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Occupation 101: Voice of the Silenced Majority is a documentary on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, narrated by If Americans Knew founder Alison Weir. It piles up damning allegations against Israel, and the human rights abuses, the genocide, the Israelis are committing in Palestine and Gaza, detailing how horrid life is for the Palestinians under Israeli military rule. Why should you care? Because United States (American) tax dollars are paying the bill for the murder, the genocide, of the Palestinian people. Israel is “empowered by American tax money.” This implicates every American in the horrific crimes being perpetrated against the Palestinian people.

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Occupation 101 questions the nature of Israeli-American relations, the Israeli military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, and whether Americans should help pay for it. It includes interviews with mostly American and Israeli scholars, religious leaders, humanitarian workers, and NGO’s critical of the injustices, the human rights abuses that stem from Israeli policy in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip.

Occupation 101 is a thought-provoking and powerful documentary film on the current and historical root causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the role of the United States in the conflict, and the major obstacles that stand in the way of a lasting and viable peace. The roots of the conflict are explained through first-hand on-the-ground experiences from leading Middle East scholars, historians, peace activists, journalists, religious leaders and humanitarian workers whose voices have too often been suppressed in American media outlets. Unlike any other film ever produced on the Israeli battle against the Palestinians, Occupation 101 presents a comprehensive analysis of the facts and hidden truths surrounding the never ending controversy and dispels many of its long-perceived myths and misconceptions. It explains the reality of the situation that is silenced in the mainstream media.”

Alison Weir - If Americans Knew

“Alison Weir (the narrator) is the founder of If Americans Knew. She was a journalist off and on for many years. As a freelance journalist, Weir went on an independent investigation to the flash points in the West Bank and Gaza rarely visited by American journalists. Since returning she has spoken on Capitol Hill, to business leaders, at prestigious Washington D.C. think tanks, and at a multitude of universities.”

Former Congressman Tom Campbell said of Weir:

“Ms. Weir presents a powerful, well documented view of the Middle East today. She is intelligent, careful, and critical. American policy makers would benefit greatly from hearing her first-hand observations and attempting to answer the questions she poses.”

The film won several awards from film festivals.

* Winner of the “Golden Palm” Award (highest honor given by jury) and for “Best Editing” at the 2007 International Beverly Hills Film Festival.
* Winner of the ‘Artivist Award’ for Best Feature Film under the category of Human Rights at the 2006 Artivist Film Festival in Hollywood.
* Winner of the Best Documentary Award (Special Recognition) at the 2007 New Orleans International Human Rights Film Festival.
* Winner of the Best Feature Film Award at the 2006 River’s Edge Film Festival.
* Winner of the Best Documentary Feature Award at 2006 The Dead Center Film Festival.
* Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at 2006 East Lansing Film Festival.
* Winner of the John Michaels Memorial Award at the 2006 Big Muddy Film Festival.

Technorati Tags: Israel, Gaza, Palestine, genocide, murder, human rights, human rights abuses, Alison Weir, Occupation 101, occupation, military, military occupation, activist, activists, activism,

Rachel Corrie, an American college student, was murdered March 16, 2003, by the Israeli Army while trying to block demolition of a Palestinian doctor’s home in Gaza by an Israeli army bulldozer, made in America by Caterpillar Inc. and paid for with American taxpayer’s dollars. The doctor was a peaceful man. “Rachel Corrie believed in non-violent resistance, put herself in harm’s way as a shield of the people, and paid with her life in a manner most brutal.” –Billy Bragg–

Eyewitness Account

The following account is from Joe Carr, a International Solidarity Movement (ISM) peace activist from Kansas City, Missouri.

“Between 16:45 and 17:00, One Israeli Defense Force bulldozer, serial number 949623, began to work near the house of a physician who is a friend of ours. It continued driving forward headed straight for Rachel. When it got so close that it was moving the earth beneath her, she climbed onto the pile of rubble being pushed by the bulldozer. She got so high onto it that she was at eye-level with the cab of the bulldozer. Despite this, he continued forward, which pulled her legs into the pile of rubble, and pulled her down out of view of the driver. We ran towards him, and waved our arms and shouted, one activist with the megaphone. But he continued forward, until Rachel was underneath the central section of the bulldozer. Despite the obviousness of her position, the bulldozer began to reverse, without lifting its blade, and drug the blade over her body again. He continued to reverse until he was on the boarder strip, about 100 meters away, and left her crushed body in the sand. Three activists ran to her and began administering first-responder medical treatment. She said, “My back is broken!” but nothing else …”

According to Amnesty International, “For years, the Israeli authorities have pursued a policy of discriminatory house demolition, on the one hand allowing scores of Israeli settlements to be built on occupied Palestinian land, in breach of international law, while simultaneously confiscating Palestinian lands, refusing building permits for Palestinians and destroying their homes. The land vacated has often been used to build illegal Israeli settlements. International law forbids occupying powers from settling their own citizens in the territories they occupy.”

“Any humanitarian looking at the sheer number of innocent civilians who have lost their homes can only condemn Israel’s house demolition policy as a hugely disproportionate military response by an occupation army… It is a policy that creates only hardship and bitterness, and in the end can only undermine hope for future reconciliation and peace.” -–Peter Hansen– Commissioner General of United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA)

In Israel, since 1947, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have been guilty of genocide, an ethnic cleansing of the native palestinian people. Amnesty International rips IDF for ‘reckless disregard of life’ in Gaza. The London-based human rights organization Amnesty International has condemned Israel’s attacks on Gaza, claiming they are “being carried out with reckless disregard for civilian life,” killing disproportionately huge numbers of unarmed civilian bystanders. The statement said that IDF actions this week displayed a “disproportion and recklessness” that has “characterized” its operations in Palestinian territories. In its statement, Amnesty highlighted disproportionate casualty statistics in the conflict, saying that in the last two months, close to 200 Gazans, of whom around “one-third were unarmed civilian bystanders, including 15 children” have been killed.” In the same period, the statement continued, “one Israeli civilian was killed and several injured by rocket fire,” the statement said. “This latest cycle of killings and destruction comes at a time when the 1.5 million inhabitants of Gaza are confronting a humanitarian crisis as a result of the increasingly stringent blockade imposed by Israel on Gaza. Hospitals and medical facilities, already struggling to cope with shortages of electricity, fuel, equipment and spare parts due to the Israeli blockade, are struggling to cope with the new influx of casualties caused by Israeli attacks in the last few days. With Gaza’s borders sealed, many patients in dire need of medical care which is not available in Gaza cannot be transferred to hospitals abroad and risk losing their lives.”

Rachel Corrie’s death is a scandalous example of American taxpayer’s dollars at work. Caterpillar Inc. and Volvo, two American companies, are involved and taking money from Israel to pay for the bulldozers. This money was obtained by Israel from American taxes to pay for the demolition of homes, and the death of Rachel Corrie. Doesn’t this make you proud be an American?

Video by staticbrain.com, music by Billy Bragg, pictures from rachelcorrie.org, scoop.nz

Technorati Tags: rachel, corrie, rachel corrie, peace, peace activists, activists, caterpillar, volvo, Israel, IDF, Israeli Defense Forces, Gaza, Palestine, taxpayer, American, America, bulldozer, bulldozers, murder

Israel Warns World War III May Be Biblical War of Gog and Magog
by Ezra HaLevi, Israel National News

(IsraelNN.com) US President George W. Bush said a nuclear Iran would mean World War III. Israeli newscasts featured Gog & Magog maps of the likely alignment of nations in that potential conflict.

Channel 2 and Channel 10 TV showed the world map, sketching the basic alignment of the two opposing axes in a coming world war, in a manner evoking associations of the Gog and Magog prophecy for many viewers. The prophecy of Gog and Magog refers to a great world war centered on the Holy Land and Jerusalem and first appears in the book of Yechezkel (Ezekiel chapter 38).

On one side were Israel, the United States, Britain, France and Germany. On the other were Iran, Russia, China, Syria and North Korea.

US President Bush said Wednesday during a press conference that Iran attaining nuclear weapons raises the risk of “World War III.”

“If Iran had a nuclear weapon, it’d be a dangerous threat to world peace,” Bush said. “So I told people that if you’re interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested [in preventing a nuclear Iran]…I take the threat of Iran with a nuclear weapon very seriously.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Iran Tuesday and slammed the US’s refusal to rule out the use of force against Iran’s nuclear project. “Not only should we reject the use of force, but also the mention of force as a possibility,” he said.

Russia has blocked tougher UN sanctions in the UN Security Council, where it has veto power. The Russian president asserts that there is no evidence Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons rather than a peaceful nuclear power program.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni called for a new Security Council resolution against Iran at a press conference following her meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Wednesday. “I do believe there is a need for another Security Council resolution,” she told reporters. “In the past, the need to get everybody on board - including Russia and China - led to some compromises on the nature of the sanctions. I hope this will not be the case this time.”

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced Wednesday a sudden trip to Moscow Thursday morning, where he will meet with Putin about Iran. Other topics of discussion will reportedly be Russia’s continued supply of weapons to Syria, which have then made their way into the hands of various terrorist groups based there as well.

Technorati Tags: Iran, war, nuclear, nuclear war, George Bush, bible, prophecy, bible prophecy, Gog and Magog, end times, weapons, weapons of mass destruction,