Palestinians say they are outraged by the Israeli government’s decision to withhold millions of dollars of tax revenues from them while accelerating settlement construction. The decision follows Palestine being recognised as a state by UNESCO — the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.

There are now 150,000 Palestinian Authority employees across the West Bank and Gaza who do not know whether they will receive their full salaries next week.

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Israel has carried out air strikes over Gaza after a series of attacks in southern Israel killed at least eight people. The air strikes killed at least six people, including five members of the Hamas-linked Popular Resistance Committees and a young boy.

The air raid came in response to an attack on vehicles heading towards the Israeli resort of Eilat on Thursday.

Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby has condemned Israel’s interception of a boat attempting to break the Gaza blockade, calling it an “act of piracy”.

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News of the Rafah border crossing opening has brought a sense of renewed possibility for Palestinians. People are relieved and excited that all women and children as well as men over the age of 40 will now be allowed to leave Gaza via the Rafah crossing in Egypt.

Israeli soldiers shoot on protesters trying to cross the border from Syria, Lebanon and Gaza in commemoration of The Nakba.

13 year-old Mohammad Ebayyat lives with his father in Gaza. He hasn’t seen his mother and his siblings for 2 years, because they can’t travel to Gaza under the Israeli policy.

Very graphic images of the Zionist massacre committed against four Palestinian children in Gaza on 22nd March 2011. On this particular day, eight Palestinians were slaughtered and scores more were wounded when the Zionist American=made war planes bombarded a group of children playing football next to their homes.

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George Galloway’s powerful speech in the House of Commons debate on Gaza, Thu 15 Jan 2009 (5.30pm), highlighting the hypocrisy and brazen double-standards of Western foreign policy towards Israel policies, including assassinations and other war crimes.

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Disgusting and deplorable attitude from the aggressors of the War on Gaza.

We the civil society representatives of the peoples of East Asia and South-East Asia, gathered in Shah Alam , Malaysia on 3-4 November 2010, having discussed and deliberated on the Asian Caravan to Gaza in support of the Palestinian National Liberation struggle hereby declare:

The Palestinian struggle for freedom is the defining & central geopolitical issue of our times & the Palestinian Intifada stands as the vanguard of the international resistance to imperialism and Zionism.

We extend our solidarity to the courageous people of Palestine in their struggle, resistance and intifada against the Zionist Israeli occupation and affirm our commitment to:

• Right of self-determination for the Palestinians;
• Stop the Zionist occupation of Palestine;
• The equation for the rights of all in the historic Palestinian state;
• Right of return intact for Palestinian refugees;
• International boycott against Israel’s policy of Apartheid;

We endorse the Cairo Declaration of 2010; the United Palestinian call of July 2005 for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) to compel Israel to comply with international law; the Palestinian Campaign for Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI); and all other initiatives to end the occupation of Palestine.

Therefore, we urge and a commitment to develop and participate in the movement of the global community to cooperate with the Palestinian people for the independence of Palestine. We will also accelerate the formation of the Palestine Solidarity for Asia Society, in the form of a combination of community organizations, party-political parties, social movements and civil society institutions throughout the Asia community.

Taking a serious view of:

• Israel’s collective punishment sustained by the occupation and the blockade of Gaza;
• Placement / illegal occupation of the West Bank, including East Jeruselam, and the continuing development of the Jewish houses and the construction of separation wall;
• Denying the democratic rights of the Palestinian people as shown by Israel, the United States, Canada, the European Union, and other post-2006 Palestinian elections in Gaza;
• Genocide in the form of a war crime to remove the Palestinians by Israel;

A variety of threats that continue to occur to destroy al-Aqsa mosque and Qubattus Sakhra, as well as the many Christian holy sites as a result of Judaisation on these sites as well as all the historic sites in Palestine without mercy;
* Continuing discrimination and oppression faced by Palestinians who had lived in the territory of Israel;
* Exodus of Palestinians out of millions of Palestinian refugees;
* Zionist ideology which became the basis for Israel and a source of inspiration and legitimacy of the racist and oppressive measures,

We are committed to:

• Building solidarity with the Asian community for Palestinian independence;
• Provide assistance in kind, human resources, and volunteers to support the struggle of the Palestinian people;
• Support and strengthen the boycott of Israeli products in addition to efforts to terminate the financial companies that directly support the occupation and / or the Israel-owned industries;
• The campaign for not working with academic institutions, cultural and sporting events which includes Israel;
• Protest against government decisions and actions that support our country’s own economic, financial, military and diplomatic Israel and the actions and decisions that allow Israel to act arbitrarily;
• Launch a campaign to prosecute and punish the regime of Israel for their various war crimes;
• Reaffirm the UN Resolution 3379 which equates Zionism with Racism, with the support of the international community.

Therefore we demand the Zionist regime of Israel to immediately:

• End the blockade of Gaza;
• End illegal construction by Israel, breaking down barriers and to close the road blocks (check points), which has transformed into a prison of Palestine-while-open of the largest concentration camps in the world
• Respect the sanctity of the sites of Muslims and Christians in the Palestinian territories and stop their evil plans against al-Aqsa mosque and Qubbat-us Sakhra;
• Stop the murder plans against the leaders of the Palestinian state while brutal violence, torture and murder of civil citizens indiscriminately;
• Freeing the men, women and children of Palestinians in prison, which amounts to more than 11,000 people.

We urge our government to:

• Cut off all relations, whether open or secret, with Israel;
• Using international forums including the UN Security Council and the International Criminal Court (ICC) to seek accountability for Israeli crimes against humanity and war crimes;
• Full support of economic, political, diplomatic and military aid to the Palestinian resistance movement against their invaders;
• Support the boycott campaign, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS), which was initiated by Palestinian civil society.

We unite with all peoples’ movements and national resistances, peace loving citizens and democratic states of the world for the establishment of a sovereign, independent and democratic state of Palestine with Jerusalem as the capital.

Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid
Chairman, “Asian Caravan to Gaza” Conference

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Israeli soldiers appear on camera cheering on the destruction of Palestinian houses in Gaza in a video that surfaced Thursday. The video, shot with a mobile phone during Israel’s winter attack on Gaza, shows soldiers laughing and exclaiming as they witness a series of explosions destroying three Palestinian houses. Sporadic gunfire is heard in the background.

After the first two houses are destroyed, one soldier is heard remarking, according to the English subtitles, “It’s all documented. It’s all on camera. What about the third house? Give me the third house please [laughs].”

Later, after the third explosion, the same soldier is heard saying, “There’s nothing like this [laughs.] Bye, Gaza, bye. Wow, dude, what a thing!”

“How small are we. We’re so small compared to this,” he says, as the camera pans around to show the soldiers lying on the ground as they witness this destruction. (Source)

As George Galloway put it, “we had to walk through the Rafah crossing and leave the brand new vehicles we bought with our own money, in Egypt, behind!”

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Mussab Abu Maateq, one, Hana Abu Maateq, three, Rudeina Abu Maateq, four, and Saleh Abu Maateq, five, were killed along with their mother when a tank shell hit their home in Beit Hanun, doctors at the Kamal Radwan hospital said. Ten people were reportedly injured in the incident, three of them sustaining serious to critical wounds, and one person was trapped under the rubble. A Palestinian source in the Strip said that a member of the al-Quds Brigades, the Islamic Jihad’s military wing, was also martyred by Israeli occupation army soldiers.

Earlier Monday, Palestinian fighters fired three Qassam rockets from northern Gaza towards occupied territories. The rockets landed in the Netivot area, within the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council and on Palestinian territory. There were no reports of injuries or damage.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian organizations are preparing for another round of talks in Egypt in regards to the offer for a truce with Israel. According to estimates, the parties will accept the proposal presented by Hamas leader Dr. Mahmoud al-Zahar over the weekend.

Israeli daily Ynet said Sunday that Abu Mujahed, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, said that Israel is continuing its activities in the Gaza Strip, while completely ignoring the discussions on a truce. “Therefore, there is no reason for us to stop taking measures to defend ourselves,” he said.

Heavy exchanges of fire took place over the weekend between Israeli occupation forces and Palestinian resistance fighters in Beit Lahiya. A 14-year-old Palestinian girl was killed in the incident, and at least seven other Palestinians were injured, three of them sustaining critical wounds.

The hospital in the northern reported that the girl killed was the daughter of a senior Hamas members arrested by the forces during the incident. The Palestinians added that the girl’s mother was also injured in the clashes.