660f&offset=

Ni'lin continue their struggle against the apartheid wall
On Monday September 8th 2008 approximately 100 Palestinians, Israelis and international solidarity activists marched in protest towards the construction site of the illegal apartheid wall in Ni'lin. The protest started at 1pm and ended at approximately 4pm. Rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas and sound bombs were shot at the non-violent protesters.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/10/nilin- continue- their-struggle- against-the- apartheid- wall/

Tell UK not to rent embassy from settlement-builder Leviev
The Guardian's "Comment Is Free" posted an article on 9 September, "The wrong message to Israel," by Abe Hayeem, a founding member of Architects & Planners for Justice in Palestine, calling on the UK government to revoke plans to rent its new embassy in Tel Aviv from Israeli-settlement mogul Lev Leviev.
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9821. shtml

Israel allows entry of Arabs of 48 lands into a West Bank city
The Israeli authorities decided on Thursday to allow entry of Israeli-Arab citizens and their vehicles to the West Bank city of Qalqilia without permissions, starting from tomorrow Friday.
http://www.imemc. org/article/ 56930

Growing up occupied in Gaza
It was a very sudden moment when I realized that I was no longer a child. Occupation, intifada, Israel, enemy, Zionists, curfew, revolution, all these words were repeatedly spoken everywhere and I was very confused trying to understand what they all meant. Ahmed Abed reflects on what it means for children to grow up under occupation in the Gaza Strip.
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9819. shtml

"I used to dream about my future" - Israeli forces tear-gas school children in Ni'lin
"I used to dream about my future. About going to university, getting married and having a family. I stopped doing that. I have to face that tomorrow I might be dead." - Quote by a 16-year-old boy from Ni'lin when talking the military violence in the village of Ni'lin. On Tuesday September 9th, the pupils of the boys school in the West Bank village of Ni'lin started a protest against the building of the apartheid wall and the violent occupation they are put under by the Israeli army.
http://www.palsolid arity.org/ main/2008/ 09/10/i-used- to-dream- about-my- future-israeli- forces-tear- gas-school- children- in-nilin/

A blockade of young minds
My dream is to become a bone specialist. But the Israeli government won't let me leave to pursue my studies abroad
http://www.guardian .co.uk/commentis free/2008/ sep/11/middleeas t.israelandthepa lestinians? gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews

Round Two in Gaza
The most recent confrontation in the Gaza Strip has left Hamas in firmer control than ever and prospects for inter-Palestinian reconciliation and a sustainable peace process increasingly elusive. Hamas's takeover of Gaza is increasingly complete, and both it and Fatah seem intent on consolidating their gains. As the West Bank and Gaza go separate ways prospects for a genuine and sustainable peace process are bad and getting worse.
http://www.crisisgr oup.org/home/ index.cfm? id=5665

Palestine: Regaining the Initiative
In early September, 2008, a group of Palestinian intellectuals, businesspeople, and academics called The Palestine Study Group presented a Report of their long deliberations entitled Palestinian Strategic Options to End Israeli Occupation.( 1). This is a 56 page document, quite thorough and comprehensive in the theoretical and practical aspects of the options that Palestinians can adopt to end the Occupation. While it is theoretical in its analysis it is also a modest attempt at being a 'how to do it' manual. It expects to engage in dialogue and discussion with fellow Palestinians mainly and also with interested individuals and groups.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14139

Enough of the Jerusalem Mantra
I was born American. Thirty-five years ago, I chose to become Israeli. My choice in no way reflects a lack of affection for the United States. But patriotism is monogamous: I am an Israeli patriot, and a platonic friend of the land of my birth. I have never voted in a U.S. election and I belong to no U.S. political party. I see myself as an observer of, rather than a participant in, American presidential election politics. But as a Jerusalemite, I do have a stake in the 2008 Presidential race, like it or not.
http://newsweek. washingtonpost. com/postglobal/ needtoknow/ 2008/09/enough_ of_the_jerusalem _mantra.html

Film review: "Slingshot Hip Hop"
Jackie Salloum's invigorating new documentary Slingshot Hip Hop portrays the story of three aspiring Palestinian musicians from the rap group DAM as they develop their talent in their bedrooms and take it to standing-room- only crowds throughout historic Palestine. Maureen Clare Murphy reviews this most recommended film for The Electronic Intifada.
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9818. shtml

The Mendacity of 'Missed Opportunities'
"There has been Anti-Semitism, the Nazis, Hitler, Auschwitz, but was that their fault? They see but one thing: we have come and we have stolen their country. Why would they accept that?"
"Jewish villages were built in the place of Arab villages . . . There is not a single place built in this country that did not have a former Arab population." -- David Ben-Gurion (1)
All too often, the failure of Israel and the Arabs to make peace — especially since the creation of Israel — has been described as the folly of missed opportunities. In a discourse that is dominated by the Zionists, the Palestinians are forced to carry much of the burden of this folly.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14147

A New Palestinian Initiative That's Hard to Read
I have just stumbled across an important-looking report entitled 'Regaining the Initiative - Palestinian Strategic Options to End Israeli Occupation' by the Palestine Strategy Group. It is dated August 2008, but I don't recall any fanfare to launch it. Were we actually meant to discover it? The only mention I've seen was buried deep within the text of an excellent article, 'Coexistence with Occupation Not an Option' by Sam Behour, recently posted on the Palestine Chronicle website.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14146

The Palestinian Horror Story
Last night as I lay in bed wishing for sleep, I thought I saw a spider scurry across the moonlit ceiling. I closed my eyes only to have uninvited thoughts intrude in that drifting space between wakefulness and slumber. Images floated by. There in that nether world, shimmering threads criss-crossed the darkness of the unknown luring me to come closer until I saw the faces of millions caught in a gigantic, glistening spider's web. The faces were my own.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14145

Harvesting with hope in Gaza
On a hot afternoon during the month of Ramadan, there are few better places to be than resting beneath the shade of an orchard of guava trees, with the scent of fresh ripening fruit wafting around you. Farmer Sa'id al-Agha sits quietly, his eyes resting on his fruit trees. "My father and my grandfather both grew up here, farming guavas, and I've lived here all my life" he says. "This land is in my blood."
http://electronicin tifada.net/ v2/article9822. shtml

Car bomb kills Lebanese politician
A Lebanese Druze politician has been killed and three others injured in a car bomb attack in the Mount Lebanon region, according to a Lebanese army spokesman and a security official.
http://english. aljazeera. net/news/ middleeast/ 2008/09/20089101 91932791866. html

Iraq: at least 4 killed as US occupation grinds on
The bodies of two men were found in different districts of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.
http://www.alertnet .org/thenews/ newsdesk/ RAS034529. htm

Blasts shake Iraqi city of Karbala, killing 2
AP - Two bombs exploded an hour apart late Wednesday in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, killing at least two people and wounding 15 others, including women and children, police and hospital officials said.
http://us.rd. yahoo.com/ dailynews/ rss/iraq/ *http://news. yahoo.com/ s/ap/20080910/ ap_on_re_ mi_ea/iraq

Displaced Iraqis live under stands in soccer stadium
KIRKUK, Iraq — Qader Abdullah Rasoul visited Kirkuk Stadium the day it opened and thought it beautiful. The lush turf was newly laid, and the stands were smooth concrete, steeply tiered to seat tens of thousands of soccer fans. Odai Hussein himself, son of Saddam, attended, and on that day in 1986 Iraq's national team thumped Saudi Arabia 2-1.
http://www.mcclatch ydc.com/iraq/ story/52207. html

Ending Sh'ia-Sunni Strife
The United States assumes that only western initiatives can resolve Middle East problems, many of which western nations helped to create. In effect, Middle East nations cannot take care of themselves. Using slogans of democracy, freedom, and nation building as the path to peace and stability, the U.S. in the last ten years has brought neither peace nor stability to the lands between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. Guided by encouraging words rather than meaningful deeds, the U.S. has deceived itself with illogical maneuvers, hypocritical behavior and contemptuous meddling in the Arab world. Smug attitude and self-interest prevents a Bush administration from realizing that invigorated Middle East nations can stabilize themselves. The present inward looking U.S. administration would never contemplate that Iran and Saudi Arabia could lead the advance.
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14138

Jonathan Steele: What's changed in Iraq this year?
Jonathan Steele: The security situation has improved, but as the smoke of conflict clears, the full human cost of the Iraq occupation comes into view.
http://www.guardian .co.uk/commentis free/2008/ sep/10/iraq. middleeast? gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews

A strange sort of victory
If George Bush's recent speech is anything to go by, Iraq has been a success. Does anyone in their right mind believe him?
http://www.guardian .co.uk/commentis free/2008/ sep/10/georgebus h.iraq?gusrc= rss&feed=worldnews

Victims or villains? Iraqi female suicide bombers
There have already been 30 suicide bombings by women and girls in Iraq this year - almost four times as many as in the whole of 2007. The increase has been put down to their ability to evade security checks. But, reports Jonathan Steele, the reasons go much deeper.
http://www.guardian .co.uk/world/ 2008/sep/ 11/iraq.alqaida? gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews

Daughters of Iraq: front-line guards against suicide bombers
Baghdad - Although the overall level of violence in Iraq has decreased to a four- year low, the country has recently witnessed a sharp rise in a violent trend that alarms many Iraqis: female suicide bombings. This year the number of suicide bombings carried out by women has more than tripled to 29 attacks, say US military officials.
http://www.csmonito r.com/2008/ 0911/p06s01- wome.html

Behind Maliki's Tough Line
Boosting the strength and confidence of the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has long been a Bush Administration goal in Iraq, yet the stronger and more confident Maliki becomes at home, the more inclined he has been to defy his U.S. patron. Most recently, the wily Shi'ite politician has been pushing back against Washington on the terms of a security pact that will govern the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq after their current U.N. mandate expires at the end of the year. With the clock ticking on a Bush administration that is keen to finalize a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) before the expiration of the U.N. mandate — and its own — Maliki is holding out for the U.S. to back down from its demands for legal immunity for U.S. troops in Iraq, and for their right to arrest and detain Iraqis.
http://www.time. com/time/ world/article/ 0,8599,1840231, 00.html

Iraqi MP seeks ties with Israel
An Iraqi parliamentarian has attended the Israeli Herzliya conference and called for diplomatic ties between Baghdad and Tel Aviv.
Mithal al-Alusi, who was speaking at the opening of the conference, said regional countries, including Israel, must cooperate and exchange intelligence with Iraq to fight terrorism.
http://www.presstv. ir/detail. aspx?id=69100§ionid=351020201

Should the Americans leave now?
Sahar Adnan, 38, and her son, Hussein Amir, 15, are Sunnis living in northern Baghdad with Sahar's five other children, the youngest of whom is two. Their father, a carpenter-turned- shopkeeper, was murdered by milita men. His body was never found. Initially, Sahar's brother-in-law took care of them but in 2007 he too was killed by gunmen. Now the family live in one room and depend on the support of neighbours. Hussein has recently returned to school after a break of three years during which his mother could not afford to pay for his uniform. He is trying to find a job to help his family.
http://www.guardian .co.uk/world/ 2008/sep/ 11/iraq?gusrc= rss&feed=worldnews

Decades of war: This day in Iraq's history
One year ago, General Petraeus was about to make his big speech to Congress. Five years ago, the U.N. was insisting the bombing of its headquarters would not force them out. Ten years ago George Bush Sr. was regretting that Saddam Hussein survived the Gulf War and the U.N. Security Council voted to punish Iraq for halting inspections. Fifteen years ago there was Iraqgate--remember that? Probably not. Twenty years ago Reagan Administration officials denounced the Iraqi government for its chemical attack on Kurds.
http://electronicir aq.net/news/ war-every- day-blog/ Decades_of_ war_This_ day_in_Iraq_ headlines- 3350.shtml

'They took Ali Baba but they left the 40 thieves'
The red herring in Heavy Metal in Baghdad is the music. Alastair McKay talks to its stars and finds this is a documentary about more than just the cost of freedom on the Middle East metal scene
http://www.guardian .co.uk/film/ 2008/sep/ 11/heavymetal. inbagdad? gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews

Inhofe Again Equates Iraq With 9/11
Not content to look like an idiot last week by smearing Barack Obama's patriotism while at the Republican National Convention, Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) is at it again this week -- but this time he's going back to that old GOP standby of implying that what we're doing in Iraq has anything whatsoever to do with the attacks we suffered on September 11.
http://bobgeiger. blogspot. com/2008/ 09/inhofe- again-equates- iraq-with- 911.html

Seven years on, three big 9/11 lies
HONG KONG - Dear, sweet Laura Bush told the biggest, baldest lie at last week's Republican National Convention. "Let's not forget," the first lady said, "President [George W] Bush has kept the American people safe." Mrs Bush, your husband and his administration did not keep the American people safe. On September 11, 2001, nearly 3,000 people died, and more than 6,000 were injured as al-Qaeda hijackers crashed commercial aircraft into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon outside Washington. The Bush people act as if someone else was in charge when it happened.
http://www.atimes. com/atimes/ Middle_East/ JI11Ak01. html

Global Realignment: How Bush Inspired a New World Order
The series of unfortunate and costly decisions made during the two terms of the Bush administration, combined with economic decline at home, might devastate the US's world standing much sooner than most analysts predict. What was difficult to foresee was that the weakening of US global dominance, spurred by erratic and unwise foreign policy under Bush, would re-ignite the Cold War, to a degree, over a largely distant and seemingly ethnically-based conflict -- that of Georgia and Russia. Who could have predicted a possible association between Baghdad, Kabul and Tbilisi?
http://palestinechr onicle.com/ view_article_ details.php? id=14140

Israel Asks U.S. for Arms, Air Corridor to Attack Iran
The security aid package the United States has refused to give Israel for the past few months out of concern that Israel would use it to attack nuclear facilities in Iran included a large number of "bunker-buster" bombs, permission to use an air corridor to Iran, an advanced technological system and refueling planes.
http://almanar. com.lb/NewsSite/ NewsDetails. aspx?id=56369&language=en

Audio interview with the distinguished Middle East Correspondent Robert Fisk
http://plainsfm. org.nz/on- demand/robert- fisk/

Reduced Dominance Is Predicted for U.S.
An intelligence forecast being prepared for the next president on future global risks envisions a steady decline in U.S. dominance in the coming decades, as the world is reshaped by globalization, battered by climate change, and destabilized by regional upheavals over shortages of food, water and energy.
http://www.washingt onpost.com/ wp-dyn/content/ article/2008/ 09/09/AR20080909 03302.html

www.TheHeadlines. org

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