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Fighting for the Next Generation

Danny Felsteiner the Netherlands 22 November 2006


Only a few hours after my fiancee, a 24-year-old Dutch musician and I, a 29-year-old Israeli musician and writer, arrived to Israel for the summer vacation, the war in Lebanon broke out. At first, no one dared to call it by the W-word; the media described it as a swift military operation to retrieve the kidnapped soldiers while teaching Hezbollah a bitter lesson. Everyone agreed with an across-the-board solidarity that it was a noble and imperative cause. The Israeli flag was brandished on balconies, cars and T-shirts, left and right-wing politicians were sharing spoons to stir their afternoon teas, and graffitists sprayed the walls with jingoistic ‘Go Israel!’ or ‘Let the IDF win!’. 

Lebanese Waters Still Stained Black

Meena S. Janardhan 22 November 2006


Squally winter weather in the eastern Mediterranean poses a fresh threat to marine ecology from Lebanon to Turkey this year, due to the remnants of the oil slick caused in July when Israeli forces bombed a power plant south of Beirut. Between 10,000 and 15,000 tonnes of crude leaked from the crippled power plant of Jiyeh, 30 km from the Lebanese capital, Jul. 13-15. The spill seriously contaminated the waters along the Lebanese and Syrian coast. Environmental damage to neighbouring Cyprus, Greece and Turkey was somewhat reduced by operations to mop up the floating oil. But the danger persists. 

Don't let one family's latest tragedy become that of a whole country

22 November 2006


There is no such thing as a routine political killing, but Tuesday’s assassination of Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel threatens repercussions - and signals intentions - that are nothing short of extraordinary. With the Lebanese political climate already fouled by soaring tensions, the timing alone indicates that the people who orchestrated the attack are both ruthless and reckless. The assailants’ identities and immediate demands are unknown, but their message is clear: They will bring the country to - and possibly beyond - the brink of disaster to get their way. 

The Ugly Israeli

Rima Merriman 22 November 2006


The phrase “Ugly America” which epitomized American arrogance, corruption and tragic blunders in South East Asia in the early sixties is no longer in vogue in that region. But “Ugly Israeli” is alive and well in the Middle East, wherever there is an agreement of any kind between Israel and an Arab partner. There are two essential rules to follow for anyone attempting in good faith to “normalize” relations with Israel: Avoid ambiguity in any transaction and make sure that working procedures as well as processes of arbitration and enforcement are firmly in place. 

Under-Secretary-General, briefing Security Council, describes 'alarming escalation of violence' between Israelis, Palestinians

21 November 2006


With an alarming escalation of violence, the tragic events of November had once again highlighted the fact that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could not be resolved through force, the United Nations senior political official told the Security Council this morning. “We have seen another month of violence in the Middle East –- one that for the tragedy of Beit Hanoun will almost certainly be remembered as a dark hour in this very long conflict”, Ibrahim Gambari, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs said. The Security Council met this morning to consider the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. 

In Gaza Strip, UN human rights chief decries ‘massive’ violations against civilians

20 November 2006


The top United Nations human rights official said today that “massive” violations against civilians had taken place in the Gaza Strip as she began a five-day tour of the region following Israel’s deadly assault on the occupied Palestinian territory earlier this month. Louise Arbour, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, toured the northern Gazan town of Beit Hanoun, where 19 Palestinians were killed and some 60 others injured earlier this month when the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) shelled a residential area. Arbour told journalists that an independent, credible and thorough inquiry was needed to determine where responsibility lies for the deaths in Beit Hanoun. 

Palestinians hail Irish academics' support of Palestine

David Landy 21 November 2006


Irish academics were thanked this week in an open letter, signed by over 100 academics and 1,000 students of Birzeit University near Ramallah, Palestine. The thanks were addressed to the 61 Irish academics who wrote a public letter in September calling for a moratorium on EU aid to Israeli universities, until Israel abides by international law and basic human rights norms. The letter, published in the Irish Times on September 16th, has caused a public stir in Israel; the education minister Yuli Tamir has travelled to England to ‘verify if they [the signatories] are lecturers who have influence’. 

New Amnesty Report: Out of all proportion - civilians bear the brunt of the war

21 November 2006


The 34-day war between Hizbullah and Israel in July/August 2006 caused widespread death and destruction in both Israel and Lebanon, with civilians bearing the brunt of military operations. This report, the third published by Amnesty International on aspects of the conflict, focuses on Israeli attacks in which civilians were killed as well as the impact on civilians of other attacks by Israeli forces. It also examines allegations that Hizbullah used civilians as “human shields”. Previously Amnesty International focused on Israel’s attacks on the infrastructure in Lebanon and on Hizbullah’s rocket bombardment of northern Israel. 

Streets of Hate

Jason Brown Hebron, Palestine 21 November 2006


His panic-stricken little face lights up when he receives the information that we’ll escort him home, sending him skipping merrily down the road on an errand to buy potatoes. This is the Palestinian Authority controlled area of Hebron, and as we cross through Tel Rumeida checkpoint to the other side in order to wait for the Palestinian boy’s return, we soon discover the source of his fear. We are confronted by around 100 ultra-orthodox Jews, who are gathered in Hebron to mark ‘Hebron day’, one of whom shouts “You know that Jesus is gay?”. None of us really react to this arbitrary taunt, however it does serve to focus the crowd’s attentions squarely on our small group of human rights workers. 

Karen Armstrong: How Religious Movements Prolong the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Carlton Cobb 20 November 2006


To a full audience on Capitol Hill, Oxford scholar of religion Karen Armstrong argued last week that fundamentalist movements within each of the three faiths involved in the Arab-Israeli conflict, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, contribute to sustaining that conflict. Her talk outlined how the “Christian Right” in the U.S., Islamists such as Hamas in Palestine and Hizbullah in Lebanon and ultra-Orthodox Jews in Israel have drawn religion into what is “at base a political problem…, a secular problem over land.”