1 feb 2019
Spanish rail equipment manufacturer CAF announced, on Friday, that it had refused to participate in a tender to build a section of the railway in occupied East Jerusalem as it violates international law.
An international tender to build and operate Jerusalem’s second light rail line has many companies rejecting to participate as they are fearful of arousing political opposition, since the proposed “Green Line” runs into parts of the city occupied by Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967.
The proposed Green Line, a project that could cost as much as 5 billion shekels ($1.4 billion) and stretch along 22 kilometers, proved to be problematic as it reaches Mount Scopus and Gilo.
The company, which is one of the most important Spanish companies in the field of railways, said it “refuses to build a section of the railway in Jerusalem because the Israeli government included in the section a Palestinian land that will be confiscated in violation of the resolutions of international legitimacy.”
Representatives of the company's workers who objected to the company's participation in the construction of the section explained that the problem lies in the fact that the railway will pass through Palestinian lands to serve illegal settlements in East Jerusalem.
CAF stressed, “Any project in any city of the world, especially Jerusalem, must respect in its implementation human rights and international legitimacy.”
CAF added, “The General Assembly of the United Nations and the International Court of Justice, through various resolutions, have said that they are against the occupation of land through which will pass the section of the railway.”
An international tender to build and operate Jerusalem’s second light rail line has many companies rejecting to participate as they are fearful of arousing political opposition, since the proposed “Green Line” runs into parts of the city occupied by Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967.
The proposed Green Line, a project that could cost as much as 5 billion shekels ($1.4 billion) and stretch along 22 kilometers, proved to be problematic as it reaches Mount Scopus and Gilo.
The company, which is one of the most important Spanish companies in the field of railways, said it “refuses to build a section of the railway in Jerusalem because the Israeli government included in the section a Palestinian land that will be confiscated in violation of the resolutions of international legitimacy.”
Representatives of the company's workers who objected to the company's participation in the construction of the section explained that the problem lies in the fact that the railway will pass through Palestinian lands to serve illegal settlements in East Jerusalem.
CAF stressed, “Any project in any city of the world, especially Jerusalem, must respect in its implementation human rights and international legitimacy.”
CAF added, “The General Assembly of the United Nations and the International Court of Justice, through various resolutions, have said that they are against the occupation of land through which will pass the section of the railway.”
An Israeli minister, on Wednesday, threatened to ban human rights group Amnesty International from the country, for its criticism of some tourism companies.
Gilad Erdan, the minister of public security, accused the rights group of promoting a boycott against Israelis.
“I have instructed the Ministry of Strategic Affairs to examine the possibility of preventing the entry of members of Amnesty to Israel,” Erdan said.
His remarks came after Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s strategy and research director for Turkey,warned that online tourism companies that do business in the occupied Palestinian territories could face prosecution “for supporting war crimes”.
In a new report, Amnesty chides several prominent online tourism firms — including Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor — for promoting tourism to illegal Israeli settlements, thus contributing to Israel’s decades-long occupation.
Such activities, Gardner added, “violate the UN’s guiding principles on business and human rights […] which call on corporations to operate in accordance with international humanitarian law”.
Palestinian figures show that some 640,000 Jewish settlers currently live on 196 settlements (built with the Israeli government’s permission) and more than 200 settler “outposts” (built without its permission) across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as Israel’s “eternal and undivided capital” — a move never recognized by the international community.
International law continues to view the entire West Bank as “occupied territory” and considers all Israeli settlement building there as illegal.
~Andalou Agency/Days of Palestine
Gilad Erdan, the minister of public security, accused the rights group of promoting a boycott against Israelis.
“I have instructed the Ministry of Strategic Affairs to examine the possibility of preventing the entry of members of Amnesty to Israel,” Erdan said.
His remarks came after Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s strategy and research director for Turkey,warned that online tourism companies that do business in the occupied Palestinian territories could face prosecution “for supporting war crimes”.
In a new report, Amnesty chides several prominent online tourism firms — including Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor — for promoting tourism to illegal Israeli settlements, thus contributing to Israel’s decades-long occupation.
Such activities, Gardner added, “violate the UN’s guiding principles on business and human rights […] which call on corporations to operate in accordance with international humanitarian law”.
Palestinian figures show that some 640,000 Jewish settlers currently live on 196 settlements (built with the Israeli government’s permission) and more than 200 settler “outposts” (built without its permission) across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as Israel’s “eternal and undivided capital” — a move never recognized by the international community.
International law continues to view the entire West Bank as “occupied territory” and considers all Israeli settlement building there as illegal.
~Andalou Agency/Days of Palestine
31 jan 2019
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Online booking giants Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor are fueling human rights violations against Palestinians by listing hundreds of rooms and activities in Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land, including East Jerusalem, Amnesty International (AI) said on Wednesday.
In Amnesty International's new report entitled "Destination: Occupation," the organization documents how online booking companies are driving tourism to illegal Israeli settlements and contributing to their existence and expansion. AI said, “Israel’s settling of Israeli civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) violates international humanitarian law and is a war crime. Despite this, the four companies continue to operate in the settlements, and profit from this illegal situation.” |
“One of the settlements included in AI report is Kfar Adummim, a growing tourism hub located less than two kilometers from the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, whose imminent and complete demolition by Israeli forces has been given a green light by Israel’s Supreme Court. The expansion of Kfar Adummim and other surrounding settlements is a key driver of human rights violations against the local Bedouin community.”
“Israel’s unlawful seizure of Palestinian land and expansion of settlements perpetuates immense suffering, pushing Palestinians out of their homes, destroying their livelihoods and depriving them of basics like drinking water. Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor model themselves on the idea of sharing and mutual trust, yet they are contributing to these human rights violations by doing business in the settlements,” said Seema Joshi, Amnesty International’s Director of Global Thematic Issues.
“The Israeli government uses the growing tourism industry in the settlements as a way of legitimizing their existence and expansion, and online booking companies are playing along with this agenda. It’s time for these companies to stand up for human rights by withdrawing all of their listings in illegal settlements on occupied land. War crimes are not a tourist attraction.”
In November, Airbnb pledged to remove all listings in settlements in the occupied West Bank, however it did not extend its commitment to occupied East Jerusalem, which is also occupied territory, and where it has more than 100 listings in settlements.
AI called on Airbnb to implement its announcement and remove all its listings in settlements in occupied territory, including East Jerusalem. AI also said that Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor should remove all their listings in the OPT.
All four companies in Amnesty International’s report have listings in settlements including East Jerusalem.
Airbnb currently has more than 300 listings of properties in settlements in the OPT. TripAdvisor lists more than 70 different attractions, tours, restaurants, caf s, hotels and rental apartments in settlements in the OPT. Booking.com lists 45 hotels and rentals in settlements in the OPT. Expedia lists nine accommodation providers, including four large hotels, in settlements in the OPT.
Amnesty International found that Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor not only play a significant role in driving tourism to illegal settlements, they also mislead their customers by failing to consistently indicate when listings are located in Israeli settlements.
“Tourists coming here are brainwashed, they are lied to, they do not know this is our land,” said a Palestinian farmer living next to illegal Shiloh settlement, where the Israeli government is funding a large visitor centre to draw tourists to an archaeological site.
In recent years the Israeli government has invested huge sums to develop the tourism industry in settlements. It uses the designation of certain locations as tourist sites to justify the takeover of Palestinian land and homes, and often deliberately constructs settlements next to archaeological sites to emphasize the Jewish people’s historic connections to the region.
AI’s report highlights how the Israeli government allows and encourages settlers to exploit land and natural resources that belong to Palestinians, and how Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor also benefit from this exploitation.
“Despite the fact that these are illegally appropriated Palestinian natural resources, these activities only benefit settlers and the online companies that do business with them.”
It is not just the tourism industry which is profiting from, and contributing to, illegal settlements. Hundreds of millions of pounds’ worth of goods produced in Israeli settlements are exported internationally each year, despite the fact that most countries around the world have officially condemned the settlements as illegal under international law.
AI called on individual companies to stop doing business in and with the settlements, as well as calling on governments worldwide to make this mandatory through regulation, and to introduce laws prohibiting the import of settlement goods.
Joshi stressed, “It’s not enough to condemn the settlements as illegal but allow the commercial activities that make them profitable to continue.”
The Irish Senate is currently in the process of approving a landmark bill that prohibits the import and sale of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied Palestine and Amnesty International is calling on other countries to follow this lead.
“Israel’s unlawful seizure of Palestinian land and expansion of settlements perpetuates immense suffering, pushing Palestinians out of their homes, destroying their livelihoods and depriving them of basics like drinking water. Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor model themselves on the idea of sharing and mutual trust, yet they are contributing to these human rights violations by doing business in the settlements,” said Seema Joshi, Amnesty International’s Director of Global Thematic Issues.
“The Israeli government uses the growing tourism industry in the settlements as a way of legitimizing their existence and expansion, and online booking companies are playing along with this agenda. It’s time for these companies to stand up for human rights by withdrawing all of their listings in illegal settlements on occupied land. War crimes are not a tourist attraction.”
In November, Airbnb pledged to remove all listings in settlements in the occupied West Bank, however it did not extend its commitment to occupied East Jerusalem, which is also occupied territory, and where it has more than 100 listings in settlements.
AI called on Airbnb to implement its announcement and remove all its listings in settlements in occupied territory, including East Jerusalem. AI also said that Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor should remove all their listings in the OPT.
All four companies in Amnesty International’s report have listings in settlements including East Jerusalem.
Airbnb currently has more than 300 listings of properties in settlements in the OPT. TripAdvisor lists more than 70 different attractions, tours, restaurants, caf s, hotels and rental apartments in settlements in the OPT. Booking.com lists 45 hotels and rentals in settlements in the OPT. Expedia lists nine accommodation providers, including four large hotels, in settlements in the OPT.
Amnesty International found that Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor not only play a significant role in driving tourism to illegal settlements, they also mislead their customers by failing to consistently indicate when listings are located in Israeli settlements.
“Tourists coming here are brainwashed, they are lied to, they do not know this is our land,” said a Palestinian farmer living next to illegal Shiloh settlement, where the Israeli government is funding a large visitor centre to draw tourists to an archaeological site.
In recent years the Israeli government has invested huge sums to develop the tourism industry in settlements. It uses the designation of certain locations as tourist sites to justify the takeover of Palestinian land and homes, and often deliberately constructs settlements next to archaeological sites to emphasize the Jewish people’s historic connections to the region.
AI’s report highlights how the Israeli government allows and encourages settlers to exploit land and natural resources that belong to Palestinians, and how Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor also benefit from this exploitation.
“Despite the fact that these are illegally appropriated Palestinian natural resources, these activities only benefit settlers and the online companies that do business with them.”
It is not just the tourism industry which is profiting from, and contributing to, illegal settlements. Hundreds of millions of pounds’ worth of goods produced in Israeli settlements are exported internationally each year, despite the fact that most countries around the world have officially condemned the settlements as illegal under international law.
AI called on individual companies to stop doing business in and with the settlements, as well as calling on governments worldwide to make this mandatory through regulation, and to introduce laws prohibiting the import of settlement goods.
Joshi stressed, “It’s not enough to condemn the settlements as illegal but allow the commercial activities that make them profitable to continue.”
The Irish Senate is currently in the process of approving a landmark bill that prohibits the import and sale of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied Palestine and Amnesty International is calling on other countries to follow this lead.
30 jan 2019
More than 60 queer and trans liberation organizations, from nearly 20 countries across Europe and beyond, are calling on global LGBTQIA communities to boycott the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest in Israel.
The signatories condemn Israel’s “shameful” use of Eurovision, which has a strong following among LGBTQIA communities, to “distract attention from its war crimes against Palestinians” and “forward its pinkwashing agenda, the cynical use of gay rights to distract from and normalize Israel’s occupation, settler colonialism and apartheid.”
The statement, initiated by Palestinian queer groups, recalls the 1969 Stonewall Riots symbolizing LGBTQIA resistance against daily harassment and violence, drawing parallels with the tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza protesting, through the Great March of Return, decades of Israel’s violent oppression and denial of fundamental rights.
Since last March, Israeli army snipers have shot and killed more than 200 unarmed Palestinians participating in the protests in Gaza, injuring 18,000 and leaving many with life-changing disabilities in what Amnesty International has described as “deliberate attempts” to kill and maim.
Israel held a celebratory concert with 2018 Eurovision winner Netta Barzilai the evening of the Gaza protest’s deadliest day, when Israeli forces massacred 62 unarmed Palestinians. Netanyahu has called Barzilai “the best ambassador of Israel.”
The signatories also call for a boycott of the Israeli government-backed Tel Aviv Pride, which they say is “promoting Eurovision alongside Tel Aviv Pride in order to reap maximum benefits for Israel for an entire month of pinkwashing.”
The signatories include Palestinian collectives al-Qaws for Sexual and Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society, Pinkwatching Israel and Aswat- Palestinian Feminist Center for Sexual and Gender Freedoms, the National LGBT Committee for UNISON, one of the UK’s largest trade unions, ACT UP groups in France and the UK, the Panteras Rosa in Portugal, more than 20 queer and trans groups in the Spanish State and Italy, the Gay Liberation Network, the Methodist Federation for Social Action and Jewish Voice for Peace New York City Queer Caucus in the US.
The statement from LGBTQIA groups follows an outpouring of support for the Palestinian call to #BoycottEurovision2019 in Israel, including artists, former Eurovision winners, contestants and presenters, politicians, trade unions. Tens of thousands have signed a petition urging a Eurovision boycott, and the UK band The Tuts has refused an invitation to enter the Eurovision contest in the UK.
Haneen Maikey, director of alQaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society, commented:
As Palestinian queers, we are heartened by the increasing numbers of LGBTQIA communities taking a stand against Israel’s pinkwashing agenda in a true show of effective solidarity.
LGBTQIA communities are refusing to allow queer and trans liberation to be used by the Israeli regime of oppression as a progressive smoke screen to conceal its violent oppression of Palestinians. They are saying, ‘Our rights are indivisible from the rights of all oppressed communities.’
Joining and promoting the call to boycott Eurovision 2019 in Israel and Tel Aviv Pride help expose the Israeli government’s reprehensible co-opting of queer rights as a public relations tool to hide its crimes against Palestinians. They strike a blow to its shameful pinkwashing strategy to maintain its apartheid regime and its decades-old colonization and occupation of Palestine.
For the full list of signatories, see the Pinkwatching Israel web site.
To add organizational signatures for LGBTQIA groups, please completing this form.
The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) was initiated in 2004 to contribute to the struggle for Palestinian freedom, justice and equality. PACBI advocates for the boycott of Israeli academic and cultural institutions, given their deep and persistent complicity in Israel’s denial of Palestinian rights as stipulated in international law. Visit PACBI at https://bdsmovement.net/pacbi and follow us on Twitter @PACBI
The signatories condemn Israel’s “shameful” use of Eurovision, which has a strong following among LGBTQIA communities, to “distract attention from its war crimes against Palestinians” and “forward its pinkwashing agenda, the cynical use of gay rights to distract from and normalize Israel’s occupation, settler colonialism and apartheid.”
The statement, initiated by Palestinian queer groups, recalls the 1969 Stonewall Riots symbolizing LGBTQIA resistance against daily harassment and violence, drawing parallels with the tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza protesting, through the Great March of Return, decades of Israel’s violent oppression and denial of fundamental rights.
Since last March, Israeli army snipers have shot and killed more than 200 unarmed Palestinians participating in the protests in Gaza, injuring 18,000 and leaving many with life-changing disabilities in what Amnesty International has described as “deliberate attempts” to kill and maim.
Israel held a celebratory concert with 2018 Eurovision winner Netta Barzilai the evening of the Gaza protest’s deadliest day, when Israeli forces massacred 62 unarmed Palestinians. Netanyahu has called Barzilai “the best ambassador of Israel.”
The signatories also call for a boycott of the Israeli government-backed Tel Aviv Pride, which they say is “promoting Eurovision alongside Tel Aviv Pride in order to reap maximum benefits for Israel for an entire month of pinkwashing.”
The signatories include Palestinian collectives al-Qaws for Sexual and Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society, Pinkwatching Israel and Aswat- Palestinian Feminist Center for Sexual and Gender Freedoms, the National LGBT Committee for UNISON, one of the UK’s largest trade unions, ACT UP groups in France and the UK, the Panteras Rosa in Portugal, more than 20 queer and trans groups in the Spanish State and Italy, the Gay Liberation Network, the Methodist Federation for Social Action and Jewish Voice for Peace New York City Queer Caucus in the US.
The statement from LGBTQIA groups follows an outpouring of support for the Palestinian call to #BoycottEurovision2019 in Israel, including artists, former Eurovision winners, contestants and presenters, politicians, trade unions. Tens of thousands have signed a petition urging a Eurovision boycott, and the UK band The Tuts has refused an invitation to enter the Eurovision contest in the UK.
Haneen Maikey, director of alQaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society, commented:
As Palestinian queers, we are heartened by the increasing numbers of LGBTQIA communities taking a stand against Israel’s pinkwashing agenda in a true show of effective solidarity.
LGBTQIA communities are refusing to allow queer and trans liberation to be used by the Israeli regime of oppression as a progressive smoke screen to conceal its violent oppression of Palestinians. They are saying, ‘Our rights are indivisible from the rights of all oppressed communities.’
Joining and promoting the call to boycott Eurovision 2019 in Israel and Tel Aviv Pride help expose the Israeli government’s reprehensible co-opting of queer rights as a public relations tool to hide its crimes against Palestinians. They strike a blow to its shameful pinkwashing strategy to maintain its apartheid regime and its decades-old colonization and occupation of Palestine.
For the full list of signatories, see the Pinkwatching Israel web site.
To add organizational signatures for LGBTQIA groups, please completing this form.
The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) was initiated in 2004 to contribute to the struggle for Palestinian freedom, justice and equality. PACBI advocates for the boycott of Israeli academic and cultural institutions, given their deep and persistent complicity in Israel’s denial of Palestinian rights as stipulated in international law. Visit PACBI at https://bdsmovement.net/pacbi and follow us on Twitter @PACBI
29 jan 2019
The lower house of the Irish parliament passed a law, on Thursday, preventing the importation or sale of goods from Israeli settlements.
The Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill, originally proposed by Senator Frances Black, was passed in the Irish Senate back in January 2018.
On Thursday, Irish MP Niall Collins, of the Fianna Fail opposition party, introduced the bill in the lower House (Dail Eireann), where it passed by a margin of 78 votes to 45, with three abstentions.
The bill declares that it seeks to ‘give effect to the Irish state’s obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War and under customary international humanitarian law.’
In so doing, this law would ‘make it an offence for a person to import or sell goods or services originating in an occupied territory or to extract resources from an occupied territory in certain circumstances.’
Penalties for breach of the law can lead to fines of up to 250,000 euros ($285,000) or five years imprisonment, PNN reports.
The Irish governing party, Fine Gael, voted against the bill, claiming its passage would harm Irish-Israeli relations, while also endangering Ireland’s relationship with the United States. Parliamentarians had faced intense lobbying from US congressional opponents of the legislation, yet still voted for the bill in a clear demonstration of opposition cross-party support.
Responding to government threats that opposing US policy would lead to economic retaliation, Mr. Collins said that the US had to ‘clean up its act’ in relation to its social and moral responsibilities. ‘We cannot give it a free pass on everything simply because it provides us with jobs,’ he argued.
As happened after the passing of the Senate bill, the result of the lower house vote drew an immediate and predictable response from the Occupying Authorities. The Irish ambassador was summoned, as Prime Minister Netanyahu declared Israel to be ‘outraged’ by a bill he described as ‘anti-Semitic’.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministry said it constituted ‘an expression of pure hostility’ and a ‘clear expression of obsessive discrimination.’
The latest developments in Ireland reflect a continued support of the Palestinian cause across the country. Sligo and Dublin councils recently flew the Palestinian flag to commemorate the expulsion of 750,000 Palestinians from their land in 1948, while the town of Tralee, in County Kerry, is in the process of twinning with Beit Sahour.
Despite the bill still having a number of stages to pass through, Thursday’s vote has effectively ensured it will eventually be signed into law.
The Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill, originally proposed by Senator Frances Black, was passed in the Irish Senate back in January 2018.
On Thursday, Irish MP Niall Collins, of the Fianna Fail opposition party, introduced the bill in the lower House (Dail Eireann), where it passed by a margin of 78 votes to 45, with three abstentions.
The bill declares that it seeks to ‘give effect to the Irish state’s obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War and under customary international humanitarian law.’
In so doing, this law would ‘make it an offence for a person to import or sell goods or services originating in an occupied territory or to extract resources from an occupied territory in certain circumstances.’
Penalties for breach of the law can lead to fines of up to 250,000 euros ($285,000) or five years imprisonment, PNN reports.
The Irish governing party, Fine Gael, voted against the bill, claiming its passage would harm Irish-Israeli relations, while also endangering Ireland’s relationship with the United States. Parliamentarians had faced intense lobbying from US congressional opponents of the legislation, yet still voted for the bill in a clear demonstration of opposition cross-party support.
Responding to government threats that opposing US policy would lead to economic retaliation, Mr. Collins said that the US had to ‘clean up its act’ in relation to its social and moral responsibilities. ‘We cannot give it a free pass on everything simply because it provides us with jobs,’ he argued.
As happened after the passing of the Senate bill, the result of the lower house vote drew an immediate and predictable response from the Occupying Authorities. The Irish ambassador was summoned, as Prime Minister Netanyahu declared Israel to be ‘outraged’ by a bill he described as ‘anti-Semitic’.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministry said it constituted ‘an expression of pure hostility’ and a ‘clear expression of obsessive discrimination.’
The latest developments in Ireland reflect a continued support of the Palestinian cause across the country. Sligo and Dublin councils recently flew the Palestinian flag to commemorate the expulsion of 750,000 Palestinians from their land in 1948, while the town of Tralee, in County Kerry, is in the process of twinning with Beit Sahour.
Despite the bill still having a number of stages to pass through, Thursday’s vote has effectively ensured it will eventually be signed into law.
25 jan 2019
Greek academics and researchers on Friday announced an initiative to boycott Israeli academic institutions in response to calls by the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement (BDS).
A petition signed by 61 Greek academics and researchers stated their commitment to the boycott of programs, events, and seminars related to Israeli academic and research institutions, in protest at Israel's violations of Palestinian civil and political rights.
They called on Israel to stop its illegal and inhumane actions in the Palestinian territories in general and the Gaza Strip in particular, and put an end to its settlement and apartheid policies.
They also asked Israel to recognize the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their lands occupied in 1948 as provided by the UN Resolution 194, and respect the Palestinians' right to establish an independent state.
The Greek academics called on international organizations to "maintain a distance from Israel" until it abides by the UN resolutions and international laws and to continue to support the Palestinian cause at different forums around the world.
A petition signed by 61 Greek academics and researchers stated their commitment to the boycott of programs, events, and seminars related to Israeli academic and research institutions, in protest at Israel's violations of Palestinian civil and political rights.
They called on Israel to stop its illegal and inhumane actions in the Palestinian territories in general and the Gaza Strip in particular, and put an end to its settlement and apartheid policies.
They also asked Israel to recognize the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their lands occupied in 1948 as provided by the UN Resolution 194, and respect the Palestinians' right to establish an independent state.
The Greek academics called on international organizations to "maintain a distance from Israel" until it abides by the UN resolutions and international laws and to continue to support the Palestinian cause at different forums around the world.
Jordanian actors and producers on Friday announced their withdrawal from an international movie as it turned out to be produced by an Israeli company.
Jordan-based al-Ghad newspaper said that the movie's events take place in Iraq and Jordan during the 1990s and will witness the presence of Israeli actors.
The newspaper said, quoting one of the Jordanian actors who was to take part in the movie, that the company contacted the Jordanian team to shoot several scenes in their country, and after that it contacted Israeli actors to include them in the project.
When the Jordanian team rejected the presence of Israeli co-stars in the movie, the company did not respond to their demands, which led to their withdrawal.
Al-Ghad added that the Jordanian team conducted an investigation about the production company and it was found out to be an Israeli institution.
Jordan-based al-Ghad newspaper said that the movie's events take place in Iraq and Jordan during the 1990s and will witness the presence of Israeli actors.
The newspaper said, quoting one of the Jordanian actors who was to take part in the movie, that the company contacted the Jordanian team to shoot several scenes in their country, and after that it contacted Israeli actors to include them in the project.
When the Jordanian team rejected the presence of Israeli co-stars in the movie, the company did not respond to their demands, which led to their withdrawal.
Al-Ghad added that the Jordanian team conducted an investigation about the production company and it was found out to be an Israeli institution.
23 jan 2019
Malaysia has the right not to allow athletes from a “criminal country” like Israel to enter the country, Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamed said.
The Malaysian premier told a news conference in Vienna that every country “has a right to accept or refuse entry to people from other nations.”
“The Americans are building a high wall to keep the Mexicans from going to the US. For us, we have just as much right as the US in keeping out undesirables or terrorists.”
“People who are undesirable for our country must be kept out and this includes people suspected of being terrorists and the like.’
“We have that right and we must exercise that right,” Mahathir said.
He made the remarks in response to a question on Malaysia’s decision to ban swimmers from Israel from competing in the World Para Swimming championships in Sarawak July 29 to August 4.
“These athletes come from a country that does what it likes, including building settlements in other people’s country.
“They have raided our ship, which was carrying aid for the people of Gaza.
“There are many other things done by Israel that is against international law and against morality.
“We don’t want anything to do with them, including their people. If they want to compete in sports, they can go to other countries.”
“But for Malaysia, they are coming from a criminal country and we cannot accept them,” Mahathir affirmed.
The Malaysian premier told a news conference in Vienna that every country “has a right to accept or refuse entry to people from other nations.”
“The Americans are building a high wall to keep the Mexicans from going to the US. For us, we have just as much right as the US in keeping out undesirables or terrorists.”
“People who are undesirable for our country must be kept out and this includes people suspected of being terrorists and the like.’
“We have that right and we must exercise that right,” Mahathir said.
He made the remarks in response to a question on Malaysia’s decision to ban swimmers from Israel from competing in the World Para Swimming championships in Sarawak July 29 to August 4.
“These athletes come from a country that does what it likes, including building settlements in other people’s country.
“They have raided our ship, which was carrying aid for the people of Gaza.
“There are many other things done by Israel that is against international law and against morality.
“We don’t want anything to do with them, including their people. If they want to compete in sports, they can go to other countries.”
“But for Malaysia, they are coming from a criminal country and we cannot accept them,” Mahathir affirmed.
