<span style="font-family:'times new roman',serif;font-size:xx-large">Recently In Palestine...</span><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div style="font-size:12pt;font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif"><div style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif">
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<font face="times new roman, serif"><br></font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Channel Two News (Israel's highest-rated news program) published a statement by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) that the reports during the 2008-2009 "Gaza War" saying that militants were using schools to fire rockets into Israel were "misinformation" and "falsehood" and that "there has never been any evidence produced to show that <span style="background-color:rgb(254,254,254);line-height:19px;text-align:justify">that during the Gaza war militants were firing rockets into Israel from UNRWA installations". The ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) issued an apology and retraction last week and these retractions are 2 of 3 that have been made recently by large news corporations. Palestinian activists see these retractions and apologies as victories that illustrate
that misinformation is used by the IDF to attack Palestinians without provocation. </span></font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><span style="background-color:rgb(254,254,254);text-align:justify"><span style="line-height:19px"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">These reports were used during Operation Cast Lead to justify the bombing of schools in Gaza which resulted into the destruction of 18 schools and damage being done to 280 schools. These attacks also resulted in the death of 250 students (86 from UNRWA schools and 164 from government schools), the death of 15 teachers (3 from UNRWA schools and 12 from government schools), the injury of 856 students (402 from UNRWA schools and 454 from government schools) and the injury of 19 teachers (14 from UNRWA schools and 5 from government schools).</font></span></span></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=532419" target="_blank">Source 1</a><br>
</font><div><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/failing-gaza-no%20rebuilding-no-recovery-no-more-excuses.pdf" target="_blank">Source 2</a><br>
</font><div><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/israeli-tv-admits-no-rockets-were-ever-fired-unrwa-schools-gaza-during-cast-lead" target="_blank">Source 3</a></font><br>
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<div><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><div>Muslim Odeh, a 12 year old Palestinian child, was recently arrested for the 10th time in Israel in the last 3 years under accusations of throwing stones and molotov cocktails. He is one of more than 8000 children arrested and detained by Israel since the year 2000. These children often report physical and psychological violence being committed against them during interviews, and Israel has refused to video record these interrogations as recommended by the UN. Until 2009 Israel tried people over the age of 16 as adults despite the UN declaration that anyone under 18 years old was to be tried as a minor. Many children who have been detained by Israel report fear of dogs (dogs are used during Israeli Arrests), bed wetting, night mares, eating disorder and other stress related illnesses. Arrests of Odeh and children like him raise questions about the practices of the Israeli military and whether
or not these methods actually to serve and protect Israelis or whether to further terrorize Palestinians.</div><div><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://electronicintifada.net/content/twelve-year-old-arrested-10-times-israel-three-years/11791" target="_blank">Source</a></font></div>
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<font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">A letter was recently sent to the US congress by a group of fifteen Protestant religious leaders that requested that the government look into its unconditional support to Israel. This letter acknowledged that both sides have legitimate security concerns but postulated that the human
rights violations committed by Israel are in clear violation of the U.S policy of not sending military support to any regime involved in humans rights abuses. The letter was met with much criticism and labelled anti-Semitic by many prominent Zionist groups. While appeals like these are often quickly silenced and labelled "anti-Semitic" in the United States, it shows a growing support for the Palestinian movement in the U.S. </span></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Movements like these and even student activism in universities has been a driving force in changing the public opinion on the Israeli-Palestinian issue and is the first step in changing U.S. foreign policy in Israel and Palestine.</span></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-zogby/efforts-to-silence-an-app_b_1992396.html" target="_blank">Source 1</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/21/us/church-appeal-on-israel-angers-jewish-groups.html?_r=1&" target="_blank">Source 2</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/10/20121021112143407608.html" target="_blank">Source 3</a> (This is an article on the growing popularity of the Israel-Palestine issue in the U.S.)</font></span></div>
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sans-serif"><br></font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Palestinian Authority members have begun striking in Ramallah over the "late and incomplete payment of their salaries". The PA cabinet has urged Arab countries that donate to the PA to continue their support. </font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">These strikes have also begun in the UNRWA to protest the dismissal of 130 workers and the cuts made to agency services. These cuts have raised the prices of services for Palestinians who cannot afford them. </font></div>
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<font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=531502" target="_blank"><font size="1">Source</font></a><br></font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif">
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<font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">On Tuesday, October 24th, the Israeli military said its aircraft had targeted two rocket-launching squads in northern Gaza. This attack killed two militants from the military wing of Hamas (Al-Qassam) and wounded two others. In an 8 hour period afterwards 65 rockets were fired into Israel from Gaza and Israel responded with another airstrike in Gaza early Wednesday, October 24th, killing two people and seriously wounding 9 others.</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">The Palestinian rocket strikes wounded three workers in Israel. Israel's prime minister Netanyahu has threatened that further attacks will lead to escalation on their part. </font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Three days after these attacks an Israeli Airstrike killed a Palestinian fighter and wounded another after Palestinians fired mortars at Israeli Tanks involved in an Incursion near the town of Khan Yunis. Tanks had entered into east Khan Yunis and opened fire on civilian homes according to Gaza security forces which prompted the mortar fire by Palestinian fighters. </font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">This conflict ended a brief ceasefire between Israel and Palestine which had been brokered by Egypt.</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17348103" target="_blank">Source 1</a><br>
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<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17343600" target="_blank">Source 2</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18534424" target="_blank">Source 3</a><br>
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<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20120505" target="_blank">Source 4</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/10/2012102852911952870.html" target="_blank"><font size="1">Source 5</font></a><br>
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<font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">A survey performed by the Yisraela Goldblum Fund found that the majority of the Jewish public in Israel wants preferences for Jews over Arabs in admission to jobs in the government. The survey also found that nearly 50% of Jewish citizens polled believed Jewish citizens should be treated better by the state. The survey presented much more disturbing data about how Jewish citizens in Israel viewed their Arab counterparts. The study has drawn criticism, however, for having a small sample size of 503 interviewees.</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.haaretz.com/polopoly_fs/1.471827.1351511042!/image/1004082658.jpg" target="_blank"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Source 1</font></a></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/survey-most-israeli-jews-wouldn-t-give-palestinians-vote-if-west-bank-was-annexed.premium-1.471644" target="_blank"><font size="1" face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Source 2</font></a></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Another article that discusses this issue and the general Apartheid policies of Israel can be found here:</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/10/20121027145235386715.html" target="_blank">Source 3</a></font><br>
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<font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">On Saturday, October 20th, Israel intercepted a Swedish ship attempting to bring humanitarian aide to Gaza. The ship had five serving parliamentarians from Spain, Norway, Sweden and Greece and a former parliamentarian from Canada. The activists on the boat alleged that the commandos used tasers to subdue them while the IDF issued a statement that their commandos did not use force.</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Similar seizures have been deemed legal but heavy handed by a UN commission that was created to investigate these actions. Israel's policy of intercepting humanitarian aide ships was brought into the public eye in 2010 when 9 activists on a humanitarian aide flotilla were killed by Israeli soldiers. </font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Israel also accused the activists of attempting to illegally enter Israel even though the stated mission of the ship was to support Gaza. Ten of the activists were deported on Sunday and Monday while seventeen of the activists were deported on October 24th. Three of the activists are Israeli and were placed under house arrest in Israel. </font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://dailynewsegypt.com/2012/10/20/ship-to-gaza-boarded-by-idf-forces/" target="_blank">Source 1</a></font><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/10/24/3110251/israel-deports-estelle-activists" target="_blank">Source 2</a></font><br>
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<font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">A recent Israeli Court decision forced the Israeli government to release documents that discuss studies done by the government on the amount of food needed in Gaza to ensure the survival of Gazans. This report has met much criticism because it shows that the Israeli Government has used civilians to pressure militants in Palestine to comply with their demands. This report, according to the Israeli government, is largely irrelevant because these methods were never even used but Palestinians argue that they've received far less resources than they need in Israel.</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Since the beginning of the blockade in Gaza Palestinians have struggled to receive necessary resources because of Israel's strict rules on what is allowed in and out of Gaza and because of Israel's unwillingness to let human rights groups help in the region.</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DbL_ViP8dks#!" target="_blank">Source 1</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/17/us-palestinians-israel-gaza-idUSBRE89G0NM20121017" target="_blank">Source 2</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/17/israeli-military-calorie-limit-gaza" target="_blank">Source 3</a><br>
</font></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CCoQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2012%2F10%2F17%2Fworld%2Fmeast%2Fisrael-calorie-count-gaza%2Findex.html&ei=G7-SUNuuO_Cu0AGm6YGgCg&usg=AFQjCNHK5duiE7ruPsZHEGYan3WkUX2n8Q&sig2=vPrIlBmemWUw1_NoqGf1IQ" target="_blank">Source 4</a></font><br>
</div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><br></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12pt">The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, visited the Gaza Strip in October, making him the first head of state to visit Gaza since the international Boycott of the Palestinian territories in 2006. Qatar seeks to invest in building 1000 homes for poor families in the southern Gaza strip, an area that suffered extreme damage in Operation Cast Lead, and has pledged to raise the Qatari aide to Palestine from 254 million dollars to 400 million dollars.</span><br>
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<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/10/2012102353137370247.html" target="_blank">Source 1</a></font><br></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-mednicoff/qatar-palestine_b_2010282.html" target="_blank">Source 2</a></font><br>
</span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The Palestinian Economy has begun to benefit greatly from the IT boom we've experienced here in the west. IT businesses contributed 50 million dollars to the Palestinian economy last year and it is a sector that is expected to grow by 20 percent per year. Growths in industries like this provide Palestinians with a way to make the Palestinian territory more economically successful in lieu of the trade blockades being experienced by Palestinians.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.aljazeera.com/video/middleeast/2012/10/2012102953949546447.html" target="_blank"><font size="1">Source</font></a><br></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">A recent "price-tag" movement has arisen in Israel where Israeli Zionists vandalize, and at times violently attack, both religious sites and homes in occupied territories. While the illegality of these settlements is still contested by the Israeli government, the movement shows a growing hatred within the Israeli civilian population. Movements like these show very clearly that the region is moving farther and farther from political stability and that both sides (Zionists and Palestinians) are growing more radicalized. They also demonstrate that the hatred felt in the region is not
one sided as the Western media presents it.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-19601311" target="_blank">Source</a></font><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br>
</span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Two articles discussing the effects of a barrier being built by Israel in the West bank can be found <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16656978" target="_blank">here</a> and <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18012895" target="_blank">here</a>. Both of these articles do a very good job of explaining the effects of this action by Israel.</span></div>
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><br><a rel="nofollow"></a></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://stream.aljazeera.com/story/palestinians-lost-representation-0022363" target="_blank">A very detailed account of the recent Russel Tribunals can be found here. It is recommended reading/viewing for all members and AlJazeera does a far better job of coverage on the tribunals than we can.</a><br>
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<div><font face="times new roman,serif"><i><b><font color="#ff0000">Students</font> for Justice in <font color="#009900">Palestine</font> </b></i></font></div>
<div><font face="times new roman,serif"><i><b>University of Illinois-Urbana</b></i></font></div><br>