#BDS: ايرلندا تهدد بمنع دخول المستوطنين الاسرائيليين الى دول اوروبا في حال فازت برئاسة الإتحاد الأوروبي

دبلن/PNN - هدد وزير الخارجية الأيرلندي "أيمون جيلمور" مساء امس الأحد، بمقاطعة المنتجات الإسرائيلية، ومنع المستوطنين الإسرائيليين المتورطين في أعمال عنف ضد المواطنين الفلسطينيين من الدخول إلى دول الإتحاد الأوروبي، في حال فوز بلاده برئاسة الإتحاد الأوروبي في مطلع شهر كانون الثاني من العام المقبل.

وأضاف "جيلمور":" في حال لم يحصل أي تغيير في السياسة الإسرائيلية بشأن العنف المتكرر من قبل المستوطنين الإسرائيليين تجاه المواطنين الفلسطينيين، فإن أيرلندا ستعمل على الضغط على الإتحاد الأوربي لحظر المنتجات الإسرائيلية في جميع دول الإتحاد الأوربي".

وتابع قائلاً:" كما ستعمل أيرلندا على منع المستوطنين الإسرائيليين المشاركين في أعمال عنف ضد المواطنين الفلسطينيين بالضفة الغربية من الدخول إلى دول الإتحاد الأوربي".

إقرأ\ي المزيد

#BDS: #Ireland IAWM SUPPORTS CULTURAL BOYCOTT OF #ISRAEL

"Prompted by recent media attacks on human rights activists the Irish Anti War Movement today issued a statement expressing its full support of the cultural boycott campaign which asks artists not to perform in apartheid Israel. The statement noted that the cultural boycott is part of an International Campaign of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS). It was called for by Palestinian civil society in 2005 in response to the failure of the international community to hold Israel accountable for its illegal and brutal occupation of Palestinian lands."


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#BDS: No Valentine for Israeli blood diamonds. #Ireland

"Members of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign joined London human rights campaigners in Hatton Garden, the centre of London’s jewellery trade, to raise awareness among shoppers and jewellers about the continuing sale of Israeli blood diamonds.

Israel is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and exporters of cut & polished diamonds which generate more than US$ 1 billion (about UK£ 600 million) a year for the Apartheid State. Many jewellers falsely claim Israeli diamonds are “conflict-free” which is totally unjustified, given Israel’s blatant violation of international laws."

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#BDS: #Ireland funds cultural boycott of #Israel

"Dozens of Irish artists who have signed petition urging boycott against Jewish state are financed by government bodies, Foreign Ministry report reveals

The Irish government has been funding 34 local artists who signed a petition calling for a cultural boycott against Israel, a classified Foreign Ministry report reveals.
 
These artists make up one-fifth of all performers receiving public funding in Ireland."

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#BDS: #Dublin – #Riverdance: Don’t Dance for Apartheid #Israel demo

"Riverdance is scheduled to perform a series of shows in Israel in September (see here). To protest this the IPSC are organising another demo outside Riverdance’s ongoing run at the Gaiety Theatre (South King St, off Grafton St – map here) at 6.30pm on Thursday 18th August. This will be the final action in our series of ongoing protests before Riverdance heads to perform for Israeli Apartheid – so please make the effort to come along!

The protest forms part of the international Cultural Boycott of Israel campaign which has seen many stars such as Roger Waters, Elvis Costello, Carlos Santana, Christy Moore and Damien Dempsey refuse to perform in Israel.  The Palestinian call for a cultural boycott of Israel – until it ends the occupation of Palestine and abides fully by its obligations under international law – has also been endorsed by over 200 Irish performing and creative artists as well as countless others internationally."

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#BDS: Action Alert: Write to #Total Produce (#Ireland) telling them not to buy Israeli company #Agrexco

"Irish food company Total Produce is considering purchasing Agrexco , a notorious Israeli company complicit in Israel’s regime of occupation, colonisation and apartheid (see the IPSC Press release here). It should be unacceptable for any Irish company to buy out an Israeli company as this would violate the Palestinian call for a a campaign of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel until it ends its occupation of Palestine and complies fully with its obligations under international law. The case of Agrexco is particularly striking, as it markets 60-70% of the agricultural produce grown in Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory in violation of international law."

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#BDS: Irish Congress of Trade Unions Maintains Commitment to BDS

"At its Biennial Delegate Conference this week in Killarney the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, representing the entirety of the Irish trade union movement across the Island, demonstrated its continued commitment to Palestinian solidarity and the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign.

As well as the two agenda motions on Palestine conference also considered an emergency motion condemning the sabotage of the Irish ship MV Saoirse as it prepared to breach the illegal Israeli blockade. All motions were passed without any opposition whatsoever, clearly indicating the strong support for the Palestinian people and for BDS in the Irish trade union movement. Prior to the motions being held Trade Union Friends of Palestine distributed free to all delegates copies of their latest publication, a pamphlet on the Histadrut, as well as copies of the trade union produced Boycott Israeli Goods poster."

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#BDS: Dublin: Don’t dance for Israeli Apartheid

"On Tuesday 28th June at 6pm the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) will hold a loud and colourful ‘Don’t Dance for Israeli Apartheid’ protest outside Riverdance’s opening night in the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin. The protest was called to highlight the shameful fact that Riverdance is scheduled to tour Israel this September.


The protest forms part of the international Cultural Boycott of Israel campaign which has seen many stars such as Roger Waters, Elvis Costello, Carlos Santana, Christy Moore and Damien Dempsey refuse to perform in Israel. The Palestinian call for a cultural boycott of Israel – until it ends the occupation of Palestine and abides fully by its obligations under international law – has also been endorsed by over 200 Irish performing and creative artists as well as countless others internationally (See http://www.ipsc.ie/pledge )."


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#BDS: Former Irish rugby star Hogan sets sail for #Gaza

"A year after Israeli commandos stormed the Freedom Flotilla bound for Gaza, leaving nine peace activists dead, one Irish rugby star has joined a new international gathering which will set sail at the end of the month in an attempt to break Israel’s naval blockade of the territory.

Tipperary man Trevor Hogan (31), who was capped three times for Ireland and played over 100 times for both Munster and Leinster before retiring earlier this year, will sail on the MV Saoirse as part of the Irish Ship to Gaza group. The 1.5 million Palestinian inhabitants of the coastal enclave have lived in what is often described as an “open-air prison” since Israel began a policy of isolating the strip in 2006."

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#BDS: Bob Geldof told 'boycott Israel or lose credibility'

"Pro-Palestinian campaigners have launched a campaign to stop Bob Geldof from visiting Israel next month on the basis that going there would damage the singer's "credibility as a defender of the rights of the dispossessed".

The former Boomtown Rats singer is to make his first trip to the country to accept an honorary degree from Ben Gurion University (BGU) in recognition of his anti-poverty work.

But Raymond Deane, the cultural and academic boycott officer for the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Camp (IPSC) has demanded that the star reject it and also pull out of a conference the same week on Israel's humanitarian aid work in Africa.

In a letter to Mr Geldof, who has an honorary knighthood, he said it was "a shock" that the Irish star would accept the BGU award."

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#BDS: EU-Israel Data-Sharing Plan Condemned

"The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) today condemned the decision of the European Commission which stated that “Israel provides an adequate level of protection of personal data”, thus giving the green light for “the transfer of personal data of EU citizens to Israel”.

The Irish Government had previously attempted to block this data-sharing relationship, but to no avail.

Condemning the approval, IPSC National Chairperson Freda Hughes said: “This is an outrageous move on behalf of the European Commission. Israel is a country that has used the passports of Irish, German, British and French nationals in order to extra-judicially assassinate a Hamas member in Dubai last year – and there is no reason to believe that this was the first or only such illegal action of its kind. Therefore for the Commission to allow the transfer of personal data of EU citizens to this rogue state would be farcical were it not such a patently serious issue. This move will leave millions of people potentially open to state-sponsored identity theft of the kind we witnessed in Dubai last January, and indeed would be a tacit acceptance the legitimacy of such acts of state terrorism carried out by Israel”.

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#BDS: Edinburgh students shut down lecture by Israeli diplomat

Edinburgh University Students for Justice in Palestine successfully shut down a lecture last night by Ishmael Khaldi, advisor to Israel's foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman. 

The event, hosted by the University's Jewish society and held in Lecture Theatre 1 of Appleton Tower, was re-arranged only the night before after the International Relations society refused to host Khaldi, due to the fact that Palestinian were living under “Apartheid” 

The talk was scheduled to start at 5pm but was delayed until 5.30pm, with the organisers citing 'security concerns'. When it did eventually get under way, one SJP member interrupted immediately shouting “Where is the freedom of speech for the 1,500 massacred in Gaza? Where is the freedom of speech for the Palestinian students in Israeli dungeons?”

The protesters - approximately 50 people - were the majority of the audience and compromised of students activists, members of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign and members of the local Palestinian community. The demonstrators proceeded to occupy the platform of the lecture theatre and chanted slogans such “From Cairo to Ramallah, globalise the Intifada”, “Boycott Israel” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”. 

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#BDS: “Irish Artists’ Pledge to Boycott Israel” reaches 200 signatories

Irish singer-songwriter Dylan Walshe became the landmark 200th signatory to the “Irish Artists’ Pledge to Boycott Israel”, which commits endorsers to not “avail of any invitation to perform or exhibit in Israel, nor to accept any funding from any institution linked to the government of Israel, until such time as Israel complies with international law and universal principles of human rights”.

The pledge - an initiative of the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) - was launched last August and since then has garnered the support of many high profile Irish creative and performing artists such as Stephen Rea, Sinéad Cusack, Christy Moore, Donal Lunny, Andy Irvine, Damien Dempsey, Neilí Conroy, Conor Kostick, Liam Ó Maonlaí, Sharon Shannon, Robert Ballagh and Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill. The full list of signatories can be viewed online athttp://www.ipsc.ie/pledge

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#BDS: New WikiLeaks revelations show Ireland blocking U.S. arms to Israel

Cable sent in 2006 indicates that the Irish government has been making it increasingly difficult for American weapons shipments to Israel to pass through its airport.

The Irish government has acted to limit transfers of American weapons to Israel and Iraq through Shannon Airport in the wake of public outrage after the Second Lebanon War, an American diplomatic cable published by WikiLeaks reveals.

A cable sent in 2006 by the U.S. ambassador to Ireland at the time, James C. Kenny, discloses that the deputy head of mission warned Irish officials that the United States would begin using other European airports. Such a move could cost the Irish economy tens of millions of dollars.

#BDS: Irish Groups Continue Supporting BDS

Members of Ireland’s Dublin Food Co-Op voted overwhelmingly to boycott Israeli goods at a Special General Meeting on 25 November. This was the third attempt over the last 2 years to bring in a boycott of Israeli goods, reported the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign, and this time the motion finally passed with 50 in support, and only 6 against.

The Dublin Food Co-op, which was formed in 1983 and is based “on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity,” had in the past an unwritten policy not to stock or sell Israeli produce, though some member were doing so anyway.

#BDS: Dublin Food Co-Op passes Israeli boycott motion

Last night at a Special General Meeting, members of the Dublin Food Co-Op voted overwhelmingly to boycott Israeli goods. This was the third attempt over the last 2 years to bring in a boycott of Israeli goods. Previous attempts failed to reach consensus or when put to a vote failed to reach the required 75%. Last night the mood was clearly in favour with a final tally of 50 for to about 6 against.

The Dublin Food Co-Op has The Rochdale Co-operative Principles (1844/1995) as its guiding principles which are 'based on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity. In the tradition of their founders, co-operative members believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others'.

It has been clear for some time that a coop based on these principles could not continue to sit on the fence while Israel continued its unabated assault on the Palestinian people and ignored the many calls by the world community to stop.

While the Dublin Food Co-Op itself has an unwritten 'policy' not to stock or sell Israeli produce, some of the fruit and vegetable producer/sellers have sold Israeli produce much to the disquiet of many members. Until recently inadequate labeling of products meant that members may not have known they were purchasing Israeli produce unless they specifically asked. Two years ago two thirds of the members voted for a boycott however it failed to reach three quarter vote required.

#BDS: Marilyn Monroe launches ‘Boycott Israeli Blood Diamonds’ campaign in Dublin

On Saturday 30th October 2010 the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) held a nationwide awareness-raising day to expose the contamination of the global diamond market with Israeli “blood diamonds” ahead of the annual meeting of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KP) in Jerusalem on November 1st. To launch the Boycott Israeli Blood Diamonds campaign activists from the IPSC in Cork, Galway, Limerick, Wexford and Waterford activists from the IPSC handed out thousands of leaflets and collected petition signatures to while in Dublin, a blood-stained Marilyn Monroe even turned up to endorse the campaign saying "the fact that Israeli diamonds are sold as 'conflict free' means that diamonds can no longer be considered a girl's best friend!"

Outlining the rationale for the actions, IPSC National Chairperson Freda Hughes said: “Israel is the world’s top diamond exporter with exports worth over $19 billion in 2008, accounting for over 30% of Israeli exports. Recent investigations by the UN have concluded that Israel committed war crimes in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead in 2008/09 and during the attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla earlier this year, while the brutal occupation of Palestinian land by Israel continues. The Israeli state which oversees these crimes and the military which carries them out are funded by revenue from these same diamond exports. In the view of the IPSC and the Palestinian Boycott National Committee (BNC) this Israeli diamonds should be unequivocally categorised as blood diamonds.”

#BDS: Group calls for boycott of Israeli products

The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign is urging a boycott of Israeli products and services - saying Palestine must not be forgotten.

Two members of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla will be holding a public meeting at the Central Hotel on Exchequer Street in Dublin this afternoon at 2pm.

Fintan Lane and Derek Graham were on board different ships intercepted by Israelis while trying to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The IPSC is also hoping to highlight what it calls the complicity of Veolia, the operators of the Luas in Dublin, with Israel's regime.

A spokesperson for the Irish Anti-War Movement said: "It is vital the murders of peace activists trying to break the siege of Gaza, and most importantly the cruel siege itself are not forgotten and that Israel is held to account for what it is doing to the Palestinian people.

"The easiest and most concrete way, ordinary people can put pressure on Israel and show their solidarity with the Palestinian people is by supporting the campaign of boycott, sanctions and divestment.

"Today we want to make the shops and shoppers in Dublin city aware of the connection between Israeli atrocity and some of the goods stocked in Dublin shops, and appeal to them not to buy these goods or stock them.

"Israel does very significant trade with Ireland. We need to hurt Israel in the pocket if we are to put pressure on them to end their cruel oppression of the Palestinian people."

#BDS: Irish musician refuses to visit Israel

MOSCOW, (PIC)-- Famous Irish musician Gary Moore has announced that he would never visit Israel, describing it as a criminal state during a press conference in Moscow. The PIC [Russian language] quoted Moore, who recently arrived in Russia to perform at a number of concerts, as saying that he had visited a lot of countries, opining that music is without boundaries but was quick to note that he would not visit Israel. He told a press conference that his refusal to visit Israel was because of its racist policies against the Palestinian people, adding that he could not accept Israel's policy and lies about Palestine and its people. The renowned artist said that Israel was exerting big efforts to display itself as a victim of war, while it is absolutely not.

#BDS: 8 countries absent from OECD tourism conference

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) Norway, Canada, Ireland, the UK, Sweden, Iceland, Turkey and South Africa will not be present at the OECD tourism conference to be held in Jerusalem this month despite objections from the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian civil society groups said Thursday.

The controversy comes amid attempts by Israel to use the conference to further its territorial claims on Jerusalem and in response to concerns raised by Palestinian and international civil society, as well as Palestinian officials, that the conference would serve to whitewash Israel's violations of international law.

Some of the eight countries have explained their withdrawals were political in nature.

Norway and Turkey condemned comments made by Israeli politicians in the run-up to the conference. The Swedish delegation to the OECD referred campaigners to EU policy on the status of Jerusalem and hinted their stance was an attempt to assert the policy.

In a blow to the credibility of the conference at which officials were to discuss tourism policy, a majority of invited countries did not send tourism ministers but sent low-ranking officials instead.

The Greek delegation to the OECD told campaigners during telephone calls that no officials from Athens would make the trip and that Greece would merely be represented by a staff member from the Greek tourist information center in Tel Aviv. The Czech Republic is the only EU country to send political representation.