The explosive device that was planted on the side of the Route 65 highway in Megiddo has been described as very sophisticated in nature, and does not resemble those used by Palestinians in the occupied West Bank
A mysterious roadside bombing at the Megiddo junction in northern Israel on 13 March preoccupied the Israeli security establishment, which has placed the incident under heavy gag orders and refused to publish specific details on the subject due to its sensitive nature.
According to The Times of Israel, police and medics reported that the explosion took place around 6:00 am on the Route 65 highway at the Megiddo Junction, near the Megiddo prison, leaving a young man badly injured after the bomb exploded near his car.
The victim, 21-year-old Shareef al-Din from the northern Arab village of Salem, is being treated at Rambam Hospital in Haifa and is said to be in serious condition after suffering from shrapnel to his entire body, including his head, according to medical officials.
Official Israeli sources have said that the victim may not have been the intended target, as the roadside bomb reportedly planned to target passing soldiers and settlers.
The bomb was apparently planted on the side of the highway, which remained closed for nearly 10 hours after the incident.
Following the incident, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held a series of security meetings that lasted over 24 hours. Additionally, Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the incident is being investigated by the Shin Bet security agency.
Israeli Kan 11 channel reported that “most of the details of the case are forbidden to be published according to censorship instructions – the security system is very concerned about the details of the case.”
This news comes following a series of security incidents over the past week, including multiple explosives found on settler buses in the West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit on 9 March.
The same day, three resistance leaders were gunned down by Israeli Border Police in Jenin – an explosive charge was also found in their car.
Back in November of last year, Palestinian resistance carried out a twin bombing attack in Jerusalem that was described by the Shin Bet as “complex.” The IEDs were placed on the roadside and attempted to target fully occupied buses using a remote-detonation mechanism.
However, the Megiddo incident, in particular, has been under heavy censorship by the Israeli army. Described as a “commando operation” that is “completely unusual in the security establishment,” according to Yisrael Hayom, it is still unknown who planned the attack, which involved an “elaborate and compact device” that does not resemble those often used in the occupied West Bank.
Hebrew sources compared the explosive device to past roadside bombs used by the Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah against the Israeli army in South Lebanon.
Israeli military strategist and former Chief of Staff of the army Gadi Eisenkot told Knesset members on 14 March that “the Israeli army is at a crossroads, and we are currently going through one of the most serious security periods since the Yom Kippur war.”
Expert on Israeli affairs, Dr. Adnan Abu Amer, said that “it is clear that we are facing a dangerous and unusual series of explosive device detonations, which raises questions about who planned it, how it reached this sensitive area, and will the coming days carry other devices?”
Recent months have witnessed an increase in the use of explosive devices by Palestinians as opposed to just shooting operations, in what is being described by many as the beginnings of a third intifada. As a result, the security establishment fears advancement in bomb-making by the Palestinian resistance in the occupied West Bank.
Such bombing operations are reminiscent of those carried out during the Second Intifada, which saw several large-scale attacks, such as the Megiddo Junction bus bombing of 2002 by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
In a 14 March feature by Haaretz, Amos Harel writes: “The Shin Bet and IDF have been concerned for several months about increased attempts” by Palestinians to prepare explosive charges.
Israeli officials have said that publishing the details of the Megiddo bombing will undermine the public’s sense of security at a time when the security establishment is trying to avoid confrontation.Keywords
Israeli lawmakers have voted in favor of a bill that would impose the death penalty on so-called “terrorists” accusing of killing Israelis. Backed by rightwing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hardline allies, the bill has been bitterly opposed by Palestinians and foreign observers.
The death penalty bill passed its first reading in the Israeli parliament (Knesset) by 55 votes to nine on Wednesday. Most of the opposition – led by former Prime Minister Yair Lapid – abstained from the vote in protest.
The bill was authored by MP Limor Son Har-Melech and supported by Netanyahu and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Both Son Har-Melech and Ben-Gvir are members of the ‘Jewish Power’ party, an extremist Zionist faction that helped Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party back into power in last November’s elections.
Under the legislation, anyone who “intentionally or out of indifference causes the death of an Israeli citizen when the act is carried out from a racist motive or hate to a certain public… and with the purpose of harming the State of Israel and the rebirth of the Jewish people in its homeland” shall face execution, with no chance of prison time.
The law would apply in the West Bank, which although partially administered by the Palestinian Authority, is subject to Israeli military occupation and law.
The bill crosses “a clear red line as part of Israel’s slide into total fascism,” Arab-Israeli political party Hadash Ta’al said in a statement. “Today it is the Palestinians, tomorrow it will be the protestors on the streets. Ben-Gvir will be easy on the trigger when it comes to determining who is a terrorist.”
The Palestinian Authority said that the bill is “cruel, barbaric, and inhumane,” describing it as “rooted in Jewish supremacy.” Its passage will lead to Palestinians “arbitrarily and ceremonially being put on death row,” its statement continued.
Thousands of Israelis gathered outside the country’s parliament building in recent days to protest the bill, while opposition poured in from abroad. Speaking after a meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on Tuesday, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called the bill “particularly worrying,” given that Israel has not executed anyone since Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann was hanged in 1962.
The United Nations Security Council, after reversing on a resolution condemning Israeli settlement expansion, issues a mere statement denouncing the issue.
A view of the occupied West Bank illegal settlement of Eli, occupied Palestine, February 14, 2023 (AP Photo)
The United Nations Security Council expressed on Monday its “dismay” with the Israeli occupation’s government’s plans to legalize settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. The UNSC issued a statement warning that these measures “impede peace”.
“The Security Council reiterates that continuing Israeli settlement activities are dangerously imperiling the viability of the two-State solution,” the Council said in a statement supported by all 15 members but which does not have the binding force of a resolution that was being mulled last week.
The Israeli occupation was quick to criticize the declaration, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed it denied the “historic rights” of the Jewish people.
“The UN Security Council has issued a one-sided statement which denies the rights of Jews to live in our historic homeland,” Netanyahu’s office claimed in an official statement.
Furthermore, the occupation’s premier’s office said the statement “fails to mention the Palestinian terror attacks” that took place over the past few weeks in reference to the resistance operations that were conducted against illegal Israeli settlers in various places all over occupied Palestine.
The UNSC declaration should “never have been made, and the United States should never have joined it.”
The draft resolution that was being mulled, reportedly proposed by the United Arab Emirates, had called on the Israeli occupation to “immediately and completely cease” settlement activities in occupied Palestinian areas.
The draft, condemning “all attempts at annexation, including decisions and measures by Israel regarding settlements, including settlement outposts” had been dropped, AFP diplomatic sources said Monday, saying it would be replaced by the new statement issued by the president of the UNSC.
The United States opposed the resolution and shot it down with its UNSC veto, with the White House saying it was “deeply dismayed” by the plans.
UN diplomats said that in order to avoid having to use its veto to block the resolution, Washington has encouraged Palestine and its allies in the UNSC to consider drafting “a more symbolic” joint statement condemning the Israeli cabinet’s announcements.
At the same time, Washington denounced a recent Israeli security cabinet announcement regarding the legalization of nine illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The UNSC “strongly opposes all unilateral measures that impede peace, including, inter alia, Israeli construction and expansion of settlements, confiscation of Palestinians’ land, and the ‘legalization’ of settlement outposts, demolition of Palestinians’ homes and displacement of Palestinian civilians,” the statement read.
Palestine’s envoy to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, stressed the fact that it was a unanimous stance by the Security Council.
“We have a united front,” he said. “To isolate one side is a step in the right direction. We are fast approaching a breaking point that no one should care to explore.”
He concluded that the message needed to be “translated into a time-bound action plan at concerted effort by the UN and its member states to set us on a different path. One that leads to freedom, justice, and peace.”
The Biden administration is trying to avoid a diplomatic crisis with the UNSC over Israeli plans for settlement expansion, in light of a recent draft resolution that would demand “Israel” to “immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory.
According to multiple diplomats familiar with the situation, the US was successful in delaying the resolution proposed by the Palestinians and their supporters.
The Security Council would likely accept a weaker presidential statement similar to the resolution on Monday, according to the diplomats, rather than a resolution. That said, Presidential statements have become part of the council’s record but are not legally binding because they require the support of all 15 council nations.
The UN diplomats said Palestine has rejected the US proposal and is pushing for the draft resolution to be brought to a vote on Monday, noting that talks on the resolution are ongoing, but the text and the timing for the vote could change, as per The Times of Israel.
What would a veto on settlements mean?
During the run-up to the 2024 presidential election, President Joe Biden would face political difficulties if the resolution on settlements is vetoed.
According to diplomats, the efforts against the draft resolution included Secretary of State Antony Blinken, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Sullivan’s deputy Brett McGurk, Middle East top diplomat Barbara Leaf, and special envoy for Palestinian affairs Hady Amr.
Moreover, the Palestinian push for a resolution comes as the new Israeli extremists’ government reaffirmed its commitment to building new settlements in the West Bank, which is further exacerbating the situation in Palestine, as the extremist occupation seems to be bent on changing the status quo in the occupied territories, pushing Palestinians to further defend themselves against Israeli aggression.
It is noteworthy that in December 2016, the UNSC passed a resolution against the Israeli occupation’s settlements expansion, 14 out of the council’s 15 members voted in favor, while the US, under then-President Barack Obama, abstained.
Denmark’s Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen. (Photo: News Oresund, via Wikimedia Commons)
– Sophia Wright is an experienced Activist skilled in Nonprofit Organizations, Strategic Planning, Leadership, Community Development, and Team Management, with a demonstrated history of working in the civic & social organization industry. She contributed this article to The Palestine Chronicle.
Denmark was in the midst of receiving its last artillery systems. Strangely, as the order was about to be completed, Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen and Finance minister Nicolai Wammen decided to send all of their artillery to Ukraine and purchase an alternative artillery system, called the Atmos 2000 from Elbit Systems, Israel.
Poor management of military programs? Yes. But there’s much worse. The knee-jerk decision strongly implies that Denmark no longer upholds international standards or basic human rights, by finally entering into business with one of the shadiest companies in the world.
The Previous Government’s Rejection
When Denmark chose its howitzers in 2015, they were, as is customary, selected at the end of a rigorous process that carefully considered all aspects, technical and other. In the shortlist remained the Korean K9, the Israeli Atmos 2000, and the French Caesar. The last was ultimately selected after the K9 was excluded, due to its slow and cumbersome design. The only remaining competitor was the Atmos, which had satisfactory specs, but also carried a scent of brimstone with it.
Back then, ethical considerations still apparently mattered to the Danish government. Elbit Systems is the main provider of weapons used in the Israeli strikes on the Gaza civilian population, in the West Bank and in Lebanon. Thousands of civilians have died from their equipment and the Israeli army continues to use it to this day, regardless of the accusations of war crimes from around the world. It was again used last August, in a two-day Israeli operation, which left 36 civilians dead and 350 wounded. Finally, it supplies numerous anti-democratic governments around the world, such as Azerbaijan and Uganda.
But just after the decision to reject the howitzers from such a nefarious provider, an early hint of what was to come should have worried international observers: in 2017, Denmark discreetly purchased Israeli equipment for the first time, overriding the ethical considerations that had been the framework of defense acquisitions until then.
Despite this discreet inauguration of defense relations, it had nonetheless been spotted by Information reporter Sebastian Gjerding.
“Via a subsidiary, the controversial Israeli arms giant Elbit has succeeded in landing a million dollar order with the Danish defense […] Elbit in particular is a controversial choice,” Gjerding wrote.
“The UN human rights rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories has called for a boycott of the company, and several Danish pension funds and investors have blacklisted them.”
Encouraged by the lack of outcry, either domestic or international, the Danish government assumed it could now throw its duty to protect human rights and uphold ethical leadership overboard.
Nothing has Changed, Except What Actually Matters
The Danish military invokes delays in deliveries. That may be true, but it’s also true for all weapons providers these days. Fulfilling NATO obligations to equip the first land forces brigade is hardly an excuse, as the French howitzer deliveries were on the verge of being finalized.
This motive is therefore unlikely to be genuine. Their current supplier is currently upgrading the artillery system, which accounts for some of the delays, but so is Elbit. A late but sudden realization that the Atmos is far better suited to defend the homeland? Doubtful: Danish officials themselves acknowledge that both systems have similar capacities.
In fact, only three things have changed since the initial decision: more Palestinian blood has been shed in suspected Israeli war crimes, first; and the government has changed, second. Current Defense minister, Jakob Ellemann-Jensen (Venstre), is quoted by DR reporter East Meesenburg as “having no problems with the Israeli deal”.
“I completely agree that someone has a fear of touch in relation to the fact that it is an Israeli company. The government does not have that. This is about it being delivered quickly by someone who has proper equipment”.
Finally, light has since been shed on the unethical practices of Elbit Systems when it comes to weapon sales.
It now appears clear that ethical considerations are far lower on the list of this government than that of the last one, which had had the decency to avoid enriching a military provider covered in accusations of corruption (the last corruption-based arrest related to Elbit dealings goes back less than 2 months, in Zambia, and there’s hardly a year that goes by without a new scandal hitting the headlines) and which steadily enables war crimes. Previously, in March of 2022, Elbit Systems was banned from Australia’s future fund, due to allegations that the Israeli manufacturer produced illegal cluster munitions.
Elbit Systems Acquiring Respectability Thanks to Denmark
Atmos 2000 has mainly been purchased by non-democratic governments and States which see little value in providing ethical leadership, namely Uganda (whose army commits as many atrocities as the rebels), Thailand (whose authoritarianism is on the rise) and Azerbaijan, who showed its true colors in 2022. Azerbaijan has furthered the suffering of the Armenian people, which has already endured its own genocide, no less, by firing the Atmos 2000 on the civilian population during the Karabakh conflict, furthering a decade-old conflict that has seen hundreds of ethnic Armenians die in the Nagorno-Karabach region. The latest episode of this conflict was notoriously under-reported, as the European Union depends on gas that transits through that area.
Until now, Elbit Systems suffered an ominous reputation, as the supplier for Azerbaijani tyrant Ilham Aliyev, Ugandan dictator Yoweri Museveni, and of course, its own domestic operations in Gaza. By publicizing its recent sale to Queen Margaret of Denmark, sanctioned by democratically elected PM Mette Frederiksen and duly nominated defense minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen; they can hope to obtain a degree of respectability they could never have dreamt of, at the direct expense of Denmark.
Denmark will be used by Elbit as an ethical voucher to improve its image at the expense of the Danish government and people’s reputation. It will be very interesting to see how the Danish government manages to explain how it can bravely take the side of the oppressed Ukrainian people, in a high-profile conflict, but then side with Azerbaijan crushing Armenia, or Israel firing artillery shells against Palestinians, by purchasing their blood-soaked and overpriced equipment.
Until now, Denmark had been amongst the most virtuous nations in Europe and the world, when it came to ethical considerations and the defense of democratic values. But corruption never lets up and, if Israeli death merchants failed to convince the last Danish government to override ethical imperatives, they tried again once the next decision-makers were in place. This time, they seem to have succeeded.
The rate of executions carried out by Saudi Arabia has almost doubled under the rule of the de facto leader, Mohammed bin Salman [MBS], with the past six years being among the bloodiest in the Kingdom’s modern history, a report has found.
Rates of capital punishment are at historically high levels, despite a push to modernize with widespread reforms and a semblance of individual liberties. Activist groups say the price of change has been high, with a total crackdown on the crown prince’s political opponents and zero tolerance for dissent.
Pledges by MBS – who has consolidated extraordinary powers across the Kingdom’s business spheres, industrialists and elite families – to curb executions have not been kept, the new data shows, with each of the six years that he has led the country resulting in more state-sanctioned deaths than any other year in recent history.
Between 2015 and 2022, an average of 129 executions were carried out each year. The figure represents an 82% increase on the period 2010-14. Last year, 147 people were executed – 90 of them for crimes that were considered to be nonviolent.
On 12 March last year, up to 81 men were put to death – an all-time high number of executions, in what activists believe was a pointed message from the Saudi leadership to dissenters, among them tribal groups in the country’s eastern provinces.
The report – prepared by two organizations, the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights and Reprieve – says: “Saudi Arabia’s application of the death penalty is riddled with discrimination and injustice and the Saudi regime has been lying to the international community about its use.
“The death penalty is routinely used for non-lethal offences and to silence dissidents and protesters, despite promises by the crown prince that executions would only be used for murder,” it added. “Fair trial violations and torture are endemic in death penalty cases, including torture of child defendants.”
The kingdom is considered one of the leading exponents of capital punishment in the region, with only Iran thought to execute more people a year. In the last six years there have also been slight increases in numbers of executions of children, women and foreign nationals, as well as mass executions and executions for non-lethal offences. A moratorium on capital punishment for drug crimes was recently lifted.
Prince Mohammed has introduced extensive reforms across Saudi workplaces and society, giving women more access to gainful employment and changing social norms that had, for the four decades that followed the Islamic revolution in Iran, kept genders strictly segregated and enforced an ultra-hardline interpretation of Islam.
But while there was already little room for dissent under the Kingdom’s absolute monarchy, Prince Mohammed has taken intolerance to new levels, with political and business rivals subject to mass detention and financial shakedowns, and family members of officials that have fled the country being detained for use as leverage to get them back to the kingdom.
The death penalty is seen as one of the new regime’s more visceral tools.
“It’s literally a sword that hangs over all of us, anyone who dares to defy him,” said one Saudi royal in exile in Europe. “It’s either that, or being disappeared. Think Gaddafi. Think Saddam. That’s where we are now.”
Saudi insulting campaign to Palestine because of the Asian Cup
تعمّد المحقق العدلي في قضية تفجير مرفأ بيروت القاضي طارق البيطار الحضور إلى مكتبه في قصر عدل بيروت صباح أمس، في محاولة لنفي المعلومات المؤكدة عن محاولات نقله إلى قصر عدل الجديدة – المتن بعد تحذيرات تلقاها من قيادة الجيش بعدم الخروج من منزله. لكن الحضور الذي استمر ثلاث ساعات، لم ينفع في التعمية على التطورات التي لا تزال تتوالد مِن جّراء الانقلاب القضائي الذي نفذه البيطار، ولامست تداعياته حدّ تفجير الشارع.
ثلاث سنواتٍ ونيّف مما يُصطلَح على تسميته بالحكم «العبّودي»، هي الأسوأ في تاريخ العدلية منذ عام 1920، بحسب مصادر قضائية مخضرمة، بعدما أدارها رئيس المجلس الأعلى للقضاء سهيل عبّود وفق «مسار غير عقلاني» و«لا مبالاة مطلقة» تجاه المؤسسة القضائية، بدت أكثر فجاجة بعد انفجار مرفأ بيروت
Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has announced plans to introduce legislation allowing the death penalty against Palestinians, Israeli media reported.
According to The Times of Israel, the far-right politician made the announcement following a security cabinet meeting held late on Saturday night after an attack was carried out in a Jewish settlement that killed seven Israelis and wounded three. The incident came a day after the deadliest Israeli military raid in the West Bank in years, which left at least 9 Palestinians killed and 20 others wounded.
“I hope we will pass it with a big majority,” Ben-Gvir said in a statement, adding that the security cabinet’s newly announced measures are “important”.
He also said he wanted “a lot more and I will continue and will strive for more and more decisions for combating terror.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also said the security cabinet had decided on a series of steps to “combat terror and exact a price from terrorists and their supporters”.
Without providing further details, he added that steps will be taken to “strengthen settlements” in response to the attacks.
In November, Ben-Gvir made the introduction of capital punishment against Palestinians found guilty of killing Israelis a condition for his faction to join Netanyahu’s coalition government.
The third episode of Enigma talks about post-revolution Cuba and highlights the measures taken by Havana in Cuba and the US role in inciting against the revolutionary government.
Enigma
The third episode of Al Mayadeen‘s Enigma documentary series, aimed at shedding the light on the Cuban revolution and the impact it had on the world, highlighted the most prominent figures in the Cuban revolution and the circumstances that led to it altogether.
The third episode touched on what it was like in post-revolutionary Cuba and the measures taken by the revolutionary government in light of incitement by the United States against the government in Havana.
On January 8, 1959, through the road known as Malecón, Havana, officially the Avenida de Maceo, the freedom convoy led by leader Fidel Castro marched onto Havana. They had thwarted Fulgencio Batista’s US-backed dictatorship and came from the east, from the mountains of Sierra Maestra, from where they had begun 25 months prior to their final battle for victory and national integrity.
They were accompanied by popular support from the people of Cuba, and at the capital, the support of the Cuban people and their eagerness for change climaxed: they now had a new leader.
By that time, all main government strongholds that used to be controlled by the Batista regime had been under the control of the revolutionary authorities. Commander Ernesto “Che ” Guevara had taken over the Fortaleza de San Carlos de la Cabaña, or the Fort of Saint Charles, and his comrade Camilo Cienfuegos over Camp Columbia, the stronghold of dictatorship in Havana. That is where Castro went that night, and he was surrounded by a sea of people chanting in support of him and celebrating the ousting of the US-backed dictator whose reign caused nothing but misery. Castro called for the unity of the Cuban people, unity for victory, and he also warned that as of that moment, everything could either be smooth sailing or be extremely difficult.
Since the beginning, the revolutionary government took impactful measures, with the people being thought of first when it came to policy-making. The economic, political, and social changes were implemented swiftly, with rents and electricity prices getting halved, medicine prices getting decreased, and civilians being allowed to go on the beach after they were denied such privileges by the dictator.
Despite the various policies taken by Castro’s government, the measure that had the most repercussions at the time was the first agrarian law passed in May 1959, which granted the right of ownership of land to those who cultivate it and worked on it. Cuba started changing course and began reimbursing the people for their work after they had been exploited at the hands of the US-backed regime. And with that, the United States began weaving its first plots against the revolutionary government.
US anti-revolutionary schemes
With the onset of the revolution, the United States signed a decree imposing the first ban on trade with Cuba. The decision was made to stop all exports to the island, except for food and medicine. A few months later, on January 3, 1961, diplomatic relations were severed, and a few days later, the decision was made to restrict the travel of American citizens to the island. The Eisenhower administration ushered in a new era and drew up the basics of Washington’s policy toward Cuba, which would go on to shape US-Cuban relations to this very day.
Many of the destabilizing elements between Cuba and the United States were policies taken during the 60s and are still in force to this day, and the Cuban people are bearing the brunt of the US anti-revolutionary rhetoric.
Another aspect that shaped Cuban-US relations was the countless operations carried out by the CIA to try and destabilize Cuba, such as Operation Peter Pan, which was orchestrated by the CIA, the US State Department, and the leadership of the Catholic Church in Miami.
All measures of change in the country were taking place in the face of violent confrontations, and in fact, the country was subject to a permanent terrorist threat, as sabotage, threats of invasion, and hijacking of planes and fishermen’s boats were commonplace.
Not far from the Escambray Mountains in central Cuba, in the ancient province of Las Villas is the city of Trinidad, a World Heritage Site. Right in the heart of that region, some of the fiercest counter-revolutionary gangs operated between 1959 and 1965. It was a counter-revolutionary movement funded, armed, and run by the CIA.
The CIA wanted to take advantage of this situation in the Escambray region to carry out a sea and land landing of a military brigade and take control of a coastal outpost in Trinidad. US plans revealed that Washington would form a provisional government there and demand international recognition and military support to overthrow the revolutionary government.
In March 1961, Havana carried out Operation Cage, an operation aimed at counter-revolutionaries, trapping them before conducting an offensive against them. The offensive was called Operation Escambray Purge, and it saw more than 70,000 fighters from all over Cuba taking up arms in the face of the anti-revolutionaries.
On the dawn of April 15, 1961, eight American B-26 bombers carried out attacks against three Cuban airports; Santiago de Cuba, San Antonio de los Baños, and Ciudad Libertad. The bombing was an attempted false flag operation. The bombers flew in disguised with the emblem of the Cuban Air Force in order to make it look like an internal mutiny from the air force. However, the other goal behind the operation was destroying the humble revolutionary air force on the ground so that it would not possess the capacity for a confrontation during an invasion.
On that day, seven Cubans were killed and 50 others were wounded. One of those murdered by the United States wrote the name of Fidel Castro on the wall in his own blood before succumbing to his wound, embodying the decision to resist.
Cuba adopts socialism
From the heart of the Cuban capital of Havana and as a funeral was underway for those martyred during the bombing, commander Fidel Castro declared a general state of alert to face the imminent invasion. He also declared the socialist aspect of the Cuban revolution, turning Cuba into the first country to adopt socialism as a social and economic system in the Western Hemisphere.
A military campaign was orchestrated by the United States to topple the island nation’s socialist government, with Washington allocating some $13 million to form a brigade of 600 mercenaries who, according to the US dream that would stand the test of time as a dream, were supposed to completely eradicate the revolution within two days. Some of the mercenaries were sent to train in training camps set up in Guatemala and Panama.
The e 2506th Mercenary Brigade, financed by the Kennedy administration, landed at the Bay of Pigs on April 17, 1961. However, the fierce and brilliant resistance of the Cuban Revolutionary Militia, personally led by Fidel Castro, thwarted this aggression in less than 72 hours. The time factor was important because the goal of the invaders was to control a coastal outpost, form a government, and seek recognition from the puppet governments of the corrupt OAS.
The mercenaries were only able to make it a couple of kilometers into Cuba from the shore before they were completely crushed by a resilient Cuba.
The most dangerous event that both countries and indeed the entire world faced during the Cold War period was in October 1962. Humanity was on the brink of nuclear fallout. USSR intelligence confirmed what Cuba already knew: the American invasion of the island is imminent. The Soviet Union then suggested to the government and the leadership of the revolution that Moscow deploys defensive nuclear missiles on Cuban soil.
President Kennedy demanded that the Soviet nuclear missiles stationed in Cuba be handed back. To realize his goal, he imposed a naval blockade on the island. This prompted the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces to respond by putting all its units on combat alert, as a direct attack on Cuba seemed imminent.
Despite the unwavering position of the people of Cuba and its armed forces, who were all mobilized and prepared in the face of this threat, the Soviets decided unilaterally to take the missiles back from Cuba during negotiations that took place between Nikita Khrushchev and Kennedy without the involvement of the Cuban leadership.
Socialism unites
The proclamation of the socialist nature of the Cuban Revolution was a decisive step towards uniting all the revolutionary political forces: the 26th of July Movement, the Popular Socialist Party, and the Revolutionary Directorate of the 13 March Movement agreed to dissolve themselves independently and individually in order to later unite into a single party: the Communist Party of Cuba.
It was a Monday not like any other, as the streets of Cuba were unusually silent. The news of Che’s martyrdom has made it into every street, house, and heart of Cuban citizens. Children went to school, but they were silent. That is what a local newspaper said in Che Guevara’s obituary.
About half a million Cubans participated in the anti-colonial wars in Africa. Men and women from the Caribbean island supported Algeria, Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde Island, and Ethiopia, in their wars to defend their sovereignty. The Cuban forces supported Angola in its struggle against the system of discrimination and apartheid as well.
In the long list of attacks against the Cuban people, 1976 stands out as one of the most blood-stained years since the revolution. Another terrorist act was organized by members of the Cuban-American mafia in Miami, and the CIA had a hand. The terrorists bombed a Cubana de Aviacion airliner while in the air, killing 73 people. Those who masterminded this terrorist attack were the Cuban terrorists Orlando Bosh and Luis Posada Carriles. They were later protected by the US government after the victims’ families demanded that they be prosecuted.
On September 18, 1980, the first Latin American man to make it to space, Cuban astronaut Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez, took off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. This event was the fruit of space cooperation between the Soviet Union and other socialist countries.
Ties between the USSR and Cuba were very warm despite being almost non-exist pre-revolution. They began to develop due to transformations undertaken by the country. From the start, these ties helped resist the US blockade imposed on the Caribbean island.
By 1974, Cuba had joined the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) on preferential terms. In practice, this meant that Cuba would be granted loans on soft terms and had incentive prices set for its products, as well as partaking in joint construction of industrial facilities while receiving effective assistance in the scientific sector.
The 90s brought upon the world an array of changes; the Berlin wall fell, Soviet republics were no more, the USSR collapsed, and with that CMEA was no more either. It was believed at the time that Cuba was isolated from its “eco-system”, from the system that allowed it to maintain its economic equilibrium. This political and economic isolation would have isolated or re-isolated Cuba at a time when the United States was escalating its hostilities against the island nation. However, Cuba was not to be isolated just yet due to the creative resistance of the Cuban people.
The people and their revolution were unwavering in the face of the challenges and hardship thrown in their direction. None of the public services that the revolution implemented for its people were abolished. None of them were privatized. Schools remained open and Cuba remained safe from the neoliberal policies that had taken the entire Latin American region by storm at the time. Those who were hoping that the Cuban revolution would falter and that its end was near were greatly disappointed. The Cuban Revolution survived, and it continues to live even after the death of most of its leaders.
في الفراغ الرئاسي السابق، كان الرئيس سعد الحريري يستعجل العودة إلى السلطة بعيد إخراجه منها قبل سنوات، وكان الرئيس ميشال عون يعدّ الأيام مدركاً أن مرورها ليس لمصلحته أبداً، وكان رئيس حزب القوات اللبنانية سمير جعجع يبحث عن مخارج مفترضاً أن ميشال عون أهون الشرور، وكان سيناريو الغرب يقوم على المواجهة المباشرة. وبالتالي، كان التحدي: من يلين أو ينكسر أولاً… فانكسر الحريري، ثم جعجع (أو العكس، كما يحلو للقوات القول)، وانتصر فريق بانتخاب مرشحه رئيساً.
اليوم لا شيء من هذا كله. لا الحريري هنا ولا عون ولا جعجع، أو من ينوب عنهم في أدوارهم السابقة. فيما انتقلت الولايات المتحدة والسعودية من المواجهة المباشرة بكل ما تحمله من تسرع، إلى استراتيجية الأرض المحروقة الطويلة الأمد، حيث يمكن للفراغ أن يستمر لسنوات طالما أن الماكينة الإعلامية الممولة منهما تنجح في تحميل الحزب المسؤولية عنه، وعن استمرار الانهيار. وعليه، فإن لعبة «عضّ الأصابع» التي حكمت الاستحقاق السابق ليست موجودة اليوم. فلا أمر عمليات أميركياً اسمه انتخاب رئيس للجمهورية، تُحشد له الجيوش الديبلوماسية والإعلامية و«المجتمعات المدنية». ولم تتجاوز محاولات إقناع رئيس التيار الوطني الحر جبران باسيل بتأييد ترشيح قائد الجيش جوزف عون حدود رفع العتب، قبل أن يسحب المعنيون بترشيح القائد بساطهم من تحت هذا الترشيح، مؤكدين أنهم ضد وصول مرشح مدعوم من الحزب، لكنهم ليسوا مع أي مرشح محدد آخر. «يمكن أن يأتي أي كان رئيساً للجمهورية، شرط أن لا يكون انتخابه انتصاراً لحزب الله»، تقول ديبلوماسية أوروبية.
وإذا كان الأميركيون يفضلون، بما لا يقبل أي شك، خوض معركة جدية للتمديد لجوزف عون في اليرزة أكثر بكثير من خوض معركة انتقاله إلى بعبدا، باعتبار وجوده في اليرزة أكثر أهمية على المستوى الاستراتيجي من وجوده في بعبدا، يمكن للكتل المحسوبة عليهم أن تتسلى بترشيح ميشال معوض فالنائب السابق صلاح حنين ثم ثالث فرابع. ولا مشكلة في عدم الوصول إلى نتيجة. المهم هو الظهور أمام الرأي العام بمظهر من يحاول ويحاول ويحاول، فيما الحزب يقول: سليمان فرنجية أو لا أحد، تماماً كما كان يقول سابقاً عون أو لا أحد. وهناك من يستعد، في الأسابيع المقبلة، ليزرع في لا وعي هذا الرأي العام أن قوى 14 آذار تراجعت خطوات من مرشح رأس حربة كمعوض إلى شخصية أكاديمية كتلوية هادئة ليس في أرشيفها أي موقف مستفز كحنين، فيما يرفض الآخرون ملاقاتها في منتصف الطريق.
ويقول ديبلوماسي أوروبي، في هذا السياق، إن المسؤولين الأوروبيين يقولون كلاماً واضحاً لنظرائهم اللبنانيين عن التزامهم مبدأ رفع العتب في حثهم اللبنانيين على انتخاب رئيس، لوجود مشكلات أهم بكثير بالنسبة لأوروبا من رئاسة الجمهورية اللبنانية. وحتى الاجتماع الرباعي المقبل في باريس، لا يعدو كونه محطة إضافية من محطات رفع العتب، إذ إنه من دون أي خريطة طريق أو نية جدية بالتدخل، لأن القرار واضح: هناك أزمة يتحمّل العهد والحزب مسؤوليتها، انتهت إلى فراغ رئاسي يتحمّل الحزب وحده مسؤوليته اليوم. لذلك، المطلوب إطفاء كل المحركات التي يمكن أن تفضي إلى انتخاب رئيس وترك الحزب يتحمل المسؤولية. وإذا كانت الأمور مقبولة نسبياً في الفراغ السابق لأن شريحة مهمة من الرأي العام المسيحي كانت تتمسك بوصول العماد عون إلى بعبدا ولأن حكومة الرئيس تمام سلام وجدت آلية للقيام بعملها، فإن وضع التعايش مع الفراغ أصعب اليوم في ظل الأزمة الاقتصادية وانتقال الجمهور العوني وقيادته إلى المقلب الآخر المندد بمبدأ «فلان أو الفراغ» والتعطيل النسبي لعمل مجلسي الوزراء والنواب.
في ختام جلسة طويلة مع أحد الديبلوماسيين العرب، يسأل عما يمكن أن تفعله لو كنت صانع القرار في الإدارة الأميركية:
• تدفع ثمناً داخلياً أو خارجياً باهظاً مقابل انتقال جوزف عون من مكان أثبت فيه إنتاجيته بالنسبة إليك إلى مكان فخريّ لا قيمة تنفيذية له؟
• تصارع للفوز بالرئاسة حتى يحملك الجميع المسؤولية عن كل ما توارثته الأجيال من مشاكل في هذا البلد؟
• تعمل على إطالة الفراغ أكبر فترة ممكنة طالما أن ماكينتك الإعلامية تحمّل الحزب المسؤولية عنه؟
• تسهّل، بعد فراغ طويل، فوز المرشح المدعوم من الحزب لتواصل الحصار ست سنوات إضافية من تحميل العهد والحزب المسؤولية عن كل ما يحصل لتتضاعف النقمة أكثر؟
الديبلوماسي العربيّ يحرص على القول إنه يسأل نفسه هذا السؤال منذ أشهر، من دون أن تكون لديه أي معلومة في هذا الشأن. إلا أن ما ينشر من تقارير أميركية يبين مقارنة واشنطن بين استراتيجية المواجهة المباشرة (التي اعتمدت في لبنان بين عامي 2005 و2018) واستراتيجية الأرض المحروقة المحاصرة عن بعد (التي اعتمدت منذ عام 2019)، والخروج بنتيجة أن حصيلة السنوات الماضية كانت أفضل بكثير سواء من حيث النقاط أو التكلفة.
لا مبالاة عربية وغربية برسائل بطريركية عن أسماء تحظى بقبول وثقة كل من باسيل والسعودية والغرب
هذا ما يفسر، ربما، عدم اهتمام طرفي النزاع بمبدأ النقاش في ما بعد الرئاسة، اقتصادياً واجتماعياً ومالياً وتشريعياً، الذي يطرحه رئيس التيار الوطني الحر جبران باسيل. وكأن الطرفين يسلّمان باستمرارية الأوضاع على حالها. فرغم رسائل سعودية إيجابية في إشارتها إلى التقاطع الهامشيّ، لكن الأول من نوعه مع باسيل (بعد كل ما نقله القطريون لهم) في ورقة الأولويات، فإن أحداً اليوم لا يطرح حلاً يبدأ بانتخاب الرئيس.
مصادر ديبلوماسية تؤكد أن بكركي طرحت مع مراجع عليا، إقليمية ودولية، أكثر من ثلاثة أسماء تحظى بثقة الدول الخليجية والأوروبية، وأبلغت البطريركية المارونية هؤلاء أن باسيل و16 نائباً من كتلته سيصوتون لأحدها إذا تأمنت موافقة كتل وازنة أخرى عليه. كما يحسم المطلعون بوجود أكثر من اسم يمكن أن تمثل تقاطعاً جدياً بين التيار وقوى أخرى تخاصمه منذ سنوات. لكن كل هذه الطروحات لم تصل إلى نتيجة. إذ يبدو أن ما من نية خارجية حتى اليوم لفتح هذا الباب. وكل المطلوب هو الإبقاء على الفراغ، وتحميل الحزب مسؤوليته.
اكتئاب ينتظر دوروثي… وسفراء مسرورون بمغادرتها
المسرورون بمغادرة السفيرة الأميركية في بيروت دوروثي شيا ليسوا كثراً في لبنان، وليسوا جميعاً لبنانيين. والمرجح أن السفيرة ذات الصيت المهني الضعيف، ستعاني اكتئاباً حاداً بعد أشهر قليلة على مغادرتها. صحيح أن هاتفها سيظل موصولاً بعشرات السياسيين والإعلاميين ورجال الأعمال والأصدقاء في لبنان، وستتمكن من تمضية بعض الوقت معهم، وتجيب بعبارات من نوع: ربما، أعتقد أنه من الأفضل، أشعر بأن الأمر سيكون على هذا النحو، انتبهوا ، حدثوني عندما تحتاجون إلى شيء، إذا واجهتم مشكلة مع خلفي، الفتوا انتباهي، إضافة إلى توصيات في صلب جدول أعمالها، من نوع: لا تنسوا أن المشكلة هي في حزب الله، اهتموا بالمنظمات غير الحكومية لأن دولتكم فاشلة، لا تثقوا بهذا السياسي فهو كان يكذب علينا، إلى آخره، من قاموس يحمله غالبية الديبلوماسيين الغربيين الذين يغادرون لبنان على مضض، ويعودون إلى حياة طبيعية، حيث لا مواكب ولا مآدب مفتوحة، ولا دهشة على الوجوه، ولا كاميرات تلاحق، ولا قائمة طلبات لمواعيد لا يكفي العام لتغطيتها.
بعض المسرورين من غير اللبنانيين، هم من نظراء للسفيرة الأميركية، وهؤلاء بدأوا منذ الآن التدقيق في هوية الخلف وقوته ونفوذه. إذ إن الأوروبيين منهم، خصوصاً الفرنسيين والألمان، يأملون بديبلوماسي يحتاج إلى وقت طويل للتعرف إلى الملف اللبناني، ما يتيح لسفيري فرنسا وألمانيا المجال للقيام بأمور كثيرة، من دون الخشية من تعرض مشاريعهما لضربة عاجلة كتلك التي كانت دوروثي شيا تقوم بها طوال الوقت. وبعض المسرورين أيضاً، هم سياسيون يعتقدون أن شيا كانت تبالغ في ادعاء المعرفة بالتفاصيل اللبنانية، خصوصاً أولئك الذين كانت تعاقبهم بالتجاهل، أو تنهر الموفدين منهم. أما الأكثر قلقاً واستنفاراً، فهم الذين يديرون الجمعيات الممولة من السفارة الأميركية، وسبق لهم أن تدربوا على كيفية التعامل مع السفيرة ويعرفون ما الذي يغضبها أو يفرحها، خصوصاً أن الخشية تسود غالبية هذه الجمعيات من الغضب الأميركي، كون التمويل الأوروبي بدأ يتراجع، والتنافس الآن هو على الأموال الأميركية، وهي أموال كانت تصل أيضاً إلى خزائن مؤسسات رسمية في الدولة، لا سيما منها الأجهزة العسكرية والأمنية.
على أن الأهم في كل ما سيحصل، هو أن اللبنانيين سيكتشفون سريعاً، أن السفارة الأميركية في بيروت، ليست لديها استراتيجية متماسكة حيال التعامل مع مشكلات لبنان، وأن العنوان الوحيد الذي يجري العمل عليه تلقائياً ومن دون الحاجة إلى توصيات، هو العمل على تطويق حزب الله وحلفائه، والاعتماد على ترويع من يتواصل معهم، والسعي الدائم إلى خلق أرجل اصطناعية لتثبيت رجال السفارة من كل الطوائف والمذاهب.
The world of ‘influencing’ and ‘content creation’ seems to be tone-deaf to “Israel” killing, bombing, and assaulting the people of Palestine.
Dear followers, your ‘influencers’ seem ignorant about Israeli crimes
So a mere handshake or even a simple eye contact will eventually initiate some sort of disruption unless you are ‘okay’ with the crimes that are being committed and these crimes sit well with you.
Now let’s delve deeper; consider this enemy, “Israel”, the occupation that was ‘established’ on the backs of Palestinians and formed due to “Israel’s” horrific massacres in Palestine.
This is called normalization
Moving on to another set of rules: When a country that used to consider “Israel” an enemy in the past, intentionally decides to build diplomatic relations with “Israel”, this is known as “normalization agreements”. When a single diplomat steps foot in “Israel”, that is called normalization. When direct talks happen, that is called normalization. When an athlete faces another Israeli athlete in sports tournaments, that is called normalization. And when a group of Arab influencers pose for photos at an event where they are taking lessons on content creation from an Israeli, this is called normalization.
‘Influencers’ & ‘content creators’ for “Israel”
Behind the scenes of endless selfies, likes, and comments, over 3000 ‘influencers’ and ‘content creators’ attended and spoke at the ‘1 Billion Followers Summit’ in Dubai, where the Israeli ‘activist’ Nuseir Yassin was a co-host.
The event included dinners and celebrations, and the contributors ‘lit a fire in the desert’. Sounds fun doesn’t it?
Nuseir Yassin is known for his pro-“Israel” stance regarding the Palestinian struggle for freedom. He intentionally disregarded, through his self-described ‘humane videos’, the Palestinian Nakba, the Palestinian suffering, and most importantly, Israeli war crimes.
Nuseir is vocal about the ‘two-state solution’ in Palestine and believes that Palestinians and Israelis should ‘co-exist’.
In his last video about the Palestinian struggle, Yassin disregarded the Palestinians’ right to self-defense and called them ‘attacks’ on “Israel”. Nusseir Yasin usually introduces himself as “Arab-Israeli”.
Applying the before-mentioned set of rules, these Arab influencers’ existence in the same room and event as Nuseir, interacting, laughing, taking notes, and speaking with him, is called normalization.
Keynotes into normalization
Looking into the “agenda” of the Summit on the website, various topics were discussed during the two days event.
Starting from day one, after the opening ceremony, the first speaker was Nuseir Yassin.
Yassin’s topic, as it appeared on the website, was “Why Creators Will Conquer The World”. What was said during each speech or lecture cannot be found on any platform, given that the event was ‘exclusive’. On the Summit’s YouTube channel, few videos are posted and most of them are teasers or wrap-ups of the event.
Users can rarely find any content that is related to what Nuseir or other speakers said. Is censoring part of the summit? Or is it because some attendees were not supposed to be there?
In one of these short videos that were published by a particular news outlet, Nuseir was seen talking with the audience and giving a lecture about content creation with a picture displayed for them that says “And if you look like me… GOOD LUCK..”
In the video, Nuseir was filmed talking and lecturing the crowd about ‘history’ and how ‘throughout history, people could only impact 150 people…”
Why does normalization always have to be ‘fun’?
For additional background information on this topic, Nas Daily is a popular page that publishes videos on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok. Each platform has a vast number of followers.
On its Instagram account, Nas Daily writes the following slogan: ‘We Bring People Together’ at the top of its page.
Interestingly, on its Youtube platform, the ‘1 Billion Followers Summit’ posted a teaser titled “1 Billion Followers Summit – The Expo of Content Creation”. The video says ‘connecting 1 billion people under the same roof.’
In another ‘shorts’ video on YouTube, the Summit posted a video that says ‘The world of social media gathers under one roof!’
Sounds familiar?
The vlog-styled videos are identical to those of Nas Daily. The scripts, the tone, even the shooting style, and the enthusiasm, all give the same vibes.
The Summit is powered by New Media Academy, the same academy that funded and embraced Nas Daily for its videos where they whitewash Israeli crimes.
On the Summit’s LinkedIn, one can see how employees in Nas Daily actually worked for this big event. Parikshit Sachdeva appeared to be Nas Daily’s social media manager as he was a community manager in the ‘1 Billion Followers Summit’.
Another example is: Nizar Salman worked for Nas Daily as a project manager for 1 year and 9 months. Salman was an event lead for 8 months at the Summit.
The contributors to the event added the ‘mystery celebrity speaker’ into the event to make it more ‘exciting’. The speaker turned out to be the former TV presenter and comedian Trevor Noah.
Yassin was the one who hosted Noah during a debate that many attended and listened to.
In addition to Noah, many international YouTubers attended the event such as Jordan Matter and Matpat. The speakers came from the US, Canada, Poland, Lebanon, India, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and many more.
When it comes to Arabs, activist Saleh Zaghari, appeared in a video justifying his participation in the event by saying that he was seeking to provoke those in charge of the conference by raising the Palestinian flag in the event.
However, after Zaghri was heavily criticized by social media activists, he later apologized and admitted that he made a mistake by attending this event.
While the ‘1 Billion Followers Summit’ happened over the course of two days, 3 and 4 December, on 5 and 6 December, a different event took place in Abu Dhabi. The two events may look different on the surface, regarding the objectives and topics, but both meet at the same end; normalization with “Israel”.
Around 300 decision-makers and representatives of 47 international space institutions attended the first edition of the Abu Dhabi Space Debate this month. The event focused mainly on topics related to ‘space sustainability, accessibility, and security’.
All looks normal, doesn’t it?
After his unwelcomed visit to Bahrain, and after he met with UAE’s President Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan at his private home in Abu Dhabi, the Israeli President Isaac Herzog took part in the Space Debate where he made a speech.
Herzog, during his speech, urged to “move onwards and upwards, not with the competition of a cold war,” but rather with “our warm peace.” The Israeli occupation’s President called for countries to “collaborate in here on the blue planet we call home.”
The UAE was the first Gulf state to normalize ties with “Israel”, kicking off a wave of normalization that saw Bahrain, Sudan, and Morrocco swept by the tide.
The Israeli occupation and the United Arab Emirates have long been exchanging visits, drawing more and more criticism for the Arab nation that abandoned the Palestinian cause.
Spot the ‘influencer’ in the audience
After the Space Debate took place, many Lebanese activists strongly condemned the presence of a Lebanese filmmaker and content creator.
Lebanon is among the countries that still have a strong stance regarding the normalization agreement with “Israel” and considers “Israel” as an occupation.
Lebanon criminalizes normalization with the Israeli occupation in its law. The Lebanese criminal code, the 1955 Boycott Law, and the Code of Military Justice all say that any type of contact between Lebanese and Israeli citizens is prohibited; punishment can range from a few months in prison to death.
Many Twitter activists argued that the Lebanese filmmaker, Kazim Fayad, should not be present at an event that the Israeli President spoke at. After the backlash, Fayad had to issue a statement regarding the matter.
The filmmaker claimed that he was not able to leave the hall where the event was taking place and that the only reason he was attending was that he had booked interviews with several news outlets.
It is worth mentioning that the speakers of the event were published ahead of the ceremony, in addition to the many news outlets that reported that Herzog arrived in the UAE to attend the Space Debate. It does not stop here. Looking closer into the event itself, which was posted in its entirety on YouTube, there was a 40-minute break between the end of the last debate that took place and Herzog’s arrival at the event. Thus, giving Fayad, and other so-called “influencers” plenty of time to dodge a possible encounter with the enemy’s President.
Now one cannot help but wonder: do the influencers realize what they are really ‘influencing’?
The real question here is whether the millions of followers, that these ‘influencers’ have, know what subliminal messages they are intaking on daily basis, through swiping, liking, and commenting on those influencers’ social media stories, videos, and pictures.
In both events, Israelis were present. In both events, Arabs were present. And in both events, prominent figures, TV presenters, and social media influencers were present. Should any questions be raised? The answer is yes.
PA PM Mohammed Shtayyeh. (Photo: via PM of Palestine, Twitter)
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh on Monday called on the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, to include Israel on the United Nations Secretary-General’s ‘list of shame’, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.
The request comes following the Israeli army’s killing of 16-year-old Jana Zakarneh, last night, in the northern West Bank city of Jenin.
Shtayyeh described the killing of Zakarneh as another crime to be added to the horrifying crimes of murdering children committed by Israeli occupation forces.
Gamba began today a special visit to Palestine, which includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, during which she will meet with the families of the Palestinian children murdered by Israeli forces to hear from them about the grave violations that rise to the level of crimes committed by the occupation forces against Palestinian children.
المتحدث باسم القوات المسلحة اليمنية، العميد يحيى سريع، يعلن نجاحها في إجبار سفينة نقل، كانت في مهمة نهب كميات كبيرة من النفط، على المغادرة.
المتحدث باسم القوات المسلحة اليمنية العميد يحيى سريع
قال المتحدث باسم القوات المسلحة اليمنية، العميد يحيى سريع، اليوم الإثنين، إنّ القوات اليمنية “نجحت في إجبار سفينة نفطية حاولت الاقتراب من ميناء الضبة، جنوبي البلاد، على المغادرة”.
وقد حاول العدو اتخاذ إجراءات تمكنت القوات المسلحة من رصدها والتعامل معها بالشكل المناسب. القوات المسلحة اليمنية مستمرة في حماية الثروة الوطنية السيادية حتى تصبح عائداتها في خدمة اليمنيين ولتغطية مرتبات كافة الموظفين في كل المناطق اليمنية.
وأضاف سريع أنّ “السفينة، التي كانت في مهمة نهب كميات كبيرة من النفط، رفضت الاستجابة لتحذيرات القوات المسلحة”، موضحاً أن “العدو حاول اتخاذ إجراءات تمكّنت القوات المسلحة من رصدها، والتعامل معها بالصورة الملائمة”.
وأكّد أنّ “القوات المسلحة اليمنية مستمرة في حماية الثروة الوطنية السيادية حتى تصبح عائداتها في خدمة اليمنيين، ولتغطية مرتبات كل الموظفين في جميع المناطق اليمنية”.
اللجنة الاقتصادية: مرتزقة العدوان كانوا ينوون نهب 2.1 مليون برميل نفط
في غضون ذلك، قالت اللجنة الاقتصادية العليا إنها خاطبت الشركات النفطية، ذات العلاقة بالناقلة النفطية واللنشات، ودعتها إلى “عدم الاقتراب من المياه الإقليمية، وعدم خرق قرار منع نهب الثروة السيادية”.
كما تم، وفق اللجنة، “مخاطبة الدول التي تحمل القطع البحرية أعلامها، والدول التي تنتمي إليها طواقم القطع البحرية المشاركة في محاولة نهب الثروة السيادية، لوقف مشاركتهم في محاولة النهب”.
وفي إثر ذلك، استجاب طاقم أحد اللنشات للإجراءات القانونية والمخاطبات، وغادر المياه الإقليمية اليمنية، لكن الناقلة النفطية وسائر القطع تجاهلت تلك المخاطبات، وانتهكت المياه الإقليمية اليمنية، صباح اليوم الإثنين.
وبحسب اللجنة الاقتصادية، فإن “المعلومات كانت قد أشارت إلى أن مرتزقة العدوان ينوون نهب كمية 2.1 مليون برميل من النفط الخام بقيمة تقديرية 174 مليون دولار”.
وتابعت اللجنة: “بعد استنفاد كل الإجراءات القانونية، التي جرى تجاهلها، تم إعلام قيادة القوات المسلحة المسؤولة عن حماية الثروة الوطنية وصونها وفقاً للدستور، وفي إثر ذلك قامت القوات المسلحة بواجبها”.
وأكدت اللجنة أنه تم إجبار الناقلة (PRATIKA براتيكا) على مغادرة الميناء عند الساعة الخامسة، من مساء اليوم الإثنين”.
وأشار مراسلنا إلى “وقوع انفجار عنيف في ميناء الضبة النفطي، بعد رسوّ سفينة لنقل النفط فيه”، مؤكّداً “مغادرة سفينة النقل من دون شحنها النفط، في إثر الهجوم عبر طائرات مسيّرة على الميناء النفطي”.
وذكر أنّ “قيادة لواء الضبة أعلنت إغلاق طريق الضبة في مديرية الشِّحْر، شرقي حضرموت، حتى إشعار آخر، بسبب دواعٍ أمنية، في إثر الانفجار العنيف في الميناء النفطي”.
ولفت مراسل الميادين إلى أنّ هذا الهجوم “هو الثاني من نوعه، الذي تنفّذه قوات حكومة صنعاء على الميناء ذاته، خلال أقل من شهر، منذ 21 تشرين الأول/أكتوبر الفائت، من أجل منع نهب النفط اليمني”.
يُذكَر أنّ القوات المسلحة اليمنية قامت بعملية تحذيرية في محيط ميناء الضبة في محافظة حضرموت، في 21 تشرين الأول/أكتوبر الماضي، في إطار التنفيذ العملي لخطوات التصدي لعمليات النهب المتواصل للنفط اليمني، بحيث أطلقت المضادات الجوية النار على مسيّرة فوق ميناء المُكلا.
وكان المشاط أصدر توجيهات بتحرير المخاطبات الرسمية النهائية لكلّ الشركات والكيانات ذات العلاقة بنهب الثروات السيادية اليمنية، من أجل توقفها الكامل عن عمليات النهب.
وضع الأمين العام لحزب الله السيد حسن نصرالله أمس حداً لمرشحي «تقطيع الوقت»، مؤكداً «أننا نريد رئيساً للجمهورية في أسرع وقت ممكن، لكن هذا لا يعني أن نسد الفراغ في هذا الموقع الحساس بأي كان». وحدّد بعض المواصفات التي يجب أن تتوافر في الرئيس المقبل، وهي أن يكون «مطمئناً للمقاومة، لا يخاف من الأميركيين ويقدم المصلحة الوطنية على خوفه، ولا يباع ولا يشترى»، مشدداً على «أننا لا نريد رئيساً يغطي المقاومة أو يحميها لأنها لا تحتاج إلى ذلك، إنما رئيس لا يطعنها في الظهر».
وفي كلمة له في الاحتفال الذي أقامه حزب الله بمناسبة «يوم الشهيد»، قال إنه «مع الرئيس العماد إميل لحود، صنعت المقاومة التحرير عام 2000، وقاتلت بالعسكر والسياسة عام 2006، وكانت مطمئنة أن لا رئيس جمهورية يتآمر عليها ويطعنها في الظهر»، وهي كانت كذلك «مع الرئيس ميشال عون، آمنة على مدى ست سنوات وكانت عاملاً حاسماً في إنجاز ملف ترسيم الحدود البحرية لأنه كان في بعبدا رجل شجاع لا يبيع ولا يشتري ولا يخون ولا يطعن»، مؤكداً «أننا يجب أن نبحث عن رئيس جمهورية بهذه المواصفات»، و«على اللبنانيين أن يعملوا ويناضلوا للوصول إلى الخيار الأنسب»، مشيراً إلى أن «هذا الموقع له علاقة بعناصر القوة، وهذا موضوع استراتيجي يرتبط بقوة لبنان وبالأمن القومي، والمقاومة هي أحد عناصر القوة الأساسية». وتوجه إلى الفريق الآخر بأنه «عندما تطلبون منا أن ننتخب فلاناً، وهو من أول الطريق يناقشنا بالمقاومة، يعني مبلشين غلط».
وشدّد نصرالله على أن «الإدارة الأميركية هي من يمنع المساعدة عن لبنان»، واصفاً إياها بـ «الطاعون واللعنة والوباء الذي تخرجه من الباب فيعود من الطاقة إذ لا حدود لأطماعه وأهدافه». ونبّه إلى أن «الأميركيين يعتقدون أن سيناريو الفوضى يُمكن أن يؤدي إلى إنهاء المقاومة، وهم يتحدثون علناً عن دعمهم للجيش بهدف أن يكون في مواجهة المقاومة. لكن الجيش، قيادة وضباطاً ورتباء وجنوداً، كلهم يرفضون هذا الموقف بالمطلق»، وفي ظل التدخل الأميركي «يحق لنا نحن كجزء كبير من الشعب أن نطالب برئيس للجمهورية مُطمئن لهذه المقاومة».
موقع الرئاسة يتعلق بالأمن القومي ولا يمكن أن نسدّ الفراغ بأي كان
ولفت إلى أن اتفاق ترسيم الحدود البحرية أكد أن «من يحمي لبنان هو الله ومعادلة القوة. هذا العدو يفهم القوة وليس أمر آخر»، لافتاً إلى أن «البعض يعتبر أن ضمانته هو الالتزام الأميركي، لكن ضمانتنا الحقيقية هي في عناصر القوة التي يملكها لبنان والتي تشكل ضمانة استمرار هذا الاتفاق». ورد على تصريحات مساعدة وزير الخارجية الأميركي لشؤون الشرق الأدنى باربرا ليف التي «تحدثت عن سيناريوهات كارثية يمكن أن تؤدي للخلاص من حزب الله ووصفته بالطاعون أو اللعنة»، وقال إن «اللعنة هو الكيان الصهيوني الذي هجر وقتل واستباح فلسطين ولبنان وهي لعنة صنعت في الولايات المتحدة»، مشيراً إلى أن «الولايات المتحدة هي التي أرادت الفوضى في لبنان في 17 تشرين 2019 بعدما فشلت مخططاتها وزرعت لعنتها التي تصدى لها حزب الله والشرفاء». وأكد أن «اللعنة الأميركية تمنع أي دولة من مساعدة لبنان كما في هبة الفيول الإيراني».
وفي ما يتعلق بالانتخابات الإسرائيلية أكد أن «لا فرق بالنسبة لنا. كلهم أسوأ من بعضهم، الحكومات التي تعاقبت على الكيان كلها حكومات مجرمة وغاصبة ومحتلة ولا تملك شيئاً من القيم الأخلاقية والإنسانية»، وكرر أن «من يحمي لبنان هو معادلة القوة معادلة الجيش والشعب والمقاومة، وهذا العدو سواء من اليمين أو اليسار لا يفهم إلا لغة القوة». وأكد أن إيران «انتصرت من جديد على الفتنة والمؤامرة الأميركية- الإسرائيلية- الغربية، انتصاراً كبيراً وحاسماً، وهذا سيزيدها قوة».
The Lions’ Den Palestinian resistance group affirmed that its fighters, in coordination with the Balata Battalion and the al-Farouq Group, have been involved in a legendary battle against the ‘Israeli’ occupation forces after they stormed the ‘Joseph Tomb’ region in Nablus, northern occupied West Bank.
“The occupation forces’ raid of the Joseph Tomb costed them as much efforts and equipment as the enemy needs to invade any Arab state, including sniper units, Special Forces, Mistaarvim, and highly fortified motorized troops to transport the Zionist rightwing leaders to take a photo at the tomb and show the enemy as the strong side in front of its people,” a statement issued by the group read.
The true goal behind the raid, however, the statement explained that is to tell the rightwing leaders themselves to stop pressuring the military leaders, and to convince the settlers not to pressure them regarding the prayers issue, citing that they have entered and left under fire.
The statement further hailed martyr Mahdi Hashash who was martyred during Wednesday’s confrontations, assuring the Palestinian people that the Lions’ Den would only disappear when they witness the settlers entering the area safely without being showered by the bullets of the resistance.
Lion’s Den battalion called out those who think that the battalion will demise or that they have information on it as delusional while saluting the Resistance fighters that fought along them in Nablus
The Lion’s Den (Areen Al-Ousoud) battalion in Nablus.
The Areen Al-Ousoud (The Lions’ Den) Palestinian Resistance battalion said on Friday that it is, “those who presume that the Lion’s Den will demise and those who assume that they possess information about the group are the most delusional.”
The Areen Al-Ousoud (The Lions’ Den) Palestinian Resistance battalion said on Friday that it is, “those who presume that the Lion’s Den will demise and those who assume that they possess information about the group are the most delusional.”
In a statement, the group pointed out that, “the real fighters of the Lions’ Den were divided into three sections; Martyrs in God’s heavens, wounded fighters on the path of continued Resistance and those who await. They are the soldiers of God known only to him.”
The group continued, “Even if only one soldier from us remains, he will be martyred so that the idea of resistance will continue,” and asked, “What homeland is this in which we reconcile with the enemy shedding our blood?” adding that “the cowards are restless.”
“May God take away any rifle that does not confront the enemy and does not think about engaging them,” the group stated.
The battalion highlighted the Resistance fighters that have fought in the battle against the Israeli occupation in Nablus, “As for you, the ones who told commander Wadih that he will not be left alone and have engaged in a heroic battle, and no matter how much the occupation tries to hide it (achievements of the battle), its results will appear”.
“Our brothers in the Balata Battalion, the hornets’ nest battalion, the Jenin Battalion, and the Askar Battalion, we shall meet soon in battle side to side God willing,” the statement continued.
The Lions’ Den battalion also addressed the Palestinians, “Residents of our besieged city, go out and look at the roads of the settlers, for by God they are empty and the settlers are besieged.”
The Balata Battalion responded to the statement of the Lions saying: “a message to our brothers in arms and blood and partners in battles, you are not alone”.
“The Balata battalion will always be present shoulder to shoulder and fighting as one against the occupation,” the battalion’s statement said.
In this context, Israeli media reported on Friday that, “no one in the security and military establishment can say that the phenomenon of the Lions ‘Den will not multiply.”
This comes shortly after Areen Al-Ousoud revealed some details pertaining to the night Israeli occupation forces stormed the city of Nablus, during which one of the organization’s ranking members, Wadih Al-Houh, was martyred, along with five other Palestinians. Lions’ Den stressed that its leadership lured the occupation to the operation in the old city of Nablus.
The Lions’ Den consists of groups that include members of various Palestinian factions in Nablus and Jenin, in the northern occupied West Bank.
Palestinians organized a rally in support of Palestinian Resistance in West Bank (Photo: Mahmoud Ajjour, The Palestine Chronicle)
– Benay Blend earned her doctorate in American Studies from the University of New Mexico. Her scholarly works include Douglas Vakoch and Sam Mickey, Eds. (2017), “’Neither Homeland Nor Exile are Words’: ‘Situated Knowledge’ in the Works of Palestinian and Native American Writers”. She contributed this article to The Palestine Chronicle.
On October 24, 2022, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network international coordinator, Charlotte Kates, and one of the founders of the Palestinian Alternative Revolutionary Path Movement (Masar Badil), Khaled Barakat, arrived in Amsterdam to participate in the Week of Action for Return and Liberation of Palestine. No sooner had they arrived at Amsterdam Schiphol airport than immigration service, operated by Dutch military police, detained them for questioning.
After being interrogated about their political views–about Samidoun, about Masar Badil, and the week of action for liberation and return–they were denied entry and deported back to Canada where they will continue organizing and speaking out against Zionist repression of Palestinians. While saddened by this action, activists immediately spoke out, vowing to channel their anger into making the March even stronger despite efforts to quash the movement.
Calling on Palestinians to be “purveyors of consciousness not victimhood,” journalist Ramzy Baroud suggests that, while understanding that the reach of Zionist repression is important, communicating a sense of “collective victimhood” denies human agency to those who are oppressed.
When Samidoun issued a statement declaring that “our response to this attack on our organizing must be to make an even bigger, stronger, louder and more powerful stand with the Palestinian people, their resistance, and the liberation of Palestine,” they are answering Baroud’s request that Palestinians convey strength and fortitude in the face of Zionist oppression.
“The Palestinian struggle cannot be reduced to a conversation about poverty or the horrors of war,” Baroud continues, “but must be expanded to include the wider political contexts that led to the current tragedies in the first place.” Activists are doing this as well, calling attention to the history of repression against Barakat and Kates by the European state.
In their statement, Samidoun recalls the past history of repression against Barakat and Kates. In 2019, Barakat received a political ban due to his organizing among Palestinians living in Berlin, Germany at the time. After leaving Germany, Barakat and Kates, who are also a married couple, were banned from re-entry for many years. This was the cause cited as the reason for their denial of entry into the Schengen zone, though their ban did not extend to this region.
Indeed, there has been an established policy in Germany, the Netherlands and the European Union of attacking the Palestine solidarity movement. From banning Nakba commemorations to condemning organizations that are in solidarity with Palestinian liberation, these officials have a long history of repression not only in the diaspora but also of supporting the Zionist colonization of Palestine since Israel’s founding.
Significantly, Kates’ and Barakat’s most recent ban occurs as Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte was travelling to the settler colonial Zionist state for talks during a time of escalating colonial violence and repression. Rutte’s trip serves to link repression of Palestinian activism in the diaspora to increasing Israeli violence towards Palestinians in their own country.
From Charlotte Kates came a statement that voiced this link quite clearly: “The European Union always talks about human rights, but ignores them when it comes to Palestine. Palestine activists in all EU countries face repression. This deportation is therefore not just an attack on Khaled and me, but on the Palestinian movement as a whole.”
As in the diaspora, escalating Zionist violence in Palestine has fueled the rise of resistance groups, including the “Lions’ Den” and Jenin Brigades, which includes groups of people regardless of political affiliation across the West Bank. According to Hani Al-Masri, what distinguishes this movement is that it unites armed struggle with other forms of popular resistance, such as a general strike held recently in the West Bank.
In Gaza, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine organized a rally to support Palestinian resistance in the West Bank and Occupied Jerusalem. Saleh Nasser, a member of the Political Bureau of the Democratic Front in the Gaza Strip, stressed that Palestinians much chose between a variety of resistance strategies to confront the Israeli Occupation.
“What [Israel] fail[s] to understand,” writes Ramzy Baroud, “is that the growing rebellion in the West Bank is not generated by a few fighters in Nablus and a few more in Jenin, but is the outcome of a truly popular sentiment.” This unity can also be seen in solidarity around the world, most recently in the quick response to European efforts to weaken the March in Brussels.
In response to the banning of Kates and Barakat, activists at Schiphol Airport held the Palestinian flag along with signs that read “long live the Palestinian Struggle.” Others presented a statement of solidarity with Kates and Barakat to the military police who detained and interrogated the movement’s leaders.
From a wide array of Palestine solidarity groups around the world came a quick response to the injustice, showing again a commitment to unity across many different lines. For example, the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI) urged activists to stand in solidarity with Kates and Barakat by supporting and/or organizing their own protests in conjunction with the March.
Al-Awda—The Palestine Right to Return Coalitioncalled on supporters to defend the right to organize for the right of return for Palestinian people, and accentuated that “our response to this attack on our organizing must be to make an even bigger, stronger, louder and more powerful stand with the Palestinian people, their resistance, and the liberation of Palestine.”
“For the Palestinian narrative to be truly relevant,” Baroud writes, “Palestinians must assume the role of the Gramscian intellectual, as purveyors of consciousness, and abandon the role of the victim intellectual altogether.” Given rising resistance in Palestine and growing solidarity around the world, his words are bearing fruit.
Reports back from the March also paint a clear picture of carrying on with strength and dignity despite the ban. Despite efforts to the contrary—the Israeli ambassador in Brussels demanded the cancellation of the March—all attempts to quash the spirit of participants have failed.
The week began with standing room only for the first events which focused on the struggle of Palestinian prisoners. These workshops followed a 1,000-strong demonstration and march to the prison in Lannemezan, France, where Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, the Lebanese struggler for Palestine, has been jailed for the past 39 years.
As the movement becomes stronger, there will be more efforts to silence Palestinian voices. “Let us be clear,” stated the organizers of the March,
“all of these show just why it is so urgent that our demonstration on Saturday 29 October be very loud, clear and massive, demanding accountability from European colonialism and imperialist powers for their ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people. Join us on Saturday, 29 October at Lumumba Square in Brussels at 2 pm, to march to the European Parliament in the March for Return and Liberation.”
Explaining why “Israel is Afraid of the Lions’ Den,” Baroud concludes that that Palestinians are “simply fed up with the Israeli occupation and with their collaborating leadership.” They are ready to put “it all on the line,” because, he predicts, the coming months are going to be critical for all Palestinians.
All the more reason for organizers of the March to call for “a clear demonstration that the Palestinian people will accept nothing less than return and liberation, from the river to the sea, and will hold Europe accountable for the colonial crimes and ongoing imperialist exploitation.”
Joining the March or organizing local activities for return and liberation, they conclude, is a step towards making this possible.
“Lions Den” resistance group in the West Bank announced that the Zionist occupation forces assassinated one of its cadres Tamer Al-Kilani in Nablus.
In a statement, the Palestinian group mourned the martyr as one of its fierce fighters, adding that one of the traitors stuck an explosive into his motorcycle.
The following video shows the traitor sticking the explosive device into the martyr’s motorcycle:
The statement vowed a painful response to the Zionist crime, announcing a mourning day across the West Bank.
The Palestine National Liberation Movement has mourned the martyr, adding that the assassination proves the fragility of this [Israeli] occupation and its security apparatus.
“We tell our steadfast people that this heinous crime will not break the popular incubator of the resistance,” added the statement.
The rest of the Palestinian resistance factions mourned the martyr, adding that the crime will not remain unanswered.
The Ministry of Health said the assassination of Al-Kilani brings the number of Palestinians killed by the Israeli occupation forces since the beginning of this year to 177, including 51 in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli media reported a security alert in the occupation entity to face the expected responses to the assassination, adding that Kilani was behind numerous attacks on the Israelis.
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip held a funeral house to mourn the killing of Palestinian fighter Oday Tamimi. (Photo: Mahmoud Ajjour, The Palestine Chronicle)
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip held a funeral house to mourn the killing of Palestinian fighter Oday Tamimi who was killed on Wednesday by Israeli gunfire at the entrance of the illegal settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, near Jerusalem.
Tamimi, a resident of the Jerusalem refugee camp of Shuafat, was accused of killing a soldier and injuring another in a drive-by shooting attack at an Israeli military checkpoint on October 8.
Israeli occupation forces pursued Tamimi for over ten days following the drive-by shooting.
They besieged Shufat camp, Anata town, and the surrounding areas for 12 days, initiated large-scale and violent searches of homes and buildings and detained dozens of Palestinians.
Palestinian political groups declared a day of mourning after the news of Tamimi’s killing.
(All Photos: Mahmoud Ajjour, The Palestine Chronicle)
A comprehensive strike in all schools in the eastern part of occupied Al-Quds
By Al Mayadeen English
Palestinian national and Islamic forces and parents’ committees renew Al-Quds residents’ complete rejection of attempts to impose an Israeli curriculum in all schools.
All schools in the eastern part of occupied Al-Quds witnessed Monday a comprehensive strike in protest of imposing Israeli curricula on Al-Quds students.
The strike comes in response to the call of the national and Islamic forces, and the parents’ committees in the eastern part of Al-Quds.
In a joint statement, the forces held the administration of any school, the national, moral, and religious responsibility for deviating from the consensus of the parents, and for violating the national position, which refuses to teach the Israeli curricula.
The forces and parents’ committees renewed Al-Quds residents’ adherence to their firm position of absolute and complete rejection of attempts to impose a false or new curriculum on children in all schools, regardless of their academic references.
The statement stressed the forces and parents’ committees’ rejection of all forms of financial blackmail practiced by the Israeli occupation against school administrations, and the policy of overt and veiled threats against them.
The statement also affirmed the right of the Palestinian people to choose the curriculum that is taught to their children, calling on the relevant international institutions to stand up to their responsibilities and protect Palestinian educational institutions.
The national and Islamic forces and the parents’ committees in Al-Quds called on the Palestinian government to provide alternatives and to secure the actual needs and resources necessary to protect the Palestinian curriculum.
Since 1967, the education sector in Al-Quds has faced several critical problems that obstruct its development and tighten the noose around it. Perhaps the most prominent issue facing this sector is Israeli attempts to Israelaize the curricula in favor of the Israeli occupation.
At the end of last July, the Israeli occupation Ministry of Education issued a decision to withdraw the permanent license from six schools in occupied Al-Quds for a period of one year, under the pretext of incitement against “Israel” and its forces in its textbooks.
Last August, the Israeli Ministry sent a letter to several schools in Al-Quds, entitled textbooks that contain inciting content in the eastern part of Al-Quds schools, threatening to withdraw its license.
UPROOTED PALESTINIANS: SALAM ALQUDS ALAYKUM 