Olives for Hope

In Memoriam: Deir Yassin

On the eve of the war, Deir Yassin and the adjacent Jewish colony of Giv'at Sha'ul signed an agreement promising to be good neighbors. This agreement was approved by Haganah headquarters in Jerusalem.

http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article2574.shtml

Netanyahu: Hamas will not set new rules

During late-night consultations regarding escalating violence in south, PM said Israel's "response will be determined, harsh and ongoing"; Danny Ayalon: There is a heavy price for terrorism.

http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=215869

Demolitions in Samra

After noon on 7th April the army demolished three large animal shelters and a kitchen in the farming community of Al Samra in the northern Jordan Valley.

http://www.jordanvalleysolidarity.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=220

Homes and roads destroyed in Aqaba

On April the 7th at 6 am the village of Al Aqaba woke up to find the Israeli Army destroying their road and two homes. Two Caterpillar bulldozers were with the military jeeps.They demolished two concrete houses leaving a families homeless, one with 11 children, and the other with 7 children.

http://www.jordanvalleysolidarity.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=219

10 tractors were confiscated in ‘Ein Al Beida and Bardala

At 7am on Wednesday 6th April the army and military police raided farms and fields in the north of the Jordan Valley. All farmers with a tractor were forced to drive to the illegal Israeli colony of Mehola, where they waited for hours for have their IDs and proof of tractor ownership inspected.

http://www.jordanvalleysolidarity.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=218

Israel and Palestinians have conflicting visions for village's future

Lifta is the last intact pre-1948 Palestinian village in Israel. The Israelis want to put apartments there, but Palestinians want the area preserved as an open-air museum ...

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/middleeast/la-fg-palestinian-village-20110407,0,5408261.story

Settler leader downplays WikiLeaks comments on West Bank evacuation

Settlers leader Danny Dayan on Thursday downplayed his comments revealed by WikiLeaks that some settlers would be willing to leave the West Bank for "the right price."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/settler-leader-downplays-wikileaks-comments-on-west-bank-evacuation-1.354618

100 women detained in Awarta

Israeli troops stormed the village of Awarta on Thursday morning, arresting more than 100 women in what local officials said was part of the ongoing investigation into the murder of five settlers in March.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=376303

Refugee camps lack basic facilities, need to expand: study

A study into the difficult living conditions in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, including recommendations for areas of improvement, was published Wednesday. The camps have not expanded since they were founded but the population has increased fourfold in that time.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=1&article_id=126885

Marmara to return to Gaza in May

Vessel involved in deadly raid in May 2010 scheduled to take part in another flotilla to Gaza Strip next month, IHH declares. Total of 15 ships to participate in 'Freedom flotilla 2'

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4053696,00.html

Goldstone has paved the path for a second Gaza war / Gideon Levy

All at once the last doubts have disappeared and the question marks have become exclamation points. Dr. Ezzeldeen Abu Al-Aish wrote a short book in which he invented the killing of his three daughters. The 29 dead from the Al-Simoni family are now vacationing in the Caribbean. The white phosphorus was only the pyrotechnics of a war film. The white-flag wavers who were shot were a mirage in the desert, as were the reports about the killing of hundreds of civilians, including women and children. "Cast lead" has returned to being a phrase in a Hanukkah children's song.

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/goldstone-has-paved-the-path-for-a-second-gaza-war-1.354550

US wants Gaza war crimes report to 'disappear'

[US envoy to the United Nations Susan] Rice told a congressional hearing, "what we want to see is for it to disappear and no longer be a subject of discussion and debate in the Human Rights Council or the General Assembly or beyond."

http://www.worldbulletin.net/?aType=haber&ArticleID=72214

Where now for the Goldstone report? / John Dugard

In short, there are no new facts that exonerate Israel and that could possibly have led Goldstone to change his mind. What made him change his mind therefore remains a closely guarded secret. The Goldstone report was not the only fact-finding report on Operation Cast Lead. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the League of Arab States (whose mission I chaired) all produced thorough reports on the conflict. In all the reports, including the Goldstone report, there were accounts of the killings of civilians by Israel Defence Forces (IDF) in a cold, calculated and deliberate manner. But the principal accusation levelled at Israel was that during its assault on Gaza, it used force indiscriminately in densely populated areas and was reckless about the foreseeable consequences of its actions, which resulted in at least 900 civilian deaths and 5,000 wounded.

http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2011/04/goldstone-report-israel-rights

Palestinians left skeptical on unity prospects

Palestinian factions agree that national reconciliation will not be achieved in the near future because Hamas and Fatah are deeply entrenched in partisan interests despite positive statements from both sides ... Jamil Mizher, a leading figure in the PFLP, said there is nothing new regarding Egyptian pressure on Fatah and Hamas and both movements remain adamant behind their positions to serve their own interests.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=376157

60% of Egyptians support peace with Israel

Some 60% of Egyptians support the peace treaty with Israel – as long as an independent Palestinian state is established alongside the Jewish state, a study conducted by the United Nations-affiliated International Peace Institute shows.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4053607,00.html

Israeli official: We struck in Sudan

A senior Israeli military official told TIME Magazine Wednesday that the Jewish state was behind a mysterious air strike in Sudan Tuesday that killed two people.  "It's not our first time there," the official was quoted as saying, apparently referring to the 2009 airstrike that demolished an arms convoy near the border with Egypt.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4053277,00.html

Haaretz WikiLeaks exclusive: Peace Now updates US on West Bank construction

7 Apr -- Israeli left-wing non-government organization Peace Now has urged the U.S. to pressure Israel into evacuating West Bank outposts, according to an American diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks, adding that the group regularly updated both Washington and the Defense Ministry on ongoing settlement construction. See the full story in Friday's Haaretz Newspaper.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/haaretz-wikileaks-exclusive-israel-s-peace-now-updates-u-s-on-west-bank-construction-1.354656

Israel Begins Witch Hunt against Palestinian Educators, Pupils who Honoured Land Day

 Israel launched a witch hunt against Palestinian educators and pupils who commemorated Land Day by participating in the community’s declared strike. Education Ministry supervisors visited Palestinian schools on Land Day and schools were ordered to send lists of teachers absent that day. 

http/www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/israeli-society/3495-israel-begins-witch-hunt-against-palestinian-educators-pupils-who-honoured-land-day-

Israel expedites vote on hundreds of new homes beyond Green Line

Proposal to construct 942 housing units in Gilo was approved Monday by the building and planning committee; according to standard procedure, the district committee would have waited months before bringing the matter to its own agenda.

http/www.haaretz.com/news/national/israel-expedites-vote-on-hundreds-of-new-homes-beyond-green-line-1.354486

Palestine’s Christians demanded Monday freedom of access and movement to reach the holy places in Jerusalem without Israeli intervention.

A statement published by the Palestinian Christians called on the international community to intervene to facilitate freedom of entry of Christians to Jerusalem to worship during the Easter holiday.

http/english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=15799