Palestine News

The hunger striking Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons suspended their hunger strike on May 27 at dawn, after a 20-hour session of talks between the Israeli Prison Authority and imprisoned legislator Marwan Barghouthi and other senior political prisoners. Issa Qaraqe, the head of the Palestinian Detainees’ Committee, and Qaddoura Fares, the head of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society, said in a press release that the detainees reached an agreement with the Israeli authorities regarding their demands and officially suspended their strike. “A substantial transformation has been achieved by this strike,” Qaraqe declared.

Ongoing clashes erupted across the occupied West Bank on April 28 in support of hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners who entered the 12th day of a hunger strike. Palestinians are calling it the Day of Rage. Israeli forces fired tear-gas bombs, rubber-coated steel bullets and live fire, during the clashes, which broke out following Friday prayers in cities, villages and refugee camps in various districts of the West Bank. Numerous Palestinians were injured. Detainees started their hunger strike on April 17th, which also marks the Palestinian Prisoners’ Day, demanding basic, internationally-guaranteed rights.

Land Day was marked with demonstrations in memory of the seizure of 21 thousand dunams of land in Al-Jalil, Al-Muthalth and Al-Naqab on March 30, 1976. Palestinians protested the Israeli apartheid wall, attempted to plant olive trees on stolen land, and called for the release of political prisoners held by Israel. Scores were injured by Israelis with rubber-coated bullets and tear gas. Israeli occupation violations against Palestinians continue. Israel has seized more than 85% of the total area of historical land of Palestine. Arabs comprise 48% of the total population, but are able to utilize only 15% of the land.

A coalition of social justice activists demonstrated with signs, banners, and flyers outside the annual RSA cyber-security conference at Moscone Center in San Francisco on February 14 and 15, educating attendees and the public about how Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) enables and profits from Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories, and from racist immigration and incarceration policies in the United States. HPE is a platinum sponsor and participant in the annual RSA Conference. The protests followed last month’s Global Day of Action against HP, with over 150 demonstrations in over 60 countries around the world

On January 26, Fordham University reaffirmed its ban on Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). In a letter to civil rights groups, Fordham stated its decision to ban SJP was made because the group had a “singular focus of which is the political agenda of one nation,” “is more akin to a lobbying organization,” and that SJPs on other campuses were “disruptive.” Palestine Legal and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) wrote Fordham, stating the university “misconstrues the facts, misunderstands the law, and ignores Fordham’s contractual obligations to respect students’ freedom of expression.”

On December 23, Israeli forces suppressed Bethlehem’s “Santa Claus March,” shooting tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets at participants, with many suffering from tear gas inhalation. A number of demonstrators participated in a march near Israeli checkpoint 300 which separates Bethlehem residents from Jerusalem. The march, which included participants dressed up as Santa Claus, close to the Christian holiday of Christmas, was launched under the banner “Terrorism and Occupation are Two Sides of the Same Coin,” and demanded the opening of Israeli checkpoints for Christian tourists to celebrate the holiday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ.

University of California Berkeley (Cal) reinstated a student-led course on Palestine on September 19, following an outcry over its arbitrary suspension the previous week. The suspension, taken in apparent response to pressure from Israel advocacy groups, was widely condemned -- by students, professors, and observers -- as a violation of academic freedom, shocking, and unjustifiable. The organization Palestine Legal had sent a letter to Cal Chancellor Dirks on September 16 warning that the suspension infringed on First Amendment rights and principles of academic freedom.

When San Francisco Hillel sponsored the Mayor on a visit to San Francisco State University (SFSU) on April 6, a group of 20 student protesters stood on the sidelines inside the venue and chanted in protest of the Mayor’s controversial policies towards Palestinians. Student protesters were accused of threatening Jewish students with violent and anti-Semitic messages. On September 1, SFSU released a report that concluded that the protest focused on the Mayor for the policies he promotes.

On May 31, students at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA voted overwhelmingly to endorse resolutions expressing support for freedom and equality for Palestinians and labor justice for migrant workers at Sakuma Bros farm in northern Washington. The three resolutions asked students to condemn the presence of Caterpillar Inc. equipment on campus, to de-shelve Sabra hummus, and prohibit the use of Sakuma Bros berries from campus dining services.

On June 9, hundreds of New Yorkers demonstrated outside Governor Andrew Cuomo's offices, outraged by his executive order requiring the state to create a blacklist of corporations and institutions that support the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. On the west coast, the California Assembly voted unanimously on June 3 to pass AB 2844, yet another in a string of state-sponsored anti-BDS efforts currently moving forward across the country.