Janna's village in Palestine files Suit Against Adelson, Saban et al

American Palestinians sue settlement supporters in federal court OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)--

A group of American Palestinians from the West Bank have filed a lawsuit in a Washington court against a string of US-based tycoons, companies and organizations supporting settlement construction on Palestinian land. The suit was filed in the Federal District Court of Washington DC last Monday, June 6, 2016, according to Israeli newspapers.

Brought by Washington lawyer Martin McMahon on behalf of Basem Tamimi, a resident of the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, and about 35 others, the suit says that the respondents contravened American law against money laundering, in terms of which the transfer of money for the purposes of committing a crime is illegal. According to the plaintiffs, the establishment of settlements in the occupied territories has been accompanied by violence, death and injury, the destruction of houses and the burning of trees and is thus criminal.

Among those named in the suit are casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, sponsor of settler groups in Jerusalem Irving Moskowitz, evangelist John Hagee, Israeli businessman Lev Leviev, media mogul and film producer Haim Saban, and former diplomat Elliot Abrams.

The American organizations named in the suit include Friends of the IDF in the US, Friends of Ariel, Honenu, the Hebron Fund, the Karnei Shomron Fund and the Falic Family Foundation as well as a group of pro-settlements lawyers. Among the businesses named in the suit are Bank Leumi, Bank Hapoalim, Volvo (whose vehicles are allegedly used in house demolitions,) Africa-Israel, Motorola, Hewlett Packard and RE/MAX real estate.

http://english.palinfo.com/site/pages/details.aspx?itemid=79070

My essay about Janna - A Child of Palestine can be found here: Janna a Child of Palestine

One of Janna's early protests.

This full movie, Dancing in Jaffa, is one of the ones I think holds out where I see the only hope for the future. You will note that the sucess of the project was made possible largely by students from the only Arab/Hebrew integrated public school in Jaffa (Weizmann) and the also integrated Open Democratic School's early acceptance, after which segregated schools were brought on board. Its well worth an hour and a half to watch. I found a HD copy at KAT if you live in a country where it is legal to download.

This move shows Hand in Hand Schools, also a hope for the future:

It is shameful that American politicians supports billions of dollars of weapons to bigoted, racist extremist Likud and Homeland madmen, and continue to support the apartheid represented by the "Two State Solution" when peace could be achieved through bringing people together (as shown in the two films) in a single, confederated pluri-ethnic state with equality, justice and empathy for all. That is to put it simply in one sentence... the details can be worked out with three main confederated entities: Jewish Homelands, a Arab Homelands and ever increasing Intercultural Homeland.

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to watch. Between this and Orlando this week, I'm struggling to hold out some hope for humanity,

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Thaumlord-Exelbirth's picture

Before I could even vote.

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Alex Ocana's picture

The later two films are two that have given me a glimmer of hope. The only hope seems to be that the two ethnicities learn to work together for the common good. They clearly show that there is reason to believe, even in the middle of Palestine/Israel's darkest hours, that loving one another can'f become a fact on the ground.

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From the Light House.

Sandino's picture

Iran-Contra criminal, rather than former diplomat.

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Alex Ocana's picture

Were industrialists who supported the Nazi genocide machine tried as war criminals, common criminals, or, allowed to go free? Here is the answer:

http://www.archives.gov/iwg/research-papers/trial-of-war-criminals-befor...

Part of a truth and conciliation process needs to have war criminals, wherever or whoever they are, tried in tribunals. There are plenty of models. Unfortunately, I doubt if USA war criminals will be tried in my lifetime.

Somewhat off topic... but I think we will need to designate climate criminals as well.

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Lookout's picture

is very hopeful. Hope is with the young, and bringing these young folks together can erase the violence in the future.

My line through my career has been ....if we would invest in education for 30 continuous years (one generation) we could eliminate poverty and ignorance. I still dream.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Alex Ocana's picture

Can anyone tell which is a Jewish girl and which Arab?? Or maybe two Jewish girls? or two Arabic girls? You can't because they are practically genetic matches. The only thing which divides the two people is bigotry enforced by a massive war machine forcing occupation of of one religion and language over another.

It is unacceptable to me, or the international community that a state is based on state enforced bigotry. Its a punch in the face against anyone who believes in social equality and justice to allow such a state to exist in its present form as a theocracy.

gaza school angels.jpg

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Alex Ocana's picture

200 more Arab and Jewish children to learn to live together as best freinds. My God people, can't we share this vision?

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From the Light House.

The films are wonderful, and I appreciate this chance to see them. It is so frustrating and sad that when solutions and the good people offering them are ready to try to make life better for everyone in Israel, the country's leaders and American hawks and arms dealers continue to make life worse and more dangerous for all. It's hard to understand why it is that through history, and worldwide, the worst people so often hold the power. I think it is because they are obsessed and will do any horrible thing for money and power, while the rest of the people mostly just want to enjoy their life safely and in peace. Still, the evil ones usually have plenty of followers who never expect to have any of the power or riches but are, through ignorance or gullibility or some maliciousness in their character, convinced that they are on the right side. It gets harder and harder not to expect that our species will end badly, possibly sooner than we expect, although there has never been a time before when so many dystopian novels are written and read. Bernie and his supporters certainly understand how much is at stake at this point in our history and in the whole world.

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Barbara Marquardt

Alex Ocana's picture

"But with the UN’s partition plan and the Arab-Israeli war that broke out in 1948, a one-state solution was shelved. It came to light again in 1969 with the call by Yasser Arafat’s Fatah movement for the creation of a “secular and democratic state” in Palestine. The new state was based on the right of return — accepting a Jewish presence in Palestine — it was to end the injustices stemming from the creation of Israel and the expulsion of 750,000 Palestinian villagers. Although it called for the destruction of Israel as a colonial entity, it upheld the principle of a single state for all, Muslim, Christian or Jew. This was the first official attempt by the Palestinians to address the relationship between national and individual rights of citizenry. The idea met with no enthusiasm in Israel, and none internationally, and again lost momentum."

"The idea failed because the political actors of the time rejected it: the Zionist organisations were not interested, the British were unsupportive and the Arabs too suspicious. Between 1948 and 1993 the only significant change in these positions came from the Arabs, who finally came to terms with the existence of Israel."

"According to historian Tony Judt, this is where Israel reaches its limits. No state can claim democratic credentials whilst practicing ethnic exclusion; not after the crimes of the last century. Virginia Tilley says that partition, and the very existence of Israel, are “flawed from the start, resting on the discredited idea, on which political Zionism stakes all its moral authority, that any ethnic group can legitimately claim permanent formal dominion over a territorial state."

"The establishment of a bi-national state would redefine the identity of the state; it would favour democracy over nationalism. For Ali Abunimah it would allow “all the people to live in and enjoy the entire country while preserving their distinctive communities and addressing their particular needs. It offers the potential to deterritorialise the conflict and neutralise demography and ethnicity as a source of political power and legitimacy”.

Source: https://electronicintifada.net/content/israel-palestine-time-bi-national...

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Alex Ocana's picture

The Clinton's largest political benefactors are Univision chairman Haim Saban and his wife, Cheryl, who have made 39 contributions totaling $2.4 million to support the Clintons’ races since 1992. The Sabans have also donated at least $10 million to the foundation.

On the other hand, another huge benefactor of the Clinton's is Jewish/Hungarian George Soros who the extreme Tea Party press all consider an anti-Semite, a Nazi, a supporter of Daesh and what. have you. Heck, after reading the right-wing press I am beginning to like the guy and don't understand why he supports Clinton.

On the Republican side: U.S. billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson has set a new record in political donations by giving $70 million to help Republicans in the 2012 elections, nearly triple the previous highest amount, according to news outlet Politico on Monday.

Whatever, it is pretty obvious to me that US elections are being bought at the expense of the suffering of the Arabic population of Palestine.

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