Painful times

There will be a demonstration in Ramallah tomorrow (Saturday) at noon (Manara square) against the ongoing Oslo capitulations

On Thursday we visited a 16 year old young man (Udai Sirhan) who had his skull chattered months ago by an Israeli bullet in Bethlehem and he is still hospitalized after three operations (photos at http://3abalata.blogspot.com/2013/09/blog-post.html).  The bullet is still in his brain.  We also visited a friend from Al-Walaja (Basel AlAraj) who was beaten by “Palestinian Authority” security services trained by the US when he and other young people tried to demonstrate holding four mock coffins for four Palestinians killed earlier that week (3 killed by Israeli forces, one by Palestinian forces).  Video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2JkN9tdo-M

Basel and I were twice arrested together by Israeli forces in Al-Walaja. He is a most decent, kind and gentle human being.  He and others like him are being targeted by the Palestinain authority which continues to cooperate and coordinate with the occupation forces. This is painful. Sometimes we feel pain that is at a far deeper level than any physical pain.  It is visits like these that makes us lose sleep. We wish the world to wake-up to the continuing injustice inflicted on the people and landscape of Palestine with the collusion and support of many Westerners but also many Arab leaders and even some Palestinians.  

Three influential pro-Israel groups urged US lawmakers on Tuesday to authorize US President Barack Obama to launch an attack on Syria, signaling a stepped-up lobbying effort for American military action.
http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/AIPAC-say-they-support-US-strike-on-Syria-325245

Reminder (if needed) of why war is horrible: Birth Defects And Cancer Rates At Devastating High In Basra And Fallujah (VIDEO)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/20/iraq-war-anniversary-birth-defects-cancer_n_2917701.html

Quakers take steps towards BDS
http://www.quakerpi.org/news/Minutes and Statements.htm
http://www.quakerpiag.blogspot.com/

Kairos Palestine statement on Syria

http://www.kairospalestine.ps/?q=node/25

Leaked secret budget details for US intelligenece a gencies: staggering $52 billion spent on spies (this does not include military intelligence agencies)

http://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/page/national/inside-the-2013-us-intelligence-black-budget/420/

Secretary of State John Kerry referenced a photograph run by BBC purporting to be of a Syrian massacre when it was from Iraq 2003. See BBC mistakenly runs dated Iraq photo to illustrate the syrian massacre

http://www.marcodilauro.com/blog/bbc-mistakenly-runs-dated-iraq-photo-to-illustrate-the-syrian-massacre/
http://bit.ly/17Clkl8

and the New York times finally published an article about the brutalities/atrocities committed by the US-backed “rebels” (most are mercenaries from other countries financed by Saudi Arabia and trained in neighboring countries to Syria)

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/05/world/middleeast/brutality-of-syrian-rebels-pose-dilemma-in-west.html?pagewanted=all

The US government daily commits crimes against humanity around the world either directly or indirectly through regimes the US supports (like Israel and the Saud royal family).  Yet, they try to lecture the world about “human rights”.  That so many people fall for it is pathetic but that some Palestinains also do is really painful.  Pain is something we expect under Israeli occupation but increasinglyour pain cmes from knowledge of horrors of collusion/collaboration/complicity with crimes against humanity.

Mazin Qumsiyeh