Audio: Crossing the Line interviews Norman Finkelstein

This week on Crossing The Line: The international conference in Annapolis, Maryland recently came to an end. During the talks US Presient George W. Bush stated that the time is right for peace in the Middle East, but what does that mean in terms of a solution to the decades-long conflict? Host Christopher Brown speaks with Dr. Norman G. Finkelstein, a noted scholar on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the author of several books including his latest, Beyond Chutzpah: On The Misuse of Anti-Semitism and The Abuse of History, about Annapolis’ chances for success.

Next, nearly 3,000 Gaza students who study abroad living are being denied by Israel the right to leave to pursue their education. Since the summer’s closure of Gaza, few Palestinians have been allowed to leave for work, medical care or educational reasons. Brown talks with Dr. Sonia Nimer, assistant professor in the department of history and archeology at Birzeit University in the West Bank about Israel’s violations of the Palestinians’ right to education.

As always, Crossing the Line begins with “This week in Palestine,” a service provided by The International Middle East Media Center. The program finishes with a segment called, “The Occupation’s Impact” which lists the names of people killed as a result of the occupation.

Crossing the Line is a weekly podcast dedicated to giving voice to the voiceless in occupied Palestine. Through investigative news, arts, eyewitness accounts, and music, Crossing the Line does its best to present the lives of people on the ground.

Crossing the Line’s host, Christopher Brown, is an independent journalist currently living in San Francisco. Brown’s South African roots and desire for social change are the reason for his strong solidarity with the Palestinian people. In 1990 Brown was arrested in South Africa where he was detained and tortured for nearly two years by the South African secret police. Brown also lived and worked in the Old City of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

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