December 2010

Israel forces Palestinians to demolish their own homes


Israel’s demolition of Palestinian homes continued in Lyd, the Negev region, and in numerous places around the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem where two Palestinian families were forced to demolish their own homes in Sur Bahir village. The families had received demolition orders from Jerusalem Municipality officials three days before, citing “illegal construction.” 

Book Review: Europe's Alliance with Israel


David Cronin’s immensely valuable new book, Europe’s Alliance with Israel: Aiding the Occupation, charts how the European Union and its member states back Israel, and dispels the idea that the US is the only game in town (and that those of us who aren’t resident there can therefore change nothing), while also offering activists new targets for institutional lobbying and boycotts. 

Students for Justice in Palestine condemns US government witch hunt


As students at over fifty American universities, we unequivocally condemn the abuse of grand jury subpoenas to chill the exercise of First Amendment rights by university students and anti-war activists speaking and organizing against Israel’s continued oppression of the Palestinian people. 

China imports Israel's methods of propaganda and repression


A recent meeting between Chinese and Israeli military officials is only the latest in a burgeoning security relationship between Israel and China that includes drone technology, crowd control training, surveillance, intelligence gathering and more. This raises the question of how China’s official support for Palestinian self-determination will coincide with its ongoing procurement of the tools of Palestinian pacification. Jimmy Johnson comments. 

Book review: correcting mistaken notions on Arabs in America


Many Americans think anti-Arab sentiment in the United States began after 11 September 2001. Others think Arabs are recent immigrants to America. Some think the Arab community has kept to itself, not participating in struggles like the civil rights and labor movements. Alia Malek’s A Country Called Amreeka is a welcome corrective to these mistaken notions. 

Gaza families recall horror two years after Israel's assault


Between 27 December 2008 and 18 January 2009, Israel used its formidable military arsenal to wage all out war against a territory whose destitute population is made up largely of refugees. More than 1,400 people were killed, including almost four hundred children. Two years later, Rami Almeghari speaks with Gazans who witnessed Israel’s invasion. 

Haaretz journalist doubles as anti-"delegitimization" operative

Haaretz has an international reputation as Israel’s most liberal and reliable newspaper. But The Electronic Intifada has discovered that one of the newspaper’s regularly-featured reporters, Cnaan Liphshiz, used his news reports for the publication to promote the agenda of an extreme pro-Israel group with which he was also employed. Ali Abunimah reports. 

Standing together against US government witch hunt


The ongoing government campaign against anti-war activists is a stark reminder of the unabated deterioration of civil liberties and political rights in the United States. These developments admonish us to remember that the last protection for our ability to work freely for an end to the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan or Colombia, for an end to US military aid to Israel and for justice and peace in Palestine, is the solidarity we offer each other by exercising those rights before they are taken away. 

Israeli arms firm to benefit from EU-funded research


BRUSSELS (IPS) - Arms traders are seeking to convince the European Union that publicly-funded scientific research grants should help develop weapons for future wars. In a series of secret discussions, Brussels officials and representatives of the arms industry are examining if the EU’s multi-billion euro “framework program” for research can be used for projects of a military nature. 

The death of the peace process


This month marked a low point in the Obama administration’s attempts to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Instead of emphasizing direct talks between the parties, Washington will now attempt to mediate between them to develop a framework agreement around the core issues. Sound familiar? It should. The Obama administration is following the same failed path of its three predecessors to achieve peace. Osamah Khalil comments. 

Boycott roundup: activists mark holidays with boycott carols and victories


Over the past two weeks, Palestine solidarity activists across the US launched holiday-themed actions encouraging shoppers not to buy Israeli-made products. Meanwhile, BDS activists in Scotland claimed a major victory when the Edinburgh city council rejected a bid by French urban contracting company Veolia to take over public services in the city. 

Resisting an ideology of inequality: Jody McIntyre interviewed


Over the past month, journalist and activist Jody McIntyre has joined a growing number of students, workers, activists and others in the UK protesting a government decision to cut public sector funding, especially to education. Jody, who spent months alongside Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip protesting the Israeli occupation, is now back in London attending and reporting on various student-led actions. The Electronic Intifada’s Matthew Cassel spoke with Jody at his south London home. 

Israel's new wall


CAIRO (IPS) - After building a wall in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Israel has begun construction on a new wall, this one to keep migrants from Africa out. The new wall is coming up on the Egyptian border, and with Egyptian support. 

Rescuing Zionism at Palestinian expense


After almost two years of attempting to bribe Israel into “restraining” the expansion of its Jewish-only colonies on occupied, stolen land, and its violent Judaization of Jerusalem, the Obama administration concluded that it could do nothing. Of course one thing the administration never tried was real pressure using as leverage the billions in annual no-strings aid the fiscally-bankrupt United States provides to Israel. 

They call them martyrs


They call them martyrs, their fallen soldiers, their sons, brothers and fathers. Engraved on the walls of the refugee camp are their names and messages from their loved ones. Their faces painted on the alleyways, their eyes dark and alive. 

No safe haven for displaced Iraqis


More than seven years after the United States and United Kingdom-led invasion of Iraq, millions of displaced Iraqis have nowhere to go. For the overwhelming majority of refugees and internally displaced persons, displacement is not a one-off trauma. Rather, it is a continuous state of flight for most uprooted Iraqis. 

Beit Ommar returns to its roots


Palestinians in the occupied West Bank village of Beit Ommar are returning to older models of organizing against the Israeli occupation. These organizers are employing strategies of resistance made famous during the first intifada in order to overcome stagnation and division within Palestinian society. Mousa Abu Maria of the Palestine Solidarity Project analyzes. 

Boycott roundup: French companies to drop out of Jerusalem rail project


In a significant victory for the global Palestinian-led boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, French companies Veolia and Alstom have dropped out of the Jerusalem light rail project due to sustained pressure from Palestine solidarity groups. The companies were contracted by the Israeli government to construct and manage the tramway linking Jerusalem to several illegal Israeli settlement colonies in the occupied West Bank. 

Why we walked out


Students across the US are protesting a public relations campaign that brings soldiers from the Israeli army to speak on campuses. These tours are an attempt to justify recent war crimes committed by the army and are coordinated by various organizations, the most well-known being the Zionist organization StandWithUs. Ahmad Hasan and Danielle Bäck comment.