I was invited to attend a reception in Ramallah yesterday by my former scholarship sponsors, the Academy for Educational Development. They said they’d take care of the permit, though no guarantees were made. A few days ago I received word my permit was one of several that were approved. “Congratulations, you’re going to Ramallah.” I am excited-it’s been 4 years since I’ve been to Ramallah. Though it is only an hour away, permits are rarely if ever issued to Gazan Palestinians wishing to travel to the West Bank. I call up all my friends, relatives, and colleagues there. I even wonder if I can make it to Jerusalem on Friday. Read more about The Crushed Citizen 

It’s interesting to read the news from this perspective. I mean, when you are the news, or when you are living the news that is being reported. On Monday I visited the Khan Yunis refugee camp, the target of many an attack by Israeli forces, to talk to Palestinian refugees there, to hear their thoughts on Israeli disengagement. It was quite an incongruous-and bleak-scene, as is often the case in Gaza. Crumbling refugee homes with pockmarks the size of apples stand like carcasses in front of the Neve Dekalim settlement, part of the Gush settlement bloc. It is shaded with palm trees, red-roofed villas, and the unspoilt pristine sands of the Khan Yunis beach, accessible to all but the Palestinians now. Read more about Life in Khan Yunis 

Israelis driving along Highway 505 in the West Bank have been greeted with an unexpected sight. Signs that usually guide them to settlements instead on Saturday reminded them of the illegality of the construction on confiscated West Bank land. A sign pointing to Ariel, the largest settlement in the northern West Bank, built on land belonging to the Palestinian villagers of Salfit, now marks the way in Hebrew, Arabic and English to “stolen land”. Another sign that indicates the distance to Ariel from an Israeli checkpoint 12km away reminds drivers of the ongoing occupation and of the separation wall being built around Palestinian towns. Read more about Israeli road signs get activist makeover 

May marked the 57th anniversary of al-Nakba (The Catastrophe), when Jews declared their state in Palestine and thousands of Palestinians were expelled from their homeland. Today, the Palestinian refugees number more than six million, comprising nearly one-third of the global refugee population. Aljazeera.net interviewed Salman Abu-Sitta, general coordinator of the Right of Return Congress and founder of the Palestine Land Society, on the issues surrounding al-Nakba and the fate of the refugees. Abu-Sitta has worked tirelessly for the Palestinian Right of Return for several decades, and has over 50 publications to his credit. His research has shown that there is ample space in present-day Israel to accommodate all Palestinian refugees. Read more about Palestinian right of return is feasible 

Palestinian refugees in Lebanon look to Syria’s recent withdrawal from Lebanon, and their future, with anxiety and uncertainty. A week after Syrian military and intelligence units withdrew from their stronghold in Baalbak in the heart of the Beqaa Valley, there was little to indicate that they once controlled the streets of this sleepy town. Besides a few worn posters of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, change has come swiftly. Military checkpoints, once painted with the recognisable red and black of the Syrian flag, have been replaced with Lebanese cedars. Even a prominent sitting statue of the late Hafez al-Assad has been torn down and hauled back to Damascus. Read more about Palestinians in Lebanon fear for the future 

Hidden away in a squalid Palestinian refugee camp is a historical treasure trove that keeps the dreams of many alive. In a corner of the Palestinian refugee camp of Mashook in southern Lebanon, 68-year-old Muhammad Dakwar shows the way into a dusky two-room gallery that he guards with his life. Inside, ragged pieces of traditional Palestinian garments hang on thin metal racks; decades-old clay pottery and copper plates are neatly arranged on shelves amid a melange of traditional Palestinian household items. Rustically preserved samples of Palestinian earth - soil, rocks, and olive tree branches - are displayed on poster boards, crudely taped and labelled according to city or village of origin. Read more about Safeguarding Palestine's past 

Palestinians in Gaza have reacted to the Hamas decision to contest legislative elections this July with a mixture of ambivalence and approval. For some the decision was not particularly significant. Some are excited to hear about the decision and say they woul vote for Hamas candidates. Hamas won a significant majority in seven of the 10 municipalities and local councils that held elections on 27 January. The councils consist of 118 elected officials, 77 of whom are Hamas representatives. Hamas had previously boycotted legislative elections in 1996 because of its opposition to the 1993 Oslo peace accords that mandated the ballots. Read more about Hamas move gets mixed reactions in Gaza 

Ten-year-old Nuran Iyad Dib went to school as ecstatic as any schoolgirl should be. But this crisp winter day was special: she would receive her bi-annual report card. As it turned out, she passed with flying colors, which meant a gift from her parents, who had been saving up their dwindling funds for this occasion. The teacher’s comment on top of her report read: We predict a very bright future for Nuran. But Nuran would have no such future, and her gift lies abandoned in a corner of her family’s grieving home. On the afternoon of 31 January 2005, Israeli sniper fire ripped through her face as she stood in her school’s courtyard, lining up for afternoon assembly. Read more about Killing of Palestinian girl shatters family 

Unlike areas of the West Bank, the soldiers in Gaza are unseen. They remain cocooned deep within lookout towers behind ever extending military fortifications, including sandbags, electric fences, pill boxes and tanks. One can barely make out a megaphone, a tip of a machine gun, and occasionally, when all else fails to catch the attention of the hundreds of cars awaiting orders to move forward or back away, a distant wave of a hand. “Living in Gaza has become somewhat like being trapped inside a snow globe, except there is no colourful confetti to cloud the stark reality of occupation.” Laila El-Haddad reports from Gaza. Read more about No easy route from Egypt to Palestine 

A humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip is looming, and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s disengagement plan might be the final nail in the coffin, an Israeli report has warned. Dozens of Palestinians may die if Israel does not act to ensure their medical care after a planned military withdrawal from the Gaza Strip later this year, according to the report by Physicians for Human Rights-Israel. Israel’s current position is that it is not responsible for the fate of patients in Gaza, and is willing, at best, “to take into account humanitarian considerations” and “exceptional cases”, without explaining what these may constitute, says the medical rights group. Laila El-Haddad reports from Gaza. Read more about Gaza pullout could worsen health crisis