❶ ACT! Stop the ghettoization of Hebron
❷ How the Damascus Gate became the symbol of the intifada
❸ Palestinian ambassador visits Namibia, submits credentials
❹ Main Ramallah-area road closed by Israeli military for 2nd day
❺ Opinion/Analysis: CLASSIFIED:  POLITICIZING  THE  NAKBA  IN  ISRAEL’S  STATE  ARCHIVES
❻ Poetry by Fouzi El-Asmar
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❶ ALTERNATIVE INFORMATION CENTER (AIC)
ACT!  STOP  THE  GHETTOIZATION  OF  HEBRON
Hebron Defense Committee
Feb. 18, 2016
The campaign “Dismantle the Ghetto, Take the Settlers out of Hebron” is a Palestinian led initiative aiming to mobilize international solidarity groups with Palestinians from Hebron in their struggle to live in peace in their own city.
___The Israeli Occupying Forces (IOF) continue their strategy of pressuring Palestinians to leave their homes in Hebron city center. This pressure comes in the form of market and streets closures, military checkpoints, subjection to military law including frequent random searches and detention without charge, and rampant settler violence.   More . . .
❷ AL-MONITOR (PALESTINE PULSE)
HOW  THE  DAMASCUS  GATE  BECAME  THE SYMBOL  OF  THE  INTIFADA
Daoud Kuttab
Feb. 19, 2016
When Washington Post Jerusalem bureau chief William Booth wanted to write a column about the recent violence in Jerusalem, he went to the most obvious location — Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate. There he found exactly whom he sought to interview, but he also found jittery Israeli security officers. What transpired Feb. 16 is detailed in a statement of protest by the Foreign Press Association (FPA) in Israel.     More . . .

❸ MA’AN NEWS AGENCY
PALESTINIAN  AMBASSADOR  VISITS  NAMIBIA,  SUBMITS  CREDENTIALS
Feb. 20, 2016
Palestinian ambassador to South Africa Hashem Dajani on Tuesday submitted his credentials as non-resident ambassador to the Republic of Namibia, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
___The ministry in a statement released on Friday said Dajani travelled to the Namibian capital for meetings with Namibia’s president, Hage Geingob, and speaker of the Namibian National Assembly.    More . . .
❹ MA’AN NEWS AGENCY
MAIN  RAMALLAH-AREA  ROAD  CLOSED  BY  ISRAELI  MILITARY  FOR  2ND  DAY
Feb. 20, 2016
The Israeli military for the second day in a row on Saturday closed a main road leading to the occupied West Bank hub of Ramallah following a deadly stab attack carried out in a nearby settlement.
___Locals and drivers told Ma’an that all Palestinian vehicles were prevented from accessing route 60 which was blocked by Israeli military vehicles and soldiers stationed at Jabaa checkpoint.     More . . .
❺ Opinion/Analysis
+972 MAGAZINE
CLASSIFIED:  POLITICIZING  THE  NAKBA  IN  ISRAEL’S  STATE  ARCHIVES
Lisa Goldman
Feb. 19, 2016
Israeli state archive documents that were de-classified in the 1980s have been re-classified in recent years, according to an assistant professor at the University of Maryland’s Center for Jewish Studies.
___Shay Hazkani, who was Israel Channel 10′s military correspondent from 2004-8 and who recently was awarded his doctorate by New York University, discusses the background and politics of the state’s decision to re-classify various documents in an interview for the Ottoman History Podcast.     More . . .

“DREAMS  ON  A  MATTRESS  OF  THORNS,”  BY  FOUZI  EL-ASMAR
Oh my homeland
The whisper of the leaves in the breeze
Robs me of my sleep.
The darkness of the dawn
And the glance of my beautiful sister
Searching for our songs
Robs me of my sleep.

Lovebirds returning to their nest
At sunset
Kissing their nestlings
Rejoicing
Rob me of my sleep.

The silence of the night
Robs me of my sleep
Oh my country.

Sleep does not bless my eyelids
For there are nails in my eyes
Covered with the rust of many days
And the blast of drums in my eyes
Beaten by the arms of hatred.

And I run
I run
I run in order to wrap
The morning around my body.
I run towards my love ones
I kiss them
I console them for the loss
Of their yesterday.

I tell them:
My loved ones
Forget the yesterday
Let us fold it
And bury it in the ground
The day is ours
The morrow is ours
They carry the sun
Of our destiny.

About Fouzi El-Asmar
El-Asmar, Fouzi. THE  WIND-DRIVEN  REED  AND  OTHER  POEMS. Washington, D.C.: Three Continents Press, 1979.    Available from Amazon.
Palestinian ambassador Hashem Dajani presents his credentials to Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Namibia’s Deputy Prime Minister. (Photo Credit: Social media)