Since 1982, the same year she was born, her father was nowhere to be found. Was he dead? Was he a war prisoner? There was no telling what happened to him as he went missing in action. 26 years passed and his mother still managed to believe that he was alive and was hopeful that he’ll come back one day.
Last night, they received a call requesting them to go to Beirut immediately to identify him and undergo some basic DNA test to confirm his identity. 26 years and today T.H’s father is one of 200 dead bodies finally handed over by Israel to Hizbullah. 26 years without knowing how many years he suffered in the Israeli prisons and when exactly he died, or was killed.
200 dead Arabs, previously MIA’s or POW’s, and now known to be dead. 200 Arabs who died in the Israeli jails. No surprise here, it’s actually ironic because when the 2 Israeli soldiers turned out to be dead, it was a shock for many people.
This is a video I put together that represents a collection of Naji Al-Ali's work accompanied by Mahmoud Darwish's voice as he cites some of his poetry. The original was onger and of a better quality but I had to compress it and cut some parts for uploading purposes.
Tomorrow, Israel will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of establishing the "state" of Israel. Soon to-be-ex-president Bush is flying all the way from the U.S to share in the celebration. Hearing this news, I thought the world is way too screwed up. Yet, if you come to think about it, Israel should celebrate this date. Yes, because Israel hasn't only established a state, but also achieved much more than that, they did what no country in modern history did and they feel like they have the right to celebrate it.
The fact is, Israel is the only "state" that was established at the cost of dispossessing and displacing 800,000 people from their homes, which was then two thirds of the Palestinian population, who would later earn the title of "refugees". Some of those fled the Israeli atrocities, others were forced out, and many of those refugees now and their offspring still suffer in the dire circumstances they live under in refugee camps. Those Palestinians, who once had homes and lands full of olive and orange trees, are now living in tents with polluted water and no sanitation. That's how Israel came to life.
Moreover, Israel could neglect all the human rights by forcing around 800,000 people out of their lands based on their religion. Not that they posed any threat or did anything that undermine the peace of the country, but they only weren't Jewish, that's it. It's like saying: "If you don't have the same beliefs as I do, you have no right to have a home or to own any land where I live, or want to live" Or worse, "If you don't share my beliefs, I can kick you out anytime and take your place because, apparently, I'm superior to you."
Israel also is the only country in the world that gives itself the right to neglect and overlook the UN resolutions, International human rights and anything that has to do with humanity or common sense. Over those 60 years and way before that they managed to acquire immunity against any criticism, and no matter how brutal their acts against Palestinians and Arabs were, they've always managed to rationalize it and legitimize it in the name of self-defense.
Israel is the only country that kills a 10 year-old boy and shows no regret, even blaming him for being in the line of fire. Israel is the only state that counter-strikes stones thrown by children with heavey artillery fire. And, Israel is the only state who managed to fool the world, or some people, by making them believe that the Palestinians are the persecutors. It doesn't take much to believe that, only a little dose of delusion and ignorance.
So, this is what Israel and Bush are celebrating tomorrow. Bon annivairsaire. And to the Palestinians who are at the same time celebrating 60 years of tyranny, brutality and homelessness, these poetic verses by Nizar Qabbani…
Ah, generation of betrayal, of surrogate and indecent men, generations of leftovers, we'll be swept away-- never mind the slow pace of history-- by the children bearing rocks
On 18 April 1996, during Operation Grapes of Wrath, a Fijian UNIFIL compound in the village of Qana was shelled by Israeli artillery, killing 106 civilians and injuring around 116 others who had taken refuge there to escape the fighting. Now, 12 years later, Qana Massacre is to be remembered. 10 years later, it became known as the First Qana Massacre, after being encored on July 30th. Truely, history doesn't repeat itself, it just rhymes. The same village, the same atrocity, the same criminals, the same silence by the international community, only different, new more victims.
This is a video with facts and pictures from both massacres...
