December 2003

Israeli assassination attempt injures 14 Palestinians

31 December 2003


Yesterday evening, December 30, Israeli attack helicopters launched two missiles at a civilian car in the center of Gaza City. The attack targeted a member of the military wing of Hamas. The targeted individual, Jamal Jarrah, who is allegedly wanted by Israel, and 13 civilians were injured in the assault. Two civilians are in serious condition. The white Peugeot 104 with three other passengers was moving north in a densely populated area. Israel’s assassination policy is widely condemned as grave breaches of international humanitarian law. 

2003: A year of Israeli and US defiance of International Law (2/2)

Laurie King 2 January 2004


“For all the revolutionary potential of Universal Jurisdiction in Belgium, very little changed for the better for the Sabra and Shatila plaintiffs. In fact, Belgium’s decision to annul its progressive anti-atrocity legislation rendered the massacre survivors victims a second time over. Their attempts to realize justice in a Belgian court revealed not only the implicit political dimensions of Universal Jurisdiction, but also highlighted the fact that abstract, universal principles do not exist a priori. EI’s Laurie King-Irani concludes her discussion of lessons learned during a difficult year for international law in the Middle East. (Part II of II) 

2003: A year of US and Israeli defiance of International Law (1/2)

Laurie King 2 January 2004


“Benefiting from a growing international focus on Iraq and the folly of the US global ‘war on terror,’ Israel enjoyed enhanced impunity for its violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and a raft of UN resolutions throughout 2003. Even the supposedly ‘positive’ developments of 2003 — the US-backed ‘Road Map’ to peace and the Geneva Accords — are based on a tacit premise that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and several UN resolutions can be ignored or suspended so as to legitimate and excuse Israeli violations of Palestinian rights, lives, lands, and resources.” EI’s Laurie King-Irani reviews the prevailing legal trends of 2003 in Occupied Palestine. (Part I of II) 

2003: Israeli attacks on the Press

Arjan El Fassed 30 December 2003


In 2003, Israel continued its attacks on the press. Two journalists, a Palestinian cameraman and a British documentary filmmaker were killed by the Israeli army. Media watchdogs counted attacks and harrassment of journalists and the increasing restrictions imposed on foreign and Palestinian journalists. In January 2004, new Israeli guidelines for press accreditation will impose more restrictions on the work of foreign journalist trying to cover events on the ground in the occupied Palestinian territories. EI’s Arjan El Fassed highlights journalists in danger in 2003. 

Rafah in 2003

Arjan El Fassed 30 December 2003


The year 2003 started and ended with Israeli forces invading Rafah refugee camp and demolishing refugee homes. This year, in Rafah alone, Israeli forces killed at least 60 Palestinians, an American peace activist and a British TV cameraman. In three years, Israeli forces have demolished 800 homes in Rafah alone. Rafah in 2003 is an example of occupied Palestine in 2003. Despite road maps and declarations, the residents of Rafah are in urgent need of protection. They want to stop counting the deaths. EI’s Arjan El Fassed reviews 2003. 

Geneva Accord: Analysis of the Bankruptcy

Paul Burrows 3 January 2004


It’s hard to talk about the provisions of the recent Geneva Accord, and offer some kind of analysis without reference to the facts on the ground — right now — inside Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. But without understanding this context of repression and violence, without recognizing this ongoing process of colonization and military occupation, we will never understand the Geneva Accord itself, nor comprehend the real reasons for its inevitable and predictable failure. ISM Canada’s Paul Burrows looks at the Accord in depth. 

Ireland and UNDP assist communities affected by Apartheid Wall

29 December 2003


While a great deal has been said and written about Israel’s Apartheid Wall and its horrendous effects on the lives of many Palestinians, Ireland has formed a partnership with UNDP’s Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People to ease the isolation of small villages and create micro regional planning committees. A total of 238.3 sq km are being isolated between the Green Line and the Apartheid Wall, 57 percent of which is cultivated, mostly with olive trees and field crops. UNDP proposed emergency assistance that aims to address their needs. 

Photostory: Dancing towards freedom

Maureen Clare Murphy 29 December 2003


Comprised of teenagers from the Dheisheh Refugee Camp in the West Bank, the Ibdaa dance troupe performs internationally, has been featured in documentaries, and are no strangers to the press. And while to some this may seem like a glamorous lifestyle, it seems to the performers it’s anything but. Having to repeatedly communicate to American audiences the every day struggles that come with life under military occupation is disheartening when they return to the West Bank to find that the status quo of curfews and human losses continues unabated while the whole world watches. 

Farmers in Gaza struggle to rebuild their lives

22 December 2003


Ahmed Said stands on the rubble of his demolished house, looking out over the wasteland that used to be his farm. He is one of many farmers in Gaza whose land has been bulldozed by Israeli forces since violence between Palestinians and Israelis escalated three years ago. Until August 2002, Ahmed made a living for his wife and eight children by cultivating olive and date trees on his three-acre plot in the central region of the Gaza Strip. But one night, his house and fields were bulldozed by Israeli forces. Since then, he has been living in his brother’s house. 

Child Prisoners Briefing

14 December 2003


While politicians continued to search for a way out of the deadlock of occupation and violence in November, the Israeli army persisted with its strategy of mass detention. Many children were among the Palestinians arrested during the month, and still more are languishing without charges or trial in prisons and detention centres throughout Israel and the occupied territories. Tactics employed by the Israeli army during arrests continue to breach international human rights norms, many children are later tricked or intimidated into confessing to false charges. 

The day after the shooting of peace activists: A lot of fury, a lot of attention

27 December 2003


We just come back from a fiery demonstration — in protest at yesterday’s shooting at peace activists. The story of the seriously-wounded Gil Na’amati continues to make headlines. The 22-year-old kibbutznik had to be raced to hospital after he lost consciousness because of his heavy bleeding. Bothlegs were operated on to remove bullets. Two weeks ago Gil finished his three years of military service. His father reported on TV that what he had seen and had to participate in at the roadblocks in the West Bank had led him to protest. A Gush Shalom press release. 

An account of the shooting of Israeli protestor Gil Na'amati

Dan Shohet 26 December 2003


In the early afternoon today, in the middle of a direct, nonviolent action against the Apartheid system of walls and fences in the occupied West Bank, an Israeli citizen was shot in his leg by soldiers of the Israeli army. Gil Na’amati, whom I hadn’t met until today, was on the front line of Israeli activists who went to the fence to cut it or break it down. I was a few meters behind him, watching the soldiers and helping to take care of the barrier of the road just behind the fence. Israeli student peace activist Dan Shohet recounts what happened. Photos by IWPS. 

Palestine's neglected treasure trove

Laila El-Haddad 27 December 2003


As home to the earliest known human settlements and the world’s holiest cities, historical Palestine is literally a treasure chest of antiquities.  Remnants of Canaanite temples and towns, Byzantine mosaics and monasteries and Mamluk and Ottoman mosques all stand witness to the region’s long and colourful past. Many of the most important archaeological and historical sites are located in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. But years of conflict have left Palestinian antiquities in a sad state and in many cases out of Palestinian control. Al Jazeera reports how archaeology in the occupied territories has become a political matter. 

Weekly report on human rights violations

25 December 2003


This week Israeli forces killed 17 Palestinians, mostly civilians, including a child and an old man. Nine Palestinians were killed during an Israeli invasion of Rafah refugee camp. More than 46 homes were demolished, leaving 800 Palestinians homeless. This week Israeli forces razed more agricultural land and homes were raided. Israel continued the construction of the wall and continued with indiscriminate shelling of residential areas. Israel continued its tight siege on the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Two newly-born twins died at an Israeli military checkpoint. 

Israeli forces kill 5 and wound 15 Palestinians in Gaza

25 December 2003


On December 25, Israeli helicopter gunships fired two missiles at a civilian car in northern Gaza city, killing 5 Palestinians and wounding 15 others. Three of the victims in this attack were civilian bystanders. The white Subara was moving on Saftawi street in a busy part of Gaza city. As the car moved down the street, two missiles were fired. The missiles hit the car directly, killing two of three passengers immediately. The third passenger sustained severe injuries. It was the second assassination attempt on one of the passengers. 

Reducing the Palestinians

Joseph Massad 27 December 2003


One of the most important changes that the Oslo process brought about was the de facto transformation, indeed the ultimate corruption, of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, from a liberation movement representing the entire Palestinian people, into a vassal regime called the Palestinian Authority (PA), representing only one third of the Palestinian people, writes EI contributor, Joseph Massad. This has had an immensely deleterious effect on refugees and exiles, and Palestinians living inside Israel’s racial “democracy.” 

Israel shoots unarmed Israeli peace activist with live ammunition

26 December 2003


Within a minute of the beginning of the action, IDF forces took up positions and began firing live ammunition in the general direction of the nonviolent protestors. Ignoring the Israeli aggression, the activists held their ground and continued dismantling the gate. During this time one Israeli activist, Gil Na’amati, was seriously wounded by Israeli gunfire. One American activist was also lightly wounded by shrapnel. Despite continued Israeli firing, protestors dismantled the gate’s locking mechanism and opened the gate. 

Protest camp in Deir Balut village, Salfit district

Dan Shohet 26 December 2003


A protest camp in Dir-Balut village is a joint Palestinian, Israeli, and international action against the Apartheid Wall. The protest camp was created on Friday the 19th, and will stay there till next Friday, January 2nd. The camp is located in the yard of the newly built primary school of the village of Dir Balut. The works on the new school were stoped by the occupation authorities, as the building stands on the path of the Wall, and is now due to distruction. Dan Shohet offers some details about the camp. 

View from a Palestine Red Crescent ambulance

Scott Weinstein East Jerusalem 18 December 2003


We start out from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) HQ in Al Bireh (next to Ramallah) for a pick up and transfer of patients south of the Qalandya Israeli army check point. Our ambulance, donated by the Norwegian Red Cross, is well equipped for most emergencies. The ambulances are clearly recognizable as such. I am riding with two Emergency Medical Technicians, Emad and Mohamed. They dress in bright red uniforms with large Red Crescent patches and reflective tape. Scott Weinstein writes from Occupied Jerusalem. 

Sharon's pattern of provocation

Scott Weinstein Jenin, Palestine 26 December 2003


Night has fallen, and I am staring at mounds of rubble. This used to be a neighbourhood in the Jenin Refugee Camp. For the Jenin survivors, their tragedy is known worldwide. Numerous foreigners like me come to gape at what Abdul calls “Our Ground Zero”. The U.N., NGOs and a few Arab states have pledged assistance to rebuild — a process that is slowly happening. What I find depressing is that almost daily throughout the occupied territories, Palestinian are being killed and their houses demolished in virtual obscurity. Scott Weinstein writes from Jenin. 

117 Palestinians killed, hundreds injured during media's "relative calm"

Ali Abunimah 26 December 2003


Many leading media sources were quick to declare that an Israeli assassination in Gaza, followed by a Palestinian bombing in Tel Aviv on 25 December marked the end of a period of “relative calm” or “lull” in Israeli-Palestinian violence, that had supposedly lasted since the last Palestinian suicide attack in Haifa on 4 October. In fact, the period since 4 October has been one of intense Israeli violence, in which 117 Palestinians were killed, including 23 children. At the same time, Israel destroyed almost five hundred Palestinian homes throughout the Occupied Territories. EI’s Ali Abunimah examines the systematic media misrepresentation of the latest events. 

Hebron - Another dull day in fear

Scott Weinstein Hebron, Palestine 24 December 2003


I am shocked by what I am witnessing in Palestine. No, there wasn’t anyone shot, beaten or arrested in the region I visitied during the few days I have been here. I have not heard or seen a tank, helicopter, F-16, nor a raid. Most of the Israeli checkpoints were open. There have been no suicide bombers. It is actually so “uneventful” that journalists in my hotel are retuning home because “nothing interesting is happening”, only ordinary daily life. Scott Weinstein, a member of the Montreal based Jewish Alliance Against the Occupation, writes from Hebron. 

1st Ramallah Film Festival announces call for submissions

24 December 2003


The 1st Ramallah International Film Festival (Spring 2004) is glad to invite all Palestinian filmmakers to participate in the RIFF and submit their films to the “Palestinian Silver Screen” section of the festival. “Palestinian Silver Screen” is a competitive section of the RIFF which will be dedicated solely to Palestinian cinema. It is aimed at creating an annual platform for Palestinian cinema and international exposure to the selected films and their makers. Palestinian Silver Screen is open to all, but will underline the work made today by young, up-coming filmmakers from Palestine and around the world, and will present a kaleidoscope view of their films, documentaries, shorts, video Art and experimental films. 

A. M. Qattan Foundation announces 2004 Culture and Science Programme

24 December 2003


Despite the continuing deterioration of life in Palestine in the last three years, the A. M. Qattan Foundation’s Culture and Science Programme enters its fifth year with a number of substantial achievements. As well as continuing to support a number of young artists and creators to reach new stages in their development, the programme has initiated a number of modules for 2004. When the programme was launched in 2000, it included fifteen prizes and grants with a value of $70,500. In 2003, the number of awards and prizes exceeded 30 and reached a total value of $147,500, an increase of 109 percent, despite the obstacles and disruptions affecting all sectors of life under occupation. 

Response to NYT: 'Lost Tribe' Finds Itself on Front Lines of Mideast Conflict"

Michael F. Brown 22 December 2003


In an article about Israel’s importing immigrants from India into an illegal Israeli settlement in the West Bank, the New York Times’ Greg Myre, writes “Amishav, the group that champions the Bnei Menashe, wants to bring all 6,000 of them to Israel.” While the article is clear that the new settlers are being located on Palestinian land, the term “Israel” is clearly inappropriately used in editorial comment. Partners for Peace’s Michael Brown comments on this in a letter to the NYT, and makes the point that “bumping desperate people up against one another like this is the height of irresponsibility.” 

Israeli forces kill 5 Palestinians in Rafah

23 December 2003


In another war crime perpetrated against Palestinian civilians and property, Israeli occupying forces, reinforced by tanks and helicopters, moved into Rafah refugee camp in the south of the Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning, 23 December 2003. Israeli forces have remained in the camp through the early afternoon, using intense shelling and indiscriminate shooting to cover their actions. Already today, the Israeli occupying army has killed 5 Palestinians, including 4 civilians, and wounded over 27 others, including a number of women and children. 

International Court orders proceedings in wall case

18 December 2003


Further to the request by the General Assembly of the United Nations to the International Court of Justice “to urgently render an advisory opinion” on the question of the Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the International Court of Justice today made an Order organizing the proceedings. The Court takes all necesssary steps to accelerate the procedure. It fixed 30 January 2004 as deadline before the United Nations and its Member States could submit to the Court written statements. 

Children in Bethlehem under siege

Rifat Odeh Kassis Bethlehem, Palestine 22 December 2003


When his alarm clock goes off every day at 6am, Saif, my 11-year-old son, barely moves his body out of his bed. His mother and I must go to extraordinary lengths to get him up and ready to go to school. This was never the case before. Saif studies in the Lutheran Church School in Beit Sahour, which is also known as the “Shepherds Field” according to the Bible. Located east of Bethlehem, Beit Sahour is the last Christian majority town in Palestine and used to enjoy the reputation of having the smallest percentage of immigration. This is also not the case any more. 

Sharon's Speech: The Decoded Version

Uri Avnery 22 December 2003


He read out the written text of his speech, word for word, without raising his eyes from the page. It was vital for him to stick to the exact wording, since it was an encoded text. It is impossible to decipher it without breaking the code. And it is impossible to break the code without knowing Ariel Sharon very well indeed. So it is no surprise that the flood of interpretations in Israel and abroad was ridiculous. The commentators just did not understand what they had heard. Veteran Israeli peace activist Uri Avery comments. 

Picking Up the Pieces

Melissa Rafah, Gaza Strip 16 December 2003


Where the rubble once filled the streets it has now been pushed to the side, clearing the way for cars and people trying to go on with their daily lives. Everywhere twisted remnants belie their attempts to continue on life as normal. Twisted pieces of metal, once the support of houses, puncture the piles of crumbled, sterile, grey concrete that line the streets. Children play in the bombed out remains of houses where families once lived. Everywhere skeletons of houses remain, here and there one or two walls standing in a pile of debris. Melissa writes from Rafah. 

Who can say 'yes' to the Geneva Accord?

Maher Mughrabi 22 December 2003


A thousand accounts of the accord have preceded it from every point in the political spectrum, not to mention the elaborate sound-and-light show in Geneva itself, with a cast including Jimmy Carter, Nelson Mandela, Lech Walesa and even Richard Dreyfuss. We have learnt to be wary of stage-managed productions, from Clinton, Rabin and Arafat on the White House lawn in 1993 to Bush, Sharon and Abu Mazen in Aqaba in 2003. In the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians are being killed and maimed every day. Time is of the essence. Maher Mughrabi comments from Australia. 

The Geneva Accord and the Right of Return as seen from Al-Baqa'a Refugee Camp

Stefan Christoff 22 December 2003


Al-Baqa’a is Jordan’s largest Palestinian refugee camp, located on the outskirts of Amman and home to more than 100,000 refugees. Many of Al-Baqa’a’s youth are becoming increasingly disenchanted with life at the camp. When you ask about the Geneva Accord on the streets of Al-Baqa’a, people answer with disgusted looks as they see it as nothing but the further dismissal of the history of the Palestinian struggle in its failure to recognize that the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Stefan Christoff reports from Jordan. 

Song of the Land

Toine van Teeffelen Bethlehem, Palestine 18 December 2003


Our house is located close to the mosque of ‘Azza refugee camp and so we hear the muezzin or call to prayer five times a day. Even though the sound is loud, you get used to it and we usually sleep through it in the early morning. During the day Tamer enthusiastically shouts “Akka, Akka,” after hearing the sound of “Allahu Akbar!” He then listens to his own echo. Here in Bethlehem, the prayer calls somewhat differ in time from mosque to mosque. This has the effect that the songs “wave” across the land. Toine van Teeffelen writes about the song of the land. 

When boredom feels like slow death, what is left to lose?

Lora Gordon Rafah, Gaza Strip 20 December 2003


Young men and women out of high school have one of two options: pursue their degree, or get married. For men there is a third option — be lucky enough to connect your way to someone who is high up enough in one of the Palestinian factions to be bribed to find you one of the few jobs that exist, and magically you will be transported into the 15% of people who have found work here. This is the zahag. “Zahag”, an Arabic word for this long, heavy boredom that feels like a slow death. Laura Gordon writes from Rafah. 

Report: Restriction of movement harming Palestinians' health

22 December 2003


According to a new report released today by B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights, the IDF violates the right of residents of the Occupied Territories to obtain medical treatment. Dozens of staffed checkpoints and some 600 physical roadblocks have been set up within the West Bank in the framework of Israel’s siege policy. These obstacles to movement restricts the access of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to medical treatment. In 70% of calls to the Red Crescent, the ambulances are unable to reach the patient’s house. 

13 Israeli reservists from elite unit refuse to serve the occupation

21 December 2003


Today 13 Israeli reservists from the Israeli army’s top commando unit, “Sayeret Matkal” announced they would no longer serve in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, reflecting growing unease with Israel’s occupation of Palestine. The reservists, including three officers, made their announcement in a letter to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. “Sayeret Matkal” is the top commando unit in the Israeli army. In September, Israeli pilots wrote a similar letter, refusing to take part in air strikes on Palestinians living in the occupied territories. 

Can Israel escape a binational future?

Ali Abunimah 20 December 2003


An Israeli official recently called for controls on the ability of Palestinians to have babies, and said the delivery rooms where Arabs are born are the “factory for a backward population.” This panicked response to what many Israelis see as a “demographic threat” from Palestinians fits the international legal definition of incitement to genocide. Meanwhile, leftist Israelis are debating ways to “withdraw” from Palestinians lands while keeping most of the settlers in place, and preserving a “Jewish democracy.” EI’s Ali Abunimah asks if any of these schemes can save Israel from a binational future. 

Weekly report on human rights violations

17 December 2003


This week Israeli forces killed 10 Palestinians, including one woman. During an invasion of Rafah, Israeli forces killed five Palestinians. In Rafah and Khan Yunis, Israeli forces demolished 31 homes and razed agricultural land. In various places Israeli forces raided Palestinian residential areas, homes and arbitrary detained a number of Palestinians. Israeli forces demolished a home in Hebron and arrested the widow of a deceased Palestinian. Israel continued the construction of the wall and imposed a total siege on Palestinian towns and villages. 

Sharon's hopeless vision

Michael F. Brown 19 December 2003


As feared, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s speech on Thursday, December 18 at the Herzliya Conference provided very little hope for 2004. Sharon acknowledged there will be a Palestinian state, thereby recognizing Israel cannot control all the land between the river and the sea, but said nothing about the size of the Palestinian state. He offered no tangible vision for the Palestinians to latch on to which suggested that after decades this man is now addressing Palestinian concerns seriously. Michael Brown analyses the content of Sharon’s speech at the Herzliya Conference. 

CNN: Two stories, one news agency

Michael F. Brown 18 December 2003


Casualties in Tel Aviv. Casualties in Rafah. Where does CNN go? Tel Aviv. And it was absolutely right to go to Tel Aviv. It’s failure came in an inexcusable unwillingness to send a second crew to Rafah. CNN also posted seven transcripts Thursday mentioning the Tel Aviv explosion. Six of these transcripts clearly noted in the link heading that they dealt with the Tel Aviv explosion. How many headings dealt with the Rafah incident? Zero. And only one of the seven transcripts even bothered to mention the attack on Rafah. Michael Brown examines the transcripts. 

Racism thrives at Israel's Herzliya conference

Arjan El Fassed 18 December 2003


Speaking at the third annual Herzliya conference, Israeli Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his audience: “The most important thing is maintaining the Jewish majority in the country and improving the economy to encourage more Jews from the Diaspora to immigrate.” If the Palestinians in Israel “reach 35 to 40 percent of the Israeli population, Israel will become a state with two nationalities,” he said. Israelis — on both the left and right — will have to make a choice. To solve their “Palestinian problem” Israel can opt for four ‘solutions’ EI’s Arjan El Fassed lays them out. 

Nablus: Israeli forces kill four Palestinians

18 December 2003


Israeli occupying forces committed a willful killing and used excessive force in the slaying three other Palestinians, during a wide-scale incursion into Nablus. Israeli forces invaded Nablus and opened fire at residential areas. Israeli forces willfully killed ‘Alaa al-Din Dawaia. Three other Palestinians were killed. PCHR condemns the willful killing and the use of excessive force in the deaths of the three other casualties and calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to immediately intervene to protect Palestinian civilians. 

Two Israeli teenage refuseniks on hunger strike

29 January 2003


The two teenagers Hillel Goral (18) and Noam Bahat (19) are conscientious objectors to compulsory military service. At present they are serving their second prison sentence for refusing to enter the Israeli army. Israel has no alternative civilian service and Hillel Goral and Noam Bahat are currently on hunger strike. Hillel Goral was sentenced to 28 days, his second sentence was for the same duration. Noam Bahat was initially sentenced to 28 days, his second sentence was for 42 days. 

Trial of conscientious objector Jonathan Ben Artzi

12 March 2003


The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of their joint programme the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, would like to draw the attention on the case of Jonathan Ben Artzi, a 20-year old Israeli student, who is facing trial in his own country for having repeatedly refused to serve in the Israeli army. 

Conscientious objection at stake

14 December 2003


One month ago, on 12 November 2003, Jonathan Ben Artzi was convicted by the Military Court in Jaffa for disobeying an order by refusing to serve in the Israeli army. The Israeli military court in Jaffa is also hearing the cases of Noam Bahat, Adam Maor, Haggai Matar, Shinri Tsameret and Matan Kaminer, who are among more than 300 “Shministim,” or high school seniors, who refuse to serve in military forces involved in the occupation of Palestinian territories. 

Doing things the hard way - the verdict of five "refuseniks"

Adam Keller 16 December 2003


The courtroom at the Jaffa Military Court had never been so overcrowded. Special benches had been dragged in, filling the aisle and leaving hardly any room for passage. Activists, family members and journalists crowded into every available corner (there were four TV crews, who were chased out after the judges came in) and still as many as were in had to wait outside. At long last, the verdict in the trial of Noam Bahat, Matan Kaminer, Adam Maor, Haggai Matar and Shimri Tsameret was going to be delivered. 

Israel kills 21, injures 55 in two weeks

16 December 2003


Have you been wondering what has become of Palestinian life in the occupied territories as the world’s attention was turned towards Iraq? While there have been no Palestinian attacks inside Israel for ten weeks, Israeli attacks against Palestinians have not stopped for a single day. In the last two weeks alone, Israel has killed 21 Palestinians and injured 55 others. In an attack on Palestinian civilians and property yesterday, the Israeli military completely destroyed 18 homes in the Khan Yunis refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, leaving 25 families (178 Palestinian civilians) homeless. AMJ calls for action. 

Permission to work?

Suraya Dadoo 15 December 2003


It is 12:30pm at the Nablus area District Civilian Affairs Office (DCO). It is over 40 degrees outside, where a long queue of Palestinians had been waiting in the oppressive heat (some for over three hours) with dust and dirt and no place to sit. They are here to request a permit, formal permission from the Israeli government to travel from the surrounding villages into Nablus to work. Palestinians need permits to move, to live, for everything. Suraya Dadoo takes a look at the nightmare involved in navigating the permit maze. 

Israelis, Palestinians Seek Corporate Sponsorship for Conflict

15 December 2003


Hoping to reverse their sagging/non-existent economies, and realizing that the prospects for a peaceful settlement in the near future are bleak at best, the Israeli and Palestinian governing authorities have finally agreed on something — selling the rights to aspects of the conflict to the highest corporate bidder (although who will collect and keep the profits is, of course, the subject of bitter debate). BNN special correspondent Barad Al-Roubeen investigates the latest in a long line of proposals to sustain the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, from Madrid to the Geneva Accord. 

Torture and ill-treatment of child detainees

12 December 2003


Over the past month, the International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by PCATI and Defence for Children International/Palestine Section (DCIPA), another member of the SOS-Torture network, of the alarming situation of many other Palestinian children in detention. OMCT is gravely concerned by the high number of allegations of unlawful arrests and detention, torture and ill-treatment of children while in police custody or in Israeli detention facilities, as well as the poor and often inhuman living conditions there. 

The Peace Cycle 2004: London-Jerusalem Bike Ride

15 December 2003


The main aim of this event is to raise awareness of the plight of the Palestinian people due to the continuing Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, which is denying peace and security to all the people of the region. The ride will start in London (probably Trafalgar Square) on either 7th or 14th August 2004. It is intended that the start will coincide with a big rally for Palestine, to be organised with the support of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, The Friends of Al-Aqsa and other pro-Palestinian groups. As much media coverage as possible will be arranged at the start, with high profile supporters in attendance. 

Geneva Accord: Relapse to Structural Discord for Beilin "Absolutely Kosher."

Brock L. Bevan 15 December 2003


Not quite a deus ex machina, the Geneva Accord demonstrates the manifest inability of elements within both the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Israeli ‘Left’ to fight for a just resolution to the over 100 year Zionist enterprise in Palestine. Palestinians who desire to negotiate with Israeli politicians face an intractable problem. All Israeli officials who are capable of negotiating (i.e., who are elected to the position of Prime Minister) are ardent Zionists. Yossi Beilin, the main Israeli proponent of the Geneva Accord, worries about the demographic growth of the Palestinian community relative to that of the Jewish Israelis. Brock Bevan comments. 

Broken Crystal

Lora Gordon Rafah, Gaza Strip 8 December 2003


There are no prayer mats to be found in this empty border apartment, only years of sand accumulated on the empty floors. A chandelier’s broken crystals spread in wide sunrays in the salon from the underground explosion some few meters away a few weeks ago — the army blowing up the imagined tunnels of its dream, those phantoms. Everyone knows they don’t exist on this street, which has meticulously rid itself of armed resistance and smugglers. Still, the army blow up dirt meters below the ground many times a week just next to the border homes, shattering their windows and shaking their foundations. Laura Gordon writes from Rafah. 

Deir Ballut Camp against the Wall

15 December 2003


A group of Palestinian, international, and Israeli activists have chosen the village of Deir Ballut, in the Salfit Governorate, as the site for the next round of activities in opposition to Israel’s continued building of Phase II of the Apartheid Wall. Building on the lessons of the successful Mas’ha camp, which brought enormous international attention to the political motives behind the wall, these activists will create a two-week continual presence on their land that is threatened by the building of the wall. The International Womens’ Peace Service report on the activities of the villagers of Deir Ballut. 

The blogging war

Alan D. Abbey 23 August 2002

Arjan El Fassed, 28, is a Dutch-Palestinian resident of Ar-Ram, a Ramallah suburb, who has recently published op-ed pieces in the Philadelphia Inquirer and Newsday. “TalG” is the online name of a 30-something resident of Jerusalem’s Katamon neighborhood who has been quoted in recent articles in the Christian Science Monitor, as well as numerous Web sites. Their politics couldn’t be more different. What they have in common is they are both “bloggers,” writers of online diaries known as “blogs.” 

Virtual war

Hannah Brown 27 September 2003

There are many sites out there that give a Palestinian perspective of the news, but one of the most elaborate is the Electronic Intifada. Many other URLs for Web sites that no longer exist, such as the Palestinian Authority’s old Web site, now take you directly to this site. EI, as it calls itself, is very professional, user-friendly and well written. It does collect news from a wide variety of sources, including (although not usually) the Post. 

Nablus bullets ricochet in Hartford

Elliot Jager 1 November 2002

The obituary was placed anonymously by Gale Courey Toensing, 56, of Canaan, wife of the chairman of the Connecticut board of education, Craig Toensing. What motivated Toensing, an Arab-American, to pay $ 300 for the notice was a posting by Amer Abdelhadi “writing from Nablus, occupied Palestine” on a Web site called Electronic Intifada Diaries. “The reason I did it was so people would know what’s going on there,” Toensing told the Courant after her involvement became public. 

Is Abbas really a man of peace?

11 May 2003

Ironically, while many Israeli Jews are suspicious of Abbas, so are many Palestinians. Writing in The Electronic Intifada in March, Ali Abunimah described Abbas as “widely perceived among Palestinians themselves as one of the most notoriously corrupt individuals in the Palestinian Authority,” adding he is “deeply mistrusted among Palestinians for his authorship, along with senior Israelis, of various ‘peace plans’ that relinquish fundamental Palestinian rights and maintain the occupation intact, albeit under another name.” 

Edward Said, leading Palestinian advocate, dead at 67

25 September 2003

Edward Said’s death caused an outpouring of tributes around the world, including the Electronic Intifada online, which wrote Said had “maintained his relentless engagement with people, culture, and politics all over the world, even in the last weeks of his decade- long struggle against illness”. His supporters said he was often “the sole and most effective advocate” for bringing truth about the Palestinian cause to the United States. 

Canada missing on world stage

Alan Kellogg 9 November 2003

Writing in The Electronic Intifada, Arjan El Fassed crunched the EU poll numbers and discovered that “the more highly educated respondents (66 per cent) are more likely to perceive Israel as a threat to world peace than those who ceased their studies at an earlier age. The results appear to be a mark of the widespread disapproval in Europe of the widespread violations of human rights employed by the government of Ariel Sharon.” 

Israeli forces demolish 22 homes in Khan Yunis

14 December 2003


This morning, in the latest attack against Palestinian civilians and property, Israeli occupying forces destroyed 22 houses in the Khan Yunis refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip. Contrary to Israeli claims that the houses were uninhabited, preliminary investigations conducted by PCHR revealed that the Israeli military operation left 178 Palestinian civilians (25 families) homeless. In addition, homes belonging to 6 families (approximately 40 civilians) have become uninhabitable. 

$193m in relief needed for refugees in the West Bank and Gaza

12 December 2003


Three years of curfews, closures and conflict in the West Bank and Gaza have plunged two-thirds of the population into dire poverty, increased hunger and restricted access to health and education. Today UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees and the largest humanitarian agency in the region, launches an emergency appeal to the international community asking for $193 million to relieve some of the suffering in the occupied territories in 2004. 

UK breaking arms sales rules, says rights group

25 July 2002

Last week, the UK’s Foreign Secretary Jack Straw revealed that his government had granted export licences for parts due to be fitted in US- made F16 fighters, bound for Israel. Straw said the ‘head-up’ display units concerned - manufactured by BAe Systems - account for less than 1% of the jets’ value. But the Jerusalem-based Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights (LAW) argues that the deal contravenes the EU’s 1998 code of conduct on arms exports. 

Review: Arna's Children

Arjan El Fassed 11 December 2003


Speechless. Silent. I could not move. I just sat there, watching the screen, the scrolling text of dedication and the names of Arna’s children: Youssef, Nidal, Ashraf, and Ala. Arna’s children form a small theatre group of Palestinian children in Jenin. Arna’s son Juliano, director of this film, was directing the theatre group. All those years, from 1989 to 1996, Juliano filmed the rehearsals and performances of the plays. He films Ala sitting on the ruins of his home blown up by Israeli soldiers, growing up to become a fighter in Jenin. EI’s Arjan El Fassed saw the film and comments. 

Intifada spurs Palestine internet boom

Laila El-Haddad 11 December 2003


“The internet, with its ability to transcend borders, distance and government censorship, has become the preferred medium of information exchange for local Palestinians and foreign activists alike. Notable among the online activist initiatives is the site known as The Electronic Intifada. The site has been credited with bringing increased prominence and visibility to the Palestinian cause in the media in recent years”, reports Laila El-Haddad for Al-Jazeera.net. 

Book review: Resistance - My Life for Lebanon

Maureen Clare Murphy 18 December 2003


The greatest struggle in Soha Béchara’s life was not plotting to assassinate Antoine Lahad, the Lebanese chief of militia in Israeli-occupied Southern Lebanon during the 1980s. Rather, her true test was somewhat parallel to that of her home country of Lebanon — to survive living under the tyranny of the occupying Israelis. But in Béchara’s case, her prison was a literal one. However, Béchara’s memoirs are missing that extra layer of narration that would let readers in on the true mental process of someone who is ready to give their life for their country. 

Book Review: "Reporting from Ramallah" (2003)

Tina Dybvik 11 December 2003


In the foreword to Reporting from Ramallah: An Israeli Journalist in an Occupied Land (2003), filmmaker and activist Rachel Leah Jones describes Amira Hass’ body of work as the complete story on the confiscation of land, paving of bypass roads, and expansion of Israeli settlements. These 37 selected writings form a shorter chronological account aimed primarily at a target audience of Israeli Jews. Hass is an Israeli journalist and recipient of the UNESCO Guillermo Camo World Press Freedom Prize for 2003. From 1993 to 1997, she reported exclusively from Gaza. Tina Dybvik reviews Hass’ new book. 

Weekly report on human rights violations

11 December 2003


This week, Israeli forces killed two Palestinian children. A Palestinian prisoner died from torture and medical negligence in an Israeli detention centre. Israeli forces invaded Ramallah on the West Bank and several other areas in the occupied Palestinian territories. During invasions in the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces demolished eight homes in Rafah and Khan Younis and razed agricultural lands. Israeli forces raided Palestinian homes and imposed a tight siege. 

Rafah: Israeli forces kill 5 Palestinians and demolish 9 homes

11 December 2003


On Thursday morning, 11 December 2003, Israeli occupying forces killed 5 Palestinians, injured 13, and destroyed 9 houses during a military incursion into the al-Salam neighborhood in Rafah. Israeli occupying forces stated that the aim of the operation was to arrest a Palestinian wanted for involvement in attacks against Israeli targets. Willful killing of civilians, and extensive destruction of civilian property carried out wantonly without military necessity, are war crimes. 

Academics, activists and writers oppose "Geneva Accord"

11 December 2003


More than 500 academics, civil society leaders, activists, and journalists signed a public statement “The Reality of the ‘Geneva Accord’ ” expressing their opposition to the document. The undersigned, consider the “Geneva Accord” as “inconsistent with the prerequisites of a just and durable peace”. The petition will be presented to, among others, all US members of Congress, the European Union, the Arab League, and various international organizations and figures. 

Redemption in Gaza

Lora Gordon Rafah, Gaza Strip 10 December 2003


I’ve become enthralled with births and weddings — the creation of family — redemption from the ache of a war that systematically removes the most beloved burdens of a person’s full hands. A house, a brother, a mother. I count the marriages and the births like a high school student crosses off the squares of a calendar, measuring the distance between the dredgery of institutionalized education and the open arms of vacation. Every marriage is a triumph of construction in the face of this violent waste. Every birth is red ‘X’ on the calandar of the Occupation. 

Electronic Intifada version 3.0 launched!

The Electronic Intifada 10 December 2003


Since we launched The Electronic Intifada in February 2001, millions of people all over the world have used our site as a resource for the latest news and in-depth analysis about Palestine and the Israeli- Palestinian conflict. We are thrilled today, on International Human Rights Day, to launch Version 3.0 of the The Electronic Intifada, a major upgrade of The Electronic Intifada website. The changes you will see on the site take nothing away from all you have come to know and trust about EI, but add some fantastic new features to address the needs of the site as it has grown. 

Activists commemorate Intifada anniversary in four European cities

9 December 2003


Pro-Palestinian activists made a checkpoint in the midst of exit S104 and S105 of the A10 ring road around Amsterdam. Motorists were checked. At the end of the checkpoint the motorists were handed a flyer in which explanation was given about the checkpoint and the occupation in the daily lives of ordinary Palestinians. During this action four activists were taken into custody. The action took place in commemoration of the start of the Intifada, the Palestinian popular uprising in 1987. 

The right of return and the right of choice

Rifat Odeh Kassis 10 December 2003


Fifty-five years have past since the United Nations set forth the specific framework for resolving the Palestinian refugee case. On December 11, 1948, the UN adopted resolution 194, affirming their right to return to their homes of origin, property restitution and compensation for losses and damages. Palestinian refugees should be free to seek their right to repatriation, regardless of what negotiators acquiesces to. Rifat Odeh Kassis comments. 

World Bank grant to sustain education, health and social services

5 December 2003


The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved this week a US$15 million trust fund grant to the West Bank and Gaza which aims to sustain the delivery of education, health and social welfare services under today’s emergency conditions. This grant is the third in a series of ESSP operations, now totaling US$60 million from the Trust Fund for Gaza and the West Bank. The ESSP operations form a major part of the Bank’s response to the economic crisis associated with the Palestinian intifada. 

UNGA requests International Court of Justice to issue opinion on Separation Wall

8 December 2003


The tenth emergency special session of the 191-member United Nations General Assembly this morning adopted a resolution asking the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to issue an advisory opinion on the legal consequences of Israel’s construction of a separation barrier in the West Bank. The text was adopted by a recorded vote of 90 in favour, to 8 against, with 74 abstentions. The Hague-based ICJ, established in 1946, is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. 

One democratic state might be the solution (2/2)

Rifat Odeh Kassis 7 December 2003


The two-state solution might have been possible some years ago. Not any more. Rifat Odeh Kassis concludes that the realties, which Israel itself created on the ground are beyond the scope of honest co-existence simply because too much water has flowed under the bridge of this conflict. In the aftermath of Oslo, it became apparent that Israel was quite unwilling to countenance even some objective essentials and fundamentals in the route to peace. To persist with the idea of a two-state solution is to ignore reality. 

One democratic state might be the solution (1/2)

Rifat Odeh Kassis 7 December 2003


The two-state solution might have been possible some years ago. Not any more. Rifat Odeh Kassis concludes that the realties, which Israel itself created on the ground are beyond the scope of honest co-existence simply because too much water has flowed under the bridge of this conflict. In the aftermath of Oslo, it became apparent that Israel was quite unwilling to countenance even some objective essentials and fundamentals in the route to peace. To persist with the idea of a two-state solution is to ignore reality. 

Indictment against Israeli soldier in killing of Palestinian child in Gaza

6 December 2003


Mahmoud Al-Talalqa was killed on 1 March 2002, while he was playing in the street with his friends near the al-Nada housing project in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun, after afternoon prayers. According to a preliminary investigation conducted by PCHR’s into the incident, al-Talalqa was shot at close range by an Israeli soldier. In response to a complaint submitted by PCHR on behalf of the family, the office of the Israeli Military Prosecutor of the Southern Command stated on 4 December that an Israeli soldier has been charged with “causing death by negligence.” 

Israel unlawfully transfers 12 Palestinians

5 December 2003


In the last 24 hours, Israeli Occupying Forces transferred 12 Palestinians from the West Bank, to the Gaza Strip.  Eight of the group were moved to the Gaza Strip yesterday evening; the remaining four Palestinians were moved to the Gaza Strip at approximately 1:30am this morning. This follows a ruling issued by the Israeli High Court yesterday morning approving transfer orders issued against the group. PCHR Condemns this latest transfer within occupied territory as a violation of international human rights and humanitarian law. 

Weekly report on human rights violations

4 December 2003


This week Israeli forces killed 12 Palestinians, including four children. Israeli forces invaded a number of towns and villages in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. During the invasion of Ramallah, Israeli forces killed four Palestinians, including a child, and demolished three buildings. In Rafah Israeli forces demolished four homes. In the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces razed agricultural land. Israel continued to indiscriminately shell Palestinian residential areas in which a number of Palestinian civilians were wounded. 

Divide and destroy

Alex Klaushofer 4 December 2003


Israel’s separation wall is creating a new kind of humanitarian crisis for the Palestinians who live in its shadow. Cutting into Palestinian lands by up to six kilometres, the barrier takes different forms along its length - here an imposing concrete construction, there a steel fence and a tangle of barbed wire. The new dependency emerging in the communities destroyed by the barrier is yet another example of how the poverty afflicting the Palestinians is a human creation. Christian Aid’s Alex Klaushofer witnesses the devastation of communities. 

Palestinian museum exhibition "lost" by American Airport Security

4 December 2003


On 1 November 2003 the Palestinian Costume Archive’s exhibition, Symbolic defiance: Palestinian costume and embroidery since 1948, was taken for a security check/ x-ray at Los Angeles airport’s Terminal 4 and has not been seen since. All attempts by the Palestine Costume Archive, Qantas, Alaskan Airlines and MESA to locate the exhibition over the last three weeks failed and the search has been abandoned. The “loss” of this exhibition raises major concerns for all museums and curators worldwide currently touring Middle Eastern exhibitions in the United States. 

OPEC Fund extends US$570,000 grant to help finance capacity building projects in Palestine

1 December 2003


The OPEC Fund for International Development today approved a grant of US$570,000 to help finance four capacity building projects designed to address some of the most urgent needs of the poorest, hardest hit communities in the West Bank. The aim is to enable them to secure a decent standard of living. This is the fifth grant approved under the Fund’s Special Grant Account for Palestine, which was set up with an initial endowment of US$10 million. The first grant was approved in December 2002 to provide financial support to Palestinian universities and students. 

Resolving Israeli-Palestinian conflict, restoring calm in Iraq among Middle East challenges, UN GA told

1 December 2003


The General Assembly today kicked off its debate of the situation in the troubled Middle East, focusing on a host of challenging issues, from the importance of restoring calm in Iraq, to quelling tensions in the Syrian Golan and bringing an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — which many believed was the key to ensuring peace throughout the entire region. The General Assembly met today to continue its consideration of the question of Palestine and to begin its consideration of the situation in the Middle East. 

Nineteen donor countries pledge $72 million for activities of UNRWA

2 December 2003


Nineteen donor countries pledged $72 million for the 2004 budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) at this morning’s meeting of the General Assembly’s Ad Hoc Committee for Voluntary Contributions. Despite an increasing beneficiary base, the 2004 budget had declined by some 5 per cent in real terms to $330 million. The 2004 budget would minimally cover the Agency’s financial needs, he continued, including $4 million in salary increases and $7 million in working capital requirements. 

A campaign against "incitement"

James J. Zogby 9 July 2001

Schumer and Clinton displayed clear bias and a lack of good judgement in accepting as fact a distortion created by a pro-Israeli group. They compounded their error by further exaggerating this claim in their comments to the press and in their letter to President Bush. In doing so they did a disservice to their positions as U.S. Senators and to the pursuit of truth and peace. 

Growing up under curfew

30 April 2003

The tragic situation faced by children in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is the subject of a report put together by staff from Save the Children UK and Sweden who have joined forces and plan to launch it at the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva in April 2003. 

Education under occupation

31 March 2002

Since September 2000, there has been a dramatic deterioration of children’s rights in the Palestinian Territories. This study was conducted by Save the Children between April and June 2001. It examines the effects of this deterioration on the education system and calls for better monitoring of children’s rights in the Palestinian Territories. 

Origins of the Middle East crisis: Who caused the Palestinian Diaspora?

George Bisharat 3 December 2003


In 1948, three quarters of a million Palestinians were driven from what became Israel, their homes, land and possessions taken over by the new Jewish state. The pointed silence regarding the Palestinian right of return means that an important opportunity has been missed to apprise Israelis, and the world, of a critical reality. No real or lasting peace will be achieved in the area until Israel finally admits the long-denied truth, accepts moral responsibility and apologizes for its forcible exile of Palestinian refugees 55 years ago. Law professor George Bisharat looks at the issue. 

Israeli forces kill four Palestinian civilians, including a child

1 December 2003


In the early hours of Monday, 1 December 2003, Israeli occupation forces, using excessive and indiscriminate force, killed four Palestinian civilians during several incursions into the West Bank.  These unlawful killings represent the most recent war crimes perpetrated by Israeli occupation forces in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Two of the victims were killed when Israeli occupation forces detonated explosive devices inside a house in the Sharafa area east of Al Amari refugee camp, near Ramallah. A six year old child and another Palestinian were also killed. 

UN observes International Day of Solidarity with Palestinian People

1 December 2003


The United Nations today observed the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People with a series of resolutions and speeches calling for a peaceful settlement of the Middle East conflict. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in remarks to the General Assembly’s Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, said recent peace initiatives by Palestinian and Israeli civil society leaders show a settlement can be reached to the conflict. 

The False Hope of the Geneva Accord

Ali Abunimah 3 December 2003


It has been almost two months since the last deadly attack on Israeli civilians by a Palestinian suicide bomber, but in the meantime, the Israeli army has killed more than 70 Palestinians, among them 17 children. Amidst the hopelessness, some people have turned to the so-called “Geneva Accord” as a way out. In his commentary published in The Chicago Tribune, EI’s Ali Abunimah says that the accord offers only false hope, however, he sees prospects for long-term peace between Israelis and Palestinians in their common homeland. 

ICRC ends large-scale relief for Palestinians

20 November 2003


The ICRC’s large-scale distributions of relief aid to several hundred thousand Palestinians living in the towns and villages of the West Bank came to an end in mid-November 2003. Since June 2002, the ICRC had provided urgently needed aid to 300,000 people struggling to make ends meet. However, humanitarian aid is no longer the best way to help them. It is essential that the West Bank Palestinians’ basic rights under international humanitarian law are respected. In the long term, humanitarian aid cannot be a viable solution to the crisis. 

Can It Ever Really End?

Sam Bahour 2 December 2003


Fifty-five years of historical injustice does not subside with the signing of a peace treaty, official or unofficial, whatever the extent of public relations invested in the effort. Prospects for peace must start to be measured by how well justice is served, and not by how much fanfare is generated. To put the Palestinians and Israelis on the track toward historic reconciliation, Sam Bahour argues that Israel must stop holding the region hostage. It must begin by unilaterally ending the illegal occupation of Palestinians and working to establish a Palestinian state based on internationally accepted borders and international legitimacy. 

UNHCR seeks solutions for Palestinians on Iraq-Jordan border

28 November 2003


The UN refugee agency has urged governments in the Iraq region to find solutions for hundreds of refugees facing harsh winter conditions near the border between Iraq and Jordan. UNHCR estimates that 1,800 people are living in refugee camps in eastern Jordan. UNHCR estimates that 1,800 people are living in refugee camps in eastern Jordan. More than half of them have been stuck in the no man’s land between Iraq and Jordan since April, unwilling to return to Iraq yet unable to enter Jordan. 

Live from Palestine: The Diaries Project

Arjan El Fassed 1 December 2003


In 2003, South End Press published a book entitled Live From Palestine: International and Palestinian Direct Action Against the Israeli Occupation, edited by Nancy Stohlman and Laurieann Aladin, with introductions by Noam Chomsky and Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi, co-founder of Grassroots International Protection for the Palestinian People. The book contains contributions from two EI co-founders, Arjan El Fassed and Ali Abunimah, and reprinted several diary entries from The Electronic Intifada. The following article by Arjan El Fassed from the book introduces The Electronic Intifada’s diary project, Live From Palestine, after which the book was titled. Reprinted with permission. 

Montreal-based solidarity activist and journalist barred from Israel

International Solidarity Movement 1 December 2003


Montreal-based solidarity activist and alternative journalist was barred from entering Israel this past Saturday. Stefan Christoff, who is a member of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and a media activist, attempted to cross into Israel from Jordan. Border officials held Stefan for several hours, where he was interrogated and thoroughly searched before finally being barred entry by Israeli border guards. Stefan was unilaterally deemed a “security threat” to Israel; no proof or explanation was provided. Border guards threatened to remove Stefan by force if he did not return to Jordan. 

Tension and depression

Lora Gordon Rafah, Gaza Strip 1 December 2003


The plot of Abu Jameel’s life unfolds like a tragic drama. His street, Abu Jameel Street, named after his grandfather, once the richest man in the area whose grandson used to scorn farmers, walk through the street as one known by face only, the untouchable man in the suit. Abu Jameel inherited the riches of his family and built a row of forty stores and several apartments with his two cousins and married a beautiful Egyptian woman who bore him a son and a daughter. These days fade to memories in black and white. Laura Gordon writes from Rafah. 

Normal life in Rafah

Melissa Rafah, Gaza Strip 1 December 2003


Most of the time life in Rafah seems normal. A bustling city — taxis honking and speeding through the crowded streets, schoolchildren in their uniforms on their way to and from school, merchants of all types with their colourful wares lining the streets — fruits, clothes, household items — the perfume of life filling the air. Everywhere things seem normal, then all of a sudden something will happen and the facade of normalcy will disappear, and the ugliness of the reality will show through. Melissa writes from Rafah.