Students for Justice in Palestine at University of Maryland

A horrifying story from Gaza. From Haaretz - Family who lost 29 members in Gaza war: We envy the dead By Amira Hass Tags: Amira Hass Richard Goldstone visited the Gaza City neighborhood of Zaytoun in late June to tour the compound of the extended Samouni family, the subject of coverage here in recent weeks ("'I fed him like a baby bird,'" September 17; "Death in the Samouni compound," September 25). Twenty-nine members of the family, all of them civilians, were killed in the Israel Defense Force's winter assault - 21 during the shelling of a house where IDF soldiers had gathered some 100 members of the family a day earlier. Salah Samouni and the owner of the house that was shelled - Wael Samouni - took Goldstone around the farming neighborhood, showing him its devastated homes and uprooted orchards. In a telephone conversation this week, Salah described how he had shown Goldstone a picture of his father, Talal, among the 21 killed in the house. He told t...

Hey Everyone, Here is a heads up about an event that seems pretty interesting! - Uri Gordan speaking at St. Stephen's Church in Washington DC Timezone: America/New York Uri Gordon speaking about Anarchists against the Wall, and the joint struggle in Israel/Palestine Come hear Israeli anarchist Uri Gordon talk about Anarchist Against the Wall and the practice of anarchist organizing in Israel. Plus, his new book Anarchy Alive! will be available for %20 off the cover price! http://anarchyalive.com Tuesday, September 8 @7 pmSt. Stephen's Church1525 Newton NW Washington, DC Free admission (donations appreciated to cover tour costs) From IAS

Human Rights Watch called on Israel on Thursday to investigate seven incidents in which it said Israeli troops shot and killed Palestinian civilians who were flying white flags during the war in the Gaza Strip in January. Expressing disappointment with Israel's response so far to a range of allegations of war crimes made by international bodies, the New York-based lobby group said governments should press for prosecutions under international law if Israel and its enemies in Gaza's Islamist authorities did not act themselves. "These casualties comprise a small fraction of the Palestinian civilians wounded and killed," Human Rights Watch said. "But they stand out because, in each case, the victims were standing, walking or in slowly moving vehicles with other unarmed civilians, and were trying to convey their non-combatant status by waving a white flag." "All available evidence indicates that Israeli forces were in control of the areas in question, no fig...

"Among the 54 testimonies are stories revealing the use of "accepted practices," the destruction of hundreds of houses and mosques for no military purpose, the firing of phosphorous gas in the direction of populated areas, the killing of innocent victims with small arms, the destruction of private property, and most of all, a permissive atmosphere in the command structure that enabled soldiers to act without moral restrictions. The booklet compiles the testimonies of about 30 reserve and regular combat soldiers from various units that participated in the fighting. The testimonies demonstrate that the soldiers were not given directives stating the goal of the operation and, as one soldier testifies, "there was not much said about the issue of innocent civilians." Many soldiers said that they fought without seeing "the enemy before their eyes." "You feel like an infantile little kid with a magnifying glass looking at ants, burning them," one o...