22 dec 2017
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has tasked Head of the Israeli Knesset, David Amsalem, to promote the nationality bill, which considers Arabs as second-class citizens.
On Wednesday, Amsalem replaced MK David Bitan, who stepped down from the position, amid a corruption investigation against him.
“The first mission of the coalition chairman, MK Amsalem, will be to pass the nationality bill, one of the most important pieces of legislation that will enter Israel’s history books,” Netanyahu said, according to Days of Palestine.
The bill proposal, first submitted 4 years ago by Likud MK Avi Dichter, seeks to enshrine, as a basic law, the concept that Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people. The legislation determines that all Israeli law must be interpreted according to this principle.
As discriminatory towards Arab-Israelis (the Palestinians who remained home during the Israeli ethnic cleansing in the 1940s), the bill specifies some of the practical aspects of Israel being the nation-state of the Jewish people.
It recognizes and prioritizes the Judaization of state symbols, claims Jerusalem as the capital, Hebrew as the official language, the right of Jews to easily migrate to Israel, Jewish settlement, relations with the Jews abroad, the Hebrew calendar and holy sites.
Netanyahu requested to complete a first reading before the Knesset adjourns for the summer. However, Eyal Yinon, the Knesset’s legal advisor, informed Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein that a proposal such as this cannot be advanced on such a short schedule.
11/14/17 Netanyahu is Redefining Ethnic Cleansing, Not Pursuing Genuine Peace
On Wednesday, Amsalem replaced MK David Bitan, who stepped down from the position, amid a corruption investigation against him.
“The first mission of the coalition chairman, MK Amsalem, will be to pass the nationality bill, one of the most important pieces of legislation that will enter Israel’s history books,” Netanyahu said, according to Days of Palestine.
The bill proposal, first submitted 4 years ago by Likud MK Avi Dichter, seeks to enshrine, as a basic law, the concept that Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people. The legislation determines that all Israeli law must be interpreted according to this principle.
As discriminatory towards Arab-Israelis (the Palestinians who remained home during the Israeli ethnic cleansing in the 1940s), the bill specifies some of the practical aspects of Israel being the nation-state of the Jewish people.
It recognizes and prioritizes the Judaization of state symbols, claims Jerusalem as the capital, Hebrew as the official language, the right of Jews to easily migrate to Israel, Jewish settlement, relations with the Jews abroad, the Hebrew calendar and holy sites.
Netanyahu requested to complete a first reading before the Knesset adjourns for the summer. However, Eyal Yinon, the Knesset’s legal advisor, informed Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein that a proposal such as this cannot be advanced on such a short schedule.
11/14/17 Netanyahu is Redefining Ethnic Cleansing, Not Pursuing Genuine Peace
20 dec 2017
Israeli who shot dead one of the Palestinian rioters who hurled stones at a group of teens on a hike near the village was acting in self defense, police determine; case passed on to State Attorney's Office.
The police have concluded their investigation into the incident in Qursa, when a Palestinian rioter was shot dead by an Israeli settler, determining the shooting was done in self defense, and that there is no sufficient evidence to warrant prosecution.
The case was passed on to the State Attorney's Office on Wednesday.
Earlier this month, a group of 20 Israeli teens hiking near the village of Qusra came under attack by a group of Palestinian rioters who started hurling stones at them.
The two parents who accompanied them rushed the teens to a nearby cave to hide, while one father shot and killed one of the rioters, 47-year-old Mahmoud Za’al Odeh.
"Dozens of Palestinians threw stones and rocks at us, we were in a life-threatening situation, and we were trying to protect the children," said the father, whose son was among the group. "I had to shoot in self-defense. I hope common sense prevails, and people understand what happened here."
After the shooting, dozens of Palestinians surrounded the cave where the teens were hiding and continued throwing stones.
The Israelis were eventually rescued by IDF forces that arrived at the scene.
Following the incident, the father was questioned on suspicion of causing death by negligence.
Some 20 Palestinians suspected of taking part in the violent rioting and throwing stones were arrested, and one was charged with attempted murder on Monday. The court extended the remand of the other suspects.
Attorney Adi Kidar of Honenu, who represents the two fathers, welcomed the police announcement. "My clients acted in line with the law, as any citizen in clear and immediate danger is expected to act. In an ideal situation, the fathers who accompanied the bar mitzvah trip would've received a certificate of appreciation from day one. They risked their lives in a very serious incident to protect the kids and themselves.
Unfortunately, they found themselves under investigation. I'm glad the Israel Police announced today that their version has been checked and accepted. Now we expect the police to put their efforts into bringing all of the rioters to justice."
The police have concluded their investigation into the incident in Qursa, when a Palestinian rioter was shot dead by an Israeli settler, determining the shooting was done in self defense, and that there is no sufficient evidence to warrant prosecution.
The case was passed on to the State Attorney's Office on Wednesday.
Earlier this month, a group of 20 Israeli teens hiking near the village of Qusra came under attack by a group of Palestinian rioters who started hurling stones at them.
The two parents who accompanied them rushed the teens to a nearby cave to hide, while one father shot and killed one of the rioters, 47-year-old Mahmoud Za’al Odeh.
"Dozens of Palestinians threw stones and rocks at us, we were in a life-threatening situation, and we were trying to protect the children," said the father, whose son was among the group. "I had to shoot in self-defense. I hope common sense prevails, and people understand what happened here."
After the shooting, dozens of Palestinians surrounded the cave where the teens were hiding and continued throwing stones.
The Israelis were eventually rescued by IDF forces that arrived at the scene.
Following the incident, the father was questioned on suspicion of causing death by negligence.
Some 20 Palestinians suspected of taking part in the violent rioting and throwing stones were arrested, and one was charged with attempted murder on Monday. The court extended the remand of the other suspects.
Attorney Adi Kidar of Honenu, who represents the two fathers, welcomed the police announcement. "My clients acted in line with the law, as any citizen in clear and immediate danger is expected to act. In an ideal situation, the fathers who accompanied the bar mitzvah trip would've received a certificate of appreciation from day one. They risked their lives in a very serious incident to protect the kids and themselves.
Unfortunately, they found themselves under investigation. I'm glad the Israel Police announced today that their version has been checked and accepted. Now we expect the police to put their efforts into bringing all of the rioters to justice."
19 dec 2017
Israeli military prosecution filed an indictment on Monday, against Mohammed Wadi, Palestinian from Nablus, accusing him of attempting to murder an extremist Jewish settler.
Meanwhile, Israeli police are reportedly accepting a settler’s claim that he killed a Palestinian farmer, in the same incident, in an act of self-defense.
The Israeli military prosecution, which requested extension of Wadi’s remand detention, claimed, in the indictment against Wadi, that he entered a cave where settlers were hiding and threw stones at them from a close distance.
In addition, a spokesperson for the Israeli army claimed that Wadi threw one of the stones at the head of a settler and injured him.
At the end of November, Israeli occupation forces abducted 19 Palestinians over claims of taking part in the incident. The occupation reportedly plans to detain more Palestinians in relation to the incident.
The incident took place when a group of Israeli settlers raided Palestinian farms in the village of Qusra in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus and one of them shot dead the Palestinian farmer Mahmoud Ahmed Odeh, 48.
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman praised the settler, who opened fire at the Palestinian and killed him.
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported, according to Days of Palestine, that Israeli police are likely to accept the settler’s claim that he opened fire at the Palestinian in self-defense.
Haaretz also reported that the settler claims he opened fire in the air once, and that he did not see any Palestinian causalities caused by his fire.
Arab48.com said that these claims contradict the police report that he opened fire in an act of self-defense.
12/04/17 Settlement Council Honors Odeh’s Killer
Meanwhile, Israeli police are reportedly accepting a settler’s claim that he killed a Palestinian farmer, in the same incident, in an act of self-defense.
The Israeli military prosecution, which requested extension of Wadi’s remand detention, claimed, in the indictment against Wadi, that he entered a cave where settlers were hiding and threw stones at them from a close distance.
In addition, a spokesperson for the Israeli army claimed that Wadi threw one of the stones at the head of a settler and injured him.
At the end of November, Israeli occupation forces abducted 19 Palestinians over claims of taking part in the incident. The occupation reportedly plans to detain more Palestinians in relation to the incident.
The incident took place when a group of Israeli settlers raided Palestinian farms in the village of Qusra in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus and one of them shot dead the Palestinian farmer Mahmoud Ahmed Odeh, 48.
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman praised the settler, who opened fire at the Palestinian and killed him.
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported, according to Days of Palestine, that Israeli police are likely to accept the settler’s claim that he opened fire at the Palestinian in self-defense.
Haaretz also reported that the settler claims he opened fire in the air once, and that he did not see any Palestinian causalities caused by his fire.
Arab48.com said that these claims contradict the police report that he opened fire in an act of self-defense.
12/04/17 Settlement Council Honors Odeh’s Killer
Palestinians pray at the site in Qusra village where Mahmoud Odeh, 48, was shot dead by an Israeli settler the previous day.
A Palestinian – but not yet any Israeli – faces serious charges over an encounter between settlers and residents of a West Bank village that left a Palestinian farmer dead last month.
Muhammad Wadi has been charged with attempted murder by an Israeli military court.
The indictment over the 30 November incident in Qusra village states that Wadi entered a cave where a group of children and one adult had taken shelter and threw large rocks at them from close range, wounding the head of the adult, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported.
Nineteen other Palestinians were arrested on suspicion of involvement, the paper added.
The deadly confrontation occurred when a group of children were led on a hike near the Palestinian village as part of a bar mitzvah celebration.
The settlers claim that Qusra residents attacked them, and that one of the hike chaperones fired his gun in self-defense, killing Mahmoud Zaal Odeh, 48.
The shooter was questioned by police on suspicions of negligent homicide and subsequently released.
Israel’s defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, said that the Israeli man had acted in “self-defense,” claiming that a group of Palestinians had attempted to “lynch” the children.
“My thanks and recognition to the armed escort who saved the hikers from a clear and present danger to their lives,” he added.
Qusra residents, however, told media that Odeh was working his land when he was shot.
The Israeli military took Odeh’s body to Tel Aviv for autopsy without his family’s knowledge or permission, according to the rights group Adalah, before it was released to the family for burial.
A Palestinian – but not yet any Israeli – faces serious charges over an encounter between settlers and residents of a West Bank village that left a Palestinian farmer dead last month.
Muhammad Wadi has been charged with attempted murder by an Israeli military court.
The indictment over the 30 November incident in Qusra village states that Wadi entered a cave where a group of children and one adult had taken shelter and threw large rocks at them from close range, wounding the head of the adult, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported.
Nineteen other Palestinians were arrested on suspicion of involvement, the paper added.
The deadly confrontation occurred when a group of children were led on a hike near the Palestinian village as part of a bar mitzvah celebration.
The settlers claim that Qusra residents attacked them, and that one of the hike chaperones fired his gun in self-defense, killing Mahmoud Zaal Odeh, 48.
The shooter was questioned by police on suspicions of negligent homicide and subsequently released.
Israel’s defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, said that the Israeli man had acted in “self-defense,” claiming that a group of Palestinians had attempted to “lynch” the children.
“My thanks and recognition to the armed escort who saved the hikers from a clear and present danger to their lives,” he added.
Qusra residents, however, told media that Odeh was working his land when he was shot.
The Israeli military took Odeh’s body to Tel Aviv for autopsy without his family’s knowledge or permission, according to the rights group Adalah, before it was released to the family for burial.
A week later, dozens of settlers came back to Qusra to resume the hike under heavy military guard and in the company of Israel’s deputy foreign minister Tzipi Hotovely and agriculture minister Uri Ariel:
Also with them was Itamar Ben-Gvir, a settler, extreme right-wing activist and attorney who is considered the “go-to man” for Israelis who have committed violence against Palestinians, including two teens suspected of involvement in an arson attack that killed three members of a Palestinian family in a West Bank village in 2015.
Sarit Michaeli, international advocacy officer for the Israeli rights group B’Tselem, characterized the hike as a “settler provocation parade”:
The hike ended in a photo-op and rally at the cave where settlers accused Palestinians of laying siege to the group of children.
Settler violence
Residents of Qusra have long been subjected to violence, property damage and harassment by settlers.
In September 2011, the village’s mosque was vandalized and torched with burning tires as a “price-tag” or revenge attack after police demolished three structures in the unauthorized Migron settlement outpost.
That same month, Qusra resident Issam Badran was killed by Israeli soldiers during confrontations that erupted after settlers entered village land.
A military investigation into Badran’s killing was closed without an indictment being filed.
In January 2014, Qusra residents detained more than a dozen settlers who had raided the village and attempted to uproot olive trees.
Qusra residents have also been subjected to night raids on their homes by Israeli forces as part of their “mapping procedure” to surveil the entire Palestinian civilian population.
Meanwhile, an Israeli minor from the nearby Itamar settlement who assaulted a human rights activist and threatened him with a knife was sentenced to community service for the October 2015 incident.
The teenager had attacked Arik Ascherman, then head of Rabbis for Human Rights, while the latter was helping a Palestinian farmer harvest olives.
The incident was recorded on video:
Also with them was Itamar Ben-Gvir, a settler, extreme right-wing activist and attorney who is considered the “go-to man” for Israelis who have committed violence against Palestinians, including two teens suspected of involvement in an arson attack that killed three members of a Palestinian family in a West Bank village in 2015.
Sarit Michaeli, international advocacy officer for the Israeli rights group B’Tselem, characterized the hike as a “settler provocation parade”:
The hike ended in a photo-op and rally at the cave where settlers accused Palestinians of laying siege to the group of children.
Settler violence
Residents of Qusra have long been subjected to violence, property damage and harassment by settlers.
In September 2011, the village’s mosque was vandalized and torched with burning tires as a “price-tag” or revenge attack after police demolished three structures in the unauthorized Migron settlement outpost.
That same month, Qusra resident Issam Badran was killed by Israeli soldiers during confrontations that erupted after settlers entered village land.
A military investigation into Badran’s killing was closed without an indictment being filed.
In January 2014, Qusra residents detained more than a dozen settlers who had raided the village and attempted to uproot olive trees.
Qusra residents have also been subjected to night raids on their homes by Israeli forces as part of their “mapping procedure” to surveil the entire Palestinian civilian population.
Meanwhile, an Israeli minor from the nearby Itamar settlement who assaulted a human rights activist and threatened him with a knife was sentenced to community service for the October 2015 incident.
The teenager had attacked Arik Ascherman, then head of Rabbis for Human Rights, while the latter was helping a Palestinian farmer harvest olives.
The incident was recorded on video:
|
|
The judge who handed down the sentence against the youth “wrote that she opted for community service because a conviction could hamper the teen’s chances of getting drafted into the Israeli army, and because she believes he has a good chance at rehabilitation,” Haaretz reported.
The teenager was represented in court by Itamar Ben-Gvir. Palestinian children who are arrested by Israel on charges such as throwing stones at soldiers do not enjoy such leniency. A growing number of US lawmakers are sponsoring a bill that would require the secretary of state to annually certify that no US funds allocated to Israel are used to “support military detention, |
interrogation, abuse, or ill-treatment of Palestinian children.”
The bill condemns Israel’s prosecutions of Palestinian children in military courts while Israeli settlers in the same territory live under civilian law.
Israel operates a two-tier legal system in the occupied West Bank; Palestinians are subject to military courts where they are denied basic due process and face near-certain conviction, while Israeli settlers are under the jurisdiction of Israel’s civil police and courts.
The bill condemns Israel’s prosecutions of Palestinian children in military courts while Israeli settlers in the same territory live under civilian law.
Israel operates a two-tier legal system in the occupied West Bank; Palestinians are subject to military courts where they are denied basic due process and face near-certain conviction, while Israeli settlers are under the jurisdiction of Israel’s civil police and courts.
15 dec 2017
Maariv newspaper reported on Friday that the Israeli president, Reuven Rivlin, decided to grant the Israeli soldier Elor Azariya a presidential pardon ahead of the so-called Israel's Independence Day.
Earlier in 2016, Azariya shot dead the Palestinian youth Abdul Fattah al-Sahrif, who was injured and lying immobile on the ground, and was sentenced by a military court to 18 months in prison over manslaughter.
Shortly after the verdict was issued, the chief of general staff of the Israeli army, Gadi Eizenkot, announced a four-month reduction in Azariya's sentence. Israel's war minister, Avigdor Lieberman, also asked Rivlin to reduce the soldier's sentence.
About a month ago, Rivlin rejected an appeal for pardon filed by Elor Azariya.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later joined a list of MKs in signing a letter appealing to Rivlin to reconsider pardoning the Israeli soldier.
The Hebrew newspaper noted, quoting sources close to Rivlin, that Azariya is expected to be released during the Independence Day celebrations.
Israel's Independence Day marks the establishment of "the state of Israel" in occupied Palestine following dozens of massacres committed against hundreds of thousands of indigenous people.
Earlier in 2016, Azariya shot dead the Palestinian youth Abdul Fattah al-Sahrif, who was injured and lying immobile on the ground, and was sentenced by a military court to 18 months in prison over manslaughter.
Shortly after the verdict was issued, the chief of general staff of the Israeli army, Gadi Eizenkot, announced a four-month reduction in Azariya's sentence. Israel's war minister, Avigdor Lieberman, also asked Rivlin to reduce the soldier's sentence.
About a month ago, Rivlin rejected an appeal for pardon filed by Elor Azariya.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later joined a list of MKs in signing a letter appealing to Rivlin to reconsider pardoning the Israeli soldier.
The Hebrew newspaper noted, quoting sources close to Rivlin, that Azariya is expected to be released during the Independence Day celebrations.
Israel's Independence Day marks the establishment of "the state of Israel" in occupied Palestine following dozens of massacres committed against hundreds of thousands of indigenous people.
14 dec 2017
The Supreme Court of Israel ruled on Thursday that Israel must return the bodies of Palestinian anti-occupation activists killed by the Israeli forces.
Lawyer Mohamed Mahmoud, from the Prisoners’ and Ex-Prisoners’ Commission, said the court issued the verdict following appeals filed on behalf of the families of the Palestinians whose bodies have been withheld by the Israeli occupation authorities.
The court also ruled that the bodies of slain Palestinians be not buried at the Cemetery of Numbers and be handed over to their families.
The panel of adjudicators said the detention of dead bodies is devoid of any legal basis.
The lawyer added that the court adjourned the release of slain Palestinians held in refrigerators or those who were buried in the Cemetery of Numbers in recent months pending a final verdict regarding appeals filed by their families. In case a law is not passed in the next six months, the bodies will be returned to the families.
At least the bodies of 10 Palestinians killed by the Israeli forces have been withheld by the Israeli occupation authorities.
Lawyer Mohamed Mahmoud, from the Prisoners’ and Ex-Prisoners’ Commission, said the court issued the verdict following appeals filed on behalf of the families of the Palestinians whose bodies have been withheld by the Israeli occupation authorities.
The court also ruled that the bodies of slain Palestinians be not buried at the Cemetery of Numbers and be handed over to their families.
The panel of adjudicators said the detention of dead bodies is devoid of any legal basis.
The lawyer added that the court adjourned the release of slain Palestinians held in refrigerators or those who were buried in the Cemetery of Numbers in recent months pending a final verdict regarding appeals filed by their families. In case a law is not passed in the next six months, the bodies will be returned to the families.
At least the bodies of 10 Palestinians killed by the Israeli forces have been withheld by the Israeli occupation authorities.
12 dec 2017
Jewish extremist Yinon Reuveni, convicted of setting fire to the Benedictine church, sentenced to 4 years in prison, 2 years of probation and ordered to pay NIS 50,000 in damages; lawyers says plans to appeal punishment and conviction.
Jewish extremist Yinon Reuveni was sentenced to four years in prison on Monday after having been convicted of arson for setting fire to the Church of Loaves and Fishes, which is located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel.
Reuveni was also given two years of probation and ordered to pay NIS 50,000 in damages.
His lawyer, Itamar Ben-Gvir, said he intends to appeal both the punishment and the conviction.
Ben-Gvir argued his client cannot pay damages, as he is being held as a Jewish security prisoner and not allowed to leave his cell, not even to work. Judge Georges Azoulay, however, rejected that claim.
The Church of Loaves and Fishes, which is run by the Order of Saint Benedict, is considered one of the most important churches in Israel. Christians believe the church is built on the site where Jesus performed the Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves and the Fishes. It is a traditional site of pilgrimage in the Holy Land.
In June 2015, Reuveni and several others torched the church, causing extensive damage to two rooms and the structure's exterior. Firefighters called to the scene managed to extinguish the flames just in time to avert what could have been far more damaging as they burned just meters away from the main hall of the church itself and its wooden ceiling.
In addition to the fire, Reuveni also defaced the limestone wall with red paint denouncing the worship of idols.
Two people, a young female pilgrim and a 70-year-old man, were wounded in the blaze from smoke inhalation.
The arson led to widespread condemnation in Israel and abroad, with religious leaders of all faiths and denominations coming to Tabgha to show their support to the monks and to protest the arson.
A security video showed a Subaru vehicle near the church at the time of the arson. The same vehicle was also spotted in a gas station's security cameras in the Latrun area, with Reuveni seen filling a bottle with gasoline. The bottle was later found at the scene. Police investigators also found gloves some five kilometers away from the church with Reuveni's DNA on them.
Another defendant, Yehuda Asraf, 21, the owner of the car, was acquitted in June of charges of conspiring to commit a crime and aiding and abetting.
The Shin Bet said Reuveni and his friends belong to an ideological group seeking to "change the government and bring closer the redemption," among others things by targeting Christian sites across Israel.
Jewish extremist Yinon Reuveni was sentenced to four years in prison on Monday after having been convicted of arson for setting fire to the Church of Loaves and Fishes, which is located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel.
Reuveni was also given two years of probation and ordered to pay NIS 50,000 in damages.
His lawyer, Itamar Ben-Gvir, said he intends to appeal both the punishment and the conviction.
Ben-Gvir argued his client cannot pay damages, as he is being held as a Jewish security prisoner and not allowed to leave his cell, not even to work. Judge Georges Azoulay, however, rejected that claim.
The Church of Loaves and Fishes, which is run by the Order of Saint Benedict, is considered one of the most important churches in Israel. Christians believe the church is built on the site where Jesus performed the Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves and the Fishes. It is a traditional site of pilgrimage in the Holy Land.
In June 2015, Reuveni and several others torched the church, causing extensive damage to two rooms and the structure's exterior. Firefighters called to the scene managed to extinguish the flames just in time to avert what could have been far more damaging as they burned just meters away from the main hall of the church itself and its wooden ceiling.
In addition to the fire, Reuveni also defaced the limestone wall with red paint denouncing the worship of idols.
Two people, a young female pilgrim and a 70-year-old man, were wounded in the blaze from smoke inhalation.
The arson led to widespread condemnation in Israel and abroad, with religious leaders of all faiths and denominations coming to Tabgha to show their support to the monks and to protest the arson.
A security video showed a Subaru vehicle near the church at the time of the arson. The same vehicle was also spotted in a gas station's security cameras in the Latrun area, with Reuveni seen filling a bottle with gasoline. The bottle was later found at the scene. Police investigators also found gloves some five kilometers away from the church with Reuveni's DNA on them.
Another defendant, Yehuda Asraf, 21, the owner of the car, was acquitted in June of charges of conspiring to commit a crime and aiding and abetting.
The Shin Bet said Reuveni and his friends belong to an ideological group seeking to "change the government and bring closer the redemption," among others things by targeting Christian sites across Israel.
The Knesset approved early Tuesday morning the first reading of the “Supermarket Law”, which will grant the Interior Minister the powers to disqualify municipal bylaws promoted by the local authorities, effectively shutting down supermarkets that had been operating on the Sabbath with permission from the local authority.
The motion was approved by a majority of 59 MKs who voted in favor and 54 who voted against. One MK abstained.
Interior Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas), who initiated the legislation, threatened to resign from the government if the law was not approved in its first reading.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu shortened his trip to Europe and exerted pressure on MKs from the Likud who threatened not to support the bill, namely Sharren Haskel and Yehuda Glick. Glick finally agreed to support the bill in exchange for the coalition's agreement to promote a bill banning the publication of cigarettes and tobacco products, except in the printed press.
Under the bill, bylaws concerning opening and closing of businesses on Saturdays and Jewish holidays will require the agreement of the minister of the interior. Agreement will be granted only for businesses supplying vital needs.
The motion was approved by a majority of 59 MKs who voted in favor and 54 who voted against. One MK abstained.
Interior Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas), who initiated the legislation, threatened to resign from the government if the law was not approved in its first reading.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu shortened his trip to Europe and exerted pressure on MKs from the Likud who threatened not to support the bill, namely Sharren Haskel and Yehuda Glick. Glick finally agreed to support the bill in exchange for the coalition's agreement to promote a bill banning the publication of cigarettes and tobacco products, except in the printed press.
Under the bill, bylaws concerning opening and closing of businesses on Saturdays and Jewish holidays will require the agreement of the minister of the interior. Agreement will be granted only for businesses supplying vital needs.
9 dec 2017
A military court in Beersheba last Thursday sentenced 59-year-old Ebtisam Mousa, from the Gaza Strip, to two years in jail, with no guilt.
The Shin Bet arrested Ebtisam Mousa at the Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing as she was escorting her ill sister, who suffers from cancer, and later accused her of gathering and transferring information to Gaza, without any evidence.
In another incident, the family of prisoner Hussein Juwailes, from al-Khalil, said that Israeli soldiers rounded him up recently as he was on his way home after he left his job in the city and physically assaulted him, affirming that the assault was recorded on video.
Israeli soldiers also stormed a house last Tuesday in al-Khalil and brutally beat a Palestinian citizen called Haitham Awad, 28.
Lawyer Jacqueline Fararjeh, from the Palestinian Prisoner Society, said she recently visited prisoner Awad in Etzion jail and listened to his complaint about his exposure to physical abuse at the hands of soldiers.
He explained that Israeli soldiers raided and ransacked his home after midnight on Tuesday, December 5, then blindfolded him and bundled him into a military vehicle.
Inside the vehicle, they embarked on kicking him with their legs and rifle butts as he was lying on his belly, the prisoner added.
The Shin Bet arrested Ebtisam Mousa at the Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing as she was escorting her ill sister, who suffers from cancer, and later accused her of gathering and transferring information to Gaza, without any evidence.
In another incident, the family of prisoner Hussein Juwailes, from al-Khalil, said that Israeli soldiers rounded him up recently as he was on his way home after he left his job in the city and physically assaulted him, affirming that the assault was recorded on video.
Israeli soldiers also stormed a house last Tuesday in al-Khalil and brutally beat a Palestinian citizen called Haitham Awad, 28.
Lawyer Jacqueline Fararjeh, from the Palestinian Prisoner Society, said she recently visited prisoner Awad in Etzion jail and listened to his complaint about his exposure to physical abuse at the hands of soldiers.
He explained that Israeli soldiers raided and ransacked his home after midnight on Tuesday, December 5, then blindfolded him and bundled him into a military vehicle.
Inside the vehicle, they embarked on kicking him with their legs and rifle butts as he was lying on his belly, the prisoner added.
5 dec 2017
Modesty sign in Beit Shemesh
Beit Shemesh municipality has two weeks to remove modesty sign blocking women from public streets; 'Israel will not have streets closed to women,' justices say, while mayor says signs are 'ideological.'
The Supreme Court issued an ultimatum on Monday to the Beit Shemesh municipality mandating the removal of modesty signs hung in the city's streets which demand women dress modestly by Haredi standards.
The justices ruled the signs exclude women from the public sphere and demanded the city's municipality finds a solution to prevent their recurrence.
"Women will not be excluded from the public sphere in Israel," they declared, after the city's Mayor, Moshe Abutbul, called them merely "ideological signs," and told the judges that similar signs exist in Meah Shearim.
"On Sunday, December 12th, the signs will come down," declared Justice Hanan Meltzer. "Israel does not have streets that are closed to women."
The court's instructions come in response to an appeal by the Beit Shemesh municipality against an earlier administrative court ruling that demanded the signs come down by July 2017, and fined the city NIS 10,000 for every day the signs remained up.
'The mayor is mocking us'
For almost three years, women in Beit Shemesh have been complaining about the city's refusal to remove the modesty signs, as instructed by the court in 2015 in response to a petition filed by attorney Orly Erez-Lahovsky.
The court at that time said that the signs are offensive and "cause serious harm to human dignity, equality, personal choice and autonomy." The court also said that the city has been negligent in not removing the signs and instructed them to compensate the supplicants NIS 60,000.
Two years have passes and the signs were not removed, so the women went to the administrative court which gave the city until July 2017 to remove the signs–with a fine for every day it had not done so.
The Beit Shemesh municipality appealed the decision to the Supreme Court and as part of the appeal removed the signs, but they were immediately hung again and nothing has been done since.
"We were glad to hear the determined and unequivocal statement against the signs and restricting women from certain streets. The judge was resolute in saying that there will not be streets closes to women and he said too that a dress code in public is unacceptable," said Miri Shalem, a Beit Shemesh resident and one of the petitioners, noting that "Most of the signs are on highly visible major streets and not on side streets in Haredi enclaves."
"The mayor is mocking us, he is inconsistent," Shalem added. "Thankfully our lawyer is persistent. It can be exhausting and we sometimes ask ourselves if it's even worth it, but it is an important battle for us."
In response to the court ruling, attorney Erez-Lahovsky said that "We are thankful for the unequivocal statement by the Supreme Court which ruled that modesty signs are offensive and we ought not to tolerate them."
"The order to remove the signs with a police escort and a constant police presence will send a strong message that the rights of the women of Beit Shemesh are important," said Lahovsky. "The ruling is a victory for the rule of law over the rule of lawlessness, a victory for the rights of women for respect and equality. We will continue to monitor and combat all instances of exclusion of women in Israel."
Beit Shemesh municipality has two weeks to remove modesty sign blocking women from public streets; 'Israel will not have streets closed to women,' justices say, while mayor says signs are 'ideological.'
The Supreme Court issued an ultimatum on Monday to the Beit Shemesh municipality mandating the removal of modesty signs hung in the city's streets which demand women dress modestly by Haredi standards.
The justices ruled the signs exclude women from the public sphere and demanded the city's municipality finds a solution to prevent their recurrence.
"Women will not be excluded from the public sphere in Israel," they declared, after the city's Mayor, Moshe Abutbul, called them merely "ideological signs," and told the judges that similar signs exist in Meah Shearim.
"On Sunday, December 12th, the signs will come down," declared Justice Hanan Meltzer. "Israel does not have streets that are closed to women."
The court's instructions come in response to an appeal by the Beit Shemesh municipality against an earlier administrative court ruling that demanded the signs come down by July 2017, and fined the city NIS 10,000 for every day the signs remained up.
'The mayor is mocking us'
For almost three years, women in Beit Shemesh have been complaining about the city's refusal to remove the modesty signs, as instructed by the court in 2015 in response to a petition filed by attorney Orly Erez-Lahovsky.
The court at that time said that the signs are offensive and "cause serious harm to human dignity, equality, personal choice and autonomy." The court also said that the city has been negligent in not removing the signs and instructed them to compensate the supplicants NIS 60,000.
Two years have passes and the signs were not removed, so the women went to the administrative court which gave the city until July 2017 to remove the signs–with a fine for every day it had not done so.
The Beit Shemesh municipality appealed the decision to the Supreme Court and as part of the appeal removed the signs, but they were immediately hung again and nothing has been done since.
"We were glad to hear the determined and unequivocal statement against the signs and restricting women from certain streets. The judge was resolute in saying that there will not be streets closes to women and he said too that a dress code in public is unacceptable," said Miri Shalem, a Beit Shemesh resident and one of the petitioners, noting that "Most of the signs are on highly visible major streets and not on side streets in Haredi enclaves."
"The mayor is mocking us, he is inconsistent," Shalem added. "Thankfully our lawyer is persistent. It can be exhausting and we sometimes ask ourselves if it's even worth it, but it is an important battle for us."
In response to the court ruling, attorney Erez-Lahovsky said that "We are thankful for the unequivocal statement by the Supreme Court which ruled that modesty signs are offensive and we ought not to tolerate them."
"The order to remove the signs with a police escort and a constant police presence will send a strong message that the rights of the women of Beit Shemesh are important," said Lahovsky. "The ruling is a victory for the rule of law over the rule of lawlessness, a victory for the rights of women for respect and equality. We will continue to monitor and combat all instances of exclusion of women in Israel."
1 dec 2017
The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) is trying to retroactively legalize a sewage treatment facility near the illegal settlement of Ofra in Ramallah that was built illegally on private Palestinian land.
According to Haaretz news website, the current official effort to legalize the plant may get a boost from a recent legal opinion issued by attorney general Avichai Mandelblit allowing the expropriation of private Palestinian land for infrastructure that would serve only Israelis.
The sewage facility was built without permits and two chairmen of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council were fined after they admitted that they had advanced its construction through a land grab.
However, a legal opinion from the West Bank legal adviser could allow for the expropriation of the land, Haaretz said.
Steps to advance the plan will be discussed at a meeting of a subcommittee of the Israeli army’s civil administration planning committee on December 6.
A security source familiar with the details told Haaretz that the plan is at an advanced stage and is expected to be approved.
The land would need to be formally expropriated and then building permits would be issued retroactively, the website affirmed.
According to Haaretz news website, the current official effort to legalize the plant may get a boost from a recent legal opinion issued by attorney general Avichai Mandelblit allowing the expropriation of private Palestinian land for infrastructure that would serve only Israelis.
The sewage facility was built without permits and two chairmen of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council were fined after they admitted that they had advanced its construction through a land grab.
However, a legal opinion from the West Bank legal adviser could allow for the expropriation of the land, Haaretz said.
Steps to advance the plan will be discussed at a meeting of a subcommittee of the Israeli army’s civil administration planning committee on December 6.
A security source familiar with the details told Haaretz that the plan is at an advanced stage and is expected to be approved.
The land would need to be formally expropriated and then building permits would be issued retroactively, the website affirmed.
28 nov 2017
The Israeli Knesset passed on Tuesday a bill to cut off Palestinian neighborhoods left behind the separation wall, such as Kafr Akab and the Shuafat refugee camp, from occupied Jerusalem.
The bill – approved by a 9-7 vote in the Knesset Law, Constitution and Justice Committee ahead of second and third readings – is an amendment to the suspicious Israeli Basic Law.
The bill to establish a new municipality in Kafr Akab and Shuafat is being promoted by Israeli Minister Ze’ev Elkin, who warns of the “Palestinian demographic growth” in occupied Jerusalem.
Elkin claims that because “these neighborhoods are located behind the wall and are wide open to the rest of the West Bank, Palestinians are coming to live in them and, due to mixed marriages, the rate of Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem is rising.”
The PIC reporter revealed that the plan came as part of Israeli Judaization schemes and mainly aims to change the demographic character of the occupied city.
The bill – approved by a 9-7 vote in the Knesset Law, Constitution and Justice Committee ahead of second and third readings – is an amendment to the suspicious Israeli Basic Law.
The bill to establish a new municipality in Kafr Akab and Shuafat is being promoted by Israeli Minister Ze’ev Elkin, who warns of the “Palestinian demographic growth” in occupied Jerusalem.
Elkin claims that because “these neighborhoods are located behind the wall and are wide open to the rest of the West Bank, Palestinians are coming to live in them and, due to mixed marriages, the rate of Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem is rising.”
The PIC reporter revealed that the plan came as part of Israeli Judaization schemes and mainly aims to change the demographic character of the occupied city.
