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The Color of Water

The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother, is the autobiography and memoir of James McBride first published in 1995; it is also a tribute to his mother, whom he calls Mommy, or Ma. The chapters alternate between James McBride's descriptions of his early life and first-person accounts of his mother Ruth's life, mostly taking place before McBride was born.

Synopsis
In The Color of Water author James McBride writes both his autobiography and a tribute to the life of his mother, Ruth Zylska, a white woman who married Andrew Dennis McBride, a black man from North Carolina. James's childhood was spent in a chaotic household of 12 children who had neither the time nor the outlet to ponder questions of race and identity. Ruth did not want to discuss the painful details of her early life when her abusive father, "Tateh", lorded it over her sweet-tempered and meek mother, "Mameh" ["tateh" and "mameh" are Yiddish terms of endearment for "father" and "mother," roughly equivalent to "daddy and "mommy" ). Ruth had cut all ties with her Jewish family, as they had essentially disowned her when she married James's father.

Born Ruchel Zylska to an Orthodox Jewish family in Poland, Ruth arrived in the United States when she was two years old. She spent her early childhood traveling around the country with her family as her father, Fishel Shilsky, sought employment as a rabbi. Shilsky eventually gave up hope of making a living as a rabbi, settled the family in Suffolk, Virginia, and opened a store in the mostly black section of town, where he overcharged his customers and expressed racist opinions. When Ruth was a child, her father sexually abused her and made harsh demands on her to work constantly in the family store. He also cheated on his wife, in an affair of which practically everyone in town was aware. Ruth's brother Sam left home at age fifteen, and soon after, Ruth too felt she must leave, wanting to escape the oppressive environment of both her family and the South. She was also pregnant by Peter, her black boyfriend in Suffolk, and wanted to deal with the pregnancy away from her family. She took trips to New York to stay with relatives, and later moved permanently to Harlem. Ruth's family disowned her when she left, disgusted with her choice of marrying a black man rather than a Jew, her general failure to embrace Judaism, and the defiance of her father. Ruth promised her sister Dee-Dee that she would return to Suffolk, but she could not reconcile her family's desires for her life with her own desires for her life. She betrayed her promise to return for Dee-Dee, and her relationship with her sister suffered as a consequence. This separation from her family recurs throughout the memoir as a painful element in Ruth's life.

In Harlem, Ruth met Dennis, to whom she was immediately attracted. She married him, converted to Christianity, and became very involved with church activities. While the couple experienced a certain degree of prejudice as a result of their interracial marriage, Ruth recalls these years of her life as her happiest ones. Dennis and Ruth opened the New Brown Memorial Church together in memory of Reverend Brown, their favorite preacher. They had several children, and eventually moved to accommodate their growing family. When Ruth was pregnant with Dennis' eighth child, James, Dennis fell ill with lung cancer, and died before their child was born. Ruth mourned his death deeply and became desperate to find a means to support herself and her eight children. She approached her relatives for assistance, but they refused to have any contact with her. Ruth met her second husband, Hunter Jordan, soon after. They married and eventually had four children together.

James weaves his own life story into his mother's story. Ruth's philosophies on race, religion, and work influence him greatly. She always sent her children to the best schools, no matter the commute, to ensure they received the finest possible educations. She demanded respect and hard work from her children, and always treated them tenderly. She had an unwavering faith in God and strong moral convictions. To Ruth, issues of race and identity took secondary importance to moral beliefs. Ruth died at her home in Ewing, New Jersey, on January 9, 2010.

Ruth's side of the family

 * James: the narrator, her son
 * Ruth McBride Jordan: mother of 12 children and the second narrator
 * Hudis Shilsky aka Mameh: Ruth's mother. Despite being crippled on the left side of her body, she still managed to be a loyal wife and good mother.
 * Fishel Shilsky aka Tateh: Ruth's father. Tateh was a terrible husband who also happened to be a rabbi, who would get into bed with his daughters. He even mocked his wife in public for being a cripple.
 * Gladys "Dee-dee" Shilsky: Ruth's sister, the only sibling of Ruth's that was born in America. Often, Ruth would say that she was envious of her because she didn't have to deal with the negative stigma of being Jewish like Ruth did.
 * Sam Shilsky: Ruth's brother. He ran away from home at 15, no longer wanting to deal with Tateh. Ruth says that he died while fighting in the Second World War.

James's side of the family

 * Andrew Dennis McBride: the biological father of James, Ruth's first husband, a very caring father and pastor. Died of lung cancer.
 * Hunter Jordan: stepfather, Ruth's second husband, died after having a relapse of a stroke
 * From eldest to youngest (excluding James, who is the eighth child): Dennis, Rosetta, Billy, David, Helen, Richard, Dotty, Kathy, Judy, Hunter, and Henry: James's 11 siblings (Jacqueline "Jack": Andrew's daughter from a previous marriage)
 * Nash and Etta: his grandparents
 * Henry Walter, and Garland: uncles
 * Clemy: cousin from down South
 * Z and Maya: his nieces
 * Becky: sister-in-law
 * Karen aka Karone, Leander Bien, and Laurie Wesman: ex-girlfriends
 * Stephanie: current wife
 * Linwood Bob Hinson: cousin from North Carolina
 * Azure and Jordan: James's children

Other characters

 * Frances Moody: Ruth's very close childhood friend, a gentile, the only schoolmate who befriended Ruth
 * Peter: Ruth's first boyfriend, who got her pregnant. Ruth later dumped him after she found out that he had gotten another girl pregnant.
 * Billy Smith: James's best friend
 * Big Richard: Jack's husband and James's friend
 * Mrs. Ingram: Ruth's best friend as an adult
 * Israel Levy: old friend of Ruth who allowed her father (rabbi) a permanent place
 * Rocky: the manager of the barber shop
 * C. Lawler Rogers and Hal Schiff: music teachers
 * David H. and Ann Fox Dawson: donors who helped James go to Europe concerning his aspiration to be a musician
 * Chicken Man: A friend of Big Richard's who teaches James all he knows about the streets and helps him turn his life around

Setting

 * Place: Suffolk, Virginia (Ruth's hometown); New York City (James McBride's home during most of his childhood); Wilmington, Delaware (James's family moved to Delaware in his teen years)
 * Time: James's life (the part of his life written about in The Color of Water): 1960–90 and Ruth's life (the part of her life written about): Started in 1920, emphasis on 1930s, '40s, and '50s

Black Power
James spoke of the Civil Rights Movement which foreshadowed his decision to lean towards the African-American side of his biracial identity. Many of his older siblings had also chosen to only acknowledge that they were African-American.

Ruth's bicycle
This symbolized her constant need for movement to deal with her stress and depression and escapism.

Ruth's mother's song: Love of Birds
When Ruth's mother sang the song "Birdie, Birdie, Fly Away", she was referring to Ruth as the bird, able to move so swiftly and easily, while she referred to herself as the handicapped bird who deserved to be sacrificed and killed. This foreshadowed her death.

Themes

 * Past vs. Present; self-motivation; and the burden of secrets
 * Racism. Black-white relationships in the United States and how they were shaped by the civil rights/Black Power movements
 * Feeling comfortable with not only one's identity, but one's background and sense of self

Reception
The trade paper edition, published in February 1998, was on The New York Times bestseller list for over 100 weeks (2 years), won the 1997 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Literary Excellence, was an ALA Notable Book of the Year, The New York Women's Agenda's first book for "New York City Reads Together" and has sold more than 1.5 million copies. It has been published in 16 languages and in more than 20 countries. The New York Times called the stories of McBride and his mother "beautifully juxtaposed."

title: The Color of Water


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Synovial

Synovial may refer to:

 * Synovial fluid
 * Synovial joint
 * Synovial membrane
 * Synovial bursa

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Synovial


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Tears in a vial

 This page is an archive of the discussion about the proposed deletion of the article below. This page is no longer live. Further comments should be made on the article's talk page rather than here so that this page is preserved as an historic record. The result of the debate was DELETE. Golbez 01:12, Jun 20, 2005 (UTC)

Tears in a vial
The slippery slope thing -- this song is already mentioned in the article The System Has Failed as being track #5. It'd be one thing if this song were like "Happy Birthday" or even "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", or at the very least had more than one line about the social and political implications of the existence of this particular Megadeth song. This entry doesn't even have that -- delete. StopTheFiling 18:33, Jun 14, 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete Most songs are not notable in and of themselves. --Xcali 20:29, 14 Jun 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete non notable song. JamesBurns 06:09, 15 Jun 2005 (UTC)
 * This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and, like some other VfD subpages, is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue, the deletion, or the decision-making process should be placed on the relevant 'live' pages.  Please do not edit this page .


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Farewells

Farewells (also titled Lydia Ate the Apple and Partings in the United States; original Polish title: Pożegnania) is a Polish film released in 1958 and directed by Wojciech Has. Taking place in Poland during the late 1930s and early 1940s, this melancholy film evokes the insecurity and despair pervading Poland at the time.

Premise
The story begins immediately before World War II and centers on Pawel (Tadeusz Janczar), a member of a conservative, bourgeois family, and his love for the thoroughly jaded Lidka (Maria Wachowiak), a dancer. The mismatched pair finds momentary happiness during a trip to the countryside, however social conventions and the lovers' inability to defy them force Pawel and Lidka to part. The times change, war breaks out and ends; Pawel suffers at Auschwitz concentration camp and Lidka marries his cousin. Years later the two rediscover each other much changed, and find that they may still have the capacity for love.

Cast

 * Maria Wachowiak as Lidka
 * Tadeusz Janczar as Paweł
 * Gustaw Holoubek as Mirek
 * Stanisław Jaworski as Doctor Janowski
 * Stanisław Milski as Professor
 * Zdzisław Mrożewski as Paweł's Father
 * Irena Netto as Motel Owner
 * Józef Pieracki as Professor Michniewicz
 * Irena Starkówna Countess Róza
 * Helena Sokolowska as Aunt Waleria Siekierzynska
 * Hanna Skarzanka as Maryna
 * Jarema Stepowski as Waiter
 * Saturnin Zórawski as Butler Feliks

Production
The film is an adaptation of a lyrical and reflective novel by Stanisław Dygat, with a screenplay written by Dygat himself and Has.

title: Farewells


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User:John Z/drafts/International law and the Arab-Israeli conflict

Criteria for making legal arguments International law is embodied in a wide range of documents and conventions, where they are articulated explicitly.

Ungrammatical, prolix and unclear english

In other words, any legal argument bound in international law must start with a reference to the applicable statute and the relevant source.

"Bound" is a very strange word to use here, as is "statute" which is just plain wrong. Only upon reading the discussion several times did I realize that you (apparently) do not intend to deny customary law and general principles as  sources of international law - but as you have written it, that is what this sentence says.

The argument must then show how the statute is applicable to the situation. For example, states are not bound by treaties that they haven't signed or ratified; nor are non-states bound by treaties that only apply to states.

International law doesn't really deal with "non-states" though there can be non-state subjects/persons in international law. The clause about "signed or ratified" is just false - just plain consent should be used.

By the same token, treaties typically are limited in scope in various ways. For example, the Geneva Conventions only apply to states of war between states.

The GCs are a terrible example here, for your statement is simply incorrect. Look up article 3, "the convention in miniature", common to all the GCS.

This is complicated by the fact that there may be a state of affairs that some interpret de facto as falling into one category; and others interpret differently.

?? - how is this relevant to this conflict?

It is further complicated by the controversial principle that if a sufficient number of states has ratified a treaty, the relevant statutes become part of customary international law that may be considered binding on all states. Evidence must then show that an applicable statute in international law has been violated in one way or the other, and that this violation outweighs other legal considerations.

Each of these criteria is subject to dispute within the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

??????

I think what you are saying in this section is (a) far too unclear - your meaning often escapes me (b) it is very NPOV because I don't see at all how what you say benefits one side or the other in this conflict :-) (c) repetitive (d) it really should not be here, much of it is better explained in other articles.  It should be in a general article, not one about a particular conflict.  If you think one side or the other hold some (dubious / controversial) abstract legal position simply to favor itself, then the abstract legal positions should be discussed in an abstract article and just referred to here.  It just confuses the matter here.  You should also acquaint yourself better with the facts of the actual positions of the state of Israel, for there are many statements relating to the conflict on Wikipedia which are just plain wrong.  I.e.  Israel never annexed the Golan.  I'll see if I can find an article by Julius Stone ( I think ) that explains what happened.

One point you seem confused about is customary law, especially with respect to this conflict.

You say "There are no states that would readily agree to subordinate their legislative process to "international customary law" - doing so would violate the preamble to virtually every treaty, etc., in that national sovereignty is absolutey inviolable. "

Well treaties between states are there to have them agree to "violate their own sovereignty" in a tit-for-tat.

Well, Israel has done in at least one important instance exactly what you say no state would do. Israel never signed the Hague Regulations, although of course it signed the Geneva Conventions. An Israeli supreme court decision ruled that the Hague Regulations were customary law (everybody else says this too), hence binding on Israel internationally. It also ruled that they were "self-executing" because they were customary ( a rule they created in this very decision) and thus were automatically Israeli municipal law without a need for enabling legislation. In effect, the court signed the Hague regulations for Israel and created legislation enabling it, giving individuals the right to sue under it.

Israel is in line with the Anglo-American approach to customary law, where it is basically held to be equal to legislation, which should be interpreted to not conflict, but in the case of a definite conflict does override the international law domestically, while of course thus creating a breach of the international law.

Another example is Germany, where customary international law is essentially overrides

You should realize that for international law to exist at all it is logically necessary - and universally held - that at least one rule is customary and universal and binding without explicit consent, that of pact sunt servanda - that treaties must be observed. Otherwise, one state could just arrogate to itself the right to lie in treaties. So, as wss historically the case, treaty law comes later and needs customary law.

&&&&&&&*********&&&&&&&&***((((((((((***&&&&&&&&&&&&

The interaction between International law and the Arab-Israeli conflict needs to be appreciated because much of the debate around the Arab-Israeli conflict is based on assertions about the applicability of International law. The basis for these arguments are discussed in this article.

The basis for legal arguments
International law is different from domestic law in many important respects, but its interpretation and application relies on a formal structure similar to that of domestic law. Legal arguments are also distinct from moral arguments, historical arguments, and religious arguments, all of which come into play in the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Criteria for making legal arguments

 * International treaty law is embodied in a wide range of documents and conventions, where they are articulated explicitly. In other words, any legal argument bound in international law must start with a reference to the applicable law.
 * The argument must then show how the statute is applicable to the situation.
 * For example, states are not bound by treaties that they haven't signed or ratified; nor are non-states bound by treaties that only apply to states.
 * By the same token, treaties typically are limited in scope in various ways.
 * This is complicated by the fact that there may be a state of affairs that some interpret de facto as falling into one category; and others interpret differently.
 * It is further complicated by the controversial principle that if a sufficient number of states has ratified a treaty, the relevant statutes become part of customary international law that may be considered binding on all states.
 * Evidence must then show that an applicable statute in international law has been violated in one way or the other, and that this violation outweighs other legal considerations.

Each of these criteria is subject to dispute within the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Monism vs. dualism
Most common-law countries (including Israel) apply a dualist principle in contending that international and domestic law are distinct systems of law, and that international law only applies to the extent that it does not conflict with domestic law. Most civil law countries (including most European countries) apply a monist principle and contend that there is only one system of law that incorporates both international and domestic law. This philosophical difference leads to different interpretations of the supremacy of international law over domestic law.

Monism versus dualism would lead to different interpretations of the supremacy of international law over municipal law in Israeli municipal law - not internationally. If something is legal in Israel under Israeli law, that has nothing to do with whether it is legal internationally - what is relevant is whether it breaks a treaty Israel signed, or is against customary law. (I don't think Israel is planning piracy, genocide or slave trading, so the relevance here is not clear)

Legal issues related to sovereignty
The vast majority of the world's sovereign states are a result of wars that were resolved through peace treaties. Some of these peace treaties were imposed on the losing side in a war; others came about as a result of negotiations that followed wars, or were entered into under the threat of war.

All international treaties recognize the supremacy of national sovereignty over other considerations.

???? What does this mean? The treaty compromises the sovereignty. If the treaty is a cession of land, a state had better be careful it it takes its word back later and says " our national sovereignty is supreme over other considerations." and doesn't cede the land, especially if the other state is stronger than it.

Origins
The legal sovereignty over areas now under Israeli rule (including areas within the armistice lines from the War of 1948, areas in Gaza, the Golan Heights, and west of Jordan captured during the Six-Day War) is subject to different interpretations:

 * An Israeli perspective is that the San Remo conference in 1920 explicitly granted the mandate to Great Britain in order to set up a Jewish homeland in Palestine . It is claimed that the mandate is still in force and is the only applicable treaty.

 * An Arab perspective is that sovereignty over these areas, and other areas ceded by the Ottoman Empire after World War I is determined by the legitimate struggle for national self-determination, as exemplified in other struggles for independence in former European colonies. They also claim the areas in question were never intended for Israel in the UN partition plan for Palestine; they were seized from Jordan during the Six day war and are thus considered occupied by Israel.

Subsequent treaties and resolutions
During the course of the British mandate in Palestine, the British government sought to reconcile the two claims in different ways. A number of proposals and declarations were put forward, all of which were rejected by one party or the other, and usually both. Again, two different interpretations apply:
 * The Israeli perspective is that Great Britain only had the mandate to propose solutions in keeping with the San Remo conference, not to enforce them. And even if the proposals had greater authority, their rejection and non-enforcement rendered them null and void for further consideration.
 * The Arab perspective views the proposals as promises (subsequently broken) to the people of Palestine, see also the Hussein-McMahon Correspondence.

After World War II, the British government decided to abandon its mandate in Palestine. A United Nations Commission (UNSCOP) was assigned to recommend a solution to the conflict to the General Assembly. The recommendation was a partition plan that would result in an Arab and a Jewish state in the remaining mandate, and Jerusalem under UN rule, was approved by General Assembly. This plan arguably did not have the authority of international law, since the General Assembly can only express international diplomatic consensus, not make international law. In any case, the plan was rejected by Arab states at the time.

However, on the basis of the resolution, the State of Israel was founded at the same time that Great Britain had announced its mandate would expire. Many states granted the State of Israel either de facto or de jure recognition. Israel was accepted as a sovereign member state in the United Nations and enjoys diplomatic relations with many, but not all, sovereign states.

The legal consequence of subsequent events
Several events have affected the legal issues related to the conflict:
 * After the war in 1948, the mandate ended up being split between Israel, Egypt and Jordan. Israel and Jordan annexed all areas under their administration; Egypt maintained a military occupation of Gaza. The United Nations did not assert its authority of Jerusalem, and the city ended up being split between Israel and Jordan.
 * Although there were numerous informal and backchannel communications between Israel and Arab states through the years, no Arab state diplomatically recognized Israel until 1979. //78//
 * The war in 1967 brought all remaining parts of the mandate (as defined by Great Britain in 1947) as well as parts of the Golan Heights under Israeli administration. Israel subsequently annexed East Jerusalem and the Golan and asserted that the West Bank and Gaza were disputed territories.
 * Both as a result of the wars in 1948 and 1967, Arab residents of the former mandate were displaced and classified by the United Nations as refugees
 * In approximately the same time frame, the majority Jews in Arab states fled. Most of these were absorbed by Israel.
 * United Nations Security Council issued resolution 242 that set the framework for a resolution through "land for peace".
 * In 1979 Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1979, agreeing on international borders between the two states, but leaving the disposition of Gaza for peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
 * In 1988, the Palestinian National Authority declared the formation of an independent Palestinian state, with Jerusalem as its capital
 * In 1993, the PLO and Israel signed a declaration of principles that included mutual recognition and the ultimate goal of establishing self-determination for the Palestinian people.
 * In 1994, Jordan and Israel also signed a peace treaty.
 * No other Arab state has granted legal recognition of Israel. A formal state of war still exists between Israel and several Arab states, though armistice agreements govern interaction between the states.
 * Several attempts at finalizing the terms for a peace agreement between Israel and the PLO have failed, though both parties accept each other as legitimate negotiation partners

Legal issues related to the wars
International law recognizes that there are legal reasons to go to war. For example, states have the right to defend themselves against overt external aggression, in the form of an invasion or other attack. A number of states assert that this principle extends to the right to launch military actions to reduce a threat, protect vital interests, or pre-empt a possible attack or emerging threat. As a practical matter, these distinctions may not matter much: once a war breaks out, the efforts shift toward ending it and preventing it from starting again rather than hashing out legal distinctions.

Wars between Israel and Arab states
Nevertheless, Security Council resolution 242 emphasized "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war," setting the stage for controversy on the legal status of areas captured in 1967, and (according to some) in 1948.

There are two interpretations of this matter: As noted above, Israel, Egypt, and Jordan have resolved this impasse and have recognized international borders between these states. The dispute has now shifted to the conflict between the Palestinian National Authority/PLO and Israel
 * The Israeli position is that:
 * The wars in 1956, 1967, and 1973 were waged by Israel to ensure the state's survival. Whether or not hostilities were initiated by one party or the other, Israel had to fight and win these wars in order to ensure the state's sovereignty and safety. Territories captured in the course of those wars are therefore legitimately under Israeli administration.
 * In the absence of peace treaties between all the parties at war, Israel has under all circumstances the right to maintain control of the captured territories. Their ultimate disposition should be a result of peace treaties, and not a condition for them. Even so, Israel asserts that:
 * The 1956 war was caused by a pattern of Egyptian belligerency against Israel, culminating with the nationalization of the Suez Canal and the blockage of the canal for Israeli traffic, in their view a clear casus belli (i.e. an act justifying war
 * The 1967 war was similarly caused by the closing of the Straits of Tiran, the rejection of UN forces in the Sinai desert, and the redeployment of Egyptian forces. Jordan and Syria entered the war in spite of Israeli efforts to keep these frontiers peaceful.
 * The 1973 war was a surprise attack against Israel by Syria and Egypt.
 * The Arab position is that:
 * The war in 1967 was an unprovoked act of aggression aimed at expanding the boundaries of Israel, and the territories captured during this war are illegally occupied.
 * As a result, the territories must be returned in order for peace to be achieved.

Armed conflict between Israel and Palestinian groups
The Declaration of Principles (see above) established Israel and the PNA/PLO as negotiation partners for purposes of determining the resolution of several issues, including:
 * The borders and legal status of Palestinian self-determination, including the eventual establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state
 * The disposition of Palestinian refugees
 * Other arrangements to resolve grievances, such as financial reparations

However, the application of international law is complicated by the fact that Israel is a sovereign state, while the PNA/PLO is recognized (by Israel and other states) as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and not a sovereign state. Hence, the PLO/PNA has neither the rights nor obligations of a sovereign state.

This issue is further complicated by the fact that the PLO/PNA has limited authority over other Palestinian groups, such as Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad within territories under Israeli or Palestinian administration; or over Hizballah and other organizations in other states.

Israel does not recognize enemy Palestinian combatants as soldiers and prosecutes them under Israeli criminal law. On the other hand, Israel invokes its sovereign right to self-defense as justification for targeted killings of enemy leaders.

Legal issues related to occupation
The Geneva Conventions and other international treaties recognize that land a) conquered in the course of a war; and b) the disposition of which is unresolved through subsequent peace treaties is "occupied" and subject to international laws of war and international humanitarian law. This includes special protection of individuals in those territories, limitations on the use of land in those territories, and access by international relief agencies.

"Occupied" vs. "Disputed" territories

 * See related article Political status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Several arguments are brought forward on this issue:
 * "Rejectionists" on the Arab side point out that the armistice lines of 1949 should not prejudice future borders, and that all of Israel is in fact occupied territory
 * Hardline Israelis agree that the armistice lines of 1949 have no legal standing, but assert instead that all of the West Bank and Gaza is legally Israeli, on both legal and historical bases
 * The more mainstream Israeli position is that:
 * The Golan Heights and East Jerusalem are annexed and belong to Israel; all inhabitants there have been offered Israeli citizenship
 * The West Bank and Gaza are "disputed" and not occupied territories, because:
 * They were part of the Mandate in Palestine and therefore part of what was to become a "Jewish homeland"
 * The Arab states rejected the 1947 partition plan
 * No attempt was ever made to establish a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza between 1949 and 1967 (See Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt and Occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan.)
 * The Geneva Conventions only apply to sovereign territories captured from a signatory to the conventions
 * The international perspective, excepting only the US in some cases, is that:
 * The annexation of the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem are illegal and not recognized by international law
 * The West Bank and Gaza are "occupied," because:
 * They were captured by force of arms and against the will of their populations
 * The residents in these areas were stateless
 * Israel has put the territories under military rather than civilian administration, creating a de facto state of occupation
 * Non-Jewish residents who reject Israeli citizenship and/or hegemony have the right to self-determination

Jerusalem
Recognizing the controversial nature of sovereignty over Jerusalem, UNSCOP recommended that the city be placed under United Nations administration in the partition plan. This was never implemented, and both Israel and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital. Israel annexed Jerusalem after the 1967 war and offered all inhabitants Israeli citizenship, but the annexation is not generally recognized. Most states maintain embassies and consular offices outside of Jerusalem (typically in Tel Aviv for representation to Israel; and Arab suburbs to Jerusalem for representation to the PNA).

Settlement in territories
The Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits an occupying power from deporting or transferring "parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies." On this basis, Palestinians and much of the world community has declared that Israel in violation of international law in establishing, funding, or allowing Jewish communities in the West Bank and Gaza.

The Israeli position is that the territories in question are not occupied in any legal sense, based on arguments discussed above. They further assert that Jewish settlement in these areas does not in any way displace or cause hardship for the Palestinians, which is the original purpose of the Conventions.

Security barrier
Israel has completed long stretches of barriers between Jewish and Palestinian communities, see the Israeli West Bank barrier and the Israeli Gaza Strip barrier articles. There are several interpretations of this issue:

 * Critics make one or several of the following arguments:
 * While a security barrier may be a necessary and effective way to stop attacks against Israeli targets, Israel has no right to build the barrier in territories considered occupied.
 * The barrier is nothing but an attempt to establish de facto borders between Israel and a future Palestinian state
 * The barrier attempts to separate Palestinians from their means of livelihood and from interaction with others and is therefore comparable to something the apartheid regime in South Africa might attempt
 * Israel defends the security barrier by arguing that:
 * The barrier and its route are solely security measures that will have no bearing on future peace negotiations
 * The land is not (for reasons outlined above) subject to the Geneva Conventions
 * Even if it were, the Geneva Conventions explicitly allows structures to be built for purposes of self-defense
 * The Israeli Supreme Court is reviewing the route on a continuous basis and has forced it to change

The International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion on July 9,2004 that it was contrary to international law for Israel to build a barrier in areas the court considered "occupied."

Legal definition of refugee
Most prominent among tractates dealing with refugees is the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. The definition of "refugee" is most often summarized as "... a person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion; and is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution."

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) applies a somewhat different version of this definition:

"Under UNRWA's operational definition, Palestine refugees are persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948, who lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. UNRWA's services are available to all those living in its area of operations who meet this definition, who are registered with the Agency and who need assistance. UNRWA's definition of a refugee also covers the descendants of persons who became refugees in 1948."

Critics of both the definitions and work of UNRWA have raised several objections as to the number of people that should be considered refugees, by arguing that:
 * There was a significant migration of Arabs into the mandate of Palestine concurrent with the Jewish immigration, in large part in response to the economic development.
 * UNRWA's services have led a number of people in the region to apply for refugee status for economic reasons, facilitated by lenient criteria for refugee status and an unwillingness on the part of UNRWA to screen applicants
 * It is unprecedented that also descendants of refugees inherit the refugee status

^^^^^^^^^^^^^&****%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

But the point is that the government of Israel does agree with its judiciary. The official position of the government of Israel has always been the same as everybody else's: These are occupied territories. Cf article 23 of the recent wall decision and similar articles in a long string of cases back to the 70's before the government of Israel had ever started to talk about disputed territories and used the word occupied like everyone else.

The government of Israel uses "disputed" in press releases. And comes near to saying "the territories are not occupied" but never quite gets there. When it comes to legal documents, it uses "occupied". Which should a rational person, which should Wikipedia use to understand what the official position is?

Israel accepted SC 242 a long time ago, which rather famously uses the word. Saying the territories are not occupied amounts to rejecting 242. Also, if you understand the government of Israel's main argument against the de jure applicability of the Geneva Conventions, you would realize that it requires the territories to be occupied under the meaning of the Hague regulations, which they manifestly are. And uncontroversially, Israel holds that the Hague regulations do apply de jure to the occupied territories (and that they are self-executing customary law).

I think there is a lack of real understanding here what the term means, what Israel and everyone else has always understood it to mean. It just means conquered, under military rule. It is a purely de facto term, having nothing to do with de jure issues. It is uncontroversial that one can occupy one's own territory in a civil war. Indeed the paradigmatic case of the modern law of belligerent occupation was one such - the US Civil War. The Lieber Code was the model of the later European treaties on the laws of war. By the way, Lieber was ideal to devise such a code - he had one son fighting on each side. So you can occupy your own territory, and you can occupy someone else's. It is then preposterous to say you can't occupy territories with disputed ownership - the most likely to be occupied of course.


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Roundstone, County Galway

Roundstone is a village on the west coast of Ireland, in the Connemara region of County Galway. Lying opposite the island of Inishnee on Roundstone Bay, by road it is 76 km northwest of Galway and 18 km southeast of Clifden. Known as a haven for people in the creative arts, it hosts an annual regatta in July.

Etymology
The anglicised name is usually considered an error on the part of the British colonial Ordnance Survey, which translated the village name; while Cloch certainly means "stone" or "rock", Rón means "seal", not "round". Still, the names Cloch na Rón and Roundstone may be totally independent. The bay is referred to as Round-stone Haven as early as 1684 (Roderick O'Flaherty), and the rock after which it is named stands like a marker at the entrance and is strikingly round.

History
The area to the north of Roundstone was ruled by the Chiefs of Clan O'Flaherty, who built a Dominican Priory about 2 mi to the north of what is now Roundstone in the 15th-century. Roundstone was established by Scottish engineer Alexander Nimmo in the 1820s, while building houses, roads and harbours throughout the West of Ireland. Fishermen from Scotland settled here, and, following Catholic Emancipation, in 1835 a Franciscan Monastery was built. By the end of 1840s it had a thriving fishing industry and a population of 400 people.

Culture
Roundstone is known as a home for creativity and the arts. For many years some of the most important figures in Irish Art have painted there, including Paul Henry, Jack B. Yeats, Gerard Dillon and Nano Reid. Yvonne Kings Studio and the Stable Gallery are notable galleries in the village. The local Summerfest and regatta is held in July. Traditional Irish Nights are held weekly throughout July and August and offers music, song and dance from the Connemara area. Rock star Sting had a home in Roundstone in the early 1980s, where he wrote most of the songs for The Police’s third album, Zenyatta Mondatta.

Roundstone is twinned with the village of Noyelles-sous-Lens (a suburb of Lens, Pas-de-Calais) in France.

Films shot in Roundstone include The Mackintosh Man (1973) by John Huston, Into the West (1992) by Mike Newell, The Matchmaker (1997) by Mark Joffe,  Marley & Me  (2008) by David Frankel and Love Me No More (2008) by Jean Becker. The six-part drama series, North Sea Connection was filmed there in 2021.

Transport
The village is connected to the rest of the national road network via a regional road, the R341, which connects it to the N59.

title: Roundstone, County Galway


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Dania Ramirez

Dania Ramirez (born November 8, 1979) is an American actress. Her credits include the roles of Maya Herrera in the NBC series Heroes, Alex in the HBO series Entourage, and Blanca during the last season of the HBO crime drama The Sopranos on television. Her film roles include Alex Guerrero in She Hate Me and Callisto in the feature film X-Men: The Last Stand. She portrayed Rosie Falta on Lifetime's Devious Maids from June 2013, until its cancellation in 2016. In July 2017, Ramirez joined the hit ABC series Once Upon a Time for its softly-rebooted seventh season in a starring role as Cinderella. In 2023, she began the starring role of Captain Nikki Batista in the Fox crime drama Alert: Missing Persons Unit.

Early life
Ramirez was born in Santo Domingo. At an early age, she decided to become an actress. As a young child, she would reenact telenovelas for her family. She was discovered by a modeling scout while working in a convenience store at the age of 15, and was offered a small part in a soda commercial. Later, she decided to pursue acting seriously and studied at the Actor's Workshop in New York City under Flo Greenberg.

At 16 years old, Ramirez started at Montclair State University, where her volleyball talents led her to be placed among the top five in career digs, digs/game, solo blocks and total blocks. She graduated in 2001. After graduation, Ramirez moved to Los Angeles to pursue her acting career.

Music videos
Ramirez has appeared in several music videos, including Jay-Z's Streets is Watching (1998), De La Soul's "All Good?" feat. Chaka Khan (2000), Enrique Iglesias’ Could I Have This Kiss Forever, feat. Whitney Houston, LL Cool J's "Hush" (2005; directed by her then fiancé Jessy Terrero),  Santana's "Into the Night" (2007), as well as "Cry Baby Cry" (a collaboration of Santana and Sean Paul). Ramirez appeared in Wisin & Yandel's music video "Dime Qué Te Pasó", in which she played the main character, the wife and mother of a military man in Iraq who finds out her husband died at war. She was also featured in hip-hop group Sporty Thievz's video "Cheapskate" in 1998.

Films
Ramirez appeared as an extra in the HBO film Subway Stories (1997), where she met filmmaker Spike Lee who would later cast her in the film She Hate Me (2004). She played older sister Lauri in the film Fat Albert (2004). She was Callisto (one of The Omegas) in the comic book film X-Men: The Last Stand (2006). She went on to star in The 5th Commandment, a film written by and starring Rick Yune, in 2008. In 2012, Ramirez appeared in two films, playing Selena in American Reunion and a bicycle messenger in Premium Rush.

Television
Ramirez appeared as the minor character Caridad in the final episodes of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and as Blanca Selgado, a recurring role during season six of The Sopranos.

Ramirez portrayed the character of Maya Herrera on the TV series Heroes.

Ramirez was a guest judge on episode five of Cycle 14 of America's Next Top Model.

Ramirez guest starred as Alex, an employee of Turtle's, who begins a relationship with Turtle in season seven on the TV series Entourage. From 2013 to 2016, Ramirez had been part of the main cast of Devious Maids, which aired on the Lifetime network for four seasons. She portrayed Rosie Falta, one of the main characters and titular protagonists of the series.

In July 2017, Ramirez was cast as a series regular in the softly-rebooted final season of Once Upon a Time. She portrayed Jacinda Vidrio, the real-world counterpart of the series' second iteration of Cinderella. In 2018, Ramirez was cast in another fairytale-themed drama, Tell Me a Story for CBS All Access. Ramirez played Hannah Perez, who is loosely based on Gretel from Hansel and Gretel.

As of 2023, she stars in Alert: Missing Persons Unit, which premieres on Fox on January 8. Her casting was announced in August 2022.

Other media
Ramirez has appeared in several magazine spreads. She has also been listed in several of the world's top publications' "Sexiest Ladies of the Year" lists. In 2009, she was added to the roster of models for CoverGirl Cosmetics. In January 2010, Ramirez and Queen Latifah launched the company's "Clean Makeup for Clean Water Campaign".

Personal life
Dania dated Soul Plane director Jessy Terrero until 2008. She became engaged in September 2011 to director John Beverly "Bev" Land. The couple married on the beach in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on February 16, 2013. Land has a son, Kai Miles, with former wife Sharon Leal.

On July 15, 2013, Ramirez announced that she was pregnant with twins. That December, she gave birth to fraternal boy-girl twins.

title: Dania Ramirez


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187th Infantry Regiment (United States)

The 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment (Rakkasans) is a regiment of the 101st Airborne Division.

, the 1st and 3rd battalions are the only active elements of the regiment; they are assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division.

World War II and aftermath
The regiment was originally constituted as the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment on 12 November 1942, and activated on 23 February 1943 at Camp Mackall, North Carolina. It was originally a two battalion glider regiment assigned to the 11th Airborne Division, the men of the 187th trained both as glider and parachute troops. They moved to Camp Polk on 9 January 1944 for glider training. The regiment staged at Camp Stoneman, California on 29 April 1944, and departed from the San Francisco Port of Embarkation on 6 May 1944.

The regiment arrived in New Guinea on 29 May 1944 and joined the New Guinea Campaign. The regiment departed New Guinea on 11 November 1944, and arrived on Leyte on 18 November 1944 to join the Leyte Campaign.

The regiment left Leyte, and joined the Luzon Campaign by assaulting Nasugbu Point Luzon on 31 January 1945, blocking Japanese forces as part of the advance on Manila from the south. From then until April 1945, the 187th fought their way from Nichols Field, Fort William McKinley, and Manila to Mount Macolod and Malepunyo.

In May 1945, the 187th moved into Lipa to refit, rebuild, and prepare for Operation Downfall, the planned invasion of Japan. At this time, the 3rd Battalion was formed and the regiment was redesignated a para-glider regiment.

The regiment was attached to the Provost Marshal General, U.S. Army Forces Far East from 1 June 1945 through 27 July 1945 at Manila. The campaigns in the Philippines were declared completed on 4 July 1945, and the regiment moved to Okinawa on 12 August 1945 for occupation duty. This is where the unit gained its name; Rakkasan, which means “falling umbrella” in Japanese, when it was the only unit to parachute onto Japanese soil at the time. With soldiers landing in close proximity to local landmarks featuring Torii's the 187th adopted the Torii as an unofficial part of the unit identity. After the war ended on 14 August 1945, the regiment subsequently moved to Japan on 30 August 1945, and was alleged to be the first foreign ground combat unit to enter that nation.

In April 1949, the regiment returned to the United States and was stationed at what was then Camp Campbell, Kentucky. It was redesignated the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment on 30 June 1949 and remained assigned to the 11th Airborne Division. In early 1950, the 187th participated in "Operation Swarmer", the largest peacetime airborne maneuver in history.

Korean War

The 187th was selected as an airborne regimental combat team responding to the crisis in Korea. On 1 August 1950 the regiment became the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team (ARCT) when supporting units were added and deployed to Japan, arriving on 20 September 1950. The advance party of the 3rd Battalion of the Rakkasans was the first to arrive in Korea, arriving at Kimpo Airfield on 23 September. On 24 September, it was placed under the operational control of the First Marine Division, relieving the 2d Battalion of the 7th Marine Regiment, arriving almost a week after Douglas MacArthur's surprise landing at Inchon on 17 September 1950.

One month later, on 20 October 1950, the regiment made successful combat parachute assaults near the towns of Sukchon and Sunchon, North Korea as part of the Battle of Yongju. The published purpose of that drop was to capture members of the North Korean Government fleeing Pyongyang and also to free American POWs being moved from Pyongyang toward the Manchurian border. Neither objective was realized but were followed by battles at Suan, Wonju, Kaesong, Munsan-ni, and Inje.

The 187th led the second and last parachute assault in Korea on 23 March 1951 as part of Operation Tomahawk.

Under BG Thomas J. H. Trapnell, it redeployed to Japan on 26 June 1951 where it became a strategic reserve but returned to Korea on 24 May 1952 to assist in the suppression of the prisoner rebellion at the Geoje POW Camp (aka. Koje Pow Camp during the Korean War) where prisoners had forcibly seized and held Brigadier General Francis Dodd, camp commandant, hostage for four days from 7 May 1952 (Koje Island Incident). After this, it once more returned to Japan on 18 October 1952 and made its final return to Korea on 22 June 1953. From late 1952 to 1953 the 187th was commanded by Brigadier General (later General) William Westmoreland. The unit returned to the United States in July 1955 and, the following year, became part of the newly reactivated 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, KY.

The 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team consisted of the following units: The following units were assigned by General Order 34 (Confidential) Headquarters 11th Airborne Division: The following units were added on 23 August 1950 by General Order 41, 11th Airborne Division dated 22 August 1950: The following units were attached on 26 August 1950 per General Order 42, Headquarters 11th Airborne Division dated 25 August 1950: On 28 August 1950, Operations Order Number 1, IX Corps, the 2348th Quartermaster Air Packaging and Resupply Company was attached to the command of Colonel Bowen
 * 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment
 * 674th Airborne Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
 * Battery "A", 88th Airborne Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion
 * Company "A", 127th Airborne Engineer Battalion
 * Detachment, 11th Airborne Military Police Company
 * Detachment, 11th Airborne Quartermaster Company
 * Parachute Maintenance Company
 * Pathfinders from 11th Airborne Division
 * Platoon, Ambulance Company, 11th Airborne Medical Battalion
 * Platoon, Clearing Company, 11th Airborne Medical Battalion
 * Attached units

 * 2d and 4th Ranger Infantry companies (Airborne) (3 March 1951 – 4 April 1951)
 * 5-man FECOM Tactical Liaison Office Team, 8177th Army Unit. (Tactical Intelligence)

Many personnel from the 511PIR in the 11th Airborne Division were transferred to the 187th ARCT to bring it up to full strength for overseas deployment.

Four members of the 187th were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions in the Korean War: Corporal Lester Hammond, Jr.(KIA), Corporal Rodolfo P. Hernandez, Corporal Joe R. Baldonado(KIA) and Private First Class Richard G. Wilson(KIA).

The 1950s and early 1960s were a turbulent time for the Rakkasans, they returned to the US in 1955, this time to Fort Bragg, North Carolina. As part of a larger realignment of the army, under the Pentomic Division concept, the Rakkasans road marched to Fort Campbell in February 1956 to serve as the nucleus of the newly reactivated 101st Airborne Division.

Post-Korean War and Air Mobility
When the Pentomic concept that replaced regiments and battalions with battle groups was introduced in 1957, Companies A, B, and C of the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment were redesignated as HHCs of the 1st, 2d, and 3d Airborne Battle Groups, 187th Infantry, respectively. The 1st ABG, 187th Infantry was assigned to the 11th Airborne Division in Germany from 1 March 1957 to 1 July 1958, when the 11th was inactivated and reflagged as the 24th Infantry Division. During its assignment to the 24th it was involved in the Lebanon intervention. On 8 February 1959 it was relieved from the 24th, rotated back to the United States and was assigned to the 82d Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC. Its colors were inactivated on 25 May 1964 and concurrently consolidated with the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry (constituted and activated 1 February 1964 at Fort Benning, Georgia, as an element of the 11th Air Assault Division, and the consolidated unit designated as the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry, an element of the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) at Fort Benning, GA. It was inactivated on 30 June 1965 when the 11th Air Assault Division and 2d Infantry Division were combined to form the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), during which time the elements of both the 11th and 2d were reflagged with new designations.

The 2d ABG, 187th Infantry remained assigned to the 101st Airborne Division and was inactivated on 1 February 1964 when the Army abandoned the Pentomic structure in favor of brigades and battalions.

The 3d ABG, 187th Infantry was not active during the Pentomic era. The colors were redesignated on 1 February 1963 as HHC, 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry, assigned to the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) at Fort Benning, GA, and activated on 7 February 1963. Over the next year, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment served as a test unit to help validate the Army's airmobile concept. It was relieved from the 11th on 1 February 1964 and the colors were assigned to the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, KY. There was no transfer of troops or equipment; instead, the existing 3–187th at Fort Benning was reflagged as 1–187th.

Vietnam War
The Rakkasans moved back to Fort Campbell, Kentucky in February 1964, to serve as part of the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division. In December 1967 the 3d Battalion deployed to Vietnam, alongside 1st and 2d Battalion, 506th Infantry. Over the next four years the Iron Rakkasans fought in twelve major campaigns, conducting numerous air assaults and search and destroy missions. During one such mission in March 1968 Captain Paul W. Bucha, commander of D Company, received the Medal of Honor when he crawled through a hail of fire to single-handedly destroy a machine gun bunker with grenades near Phuoc Vinh, Vietnam. When the battalion colors returned to Fort Campbell the unit had distinguished itself by earning two Valorous Unit Awards, and its third and fourth Presidential Unit Citations for the battles of Trang Bang and Dong Ap Bia Mountain (commonly known as "Hamburger Hill"). The Iron Rakkasans emerged from the Vietnam War as the country's most highly decorated airborne battalion.

Assignments in South Vietnam

The 3-187th Infantry's exploits from 10 to 20 May 1969 on hill 937 in the A Shau Valley were depicted in a 1987 movie using the hill's nickname Hamburger Hill as the title. For this action the unit received the Presidential Unit Citation.

Post Vietnam
When the 101st returned from Viet Nam, most of its personnel in the rank of staff sergeant and below were discharged upon arrival at Oakland, California, or Seattle, Washington. What remained largely consisted of a command group of staff officers and senior NCOs. The division settled into buildings recently vacated by the "U.S. Army Training Center, Fort Campbell, Kentucky."

When the 101st was rebuilt, the separate 173d Airborne Brigade was inactivated and its assets used to form the 3d Brigade as an airborne unit consisting of 1–503d INF, 2–503d INF, and 3–187th INF. The partial airborne capability also extended to supporting units of the division (i.e., one company of three in a supporting unit was airborne). This lasted only until April 1974, when jump status for the 3d Brigade was terminated, and the Airmobile Badge (renamed Air Assault Badge later that year) was introduced.

In October 1983 the 1st, 2d, and 4th Battalions, 187th Infantry, were activated, and on 21 November 1984 a 5th Battalion was activated. The 1st and 2d Battalions were assigned to the 193rd Infantry Brigade in Panama and the 3d, 4th and 5th were assigned to the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at Fort Campbell. The 4th and 5th were created by reflagging the existing 1–503d and 2–503d, the colors of which were soon reactivated in Korea within the 2nd Infantry Division (United States). The Panama-based 2–187th included one airborne company (Moatengators) within the battalion, and later jump status was expanded to the entire battalion. 2-187th was the last airborne battalion of the 187th. During a realignment of the United States Army's combat forces in 1987 the 1st and 2d Battalions were inactivated and the 5th and 4th Battalions were reflagged as the 1st and 2d Battalions, respectively.

From July 1984 to January, 1985, the 4th Battalion, reorganized at TF-4-187 (Rakkasan Raiders) deployed to the Sinai Desert, Egypt as the United States' contingent of the Multinational Force and Observers peacekeeping mission.

From September 1988 through March 1989, 1st Battalion reorganized as Task Force 1–187 and deployed to the Sinai Desert, Egypt as the United States' contingent of the Multinational Force and Observers peacekeeping mission.

Gulf War
In September 1990 the Rakkasans were deployed to Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield. In February 1991 two companies from the 1st Battalion captured 434 Iraqi soldiers during the air assault into Objective Weber and on 25 February the Rakkasans conducted the deepest and largest air assault operation in history. Striking 155 mi behind enemy lines into the Euphrates river valley, the assault led to the timely defeat of Iraqi forces and contributed to a total allied victory. The unit moved farther north than any other unit during Operation Desert Storm.

Between Gulf War and GWOT
From 1991 to 1993 the 3-187 was commanded by Lt. Colonel (later General) David H. Petraeus who renamed the battalion the "Iron Rakkasans" after the physical training test he created. CSM Donald Purdy was the Battalion Command Sergeant Major during this time.

In 1995 the Iron Rakkasans battalion was organized as Task Force 3-187 and deployed to the Sinai Peninsula in July 1995. The Iron Rakkasans were responsible for the southern portion of Zone C and based at South Camp, Sharm el Sheik, Egypt. During the deployment, they were instrumental in the recovery of casualties from an accident near one of the sector control centers and evacuating them to hospitals utilizing Multinational Forces Helicopters. On 23 November 1995, the 7.3 Gulf of Aqaba earthquake hit the Sinai Peninsula. Again the Iron Rakkasans performed road recon and rescue operations throughout the peninsula. The Iron Rakkasans earned an Army Superior Unit Award for their actions during the deployment. The unit returned to the United States in January 1996.

In September 1996, elements of Raider Rakkasan (2nd Battalion), Alpha Co. "Blackhawks", Charlie Co. "Hard Rock", and Bravo Co. "Warriors", 2nd Battalion deployed to Saudi Arabia through April 1997 in support of Operation Desert Focus, providing force protection for U.S. personnel in support of U.S. air assets in Saudi Arabia relocated from Dhahran and from Riyadh to the remote Prince Sultan Air Base, Camp Eagle Town II. The move's purpose was force protection, and came in the wake of the 25 June 1996 terrorist bombing at Khobar Towers which killed 19 airmen and wounded many more. U.S. and Saudi Arabian officials agreed to split the $200 million cost of relocating more than 4,000 US troops. Some 2nd Battalion soldiers were awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Army Achievement Medal and the unit was awarded the Army Superior Unit Award. LTC Twomey was the battalion commander. Elements of 1/187th, deployed to Saudi, were part of Operation Desert Eagle, From Sept. to Dec. 1997.

From February 2000 through August 2000 1-187 deployed to Kosovo for peacekeeping operations as a part of Task Force Falcon in support of Operation Joint Guardian.

Afghanistan and Iraq

In 2001–2002, following the attacks of 9-11, the Rakkasans deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom where they most notably participated in Operation Anaconda in the eastern Shah-i-Khot region. The 2d Battalion (Raider Rakkasans) as well as Companies B,C, and D, 1st Battalion (Leader Rakkasan), were awarded the Valorous Unit Award for combat valor during this period.

In 2003, the Rakkasans, commanded by Colonel Mike Linnington, were deployed for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry was temporarily attached to the 3rd Infantry Division and accompanied them during the push into Baghdad. While attached to the 3rd Infantry Division, 3rd Battalion cleared the Republican Guard headquarters and Baghdad International Airport in April 2003. For this action the battalion earned an unprecedented fifth Presidential Unit Citation. Following the invasion, 3d Battalion conducted six months of security operations near Rabia, Iraq, on the Syrian border, to block the flow of foreign fighters. Prior to returning stateside in February 2004 the Iron Rakkasans conducted combat operations in Husaybah, Iraq with the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment. Once back in the US the battalion added a forward support company.

Before moving north to Ninawa Governorate (province), the Rakkasans conducted extensive stability and support operations in Baghdad's southeast sector. The Rakkasans conducted the majority of their operations in the northwest of Ninevah province with the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry focusing efforts around Tallafar, Zumar, and Avgani. The 2d Battalion, 187th Infantry worked primarily around Sinjar and Baji, and the 3d Battalion was headquartered in Rabia.

They returned to Fort Campbell in 2004 and redeployed to Iraq again in the fall of 2005. During their second tour in Iraq, they focused operations in Salah ad Din province, with the 3d Battalion. The brigade commander was Colonel Michael D. Steele. During this deployment that the brigade conducted "Operation Swarmer", one of the largest combat operations in Iraq since the initial invasion. Rakkasans worked with Iraqi Army soldiers throughout Salah ad Din province defeating insurgents, Al Qaeda cells, and uncovering numerous caches of weapons and explosives.

In October 2007 the Rakkasans again deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom 07-09 led by brigade commander Col. Dominic Caraccilo. The brigade was headquartered at Camp Striker near Baghdad with an area of operation that extended from the Euphrates river in the west to the Tigris in the east and ran south from Baghdad to Al-Mahmudiyah. This area included the Triangle of Death which had seen significant violence in the war and was often a staging area for the insurgency. As a unit following the surge, the Rakkasans manned combat outposts throughout the rural areas to provide local security for the populace, partner with Iraqi defense and police forces, and facilitate numerous economic and developmental projects. When the Rakkasans redeployed to Fort Campbell at the end of their tour in November 2008, they did not transfer authority to an incoming U.S. military unit. Instead, the area became the responsibility of the partnered Iraqi forces marking a significant step in the transference of security and authority from coalition forces to the Iraqis.

In January 2010, the Rakkasans, now commanded by COL Viet Luong, again deployed to Regional Command East in Afghanistan for a 12-month deployment, where it received the Valorous Unit Award while conducting combat operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in the Ghazni, Paktya, Paktika and Khowst Provinces in Eastern Afghanistan during the period 1 April 2010 to 31 August 2010.

Task Force Rakkasan consisted of the following units:
 * Headquarters, 3d Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division
 * 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment
 * 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment
 * 3d Battalion 320th Field Artillery Regiment
 * 1st Squadron, 33d Cavalry Regiment
 * 626th Support Battalion
 * Special Troops Battalion, 3d Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division
 * 3d Battalion, 172d Infantry Regiment (Task Force Avalanche)
 * Company B, 2d Battalion, 151st Infantry Regiment
 * 92d Military Police Company
 * 615th Military Police Company (1 April 2010 - 30 April 2010)
 * Provincial Reconstruction Team Paktika (Provisional)
 * Provincial Reconstruction Team Paktiya (Provisional)
 * Provincial Reconstruction Team Khost (Provisional)
 * Agribusiness Development Team (Provisional), Oklahoma Army National Guard
 * Agribusiness Development Team (Provisional), Indiana Army National Guard

On 6 September 2016, the U.S. Army announced it would deploy about 1,400 soldiers from 3d Brigade Combat Team to Afghanistan in fall 2016 in support of Operation Freedom's Sentinel – the U.S. counter-terrorism operation against the remnants of al-Qaeda, ISIS–K and other terror groups. Senior leadership referred to the 3d Brigade Combat Team as being exceptional. Brig. Gen. Scott Brower stated that the Rakkasans are trained, well-led, and prepared to accomplish any mission given to them.

Coat of arms

 * Shield: Azure on a pale nebuly Argent a double handed sword erect Gules.
 * Crest: On a wreath Argent and Azure between a Japanese city symbol Gules and a mullet of seven points per fess wavy of the last and of the second, a sea lion Or charged on the shoulder with a heart Purpure and holding in his dexter paw a sword bendwise of the first with hilt and pommel of the fourth the blade notched three times to base of the third.
 * Motto: Ne Desit Virtus (Let Valor Not Fail).

The symbolism includes: Slang term : Angels From Hell, For retired insignia.

 * Shield:
 * Blue is for the Infantry.
 * The partition line of the pale heraldically representing clouds and the doubled-handed sword, an ancient infantry weapon, symbolizes the character of the organization as an Airborne Infantry unit.
 * Crest: The golden seal lion, adapted from the seal of the president of the Philippines, represents the award of the Philippine Presidential Unit Streamer for the campaign on Manarawat, scene of the first combat jump of the 187th.
 * The heart on the lion's shoulder points out the action on Purple Heart Hill.
 * The winged sword with three notches in the blade signifies the unit's score of three combat jumps, one in the Philippines and two in Korea.
 * The red diamond shape is the insignia of the city of Yokohama, Japan, where the 187th landed as the first American combat troops and began four years of occupation duty.
 * The seven-pointed star, divided in the manner of the Korean Taeguk stands for the unit's seven campaigns in that country.

The coat of arms was originally approved on 15 December 1952 for the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment. It was redesignated for the 187th Infantry Regiment on 7 February 1958.

Helmet insignia
Members of the 187th have informally worn torii patches or designs on their helmets in honor of the unit's parachuting into Japan.

Lineage

 * Regiment Constituted 12 November 1942 in the Army of the United States as the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment.
 * Assigned 25 February 1943 to the 11th Airborne Division and activated at Camp Mackall, North Carolina.
 * Allotted 15 November 1948 to the Regular Army.
 * Reorganized and redesignated 30 June 1949 as the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment
 * Reorganized as the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team on 1 August 1950 and posted to Japan where it served in the Korean War
 * Relieved 1 February 1951 from assignment to the 11th Airborne Division.
 * Regiment assigned 1 July 1956 to the 101st Airborne Division.
 * Company A reorganized and redesignated 1 March 1957 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Airborne Battle Group, 187th Infantry, relieved from assignment to the 101st Airborne Division, and assigned to the 11th Airborne Division (organic elements concurrently constituted and activated).
 * On 25 April 1957, the following actions took place:
 * 1) Regimental Headquarters relieved from assignment to the 101st Airborne Division; concurrently reorganized and redesignated as the 187th Infantry, a parent regiment under the Combat Arms Regimental System.
 * 2) Company B reorganized and redesignated Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2d Airborne Battle Group, 187th Infantry, and remained assigned to the 101st Airborne Division (organic elements concurrently constituted and activated)
 * 3) Company C inactivated at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and relieved from assignment to the 101st Airborne Division; concurrently redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3d Airborne Battle Group, 187th Infantry
 * 1st Airborne Battle Group relieved 1 July 1958 from assignment to the 11th Airborne Division and assigned to the 24th Infantry Division.
 * 1st Airborne Battle Group relieved 8 February 1959 from assignment to the 24th Infantry Division, and assigned to the 82d Airborne Division.
 * HHC 3d Airborne Battle Group redesignated 1 February 1963 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry, and assigned to the 11th Air Assault Division (organic elements concurrently constituted)
 * 3d Battalion activated 7 February 1963 at Fort Benning, Georgia.
 * The following actions took place on 1 February 1964:
 * 1) 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment constituted and activated at Fort Benning, Georgia, as an element of the 11th Air Assault Division.
 * 2) 2d Airborne Battle Group relieved from assignment to the 101st Airborne Division.
 * 3) 3d Battalion relieved from assignment to the 11th Air Assault Division and assigned to the 101st Airborne Division.
 * 2d Airborne Battle Group inactivated 3 February 1964 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
 * 1st Airborne Battle Group inactivated 25 May 1964 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; concurrently consolidated with the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry, and consolidated unit designated as the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry, an element of the 11th Air Assault Division (later redesignated as the 11th Airborne Division)
 * On 1 October 1983, the following actions took place:
 * 1) 187th Infantry Regiment Regiment withdrawn from the Combat Arms Regimental System and reorganized under the United States Army Regimental System
 * 2) HHC 1st Battalion relieved from assignment to the 11th Airborne Division, assigned to the 193rd Infantry Brigade, and activated in Panama.
 * 3) HHC 2d Airborne Battle Group redesignated as HHC 2d Battalion, 187th Infantry, assigned to the 193d Infantry Brigade, and activated in Panama
 * 1st Battalion inactivated 1 May 1987 in Panama and relieved from assignment to the 193d Infantry Brigade.
 * 2d Battalion inactivated 10 July 1987 in Panama and relieved from assignment to the 193d Infantry Brigade.
 * On 16 September 1987, the following actions took place:
 * 1) 1st Battalion activated at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and assigned to 101st Airborne Division.
 * 2) 2d Battalion activated at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and assigned to 101st Airborne Division.
 * On 16 September 2004, 1st Battalion and 3d Battalion were relieved from assignment to the 101st Airborne Division and assigned to the 3d Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division.
 * On 1 October 2005, the following actions took place:
 * 1) 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry redesignated as the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment
 * 2) 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry redesignated as the 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment

Campaign participation credit

 * World War II:
 * 1) New Guinea;
 * 2) Leyte;
 * 3) Luzon (with arrowhead)

 * Korean War:
 * 1) UN Offensive (with arrowhead);
 * 2) CCF Intervention;
 * 3) First UN Counteroffensive (with arrowhead);
 * 4) CCF Spring Offensive;
 * 5) Korea, Summer-Fall 1952;
 * 6) Korea, Summer 1953

 * Vietnam War:
 * 1) Counteroffensive, Phase III;
 * 2) Tet Counteroffensive;
 * 3) Counteroffensive, Phase IV;
 * 4) Counteroffensive, Phase V;
 * 5) Counteroffensive, Phase VI;
 * 6) Tet 69/Counteroffensive;
 * 7) Summer-Fall 1969;
 * 8) Winter-Spring 1970;
 * 9) Sanctuary Counteroffensive;
 * 10) Counteroffensive, Phase VII;
 * 11) Consolidation I;
 * 12) Consolidation II

 * Southwest Asia War (Gulf War):
 * 1) Defense of Saudi Arabia;
 * 2) Liberation and Defense of Kuwait

Decorations
The 187th is one the most highly decorated units in the United States Army. Its unit awards include the following:

 * Presidential Unit Citation (Army) for:
 * 1) TAGAYTAY RIDGE
 * 2) SUKCHON
 * 3) TRANG BANG
 * 4) DONG AP BIA MOUNTAIN
 * 5) OIF 1

 * Presidential Unit Citation (Navy) for:
 * 1) INCHON

 * Valorous Unit Award for:
 * 1) BINH DUONG PROVINCE
 * 2) THUA THIEN PROVINCE
 * 3) OPERATION ANACONDA (OEF 1)
 * 4) GHAZNI, PAKTYA, PAKTIKA, AND KHOWST PROVINCE (OEF 4)
 * 5) PAKTYA, PAKTIKA, AND KHOST PROVINCE (OEF 10/11)

 * Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army) for:
 * 1) VIETNAM 1968
 * 2) SOUTHWEST ASIA
 * 3) OIF 1
 * Army Superior Unit Award for 1995–1996
 * Philippine Presidential Unit Citation for 17 October 1944 to 4 July 1945.
 * Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for:
 * 1) KOREA 1950–1952
 * 2) KOREA 1952–1953

Notable members

 * GEN William Westmoreland, commanded the Rakkasans during the Korean War from November 1952 to 1953, and later commanded Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) and served as Chief of Staff of the US Army
 * GEN David Petraeus, former 3rd Battalion commander, later Director of CIA
 * GEN Melvin Zais, commanded the 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam
 * GEN Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., leader of coalition forces during Gulf War briefly executive officer of a company in 1950s
 * LTG Robert L. Caslen, Jr., Rakkasan combat vet from the First Gulf War later Superintendent of the United States Military Academy
 * COL Michael D. Steele, Former 187th commander, commanded Ranger company during the Battle of Mogadishu.
 * LTC Ronald Speirs, former company commander of E Co, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, served as a rifle company commander with the 187th Regimental Combat Team during Operation: Tomahawk
 * CPT Paul W. Bucha, Medal of Honor (Vietnam)
 * SMA George W. Dunaway, second Sergeant Major of the Army, was sergeant major of the 187th from 1954 to 1960
 * SGM Eric J Geressy (Iraq) Silver Star, three Bronze Stars, and the Army Commendation Medal for Valor
 * MSG Albert Blithe, WWII member of 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, portrayed in the TV-series Band of Brothers
 * CPL Lester Hammond, Jr., Medal of Honor (Korea)
 * LTC Charles Lockie, Silver and Bronze Star (Korea)
 * CPL Rodolfo P. Hernandez, Medal of Honor (Korea)
 * SPC Ryan A. Conklin, reality TV star and author of An Angel From Hell which chronicled A Co. 3/187th Infantry during the Iraq deployment of 2005–2006.
 * PFC Richard G. Wilson, Medal of Honor (Korea)
 * PFC Stephen Flemmi, Silver Star (Korea), later became Winter Hill Gang member then and FBI informant

In film
The "Rakkasans" are portrayed in the 1987 movie Hamburger Hill.

The 187th AIR was also portrayed in the 2003 movie Big Fish. Ewan McGregor's character returns home from the Korean War wearing the 187 Airborne Infantry Regiment patch

title: 187th Infantry Regiment (United States)


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Garafía

Garafía is a municipality in the island of La Palma, Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands). Located in the northwest of the island, in the middle of two whims of nature: the ravines of Franceses (by the North) bordering Barlovento and Izcagua by the South (born at the foot of the Roque de los Muchachos), bordering Punta Gorda. The administrative capital, home to the City Council, is called Santo Domingo; its parish church, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de La Luz dates back to the 16th century. Garafía has a length of 25.50 km coastline.

It covers an area of 103 square kilometers being the largest municipality of the island of La Palma with an estimated population of 1,654 inhabitants (National Institute of Statistics, January 2012) population. Its administrative capital, Santo Domingo, where resides the City, is located at an altitude of 400 meters.

The climate in the coastal zone is smooth, with many windy days motivated by the impact of the trade winds in the area, most of the time being its very choppy sea. In the area of middle altitude called medianías, part of the territory in between 400 and 1200 meters over the sea level, very extensive, the temperature is colder, and is a place where the land is very rich. At this altitude is seen in the cool nights of Roque del Faro, Hoya Grande or Llano Negro, mild climate to the extent we drove south on Catela, El Castillo or Las Tricias. This brings, along with the goodness of their land, agriculture rich and varied at this zone, the main crops cereals, fruits and tubers, and there are large areas of fresh and varied pastures that serve as gathering forage for raising animals, mostly his cabin goats, whose milk pemit obtain a tender cheese artisan deserved reputation for the golden color of its bark and its taste, resulting from treatment careful in smoked thereof, carried out by master craftsmen obtained area. Finally, find its summit path of Roque de los Muchachos and Los Andenes, in the same edge of the Caldera de Taburiente, with extremely cold climate, where even snows in winter, being a very picturesque contrast to see the white snow in contrast to the black basaltic or reddish stones of this area. Acclimatization include violet flower of Garafía at this extreme weather and blue and rose tajinastes blooming in the margins of the road to the top of the mountain.

In its municipal term is the Roque de los Muchachos, the highest point of the island with 2,426 meters over the sea level, where is located the headquarters of the telescopies the Canary Island Astrophysics Institute (IAC) on the island of La Palma, which together with this Institute has facilities in Tenerife (Izaña) make up the network ENO (European Northern Observatory, composed of over sixty scientific organizations in nineteen states), while its administrative base remains in La Laguna, Tenerife. The Roque de los Muchachos, on the edge of La Caldera de Taburiente, given its unique location, bathed by trade winds from the Atlantic, laminar, non-turbulent cold air, make it one of the prime locations in the northern hemisphere for astronomical observation.

This town, which had in 1960 almost 5,000 inhabitants, has strongly suffered the phenomenon of emigration, since today is only 1,700 inhabitants, according to the INE (National Institute of Statistics, January 2012). Located on the steepest part of the island of La Palma, the development of communications came very late, still the road to Las Mimbreras the milestone causing its gradual depopulation and abandonment. Because of this secular isolation has preserved its rural, natural and ecological character, what he has done having great potential for rural tourism, together with a complex set of paths and trails (ancient trails) that are a delight for visitors, vestige of an important past and that captivate trekkers for its natural scenic charms.

The municipality of Garafía is in itself a monument to Mother Nature. It should be borne in mind that in its 103 km²,all three together Natural Monument Coast Hiscaguán, the Special Guelguén Natural Reserve and the Integral Natural reserve of Pinar de Garafía, are in total almost one third of the entire surface of the municipality. This reflects the high commitment and respect to the nature of local government of the municipality of Garafía. To this will be added Protection Act Astronomical Observatories Quality Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands of 3 November 1988.

The municipality consists of the districts of Llano Negro, Cueva de Agua, Don Pedro, Franceses, Santo Domingo, Hoya Grande, Juan Adalid-El Mudo, Catela, El Palmar, Roque del Faro, El Tablado, Las Tricias, El Castillo and La Mata.

Land cover
The higher parts of Garafía are covered in pine trees with just a small treeless area above the tree line. The central areas around the villages are mostly farmland or rough natural landscape including almond trees and vineyards. The coastline is rough with steep cliffs and gorges and can be accessed at several points.

The villages
Traditionally, the villages have been noted for their lack of geographical communication and their isolated remoteness. Until the 1960s the villages were largely isolated from the rest of the island and only accessible by donkey paths. Since then roads have been built and the area is easily accessible on good, but twisty, asphalted roads. As with many rural areas the population is in decline as small-scale agriculture and traditional rural life does not provide the income to encourage young people to stay.

Tourism
It is a wonderful area for walking and hiking with its network of marked walking paths, lush greenery and spectacular scenery. The steep forested hillside are dissected by barrancos (gorges). Cueva

title: Garafía