“The day after Christmas, the Israeli Army has killed six men, one of them from the next village over, Qabatiya. He is Hamza Abu Rubb who was active in Islamic Jihad. The Army’s obvious presence, comprised of tanks and armored personnel carriers, have been less in evidence. However, they are very much here, using Special Forces soldiers disguised as Arabs to track down and arrest or kill men.” Annie Higgins writes from Jenin. Read more about Jenin: the day after Christmas 

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 

“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 

“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 

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 

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  

“Technically, I’ve disobeyed an Israeli high court ruling that allowed me to stay in Israel for seven days on the very specific condition that I not visit the Palestinian territories. To obey the ruling on not traveling to Palestine is to be complicit in the process of normalizing Israel’s occupation. It allows the occupying power to continue to dictate its rule over the occupied.” Jaggi Singh writes from Beit Sahour. Read more about Entering Palestine: Defying the Israeli courts 

Hundreds of Iranian and other Middle East citizens were in southern California jails on Wednesday after coming forward to comply with a new rule to register with immigration authorities only to wind up handcuffed and behind bars. A disturbing Reuters report by Jill Serjeant. Read more about Hundreds of Muslim immigrants rounded up in California