International Court of Justice :Arrest Warrants for Netanyahu and Hamas Leaders ?!

=> Breaking News added on Helicopter Crash
=> that caused the Death of Iranian President
=> Update on May 21

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his minister of defense Yoav Gallant are being charged with war crimes in Gaza, together with three Hamas leaders: Yahya al-Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh and Mohammad Diab Ibrahim al-Masri are accused for the events of October 7, 2023. Haniyeh is the political leader of Hamas, al-Sinwar its leader in Gaza and al-Masri its military leader and general commander of the Qassam Brigades.

Karim Khan, head of the International Criminal Court, must request the arrest warrants from a committee of three judges in The Hague. It takes an average of about two months for them to review the evidence and decide whether to proceed with the request or not.

Egyptian Media Comment: The Nakba Day of Israel (May 18)

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Death of Iran's President
and his Foreign Minister

The Iranian Tasnim Agency reported that the Iranian President died, accompanied by Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the Friday Imam of Tabriz, Ayatollah Al Hashem, the Governor of East Azerbaijan, Malek Rahmati, the head of the President’s Protection Unit, and a member of the Revolutionary Guard, after the helicopter carrying them fell in East Azerbaijan.

Raisi and his accompanying delegation visited East Azerbaijan, and together with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev inaugurated the Qiz Qalasi Dam, which is a joint project between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The helicopter was involved in an accident on its way back to the city of Tabriz in order to inaugurate the project to improve the quality of the Tabriz refinery, and it crashed in the Dezmar forests located between the villages of Uzi and Pir Daoud in the Warzagan region in East Azerbaijan Province, northwest of Iran.

[إلاف on May 21]

Turkey: Major helicopter signalling system either unavailable or disabled

After announcing the crash of the Iranian president's helicopter and his death along with his foreign minister and other officials, Turkish Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uroglu revealed on Monday that the signal system of the helicopter that crashed carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister on Sunday was not activated or that the plane did not have such a system. ...................... "But we think the signal system was probably not activated or that the helicopter didn't have that signalling system, because the signals didn't (show up this time)." ............................. According to the international standard in civil and military aviation, there is a positioning device installed inside the aircraft, or what is known as "Locator beacons", designed to send continuous signals for a period of up to 30 to 35 days. ........................... The Emergency locator beacon is a portable battery-powered wireless beacon that sends continuous signals to locate aircraft, ships and people in extreme emergencies for immediate intervention and rescue. The purpose of all emergency positioning signals is to help rescuers find survivors during the so-called "golden day" – the first 24 hours after a collision or crash, during which the majority of survivors can usually be rescued.

[العربية on May 20]

Nakba Day يوم النكبةEgypt going to take Diplomatic Steps against Israel

Update added on May 18

[Lebanon 24 on May 16]

Title: On the 76th anniversary of An-Nakba -
Witness in his 80ies clings to the right of return
The elderly Palestinian Muhammad Khader, who lived through the Nakba of 1948 [ i.e. the catastrophe of displacement ], told Anadolu: We left our homes under pressure from Zionist gangs. We went to the city of Ramla, then to Ramallah, later to Al-Am’ari camp. On the way (during the displacement) I saw something unmentionable, and among that is a (Palestinian) woman who was slaughtered from vein to vein. What the Palestinians of the West Bank are subjected to today in terms of “killing and abuse” at the hands of the settlers is similar to what happened in 1948. We live a new Nakba every day, but no matter how long it takes, we must return home ...

[Anadolu, Turkey on May 15, Day of An-Nakba]
Please note: My blog only reflects the views expressed by leading global media regarded as reliable when it comes to their treatment of daily news. The editor cannot be held responsible for single comments put in the showcase by such media and which is part of their daily business of information. W.W./Ulysses

IDF found the bodies of three Jewish festival goers abducted by Hamas on 7 October 2023.
The bodies are reported to be "in a good condition". [CBS on May 17]

..........................

The Wall Street Journal said that Egypt is considering reducing the level of its diplomatic relations with Israel, and has decided to support the genocide lawsuit against it in the International Court of Justice.

The newspaper added in a report: “During the 45 years since the historic peace agreement, Israel and Egypt have become necessary partners, with close, albeit not warm, relations that are important for their national security. But the Israeli attack against Rafah threatens to undermine all of this.”

The newspaper said that Egypt, which represents the center of Arab military, political and cultural power, is now considering reducing the level of its diplomatic relations with “Israel,” according to what Egyptian officials say.

Cairo said in recent days that it would listen to South Africa's lawsuit to the International Court of Justice, which accuses "Israel" of genocide in Gaza . Egypt also refused to open its borders after the Israeli army took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing.

The newspaper quoted Muhammad Anwar Sadat, whose uncle, President Anwar Sadat, negotiated the "Camp David" Treaty in 1979, as saying that the current conflict is the worst that bilateral relations have witnessed.

Sadat, a former member of the Egyptian parliament, said: “There is a lack of trust” and “there is in fact now a kind of suspicion between the two parties.”

The newspaper says that the current crisis began after the Israeli army gave Egypt a few hours’ notice before it launched a campaign against the Rafah crossing last week , according to an Egyptian official.

The surprise message that reached Egyptian intelligence came after months of cautious negotiations between military, security and Israeli officials regarding the attack in which Benjamin Netanyahu's government threatened against Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians had taken refuge

[عربي 21, London May 14, quoting the Wallstreet Journal]

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Latest Update: May 12

The Pillars
of
Palestine

The Palestinians At Home
Photo Book © 2024 / 1974

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For the best performance you better use a
Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge browser.

CNN Report on Abuse of Palestinian Prisoners

An investigative news report by US broadcaster CNN uncovered the horrors
of a shadowy detention facility where Palestinian prisoners are blindfolded,
handcuffed and forced to wear dirty diapers. [CNN on May 10]

Israeli Attack on Rafah

Independent [US] Senator Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, said Israel shouldn't receive "another nickel" in U.S. military aid despite the findings of a recent State Department report.

"Any objective observer knows Israel has broken international law, it has broken American law, and in my view, Israel should not be receiving another nickel in U.S. military aid," Sanders said in an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press." "Look the facts are quite clear. Hamas is a terrible disgusting terrorist organization that began this war. Though what Israel has done over the last seven months has not just gone to war against Hamas, it has gone to war against the entire Palestinian people. And results have been absolutely catastrophic."

[Fox News on May 12]

[The Hill, US political news from Washington DC on May 8]

.............................

Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib said Monday that her country will support a resolution to recognize Palestine as a full member of the UN.

"The vote will take place this week, on May 10. It is important that the European Union does not miss this historic moment," Lahbib said as she met with her Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki.

She also said that Belgium wants to co-sponsor and support the resolution.

[Yeni Safak, Turkey, on May 7]

More than 100 students set up camps on the Free University of Berlin campus on Tuesday to protest Israel's war on Gaza.

The group erected tents outside the university building and unfurled banners expressing solidarity with the Palestinian people.

Wearing keffiyehs and waving Palestinian flags, the students shouted slogans such as “Free, free Palestine!”, "Israel is a terrorist state", "Shame on you Germany”.

The university administration said in a statement that the attempt of the students to occupy the campus was “unacceptable” and it has called in the police to evict the protesters.

Since protests started last month at a number of US universities in support of Palestine, the protests have spread worldwide, including in universities across Europe.

[Yeni Safak, Turkey, on May 7]


..................................

Website request from Australia: Israel - German Submarine Delivery (2012)

My trip to Israel started in West-Berlin where I
lived in a part of the American Sector that was
already populated by Turkish families in 1974.

Israel raising International Concern - Attack on Damascus- Hamas Rejects Agreement - Turkey cuts Economic Links

LAST UPDATE on May 4: Gazans Thank US Campus Protesters for Support
- Nations Bracing for Palestinian Stateship => => => Included Further Down !

According to the Times of Israel on May 2, local time, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu once again stated in a speech at a public event that the Israeli army would launch military operations in Rafah, southern Gaza. Israeli officials said Hamas was expected to formally reject the latest hostage exchange deal.

Separately, a security source said Israeli aircraft struck a site on the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus late Thursday.

Pictures widely circulated on social media showed thick smoke billowing over the struck building. Syrian state media later stated that eight soldiers were injured in the attack.

The Syrian military issued a statement in the early morning of May 3, saying that a location near the Syrian capital Damascus was hit by an Israeli air strike on the evening of the 2nd, injuring eight soldiers. The statement said that at around 22:05 local time on the 2nd, Israel launched an air strike on a location around Damascus from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights, injuring eight soldiers and damaging some facilities.

The well-known financial blog Zerohedge pointed out that Israel’s new attack may be another targeted assassination operation targeting Iranian generals or Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officers. Of course, it is also intended to show that Israel is still not frightened by Iran’s April 13 attack. live. It is worth noting that Iran's attack was in retaliation for a previous Israeli attack on the Iranian Embassy in Damascus.

According to unconfirmed social media reports: Israeli strikes in Syria targeted the Syrian national security building in the "Najha" area of ​​rural Damascus.

There was speculation that this was Israel's response to Syria's rocket launch into the Golan Heights earlier this week.

Zerohedge said the new attack also showed that Iran-Israel tensions that nearly led to a major regional war last month were not over.

Both sides made concessions after tit-for-tat "limited" strikes on each other's territory. Israel had reportedly planned a larger attack, but Washington reportedly pressured Netanyahu's government to back down amid concerns that the entire area would be set ablaze.

After the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011, the Israeli military repeatedly carried out air strikes on targets in Syria on the pretext of attacking Iranian military facilities. Both the Syrian and Iranian governments deny that Iran has troops stationed in Syria.

Although the geopolitical situation still provides support to gold prices, investors on this trading day also need to pay attention to the U.S. non-farm payrolls report to be released at 20:30.

Economists agree that the U.S. non-farm payrolls report for April, released on Friday, is expected to add more than 200,000 jobs for the fourth consecutive month, indicating that the U.S. labor market remains tight.

The market generally expects 243,000 new jobs to be created in April, a slowdown from 303,000 new jobs in March, and the unemployment rate is expected to remain unchanged at 3.8%.

[Chinese financial network FX678 on May 3, 2024]

BEIRUT (Tribune News Service) — People across Gaza on Wednesday sent messages of appreciation to demonstrators on U.S. campuses, thanking them for their protests against the Gaza war.

Children, parents and medical staff assembled in the courtyard before Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital in central Gaza, with many of them unfurling banners carrying university insignias with “Thank you for supporting our cause.” Others brandished signs with the words “Your voices pierce the wall of silence and reach the victims in Gaza!,” “The killing of children in Gaza must stop” and “Palestine is everywhere.”

In recent days, as protests and encampments have bloomed in dozens of campuses across the U.S., people in Gaza have taken note of the outpouring of solidarity, both in America and abroad. They in turn have responded — on social media, in rallies, in videos, by words scribbled on tents — with messages of support of their own.

Many view the protests as a positive omen in a time of unrelenting bleakness in Gaza. At another event also in Deir al Balah, others hoped for similar protests to spread in European and Arab countries.

[US Military Newspaper Stars and Stripes quoting a Los Angeles Times article on May 2]

Israel is pushing back as the United Nations as well as several countries in Europe and beyond are expected to recognize a Palestinian state in the coming weeks.

After months of debate among U.N. member states, individual countries and parliaments over whether to recognize an independent Palestinian state, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said this week that five European states could do so by the end of May. In addition, the U.N. General Assembly is expected to vote on Palestinian membership on May 10, following a U.S. veto in the Security Council last month.

Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan told the General Assembly on Wednesday that “by advancing a Palestinian state, you are telling the Hamas murderers and rapists that terror pays off. It makes me want to vomit.”

“You know the Palestinian Authority doesn’t meet the criteria for statehood,” Erdan added. “You prefer a rogue state and to hell with the Jewish state. This is a clear message to the Palestinians that they never, ever, ever have to sit at the negotiating table, let alone make any compromises.”

The majority of U.N. states already recognize a Palestinian state. When the question of promoting “Palestine” from observer status to full U.N. membership was brought to the Security Council in April, 12 members voted in favor, with Britain and Switzerland abstaining, while the U.S. vetoed the resolution. The resolution, which is nonbinding, is set to go to a General Assembly vote next week; only the Security Council can admit new member states to the U.N.

[Jewish Insider on May 3]

How did the Jews come to America ? There is a fictive answer to this question given by Paul Auster, America's famous contemporary author. It is based on the family legend of Archibald Isaac Ferguson, the boy whose life takes four simultaneous and independent fictional paths in Paul Auster's outstanding novel '4321': According to family legend, Ferguson's grandfather departed on foot from his native city of Minsk with one hundred rubles sewn into the lining of his jacket, traveled west to Hamburg through Warsaw and Berlin, and then booked passage on a ship called the 'Empress of China', which crossed the Atlantic in rough winter storms and sailed into New York harbor on the first day of the twentieth century. While waiting to be interviewed by an immigration official at Ellis Island, he struck up a conversation with a fellow Russian Jew. The man said to him: Forget the name Reznikoff. It won't do you any good here. You need an American name for your new life in America, something with a good American ring to it. Since English was still an alien tongue to Isaac Reznikoff in 1900, he asked his older, more experienced compatriot for a suggestion. Tell them you are Rockefeller, the man said. You can't go wrong with that. An hour passed, then another hour, and by the time the 19-year-old Reznikoff sat down to be questioned by the immigration official, he had forgotten the name the man had told him to give. Your name ? the official asked. Slapping his head in frustration, the weary immigrant blurted out in Yiddish, Ikh hob fargessen (I have forgotten) ! And so it was that Isaac Reznikoff began his new life in America as Ichabod Ferguson. Editor's note: Ichabod (Hebrew: אִיכָבוֹד ʾĪḵāḇōḏ) is a biblical name meaning "without glory", or "where is the glory?". That name makes part of Paul Auster's preferred joke in '4321'. And it should be known that Auster has a Jewish background himself.

War on Gaza - Hamas Concessions ?

- Breaking News from China -
added further down on May 2

Hamas makes major concessions, proposes disarmament conditions

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After confirming that Iran will not retaliate again, the main Israeli army that previously left Gaza is returning to Gaza. Hamas is well aware of the gap in military strength between itself and the Israeli army. If it continues to fight, it will not get any advantages, and it may even be completely annihilated. It chose to make concessions in order to protect itself.

According to Taiwan Strait Network, on Wednesday, Hamas senior political official Khalil Haya said in an interview that Hamas is willing to follow the pre-1967 borders in accordance with the "two-state solution" recognized by the international community. Establish a sovereign Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank with East Jerusalem as its capital and accept refugees in accordance with international resolutions.

If this comes true, Hamas is willing to reach a ceasefire agreement with Israel for five years or even longer, disarm, turn into a political party, and form a unified government. This is seen by the outside world as a major concession made by Hamas. However, it seems unlikely that Israel will accept this condition. After all, in their eyes, only the complete destruction of Hamas is the real victory, and senior officials of the Israeli government firmly oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders and clearly reject the two-state solution.

以色列敢这么狂妄，拒不执行安理会决议，公然站在国际社会的对立面，说白了就是因为美国的默许和纵容。

Israel dares to be so arrogant, refuses to implement Security Council resolutions, and openly stands on the opposite side of the international community. To put it bluntly, it is because of the tacit consent and encouragement of the United States.

..........

According to The Paper, White House spokesman Kirby said that Hamas is a "terrorist organization" and must be "eradicated." As long as Hamas remains in power, it will be impossible to implement the "two-state solution" and there will be no Palestinian state. If they want to temporarily change the rules and really want to build a state for the Palestinian people, they can end the war now, just lay down their weapons and release the hostages.

..........

Hamas does not trust the United States and Israel at all, because they often say one thing and do another, and do not play their cards according to routines. After Hamas disarms, the United States may still veto Palestine's application to join the UN with one vote and prevent Palestine from becoming an independent country.

Israel may also continue to attack Hamas and annex Palestinian territories step by step. By then, the unarmed Hamas will be unable to change anything.

However, when Kirby said these words, wasn't he afraid of domestic chaos? As we all know, not long ago, Palestine's application to join the United Nations was vetoed by the United States, arousing the anger of the international community. Large-scale pro-Palestinian protests and marches broke out in many colleges and universities in the United States.

According to Red Star News, according to statistics, nearly 550 people in American universities have been arrested for related protests in the past week. Protests and demonstrations in American universities have even spread to the southern hemisphere. Demonstrators also broke out at the University of Sydney. They set up tents on campus and wrote slogans saying "Liberate Gaza".

[Excerpts quoted from a comment written by 立伟视界 (Li Wei's gobal view),
'nom de guerre' for a Chinese military commentator from Jiangxi province,
and published by 腾讯网 on May 1st 2024]

Hamas senior official:
Blinken is 'Israel's foreign minister', not the US secretary of state

..........

According to reports, Blinken met with Israeli leaders to discuss how to provide more aid to Gaza. He repeatedly urged Hamas to accept Israel's proposal to release detained personnel and achieve a ceasefire, calling it "extremely generous."

这名哈马斯官员对路透社记者说：“布林肯的言论与现实相矛盾。布林肯发表这样的言论并不奇怪。他被称为以色列外长，而不是美国国务卿。”

The Hamas official told Reuters: "Blinken's remarks contradict reality. It is not surprising that Blinken would make such remarks. He is called the Israeli foreign minister, not the U.S. secretary of state."

He added: "Even the Israeli negotiating team admitted that Netanyahu was the one who was blocking the ceasefire agreement."

According to reports, Hamas is seeking a permanent ceasefire and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, while Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said that regardless of whether it reaches an agreement with Hamas or not, Israel must destroy the remaining Hamas organization in Rafah, southern Gaza, to ensure your own safety.

[Excerpts from a news report published in Beijing by 搜狐 on May 1st 2024]



.......... BREAKING NEWS from CHINA on May 2, 2024 ..........

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that both Hamas and Fatah
have come to Beijing. Will the two factions join forces to fight Israel?

外交部宣布，哈马斯法塔赫都来了北京，两派要合力大战以色列？

The conflict in Gaza continues, with people dying from air strikes or starvation every day, and a ceasefire is imminent. As a responsible major country committed to achieving peace in the Middle East, China announced another blockbuster news today (30th): the two main Palestinian factions are negotiating in Beijing!

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at a regular press conference on April 30, a reporter asked about the talks between Fatah and Hamas in Beijing. Spokesperson Lin Jian confirmed this and stated that both parties fully expressed their reconciliation will to discuss many specific matters and make progress, and agreed to continue the dialogue.

..........

But starting the reconciliation process does not mean that reconciliation will be completed automatically. To achieve real reconciliation, we must agree on the most urgent struggle strategies at the moment. Hamas has sacrificed a lot of manpower and material resources. If Abbas and Fatah are sincere in reconciling, they must learn the lessons of the Moscow Conference and not have the idea of "picking the fruit." It should be noted that "if peace is sought through struggle, peace will survive; if peace is sought through compromise, peace will perish." Only when the Palestinian people share the same hatred can they defeat powerful enemies and the dawn of peace can come.

[Excerpts from a news report published in Beijing by 腾讯 on May 2, 2024]

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Obituary for Paul Auster For years, Paul Auster has been my favorite author. Today I heard about his death. Here is a collection of some important works I read and would like to recommend. Some lines from 'Moon Palace' I even read occasionally in a nearby public library. Paul Auster caught my interest because of his ability to combine the development of his characters simultaneously with the development of historic events, some of which I experienced myself. He therefore became the chronicler of my generation, even though some thousand miles separated the author from his reader. After having passed some months in the French capital of Paris, Auster even excelled in the translation of French poetry. The following lines are taken from his 'Report from the Interior', seen as a chronicle of post-war America. They describe his busy activity as a translator and writer of novels, as well as his difficulties to get his works typed for publishing. A letter from Nov. 23, 1967, has it that he rents a typewriter: " About the scenario. I have just gotten hold of a typewriter, a huge machine, rented at the price of $6 a month and have not yet begun the rewriting, only mental revision, addition.The biggest task is the physical work - the typing - there are so many pages. So I won't send it in the mail right away - rather, bring a copy with me at X-mas ... I'll also bring the Dupin translations, and translations of 2 other French poets: Jaccottet and du Bouchet. I'm doing a little book of the three poets for my French course - translations (about 20 poems of each), a general introductory essay, an article on each poet, and commentaries. How academic ! But it is much better than doing an ordinary paper. I have a novel that I am about to begin. Have also written some poems, which I will send to you in the next letter. They still need a bit of work. " Paul Auster was, as well, a notorious smoker of small cigars. In the cultic and obviously autobiographic film 'Smoke', Auster's protagonist, some NY author suffering from a writing blockade, receives the ideas for his X-mas essay just from the worldwise tobacco vendor where he would usually buy his Schimmelpenning cigars (same brand I used to smoke in the 1980s). Unlike me, he smoked until he was grabbed by a lung cancer from which he now died at the age of 77. His last work 'Baumgartner', a novel about age and the fragility of life, I held in my hands but refrained from buying it. It seemed to me too depressing ... Wolfgang Wiesner "Ulysses" on May 1st, 2024