Obama legitimates drones outside US airspace & Pakistan slams drone strikes

Obama Legitimates Drones outside US Airspace

Al Manar

U.S. President Barack Obama issued a decree on Friday that allows the use of drones outside the borders of the United States.

He said that this decree will enable the United States to “carry out effective operations against the terrorists.”

In Friday’s speech at the National Defense University in Washington, U.S. President stressed “that he is determined to continue the war against al-Qaeda to eliminate it.”

But, in turn, he asserted “that a permanent war against terrorism will fail and will change the American current situation, as a clear strategy to address ‘terrorism’ is absent.”

The American President, reiterated his administration’s support for the Syrian opposition.

However, he lashed out at any attempt to replace Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by terrorist takfiris fighting now against the government troops.

“Extremists must not replace the dictatorial regime, he said, in reference to the acting regime in Syria.

“Permanent war on terrorism is the loser in advance,” he stressed.

Syria was hit by a violent unrest since mid-March 2011, where the Syrian government accuses foreign actors of orchestrating the conflict, by supporting the militant opposition groups with arms and money.

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Pakistan slams US drone strikes as violation of its sovereignty

Press TV

Islamabad has reiterated its strong opposition to the ongoing CIA-operated deadly campaign of drone strikes inside Pakistani soil.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday that the US drone attacks cause civilian casualties and are in breach of international law as well as Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“The Government of Pakistan has consistently maintained that the drone strikes are counter-productive, entail loss of innocent civilian lives, have human rights and humanitarian implications and violate the principles of national sovereignty, territorial integrity and international law,” the statement read.

Pakistan’s government was reacting to US President Barack Obama who on Thursday defended the use of controversial terror drones as self-defense.

Over the past several years, Washington has been launching drone attacks on Muslim countries, including Pakistan, Somalia, and Yemen.

Pakistan’s tribal regions are attacked by US assassination drones almost regularly, with Washington claiming that militants are the targets. However, casualty figures clearly indicate that civilians are the main victims.

The killing of Pakistani civilians, including women and children, has strained relations between Islamabad and Washington. The US assassination drone strikes have triggered massive protests in Pakistan.

The United Nations says the US-operated drone strikes in Pakistan pose a growing challenge to the rule of international law.

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Obama, Bush, Blair must be put on trial at ICC: Chomsky

Press TV

Renowned American academic, Noam Chomsky, says US President Barack Obama, his predecessor George W. Bush, along with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair should face trial for the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the ensuing turmoil in the Arab state.

“Bush and Blair ought to be up there [at the International Criminal Court]. There is no recent crime worse than the invasion of Iraq. Obama’s got to be there for the terror war,” Chomsky told Russia Today on Thursday.

In 2003, the US and Britain invaded Iraq in a blatant violation of international law and under the pretext of finding weapons of mass destruction. But no such weapons were ever found in Iraq.

More than one million Iraqis were killed as the result of the US-led invasion and subsequent occupation of the country, according to the California-based investigative organization, Project Censored.

Chomsky, a prominent critic of the US foreign policy, said the invasion of Iraq is a “supreme international crime,” adding that the US and its allies were responsible for bomb attacks across the Arab country.

“The US and British invasion of Iraq was a textbook example of aggression, no questions about it. Which means that we were responsible for all the evil that follows like the bombings. Serious conflict arose, [and] it spread all over the region. In fact the region is being torn to shreds by this conflict. That is part of the evil that follows,” Chomsky stated.

He went on to slam Washington for its growing use of killer drones in a number of countries including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and Somalia, describing it as a “massive terror campaign.”

“A drone strike was a terror weapon; we do not talk about it that way. It is; just imagine you are walking down the street and you do not know whether in five minutes there is going to be an explosion across the street from some place up in the sky that you cannot see,” said Chomsky.

“Somebody will be killed, and whoever is around will be killed, maybe you will be injured if you are there. That is a terror weapon. It terrorizes villages, regions, huge areas. In fact it’s the most massive terror campaign going on by a long shot,” he added.

Washington uses killer drones in several countries, claiming that they target “terrorists.” According to witnesses, however, the attacks have mostly led to massive civilian casualties.

Swimming in a sea of frequencies: electromagnetic fields and us

by Alex Quinn, source

*view tables in original source*

Particularly now that wireless communications are so closely integrated into our daily lives, electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are all around us. Our cities, especially the larger ones, are perpetually shrouded in an invisible electrosmog, a ‘sea’ of EMFs through which we swim every day. But does this momentous development in civilisation come with health effects – and if so, can we do anything to reduce them?

What is ELF-EMF and what are its sources?

It’s important to realise that there are two main forms of EMF: radiofrequency (RF)-EMF and extremely low-frequency (ELF)-EMFs. The frequency range of ELF-EMF is 1–300 Hz, and the Earth’s natural geomagnetic field strength varies from around 60 μT (microtesla) at the magnetic poles to around 30 μT at the equator.

Many man-made sources of ELF-EMF exist. Prime among these artificial sources are power lines and electronic appliances, with vacuum cleaners, electric can-openers, microwave ovens, shavers and hair dryers among the most powerful. These appliances emit ELF-EMF at field intensities ranging from 17.44 to 164.75 μT, measured from 5 cm away. Since the intensity of magnetic fields decreases dramatically with increased distance from the source, the corresponding range of magnetic field intensities at 50 cm is 0.12–1.66 μT.

The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (INCIRP) has set limits of 1 mT (millitesla) for occupational exposure to ELF-EMF, and 200 μT for general public exposure. While these limits are not breached by individual man-made sources, additive effects must also be considered, as we shall see.

What is RF-EMF and what are its sources?

The frequencies of RF-EMFs are considerably higher than ELF-EMFs, ranging from 100 kHz to 300 GHz. As its name suggests, the main uses of RF-EMF are in broadcasting information. In today’s data-driven world, this means that RF-EMF is constantly around us: it is produced by things such as mobile phone base stations, cordless phones, utility ‘smart’ meters, remote control toys, wireless networks, radar and baby monitors. In addition, there are various natural sources of RF-EMF, including the Earth, the Sun and other black body radiators.

Here’s a shocking statistic: did you know that having a cordless phone base station in your house can expose you to the same level of RF-EMFs as having a mobile phone mast in your back garden?

Do EMFs pose health problems?

The mainstream view is that the only potential danger from EMFs stems from their heating effects on tissue, in the case of RF-EMF, or of electrical currents induced in the body for ELF-EMF. However, there is strong evidence to suggest that the athermal effects of ELF- and RF-EMFs also contribute to various health problems.

Childhood leukaemia

According to the BioInitiative report, evidence indicates that risk of childhood leukaemia in young boys doubles when they are exposed to ELF-EMF levels of 1.4 mG (milligauss), while other studies indicate that leukaemia risks begin at 2, 3 and 4 mG. This occurs in the context of an ICNIRP limit of 1000 mG.
The BioInitiative report also found that ELF-EMFs interfered with recovery from childhood leukaemia: if a child was exposed to levels of ≥2 mG during recovery, their risk of death increased by 300%, while at levels of ≥4 mG that risk increased to 450%.

Alzheimer’s disease

ELF-EMF has also been found to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by increasing levels of a protein called amyloid beta, a leading risk factor for Alzheimer’s.

Melatonin

EMFs have also been found to decrease the levels of melatonin in the body. Melatonin is produced in the pineal gland of the brain, which produces melatonin when it directly or indirectly detects low light levels. EMFs may interfere with this mechanism because the brain confuses them with light waves, thus suppressing the pineal gland’s melatonin production. Melatonin is an absolutely vital hormone. It acts as a powerful antioxidant, and has been found to aid in the prevention of Alzheimer’s, depression, cardiovascular diseases, insomnia, mood disorders, tinnitus and various cancers.
Brain and auditory nerve cancers

RF-EMFs have been given a 2B classification – possibly carcinogenic – by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). They have been found to be possible causes of acoustic neuromas and brain tumours called gliomas. Studies have shown that using cordless phones, which produce RF-EMFs, can increase the risk of brain tumours by up to 470% after ≥10 years of use when habitually used on one side of the head. Mobile phones, in the same scenario, can increase the risk by up to 200%. Both mobiles and cordless phones can trigger reactions in people who suffer from electrohypersensitivity.

What about interactions between EMFs and other factors?

Of course, EMFs don’t affect us in isolation: everyone living in a city, for example, is bombarded by numerous chemical toxins and other environmental pollutants, and many of them take multiple pharmaceutical drugs – in addition to constant EMF exposure. We are at an early stage of investigating and defining these complex interactions, but existing research indicates that these combinations can have both beneficial and adverse effects. For example, in vitro DNA damage was caused by a 7 mT magnetic field in combination with ferrous chloride, but not with either agent alone. Other combinations of EMFs and agents enhanced analgesia and neural performance.

Call to action: Reduce your EMF exposure!

Thus, you should take as many steps as possible to reduce your exposure to EMFs. Suggested strategies include:

Using fibre-optic cables for your broadband
Using wired connections whenever possible
Keeping mobile and cordless phones away from your body
Using wired baby monitors: children are more effected by EMFs than adults
Keeping wireless routers or cordless phones out of regularly used bedrooms or children’s bedrooms
Reducing time spent in calls when using mobile or cordless phones
Reducing children’s exposure to wireless devices as much as possible
Avoiding using microwave oven
Avoiding placing wireless computers on your lap
Avoiding allowing your children to use remote-control toys for long periods of time, if at all

UPDATE WITH VIDEO: 13 year-old boy shot at by settlers, tortured by soldiers, denied medical attention

19th May 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Team Nablus | Qaryut, Occupied Palestine

UPDATED: The 13-year-old Qaryut boy attacked by settlers on 16 May completed an operation on his lower leg and foot on Friday and has since been released to recover at home. He also provided a full account of his attack and the time he spent in an Israeli jeep untreated and tortured for information he neither had nor could speak of due to the pain from his untreated injury.

The boy said he was alone on his land near the illegal settlement of Eli when he was attacked. His friend was coming to join him when settlers began shooting at the boy. He ran, but fell from a big drop in the land, being on the mountainside. Settlers pursued him but he dragged himself on his stomach by some bushes. He was in great pain but kept quiet, afraid of settlers or soldiers finding him and continuing to attack him. After some time, his phone rang when his sister and friend called him. The soldiers then found and descended on him, threatening him with their guns while he lay, unable to move, on the ground.

Below is video of the boy’s harassment when the Israeli soldiers found him; the video is taken in the village area down the mountain from the nearest illegal Eli settlement houses, in view of the land where the boy was attacked. He said that the soldiers and settlement security official (DCI) threatened to kill him.

No one from the village could come to the boy’s aid for risk of being shot at by the soldiers. Local Red Crescent representatives said that a man from the municipality was with the soldiers and was told that the boy would be treated in an Israeli ambulance and possibly taken to an Israeli hospital. However, as the Red Crescent, the boy’s family, solidarity activists and nearby villagers waited, watching the soldiers on top of the mountain for two to three hours, the boy was untreated and tortured by Israeli army officials for information.

“They said I was trying to set fire to the land by the settlement; they said I was with three others and had a lighter and a firebomb,” the boy said. “They would twist my leg every ten minutes or so when I would not give them names [of those with whom he was accused of conspiring].” The boy said he was also beat for information.

The boy’s interrogators also told him they had pictures him, evidence against him, and that a soldier had seen him. “Why don’t you ask the soldier, then?” the boy said. Reportedly the response to this question was, “No, I want to ask you.”

Finally, the local Red Crescent brought an ambulance to the entrance of the illegal settlement where they were given the boy, untreated. The boy’s grandfather said that his grandson’s flesh near his ankle was open, his leg wobbly, and black flesh showed from the boy’s yet untreated injury. The Red Crescent immediately took the boy to the nearest hospital in Nablus: Rafedia hospital 30-45 minutes away.

The area of the boy’s attack has seen several settler attacks on the nearby houses. Most notably, settlers from Eli have several times in the past year set fire to Palestinian olive trees near the house Im Fayyiz, a woman known in the village for her long-time struggle with attacks by the nearby settlers.

Qaryut also suffers from a key road-closure of a road leading to both Nablus and Ramallah. Previous peaceful demonstrations to open the road, however, have ceased due to fear of more arrests, as 15 innocent Qaryut villagers, mostly young men, were arrested in the past 5 months for peaceful activism in taking part in the demonstrations.
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At about 2pm on 16 May, a 13 year-old boy was shot at and beaten by settlers and soldiers; he broke bones in his leg running from the shots at him and from being beaten. After falling, the boy was threatened with his life by settlers, but soldiers arrived and stopped the settlers from killing him before threatening the young boy with three guns while he lay injured and immobile on the ground.

Initial medical attention was not allowed during the time Israeli soldiers had taken the boy into their custody, implying that he would be treated in an Israeli ambulance. However, three hours later, the boy had to be picked up, untreated, by the Red Crescent and taken to Rafidia hospital in Nablus.

When solidarity activists saw the boy, his entire right leg was wrapped in a cast. Later he described that he was sitting on his land which is close to an illegal Israeli settlement bordering Qaryut and famous for attacks such as olive tree torching. Settlers shot at him and he ran from the shots. When he fell, the settlers beat him and were going to kill him, but soldiers arrived and told the settlers could not. Afterwards, the soldiers also shouted at the boy with guns pointed at him.

The boy may undergo surgery for his broken bones.

Just two days before this attack, Qaryut faced an olive tree torching attack from another nearby illegal Israeli settlement and the village has a history of well-documented settler attacks on its land. In addition, Israeli military have closed a Qaryut road to Nablus and Ramallah for Palestinian use as the road is not far from illegal Israeli settlements on Qaryut land. Currently, 15 mostly young Qaryut men have been arrested for activism in peaceful demonstrations against the key road’s closure.

Systemic malfunctioning of the labor and financial markets

Palestine: Hundreds of worshipers, students rally in Al-Aqsa Mosque, cultivated land lot bulldozed & more minors are detained

Ongoing Nakba: Powerful infographic from Visualizing Palestine shows century of land theft, expulsion (click to view)

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Watch: “From Al-Araqib to Susiya” – Palestinians highlight ‘Israel’s’ ongoing efforts to expel them (click to read/watch)

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Hundreds of worshipers and students rally in Al-Aqsa Mosque

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)– Al-Aqsa Foundation for Endowment and Heritage said hundreds of worshipers and students from Jerusalem and 1948 territories accompanied by Islamic Movement leaders rallied on Wednesday in Al-Aqsa Mosque to support Jerusalemites

The Islamic Movement leader Sheikh Taysir Khalidi said that 20 buses carrying Palestinians from the 1948-occupied territories headed toward Al-Aqsa Mosque to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Nakba.

He said the move was called for by a number of political parties and movements, which urged Palestinians from the 1948 territories to flock to Jerusalem to support its residents and defend Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Resurrection against the settlers and Jewish extremists’ fierce attacks.

Al-Aqsa Foundation reported that nearly 70 settlers, guarded by the Israeli police, stormed on Wednesday morning Al-Aqsa Mosque from the Mughrabi Gate, and desecrated its courtyards.

The Foundation pointed out that the pace of raids in Al-Aqsa has increased, especially in recent days, and warned that the incursions will continue in the coming days.

Meanwhile, Kiryat Arba settlers in addition to a number of Jewish organizations announced their intention to storm Al-Aqsa Mosque and organize inside it a celebration for their children on the occasion of the Shavuot Feast.

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Rabbi accompanies Jewish settlers on storming of Aqsa

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)– Extremist rabbi Yisrael Ariel stormed the holy Aqsa mosque in occupied Jerusalem on Thursday at the head of a group of Jewish settlers.

Jerusalemite sources said that groups of Jewish settlers stormed the Aqsa mosque via the Maghareba gate and strolled inside it under heavy police escort.

Worshipers and Quran students inside the mosque chanted Allahu Akbar to protest the tour.

For his part, Mahmoud Abu Atta, the spokesman for the Aqsa Foundation for endowment and Heritage, said that 32 settlers broke into the Aqsa mosque in three groups and toured its plazas and attempted to offer Talmudic rituals.

Abu Atta said that the Israeli police forces tightened security measures in and around the holy site and took shots of worshipers and students.

Tension is running high in occupied Jerusalem and the vicinity of the Aqsa mosque in light of the heavy deployment of Israeli police and military forces in anticipation of more such storming by Jewish settlers.

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IOF soldiers bulldoze cultivated land lot

NABLUS, (PIC)– Israeli occupation forces (IOF) bulldozed Palestinian cultivated land lot in Aqraba village near Nablus claiming that it was “state owned”.

Hamza Direiya, a member of the committee in defense of Aqraba land, said that the soldiers destroyed the 25-dunum land planted with olive and almond trees south of the village.

He said that the soldiers also destroyed a water well used in irrigating that land owned by Ayham Direiya.

The activist said that the land owner, who has been reclaiming the land for the past two years, suffered heavy material losses, adding that the Israeli authorities did not recognize the land owner’s title deeds proving his ownership of the land.

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IOF soldiers detain 20 Palestinians mostly children

AL-KHALIL, (PIC)– Israeli occupation forces (IOF) detained 20 Palestinians, mostly children, in Tabaka village, south of Al-Khalil, on Thursday.

Local sources said that dozens of IOF soldiers broke into houses in the village and searched them using police dogs and rounded up 150 citizens in one of the squares before arresting 20 of them.

The soldiers targeted children in the age category 14-18 in the arrest campaign and interrogated them on the attack on an army jeep that was burnt in the attack during confrontations on Wednesday on the Nakba anniversary, the sources said.

They pointed out that the IOF released 18 of those arrested after quick interrogation and retained two behind bars.

Palestine: Putrid liquid spared in people/houses, school teachers detained & injuries, arrests in Jerusalem

Prisoner’s family from Gaza appeals for the release of its patient son

GAZA, (PIC)– Family of Palestinian prisoner Mustafa Ali Abu Haniyeh, from the Gaza Strip, appealed to international and human rights organizations to immediately intervene to save the life of its patient son and release him from the Israeli jails.

The family of captive Abu Haniyeh, aged 40 from the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, called on the humanitarian and human rights organizations and the Red Cross to intervene and pressure the Israeli occupation authorities to release its son who suffers from several serious illnesses.

Captive Abu Haniyeh is held now in Nafha prison. He is sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, of which he has already spent 9 years.

His wife Maha confirmed that his health condition has been deteriorating, as he suffers from a stomach ulcer, breathing difficulties, and vision problems.

She pointed out that the policy of medical neglect adopted by the Israeli prison administration had exacerbated the health condition of her husband.

Mrs. Abu Haniyeh added that the prison authorities have recently transferred her ill husband to Nafha prison, and expressed concern about his condition, holding the occupation authorities fully responsible for his life.

The Israeli authorities detain in its jails nearly five thousand Palestinian prisoners, including 450 captives from the Gaza Strip, most of them are serving long terms.

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Israeli navy gunboats open heavy machinegun fire at Palestinian fishermen

GAZA, (PIC)– Israeli navy gunboats opened heavy machinegun fire at Palestinian fishing boats working off the coast of central Gaza Strip on Saturday night.

Local sources told the PIC reporter that the gunboats opened intensive fire at the boats that were fishing off the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.

Israeli gunboats occasionally fire at Palestinian fishing boats and impede their work even within the reduced three nautical miles radius.

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IOF soldiers deploy in Al-Khalil, detain schoolteachers

AL-KHALIL, (PIC)– Israeli occupation forces (IOF) detained three teachers working at Janba school near Yatta, south of Al-Khalil province, on Sunday morning.

Local sources said that the soldiers detained the teacher while on their way to school, which is near to a Jewish settlement.

They said that IOF soldiers also roamed the streets of two villages near Al-Khalil city and broke into a number of suburbs and the Old City of Al-Khalil.

The sources said that the soldiers broke into a number of homes in the process and searched them.

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Injuries, arrests reported in Jerusalem night clashes

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)– A number of Jerusalemites were injured in Saturday night clashes with Israeli occupation forces in Bab Hitta and Saadiya alleys near the Aqsa mosque.

Wadi Hilwa information center said in a statement on Sunday that a number of Jerusalemites were hit with metal and rubber bullets in the “violent” confrontations.

It said that the soldiers used live and rubber bullets in addition to teargas and stun grenades to quell the young Jerusalemites.

In a related context, a number of Jerusalemites suffered burns and breathing problems in clashes with the Israeli forces in Tur suburb in occupied Jerusalem while a young man was detained during the confrontations.

Syrian opposition representative to “Israeli” TV: Satisfied with encouraging strike

Syrian opposition representative to “Israeli” TV: Satisfied with encouraging strike

Al Manar

(See video in original source) The “Israeli” channel 2 hosted on Sunday the representative of the “armed opposition” in Syria, and particularly in the city of Homs.

The man, who identified himself as Hassan Ristnawi, called the channel to express his joy and delight with the “Israeli” aggression against his country.
He further pointed out that “the Syrian opposition” is so much satisfied.

“Recently the Syrian regime escalated its attacks against us [the so-called Free Syrian Army],” he said, and noted that “the whole world is watching what is happening without moving.”

However, according to Ristnawi, “the “Israeli” attacks were very encouraging.”

“The “Israeli” strike delighted the hearts of opposition fighters on the ground and provided the FSA with spirits after its members suffered despair,” he told the “Israeli” channel.

Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition spokesman in Homs was keen on confirming that he is well aware that he was speaking to the “Israeli” television.

“Shalom to everyone with you,” he ended his conversation.

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UN: Syrian Militants Used Deadly Sarin Gas

Al Manar

Syrian militants have made use of the deadly nerve agent sarin in their war-torn country’s conflict, UN human rights investigator Carla del Ponte has said.

“According to the testimonies we have gathered, the rebels have used chemical weapons, making use of sarin gas,” del Ponte, a former war crimes prosecutor, said in an interview with Swiss radio late on Sunday.

“We still have to deepen our investigation, verify and confirm (the findings) through new witness testimony, but according to what we have established so far, it is at the moment opponents of the regime who are using sarin gas,” she added.

She stressed that the UN commission of inquiry on Syria, which she is a part of, had far from finished its investigation.

Sarin is a powerful neurotoxin developed by Nazi scientists in the 1930s. Originally developed as a pesticide, sarin was used to deadly effect in the 1988 raid on the Kurdish village of Halabja in northern Iraq. A Japanese cult also used sarin in two attacks in the 1990s.

The gas works by being inhaled or absorbed through the skin and kills by crippling the nervous system.

Symptoms include nausea and violent headaches, blurred or tunnel vision, drooling, muscular convulsions, respiratory arrest, loss of consciousness and then death, according to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. In high doses, sarin paralyses the muscles around the lungs and prevents chemicals from “switching off” the body’s secretions, so victims suffocate or drown as their lungs fill with mucus and saliva. Even a tiny dose of sarin — which, like other nerve gases such as soman, tabun and VX, is odourless, colourless and tasteless — can be deadly if it enters the respiratory system, or if a drop comes into contact with the skin.

US policy helped create a land of government corruption and narco gangs

Harrowing video shows Israeli soldiers arresting Hebron children

by Maureen Clare Murphy, EI

Two videos of Israeli soldiers arresting three young boys in Hebron give a harrowing glimpse into the everyday violence faced by children in the occupied West Bank city where settlers have taken over Palestinian homes under the protection of the army. (Videos embedded above and below.)

The videos, published by the group Youth Against Settlements, show a chaotic scene of settlers confronting Israeli soldiers, Palestinian residents and international observers at Shuhada Street on Sunday. The heavily-armed Israeli soldiers drag away three young boys while Palestinians and an international activist attempt to intervene. One of the boys wails with fright as he is pulled away. A woman who identifies herself as the mother of one of the children defiantly goes into the Israeli army jeep and manages to remove one of the boys from it.

According to the International Solidarity Movement in Hebron, Palestinian children were walking home from school when they were attacked by a child from one of the settlements in the city center, who was accompanied by his two older brothers. Youth Against Settlements told The Electronic Intifada via email that the children from the settlement were waiting for the Palestinian students as they exited the school.

The younger child from the settlement began “throwing sticks, beating … and hurling insults” at one of the Palestinian children in the video, identified by the International Solidarity Movement as 12-year-old Ahmed Abu Heikel.

The ISM adds:

As soon as Ahmed defended himself against the beatings, the settler children immediately called for soldiers at nearby checkpoints who came running. Eyewitnesses state that the Palestinian children were not violent. The settler children pointed out Ahmed and [his 11-year-old brother] Mouawieh as well as their classmate Bilal Said, who were violently grabbed and pushed against a wall by soldiers.

A crowd of about 50 people quickly gathered, mostly Palestinian neighbours and classmates as well as international activists, journalists and settlers. The crowd, and especially the headmistress of Qortoba school, Noora Zayer, who was walking with the boys and witnessed the attack, insisted that the arrest was unacceptable. Bystanders and international activists managed to de-arrest Bilal, who then ran away. However Ahmed and Mouawieh were arrested; Ahmed is apparently being charged with assaulting the Israeli soldier who was called to the scene by the settler children and grabbed the Palestinian rather than the settler child.

A non-violent Swedish activist who intervened peacefully on behalf of the children has also been arrested and is being charged with assaulting a soldier. The two children and the Swedish activist were taken away separately in military jeeps [author’s note: the activist was taken away in a police van]. The Swedish activist is currently being held in Givat Havot settlement near Hebron city, whilst Ahmed and Mouawieh are being held in interrogation centres.

The Israeli soldiers took no action against the settler children who had instigated the attack. The police summoned the youngest settler child who had attacked Ahmed and spoke to him in the presence of his parents for about half a minute, after which he was allowed to go back home without any repercussions.

The ISM states that the brothers were released a few hours after their arrest, and that Ahmed had his fingerprints taken and that Mouawieh was kicked in the stomach by a soldier.

The activist who Israeli soldiers are seen shoving in the videos is in detention and faces deportation, according to the ISM, who say that “He was beaten during his arrest and hit with a gun. Soldiers conducted two mock executions by pointing guns at his head, loading them and pretending to press the trigger. He was blindfolded and kept inside the military base in Hebron, where he could hear the crying of the arrested children next to him.”

Child arrests in Hebron

The incident captured in the harrowing videos is hardly an isolated event. Video shows Israeli soldiers, backed up by armed settlers, arresting a 14-year-old boy in Hebron two weeks ago.

Christian Peacemaker Teams released a report last month documenting dozens of arrests of Palestinian children aged 15 and under in Hebron between February and mid-April of this year.

Meanwhile Israeli soldiers were caught on video using a handcuffed Palestinian teen as a human shield as they fired at protesters in the West Bank village of Abu Dis, near Jerusalem, last month.

According to the rights group Defence for Children International – Palestine Section, 236 Palestinian children were in Israeli detention in February of this year, 39 of them aged 15 or younger.

Palestinian children routinely detained and arrested by Israeli authorities

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Palestine: Clip shows Israeli soldiers using teenager as human shield & several towns in WB raided

Clip shows Israeli soldiers using Palestinian teenager as human shield

Press TV

A video clip has emerged showing Israeli troops using a handcuffed Palestinian teenager as human shield during a protest in East al-Quds (Jerusalem).

According to the video, posted on YouTube by the Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-Palestine), the helmeted Israeli soldiers remove the young Palestinian from an armored jeep.

The boy, with his hands cuffed and held above his head, is then forced to stand beside the Israeli soldiers, who later start firing on Palestinian protesters.

The incident occurred in Abu Dis neighborhood of East al-Quds on Friday.

DCI-Palestine says the Israeli soldiers frequently use Palestinian children as human shield.

“We’re outraged that Israeli soldiers continue to use Palestinian children as human shields with impunity,” said Ayed Abu Eqtaish of DCI-Palestine.

Abu Eqtaish also stated that the teen in this case “was deliberately exposed to danger after he had been taken into custody.”

“Israeli authorities must conduct a prompt, transparent and impartial investigation and hold the perpetrators accountable.”

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Israeli TV Report to improve the occupation’s image

NAZARETH, (PIC)– The Israeli military censor has allowed the Israeli Channel 2 television crew to document Palestinian children’s arrest process in al-Khalil for allegedly throwing stones in an attempt to demonstrate the “Israeli positive image” during arrest processes.

The Israeli TV report tried to improve the Israeli soldier’s image during storming Palestinian houses in “kindly” way, giving the detainee’s family the opportunity to say goodbye to their children and to check on their condition after arrest.

However, the Israeli arrest process is carried out violently by the occupation soldiers, where they daily storm the Palestinian houses at night, searching and damaging their properties and attacking the detainee’s family members.

The TV report, aired on the Israeli second channel, filmed the Israeli soldiers breakings into Aroub refugee camp in al-Khalil to arrest Palestinian children under the pretext of throwing stones at settlers’ vehicles.

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IOF raids several Palestinian towns in WB

AL-KHALIL, (PIC)– The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) raided several towns in Bethlehem and al-Khalil southern occupied West Bank, while summoning a Palestinian citizen for investigation.

The sources confirmed that Israeli forces raided the towns of Nuba, Dahria and several suburbs in the city of al-Khalil, while dozens of settlers stormed Qalks town under the protection of Israeli soldiers for several hours.

The Israeli army stormed the towns of Dar Salah, Kheder, Dheisheh, Aida refugee camp, and several suburbs of the city of Bethlehem, while the occupation summoned the citizen Ramzi Mesaieed, from Aida refugee camp, to Etzion detention center near Bethlehem for interrogation.