by SAREE MAKDISI The people of Gaza were able to enjoy a few days of freedom last week, after demolition charges brought down the iron wall separating the impoverished Palestinian territory from Egypt, allowing hundreds of thousands to burst out of the virtual prison into which Gaza has been transformed over the past few years–the terminal stage of four decades of Israeli occupation–and to shop for desperately needed supplies in
Al-Manar TV reports: The Islamic Resistance Movement of Hamas has dismissed as an Israeli-led conspiracy PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s proposal to deploy his own, Western-trained forces at the Rafah crossing along with the EU monitors. Palestinian Authority said Monday that it had reached a deal with Egypt to take control of the Gaza border. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri dismissed the proposal, calling it an “Israeli-led international conspiracy with the participation
According to the United Nations, some 350,000 Gazans have streamed into Egypt after Hamas militants blew up dozens of holes in the metal wall which separated Gaza from Egypt. Most of the wall is now destroyed. Obviously, while this is good news for the Gazans starved by the Israeli blockade, this development is also full of potential dangers. It is unlikely that Hamas will stop the firing of Kassam rockets
by Hannah Mermelstein, The Electronic Intifada, 19 December 2007 (reprinted with the kind permission of the author and the editors of The Electronic Intifada) I am feeling optimistic about Palestine. I know it sounds crazy. How can I use “optimistic” and “Palestine” in the same sentence when conditions on the ground only seem to get worse? Israeli settlements continue to expand on a daily basis, the checkpoints and segregated road
From today’s Democracy Now headlines: Palestinian Professor Sentenced to 11 Years For Refusing to Testify: In Chicago, a federal court has sentenced a Palestinian-American activist to more than 11 years in prison for refusing to testify before a grand jury in 2003 about the activities of the Palestinian group Hamas. Abdelhaleem Ashqar defended his refusal to testify saying that he shouldn’t have to give testimony that would aid the Israeli
By Neta Golan and Mohammed Khatib Next month the US plans to host a regional meeting to discuss peace in the Middle East, or at least peace between Israel and the Palestinians. The maneuvering, deal making and negotiating about what will be on the table has been going on for some time. But the details of the agreement being discussed have been a well-guarded secret but for the steady flow
Dalia Karpel (shortened translation of article in Haaretz `Hamedovevet`) `We – Israeli Soldiers – were put there to punish the Palestinians`, says Ilan Vilenda, an Israeli soldier who served in Rafah during the first Intifada. Ilan is the only soldier of 21 who agreed to have his name published, after he was interviewed by psychologist Nofer Ishai-Karen. The soldiers spoke freely to Nofer, who served with them in the same
By Matt Snyders Put off by his controversial words on Israel, the University of St. Thomas snubs a Nobel Laureate Back in April, when University of St. Thomas staffer Mike Klein informed his colleagues in the Justice and Peace Studies program that he’d succeeded in booking Archbishop Desmond Tutu for a campus appearance, the faculty buzzed in anticipation. For a program dedicated to fostering social change and nonviolence, there were
by Priyamvada Gopal We have become accustomed to theatrical displays of intolerance: death threats against writers, bonfires of novels, plays shut down, vandals defacing paintings. The danger, however, is that this obscures the more insidious forms that the suppression of dissent can take. Announcing that the proposed boycott of links with Israeli universities would be illegal, the University and College Union asserted that debates related to the topic under its
This interview was originally published in Yedioth Ahronoth in Hebrew; it has been translated by Diana Buttu of The Institute for Middle East Understanding. The moment that Abbas officially announces his resignation, even if I am in prison, I will put forward my candidacy for President (of the Palestinian Authority) and I will win. This is what Marwan Barghouthi said from his cell – number 28, section 3 – during
Al-Manar TV reports: An Israeli occupation minister said on Tuesday the Jewish state should exchange detained Palestinian Intifada leader Marwan Barghuti for an Israeli soldier captured by Gaza resistance fighters more than a year ago. “Marwan Barghuti has a good chance of becoming the next Palestinian leader,” Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, infrastructure minister and member of Israeli powerful security cabinet, told army radio. “His release could allow the political negotiations to advance
by Victoria Buch The prime ethnic cleansing tool is, forever, land grab of Palestinian property in conjunction with expansion of settlements. The stage for ethnic cleansing of Palestinians has been set in the Occupied Territories, and ethnic cleansing is in progress. At present, this is the major project of the state of Israel. For an impartial person of medium intelligence, a tour of the Occupied Territories may be sufficient to
First, there was this piece in the (otherwise highly unreliable) Debka file website: ——-DEBKAfile: USS Kearsarge Expeditionary Strike Group takes up position opposite Lebanese coast amid trepidation over September presidential election Our military sources report that aboard the Kearsarge group’s vessels are members of the 22nds Marine special operations-capable Expeditionary Unit, ready to execute landings on Lebanese beaches. Wednesday, Aug. 29, Adm. William Fallon, chief of US Central Command and
by Osamah Khalil, The Electronic Intifada Over the past two months a coalition has formed around Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in an attempt to bolster his rule. Desperate to maintain his hold on power, Abbas has chosen to forgo national unity and rely on support from the U.S. and Israel to tighten his hold on the West Bank and target Gaza. Abbas and his benefactors have made it clear to
Gush Shalom Forum “Two States or One State”A debate between former Knesset Member Uri Avnery and Doctor Ilan Pappe moderator: Professor Zalman Amit Zalman Amit: Greetings to you all, and thanks for coming to be with us this evening. First of all, I would like to thank Teddy Katz, who initiated this event and did a large part of the logistics involved. I would not be exaggerating in stating that
By Michelangelo Cocco, Translated for Axis of Logic by Diego Traversa and revised by Mary Rizzo, Tlaxcala “This will be a powerful propagandistic weapon in the hands of those forces trying to de-legitimize Israel by accusing it of being an apartheid, racist system,” an internet-surfer, whose signature is Jbb, writes. Another one, Kol, instead is persuaded that “Israel is under no condition a democracy,” since “too many things carry a
The Israeli army had become used to smashing Palestinian civilians in their homes, to murdering their emerging leadership, to terrorising pregnant women in roadblocks, and to shelling young kids in their school classes. By Gilad AtzmonSpecial to PalestineChronicle.com “A few reasons help to create the Nasrallah obsession (‘dibuk’), that influenced decision makers along the (Second Lebanon) war. Primarily, Israel always perceived the Arab (leaders) as (private) people rather than representatives
I have recently published a very interesting article by the Toronto-born Israeli author and speaker Joel Bainerman entitled “One State Solution is Best“. Having posted his article I decided to contact Joel for some follow-up questions which he kindly agreed to answer. Hopefully, our Q&A exchange will provide a more in depth understanding of Joel’s views and of the one state vs. two state debate. From his answers it appears
By Joel BainermanSpecial to PalestineChronicle.com While the One State Solution (OSS) to solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is typically rejected outright as being a demographic threat to Israel- this approach could very well be the only viable path to solving the conflict. The typical assumption is that if Israel annexed the approximately 1.5 million West Bank Arabs and granted them full Israeli citizenship- within a generation there would be more Arabs
In occupied Palestine Israel differentiates between Christian and Muslim Palestinians, between Fatah and Hamas, between West Bank and Gaza Strip, and between citizens of one town and the other. Since the establishment of their terrorist state on usurped Palestinian land Israelis keep regurgitating their phobic mantra “Arabs want to wipe Israel off the map” in order to draw international sympathy, and to cover up their war crimes throughout the Arab
