4 November 2002
As the agency responsible for the provision of humanitarian aid and basic services to nearly half the population of the occupied Palestinian territory, UNRWA today faced perhaps one of the most serious challenges in its history, UNRWA’s Commissioner-General, Peter Hansen, told the Fourth Committee this morning. Read more about UNRWA faces historic crisis
5 November 2002
Many important voices have come out to express fear that the “two-state solution” for the Palestinian-Israeli dispute is fast fading. The consequences, they warn, are horrifying, not only for the Palestinians, for whom statehood is a national aspiration, but also for Israelis. Hasan Abu Nimah examines this development and what its true consequences may be. Read more about Conflict in Palestine: a tale of two states
6 November 2002
If everyone involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including Sharon, Arafat, the US, the Europeans and the Arab states all say they want peace, then why is there no peace? Hasan Abu Nimah tells The Electronic Intifada the answers. Read more about What is needed is a real peace plan for a change
6 November 2002
A recent human rights award given by an international cosmetics company, The Body Shop, has focused attention on the struggles of an oft-ignored group of Palestinian refugees: those who are living as exiles inside Israel, where they are officially classified as “Present Absentees.” Isabelle Humphries reports from Nazareth. Read more about Exiles within: Palestinian internal refugees get organized
Rafah, Gaza Strip 5 November 2002
A pile of gray cement, once a family’s home, sits next to the street. Directly in front is a small white tent. This is where the family now lives. There is no furniture, no clothes, no family pictures. They are all somewhere under the rubble. Each day at least 6 Palestinian homes are demolished, except Saturday which is a holiday for Israelis. Kristen Ess writes from Rafah, Gaza. Read more about A smaller space each day
5 November 2002
Peace activist Kathy Kern was recently deported from Ben Gurion airport after arriving for her 11th term of service with the Hebron-based Christian Peacemaker Teams. In this article about the experience, Kathy asks why the Israeli government is afraid of people reporting what it is doing in the Occupied Territories? Read more about Deported!
al-Bireh 5 November 2002
Just as the Israeli occupation to suppress the entire Palestinian population has taken on new shapes and forms in the absence of any international considerations, Israeli settlers are camouflaging this latest round of land confiscation with a facade of environmental issues, namely a solid waste landfill site on the eastern front of the Palestinian West Bank town of Al-Bireh. Walid Hamad, Mayor of Al-Bireh writes about the problem. Read more about Settlers and Trash
3 November 2002
On October 31, a number of journalists were reporting on an explosion that occurred in a house in Gaza. A number of people, who were located on the scene, assaulted the journalists. PCHR condemns the attack. Read more about PCHR condemns attack on journalists in Gaza
Tulkarem, Palestine 4 November 2002
Just after we came home for the evening we received a call informing us that the army was attacking the Tulkarem refugee camp. We also learned that people in the camp had been shot, and there were helicopters circling overhead. Rachel Engler-Stringer reports from Tulkarem. Read more about The farmers of Qaffin
4 November 2002
Israel committed war crimes, including unlawful killings, in Jenin and Nablus during a military offensive in those and other West Bank cities earlier this year, the human rights group Amnesty International said today. In its report, Amnesty said there is “clear evidence that some of the acts committed by the Israel Defense Forces during Operation Defense Shield were war crimes.” Read more about AI: Israeli Defence Forces' war crimes must be investigated