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Jerusalem family facing forced eviction and home demolition

11 May 2006


The Jerusalem Municipality is preparing to forcibly evict Muhammad Is’hac and Yousra Herbawi from the house where they live with their six children, one of whom is severely disabled, and then to demolish the building. The family have almost no income, and would be left destitute. The impact on the family’s health, in particular that of the disabled son, is likely to be very severe. The Municipality can still decide to take into account the family’s circumstances and cancel the forced eviction and the demolition. 

Groundbreaking Syrian film festival doesn't overlook the Palestinian question

11 May 2006


This week, international arts nonprofit ArteEast saw the beginning of its North American tour of “Lens on Syria: Thirty Years of Contemporary Cinema”, a groundbreaking exploration of Syrian cinema. “Lens on Syria” showcases over 30 Syrian feature films, documentaries and shorts, many subtitled in English and screening for the first time in the US. Often described as Arab cinema’s “best kept secret”, ArteEast’s Syrian cinema series provides an unprecedented opportunity for audiences in New York to discover a politically timely and relevant program. 

Balata Film Collective Tour in U.S. to visit New York, New Jersey, New Orleans, Chicago and Minneapolis

11 May 2006


The Balata Film Collective was initiated to enable young Palestinians from Balata Refugee camp to use film as a method to break their isolation, challenge their oppression, and represent their lives to the world. This May 2006, 3 members of the collective will be touring the U.S. sharing their films and their stories, and hoping to build connections with other film collectives and film makers involved in the global struggle for justice and liberation. The tour will bring them to Bard College, Boston, New York City, New Jersey, New Orleans, Chicago and Minneapolis. 

Film Review: The Chicago Palestine Film Festival's Evening of Shorts

Maymanah Farhat 11 May 2006


Rina Khoury’s West…East, is a nine minute narrative film about the Palestinian catastrophe that is told through the journey of a blind woman and her son, amidst an ambiguous landscape. Enas Muthaffar’s East…West is a sixteen minute documentary film that chronicles her family’s expulsion from their home as the apartheid wall encroaches nearby and threatens to segregate them from their community. Both films were shown in conjunction with two short films by Annemarie Jacir, Some Crumbs for the Birds and An Explanation (and then burn the ashes). 

Israeli party leader Avigdor Lieberman calls for Arab MKs to be executed

11 May 2006


Avigdor Lieberman, the leader of the far-right Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home) party, has twice called in less than a week for Arabs MKs to be put on trial for treason and executed if found guilty. Lieberman, who surprised observers by winning 11 seats in the March elections, was recently courted by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for a seat in his new cabinet. On 8 May, Lieberman presented a speech to the Knesset in which he proposed that any Arab politicians who were disloyal to the state should be punished. He added: “How is it that no Arab MK sings the national anthem or raises the flag on Independence Day?” 

Poll shows 62% of Israelis favour emigration of Arab citizens

11 May 2006


In its latest poll, the Israel Democracy Institute found that 62 per cent of Israelis support the government encouraging the country’s more than one million Arab citizens to emigrate. The Democracy Index survey, published on 9 May, contrasts with another recent poll, by the Geocartography Institute, which found that 40 per cent of Israelis favoured the emigration of Arab citizens. Recent polls have shown that, while on average 40 per cent of Israelis want Arab citizens forced to leave the country, that figure rises close to 60 per cent when respondents are asked, more ambiguously, if they want the Arab population “encouraged” to emigrate. 

Election Backlash: Iraq, Palestine and Israel

Roni Ben Efrat 10 May 2006


The phrase “democratic elections” can be misleading in its positive connotation, especially when the countries where the elections take place are embroiled in conflict. In the Middle East, during the past six months, we have witnessed three sets of elections. Each has further entangled an already complex situation. There were the Iraqi elections in December 2005, then the January 2006 elections for the Palestinian Authority (PA), and, in March, the Israeli elections. In the first two instances, the voting took place during or just after a bloody war; the elections aspired to usher in a new era of conflict resolution. 

Palestinian Laborers on the Israeli Separation Wall

Dania H. Yousef 10 May 2006


As the political and military conflict between Palestinians and Israelis wages on, it is the average citizen who has been besieged by harsh realities that have made survival all too difficult. One faction of people who have been left to clamor for economic endurance is the Palestinian laborers. The hardships faced under occupation, systemic closures, the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) history of corruption, and lack of employment opportunities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) have led many to seek employment on the Israeli Separation Wall. 

All Eyes on Jerusalem as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Allied Groups Prepare for WorldPride 2006

10 May 2006


8 May 2006, Jerusalem - WorldPride, a week-long international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) event, will be held in the Holy City August 6-12, 2006. Jerusalem Open House, lead organizer of Jerusalem WorldPride, will collaborate with thousands of activists and organizers from around the globe for a week of discussion, camaraderie and community. Major events include an Multifaith LGBT Clergy Conference, a Pride March and outdoor festival, Human Rights Day, LGBT Health Day, an International LGBT Youth conference, an LGBT Film Festival, and the Keshet Gaava annual conference. 

Poverty in the Gaza Strip

10 May 2006


The conditions in the OPT has exacerbated the humanitarian situation for Palestinian civilians. Unemployment and poverty rates have increased dramatically. The rate of unemployment is 34% in the OPT as a whole and 44% in the Gaza Strip. This rate rises to 55% during times of complete closure imposed by Israeli Occupation Forces. Likewise, the poverty rate in the OPT is nearly 50%, with the Gaza Strip rate at approximately 70%. This in turn has impacted the per capita income, which decreased by 32% over the past three years, and is actually 40% lower today than it was three years ago. On the economic front, the gross national product decreased to dangerous levels, threatening the agricultural, industrial, commerce, transportation and tourism sectors.