Aoun’s election happened only after former Interior Minister Suleiman Frangieh, the main alternative candidate, withdrew and endorsed Aoun.
Electing a president requires a two-thirds majority of parliament, which was met after Frangieh’s endorsement gave Aoun the support of Hezbollah and Amal Movements. Many media reports see Aoun’s election as a sign of Hezbollah’s weakness, despite most Hezbollah MPs supporting him.
Securing 99 of the Lebanese parliament’s 128 votes, Aoun garnered widespread support across Lebanon’s political spectrum, despite initial reservations from Hezbollah and its allies.
While political statements from Aoun are rare, he recently emerged as the US and Saudi Arabia’s favoured candidate for the Lebanese presidency.
The local and international push gathered momentum following Israel’s two-month offensive in Lebanon last year, which killed over 4,000 people and displaced over a million.
After the explosion at the port of Beirut in 2020, countries friendly to Lebanon diverted their aid to the military, claiming that they only rely on the army to distribute it. Therefore, all the aid, estimated at tens of millions of dollars, was directed directly to the army and was at Aoun’s disposal and under his direct management. It appears that the military establishment has effectively managed the funds and has never experienced a shortage due to corruption.
Since mid-September 2024, Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed at least 2,267 people and injured 11,022 more, according to a CNN tally.[393] While in Mid-November 2024 Lebanon Ministry of Public Health reported 3,583 killed, including 231 children.[397] UNICEF confirmed that more than 200 children has been killed.[368] The Lebanese Health Ministry has reported that most Lebanese killed by Israel are civilians.[59][92][398]
(archive entries)
The US has told Lebanese officials that Saudi Arabia is prepared to deploy hundreds of millions of dollars to reconstruct their war-torn country if Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun is elected president, one senior Arab official and one former senior US official told Middle East Eye.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron expressed their willingness to engage with Syria‘s new leadership, following the ousting of Bashar al-Assad, under certain conditions, a statement from the German government revealed after a call between the two leaders.
The U.S. government would “recognize and fully support” a future Syrian government that results from an inclusive and transparent transition process, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday, outlining a first set of principles regarding the Biden administration’s hopes to influence discussions over Syria’s future after the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad.
“We do not want escalation to continue in the region,” the Turkish president claimed.
“Idlib, Hama, and Homs are in the hands of the Syrian opposition, and they are continuing towards Damascus. We extended our hand to Bashar al-Assad but he did not respond,” he added.
(October 10, 2024)
Lapid advocated regime change in Lebanon, saying, “the international community will need to appoint a sort of oversight committee for Lebanon to manage its civilian life for a set period until elections can be held and a new government can take control.”
Crucial to this effort would be the establishment of a collaborator Lebanese army loyal to Israel and its Western and Gulf allies.
(…)
Lapid claimed it would be easy to recruit Lebanese by paying soldiers in a new army $500 a month. New recruits would then be trained by French, Emirati, and US military officers.
The South Lebanon Army (SLA) was established by Israel in 1976 after the collapse of the Lebanese government due to civil war.
(March 30, 2023)
The strike on Monday of Israel‘s largest worker‘s union, the Histadrut Labor Federation, was coordinated with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s inner circle, a senior member of the coalition confirmed on Thursday.
(24.04.2024)
Israeli Opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid also called for a crackdown on the protests. “What’s happening on American college campuses is unforgivable,” he wrote on X. “It is antisemitism, it is support for terrorism, it is support for Hamas which murders LGBT people and oppresses women. The administration cannot stand by, it has to intervene.”
(28.01.2024)
War cabinet minister Benny Gantz tells residents of the evacuated southern communities that the war against Hamas could last “a year, a decade, or even an entire generation,” and acknowledges the urgent need to ensure the release of the hostages still held in Gaza, Channel 12 reports.
(07.03.2024)
Ahead of president Isaac Herzog‘s scheduled visit to the Netherlands on Sunday, a local pro-Palestinian organization submitted a request to arrest him for war crimes in Gaza. The Foreign Affairs and Justice ministries are preparing to prevent embarrassment and to ensure that there will be no harm during the visit.
The comments were made on Wednesday during a ceremony in Paris, after a journalist asked whether there was a double standard in the reaction to killings in Israel and in Gaza and whether the latter also deserved a tribute.
In a widely circulated response, Hollande said: “It cannot be the same tribute. A life is a life and one life is equivalent to another but there are victims of terrorism and victims of war. Being a victim of terrorism means being attacked as a French person or as a defender of a way of life. A collateral victim, you are in war… it‘s not of the same nature.”
Israel’s war on Hamas could last an “10 years, or even entire generation,” war cabinet minister Benny Gantz reportedly told residents of evacuated communities in southern Israel.
“Complete removal of the threat will take time,” Israel’s Channel 12 reported Mr Gantz, who previously served as deputy prime minister and defence minister, as saying on Sunday.
In a recorded statement published on X, Netanyahu said he will not let Israel repeat the “mistake” of the Oslo Accords, and that Gaza will neither be “Hamastan nor Fatahstan”.
Earlier, he was quoted on the Israeli public broadcaster as saying that Israel was preparing for a possible war with the PA in the West Bank.
“It can’t be that after the enormous sacrifice of our citizens and fighters, we will let into Gaza those who teach terror, support terror, finance terror,” he said.
Hussein al-Sheikh, a senior PA and Fatah leader, said Netnayhu’s remarks “confirm his war against all Palestinians”.
(November 12, 2023)
Who?
Why?
(November 19, 2023)
The ICC is a „puppet institution“. What‘s needed is a country to invoke the Genocide Convention at the International Court of Justice. Here‘s how, with argument, phone numbers, addresses and emails.
Some of the greatest successes in recent human history have combined protest movements with strong diplomatic moves.
In February 1998, the Clinton administration seemed poised to inflict a massive attack on Iraq, but vocal opposition from the US public, especially at a CNN town hall meeting in Ohio, combined by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan going to Iraq, repelled the US government attack.
The following year, in the Battle of Seattle, combined protests in the streets and delegations from the global south finding their backbone resulted in the World Trade Organization’s plans collapsing. This was a major setback for global corporate interests.
There is now effectively a global movement, largely based around mass protests, to stop Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
Several countries, including South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros, Djibouti as well as Colombia and Algeria and Turkey have moved for the International Criminal Court to prosecute Israeli officials.
The problem is that ICC has been dragging its heels for years on prosecuting Israelis. It has been called a “white man’s court” after only going after Africans, and, after letting Israel off the hook during an earlier assault on Gaza, “a hoax”. Some of these nations have called Israel’s war crimes “genocide”. They should act on their words and invoke the relevant treaty. Other nations that have been especially critical of Israel are Pakistan, Brazil, Chile, Belize, Jordan, Chad, Honduras, Bahrain, Venezuela, Iran, and Cuba.
The International Court of Justice, also called the World Court, in contrast has ruled against Israel. But so far these rulings have been advisory opinions. It ruled against Israel in a case regarding its wall in 2004. In another case before it, is expected to rule against Israel’s long term policies.
But what can be done now, Prof. Francis Boyle, who successfully represented the Bosnians before the World Court, argues is to use emergency processes to give more teeth to the World Court. This can be done by invoking the Genocide Convention. This is outlined by Boyle, noted by UN whistleblower Craig Mokhiber, backed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Mairead Maguire, and written about by myself. And most recently by Craig Murray, now a human rights activist who was the British ambassador to Uzbekistan and Rector of the University of Dundee.
Murray just wrote the piece “Activating the Genocide Convention” which states: “There are 149 states party to the Genocide Convention. Every one of them has the right to call out the genocide in progress in Gaza and report it to the United Nations. In the event that another state party disputes the claim of genocide — and Israel, the United States and the United Kingdom are all states party — then the International Court of Justice [also called the World Court] is required to adjudicate on ‘the responsibility of a State for genocide.‘”
Murray quotes from the Genocide Convention and cites evidence that Israel is conducting genocide and that the US and British governments are at minimum complicit in that. He then states: “The International Court of Justice is the most respected of international institutions; while the United States has repudiated its compulsory jurisdiction, the United Kingdom has not and the EU positively accepts it.
“If the International Court of Justice makes a determination of genocide, then the International Criminal Court does not have to determine that genocide has happened. This is important because unlike the august and independent ICJ, the ICC is very much a western government puppet institution which will wiggle out of action if it can. But a determination of the ICJ of genocide and of complicity in genocide would reduce the ICC’s task to determining which individuals bear the responsibility. That is a prospect which can indeed alter the calculations of politicians.
“It is also the fact that a reference for genocide would force the western media to address the issue and use the term, rather than just pump out propaganda about Hamas fighting bases in hospitals. …
“I am afraid the question of why Palestine has not invoked the Genocide Convention takes us somewhere very dark. … It is Fatah who occupy the Palestinian seat at the United Nations, and the decision for Palestine to call into play the Genocide Convention lies with Mahmoud Abbas. It is more and more difficult daily to support Abbas. He seems extraordinarily passive, and the suspicion that he is more concerned with refighting the Palestinian civil war than with resisting the genocide is impossible to shake. By invoking the Genocide Convention he could put himself and Fatah back at the centre of the narrative. But he does nothing. I do not want to believe that corruption and a Blinken promise of inheriting Gaza are Mahmoud’s motivators. But at the moment, I cannot grab on to any other explanation to believe in.”
Thus speeches from Abbas and allied Palestinians figures should be viewed extremely skeptically. It is also very odd, to say the very least, that Francesca Albanese , Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, and other officials put out a statement “Gaza: UN experts call on international community to prevent genocide against the Palestinian people” — but make no mention whatever of the Genocide Convention.
As Murray writes: “Any one of the 139 states party could invoke the Genocide Convention against Israel and its co-conspirators. Those states include Iran, Russia, Libya, Malaysia, Bolivia, Venezuela, Brazil, Afghanistan, Cuba, Ireland, Iceland, Jordan, South Africa, Turkey and Qatar. But not one of these states has called out the genocide [by invoking the Convention]. Why?
“It is not because the Genocide Convention is a dead letter. It is not. It was invoked against Serbia by Bosnia and Herzegovina and the ICJ ruled against Serbia with regard to the massacre at Srebrenica.” Murray notes that this helped lead to prosecutions.
He adds: “Some states may simply not have thought of it. For Arab states in particular, the fact that Palestine itself has not invoked the Genocide Convention may provide an excuse. EU states can hide behind bloc unanimity.
“But I am afraid that the truth is that no state cares sufficiently about the thousands of Palestinian children already killed and thousands more who will shortly be killed, to introduce another factor of hostility in their relationship with the United States. Just as at [the recent] summit in Saudi Arabia, where Islamic countries could not agree [on] an oil and gas boycott of Israel, the truth is that those in power really do not care about a genocide in Gaza. They care about their own interests.
“It just needs one state to invoke the Genocide Convention and change the narrative and the international dynamic. That will only happen through the power of the people in pressing the idea on their governments. This is where everybody can do a little something to add to the pressure. Please do what you can.”
What can you do? Urge countries which have been critical of Israel to invoke the Genocide Convention at the International Court of Justice. Get groups and influential people to make this a primary ask.
Protests in NYC should include visits and vigils to the missions of those countries. Activists who have been arrested for protesting against Israel’s slaughter can ask UN officials from countries critical of Israel to invoke the Genocide Convention.
Palestinians in Ramallah may be able to directly contact the representatives of various countries to Palestine.
This can be done anywhere. Protests in London can respectfully appeal to the embassies of various countries critical of Israel.
We need to keep pressing directly against the US and Israeli governments, but their hearts are like stone. If we reach other states to invoke the Genocide Convention, it may be a key stop in curtailing the slaughter.
Moreover, it could be a turning point in global relations. Should a positive emergency ruling by the International Court of Justice be forthcoming, it would dramatically isolate the US and Israel at the UN. The US would of course try to block anything at the UN Security Council. But with a World Court ruling, Boyle argues, the stage would be set for the General Assembly to assert itself using the Uniting for Peace procedure. Combined with sustained protests, like the WTO and other critical confrontations, the costs of continuing the slaughter could become unsustainable. Moreover, a World Court ruling could facilitate other legal efforts, like universal jurisdiction.
For all that to happen, a country needs to step forward and invoke the Genocide Convention.
Make no mistake; any nation that does this may well be targeted in insidious ways by the US and by Israel. Any such nation should be afforded every bit of support people of goodwill can muster.
Here‘s a website that seems to list all the embassies and other diplomatic missions around the world. People from anywhere can be emailing, calling and going to these embassies and missions, urging these countries to use every legal mechanism to pressure Israel to stop, including invoking the Genocide Convention: embassy-worldwide.com.
A friend extracted emails of missions to the UN:
info(at)afghanistan-un.org
mission.newyork(at)mfa.gov.al
officeofthepr.albania(at)mfa.gov.al
algeriamission.ny(at)gmail.com
contact(at)andorraun.org
“This terror attack is further proof of our obligation to continue to fight with strength and determination against murderous terrorism, which threatens our citizens. In Jerusalem, Gaza, in Judea and Samaria, and everywhere,” Gantz writes on X, using the biblical name for the West Bank.
(05.03.2023)
The trial and the coup are now simultaneously underway, but while the first is lumbering along, the second is galloping forward. The hearings in the Jerusalem District Court will resume only after Passover. Until the judges return from their hiatus, the wings of the High Court of Justice might be clipped, the Judicial Appointments Committee might be under full control of the politicians, or Israel might be in the throes of a historic constitutional crisis.
(14.02.2018)
The police announcement Tuesday – that the investigations into two cases involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been completed – came 13 months after Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit decided that a “preliminary examination” of the allegations, which itself took six months, should become full-fledged criminal investigations.
(11.10.2023)
(today)
It is the 30th anniversary of the breakthrough Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestinians. The peace deal led to the creation of the Palestinian Authority, intended to provide interim self-government for just five years while negotiations solved outstanding core issues in the conflict. Today, nearly a decade after peace talks collapsed, the PA remains in place, but is losing its legitimacy.
The compromise, as reported, aimed to freeze all further judicial overhaul legislation in return for granting the coalition more power on the Judicial Selection Committee in the form of veto power on the selection of the Supreme Court president and lower court judges.
But today’s report says Netanyahu was adamant that any freeze still allow a potential “override clause” to be legislated with a regular majority, in the event that the High Court of Justice nullifies the government’s law shielding the premier from being ordered by courts or the attorney general to step down.
The conflict of interest agreement, signed in 2020, states that Netanyahu has conflicts of interest concerning appointments in the law enforcement system, given his trial for bribery, fraud and breach of trust. This means Netanyahu is barred from making judicial appointments, or getting involved in legislative matters that may impact his ongoing trial. Netanyahu signed the arrangement three years ago when then-attorney general Avichai Mandelblit drew up the arrangement to prevent Netanyahu from being declared unfit for office.
After passing the law, Netanyahu publicly stated that he would not stop his judicial overhaul and would be directly involved in the process despite the conflict of interest agreement.
(30 March 2023)
Kan news, citing unnamed sources, reported that Yonatan Urich, an adviser to Netanyahu, coordinated with Histadrut officials throughout the day on the timing and content of press conferences held by Netanyahu and the labor union’s Bar-David. It also said the premier’s wife Sara spoke with officials close to Bar-David, telling them to pressure the government to work towards broad agreements on judicial reform.
Many protesters have been angered that the labor federation has not called a general strike after a bill to radically curb judicial oversight over government decisions was passed overnight in its first reading.
In late March the union joined a daylong general strike triggered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s since-reversed decision to fire Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for calling to pause the judicial legislation amid growing unrest over the overhaul. The strike was called off the same day after Netanyahu agreed to pause the legislation to allow for negotiations with the opposition.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s cabinet on Sunday voted to adopt a proposed resolution that would see Israel work to prevent the collapse of the Palestinian Authority (PA).
The resolution, brought forward to the cabinet by the prime minister himself, was adopted by an 8-1 margin, with one minister abstaining from the vote.
With careful consideration, it is plausible to suggest that Milchan‘s decision may have been influenced by the judges‘ proposal to withdraw the bribery charge in Case 4000, which was presented just before his testimony. The witness perceived this case to overshadow his own involvement, often remarking that the magnitude of „hundreds of millions of dollars“ cannot be compared to indulgences in cigars and champagne. This positioning allowed Milchan to assume a supporting role in the unfolding narrative, but an unexpected turn of events thrust him into the spotlight. Being fluent in the language of power, it appears that Milchan recognized Netanyahu‘s resurgent influence and chose not to risk challenging him.
For this saga to end now, one of two things has to happen: Either the prosecution has to withdraw the indictment, or Netanyahu has to admit to some of the charges and leave office immediately. But the prime minister is now breathing easy and praising the judges whom he previously suspected of being leftists. And Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who views the court’s position as a colossal mistake, is currently determined to go all the way, including to the Supreme Court.
Hollywood mogul Arnon Milchan, a key witness in one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption cases, is set to testify at the premier’s corruption trial via video link from Brighton, England, beginning on Sunday.
The film producer is a witness in Case 1000 — one of three in which Netanyahu faces charges — involving suspicions that the premier illicitly accepted gifts including cigars and champagne from Milchan and another billionaire, James Packer.
According to the report, during a routine hearing at the Jerusalem District Court on Tuesday, the judges engaged in a fifteen-minute discussion with the State Prosecutor‘s Office and Netanyahu‘s defense team and the other defendants, Shaul and Iris Elovich.
The judges reportedly emphasized that „the good of the state requires a settlement.“
(22.06.2023)
According to Walla and Channel 13, the judges convened with state prosecutors and Netanyahu’s defense team in their chambers in order to discuss the complexities involved in substantiating the bribery charge against the prime minister in Case 4000, the most significant of the three cases against Netanyahu that make up the trial.
Also known as the Bezeq-Walla case, it focuses on allegations that Netanyahu, during a previous tenure as prime minister, authorized regulatory decisions that financially benefited Bezeq telecommunications giant shareholder Shaul Elovitch by hundreds of millions of shekels.
(21.06.2023)
At the start of the hearing in Netanyahu’s ongoing trial for bribery, fraud and breach of trust, the three judges summoned both sides’ lawyers to their chamber for a private consultation. However, they declined to say what the discussion had been about.
(…)
He also said that then-editor in chief Avi Alkalay routinely altered articles in ways that benefited Netanyahu. “There were also articles that were shelved,” he added.
Asked by prosecutor Yael Shahaf how Alkalay explained his behavior, Borochov said Alkalay told him “that he coordinates things with the Prime Minister’s Office,” and that if “things didn’t go the way they should,” he would be replaced with an editor in chief chosen by Netanyahu
(21.06.2023)
Yonatan Orich, Ofer Golan and Israel Einhorn attempted to intimidate Shlomo Filber, a witness in Netanyahu’s Case 4000, while being employed by the Likud as part of its 2019 election campaign, according to the State Attorney’s Office.
The three allegedly sent a mobile device with an external speaker to Filber’s home, and played a recording in which they accused the witness of lying.
(17.06.2023)
ומי שהצביעו עבור קארין אלהרר ופנינה תמנו שטה היו גם חברי הכנסת של ש״ס, בהוראה של דרעי ואולי אף דרעי בעצמו, ובידיעת נתניהו, גנץ ולפיד.
האינטרס של לפיד וגנץ היה להראות ״הישג״ בהצבעה בכנסת, האינטרס של נתניהו היה להקפיא את ההפיכה המשטרית על מנת להגיע לוושינגטון ולמסמס את המחאה, והאינטרס של דרעי היה להמשיך את השיחות בבית הנשיא על מנת לסלול את דרכו לממשלה.
נתניהו ודרעי הבינו שללא נציגת האופוזיציה בוועדה תקום סערה ציבורית והכל יתפוצץ. לכן פעלו כפי שפעלו בתיאום מלא עם גנץ ולפיד.
ולכן גם ההודעה של גנץ ולפיד, שהם משהים את השיחות עד לבחירת נציג הקואליציה לוועדה וכינוסה, גם האמירה הזאת היא עבודה בעיניים, הכל בלוף.
זה פשוט המשך שיתוף פעולה, וחלק מאותה הסכמה של גנץ ולפיד להכשיר את דרעי ולהכניסו לממשלה.
גנץ ולפיד הרימו דגל לבן, ועשו מכירת חיסול של הציבור הליברלי במדינת ישראל.
לצערי זו האמת מאחורי השיחות בבית הנשיא וההצבעה בכנסת ביום רביעי.
(17.06.2023)
“The picture that arises is that everything that happened on Wednesday in the Knesset vote for the Judicial Appointments Committee was one big show, behind which there was a four-way deal between [National Unity Party chief Benny] Gantz and [Opposition leader Yair] Lapid on one side and Netanyahu and [Shas leader Arye] Dery on the other,” Lieberman posted on his Twitter account.
“The interest of Lapid and Gantz is to show ‘an achievement’ in the Knesset vote, Netanyahu’s interest is to freeze the [judicial overhaul] so he can go to Washington and soften the protests, and Dery’s interest is to continue the talks at the President’s Residence to pave his path back to the government,” he wrote.
(June 15, 2023)
But it may well be a Pyrrhic victory, writes @noa_landau
(Jun 12, 2023)
A compromise agreement between coalition and opposition lawmakers over the government‘s judicial overhaul is expected to be reached as early as Wednesday, opposition MK Avigdor Lieberman said on Monday.
According to the Yisrael Beitenu chairman, the agreement will come after the opposition candidate for the Judicial Appointments Committee, MK Karine Elharrar of Yesh Atid, is elected to the position.
Lapid made an appearance at the Tel Aviv protest on Saturday night. At Kaplan Street, a demonstrator yelled at him, „No negotiations!“ To which he responded, „We‘re not there.“ Although he and Gantz have agreed to delay the negotiations with the coalition, protesters are demanding that they shelve them completely.
Former Justice Minister Tzipi Livni also gave a speech at that rally, saying that the government is „already advancing fascist decisions and legislation that will change the face of Israel forever. Decisions and legislation that erase democracy, bring about religious supremacy over secular people, Jewish supremacy over Arabs and messianic supremacy over judges.“
(04.05.2023)
Er muss und er will Premierminister bleiben. Er könnte leicht einen Deal eingehen: Die Opposition will ihn vielleicht nicht im Gefängnis sehen, ihn aber als Premier weghaben. Netanjahu will beides: einen Deal und an der Macht bleiben. Das geht nicht.
(8. März 2018)
Während die rechtsradikale Regierung von Israel Einheimische Jerusalems per Gesetz die Wohnberechtigung in der eigenen Stadt entziehen lassen will, wegen “Bruchs der Untertanentreue” (“breach of allegiance”), kriechen der palästinensische “Präsident” Mahmud Abbas, seine Fatah-Partei und die P.L.O. vor der Besatzungsmacht weiter zu Kreuze und tun nichts.
Am 20. Februar hatte Abbas, entgegen aller wertlosen Beschlüsse von Zentralrat und Exekutivkomitee der “Palästinensischen Befreiungsorganisation”, im Sicherheitsrat der Vereinten Nationen wieder keine Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas in der Völkergemeinschaft beantragt, geschweige denn den entscheidenden Schritt dies in der Generalversammlung zu tun (die dem Sicherheitsrat in dieser Frage übergeordnet ist).
Negotiating teams will meet next week at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem to begin dialogue over the laws of the proposed judicial overhaul. This will be the first time the sides will discuss the details of the laws submitted to the Knesset, with previous meetings having focused on technical issues.
Several speakers at the protests called on opposition leaders to halt the negotiations, among them former IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, who addressed the central demonstration in Tel Aviv.
The trial and the coup are now simultaneously underway, but while the first is lumbering along, the second is galloping forward. The hearings in the Jerusalem District Court will resume only after Passover. Until the judges return from their hiatus, the wings of the High Court of Justice might be clipped, the Judicial Appointments Committee might be under full control of the politicians, or Israel might be in the throes of a historic constitutional crisis.
Hadash-Ta’al MK Ayman Odeh accuses liberal opposition leader MK Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) of “constantly lying,” pointing to comments he made earlier today saying the Arab-Jewish list is working together with Likud. “He knows that it doesn’t have a grain of truth, that it’s all lies,” Odeh says Monday at a faction meeting in the Knesset of the Hadash-Ta’al parliamentary faction. “You didn’t succeed in leading your camp in the election, you’re not succeeding in leading the opposition,” Odeh says to Lapid. “You got used to the ‘nice Arab,” therefore it’s hard for you to deal with Arabs with a backbone.”
The largest demonstration held so far against the new government of Benjamin Netanyahu, on Saturday night in Tel Aviv, was notable in that none of the leaders of the parties of the previous government were present. It wasn’t just leader of the opposition Yair Lapid, who was on a brief weekend vacation in Paris. None of his other colleagues turned up either.
(1.Mai 2018)
Abbas ist Kollaborateur der israelischen Besatzungsmacht. Seine Aufgabe ist es, effektiven Widerstand gegen die Besatzung zu verhindern, stattdessen die Vorurteile vom primitiven, überall lauernden palästinensischen Judenmörder und Barbaren zu bedienen, alle Unterstützer der palästinensischen Sache entweder zu vergraulen oder mit solchem Wahnsinn genau so zu diskreditieren wie die Palästinenser insgesamt, und der Regierung von Benjamin Netanjahu auf jede erdenkliche Weise in die Hände zu spielen, genauso wie bisher und das möglichst so, dass es schlichter gestrickten Charakteren nicht auffällt.
Den klassischen Antijuden zu machen, kommt bei vielen Palästinensern immer noch gut an. Dabei stabilisieren gerade solche Klischees das israelische Besatzungsregime und werfen eine Tarnkappe über dessen palästinensischen Kollaborateure.
Am 14. Januar hatte zuerst der Zentralrat der P.L.O. die Abbas-Behörde dringend aufgefordert, bei der Generalversammlung der Vereinten Nationen endlich die Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas zu beantragen. Nichts passierte.
Am 4. Februar beschloss das P.L.O.-Exekutivkomitee, bei der Generalversammlung der Vereinten Nationen endlich die Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas zu beantragen. Nichts passierte.
Am 20. Februar saß dann Abbas im Sicherheitsrat der Vereinten Nationen und verzichtete entgegen den P.L.O.-„Beschlüssen“ nicht nur darauf die Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas zu beantragen, sondern ebenso darauf, Klage beim Internationalen Strafgerichtshof gegen die Besatzungsmacht Israel zu erheben, u.a. wegen Bruchs der IV. Genfer Konvention. Stattdessen redete er, zum tausendsten Male, von irgendwelchen fiktiven „Verhandlungen“ und einer „Friedenskonferenz“ im Sommer.
Und genau dafür, für seine „Friedensinitiative“ mit der U.S.-Regierung, beantragte Abbas nun am 30. April in seiner Rede in Ramallah die Unterstützung vom Nationalrat der P.L.O., deren „Parlament“; einer so vorbildlich demokratischen Institution, dass er die letzten 22 Jahre nicht zu tagen brauchte. Das war der konkrete Inhalt von Abbas Rede: das Einsammeln von Unterstützung für seine weitere, endlose Hinhaltetaktik ins Nichts und palästinensische Elend hinein …
However, with four days left, no clear coalition can be created following Tuesday’s election, according to a final poll carried out by Panels Politics on behalf of Maariv. As in a similar poll last Friday, the Netanyahu bloc received 60 seats, the Lapid bloc received 56 seats and Hadash-Ta’al received the remaining four, the survey found. The poll showed Hadash-Ta’al. Meretz, Labor, and Islamist Ra’am passing the electoral threshold of 3.25% of the general vote.
(October 25, 2022)
Calling for the International Criminal Court to open a new investigation into possible war crimes by Israeli military forces in Gaza in August, Amnesty International on Tuesday said the court must also include Israel‘s illegal apartheid policies against the Occupied Palestinian Territories in its probe.
The organization‘s call centered on the three-day offensive launched by Israel between August 5-8 in the Gaza Strip, with advocates saying its research suggests three specific attacks could amount to war crimes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Haaretz Democracy Conference on Monday, saying that Moscow’s military cooperation with Tehran will likely result in Russia assisting Iran with the development of its nuclear program.
In the prerecorded video message, the Ukrainian leader said that Iran’s sale of suicide drones and provision of military instructors to Russian forces operating in his country would not have been possible without Israel’s decision to stay neutral in the conflict.
Murphy, who chairs the Senate subcommittee dedicated to the Middle East, noted that Israel is not the only country that possesses the Iron Dome missile defense system that could potentially help Ukraine.
“The United States, in fact, could move toward transferring some of our Iron Dome capabilities to Ukraine, as well. I think Israel can do much more here,” the Connecticut senator said, adding: “These drones are absolutely devastating when they hit civilian areas“.
(12.10.2022)
Israel’s Iron Dome air defense, which boasts a 90 percent success rate against rockets fired against it, will stay out of Ukraine’s reach, experts said, as Jerusalem seeks to maintain strategic relations with Russia in Syria and other hot spots.
Israel’s Defense and Foreign ministries and the prime minister’s office uniformly declined to comment Wednesday on long-standing requests from Ukraine and its supporters for it to give, sell or loan Ukraine the system, including calls made since Monday’s barrage.
Hadash-Ta’al commented on the Central Election Commission’s decision to disqualify Balad’s candidacy for the 25th Knesset. “The decision to disqualify Balad is an unfortunate decision. [Benny] Gantz, [Yair] Lapid and [Meirav] Michaeli proved that they are right-wing in disguise. Despite the anger of the racists who want to keep the Arabs away from the polling stations, on election day we all flock to the polling stations.”
Balad and several of its lawmakers have been disqualified by past elections panels, and have so far won every appeal to the High Court to be reinstated. The party is expected to make a similar appeal to return to November’s contest following Thursday’s disqualification.
Earlier on Thursday, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara released a letter to the committee stating that there was no basis for disqualifying either Balad or the Islamist Ra’am party. The panel ultimately cleared Ra’am’s path to the ballot box, dismissing petitions that alleged the party supported terrorist organizations.
(29.09.2022)
Despite appeals filed alleging that Ra‘am „supports terrorism,“ the vote to allow their running passed 14-0, with representatives from Likud, the Religious Zionist Party, Yesh Atid, and Labor not present.
Israel‘s Defense Minister Benny Gantz of the National Unity Party ruled on Thursday that all of his party representatives on the election committee will vote to disqualify Balad from running for parliament.
(1.Mai 2018)
Abbas ist Kollaborateur der israelischen Besatzungsmacht. Seine Aufgabe ist es, effektiven Widerstand gegen die Besatzung zu verhindern, stattdessen die Vorurteile vom primitiven, überall lauernden palästinensischen Judenmörder und Barbaren zu bedienen, alle Unterstützer der palästinensischen Sache entweder zu vergraulen oder mit solchem Wahnsinn genau so zu diskreditieren wie die Palästinenser insgesamt, und der Regierung von Benjamin Netanjahu auf jede erdenkliche Weise in die Hände zu spielen, genauso wie bisher und das möglichst so, dass es schlichter gestrickten Charakteren nicht auffällt.
Den klassischen Antijuden zu machen, kommt bei vielen Palästinensern immer noch gut an. Dabei stabilisieren gerade solche Klischees das israelische Besatzungsregime und werfen eine Tarnkappe über dessen palästinensischen Kollaborateure.
Am 14. Januar hatte zuerst der Zentralrat der P.L.O. die Abbas-Behörde dringend aufgefordert, bei der Generalversammlung der Vereinten Nationen endlich die Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas zu beantragen. Nichts passierte.
Am 4. Februar beschloss das P.L.O.-Exekutivkomitee, bei der Generalversammlung der Vereinten Nationen endlich die Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas zu beantragen. Nichts passierte.
Am 20. Februar saß dann Abbas im Sicherheitsrat der Vereinten Nationen und verzichtete entgegen den P.L.O.-„Beschlüssen“ nicht nur darauf die Vollmitgliedschaft Palästinas zu beantragen, sondern ebenso darauf, Klage beim Internationalen Strafgerichtshof gegen die Besatzungsmacht Israel zu erheben, u.a. wegen Bruchs der IV. Genfer Konvention. Stattdessen redete er, zum tausendsten Male, von irgendwelchen fiktiven „Verhandlungen“ und einer „Friedenskonferenz“ im Sommer.
Und genau dafür, für seine „Friedensinitiative“ mit der U.S.-Regierung, beantragte Abbas nun am 30. April in seiner Rede in Ramallah die Unterstützung vom Nationalrat der P.L.O., deren „Parlament“; einer so vorbildlich demokratischen Institution, dass er die letzten 22 Jahre nicht zu tagen brauchte. Das war der konkrete Inhalt von Abbas Rede: das Einsammeln von Unterstützung für seine weitere, endlose Hinhaltetaktik ins Nichts und palästinensische Elend hinein …
He called for the UN Secretary-General to elaborate an international plan….
We are deeply concerned by the raids which took place in the morning of 18 August, as part of a worrying reduction of space for civil society in the oPT. These actions are not acceptable.
The further reduction of civil space in the oPT remains a source of concern. We stand firm with NGOs to uphold the right to freedom of expression and association in the oPT.
A free and strong civil society is indispensable for promoting democratic values and for a two state solution. As we stated on 12 July, no substantial information was received from Israel that would justify reviewing our policy towards the six Palestinian NGOs on the basis of the Israeli decision to designate these NGOs as ‘terrorist organisations’. Should convincing evidence be made available to the contrary, we would act accordingly.
In October, Defense Minister Benny Gantz signed an order declaring Addameer, Al-Haq, the Bisan Center for Research & Development, Defense for Children International-Palestine, the Union of Palestinian Women‘s Committees and the Union of Agricultural Work Committees as terrorist organizations. The Defense Ministry claims that they are part of a funding network operated by the largely-defunct Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a charge that all six groups deny.
(1.Mai 2018)
Abbas abgesonderter Wahnsinn über die Shoa soll verdecken, dass er der effektivste Kollaborateur der israelischen Besatzungsmacht über Palästina ist und dieser permanent in die Hände spielt.
Scholz hatte auf der Pressekonferenz überdies erklärt, dass sich Deutschland derzeit nicht für die volle Anerkennung eines palästinensischen Staates einsetzen werde. Deutschland unterstütze zwar weiterhin eine Zwei-Staaten-Lösung. Es sei aber „nicht die Zeit“, am derzeitigen Status etwas zu ändern. Die palästinensische Autonomiebehörde habe derzeit einen Beobachterstatus bei der UNO. Weitergehende Schritte müssten auf einer Verhandlungslösung mit Israel aufbauen, so Scholz.
Israels ehemaliger Armeechef Gadi Eisenkot will mit Blick auf die anstehende Parlamentswahl der neuen Partei von Verteidigungsminister Benny Gantz beitreten. Er werde sich der neuen Mitte-rechts-Partei Hamahane Hamamlachti (Nationale Einheitspartei) von Gantz und Justizminister Gideon Saar anschließen, erklärte Eisenkot heute.
6:45 pm IDT
Forty-nine Palestinians have been killed as a result of the latest military escalation between Israel and Islamic Jihad, which lasted three days. They include five girls, 11 boys and four women.
Thirty were killed during Israeli strikes. Of those, 17 were civilians, among them three girls, a boy and four women. Botched launches of Palestinian rockets killed 19 non-combatants, including 12 children.
Benny Gantz, a retired Israeli army general and the country‘s minister of defense, told a local media outlet yesterday that a New Yorker report which said Netanyahu encouraged U.S. action against Iran was likely „not what happened.“
„I don‘t know of this story and I assume this is not what happened,“ Gantz said in an interview, according to the Jerusalem Post.