By Jen Marlowe

Just months after the Israeli assault that killed 1,390 Palestinians, I visited Gaza. Among dozens of painful stories I heard, one family stood out. I spent several days with Kamal and Wafaa Awajah, playing with their children, sleeping in the tent they were living in, and filming their story.

Wafaa described the execution of their son, Ibrahim. As she spoke, her children played on the rubble of their destroyed home. Kamal talked about struggling to help his kids heal from trauma.

What compelled me to tell the Awajah family’s story? I was moved not only by their tragedy but by the love for their children in Wafaa and Kamal’s every word.

Palestinians in Gaza are depicted either as violent terrorists or as helpless victims. The Awajah family challenges both portrayals. Through one family’s story, the larger tragedy of Gaza is exposed, and the courage and resilience of its people shines through.

For more information or to purchase a DVD or organize a screening, please contact donkeysaddle@gmail.com

By Andrew Ford Lyons

Ramadan Soccer Tournament

You’re watching your children play soccer. It’s a chilly weekend morning and you may be upset at the lost sleep involved in getting up and getting them there. The grass is green and the net, goal posts, striping are new and unscarred from previous play; their maintenance secured through a school district budget that generally passes grudging voter approval every two years. You see the mix of parents, some of them groggy, some of them slightly too excited by the impending competition. And it’s all incredibly normal.

What if the infrastructure for everything in the above scenario simply didn’t exist? What if there wasn’t a dew-covered green field behind the local elementary school that was open to all for community activities, funded by tax payers and maintained by salaried groundskeepers? What would it take for that scene to play out in a refugee community in the southern border town of Rafah, Gaza?

Every year, community members in the Yibna neighborhood of Rafah find out. Amid the ongoing brutal siege conducted by the Israeli occupation forces and the often violent struggle between internal political factions, comes the third annual Ramadan Soccer Tournament, organized by the Rachel Corrie Sports Initiative in Rafah.

Edited by Evan Welkin

Gina Patnaik (third from left) represents Rachel Corrie Foundation in Geneva.

On November 9, 2010, The U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva released its draft report on the first Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the U.S. human rights record. The Universal Periodic Review was established by the U.N. General Assembly in 2006 to review human rights records of all 192 U.N. member states. The 2010 report calls for greater transparency and accountability in U.S. foreign military aid and programs. The Rachel Corrie Foundation was one of numerous non-governmental organizations to provide written submissions for the UPR of the U.S.

On Thursday, November 4, Gina Patnaik, a cousin of Rachel Corrie and PhD candidate at the University of California – Berkeley, spoke at UN headquarters in Geneva, representing the Rachel Corrie Foundation in a side panel to the U.S. review. Patnaik called upon the U.S. Government to strengthen two existing mechanisms for monitoring human rights abuses – the Leahy Amendment, and the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. The Leahy Amendment is part of U.S. foreign assistance legislation and states that the U.S. must review all credible evidence of human rights violations committed by foreign militaries and hold its foreign aid beneficiaries accountable to international law.

By Cindy Corrie

Our family’s civil lawsuit in Israel in the case of our daughter Rachel opened March 10th with testimony from four international eyewitnesses, an autopsy doctor, an expert on heavy machinery, and a military police investigator. On March 24th, the trial recessed while the State identified military personnel to testify and the court broke for summer vacation. Proceedings resumed in Haifa District Court September 5th with five sessions spread over two months, the last being November 4th. Nine members of the Israeli military (including the driver and commander of the bulldozer that killed Rachel) testified for the Israeli Ministry of Defense. A Company Commander, Deputy Battalion Commander, and a Battalion Commander are among six to testify when the trial resumes. Because of an attorneys’ strike in the State Prosecutor’s Office, previously scheduled December court dates are now in question.

There are numerous revealing dimensions to this trial, but the spotlight on conduct of Israeli military investigations – both internal operational inquiries and those by military police – may be the most relevant to broader issues. Our attorney Hussein abu Hussein commented,

This civil trial is an important step to hold accountable not only those who failed to protect Rachel’s life but also the flawed system of military investigations which is neither impartial nor thorough.

Craig and Cindy Corrie

Dear Friends,

For the Rachel Corrie Foundation, 2010 has been marked by courageous pursuits of accountability. This work is supported by an expanding network of individuals and organizations standing together for justice, non-violence, and universal human rights in the Middle East. As we evaluate and look forward, we ask for your help.

On a personal level, the trial in Israel in Rachel’s case has been all-consuming. It is significant – because, as a civil case, it addresses the collective responsibility of the Israeli Ministry of Defense and State, rather than actions of strictly one or two lower-ranked soldiers. The Rachel Corrie Foundation continues to communicate and educate about the human rights implications of this legal effort.

In May and beyond, we followed the bold path of the Gaza flotilla, the Israeli military attack on the Mavi Marmara, and the determined journeys of the MV Rachel Corrie and Irene (the Jewish Gaza Boat) that followed. At great personal risk, courageous seafarers refused to accept the continuing intransigence of the Israeli Government toward Gaza and the unwillingness or inability of the U.S. and other world powers to improve the situation. From the week following the Mavi Marmara attack until after the MV Rachel Corrie sailed, we provided over 26 local, national, and international news interviews illuminating the Israeli blockade and siege of Gaza that drove the flotilla activists to sea. Based on our own experience and on the U.S.

The White House