Awesome sale going on now take advantage of FREE Shipping on select items and 20% off everything. HURRY NOW!
Limited Edition items are being added now and for the holidays all year long so keep your eyes peeled for one of kind items and special deals throughout the year. www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyMcClever
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 20% OFF through June. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best times of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
Awesome sale going on now take advantage of FREE Shipping on select items and 20% off everything. HURRY NOW!
Limited Edition items are being added now and for the holidays all year long so keep your eyes peeled for one of kind items and special deals throughout the year. www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyMcClever
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 20% OFF through June. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best times of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
Limited Edition items are being added now and for the holidays all year long so keep your eyes peeled for one of kind items and special deals throughout the year. www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyMcClever
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 20% OFF through March. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best times of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
Limited Edition items are being added now and for the holidays all year long so keep your eyes peeled for one of kind items and special deals throughout the year. www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyMcClever
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 20% OFF through March. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best times of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
Limited Edition items are being added now so we can all celebrate the end of 2021 and ring in 2022. For the rest of 2021 my shop will be doing 10% off to help ring in the New Year! Hope to see you around in the new year. www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyMcClever
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 10% OFF through the rest of the year. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best time of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
Limited Edition items are being added now so we can all celebrate the end of 2021 and ring in 2022. To celebrate, here is a 20% discount on all items in the my store INCLUDING new items added so keep an eye out. Sale is only going on until December 20th with 20% off storewide. http://www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyMcClever
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 20% OFF but ONLY until DECEMBER 20th. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best time of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
FREE Shipping on Holiday Items PLUS 20% OFF but ONLY until DECEMBER 6th. On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best time of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping when you purchase over $35 in awesome products. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
On a Budget this holiday? Need a laugh? Want to make someone smile? Come shop my pop up sales during the best time of the year and find some Holiday Goodies for UNDER $40 plus FREE shipping. Want even bigger savings? Become a follower on social media and right here in my etsy shop and get exclusive access to my FLASH SALES going on throughout the holidays for even bigger deals.
OVER 180 UNIQUE DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM AS WELL AS SIZES, PRODUCTS AND COLOR VARIATIONS FOR ALL PRICE POINTS. Fast and FREE shipping to the US on these one of kind items designed uniquely for you as well as affordable shipping option for my friends across the world. Bulk orders welcomed plus bundle deals coming soon. Surprise your friends and loved ones with these unique items that fit every occasion especially those special moments in life from the every day mundane to major life moments. Any way you decide to go, these unique pieces allow you to utilize my design skills to let your friends and loved ones know just how you feel. Give them a gift they will cherish for a lifetime and let me worry about the rest. Let me help you create that moment of Zen!
PLEASE NOTE: As with most businesses, I strive to get the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion but please give yourself enough time before your special occasion or holiday to receive your one of a kind gifts through USPS. I try my best to make sure every customer leaves with a smile so do not hesitate to contact me with questions or for more info on your order.
After six weeks of negotiations, House and Senate negotiators have agreed to a compromise to fix a veterans health program scandalized by long patient wait times and falsified records covering up delays and deaths. Matthew Daly reports, After 6 weeks, finally a deal on VA health care, the chairman of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs committees will hold a news conference on Monday afternoon to unveil a plan to authorize billions in emergency spending to lease 27 new clinics, hire more doctors and nurses and make it easier for veterans who can’t get prompt appointments with VA doctors to get outside care. An agreement Sunday by Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), chairman of the House panel, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the Senate veterans panel chair, was reached after many private meetings, no shows and public spats with only days left until Congress goes on a five week recess. A partisan impasse loomed which both sides hoped to avoid what Miller called the “sort of bickering and name-calling for which Washington has become infamous.” Three days later, via telephone from Florida and Vermont, Miller and Sanders were on the same page. The tentative deal requires a vote by a conference committee of House and Senate negotiators and a full vote in the House and Senate. The plan announced Monday, according to Miller and Sanders, is intended to “make VA more accountable and to help the department recruit more doctors, nurses and other health care professionals.” Luis Celli, legislative director for the American Legion, the nation’s largest veterans group, said on Sunday: “There is an emergency need to get veterans off the waiting lists. That’s what this is all about.” Tom Tarantino, chief policy officer of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, said: “It’s about time they’re doing their jobs. You don’t get a medal for doing your job.” An updated audit by the VA this month shows 10 percent of veterans seeking medical care at VA hospitals and clinics still wait 30 days for an appointment with 46,000 veterans waiting at least three months for an initial appointment and an additional 7,00 veterans who asked for appointments over the past decade that never got them. The Senate and House are set to adjourn at the end of the week until September and lawmakers from both parties see the VA bill as a top priority. Meanwhile, the Senate is also expected to vote this week to confirm former Procter Gamble CEO Robert McDonald as the new VA secretary, replacing Gibson.
While one problem may potentially be resolved this week, on Sunday, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) condemned the federal government’s approach to poverty reduction claiming the Obama administration is responsible for the system that “perpetuates poverty” in America, according to Ashley Alman’s article Paul Ryan Accuses Obama Administration Of System That ‘Perpetuates Poverty.’ On NBC’s “Meet the Press” Ryan came to discuss his new poverty proposal involving consolidating 11 federal anti-poverty programs including food stamps and housing vouchers into one program coordinated by each state. Host David Gregory commented that Ryan sounded like he had little “sympathy” for impoverished Americans. Ryan responded by saying: “We don’t want to have a poverty management system that simply perpetuates poverty. The federal government’s approach has ended up maintaining poverty, managing poverty, in many ways it has disincentivized people from going to work. Able-bodied people should go to work, and we should have a system that helps them do that so that they can realize their potential.” Ryan announced his poverty proposal Thursday saying it is an opportunity for reform that would be “budget neutral.” However, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) disagrees: “The core idea of the Ryan proposal is not a new idea at all: it’s nothing more than a block grant gussied up with some bells and whistles. If you look at the block grant proposal in the context of the Ryan-Republican budget, it would dramatically slash the resources available to help struggling families.”
As families to continue to struggle to keep their heads above water, cities are not only struggling to keep people working, but keep gun violence to a minimum. Glenn Minnis reports, Can Noah’s Arc save streets of Chicago?, Joakim Noah, an NBA All Star Center, on Friday spoke to a room full of teens and adolescents at a Major Adams Community Center room about gun and gang violence culture so out of control it has brought his hometown of Chicago to its knees. Noah spoke of his motivation to start his “Stand up Chicago” campaign: “It’s very important that we understand that this is not just a problem that’s going on on the South Side, the violence is not a problem that’s going on on the West Side. This is a Chicago problem.” Noah also enlisted the help of teammate and Chi-town native Derrick Rose who appeared on a 60 second PSA for his initiative. Join by rapper and Chicago native Common, he states in the PSA: “I stand for my city.” In a statement on his Noah’s Arc Foundation site, Noah and his mom, Cecilia Rodhe, called on all Chicagoans to “take a stand against violence and become ambassadors for peace and positivity.” Over the first seven months of the year, 207 homicides have taken place in Chicago with the most recent incident on July 4 weekend where the L.A. Times reported at least 16 people killed and 82 injured over three and half days. In response, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms has added seven more ATF agents to its former roster of 45 in hopes of somehow of corralling all the madness, according to Minnis. Noah summed up the goal of his organization by saying: “As somebody who plays for the Bulls, I feel like I’m somebody who represents the city, and I think that helping our youth is important. The summer months bring a lot of violence, and we felt it was urgent to get a public service announcement out now in order to bring some hope, change and support to the community. We have to find a way together, whether you’re rich, poor, black, white, whatever you are, to come together and solve this together. To me personally, this is just as important as winning a championship.”
Meanwhile, gun advocates in Washington, D.C. this weekend celebrate following a federal judge ruling that struck down the city’s ban on handguns in public, the AOL article, D.C.’s gun laws take another hit in handgun carry ruling, explains. District Judge Frederick Scullin reached the conclusion many other district courts reached in similar cases: “The Second Amendment secures an individual right … to carry a common weapon outside the home for self-defense.” The ruling prevents D.C. officials from enforcing public gun bans until licensing regulations are put in place. In 2008 a Supreme Court decision, District of Columbia v. Heller, overturned the city’s total ban on handguns ruling the Second Amendment guarantees the right to own weapons for self-defense, AOL reports. The latest decision comes from an Aug. 2009 lawsuit that, according to SCOTUSblog notes, got tangled up in the D.C. district’s legal red tape for five years frustrating the plaintiffs. “The challengers to the D.C. law tried repeatedly to get a ruling, even asking a federal appeals court to step in to command that the case be decided.” In addition, Congress is challenging gun control in D.C. House Republicans approved an amendment to the district’s funding bill that would prevent D.C. from enforcing their gun laws. However, it will still be illegal to bring to a gun into a federal building. D.C. officials have yet to announce plans to appeal the ruling, but a spokesman told reporters the city is looking into options.
As the gun fight rages on, on Saturday, fast food workers across the nation voted to escalate efforts for $15 an hour pay and union membership using nonviolent civil disobedience. More than 1,300 workers came together at a convention center in Chicago to discuss the future of a campaign to spread to dozens of cities in less than two years, Tammy Webber reports, Fast Food Workers Vow Civil Disobedience. The Service Employee International Union provides financial and organizational support to fast food protests. They began in 2012 in New York City including daylong strikes and peaceful demonstrations outside this year’s McDonald’s Corp. shareholder meeting where 130 protestors were arrested for stepping onto company property. Saturday’s convention in Villa Park, Illinois, included session on civil disobedience and leadership training. Rev.William Barber II, head of the North Carolina NAACP, said: “People should not work and be willing to work and then be denied living wages and be denied health care because of greed. This movement is saying that America is less than she promises to be, morally and constitutionally, by denying living wages. If you raise wages for workers, you buoy the whole economy.” The movement comes as President Barack Obama and many other Democrats try to make a campaign issue out of their call to increase the federal and state minimum wage which stands at $7.25 an hour for federal wages or about $15,000 per year for40 hours a week. Obama and others want to increase it to $10.10. The restaurant industry argues that a $15 hourly wage would lead to business closing and job cuts. According to Webber: “The National Restaurant Association said last week that increasing wages to $15 will not solve income inequality and that the campaign was an attempt by unions to boost dwindling membership.” Scott DeFife, the association;s executive vice president of policy and government affairs, said protesters are “demonizing” an industry that employs all ages, backgrounds and skill levels instead of focusing on policies to increase education and job training. Unfortunately, many workers say that people stay in these jobs for years because they are the only ones available. Barber believes that “this movement is intensifying and it is going to shake the moral consciousness of this country.”
On Friday, protestors stood outside the Israeli Embassy in Ankara holding Palestinian flags to protest against the attacks on Gaza by Israel who allege the attacks are in response to rocket fire from Gaza. According to the Associated Press, Israel strikes mosque as death toll tops 120, the UN’s human rights office said that Israel could be violating the laws of war by bombing Palestinian homes in Gaza where the death toll from Israeli strikes have risen to 100. Israel has alleged that the Islamic group Hamas and other Palestinian militants deliberately placed military installations in populated areas of Gaza as part of its defense by using civilians as human shields. Palestinian Officials on Saturday reported that the death toll has now reached 120 after an Israeli airstrikes targeting Hamas in Gaza hit a mosque and a center for the disabled killing two women. In response, the Israeli military alleged the mosque concealed rockets similar to the ones used during the five day offensive and is looking into claims that other sites were hit. The problem no facing Israel is how to orchestrate a ground invasion in the region with such a densely populated Gaza Strip and immense danger to civilians.
While there are no fatalities reported in Israel from rocket fire, Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Kidra confirmed the death toll from Israeli strikes at over 120 and more than 920 wounded. Though the breakdown of casualties is not clear and Hamas militants have been hit hard, dozens of the dead are civilians. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said on Saturday that the Israeli people should prepare for several more days of fighting making it clear that the offensive shows no signs of ceasing anytime soon. Hamas said Israel struck a pair of mosques in its offensive, however, the claim along with Israel’s claim could not be confirmed. A Hamas spokesman in Doha, Qatar, had this to say: “The bombing of two mosques in Gaza overnight shows how barbaric this enemy is and how much is it hostile to Islam. This terrorism gives us the right to broaden our response to deter this occupier.” The Israeli military released an aerial photo of the mosque it struck stating Hamas hid rockets next to another religious site and civilian homes. In addition, they said Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Gaza militant groups regularly use this tactic to endanger its own civilians. Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, an Israeli military spokesman explains,”Hamas terrorists systematically exploit and choose to put Palestinians in Gaza in harm’s way and continue to locate their positions among civilian areas and mosques, proving once more their disregard for human life and holy sites.”
Israel’s military, the Associate Press reports, has struck more than 1,100 targets including rocket launchers, command centers and weapons manufacturing and storage facilities, while Gaza officials said the strikes, in addition to hitting the home for the disabled and the mosques, have hit affiliated charities and banks. The “Iron Dome,” a U.S. funded, Israeli developed rocket defense system, has intercepted more than a 130 rockets from Gaza preventing any fatalities and only a handful of Israelis have been wounded. As a precaution, the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv has relocated personnel to Beersheba. The frequent rocket fire, particularly in southern communities, has disrupted daily life with most people staying indoors, television channels airing non-stop coverage of the violence and radio broadcasts being interrupted by air raid siren warnings. Meanwhile, at the border of Gaza and Israel, Israel has massed thousands of troops along the border in preparation for a possible ground invasion.
However, recently, Israel has come under international pressure to halt its offensive due to the growing casualties in Gaza, the Associate Press reports. With the United States and Europeans leaders defending Israel’s actions, the United Nations has expressed its concern over civilian deaths in Gaza and anti-Israel protests in Europe. In the West Bank, Hamas supporters clashed with Israeli troops over the Gaza offensive. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has requested an emergency meeting with the Arab League and Arab foreign ministers that will happen in Cairo Monday to discuss the continued offensive and measures to urge the international community to pressure Israel. In New York, the United Nations Security Council called unanimously for a ceasefire, even though there are no signs of stopping from Israel nor Gaza.
Even with international pressures for a cease fire, Israel has widened its range of targets to civilian institution with alleged Hamas ties and deployed troops inside Gaza early on Sunday to raid a rocket launching site, according to Khaled Khazziha and Mohammed Daraghmeh, Israel troops briefly raid Gaza as offensive rages. The death toll now stands at more than 156 Palestinians killed. Four Israeli soldiers were hurt during the brief incursion to destroy rocket sites in norther Gaza, but returned to Israeli territory the military confirmed. Even though this was the first time Israeli ground troops entered Gaza in the current offensive, the military did say the operation was carried out by special forces and was not the beginning of a broad ground invasion. In a move to broaden the conflict, Israel fired into Lebanon late Saturday in response to two rockets fired into norther Israel. No injuries or damages reported, however Israel fears Lebanese militant groups may try to open a second front.
Critics say Israel’s heavy bombardment of one of the most densely populated territories in the world is itself the main factor putting civilians at risk. Sarit Michaeli of the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem said that while using human shields violates international humanitarian law, “this does not give Israel the excuse to violate international humanitarian law as well.”But Michaeli said civilians have been killed when Israel bombed homes of Hamas militants or when residents were unable to leave their homes quickly enough following Israeli warnings.At the United Nations, a Security Council statement approved by all 15 members called for de-escalation of the violence, restoration of calm, and a resumption of direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians aimed at achieving a comprehensive peace agreement based on a two-state solution.The statement also called for “the re-institution of the November 2012 cease-fire,” which was brokered by Egypt, but gives no time frame for when it should take effect.
While Israel faces international criticism for his possible human right’s violations, on Saturday, the Human Rights Watch alleges that Iraqi security forces and government affiliated militias have unlawfully executed 255 prisoners over the past month in apparent revenge for killings by Islamic State fighters. According to Reuters’ Stephen Addison, Iraqi Forces Executed 255 Prisoners: Human Rights Watch, the group claims the killings took place in six Iraqi towns and villages since June 9 and at least eight of the dead are under 18. On the groups website, the groups says that the killing took place while the Iraqi forces were fleeing from Islamic State militants and other armed groups. In addition, most of the security forces and militias are Shiite, while the murdered prisoners were Sunni. HRW said,”The mass extrajudicial killings may be evidence of war crimes or crimes against humanity, and appear to be revenge killings for atrocities by (Islamic State).” The Islamic State was formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The militants have never hid the face that mass executions of their prisoners occurred. Days after they began sweeping through norther cities last month, they released videos showing their masked fighters machine gunning captive government soldiers in shallow graves, Addison reports. In addition, Addison states, “HRW said it has statements from witnesses, security forces and government officials indicating Iraqi soldiers or police, pro-government Shi’ite militias, or combinations of the three had extrajudicially executed prisoners, in nearly all cases by shooting them….(HRW) has documented five of Sunni prisoners between June 9 and 21 in Mosul and Tal Afar in northern Nineveh province, in Baaquba and Jumarkhe in eastern Diyala province, and in Rawa in western Anbar province. It said residents and activists those areas believed Iraqi security forces and militias killed Sunni prisoners released by Islamic State, to stop them joining the rebellion and in revenge for the killings of government troops.” Joe Stork, HRW deputy Middle East director believes the actions of the government are “an outrageous violation of international law” adding that “While the world rightly denounces the atrocious acts of (Islamic State), it should not turn a blind eye to sectarian killing sprees by government and pro-government forces.”
On Saturday, the same day that Israel and Iraq had accusations of human right’s violations and international law, Ukrainian war planes attacked separatists along the broad front causing huge losses according to Kiev, after President Petro Poroshenko said that many will pay for a deadly missile attack on Ukrainian forces. According to Richard Balmforth and Natalia Zinets, Ukrainian Fighter Jets Pound Rebels, a military spokesman confirmed that jets struck at the epicenter of the battle against the rebels near the Russian border. The planes targeted positions where high powered Grad missiles were fired by separatists on an army motorized brigade that killed 23 servicemen Friday. The warplanes also struck near Donetsk, the east’s main town where rebels have dug in, destroying a powerful fighter base near Dzerzhinsk, a spokesman for the anti-terrorist operation, Andriy Lysenko, said. Lysenko told reporters, “According to preliminary assessment, Ukrainian pilots … killed about 500 (rebel) fighters and damaged two armored transporters.” In addition, an earlier attack on a base near Perevalsk, two tanks, 10 armored vehicles and 500 rebel fighters were destroyed. However, Luhansk based separatists, referring to the Peravalsk attack, said,”There were no volunteers (rebels) where the Ukrainian aviation was active yesterday.” So far, Lysenko reports, during Friday evening and throughout Saturday, five Ukrainian servicemen were killed and 16 overflights by Ukrainian fighter jets have taken place.
The increasing violence require now more than ever a need for diplomacy to end the worst crisis between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Since the ousting of the Moscow backed president in February and the annexation of Crimea by Russia, more than 200 Ukrainian servicemen have died and hundreds of civilians and rebels have died also. The United States and the EU have brought sanctions against Russian businesses as Ukrainian government claims Moscow has aided in the conflict and turned a blind eye to military equipment and Russian fighters crossing its border. On Saturday, the EU targeted 11 Ukrainian separatist leaders with travel bans and asset freezes without new sanctions on Russian business in order to avoid antagonizing its main energy supplier. Lysenko explained, “The situation on the border is very difficult because there is a strip of border there which has been turned into the epicenter of confrontation. This is because this is a part of the border through which the Russian terrorists are trying to bring in military equipment and arms. Ukrainian forces are there to cover that part. If the Ukrainian unit pulls out of there then columns of military equipment will start to flow on to Ukrainian territory again.” Poroshenko, urged by German Chancellor Angela Merkel to use a sense of proportion in actions against separatists, had talked on Friday with Donetsk mayor Aleksander Lukyanchenko on the issue. Meanwhile, western allies and Russia are pushing for a new meeting of the contact group involving separatist leaders to negotiate an end to the crisis. Poroshenko has proposed various venues for these talks to take place, but has said he will not repeat a 10 day unilateral ceasefire by government forces like the one that ended June 30. The rational is due to the fact, the Ukrainian government alleges that rebels repeatedly violated the ceasefire and more than 20 Ukrainian servicemen were killed while it was enforced.
CraftyMcClever's Zen Garden Gallery, Finding Light in the Darkness 