Negev Bedouins will hold tomorrow (Thur.) a general strike and demonstration - Stop home demolitions and police brutality!

Negev Bedouins will hold tomorrow (Thur.) a general strike and demonstration - Stop home demolitions and police brutality!

Demonstration on October 18 at 10:00pm opposite the Interior Ministry offices, government compound, Be'er Sheba    

On Wednesday, October 10th, the residents of the (government recognized) Bedouin village of Bir-Hadaj managed to prevent the entry of Interior Ministry inspectors, who had intended to hand out demolition orders to residents. On Thursday October 11th, according to the residents' reports, the inspectors came back to the village accompanied by police forces. When residents tried to deny their entry and prevent the handing out of demolition orders, the police started shooting tear gas, rubber coated bullets and live ammunition. Several residents were injured and one women was evacuated to the hospital, while some others were afraid that going to hospital for treatment might lead to getting arrested there. Three residents did get arrested. During the tear gas shooting, some of the gas did penetrate into the local school, and the teachers had to dismiss their classes in the middle of the day.

These cases of police violence are related to and earlier case of the same kind, which occurred at the village two weeks ago, when during house demolitions the police started shooting sponge bullets and gas grenades.


The Negev Arabs' Steering Committee announced a general strike on Thursday, October 18th, On the same day, there will be a big demonstration in front of the ministry of interior's offices in Be'er-Sheva at 10am

For further details, please contact Ofer: 050-9391299

Palestinian Loss of Land: 1946 - 2012

For Immediate Release September 26, 2012
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Portland Becomes the Latest City to See the Israel-Palestine Conflict Played Out on City Buses as Portlanders Learn about Israel’s Taking Over Palestinian Land

Portland, OR – Beginning on September 30th, on the exteriors of MAX trains and Tri-Met buses cruising through Portland’s busiest intersections, a series of four maps will powerfully portray an important aspect of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – the battle for control of land.

Read more: Palestinian Loss of Land: 1946 - 2012

The March of Folly

NOTHING COULD be more scary than the thought that this duo – Binyamin Netanyahu and Ehud Barak – is in a position to start a war, the dimensions and outcome of which are incalculable. 

It’s scary not only because of their ideological fixations and mental outlook, but also because of the level of their intelligence.

The last month gave us a small sample. By itself it was but a passing episode. But as an illustration of their decision-making abilities, it was frightening enough.

Read more: The March of Folly

100,000 flee Syria as August civilian death toll hits new high

 

The number of civilians who have fled Syria's civil war has almost doubled to more than 230,000 following the conflict's deadliest month yet, the UN refugee agency said yesterday, as it warned that number would rise further still.

Weeks of heavy fighting in the commercial hub of Aleppo and increased use of airpower by government forces led to the departure of 103,416 people during August – almost doubling the total number of registered refugees.

Activists from the Local Coordination Committees of Syria counted 4,933 civilian victims during August, making it the highest monthly death toll in the country's 17 month-long civil war.

The UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) said yesterday that 235,000 people have sought asylum in neighbouring countries since the beginning of the conflict. It added that the number is likely to be much higher as many have not registered with the agency or have other means of support.

The dramatic increase in the number of people leaving the country was described as "astonishing" yesterday by UNHCR spokeswoman Melissa Fleming. "This is a significant escalation in refugee movement," she told a news briefing in Geneva. "This probably points to a very precarious... situation in the country."

Ariane Rummery, another spokeswoman with the agency, said the UNHCR did "not see any indication" that the number of people fleeing will fall. "Many of them need everything, including shelter, healthcare, food, money and clothes," she told The Independent from Jordan, where more than 1,000 Syrians are entering the country every day.

The figures were released on the same day as the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) met with the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in an effort to improve the flow of humanitarian aid to civilians still in the country. The ICRC described the meeting in Damascus as "positive."

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