Thursday, September 27, 2007

Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 5:34:18 PM
Subject: [langleyhill] An interesting meeting

Friends

I wanted to let you know about this interfaith event which I helped
organize. It will be on Oct 7 at 1:30 at the Friends Meeting of
Washington. We have gathered several members of different churches,
synaguogues and mosques and are having them share with us some of their
knowledge and experiences. It promises to be quite interesting with a
good mix of movie, panel discussion, prayers and travelogues. The theme
is "We seek to understand and be understood". The details are in the
attached flyer and below for those of you who will experience difficulty
opening the attachment. Hope you can join us then.

Najwa
PS: Please feel free to pass on the attached flyer to any friend or
organization that might be interested. Thanks


"ABRAHAM'S TENT"

An Interfaith Celebration

Film and Discussion

SUNDAY ~ OCTOBER 7th, 2007

1:30-5:00 pm

Friends (Quaker) Meeting of Washington

2111 Florida Ave., NW - Washington, D.C. 2008

"We seek to understand and to be understood."

The Peace and Social Concerns Committee of the Friends (Quaker) Meeting
of Washington, through its Interfaith Group, the D.C. Interfaith Peace
Initiative, is sponsoring a gathering entitled "Abraham's Tent." The
date was chosen because of the close convergence this year of holy days:
the Jewish High Holy days of Rosh Hashanah &Yom Kippur, plus Sukkot; the
Christian Feast Day of Saint Francis of Assisi and World Communion
Sunday; and the Muslim month of Ramadan - which will not occur again for
more than 30 years. Come help us celebrate, learn about, and discuss the
three faiths of "the Books." Segments of the film, Three Faiths, One
God: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, will be shown and discussed among
members of the clergy and audience.

Speakers will include:

Imam Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, President, Minaret of Freedom Institute,
Bethesda, MD; imam, Dar-adh-Dhikr Mosque, Bethesda, MD

Reverend Louise Green, Minister of Social Justice, All Souls Church,
Unitarian, Washington, DC

Reverend Graylan Scott Hagler, Senior Minister, Plymouth Congregational
United Church of Christ, Washington, DC

Jonathan Hayden, Research Assistant, School of International Service,
American University, Washington, DC

Imam Faizul Khan, Islamic Society of the Washington Area, Silver Spring,
MD

Rabbi Jason Kimelman-Block, Director of Education, PANIM: Institute for
Jewish Leadership and Values, Rockville, MD

Frankie Martin, Research Assistant, School of International Service,
American University

Rabbi David Shneyer, Director of Am Kolel Sanctuary and Jewish Renewal
Center, Rockville, MD

Sarah Swick, American University student and Treasurer of Dar-adh-Dhikr
Mosque

Hailey Woldt, student, Georgetown University, Washington, DC

Co-sponsoring the event are:

All Souls Church, Unitarian, Washington, DC

Am Kolel Sanctuary and Jewish Renewal Center, Rockville, MD

Dar-adh-Dhikr Mosque, Bethesda, MD

Islamic Society of the Washington Area, Silver Spring, MD

Minaret of Freedom Institute, Bethesda, MD

Montgomery/Prince Georges Counties chapter of the Network of Spiritual
Progressives

Paint Branch Unitarian Universalist Social Action Committee, Adelphi, MD

Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ, Washington, DC

Social Justice Council of Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church,
Bethesda, MD

*For directions, see http://www.quaker. org/fmw/fmwdirec .html. If
possible, use Metrorail (Dupont Circle station;

Q St. exit) as street parking can be difficult and near-by garages are
not available on Sundays. If driving, please allow extra time for
parking (near 1:30 p.m., may have to cross Conn. Ave. to find available
spaces).

Questions about the program may be addressed to: Paul Didisheim (
paul.didisheim@ starpower. net),

Steve Sawmelle (slkursban@erols. com), or Debby Churchman (
dchurchman@yahoo. com).

Labels: , , ,

Emails Concerning Gaza: A Call to Action

Great Pam, thanks. It makes it even longer, but what the heck, we have to give it to them hard. I already wrote but now I can send a "and another thing....!"

Mark Braverman, Ph.D.
6819 Selkirk Drive
Bethesda, MD 20817

www.bravermangroup.com





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: rasmussen.pa@comcast.net [mailto:rasmussen.pa@comcast.net]
Sent: Thursday, September 20, 2007 7:53 AM
Subject: Re: Fwd: GAZA - A Call To Action


A good addition to this argument to our representatives, and to the media, would be supporting quotes from the World Bank report that just came out on this subject (and that has gotten almost no attention). Consider these two quotes from the summaries that did appear: The LA Times -- "The report says that any program to resuscitate the Palestinian economy must include Gaza, which it calls a 'quintessential part of the Palestinian territory, economy and identity.'" The AP: "The World Bank warned that the closure of the crossings in and out of Gaza will lead to laying off 30,000 private sector workers, worsening the already critical economic situation there. The report said no economic solution can ignore the need to turn Gaza into a productive, export-oriented center. Economic development must proceed despite ongoing strife. . .'Whether practical or not under the circumstances, the need for these parallel steps is evident.'"

Pam


-------------- Original message --------------
From: Cbb49@aol.com

Dear All,

I include a quick revision of the ICAHD statement that we can send individually to everyone in the house and senate. Please revise so it looks like your own!

Carol BB
Representative Chris Van Hollen



I deplore the unanimous decision by the Israeli cabinet to impose sanctions on supplies of electricity, fuel and other basic goods and services to the civilian population of Gaza, and I call on you to prevent this crime against humanity from being carried out. Indeed, the very legal framework invoked by Israel to carry out this illegal and immoral act – declaring Gaza a “hostile entity†within a “conflict short of war†– has absolutely no standing in international law. The collective punishment of an entire civilian population, by contrast, is explicitly prohibited.


I call on our government to censure this decision, especially in light of recent attempts to revive the diplomatic process. This blatant violation of human rights and the most fundamental assault on human life and dignity is made especially poignant as it is being implemented during the holy month of Ramadan.

Please do everything in your power to repudiate this cruel, illegal and immoral act – an act that stands out in its cruelty even in an already oppressive Israeli Occupation. I condemn attacks on all civilians, be they Israeli or Palestinian. Violations of international law by governments affecting millions of people are, however, especially egregious and must be denounced.

Israel’s decision to punish Gaza’s civilian population, with all the human suffering that entails, constitutes an instance of State Terrorism against innocent people. Only when Israel is held a ccountable for its actions and international law upheld will a just peace be possible in the Middle East.

Sincerely,



Carol Bullard-Bates

Labels: ,

Friday, September 21, 2007

Palestinian government seen needing $1.6 bln a year

By Adam Entous
Reuters
Tuesday, September 18, 2007; 12:22 AM



JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The Western-backed government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas estimates that it will need at least $1.62 billion in donor assistance per year to close its soaring budget gap, the World Bank said.

In a bleak report to donors obtained by Reuters on Tuesday, the international lending agency said local revenues were not enough to sustain the government's wage bill and that there was little chance of improvement as long as Israel refused to lift restrictions on Palestinian travel and trade.

The World Bank said 94 percent of the foreign aid needed by the Palestinian Authority would be used to cover recurring expenditures, including salaries, utility bills and social payments, leaving little money to fund development.

The World Bank report was prepared for next week's meeting of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, a major Palestinian donors' group. The meeting, which will lay the groundwork for a donors' conference in December, is part of a U.S.-led effort to bolster Abbas and the government he appointed in the occupied West Bank following Hamas's takeover of the Gaza Strip in June.

Western diplomats said Abbas's government, led by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, would be able to cover this year's budget gap by using foreign aid and frozen tax revenues recently released by Israel.

But the diplomats questioned Fayyad's ability to cover a fiscal hole estimated at $1.6 billion per year in the absence of a political breakthrough that will revive the Palestinian economy and bring in larger amounts of Arab aid.

"It's huge and we don't see how the Palestinian Authority can finance it," said one diplomat who monitors its funds.

PEACE CONFERENCE

U.S. President George W. Bush is expected to convene a conference on Palestinian statehood in November but it is unclear what will result from it.

In April, Fayyad estimated that the Palestinian Authority would need at least $1.3 billion in international aid in 2007. Fayyad was serving at the time as finance minister of a unity government between Hamas and Abbas's secular Fatah faction.

While foreign aid and tax funds started flowing again to the Palestinian Authority after the unity government ended in June, Western sanctions remain in place against the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip, where economic conditions have deteriorated.

Despite some initial steps by Fayyad to rein in spending, the World Bank said the government wage bill would exceed total revenues even after taking into account Israel's decision in June to hand over frozen tax funds.

Fayyad's government has sought to reduce payroll by not paying workers hired by the Hamas-led government, but the World Bank said the prime minister "may find it politically challenging to reduce the work force any further."

It is unclear how Fayyad will be able to cover the government's energy and infrastructure needs long-term.

In Hamas-controlled Gaza, the economic crisis is more acute. Gaza's main border crossings have been closed to all but humanitarian supplies, prompting the suspension of up to 90 percent of the coastal territory's industrial operations.

"The impacts of these closures will become more difficult to reverse," said the World Bank. It estimated that unemployment could reach the unprecedented level of 44 percent.

Despite the embargo, Israeli, Palestinian and Western officials say Hamas has been able to bring in tenq of millions of dollars to fund its military and social programs.

© 2007 Reuters

Labels: ,

Sunday, September 16, 2007

political nightmare
Lakeland Family Separated By Rules at Airport in Israel
7 children, declared Palestinians, must stay.
By Cary McMullen
Ledger Religion Editor
LAKELAND | The summer wasn't supposed to end like this for the family of Steve and Wedad Yacoub.

The Lakeland family was separated on Aug. 18 at an Israeli airport as they attempted to return home from a summer visiting relatives in Palestine.

Although the Yacoubs are naturalized U.S. citizens and all their children were born in America, Israeli officials told them they had been designated Palestinian citizens.

They would not allow Wedad Yacoub and 10 of her children to board the flight.

She was forced to choose between remaining in Palestine with the children or return with the three youngest, leaving the other seven behind.

"I begged them. I was crying, the kids were crying. I was very angry," Wedad Yacoub said Wednesday.

Finally, after arranging for the older children to be picked up by relatives and hoping they would follow in a few days, she flew home with her children, ages 10, 5 and 3.

The others, ranging in age from 11 to 22, were driven back to their grandmother's home in Ramallah, where they remain caught in a bureaucratic and political tangle. The family says the U.S. State Department has told them there is little they can do.

At a news conference Wednesday in Tampa, officials with the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a civil-rights group, said the Yacoubs have only two options: continue to press U.S. government officials to persuade Israel to allow the children to leave, or to send them home through Amman, Jordan, a lengthy and expensive process.

Ahmed Bedier, executive director of the council's Tampa chapter, said Continental Airlines has rebooked reservations for the children today at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, but that is where they were denied permission to return, and the family is not hopeful they will be allowed to depart.

"They hate it so much. They are crying on the phone every day, 'I want to come back,'" said Wedad Yacoub.

The Yacoub family is we ll-known in North Lakeland, where four children graduated from Lake Gibson High School and two currently are enrolled there. Another two are enrolled at Lake Gibson Middle School.

"They're good kids, excellent students, all honors-level," said Ralph Gilchrest, principal of Lake Gibson High.

"They're very easy to get along with. They follow the rules, they're mannerly and involved with their school."

Ramy Yacoub, 18, graduated from Lake Gibson in May. He was on the school's wrestling team.

A teammate, Brent Jorge, said he and Ramy would go fishing and see movies together. He said he thought it was "ridiculous" his friend had not been allowed to come home.

"He's American to everyone here. His skin is different, but he's just like everyone else," Jorge said.

Steve Yacoub, the children's father, owns a convenience store in Lakeland. He is a native of Palestine, but has been an American citizen for about 30 years.

As they have each summer for the past four years, in June the Yacoub family traveled to Palestine to visit relatives. They were admitted entry into Palestine through Israel on three-month visas, said Wedad Yacoub. This year, the visit included weddings. Twin brothers Ibrahim and Yacoub Yacoub, 22, got married in Ramallah in July.

There was a hint of problems to come when Steve Yacoub, traveling separately, was denied entry. He was forced to return to the United States and enter the Palestinian territory through Jordan.

The Yacoub's eldest child, a daughter, Palestine Yacoub, who is pregnant, was also turned away and chose not to make the trip.

On Aug. 18, as they tried to return home, Israeli security officials told the children their father's Palestinian heritage disqualified them from traveling as American citizens, Wedad Yacoub said.

A new rule was adopted by Israel in March, stating that citizens of other countries who are of Palestinian heritage may be designated as Palestinian residents and forced to leave the country through Jordan, even if they possess round-trip airline tickets and, as in the Yacoubs' case, U.S. passports. For the Yacoubs, that means an 18-hour wait at a border checkpoint, forfeiting their return-trip tickets and buying new tickets at a cost of about $16,000 .

Bedier, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said the family was told the problem could be solved if they signed a paper renouncing their Palestinian heritage and all future intention to become Palestinian citizens.

The Yacoubs immediately contacted U.S. State Department officials, who were sympathetic, but told the family it was Israeli policy.

Bedier said his organization had sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Aug. 29, urging her intervention.

"Our organization has received a rise in complaints over the summer from folks traveling in the West Bank as far as unfair treatment by the Israeli authorities, either on their way in or out. ... We find that this treatment is unacceptable, that no American citizen should be subjected to this kind of humiliation. We're puzzled by the double standard in the treatment," he said.

Ariel Roman, director of media affairs for the Israeli Consulate General in Miami, said his of fice was awaiting information from the Israeli government but offices there were closed for the night.

Keith Rupp, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Bartow, who has been working with the Yacoub family, said Wednesday that according to information from the State Department, the Israelis were holding fast to their policy, which they ascribed to "rising violence" in the Palestinian territory.

"We're not quite sure how they arrived at this decision. ... Our goal is to see an American family reunited," he said.

Rupp said the State Department posted a notice to travelers on its Web site about the new policy, then issued an enhanced warning in July, but the Yacoubs said they had no hint the rules had changed and had never encountered difficulty traveling to Palestine before.

The Yacoubs said they will not wait much longer to find a way to get their children home.

"I can't wait. I need my kids back," said Steve Yacoub Wednesday. "They're missing sc hool, they're missing everything."

Labels: ,

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Enrique Ferro wrote: Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2007
22:19:18 +0200
From: "Enrique Ferro"
Subject: C a m p a i g n f o r t h e R i g h t o f E n t r y / R e - E

n t r y t o t h e O c c u p i e d P a l e s t i n i a n T e r r i t o
r y ( o P t ). 2007 SUMMER REPORT

C a m p a i g n f o r t h e R i g h t o f E n t r y / R e - E n t r

y t o t h e O c c u p i e d
P a l e s t i n i a n T e r r i t o r y ( o P t )
A Grassroots Campaign for the Protection of Foreign Passport
Holders Residing in and/or Visiting the oPt
SUMMER 2007 -- SITUATION UPDATE FOR JULY & AUGUST 2007
(31 August 2007)
I. STATUS OF ENTRY DENIALS SINCE ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW PROCEDURES IN
DECEMBER 2006
A. Recent developments
Eight months following an announcement by Israeli authorities
purportedly resolving the issue of entry denials,
the Campaign continues to document cases of persons denied entry
clearly demonstrating that Israel's regulation
of entry into the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) by foreign
nationals remains arbitrary, abusive and
internationally unlawful.
1
Interventions by a number of third states demonstrate that they can

and must play an instrumental role in
challenging Israel's denial of entry policy:
In late July, the Spanish Consulate in Jerusalem intervened when
three peace activists from Paz Ahora, Julio
Rodríguez Bueno, Carmen Montilla and Ignacio Saldaña Herrero were
detained at the Allenby Bridge crossing.
They were trying to enter the oPt to meet 60 Palestinian children
and take them back to Spain as part of a program
called Vacaciones por la Paz (Holidays for Peace). They were
eventually allowed to enter on July 24 on a one-
week visa.
On August 9, a German citizen and Dienst service passport holder
was denied re-entry through BGA upon his
return from a trip that departed from there in July. MA not only
has a special service passport due to his work
with a German institution, he also has an Israeli issued B-1 visa,
a Palestinian ID, and has been provided lem
sheml [family unification] by Israel in order to be with his wife
and children who hold Jerusalem IDs. After 13
hours in a detention center, he was finally permitted re-entry
thanks to the direct involvement of German
Embassy officials. Israeli authorities, however, cancelled his
Dienstpass, because he holds a Palestinian ID,
thereby prohibiting his ability to access BGA for future travel.
On 13 August, Bulgaria's Consul General and a Jerusalem Legal Aid
Center attorney, Sliman Shaheen,
intervened when 65 year old Gerga Petrova Ivanova was denied entry
and detained at Ben Gurion Airport. Israeli
authorities initially refused Gerga passage to see her daughter who

resides in the oPt with her husband, a
Palestinian ID holder. After 36 hours in detention, Ms Ivanova was
given a 2-day entry permit which was
subsequently extended to 3 months upon the Bulgarian Consul
General's approach to Israeli authorities.
1
In December 2006, the Coordinator for Government Activities in the
Territories (CoGAT) outlined new procedures for entry into the
occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). On December 28, a letter
announcing the new procedures for foreign nationals wishing to visit,
live or
work in the oPt was sent by CoGAT to Dr. Sa'eb Erakat and several
diplomatic missions in Tel Aviv, including the German (then
representing the EU-presidency) and US Embassies. In March 2007, a
similar statement was issued by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and addressed to third state missions. On 5 March, the
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement entitled
"Transit Policy
to the West Bank via Israel."
In another possible violation of

---------------------------------
Page 2
Agreements between Israel and third States permitting passage of
their nationals without delay or hindrance
continue to be disregarded by Israel:
On July 27, Chilean Elisa Abedrapo was denied re-entry through
Allenby Bridge despite written assurance by the
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Chilean Government that
she would be permitted passage. Elisa is one of
two Chilean nationals whose government requested and received
written "clearance" to enter by Israeli authorities
earlier this year.
2
Ms. Abedrapo narrates her encounter at the Allenby Bridge crossing
on July 27 as follows: "The
soldier at the window said me a very nice 'hi', but suddenly her
mood changed when she opened my passport and
saw my name. She asked if I have a Palestinian or Jordanian
passport, and I told her, of course not, as 'my great
grand father went to Chile one century ago.' She asked me for the
name of my father (Jorge) and then for the
name of my grandfather (Jorge too) and then for the name of my
mother (Elisa) and if she is Arab too. After
that, the soldier told me 'go and sit.'" After further
interrogation, Abedrapo was permitted to enter on a one-week
visa with a warning that overstaying by even a single day would
result in imprisonment. After Ms Abedrapo was
denied entry in February of this year, the Chilean Government
successfully intervened on her behalf and she was
granted a 3-month tourist visa in April. This latest incident again

demonstrates that while interventions on a case-
by-case basis can be successful, resolution of the issue requires
demanding a change in Israel's policy.
In short, the denial of foreign citizens into the oPt continues to
adversely affect the fabric of family life as
many of those denied have spouses or close relatives who are
Palestinian ID holders. The denials of entry also
continue to affect economic development and the provision of
essential health and education services to the
Palestinian people. At a time when foreign investment is especially

crucial and when members of the Palestinian
Diaspora seek to bring specialized skills back into the Palestinian

community, a clear and transparent policy for
securing entry into the oPt is essential. Investment opportunities
have become increasingly risky and projects
aimed at providing specialized institutions face tremendous
difficulties due to the lack of predictability which
continues to characterize Israel's entry policy.
Moreover, as in previous months, Israel continues to resort to the
arbitrary issuing of visas of short duration
– sometimes as little as one to two weeks. This trend suggests a
cynical attempt to undermine demands by third
states that Israel cease its arbitrary denial of entry to and
residence in the oPt and honor its obligations under
International Humanitarian Law.
3
The issuing of visa durations on an unpredictable and arbitrary
basis and
mistreatment of visitors at border crossings -- like arbitrary
denials -- incur inhibiting costs and discourage
individuals from traveling to the oPt whether to visit, work or
reside and in effect contributes to the continuation
of the denial of entry policy.
In this light, the Campaign maintains its demand for third party
states to actively pursue the securing of a clear,
transparent and lawful policy for all foreign nationals wishing to
enter the oPt through Israel in line with its
obligations under International Humanitarian Law; random and
piecemeal "alleviation" of the illegal practice
of entry denial is no substitute for its abolition. The Campaign
further maintains that following recent events
and announcements by Israel and the international community of
their commitment to assist Palestinians in a more
sustainable fashion, the time has come for all parties,
particularly members of the Quartet, to address the
issue of family unification and visitation rights in a serious
fashion. The Government of Israel, in the Oslo
2
The other, Nadia Hassan, attempted to re-enter through Ben Gurion
Airport (BGA) in May based on the Israeli letter, but was denied entry
for the fifth time since September 2005. Nadia was also denied
access to the Chilean Consular official waiting for her at the
airport, in
possible violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
In another possible violation of the Vienna Convention, LK was
refused repeated requests to contact the US Embassy during the first 24
hours of her detention at BGA on June 27. Only after persistent
demands was LK finally given an opportunity to speak with US Consular
officials. The initial denial of entry was rescinded after
intervention by an attorney and a court judgment. LK holds dual
US-British
passports. Despite presenting only a US passport for entry, LK's
British passport was stamped as well, against LK's wishes.
3
See, for example, cases above: Chilean citizen Elisa Abedrapo and
Bulgarian citizen Gerga Petrova Ivanova. In another incident, reported
on July 26 in the Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, Nigel
Kennedy, one of the best-known violinists in the world, was delayed at

Ben
Gurion Airport even though the British Foreign Ministry had sent
his particulars in advance to the relevant officials. It was only
after an
urgent message from the British Embassy that Kennedy was allowed to

enter Israel. A few weeks prior, a French band was held up for a
three-hour security check. All of their musical instruments were
confiscated, in spite of their protests, and were returned to France
only a
week later. Some of the expensive instruments had been badly
damaged. The band was the guest of the French Embassy in Israel, and
the
French Foreign Ministry had sent the particulars of all its members

to the authorities at Ben Gurion Airport, but to no avail.

---------------------------------
Page 3
Accords, has already accepted the principle of issuing permanent
residency to foreign nationals wishing to live in
the Palestinian Authority areas. The Quartet and other parties
should demand the immediate resumption and
transparent processing of the 120,000+ pending family unification
applications as an immediate first step.
B. Ongoing practices
Cases documented by the Campaign demonstrate that Israel is failing

to implement even the limited procedures
outlined in Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Foreign Affairs
announcements in a consistent and transparent
manner:
1. Individuals continue to be denied entry at all major ports of
entry -- Allenby Bridge, Sheikh Hussein
Bridge, Ben Gurion Airport and Taba.
2. The overwhelming majority of documented cases since January 2007

involve US citizens. Among the
cases of entry denial are citizens from Australia, Canada and EU
member countries as well as countries in Latin
America, East Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Documented
cases include men, women and
children, ranging from 2 to over 70 years in age.
3. Procedures set out in the announcements are not being
implemented in a clear, consistent and
transparent manner.
* Individuals who have demanded explanation for their denial of
entry have been physically abused and
forced back into vehicles returning to Jordan.
* Individuals who have previously traveled to the region on a
regular basis have been denied entry for the
first time. Others who have never visited the country have also been
denied.
* Individuals who were denied entry in 2006 and were then able to
obtain some form of clearance to enter
have again been denied entry in 2007.
* Israeli assurances to third state representatives regarding
granting entry for particular foreign nationals
have repeatedly failed to materialize in several instances.
4
* Individuals seeking to apply for permits from Israeli embassies /

consulates in their home countries to
enter the West Bank (the procedure "recommended" in CoGAT
announcement) have been informed upon
inquiry that this procedure is not in effect.
* Individuals have been denied entry without access to a CoGAT
representative contrary to stipulations in
the CoGAT announcement.
* Many of the individuals permitted to enter have been able to do
so only through exclusive arrangements –
often for fees including sometimes exorbitant fees to lawyers. Some

individuals are being required to
provide monetary deposits (between NIS 20,000 and 50,000) to
guarantee their departure before the
expiration of their visas.
* Moreover, the duration of visas issued to a number of individuals

granted entry varies widely and is
issued without clear reason or explanation. Documentation includes
cases of individuals granted visas for
as little as one week and suggest that the Israeli authorities are
increasingly issuing visas of shorter
duration to those indicating the intention to travel to the oPt.
5
* Despite a reactivation of visa extension processes, documented
cases suggest that Israel's granting of visa
extensions remains arbitrary, clearly harming Palestinian family
life, educational, cultural and social
service institutions and businesses. Moreover, even those who do
receive visa extensions are unable to
leave the country since they fear they will be denied entry on their
return.
4. The welfare and integrity of countless Palestinian families
continue to be affected by separation or the
imminent threat of separation.
6
4
See, for example, cases in introductory section above.
5
See, for example, cases in introductory section above.
6
On July 23 L., a Brazilian national, was denied entry at Ben Gurion

Airport. An engineering student in Germany, she was planning to visit
the family of her fiancée, an architecture student from Beit Jala
who is also studying in Germany. In the six years that the couple has
been
together, she has never been able to visit his family. While the
family plans to appeal her denial through the Israeli court system,
L.'s
fiancée expects the procedure will be costly and tiresome and
therefore their future is uncertain. The reason cited for her denial
stems from
her prior visit three years ago. While waiting at the Allenby
Bridge crossing, she was writing in her diary. This aroused the
suspicions of
the Israeli border guard and though she was allowed entry on that
occasion after prolonged questioning, it now appears that this incident
was permanently recorded and was cited as the reason for her
current refusal. At the time of writing, she is back in Germany and the
couple's wedding has been cancelled.
Also in July, eyewitness Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh, a geneticist living in

the US, reported to the Campaign that while he was crossing Allenby
Bridge with his wife on July 12, he met the mother, father and son
of a Palestinian-American family who were prevented from entering the

---------------------------------
Page 4
* Spouses remain separated despite provisions in the CoGAT
announcement for their visa entry and
renewals.
* Young children continue to be separated from their parents and
the elderly are denied visits and essential
care from their immediate family.
5. The functioning of Palestinian health, educational and social
services and businesses continue to be
affected.
7
6. Members of the international press have been denied entry to
Israel and the oPt.
8
II. CRITICAL ISSUES STILL TO BE ADDRESSED
Moreover, critical shortcomings in CoGAT announcement have yet to
be addressed:
The right to family unification & long-term residence -
The CoGAT notice addresses only the issue of temporary admissions
(typically for short-term family visits,
tourism and humanitarian, business, educational or other
professional activities). Israel has yet to provide any
indication regarding a change in policy regarding its refusal to
process family unification applications since late
2000. The PA's Ministry for Civil Affairs estimates that it has
received more than 120,000 requests for unification
since that time. Israel's continued refusal to process family
reunification applications directly affects as many as
500,000 to 750,000 people who may be forced to leave the occupied
Palestinian territory to keep their families
intact. Together with the many foreign nationals who have
established their primary business, investment or
professional activities in the oPt, or otherwise aspire to build
their lives in the oPt, the new procedures place them,
at best, in a state of continuous uncertainty, under constant
threat of expulsion or exclusion.
Provisions for entry into East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip - The
notice omits any indication that foreign nationals
seeking entry into occupied East Jerusalem or the Gaza Strip will
be eligible to apply for temporary admission or
visa extensions.
Lack of accountability -All aspects of Israel's policies with
regard to the Palestinian civilian population have
been characterized by arbitrariness and a complete lack of
transparency; Israel has failed to indicate any
mechanisms that will be established to ensure that even the limited

procedures outlined in the CoGAT
announcement will be implemented let alone that Israeli will comply

with its obligations as an occupying power.
West Bank for another son's wedding. Both mother and father were
born in the West Bank but do not have Palestinian IDs. All three carry
US passports and prior to their departure, they had spoken with a
lawyer, the US State Department, Israeli and US Consulates in an
attempt
to ensure a smooth passage. Another witness reported that on July
19 several people were denied entry including an American woman
married to a Palestinian-American; her husband was permitted entry
with their children.
In yet another incident on 23 May, the wife and six children of
Jamal Ibrahim were denied entry via Allenby Bridge. The youngest child

is
4 years old and the oldest is 15. With the exception of Mr.
Ibrahim, the family carries US citizenship.
7
On 2 July, a Swedish human rights worker for Defense of Children
International (DCI) was denied entry at Ben Gurion Airport, held
overnight and deported the following day. Neither documents from
DCI nor from the United Nations Association for International Services
(UNAIS), the organization sponsoring her voluntary position, were
considered sufficient to facilitate her entry.
Dr. Hatem Abdo, M.D. is a specialist in neurosurgery and is
currently planning a project to establish a hospital to specialize in
cancer
recovery in Jerusalem. He is an American citizen and until
recently, also a Jerusalem ID card holder. He arrived from the United
States this
May, only to be told upon his departure, from which he was
redirected from the Allenby Bridge border crossing to Sheikh Hussein,
that he
is no longer entitled to his rights as a Jerusalem resident. His ID

card was confiscated and now he may only enter the country once a year

as
a tourist. His mission to establish a hospital has been
overshadowed by a personal struggle to re-establish his Jerusalem
residency. He
received his medical training in Egypt, Jerusalem, England, Canada
and the United States and his presence would have a great impact on
the quality of medical care available to Palestinians in Jerusalem.

By denying individuals such as Dr. Abdo, Israeli authorities are
effectively contributing to a Palestinian "brain drain" and
preventing the establishment of projects intended to benefit the
collective quality
of life in the oPt.
Ibrahim Abed Al Rahman, for example, a Palestinian American whose
spouse carries a Palestinian ID recently reported that he was denied
entry twice -- once in June of 2006 and a second time in August of
the same year. As the Israeli authorities marked his US passport, he
stayed in Jordan for more than a month awaiting a new one from the
US Embassy. He is a prominent business man who owns considerable
property in Abu Shkhedim which he is unable to attend to. He is
currently dependent on his son, who also holds an American passport, to
oversee his business, but his son is also fearful of having is
right to enter revoked.
8
On 9 July In an article in the Electronic Intifada, Matthew Cassel,

assistant editor and Photographer, chronicles his own denial through
the
Sheikh Hussein crossing in late June 2007.

---------------------------------
Page 5
In short, Israeli authorities have failed to provide a transparent
policy on which foreign nationals wishing to
enter or maintain their presence in the occupied Palestinian
territory can rely and instead have continued to
pursue both policies and practices that fail to comply with
International Humanitarian Law.
III. WHAT SHOULD BE DONE?
Third states maintaining friendly relations with Israel command the

standing to challenge the arbitrary
exclusion of their nationals from the oPt. They also have an
obligation to scrutinize Israel's exercise of
authority as an occupying power and to oppose arbitrary denials of
entry and residency that harm Palestinian
family life, educational and social service institutions,
businesses and social and economic development more
broadly.
Third states are urged to:
1. Ensure Israeli implementation of the rights to family unity and
family reunification and the establishment of
clear and transparent procedures for foreign nationals seeking to
reside in the oPt, in keeping with international
law.
- obtain Israeli cancellation of CoGAT's stipulation that
foreigners are restricted to a 27-month, single
entry, maximum stay
Types of denial of entry cases documented post-CoGAT announcement
Cases of denial documented:
Dec
2006*
Jan
2007
Feb
2007
Mar
2007
May
2007
June
2007
July
2007
Aug
2007
Ports of entry
Allenby Bridge
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Ben Gurion Airport
X
X
X
X
X
X
Sheikh Hussein Bridge
X
X
X
X
X
Taba
X
X
X
X
Nationals
Arab World**
X
Europe
X
X
X
X
X
X
Latin American
X
X
X
X
X
North America
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Other
X
Types of visitors
Business persons
X
X
X
X
Development, human rights, &
humanitarian workers
X
X
X
X
Family
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Health professionals, educators & social
service providers
X
X
X
X
Media & filmmakers
X
X
X
X
Students & researchers
X
X
X
X
X
X
Tourists & visitors
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Other***
X
X
*from 13 December 2006 when Israeli Major General Mishlav,
Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories
(COGAT), first informed the EU of its revised policy on entry and
visa renewals for the oPt.
** Citizens of Arab countries are particularly reluctant to report
entry denials. Procedures outlined in the COGAT and
MOFA notices pertain only to countries having visa agreements with
Israel; no provision for visas or entry permits are
made for Jordanian nationals – the vast majority of those seeking
family unification – or other Arab nationals seeking to
visit or reside in the oPt.
*** Others include those affiliated with the church and/or other
religious institutions.

---------------------------------
Page 6
- demand Israel's adoption and implementation of a clear,
transparent policy for issuing residency permits
to foreign nationals
2. Call for an immediate halt to Israel's arbitrary and abusive
practice of denying entry to foreign nationals
traveling to the oPt.
- demand Israel's adoption and implementation of a clear,
transparent policy for unhindered access to the
oPt by foreign nationals
- obtain explicit assurances that people who have previously been
denied entry will be permitted to re-
enter the oPt
- end the practice of issuing permits that restrict exit and
re-entry
- end the practice of issuing permits of less than three months to
those traveling to the oPt
- cease the collective punishment of those whose relatives may have

'overstayed' their original visa
duration
3. Apply vigorous scrutiny to cases of denied entry and denied
residency in the oPt with a view to promoting
Israel's adoption and transparent application of principles
consistent with the internationally accepted rights and
obligations of an occupying power.
- set up clear mechanisms for citizens to report and appeal cases
of denied entry
- set up clear mechanisms for liaising with Israeli authorities to
ensure safe passage to the oPt for all
citizens and ensure the prompt and proper resolution of cases where

safe passage has been hindered
- insist on receiving a formal explanation of each decision taken
by Israel to bar any of their citizens from
the oPt
- object to all arbitrary denials of entry and residency that harm
Palestinian family life, educational, health
and social service institutions and businesses and act to resolve
all such cases of exclusion.
4. Respect the duty of all states not to acquiesce to
internationally unlawful acts, bearing in mind that failing to
object to prima facie unlawful acts or policies when notified of
them implies accepting them as lawful.
5. Promote Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law
with appropriate and effective tools of
persuasion and dissuasion. Take appropriate measures based on
reciprocity to ensure that the correct
treatment accorded Israeli nationals seeking to enter third
countries is reciprocated by correct treatment of their
nationals seeking to enter Israel or the oPt
Concerned individuals and organizations are called on to intensify
their efforts to hold the governments of
Israel, third states and the Palestinian National Authority to
their respective obligations under international
humanitarian law and international human rights law.



----- End forwarded message -----


HTML Attachment



Enrique Ferro wrote:
Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2007 22:19:18 +0200
From: "Enrique Ferro"
Subject: C a m p a i g n f o r t h e R i g h t o f E n t r y / R e - E n t r y t o t h e O c c u p i e d P a l e s t i n i a n T e r r i t o r y ( o P t ). 2007 SUMMER REPORT


C a m p a i g n f o r t h e R i g h t o f E n t r y / R e - E n t r y t o t h e O c c u p i e d
P a l e s t i n i a n T e r r i t o r y ( o P t )
A Grassroots Campaign for the Protection of Foreign Passport Holders Residing in and/or Visiting the oPt
SUMMER 2007 -- SITUATION UPDATE FOR JULY & AUGUST 2007
(31 August 2007)
I. STATUS OF ENTRY DENIALS SINCE ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW PROCEDURES IN
DECEMBER 2006
A. Recent developments
Eight months following an announcement by Israeli authorities purportedly resolving the issue of entry denials,
the Campaign continues to document cases of persons denied entry clearly demonstrating that Israel's regulation
of entry into the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) by foreign nationals remains arbitrary, abusive and
internationally unlawful.
1
Interventions by a number of third states demonstrate that they can and must play an instrumental role in
challenging Israel's denial of entry policy:
In late July, the Spanish Consulate in Jerusalem intervened when three peace activists from Paz Ahora, Julio
Rodríguez Bueno, Carmen Montilla and Ignacio Saldaña Herrero were detained at the Allenby Bridge crossing.
They were trying to enter the oPt to meet 60 Palestinian children and take them back to Spain as part of a program
called Vacaciones por la Paz (Holidays for Peace). They were eventually allowed to enter on July 24 on a one-
week visa.
On August 9, a German citizen and Dienst service passport holder was denied re-entry through BGA upon his
return from a trip that departed from there in July. MA not only has a special service passport due to his work
with a German institution, he also has an Israeli issued B-1 visa, a Palestinian ID, and has been provided lem
sheml [family unification] by Israel in order to be with his wife and children who hold Jerusalem IDs. After 13
hours in a detention center, he was finally permitted re-entry thanks to the direct involvement of German
Embassy officials. Israeli authorities, however, cancelled his Dienstpass, because he holds a Palestinian ID,
thereby prohibiting his ability to access BGA for future travel.
On 13 August, Bulgaria's Consul General and a Jerusalem Legal Aid Center attorney, Sliman Shaheen,
intervened when 65 year old Gerga Petrova Ivanova was denied entry and detained at Ben Gurion Airport. Israeli
authorities initially refused Gerga passage to see her daughter who resides in the oPt with her husband, a
Palestinian ID holder. After 36 hours in detention, Ms Ivanova was given a 2-day entry permit which was
subsequently extended to 3 months upon the Bulgarian Consul General's approach to Israeli authorities.
1
In December 2006, the Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (CoGAT) outlined new procedures for entry into the
occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). On December 28, a letter announcing the new procedures for foreign nationals wishing to visit, live or
work in the oPt was sent by CoGAT to Dr. Sa'eb Erakat and several diplomatic missions in Tel Aviv, including the German (then
representing the EU-presidency) and US Embassies. In March 2007, a similar statement was issued by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and addressed to third state missions. On 5 March, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement entitled "Transit Policy
to the West Bank via Israel."
In another possible violation of

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page 2

Agreements between Israel and third States permitting passage of their nationals without delay or hindrance
continue to be disregarded by Israel:
On July 27, Chilean Elisa Abedrapo was denied re-entry through Allenby Bridge despite written assurance by the
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Chilean Government that she would be permitted passage. Elisa is one of
two Chilean nationals whose government requested and received written "clearance" to enter by Israeli authorities
earlier this year.
2
Ms. Abedrapo narrates her encounter at the Allenby Bridge crossing on July 27 as follows: "The
soldier at the window said me a very nice 'hi', but suddenly her mood changed when she opened my passport and
saw my name. She asked if I have a Palestinian or Jordanian passport, and I told her, of course not, as 'my great
grand father went to Chile one century ago.' She asked me for the name of my father (Jorge) and then for the
name of my grandfather (Jorge too) and then for the name of my mother (Elisa) and if she is Arab too. After
that, the soldier told me 'go and sit.'" After further interrogation, Abedrapo was permitted to enter on a one-week
visa with a warning that overstaying by even a single day would result in imprisonment. After Ms Abedrapo was
denied entry in February of this year, the Chilean Government successfully intervened on her behalf and she was
granted a 3-month tourist visa in April. This latest incident again demonstrates that while interventions on a case-
by-case basis can be successful, resolution of the issue requires demanding a change in Israel's policy.
In short, the denial of foreign citizens into the oPt continues to adversely affect the fabric of family life as
many of those denied have spouses or close relatives who are Palestinian ID holders. The denials of entry also
continue to affect economic development and the provision of essential health and education services to the
Palestinian people. At a time when foreign investment is especially crucial and when members of the Palestinian
Diaspora seek to bring specialized skills back into the Palestinian community, a clear and transparent policy for
securing entry into the oPt is essential. Investment opportunities have become increasingly risky and projects
aimed at providing specialized institutions face tremendous difficulties due to the lack of predictability which
continues to characterize Israel's entry policy.
Moreover, as in previous months, Israel continues to resort to the arbitrary issuing of visas of short duration
– sometimes as little as one to two weeks. This trend suggests a cynical attempt to undermine demands by third
states that Israel cease its arbitrary denial of entry to and residence in the oPt and honor its obligations under
International Humanitarian Law.
3
The issuing of visa durations on an unpredictable and arbitrary basis and
mistreatment of visitors at border crossings -- like arbitrary denials -- incur inhibiting costs and discourage
individuals from traveling to the oPt whether to visit, work or reside and in effect contributes to the continuation
of the denial of entry policy.
In this light, the Campaign maintains its demand for third party states to actively pursue the securing of a clear,
transparent and lawful policy for all foreign nationals wishing to enter the oPt through Israel in line with its
obligations under International Humanitarian Law; random and piecemeal "alleviation" of the illegal practice
of entry denial is no substitute for its abolition. The Campaign further maintains that following recent events
and announcements by Israel and the international community of their commitment to assist Palestinians in a more
sustainable fashion, the time has come for all parties, particularly members of the Quartet, to address the
issue of family unification and visitation rights in a serious fashion. The Government of Israel, in the Oslo
2
The other, Nadia Hassan, attempted to re-enter through Ben Gurion Airport (BGA) in May based on the Israeli letter, but was denied entry
for the fifth time since September 2005. Nadia was also denied access to the Chilean Consular official waiting for her at the airport, in
possible violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
In another possible violation of the Vienna Convention, LK was refused repeated requests to contact the US Embassy during the first 24
hours of her detention at BGA on June 27. Only after persistent demands was LK finally given an opportunity to speak with US Consular
officials. The initial denial of entry was rescinded after intervention by an attorney and a court judgment. LK holds dual US-British
passports. Despite presenting only a US passport for entry, LK's British passport was stamped as well, against LK's wishes.
3
See, for example, cases above: Chilean citizen Elisa Abedrapo and Bulgarian citizen Gerga Petrova Ivanova. In another incident, reported
on July 26 in the Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, Nigel Kennedy, one of the best-known violinists in the world, was delayed at Ben
Gurion Airport even though the British Foreign Ministry had sent his particulars in advance to the relevant officials. It was only after an
urgent message from the British Embassy that Kennedy was allowed to enter Israel. A few weeks prior, a French band was held up for a
three-hour security check. All of their musical instruments were confiscated, in spite of their protests, and were returned to France only a
week later. Some of the expensive instruments had been badly damaged. The band was the guest of the French Embassy in Israel, and the
French Foreign Ministry had sent the particulars of all its members to the authorities at Ben Gurion Airport, but to no avail.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page 3

Accords, has already accepted the principle of issuing permanent residency to foreign nationals wishing to live in
the Palestinian Authority areas. The Quartet and other parties should demand the immediate resumption and
transparent processing of the 120,000+ pending family unification applications as an immediate first step.
B. Ongoing practices
Cases documented by the Campaign demonstrate that Israel is failing to implement even the limited procedures
outlined in Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Foreign Affairs announcements in a consistent and transparent
manner:
1. Individuals continue to be denied entry at all major ports of entry -- Allenby Bridge, Sheikh Hussein
Bridge, Ben Gurion Airport and Taba.
2. The overwhelming majority of documented cases since January 2007 involve US citizens. Among the
cases of entry denial are citizens from Australia, Canada and EU member countries as well as countries in Latin
America, East Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Documented cases include men, women and
children, ranging from 2 to over 70 years in age.
3. Procedures set out in the announcements are not being implemented in a clear, consistent and
transparent manner.
* Individuals who have demanded explanation for their denial of entry have been physically abused and
forced back into vehicles returning to Jordan.
* Individuals who have previously traveled to the region on a regular basis have been denied entry for the
first time. Others who have never visited the country have also been denied.
* Individuals who were denied entry in 2006 and were then able to obtain some form of clearance to enter
have again been denied entry in 2007.
* Israeli assurances to third state representatives regarding granting entry for particular foreign nationals
have repeatedly failed to materialize in several instances.
4
* Individuals seeking to apply for permits from Israeli embassies / consulates in their home countries to
enter the West Bank (the procedure "recommended" in CoGAT announcement) have been informed upon
inquiry that this procedure is not in effect.
* Individuals have been denied entry without access to a CoGAT representative contrary to stipulations in
the CoGAT announcement.
* Many of the individuals permitted to enter have been able to do so only through exclusive arrangements –
often for fees including sometimes exorbitant fees to lawyers. Some individuals are being required to
provide monetary deposits (between NIS 20,000 and 50,000) to guarantee their departure before the
expiration of their visas.
* Moreover, the duration of visas issued to a number of individuals granted entry varies widely and is
issued without clear reason or explanation. Documentation includes cases of individuals granted visas for
as little as one week and suggest that the Israeli authorities are increasingly issuing visas of shorter
duration to those indicating the intention to travel to the oPt.
5
* Despite a reactivation of visa extension processes, documented cases suggest that Israel's granting of visa
extensions remains arbitrary, clearly harming Palestinian family life, educational, cultural and social
service institutions and businesses. Moreover, even those who do receive visa extensions are unable to
leave the country since they fear they will be denied entry on their return.
4. The welfare and integrity of countless Palestinian families continue to be affected by separation or the
imminent threat of separation.
6
4
See, for example, cases in introductory section above.
5
See, for example, cases in introductory section above.
6
On July 23 L., a Brazilian national, was denied entry at Ben Gurion Airport. An engineering student in Germany, she was planning to visit
the family of her fiancée, an architecture student from Beit Jala who is also studying in Germany. In the six years that the couple has been
together, she has never been able to visit his family. While the family plans to appeal her denial through the Israeli court system, L.'s
fiancée expects the procedure will be costly and tiresome and therefore their future is uncertain. The reason cited for her denial stems from
her prior visit three years ago. While waiting at the Allenby Bridge crossing, she was writing in her diary. This aroused the suspicions of
the Israeli border guard and though she was allowed entry on that occasion after prolonged questioning, it now appears that this incident
was permanently recorded and was cited as the reason for her current refusal. At the time of writing, she is back in Germany and the
couple's wedding has been cancelled.
Also in July, eyewitness Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh, a geneticist living in the US, reported to the Campaign that while he was crossing Allenby
Bridge with his wife on July 12, he met the mother, father and son of a Palestinian-American family who were prevented from entering the

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page 4

* Spouses remain separated despite provisions in the CoGAT announcement for their visa entry and
renewals.
* Young children continue to be separated from their parents and the elderly are denied visits and essential
care from their immediate family.
5. The functioning of Palestinian health, educational and social services and businesses continue to be
affected.
7
6. Members of the international press have been denied entry to Israel and the oPt.
8
II. CRITICAL ISSUES STILL TO BE ADDRESSED
Moreover, critical shortcomings in CoGAT announcement have yet to be addressed:
The right to family unification & long-term residence -
The CoGAT notice addresses only the issue of temporary admissions (typically for short-term family visits,
tourism and humanitarian, business, educational or other professional activities). Israel has yet to provide any
indication regarding a change in policy regarding its refusal to process family unification applications since late
2000. The PA's Ministry for Civil Affairs estimates that it has received more than 120,000 requests for unification
since that time. Israel's continued refusal to process family reunification applications directly affects as many as
500,000 to 750,000 people who may be forced to leave the occupied Palestinian territory to keep their families
intact. Together with the many foreign nationals who have established their primary business, investment or
professional activities in the oPt, or otherwise aspire to build their lives in the oPt, the new procedures place them,
at best, in a state of continuous uncertainty, under constant threat of expulsion or exclusion.
Provisions for entry into East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip - The notice omits any indication that foreign nationals
seeking entry into occupied East Jerusalem or the Gaza Strip will be eligible to apply for temporary admission or
visa extensions.
Lack of accountability -All aspects of Israel's policies with regard to the Palestinian civilian population have
been characterized by arbitrariness and a complete lack of transparency; Israel has failed to indicate any
mechanisms that will be established to ensure that even the limited procedures outlined in the CoGAT
announcement will be implemented let alone that Israeli will comply with its obligations as an occupying power.
West Bank for another son's wedding. Both mother and father were born in the West Bank but do not have Palestinian IDs. All three carry
US passports and prior to their departure, they had spoken with a lawyer, the US State Department, Israeli and US Consulates in an attempt
to ensure a smooth passage. Another witness reported that on July 19 several people were denied entry including an American woman
married to a Palestinian-American; her husband was permitted entry with their children.
In yet another incident on 23 May, the wife and six children of Jamal Ibrahim were denied entry via Allenby Bridge. The youngest child is
4 years old and the oldest is 15. With the exception of Mr. Ibrahim, the family carries US citizenship.
7
On 2 July, a Swedish human rights worker for Defense of Children International (DCI) was denied entry at Ben Gurion Airport, held
overnight and deported the following day. Neither documents from DCI nor from the United Nations Association for International Services
(UNAIS), the organization sponsoring her voluntary position, were considered sufficient to facilitate her entry.
Dr. Hatem Abdo, M.D. is a specialist in neurosurgery and is currently planning a project to establish a hospital to specialize in cancer
recovery in Jerusalem. He is an American citizen and until recently, also a Jerusalem ID card holder. He arrived from the United States this
May, only to be told upon his departure, from which he was redirected from the Allenby Bridge border crossing to Sheikh Hussein, that he
is no longer entitled to his rights as a Jerusalem resident. His ID card was confiscated and now he may only enter the country once a year as
a tourist. His mission to establish a hospital has been overshadowed by a personal struggle to re-establish his Jerusalem residency. He
received his medical training in Egypt, Jerusalem, England, Canada and the United States and his presence would have a great impact on
the quality of medical care available to Palestinians in Jerusalem. By denying individuals such as Dr. Abdo, Israeli authorities are
effectively contributing to a Palestinian "brain drain" and preventing the establishment of projects intended to benefit the collective quality
of life in the oPt.
Ibrahim Abed Al Rahman, for example, a Palestinian American whose spouse carries a Palestinian ID recently reported that he was denied
entry twice -- once in June of 2006 and a second time in August of the same year. As the Israeli authorities marked his US passport, he
stayed in Jordan for more than a month awaiting a new one from the US Embassy. He is a prominent business man who owns considerable
property in Abu Shkhedim which he is unable to attend to. He is currently dependent on his son, who also holds an American passport, to
oversee his business, but his son is also fearful of having is right to enter revoked.
8
On 9 July In an article in the Electronic Intifada, Matthew Cassel, assistant editor and Photographer, chronicles his own denial through the
Sheikh Hussein crossing in late June 2007.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page 5

In short, Israeli authorities have failed to provide a transparent policy on which foreign nationals wishing to
enter or maintain their presence in the occupied Palestinian territory can rely and instead have continued to
pursue both policies and practices that fail to comply with International Humanitarian Law.
III. WHAT SHOULD BE DONE?
Third states maintaining friendly relations with Israel command the standing to challenge the arbitrary
exclusion of their nationals from the oPt. They also have an obligation to scrutinize Israel's exercise of
authority as an occupying power and to oppose arbitrary denials of entry and residency that harm Palestinian
family life, educational and social service institutions, businesses and social and economic development more
broadly.
Third states are urged to:
1. Ensure Israeli implementation of the rights to family unity and family reunification and the establishment of
clear and transparent procedures for foreign nationals seeking to reside in the oPt, in keeping with international
law.
- obtain Israeli cancellation of CoGAT's stipulation that foreigners are restricted to a 27-month, single
entry, maximum stay
Types of denial of entry cases documented post-CoGAT announcement
Cases of denial documented:
Dec
2006*
Jan
2007
Feb
2007
Mar
2007
May
2007
June
2007
July
2007
Aug
2007
Ports of entry
Allenby Bridge
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Ben Gurion Airport
X
X
X
X
X
X
Sheikh Hussein Bridge
X
X
X
X
X
Taba
X
X
X
X
Nationals
Arab World**
X
Europe
X
X
X
X
X
X
Latin American
X
X
X
X
X
North America
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Other
X
Types of visitors
Business persons
X
X
X
X
Development, human rights, &
humanitarian workers
X
X
X
X
Family
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Health professionals, educators & social
service providers
X
X
X
X
Media & filmmakers
X
X
X
X
Students & researchers
X
X
X
X
X
X
Tourists & visitors
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Other***
X
X
*from 13 December 2006 when Israeli Major General Mishlav, Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories
(COGAT), first informed the EU of its revised policy on entry and visa renewals for the oPt.
** Citizens of Arab countries are particularly reluctant to report entry denials. Procedures outlined in the COGAT and
MOFA notices pertain only to countries having visa agreements with Israel; no provision for visas or entry permits are
made for Jordanian nationals – the vast majority of those seeking family unification – or other Arab nationals seeking to
visit or reside in the oPt.
*** Others include those affiliated with the church and/or other religious institutions.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page 6

- demand Israel's adoption and implementation of a clear, transparent policy for issuing residency permits
to foreign nationals
2. Call for an immediate halt to Israel's arbitrary and abusive practice of denying entry to foreign nationals
traveling to the oPt.
- demand Israel's adoption and implementation of a clear, transparent policy for unhindered access to the
oPt by foreign nationals
- obtain explicit assurances that people who have previously been denied entry will be permitted to re-
enter the oPt
- end the practice of issuing permits that restrict exit and re-entry
- end the practice of issuing permits of less than three months to those traveling to the oPt
- cease the collective punishment of those whose relatives may have 'overstayed' their original visa
duration
3. Apply vigorous scrutiny to cases of denied entry and denied residency in the oPt with a view to promoting
Israel's adoption and transparent application of principles consistent with the internationally accepted rights and
obligations of an occupying power.
- set up clear mechanisms for citizens to report and appeal cases of denied entry
- set up clear mechanisms for liaising with Israeli authorities to ensure safe passage to the oPt for all
citizens and ensure the prompt and proper resolution of cases where safe passage has been hindered
- insist on receiving a formal explanation of each decision taken by Israel to bar any of their citizens from
the oPt
- object to all arbitrary denials of entry and residency that harm Palestinian family life, educational, health
and social service institutions and businesses and act to resolve all such cases of exclusion.
4. Respect the duty of all states not to acquiesce to internationally unlawful acts, bearing in mind that failing to
object to prima facie unlawful acts or policies when notified of them implies accepting them as lawful.
5. Promote Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law with appropriate and effective tools of
persuasion and dissuasion. Take appropriate measures based on reciprocity to ensure that the correct
treatment accorded Israeli nationals seeking to enter third countries is reciprocated by correct treatment of their
nationals seeking to enter Israel or the oPt
Concerned individuals and organizations are called on to intensify their efforts to hold the governments of
Israel, third states and the Palestinian National Authority to their respective obligations under international
humanitarian law and international human rights law.

Labels: , ,

Thursday, September 06, 2007

Subject: The Huffington Post: Mearsheimer & Walt
Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 13:57:21 +0000
The Huffington Post
David Bromwich

Iraq, Israel, Iran
Posted September 4, 2007 | 10:38 AM (EST)


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt's article on the Israel Lobby appeared in the London Review of Books, after having been commissioned and killed by the Atlantic Monthly, neoconservative publicists launched an all-out campaign to slander the authors as anti-Semites. Now that their book The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy has appeared--a work of considerable scope, carefully documented, and not just an expanded version of the article--the imputation of anti-Semitism will doubtless be repeated more sparingly for readers lower down the educational ladder. Meanwhile, the literate establishment press will (a) ignore it, (b) pretend that it says nothing new or surprising, and (c) rule out the probable inferences from the data, on the ground that the very meaning of the word "lobby" is elusive.
The truth is that many new facts are in this book, and many surprising facts. By reconstructing a trail of meetings and public statements in 2001-2002, for example, the authors show that much of the leadership of Israel was puzzled at first by the boyish enthusiasm for a war on Iraq among their neoconservative allies. Why Iraq ? they asked. Why now? They would appear to have obtained assurances, however, that once the "regime change" in Iraq was accomplished, the next war would be against Iran .

A notable pilgrimage followed. One by one they lined up, Netanyahu, Sharon, Peres, and Barak, writing op-eds and issuing flaming warnings to convince Americans that Saddam Hussein was a menace of world-historical magnitude. Suddenly the message was that any delay of the president's plan to bomb, invade, and occupy Iraq would be seized on by "the terrorists" as a sign of weakness. Regarding the correct treatment of terrorists, as also regarding the avoidance of weakness, Americans look to Israelis as mentors in a class by themselves.









So a war projected years before by Richard Perle and Paul Wolfowitz--a war secured at last by the fixing of the facts around the policy at the Office of the Vice President--was allowed to borrow some prestige at an intermediate stage by the consent of a few well-regarded Israeli politicians. Yet their target of choice had been Iran . They accepted the change of sequence without outward signs of doubt, possibly owing to their acquaintance with the Middle East doctrine espoused by the Weekly Standard and the American Enterprise Institute--a doctrine which held that to create a viable order after the fall of Iraq , regime change in Iran and Syria would have to follow expeditiously.

To sum up this part: the evidence of Mearsheimer and Walt suggests that Israel was never the prime mover of the Iraq war. Rather, once the Cheney-Wolfowitz design was in place, the Israeli ministers who trooped through American opinion pages and news-talk shows did what they could to heat up the war fever. This war was on the cards before they threw in their lot with Cheney and Bush; by their efforts they merely helped to confer on the plan an aura of legitimacy and worldly wisdom.

But now the American war with Iran they originally wanted is coming closer. Last Tuesday, when the mass media were crammed to distraction with the behavior of a senator in an airport washroom, few could be troubled to notice an important speech by President Bush. If Iran is allowed to persist in its present state, the president told the American Legion convention in Reno , it threatens "to put a region already known for instability and violence under the shadow of a nuclear holocaust." He said he had no intention of allowing that; and so he has "authorized our military commanders in Iraq to confront Tehran 's murderous activities." Those words come close to saying not that a war is coming but that it is already here. No lawmaker who reads them can affect the slightest shock at any action the president takes against Iran .

Admittedly, it was a showdown speech, reckless and belligerent, to a soldier audience; but then, this has been just the sort of crowd and message that Cheney and Bush favor when they are about to open a new round of killings. And in a sense, the Senate had given the president his cue when it approved, by a vote of 97-0, the July 11 Lieberman Amendment to Confront Iran . It is hardly an accident that the president and his favorite tame senator concurred in their choice of the word "confront." The pretext for the Lieberman amendment, as for the president's order, was the discovery of caches of weapons alleged to belong to Iran, the capture of Iranian advisers said to be operating against American troops, and the assertion that the most deadly IEDs used against Americans are often traceable to Iranian sources--claims that have been widely treated in the press as possible, but suspect and unverified. Still, the vote was 97-0. If few Americans took notice, the government of Iran surely did.







That unanimous vote was the latest in a series of capitulations that has included the apparent end of resistance by Nancy Pelosi to the next war. After the election of 2006, the speaker of the house declared her intention to enact into law a requirement that this president seek separate authorization for a war against Iran . On the point of doing so, she addressed the AIPAC convention, and was booed for criticizing the escalation of the Iraq war. Pelosi took the hint, shelved her authorization plan, and went with AIPAC against the anti-war base of the Democratic party.

This much, one might know without the help of Mearsheimer and Walt. But without their record, how many would trace the connection between the removal of Philip Zelikow as policy counselor of the state department, at the end of 2006, and a speech Zelikow had given in September 2006 urging serious negotiation and a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine? The ousting of Zelikow was a blessing to the war party, since it freed them from a skeptical confidant of Secretary of State Rice--perhaps the only person of stature anywhere near the administration whom she treated as an ally and friend. And the meaning of the change was clear when Zelikow's replacement turned out to be Eliot Cohen: a neoconservative war scholar and enthusiast, an early booster of the "surge" on the pundit shows, and incidentally a shameless slanderer of Mearsheimer-Walt ("Yes, It's Anti-Semitic," Washington Post, April 5, 2006).

From Zelikow to Cohen was only a step on the long path of humiliation that now stretched before Condoleeza Rice. When, in March 2007, amid suggestions of a renewal of diplomacy, she intimated that talks might be helpful in dealing with the Hamas-Fatah unity government (whose formation the Arab world had greeted as offering a promise of peace), she was demolished by an AIPAC-backed advisory letter bearing the signatures of 79 senators, which directed her not to speak with a government that had not yet recognized Israel. From that moment Rice was effectively neutralized.

The hottest cries for another war have been coming this summer from Joe Lieberman. He has called for attacks on Iran , and for attacks on Syria . It is as if Lieberman, with his appetite for multiple theaters of conflict, spoke from the congealed memory of all the wars he never fought. But Joe Lieberman is a stalking-horse. He would not say these things without getting permission from Vice President Cheney, a close and admired friend. Nor would Cheney permit a high-profile lawmaker whom he partly controls to set the United States and Israel on so perilous a course unless he had ascertained its acceptability to Ehud Olmert.









Yet the chief orchestrater of the second neoconservative war of aggression is Elliott Abrams. Convicted for deceptions around Iran-Contra, as Lewis Libby was convicted for deceptions stemming from Iraq --and pardoned by the elder Bush just as Libby had his sentence commuted by the younger--Abrams now presides over the Middle East desk at the National Security Council. All of the wildness of this astonishing functionary and all his reckless love of subversion will be required to pump up the "imminent danger" of Iran . For here, as with Iraq , the danger can only be made to look imminent by manipulation and forgery. On all sober estimates, Iran is several months from mastering the nuclear cycle, and several years from producing a weapon. Whereas Israel for decades has been in possession of a substantial nuclear arsenal.

How mad is Elliott Abrams? If one passage cited by Mearsheimer-Walt is quoted accurately, it would seem to be the duty of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to subject Abrams to as exacting a challenge as the Senate Judiciary Committee brought to Alberto Gonzales. The man at the Middle East desk of the National Security Council wrote in 1997 in his book Faith or Fear: "there can be no doubt that Jews, faithful to the covenant between God and Abraham, are to stand apart from the nation in which they live. It is the very nature of being Jewish to be apart--except in Israel --from the rest of the population." When he wrote those words, Abrams probably did not expect to serve in another American administration. He certainly did not expect to occupy a position that would require him to weigh the national interest of Israel, the country with which he confessed himself uniquely at one, alongside the national interest of a country in which he felt himself to stand "apart...from the rest of the population." Now that he is calling the shots against Hamas and Hezbollah, Damascus and Tehran , his words of 1997 ought to alarm us into reflection.

Among many possible lines of inquiry, the senators might begin by recognizing that the United States has other allies in Asia besides Israel . One of those allies is India ; and there is a further point of resemblance. In a distinct exception to our anti-proliferation policy, we have allowed India to develop nuclear weapons; just as, in an earlier such exception, we allowed Israel to do the same. But suppose we read tomorrow a statement by the director of the South Asia desk of the National Security Council which declared: "There can be no doubt that Hindus are to stand apart from any nation in which they live. It is the very nature of being Hindu to be apart--except in India --from the rest of the population." Suppose, further, we knew this man still held these beliefs at a time of maximum tension between India and Pakistan ; and that he had recently channeled 86 million dollars to regional gangs and militias bent on increasing the tension. Would we not conclude that something in our counsels of state had gone seriously out of joint?







The Mearsheimer-Walt study of American policy deserves to be widely read and discussed. It could not be more timely. If the speeches and saber-rattling by the president, the ambassador to Iraq , and several army officers mean anything, they mean that Cheney and Abrams are preparing to do to Iran what Cheney and Wolfowitz did to Iraq . They are gunning for an incident. They are working against some resistance from the armed forces but none from the opposition party at home. The president has ordered American troops to confront Iran . Sarkozy has fallen into line, Brown and Merkel are silent, and outside the United States only Mohamed ElBaradei of the International Atomic Energy Agency stands between the war party and a prefabricated justification for a war that would extend across a vast subcontinent. Unless some opposition can rouse itself, we are poised to descend with non-partisan compliance into a moral and political disaster that will dwarf anything America has seen.





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Share your special parenting moments!

Labels: , ,

Saturday, September 01, 2007

Subject: Gulfnews: The undeclared war on Arab cuisine
Date: Fri, 31 Aug 2007 12:44:59 +0000



The undeclared war on Arab cuisine
By George S. Hishmeh, Special to Gulf News
Last updated: August 29, 2007

http://archive.gulfnews.com/articles/07/08/30/10150036.html



My niece, Irene, called me a few days ago indignant that some of her American friends, including some Jews, keep describing typical Arab foods such as falafel, hummus and shawarma, among others, as Israeli.



She wanted to know how she can convince them this is not the case.



I am quite familiar with this problem since many Arab Americans have been aware of this undeclared war at many unsuspecting restaurants specialising in Mediterranean cuisine, or coverage in the media. My first confrontation with this issue came in 1969 when the late Leah Rabin, wife of the assassinated Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin who was then his country's ambassador in Washington, discussed in a New York Times interview Israeli cuisine, and praised labneh (strained yogurt) as healthful food.



My first impulse was to tell my niece that Israel was almost 60 year old and these food items have obviously existed long before then. My curiosity prompted me to "google" Israeli foods. The internet yielded tens of references, including the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs website which carried a feature on Israeli foods.



I couldn't believe my eyes and wished the Arab governments would do the same, but knowing their ineptitude at explaining more life-and-death issues I doubted they will tackle this quiet Israeli attempt at usurping Arab foods. So I did not bother to check but I would like to be proven wrong.



As a matter of fact, Arab-Americans are used to reading sometimes the wildest of statements made against Arabs or Muslims. Two such items appeared in the press this week.



In an Op-Ed column published in The Washington Post, Nina Shea complains about the alleged "cleansing campaign" now underway against non-Muslim minorities in Iraq. Shea, director of the Hudson Institute's Centre for Religious Freedom and a commissioner on the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, saw this action as similar to what happened "sixty years ago (to) Iraq's flourishing Jewish population, a third of Baghdad, (that) fled in the wake of coordinated bombing and violence against them". Of the 125,000 only 6,000 remained in Iraq and the remainder presumably settled in Israel.



You would think that Shea would have checked her facts before making these outrageous and disputed allegations.



Naeim Giladi, an Iraqi Jew who fled to Israel and later settled in the US, maintains in an article that appeared in The Link (April - May 1998) and in his book, Ben Gurion's Scandals: How the Haganah & the Mossad Eliminated Jews that "the terrible truth is that the grenades that killed and maimed Iraqi Jews and damaged their property were thrown by Zionist Jews". He also pointed out that Wilbur Crane Eveland, a former senior officer in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), wrote in his book, Ropes of Sand, published in 1980, that "in attempts to portray the Iraqis as anti-American and to terrorise the Jews, the Zionists planted bombs in the US Information Service library and in synagogues (and) soon leaflets began to appear urging Jews to flee to Israel."



The second incident this week involved New York's newest public school in memory of a world-famous Lebanese-American philosopher and poet, Gibran Kahlil Gibran, a Christian, and the city's first to offer instruction in Arabic and on Arab culture. Consequently, it has been has been targeted by critics who alleged that the school will serve as "a potential radical-Islam training ground".



The school's original principal, Debbie Al Montaser, an Arab-American, had to quit for her refusal to condemn the use of the word "intifada", a term used by Palestinian Arabs to describe their uprising against Israeli occupation. Danielle Salzberg, a Jewish woman who does not speak Arabic, has been named her interim successor.



Distortions



To cite but one of many distortions and claims about the authenticity of Israeli cuisine, Joan Nathan, author of The Foods of Israel and whose writings and recipes appear on MyJewishLearning.com, maintains that falafel is "the ultimate Israeli food".



On the other hand, Daniel Rogov, the restaurant and wine critics of Haaretz, the leading Israeli newspaper, acknowledges that "despite these longstanding myths, there is nothing Israeli about falafel, shawarma, borekas or hummus ...." and added that "in order to set the culinary record straight, let it be known that falafel .... outdates the existence of the State of Israel by several thousand years, archeologists having discovered the remains of ground chickpeas in the tombs of several of the Pharaohs. Shawarma ... (is) Turkish in origin, as are borekas ... As for hummus, most food historians agree the dish originated some 4,000 years ago, probably in North Africa." Interestingly, his lengthy review titled The International Israeli Table which appears on the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was written three years ago.



Now that the record is hopefully set straight, I am just leaving to have a falafel sandwich at the best falafel and shawarma sandwich in the Washington, D.C. area, prepared by two Palestinian Arab cooks from Israel and working at a neighbourhood Jewish (kosher) restaurant.



George S. Hishmeh is a Washington-based columnist. He can be contacted at ghishmeh@gulfnews.com.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now you can see trouble…before he arrives

Labels: , ,