Haneyya: Israel must stop the slaughter, withdraw, lift the siege

LONDON, (PIC)-- In an article published in the Independent on Thursday, the Palestinian Prime Minister, Ismail Haneyya laid down Hamas's conditions for a truce with the Israeli occupation forces. "Our condition for a new ceasefire is clear and simple. Israel must end its criminal war and slaughter of our people, lift completely and unconditionally its illegal siege of the Gaza Strip, open all our border crossings and completely withdraw from Gaza," Haneyya wrote. He emphasised that Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005 was not an end of occupation as Israel kept control of land, sea and air of Gaza, and thus Israel was still responsible for Gaza as an occupying power. He also pointed out that the Israeli occupation forces killed 1250 Palestinians, including 222 children, in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip between 2005 and 2008, adding that for most of that time the border crossings to the Gaza Strip were closed allowing only limited quantities of food, fuel and other essential goods. The Prime Minster also asserted that having failed to quash the Palestinian democratic will through treachery and starvation, Israel supported by its western allies resorted to this criminal war on Gaza to "impose its own terms for a final settlement depriving us of our land, our right to Jerusalem as the rightful capital of our future state and the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their homes." He said that Israel did not respect the six-month truce that was in place before this latest Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, as it killed many Palestinians during the truce and did not lift the siege which was a condition of the truce. He also stressed that Israeli atrocities and targeting of schools, universities, mosques and civil infrastructure would not deter the Palestinian people from pursuing their national rights. " Undoubtedly, Israel could demolish every building in the Gaza Strip but it would never shatter our determination or steadfastness to live in dignity on our land."

PCHR condemns Israeli response to death of Reuters cameraman by an IOF missile

GAZA, (PIC)-- The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), in a statement on Thursday, condemned the official response of the Israeli military Advocate-General to the death of a Reuters cameraman and three other civilians, including two children, who were killed in Juhor al-Dik in the central Gaza Strip, on April 16, 2008. The cameraman, Fadel Shana’a, and the other civilians were killed by an Israeli tank crew, who, according to Israeli military advocate-general, Brigadier General Avihai Mendelblit, acted properly and will therefore not face any legal action for killing these four unarmed civilians. PCHR pointed out that "this response once again underlines the chronic failure of the State of Israel and its Occupation Forces to conducts proper investigations into the hundreds of crimes they have committed against Palestinian civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)." The statement also said that the IOF killed 9 journalists and injured at least 170 journalists since the start of the second intifada in September 2000. On Tuesday, 12 August, Reuters news agency received a letter from Brigadier General Avihai Mendelblit, in which he stated that the Israeli troops in Juhor Al-Dik could not see whether Fadel Shana’a was operating a camera or brandishing a weapon. In his letter to Reuters, Mendelblit claimed that “The tank crew was unable to determine the nature of the object mounted on the tripod, and positively identify it as [either] an anti-tank missile, a mortar or a television camera.” Mendelblit also wrote that “In light of the reasonable conclusion reached by the tank crew and its superiors that the characters were hostile, and were carrying an object most likely to be a weapon, the decision to fire at the target… was sound…” PCHR pointed out that its own investigations at the time of the incident proved beyond all reasonable doubt that Israeli Occupation Forces willfully killed journalist Shana’a and the three other civilians who died alongside him. The letter from Brigadier General Avihai Mendelblit to Reuters concerned the second attack in Juhor al-Dik, which killed Fadel Shan’a, two children and a second adult civilian. According to investigations conducted by PCHR, Fadel Shana’a and his colleague, Wafa Abu Mezyed, a Reuters soundman, arrived at Juhor al-Dik area at 17:00, an hour after an IOF missile attack in the village had killed 9 Palestinian civilians, including 6 children. The two men were wearing bullet proof vests emblazoned with the word “PRESS.” In his eye-witness testimony to PCHR, Wafa Abu Mezyed stated:" “When we arrived at Juhor al-Dik area at 5pm, the dead children had just been evacuated by ambulances… We filmed the site of the attack and then got back into our vehicle, which was daubed with the word REUTERS, and drove out of the village. We could see two tanks and a bulldozer, and we deliberately parked more than one and a half kilometers away from them for our own safety. Fadel got out of the jeep in order to continue filming… A small crowd of children gathered around us wanting to know what we were filming, and Fadel asked me to get out of the jeep too and shoo them away. I started to move the children out of his way. Fadel and I were standing just three meters apart when I heard an explosion. I saw Fadel and two of the boys fall to the ground. I threw myself on the ground too. From where I lay, I could see that Fadel and the two boys were dead and bleeding.” Fadel Shana’a, 14-year-old Ahmed ‘Aaref Farajallah and 17-year-old Ghassan Khaled Abu ‘Otaiwi, were all killed by the shell fired by the IOF tank. Less than a minute later, the IOF tank fired a second shell that completely destroyed the REUTERS vehicle. Wafa Abu Mezyed saw two children flung into the air by the force of the second explosion, which killed another civilian, 22-year-old Khalil Isma’il Dughmosh. PCHR condemned, in its statement, the Israeli Advocate-General’s response, but said it was not surprised as this reflected "the chronic failure of the State of Israel and its occupation forces to properly investigate hundreds of crimes they have committed against civilians in the OPT, including dozens of crimes against journalists." In view of this and other failures, the centre called for the setting up of an Independent Investigation Commission as the IOF cannot be trusted to investigate the war crimes its troops commit against the Palestinian people, adding that the current investigations "are a means to cover war crimes and provide legal protection and impunity to those suspected of perpetrating such crimes," stressing the need to prosecute Israeli war criminals. Finally PCHR expressed its concern that the response of the the Israeli Advocate-General in this case makes journalists easy and legitimate targets for IOF troops, especially when they are covering IOF incursions.

Olmert stops short of saying “ Israel controls US government”

From Khalid Amayreh in Occupied East Jerusalem Israeli Prime Minister has stopped short of saying that Israel controls the US government. Speaking to the Israeli media this week, Olmert said he had asked President Bush to order Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to abstain in a key UN vote on the Israeli genocidal onslaught in the Gaza Strip. “She was left shamed. A resolution that she prepared and arranged, and in the end she didn’t vote in favor,” said Olmert, bragging about “our clout and influence” in the US . “We didn’t want her to vote in favor of the resolution. And this is what we eventually got.” Olmert said he demanded rather aggressively to talk to President Bush and when Bush was on the phone, he told him to order Rice not to vote for the resolution. “I said ‘get me President Bush on the phone.’ They said he was in the middle of giving a speech in Philadelphia . I said I didn’t care. I need to talk to him now. He got off the podium and spoke to me. “I told him the US could not vote in favor. It cannot vote in favor of such a resolution. He (Bush) immediately called the Secretary of State and told her not to vote in favor.” However, a State Department spokesperson has been quoted as denying Olmert’s claim. “Mr. Olmert is wrong,” the official said. “Even if everything had gone according to plan, she would have abstained. That was the plan,” said the official. “Israel does not make US policy.” In 2001, an acrimonious argument reportedly erupted during the Israeli cabinet weekly session between then Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and then foreign Minister Shimon Peres during which Sharon reportedly yelled at Peres, saying: "Don't worry about American pressure, we control America." Peres reportedly warned Sharon that refusing to heed incessant American requests for a cease-fire with the Palestinians would endanger Israeli interests and turn the US against Israel. At this point, a furious Sharon turned toward Peres, saying: "Every time we do something you tell me America will do this and will do that . . . I want to tell you something very clear: “Don't worry about American pressure on Israel. We, the Jewish people, control America, and the Americans know it." Peres and other cabinet ministers reportedly warned Sharon against saying what he said in public, because "It would cause us a public relations disaster." Israeli sources denied the story.

Hamas: We expect Arab decisions parallel to the size of Gaza suffering

GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Wednesday welcomed any Arab official efforts and decisions in parallel with the magnitude of the suffering and the bloody scene in the Gaza Strip, highlighting that the Arab countries' reluctance to use their pressure cards to end the Israeli war on the Gaza people is no longer justified. In a press statement, Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum hailed the efforts aimed to convene an Arab summit on Gaza, stressing at the same time that his Movement would not stop its efforts to get the siege lifted and end the aggression on the Strip. Barhoum underlined that Israel's attempts to impose its conditions in any political solutions through killing civilians and destroying their homes would be doomed to failure and would not deter the Palestinian resistance from defending its people and safeguard their rights and welfare. In the context of the Egyptian ceasefire initiative, Dr. Salah Al-Bardaweel, a prominent leader of Hamas and one of its delegates to Cairo, said that his Movement would not accept less than ending the Israeli aggression, lifting the siege, opening the crossings and compensating the Palestinian people, adding that the delegation put forward these demands to the Egyptian side. In a news conference held in Cairo, Dr. Bardaweel underscored that there is no disagreement with the Egyptian leadership, but the contentious issue is how to deal with Israel through the items of the ceasefire initiative, pointing that the ball is now in Israel's court.

Zio-Nazi regime hopes world will forget Gaza genocide soon

a victim of Israel’s white Phosphor shells

Khalid Amayreh from Occupied Palestine With the holocaust-like Israeli onslaught in Gaza entering its fourth week, and with thousands of Palestinian civilians mercilessly killed and maimed by the Israeli war machine while hundreds others still buried under rubble, Israel is planning a public relations campaign aimed at “making the world forget the bad images” from Gaza very soon. The Israeli Foreign Ministry this week contacted an American PR firm requesting a “detailed PR plan” that would enhance Israel’s image following the Gaza blitz . Some military experts have compared the rampant havoc wreaked on Gaza with conditions in the German City of Dresden following the devastating aerial bombings by the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the closing weeks of the Second World War. According to the Israeli press, the Israeli Foreign Ministry Hasbara (propaganda) department has created a special task force to prepare for the aftermath of the Israeli blitz in Gaza. The Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz said the task force would be charged with repairing damage to Israel’s image. “The working assumption is that Israel has suffered a blow to its image in the West in the wake of heavy civilian casualties in the Strip.” Palestinian activists and human rights organizations operating in occupied Palestine have released gruesome images of hundreds of badly mutilated children killed or maimed by the continuing Israeli aerial bombing and artillery bombardment of residential areas. Palestinian officials have described the ongoing Israeli offensive as a real holocaust. “What Israel is doing to the Palestinians in Gaza is a real holocaust. Israel is murdering civilians en mass, destroying homes, mosques and public institutions,” said Ismael Haniya, the Prime Minister of the Hamas government during a speech on Tuesday. On Thursday, Palestinian hospital sources of more than 1100 Palestinians, mostly children and other innocent civilians, killed and over 5000 people injured, many critically, as a result of the wanton bombings by Israeli F-16 fighters. Israel has been using excessively disproportionate fire power, including Bunker buster bombs and White Phosphor shells, against a totally defenseless civilian population. The Israeli paper said Israeli officials were worried that “negative sentiment” toward Israel would grow the moment the full picture of the Israeli blitz emerged. Israeli hasbara officials have recommended several steps aimed at enhancing Israel’s image, including the intensive involvement of the Israeli army in facilitating the transfer of food and medicine to the bombed-out inhabitants of Gaza. One Israeli press officer reportedly recommended the employment of the so-called “ candy tactic” as an “image booster.” The “candy tactic” takes the form of filming Israeli soldiers while giving candies to Palestinian kids, especially after the perpetration of an especially-terrible massacre. Non the less, Israeli sources admit that no matter how effective Israeli hasbara efforts could be, the shocking reality on the ground in Gaza will be proven indelible. This is why the Israeli foreign ministry is suggesting that the Jewish state embark on a reactivated peace process with the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Said Seyam martyred in an Israeli occupation airstrike

GAZA, (PIC)-- Said Seyam, a prominent Hamas leader and Interior Minister of the elected government of Ismail Haneyya, was martyred Thursday evening along with his son, his brother and his brother's wife in an Israeli airstrike at a house in the Yarmouk neighbourhood at the centre of Gaza city. Hamas sources said that Seyam was martyred when Israeli occupation airforce bombed the house of Sheikh Eyad Seyam, the brother of Said Seyam during a visit by the latter to his brother's house. The bodyguard of Said Seyam was also martyred in the attack along with his brother and his brother's wife. Four other citizens from a neighbouring house were killed in the airstrike, three of them children. Eyewitnesses said that Israeli occupation airplanes fired two rockets at the house of Said Seyams brother. Hamas mourned Said Seyam saying that leaders of the movement were always at the forefront and that Seyam has joined previous martyrs of the movement such as Sheikh Ahmad Yassin, Dr. Abdel-Aziz al-Rantisi, Ibrahim al-Maqdmah, Ismail Abu Shanab, Jamal Mansour, Jamal Salim, Salah Shehadeh and Dr. Nizar al-Rayyan. Said Seyam was born on 22 July 1959 at the Shati' Rafugee camp to the west of Gaza City as his family was uprooted in 1948 from the village of Jura near the city of Askalan. He graduated at the Teachers College in Ramallah in 1980 with a Diploma in teaching sience and maths. He earned a degree in Islamic Studies from the Jerusalem Open University in 2000. He taught at UNRWA schools in Gaza from 1980 till 2003 when he resigned as a result of harassment of the employer because of his political affiliation. He worked as a voluntary Imam of the Yarmouk Mosque in Gaza city as well as other mosques in the Gaza Strip. He participated in the reconciliation committees formed by late Shiekh Ahmad Yassin during the first intifada. He was a trustee of the Islamic university, a founder member of the Future Research Centre, head of external relations department and a member of the political leadership of the Hamas movement. He was elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council in 2006 and was appointed Interior Minister in the tenth PA government. He was married and a father of six children.

441 Palestinians including over 70 children killed by Israel since last Saturday

GAZA, (PIC)-- Israel continued for the eighth consecutive day its military attacks against civilian targets throughout the Gaza Strip resulting in the death of 441 Palestinians including more than 70 children. Dr. Muawiya Hassanein, the director of ambulance and emergency in the health ministry, said that most of the victims were civilians including 36 women and 70 children, pointing out that the beds in Gaza hospitals are full of patients and injuries and can accommodate no more. For his part, Dr. Bassem Naim, the health minister, warned that the outcome of the ongoing Israeli massacres committed against the Gaza people is apt to increase significantly especially since there are more than 400 seriously-injured citizens. Dr. Naim noted that there is a severe shortage of medicines and medical equipment used to handle emergency situations, adding that 50 percent of ambulances are out of service due to the lack of spare part as a result of the Israeli siege. The minister also said that the IOF troops intensively bombed civilian institutions and homes, calling on the Arab states to urgently provide Gaza hospitals with medical supplies and ambulances fully equipped with medical care means. Meanwhile in the West Bank, Israeli border policemen carried out massive arbitrary arrests against Palestinian workers in Palestinian lands occupied in 1948 in fear of counterattacks carried out by the Palestinian resistance in retaliation to the Israeli crimes committed against the Gaza people. Hebrew radio reported that the IOF troops detained 80 Palestinian workers hailing from different West Bank cities during raids on construction sites and work places.