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January 20 - No. 15

Israel-U.S. Memorandum of Understanding

U.S. Preparing African Military Interventions
under Obama

U.S. Preparing African Military Interventions under Obama
Field Update on Gaza from Humanitarian Coordinator - UN Office for  Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
• International Outrage Against Israeli War Crimes and Impunity 

For Your Information
Text of Israel-U.S. Memorandum of Understanding - January 16, 2009


Israel-U.S. Memorandum of Understanding

U.S. Preparing African Military Interventions
under Obama

On January 16, Israeli Foreign Minister of Israel Tzipi Livni signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) concerning the "ending of Gaza arms-smuggling" with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. This was Ms. Rice's last working day in office but her signature on behalf of the U.S. government binds the incoming administration. It should be noted that as a member of NATO, Canada is also bound to be dragooned into future U.S.-led aggression undertaken in the name of "stopping weapons flows to Hamas in Gaza."

According to the second specific undertaking of this MOU:

"2. The United States will work with regional and NATO partners to address the problem of the supply of arms and related materiel and weapons transfers and shipments to Hamas and other terrorist organizations in Gaza, including through the Mediterranean, Gulf of Aden, Red Sea and eastern Africa, through improvements in existing arrangements or the launching of new initiatives to increase the effectiveness of those arrangements as they relate to the prevention of weapons smuggling to Gaza. Among the tools that will be pursued are:

"Enhanced U.S. security and intelligence cooperation with regional governments on actions to prevent weapons and explosives flows to Gaza that originate in or transit their territories; including through the involvement of relevant components of the U.S. Government, such as U.S. Central Command, U.S. European Command, U.S. Africa Command, and U.S. Special Operations Command.

"* Enhanced intelligence fusion with key international and coalition naval forces and other appropriate entities to address weapons supply to Gaza;

"* Enhancement of the existing international sanctions and enforcement mechanisms against provision of material support to Hamas and other terrorist organizations, including through an international response to those states, such as Iran, who are determined to be sources of weapons and explosives supply to Gaza."

Any "enhancement" of these above-mentioned operations must envision full-scale military intervention. In effect, the U.S. is prepared to undertake a war of intervention in East Africa in the name of what Washington and Tel Aviv think of as "securing Israel's future survival from the threat of Islamic terrorism." The effective meaning of the content of this proviso of the MOU is that an attack on Sudan, possibly based from Kenya, would be one of the wars into which the U.S. would be plunged under the presidency of Barack Obama. The incoming president is the first person of African background, from Kenya, to serve in that office. This would confirm the suspicions of those who, from observing the entire direction of the Obama candidacy since 2007 and its eventual embrace by the ruling establishment during 2008, concluded that his role would be to provide what the Bush presidency failed to achieve and that is legitimacy for the U.S. bid to control the affairs of the world in its interests. The MOU signed with Israel signals a new period of expanded and/or accelerated U.S. military interventions on the African continent. It must not pass!

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Field Update on Gaza from Humanitarian Coordinator


January 17, 2009: Palestinian civilians and medics run to safety during an Israeli bombardment of a UN school in Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza where civilians were sheltering. Two people were killed.

"Where you have a direct hit on an UNRWA school where about 1,600 people had taken refuge, where the Israeli army knows the coordinates and knows who's there, where this comes as the latest in a catalogue of direct and indirect attacks on UNRWA facilities, there have to be investigations to establish whether war crimes have been committed."
- Christopher Guinness, UN Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) spokesperson

Following a meeting of the Israeli security cabinet on 17 January, Prime Minister Olmert announced a unilateral cease-fire in Gaza, which came into effect at 0200 hours local time 18 January, and stated that Israeli forces will remain in the Gaza Strip 'for the time being' and respond to fire from militants. For its part, Hamas initially declared it would continue hostilities until Israel withdrew its forces, opened the border crossings and ended its restrictions on the entry of goods to Gaza. On the afternoon of 18 January, Hamas declared its own cease-fire, announcing that Israeli forces had one week to leave the Gaza Strip.

The cease-fire follows twenty-two days of bombardment by land, sea and air which have left 1,300 Palestinians dead according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health and caused extensive destruction to homes and to public infrastructure throughout the Gaza Strip. Supplies of basic foodstuffs and fuel, and the provision of medical, water and sanitation services remain critical. In a press release on 18 January, UN Development Programme (UNDP) warned that 'the long-term implications of this most recent conflict in terms of recovery and development are mounting. [T]he livelihoods and assets of tens of thousands of civilians are being systematically undermined through the destruction of productive resources such as fruit orchards, fisheries, and basic industries.'

Protection of Civilians

The Israeli army remains in the north, east and Rafah border areas although there are reports that ground forces are withdrawing from some areas in Gaza City and Rafah following the cease-fire. Prior to the Hamas ceasefire, Palestinian militants continued to fire rockets and mortars into Israel and Israeli fire resulted in a number of Palestinian casualties. On the evening of 16 January, an Israeli air strike struck a residential house in Bureij Refugee Camp, killing a mother and five of her children. Seven people attending a funeral wake house in Gaza City were killed on the same day when a shell struck the house, including three brothers of the deceased. The same evening, an Israeli shell struck the Abu al-Aish family home in Jabalia killing three daughters and a niece. Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) figures as of 1600 hours 18 January are 1,300 Palestinians dead, of whom 410 are children and 104 are women. The number of injured stands at 5,300, of whom 1,855 are children and 795 are women. The danger to medical staff and the difficulty of extracting the injured from collapsed buildings makes proper evacuation and estimation of casualties difficult, including the determination of the number of Palestinian male civilian casualties. Approximately 100 bodies have been recovered today 18 January from areas from which the Israeli army has withdrawn. More are expected once the Israeli army completes its withdrawal from Gaza. Nine Israeli soldiers have been killed since 27 December. According to the Magen David Adom national society, Israeli civilian casualties stand at four dead and 84 injured since 27 December. OCHA's casualty figures do not include the number of Palestinians or Israelis treated for shock.

UN Facilities

On 17 January, a number of white phosphorous shells struck the yard of an UNRWA school in Beit Lahia, causing panic among the 1,600 civilians who had taken refuge there. While evacuating the shelter, an explosive shell struck the third floor of the school, killing two brothers, aged five and seven, and injuring 14 others including the boys' mother. UNRWA has demanded an independent investigation into this incident. A total of more than 50 UN facilities have sustained damaged since 27 December. There are no bomb shelters in the Gaza Strip, and no alarm systems to warn of impending bombardment.



Shelter

UNRWA is now operating 50 emergency shelters for 50,896 displaced people in Gaza. The shelters, many of them schools, are overcrowded. Prior to the military operation, UNRWA had procured and pre-positioned non-food items for 5,000 people. Due to the unprecedented number of people seeking refuge, UNRWA has been able to provide only basic levels of support, including food and water. The emergency shelters, especially those in the north, are in urgent need of non-food items. Altogether, the 50 shelters have a shortage of more than 23,000 blankets and mattresses. Construction materials also need to be brought into Gaza. Thousands of families whose houses have been damaged are struggling to stay warm as they have no materials to repair the damage.


Palestinians return to their destroyed homes after the withdrawal of Israeli Occupation Forces. Left: Jabaliya; right: Rafah.

Health

The ability of hospitals and intensive care units to cope with the constant influx of war injured is stretched to the limit, and medical personnel are under severe strain following twenty-two days of crisis.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the administrative building, emergency and ambulance station at the Al-Quds Palestinian Red Crescent Society Hospital were entirely destroyed when it was shelled on 15 January. The hospital's roof, top floor and a corridor were also damaged. The hospital is no longer able to function. In a separate attack on the same day, the Al Wafa Rehabilitation Hospital in east Gaza City sustained damage to the eastern wall of the geriatric ward. Despite the damage, the hospital continues to provide health care.

Following these incidents, 60 patients were evacuated from the Al Quds and Al Wafa hospitals to Shifa Hospital, adding additional strain to its already overloaded capacity.

On 16 January, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) coordinated the trucking of more than 25,000 litres of fuel to ten hospitals and clinics in Gaza City. Fuel is badly needed for hospital generators as well as for ambulances to move and collect the injured and sick. During the past 48 hours, Shifa Hospital has been powered exclusively by generators to avoid unexpected power cuts, especially for patients in the intensive care unit.

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International Outrage Against
Israeli War Crimes and Impunity

Millions around the world took to the streets this past week to demand an end to Israel's war crimes in Palestine and U.S. support for these crimes. For demonstrations in Canada see TML Daily, January 19 - No. 14 - Afternoon Edition

Palestine

Nablus; Hebron



Ramallah

Israel


Jerusalem

 
Shuafat Refugee Camp, northeastern Jerusalem



January 16, 2009: More than 3000 people protest in the Bedouin village of Arara Ba Negev.

 
Israelis and Arabs shout slogans during a protest in Jaffa near Tel Aviv January 17, 2009. More than 3000 Arabs and Jews marched from Tel Aviv to Jaffa.


An Arab Israeli girl leads a group of demonstrators while holding a placard reading  "Olmert, Barak and Livni, we will try you" near the Arab Israeli town of Nazareth, January 18, 2009.

Lebanon
Sidon and Awkar


Protesters attempting to breech razor wire around the U.S embassy are attacked with water cannons and tear gas by Lebanese riot police, in Awkar north of Beirut, January 18, 2009.


Left: Demonstrators carry a representation of the U.N. flag during the visit of the U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon, outside the UN headquarters in downtown Beirut, January 17, 2009. Right: Hamas leader Osama Hamdan speaks to newly sworn in Hezbollah "Fighters for Gaza" in the southern Lebanese town of Qana on January 18, 2009. Hamdan reiterated Hamas' warning that despite a ceasefire it would not accept the presence of a single Israeli soldier in Gaza.


Iraq and Yemen

Baghdad; Sanaa

Jordan

Right: Jordanian demonstrators burn an Israeli flag in Amman, Jordan, January 16, 2009. About 1,500 worshippers marched after the noon prayers toward the EU mission in Amman calling on the European countries to "end their support to Israel in its war on Gaza."

Syria

Damascus; Yarmouk Refugee Camp, 8 km outside Damascus

Tunisia

Tunis


Asia

Afghanistan


Afghan security guards try to control demonstrators in Kabul, January 16, 2009.
Hundreds of Afghans took part in the protest
.

Pakistan

Karachi; Islamabad


Lahore

Kashmir


Srinigar

India

Mumbai; New Dehli

China

Hong Kong

Indonesia

Jakarta; Kuala Lumpur, sign reads: "Free Palestine."


Philippines

Manila

Korea

Seoul


Europe

England


London

France

Paris


Marseille: "Stop the massacare of the Palestinian people"; Nantes: "Liberty, Peace, Justice for the Palestinian people."

Germany

Hamburg: "Freedom for Palestine, stop the massacre"; Duisburg

Switzerland; Belgium

Bern; Brussels: demonstration outside buildings of the European Commission.

Greece; Bosnia

Astakos; Sarajevo: sign reads, "Stop Israeli massacre."

Turkey


Ankara; bottom right: "Down with America"


United States

New York City

On January 16, a banner drop over New York City's West Side Highway near the USS Intrepid was carried out by members of Jews Against the Occupation/NYC (JATO/NYC) to highlight the role of U.S. aid to Israel in the current war and massacres. This action by Jewish New Yorkers continued the wave of increasingly public Jewish solidarity with the Palestinians targeted by the Israeli government's ongoing attack on the Gaza Strip. "We are standing up for justice, which is a Jewish tradition that many Jewish organizations seem to have abandoned," said Niuta Teitelboim, one of the JATO/NYC activists.

 
Los Angeles

In Los Angeles on January 15, Jewish activists chained themselves to the entrance of the Israeli consulate and blocked the driveway to the parking structure. The activists were joined by 50 other supporters who chanted "LA Jews say: End the Siege of Gaza! " and "Not in Our Name! We will Not be Silent!" In San Francisco, protesters also blocked the entrance to the Israeli consulate and held up signs reading "Caution: Israeli War Criminals."


San Francisco


Latin America

Argentina

Buenos Aires; left: "Murderers"; right: "I'm a Jew. Don't kill in my name."

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For Your Information

Memorandum of Understanding Between Israel and the United States Regarding Prevention of the Supply of Arms and Related Materiel to Terrorist Groups Israel and the United States (the "Parties")

Recalling the steadfast commitment of the United States to Israel's security, including secure, defensible borders, and to preserve and strengthen Israel's capability to deter and defend itself, by itself, against any threat or possible combination of threats;

Reaffirming that such commitment is reflected in the security, military and intelligence cooperation between the United States and Israel, the Strategic Dialogue between them, and the level and kind of assistance provided by the United States to Israel;

Taking note of the efforts of Egyptian President Mubarak, particularly the recognition that securing Gaza's border is indispensable to realizing a durable and sustainable end to fighting in Gaza;

Unequivocally condemning all acts, methods, and practices of terrorism as unjustifiable, wherever and by whomever committed and whatever the motivation, in particular, the recent rocket and mortar attacks and other hostile activity perpetrated against Israel from Gaza by terrorist organizations;

Recognizing that suppression of acts of international terrorism, including denying the provision of arms and related materiel to terrorist organizations, is an essential element for the maintenance of international peace and security;

Recognizing that the acquisition and use of arms and related materiel by terrorists against Israel were the direct causes of recent hostilities;

Recognizing the threat to Israel of hostile and terrorist activity from Gaza, including weapons smuggling and the build-up of terrorist capabilities, weapons and infrastructure; and understanding that Israel, like all nations, enjoys the inherent right of self defense, including the right to defend itself against terrorism through appropriate action;

Desiring to improve bilateral, regional and multilateral efforts to prevent the provision of arms and related materiel to terrorist organizations, particularly those currently operating in the Gaza Strip, such as Hamas;

Recognizing that achieving and maintaining a durable and sustainable cessation of hostilities is dependent upon prevention of smuggling and re-supply of weapons into Gaza for Hamas, a terrorist organization, and other terrorist groups, and affirming that Gaza should not be used as a base from which Israel may be attacked;

Recognizing also that combating weapons and explosives supply to Gaza is a multi-dimensional, results-oriented effort with a regional focus and international components working in parallel, and that this is a priority of the United States' and Israel's efforts, independently and with each other, to ensure a durable and sustainable end to hostilities;

Recognizing further the crucial need for the unimpeded, safe and secure provision of humanitarian assistance to the residents of Gaza;

Intending to work with international partners to ensure the enforcement of relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions on counterterrorism in relation to terrorist activity in Gaza;

Have reached the following understandings:

1. The Parties will work cooperatively with neighbors and in parallel with others in the international community to prevent the supply of arms and related materiel to terrorist organizations that threaten either party, with a particular focus on the supply of arms, related materiel and explosives into Gaza to Hamas and other terrorist organizations.

2. The United States will work with regional and NATO partners to address the problem of the supply of arms and related materiel and weapons transfers and shipments to Hamas and other terrorist organizations in Gaza, including through the Mediterranean, Gulf of Aden, Red Sea and eastern Africa, through improvements in existing arrangements or the launching of new initiatives to increase the effectiveness of those arrangements as they relate to the prevention of weapons smuggling to Gaza. Among the tools that will be pursued are:

* Enhanced U.S. security and intelligence cooperation with regional governments on actions to prevent weapons and explosives flows to Gaza that originate in or transit their territories; including through the involvement of relevant components of the U.S. Government, such as U.S. Central Command, U.S. European Command, U.S. Africa Command, and U.S. Special Operations Command.

* Enhanced intelligence fusion with key international and coalition naval forces and other appropriate entities to address weapons supply to Gaza;

* Enhancement of the existing international sanctions and enforcement mechanisms against provision of material support to Hamas and other terrorist organizations, including through an international response to those states, such as Iran, who are determined to be sources of weapons and explosives supply to Gaza.

3. The United States and Israel will assist each other in these efforts through enhanced sharing of information and intelligence that would assist in identifying the origin and routing of weapons being supplied to terrorist organizations in Gaza.

4. The United States will accelerate its efforts to provide logistical and technical assistance and to train and equip regional security forces in counter-smuggling tactics, working towards augmenting its existing assistance programs.

5. The United States will consult and work with its regional partners on expanding international assistance programs to affected communities in order to provide an alternative income/employment to those formerly involved in smuggling.

6. The Parties will establish mechanisms as appropriate for military and intelligence cooperation to share intelligence information and to monitor implementation of the steps undertaken in the context of this Memorandum of Understanding and to recommend additional measures to advance the goals of this Memorandum of Understanding. In so far as military cooperation is concerned, the relevant mechanism will be the United States-Israel Joint Counterterrorism Group, the annual Military to Military discussion, and the Joint Political Military Group.

7. This Memorandum of Understanding of ongoing political commitments between the Parties will be subject to the laws and regulations of the respective parties, as applicable, including those governing the availability of funds and the sharing of information and intelligence.

This Memorandum of Understanding was signed on 16 January, 2009 at Washington, in duplicate, in the English language.

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