From PressTV
Israeli troops flatten private Palestinian land in WB
Israeli forces have leveled a piece of private Palestinian land near the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem, a report says.
Israeli soldiers and settlers escorted bulldozers to the land near the village of Kisan, southeast of Bethlehem, to flatten the ground on Tuesday, the Palestinian Ma’an News Agency reported.
The raid happened on 18 acres of land belonging to Palestinian families, said local officials in Kisan.
Israeli authorities plan to build an industrial zone of 150 acres on the land, Khalid Qaddura, the director of Bethlehem’s District Civil Liaison Office, said.
He also added that the plan would isolate Kisan from adjacent Palestinian villages and leave it encircled by Israeli settlements and the industrial zone.
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From The Independent
Israel election: Palestinians fear whichever candidate wins, they lose ahead of next week’s poll
You might have thought they would support Isaac Herzog, the man promising peace where Benjamin Netanyahu has brought only war. But there is little enthusiasm in Ramallah
BEN LYNFIELD RAMALLAH Tuesday 10 March 2015
Nasser Abdul Qader has little patience for questions about Israel’s elections next week. The 34-year-old’s spacious but chilly grocery store in the Palestinian Authority (PA) de facto capital of Ramallah is adorned with a picture of Palestinian founding father Yasser Arafat. “All are bad, there is no difference between them,” he says of candidates in Tuesday’s polls.
Israelis are asking themselves who to vote for in a contest between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Zionist Union challenger, Isaac Herzog. But Palestinians face a more daunting question: how to continue feeding their families and running their businesses in the face of Israeli economic sanctions.
Mr Abdul Qader said he did not care if peace negotiations resume, something the moderate Mr Herzog has said he would try to bring about. “These negotiations are all lies. The occupation will continue,” he said. In early January, in response to a Palestinian application to join the International Criminal Court (ICC), Mr Netanyahu’s government began withholding the monthly tax revenues it collects and is meant to transfer to the PA, which are crucial to its ability to pay its more than 150,000 employees.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Obama extends sanctions on Iran while noting its improved behavior
WASHINGTON (JTA) — President Barack Obama noted improved Iranian behavior while nuclear talks are underway, but said a yearlong extension of sanctions is still merited.
On Wednesday, Obama extended the status of national emergency for Iran, which perpetuates existing sanctions on the regime for a year.
Such extensions have been routine since 1995, when President Bill Clinton first imposed nuclear-related sanctions. But Obama spoke of progress made in the talks between Iran and the major powers.
“This marks the first time in a decade that Iran has agreed to take, and has taken, specific actions that stop the advance and roll back key elements of its nuclear program,” he said, adding that the United States was participating in the temporary relief of some sanctions as part of the agreement governing the talks.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Israeli role in Stuxnet reportedly stalling leaks inquiry
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Israel’s role in the cyber-sabotage of Iran’s nuclear weapons development could hinder a leaks prosecution.
On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported that the inquiry by the U.S. government into whether James Cartwright, a retired general in the U.S. Marines, leaked the information about the Stuxnet virus to The New York Times was stalled, among other reasons, over fears that moving forward would expose Israeli secrets.
The computer virus, first discovered in 2010, sabotaged uranium-enriching centrifuges. It has been widely attributed to the United States and Israel, working in tandem, but neither country has acknowledged responsibility.
From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Netanyahu favorable rating plummets among U.S. Democratic voters
WASHINGTON (JTA) — U.S. favorability ratings for Benjamin Netanyahu among likely U.S. voters dropped dramatically among those who lean Democratic in the aftermath of the Israeli prime minister’s speech to the U.S. Congress, a Gallup poll showed.
Netanyahu’s overall favorable ratings dropped to 38 percent in the March 5-8 poll posted Wednesday by the polling outfit, down from 45 percent in a Feb. 8-11 survey.
Among Democrats/leaning Democratic, favorability plummeted to 17 percent from 32 percent in the February poll. Republican approval rose to 62 percent from 60 percent, remaining within the margin of error.
The March poll canvassed 1,025 adults and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.
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From The Times of Israel
ADL blasts Liberman for remark urging beheadings
US anti-Semitism watchdog calls foreign minister’s comments ‘unacceptable’ as Palestinians threaten ICC suit
March 11, 2015, 1:15 pm
The Anti-Defamation League denounced on Tuesday remarks made by Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman in which he implied that Arabs disloyal to Israel should be decapitated — calling the comments “divisive and unacceptable.”
The prominent anti-Semitism watchdog’s censure came amid threats by Palestinian lawmakers to have Liberman tried before the International Criminal Court for his comments.
Speaking at an elections event at the IDC, the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, the Yisrael Beytenu party head had said Sunday that Israeli Arabs who support the state “should receive everything [in terms of rights]; those against us, it cannot be helped, we must lift up an ax and behead them — otherwise we will not survive here.”
ADL National Director Abraham Foxman upbraided Liberman for his remarks and urged all candidates in Israel’s upcoming general election to avoid extremist rhetoric.
“Minister Lieberman’s comments are divisive and unacceptable. Even suggesting that violence is an appropriate course of action against political rivals is beyond the pale,” Foxman said
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