Anthony Hurndall, father of volunteer killed by ISRAELI forces in 2003, warns Israel that unless it recognises it's 'fundamentally unethical and inhuman attitudes' towards Gaza bombardment it will lose Western support.
Tom Hurndall was shot by an Israeli sniper while trying to help a child in Gaza
Tom had been volunteering in Gaza as part of the International Solidarity Movement
The barrister said the shooting of his son, Tom Hurndall, was an example of how the Jewish state's military can sometimes target the wrong people and make up evidence to justify its actions.
The IDF made a number of false claims about TOM and his actions, which were later debunked.
Writing in the Times today, Mr Hurndall said he saw parallels between the falsehoods told about his son and the information given to the press by the Israeli military during its ongoing operation in Gaza.
Tom Hurndall was fatally shot by an Israeli sniper in the Gaza Strip in 2003 while he tried to help a Palestinian child
It was a cold end of December night; I was hungry, and the sun had set by the time the train brought me to Venice.
As usual I had no accomodation reserved and all the hotels between the station and the Rialto seemed to be 'completo' full up. The streets were crowded with noisy tourists dressed in gold and fur and all no doubt safely booked into warm hotels.
I struggled on from hotel to hotel and began to wonder if the churches would stay open at night.
Then, just past the Rialto, I found a room still vacant. Having unpacked my toothbrush, I hurried off to guzzle down a pizza thick with steaming mozarrela, tomatoes and anchovies.
There was a lady in Rio who thought that in a previous life she had lived in England. That evening I felt some special friendship with Venice.
The moon was full as I sauntered across the piazza; lovers were warming themselves under dusky arcades; in a tiny piazzetta, grinning choirboys were juggling with footballs; Riva degli Sciavoni had the flashing lights and the music of the carnival.
Campo Ruga was silent. I had fond memories of Campo Ruga, but that night no one seemed to be about.
...
In the light of a sunny winter morning, Campo Ruga revealed itself as a place of quiet activity. Sparrows, pigeons and muzzled dogs moved about among the swirling paper. A rubbish cart was pushed by hand through the throng. Green doors opened to reveal bambini in warm coats and hats. And from a balcony a pretty woman hung out her families pretty washing. Over three years before I had been here, standing on the bridge.
That was where I had first met Andrina.
As I approached the tobacconist's shop a fair-haired girl smiled at me in recognition. My heart took a little leap.This girl was one of Andrina's friends.
She led me down a narrow lane to the house of Andrina. It was a simple working class house with discarded toys and a broken window in the dark narrow hall.
Andrina greeted me warmly. She had Slav good looks.
I was given a tour of Venice, and this included St Mark's Square where I was introduced to Andrina's uncle Franco who sells books and postcards at a stall. I was introduced to Andrino's uncle Renato who works as a furniture restorer. Then there was the friend who worked at the carnival and a whole host of others, in various ways inter-related.
Of all the meals I had at Andrina's, the best was on the 31st December.
Andrina's father, Carlo, was perhaps a little embarrased about the small size of the house, but he was proud of the family. Andrina acted as my translator, and her translations often began with the words, 'Excuse me sir, I am asking you....'
In the kitchen we feasted on chicken soup, pasta with mushrooms, tender roast beef, the best Ruffino wine from Florence, cheese, coffee with brandy, and finally, more brandy.
Carlo and Marisa his wife began to sing in accompaniment to a record of gondolier music, and Marisa confided that she came from a gondolier family. We looked at family photographs taken during holidays in Rome and in the Dolomites, and we chatted about Venice and Iran. The family all believed that Venice was the most beautiful of all cities.
Marisa, a devout Roman Catholic, liked Iran and Khomeini. Older son, Massimo, pointed out that the Iranian regime executed people for having 'lax' sexual morals. Marisa thought this was good.
At midnight we opened a bottle of Spumante wine and ate some cake. Marisa threw her arms around Carlo, and Massimo, and Andrina, and all the others. The evening finished with dancing to the music of Glen Miller.
Andrina? Her mother was not a typical Venetian. Or was she?
I revisited the islands of Burano, Murano, Torcello, the ever colourful Pellestrina, and Chioggia, but it was to the area around Castello and Campo Ruga that I most liked to return.
Right next to Venice you will find Torcello, an island of nostalgia, green fields , muddy canals, a decayed piazza, small farmhouses, skinny dogs, and a cathedral half Byzantine half Gothic. You can lunch at the expensive, but good,trattoria.
Burano - WOW! Don't miss this fabulous island. Gorgeous blazing blue and white and pink and yellow and red and orange fishermen's houses. Orange as blue as the sky. Flaking paint. Subtle effects; with light blues wearing away to show darker blues; in turn wearing away to reveal bottle greens... have some more wine and tell me if you think the campanile is about to fall over. Talk about a leaning tower!
It's like a well-lit operetta. Gardens of bougainvillea, women sewing lace, children in boats... Kids used to bathe in the canals here. But now the water is almost solid with muck.
Murano - great, if you like factories.
Pellestrina - a narrow strip of land, fishermen's houses faded by the sun, bathing shacks, and a haunting atmosphere. Stop for some fish and wine.
Chioggia - rougher, uglier, and simpler than Venice, but worth a visit. This is the biggest fishing port in Italy and is full of raucous activity and fish. Here children still swim in the canals, even though the waters are black.
THE REALITY OF AYATOLLAH KHOMEINI: A BRITISH AGENT
Khomeini’s real father, was William Richard Williamson, born in Bristol, England, in 1872 of British parents and lineage. William Richard Williamson became known as Haji Abdullah Fazl Zobeiri.
1979, Khomeini was flown from France to Iran, with the help of the British Intelligence Service, MI6 & CIA. He took over Iran.
In 1978, the Shah’s government of Iran and British Petroleum were “negotiating” on the renewal of the 25-year oil extraction agreement. In October 1978, the talks had collapsed over the British “offer” that demanded exclusive rights to Iran’s future oil output.
The coup against the Shah was run by British and American intelligence, with the “American” Zbigniew Brzezinski (born in Poland), taking the “credit” for getting rid of the “corrupt” Shah, while the British characteristically remained in the background.
The BBC’s Persian-language broadcasts, drummed up hysteria against the regime in exaggerated reporting of incidents of protest against the Shah and gave Ayatollah Khomeini a full propaganda platform inside Iran.
At the same time, the Carter administration began protesting abuses of “human rights” under the Shah. According to the US media, the Shah was suddenly "a despot, an oppressor, a tyrant".
On 14 January 1979, US ambassador William H. Sullivan organised a meeting between Ebrahim Yazedi, an assistant of Khomeini, and a representatives from the US State Department.
The Shah fled in January 1979, and by February Khomeini had been flown into Tehran to proclaim the establishment of his theocratic state.
There are several sources that claim that the Reagan-Bush team promised arms to the Ayatollah's Iran to NOT release the American hostages, to make Carter look like a wimp, until Reagan was crowned US president.
Carter's rescue effort of the hostages was sabotaged by the Reagan-Bush team.
Officials in the Reagan-Bush campaign, including John McFarland and William Casey, held meetings with representatives of the Iranian government in Washington DC and in Madrid, Spain to NOT release the hostages.
In March 1980, a first meeting took place at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, attended by William Casey and the brothers Cyrus and Jamshid Hashemi.
The Hashemis were willing to cooperate with the Carter administration, but Casey told them he didn’t want the release of 52 American hostages before the November 1980 elections..
Richard Brenneke and Gunther Russbacher stated that they saw George Bush and Donald Gregg in Paris on the weekend of 19 October 1980.
