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Even cultural centers surrounded by Israel!
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Israeli police cordoned off on Thursday, the French Cultural Center in East Jerusalem and dispersed a demonstration organized in the framework of the final events of the celebration of "Jerusalem as the capital of Arab culture for 2009."

The group organized a Boy Scout rally in Jerusalem‘s Old City which played the Palestinian anthem, and met the group after a short walk at the Damascus Gate protestors fired balloons amid chants of "Jerusalem is Arab," and brought women, including the Palestinian flag, and then the police intervened to disperse them.

In Salah El-Din - the main street in the city of Jerusalem - was launched balloons color the Palestinian flag, as he went in pursuit of Israeli policemen are still at balloons.

The police said the assembly section column is illegal and forcibly dispersed a combination that was considered about 150 people and detained by the police identity cards for more than a dozen others, which impede the movement of fully

According to the Jerusalem Center for Social and Economic Rights that the Israeli police: "used excessive force to disperse the participants in the celebrations and beat them and arrested at least 12 citizens."


The built Taddeih cultural advisor to the French consulate general that the police had intended to appear to the arrest of the Palestinian Rania Elias who participated in organizing the cultural event at the center of activities within the Final Events "Jerusalem Arab Capital of Culture 2009."

Were about 50 people, including officials in the Palestinian Authority, within the cultural center when it was surrounded by Israeli police, according to the source.


Israel has prevented any official activity in East Jerusalem, while the Palestinians insist that East Jerusalem be the capital of their future state.

He said Frederic Desagneaux, Consul General of France, "We are here to express our support for the Palestinian culture" in explaining the reasons for hosting the consulate of the effectiveness of the Palestinian cultural.

It is worth mentioning that Israel occupied East Jerusalem and annexed it in 1967, but the international community did not recognize this annexation, since 1996 the Arab states to choose each year to be an Arab city "the capital of Arab culture."