Tag Archives: Mideast

Arab and Middle Eastern States: International Day of Peace

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

A survey by CPNN

The following 30 events in 15 Arab and Middle Eastern countries were listed in Google during the week of September 21-28 under the key words “International day of peace” “journee internationale de la paix” and اليوم الدولي للسلام. This also includes a few events listed on the websites of International Cities of Peace, the event map of the international day of peace, as well as partipants in One Day One Choir and Montessori schools singing for peace.


Photo from ceremony of the UN Fprce in Lebanon (FINUL).

Here are excerpts from the articles.

CAIRO, EGYPT: The 11th International Festival of Songs and Spiritual Music was held in Egypt on the occasion of the International Day of Peace. The festival is attended by teams from 16 Arab and foreign countries as well as the Egyptian and Syrian teams currently residing in Cairo. Participating countries include India, Greece, China, Sri Lanka, Jordan, Algeria, Sudan and Pakistan, while Congo will be the guest of honor. The shows will be held in archaeological and tourist sites such as the Dome of the Ghuri, Al Moez Street and the Religions Complex, as well as the Hanager Square in Opera, the Roxy Square and the Behar Pass in the city center. “Today we are opening the eleventh session of the Sama Festival for Chanting and Spiritual Music,” Egyptian Culture Minister Inas Abdel Dayem said at the opening ceremony on Saturday at the Beer Youssef Theater in Salahuddin Citadel. “We meet with the music and cultures of many countries in the world that are keen to participate in the festival Public”.

HELIOPOLIS, EGYPT: On the occasion of International Human Rights Day, the Heliopolis Public Library in Heliopolis is holding a Fine Art Exhibition under the title “International Day of Peace”, with the participation of artist Ahmed Pero and artist Christine Safwat at 12 noon on Saturday.

LUXOR, EGYPT: The “Peaceful Coexistence” initiative in the province of Luxor organized a celebration on the occasion of the International Day of Peace, yesterday evening. “The World Day of Peace provides all the peoples of the world with a common opportunity to organize events and carry out works that glorify the importance of peace and democracy in realistic and useful ways for this celebration of World Peace Day,” said Sameh Thabit, founder of the initiative. The celebration began with the organization of sports games for both boys and girls, urging them to cooperate, love and work together. Sameh stressed that the initiative is working to introduce the concept of sport and its relationship to development.

TEL AVIV-YAFO, ISRAEL: Peace day was celebrated with speakers from the different parts of Israel who daily fight for peace.

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL: A short March, prayer for peace and ceremony was held in the Atsma’ut Garden.

NAQOURA, LEBANON: On the International Day of Peace, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) held a ceremony at its headquarters in Naqoura and a photo exhibition in Beirut and a letter from the head of the mission that all sides cooperation is necessary to achieve peace and stability in sustainable South Lebanon . At a ceremony for the occasion, the President of the UNIFIL mission and its leader , General Major General Stefano del Cole , stressed that “efforts must be directed towards a cease – fire a lasting and sustainable peace.” He also affirmed UNIFIL’s strong commitment to helping the parties maintain a peaceful environment in southern Lebanon, stressing three key words: “Peace, Partnership and Understanding”.

BEYROUTH, LEBANON: The association “The Third Voice for Lebanon” (3V) organized at the Lycée Montaigne an exposition of Guernica, the masterpiece of Picasso. The exhibition opened last Friday on the occasion of the International Day of Peace (21 September). The event lasted from 21 to 23 September and was under the patronage of Ziad Chbib, Beirut’s mohafez, and was held on the first day in the presence of Mr. Chbib and Imane el-Assi, representing Fadi Yarak, Director General of the Ministry of Education, Jihad Feghali, President of 3V, as well as the vice-president of the association, Aimée Karam. “Our goal is to strengthen the building of peace in Lebanon through education in schools, the family and the social environment at the level of the individual and groups. This type of intervention in schools encourages personal development, the consolidation of values, information, skills and attitudes through the exercise of peace (…), which should mark what should be a true citizenship, “said Ms. Karam.

AL JANUB, LEBANON: On the occasion of the International Day of Peace, Al-Haj Bahaa Al-Hariri School has organized a series of activities entitled “The Right to Peace – 70 years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”. On the occasion, schoolchildren formed the word “peace” with their bodies surrounded by olive branches, emphasizing the right of peoples to live in peace. The activities were directed to the students of the kindergarten classes until the ninth grade under the supervision of teacher Ramia al-Sousi. The teachers from the school gave an explanation of this international day, which was dedicated by the General Assembly of the United Nations to promote the ideals of peace in and among nations and peoples. The activities also included songs inspired by the occasion, drawing and coloring the slogan of peace, as well as writing texts on the importance of renouncing violence and wars and bringing peace, freedom and democracy within society.

LIBYA: Libya’s Future Movement launched an international campaign for peace in Libya on Friday, the International Day of Peace. This is in cooperation with the Tunisian Project Movement and CEMAJUR International, at the headquarters of the Institute for Public Policy of the Tunis Project Movement in Tunis.

GAZA CITY, PALESTINE: Palestinian students of Fine Arts celebrated on October 13, the World Day of Peace, making murals in the city of Gaza.

MOGADISHU, SOMALIA: The Peace Action Society Organization PASOS held an event in Mogadishu for the International Day of Peace. It was attended by more than 160 people, among them peace activists and civil society groups, government representatives, international NGOs and youth organizations. The meeting discussed the security situation and how peace is needed, that everybody has the right to access to water and a better life.

NORTH DARFUR, SUDAN: The Deputy Governor of North Darfur, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation Mohammad Barima, addressed the celebration organized by the Ministry of Culture and Information in the State in cooperation with the Joint African Union-United Nations Mission (UNAMID) on the occasion of the International Day of Peace. He affirmed the commitment of the state government to consolidate peace, security and stability in the province and preserve its gains, pointing out that the president’s decision to collect weapons. For his part, the Minister of Culture and Information in the state of Hada Barma Saleh said that his ministry will continue to support and support programs and projects that work to spread a culture of peace. The United Nations has traditionally celebrated the International Day of Peace in order to achieve the lofty human goals and objectives and to commemorate the United Nations Charter on Human Rights, said UN peacekeeping chief Luke Olama. He stressed that human rights in Darfur have improved significantly, prompting the United Nations to take its decision to withdraw UNAMID from the state and final and towards the programs of development and reconstruction.

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Question for this article

What has happened this year (2018) for the International Day of Peace?

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ALEPPO, SYRIA: On the occasion of the International Day of Peace, the International Youth Chamber organized in cooperation with the Syrian Secretariat for Development, the event in Aleppo entitled “The Cloe Sager Olive”, which included a volunteer youth march from the Holy Land Monastery to the Garden of the pine and planting it with 400 olive trees and naming them with a number of expatriates. “On the occasion of the International Day of Peace and the recovery and reconstruction of Aleppo, this event came to spread a message of peace to the expatriate outside Syria,” said Rami Kamal, president of the International Youth Chamber. The event was attended by 60 associations and grassroots organizations, about 1,000 young men and women from the International Youth Chamber, the Syrian Secretariat for Development, local associations and organizations, chambers of tourism, industry and trade, and the church scout teams in Aleppo.

HOMS, SYRIA: The International Chamber of Youth in Homs held this evening the event of “Kloe Sager Olive … for Syria Peace” on the occasion of the International Day of Peace, which included the planting of more than sixty different olive and citrus trees in the garden opposite the Islamic neighborhood in Al-Wa’r neighborhood. Dr. Alaa Birekdar, President of the Chamber said in a statement to SANA correspondent that the activities of the day are held in cooperation with the city council of Homs and the Islamic community in order to convey a message to the whole world that Syria is a country of good and peace and that with our cooperation we can change and rebuild.

SAHNAYA, SYRIA: The “Bidaya” Center for Development Activities in Sahnaya established “Our Heritage Our Identity” initiative on the occasion of World Peace Day, under the slogan “We must each plant a grain in the land of peace.” The initiative presented various paintings, reflecting the different cultures and environments that live in Syria, such as the Shami and Halabiya environments, Zafat and Zogarid from Suwayda, in addition to Deir al-Zour and Homs. The Syrian coast also has a share, along with Arab cultures living in Syria such as Palestine and Iraq. “It is one of the commandments of Christ to love each other, and love is only in peace,” said the priest of St. Elias’s Church of St. Elias.

QAMISHLI, SYRIA: Several civil society organizations in Qamishli, in the northern countryside of Al-Hasakah, organized a festival on the occasion of the International Day of Peace, aimed at promoting coexistence among the components of the region. The Rosanna correspondent in al-Qamishli Hassan Hussein said that the festival, entitled “We Love Mahamshili” was organized by Doz with the participation of many civil society organizations last Friday, September 21, World Day of World Peace. “This initiative started in 2017 and this year we have been working in the form of teams and each group has a particular theme, water security and sport against extremism, art and culture,” said festival coordinator Hanaa Ahmed. She added that “the goal of the festival peaceful coexistence among the components of the region and peace in Qamishli city of love and peace.” Participating in the festival were the Char Development Organization, the SMART Center for Psychological Support, the Arab National Authority, the Human Rights Organization, the Common Ground and the Union of Kurdish Writers. The city of Qamishli, where Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians and Syrians live, is in a state of tension between the army of the Syrian regime and the forces of “self-management” Kurdish, with sporadic clashes between the parties from time to time.

SYRIA: On the occasion of the International Day of Peace, Damascus and several Syrian cities witnessed a 12-hour marathon, in which about 15,000 people from different age groups took part. The marathon began at 8 am in Aleppo, Homs, Hama, Lattakia, Tartous and Sweida, where the participants ran simultaneously for a distance of 3 kilometers, before a number of them went to participate in another evening marathon in Damascus, concluded by a ceremony held by the Umayyad Square in the Syrian capital [with CNN video of event].

TUNIS, TUNISIA: The International Day of Peace was celebrated at the Faculty of Juridical, Political and Social Sciences on September 21. The meeting was addressed by the head of the faculty, Mme. Neila Chaabane, the representative of the Club of International Humanitarian Rights, Mme. Takwa Tayari, and the representative of the UN Information Center, Mr Jihed Gannem. A film was shown in memory of Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: The “Sawab” Center launched a new campaign on its social networking platform yesterday by marking #AfterTerrorism in Arabic, English and French on the “Sawab” platforms in Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube in conjunction with the activities of the International Day of Peace. The new campaign will shed light on the stories of victims and survivors of extreme violent terrorist attacks around the world, such as those in France, Burma, Norway and elsewhere, said the center, the joint US-US Digital Initiative platform to combat violent extremist ideologies across the Internet and promote positive alternatives. In celebration of the International Day of Peace, the Center will also include the voice of strong figures such as: Pakistan’s Malala Yusufi, South African President Nelson Mandela, and the late Pope John Paul II who survived violent extremism and later became symbols, supporters and heroes of the industry. Hope, and spreading the message of forgiveness, love and tolerance, and peace, reconciliation and peaceful coexistence.

ADEN, YEMEN: On 25 September 2018, the Commission for Development and Rights in Aden organized a celebration on the occasion of World Day of Peace in partnership with the Development Symbols Foundation for the Deaf and the Yemeni Organization for Permanent Peace. The celebration included a number of events and events with the participation of 25 media and media and 30 deaf children. The committee provided psychosocial support to Deaf children and launched a friendly space for them at the Symbols Foundation for the Deaf and worked as a special workshop and drawing them towards peace. To get them out of the cycle of violence they are living. Fayrouz Wahban presented a briefing to the participating media about psychological support and its importance to societies that have experienced wars and violence. The media coordinator also called on all media and media outlets to shoulder their responsibilities to protect the social fabric that has been torn apart by wars and violence in society. The aim of this event is to spread a culture of social peace and to encourage people and society to preserve it and guide them towards peace, development and construction rather than demolition.

In addition to the above events, One Day One Choir lists participating choirs for the International Day of Peace in :
Egypt (ALEXANDRIA, CAIRO)
Ethiopia (ADDIS ABABA)
Israel (TEL-AVIV)
Jordan (AMMAN)
Lebanon (BEIRUT)
Morocco (CASABLANCA)
Tunisia (TUNIS)

And the map of Montessori schools singing for peace on the International Day of Peace includes schools in:
Bahrain (MUHARRAQ)O
Morocco (CASABLANCA)

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, Mideast

Algeria: Ooredoo hosts the 32nd Arab Scout Camp

TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY .

An article by Mouloud Ahmed in Algerie Patriotique (translated by CPNN)

The telecommunications company Ooredoo is hosting the 32nd edition of the Arab Scout Camp, which is held in Algiers from August 25 to September 5, 2018 under the slogan “The Arab Dream”.

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(Click here for the original French version of this article.)

Question for this article

Two movements: scouting and culture of peace, Are they related?

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Placed under the patronage of His Excellency the President of the Republic, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, this pan-Arab demonstration, organized by the Algerian Muslim Scouts (SMA), gathers more than 1200 participants representing about twenty Arab countries.

The camp, hosted by Algeria for the third time, aims to promote living together, the culture of peace and solidarity and fraternity between peoples. A rich program has been planned by the Organizing Committee for the benefit of the participants, including cultural and educational activities, sightseeing tours, water activities, entertainment games and thematic conferences.

By hosting this 32nd Arab Scout Camp, Ooredoo confirms its status as a civil organization resolutely involved in supporting events that contribute to the influence of Algeria.

d-tolerance

Historic leap in Tunisia: Women make up 47 per cent of local government

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY .

An article from UN Women

Seven years after the 2011 Revolution and four years after the adoption of the Constitution, women now make up 47 per cent of the local council positions in Tunisia following the May 2018 elections. The dramatic increase in women members is the result of a 2016 electoral law that includes the principles of parity and alternation between men and women on candidate lists for all elections.


Ichrak Rhouma participated in the Political Academy Project. She was elected on May 6th, 2018 in Sidi Hassine council, Tunis. Photo: Aswat Nissa

In May, Ichrak Rhouma was elected to the Sidi Hassine Council in Tunis, the capital city. Prior to being elected, Rhouma participated in the Women’s Political Academy, a joint project by UN Women and the Tunisian women’s rights organization, Aswat Nissa (Women’s Voices). The Academy trained women candidates on local governance, missions and roles of municipal councils, as well as media relations. Rhouma says that the Women’s Political Academy “allowed us to deepen our knowledge on women’s rights in general, but also to learn new concepts such as gender-sensitive budgeting.”

In addition to the Academy, the project has conducted research on women’s expectations of municipal council’s activities in five regions across the country. The study’s results informed candidates’ electoral campaigns and shaped regional development planning.

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Question for this article

Prospects for progress in women’s equality, what are the short and long term prospects?

What is the United Nations doing for a culture of peace?

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Prior to the 2018 elections in Tunisia, UN Women and its civil society partners conducted capacity building sessions and supported the updating of the gender-sensitive election observation manual. UN Women also provided capacity building to 75 election observers who were trained on the importance of women’s participation in elections and how to observe gender-related issues during the voting stages.

UN Women also supported the Tunisian League of Women Voters (LET) to run awareness-raising campaigns to increase voter participation, especially in the regions of Sousse, Bizerte and Nabeul, which had registered the lowest rates in 2012 elections.

“The objective was to invigorate a participatory democracy and political culture within women and youth. Our awareness campaigns trained and engaged young men and women who went door to door explaining the importance of women’s participation in the political scene,” explains Nejma Ben Kheher, Project Officer at LET.

Khedher added, “Now that we have this high number of elected women in local and regional councils, we hope to continue supporting them with targeted training, such as access to information or gender-responsive budgeting to help them succeed in their mission.”

“The increased women’s representation in the municipal councils offers an opportunity to impact territorial policies in Tunisia,” said Leila Rhiwi, UN Women Representative in Maghreb. “UN Women will continue supporting the councils to integrate gender concerns into their communal development plans that foster good governance and women’s leadership.”

Tunisia is one of the few countries in the world to establish the principle and practice of equal representation of men and women across candidate lists (horizontal parity – where women should head 50 per cent of candidate lists), as well as down the candidate lists (vertical parity – alternating men and women through the list), in its electoral law. While gender parity has been achieved regarding the municipal lists, according to the High Authority for Independent Elections, more work is needed to support horizontal parity, since women only made up 29.6 per cent of positions at the head of party lists.

Tunisia will hold its parliamentary and presidential elections in 2019.

Mideast, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

Uri Avnery, leader of the Israeli peace movement Gush Shalom, 1923-2018

TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY .

An article by Rabbi Michael Lerner in Tikkun

Tikkun grieves and mourns the passing of the founder and leader of Israel’s peace movement, Gush Shalom, Uri Avnery.

Until the last moment he continued on the way he had traveled all his life. On Saturday, two weeks ago, he collapsed in his home when he was about to leave for the Rabin Square and attend a demonstration against the “Nation State Law”, a few hours after he wrote a sharp article against that law.

For several decades, Avnery was a columnist for Tikkun magazine, sharing his wisdom and insights with our Tikkun readers. When I met with him in Tel Aviv I found him to be a wise and passionate and sensitive human being, capable to seeing the humanity of the people who criticized him and capable of seeing the faults of his allies in both Israel and Palestine.

Avnery devoted himself entirely to the struggle to achieve peace between the state of Israel and the Palestinian people in their independent state, as well as between Israel and the Arab and Muslim World (See his article on on Israel’s Days of Shame). He did not get to the end of the road, did not live to see peace come about. We – the activists and supporters of Tikkun magazine, as well as the members of Gush Shalom as well as very many other people who were directly and indirectly influenced by him – will continue his mission and honor his memory.

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Questions for this article:

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

Where in the world can we find good leadership today?

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On the day of the passing of Uri Avnery, the most right wing government in the history of Israel is engaged in negotiations with Hamas. Ironically, the same kind of demagogic accusations which were hurled at Uri Avnery throughout his life are now made against right-wing extremist Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

In the history of the State of Israel, Uri Avnery will be inscribed  as a far-seeing visionary who pointed to a way which others failed to see. As Adam Keller, Avnery’s closest ally in Gush Shalom,  put it in a statement, some of whose words I’ve copied in this note, “It is the fate and future of the State of Israel to reach peace with its neighbors and to integrate into the geographical and political region in which it is located. As Avnery’s greatest opponents will ultimately have to follow in his footsteps – because the State of Israel has no other real choice.”

We in the Tikkun community and in our interfaith and secular-humanist-welcoming Network of Spirirtual Progressives, salute all those in Gush Shalom, in the remnants of the Israeli peace movement (tens of  thousands of whom demonstrated against the new “Nation State Law” which Avnery was on his way to protest), and to Jews and people of all faiths who continue to support those of us who insist that the path to safety and security for the Jewish people and for Israel is a path of generosity, repentance, open-hearted reconcialition, and justice for the Palestinian people and a deep respect for the humanity that continues to emerge in all people on this planet despite the forces of violence and repression that are temporarily in ascendency. It is in maintaining that vision that we can best honor the memory of this amazing and wonderful human being whose passing from our world we grieve today.

Mideast, TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY

UN Chief Proposes Armed Peacekeeping Force to Protect Palestinians

TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY .

An article from Telesur TV

Antonio Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations, proposed Friday [17 August] a United Nations-led armed international mission to defend Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza from the Israeli army.

The proposal was one of four laid out by Guterres in a 14-page report. Other options include providing a “more robust United Nations presence on the ground” with rights monitors and political officers, providing more humanitarian and development aid to “ensure the well-being of the population,” creating a civilian observer mission to be present in sensitive areas such as military checkpoints and Israel’s illegal settlements.

Guterres’ report is a response to a U.N. General Assembly resolution adopted in June by 120 states that condemned “Israel’s excessive and disproportionate use of force” against protesters in the besieged Gaza Strip in the context of the Great March of Return, and tasked Guterres with recommending an “international protection mechanism” for the Palestinians.

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Question for this article

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

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All of the options presented by Guterres seem unlikely according to observers and activists.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which sole mandate is to provide humanitarian and development aid to the millions of Palestinian refugees has been dramatically underfunded after the United States decided to slash its contributions to the U.N. body.

The United States cut US$300 million in funding for UNRWA earlier this year in an effort to pressure the Palestinian Authority into a U.S.-mediated dialogue with Israel. The PA refused a U.S.-mediated dialogue after U.S. president Donald Trump announced his intentions to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv, Israel’s capital city, to the occupied city of Jerusalem.
Trump moved the embassy on the eve of the Palestinian Nakba, which commemorated the over 700,000 Palestinians who had to flee their cities and towns after Israel declared its independence on May 14, 1948.

UNRWA currently has a US$217 million budget shortfall.
U.S. attacks on UNRWA are far from over. Emails published this month by Foreign Policy magazine revealed Jared Kushner, Trump’s senior Middle East adviser, and son-in-law has been pushing to remove the refugee status of millions of Palestinians to shut down UNRWA.

Furthermore, Israel has refused to allow observer mission in flashpoints and has increasingly prevented human rights activists from entering the country. So it is unlikely it will give the U.N. a green light for this option.  

The armed option will require approval by the U.N. Security Council, in which Israel’s greatest ally, the U.S. has veto power.  

In the report, Guterres also criticised Israel’s expansion of illegal settlements saying it “continues unabated and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law,” and lamented the high number of Palestinian casualties since the Great March of Return began on March 30 arguing it “reflects an alarming trend of the use of lethal force by Israeli… forces against individuals who may not pose a threat of imminent death or serious injury.”

Guterres’ report comes as Gaza’s Health Ministry reported Friday two Palestinians were killed and 270 were injured by Israeli occupation forces during protests near the Gaza fence.

Mideast, TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY

After escaping 35 years of slavery, this black Mauritanian woman is running for office

…. HUMAN RIGHTS ….

An article from Face2face Africa

A former slave in Mauritania has put her name on the ballot for the elections in September.

Habi Mint Rabah became a slave when she was just five years old and was only released in 2008.

Habi Mint Rabah became a slave when she was just five years old and was only released in 2008.

“I became a slave at the age of five. Every day I had to take care of the flock. Every night I was raped by my master. I always believed, without really understanding, that it was normal, “she said.

As a slave, she hauled water, did the cooking, and sometimes slept next to the goats on the sand.

“I carried the water on my back. I ate the leftover food. If they left nothing, I had nothing to eat. I was sleeping wherever I could find a place – sometimes in the sand, with the goats.”

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Question related to this article:

What is the state of human rights in the world today?

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Her owners  would even deny her the chance to pray, telling her that she did not deserve to because her soul was inferior.

She was able to escape slavery thanks to her brother Bilal Ould Rabah who freed himself and alerted the anti-slavery movement IRA and human rights group, who mobilised her release after 35 years in bondage.

“Even if sometimes I don’t have anything to eat, at least I have my freedom now. My freedom is the most important thing. I’m like another person now. I’m the master of my own life,” she said after she was released.

Rabah is one of the black women in Mauritania who have been enslaved by their light-skin country people.

The country is considered the slave-capital of Africa and the practice is still ongoing. The government has denied the existence of slavery  amid pressure from the United Nations and other rights groups.

Rights groups have also been under attack for protesting slavery, with the government accusing them of colluding  with the West to destabilise the country.

Rabah is vying for a parliamentary seat under the Sawap-Ira coalition.

According to the president of IRA, Biram Dah Abeid, Rabah is the perfect candidate for a number of reasons:

“[She’s] a victim of slavery that has been liberated. She is in our ranks, militant, and it is she who will bring the contradiction to the dominant slavery group, in the future Mauritanian Parliament,” he said.

This will be the first time for the abolitionist group to participate in elections after it registered as a political party.

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

Africa, HUMAN RIGHTS, Mideast,

Mauritania: Creation of the Youth Movement for Employment

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

An article from Maghreb Emerging

On Thursday [July 26] the Youth Movement for Employment held a press conference at which this movement announced its creation.


Photo by CRIDEM

The president of the movement, Mr. Balle Diagne spoke about the causes behind the creation of the movement and reviewed its objectives which aim, among other things, the recovery of young people exposed to a potential rupture with society and to fight at their side against drug abuses, narcotics, criminal gangs, as well as extremist currents etc.

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(Click here for the original French version of this article.)

Question(s) related to this article:

Youth initiatives for a culture of peace, How can we ensure they get the attention and funding they deserve?

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To this end, the movement aims to create a space for exchanges and functional learning between state and non-state institutions, to popularize national unity and cohesion and to challenge decision-makers and economic operators to invest in promoting of youth development and raising awareness of the values ​​of citizenship and the culture of peace.

In this context, the president of the movement stressed the importance for young people to preserve national assets and to promote development projects for young people.

As for the secretary general of the movement, Mrs. Malika Mint Mohamed Saleck, she reaffirmed the same principles and objectives inviting all young Mauritanians to join the movement that aims to develop Mauritania and protect against all dangers.

Responding to a question from the Mauritanian Information Agency on the nature of the movement, Balle Diagne said the movement is not political, but he called on Mauritanian youth to register on the electoral roll and to participate fully in the elections.

He added that his movement does not operate within the framework of tribal and regional sectarian structures but, on the contrary, strongly opposes them. He said he believes in the skills and abilities of young Mauritanians.

Africa, FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, Mideast,

BDS Victory: Irish Senate Approves Bill Boycotting Israeli Settlement Goods

. .DISARMAMENT & SECURITY. ,

An article from Telesur TV

Ireland becomes the first country to ban trade with Israel’s illegal settlements.

The Ireland senate approved the Occupied Territories Bill, which bans all trade with illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, Wednesday. The Irish government opposed the legislation, but 25 independent and opposition lawmakers secured its approval.

Ireland is on its way to becoming the first country to prohibit “the import and sales of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied territories.” 

The Israeli Foreign Ministry responded to the decision saying that “the Irish Senate has given its hand to an aggressive, dangerous and radical populist anti-Israel boycott initiative that undermines prospects for a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians.”

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Question related to this article:

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

How can a culture of peace be established in the Middle East?

(article continued from left column)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also protested, saying the bill “is to support the BDS movement and harm the State of Israel.”

The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement is a Palestinian-led international campaign launched in 2005 to push for the end of Israel’s over-50-year-long military occupation of Palestine, the end of the apartheid regime, and for the recognition of the right to return of the over five million Palestinian refugees.  

Despite attempts to discredit the BDS movement, Israel’s lethal response against protesters who participated in the Great March of Return, which began on March 30, has given the international campaign more relevance and victories.
 
The bill was introduced by Frances Black, a well-known singer and member of the Seanad, the upper house in Ireland’s Parliament. 

There is international consensus on the illegality of these settlements. Earlier this year the United Nations Human Rights Council published a report  on the role businesses play in Israel’s violations of international humanitarian law, “contributing to Israel’s confiscation of land, facilitate the transfer of its population into the Occupied Palestinian Territory and… the exploitation of Palestine’s natural resources.”

(Thank you to the Transcend Media Service for bringing this to our attention.)

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Europe, Mideast,

ICC judges order outreach to victims of war crimes in Palestine

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article by Ali Abunimah in The Electronic Intifada

Judges in The Hague have ordered the International Criminal Court to reach out to victims of war crimes in Palestine. It is a sign the court may be inching towards ending Israeli impunity.

On Friday, the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber 1 ordered court administrators to establish “a system of public information and outreach activities for the benefit of the victims and affected communities in the situation in Palestine.”


Relatives mourn over the body of Amir al-Nimra, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on 14 July along with his friend Louay Kuhail. Both boys were 14 years old.Mohammed ZaanounActiveStills

The Pre-Trial Chamber is a panel of judges that supervises how the ICC prosecutor’s office carries out its investigative and prosecutorial activities. It has the responsibility to guarantee the rights of suspects, victims and witnesses during investigations by the prosecutor.

The court will also create a page on its website “especially directed to the victims in the situation in Palestine.”

The decision facilitates the gathering of evidence that could be used in indictments or trials of suspected war criminals.

Death threats

The order instructs the court’s public information and victims participation sections to “take a central role in the initial phase of approaching victims, nongovernmental organizations and intermediaries.”

Anticipating the dangers victims may face coming forward, the judges say that court officials “may consult with the Victims and Witnesses Unit regarding protection issues.”

Nongovernmental organizations, particularly the Palestinian human rights groups Al-Haq, Al Mezan and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, have played a key role in collecting evidence of Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity that they have handed over to the ICC prosecutor.

In September, the groups turned over dossiers detailing crimes of persecution, apartheid, the extensive theft, destruction and pillage of Palestinian property and evidence of the “wilful killing and murder” of hundreds of Palestinians since 2014 in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Previously, they gave the prosecutor evidence related to crimes committed by senior Israeli civilian and military officials during Israel’s 2014 attack on Gaza that left more than 2,200 Palestinians dead.

While doing this work, human rights defenders have faced death threats and harassment  likely perpetrated by Israel  or its surrogates.

Those death threats have been investigated  by authorities in the Netherlands, where the ICC is based.

In a joint statement, Al-Haq, Al Mezan and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights express hope that the Pre-Trial Chamber’s order “would be implemented in an effective manner.”

Worry in Israel

The decision to reach out to victims is causing worry in Israel, as a discussion on Israeli public television channel Kan indicates . . . .

In the discussion, translated and subtitled by activist Ronnie Barkan, a commentator calls the judges’ decision “outrageous” and “a dramatic statement advancing towards an investigation of Israel and Israelis.”

(continued in right column)

Question related to this article:

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

Israel/Palestine, is the situation like South Africa?

How can war crimes be documented, stopped, punished and prevented?

(continued from left column)

Israel is refusing to comment  officially, but Alan Baker, a former senior Israeli diplomat, called the Pre-Trial Chamber’s decision “quite crazy” and claimed that the ICC was “openly turning itself into a Palestinian propaganda engine, similar to the [United Nations] Human Rights Council.”

Foot dragging

Yet the Pre-Trial Chamber’s decision does not by itself indicate that the ICC prosecutor’s office, headed by Fatou Bensouda, is about to issue indictments against Israeli war crimes suspects.

The Palestinian human rights groups note in their statement that the Pre-Trial Chamber’s order to reach out to victims was not taken by, or at the request of, the chief prosecutor.

The situation in Palestine has been under preliminary examination  by the prosecutor’s office since 2015.

A preliminary examination is the first step in the process to determine whether to open a formal investigation, which can then lead to indictments and trials.

But while a preliminary examination is carried out whenever a referral is made, it is open-ended and can continue for years, at the chief prosecutor’s discretion.

However in April, Bensouda issued an unprecedented warning  that Israeli leaders could ultimately face trial for the killings of unarmed Palestinians in the Gaza Strip during the Great March of Return  protests that began at the end of March.

The chief prosecutor’s warning was surprising given her foot-dragging on the preliminary investigation and her demonstrated reluctance in another case to hold Israel to account.

Late last year, Bensouda reaffirmed  there was a “reasonable basis to believe” that the Israeli military committed “war crimes” when it attacked an activist flotilla to Gaza in 2010.

But she claimed that there was “no potential case” of “sufficient gravity” under the court’s founding Rome Statute to proceed with a formal investigation.

Her insistence that the court did not need to act in the case of an extraordinary military attack on civilian vessels in international waters flew in the face of scathing criticism from the Pre-Trial Chamber.

In 2015, the ICC judges had ordered Bensouda to re-examine an earlier decision not to proceed with an investigation into the flotilla case.

In December, the law firm for the victims of the Mavi Marmara attack told The Electronic Intifada that it was “lamentable that the prosecutor has been considering only the question of whether to open an investigation for over four years now.”

The lawyers, who said they would once again appeal, added that Bensouda’s office “could have by now in actual fact investigated the case, instead of avoiding its responsibility to strive to end impunity for international crimes.”

The Pre-Trial Chamber’s decision to reach out to victims in Palestine now shows that even if Bensouda continues to drag her feet, the judges at least understand the urgent need for justice and the importance of hearing testimony from Palestinian victims.

In the meantime, Israel continues to create new victims.

On Sunday, Palestinians buried  Amir al-Nimra and Louay Kuhail, two friends who were playing on the roof of the unfinished al-Katiba building in Gaza City when they were killed in an Israeli airstrike  the previous day.

Al Mezan reported  that the boys were both 14 years old.

(Thank you to Phyllis Kotite, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Mideast

Flotilla bringing needed medical supplies to Gaza

TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY .

A news release from Right to a Just Future for Palestine

In the past 15 weeks, more than 130 Palestinians in Gaza have been executed by Israeli snipers, more than 4,000 have been wounded and 15,000 injured with tear gas. At least 43 people have had their legs amputated due to the types of bullets the Israeli Occupation Forces are using and hundreds more will have long-term debilitating injuries from these bullets. The medical system in Gaza is overwhelmed and urgently needs medical supplies.


(Click on image to enlarge)

TAlthough the Freedom Flotilla Coalition continues to see our mission’s goal as political solidarity rather than charity or aid, the need for medical supplies in Gaza is too urgent to ignore. As a result, our Right to a Just Future for Palestine flotilla that is on its way to Gaza will carry as many medical supplies as our four boats can safely hold. These are medical supplies that have been specifically requested by Palestinian medical authorities in Gaza – all of them are in short supply due to the blockade.

(Article continued in the right column)

Question for this article

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

(Article continued from the left column)

We demand that the Israeli government does not interfere with our boats as they approach, dock and unload in Gaza, in order to deliver the  medical  supplies  directly to hospitals in Gaza City, less than one 1.6 km from the Gaza City harbour. Whatever happens to our boats, we hold the Israeli government accountable for the safe reception of these life-saving supplies by Palestinian medical authorities in Gaza.

As an occupying state that has placed a land, air and sea blockade on Gaza, international law mandates that Israel must allow medical supplies into Gaza. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition and its worldwide allies, including those in Israel, will keep the international community and governments informed of any delays in delivering these critical medical supplies to Gaza.

People anywhere who wish to contribute to towards the cost of these medical supplies can make donations through any one of our campaigns, designating your donation “Medical supplies for Gaza.” We will use your donations to purchase medical supplies close to our last port of call, Palermo (please do not send us medical supplies though as we do not have the capacity to move additional items to our departure point). Together, we can help end the illegal blockade of Gaza.

(Thank you to Phyllis Kotite, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

Mideast, TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY