I extracted this piece from Hanan's comment under Chedet's Palestine post.
An eye opener instead as I always hear this term never get to realize the true meanings..
By Hanan on February 14, 2009 5:18 PM
What means Zionism, Judaism? Why I feel a Zionist, as some of you asked.
Just one comment prior reading the whole Zionist related issues, I think many of you didn't got my intention of my previous message. I'll leave the interpretation of it to your self intellectual understanding.
1. Zion:
A hill in Jerusalem, which, after the capture of that city by the Israelites, became the royal residence of David and his successors. To simplify, it is another name of Jerusalem.
2. Zionism, the national movement for the return of the Jewish people to their homeland (Eretz Israel, means the Land of Israel) and the resumption of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel, advocated, from its inception, tangible as well as spiritual aims. Jews of all persuasions, left and right, religious and secular, joined to form the Zionist movement and worked together toward these goals. Disagreements led to rifts, but ultimately, the common goal of a Jewish state in its ancient homeland was attained. The term “Zionism” was coined in 1890 by Nathan Birnbaum.
3. Judaism can be thought of as being simultaneously a religion, a nationality and a culture.
Throughout the Middle Ages and into the 20th century, most of the European world agreed that Jews constituted a distinct nation. This concept of nation does not require that a nation have neither a territory nor a government, but rather, it identifies, as a nation any distinct group of people with a common language and culture. Only in the 19th century did it become common to assume that each nation should have its own distinct government; this is the political philosophy of nationalism. In fact, Jews had a remarkable degree of self-government until the 19th century. So long as Jews lived in their ghettos, they were allowed to collect their own taxes, run their own courts, and otherwise behave as citizens of a landless and distinctly second-class Jewish nation.
Of course, Judaism is a religion, and it is this religion that forms the central element of the Jewish culture that binds Jews together as a nation. It is the religion that defines foods as being kosher and non-kosher, and this underlies Jewish cuisine. It is the religion that sets the calendar of Jewish feast and fast days, and it is the religion that has preserved the Hebrew language.
Is Judaism ethnicity? In short, not any more. Although Judaism arose out of a single ethnicity in the Middle East, there have always been conversions into and out of the religion. Thus, there are those who may have been ethnically part of the original group who are no longer part of Judaism, and those of other ethnic groups who have converted into Judaism.
If you are referring to a nation in the sense of race, Judaism is not a nation. People are free to convert into Judaism; once converted, they are considered the same as if they were born Jewish. This is not true for a race.
4. Excerpts from Herzl’s The Jewish State:
"The idea I have developed in this pamphlet is an ancient one: It is the restoration of the Jewish State. . . The decisive factor is our propelling force. And what is that force? The plight of the Jews. . . I am profoundly convinced that I am right, though I doubt whether I shall live to see myself proved so. Those who today inaugurate this movement are unlikely to live to see its glorious culmination. But the very inauguration is enough to inspire in them a high pride and the joy of an inner liberation of their existence. . .
The plan would seem mad enough if a single individual were to undertake it; but if many Jews simultaneously agree on it, it is entirely reasonable, and its achievement presents no difficulties worth mentioning. The idea depends only on the number of its adherents. Perhaps our ambitious young men, to whom every road of advancement is now closed, and for whom the Jewish state throws open a bright prospect of freedom, happiness, and honor perhaps they will see to it that this idea is spread. . .
It depends on the Jews themselves whether this political document remains for the present a political romance. If this generation is too dull to understand it rightly, a future, finer, more advanced generation will arise to comprehend it. The Jews who will try it shall achieve their State; and they will deserve it. . .
I consider the Jewish question neither a social nor a religious one, even though it sometimes takes these and other forms. It is a national question, and to solve it we must first of all establish it as an international political problem to be discussed and settled by the civilized nations of the world in council.
We are a people — one people.
We have sincerely tried everywhere to merge with the national communities in which we live, seeking only to preserve the faith of our fathers. It is not permitted us. In vain are we loyal patriots, sometimes super loyal; in vain do we make the same sacrifices of life and property as our fellow citizens; in vain do we strive to enhance the fame of our native lands in the arts and sciences, or her wealth by trade and commerce. In our native lands where we have lived for centuries we are still decried as aliens, often by men whose ancestors had not yet come at a time when Jewish sighs had long been heard in the country. . .
Oppression and persecution cannot exterminate us. No nation on earth has endured such struggles and sufferings as we have. Jew-baiting has merely winnowed out our weaklings; the strong among us defiantly return to their own whenever persecution breaks out. . . Wherever we remain politically secure for any length of time, we assimilate. I think this is not praiseworthy. . .
Palestine is our unforgettable historic homeland. . . Let me repeat once more my opening words: The Jews who will it shall achieve their State. We shall live at last as free men on our own soil, and in our own homes peacefully die. The world will be liberated by our freedom, enriched by our wealth, magnified by our greatness. And whatever we attempt there for our own benefit will redound mightily and beneficially to the good of all mankind."
5. The Return to Zion:
In the late 19th century, the rise of religious and racist anti-Semitism led to a resurgence of pogroms in Russia and Eastern Europe, shattering promises of equality and tolerance. This stimulated Jewish immigration to Palestine from Europe.
Simultaneously, a wave of Jews immigrated to Palestine from Yemen, Morocco, Iraq and Turkey. These Jews were unaware of Theodor Herzl's political Zionism or of European pogroms. They were motivated by the centuries old dream of the "Return to Zion" and a fear of intolerance. Upon hearing that the gates of Palestine were open, they braved the hardships of travel and went to the "Land of Israel."
The Zionist ideal of a return to Israel has profound religious roots. Many Jewish prayers speak of Jerusalem, Zion and the Land of Israel. The injunction not to forget Jerusalem, the site of the Temple, is a major tenet of Judaism. The Hebrew language, the Torah, laws in the Talmud, the Jewish calendar and Jewish holidays and festivals such as Shavuot all originated in Israel and revolves around its seasons and conditions. Jews pray toward Jerusalem and recite the words "next year in Jerusalem" every Passover. Jewish religion, culture and history make clear that it is only in the land of Israel that the Jewish commonwealth can be built.
In 1897, Jewish leaders formally organized the Zionist movement, calling for the restoration of the Jewish national home in Palestine, where Jews could find sanctuary and self-determination, and work for the renascence of their civilization and culture.
6. Zionism Is Not Racism:
In 1975, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution slandering Zionism by equating it with racism. In his spirited response to the resolution, Israel's Ambassador to the UN, Chaim Herzog noted the irony of the timing, the vote coming exactly 37 years after Kristallnacht (Crystal Night in the Nazi Germany).
Zionism is the national liberation movement of the Jewish people, which holds that Jews, like any other nation, are entitled to a homeland.
History has demonstrated the need to ensure Jewish security through a national homeland. Zionism recognizes that being Jewish is defined by shared origin, religion, culture and history.
The realization of the Zionist dream is exemplified by more than four million Jews, from more than 100 countries, including dark-skinned Jews from Ethiopia, Yemen and India, who are Israeli citizens. Approximately 1,000,000 Muslim and Christian Arabs, Druze, Baha'is, Circassians and other ethnic groups also are represented in Israel's population.
Many Christians have traditionally supported the goals and ideals of Zionism. Israel's open and democratic character and its scrupulous protection of the religious and political rights of Christians and Muslims rebut the charge of exclusivity.
The Arab states define citizenship strictly by native parentage. It is almost impossible to become a naturalized citizen in many Arab states, especially Algeria, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Several Arab nations have laws that facilitate the naturalization of foreign Arabs, with the specific exception of Palestinians. Jordan, on the other hand, instituted its own "law of return" in 1954, according citizenship to all former residents of Palestine, except for Jews.
The presence of thousands of black Jews in Israel is the best refutation of the calumny against Zionism. In a series of historic airlifts, labeled Moses (1984), Joshua (1985) and Solomon (1991), Israel rescued almost 42,000 members of the ancient Ethiopian Jewish community.
To single out Jewish self-determination for condemnation is itself a form of racism. "A world that closed its doors to Jews who sought escape from Hitler's ovens lacks the moral standing to complain about Israel's giving preference to Jews," wrote noted civil rights lawyer Alan Dershowitz.
When approached by a student who attacked Zionism, Martin Luther King responded: "When people criticize Zionists, they mean Jews. You're talking anti-Semitism."
The 1975 UN resolution was part of the Soviet-Arab Cold War anti-Israel campaign. Almost all the former non-Arab supporters of the resolution have apologized and changed their positions. When the General Assembly voted to repeal the resolution in 1991, only some Arab and Muslim states, as well as Cuba, North Korea and Vietnam were opposed.
7. World Zionist Organization (WZO):
The Zionist Organization was founded by Theodor Herzl at the First Zionist Congress in Basle in 1897; it was renamed the World Zionist Organization in 1960. Its goals were set forth in the Basle Program: "Zionism seeks to establish a home for the Jewish people in Palestine, secured under public law." The right of membership in the ZO was given to anyone who accepted the Basle Program and purchased the Zionist shekel (dues). The first constitution was passed by the Third Congress in 1899 and amended over the years.
At the First Zionist Congress, the Zionist movement organized itself as a worldwide organization with permanent institutions. The supreme institution was, and still is, the Zionist Congress. The elected institutions that function between congresses are the Zionist General Council and the Zionist Executive; the latter carries out the movement's policies. The Zionist Congress also elects a law court, an attorney and a comptroller. The Zionist Executive is headed by its chairman, who is also the president of the ZO.
Since its foundation, the ZO has established companies and institutions to carry out its policies; these include Keren Hayesod, the Jewish National Fund, the Jewish Colonial Trust, and the Jewish Colonial Trust's subsidiary, the Anglo-Palestine Bank.
The Mandate for Palestine accorded Great Britain by the League of Nations called for the establishment of a Jewish Agency to represent the Jewish people vis-a-vis the Mandatory government and to cooperate with it in establishing the national home. The Zionist Organization was initially given the status of a Jewish Agency.
In 1929, an expanded agency was established as a partnership between the ZO and non-Zionist, public Jewish groups. At the founding conference in Zurich in 1929, half the delegates were representatives of the ZO, and half represented the non-Zionist organizations. Dr. Chaim Weizmann, president of the ZO, was elected president of the newly founded Jewish Agency.
The Jewish Agency was viewed as a tool for the involvement of the entire Jewish people in the building of the land. It was also hoped that inclusion of the non-Zionist organizations would boost the financial resources available to the Zionist movement, something which did not occur, partly because of the worldwide economic crisis of 1929. The principle of equal representation in the Jewish Agency leadership was also gradually breached. After several years, the Executive of the Jewish Agency became identical with that of the Zionist Organization.
In the pre-state period, the Jewish Agency was an "almost-government" which dealt with organizing immigration - including illegal immigration - and absorbing the immigrants in Palestine. It founded Youth Aliya, maintained labor, settlement and industry departments, and was a senior partner in the establishment of the yishuv's (residence places) defense force and of the stockade and watchtower settlements. David Ben-Gurion served as chairman of the Jewish Agency Executive from 1935 to 1948, while Moshe Shertok (later Sharett) headed the Political Department.
The goals of the ZO and the Jewish Agency did not change until after the establishment of the State of Israel, when their status was redefined. On November 24, 1952, the Knesset passed the "Zionist Organization - Jewish Agency for Israel Status Law", and later a covenant was signed between the government of Israel and the Zionist Executive, according to which the organizations' main areas of responsibility remained those related to aliya, immigrant absorption and settlement.
In August 1970, an agreement was signed modifying the structure and functions of the Jewish Agency and the WZO. Half the members of the Assembly of the expanded Jewish Agency are representatives of the WZO; 30 percent represent the UJC (U.S.); and 20 percent represent organizations affiliated with Keren Hayesod in the rest of the world. With regard to immigration, the following division was set forth: the Jewish Agency would deal with immigration from countries of persecution and the WZO would deal with immigration from affluent countries. The Jewish Agency and the WZO signed two new covenants with the government of Israel in June 1979. The Jewish Agency retained its responsibility for initial absorption of the immigrants in Israel; support for educational activities and work with youth; immigrant absorption in rural settlements; immigrant housing; and welfare services. The WZO concentrates on work in the Diaspora and that relating to Diaspora Jewry: Jewish education, work with youth and so forth.
8. Why am I a Zionist?
I feel as person who fulfilled his self independence in my homeland after my fathers and grand fathers were expelled by force from their homes and assets.
This has nothing to do with the rights of Palestinians to live on the same soil. We can live here side by side and flourish. It is just dependent on both sides good will to make it.
Hanan, Jewish and an Israeli Zionist.
Read more...
Monday, February 16, 2009
Perceptions or Facts?
My view: Whenever we are accusing certain party at fault, often time, we are “assuming” those people whom sharing the same religion, skin colors & believes will also act the same. But before we jump into any conclusion, do we open our mind in listening to both sides of the stories or evaluating the issue objectively without involving emotional feelings?
It is the main intention of this blog when I started it off Feb this year for Intellectual Debates & platform of discussion. Besides getting information from Mass media, there are other resources available in the internet. Probably you can start your research by FIRST venturing into the story of the party that you disagree on? I would welcome any finding from you all but minus the emotional quotes :)
Extracted notes between Ali Baba & Hanan in Chedet's Hanan post that triggerred My view
By Ali Baba on February 13, 2009 7:51 PM
Ha ha ha............very cheap propaganda by BladeLizard! Non muslim is pretending to be an expert in Islam. What a fool! You're not good enough to be Salman Rushdie nor Geert Wilders. Even Hanan will lough at you. What a pity!
________________________
By Hanan on February 14, 2009 6:19 PM
Dear Ali Baba,
What about Muslims pretending being experts in Judaism or Christianity?
When someone is saying something something opposed to your opinion, does it mean it is propaganda?
Everone bears close to him what he believes is the truth.
When you say it is propaganda it is not proving that what you say is true and not proving that BladeLizard is wrong.
I think, in counter to you, I'm reading most of the comments here even I disagree many of them and try to see if they are still valid as truth. I'm not saying that the things I dont like are propaganda.
Shalom,
Hanan, Jewish and Israeli Zionist.
Read more...
It is the main intention of this blog when I started it off Feb this year for Intellectual Debates & platform of discussion. Besides getting information from Mass media, there are other resources available in the internet. Probably you can start your research by FIRST venturing into the story of the party that you disagree on? I would welcome any finding from you all but minus the emotional quotes :)
Extracted notes between Ali Baba & Hanan in Chedet's Hanan post that triggerred My view
By Ali Baba on February 13, 2009 7:51 PM
Ha ha ha............very cheap propaganda by BladeLizard! Non muslim is pretending to be an expert in Islam. What a fool! You're not good enough to be Salman Rushdie nor Geert Wilders. Even Hanan will lough at you. What a pity!
________________________
By Hanan on February 14, 2009 6:19 PM
Dear Ali Baba,
What about Muslims pretending being experts in Judaism or Christianity?
When someone is saying something something opposed to your opinion, does it mean it is propaganda?
Everone bears close to him what he believes is the truth.
When you say it is propaganda it is not proving that what you say is true and not proving that BladeLizard is wrong.
I think, in counter to you, I'm reading most of the comments here even I disagree many of them and try to see if they are still valid as truth. I'm not saying that the things I dont like are propaganda.
Shalom,
Hanan, Jewish and Israeli Zionist.
Read more...
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Hamas says long term truce with Israel imminent (AP)
My previous post talked about peace truce conditions including the key hostage release (Gilad Shalit-captive since 2006 by Hamas). Today, the negotiation seems banging to a wall where both sides pointing fingers with disagreement. While Israel is standing firm over the kidnapped soldier release, Hamas in the other end disagreed & blaming Israel over procrastinating the peace effort. I may not have the full picture on the overall situation but 1 question remained after reading all the reports (Reuters & Ynetnews): Is Gilad Shalit still alive?
JERUSALEM, Feb 14 — Hamas officials said yesterday an agreement with Israel on a long-term ceasefire in Gaza could be announced within days, but a new cycle of attacks by both sides put new strains on the temporary truce that has held since Israel's offensive.
Two rockets and a mortar shell fired from Gaza hit southern Israel, the Israeli military said. No one was injured, and no Palestinian group took responsibility for the attacks.
Hours later, Israel retaliated with an airstrike that killed a man and critically wounded another near the Gaza town of Khan Younis, Palestinian security officials said. The dead man was a member of the small, violent Popular Resistance Committees group.
The Israeli military, confirming the strike, said the men were planning an attack on Israel.
The Khan Younis strike was followed by air attacks on what the military said were six weapons-smuggling tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border. The military said "secondary explosions" were observed at some of the sites, a phrase used to indicate that arms or explosives were stored there. A spokesman said the strikes were in response to the earlier Palestinian attacks.
There were no reports of Palestinian casualties in the raids on the tunnels.
Israeli aircraft struck again before midnight, Palestinian officials said, hitting a field north of Gaza City used as a launch site for one of the earlier rocket attacks and a carpenter's shop in the Jabaliya refugee camp where a man suffered moderate injuries.
The Israeli miltary, however, said both airstrikes hit weapons-producing workshops in Jabaliya.
Rocket fire and shooting incidents along the Gaza-Israel border have persisted since the end of Israel's devastating offensive against Hamas in the territory. Israel halted the operation on Jan 18, and Hamas declared a ceasefire later the same day.
Yesterday's fighting came after Hamas officials said talks in Cairo on a long-term truce were close to success and an agreement could be announced within days, possibly as early as tomorrow.
But Khaled Mashaal, the group's top political leader who lives in exile in Syria, later added a negative cast to the situation.
Asked about a ceasefire, he told reporters in Qatar, "It was supposed to start on Sunday, but there has been a setback, and it will not start as it was expected." He did not offer any specifics on the talks.
Ali Baraka, deputy head of Hamas' office in Damascus, Syria, declined to discuss the comment, saying only that the negotiations continued.
A Hamas delegation is in the Egyptian capital, and an Israeli envoy has been flying in periodically from Tel Aviv. Egypt is mediating between the two sides because Hamas and Israel will not talk directly to each other.
A few hours before Mashaal spoke, Taher Nunu, a spokesman for Hamas' truce delegation in Cairo, said he expected an agreement "within the coming three days." He said progress had been made on a ceasefire, on a reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, and on reconstruction funds for Gaza.
"Many obstacles have been resolved, especially stopping all forms of aggression and the issue of the quality and kind of goods (entering Gaza) and the opening of the border," Nunu said in a statement e-mailed to reporters in Gaza.
The border crossings have been blockaded by Israel and Egypt since Hamas violently seized power in the territory in 2007, defeating the rival Fatah faction.
Late Thursday, Hamas deputy leader Moussa Abu Marzouk told Egypt's official MENA news agency that the Islamic militant group agreed to an 18-month truce with Israel and that it would be announced within two days after the group consulted with other Palestinian factions.
Abu Marzouk said the deal calls for Israel to reopen its border crossings into Gaza, fulfilling Hamas' central demand.
Egyptian state-run newspapers yesterday quoted Egypt's top mediator, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, as saying that four obstacles remained to be resolved; firing rockets, establishing a buffer zone between Gaza and Israel, a Hamas commitment to respect calm and a halt to weapons smuggling into Gaza.
Israeli defence officials said the talks were serious and making progress. An initial agreement could involve a partial opening of Gaza's crossings, they said, with a later agreement to include the release of Sgt Gilad Schalit, an Israeli soldier held by Hamas since 2006, in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners demanded by Hamas.
Talks on Schalit's release have stalled over disagreements about which prisoners Israel would free. The hundreds of names on Hamas' list include senior militants and masterminds of deadly suicide bombings.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the details remain classified.
It was unclear whether the results of Israel's national election this week would affect the Cairo talks. The election ended with the moderate foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, winning one more Parliament seat than hardline Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu.
But with hawks now forming a majority in the incoming Parliament, Netanyahu has better chances of cobbling together a coalition government. He met with potential allies yesterday. Coalition wrangling is expected to last weeks, at least.
A new government is likely to be either a hardline coalition led by Netanyahu or a centrist coalition involving a power-sharing arrangement between Netanyahu and Livni.
Violence also erupted yesterday in the West Bank city of Hebron. Staff at a local hospital said a teenage boy was killed by Israeli army fire during a clash between troops and stone-throwing Palestinian youths.
Doctors at Alia hospital named the dead boy as Izzadine Jamal, 14. They did not know if he was among those attacking the Israelis.
The army said dozens of Palestinians hurled rocks at a military guard tower next to an Israeli settlement and a soldier shot the ringleader.
Hebron, the largest city in the West Bank, is divided between Israeli and Palestinian zones of control and clashes are frequent. About 500 Jewish settlers live there among about 170,000 Palestinians. — AP
Read more...
JERUSALEM, Feb 14 — Hamas officials said yesterday an agreement with Israel on a long-term ceasefire in Gaza could be announced within days, but a new cycle of attacks by both sides put new strains on the temporary truce that has held since Israel's offensive.
Two rockets and a mortar shell fired from Gaza hit southern Israel, the Israeli military said. No one was injured, and no Palestinian group took responsibility for the attacks.
Hours later, Israel retaliated with an airstrike that killed a man and critically wounded another near the Gaza town of Khan Younis, Palestinian security officials said. The dead man was a member of the small, violent Popular Resistance Committees group.
The Israeli military, confirming the strike, said the men were planning an attack on Israel.
The Khan Younis strike was followed by air attacks on what the military said were six weapons-smuggling tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border. The military said "secondary explosions" were observed at some of the sites, a phrase used to indicate that arms or explosives were stored there. A spokesman said the strikes were in response to the earlier Palestinian attacks.
There were no reports of Palestinian casualties in the raids on the tunnels.
Israeli aircraft struck again before midnight, Palestinian officials said, hitting a field north of Gaza City used as a launch site for one of the earlier rocket attacks and a carpenter's shop in the Jabaliya refugee camp where a man suffered moderate injuries.
The Israeli miltary, however, said both airstrikes hit weapons-producing workshops in Jabaliya.
Rocket fire and shooting incidents along the Gaza-Israel border have persisted since the end of Israel's devastating offensive against Hamas in the territory. Israel halted the operation on Jan 18, and Hamas declared a ceasefire later the same day.
Yesterday's fighting came after Hamas officials said talks in Cairo on a long-term truce were close to success and an agreement could be announced within days, possibly as early as tomorrow.
But Khaled Mashaal, the group's top political leader who lives in exile in Syria, later added a negative cast to the situation.
Asked about a ceasefire, he told reporters in Qatar, "It was supposed to start on Sunday, but there has been a setback, and it will not start as it was expected." He did not offer any specifics on the talks.
Ali Baraka, deputy head of Hamas' office in Damascus, Syria, declined to discuss the comment, saying only that the negotiations continued.
A Hamas delegation is in the Egyptian capital, and an Israeli envoy has been flying in periodically from Tel Aviv. Egypt is mediating between the two sides because Hamas and Israel will not talk directly to each other.
A few hours before Mashaal spoke, Taher Nunu, a spokesman for Hamas' truce delegation in Cairo, said he expected an agreement "within the coming three days." He said progress had been made on a ceasefire, on a reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, and on reconstruction funds for Gaza.
"Many obstacles have been resolved, especially stopping all forms of aggression and the issue of the quality and kind of goods (entering Gaza) and the opening of the border," Nunu said in a statement e-mailed to reporters in Gaza.
The border crossings have been blockaded by Israel and Egypt since Hamas violently seized power in the territory in 2007, defeating the rival Fatah faction.
Late Thursday, Hamas deputy leader Moussa Abu Marzouk told Egypt's official MENA news agency that the Islamic militant group agreed to an 18-month truce with Israel and that it would be announced within two days after the group consulted with other Palestinian factions.
Abu Marzouk said the deal calls for Israel to reopen its border crossings into Gaza, fulfilling Hamas' central demand.
Egyptian state-run newspapers yesterday quoted Egypt's top mediator, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, as saying that four obstacles remained to be resolved; firing rockets, establishing a buffer zone between Gaza and Israel, a Hamas commitment to respect calm and a halt to weapons smuggling into Gaza.
Israeli defence officials said the talks were serious and making progress. An initial agreement could involve a partial opening of Gaza's crossings, they said, with a later agreement to include the release of Sgt Gilad Schalit, an Israeli soldier held by Hamas since 2006, in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners demanded by Hamas.
Talks on Schalit's release have stalled over disagreements about which prisoners Israel would free. The hundreds of names on Hamas' list include senior militants and masterminds of deadly suicide bombings.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the details remain classified.
It was unclear whether the results of Israel's national election this week would affect the Cairo talks. The election ended with the moderate foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, winning one more Parliament seat than hardline Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu.
But with hawks now forming a majority in the incoming Parliament, Netanyahu has better chances of cobbling together a coalition government. He met with potential allies yesterday. Coalition wrangling is expected to last weeks, at least.
A new government is likely to be either a hardline coalition led by Netanyahu or a centrist coalition involving a power-sharing arrangement between Netanyahu and Livni.
Violence also erupted yesterday in the West Bank city of Hebron. Staff at a local hospital said a teenage boy was killed by Israeli army fire during a clash between troops and stone-throwing Palestinian youths.
Doctors at Alia hospital named the dead boy as Izzadine Jamal, 14. They did not know if he was among those attacking the Israelis.
The army said dozens of Palestinians hurled rocks at a military guard tower next to an Israeli settlement and a soldier shot the ringleader.
Hebron, the largest city in the West Bank, is divided between Israeli and Palestinian zones of control and clashes are frequent. About 500 Jewish settlers live there among about 170,000 Palestinians. — AP
Read more...
Friday, February 13, 2009
Hamas says Gaza truce deal expected in next 3 days (Reuters)
Will this Peace truce last in many years to come?
GAZA, Feb 13 (Reuters) - An Egyptian-mediated truce agreement in Gaza between Israel and Hamas would most likely be announced in the next three days, the Islamist group said.
"Most of the obstacles that prevented us from reaching an agreement were resolved and an announcement of a deal is expected within three days," Taher al-Nono, a member of Hamas's negotiating team in Cairo, told Reuters.
Nono said the agreement would ensure the end of cross-border violence between Palestinian militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and Israel as well as the opening of the territory's border crossings.
Israeli officials had no immediate comment.
Egypt, which has been trying to broker a truce deal between Israel and Hamas, said earlier on Thursday it would announce "positive" results coming from the talks in the coming hours.
A longer term truce deal would take the place of a shaky Jan. 18 ceasefire, declared separately by both sides, that ended Israel's 22-day military offensive against Hamas Islamists in the Gaza Strip.
About 1,300 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli offensive. Fourteen Israelis have died since Dec. 27, when the fighting broke out.
Egypt has proposed a staged process beginning with a ceasefire declaration, a deal to exchange prisoners, the opening of Gaza's border crossings with Israel and with Egypt and reconciliation talks between rival Palestinian factions.
Hamas has demanded Israel free 1,400 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier captured by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid in 2006. Diplomats said Israel was likely to free closer to 1,000.
Nono said after meeting with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman "significant progress" had been made on the key issues of reaching a truce with Israel, Gaza's reconstruction and the opening of the territory's border crossings.
Israel tightened a blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas Islamists seized the enclave in 2007 from forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Nona added that Egypt invited the leaders of Palestinian factions to Cairo on Feb. 22 for reconciliation talks.
© REUTERS 2009
Read more...
GAZA, Feb 13 (Reuters) - An Egyptian-mediated truce agreement in Gaza between Israel and Hamas would most likely be announced in the next three days, the Islamist group said.
"Most of the obstacles that prevented us from reaching an agreement were resolved and an announcement of a deal is expected within three days," Taher al-Nono, a member of Hamas's negotiating team in Cairo, told Reuters.
Nono said the agreement would ensure the end of cross-border violence between Palestinian militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and Israel as well as the opening of the territory's border crossings.
Israeli officials had no immediate comment.
Egypt, which has been trying to broker a truce deal between Israel and Hamas, said earlier on Thursday it would announce "positive" results coming from the talks in the coming hours.
A longer term truce deal would take the place of a shaky Jan. 18 ceasefire, declared separately by both sides, that ended Israel's 22-day military offensive against Hamas Islamists in the Gaza Strip.
About 1,300 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli offensive. Fourteen Israelis have died since Dec. 27, when the fighting broke out.
Egypt has proposed a staged process beginning with a ceasefire declaration, a deal to exchange prisoners, the opening of Gaza's border crossings with Israel and with Egypt and reconciliation talks between rival Palestinian factions.
Hamas has demanded Israel free 1,400 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier captured by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid in 2006. Diplomats said Israel was likely to free closer to 1,000.
Nono said after meeting with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman "significant progress" had been made on the key issues of reaching a truce with Israel, Gaza's reconstruction and the opening of the territory's border crossings.
Israel tightened a blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas Islamists seized the enclave in 2007 from forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Nona added that Egypt invited the leaders of Palestinian factions to Cairo on Feb. 22 for reconciliation talks.
© REUTERS 2009
Read more...
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Aziz in Chedet to Hanan
Another bold challenge from one of the reader in chedet called aziz in response to Hanan's comment. Not much intellectual points given in the response except the same & common terminology used in Malaysian Mass Media when reporting the Gaza-Israel issue. But you be the judge...& welcome to voice your comment in this blog
Dear Tun,
I would like to reply to the comment made by Hanan.
Dear Hanan,
I appreciate your effort to explain the major points regarding this matter. Somehow you must also understand that the action taken by the HAMAS or Israelis army are both wrong and should be condemned. There is not one religion in this world including Islam, Christian, Judaism or Buddha or any other that teach the people to kill another human being. It shows that you are very arrogant and ignorant person who thinks that killing one another is fine. You call yourself to be a Jew but I am sure that your religion does not teach you to kill others.
I also need to remind you that the blockaded done by the Israelis army on Palestinians people from getting good supply and other supply has caused to all this problem. If they allow the Palestinians to live their lives without any sanction on them, they will not be getting any rocket attack from the HAMAS. I am sure of that. The Zionist continue doing so because they want to have a valid reason to retaliate by killing more Palestinians so they will be perished from this earth. That is your Zionist ambition. I know you know this very well. Since you yourself claimed to be a Zionist.
You can go on and say whatever you want about this whole issue. But for me and I think for most of the people in this world, they do not like you the ZIONIST. It is not because you are an Israelis but it is because you are ZIONIST. I have a good friend of mine who happen to be an American Jew. But he lives his life simple and do business as usual without any problem here in Kuala Lumpur. And I am sure that there are many more of them who are good Jews around the world. Same as muslim. We also have the good muslim around the world who follow the God's revelation which is the Koran. But somehow we also have the bad Muslim around the world who commit suicide bombing in the name of Allah.
And the Palestinians are very stubborn and they will do whatever it takes to win. Same goes to your people of Israel. They will do what it takes to win too. So you tell me Hanan, do you want this to continue? Do you want to see people living side by side without any problem or living side by side but killing each other and make each others life hard enough that the kids can't go to school, no food to eat, no proper education, no places safe to go and live their life like 1000 years ago with no electricity, no internet connection.
If you choose to see them living that sort of life then I must say that all your argument earlier was for nothing. Because you are just as arrogant as the Palestinians Arab. You are very selfish person who only think for yourself and your people only. You are very stubborn who does not want to listen to any other voice around the world that condemned the killing of innocent people of Palestine.
Do you remember what you did before to people of Jenin? People of Gaza? Other top leaders of the Islamic ruling party? You do not care because their blood is nothing compare to your people. The Hamas kill your people not more than 20 people in the recent attack but the Israelis army killed more than 1500 of innocent people. So you tell me, is there any fairness in your attack? Is there any logic to your killings? Come on Hanan. I am sure you have a good brain to think for yourself. Maybe you should take a bit of time to think about it. But maybe also you do not have a good heart so you will take as many minutes as possible but you will never understand it. You will not get what I am saying and the world is demanding. Because you are just as bad as the Arabs who are stubborn and ignorant towards another people's point of view.
We are living in 20th century now and we still killing one another just to fulfill our lust and to be in power.
Now in Israel they are having an election to elect a new Prime Minister. I pray to Allah that the new leader will be a good leader who has a good heart and who will not kill the innocent people like the previous leader of Israel. But I doubt it though because as long as the Zionist mentality is still in power, they will continue killing people for no reason.
I hope that all Arabs in the middle east get up and fight the Israelis. They are very small country will less than 4 million people. The Arab Gulf combined will get more than 100 people. I am sure the Arab will win anytime by just fighting one on one. There should be easy. But it is not as simple as that. Because the Arab leaders are coward. They do not want to risk their fortune by involving in the war between the Palestine and Israel. They rather spend their money on sleeping with as many girls as possible and buying alcohol to make them drunk all the times and splashing the money on building their mansion and buying sport cars as many as the one in the car dealer show room.
You may argue with the best brain in the world Hanan but you will never change your mentality about this war. You have something that is blocking your brain from receiving information clearly just like the Palestinians being blocked from getting food from Israelis. That is why both of you are acting like animals because you can;t get what you want. You just acting like animals who only think to fulfill their lust and wish list.
thank you
aziz
Read more...
Dear Tun,
I would like to reply to the comment made by Hanan.
Dear Hanan,
I appreciate your effort to explain the major points regarding this matter. Somehow you must also understand that the action taken by the HAMAS or Israelis army are both wrong and should be condemned. There is not one religion in this world including Islam, Christian, Judaism or Buddha or any other that teach the people to kill another human being. It shows that you are very arrogant and ignorant person who thinks that killing one another is fine. You call yourself to be a Jew but I am sure that your religion does not teach you to kill others.
I also need to remind you that the blockaded done by the Israelis army on Palestinians people from getting good supply and other supply has caused to all this problem. If they allow the Palestinians to live their lives without any sanction on them, they will not be getting any rocket attack from the HAMAS. I am sure of that. The Zionist continue doing so because they want to have a valid reason to retaliate by killing more Palestinians so they will be perished from this earth. That is your Zionist ambition. I know you know this very well. Since you yourself claimed to be a Zionist.
You can go on and say whatever you want about this whole issue. But for me and I think for most of the people in this world, they do not like you the ZIONIST. It is not because you are an Israelis but it is because you are ZIONIST. I have a good friend of mine who happen to be an American Jew. But he lives his life simple and do business as usual without any problem here in Kuala Lumpur. And I am sure that there are many more of them who are good Jews around the world. Same as muslim. We also have the good muslim around the world who follow the God's revelation which is the Koran. But somehow we also have the bad Muslim around the world who commit suicide bombing in the name of Allah.
And the Palestinians are very stubborn and they will do whatever it takes to win. Same goes to your people of Israel. They will do what it takes to win too. So you tell me Hanan, do you want this to continue? Do you want to see people living side by side without any problem or living side by side but killing each other and make each others life hard enough that the kids can't go to school, no food to eat, no proper education, no places safe to go and live their life like 1000 years ago with no electricity, no internet connection.
If you choose to see them living that sort of life then I must say that all your argument earlier was for nothing. Because you are just as arrogant as the Palestinians Arab. You are very selfish person who only think for yourself and your people only. You are very stubborn who does not want to listen to any other voice around the world that condemned the killing of innocent people of Palestine.
Do you remember what you did before to people of Jenin? People of Gaza? Other top leaders of the Islamic ruling party? You do not care because their blood is nothing compare to your people. The Hamas kill your people not more than 20 people in the recent attack but the Israelis army killed more than 1500 of innocent people. So you tell me, is there any fairness in your attack? Is there any logic to your killings? Come on Hanan. I am sure you have a good brain to think for yourself. Maybe you should take a bit of time to think about it. But maybe also you do not have a good heart so you will take as many minutes as possible but you will never understand it. You will not get what I am saying and the world is demanding. Because you are just as bad as the Arabs who are stubborn and ignorant towards another people's point of view.
We are living in 20th century now and we still killing one another just to fulfill our lust and to be in power.
Now in Israel they are having an election to elect a new Prime Minister. I pray to Allah that the new leader will be a good leader who has a good heart and who will not kill the innocent people like the previous leader of Israel. But I doubt it though because as long as the Zionist mentality is still in power, they will continue killing people for no reason.
I hope that all Arabs in the middle east get up and fight the Israelis. They are very small country will less than 4 million people. The Arab Gulf combined will get more than 100 people. I am sure the Arab will win anytime by just fighting one on one. There should be easy. But it is not as simple as that. Because the Arab leaders are coward. They do not want to risk their fortune by involving in the war between the Palestine and Israel. They rather spend their money on sleeping with as many girls as possible and buying alcohol to make them drunk all the times and splashing the money on building their mansion and buying sport cars as many as the one in the car dealer show room.
You may argue with the best brain in the world Hanan but you will never change your mentality about this war. You have something that is blocking your brain from receiving information clearly just like the Palestinians being blocked from getting food from Israelis. That is why both of you are acting like animals because you can;t get what you want. You just acting like animals who only think to fulfill their lust and wish list.
thank you
aziz
Read more...
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