EU opens way for direct aid to Syrian rebels
[The Western imperialists have been arming the opposition in Syria indirectly through their proxies and allies, the Gulf states, Israel, Turkey, etc. They are now clearing the way to arm them directly. The destruction of Syria clears the way for imperialist attacks on Iran. --NP]
EU opens way for direct aid to Syrian rebels
By Justyna Pawlak and Ethan Bilby
(Reuters)
BRUSSELS – The European Union took steps on Monday to provide direct aid potentially including security advice to rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but stopped short of lifting an arms embargo on the country.
The decision, taken at an EU foreign ministers’ meeting, was a compromise after weeks of clashes between Britain, which pushed for easing the embargo to help rebels, and EU countries worried allowing more weapons into Syria could fuel violence.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said he foresaw more talks in coming months on how the EU can help the opposition in Syria, but now London would use the new measures to offer help.
“We will certainly use the full leeway provided by this amendment to the embargo in order to provide greater assistance for the protection of civilians,” Hague told reporters after meeting his EU counterparts in Brussels.
Details of what will be allowed in practice must still be determined, but diplomats said governments could offer advice on bolstering security or holding back Assad’s forces, for example.
“(It could take place) in the country or in the region,” one EU diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Many EU governments are concerned any easing of the arms embargo would only inflame the Syrian conflict, and it would be difficult to ensure equipment reaches the right people.
“There is no shortage of arms in Syria,” Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said before the meeting.
EU rules only allow some protective gear to be sent to countries under arms embargoes, such as Syria.
WEIGHING OPTIONS
Several scenarios were under consideration during Monday’s discussions, EU officials said, including a full lifting of the arms ban to allow shipments to opposition groups.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton underlined that no “lethal” support would be provided but said Monday’s decision marked a significant change in the EU’s approach to the rebels.
“This is not about military support, but that we were able to give the support to the people on the ground to help them in every possible way,” she told reporters. “There’s nothing politically fudgy … around this at all.”
Ministers also decided to renew all sanctions against Syria, which include a ban on purchasing Syrian oil, for three months.
President Barack Obama has decided to limit U.S. support for the rebels to non-lethal aid as well, even though the Pentagon has supported a recommendation to arm them promoted by the State Department and the CIA.
An estimated 70,000 people have been killed since an uprising against Assad began in March 2011 after the overthrow of veteran authoritarian rulers in Tunisia and Egypt.
Despite some support from Sunni regional powers including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, the rebels remain largely disorganized, fragmented and ill-equipped. They say weapons occasionally do seep through from Jordan but they rely more on arsenals seized from Assad’s troops and arms from Turkey.
(Additional reporting by Adrian Croft; Editing by Jason Webb)
Palestinians: Protester shot dead by Israeli fire
[The United States continues to support state-sponsored murder worldwide when they perceive it is in their interests. -- NP]
Palestinians: Protester shot dead by Israeli fire
(AP)
JERUSALEM (AP) — A Palestinian medical official says a man has died after he was shot in the head by Israeli security forces in the West Bank.
Yatta hospital director Ziyad Abu Zahra identified the man as 25-year-old Mahmoud Titi.
An Associated Press photographer says the man was among dozens throwing rocks at Israeli troops near the city of Hebron.
The Israeli military did not immediately confirm Tuesday’s incident but said it is looking into it.
Palestinians have increasingly complained in recent weeks of the use of live fire by Israeli forces. The military says it only uses live fire in situations it considers life-threatening.
Bahrain detains 6 over anti-government tweets
[The United States and other imperialists claim to support democracy in Libya and Syria where they have ripped those countries apart by supporting bloody civil wars. However, in Bahrain, the United States supports the crackdown on dissent. This is because the imperialists do not care at all about civil rights They care about their own power and economic interests. Hypocrisy. -- NP]
Bahrain detains 6 over anti-government tweets
(AP)
MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — The public prosecutor’s office in Bahrain says six people have been detained for allegedly defaming the country’s ruler on Twitter.
The six, who were not identified, join a growing list of anti-government activists caught up in an Internet crackdown by authorities in the Sunni-ruled Gulf nation.
Bahrain has seen nearly two years of unrest over demands by the country’s majority Shiites for a greater political voice.
The six were detained over the past couple of days and the prosecutor’s statement Wednesday said they will be charged with misusing Twitter and insulting King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
The arrests come two days after a court acquitted rights activist Yousef al-Muhafedha of spreading false news on Twitter. He is one of dozens to face charges for posting comments on social media.
‘People want Assad to stay’
[The Baathist regime in Syria is not socialist nor consistently anti-imperialist. Even so, the reporting on the regime in the media has been extremely one-sided. The conflict in Syria is one largely manufactured by outside forces. The West and its Libyan, Turkish, Israel, and Gulf allies are fighting a proxy war in Syria against Iran's growing influence. With Assad deposed, Iran, Hezbollah, and Palestinian liberation forces will be weakened. Iran will be further isolated to set the stage for a Western invasion. The West has little care for actual democracy as history shows us. The monarchy in Bahrain is killing protesters, jailing journalists, harassing and jailing intellectuals, etc. with US support. So talk of "democracy" is simply lies when uttered by the State Department of the United States -- NP]
‘People want Assad to stay’
(BBC)
Life has become difficult for the residents of Damascus, in Syria, but little is reported of the lives of those in Damascus who support the Assad regime. BBC reporter Zubeida Malik spoke on the Today programme to some of the government supporters in Syria’s capital city.
Thirty one-year-old Damascus resident Zenub, a university teacher who supports the Assad regime, explained that her quality of life has deteriorated significantly since the beginning of the uprising: “We are not free to leave our homes. We hear shooting and explosions every night. I feel in danger when the sun starts to set… we are asking for our freedom to live as we did before.”
Abdul, who used to work as a teacher and supports the government, says the conflict has affected the economy in Damascus: “A lot of people are on the streets asking for money. Some people are relying on their savings. The good thing is, the government is giving salaries to their employees. Some company and factory owners have moved to Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan and that means the money has moved to these places.”
Abdul remarked that he believes he is supporting the winning side: “I am not depressed about the future because the situation is worse than before, in terms of damages to our country. But in terms of people’s minds, I can say now that people have understood that this revolution has damaged us. It’s being controlled from outside. A lot of people want Assad to stay.”
Qatar poet remains in prison for ‘offensive’ verse
[The United States and its allies silence dissent when it is to their advantage. They claim to support human rights. However, such claims are just a smokescreen for advancing imperialist interest. -- NP]
Qatar poet remains in prison for ‘offensive’ verse
By ABDULLAH REBHY
(AP)
DOHA, Qatar (AP) — A poet jailed for a verse considered offensive to Qatar’s ruler harshly denounced the Gulf nation’s legal proceedings on Monday after an appeals court reduced his life sentence but still kept a 15-year prison term.
The rant in court — rare in the tightly controlled Gulf Arab states — underscored the free speech battles across the region as Western-backed authorities take strict measures against perceived political dissent in the wake of the Arab Spring.
From Kuwait to Oman, dozens of people have been arrested in the past year for social media posts deemed insulting to leaders or calling for political forms. For Qatar, the case also could bring added pressure from rights groups looking into labor conditions and other preparations for football’s 2022 World Cup, which will be by far the most prominent international event hosted in the Gulf region.
“Unjust,” shouted poet Muhammad ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami in the heavily guarded courtroom in Qatar’s capita, Doha, after his appeal to drop the conviction was denied. The court cut the life sentence handed down in November and imposed a 15-year term instead.
Al-Ajami faced specific charges from a poem posted online in 2010 that discussed the traits needed for a good leader — which apparently was seen by authorities as a challenge to Qatar’s emir and the ruling family.
He was more widely known for an Internet video of him reciting “Tunisian Jasmine,” a poem lauding that country’s popular uprising, which touched off the Arab Spring rebellions across the Middle East. In the poem, he said, “we are all Tunisia in the face of repressive” authorities and criticized Arab governments that restrict freedoms, calling them “thieves.”
Al-Ajami still can appeal the remaining prison term to a higher court.
“This sentence will not stand,” said his brother Hasan. “When you strip away everything, this is just a case about power and pressure.”
Qatar’s attorney general, Ali bin Fetais al-Marri, told Al-Jazeera English that state prosecutors also will seek to restore the life sentence.
“We accept the ruling,” al-Marri told the network. “However, we, as public prosecution, will resort to the Supreme Court to challenge the judgment, hoping to restore it as was, a life term. However, in any case, we will honor the (decision) of the court.”
Earlier this month, a Kuwait court sentenced three former opposition lawmakers to three years hard labor for insulting the country’s ruler during speeches at political rallies. In January, a Kuwait blogger and online journalists received two-year sentences in back-to-back convictions for posts deemed “insulting” to the emir.
In November, the United Arab Emirates set stricter Internet monitoring and enforcement codes. They include giving authorities wider leeway to arrest Web activists for offenses such as mocking the country’s leadership or calling for demonstrations.
Dubai officials block Bahrain-based AP journalist
[The United States is the major military backer of the Gulf states. The Gulf states along with the West are in a proxy war against Iran, which is why the West and their allies support the oppression of the Shia majority in Bahrain by the dictatorship there. The United States claims to support free speech, but the reality is that the United States and its allies are fine with censoring dissent. As the United States claims to support so-called "democracy" in Syria, the United States and its allies work to suppress the massive protests in Bahrain. --NP]
Dubai officials block Bahrain-based AP journalist
(AP)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Two Bahrain-based journalists, including a reporter for The Associated Press, were blocked from entering the United Arab Emirates on Monday under apparent new restrictions by Gulf Arab states.
Reem Khalifa and her husband, Mansoor al-Jamri, chief editor for Bahrain’s independent Al Wasat newspaper, said they were told by authorities at Dubai International Airport that they were on a list to deny entry.
No further explanations were immediately given, but it appears part of tighter coordination between Gulf allies to control and monitor journalists, activists and others in the region.
Like all Gulf partners, the UAE has expanded crackdowns on perceived political dissent since the Arab Spring, including charging 94 people last month with conspiring to overthrow the ruling system. But it still remains among the most open countries in the Gulf for journalists, researchers and scholars.
Bahrain’s 2-year-old uprising is a critical issue for Gulf leaders, who want to safeguard the ruling families across the region.
Khalifa and her husband — on a private visit to Dubai — closely cover Bahrain’s struggles between majority Shiites and the Sunni rulers in the strategic kingdom, which is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.
Khalifa had visited Dubai last year without incident. Al-Jamri was among the winners in 2011 of the International Press Freedom Award by the Committee to Protect Journalists.
A senior UAE official said airport immigration issues fall under Dubai police, which had no immediate comment. Bahrainis and other citizens from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council — as well as many Western passport holders — can enter the UAE without a pre-arranged visa.
Bahrain, however, has imposed a special journalist visa that has sharply limited outside media access to the country.
Last week, the UAE also denied entry to a prominent academic from the London School of Economics who was scheduled to speak about Bahrain at a conference on the Arab Spring.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that Kristian Coates Ulrichsen was not allowed into the country because his work has been critical of Bahrain’s monarchy, which is closely backed by other Gulf leaders. The UAE said “non-constructive” views on Bahrain are unwelcome.
Palestinians bury man who died in Israeli custody
[Israel is an illegitimate, racist, apartheid country. The genocide against the Palestinians by the Zionists is financed and armed by the West, especially the United States. --NP]
Palestinians bury man who died in Israeli custody
By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH
(AP)
SAEER, West Bank (AP) — A Palestinian man who died under disputed circumstances in Israeli custody was given a hero’s funeral Monday, as thousands thronged his gravesite and Palestinian police fired a 21-gun salute.
Palestinian officials, citing an autopsy, said Arafat Jaradat was tortured during Israeli interrogation. Israeli officials said more tests are needed to determine the cause of death, and Israel’s public security minister said he would allow an international expert to review the autopsy results.
The weekend death of the 30-year-old gas station attendant and father of two comes amid rising West Bank tensions that have prompted talk in Israel about the possibility of a new Palestinian uprising.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Monday he was consulting with security officials, while U.N. envoy Robert Serry warned that “mounting tensions present a real risk of destabilization.”
In recent days, there have been frequent Palestinian protests in support of some 4,600 Palestinians held by Israel, particularly four inmates who’ve staged extended hunger strikes.
In a clash Monday, Palestinian medical officials said two Palestinian youths, one 13 years old and one 16, were seriously wounded by live fire. An Israeli military spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military policy, said the military was looking into the claim. He said protesters hurled “improvised hand grenades” towards a holy site in the Bethlehem area, endangering the worshippers inside, at which point soldiers fired at the legs of one Palestinian, lightly injuring him.
Israel’s military has said it typically uses non-lethal means to disperse violent protests, but occasionally uses live fire when soldiers feel they are in a life-threatening situation. In recent weeks, Palestinians have increasingly complained of the military’s use of live fire at protests.
The fate of the prisoners is sensitive in Palestinian society, where virtually every family has had a member imprisoned by Israel. Detainees are held on a range of charges, from stone-throwing to deadly attacks, and are seen as heroes resisting occupation. Israelis tend to view them as terrorists.
Palestinian and Israeli officials traded accusations Monday, each saying the other was trying to exploit the latest unrest for political gains.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Israel is trying to provoke the Palestinians with what he said are increasingly lethal methods by Israeli security forces clamping down on Palestinian protests.
“However they try to drag us to that place, we won’t be dragged,” said Abbas. “We won’t be dragged, but they (Israelis) have to bear the responsibility.”
Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev alleged that Abbas’ self-rule government in the West Bank is inciting violence against Israel. Palestinian officials have called for more solidarity rallies for the prisoners.
Abbas, a critic of violence, has said he would not allow an armed uprising on his watch.
But tensions have been rising in recent days with a number of protests in solidarity with prisoners held by Israel, and then the death of Jaradat over the weekend.
At Monday’s funeral, thousands marched behind Jaradat’s body, draped in a Palestinian flag, as the procession snaked through his home town of Saeer, near the West Bank city of Hebron.
Palestinian police maintained order, and seven officers fired a 21-gun salute near the gravesite.
Abbas Zaki, a senior member of Abbas’ Fatah movement, called Jaradat’s death an Israeli crime.
“I am telling Fatah members that our enemy only understands the language of force,” he told the crowd in what appeared to be a call to violence.
Jaradat was arrested on Feb. 18 on suspicion that he had thrown stones at Israelis. He died Saturday at Israel’s Megiddo prison after several days of interrogation by the Shin Bet security service.
Israel’s forensics institute performed an autopsy Sunday, in the presence of a physician from the Palestinian Authority.
The Palestinian minister of prisoner affairs, Issa Karake, said after being briefed by the Palestinian doctor that Jaradat was tortured. He said Jaradat was bruised over his body and suffered two broken ribs.
Jaradat’s brother, Mohammed, said he saw the body Sunday and believed his brother was severely beaten.
Israel’s Health Ministry said the autopsy did not conclusively determine the cause of death, but that the bruising and broken ribs were likely the result of attempts to revive the detainee. It said more testing was needed.
Amos Gilad, an Israeli defense official, alleged that Palestinian officials were jumping to conclusions. “It’s intended to incite,” Gilad told Israel Army Radio on Monday. “There is a clear political purpose to stir things up.”
The Shin Bet initially said Jaradat apparently died of a heart attack, though the Palestinian physician attending the autopsy was quoted as saying he did not find any evidence of that.
An agency official has denied Jaradat was beaten.
Detainees have filed some 700 complaints about mistreatment by Shin Bet agents in the past decade, according to the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem.
Reports of physical mistreatment have dropped sharply in recent years but have not disappeared, said B’Tselem spokeswoman Sarit Michaeli.
Serry said Israel must respect its obligations toward all Palestinians in custody, adding that the U.N. is concerned about the deteriorating health of Palestinian detainees on hunger strike.
___
Associated Press writer Dalia Nammari in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed.
Hamas says 20 of its members arrested by Israel
Hamas says 20 of its members arrested by Israel
By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH
(AP)
RAMALLAH, West Bank — The Palestinian militant group Hamas says Israel has arrested 20 of its members, including three lawmakers, in a West Bank raid.
Several Hamas officials say the arrests took place early Monday across the territory. They say three of those arrested are Hamas lawmakers. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.
Palestinians have been deeply divided since Hamas overran Gaza in 2007, ousting forces from the secular Fatah party led by the Western backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Hamas lawmakers have been subject to arrests by Israel since the group defeated Fatah in the 2006 Palestinian election.
Israel considers Hamas a terrorist organization because it has carried out scores of deadly attacks against civilians.
The Israeli military had no immediate comment on the arrests.
Palestinian protesters evicted from West Bank site
[The Zionists, the racist Israeli regime, continues its genocide of Palestinians. Israelis continue to push onto, steal and settle Palestinian land. This is only possible because Israeli is bankrolled by the United States. The United States is as much a culprit as Israel. --NP]
Palestinian protesters evicted from West Bank site By IAN DEITCH
(AP)
JERUSALEM (AP) — Palestinian protesters who pitched tents at a strategic West Bank site to protest plans to build a Jewish housing project there were evicted early Sunday, police said.
Palestinian activists erected tents in the area known as E-1 on Friday saying they wanted to “establish facts on the ground” to stop Israeli construction in the West Bank. The Palestinian activists were borrowing a phrase and a tactic, usually associated with Jewish settlers, who believe establishing communities means the territory will remain theirs once structures are built.
Spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said police evicted about a hundred protesters from the site early Sunday morning after a court decision authorizing their removal. He did not know which court had allowed the eviction.
Haaretz reported that the eviction was carried out despite a temporary High Court injunction preventing it.
Rosenfeld said no arrests were made during the half hour operation and that no injuries were sustained on either side. He said the tents were not dismantled and that a decision on that would be made later in the day.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday evening ordered roads closed leading to the area and had the military declare a closed military zone and shut off access. Netanyahu’s office said that the state was petitioning the Supreme Court to rescind an earlier injunction blocking the evacuation.
Israel announced it is moving forward with the E-1 settlement after the U.N. recognized a de facto state of Palestine in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem in November.
Palestinians say E-1 would be a major blow to their statehood aspirations as it blocks east Jerusalem from its West Bank hinterland. Palestinians are demanding these areas, along with Gaza, for their future state.
Activists said they want to build a village called Bab Al Shams at the site.
The construction plans drew unusually sharp criticism from some of Israel’s staunchest allies including the U.S. who strongly oppose the E- 1 project.
Israeli officials have said actual construction on the project may be years away if it ever gets off the ground, while Israeli critics have questioned whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu actually intends to develop E-1, or is pandering to hard-liners ahead of Israel’s Jan. 22 election.
In a separate incident Saturday, the Israeli military said soldiers shot at a Palestinian who “tried to infiltrate Israel” from the West Bank. The military said soldiers called on the man to stop, then fired warning shots in the air, and finally fired at his legs when he refused to stop.
Palestinian police said he later died of his wounds.
It was the second shooting death on the borders with the Palestinian territories in two days. On Friday, Palestinian officials in the Gaza Strip said a man was shot and killed near the coastal territory’s border fence. The Israeli military said he was part of a group that rushed the fence to damage it.
Death toll rises in Syria
Death toll rises in Syria
By Red Lion
(New-Power.org)
For over 20 months, Syria has been home to a brutal civil war that has the entire world watching. The UN estimates more than 60,000 people have died in Syria’s uprising and civil war. UN Human Rights researchers have gathered data for over five months and report that 59,648 people have been killed in Syria between March 15, 2011 and November 30, 2012. Recently, it was reported that dozens lost their lives from an airstrike that turned a petrol station into an inferno. The situation in Syria is worsening and the bloodshed shows no sign of slowing down.
In early 2011, anti-Assad protests broke out in Damascus and Aleppo. Eight months later, United States President Barack Obama called on Syria’s president to step down. Consequently, a civil war erupted between the Syrian opposition, also known as the Free Syrian Army, and Assad’s government forces. The main objective of the battle against Assad is regime change. The imperialists are sharpening their knives at such a prospect. The removal of Assad from power has been in the works for quite some time. The United States and Israel are weary of Syria’s alliance with Iran, a country that has been in the imperialists’ crosshairs for decades and is currently facing attacks as well. According to Central Command chief Gen. James N. Mattis, regime change in Syria would represent “the biggest strategic setback for Iran in 25 years.” The United States has not overtly intervened in Syria but they, along with NATO, are waging war by proxy. Arms are flowing into Syria from surrounding countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq and Israel. The resurgence of Al-Qaeda in Syria, possibly backed by Western finance, has been observed. The al-Nusra Front, an Al-Qaeda affiliate, is one of the many factions that have carried out multiple terrorists attacks in the effort to undermine Assad. Although the al-Nusra Front has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States, the front appears do be doing much of the heavy lifting for the United States-backed anti-regime forces. Assad’s forces have responded. NATO intelligence reports the Syrian military has utilized Scud-style ballistic missiles against rebels. Syria denies such accusations. There have also been instances of cross-border missile deployments against southern parts of Turkey. A Turkish military plane was shot down by the Syrian regime earlier this year. The conflict may be spilling into Turkey.
The Alawi
The imperialists are once again exploiting sectarian and religious difference in the Muslim world to further their dominance in the region. Although the Syrian state is mostly secular, President Bashar Al-Assad is of Alawi background, which is considered a branch of Shia Islam. The Twelver Shia, which control Iran, recognize the Alawi as legitimate Muslims even though the Alawi tradition contains pagan, gnostic, Christian elements, in addition to traditionally Islamic ones. The Alawi are the largest minority group in Syria, comprising 13% of the population. The second largest population of Alawi is in Turkey. Alawi have inhabited the mountain ranges of Northwestern Syria for over one thousand years. In the past, Alawi were at the bottom of the Sunni-dominated social system, having been prosecuted by the Sunnis for a very long time. This changed when Hafez Assad, an Alwai, came to power as part of a Ba’athist coup in 1963. He occupied the position of Minister of Defense. After a political struggle with rivals, after arresting other members of the regime in 1970, he was elected President of Syria in 1971. Assad projected the image of a Nasser figure, promoting Arab unity and the struggle against Israel. Assad’s rise changed the fortunes of women and minority groups in Syria. In 1973, Assad’s regime changed the constitution to nominally guarantee equal rights to women and to allow non-Muslims to occupy the Presidency. Later, under pressure from the opposition Muslim Brotherhood, some of these reforms were reversed. Throughout the 1980s, Assad came into conflict with the Brotherhood. After an assassination attempt, Assad’s regime reportedly killed hundreds of opposition prisoners. In 1982, the uprising against the regime in Hama led to a bombing of the city, reportedly killing 10,000. Assad’s regime’s base of support is disproportionately from minority religious and ethnic groups, Alawi, Christian, Kurdish, etc. Sectarian tensions between Assad’s base and parts of the Sunni population have heightened since the recent conflict.
A State of Chaos
Popular uprising, riots, invasion, mass killings, hunger, disease, etc. The Middle East turmoil stems from a long history of imperialism. Last year, the world witnessed the brutal assault on Libya by Western powers. What is transpiring in Syria bears some resemblance to the ousting and death of Muammar Ghadaffi. The coalition of armed rebels is backed by the United States and its Gulf allies. However, in Syria, NATO has not yet officially reared its ugly head in the conflict because they recognize the situation in Syria is different in some respects. They fear that they may not be able to manage the resulting sectarian conflict that emerges. The outcome in Syria is unpredictable. Although the Sunni Islamic opposition is currently aligned with the West in some respects, this could change in time. In addition, Syria has less resources to be plundered by the West. In addition, Syria has historic ties with Russia. Both Russia and China have extended limited diplomatic support to the regime in UN Security Council.
Comrade Lenin said that imperialism plays no progressive role upon the nations it seeks to control. Since the conflict broke out in Syria, the country has suffered significantly. There have been food shortages and power outages that affect the Syrian people every day. Food costs have shot up 20 percent, piling on misery, after increases of 50 to 80 percent were reported earlier in the year. Cities deemed conflict zones are having problems receiving food supplies because of compromised security measures. Residents living in rebel held areas say state-subsidized rations are not reaching them. Many more Syrians are without work and often have to decide between buying heating fuel or food. Some families chop up trees or even furniture for firewood. The United States, Turkey and their Gulf allies are fanning the flames of sectarian conflict and chaos in Syria. The imperialists and their allies seek to divide and conquer Syria as part of their larger campaign against Iran. It is the duty of Leading Lights and people of good conscience to stand against all imperialist meddling in Syria. We should extend critical support for all those resisting imperialism, while at the same time contending for proletarian, scientific, Leading Light leadership within the united front. “Uphold the broad united front against imperialism! Hold the Red Flag high!”
Sources:
1) http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-rebels-attack-military-airport-northwest-101534845.html
2) http://www.unionleader.com/article/20130102/OPINION02/130109957&source=RSS
3) http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/fronts/HOME?SITE=AP
4) http://www.wfp.org/
Bahrain court upholds life sentences on opposition
[The United States and its Gulf allies support the suppression of the people of Bahrain by the dictatorship there. This only goes to show that the United States is a hypocrite when it blathers on about "human rights." -- NP]
Bahrain court upholds life sentences on opposition
By REEM KHALIFA
(AP)
MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — Bahrain’s highest court Monday upheld jail sentences against 20 opposition figures — including eight sentenced to life in prison — in a decision likely to touch off more street protests in the violence-wracked Gulf nation and bring renewed criticism from its Western allies.
The group includes a rights activist who staged a 110-day hunger strike last year to protest the verdicts and is part of widespread crackdowns on dissent since an Arab Spring-inspired uprising began nearly two years ago in the strategic island kingdom, which is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.
Bahrain’s majority Shiites, who have led sporadic unrest in past decades, claim they face systematic discrimination at the hands of the Sunni monarchy. Bahrain’s rulers have offered some reforms, including giving more powers to the elected parliament, but protest leaders say they fall short of demands for a role in key government affairs.
More than 55 people have died in the unrest since February 2011 and many opposition leaders and activists have been arrested, including the group of 20 charged with “plotting to overthrow” the ruling system.
Defense attorney Jalil al-Aradi said the court refused to reconsider the sentences or convictions, which were originally handed down in 2011 by a military-led tribunal created under temporary martial law-style rules. The group has claimed they faced abuses while in custody.
Among the eight sentenced to life is rights activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, who staged a more than three-month hunger strike last year in protest. The other 12 have sentences ranging from five to 15 years, with seven convicted in absentia.
The case has brought international pressure on Bahrain, including efforts by Denmark to free al-Khawaja, who also holds Danish citizenship. Scattered protests broke out in Bahrain shortly after the court decision, which could close all further appeal options.
“The Bahrain regime is pushing its human rights crisis closer to the edge,” said Brian Dooley, director of the human rights defenders program at U.S.-based Human Rights First.
Last year, the official Bahrain News Agency said the charges include “plotting to overthrow the regime” and having “foreign intelligence contacts” — a reference to Shiite powerhouse Iran and its proxy, Hezbollah in Lebanon. Bahraini leaders have accused Iran of having links to the protesters. Tehran has strongly criticized crackdowns against Shiites in Bahrain, but denies any active assistance.
A government statement at the time said the court “provided all assurances of a fair trial” and allowed defense attorneys full access to the defendants. It also said they received “full medical care” in prison.
The crisis in Bahrain has pushed Washington into a difficult corner. It seeks to keep it crucial security and political bonds with Bahrain’s leaders, but has increasingly condemned the ongoing violence and urged the country’s rulers to open wide-ranging talks with the opposition.
Bahrain also faces other showdowns over jailed activists, including rights campaigner Nabeel Rajab whose prosecution has brought criticism from Washington.
Taliban likens US Afghan role to Vietnam War
[The Taliban are fighting the imperialist occupation of their country. Although the Taliban are reactionary in many ways, they are defeating the armies of imperialism. Recently, the Taliban have stated they will not roll back women's rights in a post-occupation Afghanistan. Mao said women hold up half the sky. Fighting imperialism without women is like fighting with one hand behind your back. Let's hope for a swift defeat of imperialism in Afghanistan. Let's also encourage Islamists who fight imperialism to take up a better line on the women's liberation. -- NP]
Taliban likens US Afghan role to Vietnam War
(AP)
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban Wednesday likened the planned withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan to America’s pullout from Vietnam, calling it a “declare victory and run” strategy.
A statement from the militant group said the ongoing transfer of security operations from U.S. troops to Afghan forces was merely a retreat similar to the American withdrawal from South Vietnam prior to the communist victory there in 1975.
American-led NATO troops are scheduled to pull out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014, although the U.S. will leave a residual force behind and other NATO countries have pledged continuing support of the Kabul government.
“They want to flee from Afghanistan just as they turned tail and ran from Vietnam,” the Taliban statement said. “When America faced utter destruction in Vietnam, they came up with the formula ‘declare victory and run’ and want to utilize the formula of ‘transfer security and run’ here in Afghanistan.”
The United States withdrew is combat troops from South Vietnam in 1973, leaving South Vietnamese forces to face the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong who marched into the capital, Saigon, two years later.
Israel orders Bedouins to leave West Bank area
[Israel is a racist apartheid state that has been waging a genocide against the Arab peoples since its founding. Israel is now displacing Arabs who have lived in their communities for decades under the pretense of military testing. Why doesn't Israel test their military equipment in Jewish areas? This is part of a wider campaign to remove Arabs from their lands. --NP]
Israel orders Bedouins to leave West Bank area
By MOHAMMED BALLAS
(AP)
KHIRBET AL-MEITEH, West Bank (AP) — The Israeli military on Wednesday ordered dozens of Palestinian Bedouins to leave their communities so it could conduct military exercises in a remote area of the West Bank.
The military said the order was temporary, and that the Palestinians were living illegally in closed military zones. The Bedouins say they have lived in the area for decades. While the army has issued temporary evacuation orders in the past, Bedouins say they have increased in frequency, and they charge the practice is meant to pressure them to leave their homes.
Israel has used largely empty areas of the West Bank for military bases, firing ranges and maneuvers since shortly after it captured the territory in 1967, marking off large areas for exclusive use of the military and bringing frequent complaints from Palestinians. The Palestinians claim all of the West Bank as a key part of a future state.
After receiving the latest evacuation order, one family dismantled its tents, and loaded sheep and small children onto a trailer in the community of Khirbet al-Meiteh alongside thin mattresses, pillows and blankets. “We will sleep here tonight, in this trailer,” said Walid Zawahiri, 57. “There’s nowhere else to go.”
He and other residents said they had to leave their youngest sheep behind because they had nowhere warm to keep them. They feared that they would be eaten by wild animals or shot during military training. The communities rely on herding animals to survive.
Zawhiri said it was the fourth time he had been ordered to relocate in a year. Nearby, soldiers arrived in military vehicles, setting up dummies for target practice.
The evictions occurred in the Jordan Valley, a section of the West Bank along the border with Jordan. Although Palestinians have a measure of self-rule in other parts of the West Bank, Israel retrains overall military and administrative control over most of the Jordan Valley.
The area, mostly desert, is home to 60,000 Palestinians, the United Nations estimates. Some 8,000 are Bedouins, a culturally distinct community that once roved between winter and summer grazing sites with its livestock. Now they are mostly tethered to one area, and rely on sheep herding and manual labor to get by. They tend to live on the poor margins of Palestinian society.
The Jordan Valley is among the 60 percent of the West Bank that remains under full Israeli control, nearly two decades after interim peace accords granted the Palestinians autonomy elsewhere in the territory. The Israeli-controlled section includes military bases, nature reserves and Jewish settlements.
In a separate incident Wednesday, dozens of Israeli settlers tried to block access to a strip of land that Palestinians sought to cultivate near the northern West Bank village of Jaloud. The Palestinians obtained a court order allowing them enter their lands after Israeli settlers in the past tried to claim the land as their own, said lawyer Qamar Mashriqi.
The military said soldiers dispersed the crowd.
The settlers of the Esh Kodesh outpost rolled flaming tires at Palestinian-owned tractors before the soldiers intervened.
Palestinians will outnumber Israeli Jews by 2020
[Whether this number includes refugees outside of Palestine, we do not know. However, shifting demographics may change the balance of power in the region. --NP]
Palestinians will outnumber Israeli Jews by 2020
(AP)
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Palestinian statistics bureau estimates that Arabs will outnumber Jews in the Holy Land by the end of the decade, a scenario that could have grave implications for Israel.
The bureau said Tuesday that 5.8 million Arabs live in Israel, the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem. That compares to about 6 million Israeli Jews, according to Israeli data.
It said that based on current birth rates, the two populations would be equal in 2016, and in 2020, Arabs would outnumber Jews by 7.2 million to 6.9 million.
The demographic issue is a main argument for Israeli backers of creation of a Palestinian state. They say relinquishing control of the Palestinian territories and its residents is the only way to ensure Israel’s future as a democracy with a Jewish majority.
Stop the killing of the children of Bahrain
Stop the killing of the children of Bahrain
(new-power.org)
The United States is almost completely silent on the killing of the Shia majority protesters by the dictatorship in Bahrain. In fact, the United States and its allies support the dictatorship there. At the same time that the United States claims to support “democracy” in Syria, the United States supports the suppression of protests with bullets in Bahrain. This reveals that the United States is not about “democracy,” rather it is about its own imperial interest.
Protests flare in Bahrain after king’s speech
[The United States and its allies are supporting the brutal repression of the people of Bahrain. The United States claims to be for democracy in places like Syria, where the United States has helped to create a bloody civil war, yet the United States supports brutal dictatorships like the monarchy of Bahrain in its crackdown against the people. -- New Power]
Protests flare in Bahrain after king’s speech
(AP)
MANAMA, Bahrain — Activists in Bahrain say police have fired tear gas at anti-government protesters who took to the streets after an annual address by the Gulf nation’s king.
The sporadic clashes took place shortly after King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa called for unity Sunday in a speech for the kingdom’s national day. They highlight the country’s sharp divides after more than 22 months of near nonstop unrest between the Sunni monarchy and the country’s majority Shiites, who seek a greater political voice.
Acting head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights Yousef al-Muhafedha says hundreds of protesters were dispersed by riot police firing tear gas in a neighborhood near the capital Manama. Elsewhere, masked youths blocked roads with burning tires.
Protest groups are calling for large-scale marches later this week.
Israel presses on with contentious settlement plan
[As public opinion worldwide moves to support Palestine, Israel’s apartheid, zionists dig in... -- NP]
Israel presses on with contentious settlement plan
(AP)
JERUSALEM — An Israeli military planning committee has unveiled plans for a contentious new West Bank settlement outside Jerusalem, pressing forward with the project in the face of heavy international pressure.
The military says the plans to develop the area known as “E1″ were formally presented at Wednesday’s meeting. There is now a 60-day period for public objections.
The project envisions construction of 3,000 new homes in a strategic corridor near Jerusalem. Construction would be years away.
Israel had frozen E-1 construction plans under pressure from successive U.S. administrations.
Israel’s government revived them last week, after the U.N. General Assembly accepted Palestine as a non-member observer state.
The Palestinians say construction in that area would cut Jerusalem off from the West bank and essentially kill any chance for a future state.
Human rights violators cannot judge Iran: Christian MP
Human rights violators cannot judge Iran: Christian MP
(PressTV)
A Christian Iranian MP has said the UN resolution on the human rights situation in Iran was a political move and known violators of human rights are in no position to judge Iran.
“Every now and then, Western countries adopt such resolutions against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which are all based on political objectives,” Karen Khanlari, an MP representing the Armenian Christian community of northern Iran, said on Saturday.
Khanlari described human rights as a “global value” and denounced international organizations for using double standards in their evaluations of the human rights situation in various countries.
Ahmed Shaheed, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran, presented his third report to the world body last week, in which he repeated his claims that there are human rights violations in the Islamic Republic and accused the Iranian government of discriminating against minority groups.
And on Tuesday, the Third Committee of the United Nations approved a non-binding resolution against Iran, with 83 countries voting in favor, 31 against, and 68 abstentions.
“The minorities recognized under the Constitution enjoy a favorable position and have representatives in the parliament,” Khanlari stated.
He also compared the situation of minorities in Iran with the situation of minorities in European and other countries, where religious groups and denominations do not have seats set aside in parliament for their representatives.
The Iranian MP said it is remarkable that the parliamentarian representatives of minorities in Iran have equal legislative powers.
The recent anti-Iranian draft resolution was initiated by Canada, which is widely criticized for its discrimination against indigenous people and immigrants.
MRS/HGL
U.S. soldier in WikiLeaks case says he was held in a “cage”
U.S. soldier in WikiLeaks case says he was held in a “cage”
By Medina Roshan
(Reuters)
FORT MEADE, Maryland – A U.S. Army private facing court-martial on suspicion of leaking secret documents to the WikiLeaks website testified on Thursday he was confined to a “cage” in the early days after his arrest in 2010, and thought he would die there.
Bradley Manning, in his first public comments since his arrest in Iraq, said his isolation quickly led to a breakdown, and his military captors eventually put him on suicide watch.
“My nights were my days and my days were my nights,” Manning said. “It all blended together after a couple of days.”
The low-ranking soldier Manning faces up to life in prison if convicted of charges he played a role in the massive leaking of secrets by WikiLeaks, which stunned governments around the world by publishing intelligence documents and diplomatic cables, mostly in 2010.
Manning’s lawyers were working on a plea deal involving less serious charges that would result in a prison term of at least 16 years, one of his attorneys said.
His captors initially gave Manning little or no information about the charges against him as he was taken from Iraq to a U.S. detention facility in Kuwait, he said.
Manning said he was confined to a structure he called a “cage” of eight feet square inside a tent. He suffered a breakdown about a month after his May 2010 arrest, and guards later found a noose in the cage. Manning had made the noose but failed to recall he had done so because he was so disoriented, he said.
“I remember thinking I’m going to die stuck here in this cage,” Manning said. “I thought I was going to die in that cage. That’s what I saw – an animal cage.”
Upon being transferred to Quantico, Virginia, in July of 2010, Manning was placed in solitary confinement for up to 23 hours a day, on suicide watch with a guard checking on him every few minutes. He was often noticed playing peek-a-boo in the mirror.
“The most entertaining thing in there was the mirror. I spent quite a lot of time with the mirror,” Manning said. When asked why, he said, “Just sheer, complete, out-of-my-mind boredom.”
The private’s testimony, which was set to continue into Friday when he would be cross-examined, came on the third day of a hearing at Fort Meade, Maryland, to determine whether his case should proceed to a full court-martial.
In the absence of a plea deal, Manning’s case could go to trial, where he faces possible life imprisonment if he is convicted of all the security breach charges against him.
LINKS TO WIKILEAKS
Charges include stealing records belonging to the United States and wrongfully causing them to be published on the Internet and aiding enemies of the United States, identified by prosecutors as al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, an affiliate of the militant network founded by the late Osama bin Laden.
Prosecutors have alleged that Manning, without authorization while on intelligence duty, disclosed hundreds of thousands of U.S. diplomatic cables, military reports and video of a military helicopter attack in Iraq in which two Reuters journalists were killed.
WikiLeaks has never confirmed Manning was the source of any documents it released.
In pre-trial litigation, prosecutors have presented testimony legal experts say could be used to build a case Manning had been in email contact with Julian Assange, WikiLeaks’ Australian-born founder.
Assange has spent nearly six months in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where he sought refuge to avoid extradition to Sweden for questioning in a sexual molestation case.
Assange and his supporters have said the Swedish case against him could be part of a secret plot to have him shipped for trial to the United States and either executed or imprisoned at the U.S. detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
U.S. officials have denied those assertions. But they have acknowledged a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, has been collecting evidence about WikiLeaks. U.S. officials have not ruled out criminal charges against Assange.
Earlier on Thursday, Assange played down reports that his health was declining after Ecuadorean officials said he was suffering from a chronic lung ailment.
(Writing by Dan Burns; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Eric Walsh)
Protesters shut down western Libya’s main oil refinery
[Since NATO deposed the regime of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has been thrown into chaos. The people of Libya suffer under warlordism. Black Africans are lynched and abused. At the same time, the imperialists loot the oil resources of the country. Gaddafi was taken down because he would not play the game by their rules. Just as the imperialists targeted Gaddafi, they now seek to send Syria into chaos. They also target the Chavez regime in Venezuela, Castro's regime in Cuba, northern Korea, and the Islamic Republic in Iran. Let us hope the people of Libya can throw out the imperialists. Stand against imperialism everywhere! -- New Power]
Protesters shut down western Libya’s main oil refinery
By Hadeel Al Shalchi
(Reuters)
TRIPOLI- Wounded soldiers protested outside western Libya’s main oil refinery on Thursday, closing operations for a second time this month, a company spokesman said, and raising fears of a petrol shortage in the war-battered country.
A large crowd of veterans of the civil war which ousted Muammar Gaddafi last year massed outside the plant run by the Zawiya Oil Refining Company demanding compensation and treatment, said staff.
“We are in a state of total shutdown … the demonstrators are preventing employees from entering the refinery and fuel trucks are unable to leave,” said Zawiya spokesman Essam al-Muntasir.
“Many of them (the veterans) want the government to send them abroad to receive treatment or they want to get more money from the government as compensation for their efforts,” he added.
A number of protests outside refineries have posed a significant challenge to Libya’s new government which is dependent on oil for the lions’ share of its revenues.
The administration is still struggling to impose order on a vast and divided country still awash with arms and militias after the fall of Gaddafi.
A similar protest in early November forced the refinery to shut down for two days, hitting fuel supplies in Tripoli.
A Zawiya security official who refused to be named said the protesters had set up check points to stop vehicles coming in.
Deputy Oil Minister Omar Shakmak said on Wednesday a shutdown at the refinery could cause a new shortage.
“We have enough fuel stored in Tripoli to last us 25 days but the problem is that protesters are not allowing trucks in or out of the fuel storage areas of the refinery,” he said.
Tripoli residents formed long queues at petrol stations to fill up their tanks on Wednesday night after hearing the news of the latest protest.
The Zawiya refinery, about 50 km (30 miles) west of Tripoli, has a capacity of 120,000 barrels per day and provides 40 per cent of western Libya’s oil needs.
Afghan students denounce Israel over Gaza fighting
Afghan students denounce Israel over Gaza fighting
By RAHIM FAIEZ
(AP)
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Several thousand university students demonstrated in eastern Afghanistan on Monday to denounce Israel’s recent offensive in the Gaza Strip, burning Israeli and U.S. flags as well as a Christian cross.
The students — some shouting “Death to Israel!” and “Death to America!” — marched outside their university in Jalalabad, close to the border with Pakistan, and blocked a highway leading into the city center.
A truce was struck last week between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers, bringing an end to an eight-day Israeli offensive against militants who had fired rockets into Israel from the Palestinian territory. The agreement is fragile, but so far the truce has stopped fighting in the Gaza Strip.
At the demonstration, which was peaceful, Nangarhar University student Abdul Gayr said participants also denounced Pakistan for its recent artillery shelling into Afghanistan. They also opposed a death sentence given to an Afghan National Army solider who was convicted earlier this year of killing five French soldiers.
The protesters, Gayr said, think capital punishment is unfair in the case so long as international forces are not punished when their military operations result in the death of Afghan civilians.
Separately, a bomb strapped to a bicycle exploded Monday, wounding 26 civilians in Khost, about 150 kilometers (90 miles) south of the capital, Kabul.
Provincial spokesman Baryalai Wakman said the morning blast occurred in a marketplace full of shoppers. Five people were seriously injured, according to hospital officials.
In southern Afghanistan, NATO said a service member with the international military coalition was killed in a roadside bombing on Monday. No other details were released.
So far this year, 381 U.S. and other international troops have died in Afghanistan.
Iran condemns Israel’s Gaza strikes as “terrorism”
Iran condemns Israel’s Gaza strikes as “terrorism”
(Reuters)
UBAI – Iran condemned on Thursday as “organized terrorism” an offensive by Israel against Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.
“Iran considers the criminal act of Israeli military forces in killing civilians as organized terrorism and strongly condemns it,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.
The spokesman also criticized what he called “the silence of international organizations claiming to defend human rights,” following the strikes.
Israel killed the military commander of Hamas on Wednesday in an air strike on Gaza and threatened an invasion of the enclave.
The Islamist group retaliated on Thursday by firing dozens of rockets into southern Israel, killing three people.
(Reporting by Zahra Hosseinian; Editing by John Stonestreet)
Hamas says now in ‘open war’ with Israel, promises ‘gates of hell’
Hamas says now in ‘open war’ with Israel, promises ‘gates of hell’
(RT)
Hamas says that it is now in a state of “open war” indefinitely with Israel after the killing of the Hamas commander Ahmed Jabari by an Israeli airstrike.
The assassination has “opened the gates of hell,” the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, were quoted by AFP as saying.
“The occupation committed a dangerous crime and crossed all the red lines, which is considered a declaration of war,” he said in a statement. Hamas vowed to “continue the path of resistance.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called for an immediate Arab League meeting in response to Wednesday’s attack.
Mosques across Gaza were packed with mourners vowing revenge. The streets outside the hospital where Jabari’s body was taken were filled with thousands of angry Palestinians chanting “retaliation” and “We want you to hit Tel Aviv tonight.” Among the mourners outside the Shifa hospital in Gaza City were armed men firing into the air.
Gaza’s Health Minister Dr. Mufeed Mkhallalati said a total of 10 people were killed, including Jabari. Fourty five people are reported injured, 10 of them are in critical condition. An 11-month-old and a 6-year-old girl were among the dead.
Six rockets were fired from Gaza toward Beersheba following the airstrike on Wednesday evening, Israel’s Army Radio reported. One rocket hit a shopping center in the city, while there were other media reports that a vehicle was struck in the attack. No casualties were reported.
The Israeli Press Office said“The Iron Dome missile defense system has thus far intercepted 15 rockets fired at Israel.”
Hamas said no tactic would be left off of the table following the strike.
“The resistance’s options are now open and they include suicide attacks and quality attacks in Israel cities,” Ynet cites top Hammas commander Ismail al-Ashkar as saying.
Hamas spokesman Khalil Al Haya vowed its Zionist enemy would “pay a price for this cowardly assassination.”
“The assassination of this great leader Amhed Al-Jaabary clearly confirms that we are still in the heart of resistance with the Israeli enemy; the Zionist enemy knows nothing but the language of killing and blood; our battle with the enemy is an open battle; God willing, this battle will end with Palestine and Jerusalem liberated. They should wait for our action, not words,” RT Arabic cites him as saying.
Senior Hamas official Izzat al-Rishq said the assassination will not “break the will of our people, nor weaken our resistance,” Al-Rishq wrote on his Facebook page, Al Ahram reported.
He added that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is using the “war crime” to appear tough on national security as part of his reelection bid, though his plan could backfire.
Israel will hold a general election on January 22. Residents in southern Israel have been severely critical of his conservative government’s handling of rocket strikes in recent weeks. On Wednesday night Netanyahu said that no country in the world would accept a situation in which rockets were being fired at its citizens, and neither would Israel.
Fatah’s former chief negotiator Saeb Erekat disagreed with the Israeli PM’s justification for the operation, saying “this exposes that Israel has an agenda for war but not for peace” on Twitter.
“We hold Israel responsible for the consequences that this new act of aggression would bring to the region,” he continued.
Washington said it is closely watching developments in Gaza, a Pentagon spokesman said.
“We’re monitoring the situation closely. We stand by our Israeli partners in their right to defend themselves against terrorism,” Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Warren said.
Egypt’s foreign ministry released a statement calling on Israel to stop its strikes on Gaza Strip immediately.
The Muslim Brotherhood controlled government says it “will not allow the Palestinians to be subjected to Israeli aggression,” the Jerusalem Post cites him as saying.
Egypt recalled its ambassador in Tel-Aviv back to Cairo in response to the start of Israel’s Operation Pillar of Defense in Gaza. Cairo has also requested an emergency meeting before the United Nations Security Council.
The Israeli Air Force (IAF) killed Jabari in an airstrike on his car in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday. Israel’s TV Channel 2 says his son also died in the missile attack. There are also reports that Raed al-Atar, the commander of Hamas’s southern division, was also killed.
The attack comes as the first step in the expanding Israeli operation which could see IDF troops on the ground in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Air Force strikes reportedly hit at least 20 rocket-launching pads belonging to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, “seriously damaging their long-range missile capabilities,” an Israeli military spokesman said. IDF tank fire also struck targets in Gaza. The IDF said it was willing to initiate a ground operation in Gaza to eliminate any further sources of rocket fire.
“All options are on the table. If necessary, the IDF (army) is ready to initiate a ground operation in Gaza,” the IDF said on its official Twitter account.
Jabari, who was deputy commander of Hamas’s military wing, is the most senior Hamas official to be assassinated since Israel’s sweeping 2008 military operation in Gaza which resulted in the death of some 1,800 Palestinians. In reponse to the targeted assassination, the IDF characterized Jabari as a “man with a lot of blood on his hands.”
In the run up to the operation on Wednesday, seven Palestinians had been killed in retaliatory Israel strikes to missile strikes originating in Gaza.
