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International Women's Day: Yes to Life, No to Death

7 March 2007


Women around the globe celebrate International Women’s Day tomorrow, 8 March 2007. This event is one of the most distinguished ones that renews commitment and stresses the importance of women’s enjoyment of all their rights in accordance with international standards and conventions. In addition, this day comes as a reminder of the pioneering role of women in different social, cultural, economic, and political spheres.The 8th of March comes this year upon Palestinian women as they face very difficult and harsh circumstances. 

Israel, Iran, U.S. Least Liked Countries

Jim Lobe 6 March 2007


WASHINGTON, Mar 6 (IPS) - A majority of people from around the world hold predominantly negative views of Israel, Iran, and the United States, according to a survey of more than 28,000 respondents in 27 countries. The survey, which was sponsored by the BBC World Service and designed by Globescan and the Washington-based Programme for International Policy Attitudes (PIPA), found that 56 percent and 54 percent of all respondents said they had mainly negative views of Israel and Iran, respectively. Fifty-one percent and 48 percent said the same about the United States and North Korea, respectively. 

Requesting Permission to Narrate: "Dreams of a Nation" Reviewed

Alexander Provan 6 March 2007


Since 1948, Palestinians have not only occupied the painful position of many oppressed peoples who are systematically displaced, disenfranchised, denationalized, brutalized and murdered; they have also been put in the awkward, even tragicomic, position of having to convince the rest of the world of their very existence. This problem of visibility lies at the heart of Dreams of a Nation: On Palestinian Cinema, an illuminating, if incomplete, anthology of essays on the efforts of Palestinians to represent themselves on film to the world and to each other. 

"My sheep were my life"

6 March 2007


MAROUN EL RAS, 6 March 2007 (IRIN) - Muhammad Zein el Abidyn Jaber is a 72-year-old farmer who lives with his family of five in the small Lebanese village of Maroun El Ras, on the border with Israel. During the July-August 2006 war between Israel and the armed wing of the political party Hezbollah, he fled his town and left his sheep and cattle behind. When Muhammad returned a few weeks later, he found they had died of hunger and thirst. 

OCHA: Nablus Situation Report

6 March 2007


At approximately 02:30 on 28 February, a large force of IDF soldiers and Israeli Border Police re-entered Nablus. This latest incursion marks the continuation of Operation “Hot Winter”, the largest military incursion in three years in Nablus city. Since re-entering Nablus in the early hours of this morning, as was the case with the first incursion, the IDF has placed the Old City and its surroundings under curfew. The IDF has again taken over the facilities of local television and radio stations to announce the names of seven wanted Palestinians they are specifically seeking. 

'Independent Australian Jewish Voices' issue call for free debate

6 March 2007


As Australians we are privileged to live in a democratic state that embodies the principles of tolerance and free speech. We feel there is an urgent need to hear alternative voices that should not be silenced by being labelled disloyal or “self-hating.” Uncritical allegiance to Israeli government policy does not necessarily serve Israel’s best interests. Our concern for justice and peace in the Middle East is a legitimate opinion and should be met by reasoned argument rather than vilification and intimidation. 

Volleyball and Civil War

Philip Rizk Gaza Strip, Palestine 6 March 2007


I heard my name called out as I walked swiftly past the main police station in Gaza City. One of the three policemen gathered there walked over to me, a cigarette dangling from his lips. I had met Ahmed the second week I was in Gaza, when I went to play volleyball with Palestine’s best team, located in the Jabalya refugee camp. Ahmed was their star player. Warming up that day I paired up with Ahmed, which lead to a slew of questions about my coming to Gaza and sparked the beginning of our friendship. 

No fake analogy

Arjan El Fassed 5 March 2007


Joel Pollak wants people to believe comparisons between Israeli policies and apartheid are nothing but a fraud, “The trouble with the apartheid analogy” (March 2). He castigates former US president Jimmy Carter for quoting a six-year-old letter from Nelson Mandela to New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman making the apartheid comparison, and accuses me of perpetrating a hoax and admitting I made the whole thing up. There is no possible basis for Pollak to say I intended people to believe the memo was written by anyone other than myself. Although the Mandela memo was only a piece of satire, it is not necessary to believe it to understand the Israel-apartheid comparison is grounded in an ugly reality. 

Obama, Israel, and the Jewish Vote

Jake Tapper 4 March 2007


Seeking to assure supporters of Israel that he is as ardent a backer of the Jewish state as are rivals such as Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, and John Edwards, D-NC, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, delivered a very pro-Israel address to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee of Chicago at the end of last week. But now comes a very interesting blog entry by the pro-Palestinian blogger Ali Abunimah at The Electronic Intifada, who alleges that Obama has changed to a far more stridently pro-Israel position as his national aspirations developed. “The last time I spoke to Obama was in the winter of 2004 at a gathering in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood,” Abunimah writes. 

Anxiety and Cautious Optimism

Moussa Bashir Beirut 5 March 2007


Most of the posts in the Lebanese blogosphere reflect the atmosphere of anxiety, pessimism and mistrust that is the general mood of the Lebanese nowadays. Here is a summary of some of the posts. An attempt has been made to include one or two light posts with brighter outlooks, but they did not drown the overall disposition mentioned above. Let’s begin by mentioning Lebanon’s loss of Joseph Samaha, a very prominent columnist and political analyst, last week. Many bloggers posted about the man and his works. Jamal Ghosn wrote a post about Samaha which he began with: “Life Goes On, but it must not go on dumber, less informed, mentally poorer.”