Barak Ravid; 14/11/08; (3 Items)
Relations between Israel and Britain remained strained on Thursday over Downing Street’s intention to label products manufactured in West Bank settlements, a week before the expected arrival of British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, David Miliband, to the Middle East. Miliband, who will visit Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Syria and Lebanon next week, is expected to talk to Israeli officials over the settlements in the West Bank and his country’s proposed plan to label products manufactured in them. “This initiative is a serious and substantial problem in relations between the two countries, and is generating a sense of crisis,” a senior diplomat in Jerusalem said. Over the past few weeks Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has spoken to Miliband and tried to persuade him to cancel the plan, by equating it to the initiative by U.K. academics to ban their Israeli counterparts. The British Secretary of State responded that the policy did not amount to an embargo on products made in the West Bank, but was merely an attempt to enforce previous trade agreements between the two countries.
See: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1037263.html
Barak approved settlement expansion despite Road Map
Uri Blau; 14/11/08
Defense Minister Ehud Barak has approved dozens of construction projects in the West Bank in recent months, contradicting Israel’s commitments to the Road Map, Haaretz has learned. Barak also approved the marketing of hundreds of housing units in settlements. Some of the permits for construction projects were granted in settlements to the east of the separation fence, which are beyond the areas the state defines as “settlement blocks” and it expects to retain under Israel’s control following a permanent agreement with the Palestinians. By press time, the Defense Ministry had not responded to Haaretz’s query on the matter.
See: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1037270.html
IDF soldiers filmed humiliating bound Palestinian face court martial
14/11/08
The Israel Defense Forces ruled on Thursday it will court-martial four infantrymen who were filmed verbally abusing a bound and blindfolded Palestinian at what is believed to be a checkpoint in the West Bank, Channel 10 reported. According to the report, IDF chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi ordered an investigation into the incident, tapping GOC Northern Command Gadi Eizencot to oversee the probe. Last week, soldiers from the Golani infantry brigade posted a video on YouTube depicting a blindfolded Palestinian being forced to repeat phrases in Hebrew as the soldiers manning the checkpoint laugh in the background. One of the lines is: “Golani will bring you a log to stick up your ass.”
See: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1037217.html
Under the cover of a commander’s orders
Meron Benvenisti; 14/11/08
A short while ago, the GOC Central Command published an order establishing in the occupied territories “The Ayosh Second Authority,” which duplicates the Second Authority for Television and Radio in Israel. ["Ayosh" is a Hebrew acronym for Judea, Samaria and Gaza.] The order was published in response to a High Court of Justice petition against the decision to grant the settlers a permit to operate a radio station, on the grounds that an Israeli body - the Second Authority - does not have the authority to operate in the territories. This legal maneuver drew hardly any attention, since it did not contain any striking innovation. Hundreds of previous “commanders’ orders” have for a long time duplicated Israel’s system of government, law and administration, and turned the territories into annexed areas; of course, only when the issue relates to, and is in the interest of, the Israelis.
See: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1037009.html
Tags: Human Rights, Israel, Settlers, Trade, UK