The Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Israel, Yona Metzger, told congregants in a Sabbath sermon that if U.S. President Barack Obama seeks reelection, he must release Jonathan Pollard, Israel Radio reported on Sunday. A civilian employee for the United States Navy, Pollard was sentenced to life in prison in 1987 on charges of spying for Israel. He is incarcerated at a federal jail in North Carolina. “If Obama wishes to dictate Israeli policy, he must show that he has mutual interests with Israel,” Israel Radio quoted Metzger as saying. The rabbi reportedly added that these “mutual interests” should be shown through releasing Pollard.

Demolishing Imam Jawad mosque in Nuwaidrat

A Bahraini activist, who is on hunger strike, has criticized the US administration for turning a blind eye to the Saudi-backed crackdown on anti-government protesters in Bahrain.

“On the one hand, the American administration always tries to show the world they represent democracy, but on the other hand they're giving the green light to the Bahraini dictatorship to do whatever they want to the Bahraini people and that is very, very, shameful,” human rights activist Zainab al-Khawaja told Press TV from Manama on Monday. “It's not just words, freedom and human rights and justice are not just words. You cannot claim to be behind change and freedom and then in Bahrain support dictators with all you have and stay silent over all of human rights abuses,” she added.

PressTV: Bahraini forces demolish two mosques

Robert Zoellick cited rising food prices as the main threat to poor nations who risk "losing a generation". He was speaking in Washington at the end of the spring meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Meanwhile, G20 finance chiefs, who also met in Washington, pledged financial support to help new governments in the Middle East and North Africa. Mr Zoellick said such support was vital. He also called for the World Bank to act quickly to support reforms in the region.

The UK government is mulling over dispatching British ground troops to Libya, a prospect raised by the Prime Minister as part of attempts to overthrow the Libyan ruler. Prime Minister David Cameron has declared that Britain is preparing to “do more” to help revolutionaries topple Muammar Qaddafi. In an interview with Sky News, Cameron boasted that there will be no “occupation” of Libya; but he insisted a short-lived ground level operation by British troops was needed to help revolutionary forces push forward their agenda.

Julie Hyland: UK government pledges increased funds for Libya war - The coalition government has agreed to hand over millions in emergency “back door” funding for operations in Libya, amid signs that it is backpedaling on planned military spending cuts. Defence Secretary Liam Fox said that operations are to be paid for directly from the treasury budget, as opposed to defence funds. The sleight of hand is because in areas of jobs, health, education and essential social provision, the government is pressing ahead with the imposition of its deeply unpopular austerity measures. While working people face unemployment, deteriorating social provision and falling wages as a result, Britain’s ruling elite have set aside tens of millions to fund another war for oil.

PressTV: Anti-Libya war groups including Stop the War and CND have called for a protest on 19 April, as the UK, France and US have announced that they will keep bombing Libya.

Today, approximately 1,000 protesters in Hebron marked Palestinian Prisoners day with a demonstration calling for Israel to release Palestinian prisoners. At the same time thousands of prisoners joined in a one-day hunger strike to protest their treatment and their legal rights as prisoners.

Protesters in Hebron began by gathering at the Eben Roshd school in Hebron City. Amongst the participants were families of prisoners, members of the Palestinian Authority and international activists. After speeches by family members and local authorities, the demonstration continued with a peaceful march from the school to the Manara square. Protesters carried pictures of imprisoned family members and banners calling for Israel to release prisoners and uphold international laws.

Prisoners Day commemorates the release of Palestinian prisoner Mahmoud Hijazi in the first prisoner exchange between Palestine and Israeli in 1974. According to a report released today by former Palestinian detainee Abdul Nasser Farwana, just about every Palestinian household has had members jailed. According to the report Israel has arrested around 750,000 Palestinians since the six day war in 1967, including nearly 12,000 women and tens of thousands of children

An amazing video of the late Vik Vittorio Arrigoni from May 2009. At minute 6 he documents the attacks on Palestinian ambulance drivers during Cast Lead; you see two stretcher-bearers being shot at in Gaza City. Remember, this is an essential point of the now-disputed al-Samouni case, in which ambulances were prevented from approaching the bombed family, and at least one person died who surely might have survived their injuries. Doesn't that constitute a deliberate attack on civilians?

We should bear in mind that Israel is horrified by the tidal wave of Palestinian solidarity. It is aware of the 40 countries strong 'breaking the siege Flotilla' that is planned to embark soon. Israel is desperate to intimidate us all. But we are determined. We will keep fighting. We will expose Israeli crimes and 'tricks'. We will bring this murderous racist state down. [Gilad Atzmon]

You Tube: Mossad Killed - Vik Vittorio Arrigoni - Rest in Peace Vik...Anyone that uploads this video from me, please copy the information below and put it in the video description! Thank You! Please subscribe to the Originator of this video "Gaza Friends" and join in our fight to free Gaza. [2minstral]

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Very Important Article: Those who want to bump off the witnesses of the slaughter - 15/01/09

Source: Original Article
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Source: Original Article (English Translation)
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An undercover investigation has revealed that bunnies are being subjected to excruciating drug tests after being starved for up to 30 hours, denied water, then locked into vices – with some not surviving the ordeal. Some may feel that dying would be a better option for the rabbits, because those that did live through it were simply re-used and kept in bare metal cages that drove them half-mad.

The British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, or BUAV, spent eight months at Wickham Laboratories in Hampshire secretly filming their procedures – and say that the lab inflicted ‘appalling suffering’ on thousands of animals in tests that are ‘crude, archaic and extremely cruel’. Among the lab’s subjects are a colony of around 100 rabbits which are used to test the side effects of antibiotics, blood filters and saline waters.

BUAV say that the test substances are injected into an ear vein that sometimes results in painful damage to the ear and weeping eyes. In other instances a temperature probe is inserted into the animal’s rectum and left for hours at a time. The rabbits clearly find these tests uncomfortable and distressing. Those that are too weak to be used again are killed afterwards, the others are returned to bare metal cages that just add to the suffering.