aqsa news, issue 57, january 2015
DESCRIPTION
Friends of Al-AqsaTRANSCRIPT
A Q S A N E W SFriends of Al-Aqsa newspaper since 1997
Israel converts historic mosque in to museum
Three babies freeze to death as world remains silent
Symbolic recognition ofPalestine
News
Israel continues to violate Gaza truce
PAGE 2
News
Ferguson protesters and Palestinians find
common ground
PAGE 5
Film Review
‘Open Bethlehem’Leila Sansour
PAGE 6
Special Feature
What is troubling Masjid al-Aqsa?
PAGE 14
Recipe
Caraway Pudding(Karawya or Moghli)
PAGE 16
In History
Creation of PLO
PAGE 19
AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
2 3 4
TravelVolunteering in Palestine
Page 17
FOA launches global campaign to protect al-Aqsa
Israeli attacks on Masjid Al Aqsa and other religious sites in the West Bank and Jerusalem surged in 2014, with more than 86 physi-cal assaults on Muslim and Christian places of worship. In Gaza, 271 religious sites were damaged or destroyed during Israel’s bombard-ment in the Summer.
FOA launched a global campaign #HandsOffAlAqsa to draw attention to at-tacks on Al-Aqsa and the
increasing threats faced by the Muslim holy site in Je-rusalem. The campaign was launch following a complete closure of Al-Aqsa by Israel for the first time since the occupation began. Although reopened a day later, access remains severely restricted and Palestinians are regu-larly barred entry during prayer times, and extremist Israeli settlers continue to trespass onto the site.
Al-Aqsa in ParliamentIn a bid to increase political awareness and under-
standing of the significance of Al-Aqsa, FOA held a meet-ing in Parliament in December, which was attended by both Conservative and Labour MPs.
FOA Chair Ismail Patel spoke about the enormous significance of Al-Aqsa within Palestinian and Islamic his-tory, highlighting Israel’s frequent transgressions against the rights of Palestinians, including the freedom to wor-ship without harassment. “Palestinians are no longer seen as humans, but as targets,” he said. Labour MP Andy Slaughter recognised that the threat Al Aqsa faced was unprecedented in its history.
#HandsOffAlAqsa
• Al-Aqsa closed to worshippers for the first time since 1967
• 86 attacks on Palestinian religious sites in the West Bank and Jerusalem in 2014
• 271 religious sites bombed in Gaza
FREEDOMWALK2015
Join the FOA Sponsored Walk and raise money to help bring freedom to Palestine
SUNDAY 3 MAY • REGISTER TODAY • PAGE 13WWW.FOA.ORG.UK • [email protected]
2 INSIDE PALESTINEAQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Israel continues to violate Gaza truce
Settlers target Palestinian childrenIsraeli settler assaults
on Palestinian children have increased in recent months, with a number of attacks causing deaths and serious injuries.
The angelic five-year-old Inas Khalil was killed by a settler who ran over her and a friend as they came off their school bus in October. Her family were left devas-tated by the attack, while Is-rael failed to charge or pros-ecute her murderer, calling it a ‘road traffic accident’.
Other children including five-year-old Muhammed Ja-mal Obeid, lost his eye when he was shot with a rubber coated steel bullet. 8 year old Ali Qrei’esh was severely injured by a settler who hit him with his car and drove
off. Other hit and run inci-dents involving adults have also been reported.
The lack of accountability for these attacks reinforced accusations of Israeli apart-heid policies. In contrast, the tragic death of an Israeli child caused by a Palestin-ian motorist ploughing into a crowd was followed by the Palestinian being shot and killed by soldiers.
Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank have killed more than 49 Palestinians in 2014, according to the UN. At least ten of those were children. The figures do not even include those killed by extremist settlers or those Israel denies responsibility for killing.
Since the ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Gaza in August, Israel has launched a number of at-tacks on the besieged terri-tory. Meanwhile, Palestin-ians in Gaza are continuing to stick to the terms of the fragile truce despite these provocations and Israel’s
failure to abide by terms of the agreement.
Under the agreement, Palestinian fishermen should have been allowed to fish 6 miles off Gaza’s coast, to be increased to 12 miles by September 2014. Instead, Israel began by permitting 6 miles, and then reduced this
down to 5 miles. The siege on Gaza con-
tinues unabated, and lack of economic opportunity and basic supplies continues to make life miserable for the residents, approximately half of whom are children.
Christmas under OccupationPalestinian Christians
have marked another Christ-mas under occupation with many unable to attend cele-brations in Bethlehem due to Israeli restrictions. Worship-pers blamed Israel’s apart-heid wall and the dozens of checkpoints it operated to restrict Palestinian move-ment, for making it impossi-ble to get to services in time.
The physical barriers used by Israel mean it is im-possible to reach different holy sites, which are dotted around the region, in a short period of time.
Even Israel’s close ally, the US, has criticised the Zi-onist state for hindering free worship at Christian sites, including the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, and the Church of the Nativ-ity in Bethlehem.
The US State Department also condemned Israel for not allowing visitor permits for members of the clergy, nuns, and other religious of-ficials.
Christians make up roughly 10 percent of the Palestinian population both in the occupied territories and within Israel itself.
Israeli court sentences man for handing out sweets at al-Aqsa
An Israeli court has sen-tenced a Palestinian man to four years in prison for handing out gifts to children at Al Aqsa mosque, the Gulf News reported.
Activists condemned the ruling against 41-year-old Khalil Attiyah Al Ghazawi from East Jerusalem, who
was also forced to pay a 200,000 shekel (£33,000) fine.
The father of eight was arrested at his home shortly after handing out gifts to children at the mosque and encouraging them to visit it more often.
Ghazawi, who worked as
a teacher in Jerusalem, had previously been targeted by occupation forces and had been imprisoned on a num-ber of occasions for religious activities.
He will spend his cur-rent sentence at Eshel prison near Beersheba.
Israel converts historic mosque in to Museum
Israeli authorities have converted the Grand Mosque of Beersheba in to a mu-seum, despite no alternative adequate prayer facilities for the area’s 10,000 Muslims.
Local sources said the historic mosque was now being used to house a col-lection of antique Muslim prayer rugs and that no
Arabs or Muslims were on the exhibition’s supervi-sory committee, Maan news agency reported.
The move disregards the needs of thousands of Bedouin Palestinians living in the area, who had hoped that they could use the mosque to worship in. The community had been peti-
tioning Israeli authorities for the right to at least con-duct Friday prayers in the mosque.
The building once served a thriving Palestinian com-munity, who were driven from their city to the Gaza Strip by Zionist gangs after the establishment of Israel in 1948.
INSIDE PALESTINE 3AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Israel frees youth who refused to serve in occupation army
A Jewish youth who re-fused to serve with occupa-tion forces has been given his draft exemption after spending 177 days in jail. Uriel Ferera, an Orthodox Jew, from Beersheba went through 10 separate court hearing for refusing to join the Israeli army.
The 19-year-old had turned down the offer of a non-combat role serving in an Israeli army office, ex-plaining that if he accepted, he would still be helping the occupation.
“If I enlist in the army; I will contribute to the occu-pation even if I do not serve in the territories. Any office
work in the army is collabo-ration, and I want no part of it,” Ferera said.
Ferera, who was born in Argentina and moved to Beersheba when he was six, has a history of activ-ism against social injustices, and had attended protests against the expulsion of Bed-ouins from their villages by the Israeli forces.
Israelis who refuse mili-tary service are regularly imprisoned, and prominent objectors include Jonathan Ben-Artzi, the nephew of Benjamin Netanyahu, and Omer Goldman the daughter of a former Mossad deputy-chief.
Israel bans surgeon from entering Gaza
Israel has banned the Norwegian humanitarian activist and surgeon, Mads Gilbert from entering the Gaza Strip.
The trauma specialist was told he would not be allowed into the besieged territory when he tried to enter Gaza through the Erez crossing in October.
The doctor, who has spent 15 years treating Pal-estinians in Gaza, gained international acclaim this year when he spent the summer helping victims of Israeli bombing raids in the besieged territory.
Gilbert has vowed to defy the Israeli government and enter the territory re-gardless of the ban. “I have
never violated Israeli law, never been arrested and never lied,” he said.
The Norwegian has spent much of his time af-ter the Israeli war on Gaza describing the suffering he witnessed in the area on in-ternational media outlets.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, he described how he saw families bringing in children who were badly maimed by Israeli muni-tions.
During the conflict, he became a familiar face in the media, describing con-ditions inside Al Shifa hos-pital where he worked and calling on the outside world to stop the Israeli onslaught, calling it “state terrorism”.
Arab bus drivers quit en-masse
About 100 Palestin-ian bus drivers in Jerusalem have left their jobs following a rise in attacks by Zionist extremists. The mass resig-nations follow the lynching of Yousef Al Ramouni by set-tlers in Jerusalem in Novem-ber.
One of Ramouni’s col-leagues at the Egged bus company, Awad Ganin, told Haaretz news that attacks against Arab drivers were common, particularly in ul-
tra Orthodox Jewish areas.Ganin described one at-
tack where he was beaten by youths who chanted “death to the Arabs.”
Jewish drivers also com-plain that they are forced to prove they are not Arabs by passengers who suspect them of being so.
Both Jewish and Arab employees complain that Israeli authorities are usu-ally slow to respond to com-plaints of racial harassment. Three babies freeze to death
as world remains silent
The 1.8 million Pales-tinians living in Gaza are facing the worst winter in decades, with snowfalls bringing freezing conditions. Following Israel’s attack on Gaza in the summer, over one hundred thousand peo-ple remain homeless, living in highly inadequate tents which were intended to be emergency shelter. Israel has not allowed adequate rebuilding materials to en-ter Gaza, leaving these civil-ians facing a deadly winter. The children are facing the harshest challenge, and so far, three infants have frozen to death due to the lack of basic human essentials such
as shelter, electricity and food.
2 month old Rafah Ali Abu Assi died in her partially destroyed house in Khan Younis refugee camp due to lack of heat. Her family has no choice but to continue living there. One-month-old Adel Maher al-Lahham, also from Khan Younis also died from freezing weather. These deaths have gone largely unreported in the media, despite being the di-rect consequence of Israeli state policies against Pales-tinians.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza can-not protect themselves from
the brutality of the freez-ing weather, and many have been suffering immensely from the winter over the past weeks withstanding storms, freezing tempera-tures, floods and vicious winds.
Following the summer attacks, Palestinians con-tinue to face desperate living conditions. In a report by Al Jazeera, Palestinian families are shown to be living in graveyard sites, having no choice but to cook and raise their children in these dire situations.
Gaza’s main and only power station, which was heavily damaged during the
war, is severely lacking fuel and is only capable of sup-plying on average 6 hours of power per day, which is less than half its original capac-ity. Only 30 per cent of the population has regular ac-cess to clean water.
The Turkish government has offered to provide Gaza a ‘floating power station’, to provide some electricity and heat throughout the winter, but Israel blocked this dona-tion. A new year was meant to bring new hope, but Israel determined to trip Palestin-ians of all human rights, dig-nity, and in the case of these babies, their very lives.
4 GLOBAL NEWSAQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Palestinian refugees face humanitarian catastrophe in Yarmouk
Activists are warning of a humanitarian catastrophe in the war-stricken Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria. The camp on the outskirts of Da-mascus, which houses more than 20,000 Palestinian refugees, has been the scene of a devastating siege and in-
tense fighting between Syr-ian rebels and forces loyal to the Syrian government.
UNRWA, which provides aid to residents of the camp has been unable to operate in the area for much of the winter because of the clash-es, leaving tens of thousands
without adequate food or heating.
Damage to the infra-structure in the area means refugees have to make do without running water and deal with frequent power cuts.
Those lucky enough to
reach food distribution cen-tres do so risking death from airstrikes and mortar bar-rages.
A statement by the UN-WRA said it was demanding “full, safe, and unrestricted humanitarian access to Yar-mouk.”
India to drop UN support for Palestinians
The newly elected ultra-nationalist BJP party in India is planning to drop the coun-try’s traditional support for Palestinians at the UN.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was reported to be considering changing Indian voting policy regard-ing Palestine at the UN in the wake of blossoming ties with Israel.
Government sources told The Hindu newspaper that the country would abstain in future votes on the Middle East process, in sharp con-trast to its traditional pro-Palestinian stance.
If the policy is finalised, it would mark the most defini-tive change in India’s foreign policy regarding the Middle East since it established dip-lomatic relations with the Is-
raelis in 1992.Since recognising Is-
rael, the two countries have shared close strategic, mili-tary and economic ties, with India becoming one of the biggest clients of Israeli mili-tary technology.
Modi met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in September in New York, where the pair agreed to develop close mili-tary cooperation between the two states.
The Indian Prime Minis-ter is a controversial figure among India’s Muslims for his anti-Muslim views and his alleged role in pogroms in the state of Gujarat in 2001, which left more than a thousand people dead. Modi was the state’s governor at the time.
Symbolic recognition of PalestineA number of European
countries have passed non-binding resolutions recog-nising a Palestinian state in recent months.
The trend started after Swedish lawmakers moved to officially recognise Pal-estine in September. Parlia-mentarians in the UK then quickly drew up non-bind-ing resolutions symbolically recognising a Palestinian state in October, followed by their French and Spanish counterparts.
Of these, only Sweden’s declaration was binding, the others have little to no effect on the ground.
Despite not carrying any legislative weight, the mo-tions were flatly condemned by Israel, whose Foreign Ministry said recognising a Palestinian state “under-mined chances for peace.” This position is reflective of Israel’s desire to control
the future of Palestine, and dictate the agenda for inde-pendence from occupation.
The British vote, which passed with 274 votes in fa-vour of recognition, and 12 votes against was notable for the abstentions of most of the ruling Conserva-tive government, including Prime Minister David Cam-eron.
Conservative MP Rich-ard Otterway, however, vot-ed in favour of the motion, condemning Israel for its theft of Palestinian land in the West Bank.
The 12 MPs who voted against the resolution in-cluded Conservatives; Bob Blackman, Jonathan Djan-goly, Mike Freer, Nigel Mills, Matthew Offord, and An-drew Syms. Liberal Demo-crat MP, Sir Alan Beith, also voted against, in addition to five DUP MPs from North-ern Ireland.
GLOBAL NEWS 5AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Ferguson protesters and Palestinians find common ground
Black rights activists in the US have found common cause with Palestinians un-der occupation in the West Bank and Gaza.
After a series of killings of unarmed Black men by US
policemen, Palestinians, who are frequently the targets of unprovoked attacks by Israe-li forces, took to social media sites to offer their solidarity.
Activists in the US re-sponded by holding placards
thanking Palestinians for their support and flying the Palestinian flag alongside pan-African flags at demon-strations against police bru-tality.
Hamas removed from EU terror blacklist
A court has ordered the European Union to remove Hamas from its list of terror-ist organisations, citing tech-nical grounds.
Despite the move by the EU’s lower court, sanc-tions and punitive measures against the group, which controls the Gaza Strip would continue for three months to allow time for ap-peals against the decision.
The court said the deci-sion to add Hamas to the EU’s terror blacklist had not been confirmed by “com-petent authorities” but was instead based on “factual im-putations derived from the press and the Internet.”
Israel, predictably, con-demned the ruling. Its Prime Minister Benjamin Netan-yahu demanded that the EU immediately put the organi-sation back on the list, say-ing “Hamas is a murderous terrorist organization.”
The group’s military wing was added to the EU’s list of terrorist organisations
after the September 11 at-tacks in the US in 2001, with its political wing proscribed by the EU in 2003.
Hamas says it is involved only in a military and politi-
cal struggle against Israel to end the occupation of Pales-tinian land.
An EU spokeswoman said the organisation would consider the court’s verdict.
Jordanians protest Israel gas deal
Dozens of protesters have demonstrated in Jor-dan’s capital Amman against an expected gas deal with Israel.
The Jordanian govern-ment is planning to import more than $15 billion dollars worth of fuel from gas fields Israel has seized in the East-ern Mediterranean.
Activists from a coalition of groups held banners con-demning the Jordanian gov-ernment with signs that read “the people of Jordan are
not collaborators,” the Maan news agency reported.
The protests follow the announcement of legal pro-ceedings by Jordan’s main opposition party, the Islamic Action Front, against those who sign the deal with Israel.
Under the deal agreed in September Israel will sup-ply Jordan with more than 45 billion cubic metres of natural gas, from fields that are also claimed by Lebanon. Other fields controlled by the Israelis fall within Pales-
tinian territorial waters.Jordanian lawmakers
have widely rejected the agreement with 79 of 150 MPs voting in favour of a mo-tion to scrap the deal.
Jordan’s peace deal with Israel, which has turned once bitter enemies in to strong allies, is widely reviled in a country where almost half of the population are descend-ants of Palestinian refugees expelled from their homes by Zionist gangs.
6 ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENTAQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Leila Sansour’s ‘Open Bethlehem’ focuses on her hometown of Bethlehem. The construction of the apartheid separation wall towering over this little town and countless number of checkpoints has stifled it’s growth and spirit. Since the wall was constructed, Beth-lehem has become a ghost town with tourists being re-stricted to visiting for brief periods using the intensely policed system of state-ap-proved minibuses.
The film chronicles Lei-la’s mission to ensure that Bethlehem is a free and open city and not one overcome by Israeli oppression. Having left Palestine and Bethlehem at age 18 and returning sev-eral years later to film this documentary, the film evi-dences the impact of the oc-cupation on her family who are feeling the pressures of the regime that is keep-ing Palestine a segregated nation and one that relies heavily on international aid, most of which doesn’t arrive in full.
The film begins by high-lighting the history of Leila’s family and introduces a re-curring figure throughout, in the form of Leila’s late father. Consequently, it is this rela-tionship that gives Leila the initial impetus to begin her journey and to “Open Beth-lehem”.
The documentary is filmed over seven years, and the focal point is the destruction caused by the wall, which is an imposing obstacle that not only di-vides and segregates two communities but also oblit-erates the historical heritage of Bethlehem. The family ties to Leila’s campaign for a free
Bethlehem run throughout the film and provide touch-ing moments.
In an interview with a shopkeeper particularly af-fected by the wall, it was evi-dent that the Israeli govern-ment’s wall has crushed the Palestinian economy. It stops local businesses from hav-ing access to new customers, and has severely restricted the tourism industry. Nev-ertheless the spirit of the Palestinian people and their passion for a free and fairer state is not diminished and the documentary evidently portrays this.
Bethlehem carries the scars of occupation. The film shows families collect-ing bullets that have ripped through their homes and cases of missiles that have fallen in their gardens. These artefacts serve as a reminder of the dangers that go hand in hand with refusing to sub-mit.
Leila’s Open Bethlehem campaign is an attempt to marshal a rainbow coalition of prominent international Christians, Muslims and Jews to persuade Israel’s government to open up Je-sus’s birthplace. This would bring life back to the town, ensuring growth through commerce, ecumenical tour-ism, and to let people visit the city freely, staying or as long as they wish
Open Bethlehem is a poignant and necessary documentary shedding light on a town that is known to the world, while its current, depressing circumstances are not. Leila Sansour’s Open Bethlehem project is the kind of first step on which peace processes are built.
Film Review
Open Bethlehem
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT 7AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Book Review
Olives, Lemons & Za’atar
Rawia Bishara’s new cookbook Olives, Lemons & Za’atar is a combination of traditional and modern cuisine, making her book perfect for those wanting to cook Palestinian food any-where in the world. The book itself is diverse since it caters for those who are already fa-miliar with basic Palestinian dishes and flavours as well as individuals who haven’t really been exposed to it. Her
eye for detail and beautiful imagery reinforce the sense of happy family cooking.
Rawia’s recipes infuse original Palestinian flavours but at the same time, her use of jalapenos, brussel sprouts and panko crumbs mirror the influences she has had from the countries she has lived in. Her recipes can eas-ily be incorporated into your daily cooking and be adapted to your own individual taste.
They are clear and simply explained and many of the ingredients are easily acces-sible in your local supermar-ket. Also an added bonus is that many of the cuisine are extremely healthy.
Recipes for deserts such as macaroni cookies, start-ers and mains are all includ-ed. In total it has 100 reci-pes, catering for a diversity of tastes regardless of what level cook you are. It is also
accommodates vegetarians with several vegetarian reci-pes. However many of the non-veg recipes that Rawia provides can easily be adapt-ed by simply leaving out the meat.
I highly recommended this book for anyone wanting to cook authentic Palestinian food with a modern twist.
Olives, Lemons & Za’atarThe Best Middle Eastern Home Cooking
Rawia BisharaChef/Owner of Brooklyn’s Tanoreen Restaurant
Price: £6.99(TheWorks.co.uk)
8 BRANCH UPDATESAQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
London
A Message
The cold winter and the bitter winds makes the prospect of leaving home in the mornings very grim. Within our homes there is comfort, warmth and food - a great deal to be grate-ful for. While many around the globe face winter with-out such shelter, in Gaza, that situation is not due to natural disasters or na-tional poverty, it is Israel’s deliberate and cruel pun-ishment.
Since the summer slaughter of so many civil-ians, over one-hundred thousand lost their homes and remain homeless. Where are these people now? Many face the bleak winter storm still confined to living in tents, wholly inadequate to combat the rain and cold. While the world continues to selec-tively condemn acts of ter-rorism, the stark question remains: when will Israel’s state terrorism be high-lighted and when will the innocent civilians of Gaza be given respite from the enforced imprisonment and misery they have had to endure year after year?
This is a question for us all to address, and to bring up with our prospective MPs as the elections draw closer. We see a clear move towards the pro-Israel po-sition by those wishing to appease Israel supporters. This was clear in David Cameron’s recent speech in which he ludicrously com-pared the appalling shoot-ing of Pakistani school children with Palestinians resisting Israeli occupa-tion. Now is the time to ask David, and those like him, how many Palestinian chil-dren, including some tak-ing refuge in schools, have been killed in the last year alone, and by whom? It is clear that Israel is the state to be compared to terror-ists, not Palestinians.
As voters, we can make Palestine an issue during these elections and now is the time to engage with prospective parliamentary candidates. Join the FOA Palestine Election Pledge today.
http://www.foa.org.uk/pal-estine-election-pledge
Ismail Patel Follow on Twitter: @Ismailadampatel
Coventry Glasgow
And Allah (swt) has sent down rain from the sky, and given life thereby to the earth after its lifelessness. Indeed in that is a sign for a people who listen. (Quran, 16:65)
Tens of thousands of people across the globe have joined FOA’s #Hand-sOffAlAqsa campaign with nearly 20,000 impressions on Twitter and tens of thou-sands of likes on Facebook.
The massive response to the campaign aimed at raising awareness of Israeli threats against one of Islam’s holiest sites drew contribu-tors from as far away as the
US, Russia, and India.A Thunderclap, designed
to amplify the message on social media websites, exceeded FOA’s target by 2768%!
Such huge involvement meant millions of people worldwide saw the hashtag and the campaign eventually trended in South Africa, Lon-don and Malaysia.
#HandsOffAlAqsa Campaign
Our annual formal la-dies dinner for awareness raising, called the Arabian Nights, was sold out! The response from the public was overwhelming.
It was clear that those
who attended cared deeply about al-Aqsa and the Pal-estinian cause. The ladies were given information packs with boycott and lob-bying action points to fol-low.
Arabian Nights
FOA volunteers joined an aid trip to Palestine where they provided dental surgery at various clinics in the Nabulus and Qalqiliya regions. The trip was sup-ported by many who gave donations of vital equip-ment and heartfelt prayers.
The trip prioritised 150 children with special needs
who suffer from a range of illnesses from cerebral palsy to downs syndrome. Some had never been to a dentist before and benefit-ted from oral health educa-tion and treatments. The trip was an opportunity to contribute in alleviating at least some of the suffering faced by these children.
Volunteers in Palestine
At FOA Coventry, we work closely with the Friends of Palestine Group, and over the past couple of months, we have been concentrating on leafleting. Using a pop-up shop in the town centre, we engaged with a lot of shop-pers and passers by.
On the day the Christmas Lights were switched on, we distributed FOA leaflets on Bethlehem to people attend-ing the event, making them aware of the struggle faced by the town of Jesus’s birth according to Christians. It was a great opportunity to spread awareness!
Dewsbury and Batley
At our branch, we have worked very hard to raise the profile of #HandsOffAlAqsa campaign locally, focussing on the Muslim religious com-munities in the mosques. We encouraged the Friday Khut-bah (sermon) to be focussed on al-Aqsa and its religious significance. The response has been very positive and we will continue to work
on raising the profile of this campaign.
Over the last few months, we have also expanded the branch and have a working women’s group now, who are keen to begin activities in the region!
We welcome new volun-teers, who can contact us on [email protected].
FOA London held the launch event for the #NotInMyFridge Cam-paign. We set up a visual display in front of the Co-ca-Cola truck as it made its first stop to London to draw attention to the cam-paign. We engaged with those visiting and walking past the truck as well as people working for Coca-Cola about why we are boy-cotting this super brand.
The public responded
positively to the campaign message and many individ-uals disposed of their free can of Coca-Cola after we informed them about our boycott.
‘I didn’t know that Coke operates in illegal Israeli settlements. Now that I know that I’m not drink-ing Coke anymore’ said one lady who came with a group of friends to visit the truck.
Launching #NotInMyFridge
We are continuing with our pivotal awareness raising work, speaking at a number of events regarding the im-portance of al-Aqsa including Sri Lanka Islamic Forum UK and Queen Mary University.
We welcome volunteers to join our fantastic team! Email [email protected]
Awareness
BRANCH UPDATES 9AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
#icheckthelabel
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COMPETITION!Can you come up with a Palestine solidarity design for this hoodie?
Our judges will pick one winning design. The winner will receive a £20 gift card and a FOA goody bag!!
Entries must be received by Sunday 28th February to Friends of Al-Aqsa, P.O. Box 5127, Leicester, LE2 0DT
TIP: To save costs, why not ask a grown up to take a picture of your design and send it to us by email to [email protected]
Name: _____________________________________________________Address: ___________________________________________________Postcode: __________________________________________________Age: _______________________________________________________
Can you find your way through this maze?
Y B A K Q U T S U N H F H I K R Q D L DQ G A L Y B W U B S C S S S F I H Z Z AO D Z D I N M E V D J K L O K Q E L Y QR K O A R S O U Z Q G I X M Q I Z K X SF M K D Z E R K Y O V Z A E C G R K W AE N R G Z G N A D Y X Q R L L K S G R AA E N V P M Q I M A O U E A U W I J A CS I D Q A M L U T I A B C S M A S J I DF J K F U B E N D S K Q D U Q G C Y Y DD Z U G H J E U X A E J W R T B L C U CP O E Y E M L F I G A L V E E E Y J Z YL U J F M B L N H R A U A J X A G U D BF C X W P Q I S I C O S E P B R O H X WX O I D U N B M K X L P D W G M U F S SM D Y G L C L C Z X X H X A Z T L P X ME B B S O A W V Z H E R J N M V W Q X XC Y H Z H B Z Z N E N X C Q X W G Y P BG W L U I V H K J M D P O S M W G R V JF G P U F S C W M N Y O W O S D X K N WJ D I U X B E N A Z V T H M K Q U S U P
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FREEDOM WALK 2015
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14 SPECIAL FEATUREAQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
What is Troubling Masjid al-Aqsa?
Events at al-Aqsa have escalated to make headline news across the world. The change came when Israel, for the first time since the occupation began, enforced a total closure of the al-Aqsa mosque. The events surrounding the closure were full of violence and trespass on to the holy site, by unwelcome Israelis.
Described in the media as ‘visitors’, these Israeli reli-gious extremists were illegal settlers who are openly call-ing for Al-Aqsa to be taken away from Palestinians, de-molished of its current his-toric and cultural buildings, and replaced with a Jewish
temple. ‘Visitors’ are usu-ally invited guests welcomed by those who own a place. The highly misleading and deliberate use of the term by Israel meant that many around the world viewed the Palestinians as the aggres-sors here.
An opinion which was for decades on the periph-ery of Israeli society was that of right wing Jewish religious extremists calling for the establishment of Jew-ish sovereignty over al-Aqsa. Many have worked and con-tinue to work tirelessly to achieve this. Worrying for Palestinians, now this opin-ion has worked its way into the mainstream, and al-Aqsa faces the danger of constant tresspass and Palestinian worshippers are routinely
blocked from entering. Until the Six Day War, the
question of Jews entering the Temple Mount was one confined to books. Since the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD, Jews had not entered the area of al-Aqsa because of rabbinical prohibition. Following the Nakba of 1948, Masjid Al-Aqsa came under Jordanian control and remained so un-til Israeli occupation in June 1967.
The Muslim status quo continued after the Six Day War—Israel’s Chief Rabbinate restricted Jews to the Bu-raq Wall (Western or Wailing Wall) and prohibited them from praying inside Masjid Al-Aqsa based on Jewish the-ology.
However, Israeli control of the holy site challenged the traditional theology. A small minority wanted to es-tablish al-Aqsa as a temple and several unsuccessful plots were hatched to blow up Masjid Al-Aqsa in the 1970s and 1980s.
As decades passed and the political landscape changed within Israeli society, what was a minority and fringe opinion in regards to Jewish prayer in the Haram became a mainstream view. In the last decade, a grow-ing number of rabbis have been sanctioning visits and prayers at the site. There is also an on-going concentrat-ed effort—politically, educationally and socially—to end Muslim control of the site and start the process of estab-lishing the Third Temple.
As Palestinians feel the pressure intensify, Israel con-tinues to tell the world that there is no danger to al-Aqsa and calls all Palestinian claims exaggerations. The facts tell a very different story.
It is in this context that there has been an escalation in tensions in and around Masjid Al-Aqsa and Jerusa-lem’s old city since 2013. The tensions are directly caused by extremist Israeli settlers, right-wing politicians and police who are increasingly trespassing into the Haram while openly calling for Isra-el to assert sovereignty over the holy site.
According to media re-
ports, hundreds of Jews—mainly right-wing settlers and students from yeshi-vas—come to Masjid Al-Aqsa for solitary prayers everyday. During 2014, some 13,757 Israelis trespassed into Mas-jid Al-Aqsa, of which 11,507 were right-wing Israelis and the rest soldiers, a signifi-cant increase from the year before and creating great anxiety for Palestinians.
Israeli soldiers stand near the al-Aqsa mosque compound after Israeli authorities temporarily closed the compound.
Israeli Jewish Claims
Attacks on Palestinian worshippers
SPECIAL FEATURE 15AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Feiglin’s plans were taken to the heart of Israeli poli-tics when he proposed a debate on placing al-Aqsa under strict Israeli control, and despite making little progress, Palestinians believe this is a clear indication of Israeli plans.
Religious fanatics who are part of various Temple Mount movements, mes-sianic groups and others are the ‘visitors’ Israel de-scribes.
The website of the Tem-ple Mount Faithful—a con-sortium of several Temple Mount groups which share the same ideology—pro-vides sombre reading. Pal-estinians are referred to as
“foreigners” and the group aspires to realise “... the building of the Third Tem-ple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem in our lifetime in accordance with the Word of G-d and all the Hebrew prophets, and the libera-tion of the Temple Mount from Arab/Islamic occupa-tion so that it may be con-secrated to the Name of G-d.”
Muslim men pray outside al-Aqsa Mosque, which was closed for the first time since 1967.
Who are the Trespassers?Recently, Palestinian
worshippers were blockad-ed inside the grey domed Al-Qibli Mosque situated towards the south of the 30-acre site. Media reports based on the Israeli army statements stated that Pales-tinians were armed with pet-rol bombs, stones, rockets and fireworks—menacing Israeli ‘visitors’. Images and
videos later emerged from within the mosque, filled with smoke and the sound of explosions, reflecting a scene of siege by Israeli soldiers rather than attack by Pales-tinian worshippers. Media agencies did not questions how Palestinians would have taken such weapons into the mosque when it is guarded by Israeli police.
The group also refers to the various Islamic build-ings within the Al-Aqsa com-pound as “pagan shrines” and suggests that the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Qibli Mosque “be removed, trans-ferred to, and rebuilt at Mec-ca.” They attempt to lay claim to a land with an ancient Palestinian heritage, to the exclusion of the Palestinians. This is Zionism at its peak.
‘Visitors’ include Deputy
Speaker of the Israeli Knes-set (parliament) Moshe Fieglin, an extremist who re-mains in power despite call-ing for “tent encampments” to “concentrate” Palestinians in, in other words Concen-tration Camps. Fieglin leads an extremist group who tres-pass on Al-Aqsa without fail every month. It is such unsa-voury characters that are the “visitors” referred to in the media.
One of the gates to get into the Sancturay is closed off.
16 RECIPEAQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Lets Bake…Caraway Pudding (Karawya or Moghli)Ingredients • 1 cup powdered rice (if not available in stores, grind using spice grinder)• 2 tablespoons powder caraway • 1 teaspoon powder cinnamon• ¾ cup sugar• 2 cups Plain Flour• 2 tablespoon pistachio, crushed• 2 tablespoon almond, crushed • 1 tablespoon walnut, crushed• 1 tablespoon ground coconut
Method• Place a deep saucepan over medium heat. Add 9 cups of water, the rice, the caraway, and the cinnamon to the pan. Stir frequently until the mixture is starting to boil. Add the sugar while stirring for another minute. Taste it in order to adjust sugar based on your preference. Leave the pudding on a low heat and keep stirring from time to time for another five minutes until it is thick and bubbly. • Pour pudding mixture into small serving bowls. Add 1 tablespoon of mixed nuts (pistachio, almond, walnut, coconut) to each bowl. Serve hot.
Register by 20th April • www.gov.uk/registertovote
Supported by:
YOUTH MUSLIM ORGANISATION
MUSLIM ASSOCIATION OF BRITAIN
MUSLIMAAT UKMUSLIM WOMEN’S FORUM
BRITISH MUSLIM INITIATIVE
TRAVEL TO PALESTINE 17AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
Volunteering in Palestine
By A. YusufI went as part of a volunteer group called ‘Volunteer in Palestine’. I stayed for 10 days; 7 of which were the official volunteer trip, based in the town of Beit Sahour, just outside of Bethlehem. 3 days were my own time, spent wandering around the magical Al Aqsa Sanctuary and the souks of ‘Al Quds’.
The mornings were spent either helping farmers plant-ing and harvesting vegetables and fruits or volunteering in schools. The afternoons were spent travelling to different towns around Palestine, such as Bethlehem (Beit - Lahem), Hebron (Al-Khalil) and Jerusalem (Al-Quds). The aim of the visit was to combine helping Palestinian farmers with an op-portunity to learn more about the conflict in Palestine first hand.
The saying you can’t truly understand what life is like for a people until you experience it yourself rung home every day. No matter how many videos you watch, no matter how many posts you like or comment on, on Facebook or Insta-gram, until you become the individual standing in front of an Israeli soldier with a firearm in Hebron, you can’t say you know what it feels like to be at the mercy of a brutal occupa-tion.
But, the beauty and significance of Palestine far out-weigh the negatives, which often act as a stumbling block for many wanting to visit.
People often ask me what was your most memorable moment? Something I struggle to encompass in a few sen-tences.
I ponder and think; is it the moment I was given my entry Visa at Ben Gurion International Airport?
Is it the moment we met patients from Gaza at the Al Makassed Hospital in Jerusalem. Patients who had been transferred during the 51 day bombardment in July, who recalled stories of lost limbs and lives, their own and their families. I remember crying unashamedly as they told their stories, though not one of the patients cried. They simply kept repeating that this was Allah’s plan and their reward would be in heaven, god willing. Their strength, faith and de-termination is something that lives with me till today.
Is it the moment I first prayed at Musallah al Qibly. That feeling of peace and tranquillity that envelopes you, whilst in Sujood and whilst raising your hands in Dua’a? As I walked around the grounds of the Al Aqsa Sanctuary, was it the moment I realised that within this blessed space, our beloved Prophet Muhammad, (may peace and blessings be upon him), stood here and enjoined all of the Prophets and Angels (may peace and blessings be upon them all) in prayer and undertook his journey of Miraj?
As I contemplate 5 months on, for many reasons, this was the trip of a lifetime. I’m fortunate to have travelled before, but the beautiful land of Palestine has captured a piece of my heart, which no other place is likely to.
I pray with all my heart, that the almighty favours and grants both me and every single one of you a first or sec-ond chance to visit this blessed place. Ameen!
www.volunteerinpalestine.co.uk
“Volunteer in Palestine??” – Does it seem like a dream beyond your reach?
Well, these were the same thoughts I had before I was blessed with the opportunity to volunteer in Palestine in 2014.
Was it standing atop a hill on Abu Akram’s farm, carry-ing buckets of water, marvelling at the beauty of Palestine, whilst eating grapes and figs, fresh off the vine?
Or finally, is it my wonderful mama and baba, Aunty J and Uncle A, who treated me like one of their own. Their hospitality and welcoming nature made me feel at home, right from the moment I arrived. Something Palestinians are famed for!
18 AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 56 | SEPTEMBER 2014 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
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19AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015/foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
In history...Creation of PLO
Sixteen years after Israel came into ex-istence, the Palestine Liberation Organisa-tion (PLO) was founded in January 1964.
Consisting of numerous guerrilla groups and political factions, the PLO was established during the first Arab summit convened by Egypt’s President Gamal Ab-dul Nasser who wanted to lead an Arab re-sponse to Israel. It was at this meeting that the Arab states voted to establish a body to organise the Palestinians in their Diaspora.
Ahmad al-Shuqair, a Palestinian lawyer who had served as Saudi Arabia’s UN rep-resentative, was selected to head the group. Four months on, he convened the first Pal-estinian parliament in Jerusalem and the PLO was officially announced.
Since its inception, the PLO has been dominated by Al-Fatah and Yasser Arafat, who remained its chairman from 1969 un-til his death in 2004. Following the 1967 Six Day War, Palestinian guerrilla factions established themselves in refugee camps across the Middle East.
During their stay in Jordan, the Palestin-ians were perceived to have set up a state within a state. The PLO was subsequently expelled from Jordan and moved its head-quarters to Beirut.
In 1974, the PLO received UN recogni-tion and was named the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people; Yasser Arafat received a standing ovation at the General Assembly of the UN. A gov-ernment in exile was recognised by Arab nations as a basis for a future Palestinian state.
In April 1975, civil war broke out in Lebanon and then in 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon. The Palestinian forces collapsed rapidly and the PLO was driven out. In 1983, fighting broke out in Lebanon be-tween pro and anti Arafat forces. From his new headquarters in Tunisia, Arafat un-dertook a daring air and sea journey and slipped into Lebanon in disguise to join his fighters.
After the 1987 Intifada and the 1991 Gulf War, the PLO proclaimed the establish-ment of an independent Palestinian state and in 1993 the PLO and Israel reached a peace agreement. The PLO leadership re-nounced armed struggle, recognised Israel and returned to the Occupied Territories. In spring 2002, Israeli forces surrounded Arafat’s headquarters. Arafat held out un-til October, when he was struck down by a mystery illness and eventually died in a Paris hospital in 2004.
US Israel Supporters Pressure France to support Israel
Following the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris in early January, French Prime Minister Valls received a con-ference call from American Jewish leaders who asked if France would now take a more pro-Israel position fol-
lowing the attack on a Jewish supermarket in Paris.
Valls responded by say-ing the attack in France had nothing to do with Israel/Palestine. “You know how much friendship I feel to-ward Israel. The bond be-
tween France and Israel is very strong. Of course we can disagree on one political topic or another,” he said to members of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jew-ish American Organizations.
Settlements cost Palestinians $1billion a year
The Palestinian Forum for Israeli Studies released a report on Tuesday titled “Is-raeli Colony Activities: Dis-
astrous Effects on the Pales-tinian Economy”, in which it states that Palestinians lose $1billion annually due to il-
legal Israeli settlements. The study said that in
the agricultural sector in the West Bank, Palestinian farmers lose $153 million in direct losses of their sea-sonal products. It claimed that Palestinian industries lose $212.7 million directly, the tourist sector in the West Bank loses $63 million and the construction sector los-es $60 million. This results in direct losses of $488.7 million and the Palestinian economy also suffers $385.3 million in indirect losses.
Palestine Parkour
Palestinian children aged 13 to 17 are learning to over-come their fears by practis-ing a new sport called Park-our. This is the latest global trend setting hobby, and is a physical discipline of move-ment focused on overcom-ing obstacles. The children in Gaza are still devastated
from the attack in summer 2014, and this is a means by which they can begin to re-build their confidence.
Gaza may still be in rub-ble and young teenagers are using wasted land and space to compete with each other in this new hobby. Parkour is a training discipline devel-
oped from military courses but is practised by lots of different types of people from teenagers to Holly-wood movie stars. For many who take up this hobby it becomes a form of therapy and has helped many Gazan children face the difficulties in their lives.
Over 1,200 Palestinian children arrested during 2014
Israel arrested 1,266 Palestinian children during 2014, according to sources in Occupied Palestine.
The majority of those detained were arrested in the second half of 2014, par-ticularly after the disappear-ance of three Israeli settlers in June. The figures show a 36 percent increase from the year before, and an 87 per-cent increase since 2011.
Abdul Nasser Ferwana, director of the Bureau of Statistics at the Commission for Prisoner Affairs, said that the figures are dangerous and worrying. He added that 3,755 Palestinian children
have been detained by Israel over the past four years.
Ferwana said that out of the 1,266 children detained in 2014, 700 (55.3 percent) were from Jerusalem. He
added that these children are often abused, tortured, humiliated and denied basic human rights, and that the international community needs to intervene.
20 AQSA NEWS | ISSUE 57 | JANUARY 2015 /foapeaceinpalestine @friendsofalaqsa @friendsofalaqsa
AFC head condemns Israeli targeting of
Palestinian footballersThe head of the Asian
Football Confederation (AFC) has declared his inten-tion to tackle “illegal Israeli practices.”
AFC President Shaikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khal-ifa spoke out after Israeli forces stormed the head-quarters of the Palestinian Football Association in Jeru-salem in November, accord-ing to a report by Reuters.
The incident came after a number of senior figures spoke out against the ob-stacles Palestinian players face in playing the game and traveling abroad for training.
Israel was widely con-demned in the summer for the appalling and contempti-ble crime of shooting the feet of two Palestinian football-ers, Jawhar Nasser Jawhar and Adam Halabiya, prevent-ing them for playing again.
Palestine begin Asian Cup campaign
Palestine begin their first ever AFC Asian cup cam-paign with tough matches against Iraq, Japan and Jor-dan.
The tournament marks the culmination of an amaz-ing year for the ‘Lions of Ca-naan’, after qualifying with a one-nil victory over the Phil-lipines in the 2014 AFC Chal-lege Cup in the Maldives last May.
The year also marked their highest ever FIFA world ranking, reaching 94th, after a previous high of 115th in 2008.
Their previous matches against Iraq and Jordan both ended in defeats for the Pal-estinians, but the debutants hope their recent run of good form will carry them through.
Call 020 8961 9993 or visit www.interpal.org
This winter, Palestinian refugees desperately need your help.
Registered Charity No. 1040094
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