This is a video of Geroge Galloway's speech transmitted into Canada via video link
you can watch it HERE
enjoy!
3 years ago
WASHINGTON, March 25, 2009 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ ----The Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy, Inc. (IRmep) urges the Department of Justice to proceed with its long delayed prosecution of former AIPAC employees Steve Rosen and Keith Weissman. Colonel Lawrence Franklin, a co-conspirator indicted in 2005 for allegedly passing classified information in violation of the 1917 Espionage Act, has already been convicted. Growing special interest calls for dismissing charges against the former AIPAC employees strongly resemble previous demands for special treatment under the law.
In 2008 the release of formerly secret internal Department of Justice documents revealed that the DOJ ordered AIPAC's parent organization to register as the foreign agent of an Israeli principal in 1962. After three years of behind the scenes pressure and lobbying the DOJ acquiesced to pressure that the foreign agent registration be heavily redacted and filed in secret, an unprecedented exception in the history of public Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA: undefined, undefined, undefined%) filings. The 1938 FARA protects American citizens and Congress from foreign funded stealth lobbying.
Shutting down the current US v Rosen and Weissman case before it goes to trial would similarly short circuit rule of law in the United States. Only a public trial can reveal whether AIPAC lobbyists crossed a red line in their advocacy activities. An open trial may reveal whether there was an effort to leverage classified information into US military action against Iran, or whether mainstream media and the public are manipulated by lobbyists selectively trafficking secrets.
"Quietly folding this prosecution would promote a growing perception across America that some organizations and individuals are free to break the law with impunity, at great cost to law abiding citizens." said IRmep Director Grant F. Smith. "Based upon the alleged activities raised by the indictment our supporters from 37 states urge the Department of Justice to proceed to trial. Doing otherwise could have grave consequences for governance in America."
Reporters seeking background about the current AIPAC espionage case or the 1962 foreign agent registration episode may consult case files online at http://www.irmep.org/ila.
AJC, ADL urge AIPAC prosecution to reconsider
March 26, 2009
WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Two top Jewish groups are urging the Justice Department to reconsider its prosecution of former AIPAC staffers Steve Rosen and Keith Weissman
Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg, whose nation currently holds the rotating EU presidency, told his country's Lidove Noviny newspaper that the union was "not happy with some of the steps of the Israeli government, namely construction works close to Jerusalem but also access to Gaza, which is today very limited."
Meanwhile in Prague, President Shimon Peres met with Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek Tuesday and warned him that "it would be a mistake on the EU's part to give Israel the cold shoulder" and delay the planned upgrade of EU-Israel relations "due to our war on terror."
"Israel is at the forefront of the war on terror," he said. "This is a war that we fight not only for our people, but for the entire world. Today terror is in Israel and tomorrow terror will be in Europe."
Peres tell EU president: Europe must keep eyes open for Iranian threat
President Shimon Peres met with Czech President Vaclav Klaus in Prague on Monday and told his counterpart, who currently holds the rotation European Union presidency that "the EU must keep it's eyes open for the dangers lurking – Nuclear Iran is a danger to the world and to Europe."
More than 250 Zionist Organization of America activists urged Congress to tighten sanctions on Iran and place conditions on U.S. aid to the Palestinians
A row has broken out over allegations of antisemitism at the New York Times, America's most vaunted name in journalism and a newspaper with a large Jewish readership.
The storm centres on a column about Jews in Iran written by New York Times journalist Roger Cohen and a cartoon attacking the recent war in Gaza.
The newspaper, and Cohen in particular, has been accused of being too critical of Israel and an apologist for Iran and its leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Cohen's column was written from Iran about the country's small Jewish minority. His piece acknowledged the difficulties the group experienced and portrayed them as part of an Iranian society that he said was more tolerant, democratic and sophisticated than many American critics allowed.
Such sentiments might seem uncontroversial, but in America no one touching on issues around Israel or antisemitism escapes close scrutiny. Cohen was attacked by Jewish writers and bloggers. The Jerusalem Post dubbed him "misled", while the Atlantic Monthly called him "credulous". Others went much further. "The Nazis had Theresienstadt, their 'model' concentration camp used to 'persuade' the gullible that Jews and others who aroused the ire of the Nazis were being treated well. Would Roger Cohen have had no problem portraying that favourably as well?" fumed writer Ed Lasky on the American Thinker website. more HERE
WASHINGTON, March 25, 2009 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ ----The Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy, Inc. (IRmep) urges the Department of Justice to proceed with its long delayed prosecution of former AIPAC employees Steve Rosen and Keith Weissman. Colonel Lawrence Franklin, a co-conspirator indicted in 2005 for allegedly passing classified information in violation of the 1917 Espionage Act, has already been convicted. Growing special interest calls for dismissing charges against the former AIPAC employees strongly resemble previous demands for special treatment under the law.
In 2008 the release of formerly secret internal Department of Justice documents revealed that the DOJ ordered AIPAC's parent organization to register as the foreign agent of an Israeli principal in 1962. After three years of behind the scenes pressure and lobbying the DOJ acquiesced to pressure that the foreign agent registration be heavily redacted and filed in secret, an unprecedented exception in the history of public Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA: undefined, undefined, undefined%) filings. The 1938 FARA protects American citizens and Congress from foreign funded stealth lobbying.
An open trial may reveal whether there was an effort to leverage classified information into US military action against Iran, or whether mainstream media and the public are manipulated by lobbyists selectively trafficking secrets.
Shutting down the current US v Rosen and Weissman case before it goes to trial would similarly short circuit rule of law in the United States. Only a public trial can reveal whether AIPAC lobbyists crossed a red line in their advocacy activities. An open trial may reveal whether there was an effort to leverage classified information into US military action against Iran, or whether mainstream media and the public are manipulated by lobbyists selectively trafficking secrets.
"Quietly folding this prosecution would promote a growing perception across America that some organizations and individuals are free to break the law with impunity, at great cost to law abiding citizens." said IRmep Director Grant F. Smith. "Based upon the alleged activities raised by the indictment our supporters from 37 states urge the Department of Justice to proceed to trial. Doing otherwise could have grave consequences for governance in America."
British MP George Galloway is no more a threat to Canada’s national security than was deported racist Ernst Zundel.
If Canada is going to bar all prominent visitors who are obnoxious, or who spout political views we don’t agree with, then we had better start hiring thousands more customs personnel LINK
Israeli military police have closed an investigation into soldiers' accounts of abuses committed in Gaza, saying they were based on hearsay.
An Israeli military college published the accounts, which included claims that soldiers fired on civilians and vandalised property.
The probe concluded that the stories were "purposely exaggerated".
"The climate in general... I don't know how to describe it.... the lives of Palestinians, let's say, are much, much less important than the lives of our soldiers," an infantry squad leader was quoted saying in reports carried in Israeli newspapers.
While academy director Dany Zamir told public radio that "[the testimonies] conveyed an atmosphere in which one feels entitled to use unrestricted force against Palestinians".
Testimonies, which were given by combat pilots and infantry soldiers, also included allegations of unnecessary destruction of Palestinian property.
"We would throw everything out of the windows to make room and order. Everything... refrigerators, plates, furniture. The order was to throw all of the house's contents outside," a soldier said.
Heavy civilian casualties during the three-week operation which ended in the blockaded coastal strip on 18 January have provoked an international outcry.
Record losses for Africa Israel
Lev Leviev's Africa Israel is going deeper and deeper into the red. The company is expected to lose NIS 1.5 billion to NIS 2 billion for the fourth quarter of 2008 alone, and total 2008 losses could reach an unprecedented NIS 3.5 billion. Most of the losses stem from the drop in the value of the firm's real estate properties in Eastern Europe.
Africa Israel refused to comment on the report
Africa's shareholder equity at the end of the third quarter last year totalled NIS 7.4 billion.
The company had forecast losses of NIS 1.7 billion for the third quarter of 2008, but in the end it reported NIS 2.1 billion of red ink.
The third quarter numbers included write-downs of NIS 1.08 billion on the value of real estate properties. Most came from various Africa Israel subsidiaries, those in the U.S., Eastern Europe and Russia in particular. These losses continued in the fourth quarter, mostly due to the decline in value of Eastern European currencies.
Africa's shares have fallen 86% in value in the past year, and the company is now valued at only NIS 1.7 billion on the stock market. Its bonds are now trading at junk bond yields of up to 60%.
In its 2008 third quarter financial report, Africa Israel wrote it would put up further assets as guarantees for its debts to the banks. The company is expected to finalize an agreement this week with Bank Leumi on refinancing its 73.4% holdings in the Ramat Aviv Mall, after Africa failed in all its attempts to sell the mall at a price tag of NIS 1.3 billion.
Leviev losses force Chabad to fund-raise
Chabad is turning to small donors to stave off a financial crisis in its Russian operations, as major donors like diamond and real estate mogul Lev Leviev are pulling back after suffering heavy losses in the global economic recession.
Officials at Chabad's worldwide headquarters in New York's Crown Heights neighborhood declined to comment specifically on budget cuts due to Leviev's losses, but said that outposts in the former Soviet Union had been successful in drumming up new donors to keep critical programs intact
Oil Refineries, Israel's biggest refinery, posted a quarterly net loss of $182 million, compared with a profit of $18 million a year earlier.
British MP banned from Canada
12:39pm
Edmonton / iNews880.com
3/30/2009
Controversial British MP George Galloway's request for an injunction to enter Canada has been denied by a Federal Court judge.
The decision prevents Galloway from appearing in person at an event in Toronto this evening, the first of three scheduled events in Canada.
The federal government has told Galloway he could not enter Canada because he allegedly engaged in terrorist activities.
In a letter to Galloway, the government says the MP delivered humanitarian goods to war-torn Gaza and gave $45,000 to Hamas, which is a banned terrorist organization in Canada.
On Sunday, one of the lawyers who made the injunction bid said Galloway gave money to the head of the government in Gaza, not to the head of Hamas, even though they are the same person.
Organizers of Galloway's speaking tour have said the Toronto speech, scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, would go ahead - either in person if he wins the court injunction, or via video if he loses.
Galloway speech will aid Hamas, group alleges
A Federal Court judge in Toronto has upheld a Canadian travel ban for outspoken British MP and antiwar activist George Galloway.
George Galloway's planned visit to Canada is not just a speaking junket, but a fundraising tour that would benefit the outlawed terrorist group Hamas, the Canadian wing of the Jewish Defence League alleged yesterday.
The controversial Zionist group cited a press release from Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights, one of Mr. Galloway's hosts, that said a Montreal event on Wednesday "will aim to raise additional funds for Galloway's Gaza aid caravan."
Meir Weinstein, national director of JDL, said he did not know if it was his March 16 letter, citing Mr. Galloway's own promotional material, that tipped the Conservative government to the visit.
Mr. Weinstein said he is primarily concerned with the fundraising, not the famously bombastic content of Mr. Galloway's speeches.
He said concerns over free speech made him feel "damned if you do, and damned if you don't." But he said he "can't accept being relegated to second rate status, that we don't have a right to object."
"We would oppose him speaking anywhere and we would oppose any apologist or supporter of Hamas," he said. "But whether or not the government would prevent that, I don't know. We're not taking a stand on the issue of free speech here... It's extremely dangerous what this individual represents."
Laith Marouf, branches coordinator for Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights in Montreal, said that for the JDL to accuse others of supporting terrorism "is like the pot calling the kettle black."
He referred to the FBI's description of JDL as "a violent extremist Jewish organization." Among other critics, the Southern Poverty Law Center calls it a "hate group," and denounces its "long history of bombing, assaulting and threatening its perceived enemies."
JDL's Canada wing was recently reformed under Mr. Weinstein after a period of inactivity.
Mr. Marouf said Mr. Galloway's aid caravan brought humanitarian and medical aid to Gaza, and did not support terrorism.
"That is what we are aiming to raise funds for," Mr. Marouf said, adding that the money would be given as a donation to the British charity Viva Palestina.
This charity, backed by Mr. Galloway, has said it raised around $2-million, largely as a result of public outcry at Israel's offensive there in January.
"Investigation by the Los Angeles JTTF revealed that Irving Rubin and Earl Krugel were active members of the Jewish Defense League (JDL), a known violent extremist Jewish Organization. A Cooperating Witness reported statements made by Rubin and Krugel indicating a plan to attack the Islamic Muslim Public Affairs Council (IMPAC) office in Los Angeles or possibly the California office of United States Congressman Darrell Issa. Statements made by Kruger indicated the motivation for the attack was to serve as a "wake up call" to the Muslim Community. Rubin and Krugel were arrested by members of the Los Angeles JTTF for conspiring to build and place an improvised explosive device at the IMPAC office. Irving Rubin committed suicide and Earl Krugel's charges are pending."
Travel ban upheld for outspoken British MP Galloway
Ruling leaves open the possibility that there could be a full hearing on whether Mr. Galloway can enter Canada at a later date. Barbara Jackman, who represented Mr. Galloway and his supporters, said she was disappointed with the decision.
"The court was asked to do something courageous, to defend free speech," said Ms. Jackman, who added that she is not aware of any other British MP ever being denied entry to Canada.
She indicated there may be a full hearing at a later date to decide if Mr. Galloway can enter the country in the future.
IDF ends Gaza probe, says misconduct claims are 'rumors'
Military Advocate General Brig. Gen. Avichai Mendelblit on Monday instructed the Military Police Investigation unit to close the investigation into soldiers' accounts of alleged misconduct and serious violations of the army's rules of engagement during Operation Cast Lead.
In a press release issued Monday the army said that the preliminary Military Police investigation into the testimonies revealed that they "were based on rumors and not first-hand experience."
However, the Military Advocate General's announcement does not address testimonies published by the Associated Press on Friday that corroborate soldiers' accounts with testimonies given by Palestinians.
The probe was launched earlier this month after IDF soldiers were quoted as telling a military cadet academy that combat troops in Gaza fired at unarmed Palestinian civilians and vandalized property during Operation Cast Lead. The army has barred those soldiers from speaking to the press. (Hmm wonder why?.....NOT!)
The testimonies include a description by an infantry squad leader of an incident where an IDF sharpshooter mistakenly shot a Palestinian mother and her two children. "There was a house with a family inside .... We put them in a room. Later we left the house and another platoon entered it, and a few days after that there was an order to release the family. They had set up positions upstairs. There was a sniper position on the roof," the soldier said.
Another squad leader from the same brigade told of an incident where the company commander ordered that an elderly Palestinian woman be shot and killed; she was walking on a road about 100 meters from a house the company had commandeered.
Report: U.S. warned Sudan before attack on Gaza convoy
The U.S. warned the Sudanese government that weapons were being smuggled into the Gaza Strip through its territory ahead of a recent attack on a Gaza-bound arms convoy, which foreign media has attributed to the Israel Air Force, the pan-Arab daily Al-Sharq al-Awsat reported Monday.
a senior American official transferred a message to a Sudanese government official and asked him to make sure that the message makes its way to Sudan's leaders in Khartoum so that immediate steps can be taken to put a stop to the smuggling of weapons. The sources said that the Sudanese security establishment declared that the issue would be investigated, shortly before the first attack.
On Friday, the American network ABC reported that the IAF had targeted a convoy of trucks in Sudan carrying Iranian weapons to Gaza in January. According to the report, 39 people riding in 17 trucks were killed, and civilians in the area sustained injuries.
In light of the fact that the attacks occurred in such close proximity to the American warning, Sudanese officials initially assumed that it was the U.S. that was behind the bombings. However, when the U.S. denied involvement, the accusations were pointed at Israel, which has yet to confirm or deny the reports.
On Friday, the spokesman for the Sudanese Foreign Ministry said that Sudan was investigating the attacks and collecting evidence at the scene, but will not respond until the investigation is complete.
He added that the convoys were likely smuggling goods, but not weapons.
Caravan to meet British MP George Galloway at border cancelled
TORONTO - A Federal Court judge will rule today on an injunction asking that British MP George Galloway be allowed into Canada to deliver anti-war speeches.
A caravan of his supporters was scheduled to meet him at the Canada-U.S. border at Lacolle, Que. today in anticipation of the court decision. But because the ruling isn't expected until about 2 p.m. ET, caravan organizers have decided to cancel the border event.
Organizers of Galloway's speaking tour say a speech scheduled for 7 p.m. ET in Toronto will go ahead - either in person if he wins the court injunction, or via video if he loses.
Lawyers representing groups trying to bring Galloway to Canada say an injunction should be granted allowing Galloway to enter Canada for four days pending a judicial review.
Galloway is also scheduled to deliver speeches in Mississauga, Ont., Montreal and Ottawa.
Sunday 29 March 2009, Londoners converged towards Tesco supermarkets in West London in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
Avocadoes, pomellos, cherry tomatoes, herbs and dates grown in Israel and on illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian West Bank were trapped in baskets and trolleys in order to disrupt the sale of such produce and symbolise the need for clear international action against illegal Israeli settlements and Israeli war crimes in the region. Leaflets were placed on the empty shelves explaining the role of Israeli goods in funding Israeli settler colonialism and state violence.
Tesco, and most supermarkets in Britain, stock and sell Israeli goods including produce from illegal Israeli settlements implanted in the occupied Palestinian West Bank. Some of this settlement product is misleadingly labelled 'West Bank' leading many customers to believe they are buying Palestinian produce, while some is labelled 'made in Israel' even though the settlements are clearly colonial entities outside of Israel's internationally recognized borders.
The event was timed to mark Yom el Ard, the yearly celebration of the Palestinian civil rights movement, as well as the global day for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions ( http://www.alternativenews.org/content/view/1668/381/, http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/351, http://www.alternativenews.org/content/view/1615/1/)
In recent months, the global pressure for Israel to end its violence against Palestinians has been increasingly felt inside Israel.( http://www.alternativenews.org/content/view/1605/110/)
BEIRUT, March 30, 2009 (MENASSAT) - “Diaa (Eddin Gad) was released on Friday (March 27) at dawn... He was ill-treated in the period when we did not know where he was being held," Gamal Eid, director of the Cairo-based NGO Arabic Network for Human Rights Information told Reuters regarding Egyptian blogger Gad's imprisonment.
According to Eid, Gad was interrogated about his criticism of Mubarak and support of Gaza on his blog. Eid also said that the blogger was subject to torture while in custody, althought he Egyptian government has said nothing on the matter.
Gad was detained by police in early February near his home in the Nile Delta province of Gharbiya and then transferred to an unknown location.
On his blog "An Angry Voice" (http://soutgadeb.blogspot.com), Gad had featured "pro-Palestinian" content and news on the situation in the Strip during the recent three-week long Israeli offensive on Gaza.
Gad had posted numerous personal critiques of President Mubarak and the Egyptian authorities for their handling of the Gaza crisis, referring to Mubarak as "Ehud Mubarak"--an obvious reference to Israeli Defense Minister and former Prime Minister Ehud Barack.
Egypt faced strong criticism from the Arab world during the Gaza war for keeping its border with the Strip closed throughout the Israeli offensive.
Thousands of Egyptians joined in several large demonstrations that were held in Cairo in support of Gaza during the war.
Gad is not the only one: Mohammad Adel
Gad is not the only pro-Palestinian activist that was arrested during the time of the Gaza crisis. In February, Egyptian police detained German-Egyptian student and blogger Philip Rizk in a march in support of Gaza. He was held in custody for five days.
Last year, the Egyptian authorities arrested 20-year old student blogger Mohammed Adel on a Cairo street. No formal charges have been brought against Adel, but it is believed that the cyber-activist is being held because of recent photos he took in Gaza where he is seen posing with Hamas leaders.
Sources in Cairo say Adel could face charges of “terrorism and involvement in an armed organization” because of the images.
In an act of solidarity with Adel, a group of Egyptian bloggers and activists launched in February this year the campaign “ Operation General Meit”, “Meit” being Adel’s blog title (and nickname) that translates to “Already Dead”, where they are posing with fake AK-47s and toy guns in pictures on the Internet.
Blogger and “Operation General Meit” campaigner Mina Zekry previously told MENASSAT that the aim of the campaign was to bring attention to how “ridiculous” the allegations against Adel are.
“If Meit (Mohammed Adel) is a terrorist, then I’m also a terrorist,” Zekry states in a picture depicting the blogger holding a fake gun.
A letter from an Israeli teenager refusing to go into the army
About three years ago, as a youth of 18 years, I was facing the same dilemma facing most Israelis today: Do I go to the army like most people, do I go to the army psychologist and play crazy to get out of the army like so many Israelis do, or do I refuse to go to the army and to the shrink and go to prison? I want to look at these three options again, the way I did three years ago.
The first option is going to the army. This is the “normal” thing to do. This is what most Israelis do. This is what people in the whole world do, and have always done, when there is a war, a danger to their society. But is it the right thing to do? In order to answer that question I had to take a very careful look around me. I had to think of my experience with this conflict, and what I know of it.
When I was in the 9th grade, a teacher, asked me to join a new project called "The NIR School", introducing students, across national boundaries, to the field of biotechnology. I thought it would be interesting to go school with Palestinians, so I agreed. I found myself, in the summer of '99, on a two-week long program, with 60 youths from Israel, Jordan and the West Bank, living in youth hostels in Israel and Jordan. It was the first time I got to meet Palestinians. We didn't talk about current affairs. We got to know each other through study groups, social activities and music lessons. Rarely one of the Palestinian members would share a check-point story, but mostly it just didn't come up.
When the Intifada broke out, I talked to my NIR School friends on the phone and on the internet. The staff put together a special reunion for us. Almost all of the Israelis were there, but only 6 of 20 Palestinians came, in spite of heavy objection from their friends. Nu'ha from Beit-Jalla cried when talking about the shelling of her neighborhood, Muhanad from Tul-Karrem spoke of three days of detention in very harsh terms, and Sari told us of his friends who were shot dead during a demonstration.
This set me on a long road, traveling among the villages and towns of the West Bank in special convoys of the “Ta’ayush” movement, an Arab – Jewish partnership. As I rode in the convoy bringing food, water, and basic necessities to Palestinian villages, I found out that the state of Israel commits war crimes and tramples on human rights, destroying Palestinian cities, towns and villages, stealing land, detaining and executing people without trial, demolishing houses, businesses, and public institutions; looting, imposing closure and curfew on Palestinians, using torture and prevention of medical care, and all the time continuing with the construction and
expansion of Jewish settlements on Palestinian land. All this made me realize that I could not be a part of an army that engages in this kind of oppression.
I was left with two options. Going to the army psychologist is easy. Many people get a release from the army because they “don’t sleep well at night”, “think of killing themselves” and so on. Everybody knows how to do it.
But this too is oppression. Because it means you have to say something is wrong with YOU, not the army. You have to go quietly to ask for this release – and not proudly state your beliefs. Worst of all – it takes out most of the meaning of not going to the army. Because this means that a few people more don’t go to be occupiers – but many others will go. In order to make a change you have to go public – and if you go public they won’t let you go.
So I was left with prison. Of course prison is a very hard thing to go through, and of course it is also oppression. But going to prison is also one of the only things anyone in Israel can do these days to make a difference nonviolently. It is a moral step to take, a way of talking to people. Going to prison means you really believe in what you do, and you’re willing to pay a price for it. Going to prison was a way for us (me and my friends) to start talking to more Israelis and to tell them about the Palestinians we met, about the occupation, and about the responsibility we think we have to change things. It gave us a chance to reach Palestinians and show them that there are Israelis you can talk to and build something positive with. Most of all – it was the oppression I had to suffer from, in order to help lessen the oppression against others.
That is why I choose prison – and that is why I am still glad I made this decision, even after a long and hard two years behind bars.
The scale of the correspondence we’ve received means that it will take some time to respond properly to all who’ve emailed in.
Perhaps Jason Kenney hoped to silence George by banning him from the country. The opposite has happened. Not only has George begun a packed tour of the US, speaking on Palestine and the war, but he is getting coast to coast coverage in Canada itself. Pressure is mounting on the government to reverse its decision.
As George says, “What is happening is a sinister attempt to criminalise efforts to build solidarity for the besieged people of Palestine their right to choose their own government.” It is also a dangerous attack on the principle of free speech.
Below is a step by step guide from Canadian campaigners over how to register your anger at the ban. Please take a couple of moments to email off your response.
The legal challenge to the ban has been submitted and more and more people are booking for the tour dates. Whatever happens, George will be addressing those theatres by one means or another.
We are also asking people to show their support financially. Click this link to donate to the special fund to fight Kenney’s political ban and to support Viva Palestina’s political campaigning work to lift the siege of Gaza. If you’re sick of illiberal, pro-war policies – help fund opposition to them.
Thank you again for your support. Do check out the Viva Palestina site – www.vivapalestina.org and George’s own site www.georgegalloway.com
With best wishes,
George Galloway campaign team
Jason Kenney:
Defend free speech.
Let George Galloway into Canada. Stop the attacks on civil liberties.
Please contact immediately the offices of Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney to demand that he reverse his ban on British MP George Galloway. Jason Kenney must stop his attacks on civil liberties and support the right to free speech.
Please also include the entire Conservative caucus in your e-mail (or as much of it as you can). Conservative MPs must take responsibility for their party’s decision to attack free speech in Canada. Make sure they know that their position is indefensible, and that they must join the call to reverse the ban on George Galloway.
E-mailing is the fastest and easiest way to contact Jason Kenney and Conservative MPs. Just follow these steps:
Step 1:
Cut and paste Jason Kenney’s e-mail addresses into your address line:
KenneJ@parl.gc.ca; Kennej7@parl.gc.ca; minister@cic.gc.ca
Step 2:
Cut and paste the e-mail addresses of the entire Conservative caucus into your CC line (If your e-mail account can’t e-mail this many addresses at once, try sending your e-mail to a smaller block of addresses one at a time. You may have to send several e-mails in order to reach the entire caucus.). Please note that this list includes Conservative staffers.
AbbotJ@parl.gc.ca; AblonD@parl.gc.ca; calgary@ablonczy.com; Aglukkaq.L@parl.gc.ca; AlbreH@parl.gc.ca; AllenM@parl.gc.ca; AllisD@parl.gc.ca; AmbroR@parl.gc.ca; AmbroR1a@Parl.gc.ca; AnderR@parl.gc.ca; RobAnders@telus.net; AnderDa@parl.gc.ca; david.anderson1@sasktel.net; Ashfield.K@parl.gc.ca; BairdJ@parl.gc.ca; BenoiL@parl.gc.ca; benoil@parl.gc.ca; BerniM@parl.gc.ca; BezanJ@parl.gc.ca; office@jamesbezan.com; ottawa@jamesbezan.com; BlackJ@parl.gc.ca; BlaneS@parl.gc.ca; Block.K@parl.gc.ca; BouchS@parl.gc.ca; Boughen.R@parl.gc.ca; boughr@parl.gc.ca; Braid.P@parl.gc.ca; Braidp1@parl.gc.ca; braidp1@parl.gc.ca; BreitG@parl.gc.ca; breitg1b@parl.gc.ca; ! BrownG@parl.gc.ca; Bro! wn.L@par l.gc.ca; BrownLo@parl.gc.ca; BrownPa@parl.gc.ca; barrie@servingbarrie.com; ottawa@servingbarrie.com; BruinR@parl.gc.ca; Cadman.D@parl.gc.ca; CadmaD1@parl.gc.ca; Calandra.P@parl.gc.ca; CalkiB@parl.gc.ca; CannaR@parl.gc.ca; ron@cannan.ca; CannoL@parl.gc.ca; Cannon.L@parl.gc.ca; Cannol1@parl.gc.ca; CarriCo@parl.gc.ca; CassoR@parl.gc.ca; casson@rickcasson.com; ChongM@parl.gc.ca; Chong.M@parl.gc.ca; ClarkR@parl.gc.ca; Clarke.R@parl.gc.ca; ClemeT@parl.gc.ca; Clement.T@parl.gc.ca; Clemet1@parl.gc.ca; Clemet2@parl.gc.ca; clemet1a@parl.gc.ca; CummiJ@parl.gc.ca; cummins@dccnet.com; cummij@parl.gc.ca; DavidP@parl.gc.ca; Davidp1@parl.gc.ca; DayS@parl.gc.ca; ! days1@parl.gc.ca; De! chert.B@ parl.gc.ca; decheb1A@parl.gc.ca; DelmaD@parl.gc.ca; DevolB@parl.gc.ca; Dreeshen.E@parl.gc.ca; Duncan.J@parl.gc.ca; DykstR@parl.gc.ca; FastE@parl.gc.ca; ed@edfast.ca; FinleD@parl.gc.ca; Finley.D@parl.gc.ca; FlaheJ@parl.gc.ca; jim@jimflahertymp.ca; flaherty.j@parl.gc.ca; FletcS@parl.gc.ca; Fletcher.S@parl.gc.ca; GalipR@parl.gc.ca; GalipR1@parl.gc.ca; Galipr7@parl.gc.ca; GallaC@parl.gc.ca; Glover.S@parl.gc.ca; gloves@parl.gc.ca; GoldrP@parl.gc.ca; goldrp1@parl.gc.ca; GoodyG@parl.gc.ca; info@garygoodyear.com; goodyg1@parl.gc.ca; GourdJ@parl.gc.ca; GrewaN@parl.gc.ca; grewan1@parl.gc.ca; GuergH@parl.gc.ca; HarpeS@parl.gc.ca; pm@pm.gc.ca; Harpe.S@parl.gc.ca; HarriR@parl.gc.ca; harrir1@parl.gc.ca; HawnL@parl.gc.ca; hawnl1@parl.gc.ca; HiebeR@parl.gc.ca; info@russhiebert.ca; HillJ@parl.gc.ca; Hoback.R@parl.gc.ca; hobacr1@parl.gc.ca; hobacr@parl.gc.ca; Hoeppner.C@parl.gc.ca; info@candicehoeppner.com; Holder.E@parl.gc.ca; JeanB@parl.gc.ca; jeanb1@parl.gc.ca; KampR@parl.gc.ca; randy@randykamp.com; KeddyG@pa! rl.gc.ca; keddyg@ns.sympatico.ca; geraldkeddymp@eastlink.ca; keddyg1@ns.sympatico.ca; kennej0@parl.gc.ca; kennej1@parl.gc.ca; kennej2@parl.gc.ca; kennej3@parl.gc.ca; kennej4@parl.gc.ca; kennej5@parl.gc.ca; kennej6@parl.gc.ca; kennej7@parl.gc.ca; kennej8@parl.gc.ca; kennej9@parl.gc.ca; Kent.P@parl.gc.ca; kentp@parl.gc.ca; Kerr.G@parl.g! c.ca; info@westnova.org! ; KomarE@parl.gc.ca; komare1@parl.gc.ca; komare2@parl.gc.ca; komare3@parl.gc.ca; KrampD@parl.gc.ca; krampd1@parl.gc.ca; LakeM@parl.gc.ca; LauzoG@parl.gc.ca; info@guylauzon.ca; LebelD@parl.gc.ca; LemiePi@parl.gc.ca; lemieux.p@parl.gc.ca; Lobb.B@parl.gc.ca; LukiwT@parl.gc.ca; LunnG@parl.gc.ca; lunnmp@garylunn.com; LunneJ@parl.! gc.ca; nanaimo@jameslunneymp.ca; ottawa@jameslunneymp.ca; MackaP@parl.gc.ca; Mackap3@parl.gc.ca; Mackap2@parl.gc.ca; Mackap1a@parl.gc.ca; MackeD@parl.gc.ca; macked2@parl.gc.ca; macked1@parl.gc.ca; MarkI@parl.gc.ca; inkymark@mts.net; MayesC@parl.gc.ca; mayesc1b@parl.gc.ca; McColeman.P@parl.gc.ca; McLeod.C@parl.gc.ca; McLeoC1@parl.gc.ca; McLeoC@parl.gc.ca;! MenziT@parl.gc.ca; menzies.t@parl.gc.ca; MerriR@parl.gc.ca; Merrifield.R@parl.gc.ca; MilleLa@parl.gc.ca; manager@larrymiller.ca; ottawa@larrymiller.ca; MooreJ@parl.gc.ca; MooreR@parl.gc.ca; NichoR@parl.gc.ca; Nichor1@parl.gc.ca; Nichor2@parl.gc.ca; NorloR@parl.gc.ca; Norlock.R@parl.gc.ca; rick@ricknorlock.ca; ObhraD@parl.gc.ca; deepak@deepakobhrai.com; OconnG@parl.gc.ca; mp@gordonoconnor.ca; OdaB@parl.gc.ca; Oda.B@parl.gc.ca; ONeill-Gordon.T@parl.gc.ca; oneilt@parl.gc.ca; ParadC@parl.gc.ca; paradc0@parl.gc.ca; paradc1@parl.gc.ca; Payne.L@parl.gc.ca; PetitD@parl.gc.ca; petitd1@parl.gc.ca; PoiliP@parl.gc.ca; PrentJ@parl.gc.ca; Prentice.J@parl.gc.ca; PrestJ@parl.gc.ca; assi st@joeprestonmp.ca; Raitt.L@parl.gc.ca; RaittL@parl.gc.ca; RaittL1@parl.gc.ca; RajotJ@parl.gc.ca; rajotj1@parl.gc.ca; rajotte.j@parl.gc.ca; Rathgeber.B@parl.gc.ca; rathgb1@parl.gc.ca; rathgb@parl.gc.ca; ReidS@parl.gc.ca; Richards.B@parl.gc.ca; blake@blakerichards.ca; richab@parl.gc.ca; RichaL@parl.gc.ca; richal1@parl.gc.ca; richardson.l! @parl.gc.ca; Rickford.G@parl.gc.ca; rickfg@parl.gc.ca; rickfg1@parl.gc.ca; rickfg2@parl.gc.ca; rickfg3@parl.gc.ca; RitzG@parl.gc.ca; Saxton.A@parl.gc.ca; ScheeA@parl.gc.ca; SchelG@parl.gc.ca; Shea.G@parl.gc.ca; sheag1A@parl.gc.ca; sheag1B@parl.gc.ca; ShiplB@parl.gc.ca; Shory.D@parl.gc.ca; SmithJ@parl.gc.ca; joy@joysmithmp.ca; SorenK@parl.gc.ca; sorenk1@parl.gc.ca; sorenson.k@parl.gc.ca; StantB@parl.gc.ca; stanton.b@parl.gc.ca; stantb0@parl.gc.ca; stantb1a@parl.gc.ca; stantb1b@parl.gc.ca; stantb1@parl.gc.ca; stantb1c@parl.gc.ca; stantb8@parl.gc.ca; StorsB@parl.gc.ca; brian@brianstorseth.ca; StrahC@parl.gc.ca; riding@chuckstrahl.com; ottawa@chuckstrahl.com; SweetD@parl.gc.ca; info@davidsweet.ca; ottawa@davidsweet.ca; ThompG@parl.gc.ca; TilsoD@parl.gc.ca; tilsod1@parl.gc.ca; tilsod1a@parl.gc.ca; ToewsV@parl.gc.ca; toewsv1@mts.net; Toews.V@parl.gc.ca; TrostB@parl.gc.ca; trost.b@parl.gc.ca; TweedM@parl.gc.ca; tweedm1@parl.gc.ca; Uppal.T@parl.gc.ca; uppalt@parl.gc.ca; VankeD@parl.gc.ca; vankesteren.d@parl.gc.ca! ; vanked1@parl.gc.ca ; vanked1a@parl.gc.ca; VanLoP@parl.gc.ca; vanlop1@parl.gc.ca; vanloan.p@parl.gc.ca; VellaM@parl.gc.ca; vellam1@parl.gc.ca; VerneJ@parl.gc.ca; WallaM@parl.gc.ca; Wallam@parl.gc.ca; wallam1@parl.gc.ca; WarawM@parl.gc.ca; warawm7@parl.gc.ca; WarkeC@parl.gc.ca; warkec1@parl.gc.ca; warkentin.c@parl.gc.ca; WatsoJ@parl.gc.ca; Weston.J@parl.gc.ca; westoj@parl.gc.ca; Weston.R@parl.gc.ca; westor1@parl.gc.ca; westor@parl.gc.ca; Wong.A@parl.gc.ca; WongA1@parl.gc.ca; Woodworth.S@parl.gc.ca; YelicL@parl.gc.ca; Yelich.L@parl.gc.ca; Young.T@parl.gc.ca;
Step 3:
Don¹t forget to fill out your subject line:
Let Galloway into Canada. Defend free speech.
Step 4:
Cut and paste the message below. Feel free to personalize it with your own words. And don’t forget to include your name at the bottom.
Dear Mr. Kenney:
Your decision to ban British MP George Galloway represents an unprecedented attack on free speech and on civil liberties in Canada.
Regardless of Mr. Galloway’s opinions on the war in Afghanistan or the Middle East, you have no right to silence his views. Canada is now the only country in the world to ban a sitting Member of the British Parliament, someone who has been elected five times and who has no criminal record.
I am demanding that you reverse this decision immediately and make provisions to guarantee Mr. Galloway’s entry into Canada. In addition, I am demanding that you cease immediately any further attacks on free speech and civil liberties in Canada.
I look forward to your prompt reply.
Sincerely,
Step 5: Press send!
A group of hard-nosed foreign policy realists in Washington last autumn produced a “bipartisan statement on US Middle East peacemaking” that was handed to Obama by his senior economic adviser Paul Volcker, a signatory. The wise men called for an “intense American mediation in pursuit of a two-state solution . . . a more pragmatic approach to Hamas” and American command of a multinational force to keep the peace between Israel and Palestine. George Mitchell, Obama’s Middle East envoy (who acted as an honest broker in Northern Ireland), and General Jim Jones, his national security adviser, are said to be highly sympathetic.
Media allege corruption in massive Israel-India arms deal
Allegations of possible illegalities in a massive arms deal between Israel and India have surfaced over the weekend in the Indian media. The size of the deal between the Indian Ministry of Defense and Israel Aerospace Industries, estimated at $1.5 billion, had grown to allow for the payment of commissions, which is illegal in India, said the press there.
The deal in question, signed in late February between Israel Aerospace Industries and the Indian Defense Ministry, is for the delivery of 2,000 Barak Mark VIII missiles, which were originally designed as sea-based weapons.
According to the deal, a third of the value of the deal will be spent in India, where the IAI will make offset purchases from Tata, a local consortium.
“Suspend defence deal with Israel”
NEW DELHI: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Saturday demanded that the United Progressive Alliance government forthwith suspend the air defence missile deal it had struck with Israel and order a CBI probe into the circumstances leading to the purchase and the alleged kickbacks involved in it.
Salfit – Ma’an – Israeli Border Police seized 208 West Bank Palestinians living without permits in Israel over the weekend and deported them to the Palestinian Authority.
According to Israeli officials, four Israeli employers, five drivers and two people who provided the Palestinians with housing were also arrested.
The Secretary-General of Palestinian Workers’ Public Union, Shaher Sa’d, condemned the arrests of the workers as a violation of international law. He also accused Israeli police of beating Palestinians during arrest raids.
Obama gets list of top Muslim Americans
CHICAGO — In a bid to get more Muslim Americans working in the Obama administration, a book with resumes of 45 of the nation's most qualified — Ivy League grads, Fortune 500 executives and public servants, all carefully vetted — has been submitted to the White House.
The effort, driven by community leaders and others, including U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., was bumped up two weeks because White House officials heard about the venture, said J. Saleh Williams, program coordinator for the Congressional Muslim Staffers Association, who sifted through more than 300 names.
"It was mostly under the radar," Williams said. "We thought it would put (the president) in a precarious position. We didn't know how closely he wanted to appear to be working with the Muslim American community."
Netanyahu’s grand strategy is to avoid peace by deceiving the US and Europe
By Uri Avnery
29 March 2009
Uri Avnery argues that, conscious that his government's opposition to peace with the Palestinians will put it on a collision course with the US, Binyamin Netanyahu will “present to the world, and especially the US and Europe, a false picture, pretending that our new government is yearning for peace ... while doing the exact opposite”.
”Liberman, Netanyahu, Barak, Ellie Yishai of Shas and Danny Hershkovitz of the “Jewish Home” party are in total agreement about the Palestinians. All of them agree on the need to prevent the establishment of a real Palestinian state. All of them agree not to talk with Hamas. All of them support the settlement enterprise. During Barak’s stint as Prime Minister, the settlements grew even faster than during Netanyahu’s tenure. Liberman is himself a settler, Hershkovitz’s party represents the settlers. All of them believe that there is no need for peace, that peace is bad for us.”
Binyamin Netanyahu has proven that he is a consummate politician. He has realized the dream of every politician (and theatre goer): a good place in the middle. In his new government he can play off the fascists on the right against the socialists on the left, Liberman’s secularists against the orthodox of Shas. An ideal situation.
The pinnacle of his achievement was the acquisition of the Labour party for his government.
In one stroke he turned a government of lepers, which would have been viewed by the whole world as a crazy bunch of ultra-nationalists, racists and fascists, into a sane and balanced government of the centre. All this without changing its character in the least.
The most ardent supporter of this feat was Liberman, the new foreign minister of Israel. This extreme racist, this spiritual brother of the French Jean-Marie Le Pen and the Austrian Joerg Haider (I hope both, the living and the dead, will not feel insulted), was very anxious about what was awaiting him. In his imagination he saw himself extending his hand to Hillary Clinton and being left with his arm dangling in the air. Leaning forward to kiss Angela Merkel only to see her draw back in horror. Unpleasant.
The addition of the Labour Party solves everybody’s problem. If the social democrats are joining the government, all this talk of fascism must be nonsense. Obviously, Liberman has been misunderstood. He has been misrepresented. He is not a fascist at all, God forbid. He is not a racist. He is just a traditional right-wing demagogue who exploits the primitive emotions of the masses to garner votes. Which elected politician could object to that?
Indeed, the whole government has been given a kosher certificate by Ehud Barak. He continues the glorious Labour Party tradition of political prostitution.
Why did Barak do this? And why did the majority of the Labour Party support him?
Labour is a government party. It has never been anything else. As early as 1933 it took over the Zionist movement, and since than it ruled the Yishuv (the pre-1948 Jewish community in Palestine) and the state without interruption until Begin’s ascent to power in 1977. For 44 consecutive years it held unchallenged power over the economy, the army, the police, the security services, the education system, the health system and the Histadrut, the then all-powerful Labour federation.
So what will be the real platform of this government?
In four words: Deception for the fatherland.
On this government’s chosen path there lies a huge rock: the United States of America.
While Israel made a big leap to the right, the US has made a big leap to the left.
Netanyahu is conscious of this problem, perhaps more than any other Israeli leader. He grew up in the US, after his father, a history professor in Jerusalem, felt himself deprived of his rightful place in academia because of his extreme right-wing views and went to America. There Binyamin attended high school and university. He speaks the fluent American English of a travelling salesman.
If there is one thing that unites practically all Israelis, from right to left, it is the conviction that the relationship between Israel and the US is critical for the security of the state. Netanyahu’s main concern is, therefore, to prevent a serious break between the two countries.
The clash seems inevitable. Obama wants to create a new order in the Middle East. He knows that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict poisons the atmosphere against America in the Arab world – and indeed in the entire Muslim world. He wants a solution to the conflict – exactly what Netanyahu and his partners want to prevent at any price, except the price of a breach with the US.
The solution is written in the Bible (Proverbs 24:6): “For by ruses thou shalt make thy war.”
(In the King James version, the Hebrew word Takhbulot is translated as “wise counsel”. In Modern Hebrew it means ruses, tricks, ploys – and that is the way it is understood by all Hebrew-speakers today.)
From the beginnings of Zionism, its leaders have known that their vision necessitates a large measure of make-belief. It is impossible to take over a country inhabited by another people without disguising the aim, diverting attention, hiding the acts on the ground behind a screen of flowery words.
Because of the special circumstances of their enterprise, the Zionists have had to use deceit perhaps a bit more than usual.
Now the task is to present to the world, and especially the US and Europe, a false picture, pretending that our new government is yearning for peace, acting for peace, indeed turning every stone in search of peace – while doing the exact opposite.
But deceiving, like dancing the tango, takes two: one who deceives and one who wants to be deceived.
Netanyahu believes that Obama will want to be deceived. Why would he want to quarrel with Israel, confront the mighty pro-Israel lobby and the US Congress, when he can settle for soothing words from Netanyahu? Read it all HERE
The absurdity of spending US tax dollars on Israel while Americans struggle onPaul J. Balles argues that if enough ordinary Americans “feel the pinch and connect the dots between their own financial losses and America’s continued unbridled support of Israel’s devastating war machine, Israel could be forced to make peace with the Palestinians”.
The things that are now painfully connected to the recent financial crisis in America include health care costs that people are unable to meet, home foreclosures, job losses, excessive credit debt and loss of pay.
Is it possible that an economic catastrophe in America might have a surprisingly positive effect? An article by Jane Stillwater entitled "Our dual-citizenship Congress” suggested an unforeseen result that could be very good for the whole world.
She writes:
I turned on the television last night and listened to the local news anchor tell me, "The State of California is currently facing bankruptcy." I live in California.
This is not good news. Plus California's jobs are drying up, homes are being foreclosed on, stores are going out of business, schools are laying off teachers, banks are eliminating branches. The eighth-largest economy in the world is about to tank. Boy could we use some financial help from the feds.
Then, after asking, “But will we get it?” she concludes, “Probably not.”
But Congress still continues to enthusiastically pour billions of our taxpayers' dollars into the Israeli economy each year. What's with that?
Do our Congressional representatives hold dual citizenship with the United States and Israel or what? When are they going to stop voting pork for Israel and start voting bailout money for CA?
Are we Californians going to have to start firing Qassam rockets at Washington to get their attention or what?
After getting Jane's permission, I sent her article to my Congressman and cc'd it to everyone I know in California. The next day, I received several comments that echoed Jane’s complaint. Why are we continuing to send US taxpayer money to support Israel’s slaughter of innocents in Gaza while we don’t have enough money to support our own economy?
My daughter wrote, "It infuriates me to think that they are spending our tax $$$ for Israel instead of our own country and state.
How can this possibly have a positive outcome? The economic crisis in both state and federal budgets has already pinched many shoes. Americans are very upset at the damage done to their financial conditions.
If enough people feel the pinch and connect the dots between their own financial losses and America’s continued unbridled support of Israel’s devastating war machine, Israel could be forced to make peace with the Palestinians.
How could that happen? Israel would no longer be able to ignore the Arab peace initiative first proposed in 2002 that offers pan-Arab recognition of Israel in exchange for Israel’s withdrawal from lands captured in 1967. read it all HERE
Quebec Caravan to bring MP George Galloway into Canada Monday.
MONTREAL, March 29 /CNW Telbec/ - On Monday 9:30am, March 30, the Free
Speech Caravan will leave Montreal to meet MP George Galloway at the Lacolle
Canada/US border.
In opposition to the Conservative government's political decision to ban
Mr. Galloway from entering Canada, a number of Canadian MPs and Quebec MNAs
will try to escort the British MP across the border. The Free Speech Coalition
and SPHR, organizers for the Galloway Canada Tour, are meeting at 9:30am at
Carre Cabot, corner of Ste. Catherine and of rue Lambert Closse, by Atwater.
They will be at the Lacolle border at 11am.
For further information: Laith Marouff (English), (514) 999-1948; Rezeq
Faraj (French), (514)865-7908
LINK HERE
Ramallah bank robbery planned in Israel
First armed robbery in history of Palestinian Authority planned by Israeli Jew, says spokesman of PA's security organization. According to official, some of people involved in incident arrested, part of stolen money returned
An armed bank robbery which took place in the West Bank city of Ramallah last week was planned by Israel and one of the bandits is an Israeli Jews, a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority's security organizations said Sunday.
Dameiri said that three of the robbery schemers have Israeli identity cards and one of them is a Jew. He didn't elaborate on the suspects' identities.
According to the PA official, the bandits observed the robbed bank and additional bank branches for four months before choosing to rob the Arab Bank branch. Four veiled people entered the branch and stole some 27,000 Jordanian dinars (about $38,055) at gunpoint
Lawyers hope to get Galloway ban lifted today
Updated Sun. Mar. 29 2009 12:45 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Lawyers representing George Galloway will appear in federal court on Sunday in an attempt to overturn a government decision that bars the controversial British MP from entering Canada.
Galloway's lawyers are seeking an injunction that will allow him to follow through with four Canadian speaking engagements, planned for this week.
The legal team was expected to make its arguments in Toronto during a scheduled 11 a.m. court appearance.
The federal government accuses Galloway, an outspoken anti-war advocate, of supporting groups that it says engage in terrorist acts.
It appears the government's allegation stems from the fact Galloway made a $45,000 donation to the Hamas government in Gaza, and helped deliver humanitarian goods after Israel's military offensive in the region.
Last week, Galloway told CTV's Question Period that ambulances and medical supplies must be delivered through Hamas because they are the democratically elected government in the Gaza Strip.
The Canadian government includes Hamas on its list of banned terrorist groups.
James Clark, the organizer of Galloway's speaking tour, said that if Galloway is not allowed into the country, he will speak via an electronic link.
Erekat Warns Obama: Netanyahu Gov't Doesn't Want Peace
(IsraelNN.com) Saeb Erekat, chief negotiator for the Palestinian Authority, has raised the alarm in Washington D.C. against the incoming Netanyahu government.
Erekat wrote in an editorial column published in Saturday's edition of The Washington Post that Israel's commitment to peace is in doubt, while it is being made a priority by U.S. President Barack Obama as part of America's "more integrated approach" to Middle East policy.
"Peace is not a word that sits comfortably with the Israeli right, which will dominate Israel's new government, even with Labor's decision this week to join it," he wrote.
Taking a swipe at the new coalition, Erekat added, "Among its ranks are those who have long opposed peace with Palestinians, no matter the cost; who use the cover of religion to advocate extremist views and who have supported the expulsion of Palestinians or now devise loyalty tests to achieve the same result."
The PA negotiator bitterly noted that incoming Prime Minister-designate Binyamin Netanyahu has proposed an "economic peace" rather than accept the notion of a two-state solution from the outset, but Erekat stopped short of issuing an open ultimatum. "Palestinians have not engaged in years of negotiations to see them fail. But neither is our patience unlimited," he warned.
Among the list of "musts" that Israel is expected to comply with – ending with the establishment of a PA state based on the pre-1967 borders -- is "an immediate and complete freeze on settlement activity, including all natural growth and the construction of Israel's '[security] wall."
The PA chief negotiator warns that "without a settlement freeze, there will be no two-state solution left to speak of."
Erekat also slammed Israel's "crippling regime of closures" and called for Jerusalem to remove all security restrictions that have reduced terrorism in the country.
"Checkpoints, Israel's wall, the permit system it imposes on Palestinians and other restrictions on movement frustrate Palestinian life, fragment Palestinian society and strangle our economy,"
Erekat also cited the "urgent need to reopen Gaza's border crossings to allow the movement of goods and people in and out of Gaza, especially desperately needed humanitarian supplies and reconstruction materials."
Jerusalem-based spokesman Chris Gunness of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) also contends that Israel is choking the people of Gaza.
"The needs in Gaza remain immense and the urgent priority is and will continue to be building materials," Gunness told Israel National News in an email interview last week. "Karni is not open for imports, exports and humanitarian goods in an unrestricted sense according to the Access and Movement agreement of November 15th 2005."
When asked whether there was anything other than building materials that is desperately needed and not being allowed in to the region, Gunness replied, "You saw all the coverage of pasta and tomato paste?"
The comment was a reference to a complaint by a U.S. Senator several months ago over the omission of pasta on the list of approved products for shipment of humanitarian supplies in to Gaza. Israel has since allowed it to enter Gaza.
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Morocco has pledged to reconstruct the agronomy faculty of Al-Azhar University and the destroyed part of Al-Quds Hospital in Gaza.
Two agreements were signed on Thursday under the chairmanship of King Mohammad VI, the ruler of Morocco, according to a statement.
The first agreement, signed by director of the king's private secretariat, Mohamed Mounir Majidi, and the deputy chairman of Al-Azhar University, Youssef Joumaa Salama, provides for reconstructing the agronomy faculty of Al-Azhar University, which was destroyed during the Israeli assault on Gaza in February, to be paid by the king.
The second agreement, which was signed by Morocco's central bank governor, Abdellatif Jouahri, representative of the Palestinian Red Crescent, Younes El-Khatib, and director of Al-Quds Hospital, Khalid Jouda, provides for reconstructing the destroyed portions of Al-Quds Hospital.
The second project will be financed by the 33.57 million dirham (3.87 million dollars) donations made by the Moroccans in the bank account opened under instructions of the monarch, chairman of the Al-Quds Committee.
The financing of these two projects is part of Morocco's assistance to Palestine following the recent Israeli assault. The north African kingdom had sent emergency aid of medicines, foodstuffs and various supplies to the Palestinians.
British MP tour organizers hope court will overturn ban, but make a Plan B
15 minutes ago
TORONTO — A Canadian speaking tour by George Galloway will go ahead Monday, even if lawyers for the British MP are unsuccessful in arguing against an order banning him from entering the country, tour organizers say.
Lawyers for the British parliamentarian will be in Federal Court in Toronto on Sunday seeking an injunction on the ban so Galloway can enter Canada until a judicial review is heard.
"We're waiting to see what the outcome of the legal challenge is on Sunday."
Clark said if that bid is unsuccessful organizers will meet Galloway at a border crossing to the United States, where he was on a speaking tour.
They will bring him to the Canadian border but not attempt to cross it, and he can deliver a speech through a phone that will be amplified for supporters in Canada to hear, Clark said. Organizers are still working out the details.
"Even if he does not get in, in Toronto, in Mississauga, in Montreal and in Ottawa on the assigned days he's scheduled to speak he will deliver a speech to that audience and people will be able to ask questions," Clark said.
Galloway's supporters allege political interference in the Canada Border Services Agency decision and are calling on Immigration Minister Jason Kenney to overturn it.
Kenney has previously said he would not use his ministerial power in that way and that he did not ask the CBSA to rule the way it did.