9 Mar 2010 4:02 PM

Family of activist killed in Gaza to sue Israel

The family of slain US activist Rachel Corrie is suing the State of Israel for damages, Reuters reports.

The case brings more light to the controversy surrounding Israeli treatment of pro-Palestinian protesters.  Corrie, then 23, was protesting as a member of the International Solidarity Movement when she was killed March 17, 2003.  She was struck fatally by a concrete slab when an Israeli army bulldozer was clearing a militant hideout in Gaza.

Corrie's family is suing for $324,000, and the case will be heard by a Haifa court Wednesday.  Says the family, based on witness accounts, the driver must have spotted her before moving the bulldozer in her direction.


Excerpt:

Two former activists in Gaza are to testify in the case.

Lieutenant-Colonel Avital Leibovich, an Israeli army spokeswoman, told Reuters in an interview that "the crew inside the bulldozer did not see her nor hear her", and that tear gas and stun grenades had been fired to warn protesters to flee.

Israelis have shown little sympathy for Corrie, whose death occurred at the height of a Palestinian uprising in the Gaza Strip and occupied West Bank in which thousands of Palestinians and hundreds of Israelis were killed.

Revival of her case was expected to stoke anger in a nation still reeling from a scathing United Nations report alleging both the Israeli army and Palestinian militants committed war crimes during the 2008-9 Israel-Gaza conflict.

Steven Plaut, an Israeli from Haifa, charged in a column for the Jewish Press newspaper that Corrie's parents were a "two-person anti-Israel propaganda SWAT team" who supported Israel's enemies.


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9 Mar 2010 11:45 AM

World Bank official Daboub to visit West Bank

World Bank Managing Director Juan José Daboub arrives in the West Bank today to embark on a 2-day fact-finding mission, reports a World Bank media advisory made available to Palestine Note.

Daboub in the Phillippines with Marikina City Mayor Marides Fernando

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9 Mar 2010 9:50 AM

Male hairdressers protest Hamas salon ban

Male hairdressers in Gaza are not sitting idle after Hamas' ban on men styling women's hair.  Gaza's male stylists have filed a complaint with the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) in Gaza City, reports the Associated Press.

Stylist Hatem al-Ghoul said they hope PCHR is able to pressure the government to rescind its decision.  The affects only five hairdressers, but it "highlights Hamas' increasing attempts to impose a strict version of Islam in the already conservative Palestinian territory."  PCHR has responded saying it is "seeking clarifications" from the Hamas government on the edict.


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9 Mar 2010 9:23 AM

1,600 new homes approved in E. Jerusalem

The Israeli Interior Ministry has approved 1,600 new housing units in the ultra-orthodox Ramat Shlomo neighborhood in East Jerusalem, Haaretz reports. 

The addition of public facilities and a central park have also been approved for the neighborhood.  Leftist Israeli group Meretz claims the building expansion is aimed at disrupting US Vice President Joe Biden's visit.  Said Meretz rep Meir Margalit:

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9 Mar 2010 8:45 AM

International Women's Day: Gaza's women achieve despite difficult circumstances

By Mariam Hamed - Special to Palestine Note

International Women's Day marks the economic, political and social achievements of women all over the world.  Gaza's women are answering in all of these areas with success.

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9 Mar 2010 8:24 AM

PA sex scandal update: No deadline on Husseini inquiry

No deadline has been assigned for government investigations into former Abbas chief of staff Rafiq al-Husseini's professional conduct, reports Ma'an News Agency.  The government inquiry is investigating corruption and sex scandal allegations against Husseini.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas suspended Husseini after the sex scandal broke last month

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