Nov 29, 2011

BDS: Law suit filed after 'Boycott Israel' ads blocked in Michigan

"The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against an Ann Arbor bus agency after it refused to allow an ad that says, "Boycott Israel."

The lawsuit filed today in federal court in Detroit claims the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is violating the free-speech rights of Blaine Coleman, who wants to put the ad on buses near the University of Michigan.

The lawsuit says the bus agency's board met Nov. 17 and rejected the ad, claiming it violates a policy against ads that ridicule people or groups."

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BDS: بيان من جمعية مناهضة الصهيونية والعنصرية حول تزايد التطبيع الرسمي الأردني مع العدو الصهيوني

لاحظت جمعية مناهضة الصهيونية والعنصرية تزايد التطبيع الرسمي الأردني مع العدو الصهيوني خلال الأيام الماضية، وقد تجلى ذلك مثلاً من خلال استقبال السفير الصهيوني في عمان دانييل نيفو في وزارة المياه الأردنية في 22/11/2011، حيث أشارت تقارير صحيفة أنه تباحث مع وزير المياه الأردني موسى الجمعاني في مشروع ناقل البحر الأحمر، كما تجلى في استدعاء رئيس دولة الكيان الصهيوني شمعون بيريز إلى عمان يوم 28/11/2011 ولقاء الملك عبدالله الثاني معه، حيث أشارت تقارير صحفية إلى أن الحديث تطرق لسبل إعادة إحياء “عملية السلام” وفقاً لما يسمى “مبادرة السلام العربية” التي أعطت الجامعةُ العربيةُ الكيانَ الصهيونيَ مهلةً مفتوحةً لقبولها على ما يبدو!!

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#BDS: مقاضاة أنصار المقاطعة

في البدء، أوجّه تحيّة عرفان وتقدير إلى سماح إدريس ومركز 'عائدون' وجميع القوى اللبنانيّة المناهضة للتطبيع والمؤيّدة لمقاطعة إسرائيل. إنهم الوجه المشرق للبنان الذي يتبنّى سلاحَ المقاطعة كشكل رئيس من أشكال المقاومة المدنيّة السلميّة، لا تضامناً مع الشعب الفلسطينيّ فقط، بل أيضاً نضالاً ضدّ الاحتلال الإسرائيليّ المستمرّ للبنان، ومناهضةً للمحاولات الجارية من قِبل البعض لتطبيع العلاقات بشكل غير مباشر مع هذا الاحتلال.
يبدو أنّ بعضَ اللبنانيين قد نسوا أو تناسوْا أنّ إسرائيل ليست عدوَّ الشعب الفلسطينيّ وحسب، بل عدوّ الشعب اللبنانيّ والسوريّ والمصريّ والأردنيّ وكافّة الشعوب العربيّة أيضاً. لا مجال هنا لتذكير هؤلاء بكلّ ما اقترفته إسرائيل في حقّ شعب لبنان من جرائم منذ إقامتها في نكبة 1948 وتشريدها لمعظم الشعب الفلسطينيّ، ولكنْ تكفي الإشارةُ إلى أنّ تحرير مزارع شبعا اللبنانيّة وعودة اللاجئين الفلسطينيين إلى ديارهم التي شُرّدوا منها يبقيان ضمن أعلى أولويّات العمل الوطنيّ اللبنانيّ حسب برامج كلّ الأحزاب الوطنيّة في لبنان.

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BDS: الصحة العالمية تقرر نقل مؤتمرها من القدس الى تل ابيب- وانسحاب النرويج

غزة- معا- قررت منظمة الصحة العالمية نقل مؤتمرها الاقليمي الأول من مدينة القدس الى تل ابيب نتيجة الضغوطات والاحتجاجات من الداخل والخارج، فيما قررت النرويج الانسحاب من المؤتمر.

وقالت وزارة الصحة بالحكومة المقالة في تصريح مقتضب وصل لـ"معا": نتيجة الضغوطات من الداخل والخارج منظمة الصحة العالمية تقرر نقل المؤتمر الاقليمي الأول الى مدينة تل الربيع، وتحويله من مؤتمر الى لقاء تقني ومنع التغطية الاعلامية وانسحاب النرويج من المؤتمر".

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#BDS Streisand to sing at Israeli soldier benefit in LA

Rare performance: Barbra Streisand will play a Dec. 8 LA gala for the Israel Defense Forces. Hosted by Jason Alexander, who is going to forge the two-state solution. Sponsored by Haim Saban. (Hebrew link) She's a big Democrat, right? So's Saban, more or less. No Christian Zionists in sight. Here's Barbra talking about Bill Clinton's dedication to human rights. And kids in Africa, and global climate change. Progressive except Palestine. This is what J Street is up against, inside the Jewish community. And what America is up against. Read more here.

#BDS success or health problem? MF DOOM mysteriously cancels Tel Aviv show

BDS success or health problem? MF DOOM mysteriously cancels Tel Aviv show

According to Walla!, the producer of the Tel Aviv show said that Doom was suffering from heart trouble and canceled additional shows. He remarked that the cancellation was not due to political causes and that he anticipated that Doom would reschedule. In the meantime, ticket holders to the Tel Aviv show, which was scheduled to be held at the Block on Saturday night, could get a refund.


While MF Doom does have a history of heart trouble, the cancellation fueled speculation that Doom had answered the Palestination Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) call to boycott. PACBI published an open letter to Doom on November 11, just over two weeks before he was schedule to perform.

#BDS Europeans hold 60 ‘Boycott Israel’ actions in 10 countries

Europeans hold 60 ‘Boycott Israel’ actions in 10 countries
Organizers of the campaign claim that fruit and vegetable imports from Israeli settlements facilitate violations of Palestinian rights and international law. The campaign is focused on leading Israeli fruit and vegetable exporters Mehadrin and Agrexco, among others.

Demonstrations were held outside the British and French headquarters of leading Israeli fruit and vegetable exporter Mehadrin, which exports produce from illegal Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory, and which activists say works with state owned company Mekerot to deprive Palestinian communities of water. Campaigners in Rome organized a Palestine contingent on a national demonstration for affordable access to water.

Jamal Juma’, coordinator with Stop the Wall, the Palestinian anti-apartheid wall campaign that is currently working to support Al Hadidiye, a Bedouin community in occupied Palestinian territory recently served with demolition orders by the Israeli authorities, said, “The residents of Al Hadidye are denied access to water and can only rear livestock as a result. In the nearby illegal settlements of Ro’I and Beqa’ot, agricultural produce is grown with an abundance of stolen water for export to Europe by Mehadrin and other companies, and it is these companies that stand to benefit from the threatened demolitions at Al Hadidye.”

“Companies like Mehadrin profit from and are often directly involved in the ongoing colonisation of Palestinian land and theft of our resources. Trade with such companies constitutes a major form of support for Israel’s apartheid regime over the Palestinian people and must be brought to an end,” Juma’ added. Read more here.

#BDS DePaul University Students Declare Victory in Sabra Hummus Campaign

DePaul University Students Declare Victory in Sabra Hummus Campaign
Just prior to Thanksgiving, US Campaign coalition member group DePaul University Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) announced an important victory in its campaign against the sale of Sabra hummus in university dining halls. Earlier this year, DePaul SJP launched a campaign to have Sabra hummus removed from campus dining halls because it is partially owned by the Strauss Group, which provides material and financial support to Israeli military units. After an inquiry into the activities of the Strauss Group, the university elected to continue selling Sabra hummus. However, the university has quietly introduced the sale of an alternative brand of hummus in the university's dining halls providing students with the opportunity to make ethical consumer purchases. Read more here.

#BDS PCHR Strongly Condemns WHO’s Decision to Conduct a Conference in Jerusalem

PCHR Strongly Condemns WHO’s Decision to Conduct a Conference in Jerusalem
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) condemns in the strongest possible terms the decision of WHO Europe to conduct an official conference in Jerusalem, hosted by Israel. The first World Health Organisation (WHO) European Conference on the New European Policy for Health is to take place on the 28–29 November 2011.
Read more here.

Activists charge World Health Organization with being 'blind to apartheid' / Adam Horowitz
Mondoweiss 28 Nov -- A press release from Boycott from Within, a coalition of Israeli citizens, who support the Palestinian-led campaign for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel: This morning a group of Palestinians and Israeli activists held a protest action in front of the Inbal hotel where the WHO (World Health Organization) held their first 'Health 2020 – The New European Policy for Health' conference. The conference participants encountered activists who had been bound and gagged as Palestinian detainees. Israeli physicians are often complicit in the torture and ill-treatment of such detainees, as reported recently by Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHR) and the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI). Read more here.