Gate 48 Newsletter

Platform for critical Israelis in the Netherlands
		Newsletter February 2016
	Dear friends and supporters, This is the first newsletter of gate48 in 2016. We are sending it at difficult times in Israel/Palestine. Since October we have witnessed a new wave of violence with over 100 different attacks, most of them by children and young people, during which over 30 Israelis and over 88 Palestinians lost their lives. There is no justification to attack the civilian population, however the way a great amount of the Palestinian attackers was killed by security forces or by the civil population without any trial, is very alarming. These actions are generally supported by the wider public and follow clear calls from some politicians and officials to use violence and arms against attackers. In some videos, mainly shot by human rights organizations, there is clear evidence that attackers were killed after they were already unarmed. These actions can therefore only be described as executions without a trial and should be investigated by the international communit y. In addition, we see a growing political prosecution against human rights defenders and their supporters. At the moment Israeli social media are full with lists of names of people with the claim that they are foreign agents or ‘moles’ out to harm Israel. In mid-January three human rights defenders were falsely arrested and detained for a week during which they were not allowed to meet with their lawyers and the media were put under a full gag-order regarding these arrests. For us it is clear that the main reason for the current situation is almost half a century of occupation. Ending the occupation and giving full and equal rights to all people between the Jordan River and the sea is the only solution.
	Friday the 26 of February, 20:00, Doelenzaal (Singel 425) Amsterdam The Political Geography of Israel/Palestine: Apartheid or Confederation? Public Discussion with Prof. Oren Yiftachel The Lecture analyzes the evolving political geography of Israel/Palestine and the persistent failures of peace efforts. It highlights the double meaning of Zionism, being both a national liberation and a colonial movement, and the changing nature of Palestinian mobilization and nationalism. The struggle over the very same homeland, and post-colonial theories of democratization, redistribution and recognition, leads to a series of observations about future scenarios, which span between, on the one hand, a process of ‘creeping apartheid’ or, on the other, a de-colonized confederacy for a newly established Israeli-Palestinian Union. Prof. Yiftachel teaches urban Read more Sunday the 21 February, 18:30, Mezrab (Veemkade 576) Amsterdam Mizrahi night at mezrab Book presentation and video clips with dr. Smadar Lavie gate48 invites you to a program centering on Arab Jews in Israel. The program explores Mizrahi contemporary struggles and culture in Israel and in the context of the struggle against the occupation and regional war. The program is made possible with the generous support of Mezrab cultural center.  Program: 18:30 open doors, with Persian soup refreshment  19:00-20:00 Book presentation Smadar Lavie, “wrapped in the flag of Israel” Smadar Lavie is an Israeli anthropologist famous for her outspoken scholarship and activism for gender equity and social justice for both Israelis and Palestinians. Her latest Read more Opinion article in Volkskrant: Stop vervolging activisten in Israel Posted on February 1st, 2016 by gate48 Opinion article about political prosecution in Israel, by Galit Saporta, the director of gate48, in the Volkskrant here. De toenemende internationale kritiek op de Israëlische bezetting van Palestijns gebied, met name op de dagelijkse schending van mensenrechten, blijft niet onopgemerkt. De Israëlische autoriteiten kunnen deze kritiek dan ook niet langer negeren, alleen geloven zij dat er niets mis is met de bezetting en geven de schuld aan de mensenrechtenorganisaties die de bezetting aan de kaak stellen. Anno 2016 kent Israël een tot nu toe ongekende politieke vervolging van mensenrechtenactivisten. Het gaat hierbij om een gezamenlijke campagne van regering, parlement, justitie, Read more New HRW report - Occupation, Inc. Posted on January 19th, 2016 by gate48 How Settlement Businesses Contribute to Israel’s Violations of Palestinian Rights This report documents how settlement businesses facilitate the growth and operations of settlements. These businesses depend on and contribute to the Israeli authorities’ unlawful confiscation of Palestinian land and other resources. They also benefit from these violations, as well as Israel’s discriminatory policies that provide privileges to settlements at the expense of Palestinians, such as access to land and water, government subsidies, and permits for developing land. To read the report here New video on our site War against the people: Israel, the Palestinians and global pacification Presentation and launch of Jeff Halper’s new book In this presentation of his latest book, War Against the People, Halper examines Israel’s “security politics,” how it parlays the military and security prowess gained through its decades of control over the Palestinians Into political clout in international affairs. Marketing the weaponry, security systems and surveillance systems developed in the laboratory of the West Bank and Gaza as essential to waging “wars against the people,” Israel is globalizing its Palestinian experience.By placing his analysis within the framework of capitalist hegemony, in which the pacification of peoples is integral to the smooth flow Read more