2020-11-26: News Headlines

MEE and agencies (2020-11-26). Gaza blockade has pushed more than one million people below poverty line. middleeasteye.net Gaza blockade has pushed more than one million people below poverty line | UN report says that 11-year blockade of the coastal enclave cost Palestinians $16.7bn | Thu, 11/26/2020 – 12: 03 | Vehicles transporting Palestinians about to cross onto the Egyptian side wait at the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt (AFP) | Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip has pushed more th…

Lily Galili (2020-11-26). The 'banal' trauma of Israel's nightly raids on Palestinian children. middleeasteye.net The 'banal' trauma of Israel's nightly raids on Palestinian children | Despite cosmetic reforms to Israeli military law in the West Bank, Palestinian children and their families are routinely abused | Thu, 11/26/2020 – 10: 00 | Israeli soldiers interrogate a Palestinian woman during a night raid in the occupied West Bank refugee camp of Jalazun, north of Ramallah, on 16 June 2014 (AFP) | A sudden noise p…

MEE staff (2020-11-26). Palestinian hunger striker Maher al-Akhras released from Israeli prison. middleeasteye.net Palestinian hunger striker Maher al-Akhras released from Israeli prison | Akhras spent 103 days on hunger strike in protest against his administrative detention | Thu, 11/26/2020 – 09: 30 | Palestinian detainee Maher al-Akhras arrives at al-Najah Hospital in the West Bank city of Nablus following his release by Israeli authorities on 26 November (AFP) | Israeli authorities have released Palestinian prisoner Ma…

MEE staff (2020-11-26). Google plans fiber-optic cable linking Israel and Saudi Arabia. middleeasteye.net Google plans fiber-optic cable linking Israel and Saudi Arabia | Project would mark the latest sign of warming relations between the two historical enemies | Thu, 11/26/2020 – 13: 32 | The network will be more than 8,000km long and is expected to cost $400m (AFP) | Google is planning to deploy a fiber-optic network that will run through Saudi Arabia and Israel to open a new global internet traffic corridor, ac…

MEE staff (2020-11-26). Israeli court orders eviction of 87 Palestinians from East Jerusalem neighbourhood. middleeasteye.net Israeli court orders eviction of 87 Palestinians from East Jerusalem neighbourhood | Settler group had sued residents of Batan al-Hawa, claiming land where they live was previously owned by Yemini Jews | Thu, 11/26/2020 – 13: 52 | The East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Silwan with the Dome of the Rock in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in the background (AFP/file photo) | Israel's Jerusalem District Court ratified on…

South Front (2020-11-26). Video: Israel Enjoys Last Weeks of Love with Trump. Azerbaijan Controls Kalbajar District in Karabakh. globalresearch.ca On November 25, Azerbaijani troops entered the district of Kalbajar in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The district was handed over to Baku under the ceasefire deal reached between Armenia and Azerbaijan to put an end to the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War earlier …

John Pilger (2020-11-26). Britain's Class War on Children. zcomm.org Study after study shows that the people who suffer and die early from the diseases of poverty brought on by a poor diet, sub-standard housing and the priorities of the political elite and its hostile "welfare" officials — are working people…

Jonathan Cook (2020-11-26). Pompeo Spells Out the New Normal: All Criticism of Israel is "antisemitic" dissidentvoice.org It is tempting to dismiss last week's statements by Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, equating anti-Zionism with antisemitism and suggesting the global movement to boycott Israel is driven by hatred of Jews, as the last gasp of a dying administration. But that would be foolhardy. Pompeo's decision to label all but the most tepid …

Nadda Osman (2020-11-25). Israel-UAE deal: Netanyahu and Mohammed bin Zayed's Nobel Peace Prize proposal denounced. middleeasteye.net Israel-UAE deal: Netanyahu and Mohammed bin Zayed's Nobel Peace Prize proposal denounced | Social media users have called the nominations a mockery, citing human rights abuses by the leaders | Wed, 11/25/2020 – 14: 38 | Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been put forward for the Nobel Peace Prize (AFP) | The latest people named for the Nobel…

Akram Al-Waara (2020-11-25). Israeli soldiers attack medics treating injured Palestinian in Jordan Valley. middleeasteye.net Israeli soldiers attack medics treating injured Palestinian in Jordan Valley | The disturbing video footage of the attack went viral on Palestinian social media overnight, sparking an uproar by human rights advocates | Wed, 11/25/2020 – 14: 03 | "> | An Israeli soldier fires teargas against Palestinian protesters during a protest against Jewish settlements on 24 Nove…

MEE staff (2020-11-25). Israeli press review: Netanyahu-MBS meeting kept secret from Israeli ministers. middleeasteye.net Israeli press review: Netanyahu-MBS meeting kept secret from Israeli ministers | Meanwhile, Israelis on the verge of heading to a fourth election since April 2019 as political factions look into bill to dissolve Knesset in December | Wed, 11/25/2020 – 12: 58 | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and his coalition partner Defence Minister Benny Gantz (AFP) | Netanyahu-MBS meeting causes a stir

Nadda Osman (2020-11-25). Israel-UAE deal: Netanyahu and Mohammed bin Zayed's Nobel Peace Prize nomination denounced. middleeasteye.net Israel-UAE deal: Netanyahu and Mohammed bin Zayed's Nobel Peace Prize nomination denounced | Social media users have called the nominations a mockery, citing human rights abuses by the leaders | Wed, 11/25/2020 – 14: 38 | Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been put forward for the Nobel Peace Prize (AFP) | The latest nomination for the Nobel…

news.un (2020-11-25). UN report finds Gaza suffered $16.7 billion loss from siege and occupation. news.un.org Israel's military operations and prolonged closure of Gaza, has caused economic damage of $16.7 billion between 2007 and 2018, driving the poverty rate up almost fourfold compared to what it might have otherwise been, the UN trade and development agency UNCTAD said in a report published on Wednesday.

sputniknews (2020-11-25). Israeli Army Says Held Drills Near Border With Gaza Strip. sputniknews.com TEL AVIV (Sputnik) — The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that they held a military exercise near the border with the Gaza Strip involving the Gaza Division, as well as units of the Air and Space Force, Navy, Cyber Defense and intelligence.

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-25). Zionist army attacks Palestinians march against annexation. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 25 (MNA) — The Zionist regime army fired rubber bullets and tear gas at Palestinians participating in an anti-settlement and anti-annexation march in the Al-Aghwar area.

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-25). US officials meet with Netanyahu, MBS' close figure in Quds. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 25 (MNA) — A Palestinian website reported a meeting between senior US government officials, a figure close to the Saudi Crown Prince and the Zionist prime minister in Occupied Quds.

CFJPIME (2020-11-25). As Palestinian Refugees Face Severe Crisis, Canada Must Show Support for UNRWA. globalresearch.ca Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) and the Coalition of Canadian Palestinian Organizations (CCPO) are urging the Canadian government to take action in response to the crisis facing the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for …

_____ (2020-11-25). Moral Panic Over Palestinian Content In Ontario schools. popularresistance.org Digital technology has been a fixture in the Ontario classroom setting for some years now, but with COVID it has become a particularly dominant instrument of secondary school pedagogy. Online teaching and e-learning have increased exponentially with the pandemic. And while such educative options have been a necessary shield against aerosol contamination, they have not been without significant shortcomings. | The electronic medium has brought with it the plague of misinformation, the perils of unchecked public scrutiny, and the troubling consequences of unofficial surveillance…

Shatha Hammad (2020-11-24). What did the PA gain for resuming security coordination with Israel? middleeasteye.net What did the PA gain for resuming security coordination with Israel? | Activists say they expect the Palestinian Authority to crackdown on dissent, as Palestinians criticise a return to the coordination policy | Tue, 11/24/2020 – 14: 37 | Palestinian Authority security forces stop vehicles at a checkpoint in Nablus in the occupied West Bank on 2 July 2020, after authorities reimposed a Covid-19 loc…

Clinton Nzala (2020-11-24). Malawi is Just the Beginning: How Israel Changed the Political Narrative of an Entire Continent. mintpressnews.com The Palestinian cause was pivotal on the agenda of many African political parties in the 1970s and '80s. Over the last three decades, however, it has been pushed to the fringes of political discourse save for a handful of countries on the continent.

RT (2020-11-24). Syrian state media reports 'Israeli aggression' near Damascus & in southern Quneitra. rt.com The Israeli military has allegedly struck at least two sites in Syria, including in the Damascus countryside and near villages south of Quneitra, Syrian state media reported. Only material damage was inflicted in the attacks. | Early reports indicate the strikes, launched early Wednesday morning, hit near the town of Jabal Al-Mani in a rural area around the Syrian capital, as well as the village of Ruyhaina located south of Quneitra, which straddles the border between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. It is yet unclear what munitions were used in the attacks or whether Syrian defenses attempted to…

Serene Khattab (2020-11-24). Egypt: Singer suspended by music syndicate over photo with Israeli celebrities. middleeasteye.net Egypt: Singer suspended by music syndicate over photo with Israeli celebrities | Mohamed Ramadan also faces a court case over accusations of normalisation with Israel | Tue, 11/24/2020 – 13: 36 | Egyptian singer Mohamed Ramadan has come under fire after posing for a photo with Israeli celebrities (AFP) | Egyptian singer Mohamed Ramadan was suspended by Egypt's Union of Artistic Syndicates on Mon…

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-24). VIDEO: Israeli aircraft crashes in southern occupied lands. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 24 (MNA) — Two were killed after an Israeli aircraft crashed near Beersheba in the southern parts of the occupied Palestinian lands on Tuesday.

Abdel Bari Atwan (2020-11-24). Netanyahu in Saudi Arabia. thealtworld.com The Arab-Israeli normalisation fad will not last long. And the regimes involved will live to regret it. | With all the Israeli media confirming that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew to Saudi Arabia on Sunday for talks with Crown Prince Muhammad Bin-Salman and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin-Farhan's awkward denial that any such meeting took place was unconvincing in the extreme. | True, Netanyahu's office refused to confirm or deny the gathering held at the complex of royal palaces in north-eastern Saudi Arabia at the site of the planned 'mega-city' of Neom. It su…

WSWS (2020-11-24). US, Israel and Saudi Arabia meet amid mounting war threats against Iran. wsws.org The trip by Pompeo and Netanyahu to Saudi Arabia came as the Pentagon is steadily building up its air power in the region.

sputniknews (2020-11-24). Israel Strikes South of Damascus Province, Damage Inflicted, Syrian Army Says. sputniknews.com The reports follow last week's airstrikes conducted by the Israeli military, which, the IDF said, targeted Iranian Quds and Syrian Army objects in Syria. The attack resulted in three soldiers killed and one injured, Syrian media said, citing a military source.

Raouf Halaby (2020-11-24). "Ouch," the Unkindest Cuts of All. counterpunch.org During the years of my Jerusalem childhood I was raised in the Antiochian Orthodox tradition. My brothers and I served as altar boys in the St. Simeon's Qatamoun Orthodox Church, a church we attended until the harassment, harangue, and stone throwing by interloping male Jewish children and adults became life-threatening. Eventually we'd attend St. Andrews

MEE staff (2020-11-23). Israel's Netanyahu made secret trip to Saudi Arabia to meet crown prince, say reports. middleeasteye.net Israel's Netanyahu made secret trip to Saudi Arabia to meet crown prince, say reports | Saudi foreign minister denies meeting or any visit by Israeli officials, despite anonymous confirmations to US media | Mon, 11/23/2020 – 07: 37 | US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, L, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrive to make a joint statement after meeting in Jerusalem on 19 November 2020 (AFP) | Israeli…

MEE and agencies (2020-11-23). Israel invites Lebanese president for direct talks over maritime dispute. middleeasteye.net Israel invites Lebanese president for direct talks over maritime dispute | No indication on whether Michel Aoun intended to respond to the invitation by Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz | Mon, 11/23/2020 – 11: 51 | President Michel Aoun delivering a televised address on the eve of the country's 77th independence day, at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of the capital (AFP) | I…

Staff (2020-11-23). Reports of Meeting Between Netanyahu, Pompeo, bin Salman Spark Fear of Iran War. truthout.org The alarming possibility of a military attack on Iran — a nation that has long been in the sights of war hawks in the United States, Saudi Arabia, and Israel — was immediately invoked by foreign policy analysts Monday following

Peoples Dispatch (2020-11-23). Following air strikes, Iran warns Israel against violating Syria's sovereignty. peoplesdispatch.org Israel carried out airstrikes inside Syria on November 18 and again on November 21. At least three Syrian soldiers and close to 15 militiamen were killed in the airstrikes…

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-23). Gantz, Ashkenazi not-informed of Netanyahu visit to S. Arabia. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 23 (MNA) — Netanyahu informed neither Gantz nor Ashkenazi of his secret visit to Saudi Arabia.

Mitchell Plitnick (2020-11-23). Pompeo's Attack on BDS Is an Assault on Free Speech. globalresearch.ca Secretary of State Mike Pompeo broke a long-standing taboo and became the first American secretary of state to visit an Israeli settlement. Then, Pompeo announced that the United States would recognize products made in West Bank settlements as "made in …

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-23). Aramco rocket attack coincides secret talks in S. Arabia. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 23 (MNA) — Saudi Arabia was surprised when Jedda's ARAMCO distribution facilities were hit by rockets of Houthis on Monday morning a while after Pompeo, Netanyahu, and MBS were holding secret talks in the country.