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Showing posts with label settlements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label settlements. Show all posts

Saturday, 28 May 2016

Return Conference - Zochrot

http://zochrot.org/en/wrapper/27

The International Conference on the Return of Palestinian Refugees
The conference seeks to examine different ways of promoting return today as well as imagine the post-return reality. Its point of departure is recognition of the right of return and its objective is to explore how return will occur in practice, and how it can offer an opportunity for living together in a truly democratic, egalitarian and just regime for all inhabitants of this country. Accordingly, the issues discussed in the conference will focus on the post-return political, cultural, educational, economic and planning realities, as well as on current spaces and activities to promote return in practice.


Sunday, 8 March 2015

Video by ‎Shasha.ps | شاشة نيوز‎ - synthesis

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=857733444237268


Wednesday, 8 October 2014

Gaza buildings damaged


Professor Salaita Termination for Speech Critical of Israel

http://www.ccrjustice.org/ourcases/current-cases/professor-salaita-termination-speech-critical-israel

by Center for Constitutional Rights
http://www.ccrjustice.org/

Synopsis

CCR, along with the Chicago civil rights law firm of Loevy & Loevy, is representing Professor Steven Salaita, whose appointment to a tenured faculty position at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign – for which he had resigned from another tenured teaching position and was preparing to move – was terminated following his public tweets criticizing the Israeli government's recent actions in Gaza.  Salaita's termination, which functions as a penalty for his speech on an issue of public concern, constitutes “viewpoint discrimination,” a violation of the First Amendment, and also threatens academic freedom by punishing a faculty member for speaking as a citizen on a critical issue.

Status

For information about the September 9, 2014 press conference with Professor Salaita, please see the media advisory and Professor Salaita's statement.
Prior to representing Professor Salaita, CCR sent a letter to University of Illinois Chancellor Phyllis M. Wise regarding her decision to terminate his appointment at the University based on the content of his constitutionally-protected speech critical of the Israeli government’s military and political actions in Gaza.  The University's betrayal of academic freedom has been widely condemned.

Description

Professor Steven Salaita was a tenured English professor at Virginia Tech University, whose scholarship focused on colonialism, militarism and occupation and who had written well-regarded books studying Arab-American literature and criticizing Zionism.  It was on the basis of his excellent scholarly record that the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences offered Professor Salaita a tenured position in the University’s American Indian Studies department.  Based on the contract he had with the University of Illinois, Professor Salaita resigned his tenured position at Virginia Tech University and had prepared to move his family to Illinois.  Yet, one week before school was to start, Professor Salaita received a terse letter from University Chancellor Phyllis M. Wise, summarily informing him that his appointment was terminated.  It offered no reasons why.

It is clear, however, that Professor Salaita’s termination was a result of a number of posts on social media highly critical of Israeli government atrocities in Gaza in recent weeks.  The University received strong pressure from outside groups who, consistent with a broader strategy to silence Palestinian human rights activists, labeled Professor Salaita anti-semitic.  CCR has seen similar attempts to silence Palestinian activists on campuses all across the country.  Seven years of absolutely stellar teaching and scholarly evaluations for Professor Salaita totally belie claims that he would ever be “uncivil” to students in the classroom, as Chancellor Wise has since intimated.

The University’s action to repress or penalize Professor Salaita’s speech on a matter of public concern such as Israel/Palestine because of disagreement with its message is impermissible “viewpoint discrimination,” a serious First Amendment violation.  It is also no defense for the University to claim that his speech was offensive or aggressive, as the First Amendment also clearly protects the tone and manner of speech others find objectionable.  As CCR explained in our letter to Chancellor Wise, beyond the First Amendment violation committed in this instance, the University has “betrayed elementary principles of academic freedom which naturally extend protections to faculty members’ ability to ‘speak or write as citizens,’ and which must be free from ‘institutional censorship or discipline.’” 

The University’s betrayal of academic freedom has been met with harsh criticisms, from academic boycotts of the University, withering editorial commentary, to a petition garnering over 16,000 signatures.  A small sampling of statements in support of Professor Salaita and critical of the University of Illinois are below.
Statements of Support for Professor Salaita and Critical of University of Illinois's Actions

Letters from Legal Organizations
Letter from Center for Constitutional Rights
Letter from Palestine Solidarity Legal Support, CAIR-Chicago and NLG-Chicago
Open Letters from Academic Organizations
Letter from American Anthropological Association (AAA)
Letter from American Association of University Professors (AAUP)
Letter from American Comparative Literature Association (ACLA)
Letter from American Historical Association (AHA)
Letter from American Political Science Association (APSA)
Letter from Arab American Studies Association (AASA)
Letter from California Scholars For Academic Freedom
Letter from Committee on Academic Freedom of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA)
Letter from Modern Language Association (MLA)
Statements from Academic Organizations
Statement by American Association of University Professors (AAUP)
Statement by American Studies Association (ASA)
Statement by the Executive Committee of the Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Statement by Cultural Studies Association (CSA)
Statement by Native American and Indigenous Studies Association (NAISA)
Statement by Society of American Law Teachers
Letters from Faculty

Letter from Constitutional Law and Free Speech Scholars
Letter from English and Literature Department Faculty
Letter from Scholars Committed to Advancing Critical and Open Perspectives on the Israel-Palestine Conflict
Letter from Scholars Who Have Traveled in Palestine
Letter from Bonnie Honig
Letter from Katherine Franke
University of Illinois Jewish Community Letter in Support of Our Professor Steven Salaita
Petitions and Academic Boycott Announcements
The US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI) Condemnation
Scholars Petition Boycotting University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Public Petition Demanding Reinstatement
Media Commentary
Mondoweiss: Salaita’s stellar teaching record exposes political motivation behind his firing
Inside Higher Ed: Fighting the Twitter Police
Academe Blog: Chancellor Phyllis Wise Explains the Firing of Steven Salaita
Inside Higher Ed: The Emails on Salaita
The News Gazette: UI precluded any honest debate
The Daily Illini: Termination of Salaita is Censorship
The News-Gazette: Salaita prompted donors' fury
The Washington Post: Did the University of Illinois rescind Steven Salaita's appointment to appease donors?

Timeline

August 1, 2014 - The Vice President and Chancellor of the University of Illinois informed Professor Salaita that they would not recommend further action by the Board of Trustees regarding his appointment to a tenured position.
August 7, 2014 - CCR sent a letter to University of Illinois Chancellor Phyllis M. Wise regarding her decision to terminate the appointment of Professor Steven Salaita at the University based on the content of his constitutionally-protected speech critical of the Israeli government’s military and political actions in Gaza.
August 22, 2014 - Chancellor Wise released a statement regarding her decision.
September 9, 2014 - Professor Salaita spoke publicly for the first time about the termination of his position at a press conference.
September 11, 2014 - The University of Illinois Board of Trustees voted to terminate Professor Salaita from his tenured position.

Friday, 23 August 2013

نحمي مبنى الرجبي Protect Al Rajabi Building - petition

petition:
http://www.petitionbuzz.com/petitions/protectalrajabihouse

لنحمي مبنى الرجبي Protect Al Rajabi Building

 *English version is below              
  
                                                                     لا للإستيطان الإسرائيلي في مبنى الرجبي



مبنى الرجبي هو مبنى ضخم يقع في البلدة القديمة من الخليل وتعود ملكيته لعائلة الرجبي، تم احتلاله من المستوطنين عام 2007 وأخرجوا منه عام 2008 بقرار قضائي من المحكمة العليا الاسرائيلية، على خلفية هذا القرار هاجم المستوطنون المناطق المحيطة بالمبنى وأحرقوا منازل المواطنين وروعوا الأطفال والنساء، وأطلقوا النار بشكل مباشر على المواطنين مما أدى لإصابة اثنين منهم بجراح خطيرة.

لكن المحكمة المركزية الإسرائيلية قررت منح ملكية المبنى للمستوطنين الإسرائيليين على الرغم من ثبوت إستخدامهم وثائق مزورة وغير قانونية أمام المحكمة العليا والمحكمة المركزية، رفعت لجنة إعمار الخليل إستئناف أمام المحكمة العليا الإسرائيلية ضد قرار المحكمة المركزية، لذلك ستعقد المحكمة العليا بتاريخ 2/9/2013 جلسة حاسمة ونهائية للفصل في القضية وتحديد مصير هذا المبنى.

إن تسليم مبنى الرجبي للمستوطنين يعني إقامة بؤرة استيطانية جديدة في قلب مدينة الخليل وإطلاق يد المستوطنين المتطرفين لإرتكاب مزيد من الإعتداءات ضد المواطنين الفلسطينيين وممتلكاتهم لتهجيرهم قسرياً من مدينتهم، وينذر بتقطيع أوصال البلدة القديمة وعزلها عن مدينة الخليل وزيادة معاناة سكانها من الإحتلال والإستيطان.

يطالب الموقعون أدناه بما يلي:

1- أن تتخذ المحكمة العليا في دولة الإحتلال الإسرائيلي قرار عادل وتسلم المبنى لمالكيه الفلسطينيين.

2-  أن تمنع سلطات الإحتلال الإسرائيلي تسليم مبنى الرجبي للمستوطنين.

3- أن تقوم الأمم المتحدة ووكالاتها المتخصصة والمجتمع الدولي بواجباتهم في حماية مدينة الخليل القديمة و حقوق سكانها من الإستيطان الإسرائيلي اللاشرعي.



                                               متحدون ضد الإستيطان الإسرائيلي في الخليل

                                                      لجنة إعمار الخليل




                                       Reject the Israeli Settlement in the Al Rajabi Building



The Al Rajabi Building is a large residential building owned by the Al Rajabi family, located in the Old City of Hebron. Israeli settlers first occupied the building in 2007 but were evictedafter a 2008 Israeli Supreme Court judicial decision. In retaliation to the court’s decision, Israeli settlers attacked areas surrounding the building, burning houses, shooting firearms and seriously injuring two people, inducing a general state of fear for residents.

This July, the Israeli District Court made a contradictory decision to grant ownership of the building to Israeli settlers despite that the fact that it was proved that forged and illegal documents were used. The Hebron Rehabilitation Committee has raised an appeal to the Israeli Supreme Court opposing the decision of the District Court. On September 2, 2013, The Supreme Court will hold a session to make the final decision in the case, determining the future of the building.

The transfer of the building to settlers effectively means the establishment of another outpost in the heart of Hebron’s Old City. Such outposts work as a platform for settlers to commit violations against Palestinian civilians and their property with the intention of forcibly displacing them from their city. Furthermore, the building’s handover to settlers functions to divide the Old City and isolate it from the rest of Hebron, increasing the suffering of the Palestinian residents rendered by the occupation and the settlements.

The undersigned urge the following actions:

1 – That the Supreme Court of the Israeli Occupation State’s fair decision be upheld, and the building be handed over to its Palestinian owners.

2 – That the Israeli occupation authorities prevent the transfer of the Al Rajabi building to settlers.

3 – That the United Nations and its specialized agencies as well as the international community uphold their duties to protect the Old City of Hebron and the rights of its population from the illegal Israeli settlements.



United Against Israeli Settlements in Hebron

Hebron Rehabilitation Committee



Monday, 10 June 2013

if Americans knew about Israeli Palestinian conflict- statistics

http://www.ifamericansonlyknew.com/

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the world’s major sources of instability. Americans are directly connected to this conflict, and increasingly imperiled by its devastation.
It is the goal of If Americans Knew to provide full and accurate information on this critical issue, and on our power – and duty – to bring a resolution.
Please click on any statistic for the source and more information.
Statistics Last Updated: May 15, 2013
129 Israeli children have been killed by Palestinians and 1,519 Palestinian children have been killed by Israelis since September 29, 2000. (View Sources & More Information)
Chart showing that approximately 12 times more Palestinian children have been killed than Israeli children
Chart showing that 6 times more Palestinians have been killed than Israelis.
1,104 Israelis and at least 6,829 Palestinianshave been killed since September 29, 2000. (View Sources & More Information)
9,104 Israelis and 50,742 Palestinians have been injured since September 29, 2000. (View Sources & More Information.)
Chart showing that Palestinians are injured at least four times more often than Israelis.
Chart showing that the United States gives Israel $8.2 million per day in military aid and no military aid to the Palestinians.
During Fiscal Year 2013, the U.S. is providing Israel with at least $8.5 million per day in military aid and $0 in military aid to the Palestinians. (View Sources & More Information)
Israel has been targeted by at least 65 UN resolutions and the Palestinians have been targeted by none. (View Sources & More Information)
Chart showing that Israel has been targeted by over 60 UN resolutions, while the Palestinians have been targeted by none.
Chart showing that Israel is holding 5,604 Palestinians prisoner.
0 Israelis are being held prisoner by Palestinians, while 4,900 Palestinians are currently imprisoned by Israel. (View Sources & More Information)
0 Israeli homes have been demolished by Palestinians and 27,000 Palestinian homes have been demolished by Israel since 1967. (View Sources & More Information)
Chart showing that 24,145 Palestinian homes have been demolished, compared to no Israeli homes.
Chart depicting the fact that the Palestinian unemployment is around 4 times the Israeli unemployment rate.
The Israeli unemployment rate is 5.6%, while the Palestinian unemployment in the West Bank is23% and 30% in Gaza. (View Sources & More Information)
Israel currently has 269 Jewish-only settlements and ‘outposts’ built on confiscated Palestinian land. Palestinians do not have any settlementson Israeli land. (View Sources & More Information)
Chart showing that Israel has 227 Jewish-only settlements on Palestinian land.