After hearing that the New York City LGBT Center was planning to host Israeli Apartheid Week’s final celebratory fundraiser, “Party to End Apartheid,” gay porn director Michael Lucas made some phone calls, sent some emails and spent upwards of $1,000 to pressure the center to close their “open doors policy” and cancel the event. Anna Lekas Miller comments for The Electronic Intifada Read more about Palestine is a queer issue 

We are a group of Palestinian youths who have called on Palestinians across the nation to unite under one slogan: “The people want to end the division!” Rawan Abu-Shahla, a member of Gaza Youth Break Out, comments for The Electronic Intifada. Read more about Why Palestinians will protest on 15 March 

Benjamin Netanyahu’s advisers conceded last week that the Israeli prime minister is more downcast than they have ever seen him. The reason for his gloominess is to be found in Israel’s diplomatic and strategic standing, which some analysts suggest is at its lowest ebb in living memory. Jonathan Cook reports. Read more about Global unpopularity wearing down Israeli government 

Al-Araqib was the last village I visited before my arrest. Al-Araqib is not just a village, but the very heart of a nation and a people. On 5 May 2010, I was there under the tent of Sheikh Sayah, a local leader. There was a big crowd after the destruction and the reconstruction of the village. We met there until late at night, taking advantage of the desert darkness. Ameer Makhoul comments. Read more about The struggle for al-Araqib is the struggle for Palestine 

CAIRO (IPS) - Ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak portrayed himself as a paradigm of stability in a country he once described as a “powder keg” of sectarian unrest. Yet far from promoting stability, his regime may have actually been the source of much of the religious strife it claimed to suppress. Read more about Mubarak regime source of sectarian unrest 

As international stars face widespread criticism for having earned huge fees entertaining Libya’s Gaddafi family, Nada Elia and Laurie King ask why artists who entertain apartheid Israel should not be held to exactly the same standard. Read more about Is entertaining dictators worse than normalizing apartheid? 

In the 1990s, one could only whisper Hosni Mubarak’s name. Political talk or jokes were avoided in phone calls. This year, millions of Egyptians fought for 18 days against their aging tyrant, braving the police troops firing teargas, rubber bullets and live ammunition. People in Egypt have lost their fear, but it did not happen overnight. Hossam el-Hamalawy comments. Read more about How Palestine's uprising inspired Egypt's