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02:02 AM Jun 22 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	This post, to shire the information and what is going on in the occupied land Palestine. So, we try to follow daily the news and change opinions about them. Also, change all the information about Palestine. So, every body is welcome to comment and shire.

02:02 AM Jun 22 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

This post, to shire the information and what is going on in the occupied land Palestine.
So, we try to follow daily the news and change opinions about them.

Also, change all the information about Palestine.
So, every body is welcome to comment and shire.

05:58 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	Israel blamed over drone attacks At least 1,400 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza offensive [EPA] Human Rights Watch (HRW) has alleged that Israeli operators failed to verify targets of drone aircraft at least six times during the Gaza war, firing missiles that killed at least 29 Palestinians. In a 39-page report released on Tuesday, the New York-based group said that despite having advanced surveillance equipment, drone operators failed to exercise proper caution "as required by the laws of war" in verifying their targets. Israel has a fleet of spy drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), but does not discuss whether some of these aircraft also carry weapons. The Israeli army issued a statement casting doubt on reseach methods of HRW, asserting that all Israeli forces' combat actions "conform to international law, as do the weapons and munitions used". Israel said it launched its December-January offensive to counter rocket fire from Hamas-ruled Gaza. It has since weathered foreign censure over the killing of some 1,400 Palestinians, many of them civilians, during the fighting. HRW based its findings primarily on debris from Israeli-made Spike missiles, which it said are fired from drones. Palestinian witnesses But Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd, Spike's state-controlled manufacturer, said the missile, which has been sold widely abroad, can be fired by helicopters, infantry units and naval craft. Marc Garlasco, HRW's senior military analyst, said they were able to establish that drones fired the missiles after gathering evidence from Palestinian witnesses who said they had seen or heard the unmanned aircraft. But he conceded that two of the incidents cited took place in the evening or night, ruling out the possibility of anyone seeing the small and often high-flying aircraft. Asked about the possibility of an armed drone being spotted solely from the distinctive buzz of its propellers, an Israeli defence industry official noted that surveillance drones had regularly patrolled Gaza during the war. "How could you tell what exactly you were hearing?" the official asked. The Spike has a range of 8km, Rafael says. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/06/2009630111454929270.html

05:58 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

Israel blamed over drone attacks

At least 1,400 Palestinians were killed in
the Gaza offensive [EPA]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has alleged that Israeli operators failed to verify targets of drone aircraft at least six times during the Gaza war, firing missiles that killed at least 29 Palestinians.

In a 39-page report released on Tuesday, the New York-based group said that despite having advanced surveillance equipment, drone operators failed to exercise proper caution "as required by the laws of war" in verifying their targets.

Israel has a fleet of spy drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), but does not discuss whether some of these aircraft also carry weapons.

The Israeli army issued a statement casting doubt on reseach methods of HRW, asserting that all Israeli forces' combat actions "conform to international law, as do the weapons and munitions used".

Israel said it launched its December-January offensive to counter rocket fire from Hamas-ruled Gaza.

It has since weathered foreign censure over the killing of some 1,400 Palestinians, many of them civilians, during the fighting.

HRW based its findings primarily on debris from Israeli-made Spike missiles, which it said are fired from drones.

Palestinian witnesses

But Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd, Spike's state-controlled manufacturer, said the missile, which has been sold widely abroad, can be fired by helicopters, infantry units and naval craft.

Marc Garlasco, HRW's senior military analyst, said they were able to establish that drones fired the missiles after gathering evidence from Palestinian witnesses who said they had seen or heard the unmanned aircraft.

But he conceded that two of the incidents cited took place in the evening or night, ruling out the possibility of anyone seeing the small and often high-flying aircraft.

Asked about the possibility of an armed drone being spotted solely from the distinctive buzz of its propellers, an Israeli defence industry official noted that surveillance drones had regularly patrolled Gaza during the war.

"How could you tell what exactly you were hearing?" the official asked.

The Spike has a range of 8km, Rafael says.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/06/2009630111454929270.html

05:59 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	Israel permits new settlement homes Israel has approved 50 new settlement units in the West Bank and plans to build 1,400 more [AFP] Israel has approved the construction of 50 new homes in a West Bank settlement and announced plans to expropriate more Palestinian land. The move comes just hours before Israel's defence minister, Ehud Barak, visits the US in a bid to defuse tensions over Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land. The land grab and new permits come despite a demand from Barack Obama, the US president, for a complete freeze to all Israeli settlement activity, and could exacerbate a rare public spat between the allies. Barak, who is scheduled to meet George Mitchell, the US Middle East envoy, in New York, told Israel's Army Radio before the trip that he hoped to reach an agreement where "a solution to the settlements can be found". Compromise possible Responding to reports that Israel might agree to suspend settlement activity for three months instead of enforcing a total freeze, Ian Kelly, a US state department spokesman, said: "I'm not going to say we're not willing to compromise." Robert Gibbs, the White House spokesman, said the US was "optimistic about making progress" in Tuesday's meeting. "This would be the largest area of land ever confiscated by Israel in one go since 1967" Hatem Abdel-Qader, Palestinian minister "I think the president has outlined the responsibilities of all," he added. Despite the Barak-Mitchell meeting, Israel went ahead and approved the 50 new homes in a West Bank settlement on Monday. The Israeli defence ministry on Monday presented to the supreme court plans to relocate settlers from an illegal outpost in the West Bank to a settlement north of Jerusalem. And there are plans for another 1,400 housing units at the site, Israel's anti-settlement group Peace Now told the court. Also on Monday, a spokesman for Israel's Civil Administration, which reports to Barak, said it had placed notices in the Arabic Al-Quds newspaper on Friday, inviting Palestinians who object to the move to expropriate land, to file appeals within 45 days. "The land in question includes a strip along the shores of the Dead Sea that emerged over the years as the water receded due to shrinkage," the spokesman said. According to the Al-Quds notices, the land to be expropriated totals 139 sq km and includes plots of land near the major West Bank settlement of Maale Adumim, the spokesman said, without giving further details. Palestinian objections The moves drew immediate criticism from Palestinians. "This would be the largest area of land ever confiscated by Israel in one go since 1967," said Hatem Abdel-Qader, the Palestinian minister for Jerusalem affairs. "We will appeal against this decision." Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, reiterated his stance that peace talks with Israel cannot resume until settlement construction comes to a complete halt. "We won't accept the continuation of settlements," he said in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has said he will not allow the building of new settlements but will allow construction in existing communities, under what Israel calls "natural growth". His refusal to order a total freeze has given rise to rare public disagreements between his government and the Obama administration and even raised questions about whether the US will continue to actively support Israel at the UN. But Gabriela Shalev, Israel's UN ambassador, said on Monday that the Obama administration had assured Israel that it would continue defending it at the UN. "We were told explicitly [by the Americans] that there are no consultations and no discussions at all within the administration in this direction," Shalev told Israel's Channel Ten television. Some 500,000 Israelis live among 2.5 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, land Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war.

05:59 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

Israel permits new settlement homes

Israel has approved 50 new settlement units in the West Bank and plans to build 1,400 more [AFP]

Israel has approved the construction of 50 new homes in a West Bank settlement and announced plans to expropriate more Palestinian land.

The move comes just hours before Israel's defence minister, Ehud Barak, visits the US in a bid to defuse tensions over Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land.

The land grab and new permits come despite a demand from Barack Obama, the US president, for a complete freeze to all Israeli settlement activity, and could exacerbate a rare public spat between the allies.

Barak, who is scheduled to meet George Mitchell, the US Middle East envoy, in New York, told Israel's Army Radio before the trip that he hoped to reach an agreement where "a solution to the settlements can be found".

Compromise possible

Responding to reports that Israel might agree to suspend settlement activity for three months instead of enforcing a total freeze, Ian Kelly, a US state department spokesman, said: "I'm not going to say we're not willing to compromise."

Robert Gibbs, the White House spokesman, said the US was "optimistic about making progress" in Tuesday's meeting.

"This would be the largest area of land ever confiscated by Israel in one go since 1967"

Hatem Abdel-Qader, Palestinian minister

"I think the president has outlined the responsibilities of all," he added.

Despite the Barak-Mitchell meeting, Israel went ahead and approved the 50 new homes in a West Bank settlement on Monday.

The Israeli defence ministry on Monday presented to the supreme court plans to relocate settlers from an illegal outpost in the West Bank to a settlement north of Jerusalem.

And there are plans for another 1,400 housing units at the site, Israel's anti-settlement group Peace Now told the court.

Also on Monday, a spokesman for Israel's Civil Administration, which reports to Barak, said it had placed notices in the Arabic Al-Quds newspaper on Friday, inviting Palestinians who object to the move to expropriate land, to file appeals within 45 days.

"The land in question includes a strip along the shores of the Dead Sea that emerged over the years as the water receded due to shrinkage," the spokesman said.

According to the Al-Quds notices, the land to be expropriated totals 139 sq km and includes plots of land near the major West Bank settlement of Maale Adumim, the spokesman said, without giving further details.

Palestinian objections

The moves drew immediate criticism from Palestinians.

"This would be the largest area of land ever confiscated by Israel in one go since 1967," said Hatem Abdel-Qader, the Palestinian minister for Jerusalem affairs. "We will appeal against this decision."

Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, reiterated his stance that peace talks with Israel cannot resume until settlement construction comes to a complete halt.

"We won't accept the continuation of settlements," he said in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has said he will not allow the building of new settlements but will allow construction in existing communities, under what Israel calls "natural growth".

His refusal to order a total freeze has given rise to rare public disagreements between his government and the Obama administration and even raised questions about whether the US will continue to actively support Israel at the UN.

But Gabriela Shalev, Israel's UN ambassador, said on Monday that the Obama administration had assured Israel that it would continue defending it at the UN.

"We were told explicitly [by the Americans] that there are no consultations and no discussions at all within the administration in this direction," Shalev told Israel's Channel Ten television.

Some 500,000 Israelis live among 2.5 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, land Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war.

06:00 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	Israel stops aid ship to Gaza Israel maintains a blockade of the Gaza Strip [AFP] The Israeli navy has intercepted an aid ship on its way to Gaza, pro-Palestinian activists say. Members of the US-based Free Gaza Movement, who were on board the boat, said on Tuesday the Israeli navy threatened to open fire unless they turned the boat around. The Israeli government denied any threats were made, or that any shots were fired, but said they warned the boat not to cross into Gazan waters. The boat had set off from Cyprus on Monday, carrying humanitarian supplies for Gaza, which remains under an Israeli blockade. Humanitarian crisis Speaking to Al Jazeera, Caoimhe Butterly, a spokesperson for the Free Gaza movement, said: "This is the third humanitarian relief boat and solidarity mission that has been aggressively stopped by the Israeli army. "The humanitarian situation is at crisis point. There has been a systematic and deliberate destruction of the humanitarian infrastructure of Gaza. "We were taking medical supplies and medical equipment and limited amounts of building material … although $4 bn has been pledged to the Gaza Strip for reconstruction … no cement or building supplies are allowed in as a result of the siege. "We need to up the ante and to mount more actions and convoys of this nature," she said.

06:00 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

Israel stops aid ship to Gaza

Israel maintains a blockade of the
Gaza Strip [AFP]

The Israeli navy has intercepted an aid ship on its way to Gaza, pro-Palestinian activists say.

Members of the US-based Free Gaza Movement, who were on board the boat, said on Tuesday the Israeli navy threatened to open fire unless they turned the boat around.

The Israeli government denied any threats were made, or that any shots were fired, but said they warned the boat not to cross into Gazan waters.

The boat had set off from Cyprus on Monday, carrying humanitarian supplies for Gaza, which remains under an Israeli blockade.

Humanitarian crisis

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Caoimhe Butterly, a spokesperson for the Free Gaza movement, said: "This is the third humanitarian relief boat and solidarity mission that has been aggressively stopped by the Israeli army.

"The humanitarian situation is at crisis point. There has been a systematic and deliberate destruction of the humanitarian infrastructure of Gaza.

"We were taking medical supplies and medical equipment and limited amounts of building material … although $4 bn has been pledged to the Gaza Strip for reconstruction … no cement or building supplies are allowed in as a result of the siege.

"We need to up the ante and to mount more actions and convoys of this nature," she said.

06:01 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	UN assesses trauma of Gaza conflict The UN panel heard emotional testimony from residents during the inquiry on Sunday A UN human rights mission on the Gaza conflict is hearing from a range of experts on the social and the psychological effect of Israel's 22-day war on Gaza. On the second of the two-day inquiry on Monday, a child psychologist told the panel that an estimated 20 per cent of children in Gaza suffer post-traumatic stress syndrome as a result of witnessing violence. Dr Iyad Sarraj said: "The amount of killing and blood that they have seen or that their relatives have suffered from … is a huge amount, and this leads to negative psychological feelings, to radicalism and a cycle of violence." Lost livelihoods Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros in Gaza, where more than half of the population of 1.5 million people is under 18-years of age, said Sarraj told the panel that six months after the war the trauma is still present among children. In depth "During the war we spent the night with a family and we saw first hand the kind of trauma that Dr Sarraj was talking about in terms of the children and how frightened they were when the bombs were going off," she said. The panel also heard from the head of a women's group in Gaza City, who said that most of those who died in the conflict were men, leaving behind the women they provided a livelihood for, Tadros said. "Even months after the war the women are still suffering because they have lost their livelihood and have to go out and work," she said, adding that this was flagged up as a "major problem". The hearing, which is being broadcast live for the public, will also include testimony from experts on the military operation on the Palestinian enclave. The panel is to hold a second round of public hearings on July 6 and 7 in Geneva where it will hear from the victims of alleged violations in Israel and the West Bank. The UN chose the Swiss city as the venue of the second round of hearings because the fact-finding mission did not receive permission to enter Israel. The public hearings were called for by Richard Goldstone, the head of the 15-member team and previously a member of the South African constitutional court. The mission is due to complete a report with its findings in August. Israeli offensive Israel launched its offensive against Gaza on December 27, citing rocket attacks from the enclave that caused injuries to residents and damage to property in Sderot and other towns. The military operation killed more than 1,400 Palestinians, including more than 900 civilians, among them scores of children, according to Palestinian officials and human rights groups. It also destroyed thousands of homes and heavily damaged Gaza's infrastructure. Israel says the death toll was lower and most of the dead were Hamas fighters. Thirteen Israelis were also killed during the fighting. Gaza's reconstruction is being hampered by Israel's blockade of Gaza, which dates back to June 2007 when Hamas took control of the territory. Since then, Israel and Egypt, which control Gaza's only border crossing that bypasses Israel, have kept the territory of 1.5 million aid-dependent people sealed to all but essential humanitarian supplies. Israel has insisted that the blockade is necessary to prevent Hamas from arming itself. Human-rights groups say it is a "collective punishment" that wrongly hurts ordinary civilians. The fact-finding mission is mandated by the UN to investigate all violations of international human rights and humanitarian laws that might have been committed at any time in the context of the military operations conducted in Gaza.

06:01 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

UN assesses trauma of Gaza conflict

The UN panel heard emotional testimony from residents during the inquiry on Sunday

A UN human rights mission on the Gaza conflict is hearing from a range of experts on the social and the psychological effect of Israel's 22-day war on Gaza.

On the second of the two-day inquiry on Monday, a child psychologist told the panel that an estimated 20 per cent of children in Gaza suffer post-traumatic stress syndrome as a result of witnessing violence.

Dr Iyad Sarraj said: "The amount of killing and blood that they have seen or that their relatives have suffered from … is a huge amount, and this leads to negative psychological feelings, to radicalism and a cycle of violence."

Lost livelihoods

Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros in Gaza, where more than half of the population of 1.5 million people is under 18-years of age, said Sarraj told the panel that six months after the war the trauma is still present among children.
In depth

"During the war we spent the night with a family and we saw first hand the kind of trauma that Dr Sarraj was talking about in terms of the children and how frightened they were when the bombs were going off," she said.

The panel also heard from the head of a women's group in Gaza City, who said that most of those who died in the conflict were men, leaving behind the women they provided a livelihood for, Tadros said.

"Even months after the war the women are still suffering because they have lost their livelihood and have to go out and work," she said, adding that this was flagged up as a "major problem".

The hearing, which is being broadcast live for the public, will also include testimony from experts on the military operation on the Palestinian enclave.

The panel is to hold a second round of public hearings on July 6 and 7 in Geneva where it will hear from the victims of alleged violations in Israel and the West Bank.

The UN chose the Swiss city as the venue of the second round of hearings because the fact-finding mission did not receive permission to enter Israel.

The public hearings were called for by Richard Goldstone, the head of the 15-member team and previously a member of the South African constitutional court.

The mission is due to complete a report with its findings in August.

Israeli offensive

Israel launched its offensive against Gaza on December 27, citing rocket attacks from the enclave that caused injuries to residents and damage to property in Sderot and other towns.

The military operation killed more than 1,400 Palestinians, including more than 900 civilians, among them scores of children, according to Palestinian officials and human rights groups.

It also destroyed thousands of homes and heavily damaged Gaza's infrastructure.

Israel says the death toll was lower and most of the dead were Hamas fighters.

Thirteen Israelis were also killed during the fighting.

Gaza's reconstruction is being hampered by Israel's blockade of Gaza, which dates back to June 2007 when Hamas took control of the territory.

Since then, Israel and Egypt, which control Gaza's only border crossing that bypasses Israel, have kept the territory of 1.5 million aid-dependent people sealed to all but essential humanitarian supplies.

Israel has insisted that the blockade is necessary to prevent Hamas from arming itself. Human-rights groups say it is a "collective punishment" that wrongly hurts ordinary civilians.

The fact-finding mission is mandated by the UN to investigate all violations of international human rights and humanitarian laws that might have been committed at any time in the context of the military operations conducted in Gaza.

06:03 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
aliyatul_hikmah Indonesia	Voice of Palestine will be voice of muslims too Here we can help our brothers n sisters by share our thought… BUT in real…...their condition is still difficult n hard….. May Allah make them stronger n stronger to defend their faith…..

06:03 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

aliyatul_hikmah

Indonesia

Voice of Palestine will be voice of muslims too

Here we can help our brothers n sisters by share our thought…

BUT in real…...their condition is still difficult n hard…..

May Allah make them stronger n stronger to defend their faith…..

06:03 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	'Go back and die in Gaza' By Stephanie Doetzer Short on supplies and facilities, Gaza's hospitals cannot treated the most severe cases [GETTY] Since Israel's closure of the Gaza Strip in 2007, only severely sick Palestinians have been allowed to seek medical attention elsewhere provided they receive authorisation and security clearances from the Israeli authorities. However, getting the special permit that allows patients to leave Gaza for medical treatment is a bureaucratic hassle and, many Gazans say, comes with strings attached. According to the Israeli organisation Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), Palestinian patients are increasingly being asked to make an impossible choice: Either to become collaborators with the Israeli intelligence apparatus – or to remain in Gaza without medical treatment. Al Jazeera spoke with Hadas Ziv, the director of PHR. Al Jazeera: Your organisation has collected dozens of testimonies of patients who were pressured to collaborate with the Israeli General Security Services. How did you find out about this? A Palestinian will not easily admit he or she has been asked to become an informant. Ziv: True; it is not a subject people talk about easily and it happened gradually. Our organisation tries to support Gazan patients who were prevented by the Israeli authorities from treatment in Israel, or from crossing Israel on their way to hospitals in the West Bank. Instead of clear rejection or admittance, the Israelis started saying: "permit pending interrogation". The permit became conditional – not so much on individual health conditions, but on the outcome of the interrogation at the Erez Crossing. Then, many of the patients we were in touch with came back from interrogation and told us they did not get the permit: "They tried to extort me to collaborate and I wasn't willing to give them information, so they sent me back to Gaza." When more and more people told us the same story, we understood that this was a new policy. How do you know the testimonies are true? The testimonies come from very different people, of different ages, different political opinions and from different towns in the Gaza strip. To believe that there is such a high degree of co-ordination among all the patients is pretty far-fetched. But more importantly, it needs a lot of courage to speak to us about this. Some of the patients have a lot to lose if they talk. You started collecting testimonies in the summer of 2007. But when do you think this practice started? Very soon after the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip. Since then Israel sees Gaza as an enemy entity, as something that has to be closely monitored and controlled. And since then, it has become more difficult for the General Security Services (GSS) to gather intelligence from Gaza. They have little direct contact with Palestinians. The only ones who are still allowed to cross Erez, even if they also have a lot of difficulties, are the patients. They are an easy prey for the GSS. They are very vulnerable – for some, getting out of Gaza can be a question of life and death. The GSS is using this situation to exert pressure. Is there a standard procedure for these interrogations? It varies. The newest development is that you have a specific appointment for interrogation and it's not on the day of your treatment. But there are also cases where people think they have a permit and can go out, but then they are suddenly being taken to interrogation. Sometimes the patient has to wait in a room for several hours, without his family. Then, they take him to another room for interrogation. They may ask just a couple of questions to find out if you know any Hamas members or they may suggest a deal for long term co-operation: "If you help us, we will help you. You need a treatment, we need information. We will give you a number, you call us once a week and give us information about your neighbours." If you refuse, they become more blunt: "Okay, go back and die in Gaza." What happens back in Gaza? The patients are in a lose-lose situation. If they refuse to co-operate with the Israelis and are sent back, they may die because they can't get appropriate treatment in Gaza. If they do manage to get the permit, they will be branded as potential collaborators. Whether you really did it or not is not so important. If people think you collaborated, your life may be at risk. In the end, everyone suspects everyone else. It's like Orwell's 1984. And this is the objective – humiliation and fragmentation. Isn't the objective in the first place a more immediate one – simply gathering intelligence? That's just the surface. I think the main goal is to break the cohesiveness and solidarity among Palestinians. This way, it's much more difficult for them to unify and to struggle for a common cause. What already happens between Fatah and Hamas then also happens between neighbours, between families … and this is good for the one who tries to control you. But the Israeli government says it wants a partner for negotiations and thus a united Palestinian position. What troubles me most as an Israeli citizen is that we suffer from a kind of collective psychosis. We are governed by fear and manipulated by fear. Security is everything. But what we are being offered is a very narrow definition of security. No one has the courage to say that long-term security is security for everyone, not just for us but also for Palestinians. But we are obstructed from seeing this, because we let fear govern our lives. We constantly have something to fear. If one fear stops, another comes up. When Hamas took over the Gaza Strip, it was very convenient for the Israeli government to use this. Hamas is being presented to the Israeli public as an entity that you cannot talk to. But 20 years ago, we claimed Fatah could not be talked to. Every time, a situation is being created in which you claim you have no one to talk to. How are your views received by other Israelis? When I argue with people they tell me I should be grateful to the people who defend me. That the GSS may be saving my life through these interrogations. They say I'm naive, that I am not patriotic and things like that. But I think my point of view has the same legitimacy as others. In Israel, if you mention the word "security", no further arguments are needed. They say patients may come to Israel to organise terror attacks. In this case, Israeli society does not demand further explanation. The result is that even things that we wouldn't think about doing with convicted criminals, these things are suddenly permissible when it comes to Palestinians. It is as if we had two different sets of values. And this is only possible because we constantly dehumanise the Palestinians. If we would consider them as normal human beings, it would not be possible. Everything is conditioned according to us. To our needs and our security. I think this is not justifiable. Not just because the victims suffer. Of course, the victims' suffering is unimaginable. It is beyond what I can express. Imagine you are the mother of a 17-year-old girl who has cancer, needs urgent treatment and is being extorted by the GSS. You, as a mother, are in a different room and you don't know what your daughter is going through. This is unimaginable to me. But it is also unimaginable to me what future my society has if it continues to act like this. I'm afraid for my society as well. I think we are at a crossroads. We have to choose. If we want to remain human, we cannot continue like this. In a written statement given to Al Jazeera, the Israeli defence ministry has denied all the allegations made by Ziv. "These charges are false. The only considerations Israel has are humanitarian and security-related ones," the statement says. "There is no truth to the contention that other factors are involved. The reason why clarifications are conducted by our security personnel is to ensure that those granted medical entry permits are indeed in need of such permits, and to ensure that those planning on abusing these permits to foment terror in Israel cannot gain entry into Israel."

06:03 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

'Go back and die in Gaza'

By Stephanie Doetzer

Short on supplies and facilities, Gaza's hospitals cannot treated the most severe cases [GETTY]

Since Israel's closure of the Gaza Strip in 2007, only severely sick Palestinians have been allowed to seek medical attention elsewhere provided they receive authorisation and security clearances from the Israeli authorities.

However, getting the special permit that allows patients to leave Gaza for medical treatment is a bureaucratic hassle and, many Gazans say,
comes with strings attached.

According to the Israeli organisation Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), Palestinian patients are increasingly being asked to make an impossible choice: Either to become collaborators with the Israeli intelligence apparatus – or to remain in Gaza without medical treatment.

Al Jazeera spoke with Hadas Ziv, the director of PHR.

Al Jazeera: Your organisation has collected dozens of testimonies of patients who were pressured to collaborate with the Israeli General Security Services. How did you find out about this? A Palestinian will not easily admit he or she has been asked to become an informant.

Ziv: True; it is not a subject people talk about easily and it happened gradually. Our organisation tries to support Gazan patients who were prevented by the Israeli authorities from treatment in Israel, or from crossing Israel on their way to hospitals in the West Bank.

Instead of clear rejection or admittance, the Israelis started saying: "permit pending interrogation". The permit became conditional – not so much on individual health conditions, but on the outcome of the interrogation at the Erez Crossing.

Then, many of the patients we were in touch with came back from interrogation and told us they did not get the permit: "They tried to extort me to collaborate and I wasn't willing to give them information, so they sent me back to Gaza."

When more and more people told us the same story, we understood that this was a new policy.

How do you know the testimonies are true?

The testimonies come from very different people, of different ages, different political opinions and from different towns in the Gaza strip. To believe that there is such a high degree of co-ordination among all the patients is pretty far-fetched. But more importantly, it needs a lot of courage to speak to us about this.

Some of the patients have a lot to lose if they talk.

You started collecting testimonies in the summer of 2007. But when do you think this practice started?

Very soon after the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip. Since then Israel sees Gaza as an enemy entity, as something that has to be closely monitored and controlled.

And since then, it has become more difficult for the General Security Services (GSS) to gather intelligence from Gaza. They have little direct contact with Palestinians.

The only ones who are still allowed to cross Erez, even if they also have a lot of difficulties, are the patients. They are an easy prey for the GSS. They are very vulnerable – for some, getting out of Gaza can be a question of life and death.

The GSS is using this situation to exert pressure.

Is there a standard procedure for these interrogations?

It varies. The newest development is that you have a specific appointment for interrogation and it's not on the day of your treatment. But there are also cases where people think they have a permit and can go out, but then they are suddenly being taken to interrogation. Sometimes the patient has to wait in a room for several hours, without his family.

Then, they take him to another room for interrogation. They may ask just a couple of questions to find out if you know any Hamas members or they may suggest a deal for long term co-operation: "If you help us, we will help you. You need a treatment, we need information. We will give you a number, you call us once a week and give us information about your neighbours."

If you refuse, they become more blunt: "Okay, go back and die in Gaza."

What happens back in Gaza?

The patients are in a lose-lose situation. If they refuse to co-operate with the Israelis and are sent back, they may die because they can't get appropriate treatment in Gaza.

If they do manage to get the permit, they will be branded as potential collaborators.

Whether you really did it or not is not so important. If people think you collaborated, your life may be at risk. In the end, everyone suspects everyone else. It's like Orwell's 1984.

And this is the objective – humiliation and fragmentation.

Isn't the objective in the first place a more immediate one – simply gathering intelligence?

That's just the surface.

I think the main goal is to break the cohesiveness and solidarity among Palestinians. This way, it's much more difficult for them to unify and to struggle for a common cause.

What already happens between Fatah and Hamas then also happens between neighbours, between families … and this is good for the one who tries to control you.

But the Israeli government says it wants a partner for negotiations and thus a united Palestinian position.

What troubles me most as an Israeli citizen is that we suffer from a kind of collective psychosis.

We are governed by fear and manipulated by fear. Security is everything.

But what we are being offered is a very narrow definition of security. No one has the courage to say that long-term security is security for everyone, not just for us but also for Palestinians. But we are obstructed from seeing this, because we let fear govern our lives.

We constantly have something to fear. If one fear stops, another comes up. When Hamas took over the Gaza Strip, it was very convenient for the Israeli government to use this. Hamas is being presented to the Israeli public as an entity that you cannot talk to. But 20 years ago, we claimed Fatah could not be talked to. Every time, a situation is being created in which you claim you have no one to talk to.

How are your views received by other Israelis?

When I argue with people they tell me I should be grateful to the people who defend me. That the GSS may be saving my life through these interrogations. They say I'm naive, that I am not patriotic and things like that.

But I think my point of view has the same legitimacy as others.

In Israel, if you mention the word "security", no further arguments are needed. They say patients may come to Israel to organise terror attacks. In this case, Israeli society does not demand further explanation.

The result is that even things that we wouldn't think about doing with convicted criminals, these things are suddenly permissible when it comes to Palestinians. It is as if we had two different sets of values. And this is only possible because we constantly dehumanise the Palestinians. If we would consider them as normal human beings, it would not be possible.

Everything is conditioned according to us. To our needs and our security. I think this is not justifiable. Not just because the victims suffer. Of course, the victims' suffering is unimaginable.

It is beyond what I can express. Imagine you are the mother of a 17-year-old girl who has cancer, needs urgent treatment and is being extorted by the GSS. You, as a mother, are in a different room and you don't know what your daughter is going through. This is unimaginable to me.

But it is also unimaginable to me what future my society has if it continues to act like this. I'm afraid for my society as well. I think we are at a crossroads. We have to choose. If we want to remain human, we cannot continue like this.

In a written statement given to Al Jazeera, the Israeli defence ministry has denied all the allegations made by Ziv.

"These charges are false. The only considerations Israel has are humanitarian and security-related ones," the statement says.

"There is no truth to the contention that other factors are involved. The reason why clarifications are conducted by our security personnel is to ensure that those granted medical entry permits are indeed in need of such permits, and to ensure that those planning on abusing these permits to foment terror in Israel cannot gain entry into Israel."

06:09 AM Jul 01 2009 \| Responder
arabhamid Algeria	aliyatul_hikmah : I bring this idea from history. during Algeria revolution against the occupation of France, our brothers in Egypt gave us Radio channel, and we called (free voice of Algeria", and from this Radio channel, we were make our voice heard to all our brothers everywhere. So, I it it from there.!!! we have to learn from history my sister thanks

06:09 AM Jul 01 2009 | Responder

arabhamid

Algeria

aliyatul_hikmah :

I bring this idea from history.

during Algeria revolution against the occupation of France, our brothers in Egypt gave us Radio channel, and we called (free voice of Algeria", and from this Radio channel, we were make our voice heard to all our brothers everywhere.

So, I it it from there.!!!

we have to learn from history my sister

thanks