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Letter from a Palestinian Camp

Marcy Newman Beirut 18 June 2007


In 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed white American clergymen who were opposed to his civil resistance campaign that fought against racist, segregationist policies and practices in the US. Writing from his jail cell he responded particularly to people who would have preferred that African Americans be patient and wait for those rights to come to them rather than to resist: “For years now I have heard the word ‘Wait!’ It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied.’” Dr. Marcy Newman reflects upon the relevance of King’s words to the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. 

Whose Coup, Exactly?

Virginia Tilley 18 June 2007


Mutual accusations are hurled by Abbas and Haniyeh that the other side launched a coup against the legitimate authority. An international community worried by the ‘coup’ accusation might endorse the Fayyad government as the seemingly correct position. But the ‘coup’ claim stumbles over a basic problem — that Abbas’s appointing a new prime minister was itself entirely illegal. The new ‘emergency government’ is illegal, too. Virginia Tilley analyzes the situation and assesses the international community’s options. 

Hamas' Shock and Awe

Sam Bahour 20 June 2007


The recent overrunning of Gaza by Hamas militants was the equivalent to the United States’ Shock and Awe campaign in Iraq. EI contributor Sam Bahour writes, both campaigns were conducted outside the realm of international law and were violent and brutal, albeit each relative to their respective resources and internal contexts; both claimed to be “preemptive” in nature; and both events placed the Palestinian people and struggle for national liberation in even a more precarious position. 

Towards a Geography of Peace: Whither Gaza?

Ilan Pappe 17 June 2007


The Gaza Strip is a little bit more than two percent of Palestine. This small detail is never mentioned in the present Western media coverage of the dramatic events unfolding there. Gaza is isolated now by the Israeli siege, but historian Ilan Pappé explains that Gaza was always an integral part of Palestine and its cosmopolitan gateway to the world. It is within this context that we should view the violence raging today in Gaza and reject the reference to the events there as another arena in a ‘Clash of Civilizations.’ 

Audio: Crossing the Line interviews journalist and activist Alison Weir

15 June 2007


This week on Crossing the Line, host Chris Brown examines the disparity in media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with journalist Alison Weir. Brown also speaks with photographer and activist Andrew Courtney about the little known community of African Palestinians and their long history within the country and conflict. 

Oslo's baleful legacy

Nimer Sultany 16 June 2007


The Oslo endless fruitless negotiations peace process has created an ambiguous situation: the Palestinians are caught somewhere between state-building and liberation struggle without being or having either. As a result they bear the responsibilities of freedom without actually enjoying freedom. The world looks at them as if they were in a postcolonial stage while the colonialists are still around. Additionally, the Oslo process has transformed the Palestinian revolutionary project into a corrupted comprador class that enjoys some benefits from the occupier. 

Audio/Transcript: Ali Abunimah and Laila El-Haddad on the situation in Gaza

15 June 2007


EI’s Ali Abunimah appeared on Democracy Now!, interviewed by host Amy Goodman, on Friday, 15 June 2007. He was joined by journalist and mother living in Gaza, Laila El-Haddad. Abunimah and El-Haddad discuss the current situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories as Hamas takes control over the Gaza Strip. The two discuss US and Israel’s involvement in the recent fighting between Fatah and Hamas which has been commonly referred to as a civil war. 

Forty years of displacement: Interview with Mourid Barghouti

Bill Parry 15 June 2007


Mourid Barghouti was literally completing his final exams for his BA at Cairo University when the 1967 War broke out, an event that marked his exile from Palestine. He wrote the critically acclaimed and award-winning book, I Saw Ramallah, about this period of displacement and his feelings on finally being able to return temporarily to Palestine, visiting the places and homes of people who were part of his first 20 years of life. EI contributor Bill Parry interviews Barghouti on the anniversary of 40 years of Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 

Awaking to a different Gaza

Philip Rizk Gaza City, Palestine 15 June 2007


In Gaza people awake today to a new reality. Last night, my host Isa told me military coups were the sort of thing he heard and read about, he never thought he would experience one. Yesterday Gazans did. Although the final Fatah stronghold was still standing by the evening Hamas fighters were already making the rounds in the streets, three and four jeeps at a time, loaded with armed men wearing all black, their faces covered with masks, holding their guns in the air, a few, rather uncomfortably, waving to the people. Philip Rizk writes from Gaza City.