Israel - propanganda & Settlements

Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land provides a striking comparison of U.S. and international media coverage of the crisis in the Middle ... all » East, zeroing in on how structural distortions in U.S. coverage have reinforced false perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This pivotal documentary exposes how the foreign policy interests of American political elites--oil, and a need to have a secure military base in the region, among others--work in combination with Israeli public relations strategies to exercise a powerful influence over how news from the region is reported. Through the voices of scholars, media critics, peace activists, religious figures, and Middle East experts, Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land carefully analyzes and explains how--through the use of language, framing and context--the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza remains hidden in the news media, and Israeli colonization of the occupied terrorities appears to be a defensive move rather than an offensive one. The documentary also explores the ways that U.S. journalists, for reasons ranging from intimidation to a lack of thorough investigation, have become complicit in carrying out Israel's PR campaign. At its core, the documentary raises questions about the ethics and role of journalism, and the relationship between media and politics

Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land Part 1

BBC ban on Gaza aid broadcast sparks ire

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 14:41:10 GMT | PressTV [ BBC News]

British media has been accused of under-reporting anti-war protests in the Island kingdom.

Thousands of people are holding a protest in London, decrying BBC's refusal to broadcast a charity appeal for war-hit people of Gaza.

The BBC says it has refrained from broadcasting the appeal over concerns that it would conflict with its policy of impartiality as well as reservations about the possibility of efficient aid delivery.

International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander on Saturday urged the British network in a written letter to reconsider its decision, saying the BBC argument was weak at best.

"I think the British public can distinguish between support for humanitarian aid and perceived partiality in a conflict," he told BBC radio.

"I really struggle to see, in the face of the immense human suffering in Gaza at the moment, that this is in any way a credible argument."

The ban has sparked fierce criticism from Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government as well as Muslim groups, AFP reported.

The appeal by the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), a group comprised of respected aid charities like the British Red Cross and Oxfam, has emphasized that it has no political agendas and only aims to ease the humanitarian crisis.

The public-funded BBC is, however, not alone in its decision, as ITV and Sky have also refused to show the appeal.

A 10 million pounds (10.5 million euros, 13.6 million dollars) loss in donations has been estimated due to the broadcasting ban.

The 'Stop The War' has estimated a £10 million loss due to the broadcasting ban.

The "Stop The War" coalition has organized huge rallies in London in the past few weekends against Israel's aerial, ground, and sea bombing of Gaza, which claimed the lives of some 1,330 Palestinians and injured thousands others.

British socialist politician and activist Tony Benn has questioned the fairness of British coverage of the Gaza war, Benn told Press TV at a demonstration on January 17, before the end of the 23-day war on Gaza, that he demanded "better and fairer coverage from media in
Britain that does not cover our demonstrations."

Gaza Sues Israel over 'War Crimes'

22/01/2009  |  al  Manar   

Now that the Israeli offensive against the Gaza Strip came to an end, marking another victory for the Resistance in the region, it's time for "action" against the "war crimes" committed by the Zionist entity against the Palestinians.

In this context, the Israeli military control banned the publication of the names and photos of officers and soldiers who have taken part in the Israeli offensive. The Israeli decision was regarded by analysts as an attempt to obstruct the juridical proceedings against Israeli military and political leaders who participated in 'war crimes against humanity.'

The Israeli military sources said that the decision was taken after the propagation of the photos of the Palestinian civilians killed by Israeli excessive and random fire. They noted that international organizations and major states were heading towards accusing the Israeli army of violating international laws. 

Furthermore, the Israeli website "wanted.org.il" published on Wednesday arrest warrants against fifteen Israeli figures from the political as well as the military institutions from those who have taken part in the Second Lebanon war and the Gaza war.

At the top of the list comes Defense Minister Ehud Barak who imposed, according to the warrant, a siege, as a collective punishment, on 1.5 million residents of Gaza. On 27 December 2008, the suspect ordered the aerial bombardment of Gazan population centers. The attacks involved hundreds of aircraft sorties, dropping hundreds of tons of bombs on Gazan neighborhoods. 

Israeli outgoing PM Ehud Olmert was also among the "WANTED" list. On the 12th of July 2006, the suspect ordered the bombing of cities and villages in Lebanon, breaking international law. During the attack, the suspect also ordered several thousand cluster bombs to be dropped near residential areas in Lebanon, in defiance to international conventions. In the summer of 2007, the suspect ordered the blockade of 1.5 million people in Gaza, preventing them from receiving adequate food, water and electricity supplies and medication – something explicitly prohibited under international law according to the warrant. 

Israel Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has, of course, its reserved place on the list. On the 12th of July 2006, the suspect along with her accomplices ordered the aerial bombardment and artillery assault on residential areas in Lebanon. For 34 days she authorized troops to make 12,000 aerial sorties, to fire 100,000 artillery shells, damaging 350 schools and completely destroying 15,000 residential units in Lebanon. On 27th December 2008, the suspect and her accomplices ordered an aerial, ground and naval attack on densely populated areas in the Gaza Strip.

The list of "Wanted" Israeli "criminals" also includes Amir Peretz, Binyamin Ben Eliezer, Avi Dichter, Carmi Gilon, Dan Halutz, Doron Almog, Eliezer Shkedy, Gabi Ashkenazi, Giora Eiland, Matan Vilani, Moshe Bogie Yaalon and Shaul Mofaz.

Kedudukan UMNO - Warga pengundi & Warga kampus

Pro-Mahasiswa menang di dalam pilihanraya UM, perubahan besar ke arah Pro-Mahasiswa.

The Truth About the 2009 Gaza Massacre

Eye opening montage of news clips and photos that tell the truth about the events in Gaza. Interviews with Israeli Defence Minister, US President Elect speeches including at AIPAC, CCN research on who broke the ceasefire, a speech from a Palestinian lawmaker. There is no place safe for civillians in Gaza.  Marked UN schools and UN main building targeted.

DSAI on Palestine & Hamas

Malaysian Parliamentarians come together to support a 10-point resolution asking for an end to the war in Gaza.

Gaza: The Killing Zone

Published 15 Sept, 2008, Updated 14 Jan,2009

life in Gaza is a constant gauntlet of Israeli sniper fire, military rockets and army bulldozers. No one is safe. In light of the escalating tensions, we're bringing back one our most moving documentaries, a hard-hitting expose of life in the Occupied territories. We speak to the children caught in the crossfire and find out the true cost of Israel's targeted assassinations policy.

A little boy screams in agony. There’s shrapnel in his eye, leg, stomach and feet. He was playing in the street outside his house when an Israeli helicopter fired missiles at the car of a Hamas member. Ten minutes later, the helicopter returned and fired two more bombs at the decimated car, spraying the surrounding district with sharp metal darts. Makmoud was just 1 of 47 people injured in the attack. Four others were killed. 

The feeling in Gaza is that the West accepts this type of action. It doesn’t matter how much so called ‘collateral damage’ it causes. Whichever side kills last says it is a response to the one before. In the grim calculus of this conflict, around three Palestinians die for every Israeli killed. It’s an equation that keeps old hatreds fresh. 

Israel’s hardline policy may only be aimed at militants but it’s the civilians who end up paying the price. 12 year old Huda Darwish was sitting in her classroom when a stray bullet from an Israeli sniper hit her. After three weeks in a coma, she is finally waking up. Her relatives’ joy quickly vanishes when they realise that the bullet has left her blind. The reality of her shattered life suddenly hits her. “I want to die. Why did this happen to me?” she asks. Her family have no answers. 

We visit Huda’s school in Rafah to see how the accident could possibly have happened. The school is run by the United Nations on a big open site not easy to miss. But an Israeli military position is situated just 500 metres away. As we enter her classroom, a shell explodes nearby. The children flee terrified under their desks. One girl is so traumatised she is in a state of shock. Their teacher says that this happens all the time.

Almost every day, Israeli troops leave their base in Rafah to bulldoze Palestinian houses. “This is a combat area,” explains Colonel Pinky Zoaret. He says he needs to destroy the houses to deny the terrorists cover. But most of the houses belong to ordinary Palestinians. Thousands have lost their homes. And there’s no compensation for the dispossessed. “I can’t sleep,” confides resident Doctor Sameer. “I smoke about 40 to 50 cigarettes a night.” All his life savings are in his house but he knows he could lose it at any time.

Those who try and stop the violence can end up paying with their lives. Rachel Corrie was one of them. She brought the Palestinians’ plight to the world’s attention when she died, crushed by an Israeli bulldozer while trying to protect a building. The IDF maintain that she died because of her own irresponsible and illegal behaviour. But eye witnesses tell a different story. “The driver could clearly see she was there,” states her friend. “But instead of stopping, he continued forward.”

Months later, there are more high profile killings in Gaza. British photographer Tom Hurndall was shot trying to rescue a six year old girl who was stuck out in gunfire. Then cameraman James Miller was killed by Israeli fire. “James died because we trusted them to behave like a civilised army. We knew they could see that we weren’t armed and that we were carrying a white flag. We trusted them not to kill us under those circumstances and they shot James anyway,” states his colleague Saira Shah. 

Gaza still remains a killing zone. 

Courtesy : journeymanpictures 

A report by Sandra Jordan for Channel 4's Dispatches and Unreported World

Publisher: Journeyman Location London, UK Copyright:MBC

Media Analysis of US Coverage of Arab-Israeli Conflict

Like most Americans, Alison Weir, the editor of a small-town newspaper in California, knew very little about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, other than what she had gleaned from the evening news or newspaper headlines. As a journalist, her attention was on issues much closer to home. Neither a muslim nor a jew, she nevertheless became more curious about the topic of the Palestinian uprising. And as she researched it, she became increasingly suspicious that the American media were not telling us the whole story. Months later, she traveled to the occupied territories as an independent journalist to find out for herself what the U.S. media seemed to be omitting.

Three months after returning from Palestine, Alison Weir quit her job and founded If Americans Knew, an organization dedicated to quantifying the ways in which the American media was misinforming the public about the conflict. Ms. Weir explains her group's methodology, analyzes the data, and reports on the key findings.

9 arrested in New York rally on Gaza

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 05:17:49 GMT |  PressTV.ir

Protesters in New York

At least nine people have been arrested in the United States in a demonstration against the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip.

Seven police officers have also been injured in the Sunday afternoon rally in New York City, the police department said in a statement.

Since Israel launched an all-out war against people in Gaza on December 27, at least 900 Palestinians have been killed and some 4,000 others are reported wounded.

Witnesses said that the rally on Manhattan's West Side began peacefully, but confrontations between police and protesters broke out finally.

"The police pushed us out onto the avenue, and as we were walking down the avenue ... they charged with horses on the sidewalks and they charged with their own bodies and pushed in, and a riot started," Steve Sherman, coordinator of security for United for Peace and Justice and a demonstrator at the rally told CNN.

Backed by Washington, Tel Aviv continues it all out war on Gaza, paying no attention to the UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate end to the conflict.

All UN Security Council members except the US voted for the resolution on Friday.

The US had vetoed three other resolutions condemning the Israeli acts since the beginning of Tel Aviv's onslaught on Gaza.

The United States has so far vetoed over 40 anti-Israeli resolutions sought by the council since 1972.

Meanwhile in Europe, more than 250,000 Spanish people held the largest pro-Palestinian rally to show their anger over the Israeli bloodshed.

Italy, Greece, and Belgium were among other European countries that joined people around the world to denounce the attacks. 

 

Open Letter to Barack Hussein Obama, President-elect of the United States of America

January 1, 2009

Dear Mr. President,

I did not vote for you in the Presidential Election because I am Malaysian.But I consider myself one of your constituents because what you do or say will affect me and my country as well.

I welcome your promise for change. Certainly your country, the United States of America needs a lot of changes. That is because America and Americans have become the most hated people in the world. Even Europeans dislike your arrogance. Yet you were once admired and liked because you freed a lot of countries from conquest and subjugation.

It is the custom on New Year's day for people to make resolutions. You must have listed your good resolutions already. But may I politely suggest that you also resolve to do the following in pursuit of Change.

1) Stop killing people. The United States is too fond of killing people in order to achieve its objectives. You call it war, but today's wars are not about professional soldiers fighting and killing each other. It is about killing people, ordinary innocent people by the hundreds of thousands. Whole countries will be devastated.

War is primitive, the cavemen's way of dealing with a problem. Stop your arms build up and your planning for future wars.

2) Stop indiscriminate support of Israeli killers with your money and your weapons. The planes and the bombs killing the people of Gaza are from you.

3) Stop applying sanctions against countries which cannot do the same against you.

In Iraq your sanctions killed 500,000 children through depriving them of medicine and food. Others were born deformed. What have you achieved with this cruelty? Nothing except the hatred of the victims and right-thinking people.

4) Stop your scientists and researchers from inventing new and more diabolical weapons to kill more people more efficiently.

5) Stop your arms manufacturers from producing them. Stop your sales of arms to the world. It is blood money that you earn. It is un-Christian.

6) Stop trying to democratize all the countries of the world. Democracy may work for the United States but it does not always work for other countries.

Don't kill people because they are not democratic. Your crusade to democratize countries has killed more people than the authoritarian Governments which you overthrew. And you have not succeeded anyway.

7) Stop the casinos which you call financial institutions. Stop hedge funds, derivatives and currency trading. Stop banks from lending non-existent money by the billions.

Regulate and supervise your banks. Jail the miscreants who made profits from abusing the system.

8) Sign the Kyoto Protocol and other international agreements.

9) Show respect for the United Nations.

I have many other resolutions for change which I think you should consider and undertake. But I think you have enough on your plate for this 2009th year of the Christian Era.

If you can do only a few of what I suggest, you will be remembered by the world as a great leader. Then the United States will again be the most admired nation. Your embassies will be able to take down the high fences and razor-wire coils that surround them.

May I wish you a Happy New Year and a great Presidency.

Yours Sincerely,

Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad

(Former Prime Minister of Malaysia)

Israel pounds Gaza for second day

By Nidal al-Mughrabi | Reuters | Sunday, December 28, 2008

GAZA (Reuters) - Israel launched air strikes on Gaza for a second day on Sunday, piling pressure on Hamas after killing more than 270 people in one of the bloodiest days in 60 years of conflict between the Palestinians and the Jewish state.

Dozens of Israeli armored vehicles massed along the Gaza border for a possible ground invasion and the U.N. Security Council called early on Sunday for a halt to the violence.

Israeli military affairs commentators said the Israeli offensive did not appear to be aimed at retaking the Gaza Strip or destroying the territory's Hamas government -- ambitious goals that could prove difficult and politically risky to achieve ahead of Israel's February 10 parliamentary election.

Instead, they said, Israel -- after an air bombardment on Saturday -- wanted to strengthen its deterrence power and force Hamas into a new truce that would lead to a long-term halt to cross-border rocket salvoes.

Israel said its warplanes carried out about 100 strikes on Saturday and that Palestinian militants had fired some 70 rockets at the Jewish state, killing one Israeli man.[read more]

VIDEO : 27th December 2008 - International Solidarity Movement (ISM) volunteers witness the devastation caused as over 200 Palestinians were killed by Israeli air-strikes

FROM INDIA WITH CAPATI!

WHY DO WE DEPEND ON US ?

The Japanese save a lot. They do not spend much.
Also Japan exports far more than it imports.
Has an annual trade surplus of over $100 billion, yet
Japanese economy is considered weak, even collapsing.

Americans spend, save little.
Also US import more than it exports.
Has an annual trade deficit of over $400 billion.
Yet, the American economy is considered strong and
trusted to get stronger.

But where from do Americans get money to spend?
They borrow from Japan , China , and even India .
Virtually others save for the US to spend.

Global savings are mostly invested in US, in dollars.
India itself keeps its foreign currency assets of over
$50 billions in US securities.

China has sunk over $160 billion in US securities.

Japan 's stakes in US securities is in trillions.
Result:

The US has taken over $5 trillion from the world.
So, as the world saves for the US , Americans spend
freely. Today, to keep the US consumption going, that is for
the US economy to work, the countries have to remit $180 billion every
quarter that is $2 billion a day to the US !

Otherwise the US economy would go for a sick.
So will the global economy.

The result will be no different if US consumers begin consuming less.
A Chinese economist asked a neat question.

Who has invested more, US in China , or China in US?
The US has invested in China less than half of what
China has invested in US.

The same is the case with India .. We have invested in
US over $50 billion.
But the US has invested less than $20 billion in India

Why the world is after US?
The secret lies in the American spending, that they
hardly save. In fact they use their credit cards to spend their
future income.That the US spends is what makes it attractive to
export to the US . So US imports more than what it exports year afteR
year

The result:

The world is dependent on US consumption for its growth.
By its deepening culture of consumption, the US has
habituated the world to feed on US consumption.
But as the US needs money to finance its consumption,
the world provides the money.

It's like a shopkeeper providing the money to a customer so that the
customer keeps buying from his shop. The customer will not buy; the
shop won't have business, unless the shopkeeper funds him.

The US is like the lucky customer.

And the world is like the helpless shopkeeper financier.

Who is America 's biggest shopkeeper financer?

Japan of course. Yet it's Japan which is regarded as weak.
Modern economists complain that Japanese do not spend,
so they do not Grow.

To force the Japanese to spend, the Japanese government exerted itself.
Reduced the savings rates, even charged the savers.
Even then the Japanese did not spend (habits don't change, even
with taxes, do they?).

Their traditional postal savings alone is over $1.2 trillions, about
three times the Indian GDP. Thus, savings, far from being the strength of Japan ,
has become its pain.

Hence, what is the lesson?
A nation cannot grow unless the people spend, not save. Not just
spend, but borrow and spend.

Dr. Jagdish Bhagwati, the famous Indian-born economist
in the US, told that don't wastefully save.
Start spending, on imported cars and, seriously, even
on cosmetics! This will put all nations on a growth curve.
'Saving is sin, and spending is virtue.

Before you follow this neo economics, get some fools
to save so that you can borrow from them and spend.
This is what US has successfully done in last few
decade.

Written by Dr Jagdish Bhagwati an economist
- share your thought

Doctors Without Borders Press Released. : 2008 'Top Ten' humanitarian crises

Somalia's Humanitarian Catastrophe Worsens

Beyond the International Spotlight, Critical Health Needs in Myanmar Remain Unmet

Health Crisis Sweeps Zimbabwe as Violence and Economic Collapse Spread

Civilians Trapped as War Rages in Eastern Congo

Millions of Malnourished Children Left Untreated Despite Advances in
Lifesaving Nutritional Therapies

Critical Need of Assistance in Ethiopia's Somali Region

Civilians Killed and Forced to Flee as Fighting Intensifies in Northwestern Pakistan

No End in Sight to Violence and Suffering in Sudan

Iraqi Civilians in Urgent Need of Assistance

HIV/TB Co-Infection Poses Health Battle on Two Fronts

Plundering the Congo & The Destabilization of Congo

Wayne Madsen: Congo has fallen prey to a lot of people that want to loot its natural resources. Ethnic divisions are being stoked by client states of the US who arm both sides.

Bush's Final F.U. - a host of last-minute regulations

With president-elect Barack Obama already taking command of the financial crisis, it's tempting to think that regime change in America is a done deal. But if George Bush has his way, the country will be ruled by his slash-and-burn ideology for a long time to come.

"It's what we've seen for Bush's whole tenure, only accelerated," says Gary Bass, executive director of the nonpartisan group OMB Watch. "They're using regulation to cement their deregulatory mind-set, which puts corporate interests above public interests." . . . . [what are these regulations - read more]

"It's going to be very challenging for Obama," says Bass. "Is he going to want to look forward and begin changing the way government works? Or is he going to look back and fix the problems left by Bush? Either way, it's a tough call."

Anwar Ibrahim on YouTube with Riz Khan.

Anwar Ibrahim [present leader of opposition and MP of Malaysia] talk about the opposition, the coming shadow cabinet, the economics, press freedom and foreign direct investment.

Mahathir on YouTube with Riz Khan

Mahathir justifying his identity as a Malay, being a political critic, relating Abdullah Badawi's highandedness his opinion on ISA and the US.

The "Universal Declaration" of "Human Rights".

On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the "Universal Declaration" of Human Rights.

This animation brings all 30 articles to life using different techniques, from pen and ink to digital animation.

Today marks the 60th Anniversary of the "Universal Declaration" of "Human Rights" (UDHR). In commemoration, human rights organizations are using YouTube to inform citizens about the significance of the UDHR and the human rights violations that still plague our society.

RPK & two others on Aljazeera.

Dec 3 – Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin said tonight that 99% of the rumours he reports on his website eventually turn out to be true.

Defending himself from a caller on a special interview with Riz Khan on satellite television station Al Jazeera who asked why he persisted in writing about rumours, he said time and time again he had been proven right with his stories. . . read more

Mumbai Attacks - Democracynow.org discussion.

Toll From Deadly, Coordinated Mumbai Attacks Tops 170, Two Top Indian Officials Resign, Tensions Rise Between India and Pakistan