16 oct 2018
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Aliza Bin-Noun, demanded that French TV not air a report about Gaza teens wounded during protests arguing that it was 'unbalanced'; French media stirs up a controversy and blames Israel for trying to enforce censorship.
Israeli Ambassador to Paris Aliza Bin-Noun, demanded that French television channel France 2 reconsider airing a news report about Palestinians who were wounded by the IDF, calling it "unbalanced" and asserting that it will cause incitement against Jews in the country. The French media was outraged at Bin-Noun’s request and protested it via various media channels. It was seen as an Israeli attempt to censor and undermine freedom of speech. The report titled: "Gaza's disabled teens," was aired on an investigating television show on the prestigious France 2 channel. It discussed the stories of several young Palestinians who had lost their legs after being shot by IDF snipers and who spoke of their broken dreams. One of the teens said his dream was to become a cyclist. Footages from the March of Return were combined with the teens stories of hardship. Directly after the article promo was aired, protest stirred among French Jewry. Bin-Noun immediately sent a letter to the France 2 management and demanded the item be cancelled, saying it is unbalanced, portrays Israel in a negative light and claiming it will cause incitement and physical harm against the French Jewish community. However, this was written before the ambassador, or anyone from her staff, had seen the actual article in full. After the full show, Bin-Noun Twitted her letter to France 2 and added: “I am very disappointed that France 2 did not respond to our demand to reconsider broadcasting the report "Gaza, a Wounded Youth," which vilifies Israel and does not allow it to respond—to restore a semblance of truth and balance." However, the Tweet and the letter turned out to be an own goal. It stirred a lot of interest in the article, which was aired after 10pm and became the talk of the town. |
The Israeli attempt to prevent the article from being aired raised harsh criticism, saying that not only does Israel hurt the Palestinians, it is also trying to censor and harm the highly valued Republic’s freedom of speech.
The French media prominently reported how Israel boldly tried to intervene with content it does not approve of, and how France 2 is concerned with a foreign country’s attempt to influence its content.
The Le Monde newspaper highlighted that no one in the embassy even watched the report before protesting against it, and ignored the fact that the IDF spokesman in French was interviewed, and described the terror coming out of Gaza.
A union of pro-Palestinian journalists published an official statement protesting against the Israeli attempt at censorship.
The embassy in Paris responded to these allegations: “The promo was more than enough to understand the content, it caused outrage among a great number of people. It represented the full program and justified our demand not to air it”.
“The next day, after the program was aired, it was indeed obvious that it was one sided,” the embassy added.
The French media prominently reported how Israel boldly tried to intervene with content it does not approve of, and how France 2 is concerned with a foreign country’s attempt to influence its content.
The Le Monde newspaper highlighted that no one in the embassy even watched the report before protesting against it, and ignored the fact that the IDF spokesman in French was interviewed, and described the terror coming out of Gaza.
A union of pro-Palestinian journalists published an official statement protesting against the Israeli attempt at censorship.
The embassy in Paris responded to these allegations: “The promo was more than enough to understand the content, it caused outrage among a great number of people. It represented the full program and justified our demand not to air it”.
“The next day, after the program was aired, it was indeed obvious that it was one sided,” the embassy added.
11 oct 2018
The Israeli occupation court in Jerusalem, Tuesday, sentenced a Palestinian man to 10 months in prison over his Facebook posts.
Amir al-Dibs, from Jerusalem, was sentenced over what Israel called “incitement” on Facebook.
According to the PNN, since the beginning of October, 2015, occupation authorities have carried out more than 500 similar detentions, including of women and children, to a background of writing on social networking sites, specifically “Facebook”.
Amir al-Dibs, from Jerusalem, was sentenced over what Israel called “incitement” on Facebook.
According to the PNN, since the beginning of October, 2015, occupation authorities have carried out more than 500 similar detentions, including of women and children, to a background of writing on social networking sites, specifically “Facebook”.
8 oct 2018
The Israeli courts are keeping Arab political leader Raja Eghbaria in detention at least until 15 October; the prosecutor doesn’t deny existence of multiple errors in its translation of Eghbaria’s Arabic-language Facebook posts, but says ‘it doesn’t matter.’
An Israeli prosecutor revealed in court yesterday, 7 October 2018, that the state has only ever sought detention until the end of court proceedings for Arab suspects in online incitement to terror cases – but never for Jewish suspects.
According to Adlah, a follow-up hearing was held yesterday, in Haifa Magistrate’s Court, on the state’s request for detention until the end of proceedings for Raja Eghbaria, member of the High Follow-Up Committee for Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel and leader of the Abnaa al-Baladpolitical movement.
Israeli police arrested Eghbaria on 11 September 2018 and interrogated him for seven hours about Facebook status updates he posted over the past 12 months. He has been held in jail for upwards of a month since his initial arrest.
CLICK HERE for details on Eghbaria’s arrest and the charges against him
After the state failed to respond yesterday to charges of discrimination based on ethnic or national belonging by Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, the court ruled that a decision will be issued next week on Monday, 15 October 2018.
During the hearing, it was revealed that the state was unable to point to one case of suspected online incitement to terrorism in which detention without bond until the end of trial was sought for a Jewish defendant. In contrast, the state has made multiple requests for detention until the end of proceedings against Arab defendants in such cases.
Adalah General Director Attorney Hassan Jabareen and Adalah Attorney Rabea Eghbariah, together with private attorneys Afnan Khalifa and Omar Khamaisa, argued that the prosecutor’s policy of filing detention requests until the end of proceedings for Arab suspects only is discriminatory.
The defense team stressed that there is no basis to the Israeli police claim that Eghbaria poses a danger justifying his continued detention. In addition, the attorneys noted, the prosecutor indicated that it does not deny the existence of multiple errors in its translation of Eghbaria’s Arabic-language Facebook posts; the state further added that, even if there were errors in the translation, “it doesn’t matter.”
Adalah and partner attorneys called for the immediate release of Eghbaria without any restrictive conditions.
The court ruled yesterday to extend Eghbaria’s detention until 15 October 2018 at 13:00, when a final decision will be made on the request for detention until the end of the proceedings, which will include a reference to the detailed defense arguments raised.
CASE CITATION: State of Israel v. Raja Eghbaria (Haifa Magistrate’s Court 36094-09-18)
An Israeli prosecutor revealed in court yesterday, 7 October 2018, that the state has only ever sought detention until the end of court proceedings for Arab suspects in online incitement to terror cases – but never for Jewish suspects.
According to Adlah, a follow-up hearing was held yesterday, in Haifa Magistrate’s Court, on the state’s request for detention until the end of proceedings for Raja Eghbaria, member of the High Follow-Up Committee for Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel and leader of the Abnaa al-Baladpolitical movement.
Israeli police arrested Eghbaria on 11 September 2018 and interrogated him for seven hours about Facebook status updates he posted over the past 12 months. He has been held in jail for upwards of a month since his initial arrest.
CLICK HERE for details on Eghbaria’s arrest and the charges against him
After the state failed to respond yesterday to charges of discrimination based on ethnic or national belonging by Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, the court ruled that a decision will be issued next week on Monday, 15 October 2018.
During the hearing, it was revealed that the state was unable to point to one case of suspected online incitement to terrorism in which detention without bond until the end of trial was sought for a Jewish defendant. In contrast, the state has made multiple requests for detention until the end of proceedings against Arab defendants in such cases.
Adalah General Director Attorney Hassan Jabareen and Adalah Attorney Rabea Eghbariah, together with private attorneys Afnan Khalifa and Omar Khamaisa, argued that the prosecutor’s policy of filing detention requests until the end of proceedings for Arab suspects only is discriminatory.
The defense team stressed that there is no basis to the Israeli police claim that Eghbaria poses a danger justifying his continued detention. In addition, the attorneys noted, the prosecutor indicated that it does not deny the existence of multiple errors in its translation of Eghbaria’s Arabic-language Facebook posts; the state further added that, even if there were errors in the translation, “it doesn’t matter.”
Adalah and partner attorneys called for the immediate release of Eghbaria without any restrictive conditions.
The court ruled yesterday to extend Eghbaria’s detention until 15 October 2018 at 13:00, when a final decision will be made on the request for detention until the end of the proceedings, which will include a reference to the detailed defense arguments raised.
CASE CITATION: State of Israel v. Raja Eghbaria (Haifa Magistrate’s Court 36094-09-18)
7 oct 2018
Israel arrested 500 Palestinians, including women, children and MPs, over their social media posts, the Palestine Center for Prisoners Studies reported.
The center’s spokesman Riyadh Al-Ashqar said that the Israeli authorities began arresting Palestinians for their social media posts since the start of the Jerusalem Intifada claiming such uploads incite terror against Israel.
Israel is using its recently formed “Cyber Unit” to monitor Palestinian social media posts, he said.
This unit, Al-Ashqar said, classifies any Facebook post that glorifies Palestinian martyrs, discloses Israeli crimes, and supports resistance as “incitement of terror”.
Hundreds of Palestinians have been sentenced over the past three years to different jail terms on the ground of incitement on social media, he charged.
Some others were placed under house arrest and denied from using social media platforms, he continued.
Al-Ashqar strongly condemned such arrests that “clearly violate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the European Convention of Human Rights.”
He concluded by calling on the international community to protect the Palestinian people’s right of freedom of expression.
The center’s spokesman Riyadh Al-Ashqar said that the Israeli authorities began arresting Palestinians for their social media posts since the start of the Jerusalem Intifada claiming such uploads incite terror against Israel.
Israel is using its recently formed “Cyber Unit” to monitor Palestinian social media posts, he said.
This unit, Al-Ashqar said, classifies any Facebook post that glorifies Palestinian martyrs, discloses Israeli crimes, and supports resistance as “incitement of terror”.
Hundreds of Palestinians have been sentenced over the past three years to different jail terms on the ground of incitement on social media, he charged.
Some others were placed under house arrest and denied from using social media platforms, he continued.
Al-Ashqar strongly condemned such arrests that “clearly violate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the European Convention of Human Rights.”
He concluded by calling on the international community to protect the Palestinian people’s right of freedom of expression.
5 oct 2018
'We got through the High Holy Days just as we had planned, without a war erupting and while exacting a heavy price from the rioters on the Gaza border,' says defense minister, hinting at Israeli response now that holidays are over.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman sent a warning to Hamas on Friday morning, writing on his Twitter page that "the holidays are behind us, take that into account."
"We got through the High Holy Days just as we had planned, without a war erupting and while exacting a heavy price from the rioters on the Gaza border," Lieberman wrote. "But the holidays are now behind us, and I tell the heads of Hamas: 'Take that into account.'"
The defense minister held security consultations on Thursday with the IDF chief of staff, the head of the Military Intelligence Directorate, the coordinator of government activities in the territories (COGAT) and other senior defense officials to discuss the situation in Gaza.
"The defense minister examined the readiness of the forces around the Gaza Strip and instructed the IDF to maintain maximum alertness and be prepared for any scenario," Lieberman's office said.
IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot decided Thursday to send reinforcements to the Gaza border in the coming days.
The IDF said in a statement that the decision was made "to continue the determined policy to thwart terror attacks and prevent infiltrations into Israel in the border fence area of the Gaza Strip. The IDF is prepared and ready for a variety of scenarios and considers the Hamas terror organization responsible for everything that happens in and from the Gaza Strip."
Ahead of the expected rioting on the Gaza border on Friday, the Popular Resistance Committees in the strip threatened Thursday that "blood will be met with blood" and that "We will no longer tolerate the killing of protesters."
The Al-Quds Brigades, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad's military wing, held a military parade in the Gaza Strip Thursday, displaying what was either real or dummy rockets.
A 15-year-old Palestinian teen was shot dead Wednesday evening during clashes between Palestinian rioters and IDF forces near the Erez border crossing in the northern Gaza Strip.
Over a 1,000 Palestinians protested in several different spots along the border fence, throwing stones at IDF forces and setting fire to tires.
The Israeli troops responded with crowd dispersal measures, with the IDF saying the soldiers "are acting in accordance with the rules of engagement."
Meanwhile, a Hamas delegation headed by the terror group's deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri returned Wednesday after four days of discussions in Cairo with top Egyptian intelligence officials.
The discussions revolved around both the reconciliation with Fatah—a rival Palestinian faction led by Mahmoud Abbas—and an arrangement in Gaza, which would include a ceasefire agreement with Israel. It is unclear what the outcome of these discussions was.
In recent weeks, there has been a spike in Palestinian rioting in Gaza, as well as in the launch of incendiary balloons and kites.
On Monday, some 4,000 Palestinians rioted in northern Gaza, throwing stones and Molotov cocktails and launching fireworks at Israeli forces, who responded with crowd dispersal measures.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman sent a warning to Hamas on Friday morning, writing on his Twitter page that "the holidays are behind us, take that into account."
"We got through the High Holy Days just as we had planned, without a war erupting and while exacting a heavy price from the rioters on the Gaza border," Lieberman wrote. "But the holidays are now behind us, and I tell the heads of Hamas: 'Take that into account.'"
The defense minister held security consultations on Thursday with the IDF chief of staff, the head of the Military Intelligence Directorate, the coordinator of government activities in the territories (COGAT) and other senior defense officials to discuss the situation in Gaza.
"The defense minister examined the readiness of the forces around the Gaza Strip and instructed the IDF to maintain maximum alertness and be prepared for any scenario," Lieberman's office said.
IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot decided Thursday to send reinforcements to the Gaza border in the coming days.
The IDF said in a statement that the decision was made "to continue the determined policy to thwart terror attacks and prevent infiltrations into Israel in the border fence area of the Gaza Strip. The IDF is prepared and ready for a variety of scenarios and considers the Hamas terror organization responsible for everything that happens in and from the Gaza Strip."
Ahead of the expected rioting on the Gaza border on Friday, the Popular Resistance Committees in the strip threatened Thursday that "blood will be met with blood" and that "We will no longer tolerate the killing of protesters."
The Al-Quds Brigades, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad's military wing, held a military parade in the Gaza Strip Thursday, displaying what was either real or dummy rockets.
A 15-year-old Palestinian teen was shot dead Wednesday evening during clashes between Palestinian rioters and IDF forces near the Erez border crossing in the northern Gaza Strip.
Over a 1,000 Palestinians protested in several different spots along the border fence, throwing stones at IDF forces and setting fire to tires.
The Israeli troops responded with crowd dispersal measures, with the IDF saying the soldiers "are acting in accordance with the rules of engagement."
Meanwhile, a Hamas delegation headed by the terror group's deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri returned Wednesday after four days of discussions in Cairo with top Egyptian intelligence officials.
The discussions revolved around both the reconciliation with Fatah—a rival Palestinian faction led by Mahmoud Abbas—and an arrangement in Gaza, which would include a ceasefire agreement with Israel. It is unclear what the outcome of these discussions was.
In recent weeks, there has been a spike in Palestinian rioting in Gaza, as well as in the launch of incendiary balloons and kites.
On Monday, some 4,000 Palestinians rioted in northern Gaza, throwing stones and Molotov cocktails and launching fireworks at Israeli forces, who responded with crowd dispersal measures.
26 sept 2018
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) at dawn Wednesday arrested Palestinian writer Israa Lavi from her home in Surif town, northwest of al-Khalil province in the West Bank.
Local sources told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that Israeli troops encircled Lavi’s home in the central area of the town before ransacking it and confiscating her cellphone.
The sources added that an Israeli officer told her that she would be arrested and taken to Etzion detention center, north of the town.
Israa Lavi is a noted writer in the Palestinian arena and an advocate for the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, and actively works in the media field.
Local sources told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that Israeli troops encircled Lavi’s home in the central area of the town before ransacking it and confiscating her cellphone.
The sources added that an Israeli officer told her that she would be arrested and taken to Etzion detention center, north of the town.
Israa Lavi is a noted writer in the Palestinian arena and an advocate for the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, and actively works in the media field.
20 sept 2018
Israeli authorities released, on Thursday, Palestinian writer Dareen Tatour, aged 36, after completing her five-month prison term for a poem she wrote, and which Israel considered to incite to violence.
Tatour, from the town of Reineh, near Nazareth, in northern Israel, was detained in October of 2015, after she published a poem on social media entitled, “Resist my people, resist,” and included with it pictures of young Palestinians confronting heavily armed Israeli soldiers with stones and bottles.
After being held until January 2016, she was released and placed under house arrest until she was sentenced, in August 2018, to five months in prison.
After serving two months in prison and counting the three months she had earlier spent in jail, after her initial arrest, Tatour was freed, WAFA reports.
Tatour, from the town of Reineh, near Nazareth, in northern Israel, was detained in October of 2015, after she published a poem on social media entitled, “Resist my people, resist,” and included with it pictures of young Palestinians confronting heavily armed Israeli soldiers with stones and bottles.
After being held until January 2016, she was released and placed under house arrest until she was sentenced, in August 2018, to five months in prison.
After serving two months in prison and counting the three months she had earlier spent in jail, after her initial arrest, Tatour was freed, WAFA reports.
Cellphone spyware sold by an Israeli security firm is suspected of being used against targets in dozens of countries including the United States, researchers warned on Tuesday, raising concerns and questions about topics ranging from eavesdropping to export control.
Known as “Pegasus,” researchers from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab linked the malware to infections in 45 countries, including the U.S., Canada and the U.K., in addition to dozens of other nations, democratic and otherwise, Washington Times daily has reported.
Sold by NSO Group of Herzliya, Israel, Pegasus is capable of exfiltrating private data from infected cellphones, including passwords, text messages and live voice calls, and has previously been deployed against targets including Mexican journalists and a prominent United Arab Emirates human rights activists, among others.
Citizen Lab researchers scoured the internet for servers associated with Pegasus spyware during a two-year period ending August 2018, in turn discovering 1,091 IP addresses and 1,014 domain names, their the same source added.
Ultimately researchers detected a total of 45 countries “where Pegasus operators may be conducting surveillance operations,” including the U.S., Citizen Lab reported.
“The scope of this activity suggests that government-exclusive spyware is widely used to conduct activities that may be illegal in the countries where the targets are located, Citizen Lab reported. “While some of these infections may reflect usage of out-of-country VPN or satellite Internet service by targets, it is possible that several countries may be actively violating United States law by penetrating devices located within the U.S.”
NSO Group disputed the report in a statement, touting its products as “licensed only to legitimate government agencies for the sole purpose of investigating and preventing crime and terror.”
NSO Group could not immediately be reached for further comment.
At least six of the countries where Citizen Lab detected Pegasus operations have “previously been linked to abusive use of spyware to target civil society,” the report further stated.
Known as “Pegasus,” researchers from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab linked the malware to infections in 45 countries, including the U.S., Canada and the U.K., in addition to dozens of other nations, democratic and otherwise, Washington Times daily has reported.
Sold by NSO Group of Herzliya, Israel, Pegasus is capable of exfiltrating private data from infected cellphones, including passwords, text messages and live voice calls, and has previously been deployed against targets including Mexican journalists and a prominent United Arab Emirates human rights activists, among others.
Citizen Lab researchers scoured the internet for servers associated with Pegasus spyware during a two-year period ending August 2018, in turn discovering 1,091 IP addresses and 1,014 domain names, their the same source added.
Ultimately researchers detected a total of 45 countries “where Pegasus operators may be conducting surveillance operations,” including the U.S., Citizen Lab reported.
“The scope of this activity suggests that government-exclusive spyware is widely used to conduct activities that may be illegal in the countries where the targets are located, Citizen Lab reported. “While some of these infections may reflect usage of out-of-country VPN or satellite Internet service by targets, it is possible that several countries may be actively violating United States law by penetrating devices located within the U.S.”
NSO Group disputed the report in a statement, touting its products as “licensed only to legitimate government agencies for the sole purpose of investigating and preventing crime and terror.”
NSO Group could not immediately be reached for further comment.
At least six of the countries where Citizen Lab detected Pegasus operations have “previously been linked to abusive use of spyware to target civil society,” the report further stated.
