By Beth McKernan
Late on Sunday night, (click here) like almost every other night in Jenin, the fighting started. The Israeli army said it entered the occupied West Bank city to arrest three suspected Palestinian terrorists and militants responded by throwing firebombs and opening fire.
According to two members of her family, 16-year-old Jana Zakaran ventured up to the roof of her home when gunfire erupted nearby to bring her cat inside to safety. When Zakaran’s father went to look for her, he found her dead in a pool of blood, the cat by her side.
In a rare admission of error, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said the teenager had been accidentally shot by a sniper....
The Free World needs to address Mr. Abbas to understand his grievances. It is wrong to leave Israel to sort out all that impacts this region of the world alone.
I think Mr. Abbas has to be asked where he stands on the genocide taking place in Ukraine.
October 13, 2022
Russia wants a just settlement to the Palestine-Israel issue (click here) in line with UN resolutions, President Vladimir Putin said in a meeting with his Palestinian counterpart, Mahmoud Abbas, on Thursday, Anadolu News Agency reports.
Russia has "a principled stance based on the fundamental resolutions of the United Nations and it remains unchanged," Putin told Abbas during talks in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, on the sidelines of a regional summit.
He said Moscow continues to closely monitor developments in the Middle East.
On bilateral cooperation with Palestine, he said "a lot" needs to be done to enhance economic ties.
Abbas hailed Russia's position on the Palestinian-Israeli settlement.
"We believe and know that Russia has a clear position on the settlement, and I am absolutely sure that it will never change. We know perfectly well that Russia stands for justice, for international law," he said.
Abbas stressed the need for a greater role of the Middle East Quartet, which comprises the UN, US, EU and Russia....
Russia wants a just settlement to the Palestine-Israel issue (click here) in line with UN resolutions, President Vladimir Putin said in a meeting with his Palestinian counterpart, Mahmoud Abbas, on Thursday, Anadolu News Agency reports.
Russia has "a principled stance based on the fundamental resolutions of the United Nations and it remains unchanged," Putin told Abbas during talks in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, on the sidelines of a regional summit.
He said Moscow continues to closely monitor developments in the Middle East.
On bilateral cooperation with Palestine, he said "a lot" needs to be done to enhance economic ties.
Abbas hailed Russia's position on the Palestinian-Israeli settlement.
"We believe and know that Russia has a clear position on the settlement, and I am absolutely sure that it will never change. We know perfectly well that Russia stands for justice, for international law," he said.
Abbas stressed the need for a greater role of the Middle East Quartet, which comprises the UN, US, EU and Russia....
By Lazar Berman
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s personal aide (click here) said Wednesday that Kyiv’s UN vote in November to refer the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to the International Court of Justice in The Hague was a “mistake” that must be fixed.
Speaking at the Ukraine-Israel Innovation Summit in Warsaw, Oleksiy Arestovych blamed inertia within Ukraine’s foreign ministry for support of the resolution, titled “Israeli practices and settlement activities affecting the rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories.”(click here)
The UN General Assembly Fourth Committee voted in favor of the measure by a margin of 98 in favor, 17 opposed and 52 abstentions....
Israel is facing losses in this current increase in violence in the area. It is getting difficult to assess the exact issues involved because of the genocide in Ukraine. It is nearly impossible, considering the dynamics involved with Russia and the Free World, to isolate the conflict between Palestine and Israel.
Russia's abrupt change in policy regarding human rights must be consistent across all the countries. Russia's actions in Ukraine and its multi-front wars for economic gain bring a different perspective to any change in stability in the world. Russia cannot pick and choose its human rights abuse.
It appears the countries that are in Russia's favor are most likely allies to a much larger conflict Russia will not address to the UN while propagating it. Russia is drawing on other countries to assist in Ukraine's genocide. That cannot be ignored.
Here again, Israel has a right to defend itself in changing instability globally.
...The Committee regrets (click here) that Israel did not respond to its request for consultations with Israeli authorities or for access to Israel, the occupied Palestinian territory and the occupied Syrian Golan. Israel’s persistent refusal to engage with the UN mechanisms mirrors a lack of accountability for Israeli conduct in the occupied Palestinian territory, which was drawn to the Special Committee’s attention throughout the mission. The protracted occupation, and an entrenched culture of impunity, severely undermine the prospect of Palestinians and Israelis enjoying human rights on an equal basis and living side by side in peace and dignity....
By Yonah Jeremy Bob
Israel struck a convoy of trucks (click here) carrying Iranian weapons along the Syrian-Iraqi border last month, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi confirmed on Wednesday.
Without specifying the exact timing, it appeared clear that he was referring to an attack within Syria, next to the Iraqi border, which the Wall Street Journal and various other media outlets attributed to Israel in early November, but which Israel did not take responsibility for at the time.
According to reports at the time, the caravan was moving Iranian weapons, likely including powerful missiles, from Iraq to Syria, and around a dozen Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members and other Iranian-affiliated forces were killed....
By Luke Tress
Unilever, the parent company of Ben & Jerry’s, (click here) says it resolved a lawsuit with the ice cream maker over its attempt to boycott Israeli settlements last year.
“Unilever is pleased to announce that the litigation with Ben & Jerry’s Independent Board has been resolved,” the UK-based conglomerate says in a terse statement, without providing further detail.
The announcement appears to finally put an end to a legal battle that has dragged on for over a year. Ben & Jerry’s sued Unilever’s main US branch, Conopco, earlier this year as part of its boycott attempt, which it first announced in July 2021.
Avi Zinger, the head of Ben & Jerry’s Israel branch and a key player in fighting against the boycott, says he is “pleased” that the litigation has been resolved.
There were no details available about the settlement, but Zinger says there was no change to an agreement he inked with Unilever earlier this year....
Benjamin Netanyahu (click here) is preparing to become the Prime Minister of Israel for the third time. He has until December 21 to form a government before taking office.
In a wide-ranging interview with a group of print and television journalists at Al Arabiya, Mr. Netanyahu discussed Israel’s relations with Arab states, the US alliance structure in the Middle East, unrest in Iran, Israel’s new hard-right government, the future of the US-brokered maritime border agreement with Lebanon, and the Russia-Ukraine war.
Mr. Netanyahu reiterated the paramount importance of normalization with Saudi Arabia, which would be a “quantum leap” toward ending the Arab-Israeli conflict that “would change our region in ways that are unimaginable.” Saudi officials have consistently maintained that no normalization can happen without a Palestinian state.
Mr. Netanyahu indicated a willingness to explore a wide variety of peace options behind closed doors, stating “I believe in open covenants, secretly arrived at or discretely arrived at.”...
With Russia advancing far different directives than ever conceived before, it can be said the balance of power is in flux and all that has gone before can be reassessed. With Azerbaijan opening an embassy in Israel, there is serious doubt about any intolerance by Israel of the Muslim faith.
December 15, 2022
By Peter Marko Tase
With a new government on the way, (click here) Israel will have its latest opportunity to assess the status of its global relationships.
Israel continues to deepen its ties with the Muslim world through the signatories of the Abraham Accords. With Benjamin Netanyahu now set to return to power, the discourse has grown around additional countries, such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia potentially joining the Accords. Further, Azerbaijan’s parliament recently initiated the process of opening an embassy in Israel, making it the first Shi’ite Muslim-majority nation to take that step.
At the same time, Israel must also consider which of its relationships could prove counterproductive. In that regard, ties with Paraguay deserve increased scrutiny....
With a new government on the way, (click here) Israel will have its latest opportunity to assess the status of its global relationships.
Israel continues to deepen its ties with the Muslim world through the signatories of the Abraham Accords. With Benjamin Netanyahu now set to return to power, the discourse has grown around additional countries, such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia potentially joining the Accords. Further, Azerbaijan’s parliament recently initiated the process of opening an embassy in Israel, making it the first Shi’ite Muslim-majority nation to take that step.
At the same time, Israel must also consider which of its relationships could prove counterproductive. In that regard, ties with Paraguay deserve increased scrutiny....
The world has changed drastically in less than a year in defense of human rights to end genocide. International assessments are difficult at best.
