Tag: Bedouin

Annexation agenda escalates West Bank conflict

West BankThe Israel Defense Forces killed four Palestinians in an air-strike on the village of Siir, in Jenin district of the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Red Crescent reported that Israeli forces "prevented our teams from reaching the bombing site," declaring it a "closed military zone." Two days later, an IDF drone strike near the village of Aqaba in the Jordan Valley left two dead. The IDF again reportedly prevented ambulances from reaching the site. Two days after that, fire-fights erupted in Jenin as Palestinian Authority security forces responded to the theft of military equipment. A PA statement said "a group of outlaws opened fire on the headquarters of the security services" and stole two vehicles. Despite the designation of "outlaws," the vehicles were reportedly paraded through the streets by a band flying the flags of Islamic Jihad and Hamas. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has meanwhile introduced legislation to bar use of the term "West Bank" by the US government in favor of the official Israeli designation "Judea & Samaria." (Photo: delayed gratification via New Jewish Resistance)

Syria

Gaza: flashpoint for regional war? (redux redux)

SyriaAt least 42 people were reported killed in Israeli air-strikes near the Syrian city of Aleppo, allegedly targeting an arms depot belonging to militant group Hezbollah. Those killed included Hezbollah members and Syrian soldiers—as well as civilians, by some reports. Israeli air-strikes in southern Lebanon meanwhile killed 16 people, and one in Israel was killed by a barrage of rockets fired by Hezbollah from south Lebanon. Earlier, a series of air-strikes on Syria's eastern province of Deir el-Zor killed 15 people, including a World Health Organization staff member as well as an Iranian military adviser. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for those strikes. But Israel's intermittent air-strikes on Iran-backed militia forces in Syria have been escalating since the Gaza bombardment began. (Image: Pixabay)

From Palestine to Iran: free the land

PalestineIn Episode 160 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg notes hideous ironies in the current horrific headlines. Russia was excluded from the official commemorations of Holocaust Day at Auschwitz-Birkenau as it pursues its war of aggression and extermination in Ukraine in the perverse name of "de-nazification." But Israeli flags were of course displayed at the commemoration—even as Israel escalates toward a genocidal solution to the Palestinian question. The fundamental contradiction driving the conflict is the expropriation of the Palestinian people of their lands, and the denial of their self-determination by Israel. The emergence of an explicitly anti-Zionist bloc in the protests against the new far-right government in Israel is a sign of hope. The US, however, is undertaking its biggest joint military exercises ever with the new Israeli regime, despite Biden's supposed rejection of its extremist policies of settlement expansion and annexation—viewing the Jewish State as a strategic ally against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Meanwhile, the oppressive regime in Iran treats minority peoples such as the Kurds, Baluch, Ahwazi and Baha'i much as Israel treats the Palestinians. Listen on SoundCloud or via Patreon. (Photo: B'Tselem)  

New Israeli admin in West Bank propaganda ploy

Khan al-AhmarUS National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met in Jerusalem with President Isaac Herzog, signaling continued US support for Israel's new far-right government—despite the Biden administration's supposed opposition to its policies such as settlement expansion and annexation of the West Bank. The trip coincided with Israel's eviction of a wildcat settler outpost in what Israeli authorities call the "Samaria" region of the West Bank. Simultaneously, the Israeli government announced it is preparing to demolish the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar on the eastern outskirts of Jerusalem, home to at least 180 people. Khan al-Ahmar lies within a key corridor stretching to the Jordan Valley, where Israel aims to expand and link settlements, effectively cutting the West Bank into two. (Photo: B'Tselem)

Greater Middle East

Egypt: ‘crimes against humanity’ in Sinai feared

GazaWith the sounds of war starting to fall silent in the Gaza Strip after 470 days of brutal Israeli military assault and siege, a tiny crack of hope has opened for the Palestinian residents of the enclave that they will be able to gather the shattered pieces of their lives and begin the daunting task of rebuilding. But whether the deal reached by Israel and Hamas will lead to a decisive end to the war remains entirely unclear. Under a Trump administration that promises to be even more staunchly pro-Israel than the Biden administration, it's difficult to imagine Palestinians seeing anything resembling their aspirations for a state being met—or justice and accountability for the crimes committed over the past 15 months. (Photo: Rita Baroud/TNH)

Palestine

Israel stripping Negev Bedouin of citizenship

BedouinIsraeli authorities have revoked the citizenship of hundreds of Bedouin Palestinians in the Negev desert in recent years, leaving many stateless and without recourse to appeal the decision. Since the establishment of Israel in 1948 the Bedouin community has faced systematic dispossession and displacement, but the new policy—in place since 2010—essentially revokes their civil rights altogether.

Palestine

Israeli forces demolish Bedouin village —again

Israeli forces demolished the "unrecognized" Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the Negev for the 113th time since 2010 and for the fifth time this year—as residents persist in rebuilding.

Palestine

‘Jewish state’ bill approved for Knesset vote

Israel's cabinet approved the controversial "Jewish State" bill, which would revoke Arabic's status as an official language, clearing the way for a vote on the measure in the Knesset.