Helen Thomas / bulldog 1950 – 2010 stop of journalists

For the ten leaders of the United States (U.S.) who have inhabited the White House including the current president, Barack Obama – Helen Thomas is the name of a journalist who dared to speak out frankly and critically ask. However, after about 50 years as a correspondent at the White House, Thomas’s sudden retirement. Journalist who has 89-year-old announced his resignation as a correspondent for the Hearst News Service in the White House, Monday, June 7, 2010. The resignation followed a scathing criticism of Thomas’s comments against Israel, which turned out to offend Jewish people.

“Tell them to get out of Palestine. Remember, the people in that country was conquered and their land,” Thomas said in a videotape aired Breitbart.tv pages. The incident occurred on May 27, 2010 in a Jewish community event outside the White House. According to the daily page of the Huffington Post, Thomas’s controversial remarks when asked for opinions by a rabbi. When asked again where the people of Israel must go, Thomas casually replied, “They must return to their places of origin, to Poland, Germany … American, or other places.” Later, descendants of Lebanese journalist was expressed regret at the same time apologizing for his comments about Israel and Palestine.

However, what is meretricious, comments Thomas already reaped a storm of criticism from many quarters, including from the White House. According to the Associated Press, White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, said Thomas comments as an insult. Even his fellow reporters the White House said the comments were not worth Thomas brought up.

Thomas scathing comments about Israel soon spread on the internet. Offended parties canceled the contract a number of projects involving Thomas. Tail, he is mentioned to have to resign as a columnist for Hearst News Service. It was unclear whether the resignation was then made Thomas is no longer covering the White House or can be re-engaged in different media. Because, Thomas clearly was too senile to start a new career.

Nevertheless, the White House has become an integral part of Thomas’s career. His name was even printed permanently below normal stool she sat in the press room at the office of the U.S. presidency. Before retiring, Thomas regarded as the most senior journalists at the White House. He has covered the activities of the U.S. presidency since the days of the late Dwight Eisenhower in the late 1950s.

Thomas, who always sat in the front seat during a press conference and frequently asked questions that upset the leader of the United States, joined United Press International (UPI) in 1943 and began covering the White House in 1960. Thanks to its persistent and often ask critical questions, Thomas called a “bulldog” UPI. Through fierce competition, she became the first woman into the White House bureau chief for UPI in 1974.

In addition to being a pioneer of women in journalism, Thomas is also included in the management ranks of the National Press Club, which had banned women become members. Thomas joined Hearst in 2000. “Helen was like a vacuum cleaner of information,” says writer Kay Mills, who wrote the book “A Place in the News: From the Women’s Pages to the Front Page.”

“He always made sure already possess all the information,” said Mills. “Say he’s covered the Kennedy and Jackie’s birthday party one of their children. I tell you, he’s got every information needed.” During this time, the daughter of Lebanese immigrants was not conceal his view that the pro-Arab. During George W. Bush became president, almost all of the questions that Thomas always posed regarding the Iraq war.

Israel approved the construction of houses illegally on Palestinian land in East Jerusalem as many as 3336 housing units during March

Ramallah  – Israel approved the construction of houses illegally on Palestinian land in East Jerusalem as many as 3336 housing units during March, according to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Monday. The giant project, including construction of 1600 housing units in the Jewish settlement of Ramat Shlomo and 600 other homes near these settlements, the report said. Meanwhile, the Jerusalem regional government has set a plan and is awaiting approval to build more houses 50,000 units in the coming months, according to the report.

Last month, the United States did not reach agreement with Israel on the Tel Aviv latest plan to build Jewish settlements in the West Bank including Jerusalem. Failure to achieve agreement came after a two-day visit of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the U.S.. Discussion between Prime Minister Netanyahu and U.S. Special Envoy for the Middle East, George Mitchell has been completed but did not resolve the dispute between the two countries, U.S. officials said.

U.S. President Barack Obama in his meeting with Netanyahu demanded that the Jewish state in order to rebuild trust resumed peace talks with the Palestinians. Obama-Netanyahu meeting comes amid tension that rarely happens between the U.S. and Israel relate to American demands to freeze all Jewish settlement activity in the West Bank. U.S. believes that Israel’s settlement building activities for the Jewish settlers disrupt the prospect of peace talks with the Palestinians.

Israel, Washington’s anger when the government announced the construction of 1600 houses in East Jerusalem, during U.S. Vice-President, Joe Biden, a visit to Tel Aviv. Later, a cabinet minister of Israel apologized for the attitude of Israel which is considered insulting VP nominee Joe Biden. “This attitude should not need to happen in one visit that the vice president of the United States. For that we should express apology for this blunder.” said Welfare Minister Isaac Herzogliter Isreal. Palestinian government said the plan to build homes near Jerusalem that can shut off any opportunity to revive peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine.( Xinhua-Oana)

RAMALLAH, West Bank Israel to build 700 apartments in east Jerusalem

Israel 700 apartments

RAMALLAH, West Bank  Israel announced Monday it is building nearly 700 new apartments for Jews in east Jerusalem, where Palestinians hope to set up the capital of a future state. The U.S., Palestinians and the European Union condemned the plan, a fresh setback to American efforts to restart Mideast peace talks.The Palestinians have said they will not resume talks without an Israeli settlement freeze, and criticized what they said was another show of bad faith by Israel.”With each individual action it undertakes on the ground, Israel is saying no to meaningful negotiations,” said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.President Barack Obama’s Mideast envoy, George Mitchell, who is trying to find a formula for reviving negotiations, is due in Israel and the West Bank in the second week of January.White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said the U.S. “opposes new Israeli construction in east Jerusalem” and that neither side should take steps that pre-empt the outcome of talks. He urged both sides to restart negotiations without preconditions.

Sweden, which holds the rotating European Union presidency, said Israel’s latest plans “prevent the creation of an atmosphere conducive to resuming negotiations on a two-state solution.”Israel insists the Jewish neighborhoods in east Jerusalem are not settlements, but part of its own capital, a view disputed by the international community.The plan announced Monday takes the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into new political territory, by initiating construction for Jews in east Jerusalem. Up to now, the government has been saying it was endorsing plans already in the pipeline. Israel’s Housing Ministry confirmed that the new construction bids are Netanyahu’s first in east Jerusalem.

A partition of Jerusalem – with Jewish neighborhoods going to Israel and Arab neighborhoods to a future Palestine – would likely be part of any peace deal. Palestinians say that with each expansion of Jewish areas, the Arab portion of the city is shrinking and partition becomes more difficult.Netanyahu said he was willing to get back to talks immediately, telling a group of Israeli ambassadors: “Israel wants peace.”

Israeli-Palestinian talks broke off a year ago. After coming to power nine months ago, Netanyahu withdrew key promises made to the Palestinians by his predecessor, including a willingness, in principle, to discuss the future of Jerusalem.About 300,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and another 180,000 in east Jerusalem, areas claimed by the Palestinians for their state. Under U.S. pressure, Netanyahu agreed to slow new housing construction in the West Bank, though construction of more than 3,000 houses there continues.

The Israeli leader refuses to stop building in east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War and annexed. He says he will not cede any part of the city.Successive Israeli governments have put up sprawling Jewish neighborhoods around east Jerusalem, and Monday’s decision would build in three of them: Pisgat Zeev, Har Homa and Neve Yaakov.

Abbas insists on a total settlement construction freeze, including east Jerusalem, and also wants assurances that the pre-1967 war borders would serve as the basis for talks that would pick up where they left off under Netanyahu’s more moderate predecessor, Ehud Olmert.In those talks, Olmert and Abbas accepted the principle of swapping land – meaning Israel would retain some West Bank land to incorporate large Jewish settlements but compensate the Palestinians with Israeli land. However, the Palestinians did not accept the offer because they felt Israel wanted to hold on to too much land, and Netanyahu withdrew it.

Mitchell has been sounding out Israel about possible compromise, in hopes of getting the talks restarted, according to an aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and former Israeli lawmaker Yossi Beilin.Beilin said Netanyahu has not accepted the idea of basing the talks on the borders before the 1967 war, in which Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem. Beilin, an architect of Israeli-Palestinian peace accords in the 1990s, remains in touch with government officials.

An Abbas aide said Mitchell is also talking to Israeli officials about possible goodwill gestures, such as releasing more Palestinian prisoners and expanding West Bank areas under full or partial Palestinian control. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the content of the meetings.