News Highlights:

• March 30th marked the 28th anniversary of Land Day, and there were protests in Galilee and all across the occupied Palestinian territories.
• The first Land Day in 1976 resulted in six Palestinian Israelis shot dead near Sakhnin
  Israel demolishes the home in Rafah that Rachel Corrie died trying to protect just over a year ago.
• Israeli troops shoot a seven-year-old Palestinian boy in Balata refugee camp and then, according to international volunteers, refuse to allow passage to the ambulance carrying him – Khaled Walweel was dead on arrival at hospital.
• U.N. agencies may be forced to end their humanitarian work in Gaza, due to Israeli restrictions on their movements
  Israel’s State Attorney recommends corruption charges against Ariel Sharon.

Feature:

An in studio discussion about recent developments in Palestine and the region. The panelists looked at the impact of the Israeli assassination of Sheik Yassin, the spiritual leader of Hamas, both on the Palestinian people and the larger Arab public. The U.S. veto in the United Nations over a resolution condemning the assassination was also discussed in this context. The panel further detailed the postponement of the Arab Summit, reportedly due to disagreements over how to deal with the Palestinian issue, and analyzed how Palestinians in general were disillusioned with the impotence of such summits.

Focus On Zionism:

A personal testimony from an elderly Palestinian woman about her involvement in actions to try and stop the construction of the apartheid wall on village lands. Ghariba Daoud talked about how a group of women like her had challenged the Israeli bulldozers and soldiers.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians march in the funeral of Sheik Ahmed Yassin, the wheel-chair-bound founder of Hamas who was assassinated by Israel.
• Four more Palestinians killed in Gaza by Israeli forces the same day as the funeral, including a 12 year old child.
• U.N. Security Council convening to discuss response to Yassin’s assassination (U.S. later vetoes resolution).
• Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham sends mixed message – says Canada recognizes Israel’s “right to defend itself” and “has designated Hamas as terrorist”, but he condemns the extra-judicial killing of Sheik Yassin.
• Israeli peace group, Gush Shalom, says Ariel Sharon poses a grave danger to Palestinians and Israelies alike; Uri Avnery, one of their leaders, says – “This is worse than a crime; it is an act of stupidity”.
• On March 20, millions around the world protest on the first anniversary of the U.S.-led war on Iraq
  Fifteen thousand gather in Vancouver to protest war and occupation in Iraq, Palestine and Afghanistan, with Noam Chomsky as the featured speaker.

Feature:

A live interview with Sabine Friesinger, from Concordia University in Quebec, about the repression against student activists and a recent film that has been made, “Discordia”. Sabine talked about the situation on campus since the protest against Benjamin Netanyahu a few years ago and how the Zionist organizations were attempting to influence elections for student council. She also commented on the film “Discordia”, which she said focused solely on students’ personal lives and was void of any political context. Accordingly, she felt the film was not useful in any aspect. A short interview then followed with Aaron Mate, also from Concordia, who stated that although he agreed with some of Sabine’s criticisms of “Discordia”, he felt the film was worth viewing and encouraged people to go and see the Vancouver showings.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of an article from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz about a ban on Israeli reporters entering Gaza after Sheik Yassin’s assassination. The Israeli High Court upheld the military ban, at least for the time being, and the Foreign Press Association strongly condemned it.

Here is an audio file (choppy quality) of this show:

News Highlights:

• On March 15th, Israeli forces shot and wounded at least 15 Palestinians in a demonstration against the apartheid wall in Deir Qaddis.
• An American peace activist was arrested during the same protest; she is being held and is facing deportation.
• On March 14th, a Palestinian teenager wounded by Israeli gunfire in Khan Younis
  Ariel Sharon talks about his “disengagement plan”, while Israeli bulldozers fortify the settlements in Gaza.
• Locally, on March 15th, protestors at SFU Burnaby Campus confronted the Israeli consul general during a meeting, challenging his comments.

Feature – A tribute to the memory of Rachel Corrie:

March 16 marked the one-year anniversary of the murder of Rachel Corrie by an Israeli bulldozer, as she attempted to protect the home of a Palestinian family in Gaza. The feature honored her memory through poetry and commentaries written by other members of the International Solidarity Movement ISM, which was the group Rachel was volunteering with at the time of her death. We were unable to proceed with a planned interview with two ISM members from Victoria who are currently in Palestine, due to problems with the phone lines.

Focus on Zionism:

Excerpts of an article from the Israeli newspaper, Maariv, about a mockup of a Palestinian town Israel is building in conjunction with the U.S. for training purposes. The Israeli military will offer to rent the facility to friendly foreign armies for training their troops.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Israeli military attack in residential area in central Gaza on March 7th kills 14 Palestinians, four of them children, and wounds more than 80 others.
• Israeli minister says raids into Gaza will continue as Israeli army shoots dead another Palestinian teenager on March 8th.
• Two anti-wall protestors shot on March 8th as Israeli High Court considers petition against route of apartheid wall submitted by Palestinian villagers and Israeli settlers.
• Palestinian leader Mohammed Abul Abbas dies while in American custody in Iraq; U.S. officials will not say if he was “under interrogation”; the arrest of Abbas 11 months ago violated the immunity agreements signed in the 1990s.
• Israeli Palestinian workers marked with red paint on their helmets to distinguish them for security guards.

Feature:

An interview with Harsha, from No One is Illegal, about the recent deportation of an Algerian refugee in Montreal. Harsha explained that Mohammed Cherfi had been a leader in the refugee community in Montreal and had been snatched from sanctuary in a Quebec City church. She also talked about the situation of the over 100 Palestinian refugees in Montreal facing imminent deportation.

Focus on Zionism:

Excerpts of an article in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz regarding the comments of Israeli deputy defense minister Ze’ev Boim about whether or not Palestinians and Moslems have a “genetic defect”. He was both criticized and supported by various members of the Knesset, but Likud MK Rabbi Melchoir said the statements were racist and “likened them to claims of genetic flaws linked to Jews by the Nazis and others throughout history”.

News Highlights:

• 3 Palestinians are killed by Israeli forces during peaceful protest against the wall –
  British parliamentarians call on Israel to remove the wall.
• Israel’s court orders one-week halt to construction of apartheid wall, due to petition submitted by Palestinian villagers and Popular Committee.
• Attorney Mohammed Dakhka says the villagers will be imprisoned in their towns and all will have to pass through one gate.
• Israeli Defense Minister says construction of the separation wall should be speeded up by “working three shifts day and night”.
• Prominent Palestinian journalist, Khalil al Zaben, shot dead in Gaza; his murder the latest in a string of attacks on Palestinian reporters and media outlets.
• Israeli army captain convicted of killing Palestinian youth, first conviction of its kind during second intifada.

Feature:

An in-studio interview with Stefan Christoff, a member of International Solidarity Movement – Montreal, about his recent trip to the Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan and Lebanon. Stefan explained he had first tried to visit the West Bank but was denied entry by Israeli officials. He then went to Jordan and Lebanon and saw the conditions and life of the Palestinians in the refugee camps there. Stefan noted how the conditions in the camps in Lebanon are particularly harsh, and how the discrimination against Palestinians there is institutionalized and severe.

Focus on Zionism:

Excerpts of an article by Gideon Levy, an Israeli writer, about the Israeli military checkpoints in the West Bank. The humiliation and pointless harassment of Palestinians at the checkpoints is poignantly detailed in the article, as well as the arbitrary nature of the actions of the Israeli soldiers.

Here is an audio file of this show: