Bethlehem 26 December 2002
At the last minute, at the end of the day before Christmas Eve, the Israeli government announced it would lift its curfew of Bethlehem. This was another move in the endless game of Israeli propaganda, and one that was expected. Thousands of eyes were on Bethlehem, the West Bank city that has been under curfew and reinvasion for the past month. Kristen Ess reports. Read more about Christmas in Bethlehem
23 December 2002
Last week, [Nelson] Mandela said he was disappointed that not a single world leader had publicly condemned the recent U.S. decision to grab the 12,000-page Iraqi arms dossier and spirit it to the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) before the other 14 members of the U.N. Security Council could even peek at it. The following report from the Interpress Service cites EI’s Ali Abunimah. Read more about Unilateral U.S. Undermines U.N.'s Credibility
24 December 2002
“In 1982, lacking e-mail, a cell phone, activist list serves, or websites, the best outlet for my horror, sorrow and anger at the Sabra and Shatila massacres was to crank up The Clash’s music to full volume as I cleaned the house in fury. ” The EI’s Laurie King-Irani pays homage to the late Joe Strummer of “The Clash.” Read more about It's up to us not to heed the call-up
Bethlehem 24 December 2002
“Rather than celebrating birth, Father Sabbara plans to reflect on death — particularly the sickening reality that, just as in Jesus’s time, children are being killed by forces indifferent to their age or innocence. The latest victim is an 11-year-old girl leaning out of a window to watch the funeral procession of another child.” The Guardian’s Chris MacGreal files a somber report from occupied Bethlehem. Read more about Bethlehem, the "capital of Christmas," is dying
23 December 2002
The Israeli voter has a rare opportunity to find out how the right-wing government looks to the world when the rouge provided by Shimon Peres and Benjamin Ben-Eliezer has been wiped off. Israel’s image in December 2002 is beginning to be reminiscent of Michael Jackson’s after he took off his mask. Akiva Eldar writes in Ha’aretz. Read more about A right-wing government without makeup
Rafah, Gaza Strip 23 December 2002
“WE WERE sitting in the Asfuls’ front room. Suddenly the two tanks at the end of the street opened up their machine-guns. The bullets were flying so close to the house we could see the tracer fire slapping straight past the windows. To leave without crossing the line of fire would be impossible. All we could do was sit and hope the bullets did not come through the window.” Justin Huggler writes in The Independent. Read more about In Rafah, the children have grown so used to the sound of gunfire they can't sleep without it
23 December 2002
Unlike other ascribed and self-described “people of color” in the United States, Arabs are often hidden under the Caucasian label, if not forgotten altogether. But eleven months after September 11, 2001, the Arab-American is no longer invisible. Whether traveling, driving, working, walking through a neighborhood or sitting in their homes, Arabs in America — citizens and non-citizens — are now subject to special scrutiny in American society. The violence, discrimination, defamation and intolerance now faced by Arabs in American society has reached a level unparalleled in their over 100-year history in the US. For those engaged in activism within the United States, this article, by Louise Cainkar in the Fall 2002 edition of Middle East Report, provides essential context for their work. It is also an excellent resource for educators. Read more about No Longer Invisible: Arab and Muslim Exclusion After September 11
22 December 2002
The national movement to pressure universities to pull their investments from Israel has been battered this year by critics who call it divisive and anti-Semitic. But it has shown remarkable staying power in large part because of an unusual group of supporters: Jewish professors. Hundreds of college professors nationwide have signed petitions calling for divestment from Israel, among them several dozen Jewish professors who call their signatures an act of political conscience. Patrick Healy reports for The Boston Globe Read more about Jewish professors keep divestment drive alive
22 December 2002
Why do false assertions about the circumstances of Israel’s November killing of UN official Iain Hook in Jenin continue to make it into NPR news bulletins even after they have been fully exposed? Hugh Sansom, an avid NPR listener, shared this letter with EI. Read more about NPR continues to misreport Israel's killing of UN official Iain Hook
20 December 2002
A draft resolution which would have had the Security Council condemn recent Israeli acts, including the killing of several United Nations aid workers, was defeated today by the United States, which in casting a no vote effectively vetoed the text. Read more about US vetoes Security Council draft resolution condemning recent Israeli acts