Protesters claim it is promoting universities that aided recent military assault on Gaza
The Science Museum, one of Britain’s most prestigious public institutions, was embroiled in a row last night after being accused of promoting Israeli universities whose research was used in the country’s military campaign in Gaza.
More than 400 academics, a Nobel laureate and the former chair of the Science Select Committee called on the museum to cancel workshops due to be held this week that promote Israeli scientific achievements to schoolchildren. The critics plan to picket the event and accused the museum of promoting scientists and universities who are “complicit in the Israeli occupation and in the policies and weaponry recently deployed to such disastrous effect in Gaza”.
Many of the critics were behind a campaign in 2002 to impose an academic boycott on Israel. That campaign failed but it provoked debate worldwide over whether Israeli academics should be penalised for the actions of their government. Forty professors are among the signatories who want the workshops cancelled. They include Jonathan Rosenhead from the London School of Economics, who is leading the protest, Steven Rose from the Open University and the architect and historian Charles Jencks. The Zionist Federation is running the “educational seminars” at the Manchester Museum of Science and Industry today and at the Science Museum on Thursday. The federation’s chair, Andrew Balcombe, said that they were purely educational and non-political. “We are proud to be running an event like this. It’s an educational event, not a political one in any way, shape or form. It’s merely to inform people of the contribution that Israel has made to science and technology … I’m not aware of any connection between defence and university research, and none that is stronger than in any other countries.”
Ian Gibson MP, the former chairman of the House of Commons Science Select Committee, the Booker-shortlisted writer Ahdaf Soueif, the architect Walter Hain, and the Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire also signed a petition against the workshops. The British Committee for the Universities of Palestine organised the petition.
That another victory for the BRICUP campaign! To read all about it, see the item below:
BRICUP says: this is not a cause for celebration! Israel Day of Science
WHAT YOU WON’T SEE INSIDE THIS MUSEUM
You won’t see: The details of the literally hundreds of R&D contracts that these same universities hold with the Israeli Ministry of Defense. Tel Aviv University says it is “playing a major role in enhancing Israel’s security capabilities and military edge”, according to its Annual Report.
The University buildings constructed on land stolen from Palestinians
The names of the university staff called up without protest to serve during the Gaza attack. (Most university teachers serve in the Reserve forces.)
The smiles on the faces of the many University staff who provide policy advice on how to maintain and extend the illegal occupation of Palestinian Territories. For example
The Haifa geography professor who devised the idea and the line of the Apartheid Wall that steals Palestinian land and livelihoods.
The Tel Aviv philosophy professor who developed the military doctrines of targeted assassinations and of ‘disproportionate reprisal’
The bodies of the innocent Gaza civilians wrecked by the onslaught of the 5th strongest army in the world This event is sponsored and paid for by the Zionist Federation of Great Britain. It is not a Science exhibition mounted by the Museum. It is a PR exercise for Israel, the state that has just carried out a brutal aggression against an imprisoned and virtually defenceless population. For more information contact: BRICUP: info@bricup.org.uk
Israel Day of Science WHAT YOU WON’T SEE INSIDE THIS MUSEUM
You won’t see:
The details of the literally hundreds of R&D contracts that these same universities hold with the Israeli Ministry of Defense. Tel Aviv University says it is “playing a major role in enhancing Israel’s security capabilities and military edge”, according to its Annual Report.
The University buildings constructed on land stolen from Palestinians
The names of the university staff called up without protest to serve during the Gaza attack. (Most university teachers serve in the Reserve forces.)
The smiles on the faces of the many University staff who provide policy advice on how to maintain and extend the illegal occupation of Palestinian Territories. For example
The Haifa geography professor who devised the idea and the line of the Apartheid Wall that steals Palestinian land and livelihoods.
The Tel Aviv philosophy professor who developed the military doctrines of targeted assassinations and of ‘disproportionate reprisal’
The bodies of the innocent Gaza civilians wrecked by the onslaught of the 5th strongest army in the world
This event is sponsored and paid for by the Zionist Federation of Great Britain. It is not a Science exhibition mounted by the Museum. It is a
PR exercise for Israel, the state that has just carried out a brutal aggression against an imprisoned and virtually defenceless population.
For more information contact:
BRICUP: info@bricup.org.uk
Suleiman Baraka is a Palestinian astrophysicist working at Virginia Tech with NASA. His eleven-year-old son Ibrahim was killed in an air strike during Israel’s three-week assault on Gaza. After he first told his story on Democracy Now!, the US consulate in Jerusalem contacted him and got his surviving family members out of Gaza. This weekend, at Washington, D.C.’s Dulles Airport, he was reunited with his wife and three remaining children. We take you to the bittersweet reunion. [includes rush transcript]
It was as if they had stepped on a mine, but there was no shrapnel in the wound. Some had lost their legs. It looked as though they had been sliced off. I have been to war zones for 30 years, but I have never seen such injuries before. —Dr. Erik Fosse, Norwegian cardiologist whoworked in Gaza hospitals during the recent war.
What Dr. Fosse was describing was the effects of a U.S. “focused lethality” weapon that minimalizes explosive damage to structures while inflicting catastrophic wounds on its victims. While the weapon has been used in Iraq, Gaza was the first test of the bomb in a densely populated environment. The specific weapon—the GBU-39—is a Dense Inert Metal Explosive (DIME) and was developed by the U.S. Air Force, Boeing Corporation, and University of California’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in 2000. The weapon wraps the high explosives HMX or RDX with a tungsten alloy and other metals like cobalt, nickel or iron, in a carbon fiber/epoxy container. When the bomb explodes, the container evaporates and the tungsten turns into micro-shrapnel that is extremely lethal up to about 60 feet. Tungsten is inert, so it does not react chemically with the explosive. While a non-inert metal like aluminum would increase the blast, tungsten actually limits the explosion.
Within the weapon’s range, however, it is inordinately lethal. According to Norwegian doctor Mad Gilbert, the blast results in multiple amputations and “very severe fractures. The muscles are sort of split from the bones, hanging loose, and you also have quite severe burns.”
A convoy of 12 British doctors from PIMA (Palestine International Medical Aid) are still stranded at Rafah Crossing since Sunday 1 March.
The convoy has left Manchester Airport on Saturday 28 February carrying with them urgent medical supplies and equipment as medical relief for the victims of the war on Gaza.
The starnded physicians in Gaza
PIMA had previously sent another convoy of 12 doctors on 26 January who saw at first hand the scale of the atrocities committed against the people of Gaza and the nature and severity of the injuries sustained.
In its previous visit PIMA has pledged to carry on sending medical envoys to help treating difficult injuries and complications and to train the local doctors to raise the standards of medical care in Gaza as doctors in Gaza do not have the opportunity to develop their skills and have continuous medical education due to the closure imposed on Gaza for few years now.
Dr Ahmed Almari/PIMA Director has expressed his dismay on preventing the convoy from entering Gaza and that the 12 doctors are stranded at Rafah in a miserable weather conditions for the 4th day.This is at the time when hundreds of political delegation gather at Sharm El-Shikh and high level figures including Tony Blair went to Gaza and pledged reconstruction and humanitarian aid to Gaza. Dr Almari called upon the British and the Egyptian Authorities to stand by their pledges and facilitate the entry of the medical convoy to Gaza without any further delay.
Read below another report about how Obamahg is lining himself with Israel, day by day, and is soon going to be inhabiting the good old Bush poosition. Hilary will definitely make sure of that. And please remember, Dear Barack – Israel never forgets a friend – remember Tony Blair and his well-earned $1Million?
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration said Friday that the United States will boycott an upcoming U.N. conference on racism unless its final document is changed to drop all references to Israel and the defamation of religion. At the same time, it said the U.S. would participate as an observer in meetings of the U.N. Human Rights Council, a body that was shunned by the Bush administration for anti-Israel statements and failing to act on abuses in Sudan and other states. The racism conference is a follow-up to the contentious 2001 meeting in the South African city of Durban that was dominated by clashes over the Middle East and the legacy of slavery. The U.S. and Israel walked out midway through that meeting over a draft resolution that singled out Israel for criticism and likened Zionism – the movement to establish and maintain a Jewish state – to racism.
The Israeli invasion of Gaza, which has now claimed more than 1,400 lives, generated serious popular backlash the world over. The overwhelmingly weak official positions and statements, especially in the Arab world, stood in stark contrast to the outpouring of rage that was witnessed in the streets of capitals, cities, and towns across the globe. However, this recent wave of protests has a particular quality that differentiates it from past mobilizations: the initial flare-up of energy is being channeled into effective grassroots political action, primarily in the form of an ongoing campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS).
The tangible victories and rise of BDS activism immediately following Gaza are a direct result of the many years of often little-acknowledged organizing, building and mobilizing that was undertaken following the 2005 call from Palestinian civil society. It is important to look at these last four years in order to make sure that we continue to build on these victories. We have moved beyond questioning the efficacy of BDS and must now work to incorporate the growing numbers of people who, while outraged at the events in Gaza, are not yet connected to the BDS movement. We also must expand the actors and struggles involved in BDS by linking the Palestinian cause to other similar fights for social, economic and political justice. A number of commentators have already noted the mass mobilizations that occurred in response to Israel’s invasion of Gaza. Demonstrations and protests were undertaken on every inhabited continent involving millions of people across hundreds of cities. In the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Western Europe, where pro-Palestine demonstrations are typically strong, the numbers of participants and scale of actions were astronomical.
Reem Salahi writing from the United States, Live from Palestine
Muhammad Shurrab holds pictures of his son Kassab (left) and Ibrahim, killed during Israel's siege of Gaza. (Reem Salahi)
Having returned from Gaza, I am trying to come to terms with what I saw, what I heard and honestly, what I don’t think I will ever understand — the justification. While Israel’s recent offensive has been the most egregious of any historical attack upon the Palestinians in Gaza, it is just that, one of many. Gaza has been under Israeli bombardment and sanctions for decades. Prior to the Israeli pullout in 2005, Gaza was under complete Israeli control and occupation. Nearly 8,000 Israeli settlers occupied 40 percent of Gaza while the 1.5 million Palestinians occupied the remaining 60 percent. Settlements were located on the most fertile lands and along Gaza’s beautiful coastal regions and checkpoints prevented Palestinian mobility. Despite being one-fifth the size of Rhode Island, 25 miles long and 4 to 7.5 miles wide, Gaza was divided into three sections and Palestinians had to pass through multiple checkpoints to get from one section to the next. Often Israeli forces would close these checkpoints and not allow the Palestinians access to the other regions in Gaza as a form of collective punishment.
Yet with Israel’s pullout in 2005, the Palestinian experience has not improved. Rather, it has become even more unpredictable and isolated. Palestinians who celebrated the exodus of the Israeli settlers and the return of some of their land could not have imagined what would follow and how Israel would subsequently unleash its brutal force against them. As the saying goes, nothing in life is free and the Palestinians have paid, and continue to pay, a dear and unforgivable price for Israel’s withdrawal from their legally rightful land. Ironically, the majority of Palestinians living in Gaza are refugees who fled from their homes that were previously located in what has become Israel proper due to the influx of Zionist settlers. These refugees have yet to be restored their right to their original land and property. Now these Palestinians are even being denied their right to be refugees as Israel continues to bombard their homes in Gaza and destroy any livelihood they may have had.
As one of the numerous Jewish members of Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA Carleton), I can attest that our group is emphatically opposed to racism of any kind and explicitly opposed to anti-Semitism.
The importance of these principles to us is reflected in our list of speakers for Israeli Apartheid Week, which includes a Jewish holocaust survivor, a Jewish leader of the South African anti-apartheid movement, Canadian aboriginal leaders and Palestinian leaders.
As students at Canadian universities, we expect facts and evidence to be the critical ingredients of serious, civilized discussion and debate in our institutions. We look forward to the day when B’nai Brith’s Frank Dimant is ready to participate on this basis rather than through aggressive suppression tactics which rely heavily on denial, projection, unsubstantiated allegations and false accusations of anti-Semitism. The facts that Mr. Dimant would conceal and the views with which Mr. Dimant disagrees can no longer be suppressed.
Ben Saifer,
Ottawa
Israel’s targeting of civilian resistance to the separation wall proves the two-state solution is now just a meaningless slogan
t is quite likely that you have not heard of the most important developments this week in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In the West Bank, while it has been “occupation as normal”, there have been some events that together should be overshadowing Gaza, Gilad Shalit and Avigdor Lieberman. First, there have been a large number of Israeli raids on Palestinian villages, with dozens of Palestinians abducted. These kinds of raids are, of course, commonplace for the occupied West Bank, but in recent days it appears the Israeli military has targeted sites of particularly strong Palestinian civil resistance to the separation wall. For three consecutive days this week, Israeli forces invaded Jayyous, a village battling for survival as their agricultural land is lost to the wall and neighbouring Jewish colony. The soldiers occupied homes, detained residents, blocked off access roads, vandalised property, beat protestors, and raised the Israeli flag at the top of several buildings. Jayyous is one of the Palestinian villages in the West Bank that has been non-violently resisting the separation wall for several years now. It was clear to the villagers that this latest assault was an attempt to intimidate the protest movement.
One by one the justifications given by Israel for its latest war in Gaza are unravelling.
The argument that this is a purely defensive war, launched only after Hamas broke a six-month ceasefire has been challenged, not just by observers in the know such as Jimmy Carter, the former US president who helped facilitate the truce, but by centre-right Israeli intelligence think tanks. The Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, whose December 31 report titled `Six Months of the Lull Arrangement Intelligence Report,` confirmed that the June 19 truce was only `sporadically violated, and then not by Hamas but instead by … `rogue terrorist organisations`. Instead, `the escalation and erosion of the lull arrangement` occurred after Israel killed six Hamas members on November 4 without provocation and then placed the entire Strip under an even more intensive siege the next day.
The Gaza war, aimed at defending the bombed and neglected south, started two months ago. Does anyone even remember it by now? Indeed, we hear talk about negotiations aimed at securing Gilad Shalit`s release in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and about a ceasefire in exchange for opening the crossings. On occasion, Qassams land in the south, and rarely do we also hear about the situation in the Strip. Yet does anyone remember the war? Isn`t it worthwhile to stop and think about what happened there, and about what we achieved? Let`s try to reconstruct the events: The State of Israel chose not to accept Hamas` proposals for extending the lull, which gave more peace to the western Negev than anything else, in exchange for really opening the crossings. As opposed to common perception, they were not really open before that. Instead of an agreement, the government decided to embark on a huge offensive, whose official aims were to put an end to Qassam fire, restore our deterrence, and gravely harm Hamas. By the end of the war, after more than 1,300 Palestinians were killed, including hundreds of children, after thousands of people were wounded and immense destruction was caused, and after 13 Israelis were killed (including five killed by friendly fire), nothing has changed and the objectives were not secured.
The Qassam fire, which increased during the war, is back to routine. Deterrence is difficult to measure, yet there is no doubt that the ongoing fire hints to the answer here too. And what about Hamas? It still rules the Strip, launches recovery plans, engages in negotiations with Fatah on a unity government, and still offers Israel the same deal: A ceasefire in exchange for opening the crossings, and Shalit in exchange for prisoners. So, aside from the killing, destruction, and growing hatred, what did we achieve?
If by any chance, you were wondering what will happen now, wonder no more! Read below about the next stage in the total ethnic cleansing planned for Palestine. This is from the horse’s mouth, of course.
The Ministry of Construction and Housing is planning to construct at least 73,300 housing units in the West Bank
An examination of the data available on the Israeli government Website (http://www.govmap.gov.il/) that contains maps and information from the Ministry of Housing, reveals that in plans for the West Bank at least 15,000 housing units have already been approved, and plans for an additional 58,000 housing units are yet to be approved. This Peace Now report is based on this data published on the official government website.
However the plans published are only a small part of the overall housing plans for the Occupied Territories, there are other thousands of housing units in plans of the local authorities, private initiators and other public authorities, all of which we are in the process of collating. Main findings:
• Total number of housing units in the published plans – 73,302, out of which, 5,722 are in East Jerusalem
• Total number of housing units in approved plans – 15,156, approx. 8,950 of which have already been built.
• Total number of housing units in planning stages – 58,146.
• If all the plans are realized, the number of settlers in the Territories will be doubled (an addition of approx. 300,000 persons, based upon an average of 4 persons in each housing unit).
• In Gush Etzion (Bethlehem area) 17,000 housing units are planned in areas outside the existing settlements.
• At least six (6) outposts are included in the Ministry of Housing plans (Magen Dan, Givat Hadagan, Givat Hatamar, Bnei Adam, Bat Ayin West, Hill 26).
• There are plans for huge construction to double the size of some settlements, including: Beitar Illit, Ariel, Givat Ze’ev, Maaleh Adumim, Efrat and Geva Binyamin.
• Approx. 19,000 housing units are planned in settlements that are beyond the constructed path of the Fence (Kiryat Arba, Karnei Shomron, Ariel, Geva Binyamin, Immanuel, Revava).
• The plans in the settlements constitute 22% of the total housing units that are in planning stages in the Ministry of Housing.
For the dull report, with photos and maps,click here
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has restated “unshakeable” support for Israel, whatever type of government emerges from current coalition talks. Mrs Clinton is on her first visit to the region as the top diplomat of Barack Obama’s US administration. Right-winger Benjamin Netanyahu, who opposes some key US policies, has been asked to form Israel’s next government. Mrs Clinton also announced two senior US officials would head for Syria, Israel’s long-time foe, for talks. “We are going to be sending two officials to Syria. There are a number of issues that we have between Syria and the US, as well as the larger regional concerns that Syria obviously poses,” Mrs Clinton said. Syria had engaged in indirect negotiations with the outgoing Israeli government on the fate of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The US has kept Damascus at arms length for several years, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and destabilising its Arab neighbours. However, analysts say recent diplomatic moves could be a prelude to restoring a US ambassador in Damascus.
Those who expected that a woman who supported the criminal war in Iraq will not suport another war crime in Gaza, should take a long look in the mirror…Hilary speaks and Barack listens!
Settlements are built on Arab land occupied by Israel during the 1967 war
Israel’s Prime Minister designate, Benjamin Netanyahu, will not openly commit to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But the US insists it’s the only way forward, and Hillary Clinton is visiting the region for the first time as secretary of state.“I feel like a stranger in my own land. I can’t go for a long walk. I have to sneak around. Otherwise I’m stopped by Israeli soldiers or threatened by Israeli settlers.” This is no longer occupation, this is colonisation. Israel has no right to this land!
Raja Shehadeh
Raja Shehadeh is an award-winning author. A Palestinian mourning the erosion and theft, as he sees it, of his birthplace, the West Bank.
He took me to a stunning viewpoint over the rough, rolling hills outside the Palestinian town of Ramallah. A nature-lover, Mr Shehadeh pointed out the beautiful spring flowers all around us, as well as the Jewish settlements.“Every Palestinian town here is surrounded by these settlements,” he tells me. “The hills here have been chopped and flattened by them. They are an assault on one’s sense of beauty and of belonging in the land.” More and more Israelis have moved to the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 1967 when Israel captured and occupied the territory. This is illegal under international law. Palestinians say it makes peace here impossible.
“The only consistent policy Israeli governments have had over the last 40 years is not seeking peace and building settlements in the Palestinian territories,” says Mr Shehadeh. “This is no longer occupation, this is colonisation. Israel has no right to this land. God is not in the business of real estate. If Israel wants peace, it cannot be on this land.”
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton requested on Tuesday that Israel permit the opening of Gaza border crossings to allow for massive supply of humanitarian aid to the civilian population. Clinton made the request during a meeting with Defense Minister Ehud Barak. Last week, Haaretz reported that Clinton sent angry messages to the Israeli government over the deteriorating humanitarian plight of Gaza residents. Barak told Clinton that some 127,000 tons of food and medicine have crossed into Gaza through the openings since the end of the recent Israeli offensive. The defense minister added that over 12 million liters of fuel have been provided for the Gaza power station. Clinton then met with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in his residence in Jerusalem.
“The Secretary of State has an excellent familiarity with the State of Israel and the entire Middle East, one which goes back many years, and I am certain that she will know how to utilize all the experience and knowledge … to advance stability and quiet in the region ? because this is a goal we all share,” Olmert said.
A new report indicating an uptick in anti-Semitic incidents in Europe was dismissed on Tuesday as “too little, too late” by a key European Jewish organization. Peaks in anti-Semitic sentiment in Europe have tracked worsening tensions in the Middle East, and the image of anti-Semites as “right-wing skinheads” has changed, an EU agency said in a working paper on Monday. The Vienna-based Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), which collected information from 19 EU members, said the rise in anti-Semitic incidents, ranging from vandalism to physical attacks, was a serious concern.
As usual, when things are getting very tough, antisemitism becomes the only hope… maybe it could even drive some Jews towards Israel? I doubt that very much.
European Union countries Tuesday stepped up their opposition to Muslim attempts to shield Islam from criticism and attack Israel through a UN conference on racism. EU members were unusually outspoken in appearances before the UN Human Rights Council, saying they were worried about preparations for a global racism conference to be held next month because attention was being diverted from the real problems of racial discrimination. “I am deeply disturbed by the turn this event is taking,” Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Verhagen said.
So let us remind everyone who is still confused, what the rules of the game are:
1. Israel cannot be criticised for its racism
2. Israel cannot be criticised for its brutality
3. Israel cannot be criticised for its illegal occupation
4. Israel cannot be criticised for its continous breaking of international law
