Both young women come from the most recent refusal movement… against the Israeli occupation of Palestine. In December 2008, Amnesty International officially endorsed this campaign of solidarity led by American activist group Jewish Voice for Peace, garnering 20,000 letters of support. Amnesty International considers them to be “prisoners of conscience” and “calls for their immediate and unconditional release.” Read more »
At 11am today two people entered the Ahava store in Monmoth Street, Covent Garden and closed the shop by locking themselves inside. Under the banner of ‘Stolen Beauty from Stolen Land’, they set out to highlight the sale of beauty products manufactured on illegal Israeli Settlements on Occupied Palestinian land. Read more »
Jonathan Cook: When the transit system contract was signed in 2005, Ariel Sharon, the prime minister at the time, said it would “sustain Jerusalem for eternity as the capital of the Jewish people”. Omar Barghouti, a founder of the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement, which has been targeting Veolia and Alstom over their involvement, wrote this month in the Jerusalem Quarterly magazine that the railway was part of “a comprehensive, long-term strategy… to cement the integration of those [settlement] blocs into an ever sprawling ‘Greater Jerusalem”. Read more »
The TUC today backed a targeted boycott of Israeli goods originating from illegal settlements and an end to arms sales to Israel to ramp up the pressure “for an end to the occupation of Palestinian territories”. The decision to step up its position was triggered by widespread dismay by unions at the Israeli offensive in Gaza in January. Read more »
Jonathan Cook: Israeli peace activists are planning to ratchet up their campaign against groups in the United States that raise money for settlers by highlighting how tax exemptions are helping to fund the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank. Gush Shalom, a small peace group that advocates Israel’s withdrawal from the occupied territories, is preparing to send details to the US tax authorities questioning the charitable status of several organisations. Read more »
A protest at the Toronto International Film Festival has taken center stage after a group of artists and writers signed a letter of protest against the festival’s decision to spotlight the city of Tel Aviv. Activists say the TIFF spotlight plays into Israel’s attempt to improve its global image in the wake of the assault on the Gaza Strip and the ongoing occupation of Palestinian land.
Naomi Klein explains, very eloquently, the reasons for the protest against TIFF to Amy Goodman of Democracy Now TV. Read more »
The question is not why Norway divested from the defense electronics giant Elbit Systems, but why only now, and why only from that company? [There are] over 40 Israeli and international companies that are involved in solidifying Israel’s occupation, and in which Norway invests, according to data from the “Who Profits” project, run by the Coalition of Women for Peace. Read more »
Jane Fonda, Danny Glover and Eve Ensler have joined the growing list of artists who are boycotting the Toronto film festival over a program honoring Tel Aviv’s 100th anniversary, gossip blogger Perez Hilton reported on Friday. The three have added their names to a letter aimed at festival officials claiming that Tel Aviv was built on violence, ignoring the “suffering of thousands of former residents and descendants,” Hilton reported. Read more »
Some 200 Palestinians infiltrated and attacked a settlement outpost in the northern West Bank on Friday morning, according to eyewitnesses. The witnesses said that Palestinians from a neighboring village entered a hilltop community near the Nofe Yarden outpost in the Shiloh bloc, armed with hoes and axes.
IOA Editor: Levinson is the Haaretz settlement reporter. Clearly, his writing is Israel-centric. In this report, he neglects to mention that the Palestinians “infiltrated” an illegal compound of outsiders who invaded their land, and whose presence in the Occupied Territories is illegal and in violation of international law. Read more »
The “Shock Vehicle” is outfitted with new systems to deal with disorder. In addition, it can remove obstacles weighing half a ton. As of next month, it will be put to use in all IDF West Bank units.
IOA Editor: The latest toy in the IDF killing arsenal is touted as increasing security to both Occupation soldiers and demonstrators. The IDF PR team didn’t mention the recent deaths and grave injuries of anti-Occupation demonstrators targeted by soldiers using gas canister launchers. The “Shock Vehicle” will undoubtedly help soldiers improve their aim when launching gas canisters. Read more »
