A new shopping mall opens in Gaza
rafie
Posts: 2,160
bigdvs posted this in a different thread (viewtopic.php?f=13&t=137374#p3111022) but I thought it deserves its own thread. Everything written below is part of the original article.
Go to the original article to see the pics.
http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atla ... -gaza.html
Terror statelet Gaza is the biggest fundraiser in the world. Look how much dough they have left after they purchase their missiles, arms and bombs. But don't believe your eyes, believe Islamic lies.
A nice new shopping mall opened today in Gaza Tom Gross
(Photo of a new mall that opened today, July 17, 2010. If there “are no building materials allowed into Gaza” how did they build this shopping center, or the new Olympic-size swimming pool pictured below?)
Two days ago the EU pledged tens of millions of EU taxpayers’ euros to add to the hundreds of millions already donated to Gaza this year, much of which has been misused to procure arms.
UPDATE, Sunday July 18, 2010:
Some journalists who subscribe to this list have asked me for a quote. You are welcome to use the following.
Political and media commentator Tom Gross said:
“On a day when (because EU Foreign Policy Chief Baroness Ashton is in Gaza) the BBC and other media have featured extensive reports all day long on what they term the dire economic situation in Gaza, why are they not mentioning the new shopping mall that opened there yesterday?
“When leading news outlets mention the so-called humanitarian flotillas from Turkey, why do they omit the fact that life expectancy and literacy rates are higher, and infant mortality rates are lower in Gaza than corresponding rates in Turkey? Have they considered that perhaps the humanitarian flotillas ought to be going in the other direction, towards Turkey?”
WHAT HUMANITARIAN CATASTROPHE?
Last year, this website was the first to reveal to a Western audience pictures of the bustling, crowded food markets of Gaza that the Western media refuse to show you. Earlier this year, I first reported the new Olympic-size swimming pool of Gaza (no shortage of building materials or water here) and the luxury restaurants, where you can “dine on steak au poivre and chicken cordon bleu”. (Over 300,000 people have viewed photos on that webpage since May, according to my website monitor.)
Now I want to draw attention to the fact that this morning, on the day that the EU again criticized Israel (but not Egypt) for supposedly oppressing Gazans, on a day when the BBC TV world news headlines again lead with a report about how “devastated the economy in Gaza is,” an impressive new shopping mall opened in Gaza (photos below, followed by a selection of other photos from Gaza).
Will those Western journalists who write stories about “starvation” in Gaza and compare it to a “concentration camp” report this?
Instead of reporting on the mall opening, the British-based international satellite broadcaster Sky News reported today “The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire.”
More pictures and reportage here.
Previously at Atlas: More Chubby Starving Gazans Living the Life of Luxury.
Terror Statelet Gaza: Whining Amidst An Embarrassment of Riches.
Road Trip Gaza!
There are no starving Muslims in Gaza, but there are plenty in Darfur as a result of the relentless jihad against the Darfur in Sudan. So where's their 'aid flotilla'? (hat tip Religion of Peace)
Go to the original article to see the pics.
http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atla ... -gaza.html
Terror statelet Gaza is the biggest fundraiser in the world. Look how much dough they have left after they purchase their missiles, arms and bombs. But don't believe your eyes, believe Islamic lies.
A nice new shopping mall opened today in Gaza Tom Gross
(Photo of a new mall that opened today, July 17, 2010. If there “are no building materials allowed into Gaza” how did they build this shopping center, or the new Olympic-size swimming pool pictured below?)
Two days ago the EU pledged tens of millions of EU taxpayers’ euros to add to the hundreds of millions already donated to Gaza this year, much of which has been misused to procure arms.
UPDATE, Sunday July 18, 2010:
Some journalists who subscribe to this list have asked me for a quote. You are welcome to use the following.
Political and media commentator Tom Gross said:
“On a day when (because EU Foreign Policy Chief Baroness Ashton is in Gaza) the BBC and other media have featured extensive reports all day long on what they term the dire economic situation in Gaza, why are they not mentioning the new shopping mall that opened there yesterday?
“When leading news outlets mention the so-called humanitarian flotillas from Turkey, why do they omit the fact that life expectancy and literacy rates are higher, and infant mortality rates are lower in Gaza than corresponding rates in Turkey? Have they considered that perhaps the humanitarian flotillas ought to be going in the other direction, towards Turkey?”
WHAT HUMANITARIAN CATASTROPHE?
Last year, this website was the first to reveal to a Western audience pictures of the bustling, crowded food markets of Gaza that the Western media refuse to show you. Earlier this year, I first reported the new Olympic-size swimming pool of Gaza (no shortage of building materials or water here) and the luxury restaurants, where you can “dine on steak au poivre and chicken cordon bleu”. (Over 300,000 people have viewed photos on that webpage since May, according to my website monitor.)
Now I want to draw attention to the fact that this morning, on the day that the EU again criticized Israel (but not Egypt) for supposedly oppressing Gazans, on a day when the BBC TV world news headlines again lead with a report about how “devastated the economy in Gaza is,” an impressive new shopping mall opened in Gaza (photos below, followed by a selection of other photos from Gaza).
Will those Western journalists who write stories about “starvation” in Gaza and compare it to a “concentration camp” report this?
Instead of reporting on the mall opening, the British-based international satellite broadcaster Sky News reported today “The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire.”
More pictures and reportage here.
Previously at Atlas: More Chubby Starving Gazans Living the Life of Luxury.
Terror Statelet Gaza: Whining Amidst An Embarrassment of Riches.
Road Trip Gaza!
There are no starving Muslims in Gaza, but there are plenty in Darfur as a result of the relentless jihad against the Darfur in Sudan. So where's their 'aid flotilla'? (hat tip Religion of Peace)
Still can't believe I met Mike Mccready at the Guggenheim and got a pic with him!!!!!
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
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Besides...wouldn't a stable economy take care of humanitarian crises anyway?
But it's basically the same as saying "There is no poverty in Uzbekistan. Look at the presidential palace, and the mercedeses that drive all over town". Purely anecdotal.
Given that the pictures are from Gaza (they could be from any mall anywhere for the detail they provide), and given that the swimming pool claim is correct, that doesn't disprove that the situation in Gaza is dire for millions of people. That they managed to build a mall, doesn't mean they have materials to build everything else. It might be a prioritized showpiece from the Hamas government to show the people that they can deliver something.
So, this isn't evidence of anything. Although I will agree that Darfur gets little press. And that's becase western countries have no interests there. Plain and simple. They have interests in Israel/the middle east, so that's where the coverage go. Not because of the conspiring palestinians being uneclipsed masters of propaganda manipulating the entire world through their media henchmen. (which is the vibe I'm getting off that site and the comments posted there)
Peace
Dan
"Every judgment teeters on the brink of error. To claim absolute knowledge is to become monstrous. Knowledge is an unending adventure at the edge of uncertainty." - Frank Herbert, Dune, 1965
these pictures (if they are real), don't prove that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is not something we should be deeply concerned about. how come people who have been to Gaza and who work there contradict the rosy picture you are trying to paint? are they all liars? what about Richard Goldstein and his report, all the relief agencies, Jewish doctors who speak out against the occupation, B'tselm and so many others? i'd believe them before any biased websites.
no matter what you or anyone else says, the fact is that human beings are suffering and dying under the brutal Israeli occupation, and all the denials in the world are not going to change those facts.
Chris Patten was in Gaza on the weekend. here's some of what he has to say. you can read the full article here. seems things are not as wonderful as some might like us to believe.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/ju ... iddle-east
Israel's policy of blockading Gaza had been a "terrible failure – immoral, illegal and ineffective", he said, which had "deliberately triggered an economic and social crisis which has many humanitarian consequences".
Patten, who found it "easier to get into a maximum security prison in the UK than to enter Gaza", said Israel's relaxation of its blockade had not gone far enough. "It's moved from about minus 10 to about minus eight. It doesn't do anything to help restore economic activity in Gaza.
"It's difficult to understand what preventing exports has to do with security. It has everything to do with the view that Gaza should be collectively punished to discredit Hamas.
Suffocating Gaza - the Israeli blockade's effects on Palestinians
More than half of Gaza's population are children
© Amnesty International
1 June 2010
Israel's military blockade of Gaza has left more than 1.4 million Palestinian men, women and children trapped in the Gaza Strip, an area of land just 40 kilometres long and 9.5 kilometres wide.
Mass unemployment, extreme poverty and food price rises caused by shortages have left four in five Gazans dependent on humanitarian aid. As a form of collective punishment, Israel’s continuing blockade of Gaza is a flagrant violation of international law.
The situation in Gaza has been made worse by the Egyptian government’s general closure of the Rafah crossing, although this was opened following the deaths of activists on the Gaza flotilla.
However, it is Israel, as the occupying power, that bears the foremost responsibility for ensuring the welfare of the inhabitants of Gaza.
Closed crossings
Since the blockade of Gaza was imposed in June 2007, none of the Israeli-controlled crossings between Gaza and Israel has been open in a regular or consistent way, and relatively little aid is getting through.
The one other land crossing at Rafah, on the border between Gaza and Egypt, is kept shut most of the time. The closures prevent the movement of Palestinians into and out of Gaza in all but a handful of cases, generally in exceptional humanitarian cases.
Basic goods
The blockade prohibits most exports and restricts the entry of basic goods, including food and fuel. Much of the available food is provided by the UN and other aid agencies, or smuggled in through tunnels running under the Egypt-Gaza border and then sold on at exorbitantly high prices to Gaza’s beleaguered residents.
The situation has been made worse by the Egyptian government’s construction of a steel wall along the border at Rafah to disrupt the cross-border smuggling that has become Gaza’s lifeline, as well as the bombing of tunnels by the Israeli airforce.
Economic collapse
Rather than targeting armed groups, the blockade mainly hits the most vulnerable, such as children (who make up more than half of the population in Gaza), the elderly, the sick and the Gaza Strip's large refugee population.
According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, the number of refugees living in abject poverty in the Gaza Strip has tripled since the blockade began. These families lack the means to purchase even the most basic items, including soap, school materials and clean drinking water. According to the UN, more than 60 per cent of households are currently "food insecure".
Lack of facilities
There are worsening problems with the supply of electricity in the Gaza Strip, with many residents enduring 8-12 hours of power cuts each day. There are also recurrent shortages of cooking gas, requiring the implementation of a rationing scheme in which hospitals and bakeries are prioritized.
Aid blocked
While Israel allows some humanitarian supplies from international aid agencies into Gaza, these are strictly limited and frequently delayed. UN agencies have said that additional storage and transportation costs incurred from delays due to the blockade totalled around $5 million in 2009.
Health
Gaza's health sector has been plagued by shortages in equipment and medical supplies during the blockade.
Following the Israeli closure of crossings, people with medical conditions that cannot be treated in Gaza have been required to apply for permits to leave the territory to receive treatment in either foreign hospitals or Palestinian hospitals in the West Bank.
The Israeli authorities frequently delay or refuse these permits; some Gazans have died while waiting to obtain permits to leave the territory for medical treatment elsewhere.
World Health Organization (WHO) trucks of medical equipment bound for Gazan hospitals have repeatedly been turned away, without explanation, by Israeli border officials.
The Gaza conflict
From 27 December 2008 to 18 January 2009, Gaza was subjected to a devastating Israeli military offensive – Operation “Cast Lead” – which Israel said it carried out to stop Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups firing indiscriminate rockets into Israel.
More then 1,380 Palestinians were killed, including more than 300 children and other civilians, and thousands were injured. Many thousands of homes were destroyed or severely damaged, as were the electricity and water systems. Civilian buildings, including hospitals and schools, were also damaged or destroyed by Israeli attacks.
Operation “Cast Lead” pushed the humanitarian crisis in Gaza to catastrophic levels. Since it concluded, the blockade has severely hampered or prevented reconstruction efforts. With many construction materials barred or limited by Israel, Gaza’s inhabitants are unable to rebuild their shattered lives.
Continued violence
In November 2009, Hamas declared a unilateral cessation of rocket fire, although this has since been breached on several occasions by members of Palestinian armed groups.
Since the ceasefire following Operation “Cast Lead” in January 2009, one person in southern Israel has been killed by mortars and rockets fired by Palestinian armed groups.
Israeli military forces, meanwhile, have conducted regular raids into Gaza and have continued to bomb the tunnels under the border at Rafah used for smuggling between Gaza and Egypt. In the year following Operation “Cast Lead”, 71 Palestinians were killed and 130 injured in the Gaza tunnels from tunnel collapse, accidents or airstrikes.
Israeli soldiers also continue to shoot at Palestinian farmers, fishermen and other civilians when they venture near Gaza’s perimeter or approach the three nautical mile limit that Israel imposes on Gaza’s coastline causing deaths and injuries.
Collective punishment
The Israeli authorities have put forward a range of justifications for the blockade - saying variously that it is a response to attacks from Palestinian armed groups, a reaction to the continued holding of the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, and a means to pressure the Hamas de facto administration.
But whatever its stated justification, the blockade is collectively punishing the entire population of Gaza, the majority of whom are children, rather than targeting the Hamas administration or armed groups.
I am not trying to say that there are no problems in Gaza and that life is peachy there. Things are bad there for many people, but my point here is that the situation there is not as horrible as some would have you believe. Almost every country in the world has starving citizans that need federal aid to get by. Problem is that the Hamas is a corrupt government that takes care of its own and abandons the rest (Fatach).
The humanitarian situation in some african countries is far worse than that of Gaza, but gets much less support as far as aid funds and press go, simply because those areas do not have any global political influence.
As for the person who posted the article, I only noticed later that she was not the actual writer. She just copied it from some where else.
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
Even as a child I knew about the problems in Africa...
Why is Israel more to blame than Egypt in this situation? I am going to make an entirely non-scientific assumption that many of the critics (not all of them) are muslim, arab or have personal connections to those communities and therefore prefer to critisize Israel rather than Egypt.
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
But that other places are worse off is a very poor argument in itself. We should care about people in Gaza and their suffering, of which the Israeli state and army are major contributors to.
Peace
Dan
"Every judgment teeters on the brink of error. To claim absolute knowledge is to become monstrous. Knowledge is an unending adventure at the edge of uncertainty." - Frank Herbert, Dune, 1965
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
I believe that the main problem of the citizens of Gaza is not the blockade, but the corrupt government. Fact is, life there was not perfect before the blockade. Quite the contrary. Unemployment has been extremely high there for years. This in turn causes poverty which limits the citizens ability to purchase the items they need, even if they are in abundance. Most of the aid that goes to Gaza is kept by Hamas and does not go towards helping those that actually need the aid.
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
the issue is that Israel are illegally imprisoning over 1 million people (half of which are children) and subjecting them to cruel and inhumane treatment. Israel has no right to imprison an entire population of people.
Israel.
As for your statements in your second post, you do realize that for the past 5 years there has been no Israeli presence in the Gaza strip
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
and i can change my words if you like from ""occupying", to ''caging the palestinians in like animals with no way in or out without Israel's permission"
semantics, that's all you've got. again, trying to divert focus away from Israel's crimes.
whatever you want to call it. Israel has 1.5 million people caged in, in an open air prison, half of them children, and they are not allowed to come and go as they please.
what would you call it? in your words.
Where exactly do you want them to come and go to? They are not Israeli citizens and many of them wish to do Israel harm, so should we let them come and go into Israel as they please? Or come and go in to Egypt? That one is not Israels decision. I guess that the Egyptians do not want them in their land either, so are they also caging the Palestinians in? I really would like to know what you think of Egypts part in all this.
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
why would you a punish over a million people for the actions of a few? "many" wish to harm Israel? as incorrect as that statement is, were it true you can't expect a civilian population under siege to sit idly by while they are forcibly and brutally removed from their homes.
when a guy robs a bank in New Jersey, you don't send in tanks and helicopters to kill his entire family and destroy his neighborhood.....when a crime is committed, civilized institutions punish the individual for the crime. Israel takes the former approach, a response that borders on hysteria.
Egypt isn't sending tanks and jets and artillery fire and using bombs on densely populated Gaza. Israel is.
The biggest crime in all of this is the siege of Gaza, carried out by Israel. Egypt is blindly following superpower orders, They have little choice; they've seen what happens when insignificant countries step out of line. (Iraq, Afghanistan, Timor, Panama, Vietnam, phillipines, and on and on...)
it's almost impossible to discuss this issue rationally with you because your whole argument is based around trying to divert focus away from Israels crimes or making excuses for them and picking one word out of a post and playing semantics.
Egypt and Israel are both culpable for the blockade in one way or another. at the end of the day it's Israel who has Gaza under siege. have you forgotten operation cast lead? the IDF murdered over 1200 people in 22 days. i've posted plenty about Israels crimes. the UN consistantly condemns the Israeli settlements in the occupied territories as illegal and their treatment of the Palestinian people as brutal and inhumane.
you know Israeli citizens who do learn the truth about the suffering and loss of all human rights in Gaza and the West Bank, are usually horrified at the conditions. they form groups, they protest, they write, and they march in solidarity with the Palestinian refugees. you, well, you just make excuses and try to blame everyone else.
Israel is a racist zionist militant State, conducting a siege against an impoverished group of people, brutalizing and terrorizing every day.
that is reality.
Who in Gaza was removed "forcibly and brutally" from their homes? These people have been living there for decades.
You really think that Egypt is some sort "insignificant country" or some sort of lapdog following Israels orders? Are you that ignorant to world politics??? Egypt is considered the most significant arab country in the world as far as the west goes. Hundreds of millions of dollars are put in to Egypt every year in military aid and western interest. And this is all despite the fact that Egypt has no oil to offer the west.
Commy, until you start to actually provide intelligent arguments for your beliefs I am going to stop replying to you.
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
I most definitely addressed that question in my previous post.
Again, Why is Israel to blame and not Egypt? They are as much a part of the siege as Israel.
You do realize that there are around 1.5 million arabs that hold Israeli citizenship. They are also represented In the Israeli knesset by their own elected officials. So remind me again how this is racist? And what does zionism have to do with it?
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
but what egypt does have to offer is easy and quick access between the indian ocean and the mediterranean sea. it is to the US egypt answers, not israel. egypt wouldnt get as much aid as it does if it werent for the presence of the suez canal.
take a good look
this could be the day
hold my hand
lie beside me
i just need to say
I actually do not think that this is true. Egypt has always been the main superpower as far as the arab countries goes, even before the suez canal. Few things happened in the arab political world without the approval of Egypt. Although this has diminished a little ever since Egypt has aligned herself with the west.
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
Why so much aid from the US pouring into Egypt? Easy... oil is not a factor here - it's for their continued support for US policies, it is of course for keeping 'peace' with Israel (and they are 'some sort of lapdog' to Israel) and allowing US access to the Suez Canal. This aid is also to try and ensure Egypt stays a stable country (ie poodles to the US and Israel).
Though the tide may be changing...
"Economist Special Report: Egypt at the Tipping Point?
July 16th, 2010 by Farid
The Economist has published a new in-depth, 9-part, special report by Max Rodenbeck describing various aspects of Egyptian political, social, and economic life. The report considers the past three decades under the rule of Hosni Mubarak as characterized by political paralysis and stagnation amid economic growth, while concluding that now, “the expectation of a seismic shift is almost tangible in the air.” Uncertainty regarding the looming presidential succession, accompanied by signs that Egypt’s “rising generation” may be less politically passive than its predecessors, suggest that political paralysis may finally give way to substantive change. Rodenbeck outlines three main possibilities for Egypt’s future: “It could go the way of Russia and be ruled by a new strongman from within the system. It might, just as possibly, go the way of Iran, and see that system swept away in anger. Or it could go the way of Turkey, and evolve into something less brittle and happier for all concerned.”
Regarding Egypt’s relationship with the U.S., the report describes the country as “America’s Arab poodle,” noting that Egypt has gained “some $60 billion of economic and military aid over the years” from its American partner. With significant strategic and cultural influence over the region, “Egypt still collects rents for its moderating role,” in terms of trade, diplomacy, and “indulgence for the Mubarak government’s repression at home.” Yet, while states like Iran and Turkey are becoming leading actors, Egypt is losing its pull over events in the region. Even as the Egyptian geopolitical game has faltered in regard to its neighbors, including the Israeli-Palestinian issue, “Egypt’s leaders have failed to absorb an important lesson: that old foes such as Israel, new rivals for regional influence such as Turkey and even small non-state actors such as Hamas are strengthened by democracy. In Egypt, that still seems some way off.”
explain the crisis of 1956 if the suez canal isnt of such vital importance vis a vis shipping.
take a good look
this could be the day
hold my hand
lie beside me
i just need to say
2010: 9/7/10 - Bilbao
2012: 26-27/6/12 - Amsterdam ~~ 29/6/12 - Werchter ~~ 4-5/7/12 - Berlin
2014: 25/6/14 - Vienna ~~ 26/6/14 - Berlin
knowing the continuing need of the west for both economic and military dominance id say its the only one that counts.
take a good look
this could be the day
hold my hand
lie beside me
i just need to say
This thread is an absolute disgrace. If Israel were to take someone and cut of his head, you would post that he still has arms and legs. You should be ashamed of yourself.