News Highlights:
- Chaos in Gaza as kidnappings and popular unrest lead to instability; Palestinian NGOs and other figures call on the Palestinian Authority to take action and institute reform.
- Today, Palestinian PM Ahmed Qorei withdraws his resignation, submitted three days earlier due to the situation in Gaza.
- The U.N. General Assembly delays its vote on measures needed to implement the International Court ruling on Israel’s apartheid wall due to EU haggling on the wording.
- The Israeli cabinet extends the law Amnesty International has deemed racist that forbids Palestinians married to Israeli citizens from obtaining their spouse’s citizenship.
- Canadian Arab Federation criticizes the restrictions placed on the distribution of Al Jazeera in Canada.
- U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell will visit Egypt to thank the Egyptian government for their role in “mediating” between Israel and Palestine, after calling Egypt a crucial American partner in the region.
Feature:
A live interview with Jeff Halper in Jerusalem, the coordinator of the Israeli Committee against House Demolitions. Jeff was on a speaking tour of Canada several years ago with Salim Sharwarmeh who had his home demolished four times. Jeff updated listeners on the situation with Salim’s home which was rebuilt again and is now a “Peace Center”. Jeff also talked about the situation with the apartheid wall and in particular the suffering it is causing to Palestinians in and around the Jerusalem area.
Focus on Zionism:
Highlights of a July 19th report by the Palestinian Prisoners Society, detailing the abuse of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prison hospitals. Eyewitness accounts given to lawyers spoke about the medical negligence and outright abuse inflicted on the 200 hospitalized prisoners, abuse by both Israeli wardens and the hospital staff.