News Highlights:
- Israeli settlements are set for expansion push in September at the end of the temporary and partial “construction freeze”; Israeli media estimates 2700 new settler housing units are in the works.
- July 2nd, Israeli forces arrest activists during the weekly anti-wall protest in Wadi Rahal, near Bethlehem; July 9th will mark the sixth anniversary of the ruling of the Int’l Court of Justice that condemned the construction of Israel’s apartheid wall.
- Adeeb Abu Rahma, active in the non-violent weekly protests in Bilin, is sentenced to two years in an Israeli prison after being held for 11 months with no trial.
- Israeli human rights groups accuse the Israeli military of using Palestinians, including kids, as human shields during its invasion last January.
Feature:
Our feature was an instudio discussion about the Israeli blockade on Gaza and the diplomatic fallout from the deadly Israeli naval raid on the Gaza aid flotilla at the end of May. There was analysis of Israel’s new system for “easing” the blockade, which many analysts say is insufficient for needed reconstruction efforts, and also does not address the restrictions on movement of people and exports from Gaza. The discussion then moved to the strain in Israel-Turkey relations since the flotilla attack, how the militaries of the two countries were still maintaining close ties despite major shifts in Turkey’s diplomatic approach, and how all of this could impact relations in the region as a whole. Part of a statement by Rachel Corrie’s family, which stated that Israel could not be trusted to investigate the flotilla raid, was presented, and the feature then concluded by emphasizing the importance of the global Boycott Israel movement.
Focus on Zionism:
Highlights of a July 5th, 2010 U.N. report about how Palestinian children in Gaza are missing out on a proper education due to the Israeli blockade.
Here is an audio file of this show: