Ode to Jenin

Jenin is crying,

the youth are defying

people are dying

Zionism is killing

fascism is rising

Europe is denying

Jenin is resisting

Jenin,

Oh Jenin

My Jenin

Jenin is SUMUD)

Jenin -from the spring of gardens

revolutionaries flower

Jenin

our beloved Jenin

Salute to the Jenin Fighters

They believed us too small

insignificant

Dispossessed Palestinians

refugees in Jenin

But the UNITED PEOPLE defended PALESTINE

Against their sophisticated weapons and the US blind eye

Meanwhile, in their hide-outs, Jenin fighters warn: Whenever you try to sleep

We will be the mosquito in your room

The Stolen Home

The family Ghaith-Sub Laban

from Old Jerusalem

The News just in

DISLOCATED

from their neat and tidy HOME

75 years later

It was an order of COURT the very one Israelis are fighting to preserve

the Ghaith-Sub Labans must Go

leave their neat and loving home

after 75 years

Finally their home is CLEANSED, ETHNICALLY

The post Ode to Jenin and Other Poems appeared first on Palestine Chronicle.

The Palestine Chronicle joined a group of children and teenagers as they held a vigil at the Gaza port, demanding an end to the Israeli siege.

Most of Gazas youthful population were either not born or were not mature enough to remember the first days of the Israeli siege. 

Yet, they fully understand that their harsh reality is the outcome of the 17-year-long blockade, involving not only Israel but Egypt as well.

The Palestine Chronicle joined a group of children and teenagers as they held a vigil at the Gaza port, demanding an end to their seemingly perpetual imprisonment in the tiny, overpopulated, and impoverished enclave. 

One of the placards held by the children read: 800,000 Children in Gaza Have Only Ever Known Life Under Blockade. 

Indeed, the statement expresses a painful reality. 

Gazas population has been estimated to be 2.2 million according to the Gisha Legal Center for Movement. Half of them are children and 70 percent are under 30. 

Though the international community seems to have turned a blind eye to Gazas suffering, the children at the port were hoping to send a message to the rest of the world: End the Siege Now. 

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To live up to Israels expectations and to ensure its survival, the PA is willing to clash directly with Palestinians who refuse to toe the line.

This is the perfect opportunity for Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, to exit the stage. But he will not.

Abbas brief visit to the devastated Jenin refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank on July 12 demonstrated the absurdity and danger of the PA and its 87-year-old leader.

As he walked, Abbas struggled to keep his balance, in what was promoted as a solidarity visit to the camp.

Thousands of frustrated Jenin residents took to the streets, hardly chanting Abbas name. Some looked on with disappointment; others asked where the Presidents forces were when Israel invaded the camp, killing 12, wounding and arresting hundreds more.

The BBC reported on a huge armed deployment to secure Abbas visit, where PA security forces joined a thousand-strong unit of Mr. Abbas elite presidential guard. Their only job was to clear a path for Abbas into the camp.

On the initial and most deadly first day of the Israeli invasion of Jenin, Israeli media, citing military sources, said that 1,000 Israeli soldiers were taking part in the military operation.

Yet, it took more Palestinian soldiers to secure Abbas brief visit to Jenin.

Indeed, where were those well-dressed and equipped PA soldiers when Jenin was fighting and dying alone?  And why does Abbas need to be protected from his own people?

To address these questions, it is important to examine recent contexts, three significant dates in particular:

On July 5, Israel ended its military operation in Jenin.

On July 9, despite protests by some of his security cabinet members, Israeli Pri...

The black, the white, the green, the red,
The flag that stands for all weve shed,
For all our pain, our hope, our pride,
For all our heroes and defenders who have died.

The black, the night,
oppression beyond belief,
the darkness,
the triple scourge
Of oppression, war, and grief,
Resisting with Allahs help,
we stand our ground,
and hope and pray for some relief.

Zionist Israel has turned our homeland into a living hell,
thrown our greatest leaders into a cell,
claiming its horrendous acts are by divine right,

every semblance of morality, humanity has long since left their sight.

The white, the peace, the purity
Of our people heart and soul,
With faith and perseverance, we advance towards freedoms goal.
Our love for one another is ever-strong,
for this is OUR homeland, and we know here is where we truly belong.

The green, the land, the hope, the future,
Of a free and independent state,
Where all our people can live in peace,
And never fear the oppressors hate.

The red, the blood, the sacrifice,
Of those who fought for our emancipation,
Who gave their lives so we could live,
In a homeland of our own, not victims and slaves of an ungodly nation.

This flag is more than just a symbol,
It is a testimony to our sumud, present and past,
in the words of saintly Gandhi,
oppressive dictators will never last.

The deep-rooted love for our homeland

is like a golden sunshine ray,
It offers promise for our future,
and hope for a better day.

We raise high the flag of Palestine,
We will never give up our fight,
For our land, our freedom, our future,
We will never surrender,
to self-determine is our right.

Against the forces of darkness and tyranny,
we are lions and champions of the light.
Ambassadors of freedom, our cause is just and right,
Truth and justice have much power,
soon the world will awaken to their might.
and of the flag and liberation of our homeland
We, Palestinians will never lose sight.

The post The Noble Flag of Palestine A Poem appeared first on Palestine Chronicle....

None of the Jenin camps residents managed to sleep all night, due to the sounds of the shells, which rained down on their buildings.

Muhammad al-Saadi kissed his three children before going to bed and promised them to go on a short trip this summer.

On that Sunday evening, al-Saadi children fell asleep following a long conversation about their summer plans. 

A few hours later, the Israeli army invaded Jenin, along with the familys neighborhood in the refugee camp, located in the northern West Bank. 

The sounds of gunfire began to shake the walls of the camp by the early hours of Monday, July 3. 

The three children woke up terrified, so their father tried to calm them down. He couldnt. 

None of the camps residents managed to sleep all night, due to the sounds of the shells, which rained down on their buildings. Everyone was afraid of what Israel had planned for the camp. 

The Israeli violence continued throughout the morning hours. 

All that Muhammad al-Saadi cared about was securing his family and protecting them from danger. 

He was also concerned for his neighbors. 

Due to the intensity of the Israeli bombing, he asked his neighbors on the second floor to come down and stay in his house so that they wouldnt be harmed.

We read on social media that the Israeli soldiers stormed the camp and raided the houses one by one. In fact, we heard their voices in the houses next to us, so we were waiting for our turn, al-Saadi told The Palestine Chronicle.

Finally, the soldiers arrived, but not the way the al-Saadi family had expected. 

Unwelcome Guests 

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Many autistic children participated in the camp and its many activities, including drawing, building sand castles, and learning how to swim.

A summer camp dedicated to autistic people was held on the Gaza beach on Sunday. 

Many autistic children participated in the camp and its many activities, including drawing, building sand castles, and learning how to swim.

Several swimming coaches volunteered to teach the children how to overcome their fear of the water. 

Other volunteers helped in the various activities, bringing much joy to the young participants. 

The Gaza Strip has been living under a hermetic Israeli siege since 2006. 

This has resulted in numerous hardships including a lack of well-equipped medical facilities and even life-saving medicine. 

Most of Gazas population has never been allowed to leave the besieged and impoverished Strip, not even to the better-equipped hospitals in the West Bank. 

But the Gaza Sea continues to serve as an outlet, bringing joy to many communities that continue to reel under the impact of the Israeli blockade and many deadly wars.

...

Palestinians living in the village of Umm Al-Naser in the northern Gaza Strip, walk long distances to reach places where water is available.

It is not easy to obtain water in the village of Umm Al-Naser in the northern Gaza Strip. 

There is simply no running water in this place, hosting one of Gazas poorest populations. 

So to obtain water, especially during extremely hot weather, which is felt throughout much of the Middle East, in fact, the world, people here simply have to travel. 

They walk long distances, on foot, or on donkey carts, to reach places where water is available. 

Once they fill up small water containers for cooking and tea, the kids bathe and enjoy themselves almost unaware of their own hardship. 

The Palestine Chronicle joined a family from Umm Al-Nasr in its daily quest for water. 

This journey highlights the problem of water shortage in Palestine due to the Israeli siege and occupation. 

It also highlights the unequal distribution of water facilities, which neglects isolated and impoverished areas. 

And finally, it highlights the resilience of Palestinian families and the innocence of their children, who found joy in things most people take for granted; for example, water. 

...