Palestinians Hold W. Bank Anti-Apartheid Protest + Zionist Lawmakers Slam 'Israeli Apartheid' Boycott Plan By American Studies Association

UK BANNED Press TV: Hundreds of Palestinians have staged a demonstration against the illegal Israeli occupation of their land in the West Bank.

The protest was held by locals and members of political factions against apartheid Tel Aviv’s expansionist policies in the city of Qalqilya in the north of the West Bank on Friday.

The protesters marched towards a recently constructed section of the Israeli separation wall in the West Bank while carrying Palestinian flags and banners.
The wall, which separates people in the villages of Jayson, Azun, and Atbat from their land, was built to help the construction of 96 new settlement units in a region called ‘Karnei Shomron 2020.’
“The main goal of this event is to send a message to the international community that we will not let go of our land and we will not allow the Israelis to construct new settlement blocs,” said Palestinian activist Mahmoud al-Qadoumi.
Israeli forces used tear gas and rubber bullets to stop the protesters as they were trying to approach the wall.
The demolition orders in the area include a children’s play park and dozens of homes.
The presence and continued expansion of Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine has created a major obstacle for the efforts to establish peace in the Middle East.
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds in 1967.
The United Nations and most countries regard the Israeli settlements as illegal because the territories were captured by Israel in a war in 1967 and are hence subject to the Geneva Conventions, which forbids construction on occupied lands.

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Zionist US Lawmakers Slam 'Israeli Apartheid' Boycott Plan By American Studies Association

Zionist American lawmakers have strongly criticized the American Studies Association (ASA) for deciding to boycott apartheid Israel for decades of gross human rights violations.

UK BANNED Press TV: In a letter signed by 134 House members, the organization is accused of bigotry for boycotting Israeli academic institutions in protest of Tel Aviv's brutal treatment of Palestinians.

“We write in strong opposition to the American Studies Association’s (ASA) recent decision to boycott Israeli universities and academic institutions,” the lawmakers wrote to ASA President-elect Lisa Duggan.

“Like all democracies, Israel is not perfect. But to single out Israel, while leaving relationships with universities in autocratic and repressive countries intact, suggests thinly-veiled bigotry and bias” against Israel, it added.

“This morally dishonest double standard has already been rejected by well over 100 university presidents, with several member universities even withdrawing from the organization in protest,” according to a copy of the letter obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

Sixty-nine Democrats and 65 Republicans signed onto the letter, which was organized by Rep. Peter Roskam (R., Ill.).

The boycott decision is part of a larger international effort to win boycotts of Israeli institutions over its horrific policies toward Palestinians.

The American Studies Association is a professional group of about 4,000 scholars who study US history and culture.

The group has been debating a boycott since 2006 and put the matter to a vote after its leadership endorsed the idea in early December.

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Additional: Apartheid Israel