This music video from the USA is about the Iraq war.
From Associated Press:
Suicide bomber hits Iraqi Gaza protest
By HAMID AHMED
Associated Press WriterBAGHDAD — A suicide bomber on a bicycle blew himself up Sunday amid a crowd of demonstrators in northern Iraq who were protesting Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza, killing one demonstrator and wounding 16 others, Iraqi police said.
The bomber rode his bicycle into the demonstration of about 1,300 people in the center of the northern city of Mosul, said a police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with news media.
The demonstration was organized by the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party. The party’s Mosul spokesman, Yahiya Abid Mahjoub, complained that police and the Iraqi army had not taken security precautions for the demonstration.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the attack, the officer said.
“The ones who targeted our brothers in Gaza are the same who targeted us in Mosul today. They are agents of Israel,” Mahjoub said.
As far as the Associated Press item is concerned, Mr Mahjoub did not prove this allegation.
First of all, condolences to the families and friends of those who died or got wounded.
Second: according to conspiracy theorists, everyone who opposes United States occupation in Iraq, violently or non violently; Muslim, Christian, atheist, or other; moderate Muslim or extreme Muslim; and also everyone perpetrating violence against Iraqi civilians; is supposed to be part of a sinister big world Muslim conspiracy.
So are, supposedly, all people who oppose Israeli government violence in Gaza. But, wait a moment; here someone supposed to be part of that conspiracy violently attacks others supposed to be part of that conspiracy … Would, dare I say it, the conspiracy theory be total bull?
Most of the violence in Iraq is by United States or other occupation soldiers or mercenaries, or by allies of them like the Badr Brigade. So, against this background, the perpetrator(s) of the crime in Mosul might not be “agents of Israel”, but direct or indirect agents of the George W Bush administration in the USA.
By Gideon Levy in Israeli daily Haaretz on Gaza: here.
Ewa Jasiewicz reports live from Gaza: here.
Israel threatens ground invasion of Gaza: here.
Israel, Stop! Just. Stop. Here.
They Destroyed Iraq and Called it Freedom by Geoff Simons: here.
War Without End: The Iraq Debacle in Context by Michael Schwartz (Haymarket, £9.99): here.
Dear Kitty. Some blog 
COLLISION COURSE – the latest The Other Israel went into print
The lead article exposes the built up by the Israeli government to the assault on Gaza. You read about protests against the siege; about efforts,not all of them successful. to break the siege by sailing to Gaza. You find also news about the struggle of the Kurd family – and its supporters – against the double standard of Israeli law; about the new wave of imprisoned draft refusers, many of them girls; about the olive harvest – already a fixed point on the activists’ agenda – which this year suffered from increased settler violence. How racial violence and provocation is on the rise but also the joint Jewish-Arab confronting it – within Israel proper and beyond the Green line.
Another theme is the convergence of American and Israeli elections, in short the question how the known outcome of the first and the not yet known of the second will impact American-Israeli relations.
The description of the thousand-strong anti-war protest, yesterday, in Tel-Aviv – which was included in the paper at the very last moment – you can read also online: http://toibillboard.info/Day1.htm
First timers can order a free sample which will be sent by post. Just send a message with subject line “free sample” and include in the mail your name and postal mailing address. From addresses in North America – send it to AICIPP@igc.org. All others please send it to otherisr@actcom.co.il – also, if you know The Other Israel already but want to subscribe. We will then send the issue with an invoice.
You may send us the address of a friend – somebody for whom you think it might be interesting, somebody who stopped reading the too big flood of daily emails about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, somebody without internet, a community center or library where you think it would fit.
Table of Contents
* COLLISION COURSE, editorial overview, p.1-4
– Stoking the Gaza fire, p.1
– Wishy-washy coalition, p.2
– Floundering campaigns, p.3
– The Feiglin syndrome, p.3
– Save us from ourselves!, p.4
* Youths looking for hope, p.4-6
– Say it with banners, p.5
* Dispossessed twice, p.6-9
– The legal trap, p.6
– Indomitable struggle, p.7
– Silwan, the interregnum & the settlers, p.7
– The order to destroy has been given, p.8
* The banquet hall & the Gaza protest, p.9
* The Gaza Lifeline, p.10
– Tahiti, but not Gaza, p.10
* In besieged Gaza, Gideon Spiro, p.11
* Ceasefire petition from border area, p.12
* Samu’a and Asa’el, David Shulman, p.13-16
– The judge did her job, p.13
– Theatre of the absurd in the fields, p.14
– The good officer, p.15
– Gandhi in the modern world, p.15
* The importance of 12th-graders, p.16-18
– Metamorphosis at a road-block, p.16
* Music of refusal, Yigal Sarna, p.18
* Settlement doesn’t pay, Adam Keller, p.19
* Halting the settler radio, Naftali Kohn, p.20
* The olive harvest war, p.21-22
* Tackling the crucial issues, A.K., p.22-24
* Last minute anti-war effort, p.24
* Confronting racist violence, p.25
* To a new president, from an old fox, Uri Avnery, p.28
* Onslaught on Gaza, Protest on Day 1, A.K., p.28
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Egyptians open fire on Palestinians
5 hours ago
Egyptian border guards have opened fire on Palestinians who breached the border to escape Israel’s assault on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
An Egyptian security official said there were at least five breaches along the nine-mile border and hundreds of Palestinian residents were pouring in.
At least 300 Egyptian border guards have been rushed to the area to reseal the border, the official added on condition on anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the press.
A resident of the Gaza Strip side of the border, Fida Kishta, said that Egyptian border guards opened fire to drive back the Palestinians.
Residents have also commandeered a bulldozer to open new breaches.
Palestinians reported several people were wounded by the gunfire.
Israeli aircraft earlier bombed the border area in an apparent attempt to destroy cross border tunnels used to smuggle weapons and contraband into the Gaza Strip.
Dr Abdel Qader Higazi, a representative of the Egyptian Doctor’s Syndicate in Rafah said Egyptian authorities closed the border crossing after allowing several trucks of medical supplies into Gaza.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5grmpk18UVAYzqu4fu2F0eNh8QIgA
Copyright © 2008 The Press Association
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Flash: Irish anger at Israeli ‘war crime’
Ireland has joined a wave of international anger and revulsion at the
saturation bombing by Israel of the Palestinian-ruled Gaza Strip in
the middle East this week.
Israeli warplanes pounded the besieged Palestinian homeland for a
third consecutive day this morning, bringing the death toll to an
estimated 307 lives and leaving thousands injured.
Among the targets struck by Israeli bombers were a television station,
an Islamic University, a mosque and scores of civilian homes, as well
as domestic security compounds and police bases.
Some of the security compounds were repeatedly hit which increased the
number of casualties as local residents and medics rushed to evacuate
the wounded. A number of children are among the dead.
Israel has characterised the bombing campaign as a reprisal for
home-made rockets fired by Palestinian militants towards Israeli
settlements across the Gaza-Israel border. The justification has been
widely dismissed by international governments and independent
observers.
Despite the condemnation of the Israeli actions, there are fears of an
even greater loss of life as Israel appears set to mount a full scale
invasion of the Gaza strip. Israel’s main political parties have vowed
to violently overthrow a Hamas-led governmment following elections set
for next month.
Hospitals in Gaza are already overflowing and there are virtually no
medical supplies, although Egypt has today finally opened its border
to allow some medical assistance to enter the Gaza strip.
In Ireland, Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin issued a
statement condemning the violence and called for an immediate end to
hostilities.
“The only viable solution at this stage is the restoration of a
genuine and fully honoured ceasefire throughout Gaza and southern
Israel,” he said.
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions denounced the air strikes as
“totally disproportionate”.
Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams called for solidarity with the people
of Gaza in the wake of the repeated Israeli bombardment.
“People in Ireland and across the world have been horrified by the
events in Gaza, particularly as they occur during this time of the
year when the thoughts of millions of people are focused on the Holy
Land,” he said.
“The cause of peace and stability in the Middle East can only be
damaged by this latest outrage.
“I would urge all parties and groups in the region to accept inclusive
dialogue and political negotiation as the most effective pathway to
peace and for all acts of military aggression to end.”
Demonstrations have been taking place across Ireland in solidarity
with the Palestinian people.
Sinn Fein International Affairs and Human Rights Spokesperson Aengus O
Snodaigh TD, speaking from one such demonstration in Dublin yesterday,
said “tough words” from Minister Martin would have “little effect”.
Deputy O Snodaigh, who recently visited Gaza to witness Israel’s
blockade of the city, said “practical measures” such as the suspension
of preferential trade with Israel must be taken to exert pressure and
bring the attacks to an end.
“Israel’s treatment of the people of Gaza City has been nothing short
of disgraceful.
“Its blockade of the City has created a humanitarian crisis in the
region with shortages of food, fuel and medical supplies.
“Thousands of homes are without power and the UN is struggling to feed
the population while hospitals can’t get hold of the medical supplies
that they need.”
Mr O Snodaigh said he shared the “shock and horror” across the world
at the loss of life in Gaza.
“Israel’s insistence that this operation is to continue is an affront
to the international community”.
He joined calls for the suspension of the Euro-Mediterranean
Association Agreement, which underpins preferential trade with Israel
and is subject to Israel’s compliance with human rights.
The Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign has demanded a similar
response by the 26-County government to what it said was an “Israeli
war crime”.
It said the Dublin government should summon the Israeli ambassador to
account for the atrocity, and has planned further public protests in
Dublin and elsewhere against the bombings.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Irish Republican News
http://republican-news.org/
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CNN: Did secret US unit execute suspected insurgent in cold blood?
David Edwards and Muriel Kane
Published: Monday December 29, 2008
The US Army is investigating allegations that it executed a suspected al Qaeda member in cold blood during a special forces raid outside Baghdad two weeks ago.
The military initially issued a statement saying the killing was provoked when the victim “initially complied with Coalition Forces instructions but then returned inside the house. When he returned outside, he attempted to engage the forces with an AK-47.”
However, the dead man’s brothers told CNN correspondent Michael Ware that Haddan was unarmed when he was shot. “Both the American and Iraqi accounts agree,” Ware explained. “All of the brothers including Haddan came out, surrendering to the Americans. Both sides say Haddan then went back into the house — and this is where the stories diverge.”
According to what the Iraqis told Ware, “all the brothers were stripped to their underwear and forced to lay on the ground. … When Haddan did return inside, they say, it was the Americans who had ordered him to do so.”
The brothers insist that Haddan was killed inside the house and offer cellphone video taken by relatives, which shows bloodstains and bloody handprints in a bedroom, as evidence for their version of the story.
The brothers’ account is very similar to an incident described by the Washington Post in 2006, where Marines said they had killed an Iraqi terrorist in a gun battle, after discovering him attempting to plant a bomb, and had then found an AK-47 and a shovel by his side.
“According to accounts given by Hashim’s neighbors and members of his family, and apparently supported by photographs,” reported the Post, “the Marines went to Hashim’s home, took the 52-year-old disabled Iraqi outside and shot him four times in the face. The assault rifle and shovel next to his body had been planted by the Marines, who had borrowed them from a villager.”
In this latest incident, the cellphone video also shows that one of Haddan’s fingers had been severed. The military has “declined to explain” this, but Ware speculates it might have been done “for further identification and inclusion of his fingerprint and DNA in a US database.” However, the family sees it as an act of intimidation.
A tribal leader helped Haddan’s family meet with US officials in the Green Zone to present their case. Now the military itself is propelling the investigation, hoping to find out what really happened.
http://rawstory.com/news/2008/CNN_U.S._investigates_execution_of_Iraqi_1229.html
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Five Balousha girls — Tahir, 17; Ikram, 14; Samar, 12; Dina, 8; and Jawaher, 4 — were dead, swelling the list of Palestinian civilians killed in three days of Israeli airstrikes on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-civilians30-2008dec30,0,1804115.story
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Mother’s Response
“Does my 12-days-old baby have a rocket with her?” Samira demanded. “Or my son, does he have a missile with him? Or did my daughters have AK-47s beside them? Why did they target them?”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/29/AR2008122902490.html
Father’s Response
“If the dead here were Israelis, you would see the whole world condemning and responding. But why is no one condemning this action? Aren’t we human beings?” he said. “We are living in our land, we didn’t take it from the Israelis. We are fighting for our rights. One day we will get them back.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/30/israel-and-the-palestinians-middle-east
Students
Eight students, ages 18 to 20, were killed while waiting for a U.N. bus to take them home, and 19 were injured.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/29/AR2008122902490.html
Emergency Services
Gaza’s emergency services are crippled by the airstrikes and power outages caused in part by an Israeli blockade.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-civilians30-2008dec30,0,1804115.story
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WAC Maan stands clearly against the war. We have Arab and Jewish members fighting daily against a government that does not care for the workers. The killing of hundreds of people in Gaza under the slogan of fighting terrorism will bring no peace to Israeli workers.
workers and Unions all over the world cannot remain neutral today. we call upon Trade Unions and the Int. labour movement to press on their governments to bring an end to this blood letting that leads nowhere.
WAC Maan is organizing today a protest of solidarity with Palestinian workers and israeli workers who were killed in this futile war.
http://www.wac-maan.org.il
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Posted by: “frankofbos” FrankOfBos@yahoo.com
Sun Jan 4, 2009 11:37 pm (PST)
Bush History-Prominent GOPer & Military Expert Blasts Bush Admin Iraq
Failures, 1/5
Some signs on this date of Bush giving up his failed ‘stay the course’
Iraq policy (2007). A prominent GOP military expert has blasted Bush
Iraq failures, admitting to surprise at such incompetence. Also
connections win out over experience in a key homeland security post
(2006). Is experience really necessary? It’s only Homeland Security.
And another good date for Bushisms.
More details, from the 2009 Bush Blunder Calendar …
http://poorgeorgesalmanac.com/?p=1341
Today’s category: Bushisms, Corruption/Conflicts of Interest,
Incompetence, Iraq
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The fact that Irish MP Aengus O’Snodaigh condems Israel’s actions in Gaza can not offer you any comfort; Mr O’Snodaig belongs to a political party that supported the killing of people of a different political belief who just happened to be protestant, or British, or were just opposed to Mr. O’Snodaig’s party. Do not accept Mr. O’Snodaigh’s support as valid.
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Re #9 Are you not aware of Ian Paisley, the UVF, UDA, Red Hand Commandos, and UFF in Ireland. Of the oath of the Orange Order about the big gun of Athlone. Of songs like `Croppies lie down´. Contrary to the Unionist tradition, the Irish Republican tendency has a tradition of non sectarianism. From its founder Wolfe Tone, a Protestant, on.
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Press Release, September 15, 2009
Gush Shalom: We hope the Goldstone conclusions will deter future trigger-happy government behaviour
The severe conclusions of the Goldstone Commission are part of the high and continuing price which the state of Israel must pay for the decision to conduct a brutal and unnecessary war in Gaza. The communications media in Israel imposed censorship on themselves and prevented the citizens of Israel from seeing the scenes of widespread destruction and the killing of hundreds of civilians, including many children – scenes which the rest of the world saw broadcast directly from Gaza. Therefore, Israelis find it difficult to comprehend the feelings which the acts of their army caused throughout the world.
The Gaza war could have been prevented by negotiations with Hamas and renewal of the cease-fire – as Hamas proposed at the time. The present situation of relative calm on the Gaza Strip border could have been reached also without staining with blood the hands of all the country’s civil and military decision-makers. The conclusions of the Goldstone Commission, and the great damage which they cause and will continue to cause to Israel, might deter future governments from trigger-happy decisions – which would be a most welcome result.
Contact:
Adam Keller, Gush Shalom Spokesperson 03-5565804 or 054-2340749
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