The Egyptian Corner

Juz 30 - تحفيظ القرآن الكريم - Memorize Holy Qur'an

2009-07-03T21:22:00.004+03:00

İts a program to help you to memorize Kur'an
Actually its a free program you can download it from here
İmaanStar
You would download the exe. and also all the audio files for the reciter you want one by one , also you can download the language pack you wish for
The program comes with English translation

Here i have found the audio files for İmam Al Afasy all together with the exe., so i have uploaded them at few parts so it would be easier for those who wish to download that program to have it and also i have added the Turkish language pack, if you wish to have another pack, you can find at the original site along with other reciters.

You should instal the exe at a folder then instal the language pack and each of the audio files at same folder, then you would have your program ready to use
Also for further information you could go back to İmanStar site.

Juz30 exe. & Turkish lang pack
Audio Files
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Hope you'd find it useful .

Kuran Kerim AbdulBasit AbdulSamad Download - تنزيل قرآن كريم بصوت الشيخ عبد الباسط عبد الصمد

2009-05-28T11:32:00.005+03:00

He is/was one of the well known hafız (people who memorize Kuran and reads it- Recitation ) through the whole İslamic world, he had such a divin voice.
He was Egyptian, and you cant miss his voice at the radio in Ramazan, reading Kuran before ezan at İftar time.

Upon a wish from close people and friends who love his voice i have collected Kuran Kerim by İmam Abdulbasit Abdulsamet at 3 links to make it easier for downloads
May ALLAH grant us sevap of it. amin

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

İ have gathered them from

http://english.islamway.com/bindex.php?section=echapters&recitor_id=4

For those who cherish imam Abdulbasit voice....Enjoy !

More about Sheikh Abdul Basit 'Abd us-Samad the Egyptian Qari.

PS: Please, if you have any comment about the links, feel free to share, thank you

Mohamed Nabina by Hamada Helal - محمد نبينا

2009-05-22T04:12:00.006+03:00

A lovely song, and it was and is very much popular here in Mısır, Egypt and also very popular between kids specially, they love it and perform it specially at religious events
Maybe because the singer Hamada Helal singing it with kids
İts a song praising Rasul SAV given him
You maybe Muslim or you may not, but surly you prais and honor what you believe.
And here they are doing so.
İ saw there were many demands for translations, so i collect some, corrected some and posting them here
İ wish it helps
Enjoy !

محمد نبينا بنوره هادينا
Mohamed Nabina Be Noro Atina
Mohammed our prophet guide us with his light..
من مكة حبيبي نوره سطع عالمدينة
Men Makka Habiby Noro Sata3 El Madina
From Mecca 'oh Habibi' his light was glowing on Medina
..
مين صلى صلاته و أتحلى بصفاته
Min Sala Salato We Ethala Be Sefato ..
He who prays his prayers and tries to imitate his attitudes

يا بخت اللي في ظله ماشي يشفع له في مماته
Ya Bakht Elly Fe Dello Mashy Yeshfaalo Fe Mamato
Ohh How lucky he is, who walks in his shadow
gains his Şafa'a in his death 'İntercession'
..
يا إمامنا يا أمين يا سند للمسلمين
Ya Emamna Ya Ameen Ya Sanad Lel Muslemen
Oh our Imam, the honest one, the support prop for Muslims
..
يا حبيبي يا محمد يا ابن عبد الله
Ya Habiby Ya Mohamed Ya Ebn Abd Ellah ..
My beloved Mohammed
Oh son of Abdullah

تمت الرسالات تمام و الحبيب مسك الختام
Tammet El Resalat Tamam Wel Habib Mesk El Khetam
You completed the prophecies completely
And the beloved one is the sweetest seal (of the prophets)
..
طول حياتي و في صلاتي بأدعي أصلي وراه
Tol Hayaty We Fe Salati Bad'ey Asaly Warah
Throughout my life and in my prayers I make doa to pray behinde him
..

من أول يوم في عمري ..
سمعت أبويّ و أمي بيصلو عليه
Men Awel Youm Fe Omry Semet Aboya We Ommy Beysalo Alih
From the first day in my life I heard my mother and father making doa for him ' means saying ALLAhmua saly ala sayidna Mohamed'

_اللهم صلي عليه _
Allahom Masaly Alih

Allahuma Saly alyeh

حببني في الإيمان
حسسني بالأمان و تعلقت بيه
Allah,
Habibny Fel iman Hasesny Bel İman We Etalaat Beah
Made me love faith and feel secure and I was indelibly attached to him
..
اللهم صلي و سلم و بارك عليه
Allahom Masaly We Salem We Barek alih ..
نفسي أشوفك في المنام _يا رسول الله
Nefsy Ashofak Fel Manam, Ya Rasol Allah
_I wish to see you myself in my sleep, oh messenger of God

و أبكي على كتفك و أنام _يا حبيب الله
We Abky ala Ketfak Wanam, Ya Habib Allah
And I cry on your should and sleep there, oh beloved of God
_
و أنول شرف لقى صحبتك ..
و أخطّي في صفوف أمتك و أ تحامى فيك
We Anol Sharaf Loaa Sohbetak We Akhaty
Fe Sofof Ometak We Athama Feek
And I attain the honor of your accompaniment
And I walk among the ranks of your Umma
And I be protected by you
..
محمد نبينا ،، بنوره هادينا ..
من مكة حبيبي نوره ،، سطع عالمدينة ..
يا حبيبي يا طه ،، يا نجاه من المتاهة ..

Ya habibi ya Taha, Ya naga men elmataha

Ohhh My beloved one Taha 'other name of Mohammed SAV'

You who had survived the maze
غيّرت الدنيا فعينينا ،، بين ليلة و ضحاها ..

Ghayart El Donya fi 3nina bin lila we dohaha

Ohhh you have changed the world in our eyes just as the time between night and after dawn
مين صلى صلاته ،، و أتحلى بصفاته ..
يا بخت اللي في ظله ماشي ،، يشفع له في مماته

Allahuma Saly We Salam We Bakek Aleyk Ya Habibi Ya Rasul ALLAH

Tohoutmos Al Thaleth - تحتمس الثالث - Thutmose III

2009-02-20T00:42:00.005+02:00

Man of our / my pride .

Napoleon of Egypt or was Napoleon Thutmose III of France ?!

Well both of them concord the world they knew then and both of them also made his way to the history and sometimes to people's hearts.

İ've read here a sentence that made me stopped for a second and make my own judgements too, is it right ?
İs it so ?!

Well maybe for others, egyptologists, or foreigners who have interest in Egyptian history
But to us ?
Egyptians ?

Well actually it is not the case, the case is much more simple than that.

Here is the sentence :

For different reasons, to different people, Egypt's 18Th Dynasty is probably one of Egypt's most interesting periods. For the general public, This was the Dynasty of Tutankhamun, probably the best known, though certainly not the most powerful pharaoh of all time. To others, Akhenaten, the heretic king, will provide an everlasting curiosity.

Actually, to us, it starts with Ahmose The First our great leader, son of king Sekenen ra and brother of the Martyred king Kamose who kicked the Hyksos out of our lands with no return after ruling the country about 200 years or so.

This is how this Dynasty started and that is how it is also special to us Egyptians, it started with valuable victory
And from this victory and from that Dynasty came our brave king Tohoutmos Al Thaleth
He was the sixth king Pharaoh of this Dynasty or as we call it, Family...because actually that what it was...Family.
For a start, his Royal name was Men Kha Ra... which means Ra' is the master of power
Let's read more about him in brief

Thutmose III, possessed all the qualities of a great ruler. A brilliant general who never lost a battle, he also excelled as an administrator and statesman. He was an accomplished horseman, archer, athlete and discriminating patron of the arts. His reign, with the exception of the uncharacteristic spite against the memory of Hatshepsut, was notable for its lack of bad taste and brutality. Thutmose had no time for pompous, self-indulgent bombast and his records show him to be a sincere and fair-minded man.

During Hatshepsut's reign there were no wars. Egypt’s neighbouring countries regularly paid tribute but as is often the case when a new king comes to the throne subject nations are inclined to test his resolve.

Thutmose found himself faced with a coalition of the princes of Kadesh and Megiddo, who had mobilised a large army. Also the Mesopotamians and their kinsmen living in Syria refused to pay tribute and declared themselves free of Egypt. Not daunted, Thutmose immediately set out with his army and crossing the Sinai desert he marched to the city of Gaza, which had remained loyal to Egypt. The events of the campaign are well documented because Thutmose's private secretary, Tjaneni, kept a record which was later copied and engraved onto the walls of the temple of Karnak.

This first campaign revealed Thutmose to be the military genius of his time. He understood the value of logistics and lines of supply, the necessity of rapid movement and sudden surprise attack. He lead by example and was also probably the first person in history to really utilise sea-power to support his campaigns.
Megiddo was his first objective because it was a key point and had to be taken at all costs. When he reached Aaruna Thutmose held a council with all his generals. There were two routes to Megiddo a long, easy and level road around the hills, which the enemy expected Thutmose to take, and a route which was narrow, difficult and cut through the hills. His generals advised him to take the easy road through the hills, saying "horse must follow behind horse and man behind man also, and our vanguard will be engaged while our rearguard is at Aaruna without fighting" But Thutmose's reply to this was "As I live, as I am the beloved of Ra and praised by my father Amon, I will go on the narrow road. Let those who will, go on the roads you have mentioned; and let anyone who will, follow my Majesty" Now, when the soldiers heard this bold speech they shouted with one accord We follow thy Majesty whithersoever thy Majesty goes".

Thutmose led his men on foot through the hills "horse behind horse and man behind man, his Majesty showing the way by his own footsteps". It took about twelve hours for the vanguard to reach the valley on the other side and another seven hours before the last troops emerged. Thutmose himself waited at the head of the pass till the last man was safely through.

The sudden and unexpected appearance of Egyptians in their rear forced the allies to make a hasty re-deployment of their troops. There are said to have been over 300 allied kings, each with his own army, an immense force. However, Thutmose was determined and when the allies saw him at the head of his men leading them forward, they lost heart for the fight and fled for the city of Megiddo "As if terrified by spirits: they left their horse and chariots of silver and gold"

The Egyptian army, being young and inexperienced fell upon the plunder of the battlefield and lost the opportunity of taking the city immediately. Thutmose was very angry, he said to them "If only the troops of his Majesty had not given their hearts to spoiling the things of the enemy, they would have taken Megiddo at that moment. For the ruler of every northern country is in Megiddo and it's capture is as the capture of a thousand cities."
Megiddo was besieged. A moat was dug around the city walls and this was completed by a strong wooden palisade. The king gave orders to let nobody through except those who signalled at the gate that they wished to give themselves up.

The siege lasted some seven months but eventually the vanquished kings sent out their sons and daughters to sue for peace. "All those things with which they had come to fight against my Majesty, now they brought them as tribute to my Majesty, while they themselves stood upon their walls giving praise to my Majesty, and begging that the Breath of Life be given to their nostrils"

They received good terms for surrender. An oath of allegiance was imposed upon them "We will not again do evil against Menkheper Ra our good Lord, in our lifetime, for we have seen his might, and he has deigned to give us breath."

Thutmose III is compared with Napoleon but unlike Napoleon he never lost a battle. He conducted sixteen campaigns in Palestine, Syria and Nubia and his treatment of the conquered was always humane. He established a sort of Pax Egyptiaca over his empire. Syria and Palestine were obliged to keep the peace and the region as a whole experience an unprecedented degree of prosperity.

Thutmose III's impact upon Egyptian culture was profound. He was a national hero who was revered long after his time. Indeed his name was held in awe even to the last days of Egyptian history. Besides his military achievements he carried out many building works at Karnak. He also set up a number of obelisks in Egypt. One of which, mistakenly called Cleopatra's Needle, now stands on the Embankment in London. It's brother is in Central Park in New York. Another is near the Lateran in Rome and there is also one of his obelisks in Istanbul. Therefore, he has had an unwitting presence in some of the most powerful nations of the last two thousand years.

The Egyptian Empire in his time

Thutmose III was not just a great commander but he was also a great leader

He was first concerned with his country safety, but at same time he never forgot his country's glory!

He had his enemies taught the Egyptian culture, traditions and allow them to go back to their countries with their new knowledge so they teach them to others and live according to them ...well and of course to have their loyalty too ;-)
Well, lacking of intelligence that we can never accuse him with !
He also brought back with him plants and animals from other countries which were completely strange to Egyptian environment, but they fit there
You can see that at the drawings in the Karnak temple

Here

Thutmose III Festival Temple

This festival temple has a revolutionary style of architecture. A double row of columns that support the central roof of the temple is higher than the square side pillars which support unique pentagonal roofing slabs over the aisles. Even the columns have a unique design. They are tapered in reverse and narrower at the bottom than at the top. The capitals are reversed calyxes which give the whole temple a tent-like look. Legend says that king Thutmose III envisioned his eternal life to be a desert campaigner. The king was obsessed with the beauty of the desert. He ordered his architects to design his temple in the shape of a tent and what a fine job they did.

The Festival Hall inside the temple was built to commemorate the ancient Hebsed Festival which symbolized rebirth, or renewal of life, and the exaltation of matter into spirit. Around the Festival Hall, there are ruins of many smaller rooms, sanctuaries and chambers. Some of them contain amazing architectural designs. To the very far left of the hall are ruins of a mysterious cantilevered staircase running up the wall.

Behind the Festival hall, lies a sanctuary that contains three chambers. The left chamber has four papyrus style columns. It is known as the Botanical Garden. Its walls are covered with amazing drawings of exotic plants and animals brought back to Egypt from Syria by king Thutmose during the 25Th year of his ruling period. These amazing carvings on the chamber walls depict an actual physical manifestation of the philosophical quest in which a living matter seeks its own spiritual exaltation.

To the right of the Botanical Garden, there is a room built by Alexander the Great. Some of the drawings on the walls show Alexander the Great and others show Thutmose III. Both kings are making offerings to Neterw. It seems that Alexander wanted to reinitiate a cycle or a process that had begun by Thutmose.

OK, talking about Thutmose III we will never stop
Here are the sources,and also more readings
http://www.eyelid.co.uk/k-q3.htm
http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/tuthmosis3.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thutmose_III
http://www.touregypt.net/kartuth.htm

With many theories about him and Queen Hatshepsut, but me personally think if he wanted to destroy Queen Hatshepsut memories, he could simply just erased her from history and we wont be knowing or hearing anything about her
But he didn't !

سبانخ بالرز Sabanekh Bel Ros - Spinach With Rice

2009-02-05T01:23:00.002+02:00

We make it in some different ways, some add garlic to it and some don't

1 bunch spinach, washed and drained
2 tbsp rice, washed and drained
1 medium onion, sliced
1 small tomato, diced
2 medium tomato...
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup meat broth.
Salt
Pepper

First cut the spinach in large pieces. Sautee the onion with the butter in a medium pot. Cook for a few minutes until the smell comes out. Be careful not to burn the onion. Then add the spinach,the diced tomato, rice,salt and black pepper in the pot. Cook for a few minutes,mean while blend the tomato in the blender,stir the spinach then add the meat broth and the tomato juice when the spinach soften.

Cover the lid halfway and for cook about 20 minutes (until the rice is cooked) on medium-low heat.

Serve Spinach with Rice.

Personal, i like it best less juicy so i just add 1 medium tomato, i cut the spinach into rather small pieces than i should 'like it this way' and i add just 1 smashed garlic glove to the onion.
Then i eat it with yoghurt salad aside.

You make the yoghurt salad by adding garlic and salt to it and combine well
Then thats it
Some add ment and/or cucumber 'small pieces''

The Egyptian Women

2009-01-20T02:49:00.003+02:00

Here we will continue with our last part of that article,talking about Egyptian women in the Pharoh's era

From Warrior Women to Female Pharaohs: Careers for Women in Ancient Egypt (5)
By Dr Joann Fletcher

Careers

In fact, other than housewife and mother, the most common 'career' for women was the priesthood, serving male and female deities. The title, 'God's Wife', held by royal women, also brought with it tremendous political power second only to the king, for whom they could even deputise. The royal cult also had its female priestesses, with women acting alongside men in jubilee ceremonies and, as well as earning their livings as professional mourners, they occasionally functioned as funerary priests.
Their ability to undertake certain tasks would be even further enhanced if they could read and write but, with less than 2% of ancient Egyptian society known to be literate, the percentage of women with these skills would be even smaller. Although it is often stated that there is no evidence for any women being able to read or write, some are shown reading documents. Literacy would also be necessary for them to undertake duties which at times included prime minister, overseer, steward and even doctor, with the lady Peseshet predating Elizabeth Garret Anderson by some 4,000 years.
'By Graeco-Roman times women's literacy is relatively common...'
By Graeco-Roman times women's literacy is relatively common, the mummy of the young woman Hermione inscribed with her profession 'teacher of Greek grammar'. A brilliant linguist herself, Cleopatra VII endowed the Great Library at Alexandria, the intellectual capital of the ancient world where female lecturers are known to have participated alongside their male colleagues. Yet an equality which had existed for millennia was ended by Christianity - the philosopher Hypatia was brutally murdered by monks in 415 AD as a graphic demonstration of their beliefs.
With the concept that 'a woman's place is in the home' remaining largely unquestioned for the next 1,500 years, the relative freedom of ancient Egyptian women was forgotten. Yet these active, independent individuals had enjoyed a legal equality with men that their sisters in the modern world did not manage until the 20th century, and a financial equality that many have yet to achieve.

Now we've finished this,we will try to talk about Egyptian women through the history and in our modern world

Now What?!

2009-01-20T02:40:00.003+02:00

Actually,i don't know !
Are things going to be better ?!
Again,i don't know,but i doubt it !
Not for only the Palestinians,but for the whole area !
The area is on fire as you may see,and add this too
US has a very great existance here 'military one',add to this,the EU as in UK,France and German,offered to send their ships 'frigate or something' to the region,and so is Russia which is already there !
From reading the history,our history 'which we will talk about inşallah' and the world's history ...
Thats not good...not good at ALL !

Ps: Again ...
Apology needed !
This took time than it was expected ''i thought the world really care for that humanitarian stuff!'' but i didnt find it in my heart to do otherwise
And dedicate all that past time to war on Gaza and Palestinian people!
We still will not forget of course ,as they said,its over when its over !
But at least now we can talk about different things,and not feeling bad about it !

Views On Gaza Ceasefire.

2009-01-20T02:29:00.003+02:00

Eyal, legal worker, W Jerusalem
I am very upset because I think that we didn't achieve our goals. We should have finished Hamas and ended their attacks. I'm sure the rockets won't stop.
I'm sure Hamas is damaged, but I don't think it's as damaged as Olmert wants it to look like.
It's a political season and he has to show that he succeeded more than in Lebanon.

Rachel, W Jerusalem
It sounds pretty good. We're not withdrawing, which means the army can still react if they continue attacking Israel.
I don't think Hamas have been damaged enough. But at least our government are reacting – for eight years they haven't been reacting at all.
With Hamas I don't think it's that easy to have a deal, but Olmert tried his best.

Leon, retired, W Jerusalem
I feel elated. I am anxious to see a peaceful solution after so many years of hatred.
The ceasefire was right. There was tremendous pressure Israel to end the conflict because of all the casualties, and we want to show the world we are willing to take risks for a peaceful solution.
Only time will tell if the other side will compromise.

Erez, lawyer, W Jerusalem
I think the ceasefire came a bit early. I don't think this operation will achieve its goals.
A one-sided ceasefire will not be recognised by Hamas.
Hamas has not been damaged. They didn't fight. They just showed themselves as civilians, but most of them are terrorists. Once Israel leaves they will go out with their weapons again.

Then opinions of people whose land been taken,been into siege then finally were being killed !

Raafat, shop worker, Ramallah I am so happy because in the end we won. Their plan was to destroy Gaza and destroy the fighters, but we won. Hamas has not been damaged. It is not like if they destroy the regime they destroy Hamas – Hamas is part of the Palestinian people. They damaged the schools, the mosques, the homes. If they think this is a win, then OK, they won.

Saeda, student, E Jerusalem
They had to stop the war in Gaza. They were killing boys and girls without reason.
Sure Israel is stronger, but it's our land and Hamas must defend it.
I hope there will be peace. But I think the Israelis will continue to kill children. Israeli soldiers are killers and don't like Palestinian people.
I don't know if Hamas will stop fighting.

Imad, shop owner, E Jerusalem
When I heard yesterday I was happy, because that's enough killing people.
I think the Israelis went out with a victory, they said they achieved their goals.
Hamas came out from this war less than they were before, they have a lot of work to do to recover, to rebuild the Gaza Strip, but we can't say they destroyed Hamas.

Nayef, shoe seller, Ramallah
Definitely Israel didn't mean the ceasefire as it seems, there is something behind it.
This is just Israeli propaganda, not stopping the war on Gaza.
They didn't finish the resistance or Hamas. It's still going and it will not be defeated.

Source:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/middle_east_views_on_gaza_ceasefire/html/5.stm

'Tungsten bombs'! ..War Crime ?

2009-01-20T02:10:00.003+02:00

'Tungsten bombs' leave Israel's victims with mystery wounds
As it declares a unilateral ceasefire, Jerusalem faces a UN call for a war crimes investigation
By Raymond WhitakerSunday, 18 January 2009

Israel was facing demands for war crimes investigations as it declared a unilateral ceasefire in Gaza last night after a 22-day assault in which more than 1,200 Palestinians, a third of them children, were killed and 13 Israelis died.
Two children were killed yesterday when Israeli tanks shelled a UN school in which families were sheltering, leading a UN spokesman, Chris Gunness, to say: "There has to be an investigation to determine whether a war crime has been committed." The call was dismissed by an Israeli foreign ministry spokesman, Yigal Palmor, who said: "These claims of war crimes are not supported by the slightest piece of evidence." But among numerous allegations of disproportionate use of force, questions are also multiplying about the use of unconventional weapons by Israel, including a new type of bomb that causes injuries that doctors have not seen before, and which they find impossible to treat.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, claimed in a televised address last night that the military operation had "fully attained" its goals, "and beyond". Israel had declared the ceasefire in response to an appeal from the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, but troops would remain for now in Gaza, and Hamas would be "surprised again" if it attacked.
But even though Mr Olmert said Hamas had been "beaten badly", rockets landed in Israel a few minutes before he spoke. Despite the desperate state of Gaza's population, Hamas leaders said they would continue to fight for an end to Israel's closure of crossing points into the territory and a withdrawal of the Israeli forces.
Mr Mubarak invited the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, and the French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, to discuss Gaza in Sharm el-Sheikh today. The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, said he might attend, and Gordon Brown is among other leaders due to take part.
Although Mr Olmert's announcement was only a first step towards halting the conflict in Gaza, the UN is not the only international body insisting that inquiries must be held as soon as possible into the tactics and weapons used by Israel. Erik Fosse, a Norwegian doctor who worked in Gaza's hospitals during the conflict, said that Israel was using so-called Dime (dense inert metal explosive) bombs designed to produce an intense explosion in a small space. The bombs are packed with tungsten powder, which has the effect of shrapnel but often dissolves in human tissue, making it difficult to discover the cause of injuries.
Dr Fosse said he had seen a number of patients with extensive injuries to their lower bodies. "It was as if they had stepped on a mine, but there was no shrapnel in the wounds," he said. "Some had lost their legs. It looked as though they had been sliced off. I have been to war zones for 30 years, but I have never seen such injuries before." However, the injuries matched photographs and descriptions in medical literature of the effects of Dime bombs.
"All the patients I saw had been hit by bombs fired from unmanned drones," said Dr Fosse, head of the Norwegian Aid Committee. "The bomb hit the ground near them and exploded." His colleague, Mads Gilbert, accused Israel of using the territory as a testing ground for a new, "extremely nasty" type of explosive. "This is a new generation of small explosive that detonates with extreme power and dissipates its power within a range of five to 10 metres," he said.
According to military databases, Dime bombs are intended for use where conventional weapons might kill or injure bystanders – to kill combatants in a house, for example, without harming people next door. Instead of being made from metal, which sprays shrapnel across a wide area, the casing is carbon fibre. Part of the motive for developing the bombs was to replace the use of depleted uranium, but Dr Fosse said the cancer risk from tungsten powde was well known. "These patients should be followed up to see if there are any carcinogenic effects," he said.
While the loudest controversy has been over accusations that white phosphorus was illegally used, other foreign doctors working in Gaza have reported injuries they cannot explain. Professor Mohammed Sayed Khalifa, a cardiac consultant from Sudan, said that two of his patients had had uncontrollable bleeding. "One had a chest operation, and continued bleeding even after having been given large quantities of plasma," he said. "The other had what seemed to be a minor leg injury, but collapsed with profuse bleeding. Something was interfering with the clotting process. I have never seen such a thing before."
Dr Ahmed Almi, an Egyptian cardio-thoracic consultant at al-Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, said he had seen a number of patients with inexplicable injuries. A boy of 14 had a small puncture wound in his head, but extensive damage to his brain, making it impossible to save his life. "I don't know the nature or type of these weapons that make a very small [entry wound] and go on and make massive destruction in the tissues," he said.
Israeli military representatives have refused to confirm or deny using specific weapons, but insist that all Israel's weapons comply with international law. Neither white phosphorus nor Dime bombs are illegal, but campaigners say the way they have been used, especially in Gaza's densely packed urban areas, could constitute a war crime.

Source:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/tungsten-bombs-leave-israels-victims-with-mystery-wounds-1418910.html

More Readings:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/200911916132228885.html

Ps:İ didn't publish pictures,they are awful,and you can see sample in the original article above
My heart just can't take anymore !

Shaky Truce İn Gaza .

2009-01-20T01:57:00.002+02:00

Actually as long as there is an army on their land,that is what it will be
Shaky !

Shaky truce holds in Gaza Strip

Palestinians have been venturing out to survey the devastation of Israel's war on Gaza as separate ceasefires called by Israel and the Palestinian fighters appeared to be holding.Israeli troops and tanks were on the move on Monday, heading away from some key points in Gaza towards the border, but it remained unclear whether they would withdraw completely for the Palestinian territory.
Al Jazeera's Barnaby Phillips, reporting from the Israel-Gaza border, said Israeli military sources were saying that it was largely reservists who were leaving Gaza.
"Regular troops, by and large, are holding their positions and will remain alert, they will remain poised, to deal with any violation, as Israel sees it, of the Israeli ceasefire," he said.
"Given that the Israelis were always very unforthcoming about exactly how many troops were in Gaza at the height of the fighting, it is difficult for us to say how quickly they will leave." Israeli army radio quoted unnamed military officials as saying that troops would pull out of Gaza by the time Barack Obama, the US president-elect, takes office on Tuesday.

'Hamas victory'
Hamas and other Palestinian factions have claimed victory in the 23-day conflict

Israel had said the aim of its operations in Gaza was to cripple Hamas's ability to launch rockets into the south of the country.
However, in a televised news conference on Monday, Abu Obeida, a spokesman for Hamas's armed wing, claimed their rocket-launching capacity had not been diminished, and threatened to renew fighting if Israeli forces did not withdraw.
"They [Israel] say they weakened Hamas. We assure you that what we have lost in this war is nothing compared to what we [still] have," the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades spokesman said. The Israeli military said three rockets had landed in southern Israel since the Hamas-led truce announcement on Sunday.
Abu Obeida claimed only 48 Hamas fighters were among the 1,300 Palestinians killed in Israel's more than three-week assault. The Israeli military had claimed the figure was closer to 500.
He also reasserted that two Israeli soldiers had been captured early on in the fight, a claim which Israel denies.

Counting the cost
But the full price of the "victory" was only beginning to be revealed, as thousands of Gazans made their way back to previously inaccessible areas to find their homes and neighbourhoods devastated

Al Jazeera's Ayman Mohyeldin, in Gaza City, reported sewage on the streets as Gazans sifted through rubble of what was previously their homes to recover bodies and salvage whatever they could.
"The WHO [World Health Organisation] has been warning people that with the bodies now several weeks old ... [and] sewage flowing over many of the areas because of the destruction that happened to the infrastructure, it is ripe for an outbreak of epidemics," he said.
Scores of bodies have been discovered in the rubble of destroyed buildings since the fighting ended."We have pulled out the bodies of 15 children and women from under their house," Abed Sharafi, an ambulance driver, said in the early hours of Monday.
"They were so badly decomposed that we couldn't distinguish boys from girls. Some had been there for 15 days."

Homes destroyed

Bulldozers cleared tonnes of rubble from the streets, while the Palestinian Bureau of Statistics estimated that more than 22,000 building have been damaged or destroyed.

"We don't have homes anymore. I don't have anything anymore," Najette Manah said as she searched the wreckage of her home in Beit Lahiya.Meanwhile, Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, was preparing to visit the Gaza Strip amid the lull in violence, Israeli officials said."Ban is planning to begin his trip in Jerusalem and from there he will visit several UN sites in Gaza," Yossi Levy, a spokesman for Israel's foreign ministry, told the AFP news agency.
Israel announced late on Saturday that it was unilaterally ending its offensive in Gaza.
Following that news, Hamas and several allied Palestinian factions announced on Sunday a conditional, one-week truce.
"We in the Palestinian resistance movements announce a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and demand that enemy forces withdraw in a week and open all the border crossings to permit the entry of humanitarian aid and basic goods," Mousa Abu Marzuk, the deputy leader of Hamas's political bureau, said.
Besides Hamas, the Palestinian factions joining the ceasefire included Islamic Jihad, al-Nidal, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and al-Saeqa.

Source:

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/200911915726719317.html

Jewish Voice For Peace !

2009-01-15T18:08:00.006+02:00

İ just came through this today,and it actually cooled my heart a bit in those flammable events we have and watch everyday
Then,there is hope
Other people,specially fresh,and young generation fighting for the rights of others to live in peace
Refusing to be part of a killing machine aiming to civilians,women,children!
At their young age,they said NO !

Hats Off for them !

FREE THE SHMINISTIM – ISRAEL'S YOUNG CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS. The Shministim are Israeli high school students who have been imprisoned for refusing to serve in an army that occupies the Palestinian Territories. December 18 marks the launch date of a global campaign to release them from jail. Join over 20,000 people including American conscientious objectors,Ronnie Gilbert, Adrienne Rich, Robert Meeropol, Adam Hochschild, Rabbi Lynn Gottleib, Howard Zinn, Rela Mazali, Debra Chasnoff, Ed Asner and Aurora Levins-Morales and show your support by contacting the Israeli Minister of Defense using the form below. 40,000 LETTERS AND COUNTING!

http://december18th.org/

March. 27 2005 250 Israeli high school students declare refusal to serve

A new declaration of refusal by "shministim" - students of the 11th and 12th grades of Israeli high schools - addressed to prime minister Ariel Sharon, Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz, IDF chief of staff Moshe Yaalon and Education Minister Limor Livnat, has already collected 250 signatures of youngsters facing their term of compulsory military service.

The first members of the group are due to report at the IDF induction in the coming days, and the refusenik community is awaiting to see how the army treats them.

The text runs:

"We, boys and girls, citizens of Israel, who believe in the values of democracy, humanism and pluralism, hereby declare that we will refuse to take part in the policy of occupation and repression for which the Israeli government has opted. We come from a variety of backgrounds, but all are agreed that the following values are the basis of a just society. Every person is entitled to basic rights: the right to life, equality, dignity and freedom. It is our conscientious and civic duty to act in defence of these rights by refusing to take part in the policy of occupation and repression.

The occupation entails forfeiting human dignity and massive loss of human life. It affects the basic rights of millions of persons and causes daily killing and suffering. It leads to land confiscation, mass demolition of homes, arrests and extra-legal executions, ill- treatment and the murder of innocents, hunger, deprivation of medical care, collective punishment, construction and expansion of Jewish settlements and prevents any possibility of a normal life in the occupied territories and in Israel. This flagrant deprival of human rights runs counter to our entire philosophy, as well as international conventions which Israel has signed and confirmed.

The occupation does not contribute to the security of the state and its citizens, it merely harms them. It exacerbates despair and hatred among the Palestinian people, sustains terrorism and expands the cycle of violence. True security will be achieved only by ending the occupation, dismantling the Apartheid wall and working for a just peace agreement between the state of the Israel and the leadership of the Palestinian people and the Arab world overall. The present policy does not stem from defence needs, rather, from a nationalist and messianic world view.

The occupation corrupts Israeli society, rendering it militarist, racist, chauvinist and violent. Israel is wasting its resources on perpetuating the occupation and repression in the occupied territories, at a time when hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens live in shameful poverty. The state's citizens have experienced a decline of all public systems in recent years. Education, health care, infrastructure, pensions, social benefits and everything to do with the welfare of Israel's citizens - are neglected in favour of supporting settlements that a majority wants to see dismantled. We cannot stand by in view of this situation, which constitutes the "focussed liquidation" of the principle of equality.

We want to see the society in which we live pursuing justice, upholding equality for every person and citizen. The policy of occupation and repression is an obstacle to realisation of that vision, and we shall refuse to take part therein. We wish to contribute to society in an alternative way, which does not involve harm to human beings.

We call upon all young people awaiting induction, and all the soldiers of the Israeli army, to reconsider whether to risk their lives in taking part in the policy of repression and destruction.

We believe there is a different way."

Peretz Kidron

Yesh Gvul

Shministim Highschool Seniors Refuseniks
Shministim - Israeli Youth Refusal Movement

12-th Graders' Letter ('michtav shministim')
http://www.shministim.org/

In:http://www.btinternet.com/~musicweaver/shministim_links.htm
New Shministim Letter - February 12, 2005
http://www.nimn.org/Perspectives/israeli_voices/000442.php
Yesh Gvul ("There is a limit !") is an Israeli peace group that has shouldered the task of supporting soldiers who refuse assignments of an immoral or illegal nature. http://www.yeshgvul.org/

Source:
http://www.jerusalemites.org/articles/english/march2005/27.htm

Hats Off !

Seems there is hope after all !

More :

http://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/

! فلسطين Filistin ! Palestine !

2009-01-15T04:13:00.004+02:00

Gazza..! Gaza...!
! فلسطين Filistin ! Palestine !
The Dignity Boat
فلسطين Filistin 'Palestine' -Egyptian history
Gazza Under Fire!
To Be A Child İn Gazza!
عار ! Ar ! Shame !
Where To Go?!
How Can You Be İn Silence?!
War Against Civilan Palestinians - Dr. Mads Gilbert, Gaza
UNRWA -Red Cross

Delwa'aty,O'af We Fakkar ! Now Stop And Think About it.

2009-01-15T02:17:00.006+02:00

Now try to stop for a while and think about it!
We here have tried to give some of the historical background of that tragedy.
İt's actually plain history,and recent one too,so none can deny it,but they can represent it differently,or let's say,in a way that makes the victim become the butcher in the eyes of people who don't know the truth,or the history!
Now I'm afraid you can't say you didn't know!

OK,imagine yourself sitting peacefully in your own home,a regular peaceful person,so you don't have any sort of weapons in your home,except maybe for some knives you use them in your own kitchen!
Your home is nice,has a very rich soil,and also in a very good district,but as you are a peaceful person,and also a poor one,so you don't use the source that you have well
You just live your day!
One day,a far away neighbour came to your home,first he said he would help you to become in better position,to use your sources well
But of course he was using them for his own benefits.
You didn't like it,you started to demand him to leave your home,he said he will,but he didn't
You started to use force...you have tried to push him out,but he had a gun !
You still kept fighting ,sometimes pushing him and you get wounded
Sometimes you just yell and shout,sometimes your kids go and disturb him and run away!
Suddenly,you have found him brought some men back home...armed men
One today,then another the second day,third...!
You didn't understand...You went to him and asked who are they?!
He said they are some relative staying with me
You said,but it is my house,and i don't want anyone here including you !
He said,but they want a house,they don't have one !
You said...But İT İS MY HOUSE !
They can go and find themselves another house...buy one,anything...just not mine !
While you are arguing,your wife came screaming...come..come they took over our bedroom !
You went there,angry,wanted to kick them off,but they shot you on the arm,and they said,we will take this room !
You said with weak voice,but it is ours !
They said not anymore !
You said,how about our things,our clothes,they are there,it is ours ?!
They said,we will take them too,it will belong to one of us and his wife !
Wife ! You said .
You went that neighbour of yours,asked him what is going on,what wife
Who are those people,and what are they doing in my house?!!
He said,i told you,they want a house,and they don't have one,so they will live here with you,that's why they are bringing their families too !
FAMİLİES ?!!!
İt is MY HOUSE !
What are you talking about ?!!!
On that time,your kids,young ones and old ones were trying to kick those people out
Keeping their mother and sisters in one room so no one would harm them,and took the knives,sticks,or anything they can get,and try to fight those people back,kick them and their families out.
But what would knives and sticks do in front of guns and machine guns ?!!
Some of your boys got wounded,some got killed,some run away from the house scared,some got kicked out,but they stayed on the terrace,and some run back to their mother and sisters to protect them,and defending the rest of the house!
Your far neighbour said...ok..ok that's enough !
Now you two will share the house
Half is yours,and half belong to that man and his family.
You didn't like it of course...you said...but it is MY HOUSE !
By what right,by what law you give what it doesn't belong to you to other people?!
İt belongs to ME..not to you !
The other man ,the armed one,of course accepted it,and said i agree we both live together!
And they brought more of them to your home
You are going NUTS of course
Your neighbour go out,and say loudly so other neighbours hear,look here people,this house belong to those two,they will share it,and will live together
You close neighbours who know you,said it is not fair,it belong to this man,not to the armed one
Other neighbors,and also the police who has good relation with your far neighbour and the armed men said OK..and i also agree,and let's sign papers say this !
Arghhhhhhhhhh!
You are losing your mind !
They are stealing me !
You said NO!
İ will fight you back....
And you do,again with knives and sticks,and this time you had some help from your poor neighbours out there
The well armed one of them had gun where men in your house have machine guns
You kept fighting for a while,but it ended up that you lost,and armed men almost took over the whole house,and kicked you all in one room,and some of your boys still on that terrace !
More over,they took the yards too,back and front yards
They try to use even rocks to come back home,but armed men reply with gun shootings.
Time pass,and your boys on the terrace manage to get some weapons...some guns!
Guns yes, at least it's better than knives and sticks!
But armed men also have better machine guns,rockets and many other weapons,they got them from some far neighbours,but strong,rich ones who still have their eyes on that area!
Your boys lived out there,even it's cold,no good food,but still,it's their home !
They got married there,have children also there...and they kept trying to get their home back !
You went to the armed men,told them OK,let's have peace
İ accept that we share the house,and allow my boys back home
Armed men said no,your boys won't come back,we need more area,so half of the house is not enough
But we agree that we have peace
You keep living in that room ,you and your family there,and you don't demand that the rest of your family to come back
And your boys out there and their families stop throwing rocks at us,and keep living there
And we promise we won't attack them..
OK?
We have peace ?!
Of course you refused,and your kids out there also refused,they have home,and want to be back home,raise their children there
So they kept fighting.
Sometimes by throwing some rocks and other times by trying to fire at the armed men .
The armed men got annoyed from your boys shooting at them and throwing rocks
So they decided to go and wipe them off
They don't want them out there...they can go to other neighbours,do anything...just leave
Sounds of rocks on the glasses annoying them
Of course window's glass is bullet proof,but the sound is annoying and maybe sometimes it got scratched!
So,it's deal,the decision is taken,they will attack the boys,and kick them no matter how many of them they kill or injured,no matter if they kill them,their kids,their wives!
They just don't want them out!
They kept fighting them,killing kids,women,and when neighbours cry..STOP!
The armed men say, we defend ourselves..
When you cry STOP...!
Asking your old neighbour to do something...to anyone to do anything
The rich,strong powerful neighbour says....İt is the armed men right to defend themselves,and their house !
Their House ?!
GOD,have mercy...you cry with tears.

You...is the Palestinians
Your boys,are Hamas and the rest of the resistance
Your far away neighbour is Great Britain
Your powerful strong neighbour is US
Armed men are israel
Your poor neighbours are rest of ME

Now their numbers are 1000 died,and almost 4800 injured

İsn't about time to have peace in that house ?!
Just a small question...
Would you and your boys considered to be terrorists ?

More Than 1000...Not Enough ?!

2009-01-15T02:03:00.003+02:00

Gaza death toll passes 1,000

More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed during Israel's 19-day war in Gaza, Palestinian medical officials have said, as clashes continue throughout the Strip.
Civilians make up about 40 per cent of casualities with children accounting for a third of the dead, aid agencies and Palestinian medics said.
About 1,017 people have been killed and at least 4,750 people injured, Hasanein Myawaya, the head of Palestinian emergency services, said.
Ayman Mohyeldin, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Gaza, said while fewer Palestinians had been killed on Wednesday than during previous days, the situation for Gazans remained one of "complete fear and terror".
"For those who venture out [for food] ... they know that anytime they leave their house it could be the last time.
"More than 80,000 Palestinians have now fled their homes because of the fighting around them ... there is a sense of overcrowding ... UN schools have taken in 35,000 refugees.
'Desperation and fear'
"There is real desperation and fear among the people," he said.
Mohyeldin also said that the so-called "humanitarian corridor" - the Israeli three-hour daily lull in fighting to allow food and medical supplies into Gaza - is "simply not producing a cessation of hostilities".

Shelling could still be heard in parts of Gaza City during the three-hour armistice, he reported.
Mads Gilbert, a surgeon with the Norwegian Aid Committee, told Al Jazeera: "This is a man-made situation that affects mainly the civilian population of Gaza who are without protection."
Thirteen Israelis have been killed in the conflict, including three civilians and 10 soldiers.
Alan Fisher, reporting for Al Jazeera from Israel close to the Gaza border, said around 15 rockets had been fired from the Strip into Israeli territory.
As the death toll continued to rise, diplomatic efforts to bring about a ceasefire appeared to make little progress.
Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, arrived in Cairo earlier on Wednesday in a bid to kick-start ceasefire negotiations between Hamas - the Palestinian faction that controls the Gaza Strip - and Israel.
Ban met Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, on arrival and is expected to hold talks with the leaders of Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey.
The UN chief has not said whether he will have direct contact with Hamas leaders.
Ban has repeatedly called for both sides to immediately end hostilities, so far to no avail.
Diplomacy doomed?
Robert Fisk, a journalist and Middle East expert, said neither the current Gaza war nor the broader 60-year regional conflict would end without resolving the Palestinian issue.

"Why are they [Palestinians] dispossessed? Why are settlements - colonies for Jews and Jews only - being built on Arab land illegally? And still it continues," he told Al Jazeera.
"Unless we deal with this [Palestinian refugees], there will not be an end to this war. There might be a ceasefire in Gaza, a ceasefire in the West Bank, but there will not be an end to the war. That is the problem."
Earlier this week, the United Nations Security Council agreed a binding resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Strip.
However, both Israel and Hamas have ignored it and continued fighting.
Fisk said that Israel will be able to flout the UN ceasefire demand as long as the US - the only country to abstain from the 15-member security council vote on the resolution - continues to back Israel.
"It's quite clear from Hillary Clinton [incoming US secretary of state] most recent comments that it [the US backing of Israel] will continue under Barack Obama.
"I see no change, I see no hope at all in the future," Fisk said

Source:

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/2009114131318926177.html

BBC NEWS

Human Rights !

2009-01-13T17:29:00.004+02:00

Too much for huma rights,eh ?!

´´All European Union countries abstained and Canada voted against the resolution.´´
Then those same countries/people,walk around crying over human rights in other countries!
People in Palestine don't have rights ?
Or they are not human ?!!!

UN watchdog condemns war on Gaza

A resolution condemning Israel's military offensive in Gaza has been adopted by the UN Human Rights Council.
The non-binding resolution, approved in Geneva on Monday, said Israel's operation had "resulted in massive violations of human rights of the Palestinian people".
More than 935 Palestinians have died during the fighting, many of them women and children, and a further 4,300 have been wounded.
At least 25,000 have been displaced due to the ongoing bombardment, but are unable to flee the overcrowded territory as crossing points remain closed.
The resolution, drafted by Arab, Asian and African countries, called for an international mission to be sent immediately to the Gaza Strip to investigate Israel's actions.
It also called for an immediate end to the "launching of the crude rockets against Israeli civilians" by the Palestinian factions.

Israel launched its operation on December 27 after a ceasefire with Hamas ended a week earlier, stating its objective was to target the Palestinian faction's infrastructure and bring an end to the firing of homemade rockets into southern Israel.
'Fairytale world'Fewer states than expected supported the resolution, which passed by 33 votes to one, with 13 abstentions. The US, not a member of the council, took no part in the debate.
Israel dismissed it as one-sided and reflecting the "fairytale world" of the 47-member council.
The text of the document said the council "strongly condemns the ongoing Israeli military operations ... which have resulted in massive violations of human rights of the Palestinian people and systematic destruction of the Palestinian infrastructure".The resolution was opposed by Canada while European countries, Japan and South Korea abstained.The resolution was backed by, among others, Russia, China, Argentina and Brazil.During a debate on the resolution, Pakistan, speaking for the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), denounced what it called Israel's "unrestrained use of force, killing of innocent civilians" and violation of UN havens.
At least 40 people died last Tuesday when the UN-run school they were sheltering in was hit by Israeli fire.

'Massive violations'
All European Union countries abstained and Canada voted against the resolution.Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told Al Jazeera: "In the end they [the UN] passed the resolution, it was not unanimous. I would not say it was that heated, at the end of the day there were still differences of opinion.

Many states praised the Palestinian delegation for the flexibility they had shown in the negotiations, but they could not quite reach a consensus."
Speaking in the Gaza Strip, John Ging, head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) operations in Gaza, repeated his call for an immediate end to the fighting.
"I say now, to all politicians, here in Israel and internationally, you have an obligation to the ordinary people in the name of humanity and all that is civilised, we need to stop this now. Those who help will never be forgotten.
"Israel is responsible for its own actions and it is very clear to us that there are a lot of actions in this conflict that will need to be fully investigated independently and internationally."Those who have been killed and injured, those who are innocent, deserve accountability."Peter Splinter, Amnesty International's representative at the United Nations in Geneva, backed the call for an investigation, saying "there must be a full accountability for war crimes".
"Evidence of war crimes is presenting itself each day," he told Al Jazeera.
Boutros Boutros-Ghali, a former UN secretary-general, added his perspective on the situation, saying the assault on Gaza "is a present the Israelis gave to the fundamentalists".
"It will reinforce extremists, fundamentalists, all over Arab countries and even inside Israel," he said.

Source:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/2009112152635783968.html
And here,
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1054843.html

Just Rice?!

2009-01-13T16:38:00.002+02:00

Israel's Olmert: Rice embarrassed over UN vote

JERUSALEM – Israel's prime minister said Monday that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was embarrassed by orders to abstain from voting last week on a U.N. truce resolution for Gaza that she helped arrange.
Israel had argued that the Security Council measure calling for a halt to the Gaza fighting — which passed Thursday in a 14-0 vote with the U.S. abstaining — was unworkable because it did not guarantee Israel's security.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he called President George W. Bush to seek an abstention from the U.S., a key Israeli ally at the United Nations.
"I said: 'Get me President Bush on the phone,'" Olmert said in a speech in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon. "They said he was in the middle of giving a speech in Philadelphia. I said I didn't care: 'I need to talk to him now.' He got off the podium and spoke to me."
Olmert said he argued that the United States should not vote in favor, and the president then called Rice and told her not to do so.
"She was left pretty embarrassed," Olmert said.
A senior U.S. official in Washington disputed the account.
"The plan had been all along, as agreed by the secretary and the president, that if all of the pieces fell into place, we would abstain," the official said on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.
"The government of Israel does not make policy for the United States," the official added.
The approved resolution called for "an immediate, durable and fully respected cease-fire, leading to the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza."
Rice said later that the United States "fully supports" the resolution but abstained because it "thought it important to see the outcomes of the Egyptian mediation," referring to an Egyptian-French initiative aimed at achieving a cease-fire.
Still, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said he was surprised by the U.S. abstention.
"We were told that the Americans were going to vote in favor," he said Friday, a day after the vote.
But when Rice came in to the Security Council chamber, she informed the Saudi foreign minister with an apology that she would abstain and would clarify later that the U.S. supported the resolution nonetheless, according to Malki.
"What happened in the last 10 or 15 minutes, what kind of pressure she received, from whom, this is really something that maybe we will know about later," he said.

Source:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090112/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_us_rice

İf some countries do as they have been told 'even if they don't like and consider it not in their benefits ! ',and try to find themselves some excuses.
What is the USA government excuse ?!
Not powerful enough ?
Not strong enough ?

Just a question coming into my mind to our Americas friends out there...
Guys,Who is making the decisions for you ?!

Denial as usual ! Phosphorus Shells !

2009-01-12T10:21:00.004+02:00

Denial as usual !
İsreal deny,what we already see with our eyes,what we hear with our ears,what is everyone screaming about..''it's happening ..it's happening..help those people !''
Maybe they can convince the world it is just fireworks?!
But would we/you believe it with comfortable conscious?!
İ know many politicians will....!
But how about you ?!

Israel denies banned weapons use

Medics in Gaza say latest casualties include at least 60 people affected by suspected phosphorus shells fired illegally near civilian areas.
An Israeli army spokeswoman strongly denied the report, saying all its munitions complied with the law.
An Israeli spokesman also denied Human Rights Watch allegations of multiple use of white phosphorus in the bombing.
Phosphorus shells are allowed to make smoke in battlefields. Their use where civilian may be harmed is prohibited.

Palestinian medics in Khan Younis said the Israelis fired phosphorus shells at Khouza, east of the southern city, killing a woman and causing at least 60 people to suffer gas inhalation and burns.
"These people were burned over their bodies in a way that can only be caused by white phosphorus," said Dr Yousef Abu Rish.
Human Rights Watch said its researches observed multiple shell-bursts of white phosphorus on 9 and 10 January near Gaza City and Jabaliya refugee camp.
There is no way to independently explain the contradiction between the Israeli military's denial and claims by Dr Abu Rish as well as other Palestinian doctors and HRW.
Israel has prevented international journalists from entering the Gaza Strip during its bombardment.
Horrific burns
HRW cited numerous photos and video of the Israeli bombardment appearing to show the characteristic outline of white phosphorus shells.
It acknowledged the weapons appeared to have been used legally to make smoke screens to hide troop movements, but warned of the risk to Palestinian civilians.
"White phosphorus can burn down houses and cause horrific burns when it touches the skin," said Human Rights Watch analyst Marc Garlasco.
The Israeli army said operational secrecy prevented disclosure of its weaponry, but emphasised it "only employs weapons permitted by international law".
White phosphorus sticks to human skin and will burn right through to the bone, causing death or leaving survivors with painful wounds which are slow to heal.
The international convention on the use of incendiary weapons says it should not be used where civilians are concentrated.
Controversial use
The US military in Iraq admitted using white phosphorus as a weapon in the assault on Falluja in 2004 - after initial denials, although it insisted the use was legal.
Afterwards, officials for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons stressed white phosphorus use was permissible only if it was to produce smoke.
However, if its "toxic or caustic properties" are specifically intended to be used as a weapon, it would be considered a chemical rather than incendiary weapon and therefore would be banned.
The Israeli military has used phosphorus shells in the past, during its bombardment of Lebanon in 2006.
Minister Jacob Edery told the Israeli parliament after the 2006 war: "The [Israeli Defence Forces] holds phosphorus munitions in different forms... [and] made use of phosphorous shells during the war against Hezbollah in attacks against military targets in open ground."
The Israeli military was strongly criticised for some of its tactics in 2006, including the widespread use of cluster munitions in the final hours before a ceasefire came into effect.

Source:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7823078.stm

İsrael.....UN !

2009-01-10T01:52:00.002+02:00

No Comment !

Powerful UN!

2009-01-10T01:38:00.002+02:00

Israel, Hamas brush off U.N. cease-fire resolution

A Palestinian inspects rubble Friday after an overnight airstrike in Rafah in southern Gaza.

GAZA CITY, Gaza (CNN) -- Israel continued its offensive in Gaza on Friday, hitting more than 70 targets, despite the U.N. Security Council's call for an immediate cease-fire.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel was disregarding the U.N. vote because the resolution will not be heeded by "murderous" Palestinian groups. The firing of rockets from Gaza into southern Israel on Friday, he said, "proves the U.N. resolution is not practical."
"The state of Israel has never agreed that any outside body would determine its right to defend the security of its citizens. The [Israel Defense Forces] will continue operations in order to defend Israeli citizens and will carry out the missions with which it has been assigned in the operation," Olmert said.
The Cabinet also decided to continue humanitarian activity in Gaza and keep up efforts "to prevent the smuggling of war materiel into the Gaza Strip."
The Cabinet was briefed on meetings that Israeli Maj. Gen. Amos Gilad had with Egyptian officials over a proposed Egyptian-French truce plan.
Hamas also rejected the resolution, the Paris, France, daily newspaper Le Figaro reported.
The resolution "does not serve our interests nor that of the people of Palestine," said Hamas official Raafat Morra, speaking from Lebanon. "It does not take into account the aspirations and the principal objectives of the Palestinian people."
At least 792 Palestinians have been killed since Israel began its air and ground assault, a U.N. official said, citing numbers from the Palestinian Health Ministry. See images from the offensive »
The official said the Health Ministry is reporting that about 3,200 Palestinians have been wounded in the past two weeks.
Thirteen Israelis, including 10 soldiers, have also have so far been killed, IDF said. One soldier was moderately wounded and two others were lightly wounded during the day, but no deaths were reported Friday.
Israel has repeatedly defended its offensive, which it says is meant to stop Hamas militants from continuing to use the territory to lob rockets into southern Israel.

The Security Council called overwhelmingly for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza late Thursday, expressing "grave concern" at a mounting humanitarian crisis and heavy civilian casualties in the Palestinian territory.
Fourteen of the council's 15 members voted in favor of Resolution 1860, with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice abstaining from the vote on behalf of the United States. Rice said the United States prefers to wait on the results of ongoing Egyptian-brokered talks in Cairo between Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

The resolution "stresses the urgency of, and calls for, an immediate, durable and fully respected cease-fire which will lead to the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza."
Although the resolution does not mention Hamas by name, it does condemn "all violence and hostilities directed against civilians and all acts of terrorism."
A resolution from the council, particularly one that passes with such large support, can put international pressure on parties involved in a conflict. But they are in no way binding, and many in the past have been ignored by warring factions.
The IDF said aircraft attacked more than 70 targets in Gaza identified as terrorist sites as Israel's offensive against Hamas stretched into its 14th day

The IDF said its ground forces found a "rigged house containing a number of land mines" and struck "terror operatives who fired anti-tank rockets at them."
"In addition, the house used by terrorists that shot and killed Sgt. Amit Robinson yesterday was shot at by IDF forces today," the military said. The 70 targets included 20 "terror operatives," rocket launching areas, three houses of Hamas operatives that had been used to store weapons, two weapons smuggling tunnels and "a vehicle with armed terror operatives."
Israel said that its naval forces hit "at least ten armed terror operatives" Thursday night and "they continued assisting the ground forces throughout the night."
One location hit by Israeli missiles was a house in northern Gaza where six people were killed early Friday, the Ramattan News Agency in Gaza City reported.
In another attack, Israeli helicopters obliterated the house of a Hamas military commander in northern Gaza City on Friday, sources in the Hamas movement said.
Aqsa TV identified the man as Abu Farouk Dababesh. The Hamas sources said Dababesh's house was among 15 houses targeted by Israel on Friday.
Palestinian medical sources said 22 Palestinians were killed Friday.
The IDF said its missiles hit five Gaza sites where Hamas was launching rockets into Israel Friday morning, including one that was adjacent to a mosque.
The Israeli military said more than 30 rockets from Gaza landed in southern Israel on Friday, including two Grad missiles that fell on Beer Sheva. Two rockets hit Ashkelon and one landed at Ashdod. No damage or injuries were reported, the IDF said.
Israel took steps before Friday prayers to head off any possible violence in Jerusalem. West Bank entries into Israel have been halted through Saturday night and men younger than 50 were banned from entering Jerusalem mosques.
Also Friday, the U.N. said it would resume its suspended aid operations in Gaza.

The U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees suspended food delivery operations Thursday to 750,000 Palestinian refugees after strikes by Israel killed one of its drivers and wounded another. The U.N. said the aid workers "had received Israeli clearance."
U.N. officials attended a high-level meeting at the Israeli Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv on Friday. There, "the U.N. received credible assurances that the security of U.N. personnel, installations and humanitarian operations would be fully respected," a U.N. statement said.

Source:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/09/israel.gaza/index.html?eref=onion

War Crime...And ? !

2009-01-10T01:05:00.002+02:00

Gaza bombing witnesses describe horror of Israeli strike

When the first accounts emerged this week of what the Israeli armed forces did to the extended Samouni clan in Gaza they were initially lost in an already crowded chorus of civilian suffering.

Palestinians mourners carry the bodies of three toddlers, Ahmed, Mohamed, and Issa Samouni in Zeitoun

But as more survivors surfaced to give largely consistent testimony the horrific realisation emerged what happened to the Samouni family could constitute war crimes by Israel.
Israel is barring foreign journalists from Gaza so it is difficult to verify completely the survivors' accounts about an incident that left up to 70 civilians dead.
They contain allegations that Israeli forces shelled a building where they had previously put a large number of civilians, killed a child in cold blood, used human shields and failed to provide proper treatment to survivors.
Even though they were nearby, Israeli soldiers were found not to have taken action to help four children who spent 48 hours clinging to what the ambulance crew believed to be their mothers' corpses.
The Gazan town of Zeitoun has been home to the Samouni clan for generations but its location in the sandy southern approaches to Gaza City made it a strategic target for Israel on the first night of their ground offensive.
After Israeli tanks and infantry rolled through the Gaza perimeter fence on last Saturday night one of the units headed straight to Zeitoun.
Known to be an area where Hamas militants have been active, Israeli commanders wanted to make sure they took the town as part of a strategy of encircling Gaza City and cutting it off from the rest of the Gaza Strip.
Surviving members of the Samouni family said that at around dawn on Sunday Israeli soldiers arrived in large numbers, knocking on doors and detaining men of fighting age.
Meysa Samouni, 19, described how the Israeli soldiers had "blackened'' their faces for night combat.
The troops went from house to house detaining younger men and then crowding a large number, mostly women and children, into a building owned by Wael Samouni.
Described by Meysa as a "warehouse'', up to 110 members of the Samouni family were forced inside without running water or food.
Conditions grew more dire and tensions rose so by dawn on Monday Rashed Samouni, 41, Meysa's father-in-law and two other men prepared to leave to go in search for missing family members and supplies.
As they left the door of the warehouse they were hit by a barrage.
"My husband went over to them to help, and then a shell or missile was fired onto the roof of the warehouse,'' Meysa said. "Based on the intensity of the strike, I think it was a missile from an F-16.
"When the missile stuck, I lay down with my daughter under me. Everything filled up with smoke and dust, and I heard screams and crying.
"After the smoke and dust cleared a bit, I looked around and saw twenty to thirty people who were dead, and about twenty who were wounded.
"The persons killed around me were my husband, who was hit in the back, my father-in-law, who was hit in the head and whose brain was on the floor, my mother-in-law Rabab, my father-in-law's brother Talal, and his wife Rhama Muhammad a-Samuni, 45, Talal's son's wife, Maha Muhammad a-Samuni, 19, and her son, Muhammad Hamli a-Samuni, 5 months, whose whole brain was outside his body, Razqa Muhammad a-Samuni, 50, Hanan Khamis a-Samuni, 30, and Hamdi Majid a-Samuni, 22.'' She said she tended to her nine month old daughter, Jumana, whose thumb and two fingers had been cut off one hand.
According to her count up to 30 died in the building but other witnesses suggest the death toll among the 110 crowded inside was higher.
Meysa said survivors and walking wounded eventually emerged and found some Israeli soldiers who took two of the male survivors and let the rest pass. She believed the men were to be used as human shields.
According to Majed Samouni, a 42-year-old farmer, he was corralled into another house in Zeitoun on Sunday by Israeli soldiers.
He alleged when Israeli soldiers went from house to house rounding up members of his family a cousin Atiyeh Samouni, 43, was shot dead by Israeli soldiers as he opened the door to his house.
Majed also alleged Israeli soldiers shot Atiyeh's two-year-old son, Ahmad, in cold blood.
Majed said 80 Samouni family members ended up crowded in his two-storey house before they too fled after the barrage early on Monday morning.
There were other allegations that Israeli soldiers picked off at least one member of the Samouni family as they fled.
By midday on Monday the first Samouni survivors got to Shifa hospital in Gaza City carrying mortally wounded children.
By Tuesday the mortuary had records of ten Samounis having died including three infants who were buried in funeral in Gaza City. A photograph of the funeral appeared on the front of the International Herald Tribune newspaper.
But the number of Samounis who had died but still lay in Zeitoun was unknown. The International Committee of the Red Cross and the local Palestinian Red Crescent twice tried to reach Zeitoun but it was too dangerous.
On Wednesday the ambulances were finally given permission by Israel but with Israeli earth berms on the roads and war damage it was difficult and dangerous for them to search Zeitoun properly.
Around 15 wounded were found including four traumatised children next to what ambulance crew took to be the corpses of their mothers.
The fact Israeli soldiers were within a hundred yards of the children but did not help them led to the ICRC to issue an uncharacteristically strong condemnation pointing out failing to help wounded violates the rules of war.
"The ICRC believes that in this instance the Israeli military failed to meet its obligation under international humanitarian law to care for and evacuate the wounded,'' the statement said.
"It considers the delay in allowing rescue services access unacceptable.'' And it demanded full access to Zeitoun to recover wounded civilians it believes are still there.
Israel has so far refused permission for the ambulances to carry out a full sweep.
Last night an Israeli army spokesman said an initial internal investigation had found no evidence Israeli armed forces had done anything wrong during combat around the Samouni family homes in Zeitoun.
He denied the army massed civilians in specific locations and said there was no record of a “specific attack on a specific target’’ in the area last Monday.
“This does not rule out exchanges of fire but it does rule out targeting of a specific building,’’ he said.

Source:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4209550/Gaza-bombing-witnesses-describe-horror-of-Israeli-strike.html

Wondering...Why The Palestinians complain !

2009-01-09T05:38:00.003+02:00

As if saying....even its destroyed....its still ours...our place,our land ! A Palestinian man places a green Hamas flag on the rubble of a destroyed mosque after an Israeli air strike in Gaza

Mark Steel: So what have the Palestinians got to complain about?

To portray this as a conflict between equals requires some imagination
Wednesday, 31 December 2008

When you read the statements from Israeli and US politicians, and try to match them with the pictures of devastation, there seems to be only one explanation. They must have one of those conditions, called something like "Visual Carnage Responsibility Back To Front Upside Down Massacre Disorder".
For example, Condoleezza Rice, having observed that more than 300 Gazans were dead, said: "We are deeply concerned about the escalating violence. We strongly condemn the attacks on Israel and hold Hamas responsible."
Someone should ask her to comment on teenage knife-crime, to see if she'd say: "I strongly condemn the people who've been stabbed, and until they abandon their practice of wandering around clutching their sides and bleeding, there is no hope for peace."
The Israeli government suffers terribly from this confusion. They probably have adverts on Israeli television in which a man falls off a ladder and screams, "Eeeeugh", then a voice says, "Have you caused an accident at work in the last 12 months?" and the bloke who pushed him gets £3,000.
The gap between the might of Israel's F-16 bombers and Apache helicopters, and the Palestinians' catapulty thing is so ridiculous that to try and portray the situation as between two equal sides requires the imagination of a children's story writer.
The reporter on News at Ten said the rockets "may be ineffective, but they ARE symbolic." So they might not have weapons but they have got symbolism, the canny brutes.
It's no wonder the Israeli Air Force had to demolish a few housing estates, otherwise Hamas might have tried to mock Israel through a performance of expressive dance.
The rockets may be unable to to kill on the scale of the Israeli Air Force, said one spokesman, but they are "intended to kill".
Maybe he went on: "And we have evidence that Hamas supporters have dreams, and that in these dreams bad things happen to Israeli citizens, they burst, or turn into cactus, or run through Woolworths naked, so it's not important whether it can happen, what matters is that they WANT it to happen, so we blew up their university."
Or there's the outrage that Hamas has been supported by Iran. Well that's just breaking the rules. Because say what you will about the Israelis, they get no arms supplies or funding or political support from a country that's more powerful than them, they just go their own way and make all their weapons in an arts and crafts workshop in Jerusalem.
But mostly the Israelis justify themselves with a disappointing lack of imagination, such as the line that they had to destroy an ambulance because Hamas cynically put their weapons inside ambulances.
They should be more creative, and say Hamas were planning to aim the flashing blue light at Israeli epileptics in an attempt to make them go into a fit, get dizzy and wander off into Syria where they would be captured.
But they prefer a direct approach, such as the statement from Ofer Schmerling, an Israeli Civil Defence official who said on al-Jazeera, "I shall play music and celebrate what the Israeli Air Force is doing."
Maybe they could turn it into a huge nationalfestival, with decorations and mince pies and shops playing "I Wish We Could Bomb Gaza Every Day".
In a similar tone Dov Weisglas, Ariel Sharon's chief of staff, referred to the siege of Gaza that preceded this bombing, a siege in which the Israelis prevented the population from receiving essential supplies of food, medicine, electricity and water, by saying, "We put them on a diet."
It's the arrogance of the East End gangster, so it wouldn't be out of character if the Israeli Prime Minister's press conference began: "Oh dear or dear. It looks like those Palestinians have had a little, er, accident. All their buildings have been knocked down – they want to be more careful, hee hee."
And almost certainly one of the reasons this is happening now is because the government wants to appear hard as it wants to win an election. Maybe with typical Israeli frankness they'll show a party political broadcast in which Ehud Olmert says, "This is why I think you should vote for me", then shows film of Gaza and yells: "Wa-hey, that bloke in the corner is on FIRE."
And Condoleezza Rice and her colleagues, and the specially appointed Middle East Peace Envoy, could then all shake their heads and say: "Disgraceful. The way he's flapping around like that could cause someone to have a nasty accident."

Source:

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/mark-steel/mark-steel-so-what-have-the-palestinians-got-to-complain-about-1218135.html

We Ask !

2009-01-09T05:32:00.002+02:00

Robert Fisk: Why do they hate the West so much, we will ask
Wednesday, 7 January 2009

A child injured in the Israeli bombardment of a UN school yesterday is taken to Shifa hospital in Gaza City

So once again, Israel has opened the gates of hell to the Palestinians. Forty civilian refugees dead in a United Nations school, three more in another. Not bad for a night's work in Gaza by the army that believes in "purity of arms". But why should we be surprised?
Have we forgotten the 17,500 dead – almost all civilians, most of them children and women – in Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon; the 1,700 Palestinian civilian dead in the Sabra-Chatila massacre; the 1996 Qana massacre of 106 Lebanese civilian refugees, more than half of them children, at a UN base; the massacre of the Marwahin refugees who were ordered from their homes by the Israelis in 2006 then slaughtered by an Israeli helicopter crew; the 1,000 dead of that same 2006 bombardment and Lebanese invasion, almost all of them civilians?
What is amazing is that so many Western leaders, so many presidents and prime ministers and, I fear, so many editors and journalists, bought the old lie; that Israelis take such great care to avoid civilian casualties. "Israel makes every possible effort to avoid civilian casualties," yet another Israeli ambassador said only hours before the Gaza massacre. And every president and prime minister who repeated this mendacity as an excuse to avoid a ceasefire has the blood of last night's butchery on their hands. Had George Bush had the courage to demand an immediate ceasefire 48 hours earlier, those 40 civilians, the old and the women and children, would be alive.
What happened was not just shameful. It was a disgrace. Would war crime be too strong a description? For that is what we would call this atrocity if it had been committed by Hamas. So a war crime, I'm afraid, it was. After covering so many mass murders by the armies of the Middle East – by Syrian troops, by Iraqi troops, by Iranian troops, by Israeli troops – I suppose cynicism should be my reaction. But Israel claims it is fighting our war against "international terror". The Israelis claim they are fighting in Gaza for us, for our Western ideals, for our security, for our safety, by our standards. And so we are also complicit in the savagery now being visited upon Gaza.
I've reported the excuses the Israeli army has served up in the past for these outrages. Since they may well be reheated in the coming hours, here are some of them: that the Palestinians killed their own refugees, that the Palestinians dug up bodies from cemeteries and planted them in the ruins, that ultimately the Palestinians are to blame because they supported an armed faction, or because armed Palestinians deliberately used the innocent refugees as cover.
The Sabra and Chatila massacre was committed by Israel's right-wing Lebanese Phalangist allies while Israeli troops, as Israel's own commission of inquiry revealed, watched for 48 hours and did nothing. When Israel was blamed, Menachem Begin's government accused the world of a blood libel. After Israeli artillery had fired shells into the UN base at Qana in 1996, the Israelis claimed that Hizbollah gunmen were also sheltering in the base. It was a lie. The more than 1,000 dead of 2006 – a war started when Hizbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on the border – were simply dismissed as the responsibility of the Hizbollah. Israel claimed the bodies of children killed in a second Qana massacre may have been taken from a graveyard. It was another lie. The Marwahin massacre was never excused. The people of the village were ordered to flee, obeyed Israeli orders and were then attacked by an Israeli gunship. The refugees took their children and stood them around the truck in which they were travelling so that Israeli pilots would see they were innocents. Then the Israeli helicopter mowed them down at close range. Only two survived, by playing dead. Israel didn't even apologise.
Twelve years earlier, another Israeli helicopter attacked an ambulance carrying civilians from a neighbouring village – again after they were ordered to leave by Israel – and killed three children and two women. The Israelis claimed that a Hizbollah fighter was in the ambulance. It was untrue. I covered all these atrocities, I investigated them all, talked to the survivors. So did a number of my colleagues. Our fate, of course, was that most slanderous of libels: we were accused of being anti-Semitic.
And I write the following without the slightest doubt: we'll hear all these scandalous fabrications again. We'll have the Hamas-to-blame lie – heaven knows, there is enough to blame them for without adding this crime – and we may well have the bodies-from-the-cemetery lie and we'll almost certainly have the Hamas-was-in-the-UN-school lie and we will very definitely have the anti-Semitism lie. And our leaders will huff and puff and remind the world that Hamas originally broke the ceasefire. It didn't. Israel broke it, first on 4 November when its bombardment killed six Palestinians in Gaza and again on 17 November when another bombardment killed four more Palestinians.
Yes, Israelis deserve security. Twenty Israelis dead in 10 years around Gaza is a grim figure indeed. But 600 Palestinians dead in just over a week, thousands over the years since 1948 – when the Israeli massacre at Deir Yassin helped to kick-start the flight of Palestinians from that part of Palestine that was to become Israel – is on a quite different scale. This recalls not a normal Middle East bloodletting but an atrocity on the level of the Balkan wars of the 1990s. And of course, when an Arab bestirs himself with unrestrained fury and takes out his incendiary, blind anger on the West, we will say it has nothing to do with us. Why do they hate us, we will ask? But let us not say we do not know the answer.

Source:

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-why-do-they-hate-the-west-so-much-we-will-ask-1230046.html

UNRWA,Red Cross

2009-01-09T05:05:00.002+02:00

By what law they have been targeted ?!!!

A Palestinian boy mourns over the bodies of 42 people who were killed yesterday in an Israeli attack on a U.N.-run school building, on Jan. 7 in Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza

Israeli troops kill U.N. truck driver at Gaza crossing

JERUSALEM — Israeli soldiers opened fire Thursday on a truck attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to the beleaguered Gaza Strip, killing one United Nations-contracted driver and seriously wounding another, U.N. officials said.
The shooting occurred at the Erez checkpoint, the main entrance used by relief agencies to funnel badly needed food and medical supplies into Gaza, where Israel is waging a devastating, 13-day-long military campaign against the militant Islamic group Hamas.
U.N. officials said that they had contracted the truck to deliver supplies into Gaza, and that the Israeli military had approved the delivery. But Israeli ground troops, which control the Erez checkpoint, fired on the truck. It wasn’t clear what caused the Israeli soldiers to open fire, and Israeli military officials weren't immediately available for comment.
Relief officials said that as a result of the shooting, Israel closed the Erez checkpoint. It was unclear whether any relief trucks would be allowed to enter Gaza on Thursday, despite what humanitarian agencies describe as a worsening humanitarian crisis.
"It's a tragic example of how impossible it’s becoming to deliver assistance here," John Ging, the top U.N. refugee official in Gaza, told the Al Jazeera television network. "We cannot continue in these circumstances where aid workers…are being killed and injured, even when they are in direct coordination with the Israeli liaison people, who are supposed to ensure their safety."
It was at least the second time in recent days that Palestinian relief workers contracted by the U.N. had been killed. On Monday, Israeli shells landed near the parking lot of a Palestinian company contracted by the U.N. World Food Program to deliver food supplies in Gaza. Two employees were killed and three severely wounded, according to WFP spokeswomen Barbara Conte, who said that the relief workers were not the target of the Israeli strike.
Nearly 700 Palestinians have died in Gaza since the conflict began, including a rapidly rising number of women and children, and nearly 3,000 have been wounded, according to Gaza health officials.
Israel planned to observe another three-hour pause in fighting Thursday afternoon to allow besieged Gaza residents — most of whom are running out of food and have had their water and electricity sources cut off due to the fighting — to emerge from their homes and collect food, cooking gas, blankets and other supplies.
But in the hours before the pause, Israeli forces continued to pound the narrow coastal territory, bombarding approximately 60 targets overnight including the homes of two leading Hamas militants.
An Israeli soldier was killed and another lightly wounded when militants fired on their brigade with an anti-tank missile during a firefight Thursday morning in central Gaza. The death marked the seventh military fatality since Israel sent ground forces into Gaza five days ago.
Also Thursday, a burst of rockets from southern Lebanon landed in northern Israel, but the Israeli military said it did not consider the attack a sign that the war in Gaza could expand.
At least three rockets landed near the Israeli town of Nahariya — one of them lightly injuring two women in a nursing home — and the Israeli military fired a volley of artillery shells back across the border in response.
The Israeli military downplayed the incident, calling it "an isolated event."
"We don’t expect there to be more" rocket fire from Lebanon, Major Avital Leibovich said.
No Lebanese group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Hezbollah, which fought a war with Israel in 2006 during which it lobbed more than 3,000 Russian-made Katyusha rockets into northern Israel, has condemned the war on Hamas but so far stayed on the sidelines of the conflict. Smaller pro-Palestinian militant groups in Lebanon also possess rockets.
Special correspondent Ahmed Abu Hamda contributed to this report from Gaza City.

Source:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/59250.html

“This is an all-out war against the civilian Palestinian population”

2009-01-07T19:52:00.001+02:00

Dr. Mads Gilbert, Gaza, Dr . Mads Gilbert, a Norwegian doctor in Gaza, tells Sky News that the number of civilians injured and killed in Gaza proves that Israel is deliberately attacking the population.

“Just a little bit more than an hour ago the Israelis bombed the central fruit market in Gaza city and we had a mass influx of about 50 injured and between 10 and 15 killed. At the same time they bombed an apartment house with children playing on the roof and we had a lot of children also. So this is really like speaking from the dumps of Inferno, it’s like hell here now, and it’s been bombing all night. Until now close to 500 people have been killed and the number of casualties is getting to 2,500 of which 50% are children and women.Are your hospitals reaching capacity? Can you deal with these people?We have been doing surgery around the clock. I have just talked with one of my colleagues in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit), he's not been sleeping for three days and the hospital is completely overcrowded, we are running 6 - 7 Ors (Operating Rooms) and there are injuries you just don’t want to see in this world… children coming in with open abdomens and legs cut off. We just had a child that we had to amputate both legs and an arm. And their only crime is being civilians and Palestinians living in Gaza. The relief now is not more doctors and more drugs; the relief now is to stop the bombing immediately, this cannot go on, it’s a disaster.You’ve talked about the civilians, the women, the children, the men who aren’t involved in this, but are you also getting casualties that are Hamas fighters?To be honest, we came on New Year’s Eve in the morning. I’ve seen one military person among the tenths… I mean hundreds that we’ve seen and treated, so anybody who tries to portrait this as a totally clean war against another army are lying. This is an all-out war against the civilian Palestinian population in Gaza, and we can prove that with numbers. And you have to remember that the average age of the Gaza inhabitants is 17 years, it’s a very young population, and 80% are living below the poverty limit of the UN. So this is a poor and very young people, and they are able to escape absolutely nowhere, because they cannot flee like other populations can in war time, because they are fenced in and they are in a cage, so they’re bombing 1.5 million people in a cage… young people, poor people and, you know, you cannot separate between the civilians and the fighters in such a situation.”

Source:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article21654.htm

How Can You Be İn Silnce ?!

2009-01-07T19:19:00.003+02:00

İ came through this...and least i can do is publishing it here !
Not nice pictures yes,heart breaking ones...yes
Wish if we don't see them...also yes.
But you know...its not part of some horror movie,not some old history,we try to forget,and give excuses that,they were some barbaric times.
İts something happening these days,actually now,today,and yesterday
İts something these people living,and cant escape it.
So,can we really find it in our consciousness to just skip an eye ?!

Source:
http://www.elfarra.org/gallery/gaza.htm

I saw the images and they were disturbing. Images are of the Israeli assault against civilians in Gaza. I did not imagine things in Gaza are going as they are; therefore I forwarded it on to you so that you witness the crimes against humanity that the Israelis carry out.

Israeli air strikes hit civilian homes, and left women and kids without shelte

A Palestinian civilian, a victim as Israelis bomb his home leaving him with permanent disability

Paramedics attempt to rescue a family as their house is targeted by the Israeli air force

Again, paramedics try and evacuate a group of civilians from an area that was bombed

A ten year old child is killed when Israeli war planes target his home

A child less than 5 months old is killed in his home. Is he the terrorist or is the one that killed him the terrorist? Mohamed was the only son for his parents who were suffering infertility problems for five years. They are without kids again.

In three days, the Israeli army has killed more than 350 people in Gaza, 65 of them are children, and about 200 are civilians

Now they are 666 died and about 3100 injured

Where to go ?!

2009-01-07T01:17:00.003+02:00

That was a scream from a Palestinie woman...
Where to go?!
Where to go ?!
They have destroyed our houses,they have destroyed everything
Where will we go ?!
Then this.....!

Scores killed as Gaza school hit

Israeli strikes have killed at least 40 people who took refuge inside a UN school in the Gaza Strip, medics have said.

The strike on Tuesday hit a school run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, in the northern town of Jabaliya.
Medical sources at two Gaza hospitals said two tank shells exploded outside the school, where hundreds of Palestinians had sought refuge from the Israeli attacks.
The toll quickly rose as rescuers struggled through the rubble.
In addition to the dead, several dozen people were wounded, the officials said.
Doctors said all the dead were either people sheltering in the school or residents of Jabalya refugee camp, in the north of the Gaza Strip.
John Ging, director of operations in Gaza for Unrwa, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, said three artillery shells landed near the school where 350 people were taking shelter.Ging said Unrwa regularly provided the Israeli army with exact geographical coordinates of its facilities and the school was in a built-up area.
"Of course it was entirely inevitable if artillery shells landed in that area there would be a high number of casualties," he said.
"The initial findings... are that there was hostile fire at one of our units from the UN facility," Mark Regev, spokesman for the Israeli prime minister, said.
"Our unit responded. Then there were explosions out of proportion to the ordnance we used," he said.Avital Liebowitz, an Israeli military spokesperson, told Al Jazeera that Hamas had "booby-trapped" installations in Gaza and Israel had no choice but to retaliate.
"This is how it is in wars, we did not choose to be in a war. However, Hamas chose to target Israelis, we did not force them to do anything, and Hamas chose terror."

But Azmi Bishara, a former Arab member of the Israeli Knesst, told Al Jazeera that Hamas' rockets were a "protest shout" against a "an occupying power".

"They are weapons of the poor, used to express their will.

"Israel would say, "what would any normal country do if they were threatened by rocket fire? They would act".

"But Israel is not a normal country, it is an occupying country, a colonial country and the people of Gaza are under siege."
Earlier in the day, two people were killed when an artillery shell hit a school in the southern town of Khan Yunis and three people were killed in an air strike on a school in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, medics said.
More than 640 people have been killed and 2,800 others wounded in the 11-day operation, most of them civilians.Widening the operation
The Israeli military also appears to be broadening its assault on the Gaza Strip as heavy artillery fire is reported from the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.
Palestinian witnesses said Israeli tanks have moved into Khan Younis, the second biggest urban area in the Strip after Gaza City, in what seems to be an attempt to isolate it from Rafah.
Ayman Mohyeldin, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Gaza, said Khan Younis is strategically significant on several levels - including that Palestinian fighters can fire missiles into Israeli territory from there.
He stressed reporting teams cannot confirm the reports as they are unable to reach the south from Gaza City in the north because the Strip has been effectively dissected by a column of Israel troops.
Mohyeldin also said Palestinian factions had reported that the Israeli navy was attempting to land near the central coastal city of Deir al-Balah – the scene of more intense fighting - on Tuesday.
"There was very intense shelling overnight and people woke to the presence of ground forces in and around Khan Younis this morning," he said.
Four Israeli soldiers were killed and 24 wounded in battles around Gaza City on Monday night, the Israeli military said early on Tuesday, bringing the Israeli death toll to eight.
Nowhere to hide
Fierce clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian fighters were also reported in Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip and two black plumes of smoke could be seen rising over the area.
Fares Akram, a Gaza city resident, told Al Jazeera there was "no safe place in Gaza" as "the Israeli war planes don't stop dropping bombs and firing missiles into Gaza".
Akram says his wife, who is nine-months pregnant, is living in fear of going into labour both because of how dangerous it is to leave their home and because "she knows hospitals in Gaza are in chaos".
He said that while Gazans appreciated demonstrations staged across the Arab world in protest at Israel's actions in the Strip, most believe that while the US backs the Israeli offensive the assault will continue.
In addition, the humanitarian situation in Gaza – already poor following the 18-month Israeli blockade of the strip that left the territory desperately short of fuel, food and medical supplies – is worsening.
John Ging, the head of Unrwa, said he was "shocked" by "the brutality of the injuries" he had seen during a visit to the Shifa hospital in Gaza.
'Absence of accountability'
He said: "There are very real shortages of medicine. This hospital has not had electricity for four days. If the generators go down, those in intensive care will die. This is a horrific tragedy here, and it is getting worse by the moment.
Ging described the situation as "the consequences of political failure and complete absence of accountability for this military action" and appealed for political leaders in the region and around the world to "take on the responsibility".
A number of diplomatic initiatives are under way in the region, with Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, visiting Israel and Syria on Tuesday for talks aimed at brokering a ceasefire.
Sarkozy, speaking with Bashar al-Assad, his Syrian counterpart, called on Syria to use its weight to influence Hamas.
"Syria needs to apply its weight to both sides, but in particular to Hamas that the missile attacks stop,” he said in the Syrian capital, Damascus. "Syria has to convince Hamas to make a choice for peace, reason and logic and that they themselves become the agent of reconciling Palestinians. We have to get to the point where we can solve this problem. "There are still a few hours left for us to carry on talking, but I am convinced if both sides are prepared to take the first step, the fighting can stop. The images we have seen are unbearable for all of us. "It is up to each side to make the first step, with help from Europe, Turkey and Egypt... to escape the spiral of violence and replace it with a spiral of peace."
Israel launched its offensive on the Strip after a fragile six-month ceasefire with Hamas – the Palestinian faction that controls Gaza – ended on December 19.
Both sides blame each other for the failure of the ceasefire, with Israel saying Palestinian fighters breached the truce by firing rockets into southern Israel.
Hamas, and other Palestinian groups, say the truce could not be extended because Israel failed to lift its crippling siege of the Strip.

Source:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/2009169564177230.html

عار ! Ar ! Shame !

2009-01-05T06:11:00.002+02:00

The world says STOP!

İn Misir..İn Egypt

İn Türkiye...Turkey

İn Lebanon

And the rest of the WHOLE world even in İsaerl !

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28435441/displaymode/1107/s/2/framenumber/7/

But the UN...living in another world !

UN fails to issue even a demand for Israel to halt attacks on Gaza

Gaza, January 4, 2009 (Ramattan) – The UN Security Council has failed to reach an agreement on a statement demanding the immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

The council held an emergency meeting late on Saturday night after Israel started a ground invasion.

The gathering followed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon's condemnation of the Israeli attacks.

He called for an "immediate" ceasefire of the hostilities which have claimed the lives of at least 460 Palestinians.

However, French Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert, who presides over the Security Council, said no formal agreement had been reached.

Libya submitted a draft statement that expressed "serious concern" about the ground invasion and called for an immediate ceasefire.

But the document was rejected, as it made no mention of the ongoing rocket attacks against Israel by Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group that controls Gaza.

As Israel's closest ally, the United States regularly vetoes resolutions it sees as too critical of the Jewish state.

On Friday, President Bush made clear he would not condemn an Israeli ground offensive.

http://english.ramattan.net/newsdetails.aspx?news_id=39708

Maybe we can condemn the Gazian people for being killed by the İsraeli fire then ?!!!

WHAT A SHAME !

To be Child in Gaza !

2009-01-05T06:02:00.003+02:00

For a child, war means mum reads you stories

Reem al-Naraib and her family have taken to sleeping by day as they try to cope with life in a battle zone

By Andy McSmithMonday, 5 January 2009

If you are under 13 years old and protected by a loving family, anything can be fun, even taking refuge from Israeli bombardment in the hell that is the Gaza Strip.
Reem al-Naraib, who is six months' pregnant, and her husband Sabah fled with their three children, aged 12, eight and six, from their home near Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, two-and-a-half miles from the Israeli border, where they had been directly in the line of fire.
Yesterday, they were in a three-room flat on the fourth floor of a tower block near the centre of Gaza City, without water, electricity, light, or any means of communication except a crackling landline. When The Independent spoke to Mrs al-Naraib, there was constant noise in the background – not made by bombs but by excited children.
"My children, thank God, are not so afraid," she said. "When we were living at home, the sound of bombing was a regular thing for us, so they are used to it.
"They run around chasing each other, and they jump on the furniture. Then my husband tells them stories – good stories, not frightening stories about Jews, children's stories.
"We sleep in the mornings, and we stay awake at night because the Israelis double their bombing targets at night, and we use the telephone for news of friends and neighbours. And that's our life now.
"We hear the bombing, we hear the ambulances, we look out of the window and we see smoke, but we don't know where it is. We want to hear about the news, but there is no news. Even the neighbours have no news. Each has closed his door. It's a war – really a war. We don't know what is happening."
Gaza has been used to shortages since the start of the Israeli blockade, but from the sporadic accounts coming out of the Strip since Israeli tanks moved in after nightfall on Saturday their existence is now a scrabble to find food and basic necessities, amid constant anxiety.
Adding to the physical hardship, there is the stress of knowing so little about what is going on.
In Tel Aviv, volunteers from Physicians for Human Rights were on the telephone all day, trying to learn what they could about conditions in the hospitals. "Many of the phone lines are down, and those that are working are crackly," said their director, Hadas Ziv.
"Everyone is indoors. Each can tell you what is happening in their immediate vicinity, but only that." Yesterday, Mrs al-Nuraib went looking for a loaf of bread in the market, but there was none. Fortunately, there was rice in the cupboard, which she heated over a gas cooker. But the gas is running low. The family have not seen a television that works since Friday, and have no radio. "All Gaza City is without electricity," said Fikr Shalltoot, programme co-ordinator for the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians.
"That means there is no water. Inside my house this is the fourth day without water. We can buy a little bit of water to wash ourselves, but we can't have a shower."
But if conditions are bad for the Gazans trying to live in what passes for normality, they are worse for the injured and bereaved in the understaffed and overcrowded hospitals.
"There were 2,050 hospital beds in Gaza before the air strikes, and the number of injured already exceeds that," Mr Shalltoot said. "The injured coming in have been hit by F15 bombs or missiles, not bullets, so you can imagine the injuries they have. There are thousands of people moving inside the hospitals – medical teams, and people coming to find out about missing relatives, coming in off the street, and some of the injured are lying on the floor. Some are women or children. Some have lost limbs.
"There are not enough stretchers," he said. "The hospitals are short of sheets, blankets, and surgical gowns. There is no gauze, so they are using cotton, which sticks to wounds. They can't sterilise clothes for the operating theatre. They are using the wrong- size syringes."
Mr Shalltoot added: "I have seen remains lying outside the mortuaries, because the mortuaries can't cope with the number who have been killed. Neighbours come directly to the mortuaries to find out if the missing have been killed. If they don't find them at the mortuaries they look in the beds and the corridors of the hospitals. If the remains are recognised by friends or relatives, they are taken away."
Dr Mads Gilbert, a Norwegian doctor working at Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital, said: "We are doing surgery around the clock. The hospital is completely overcrowded and we're seeing injuries that you don't want to see in this world. A child just came in and we had to amputate both arms and legs. It's like hell here now."

Source:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/for-a-child-war-means-mum-reads-you-stories-1225799.html

غزه تحت النيران Gazza Taht Al Niran - Gaza Under Fire !

2009-01-05T05:17:00.004+02:00

An organized army in war with women and children !

Well,that is how it is,the numbers now are 500 died and about 2500 injured

Consider that army has heavy weapons,airplanes,tanks...etc whatever you can think of,and in war with people of light weapons,and the heaviest thing they have are missiles with some kilo meters range !
The war is in city where people live,and then they blame the women and children for being in the way !
Then you read something like this,and all you can do is just laugh about it
Laugh with tears in your eyes ...

''Hamas has held the people of Gaza hostage ever since their illegal coup against the forces of (Palestinian) President Mahmoud Abbas ''
White House statement
Hostage ?!!
People elected Hamas
Hamas is the elected goverment of Palestine,people actually choose it
So they are the ones who held people hostage,not the army who is serounding the people and killing women and children ?!

Hellooo,they live there,its their homes...sure when you fire there,women and children will be killed
They are hiding in their homes away from the fire,which it didn't let them get away easily,but track them down till their bedrooms!
And then,they say,its the women and children mistake...they should have left!
Leave where ?!
Where to go ?
Leave their homes and lands and go where ?!
İs there a safe place out there ?!!!

Israeli troops enter Gaza Strip

Israel has sent ground forces into the Gaza Strip after a week of air strikes to try to halt rocket attacks by Palestinian militants.
Its troops were reported to be engaged in heavy clashes with Hamas fighters in northern Gaza. Both sides have reported casualties in the fighting.
The UN secretary general called for an immediate halt to operations.
But an emergency Security Council meeting failed to agree a united approach to the Gaza conflict.
As dawn broke in Gaza a large plume of black smoke could be seen rising from part of the northern strip while the sound of exploding artillery shells - could also be heard. The shelling had continued through the night.

Witnesses say Israeli military convoys supported by attack helicopters crossed into northern Gaza at four separate points after nightfall on Saturday.
Advancing Israeli tanks were reported to be in battles around Gaza City and the northern towns of Beit Lahiya and Jabaliya, the Afp news agency reported. Hamas fighters replied with mortars and rockets, witnesses said.
The Israeli army said 30 of its soldiers had been wounded in the ground offensive, two of them seriously.
Palestinian medical officials said eight Gazans had been killed by Israeli troops, five of them gunmen.
'Not war-hungry'
An Israeli military spokeswoman said the objective of the ground operation was "to destroy the Hamas terror infrastructure in the area of operations".

"We are going to take some of the launch areas used by Hamas," Maj Avital Leibovitch told reporters.
Israeli officials have described the offensive as a "limited" operation.
The move into Gaza had been preceded by some of the heaviest Israeli air and artillery attacks on the territory in more than a week of bombardment.
Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the ground campaign against Hamas "will not be easy or short, but we are determined".
"Our aim is to force Hamas to stop its hostile activities against Israel and Israelis from Gaza, and to bring about a significant change in the situation in the southern part of Israel," he told a news conference.
"We have carefully weighed all our operations. We are not war-hungry, but we shall not allow a situation in which our towns, villages and civilians are constantly targeted by Hamas."
Mr Barak also said Israel would "keep a sensitive eye" on its northern border with Lebanon, where it fought a short but bloody war with the Shia Hezbollah movement in 2006.
"We hope the situation will remain calm. Nevertheless, we are ready and alert to face any unwanted development in that area," he added

The BBC's Paul Wood in Jerusalem says this is probably just the first wave of the assault, since there are said to be some 10,000 Israeli troops and hundreds of tanks massed on the border with Gaza.
The government has also announced the urgent call-up of "tens of thousands" of extra military reservists.
Just before the ground offensive began, Hamas issued a statement promising that Palestinian children would be picking over the ruins of Israeli tanks and the body parts of Israeli soldiers.
The militant group's exiled political leader, Khaled Meshaal, earlier warned Israel against a ground offensive, saying that a "black destiny" awaited Israeli forces if the entered Gaza.
A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the offensive as "a vicious aggression".
Our correspondent says this promises to be a very bloody encounter.
'Alarm and dismay'
The UN session was convened a few hours after Israeli forces entered Gaza.
Talks lasted more than three hours and afterwards the Security Council's current president - France's Jean-Maurice Ripert - said there was a "general convergence" among some members, but he would not elaborate.
UN fails to reach Gaza consensus
The UK ambassador to the UN, Sir John Sawers, said members had got close to an agreement. He added it was disappointing there could not be a firm statement from the UN as the situation on the ground escalates.

France has strongly criticised the Israeli land campaign. The British Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, said the escalation of the conflict would cause alarm and dismay.
The US said it had told Israel's government that military action must be "mindful of the potential consequences to civilians."
The State Department also said Washington is "deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation" in Gaza, but said in a statement that Hamas holds the people of Gaza hostage.
Israeli warplanes and naval vessels have carried out more than 800 strikes on the Gaza Strip since the offensive started eight days ago, including 40 on Saturday.
The UN has warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis, and believes 25% of more than 400 Palestinians killed by Israel so far were civilians. Israel says about 80% of those killed were Hamas militants. Four Israelis have been killed by rocket fire from Gaza.
Mosque hit
Earlier on Saturday, at least 13 people were killed in one Israeli raid when a missile struck a crowded mosque in Beit Lahiya, Palestinian medics said.

Witnesses said more than 200 people had been inside the Ibrahim al-Maqadna mosque for evening prayers when it was struck.
Correspondents say Israel has accused Hamas of using mosques to hide weapons and ammunition, but this is the first time a mosque has been hit at prayer time.
Militants in Gaza fired more rockets into southern Israel on Saturday, one of which hit the port of Ashdod, injuring two people.
Around the world, demonstrations were held against Israel's military operations.
The biggest was in Paris, drawing more than 20,000 people. About 10,000 people protested in London.
In Israel itself, tens of thousands of Israeli Arabs gathered in the town of Sakhnin to protest against their government's actions.

Source:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7809959.stm

فلسطين Filistin 'Palestine' - Misir 'Egypt' History

2009-01-02T04:23:00.003+02:00

THE EGYPTIANS (C. 1468- 1200 BC)
History of Palestine
Considerable insight into the status of Palestine after Armageddon was gained through the discovery of the ' Amarna Tablets', a large collection of tablets found at El- Amarna in middle Egypt. These tablets are mostly letters from the royal archives of the pharaohs.

Many of them are written directly from or Palestine, in the period between 1450 and 1350 BC. Some similar documents have also been discovered in Palestine. In short, the tablets show that the Egyptians had left the Canaanite princely houses in control of their own territories, but under the supervision of Egyptian and Canaanite commissioners. Inspectors were appointed to estimate the yield of the harvest in Canaan and overseers collected the revenue. This tribute became the test of Canaanite loyalty to pharaoh.

But what really interested Egypt was the prosperous trade business of the Canaanite seaports of Gaza, Jaffa, Acca, Tyre, Sidon, Byblos and Ugarite, who traded their goods far and wide. The Amarna tablets show that the Canaanites were mostly concentrated in the Coastal cities; the hinterland was but sparsely settled with concentrations around well-water centres as in Megiddo, Shechem, Jerusalem and Hebron. There are some seven letters written from the rulers of Jerusalem- then called Ursalim, or the City of Salam or Peace-beseeching help from pharaoh against marauding bedouin.

When Pharoah Seti I succeeded to the Egyptian throne in 1318 BC, many of the Canaanite city-states ere hostile to Egypt, and even engaged in warlike operations against towns which were still loyal to Egypt. Apparently, the Hitties were behind this uprising. The Hitties had built up a powerful army of charioteers in Asia Minor, and Palestine loomed as a gold coast.

The campaigns of Seti I into Palestine are recorded in a series of scenes carved on the east and north walls of the temple of Amun at Karnak; with reliefs showing action in the field, submission of defeated rulers, and prisoners-of-war being presented to Amun, the national god. Despite Seti's apparent successful military campaigns in Palestine, the Hitties continued pushing and inciting the Canaanite kings against the Egyptians. When Seti's son, Ramses II, succeeded to the throne, he decide on a showdown with the Hitties.

Heading four divisions, each named after an Egyptian god, Ramses crossed the Sinai into Palestine and then into Syria, where the clash of the two superpowers took place in an area called Kadesh. The Hitties unleashed some 3,500 chariots against the Egyptian army. Both sides were so badly beaten that when, on the next day, the Hittie king asked for an armistice, Ramses was only too gald to accept.

The battle of Kadesh undermined Egypt's prestige among the Canaanites and many of the Canaanite sities rebelled; compelling Ramses to return to Palestine to storm its cities. In order to secure Palestine, in 1280 BC Ramses signed with the Hitties history's first international peace treaty; in which Syria was recognized as part of the Hittie Empire, and Palestine part of Egypt's sphere of influence. And to improve relations with his former adversary, Ramses married the daughter of the Hittie king; adding her to his large circle of wives, who allegedly exceeded one hundred

Resource:
http://www.jerusalemites.org/history_of_palestine/16.htm

Egyptian control (1948-1967)

According to the terms of the 1947 United Nations partition plan, the Gaza area was to become part of a new Arab state. Following the dissolution of the British mandate of Palestine and 1947-1948 Civil War in Palestine, Israel declared its independence in May 1948. The Egyptian army invaded the area from the south, starting the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.[4]
The Gaza Strip as it is known today was the product of the subsequent 1949 Armistice Agreements between Egypt and Israel, often referred to as the Green Line. Egypt occupied the Strip from 1949 (except for four months of Israeli occupation during the 1956 Suez Crisis) until 1967. The Strip's population was greatly augmented by an influx of Palestinian Arab refugees who fled from Israel during the fighting.
Towards the end of the war, the All-Palestine Government (Arabic: حكومة عموم فلسطين hukumat 'umum Filastin) was proclaimed in Gaza City on 22 September 1948 by the Arab League. It was conceived partly as an Arab League attempt to limit the influence of Transjordan over the Palestinian issue. The government was not recognized by Transjordan or any non-Arab country. It was little more than a façade under Egyptian control, had negligible influence or funding, and subsequently moved to Cairo. Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip or Egypt were issued All-Palestine passports until 1959, when Gamal Abdul Nasser, President of Egypt, annulled the All-Palestine government by decree.
Egypt never annexed the Gaza Strip, but instead treated it as a controlled territory and administered it through a military governor.[6] The refugees were never offered Egyptian citizenship.
During the Sinai campaign of November 1956, the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula were overrun by Israeli troops. International pressure soon forced Israel to withdraw.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaza_Strip#Egyptian_control_.281948-1967.29

İt was either Misir 'Egypt' take over Gaza on that time,or İsrael does,and kick the Palestinians out
So Misir took control of Gaza to handle it over to her people which didnt have any army to defend them on that time.

More readings:

http://www.arabnews.com/?page=9&section=0&article=106832&d=17&m=2&y=2008

كل سنه و انت طيب Kol Sana We Entom Tayebeen - Happy New Year

2009-01-02T03:06:00.004+02:00

Wish it brings Peace,Love and Happiness to all of us :)

The Dignity Boat !

2008-12-31T06:08:00.003+02:00

(CNN) -- An Israeli patrol boat struck a boat carrying medical volunteers and supplies to Gaza early Tuesday as it attempted to intercept the vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, witnesses and Israeli officials said.

CNN correspondent Karl Penhaul was aboard the 60-foot pleasure boat Dignity when the contact occurred. When the boat later docked in the Lebanese port city of Tyre, severe damage was visible to the forward port side of the boat, and the front left window and part of the roof had collapsed. It was flying the flag of Gibraltar.
The Dignity was carrying crew and 16 passengers -- physicians from Britain, Germany and Cyprus and human rights activists from the Free Gaza Solidarity Movement -- who were trying to reach Gaza through an Israeli blockade of the territory.
Also on board was former U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney.
Penhaul said an Israeli patrol boat shined its spotlight on the Dignity, and then it and another patrol boat shadowed the Dignity for about a half hour before the collision.

The Dignity arrives in Tyre, Lebanon, after it was reportedly rammed by an Israeli military vessel Tuesday

Resource:

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/30/gaza.aid.boat/

Israeli vessel hits Gaza-bound boat

A small boat, damaged as it tried to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, has arrived in the Lebanese port of Tyre.The Dignity started taking on water after it was hit by an Israeli naval vessel as it approached the Israeli coast with its cargo of medical aid.
The Free Gaza Movement, which organised the attempt to reach the territory , said their boat was "rammed" and shots were fired when at least four Israeli vessels confronted them in international waters.Yigal Palmor, a spokesman for Israel's foreign ministry, denied there had been any shooting but said that the ships had made "physical contact".
He said that the crew of the Dignity had failed to respond to Israeli naval radio contact.'Rammed'Elize Ernshire, one of the activists onboard the boat, told Al Jazeera by telephone that the boat was rammed twice from the front and then once from the side.
"It has destroyed the front of the boat and the roof ... and has left the cabin, the wheelhouse quite destroyed," she said.
"... we were threatened directly by the Israeli navy that if we continued on our course towards Gaza they would attack us again"Elize Ernshire,activist onboard Dignity
" ... we were threatened directly by the Israeli navy that if we continued on our course towards Gaza they would attack us again."Mark Regev, an Israeli government spokesman, said that the incident was nothing more than a "propoganda stunt".
"Israel would never have done anything against international law, that is inconceivable," he told Al Jazeera.
"These people just want a headline, they don't really want to help the people of Gaza, if they wanted to help the people of Gaza they would be asking Hamas why they initiated the violence."Several small boats have arrived in the Gaza Strip carrying international activists and medical aid since August in defiance of the Israeli siege.Ernshire said that the incident would not stop the movement trying again to take aid to the impoverished territory."The majority of passenger here are determined, once we reach Lebanon, to keep continuing to organise such boats as these, to reach the people of Gaza," she said.Gaza's health system is struggling to cope with the casualties from four consecutive days of aerial bombardment by Israeli warplanes and helicopter gunships.ShortagesHospitals were already facing shortages of medicines and other medical products due to the Israeli siege imposed after the Hamas government seized full control of the territory in 2007.

As well as more than three tonnes of aid, the Dignity was carrying three doctors to help treat the more than 1,600 wounded in recent days.Avital Leibovitz, an Israeli military spokeswoman, said that humanitarian aid was being allowed into the Gaza Strip and the medical supplies on the boat would not have made much impact on the humanitarian situation.
"Lets not talk about a blockade because it does not exist, the humanitarian corridor is active, alive and working," she told Al Jazeera.
"There are a numerous number of trucks enetring Gaza with food and medicine according to the requests of the aid organisations." Three Al Jazeera journalists were among the 15 people onboard the boat."Al Jazeera holds Israel responsible for the safety of the Al Jazeera journalists and everyone on board the Dignity," Wadah Khanfar, director general of the Al Jazeera network said in a statement.
"Al Jazeera's presence on the boat is to cover the expedition for news and journalistic purposes. We are deeply concerned for the safety and well being of our journalists."

Resource:

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2008/12/20081230121412669439.html

NO Comment !

Numbers for today,
About 390 died and 1750 injured.

Sad how we refer to other human...just numbers ?!

No by God...its tragedy...not just numbers !

على الأقل - At Least !

2008-12-30T05:29:00.003+02:00

İ wanted to carry out from where we stopped,talk about history,food,traditions,things some know things some don't

But i couldn't...!

İ really couldn't !

Not while watching people dying on the TV,women and children and counting numbers!

Every hour a new number!

Not while watching a small boy and a smal girl crying and shaking with sadness and fear

Afraid to sleep and afraid to wake up too!

Not while watching this look in the eyes,wondering silently what have they done for that ?!

What am i going to do ?

What is in my hand to do ?

Honestly....i don't know !

Countries like Mısır -Egypt. Tükiye -Turkey,Qatar,Saudi Arabia,Libya,Jordan,Algeria,and many many other countries are sending humanitarian aids,food,and medical supplies to Mısır-Egypt so they cross to Gazza through Egypt-Gaza border.

Do they need more there in Gazza ?

Ohhh,YES,they need much...they have nothing actually !

Maybe i also can help?

Sending even a blanket through the Red Cresent or The Red Cross ?

İ dont know !

But at least,i can do this for a start...

İ can share this with you all,and dedicate this week for them.

İ beg your pardon,i know this is a new blog,and it is not about Palestine,and also that is not what you came here to read,but i don't find it in my conscience to continue as if nothing happening. Palestine is/was part of us and our history too.
And she is calling for help...i can't just skip an eye .

For Gazza,and people of Gazza,the Palestinians whose numbers have reached the 350 died and 1650 injured till now for just 3 days !

Light a candle

Make Doa,إدعوا

Pray

Even just hope

İt doesn't matter if we are Muslims,Christians,Buddist,Buddhist,Jewish...etc
They die there side by side,and fight there side by side,missiles don't target muslims but not none muslims,all are same,all are Palestinians!

So let's remember them in our,prayers,doas, thoughts,keep them in mind and wish them what we wish for our daughters,sons,women,and men

Safe and peace.

فلسطين Filistin - Palestine

2008-12-29T02:33:00.004+02:00

Least we can do in time like this,is to have a momet of silence to pay our respect
And due to the event,we will talk a little about it..
Not about the event...opening TV would be enough,but about the facts lying behinde it
Misery of a whole nation !

1517 AD : The Ottoman Turks of Asia Minor defeated the Mamelukes, with few interruptions, ruled Palestine until the winter of 1917-18. The country was divided into several districts (sanjaks), such as that of Jerusalem. The administration of the districts was placed largely in the hands of Arab Palestinians, who were descendants of the Canaanites. The Christian and Jewish communities, however, were allowed a large measure of autonomy. Palestine shared in the glory of the Ottoman Empire during the 16th century, but declined again when the empire began to decline in the 17th century.
1831-1840 AD : Muhammad Ali, the modernizing viceroy of Egypt, expanded his rule to Palestine . His policies modified the feudal order, increased agriculture, and improved education. 1840 The Ottoman Empire reasserted its authority, instituting its own reforms .
1845 Jewish in Palestine were 12,000 increased to 85,000 by 1914. All people in Palestine were Arabic Muslims and Christians.
1897 the first Zionist Congress held Basle, Switzerland, issued the Basle programme on the colonization of Palestine.

1904 the Fourth Zionist Congress decided to establish a national home for Jews in Argentina.
1906 the Zionist congress decided the Jewish homeland should be Palestine.
1914 With the outbreak of World War I, Britain promised the independence of Arab lands under Ottoman rule, including Palestine, in return for Arab support against Turkey which had entered the war on the side of Germany.
1916 Britain and France signed the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which divided the Arab region into zones of influence. Lebanon and Syria were assigned to France, Jordan and Iraq to Britain and Palestine was to be internationalized.
1917 The British government issued the Balfour Declaration on November 2, in the form of a letter to a British Zionist leader from the foreign secretary Arthur J. Balfour prmissing him the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine.
1917-1918 Aided by the Arabs, the British captured Palestine from the Ottoman Turks. The Arabs revolted against the Turks because the British had promised them, in correspondence with Shareef Husein ibn Ali of Mecca, the independence of their countries after the war. Britain, however, also made other, conflicting commitments in the secret Sykes-Picot agreement with France and Russia (1916), it promised to divide and rule the region with its allies. In a third agreement, the Balfour Declaration of 1917, Britain promised the Jews a Jewish "national home" in Palestine .
1918 After WW I ended, Jews began to migrate to Palestine, which was set a side as a British mandate with the approval of the League of Nations in 1922. Large-scale Jewish settlement and extensive Zionist agricultural and industrial enterprises in Palestine began during the British mandatory period, which lasted until 1948.
1919 The Palestinians convened their first National Conference and expressed their opposition to the Balfour Declaration.
1920 The San Remo Conference granted Britain a mandate over Palestine. and two years later Palestine was effectively under British administration. Sir Herbert Samuel, a declared Zionist, was sent as Britain's first High Commissioner to Palestine. 1922 The Council of the League of Nations issued a Mandate for Palestine.
1929 Large-scale attacks on Jews by Arabs rocked Jerusalem. Palestinians killed 133 Jews and suffered 116 deaths. Sparked by a dispute over use of the Western Wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque ( this site is sacred to Muslims, but Jews claimed it is the remaining of jews temple all studies shows clearly that the wall is from the Islamic ages and it is part of al-Aqsa Mosque). But the roots of the conflict lay deeper in Arab fears of the Zionist movement which aimed to make at least part of British-administered Palestine a Jewish state.
1936 The Palestinians held a six-month General Strike to protest against the confiscation of land and Jewish immigration.
1937 Peel Commission, headed by Lord Robert Peel, issued a report. Basically, the commission concluded, the mandate in Palestine was unworkable There was no hope of any cooperative national entity there that included both Arabs and Jews. The commission went on to recommend the partition of Palestine into a Jewish state, an Arab state, and a neutral sacred-site state to be administered by Britain.
1939 The British government published a White Paper restricting Jewish immigration and offering independence for Palestine within ten years. This was rejected by the Zionists, who then organized terrorist groups and launched a bloody campaign against the British and the Palestinians.

1947 Great Britain decided to leave Palestine and called on the United Nations (UN) to make recommendations. In response, the UN convened its first special session and on November 29, 1947, it adopted a plan calling for partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states, with Jerusalem as an international zone under UN jurisdiction.
1947 Arab protests against partition erupted in violence, with attacks on Jewish settlements in retalation to the attacks of Jews terrorist groups to Arab Towns and villages and massacres in hundred against unarmed Palestinian in there homes.
15 May 1948 British decided to leave on this day, leaders of the Yishuv decided (as they claim) to implement that part of the partition plan calling for establishment of a Jewish state. The same day, the armies of Egypt, Transjordan (now Jordan), Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq joined Palestinian and other Arab guerrillas in a full-scale war (first Arab-Israeli War). The Arabs failed to prevent establishment of a Jewish state, and the war ended with four UN-arranged armistice agreements between Israel and Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. The small Gaza Strip was left under Egyptian control, and the West Bank was controled by Jordan. Of the more than 800,000 Arabs who lived in Israeli-held territory before 1948, only about 170,000 remained. The rest became refugees in the surrounding Arab countries, ending the Arab majority in the Jewish state.
1956 Attckes incursions by refugee guerrilla bands and attacks by Arab military units were made, Egypt refused to permit Israeli ships to use the Suez Canal and blockaded the Straits of Tiran erupted in the second Arab-Israeli War.Great Britain and France joined the attack because of their dispute with Egypt's president Gamal Abdel Nasser, who had nationalized the Suez Canal. Seizing the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula within few days. The fighting was halted by the UN after a few days, and a UN Emergency Force (UNEF) was sent to supervise the cease-fire in the Canal zone. By the end of the year their forces withdrew from Egypt, but Israel refused to leave Gaza until early 1957.
1965 The Palestine Liberation Organization was established.

1967 Nasser's insistence in 1967 that the UNEF leave Egypt, led Israel to attack Egypt, Jordan, and Syria simultaneously on 5th of June.The war ended six days later with an Israeli victory. Israel occuiped Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, Arab East Jerusalem, West Bank, Golan Heights.
After 1967 war, several guerrilla organizations within the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) carried out guerrillas attacks on Israeli miletary targets, with the stated objective of "redeeming Palestine.
1973 Egypt and Syria joined in a war against Israel 'sentence has been corrected by me'to regain the territories lost in 1967. The two Arab states struck unexpectedly on October 6. After crossing the suez channel the Arab forces gain a lot of advanced positions in Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights and manage to defeat the Israeli forces for more then three weeks. Israeli forces with a massive U.S. economic and military assistance managed to stop the arab forces after a three-week struggle. The Arab oil-producing states cut off petroleum exports to the United States and other Western nations in retaliation for their aid to Israel.In an effort to encourage a peace settlement, U.S. secretary of state, Henry Kissinger, managed to work out military disengagements between Israel and Egypt in the Sinai and between Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights during 1974.
1974 The Arab Summit in Rabat recognized the PLO as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.
1982 Israel launched an invasion of Lebanon aimed at wiping out the PLO presence there. By mid-August, after intensive fighting in and around Bayrut, the PLO agreed to withdraw its guerrillas from the city. Israeli troops remained in southern Lebanon.
1987 Relations between Israel and the Palestinians entered a new phase with the intifada, a series of uprisings in the occupied territories that included demonstrations, strikes, and rock-throwing attacks on Israeli soldiers.
1988 The PNC meeting in Algiers declared the State of Palestine as outlined in the UN Partition Plan 181.

For more information:
http://www.palestinehistory.com/history/brief/brief.htm

http://www.palestineremembered.com/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestine

Gazza...Gaza...!

2008-12-27T20:13:00.008+02:00

Sinking in blood !

Human rights?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Which human,and what rights ?!

Only some human but not the others ?!
Aren't they human ?
İt can be your daughter,son,brother or sister,
Husband ,wife,father or mother ,can't it?!

Don't they have right to LİVE same as you and i do?!!!!!!!!!!!

Israeli F-16 bombers have pounded key targets across the Gaza Strip, killing more than 200 people, local medics say.

Most of those killed were policemen in the Hamas militant movement, which controls Gaza, but women and children also died, the Gaza officials said.
About 700 others were wounded, as missiles struck security compounds and militant bases, the officials said.
Israel said it was responding to an escalation in rocket attacks from Gaza and would bomb "as long as necessary".

They were the heaviest Israeli attacks on Gaza for decades. More air raids were launched as night fell.

The operation came days after a truce with Hamas expired.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said "it won't be easy and it won't be short".
"There is a time for calm and a time for fighting, and now the time has come to fight," he said.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an immediate halt to the violence, condemning what he called Israel's "excessive use of force leading to the killing and injuring of civilians" and "the ongoing rocket attacks by Palestinian militants".
Middle East envoy Tony Blair and the French EU presidency also urged an immediate ceasefire.
Palestinian militants frequently fire rockets against Israeli towns from inside the Gaza Strip; large numbers of rocket and mortar shells have been fired at Israel in recent days.
In a statement, Israel's military said it targeted "Hamas terror operatives" as well as training camps and weapons storage warehouses.

Hamas bases destroyedA Hamas police spokesman, Islam Shahwan, said one of the raids targeted a police compound in Gaza City where a graduation ceremony for new personnel was taking place.

At least a dozen bodies of men in black uniforms were photographed at the Hamas police headquarters in Gaza City.
Israel said operations "will continue, will be expanded, and will deepen if necessary".
It is the worst attack in Gaza since 1967 in terms of the number of Palestinian casualties, a senior analyst told the BBC in Jerusalem.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni defended the air raids, saying Israel had "no choice". "We're doing what we need to do to defend our citizens," she said in a television broadcast.
Israel hit targets across Gaza, striking in the territory's main population centres, including Gaza City in the north and the southern towns of Khan Younis and Rafah.
Hamas said all of its security compounds in Gaza were destroyed by the air strikes, which Israel said hit some 40 targets.
Mosques issued urgent appeals for people to donate blood and Hamas sources told the BBC's Rushdi Abou Alouf in Gaza that hospitals were soon full.
In the West Bank, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas - whose Fatah faction was ousted from Gaza by Hamas in 2007 - condemned the attacks and called for restraint.

But Hamas quickly vowed to carry out revenge attacks on Israel in response to the air strikes, firing Qassam rockets into Israeli territory as an immediate reply.
One Israeli was killed by a rocket strike on the town of Netivot, 20 kilometres (12 miles) east of Gaza, doctors said.
"Hamas will continue the resistance until the last drop of blood," spokesman Fawzi Barhoum was reported as saying.
The air strikes come amid rumours that an Israeli ground operation is imminent.
Calls for ceasefire
World leaders urged both sides to halt the violence.
A White House spokesman said the United States "urges Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza".
"Hamas' continued rocket attacks into Israel must cease if the violence is to stop," the spokesman, Gordon Johndroe, added.
The UK Foreign Office said: "We urge maximum restraint to avoid further civilian casualties."
At least 30 missiles were fired by F-16 fighter bombers. Israel's Haaretz newspaper reported that about 60 warplanes took part in the first wave of air strikes.
Egypt opened its border crossing to the Gaza Strip at Rafah to absorb and treat some of those injured in the south of the territory.
Most of the dead and injured were said to be in Gaza City, where Hamas's main security compound was destroyed. The head of Gaza's police forces, Tawfik Jaber, was reportedly among those killed.

Residents spoke of children heading to and from school at the time of the attacks.
Palestinians staged demonstrations in the West Bank cities of Ramallah and Hebron, and there were some scuffles with Israeli troops there.
Israeli security officials have been briefing about the possibility of a new offensive into Gaza for some days now, says the BBC's Paul Wood, in Jerusalem.
But most reports centred on the possibility of a ground offensive, and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was not expected to authorise any operation until Sunday at the earliest.
Although a six-month truce between Hamas and Israel was agreed earlier this year, it was regularly under strain and was allowed to lapse when it expired this month.
Hamas blamed Israel for the end of the ceasefire, saying it had not respected its terms, including the lifting of the blockade under which little more than humanitarian aid has been allowed into Gaza.
Israel said it initially began a staged easing of the blockade, but this was halted when Hamas failed to fulfil what Israel says were agreed conditions, including ending all rocket fire and halting weapons smuggling.
Israel says the blockade - in place since Hamas took control of Gaza in June 2007 - is needed to isolate Hamas and stop it and other militants from firing rockets across the border at Israeli towns.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7800985.stm

Gaza....
What is Gaza ?

The Gaza Strip is not recognized internationally as part of any sovereign country. It is claimed by the Palestinian National Authority as part of the Palestinian territories, though following the June 2007 battle of Gaza, actual control of the area is in the hands of the de facto government dominated by Hamas. Israel, which governed the Gaza Strip from 1967-2005, still controls the strip's airspace, territorial water and offshore maritime access, as well as its side of the Gaza-Israeli border. Egypt, which governed the Gaza Strip from 1948-1967 controls the southern border between the Gaza strip and the Sinai desert.

History of Gaza

Ottoman and British control (1517-1948)
In 1517 Gaza fell to the Ottomans and was part of the Ottoman Empire until the First World War.
Starting in the early 19th century, Gaza was culturally dominated by neighboring Egypt. Though part of the Ottoman Empire, a large number of its residents were Egyptians (and their descendants) who had fled political turmoil.[2]
The region served as a battlefield during the First World War (1914-18). The Gaza Strip was taken by the British in the Third Battle of Gaza on 7 November 1917. The British government has financially supported the maintenance of a cemetery for fallen British soldiers from WWI.[3]
Following World War I, Gaza became part of the British Mandate of Palestine under the authority of the League of Nations.[4]
Jews were present in Gaza until 1929 Palestine riots, when Jews were forced to leave Gaza. After that the British prohibited Jews from living in the area, though some Jews returned and, in 1946, established kibbutz Kfar Darom near the Egyptian border.[5]
British rule of Palestine ended with the Israeli War of Independence in 1948.

Egyptian occupation (1948-67)

Main article: Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt
According to the terms of the 1947 United Nations partition plan, the Gaza area was to become part of a new Arab state. Following the dissolution of the British mandate of Palestine and 1947-1948 Civil War in Palestine, Israel declared its independence in May 1948. The Egyptian army invaded the area from the south, starting the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
The Gaza Strip as it is known today was the product of the subsequent 1949 Armistice Agreements between Egypt and Israel, often referred to as the Green Line. Egypt occupied the Strip from 1949 (except for four months of Israeli occupation during the 1956 Suez Crisis) until 1967. The Strip's population was greatly augmented by an influx of Palestinian Arab refugees who fled or were expelled from Israel during the fighting.
Towards the end of the war, the All-Palestine Government (Arabic: حكومة عموم فلسطين hukumat 'umum Filastin) was proclaimed in Gaza City on 22 September 1948 by the Arab League. It was conceived partly as an Arab League attempt to limit the influence of Transjordan over the Palestinian issue. The government was not recognized by Transjordan or any non-Arab country. It was little more than a façade under Egyptian control, had negligible influence or funding, and subsequently moved to Cairo. Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip or Egypt were issued All-Palestine passports until 1959, when Gamal Abdul Nasser, President of Egypt, annulled the All-Palestine government by decree.
Egypt never annexed the Gaza Strip, but instead treated it as a controlled territory and administered it through a military governor. The refugees were never offered Egyptian citizenship.
During the Sinai campaign of November 1956, the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula were overrun by Israeli troops. International pressure soon forced Israel to withdraw.

Israeli occupation (1967-1994)

Israel occupied the Gaza Strip again in June 1967 during the Six-Day War. The military occupation lasted for 27 years, until 1994. However, according to the Oslo Accords, Israel retains control of air space, territorial waters, offshore maritime access, the population registry, entry of foreigners, imports and exports as well as the tax system.
During the period of Israeli occupation, Israel created a settlement bloc, Gush Katif in the south west corner of the Strip near Rafah and the Egyptian border. In total Israel created 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip, comprising some 20% of the total territory. Besides ideological reasons for being there, these settlements also served Israel's security concerns. The Gaza Strip remained under Israeli military administration until 1994. During that period the military administration was also responsible for the maintenance of civil facilities and services.
In March 1979 Israel and Egypt signed the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. Among other things, the treaty provided for the withdrawal by Israel of its armed forces and civilians from the Sinai Peninsula which Israel had captured during the Six-Day War. The final status of the Gaza Strip as with relations between Israel and Palestinians was not dealt with in the treaty. The treaty did settle the international border between Gaza Strip and Egypt. Egypt renounced all territorial claims to the region beyond the international border.
In May 1994, following the Palestinian-Israeli agreements known as the Oslo Accords, a phased transfer of governmental authority to the Palestinians took place. Much of the Strip (except for the settlement blocs and military areas) came under Palestinian control. The Israeli forces left Gaza City and other urban areas, leaving the new Palestinian Authority to administer and police the Strip. The Palestinian Authority, led by Yasser Arafat, chose Gaza City as its first provincial headquarters. In September 1995, Israel and the PLO signed a second peace agreement extending the Palestinian Authority to most West Bank towns. The agreement also established an elected 88-member Palestinian National Council, which held its inaugural session in Gaza in March 1996.
The PA rule of the Gaza Strip and West Bank under leadership of Arafat suffered from serious mismanagement and corruption. Exorbitant bribes were demanded for allowing goods to pass in and out of the Gaza Strip, while heads of the Preventive Security Service apparatus profited from their involvement in the gravel import and cement and construction industries, like the Great Arab Company for Investment and Development, the al-Motawaset Company and the al-Sheik Zayid construction project.
The Second Intifada broke out in September 2000. In February 2005, the Israeli government voted to implement a unilateral disengagement plan from the Gaza Strip. The plan began to be implemented on 15 August 2005 (the day after Tisha B'av) and was completed on 12 September 2005. Under the plan, all Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip (and four in the West Bank) and the nearby Erez bloc were dismantled with the removal of all 9,000 Israeli settlers (most of them in the Gush Katif settlement area in the Strip's southwest) and military bases. On 12 September 2005 the Israeli cabinet formally declared an end to Israeli military rule in the Gaza Strip. To avoid any allegation that it was still in occupation of any part of the Gaza Strip, Israel also withdrew from the Philadelphi Route, which is a narrow strip adjacent to the Strip's border with Egypt, after Egypt's agreement to secure its side of the border. Under the Oslo Accords the Philadelphi Route was to remain under Israeli control, to prevent the smuggling of materials (such as ammunition) and people across the border with Egypt. With Egypt agreeing to patrol its side of the border, it was hoped that the objective would be achieved.

El Tarikh El Masri - The Egyptian History

2008-12-27T17:08:00.002+02:00

Till now we haven't talked about.İt was like 'Hey ,and who don't know about the Egyptian history,enough that you type the word Egypt in google and you will get loads and loads of hits !'
Still,we cant talk about Misir-Egypt without talking about history,can we ?

They made the history,wrote it down years and years before any other civilization did.

We will try to have a wide look about it as much as we can,but brief one

Shall we ?

Introduction

Egypt enjoys a deep-rooted civilization which began when the ancient Egyptians established on the bank of the River Nile the first central state.
Throughout centuries, the Egyptians interacted with other civilizations and peoples. Yet, Egypt kept its cultural peculiarity which historians divide into Pharaonic Era which lasted for 3000 years, Greek Era which also lasted for 3000 years, Roman Era which interacted with Coptic Era after Christianity entered Egypt, and finally the Islamic Conquest of Egypt and the Ottoman Rule till the Modern Era launched by Mohamed Ali Pasha, the founder of modern Egypt.

Egypt in the Pharaonic Era

The Pharaonic Era dates back to 3000 years B.C. till Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 323 B.C. During the Pharaonic Era, Egypt witnessed many aspects of progress and renaissance in all fields. Historians divide the Pharaonic Era into three successive divisions: Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and Modern Kingdom. The Pharaonic Era is thus divided into three dynasties as follows:

Ancient Age (Dynasties I & II)

In 3200 B.C. Menes managed to unify north and south of Egypt and he established the first ruling dynasty. To secure the unity of Egypt, Menes established the city of Memphis near Delta.

Old Kingdom (Dynasties from III to VI)

During the Old Kingdom, Egypt enjoyed stability, security and peace, a matter that achieved its economic, cultural and artistic progress in this time. The kings of the Old Kingdom ruled till 2800 B.C. after the throne of Egypt moved to Manf by Zoser, whose pyramid is the oldest known one at Saqqara. The Egyptian civilization flourished in this period, a matter represented in the building of the Giza Pyramids: Khufu (Cheops), Khafre (Chephren) and Menkaura (Mycerinus

The First Middle Age (Dynasties from VII to X)

This age began in 2200 B.C. when Menthotpe II (Mentuhotep) managed to reunify the country.

The Middle Kingdom (Dynasties XI& XII)

After Menthotpe II, the Prince of Thebes, managed to reunify the country and founded a strong government, Egypt flourished economically. In 2000 B.C. Amenemhet I played a great role in the renaissance of the Middle Kingdom. The kings and queens of Dynasty XII acquired fame all over the world in the fields of policy, war, culture civilization and religion such as Ahmos, hero of liberation, Amenhotep I who laid down fair standards for wages and incentives, Tuhutmos I, the warrior who expanded the Egyptian borders north and south, and spread out education everywhere, Tuhutmos III who possessed a unique military genius, Tuhutmos IV, the diplomat who was the first to record international agreements. This is in addition to Akhenaton who was the first to call for the oneness of the Creator and Tut Ankh Amun, who gained fame in the modern time. The most famous queens of this time were Ahmos Nefertari, wife of Ahmos I, Tee, mother of Akhenaton, Nefertiti, wife of Akhenaton and Hatchepsut who ruled Egypt for 20 years. The Second Middle Age (Dynasties XIII, XVII) In 1725 B.C. the Hyksos attacked Egypt and occupied the Egyptian lands. Yet, the princes of Thebes, led by Ahmos I, managed to expel them out of Egypt.

The Modern Kingdom (Dynasties XVIII, XX)

After Ahmos expelled the Hyksos, he worked on establishing a well-equipped army. Ramsis II, one of the most famous kings of the Modern Kingdom, signed the first peace treaty in history with the Hittites.

The Late Age (Dynasties XXI to XXX)

From Dynasty XXI till Dynasty XVIII, the Assyrians and the Persians occupied Egypt, till the rule of the Pharaohs ended during the reign of Dynasty XXX when Alexander the Great conqured Egypt.

Arts of the Pharaonic Civilization Architecture

Ancient Egyptians made outstanding achievements in architecture, as can be clearly seen from the everlasting monuments they have left behind. The first pyramid ever built in Egypt was Zoser's, then Midum's pyramid. However, the Giza pyramids together with the Sphinx, built during the 4th Dynasty, are the most famous of the 97 pyramids built to be tombs for Pharaohs.
During the period of the Middle Kingdom, many funerary temples were built. The 12th Dynasty kings were also interested in el-Fayyoum area where they attended to irrigation works. The most famous of those temples was the Labyrinth Temple or the “Maze Palace” as called by the Greeks. The temple was built in Hawwara by King Amenemehet III, who also built castles, fortresses and walls along Egypt's eastern borders.
The period of the Middle Kingdom was the heyday of architectural arts, where exquisite inscriptions and fine artworks were engraved on the walls of colossal temples, the most prominent ones were Karnak, Luxor and Abu Simbel.
The era of Thutmose I was a turning point in using pyramids as tombs. On the west bank of the Nile at Luxor, there were carved-into-mountains tombs with rich and luxurious funerary furniture. This can be clearly seen in the tomb of Tutankhamun.
In order to keep wall inscriptions intact, the artists of the Modern kingdom deliberately used deep slightly embossed engravings, thus, avoiding distortion or erosion.
The most recently discovered tomb of the Valley of Kings was that of the sons of King Ramsis II; a vast tomb containing 15 mummies. Pharaonic obelisks were cut out of granite and erected in two-somes at the entrance of temples. Some of the most beautiful examples of architectural art in the ancient Egyptian empire are the temples of Amun, Cheops in Karnak and Luxor, Ramsium and Hetshep-sut at ad-Deir al-Bahari as well as the rock-embedded temples such as the major and minor temples of Abu Simbel.
New trends in the architectural, plastic and applied arts emerged as can be clearly seen in the sculptured colossal and minor statues and ornamented temple columns and mural inscriptions. This elevated style is evident in thousands of small statues made from alabaster, wood or ivory and pieces of antiquities made of glass and earthenware and jewelry inlaid with precious stones.

Literature

Ancient Egyptian monuments still bear witness to their excellent talent in writing and literature. Humanity is indebted to ancient Egyptians for inventing writing, later called by the Greeks the “hieroglyphic alphabet”; composed of 24 letters. Writings were made in black or red ink on papyrus. Egyptians excelled in religious writing which tackled their religious creeds and theories of the after life, secrets of the universe, various myths of gods, prayers and songs. The oldest examples of which were “The Pyramids Texts” and “The Book of the Dead”.
Ancient Egyptian writers were excellent story writers. They used words as a tool to convey wisdom and rules of good conduct. Ancient Egyptians were bent on narrating their heritage of wise sayings and proverbs, chanting them in their feasts and ceremonies. They pursued the tradition of documenting current events of their times. This rich cultural climate was instrumental in generating several Egyptian men of letters and philosophers who left masterpieces indicative of a high level of culture and thought in Egypt.

Music

Music and songs were a favorite object for all Egyptians. Music was used for educating young people as well as in public and private ceremonies, particularly in the army. It was equally used in prayers and the burial of the dead.
Egyptians from the Old Kingdom knew wind and stringed instruments such as the “harp” known at that time as “Tipoti”. They also invented many new types of percussion instruments which were further improved across their history.

Ornamentation

Ornaments, characterized by high artistic precision and beautiful form, were also known to ancient Egyptians. Decorative elements were derived from natural surroundings including papyrus, palm trees, lotus flowers and precious stones. Amulets, believed to protect them against evil spirits, were used. Women, in particular, paid special attention to their own make-up and toilet. They were accustomed to use Kohl (as eye-liner), bracelets, necklaces, rings and henna. Costumes in Pharaonic Egypt varied from one class to another. Clothes were made of soft linen or silk fabrics imported from ancient Syria (Phoenicia). Clothes differed according to the occasion.

Next...

Source:

http://www.sis.gov.eg/En/History/Pharaohs/080200000000000001.htm

The Egyptian Women

2008-12-26T22:20:00.006+02:00

From Warrior Women to Female Pharaohs: Careers for Women in Ancient Egypt (4)

By Dr Joann Fletcher

Wives and mothers

But with the 'top job' far more commonly held by a man, the most influential women were his mother, sisters, wives and daughters. Yet, once again, many clearly achieved significant amounts of power as reflected by the scale of monuments set up in their name. Regarded as the fourth pyramid of Giza, the huge tomb complex of Queen Khentkawes (c.2500 BC) reflects her status as both the daughter and mother of kings. The royal women of the Middle Kingdom pharaohs were again given sumptuous burials within pyramid complexes, with the gorgeous jewellery of Queen Weret discovered as recently as 1995.
During Egypt's 'Golden Age', (the New Kingdom, c.1550-1069 BC), a whole series of such women are attested, beginning with Ahhotep whose bravery was rewarded with full military honours. Later, the incomparable Queen Tiy rose from her provincial beginnings as a commoner to become 'great royal wife' of Amenhotep III (1390-1352 BC), even conducting her own diplomatic correspondence with neighbouring states.
'...Queen Tiy rose from her provincial beginnings as a commoner to become 'great royal wife' of Amenhotep III...'
Pharaohs also had a host of 'minor wives' but, since succession did not automatically pass to the eldest son, such women are known to have plotted to assassinate their royal husbands and put their sons on the throne. Given their ability to directly affect the succession, the term 'minor wife' seems infinitely preferable to the archaic term 'concubine'.
Yet even the word 'wife' can be problematic, since there is no evidence for any kind of legal or religious marriage ceremony in ancient Egypt. As far as it is possible to tell, if a couple wanted to be together, the families would hold a big party, presents would be given and the couple would set up home, the woman becoming a 'lady of the house' and hopefully producing children.
Whilst most chose partners of a similar background and locality, some royal women came from as far afield as Babylon and were used to seal diplomatic relations. Amenhotep III described the arrival of a Syrian princess and her 317 female attendants as 'a marvel', and even wrote to his vassals - 'I am sending you my official to fetch beautiful women, to which I the king will say good. So send very beautiful women - but none with shrill voices'!
Such women were given the title 'ornament of the king', chosen for their grace and beauty to entertain with singing and dancing. But far from being closeted away for the king's private amusement, such women were important members of court and took an active part in royal functions, state events and religious ceremonies.
With the wives and daughters of officials also shown playing the harp and singing to their menfolk, women seem to have received musical training. In one tomb scene of c.2000 BC a priest is giving a kind of masterclass in how to play the sistrum (sacred rattle), as temples often employed their own female musical troupe to entertain the gods as part of the daily ritual.

Next...

Waraket Lahma - meat in the oven

2008-12-23T02:07:00.003+02:00

İ haven't eaten for ages it seems...but it is yummyyy

Warakat lahma (oven-cooked meat)

This is a very well known Egyptian dish usually served at intimate family gatherings especially in Ramadan.
Cuisine :Egyptian
Main ingredients :Veal, Potatoes, Carrots, Green peppers, Grean beans, Zucchini
Time of preparation : 20 Minutes
Time of cooking : 2 Hour(s), 40 Minute(s)
Serving :4

! You need to marinate meat for 24 hours before cooking it.

Ingredients
1kg Veal ,loin cut, sliced
2Zucchini ,large size, sliced
2Potatoes , peeled and cubed
1/2pack Mixed Vegetables
2Green Peppers ,medium size, sliced
1Onion ,large size, grated
1Onion ,medium size, sliced
1/2cup Lemon Juice
pinch Cinnamon ,(optional)
Salt and Pepper

Directions
In a large plastic bowl, put meat and season with lemon juice, grated onion, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
Heat oven to medium heat (180-190 C).
In a large metal baking dish arrange vegetables and potatos then onion slices, then arrange meat slices on top and pour its marinating sauce.
Cover baking dish with aluminum foil and put on the low oven rack. Put some wet newspapers under baking dish. Leave to cook for 2 - 2 ½ hours until thickest pieces of meat are tender.

Ps: whatever vegetables you like,you can add

Reference: http://www.wasfasahla.com/docs/recipe.cfm?recipe_id=1257

Edited :
As a feedback,i just made this one,and i can tell you there was a LOTS of lemon here !
For me at least !
İ would reduce the amount of lemon to just about 1 and half tbls,and add some spices
Whatever you like to taste,and also adding some soysauce to the meat would be great

Ana Bahebac...İ Love You

2008-12-21T03:14:00.009+02:00

We have talked about many things here...and we will talk more too

Just we will take a small break and take our breath
We will do that with a poem
İt may not called İ love you...but to me,that is all what it say..

Shall we ? :)

Called,İn your eyes is my address by Faruk Gewede

في عينيك عنواني

وقالت: سوف تنساني

وتنسى أنني يوما
وهبتك نبض وجداني

وتعشق موجة أخرى
وتهجر دفء شطآني

وتجلس مثلما كنا
لتسمع بعض ألحاني

ولا تعنيك أحزاني
ويسقط كالمنى اسمي

وسوف يتوه عنواني
ترى..ستقول ياعمري بأنك كنت تهواني؟

فقلت:هواك ايماني ومغفرتي..وعصياني

أتيتك والمنى عندي
بقايا بين أحضاني

ربيع مات طائره
على أنقاض بستان

رياح الحزن تعصرني
وتسخر بين وجداني

أحبك واحة هدأت
عليها كل أحزاني

أحبك نسمة تروي
لصمت الناس..ألحاني

أحبك نشوة تسري
وتشعل نار بركاني

أحبك أنت يا أملا
كضوء الصبح يلقاني

أمات الحب عشاقا
وحبك أنت أحياني

ولو خيرت في وطن
لقلت هواك أوطاني

ولو أنساك يا عمري
حنايا القلب..تنساني

اذا ما ضعت في درب

ففي عينيك..عنواني

İn your eyes is my address.

And she said,you will forget me,

And forget that someday,i gave you my heart beats .

And fall in love with another wave, and abandon the warmth of my shores.

And sit as we used to sit,to hear some of my music, and you won't care my sorrow

And my name fall down like hope,and my address get lost.

İ wonder,will you say my love that you were in love with me ?!

İ said, your love is my faith,my forgiveness,and my disobedient.
İ came to you,and hopes were remains in my chest
Spring,has died its bird,in a lefted garden.
Winds of sorrow squeezing me, and make fun in my chest.
İ love you,a garden calmed all my sorrows,
İ love you,a soft wind tell to the silent people my music,
İ love you,enjoyment flow,and lighten the fire of my volcano,
İ love you,a hope,like a day light meeting me.
Love has murder lovers, And your love,makes me alive.
İf i to choose a country, İ would've said,your love is my countries.
And if i forget you my love, my heart will forget me!

İf i got lost in my way,
İn your eyes is my address !

İt was made a song and here it is by Somaya Caysar

Part 1

Part 2

Ana Asfa - İ'm Sorry

2008-12-20T01:00:00.001+02:00

İ'm sorry,due to technical problem,i may not be active daily as i wish to be,please accept my apology .
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7792688.stm

Edited :Ohhhh, WAİT... !
İts fixed :)

Egga - عجه

2008-12-19T03:24:00.002+02:00

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 leek, white parts julienned
A large potato, grated
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp chopped parsley

Beat the eggs well in a bowl, and add the chopped onion, julienned leek, and the chopped parsley. Add the grated potato and the cumin. Season with salt and pepper, and mix well.

Heat butter to foaming in a large skillet and add the egg-mixture (It needs to be thinner than the traditional Spanish Tortilla.)

Turn down the heat immediately and cook very very slowly on the lowest heat you can provide, for about 20 minutes.

The picture is when you add some flour and put it in oven,but that above recipe is more crispy ,and..mmm actually its the way i make it ;-)

All Lyrics.com

More about Misir - Egypt

2008-12-15T23:40:00.006+02:00

Before you go to any where or even read about it,first you want to get introduced to it,how is it like,what it consist of,same like being introduced to some people for the first time,you would have some interest about where they live,came from,do they live in a house or apartment there,does it has a garden..is it big or just small one ...etc

Wont you have some similer questions

Ok,let's try to have some answers here ,shall we ?

Egyptian Flag and the coat of arms

Egypt (/ˈiːdʒɪpt/ (help·info); Arabic: مصر‎, Miṣr or Máṣr) is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about 1,010,000 square kilometers (390,000 sq mi), Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west.
Egypt is one of the most populous countries in Africa and the Middle East. The great majority of its estimated 82 million live near the banks of the Nile River, in an area of about 40,000 square kilometers (15,000 sq mi), where the only arable agricultural land is found. The large areas of the Sahara Desert are sparsely inhabited. About half of Egypt's residents live in urban areas, with the majority spread across the densely-populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities in the Nile Delta.
Egypt is famous for its ancient civilization and some of the world's most famous monuments, including the Giza pyramid complex and its Great Sphinx. The southern city of Luxor contains numerous ancient artifacts, such as the Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings. Egypt is widely regarded as an important political and cultural nation of the Middle East.

Geography:

At 1,001,450 square kilometers (386,660 sq mi), Egypt is the world's 38th-largest country. In terms of land area, it is approximately the same size as all of Central America,twice the size of France, four times the size of the United Kingdom, and the combined size of the US states of Texas and California.
Nevertheless, due to the aridity of Egypt's climate, population centres are concentrated along the narrow Nile Valley and Delta, meaning that approximately 99% of the population uses only about 5.5% of the total land area.

The Coastline of Alexandria, Egypt's second largest city
Egypt is bordered by Libya to the west, Sudan to the south, and by the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east. Egypt's important role in geopolitics stems from its strategic position: a transcontinental nation, it possesses a land bridge (the Isthmus of Suez) between Africa and Asia, which in turn is traversed by a navigable waterway (the Suez Canal) that connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Indian Ocean via the Red Sea.

Apart from the Nile Valley, the majority of Egypt's landscape is a desert. The winds blowing can create sand dunes more than 100 feet (30 m) high. Egypt includes parts of the Sahara Desert and of the Libyan Desert. These deserts were referred to as the "red land" in ancient Egypt, and they protected the Kingdom of the Pharaohs from western threats.
Towns and cities include Alexandria, one of the greatest ancient cities, Aswan, Asyut, Cairo, the modern Egyptian capital, El-Mahalla El-Kubra, Giza, the site of the Pyramid of Khufu, Hurghada, Luxor, Kom Ombo, Port Safaga, Port Said, Sharm el Sheikh, Suez, where the Suez Canal is located, Zagazig, and Al-Minya. Oases include Bahariya, el Dakhla, Farafra, el Kharga and Siwa. Protectorates include Ras Mohamed National Park, Zaranik Protectorate and Siwa. See Egyptian Protectorates for more information

Climate :

Egypt does not receive much rainfall except in the winter months. South of Cairo, rainfall averages only around 2 to 5 mm (0.1 to 0.2 in) per year and at intervals of many years. On a very thin strip of the northern coast the rainfall can be as high as 410 mm (16 in), with most of the rainfall between October and March. Snow falls on Sinai's mountains and some of the north coastal cities such as Damietta, Baltim, Sidi Barrany, etc. and rarely in Alexandria, frost is also known in mid-Sinai and mid-Egypt.
Temperatures average between 80 °F (27 °C) and 90 °F (32 °C) in summer, and up to 109 °F (43 °C) on the Red Sea coast. Temperatures average between 55 °F (13 °C) and 70 °F (21 °C) in winter. A steady wind from the northwest helps hold down the temperature near the Mediterranean coast. The Khamaseen is a wind that blows from the south in Egypt in spring, bringing sand and dust, and sometimes raises the temperature in the desert to more than 100 °F (38 °C).
Every year, a predictable flooding of the Nile replenishes Egypt's soil. This gives the country consistent harvest throughout the year. Many know this event as The Gift of the Nile.
The rise in sea levels due to global warming threatens Egypt's densely populated coastal strip and could have grave consequences for the country's economy, agriculture and industry. Combined with growing demographic pressures, a rise in sea levels could turn millions of Egyptians into environmental refugees by the end of the century, according to climate experts.

Governorates of Egypt:

Egypt is divided into 29 governorates (singular muhafazah) and 1 self-governing city. This designation replaces that of "province" (muderiyah). Egyptian governorates are the top tier of the five-tier jurisdiction hierarchy. A governorate is administered by a governor (muhafez) appointed by the president of Egypt. Most governorates have a population density of more than one-thousand per km², while the 3 largest have a population density of less than two per km².
Governorates are either fully "urban" or else they are an admixture of "urban" and "rural". The official distinction between "urban" and "rural" is reflected in the lower tiers: i.e., fully urban governorates have no regions (markaz), as the markaz is, natively, a conglomeration of villages. Moreover, governorates may comprise just one city, as in the case of Cairo or Alexandria. Hence, these one-city governorates are only divided into districts (i.e. urban neighborhoods). Cairo consists of 23 districts; Alexandria consists of 6.
Two new governorates were created in April 2008, Helwan and 6th of October.

List of the Egyptian governorates

Alexandria
Aswan
Asyut
Beheira
Beni Suef
Cairo
Dakahlia
Damietta
Faiyum
Gharbia
Giza
Ismailia
Kafr el-Sheikh
Matruh
Minya
Monufia
New Valley
North Sinai
Port Said
Qalyubia
Qena
Red Sea
Sharqia
Sohag
South Sinai
Suez
Luxor
Helwan
6th of October

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt#cite_note-15

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governorates_of_Egypt

More to come ....

Fatta

2008-12-15T04:36:00.002+02:00

Ingredients
3 cups Rice
1 1/2 kg Veal , shins, sliced or cubed
5-6 loaves Egyptian Bread
3 tbsp Garlic ,minced
1 tbsp Coriander
1 tsp Sugar
1/2 cup Vinegar
3/4 cup Almonds , fried
6 tbsp Margarine
3 Arabic Gum
2 Cardamom
Salt and Pepper

Directions

Preparing meat:
In a deep pan boil meat for 30 -50 minutes or until tender. Strain and reserve 2-3 cups of meat broth.
Preparing rice:
While meat is boiling, prepare rice. Wash rice well under running water and drain.
In a deep pan melt 2 tbsp margarine. Add 2 Arabic gums and 3 cardamoms and stir for a minute. Add rice and sir for another minute.
Add salt and 3 cups water and cook until water is absorbed. Cover and move to low heat and leave to cook for about 25 minutes.
Preparing sauce:
In a small saucepan heat and stir 1 tbsp margarine and garlic until golden. Add coriander and sugar and stir until golden brown.
Add ½ cup broth and ½ cup vinegar and leave to boil.
Preparing bread and nuts:
Cut bread into bite size squares. In a large skillet heat 2 tbsp margarine. Add bread and stir until crispy.
Add gradually 2-3 cups meat broth and stir until bread is just soft and drain any unabsorbed broth.
Serving fattah:
In a large oval serving platter, arrange bread then add meat to make a layer covering bread. Sprinkle half the quantity of sauce over meat and bread.
Add rice to form another layer and sprinkle the remaining sauce. Pour fried almonds with the margarine on top of dish.

http://www.wasfasahla.com/docs/recipe.cfm?recipe_id=240

Eid Traditions - Eid Al Adha

2008-12-15T03:23:00.003+02:00

The word Eid is an Arabic name that means a festivity, a celebration, a recurring happiness, and a feast. In Islam, there are two major Eids namely "Eid al-Fitr" (Festival of Breaking the Fast) celebrating the end of Ramadan and "Eid al-Adha" (Festival of Sacrifice) which coincides with the Hajj and commemorates prophet Abraham’s sacrifice of a sheep in place of prophet Ishmael

This year,Eid was on Monday the first day of Eid al-Adha, Islam's most important four-day religious holiday during which millions in Turkey travel to spend time with family members and loved ones.

After the Eid prayer, performed on the first day of the Eid, animals are slaughtered as a reminder of the Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael to God as an act of obedience and submission. The holiday is also when Muslims able to do so go on the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
Eid al-Adha is seen as a time of year when Turks actively socialize and reunite with friends and family, creating a positive atmosphere across the country with solidarity between relatives, neighbors and society at large, with communities not forgetting the needs of the poor and less fortunate even at this joyful time. It is a time of giving and sharing.

Eid al-Adha is also a day of remembrance for those who are no longer with us, with many visiting the graves of deceased relatives and loved ones over the holiday.
Common greetings during this holiday are "Eid mubarak," (May your Eid be blessed). Kol Sana we enta/enti tayeb/tayebah which is a wish meaning in a whole,'wish you be good every year and be in Eid with us'

Muslims put on their best clothes, called "hodom El Eid"clothes of Ei Eid, often purchased just for the occasion. They visit loved ones and pay their respects to the deceased in cemeteries.

Usually the week before the Eid,stores be very much crowded,everyone is going down town to buy the new clothes for their children,and if they can afford,they buy also for themselves.

The Waqfa 'the day before Eid' many of the Muslims fast it as sharing for others who are there in Macca.

But still,that doesnt prevent them from buying the new clothes,before or after iftar 'breaking the fast'

Then they go back home,and all take a very nice shower before sleeping,and sleep to wake up early for Eid prayer.

They wake up and put on their new clothes,men and children and sometimes also women go,they all almost shine in their new clothes.

We finish Salah 'prayer' and go home ready to gather with all family and go to the elder member of the family and have breakfast with...which is Fata

İts made of crisp bread wetted with soup,rice,tomato sauce,nuts,raisin and flavored with garlic with vinegar
İts really cool,i make it just GREAT !

And before having breakfast usually animals are slaughtered,although some people do it at the second day.
It is customary for children to also receive a "Eidyah" from their grown-up relatives. This is a small sum of money that the children receive, to spend on all their activities throughout the Eid. Children wear their new clothes and go out to amusement parks, gardens or public courtyards based on how much their Eidyah affords. The amusement parks can range from the huge ones on the outskirts of Cairo to small mobile neighborhood rides consisting of swings, much like a neighborhood carnival. In a lot of neighborhood courtyards, kids also gather around a storyteller, a puppeteer or a magician mesmerized by Egyptian folktales or by a grownup’s sleight of hand. It is also customary for kids to rent decorated bikes to ride around town.

Eid is a time for family gatherings and since a lot of Egyptian city dwellers are first or second generation immigrants from towns and villages, those gatherings can involve traveling and thus it is the busiest time of the year for highways and trains. Since most Egyptians live in close proximity to the Nile, felucca Nile rides is one common feature of Eid celebration in Egyptian villages, towns and cities. For a lot of families from working neighborhoods, Eid celebration also includes picnics in green areas including parks, zoos, botanical gardens and even green islands on major roads

Television and radio stations broadcast a variety of Eid programs, including movie specials, music programs and celebratory addresses from stars and politicians.

At lunch we usually make BBQ ,sometimes they call Eid Al Adha,Meat's Eid,because we eat meat in those few days more than we usually do in norm.
And we make sure that poor people get their share from it too.

rest of the days we spent them in socialize with more relative,sometimes we dont visit them for a whole year but MUST visit at Eid times.
And meet with friends,make more family gatherings,and go out and spent Eideyah's money :)

References:
http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/eid.htm
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=160945 Our traditions almost same :)

Ps:Sry guys for not posting it earlier,but i was busy with Eid too

Eid Al-Adha

2008-12-08T03:10:00.002+02:00

Just in a hurry,giving you some idea about what is Eid Al Adha,then will be back to tell you more how we celebrate it in Misir-Egypt.
Eid al-Adha (Arabic: عيد الأضحى ‘Īd ul-’Aḍḥā) or the Festival of Sacrifice (Turkish: Kurban Bayramı) is a religious festival celebrated by Muslims and Druze worldwide in commemoration of the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God. The devil tempted Ibrahim by saying he should disobey God and spare his son. As Ibrahim was about to sacrifice his son, God intervened and instead provided a lamb as the sacrifice. This is why today all over the world Muslims who have the means to, sacrifice an animal (usually a goat or a sheep), as a reminder of Ibrahim's obedience to God. The meat is then shared out with family, friends (Muslims or non-Muslims), as well as the poor members of the community. (Islam names Ishmael as the son who was to be sacrificed, whereas the Judeo-Christian name Isaac).
Eid al-Adha is one of two Eid festivals celebrated by Muslims, whose basis comes from the Quran.[1] (Muslims in Iran celebrate a third, non-denominational Eid.) Like Eid el-Fitr, Eid al-Adha begins with a short prayer followed by a sermon (khuṭba).
Eid al-Adha annually falls on the 10th day of the month of Dhul Hijja (ذو الحجة) of the lunar Islamic calendar. The festivities last for two to three days or more depending on the country. Eid al-Adha occurs the day after the pilgrims conducting Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia by Muslims worldwide, descend from Mount Arafat. It happens to be approximately 70 days after the end of the month of Ramadan.

Refrence :http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eid_ul-Adha

Misri Food - Egyptian Cuisine

2008-12-06T17:07:00.015+02:00

Here,we will try to introduce you to some of the Misri food,and main traditional dishes

Yummyyy,i must say ;-)

Like some traditional breakfast

Or some lunch waiting for kebab dish

Koshari

Shawerma

But we usually eat it in sandwiches,and it comes in both chicken or beaf

Or kebab

And how about deserts ?

Yes,this is same as the Turkish one

And here is the Konafa

And then Basbousa

Done yet ? :)

Ok,let's start to get more closer ;-)

Koshari
Shakshuka

Fatta

Here,you can read more about the Egyptian Cauisine

Egyptian Arabic Mini Traveller phrasebook

2008-12-05T14:46:00.004+02:00

Egyptian Arabic (maSrī مصري) is the modern Egyptian vernacular and the most widely spoken and understood colloquial variety of Arabic. It is spoken by 77 million people, mainly in Egypt. It is used in everyday speech, comics, advertising, song lyrics, teen magazines, plays, and TV shows, but rarely in novels, newspapers, and never in news reporting, which use Modern Standard Arabic instead
Pronunciation
Vowels
Egyptian Arabic differentiates between short and long vowels. Long vowels are shown in this phrasebook with a macron above the vowel.
ī
as in "sheet" (long)
i
as in "fig" (short)
ē
as in "fate" (long)
ā
as in "hand" (long)
a
like ā but shorter
ū
as in "shoe" (long)
u
as in "put" (short)
ō
as in "float"
ǟ
as in "bar"
ä
like ǟ but shorter
Consonants

Most Arabic consonants are not too difficult:
b
as in English
f
as in English
t
as in English, pronounced more forward in the mouth
d
as in English, pronounced more forward in the mouth
g
as in English
k
as in English
r
as in English, pronounced trilled (as in Spanish)
l
as in English, pronounced more forward in the mouth
h
as in English, but occurs in unfamiliar positions
m
as in English
n
as in English
s
as in English
z
as in English
w
as in English
y
as in English
š
as /sh/ in English
j
as /s/ in pleasure (only found in loanwords)
p
as in English (only found in loanwords)
v
as in English (only found in loanwords)

The following are a little more unusual:
S
emphatic s pronounced with the tongue raised and mouth tensed
T
emphatic t pronounced with the tongue raised and mouth tensed
D
emphatic d pronounced with the tongue raised and mouth tensed
Z
emphatic z pronounced with the tongue raised and mouth tensed
q
a hard k pronounced in the back of the mouth found mostly in borrowings from classical Arabic
x
a harsh sound found in some English words like bach and loch
ğ
a voiced x like a French "r"
ħ
a hard h made in the pharynx
And the last two are very hard indeed for non-native speakers to get right, so try to get a native speaker to demonstrate. That said, most beginners tend to opt for the simple approach of ignoring those pesky apostrophes entirely, but it's worth it to make the effort.
’
a glottal stop (IPA ʔ), or the constriction of the throat as between the syllables uh-oh, but in Arabic this is often found in strange places such as the beginning of a word. Known in Arabic as hamza (ء).
ʿ
a voiced ħ (IPA ʕ), famously equated to the sound of someone being strangled. Known in Arabic as ʿayin (ع).
Egyptian vs MSA
Some notable differences between Egyptian Arabic and Modern Standard Arabic include the following:
ج is pronounced with a hard "g" [g], not "j" [dz]
ث is pronounced as "s" [s], not "th" [θ]
ذ is pronounced as "z" [z], not "dh" [ð]
Phrase list
Basics
Many Arabic expressions are different for men and women, depending both on the gender of the person talking (you) and the person being addressed.
Hello
’is-salāmu-ʿalēku السلام عليكو
Hello (informal)
’ahlan أهلا
Good morning.
Säbǟħ ’il-xēr صباح الخير
Good evening.
masā’ ’il-xēr مساء الخير
Good night (to sleep)
tiSbäħ ʿala xēr تصبح على خير (to a male)tiSbäħi ʿala xēr تصبحي على خير (to a female)tiSbäħu ʿala xēr تصبحو على خير (to a group)
How are you?
’izzayyak? إزيياك (to a male)’izzayyik? إزييك (to a female)’izzayyuku? إزييكو (to a group)
Fine, thank you.
kwayyis šukran كوييس شكرا (male)kwayyisa šukran كوييسه شكرا (female)kwayyisīn šukran كوييسيين شكرا (group)
What is your name?
’ismak ’ēh? إسمك ايه؟ (to a male)’ismik ’ēh? إسمك إيه؟ (to a female)
My name is ______ .
’ana ’ismi ______ أنا إسمي
Please.
min fäDläk من فضلك (to a male)min fäDlik من فضلك (to a female)min fäDluku من فضلكو (to a group)
Thank you.
šukran شكرا
You're welcome.
ʿ afwan عفوا
Yes.
’aywa أيوه
No.
la’ لاء
Excuse me. (getting attention)
law samaħt لو سمحت (to a male)law samaħti لو سمحت (to a female)law samaħtu لو سمحتو (to a group)
Excuse me. (avoiding offence)
baʿd ’iznak بعد إذنك (to a male)baʿd ’iznik بعد إذنك (to a female)baʿd ’iznuku بعد إذنكو (to a group)
Excuse me. (begging pardon)
lā mu’axza لاموءاخذه
I'm sorry
’ana ’āsif أنا آسف (male)’ana ’asfa أنا آسفه (female)
Goodbye
maʿas-salāma مع السلامة
Goodbye (informal)
salām سلام
I can't speak Arabic well.
mabakkallimš ʿarabī kwayyis ما بتكلمش عَرَبيْ كوييس
Do you speak English?
bitikkallim ’ingilīzi? بتتكلم إنجليزي؟ (male)bitikkallimi ’ingilīzi? بتتكلمي إنجليزي؟ (female)
Is there someone here who speaks English?
fī ħadd hina biyikkallim ’ingilīzi? في حدهنا بيتكلم انجليزي؟
Help!
’ilħa’ūni! الحقوني
Look out!
ħāsib حاسب (to a male)ħasbi حاسبي (to a female)ħasbu حاسبو (to a group)
I don't understand.
’ana miš fāhim أنا مش فاهم (male)’ana miš fahma أنا مش فاهمه (female)
Where is the toilet?
fēn ’il-ħammām? فين الحمام؟
Problems
Leave me alone.
’imši! إمشى (to a male or a female)’imšu! إمشو (to a group)
Don't touch me!
matilmisnīš! ماتلمسنيش (to a male)matilmisinīš! متيلمسينيش (to a female)
I'll call the police.
’ana ħakallim ’il-bulīs أنا هكلم البوليس
Police!
bulīs! بوليس
Thief!
ħärǟmi! حرامى
I need help.
’ana miħtāg musaʿ da أنا محتاج مساعدة (male speaking)’ana miħtāga musaʿ da أنا محتاجة مساعدة (female)
It's an emergency.
ħāla Tǟri’a حالة طارئة
I'm lost.
’ana taayih أنا تايه (male speaking)’ana tayha أنا تايها (female)
I lost my purse/handbag.
’ana Däyyäʿt šänTiti أنا طيعت شنطيطى
I lost my wallet.
’ana Däyyäʿt mäħfäZti أنا طيعت محفظتى
I'm sick.
’ana ʿayyān أنا عيان (male speaking)’ana ʿayyāna أنا عيانة (female)
I'm injured.
’ana mitʿ äwwär أنا متعاور (male speaking)’ana mitʿ äwwära أنا متعاورة (female)
I need a doctor.
’ana miħtāg duktūr أنا محتاج دكتور (male speaking)’ana miħtāga duktūr أنا محتاجة دكتور (female)
Can I use your phone?
mumkin ’astaʿ mil tilifōnak? ممكن أستعمل تيلفوناك؟ (to a male)mumkin ’astaʿ mil tilifōnik? ممكن أستعمل تيلفونيك؟ (to a female)mumkin ’astaʿ mil tilifōnku? ممكن أستعمل تيلفونكو؟ (to a group)
Can I use your cell phone?
mumkin ’astaʿ mil mōbiylak? ممكن أستعمل موبايلاك؟ (to a male)mumkin ’astaʿ mil mōbiylik? ممكن أستعمل موبايليك؟ (to a female)mumkin ’astaʿ mil mōbiyluku? ممكن أستعمل موبايلكو؟ (to a group)
Numbers
0
Sifr
1
wāħid
2
’itnēn
3
talāta
4
’ärbäʿä
5
xamsa
6
sitta
7
sabʿa
8
tamanya
9
tisʿa
10
ʿäšärä
11
ħidǟšär
12
’itnǟšär
13
tälättǟšär
14
’ärbäʿtǟšär
15
xämästǟšär
16
sittǟšär
17
säbäʿtǟšär
18
tämäntǟšär
19
tisäʿtǟšär
20
ʿišrīn
21
wāħid wi-ʿišrīn
22
’itnēn wi-ʿišrīn
23
talāta wi-ʿišrīn
30
talatīn
40
’ärbiʿīn
50
xamsīn
60
sittīn
70
sabʿīn
80
tamanīn
90
tisʿīn
100
miyya
200
mitēn
300
tultumiyya
400
rubʿumiyya
1000
’alf
2000
’alfēn
1,000,000
milyo:n
number
nimra or räqäm
half
nuSS
less
’a’all
more
’äktär
Time
now
dilwa’ti
later
baʿdēn
before
’abl
after
baʿd
morning
Säbǟħ
in the morning
’iS-Subħ
afternoon
baʿd ’iD-Duhr
in the afternoon
’iD-Duhr
evening
misa or masā’
in the evening
misā’an
night
lēla
in the night
bil-lēl
Clock time
what time is it?
’is-sāʿa kām?
it is ___
’is-sāʿa ___
it is ʿ o'clock
’is-sāʿa talāta biZZäbT
quarter past
wi rubʿ
quarter to
’ila rubʿ
half past
wi nuSS
it is half past
’is-sāʿa talāta wi nuSS
Duration
Days
Monday
yo:m ’il-itneen
Tuesday
yo:m ’il-talāt
Wednesday
yo:m ’il-’arbaʿ
Thursday
yo:m ’il-xamīs
Friday
yo:m ’il-gumʿa
Saturday
yo:m ’is-sabt
Sunday
yo:m ’il-ħadd
Months
January
yanayer
February
febrayer
March
mares
April
ibril
May
mayu
June
yunya
July
yulya
August
ağustus
September
sebtamber
October
uktobar
November
nufamber
December
dissamber
Writing time and date
Colors
white
abiad
black
asuad
red
ahmer
green
akhdar
blue
azrak
yellow
asfar
orange
burtuqali
pink
wardi
purple
banafsegy
Transportation
Bus and train
Can I buy a ticket?
momkn Ashtrī tazkara ?
I will step down in (Heliopolis)
Ana nazel fee misr (El-gedida)
Directions
front
odam
back
wara
right
yemin
left
shemal
up
fook
down
taht
Taxi
Can you drive me to (the hospital)?
momkn tawasalnī (elmostashfā)?

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Egyptian Arabic

2008-12-05T14:06:00.003+02:00

Egyptian Arabic, or Egyptian Colloquial Arabic, is the national language of Egypt. It also serves as a second language in many countries of the Middle East.
Prior to the Arab conquest of Egypt in the 7th century AD, the Egyptians spoke Coptic, a later phase of ancient Egyptian. Following the Arab conquest, there was a prolonged period when both Coptic and Arabic were spoken in Egypt. Egyptian Arabic, as distinct from Classical Arabic and the variety spoken by the Arab invaders, is thought to have developed in the first Islamic capital of Egypt, that is now part of Cairo, the capital of present-day Egypt. With increased Islamization and Arabization of the country, Egyptian Arabic slowly replaced Coptic. However, there is evidence that Coptic Egyptian continued to be spoken until the 17th century AD. Coptic is still the liturgical language of the Egyptian Coptic Church.

A continuum of varieties of Arabic is spoken by more than 77 million Egyptians in Egypt as well as by immigrant Egyptian communities in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Australia and South East Asia. Accents of all regions of Egypt have been increasingly adapting idioms. This has accelerated with the proliferation of education and central, government-controlled radio and TV during the past 30 years.
Among the spoken varieties of Arabic, Egyptian Cairene is the only one to have become a lingua franca in other parts of the Arabic-speaking world, in addition to within Egypt, for two main reasons :the proliferation and popularity of Egyptian films and other media in the region since the early 20th century; and the great number of Egyptian teachers and professors who were instrumental in setting up the education systems of various countries in the Arabian Peninsula and who also taught there and in other countries such as Algeria and Libya.
In Yemen, many Yemenites have adapted their everyday speech to Egyptian Arabic by borrowing Egyptian words (such as kowayyes 'well, good') and occasionally Egyptian morphology. Similar occurrences to varying degrees can be found in elsewhere in Arabia, Sudan, the Levant (particularly Palestine) and in Libya. This trend may now be shifting with the recent ascendancy of Lebanese media in the region, though many Lebanese artists choose to sing in Egyptian as well as Lebanese.

Although Egyptian Arabic is for the most part a spoken dialect, it is also used in vernacular literature, including novels, plays, and poems, as popular media, such as in comics, advertising, some newspapers, and in transcriptions of popular songs. Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is used In most other written media and in TV broadcasts. MSA is spoken on all formal occasions and for all formal purposes.
Egyptian Arabic is widely understood throughout the Arab world because Egypt has been a dominant force in film and in the media. Egypt developed the first Arab-speaking local film industry, and Egyptian films are widely distributed throughout the Arab world. The Egyptian film industry has created some 3,000 full-length films since 1924 and has earned the name of 'Hollywood on the Nile.' As a result, Egyptian Arabic is usually chosen as the spoken dialect taught to students of Arabic as a foreign language.

The Egyptian Women

2008-12-05T04:56:00.003+02:00

From Warrior Women to Female Pharaohs: Careers for Women in Ancient Egypt (3)

By Dr Joann Fletcher

Women at the top

The status and privileges enjoyed by the wealthy were a direct result of their relationship with the king, and their own abilities helping to administer the country. Although the vast majority of such officials were men, women did sometimes hold high office. As 'Controller of the Affairs of the Kiltwearers', Queen Hetepheres II ran the civil service and, as well as overseers, governors and judges, two women even achieved the rank of vizier (prime minister). This was the highest administrative title below that of pharaoh, which they also managed on no fewer than six occasions.
Egypt's first female king was the shadowy Neithikret (c.2148-44 BC), remembered in later times as 'the bravest and most beautiful woman of her time'. The next woman to rule as king was Sobeknefru (c.1787-1783 BC) who was portrayed wearing the royal headcloth and kilt over her otherwise female dress. A similar pattern emerged some three centuries later when one of Egypt's most famous pharaohs, Hatshepsut, again assumes traditional kingly regalia. During her fifteen year reign (c.1473-1458 BC) she mounted at least one military campaign and initiated a number of impressive building projects, including her superb funerary temple at Deir el-Bahari.
'As 'Controller of the Affairs of the Kiltwearers', Queen Hetepheres II ran the civil service...'
But whilst Hatshepsut's credentials as the daughter of a king are well attested, the origins of the fourth female pharaoh remain highly controversial. Yet there is far more to the famous Nefertiti than her dewy-eyed portrait bust. Actively involved in her husband Akhenaten's restructuring policies, she is shown wearing kingly regalia, executing foreign prisoners and, as some Egyptologists believe, ruling independently as king following the death of her husband c.1336 BC. Following the death of her husband Seti II in 1194 BC, Tawosret took the throne for herself and, over a thousand years later, the last of Egypt's female pharaohs, the great Cleopatra VII, restored Egypt's fortunes until her eventual suicide in 30 BC marks the notional end of ancient Egypt.

Next...

Koshari

2008-12-03T05:32:00.005+02:00

Koshari

Kushari, often transliterated as kosheri or koshari, (Egyptian Arabic: كشرى; translit: kusharī) is a popular traditional Egyptian national dish, normally eaten in specialty Kushari restaurants that serve this dish exclusively. It consists of a base of rice, brown lentils, chickpeas, macaroni, and a topping of Egyptian garlic and vinegar and spicy tomato sauce (salsa). Caramelized onions are commonly added as a garnish. Kushari is normally a vegetarian and usually a vegan dish, possibly reflecting the meatless diet of Coptic Christians during Lent and other fasts. It is becoming common to add fried liver or shawarma meat as an additional topping. It is often found in fast-food establishments that also serve ta'meyya (falafel). Smaller restaurants may serve either Kushari or ta'meyya while larger ones (often chain restaurants) usually serve both. It is an inexpensive dish, and serves as a staple food.
Kushari is one of the most popular, inexpensive, and common dishes in Egypt, and some restaurants specialize in this one dish

Imagine, mixing into a single dish, pasta, rice, lentil, chick peas, onions and garlic and adding to this chili sauce. The idea sounds horrific, until one tries out an Egyptian favorite called Koshary. “I had always heard about Koshary, and its importance to Egyptians. You can see it in movies and you would hear Egyptians in Saudi Arabia describe it as the most delicious traditional dish, so I was keen to try it the moment I came to Egypt. Now I’m an addict,” said Wael Fawaz, a Syrian medical student at Misr (Cairo) University for Science and Technology. “You can’t visit Egypt and not eat Koshary, you’ll miss a lot,” he added.
Koshary is a traditional Egyptian meal that consists of a strange combination of macaroni, spaghetti, rice, black lentils, chick peas, garlic sauce and a spicy tomato chili sauce, all topped with fried onions. It is sold from carts by street vendors, in restaurants or even made at home and each is considered a different taste experience.

The Koshary man stands in front of the large containers that hold each of the dish's ingredient. Usually, there is a line of people waiting to be served. Once you place your order, you stand in a row waiting to give the Koshary man your receipt that states the price of your dish. At the moment you give him the receipt the Koshary man grabs a bowl, and scoops a little of each ingredient into the bowl and sends it to your table. Each Koshary dish takes about five seconds to prepare (of course, after the ingredients are cooked).His speed can be surprising to you. “I have worked here since we opened 10 years ago, and before that I sold Koshary on a street cart, so I have to be fast. My hands are accustomed to the same movements I do all day everyday, so you can say that I memorized the movements rather than think about them,” said Aziz Awad, a Koshary man in one of the restaurants downtown.

As the Koshary man scoops, he knocks his metal spoon against the sides of the bowls, making the Koshary symphony that you won’t hear elsewhere. When the Koshary man prepares an order of more than four the restaurant fills with sound as if it was a rehearsal for a concert. “The restaurants of Koshary are very noisy. One sits to eat while the Koshary man practices his drums in your ears. It's weird but I guess it’s a part of the Egyptian identity which you get used to in time,” said Fawaz.At the table, all the dishes are aluminum except the two glass bottles that contain two different kinds of sauce, one made from vinegar and oil, the other from spicy red pepper. “The chili is a whole new dimension for the meal. You can eat Koshary and it would taste good, but for it to be this delicious you have to use chili. That creates all the taste,” said Waleed Abdullah, an office boy.

At the table, all the dishes are aluminum except the two glass bottles that contain two different kinds of sauce, one made from vinegar and oil, the other from spicy red pepper. “The chili is a whole new dimension for the meal. You can eat Koshary and it would taste good, but for it to be this delicious you have to use chili. That creates all the taste,” said Waleed Abdullah, an office boy.
Koshary is considered a meal that is inexpensive yet fills up the stomach of an average Egyptian. “Koshary is something I love; I can have it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s eaten anytime, anywhere. I can eat it standing, sitting, at work or at home,” said Abdullah. “It’s a meal that is both affordable and delicious.

Refrences:

http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/koshary.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kushari

Koshary recipe will be posted tomorrow inşallah

The ones i found in the article,and on the net need modification

As we say,every Shikh we loh Tari'ah ;-) means every Teacher has his own way ;-)

Egyptian Women

2008-12-01T01:57:00.007+02:00

From Warrior Women to Female Pharaohs: Careers for Women in Ancient Egypt (2)

By Dr Joann Fletcher

Ladies of leisure

The most common female title 'Lady of the House' involved running the home and bearing children, and indeed women of all social classes were defined as wives and mothers first and foremost. Yet freed from the necessity of producing large numbers of offspring as an extra source of labour, wealthier women also had alternative 'career choices'.
After being bathed, depilated and doused in sweet heavy perfumes, queens and commoners alike are portrayed sitting patiently before their hairdressers, although it is equally clear that wigmakers enjoyed a brisk trade. The wealthy also employed manicurists and even female make-up artists, whose title translates literally as 'painter of her mouth'. Yet the most familiar form of cosmetic, also worn by men, was the black eye paint which reduced the glare of the sun, repelled flies and looked rather good.
'...one female party-goer asking for 'eighteen cups of wine for my insides are as dry as straw'.'
Dressing in whatever style of linen garment was fashionable, from the tight-fitting dresses of the Old Kingdom (c.2686 - 2181 BC) to the flowing finery of the New Kingdom (c.1550 - 1069 BC), status was indicated by the fine quality of the linen, whose generally plain appearance could be embellished with coloured panels, ornamental stitching or beadwork. Finishing touches were added with various items of jewellery, from headbands, wig ornaments, earrings, chokers and necklaces to armlets, bracelets, rings, belts and anklets made of gold, semi-precious stones and glazed beads.
With the wealthy 'lady of the house' swathed in fine linen, bedecked in all manner of jewellery, her face boldly painted and wearing hair which more than likely used to belong to someone else, both male and female servants tended to her daily needs. They also looked after her children, did the cleaning and prepared the food, although interestingly the laundry was generally done by men.
Freed from such mundane tasks herself, the woman could enjoy all manner of relaxation, listening to music, eating good food and drinking fine wine. One female party-goer even asked for 'eighteen cups of wine for my insides are as dry as straw'. Women are also portrayed with their pets, playing board games, strolling in carefully tended gardens or touring their estates. Often travelling by river, shorter journeys were also made by carrying-chair or, for greater speed, women are even shown driving their own chariots.

next...

Let's İntorduce You to Türkiye 'Turkey' Shall we ? :)

2008-11-30T00:05:00.006+02:00

Türkiye 'Turkey' for those who doesn't know,is very much close to us Egyptian,in almost everything
Traditions,manners,ethics...etc
İn short,you wont be feeling a stranger when you are there :)
So,let's take a look and know more ?

Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye), known officially as the Republic of Turkey (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti ), is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in western Asia and Thrace (Rumelia) in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe. Turkey is bordered by eight countries: Bulgaria to the northwest; Greece to the west; Georgia to the northeast; Armenia, Azerbaijan (the exclave of Nakhichevan) and Iran to the east; and Iraq and Syria to the southeast. The Mediterranean Sea and Cyprus are to the south; the Aegean Sea and Archipelago are to the west; and the Black Sea is to the north. Separating Anatolia and Thrace are the Sea of Marmara and the Turkish Straits (the Bosporus and the Dardanelles), which are commonly reckoned to delineate the border between Asia and Europe, thereby making Turkey transcontinental. Due to its strategic location astride two continents, Turkey's culture has a unique blend of Eastern and Western tradition. A powerful regional presence in the Eurasian landmass with strong historic, cultural and economic influence in the area between Europe in the west and Central Asia in the east, Russia in the north and the Middle East in the south, Turkey has come to acquire increasing strategic significance. Turkey is a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic whose political system was established in 1923 under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, following the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I. Since then, Turkey has become increasingly integrated with the West through membership in organizations such as the Council of Europe, NATO, OECD, OSCE and the G-20 major economies. Turkey began full membership negotiations with the European Union in 2005, having been an associate member of the EEC since 1963, and having reached a customs union agreement in 1995. Meanwhile, as a Muslim-majority countryTurkey has continued to foster close cultural, political, economic and industrial relations with the Eastern world, particularly with the states of the Middle East and Central Asia, through membership in organizations such as the OIC and ECO. Turkey is classified as a developed country by the CIA and as a regional power by political scientists and economists worldwide.

For further more reading
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey

Stop Violence Against Women !

2008-11-29T05:08:00.007+02:00

We are a little bit of the topic of our blog,but still we actually in the topic,it's a topic not in Egypt,not in Türkiye,not in the middle east and surprisingly not only at the poor and developed countries only,but rich and modern ones !
So,let's say it loud and clear.
STOP!
Stop Violence Against Women!
Not man enough who abuse women...not man at ALL !

SECRETARY-GENERAL, IN MESSAGE FOR INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR ELIMINATION OF VIOLENCE
AGAINST WOMEN, SAYS BEHAVIOUR THAT EXCUSES SUCH VIOLENCE MUST BE COMBATED
UN

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, observed on 25 November:
Across the world, in countries rich and poor, women are being beaten, trafficked, raped and killed. These human rights violations do more than harm individuals; they undermine the development, peace and security of entire societies.
Women everywhere are at risk, but those living in societies experiencing armed conflict face even graver danger. As conflicts have become more complex, the pattern of sexual violence has evolved. Women are no longer in jeopardy only during periods of actual fighting; they are just as likely to be assaulted when there is calm, by armies, militias, rebels, criminal gangs or even police.
We do not know the true number of victims, but we do know that there are far more crimes than ever get reported, and far fewer lead to arrests. In too many places, rape still carries a stigma that forces women to avoid the courts that should exist to protect them. In some countries, victims are brutalized twice: first during the crime itself, and then by the justice system, where they may face trumped-up charges of “adultery” and the possibility of subsequent punishment.
Even when perpetrators are identified, they often go unpunished, especially if they are working in the police or military. At times, these crimes are particularly shocking. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s troubled North Kivu province, where some 350 rape cases are reported every month, victims are also sometimes subjected to genital mutilation.
Even more disturbing is the age of many victims. In certain violent areas of Haiti, 50 per cent of the young women have been raped or sexually assaulted. Of the handful of courageous victims who do seek justice, one in three is under 13. During one particularly violent month earlier this year in Liberia, the majority of reported rapes were committed against girls under the age of 12, some of whom were not even 5 years old.
These examples come from countries where the United Nations has a peacekeeping presence. Thanks to the Security Council’s groundbreaking resolution 1820 (2008), adopted in June, the use of sexual violence as a tactic of warfare is now recognized as a matter of international peace and security. According to the resolution, peacekeeping missions, in particular those with mandates to protect civilians, must now include the protection of women and children from all forms of violence in their reporting on conflict situations. Resolution 1820 (2008) also requested stronger efforts to implement the vital zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation by United Nations personnel, and urged troop- and police-contributing countries to ensure full accountability in cases of misconduct.
The adoption of resolution 1820 (2008) is part of a growing global trend to address this scourge. This past February’s Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking, and the continued leadership of the General Assembly, are additional signs of international momentum.
At the national level, more and more countries are meeting their obligations to protect women through comprehensive legislation, better services for victims, stronger partnerships and increased efforts to engage men and boys in addressing the problem.
This progress is welcome, but there are still gaps. We need to do more to enforce laws and counter impunity. We need to combat attitudes and behaviour that condone, tolerate, excuse or ignore violence committed against women. And we need to increase funding for services for victims and survivors.
I am determined to strengthen these efforts, including through my global campaign “UNiTE to end violence against women”, which aims to raise public awareness, increase political will and resources and create a supportive environment to make good on existing policy commitments.
All of us -- men and women, soldiers and peacekeepers, citizens and leaders -- have a responsibility to help end violence against women. States must honour their commitments to prevent violence, bring perpetrators to justice and provide redress to victims. And each of us must speak out in our families, workplaces and communities, so that acts of violence against women cease.
Further links to the topic

UNİFEM
Each country has its own shap of the problem,and in my opinion each country is the best to analysis it and solve it
And i believe our problem here in Egypt can be formed in 2 words,education and upbringing.
more to follow.....

Türkiye -Turkey- my love :)

2008-11-29T04:25:00.006+02:00

You can fall in love with her even without being there,and the more you read,the more you hear,the more you love her more and more,and you feel echo for that love in your heart,something telling you,it's not a new love,it was always there deep in your heart...it's your love for her....Türkiye 'Turkey' تركيا

Surprised are you ?

İf you are Egyptian you won't be,and also if you are a Turk and reading about Mısır 'Misir-Egypt',you won't be too.

İt's same for you like your mother and your maternal aunt 'teyze'

My country is my mother,and Türkiye is teyzem 'my maternal aunt in Turkish'

Can you understand how deep it is ?...well,if you are Egyptian,or Turk,you will feel it :)

So let's know more about it.... 'teyze'

Let's İnterduce you to Türkiye,shall we ? :)

Biladi Biladi Laky Hobby wa fouady...The Egyptian National Anthem

2008-11-28T05:45:00.005+02:00

The National Anthem

BILADI
CHORUS

Biladi Biladi Biladi
Laki Hubbi Wa Fuadi
Biladi Biladi Biladi
Laki Hubbi Wa Fuadi

Misr Ya Umm Al Bilad
Inti Ghayati Wal Murad
Wa 'Ala Kull Il 'Ibad
Kam Lineelik Min Ayadi.

CHORUS

Misr Inti Aghla Durra
Fawq Gabeen Ad-dahr Ghurra
Ya Biladi 'Aishi Hurra
Wa As 'Adi Ragh-al-adi.

CHORUS

Misr Awladik Kiram
Aufiya Yar'u-ziman
Saufa Takhti Bil-maram
Bittihadhim Wa-ittihadi.

CHORUS

MY HOMELAND

CHORUS

My homeland, my homeland, my homeland,
My love and my heart are for thee.
My homeland, my homeland, my homeland,
My love and my heart are for thee.

Egypt! O mother of all lands,
My hope and my ambition,
How can one count
The blessings of the Nile for mankind?

CHORUS

Egypt! Most precious jewel,
Shining on the brow of eternity!
O my homeland, be for ever free,
Safe from every foe!

CHORUS

Egypt! Noble are thy children,
Loyal, and guardians of thy soil.
In war and peace
We give our lives for thy sake.

CHORUS

"Lost" Pyramid Found Buried in Egypt

2008-11-25T20:16:00.007+02:00

Andrew Bossone in Cairo for National Geographic News June 5, 2008
The pyramid of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh has been rediscovered after being buried for generations, archaeologists announced today. (See photos and video.) The pyramid is thought to house the tomb of King Menkauhor, who is believed to have ruled in Egypt's 5th dynasty for eight years in the mid-2400s B.C. Long since reduced to its foundations, the structure was previously known as Number 29 or the "Headless Pyramid." It was mentioned in the mid-19th century by German archaeologist Karl Richard Lepsius. Then it disappeared in the sands of Saqqara, a sprawling royal burial complex near current-day Cairo. It took Egyptian archaeologists about a year and a half just to remove all the sand above the pyramid. "After Lepsius the location of the pyramid was lost and the substructure of [the] pyramid never known," said Zahi Hawass, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities. "It was forgotten by people until we began to search this area and a hill of sand, maybe 25 feet [7.6 meters] high." Hawass is a National Geographic explorer-in-residence. (The National Geographic Society owns National Geographic News.) Old Kingdom Clues Nothing on the pyramid specifically names its owner, and the majority of the structure has been destroyed, so Egyptian archaeologists had to put several clues together to identify it. Past archaeologists have disputed the date of the pyramid, usually putting it in either the Old Kingdom, between 2575 and 2150 B.C., or the Middle Kingdom, between 1975 and 1640 B.C. But the recent research determined that the pyramid lacked the winding mazes typical of a Middle Kingdom temple. Instead, the lack of artwork and inscriptions, as well as the structure's red granite blocks, were typical of Old Kingdom pyramids, according to Hawass. The burial chamber also contained the lid of a sarcophagus made of gray schist, a type of rock often used in the Old Kingdom. What's more, the newfound pyramid resembles the pyramid next to it, which belongs to the first pharaoh of the 6th dynasty, Teti, who ruled from 2345 to 2181 B.C. That suggested the lost pyramid could also come from the 5th dynasty. The neighboring pyramid also pointed to the owner of the pyramid as Menkauhor, since he was without a discovered burial tomb. "There were missing pyramids of the kings, and this is one of them," Hawass said. Sacred Road Archaeologists also announced the discovery of new parts of a sacred road, dating to the Ptolemaic period, some 2,000 years after the Old Kingdom. The discovery shows the sustained importance of Saqqara, which was located in the ancient capital of Memphis, the researchers added. Ola El Aguizy is a professor of ancient Egyptian languages at Cairo University. "During the whole history of Egypt, Memphis and Saqqara had remained very, very important," El Aguizy said. "I am discovering tombs of people of the 26th dynasty [in Saqqara] that were reusing tombs of the 19th dynasty. It is a sacred place, and so many important people wanted to be buried there." Another reason people wanted to be buried in Saqqara was the sacred road, which was used for the procession of mummified bulls of the god of the dead, Osiris. "[Osiris] was enthroned like a king and when he died they made funerals like those of a king," El Aguizy said. The bulls also had a historical significance: Their deaths were used to determine when a pharaoh reigned. "It's a way of dating the pharaohs," El Aguizy said. "Sometimes we know how many bulls died during the reign of a king, or vice versa." (See a photo of an underground tunnel for sacred bulls.) More Discoveries Expected The sacred path, first discovered by French archaeologist Auguste Mariette in 1850, is nicknamed the Way of the Sphinxes because of its long row of statues often found at the gates of Egyptian temples. (See a photo gallery of Egyptian landmarks.) "The modern name of ancient Memphis is Mit Rahina … which means the way of the Sphinx," El Aguizy said. "So [this path is] presumably the Way, with sphinxes [formerly] on the two sides." Archaeologists hope the path will lead to more discoveries in the area. Plans are underway to relocate modern-day workers who live in a village beside the Menkauhor site to allow an expanded search for more temples. "When I say we've discovered 30 percent of the Egyptian monuments, I take Saqarra as the first example," Hawass said. "Saqqara is a virgin site," he added. "It's very important for us to do this excavation to understand more about the pyramids of the Old Kingdom."

Offers you the sun

2008-11-24T03:11:00.002+02:00

Egypt offers you the sun :)

And meets you with a smile,poor,rich,old,young,from the city,from the countryside,even while working and dirts covering his face
Meets you with a smile :)

Egypt...My Beautiful Country

The Egyptian Corner Blog Rules.

2008-11-23T03:58:00.003+02:00

Views of members,visitors do not represent the views of the site. The Egyptian Corner Blog is not responsible for the opinions of its users.
The official language of the blog is English unless at posts related to other languages but with the English translation.
You may not type in all or mostly in capital letters since it's not only hard to read but also considered to be shouting and can be rude
Do not post vulgar, hateful, threatening, derogatory, racist or obscene comments on this site. Any such content will be deleted.
Avoid personal disputes and arguments. Personal attacks or insults directed towards other users will not be tolerated. Basically if you don't have anything nice to say then just don't say it all. If somebody posts an insulting comment do not reply to it,it will be deleted.

Location

2008-11-22T17:01:00.007+02:00

The Arab Republic of Egypt Misir, is located in the north-eastern corner of Africa and south-western Asia. It is bounded on the north by the Mediterranean Sea, on the east by Palestine and Israel, on the south by Sudan, and on the west by Libya. The country is about 1. 085 km from north to south and about 1. 255 km from east to west. It has a total area of 1. 001450 km2

Location:

Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula

Geographic coordinates: 27 00 N, 30 00 E
Map references: Africa Area: Total: 1,001, 450 sq km
Land: 995, 450 sq km
Water: 6, 000 sq km

Area-comparatives:
slightly more than three times the size of New Mexico

Land boundaries:
Total: 2, 665 km

Border countries: Gaza Strip 11 km, Palestine 266 km, Libya 1,115 km, Sudan 1, 273 km.

Coastline: 2, 450 km

Maritime claims:
- Territorial sea: 12 nm
-Contiguous zone: 24 nm
-Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
-Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Elevation extremes:
-lowest point : Qattara Depression 436 m
-highest point: Mount Catherine 2, 629 m -Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead and zinc.

Land use:
-Arable land: 2.87%
-Permanent crops: 0.48%
-Other: 96.65% (2001)

Irrigated land: 33, 000 sq km (1998 est.)

Egypt is 50 feet below sea level. Some important cities, towns, and places in Egypt are Cairo (the capital), Giza, Memphis, Thebes, Alexandria, Suez Canal, Abu Simbel, Sinai Peninsula, and Rosetta.
The highest point is Catharine Mountain that is 8,668 feet high. The lowest point is Qattara Depression and is 436 feet below sea level.
The Nile Delta is the only delta in Egypt and is 100 miles long and 155 miles wide. It is in the shape of a triangle. There are 5 important oases in Egypt and they are all located in the Libyan Desert. They are the Farafrah, Bahriah, Dakhla, Kharijah, and the Siwah oases.The area of Egypt is 386, 662 square miles. The distances from east to west are 770 miles and from north to south it is 675 miles.
There are no forests in but there are date palms and citrus groves. Papyrus plants grow only near the Nile.

Refrence: Egypt State İnformation Service

Egyptian Women

2008-11-22T14:32:00.011+02:00

Egyptian women are strong women...
And that has a long back story both in back time 'history' and in modern time too...
Shall we try to find out a bit of both?

From Warrior Women to Female Pharaohs: Careers for Women in Ancient Egypt
By Dr Joann Fletcher

Whilst the concept of a career choice for women is a relatively modern phenomenon, the situation in ancient Egypt was rather different. For some three thousand years the women who lived on the banks of the Nile enjoyed a form of equality which has rarely been equalled.

Sexual equality

In order to understand their relatively enlightened attitudes toward sexual equality, it is important to realise that the Egyptians viewed their universe as a complete duality of male and female. Giving balance and order to all things was the female deity Maat, symbol of cosmic harmony by whose rules the pharaoh must govern.
The Egyptians recognised female violence in all its forms, their queens even portrayed crushing their enemies, executing prisoners or firing arrows at male opponents as well as the non-royal women who stab and overpower invading soldiers. Although such scenes are often disregarded as illustrating 'fictional' or ritual events, the literary and archaeological evidence is less easy to dismiss. Royal women undertake military campaigns whilst others are decorated for their active role in conflict. Women were regarded as sufficiently threatening to be listed as 'enemies of the state', and female graves containing weapons are found throughout the three millennia of Egyptian history.
'...the Greek historian Herodotus believed the Egyptians 'have reversed the ordinary practices of mankind'.'
Although by no means a race of Amazons, their ability to exercise varying degrees of power and self-determination was most unusual in the ancient world, which set such great store by male prowess, as if acknowledging the same in women would make them less able to fulfil their expected roles as wife and mother. Indeed, neighbouring countries were clearly shocked by the relative freedom of Egyptian women and, describing how they 'attended market and took part in trading whereas men sat and home and did the weaving', the Greek historian Herodotus believed the Egyptians 'have reversed the ordinary practices of mankind'.
And women are indeed portrayed in a very public way alongside men at every level of society, from co-ordinating ritual events to undertaking manual work. One woman steering a cargo ship even reprimands the man who brings her a meal with the words, 'Don't obstruct my face while I am putting to shore' (the ancient version of that familiar conversation 'get out of my way whilst I'm doing something important').
Egyptian women also enjoyed a surprising degree of financial independence, with surviving accounts and contracts showing that women received the same pay rations as men for undertaking the same job - something the UK has yet to achieve. As well as the royal women who controlled the treasury and owned their own estates and workshops, non-royal women as independent citizens could also own their own property, buy and sell it, make wills and even choose which of their children would inherit.

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Misir,Egypt...Where did those names come from? ?

2008-11-22T00:21:00.000+02:00

Where those name came from ?
What do they mean?
Here,we Egyptians call our country Misir,and we are called,Missri for singular,Misreyeen for plural.
So where have those both names came from ?
Misir and the English name Egypt.

Over the millenniums, Egypt has had many names in many different languages. Today, its official name is Junhuriyaht Misr al-Arabiyah, which in English means The Arab Republic of Egypt. Egyptians themselves refer to Egypt as Misr, though this can also be a name for Cairo. Interestingly, it is common for Egyptians to refer to Egypt as Misr, if they are resident in Cairo, but if outside of Cairo, then they will refer to Cairo as Misr. In a certain respect, this is a custom that dates to the earliest times of ancient Egypt.
Basically, we can examine three groups of names which have applied to Egypt. In the early period of Egypt, during the Old Kingdom, Egypt was referred to as Kemet (Kermit), or simply Kmt , which means the Black land. They called themselves "remetch en Kermet", which means the "People of the Black Land". The term refers to the rich soil found in the Nile Valley and Delta. But it was also sometimes referred to as Deshret, or dshrt , which refers to the "Red Land", or deserts of which Egypt is mostly comprised.
Later, Egyptians referred to their country as "Hwt-ka-Ptah" (Ht-ka-Ptah, or Hout-ak Ptah) , which means "Temple for Ka of Ptah", or more properly, "House of the Ka of Ptah" Ptah was one of Egypt's earliest Gods. As in modern Egypt, this was both a name for the administrative center of Egypt, what we call Memphis today, as well as the name of the country as a whole.
Egypt, as many people of the world refer to the country today, is a derivative of this ancient name. Even today, people who speak one language often change the spelling of words in another language because of the difficulty they may have in pronouncing some of the sounds of that foreign language. Hence, in pronouncing Hwt-ka-Ptah, the Greeks changed this world to Aegyptus (Aigyptos), which they used in their literature as the name of an Egyptian King (perhaps Ramesses, though in a fictional manner), the Nile River and for the country itself. We find the word used by Homer in his famous "Odyssey. We believe the Greeks had difficulties with the Egyptian pronunciation of the letter "H" at the beginning and end of Hwt-ka-Ptah
Today, the word Egyptians often use for their country is Misr.

Miṣr, the Arabic and modern official name of Egypt (Egyptian Arabic: Maṣr), is of Semitic origin, directly cognate with other Semitic words for Egypt such as the Hebrew מִצְרַיִם (Mitzráyim), literally meaning "the two straits" (a reference to the dynastic separation of upper and lower Egypt).The word originally connoted "metropolis" or "civilization" and also means "country", or "frontier-land".
And the English name "Egypt" came via the Latin word Aegyptus derived from the ancient Greek word Aígyptos (Αίγυπτος).

Refrences:
http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/kmt.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt

Ahlan Wa Sahlan...Merhaba ...Hello

2008-11-21T19:37:00.000+02:00

Ahlan wa sahlan,Merhaba,Hello to everyone and welcome to the Egyptian Corner :)

The Egyptian Corner is a place where we will try to have a look at the Egyptian life,some about history,some about language,some about daily life,some about tradition,some about religion,and some about people..all form the Egyptian life
We will walk together,and have our stopes,at some we just visit then leave,and at some we will visit,stay...and then go to another one,another stop.
İ wish you would enjoy your tours with us.

Just mind you..we are still a baby born idea which still under construction :)
Met you with a smile,and leaving you with a smile :)
Until we meat again
Selam ,bye