1 mar 2018
Ongoing talks on the possibility of EU purchases of Israel’s natural gas put into question the EU’s commitment to Palestinian rights under international law.
The EU has made a strong commitment towards energy transition to renewable sources and has developed an ambitious strategy to meet Paris Agreement climate change targets.
At the same time the EU has spent millions in the recent years on new gas infrastructure projects and billions of euros more are expected for 104 new gas projects included in the third list of Projects of Common Interest (PCI) published by the Commission.
Natural gas is a fossil fuel composed of methane, which is 86 times more potent as a heat-trapping gas than CO2. With this massive investment, the EU is locking its dependence on fossil fuel for decades to come. As a recent report has shown, the gas corporate lobby is entrenching Europe’s addiction to fossil fuels.
In 2016 alone, “gas corporations and their lobby groups spent over €100 million on influencing EU [energy] policy, with more than 1,000 lobbyists on their payroll. … By comparison, public interest groups lobbying against new gas infrastructure managed to mobilize just 3% of industry’s spending.”
This not only puts into question the EU’s ability to meet climate change targets but also give rise to serious human rights concerns and the adverse social impact on communities where the pipelines are expected to cross.
Ongoing talks on the possibility of EU purchases of Israel’s natural gas put into question the EU’s commitment to Palestinian rights under international law. As this briefing by the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) explains, by purchasing gas from Israel, whether directly or indirectly, the EU would become complicit in Israel’s illegal annexation of the occupied Palestinian territory, its illegal settlements and the war crime of pillage of Palestinian natural resources – all in contravention of the EU’s international commitments and legal obligations.
Fueling Impunity: Israel’s Gas Exports to Europe by BNC on Scribd
Via the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC).
The EU has made a strong commitment towards energy transition to renewable sources and has developed an ambitious strategy to meet Paris Agreement climate change targets.
At the same time the EU has spent millions in the recent years on new gas infrastructure projects and billions of euros more are expected for 104 new gas projects included in the third list of Projects of Common Interest (PCI) published by the Commission.
Natural gas is a fossil fuel composed of methane, which is 86 times more potent as a heat-trapping gas than CO2. With this massive investment, the EU is locking its dependence on fossil fuel for decades to come. As a recent report has shown, the gas corporate lobby is entrenching Europe’s addiction to fossil fuels.
In 2016 alone, “gas corporations and their lobby groups spent over €100 million on influencing EU [energy] policy, with more than 1,000 lobbyists on their payroll. … By comparison, public interest groups lobbying against new gas infrastructure managed to mobilize just 3% of industry’s spending.”
This not only puts into question the EU’s ability to meet climate change targets but also give rise to serious human rights concerns and the adverse social impact on communities where the pipelines are expected to cross.
Ongoing talks on the possibility of EU purchases of Israel’s natural gas put into question the EU’s commitment to Palestinian rights under international law. As this briefing by the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) explains, by purchasing gas from Israel, whether directly or indirectly, the EU would become complicit in Israel’s illegal annexation of the occupied Palestinian territory, its illegal settlements and the war crime of pillage of Palestinian natural resources – all in contravention of the EU’s international commitments and legal obligations.
Fueling Impunity: Israel’s Gas Exports to Europe by BNC on Scribd
Via the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC).
20 feb 2018
The South African government is intending to cut diplomatic ties with Israel in protest of its treatment of the Palestinian people, the country’s Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor announced yesterday, the Middle East Monitor reported on Tuesday.
Pandor informed parliamentarians of the government’s resolution during a ten-hour joint debate on South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) that he delivered last week.
“The majority party has agreed, that government must cut diplomatic ties with Israel, given the absence of genuine initiatives by Israel to secure lasting peace and a viable two-state solution that includes full freedom and democracy for the Palestinian people,” she said.
The comments were made in response to opposition leader Kenneth Meshoe, who had argued that it was disappointing that national and provincial authorities in South Africa had refused help from Israeli companies to address the country’s current water crisis.
However, the proposal was applauded by parliamentarians and Pandor, who is expected to be appointed vice president in Ramaphosa’s new Cabinet, was given a standing ovation as she left the podium.
South Africa has been a staunch ally of the Palestinian struggle and regularly spoken out against the atrocities committed by the Israeli government.
Last month, the South African representative to the UN told the Human Rights Council that Israel is the “only state in the world that can be described as an apartheid state”, just days after the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party called for government ministers to strengthen the country’s visa restrictions with Israel.
Last year, the government also resolved to downgrade the South African Embassy in Israel to a liaison office, and cautioned Tel Aviv for blacklisting supporters of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which included prominent figures of the ANC.
The BDS South Africa campaign has witnessed significant support from the nation’s public, with universities and churches backing a cultural and economic boycott of Israel affiliated organisations.
Pandor informed parliamentarians of the government’s resolution during a ten-hour joint debate on South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) that he delivered last week.
“The majority party has agreed, that government must cut diplomatic ties with Israel, given the absence of genuine initiatives by Israel to secure lasting peace and a viable two-state solution that includes full freedom and democracy for the Palestinian people,” she said.
The comments were made in response to opposition leader Kenneth Meshoe, who had argued that it was disappointing that national and provincial authorities in South Africa had refused help from Israeli companies to address the country’s current water crisis.
However, the proposal was applauded by parliamentarians and Pandor, who is expected to be appointed vice president in Ramaphosa’s new Cabinet, was given a standing ovation as she left the podium.
South Africa has been a staunch ally of the Palestinian struggle and regularly spoken out against the atrocities committed by the Israeli government.
Last month, the South African representative to the UN told the Human Rights Council that Israel is the “only state in the world that can be described as an apartheid state”, just days after the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party called for government ministers to strengthen the country’s visa restrictions with Israel.
Last year, the government also resolved to downgrade the South African Embassy in Israel to a liaison office, and cautioned Tel Aviv for blacklisting supporters of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which included prominent figures of the ANC.
The BDS South Africa campaign has witnessed significant support from the nation’s public, with universities and churches backing a cultural and economic boycott of Israel affiliated organisations.
15 feb 2018
As Ahed Tamimi, a Palestinian teenaged girl enduring unjust detention in an Israeli prison, began her trial this week, major organizations from the Indian women’s movement, representing over 10 million Indian women, demand her release alongside all Palestinian child prisoners. These organizations have also heeded the call by Palestinian women to endorse the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, asserting that endorsing BDS is the most effective form of solidarity with Ahed and other child prisoners.
The BDS movement is a peaceful, global human rights movement that urges the use of economic and cultural boycotts to end egregious Israeli violations of Palestinian human rights and international law. It is inspired by the use of political boycotts in earlier movements for freedom, justice and equality, including the South African anti-apartheid movement, the American Civil Rights movement, and India’s movement for independence from colonial rule.
Ahed Tamimi’s release has also been called for by major human rights organizations like Amnesty International and in a recent statement by prominent cultural figures and “Dream Defender” activists in the United States.
Majida Masri thanked the Indian women’s movement on behalf of the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), which represents the largest coalition in Palestinian civil society and leads the BDS movement for Palestinian rights. Masri is also with the Women’s Campaign to Boycott Israel. She said:
We Palestinians welcome the principled solidarity of India’s leading women’s organizations with Ahed Tamimi, all Palestinian children imprisoned in Israeli jails, and our BDS movement for freedom, justice and equality. This latest expression of solidarity from Indian women is in line with a noble legacy of Indian support for our nonviolent Palestinian anti-colonial struggle. Alongside the millions in India who are calling for an end to deepening ties between the Indian and Israeli governments, we can end India’s complicity with decades of Israeli theft of Palestinian land, colonialism, military occupation and apartheid.
India’s women’s movement asserted that their own struggles against patriarchy, caste, class, religious divides and militarization form the basis of their solidarity with Palestinian women. Agreeing with their Palestinian counterparts, they reiterate that justice is always a feminist issue.
Their statement says:
We, the undersigned, demand the immediate release of Ahed Tamimi and all Palestinian child prisoners. We further believe that the strongest way to support Ahed’s struggle and the Palestinian quest for justice, freedom and equality is to support the BDS movement.
Israeli impunity is built on collaboration of corrupt regimes, and it will be dismantled by the unity of grassroots struggles across the world.
Palestinians are leading us by example. We must give shape to our solidarity in the form of the concrete and effective BDS efforts.
Boycotts were an essential part of our own struggle against colonialism, they brought down the South African apartheid regime, and they will break the back of Israeli colonization, occupation and apartheid.
We stand in vigil, demanding justice for Ahed. We urge women’s and other grassroots movements in India and across the world to do the same. As Ahed braves Israeli prisons, we must send her a resonating message of support and love. Let that message be one of resistance, of people’s power and of BDS.
Read the full statement here.
India’s long history of solidarity with Palestine is increasingly translating into growing Indian support for the BDS movement for Palestinian rights.
The Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) is the largest coalition in Palestinian civil society. It leads and supports the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement for Palestinian rights.
The BDS movement is a peaceful, global human rights movement that urges the use of economic and cultural boycotts to end egregious Israeli violations of Palestinian human rights and international law. It is inspired by the use of political boycotts in earlier movements for freedom, justice and equality, including the South African anti-apartheid movement, the American Civil Rights movement, and India’s movement for independence from colonial rule.
Ahed Tamimi’s release has also been called for by major human rights organizations like Amnesty International and in a recent statement by prominent cultural figures and “Dream Defender” activists in the United States.
Majida Masri thanked the Indian women’s movement on behalf of the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), which represents the largest coalition in Palestinian civil society and leads the BDS movement for Palestinian rights. Masri is also with the Women’s Campaign to Boycott Israel. She said:
We Palestinians welcome the principled solidarity of India’s leading women’s organizations with Ahed Tamimi, all Palestinian children imprisoned in Israeli jails, and our BDS movement for freedom, justice and equality. This latest expression of solidarity from Indian women is in line with a noble legacy of Indian support for our nonviolent Palestinian anti-colonial struggle. Alongside the millions in India who are calling for an end to deepening ties between the Indian and Israeli governments, we can end India’s complicity with decades of Israeli theft of Palestinian land, colonialism, military occupation and apartheid.
India’s women’s movement asserted that their own struggles against patriarchy, caste, class, religious divides and militarization form the basis of their solidarity with Palestinian women. Agreeing with their Palestinian counterparts, they reiterate that justice is always a feminist issue.
Their statement says:
We, the undersigned, demand the immediate release of Ahed Tamimi and all Palestinian child prisoners. We further believe that the strongest way to support Ahed’s struggle and the Palestinian quest for justice, freedom and equality is to support the BDS movement.
Israeli impunity is built on collaboration of corrupt regimes, and it will be dismantled by the unity of grassroots struggles across the world.
Palestinians are leading us by example. We must give shape to our solidarity in the form of the concrete and effective BDS efforts.
Boycotts were an essential part of our own struggle against colonialism, they brought down the South African apartheid regime, and they will break the back of Israeli colonization, occupation and apartheid.
We stand in vigil, demanding justice for Ahed. We urge women’s and other grassroots movements in India and across the world to do the same. As Ahed braves Israeli prisons, we must send her a resonating message of support and love. Let that message be one of resistance, of people’s power and of BDS.
Read the full statement here.
India’s long history of solidarity with Palestine is increasingly translating into growing Indian support for the BDS movement for Palestinian rights.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent visit was met with protests in various Indian cities, including New Delhi and Bombay.
- The 10 million strong Indian women’s movement joins the 16 million Indian farmers and agricultural works represented by the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) in supporting the BDS movement for Palestinian rights. AIKS announced its support for the BDS movement in in October 2017, resolving to document and resist the Israeli corporate takeover of Indian agriculture which undermines the interests of Indian farmers and funds Israeli military occupation and apartheid in Palestine.
- In 2017, the Delhi Queer Pride and the Queer Conversations forum in India committed to exposing and resisting Israeli government-sponsored propaganda campaigns to make cynical use of LGBTQI culture to mask, or “pinkwash”, its ongoing violence against the Palestinian people.
The Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) is the largest coalition in Palestinian civil society. It leads and supports the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement for Palestinian rights.
7 feb 2018
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A federal judge has ruled that Esther Koontz’s constitutional rights were violated when she was denied a Kansas teaching job over her refusal to renounce the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement (BDS) against Israel.
Rahul Saksena is a staff attorney with Palestine Legal. His work focuses on legislative issues and legal advocacy for Palestine rights activists. Rahul is based in New York City. TRNN video & transcript: AARON MATÉ: It’s The Real News. I’m Aaron Maté. In what is being |
called a major victory for freedom of speech, a federal court has ruled that a Kansas law that punishes people who adhere to the Boycott, Divest and Sanctions Movement against Israel is unconstitutional. The State of Kansas had used the law to refuse to sign a contract with schoolteacher Esther Koontz over her support for BDS, but the court found that Koontz’s right to boycott is constitutionally protected. Rahul Saksena is a Staff Attorney with Palestine Legal and he joins me now. Welcome, Rahul. Tell us about the case of Esther Koontz.
RAHUL SAKSENA: Sure, thank you for having me. So, Esther Koontz is a veteran math teacher in the State of Kansas. She’s a member of the Mennonite Church USA, and she supports boycotts for Palestinian rights, boycotts to protest the Israeli government’s abuses of Palestinian rights. Last summer, in July the State of Kansas enacted an anti-boycott law that basically said if you want to contract with the state, or say to teach math or to train math teachers, as Esther was intending to do, you have to certify that you are not engaged in a boycott for Palestinian rights. Esther refused to certify the form, and instead, she went to the ACLU, and with the ACLU, she filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of this anti-boycott law.And As you mentioned, just last week a federal court in Kansas issued a preliminary injunction, stopping the state from enforcing the law while the lawsuit proceeds. The federal judge, in that preliminary injunction said things that we at Palestinian Legal and other legal organizations across the country have been saying for years. One, that boycotts for Palestinian rights are political boycotts that are protected by the First Amendment. Back in 1982, the US Supreme Court ruled that such boycotts are protected by the First Amendment, in a case called NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware. And second, the judge said that because these boycotts are protected by the First Amendment, the State of Kansas cannot enact these kinds of laws aimed at punishing individuals like Esther from engaging in their First Amendment-protected speech.
AARON MATÉ: So, what is the wider significance of the court ruling against the law in this case, even though in Kansas the law still stands, right?
RAHUL SAKSENA: The law still stands pending the outcome of the lawsuit but they are blocked from enforcing it. And actually, this can have pretty wide repercussions across the country. As you may know, just in the past few years, 24 states have enacted similar anti-BDS, anti-boycott laws aimed at punishing those who engage in boycotts for Palestinian rights. The first state to do so was in 2015, was South Carolina, under Governor Nikki Haley who is now in the United Nations, President Trump’s representative to the UN.Since then, 24 states have enacted such laws. All of them violate First Amendment-protected rights because as I mentioned, the right to boycott, the right to engage in political boycotts for Palestinian rights, is a right protected by the First Amendment. Similar bills are being considered in Congress as well. The Israel Anti-Boycott Act is actually one of the most draconian of these laws. It’s a law introduced by Senator Cardin in the US Senate and has broad bipartisan support and is being backed by AIPAC. It would actually impose severe criminal penalties and severe financial penalties on some actions taken in support of boycotts for Palestinian rights.So, this is a broad issue. It’s a broad trend, and it’s part of an even broader trend to suppress and censor Palestinian rights activism across the country. Instead of engaging the issue on the merits, instead of having a conversation in this country about Israeli human rights abuses and Palestinian freedom, Israel advocacy organizations have been engaging in a widespread effort to suppress any criticism of Israeli government policies, on college campuses, through laws in state legislatures, as well as in Congress.
AARON MATÉ: The figures from your group are quite striking. Palestine Legal responded to 308 suppression incidents having to do with BDS in 2017, nearly 1,000 in the last four years. You detail some of them. Most famously, there was a pledge imposed on victims of Hurricane Harvey, saying that if you want to receive relief, you have to pledge not to boycott Israel. Just last month, we saw the City of New Orleans, the City Council, rescind a measure that seemed to favor boycotts, after heavy pressure from pro-Israel groups, or pro-Israeli government groups, I should say. That kind of political pressure that’s been brought to bear on both advocates of boycott and also lawmakers who are being pushed towards criminalizing or punishing boycotts, how powerful is that?
RAHUL SAKSENA: Well, there’s a divide in this country. I think on the ground, at the grassroots level, support for Palestinian rights, including support for boycotts for Palestinian rights is growing, growing exponentially, I think. Yet at the lawmaker level, there’s often broad bipartisan support for efforts to censor and suppress and punish those who speak out in support of Palestinian freedom. So, there is that divide and I think it’s growing more and more stark and more and more obvious for people on the ground.I think that, especially in the Trump era, where we need to protect our right to dissent and our First Amendment rights, it’s just pretty shameful that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are willing to enact these laws aimed at censoring and suppressing boycotts for Palestinian rights. This is a time where we need to stand up and support our First Amendment rights. I think that the federal court’s injunction last week was a great step forward, and I hope that lawmakers across the country will look at it and understand it and understand that they cannot infringe on First Amendment rights like they have been.
AARON MATÉ: Rahul Saksena, Staff Attorney with Palestine Legal, thank you.
RAHUL SAKSENA: Thank you.
AARON MATÉ: And thank you for joining us on The Real News.
RAHUL SAKSENA: Sure, thank you for having me. So, Esther Koontz is a veteran math teacher in the State of Kansas. She’s a member of the Mennonite Church USA, and she supports boycotts for Palestinian rights, boycotts to protest the Israeli government’s abuses of Palestinian rights. Last summer, in July the State of Kansas enacted an anti-boycott law that basically said if you want to contract with the state, or say to teach math or to train math teachers, as Esther was intending to do, you have to certify that you are not engaged in a boycott for Palestinian rights. Esther refused to certify the form, and instead, she went to the ACLU, and with the ACLU, she filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of this anti-boycott law.And As you mentioned, just last week a federal court in Kansas issued a preliminary injunction, stopping the state from enforcing the law while the lawsuit proceeds. The federal judge, in that preliminary injunction said things that we at Palestinian Legal and other legal organizations across the country have been saying for years. One, that boycotts for Palestinian rights are political boycotts that are protected by the First Amendment. Back in 1982, the US Supreme Court ruled that such boycotts are protected by the First Amendment, in a case called NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware. And second, the judge said that because these boycotts are protected by the First Amendment, the State of Kansas cannot enact these kinds of laws aimed at punishing individuals like Esther from engaging in their First Amendment-protected speech.
AARON MATÉ: So, what is the wider significance of the court ruling against the law in this case, even though in Kansas the law still stands, right?
RAHUL SAKSENA: The law still stands pending the outcome of the lawsuit but they are blocked from enforcing it. And actually, this can have pretty wide repercussions across the country. As you may know, just in the past few years, 24 states have enacted similar anti-BDS, anti-boycott laws aimed at punishing those who engage in boycotts for Palestinian rights. The first state to do so was in 2015, was South Carolina, under Governor Nikki Haley who is now in the United Nations, President Trump’s representative to the UN.Since then, 24 states have enacted such laws. All of them violate First Amendment-protected rights because as I mentioned, the right to boycott, the right to engage in political boycotts for Palestinian rights, is a right protected by the First Amendment. Similar bills are being considered in Congress as well. The Israel Anti-Boycott Act is actually one of the most draconian of these laws. It’s a law introduced by Senator Cardin in the US Senate and has broad bipartisan support and is being backed by AIPAC. It would actually impose severe criminal penalties and severe financial penalties on some actions taken in support of boycotts for Palestinian rights.So, this is a broad issue. It’s a broad trend, and it’s part of an even broader trend to suppress and censor Palestinian rights activism across the country. Instead of engaging the issue on the merits, instead of having a conversation in this country about Israeli human rights abuses and Palestinian freedom, Israel advocacy organizations have been engaging in a widespread effort to suppress any criticism of Israeli government policies, on college campuses, through laws in state legislatures, as well as in Congress.
AARON MATÉ: The figures from your group are quite striking. Palestine Legal responded to 308 suppression incidents having to do with BDS in 2017, nearly 1,000 in the last four years. You detail some of them. Most famously, there was a pledge imposed on victims of Hurricane Harvey, saying that if you want to receive relief, you have to pledge not to boycott Israel. Just last month, we saw the City of New Orleans, the City Council, rescind a measure that seemed to favor boycotts, after heavy pressure from pro-Israel groups, or pro-Israeli government groups, I should say. That kind of political pressure that’s been brought to bear on both advocates of boycott and also lawmakers who are being pushed towards criminalizing or punishing boycotts, how powerful is that?
RAHUL SAKSENA: Well, there’s a divide in this country. I think on the ground, at the grassroots level, support for Palestinian rights, including support for boycotts for Palestinian rights is growing, growing exponentially, I think. Yet at the lawmaker level, there’s often broad bipartisan support for efforts to censor and suppress and punish those who speak out in support of Palestinian freedom. So, there is that divide and I think it’s growing more and more stark and more and more obvious for people on the ground.I think that, especially in the Trump era, where we need to protect our right to dissent and our First Amendment rights, it’s just pretty shameful that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are willing to enact these laws aimed at censoring and suppressing boycotts for Palestinian rights. This is a time where we need to stand up and support our First Amendment rights. I think that the federal court’s injunction last week was a great step forward, and I hope that lawmakers across the country will look at it and understand it and understand that they cannot infringe on First Amendment rights like they have been.
AARON MATÉ: Rahul Saksena, Staff Attorney with Palestine Legal, thank you.
RAHUL SAKSENA: Thank you.
AARON MATÉ: And thank you for joining us on The Real News.
3 feb 2018
Bjørnar Moxnes, a member of the Norwegian Parliament, has nominated the international Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement for this year’s Nobel Prize.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS)-movement for Palestinian rights was, this week, formally nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize by the Norwegian MP Bjørnar Moxness (Rødt).
A press release about the nomination read: This nomination reflects the growing international solidarity with the Palestinian struggle for justice, dignity and freedom from the Israeli occupation.
The BDS Campaign is a Palestinian-led, international non-violent movement for freedom, equality and a just peace for the Palestinian people:
The BDS-movement was started and is led by the Palestinian society with over 170 Palestinian organisations behind the call for peaceful action.
The nomination proves the increasing international support for the use of the peaceful, non-violent tools of economic boycott and international sanctions to force Israel to end occupation and the apartheid rule against the Palestinian people – and achieve just peace.
The nomination also reflects the growing BDS-movement in Norway and is welcomed by the thousands of Norwegians who actively show solidarity for the Palestinian struggle for freedom, dignity and equal human rights for all people.
The toolbox of the BDS-movement is known, accepted and used with success against other occupying and racist regimes.
As of January 2018, Norway has officially imposed sanctions and restrictions against 26 different states or regions due to breeches of international laws and human rights – but not against the state of Israel – despite Israeli occupation, annexation and collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
Awarding this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to the BDS movement would be a powerful signal, emphasizing the international community’s commitment to support a just peace for the Palestinian people and by that – for the Israeli people and all people in the Middle East – and the world at large.
We nominate the BDS movement and with them – their thousands of activists globally – as a humble but necessary step towards bringing forth a more dignified and beautiful future for all peoples.
~If Americans Knew/Days of Palestine
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS)-movement for Palestinian rights was, this week, formally nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize by the Norwegian MP Bjørnar Moxness (Rødt).
A press release about the nomination read: This nomination reflects the growing international solidarity with the Palestinian struggle for justice, dignity and freedom from the Israeli occupation.
The BDS Campaign is a Palestinian-led, international non-violent movement for freedom, equality and a just peace for the Palestinian people:
- BDS upholds that Palestinians are entitled to the same rights as the rest of humanity
- Inspired by the South African non-violent anti-apartheid movement, the BDS call urges action to pressure Israel to comply with international law and human rights
- BDS is a growing, vibrant global movement of unions, academic associations, churches and grassroots movements in about 50 countries. Eleven years since its launch, BDS has major impact and is effectively challenging international support for Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism
The BDS-movement was started and is led by the Palestinian society with over 170 Palestinian organisations behind the call for peaceful action.
The nomination proves the increasing international support for the use of the peaceful, non-violent tools of economic boycott and international sanctions to force Israel to end occupation and the apartheid rule against the Palestinian people – and achieve just peace.
The nomination also reflects the growing BDS-movement in Norway and is welcomed by the thousands of Norwegians who actively show solidarity for the Palestinian struggle for freedom, dignity and equal human rights for all people.
The toolbox of the BDS-movement is known, accepted and used with success against other occupying and racist regimes.
As of January 2018, Norway has officially imposed sanctions and restrictions against 26 different states or regions due to breeches of international laws and human rights – but not against the state of Israel – despite Israeli occupation, annexation and collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
Awarding this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to the BDS movement would be a powerful signal, emphasizing the international community’s commitment to support a just peace for the Palestinian people and by that – for the Israeli people and all people in the Middle East – and the world at large.
We nominate the BDS movement and with them – their thousands of activists globally – as a humble but necessary step towards bringing forth a more dignified and beautiful future for all peoples.
~If Americans Knew/Days of Palestine
The US Campaign for Palestinian Rights welcomes a Federal District Court preliminary injunction halting a Kansas law that punishes persons engaged in boycotts of Israel. January’s ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), last fall, and is a powerful affirmation that the right to boycott for political causes is protected by the US Constitution.
US Campaign Executive Director Yousef Munayyer said, “We thank the ACLU for its dedicated work to battle repressive efforts aimed at stifling peaceful dissent. These repressive laws should have no place in the United States, where boycotts have been historic vehicles for social change. We know that there is more legal and legislative repression ahead, and we look forward to seeing those measures also fall flat in the face of justice and our constitutionally protected freedoms. We remain dedicated to the work of building the movement for Palestinian rights and holding Israel accountable through boycotts, divestment, and sanctions advocacy.”
The plaintiff in the case, Esther Koontz, is a member of the Mennonite Church USA, which, alongside eight other Christian denominations including the United Methodist Church and Presbyterian Church (USA), has taken economic action to support Palestinian human rights through boycott and divestment. As explained in an ACLU brief, “in accordance with calls for boycott made by members of her congregation and her church, Koontz decided not to buy consumer products made by Israeli companies and international companies operating in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. Koontz participates in this boycott in order to protest the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians and to pressure the country to change its policies.” In short, Koontz, a math teacher, supports boycotting Israel and was denied a state contract to train other teachers after refusing to certify she was not engaged in a boycott of Israel.
In the summer of 2017, the US Campaign worked alongside a member group, the Mennonite Israel Palestine Network, to support the adoption of an investment screen by the Mennonite church that would withdraw “investments from companies that are profiting from the [Israeli] occupation.” The resolution passed with the support of a stunning 98 percent of delegates gathered to represent congregations across the country.
Koontz is one of many Mennonites who adopted the church’s principled stance to stop investing in human rights abuses and applied it to their own consumer decisions. Koontz describes coming to the decision to boycott after learning about the situation on the ground from a member of her congregation: “we talked about how boycotts, divestments, and sanctions could help bring about an end to the Israeli government’s occupation, in the same way those tactics helped dismantle apartheid in South Africa. I left the meeting with the conviction that I needed to do my part to support the Palestinian struggle for equality, even if it just meant not buying Sabra hummus or a SodaStream machine.”
The work to educate, organize, and advocate is the key to achieving freedom, justice and equality for Palestinians and is undoubtedly protected by the First Amendment. Today’s decision is an important reminder that this work for accountability is not only a moral imperative, but is constitutionally protected as well.
The US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) is a national coalition of hundreds of groups working together for freedom, justice and equality. Founded in 2001 as the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, USCPR has been a leading player in the movement for Palestinian rights in the United States. The coalition is bound by commonly shared principles on Palestine solidarity as well as anti-racism principles.
US Campaign Executive Director Yousef Munayyer said, “We thank the ACLU for its dedicated work to battle repressive efforts aimed at stifling peaceful dissent. These repressive laws should have no place in the United States, where boycotts have been historic vehicles for social change. We know that there is more legal and legislative repression ahead, and we look forward to seeing those measures also fall flat in the face of justice and our constitutionally protected freedoms. We remain dedicated to the work of building the movement for Palestinian rights and holding Israel accountable through boycotts, divestment, and sanctions advocacy.”
The plaintiff in the case, Esther Koontz, is a member of the Mennonite Church USA, which, alongside eight other Christian denominations including the United Methodist Church and Presbyterian Church (USA), has taken economic action to support Palestinian human rights through boycott and divestment. As explained in an ACLU brief, “in accordance with calls for boycott made by members of her congregation and her church, Koontz decided not to buy consumer products made by Israeli companies and international companies operating in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. Koontz participates in this boycott in order to protest the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians and to pressure the country to change its policies.” In short, Koontz, a math teacher, supports boycotting Israel and was denied a state contract to train other teachers after refusing to certify she was not engaged in a boycott of Israel.
In the summer of 2017, the US Campaign worked alongside a member group, the Mennonite Israel Palestine Network, to support the adoption of an investment screen by the Mennonite church that would withdraw “investments from companies that are profiting from the [Israeli] occupation.” The resolution passed with the support of a stunning 98 percent of delegates gathered to represent congregations across the country.
Koontz is one of many Mennonites who adopted the church’s principled stance to stop investing in human rights abuses and applied it to their own consumer decisions. Koontz describes coming to the decision to boycott after learning about the situation on the ground from a member of her congregation: “we talked about how boycotts, divestments, and sanctions could help bring about an end to the Israeli government’s occupation, in the same way those tactics helped dismantle apartheid in South Africa. I left the meeting with the conviction that I needed to do my part to support the Palestinian struggle for equality, even if it just meant not buying Sabra hummus or a SodaStream machine.”
The work to educate, organize, and advocate is the key to achieving freedom, justice and equality for Palestinians and is undoubtedly protected by the First Amendment. Today’s decision is an important reminder that this work for accountability is not only a moral imperative, but is constitutionally protected as well.
The US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) is a national coalition of hundreds of groups working together for freedom, justice and equality. Founded in 2001 as the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, USCPR has been a leading player in the movement for Palestinian rights in the United States. The coalition is bound by commonly shared principles on Palestine solidarity as well as anti-racism principles.
1 feb 2018
The United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) released a report, on Wednesday, identifying 206 companies from around the world that are doing business linked to Israeli settlements, built in the occupied West Bank and in violation of international law.
The long-delayed report was initially intended to include the names of companies, but, reportedly, after intense pressure from the US and Israel, the published report included only the number of companies from each country, rather than naming them.
“Businesses play a central role in furthering the establishment, maintenance and expansion of Israeli settlements,” the UN report said.
“In doing so, they are contributing to Israel’s confiscation of land, facilitate the transfer of its population into the Occupied Palestinian Territory and are involved in the exploitation of Palestine’s natural resources.”
The report noted that the majority of the countries on the list, 143, are located inside Israel and the settlements themselves, while the second largest group, number 22 countries, are located in the US.
The remaining companies are located in 19 other countries. The UN report added that the database was not yet complete.
Israel’s envoy to the UN Danny Danon, who himself lives in an illegal settlement, strongly condemned the report, calling it shameful and a “disgraceful blacklist.”
According to Ma’an, between 500,000 and 600,000 Israelis live in Jewish-only settlements across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank in violation of international law.
The long-delayed report was initially intended to include the names of companies, but, reportedly, after intense pressure from the US and Israel, the published report included only the number of companies from each country, rather than naming them.
“Businesses play a central role in furthering the establishment, maintenance and expansion of Israeli settlements,” the UN report said.
“In doing so, they are contributing to Israel’s confiscation of land, facilitate the transfer of its population into the Occupied Palestinian Territory and are involved in the exploitation of Palestine’s natural resources.”
The report noted that the majority of the countries on the list, 143, are located inside Israel and the settlements themselves, while the second largest group, number 22 countries, are located in the US.
The remaining companies are located in 19 other countries. The UN report added that the database was not yet complete.
Israel’s envoy to the UN Danny Danon, who himself lives in an illegal settlement, strongly condemned the report, calling it shameful and a “disgraceful blacklist.”
According to Ma’an, between 500,000 and 600,000 Israelis live in Jewish-only settlements across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank in violation of international law.
30 jan 2018
Palestinian factions on Monday evening called for escalating clashes with Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) on Friday and declare it as a day of anger across all occupied Palestinian territories and refugee camps in addition to Arab and Muslim capitals and cities after Friday prayers in protest at the US and Israeli policies.
In a statement, the factions urged Palestinians to head to the flash points with IOF soldiers and military barriers and to participate in the events of the World Solidarity Day for the support of the rights of Palestinians in 1948 Occupied Palestine which coincides on January 30.
The factions also stressed the importance to put an end to the internal division and to come up with mechanisms for the implementation of the Palestinian Central Council's resolutions through the Executive Committee of Palestine Liberation Organization. The most prominent decisions include the dissolution of Oslo Accords, withdrawing the recognition of the state of Israel and rather recognizing the state of Palestine at the UN Security Council.
The statement also called on Palestinians to activate a comprehensive economic boycott of Israel and the US as well.
In a statement, the factions urged Palestinians to head to the flash points with IOF soldiers and military barriers and to participate in the events of the World Solidarity Day for the support of the rights of Palestinians in 1948 Occupied Palestine which coincides on January 30.
The factions also stressed the importance to put an end to the internal division and to come up with mechanisms for the implementation of the Palestinian Central Council's resolutions through the Executive Committee of Palestine Liberation Organization. The most prominent decisions include the dissolution of Oslo Accords, withdrawing the recognition of the state of Israel and rather recognizing the state of Palestine at the UN Security Council.
The statement also called on Palestinians to activate a comprehensive economic boycott of Israel and the US as well.
