News Highlights

• Dr. Mustafa Bargouthi condemns the Israeli killing of Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip, as the Israeli offensive entered its 4th day; almost 400 Palestinians are dead with over 1500 wounded so far.
• Five sisters murdered by Israeli missiles in Jabaliya, ranging in age from 2 – 17.
• The Free Gaza ship Dignity is rammed by Israeli warships in international waters and manages to make it to safe harbour in Tyre, Lebanon; passengers on the boat included former U.S. congresswoman Cynthia McKinney.
• Gaza’s hospitals are overwhelmed as the already crippled medical infrastructure struggles to handle the high volume of Palestinian wounded.
• Protests erupt around the world, and Bethlehem turns off its Christmas lights; here in Vancouver, hundreds rallied at the U.S. consulate on Dec. 29th to condemn the Israeli airstrikes.

Feature:

An interview with Canadian human rights volunteer Eva Bartlett, direct from Gaza, where she has been monitoring the escalating humanitarian crisis. Eva told us about her visit to Jabaliya, where airstrikes have killed many civilians, and also detailed what she has seen in Gaza’s hospitals. Eva concluded by criticizing the position of the Canadian government, which has supported the Israeli assault, and also the Canadian media, who have not bothered to contact her for an on-the-ground report. More of Eva’s reports can be found at her blog ingaza.wordpress.com

Focus on Zionism:

A Dec. 29th, 2008 Electronic Intifada report by Dr. Akram Habeeb about the Israeli bombing of his university in Gaza City.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Israeli peace activist Neta Golan arrested by Israeli police after going to Gaza on one of the Free Gaza boats.
• The Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem prays for an end to Israeli occupation and injustice in his Christmas message, and criticizes the siege on Gaza.
• Israel is implementing a PR campaign internationally to drum up support for an offensive on Gaza.
• Israeli human rights group Btselem says 58% of Ofra settlement, in existence since 1976, is built on Palestinian land even according to Israeli land records; Btselem states it is therefore an illegal outpost and should be evacuated.

Feature:

A live interview from Bethlehem, Palestine with Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh who teaches at Bethlehem University. Mazin talked about Christmas under occupation, the expanding Israeli settlements, and how the Palestinian people are coping under such difficult conditions. He discussed the role of the U.S. and the Arab regimes, and concluded that he felt the two-state solution was no longer a viable option. Mazin is also director of the Rapprochment Centre in Bethlehem and he encouraged people to learn more about the Palestinian situation, to come visit, to get involved and to push for peace with justice.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a Dec. 22th, 2008 Electronic Intifada report by Canadian human rights volunteer Eva Bartlett about the Palestinians killed by Israeli missile strikes in the past few weeks, many of them civilians.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Palestinian MP Mustafa Bargouthi says Israel’s prisoner releases are an attempt to deceive world opinion; Israel has arrested 5 times more Palestinians since Annapolis than it has released in a “revolving door” policy and still holds 47 MPs in prison.
• Hamas will not renew the six month old ceasefire with Israel, although it was already broken by Israeli forces on November 4th with a deadly incursion into Gaza that resulted in renewed fighting.
• U.S. army general Keith Dayton, who is training the Palestinian National Security Force for the West Bank, says in an interview marking his 3rd anniversary, that his Palestinian trainees will not fight against Israeli occupation.
• Israel expels UN human rights envoy, Professor Richard Falk, as he attempts to enter the country for a fact-finding mission.
• 200 Israeli police demolish a Bedouin village in the Negev and forcibly evict over 20 families.

Feature:

A special conversation with Palestinian photojournalist and writer Sameh Habeeb from Gaza. Sameh, who we had been unable to connect with earlier due to the power blackouts, updated us on the deteriorating conditions in Gaza for the Palestinian population as a result of the Israeli siege. He also talked about the Free Gaza boats, the fourth of which recently arrived by sea from Cyprus, and there was discussion about the role of the Arab regimes, especially Egypt, in helping to maintain the blockade on Gaza. Sameh’s work can be accessed at www.gazatoday.blogspot.com

Focus on Zionism:

Due to the length of the feature, Focus was postponed for this show.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Summary:

• Free Gaza boat breaks the Israeli siege on Gaza for the 4th time, bringing medical supplies and international academics.
• UN Human Rights Council calls on Israel to implement recommendations, including lifting the blockade on Gaza.
• Qatar calls off aid shipment from Cyprus to Gaza due to pressure from Israeli officials.
• Palestinians in Hebron/AlKhalil say Israeli police and military were complicit in the recent settler riots.

Feature:

Our live interview with Sameh Habeeb, a photojournalist in Gaza, was unable to go ahead due to the power blackouts there (see full interview Dec. 16th). In its place, we presented highlights of a speech by Dr. Ismail Zayid delivered in April 2006 at the Palestine Lives conference in McMaster University. Dr. Zayid was also in Vancouver on Nov. 21st, and spoke to a packed hall commemorating the International Day of Solidarity and introduced the new film Memory of the Cactus.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a Dec. 7th, 2008 Toronto Star report about Mrs. Al Kurd, a Palestinian mother and grandmother who was evicted from her East Jerusalem home and now lives in a tent.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Food aid is over 2/3 of the humanitarian aid requested by the UN and NGOs to assist Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
• European Development Commissioner expresses concern over the deteriorating situation in Gaza and calls the Israeli closure of border crossings “collective punishment”.
• Israel may free 250 Palestinian prisoners, out of the 11,000 political prisoners currently in Israeli jails.
• The family of Palestinian female prisoner, Sana Salah, calls for her release so she can receive urgently needed medical treatment.
• Egyptian police attack a student protest calling for an end to the siege on Gaza.

Feature:

The feature was another in our series of Eyewitness Palestine reports, this time with two moving stories, one from Gaza and the other from the West Bank. The first was a report from the UN news agency IRIN, that detailed the suffering in Gaza due to the Israeli blockade, particularly in the hospitals. It began with the details of a two-week-old premature baby whose incubator cannot provide a reliable supply of oxygen due to the hospital’s inconsistent power supply. The second story was from Anna Baltzer, a Jewish American activist, and detailed her harrowing experience in trying to pass through the Einab junction, which has one of the new style Israeli terminal buildings complete with metal gates, turnstiles and iron bars.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a Dec. 1st, 2008 Guardian article about how the multinational Unilever is selling its stake in a factory in a West Bank settlement, as pressure from a Dutch human rights group was increasing.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Palestinians in Gaza are facing a deteriorating situation as the Israeli closure leads to a lack of medicine, food and fuel; doctors struggle to save people with cancer, kidney disease and other serious illnesses due to lack of available treatments.
• Foreign Press Association petitions the Israeli government to stop its ban on journalists going to Gaza.
• Israeli army demolishes another Palestine home in occupied east Jerusalem, the sixth in just 3 weeks.

Feature:

A live interview with Diana Ralph, the coordinator for Independent Jewish Voices, about their picket against a gala organized by the Jewish National Fund. Diana explained how they had held a lively picket at the Museum of Civilization, which had hosted the event despite protests from many groups pointing out the discriminatory nature of the JNF and how that contradicted the Museum’s principles. The funds raised at the event were earmarked for the upkeep of the infamous “Canada Park”, built by the JNF on occupied Palestinian land and 3 destroyed villages. Diana also informed listeners about the activities of her group and the different campaigns they were implementing, including supporting the Durban II conference (www.independentjewishvoices.ca).

Focus on Zionism:

Excerpts of a Nov. 25th, 2008 article from the Israeli press about comments by the UN General Assembly President saying the international community should consider sanctions against Israel.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News:

• Israel maintains blockade of Gaza, despite warning from international aid agencies, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
• Power outages widen in Gaza and hospital and water treatment facilities are impacted.
• Foreign Press Association says Israel is banning foreign journalists from entering Gaza and condemns the move as an unprecedented violation of press freedom.
• Switzerland says Israel is wantonly destroying Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem in violation of the 4th Geneva Convention.
• Israeli government is angered by UK plan to label products manufactured in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Feature:

A live interview with Sara Jennings, who is currently in the Middle East as part of the Olive Tree Circus tour. Sara, who is from Whistler, BC, told us about the history of the circus and their experiences in the occupied Palestinian territories. She spoke about the response of the Palestinian kids who were thrilled with the performances. Sara, along with other circus members, was also part of a group of internationals that joined the weekly non-violent protests in the Bilin village, and were attacked by the Israeli army http://imaginaction.org/recent-news-from-olive-tree-circus . She concluded by calling on people to become informed about the situation and be proactive in supporting Palestinian rights.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a November 18th, 2008 press release from Dr. Mustafa Bargouthi, condemning the humiliation carried out by the Israeli army at a Nablus checkpoint, where they arrested and publicly stripped a young Palestinian man in front of crowds. Dr. Bargouthi added that such public humiliation was a “dramatically common event”.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Gazans plunged into darkness, due to Israel’s suspension of fuel shipments.
• Journalists are also affected by the Israeli closure and the Foreign Press Association protests against the restrictions.
• Israeli police evict Palestinian family from their east Jerusalem home of 52 years, despite ongoing appeal in Israeli court.
• UN Agency says food distribution will stop in Gaza by the end of the week, due to the Israeli blockade.
• Memorials held on the anniversary of the death of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, as many Palestinians question what has happened in the 4 years since he died.

Feature:

A conversation in the studio with Palestinian filmmaker Sobhi AlZobaidi, about his work and the showing of several of his films at the Pacific Cinematheque in Vancouver. Sobhi talked about what had motivated him to get into film, the importance of film as a medium and how his films address the complexities of Palestinian life. There was also general discussion of how people can help the Palestinians in their struggle to regain their inalienable rights.

Focus on Zionism:

Excerpts of a Nov. 6th, 2008 news story about the protest by hundreds of Palestinians against Israeli plans to allow the building of a museum atop a centuries-old Muslim cemetery.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• As world attention is focused on the U.S. election, Israeli land and air strikes in Gaza kill at least 6 Palestinians.
• International volunteers join local Palestinians to defend a home under attack by Israeli settlers in Hebron/AlKhalil.
• Israeli military intelligence chief warns extremist settlers may become more violent as Israeli government votes to end all support for “illegal outposts”.
• Settlers have clashed with Israeli security forces several times in the last week and have vowed to continue their campaign.
• A new report shows that Palestinian farmers were attacked 33 times in October during the olive harvest, from both settlers and Israeli soldiers.
• Spanish activists join the Boycott Israel movement and target transport company Veolia that is helping to build the Jerusalem light train.

Feature:

A special Eyewitness Palestine that highlighted two reports, one from the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights entitled “Blood on Their Hands” and the other a report by a volunteer with the World Council of Churches about the situation in Yanoun. The PCHR report talked about how they were launching an investigation into the Israeli military killings of 80 Palestinian kids from June 2007 to June 2008. The second report detailed how the village of Yanoun had been terrorized and emptied by violent settlers, and how the villagers had only been able to return under the protection of international peace volunteers.

Focus on Zionism:

Excerpts of an article in the Nov. 2nd, 2008 Israeli Haaretz paper about how a Palestinian Israeli student leader at Hebrew Univ. was apprehended by university security for refusing to shake Shimon Peres’ hand.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Israeli settlers and soldiers harass Palestinian farmers from Kfar Qadum, as they try to harvest their olives; the village has come under almost daily attack, despite the presence of international peace activists.
• Egypt offers new draft to achieve Palestinian national unity, with a meeting in Cairo in November.
• Syria calls on the U.N. to condemn the U.S. military raid on a Syrian village that killed 8 civilians.
• Swedish company closes factory in Israeli settlement due to protests from Swedish NGOs and the Church of Sweden that the company was involving itself in “crimes against international law”.

Feature:

A live interview with two staff members of the Palestinian NGO Al Haq, Dylan Smith and John Reynolds, who were currently touring eastern Canada. The two, who are both lawyers, talked about the work of Al Haq, one of the oldest Palestinian NGOs involved with human rights, and also described the new film Al Haq has made about Israel’s “Canada Park”, entitled Memory of the Cactus (the film will be coming to Vancouver on November 21st). The guests concluded by summarizing the supportive response they have received at all their meetings, including the one in Ottawa that the Israel lobby tried unsuccessfully to shut down.

Focus on Zionism:

There was no Focus on this show due to the length and importance of the interview.

Here is an audio file of this show: