Day: 18 October 2022

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) today welcomed the decision by Australia not to move its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

“We welcome Australia’s decision with regards to Jerusalem and its call for a two-state solution in accordance with international legitimacy and its affirmation that the future of sovereignty over Jerusalem depends on the permanent solution based on international legitimacy,” tweeted Hussein al-Sheikh, the Secretary General of the Executive Committee of the PLO.

Australia announced today the revocation of its recognition of West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, reversing the decision taken by the previous conservative government.

Foreign Minister Benny Wong confirmed the decision, stressing that “Jerusalem is a final status issue that should be resolved as part of any peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian people.”

She said that Australia is committed to a two-state solution in which the future Palestinian state and Israel coexist in peace and security, within internationally recognized borders, adding that Australia would not support an approach that would undermine this.

“Australia’s Embassy has always been, and remains, in Tel Aviv,” said the Foreign Minister.

The decision to recognize West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel was made by former Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, in 2018.

However, Australia’s new Labor government said it would reverse Morrison’s move.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates today welcomed the Australian government’s decision to reverse the decision taken by the previous government recognizing West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

In a statement issued today, the ministry considered “this decision a positive correction to Australia’s position that falls in line with international law and United Nations resolutions.”

It also appreciated Australia’s call for implementing and adhering to the two-state solution, and considering Jerusalem the basis of the negotiated final-status issues in accordance with international legitimacy.

It stressed that this Australian decision supports international and regional efforts aimed at reviving the peace process and negotiations between the Palestinian and Israeli sides, and Australia’s keenness to achieve security and stability in the conflict and the region by restoring the political horizon for resolving the conflict.

The Foreign Ministry called on all countries that made wrong decisions regarding Jerusalem to follow Australia’s example and reverse its previous decisions.

At the same time, it said that it is waiting for the Australian government to move towards a more important step, which is recognizing the State of Palestine, embodying its commitment to the principle of the two-state solution, and its commitment to the decisions of the ruling Labor Party, which officially adopted the recognition of the State of Palestine, demanding that the government implement that recognition.

It also strongly condemned the Israeli reactions to Australia’s decision, considering them unjustified and an official Israeli rebellion and a coup against the signed agreements and relevant United Nations resolutions, as well as reflecting the fact that there is no Israeli peace partner.

Australia announced today the revocation of its recognition of West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, reversing the decision taken by the previous conservative government.

Foreign Minister Benny Wong confirmed the decision, stressing that “Jerusalem is a final status issue that should be resolved as part of any peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian people.”

She said that Australia is committed to a two-state solution in which the future Palestinian state and Israel coexist in peace and security, within internationally recognized borders, adding that Australia would not support an approach that would undermine this.

“Australia’s Embassy has always been, and remains, in Tel Aviv,” said the Foreign Minister.

The decision to recognize West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel was made by former Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, in 2018.

However, Australia’s new Labor government said it would reverse Morrison’s move.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

Palestinians finding new, creative methods of resisting the Israeli occupation is not new. The newest method, though, is shaving the head and going bald. It is the latest act of resistance as it shows support and solidarity with a fellow Palestinian fighter pursued by all of Israel’s manpower.

A few days ago, Palestinian guys in the refugee camp of Shufat shaved their heads as a form of showing support to a fellow camp Palestinian identified as Oday al-Tamimi, who the Israeli authorities accuse of carrying out a shooting attack at an army checkpoint at the camp’s entrance about two weeks ago, killing one soldier and seriously injuring another.

Seemingly, the “wanted” Palestinian is bald, and in order to confuse the Israeli forces looking for him, youths from the camp shaved their heads in an attempt to look like the wanted youth so the soldiers would not be able to recognize him.

This is not the first time Palestinians come up with creative ways to resist the occupation by confusing its forces. More than 80 years ago, Palestinians wore the kuffiyeh and agal (the traditional head cover for men) on their heads to protect the fighters against the English soldiers during the British Mandate on Palestine.

Back in the 1960s and 1970s, Palestinian resistance fighters sneaked into the occupied territories walking backward in order to confuse the Israeli soldiers and make them think they were leaving Palestine, not entering it.

Shufat camp’s barbershops started offering free haircuts to whoever wanted to shave their heads to show support for Tamimi, something that later turned into a trendy campaign all across the occupied Palestinian territories and even abroad.

Guys from Jerusalem-area towns and villages joined in the trend and posted videos and pictures of themselves shaving their heads in solidarity with the Palestinians in Shufat.

Additionally, Palestinians in several areas in the occupied West Bank and even the Gaza Strip, all joined forces and shaved their heads, proving that Palestinians can be united and come up with innovatively original ways to show support to each other and still resist the occupation in whatever way they can.

This resistance method was even echoed abroad, in Pakistan, where a man tweeted that his son, Salah Eddin, has shaved his head in solidarity with the Palestinians.

The Israelis, on the other hand, were not happy with this resistance trend. Reports said more than 15 Palestinian workers, who happened to be from Shufat refugee camp, were fired from their work as sanitation workers in a town in Israel for shaving their heads bald.

Two weeks ago, life was disrupted in the camp and the town of Anata after the Israeli occupation authorities, in a revenge act for the killing of the soldier at the checkpoint, decided to collectively punish more than 130,000 Palestinian residents of these two neighborhoods by locking them in.

The decision backfired as the camp’s residents declared civil disobedience and started daily protests at the checkpoint demanding an end to the punishment, which forced the Israeli army to quickly lift it even before apprehending the alleged attacker.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has welcomed the announcement by the Australian government annulling its recognition of West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and its commitment to the two-state solution.

The OIC viewed this as an important step that aligns with international law and relevant United Nations resolutions and supports international efforts to revive the peace process and bring about peace and stability in the region.

It called on all states that had recognized Jerusalem as the so-called capital of Israel to reverse their stances against international legitimacy.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

Settlers, protected by Israeli forces, today stole the olive harvest from privately-owned Palestinian land in Wadi al-Joz neighborhood of occupied Jerusalem, according to WAFA correspondent.

WAFA correspondent, citing sources, said dozens of settlers broke into a privately-owned land in Wadi al-Joz and stole the olive harvest while the forces provided them with protection.

Settlers and soldiers last week also broke into privately-owned Palestinian land in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan and stole the olive harvest before the landowners came and forced them to leave the area.

Settlers intensify their assault against Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest season, considered one of the main sources of income for Palestinians. They often synchronize their raids and assaults with soldiers, who provide them with cover and protection.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

A number of Palestinians suffocated today after inhaling tear gas fired by them by Israeli forces in the town of Sinjil to the north of Ramallah, according to local activist Ayed Ghafri.

He said that Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians while they were plowing their land threatened with seizure by Israel.

Israeli forces reportedly joined in on the attack and fired tear gas canisters toward farmers, causing several people to suffocate.

“Settler violence has long since become part of Palestinians’ daily life under occupation. Israeli security forces enable these actions, which result in Palestinians casualties – injuries and fatalities – as well as damage to land and property. In some cases, they even serve as an armed escort, or even join in the attacks,” said the Israeli information center for human rights in occupied territories, B’Tselem.

“Investigations, if even opened, are usually closed with no action taken against perpetrators as part of an undeclared policy of leniency. The long-term effect of this violence is the dispossession of Palestinians from increasing parts of the West Bank, making it easier for Israel to take over land and resources,” said B’Tselem.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

Israeli setters today attacked Palestinian olive pickers and stole their harvest in the town of Qaffin to the north of Tulkarem, according to the town’s mayor, Waleed Sabah.

The mayor said that settlers beat up farmers while they were harvesting their olives in Wadi Salem area to the northeast of the town of Qaffin, causing one of the farmers multiple bruises throughout his body.

Settlers reportedly chased farmers out of their lands and stole their harvest.

The attack was led by an Israeli settler who took over the area three years ago and placed caravans there for raising sheep.

Since the start of this olive season, settlers have been attacking at gunpoint Palestinian olive pickers and stealing their harvest.

The olive harvest is a national holiday and a main source of income for thousands of Palestinian households.

The settlers have been responsible for the destruction of thousands of olive trees in the occupied territories over the years, but mainly around the harvest season to maximize the damage to the farmers and country, without anyone ever being arrested or charged with vandalism of private property, rather, Palestinians charge, they carry out their mischievous acts under the cover and protection of the Israeli army.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

An entire Palestinian family, including children and an elderly, suffocated today after inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli forces directly at their home in Masafer Yatta to the south of Hebron, according to a local activist.

Coordinator of the protection and steadfastness committees, Fuad al-amour, said Israeli forces fired stun grenades and tear gas canisters directly at the family home of Kaal Rabi in Masafer Yatta, causing the entire family to suffocate, including children. The exposure to tear gas caused Rabi’s mother, an elderly, to lose consciousness.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

The Republic of Singapore today opened a new representative office to the State of Palestine in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

In his speech during the opening ceremony, Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Minister Riyad Maliki stated that the opening of the office was a key milestone in Singapore’s recognition of and relation with the State of Palestine.

He added that he attended the ceremony as a confirmation of what has been agreed upon with Singapore while expressing his desire that bilateral diplomatic relations would reach more advanced stages as soon as possible.

He stressed the depth of the bilateral relations with Singapore and the latter’s role in enhancing the capacities of scores of Palestinian employees and students.

Reflecting on the capacity-building support provided by Singapore to government institutions, Maliki pointed that some 600 Palestinian public employees were receiving capacity-building training, not to mention the number of students awarded scholarships in Singaporean universities.

He concluded his speech by revealing that Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh was scheduled to visit the Southeast Asian country on October 26 to further strengthen bilateral relations, while expressing his hope that this visit would culminate in reaching understandings.

The opening ceremony was also attended by Singapore’s Second Minister for Foreign Affairs Mohamad Maliki Osman, Singapore’s Non-Resident Representative to the Palestine Hawazi Daipi in addition to Honorary Director Ms Shireen Shelleh.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said today that occupying the Palestinian territories is profitable for Israel.

“In order to end it, it must be made a costly occupation, through sanctions on settlements and their products,” Shtayyeh said in a video speech during the meeting of the Executive Directors of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva.

The conference discusses some pressing issues, including the report: The Economic Cost of the Israeli Occupation for the Palestinian People: Fees on Additional Restrictions in Area C (2000-2020).

“The report confirms what we know and live. The report estimated the losses of Palestine at about $50 billion between 2000 and 2020 due to settlement and the restriction of economic development in various Palestinian areas, and this is equivalent to three times the gross domestic product (GDP),” Shtayyeh said.

In contrast, he added, the Israeli colonial settlement, including in Jerusalem, contributes to Israel’s GDP by $41 billion annually, which means $820 billion during the period specified in the report.

“In addition to its profits from our capabilities,” the Prime Minister said, “Israel is illegally deducting Palestinian tax funds, which puts the country in a difficult financial situation and a large financing gap.”

“If Palestine was independent and controls its own resources, we would not need foreign aid. Palestine would have been a prosperous country, according to the figures shown in the report,” he affirmed.

The Prime Minister praised the report, thanking UNCTAD Secretary-General Rebecca Greenspan, and her team that completed the report, calling on the international institution to intensify its work in documenting these important issues at the political and economic levels.

He also called for distributing the report’s outputs on the widest scale and sending it to the International Criminal Court as a document against Israel.

“Enabling Palestinians to access and invest in all areas, including those designated as C, control their resources and end settlements, is an indispensable condition for achieving sustainable development in Palestine towards the embodiment of the Palestinian state on the viable and contiguous 1967 borders based on the two-state solution in accordance with United Nations resolutions,” Shtayyeh stressed.

The report documents that Israel has implemented a long-term policy of building settlements since the occupation in 1967 in Area C in the occupied areas of the West Bank and East Jerusalem as well as areas B and A in the West Bank.

According to the report, Israel, as an occupying power, included more than 70% of Area C within the boundaries of the so-called regional councils of settlements, which means that they are outside the Palestinian economic benefit areas, and this means that the Palestinian areas are economically very restricted, and that restricts economic development in the Palestinian areas Including the ban on importing technology specifically and inputs under the double list, as well as the myriad restrictions on movement, which inflate the cost of production and undermine the competitiveness of Palestinian producers in the domestic and foreign markets.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency