The lightening success of Hamas in forcefully taking over the supposed symbols of Palestinian power in Gaza cannot and ought not obscure the fact that, given the overbearing presence of Israel’s military occupation, the bloody clash between the Islamist group and its secular counterpart, Fatah, and irrespective of motives, has descended into a feud between two slaves fighting over the crumbs thrown to them, whenever they behave, by their common colonial master. EI contributor Omar Barghouti comments on the crisis and the imminent dissipation of the illusion of national Palestinian sovereignty under Israeli hegemony. Read more about The Light at the End of the Gaza-Ramallah Tunnel
Mutual accusations are hurled by Abbas and Haniyeh that the other side launched a coup against the legitimate authority. An international community worried by the ‘coup’ accusation might endorse the Fayyad government as the seemingly correct position. But the ‘coup’ claim stumbles over a basic problem — that Abbas’s appointing a new prime minister was itself entirely illegal. The new ‘emergency government’ is illegal, too. Virginia Tilley analyzes the situation and assesses the international community’s options. Read more about Whose Coup, Exactly?
The recent overrunning of Gaza by Hamas militants was the equivalent to the United States’ Shock and Awe campaign in Iraq. EI contributor Sam Bahour writes, both campaigns were conducted outside the realm of international law and were violent and brutal, albeit each relative to their respective resources and internal contexts; both claimed to be “preemptive” in nature; and both events placed the Palestinian people and struggle for national liberation in even a more precarious position. Read more about Hamas' Shock and Awe
The Gaza Strip is a little bit more than two percent of Palestine. This small detail is never mentioned in the present Western media coverage of the dramatic events unfolding there. Gaza is isolated now by the Israeli siege, but historian Ilan Pappé explains that Gaza was always an integral part of Palestine and its cosmopolitan gateway to the world. It is within this context that we should view the violence raging today in Gaza and reject the reference to the events there as another arena in a ‘Clash of Civilizations.’ Read more about Towards a Geography of Peace: Whither Gaza?
The Oslo endless fruitless negotiations peace process has created an ambiguous situation: the Palestinians are caught somewhere between state-building and liberation struggle without being or having either. As a result they bear the responsibilities of freedom without actually enjoying freedom. The world looks at them as if they were in a postcolonial stage while the colonialists are still around. Additionally, the Oslo process has transformed the Palestinian revolutionary project into a corrupted comprador class that enjoys some benefits from the occupier. Read more about Oslo's baleful legacy
On Friday, 8 June, DePaul University President Dennis Holtschneider announced that he had decided to uphold the university’s tenure and promotion board’s ruling denying outspoken political science professor Norman Finkelstein tenure. In a press release, the president is quoted as saying that academic freedom “is alive and well at DePaul University.” Not surprisingly, the announcement of Finkelstein’s tenure denial has spawned a national discussion. DePaul University Assistant Professor Matthew Abraham comments. Read more about The case for Norman Finkelstein
The following is a speech made by Dr. Mona El-Farra at a special meeting at the United Nations headquarters in New York marking 40 years of occupation by Israel of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip: It is my honour to be amongst you today, despite the gravity of the occasion being commemorated, on this 40th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. First, let me say that 2007 is the 59th anniversary of the brutal occupation of the Palestinian people. Read more about No justice without right of return
BEIRUT, 10 June 2007 (IRIN) - Researchers warn that economic instability and persistent security threats are driving ever more young, educated Lebanese abroad, creating a brain drain that threatens the country’s economic and social future. “We’re suffering a huge brain drain,” Kamal Hamdan, head of the Lebanese Centre of Research and Studies, told IRIN. “Those who have the brains take their diplomas and leave. They are the young people who would go on to be middle executives and entrepreneurs. In the long term, their absence means we may face a serious shortage of policy developers and managers.” Read more about One in three Lebanese wants to leave
“Forty years ago today was the last day the citizens of Israel were a free people in their own land,” wrote Ha’aretz columnist Akiva Eldar on June 4. “It was the last day we lived here without living other peoples’ lives.” This sums up the cherished mythology of what is still called the Israeli left and much of the international peace process industry — that prior to the 1967 war, Israel was pure and on the right path. EI’s Ali Abunimah challenges the idea that had Israel not “become an occupier” the region would have had a happier history. Read more about It's not just the occupation
