The award-winning Palestinian film Divine Intervention, directed by Elia Suleiman, will feature during the Hubert Bals Fund Harvest at the showcase for contemporary world cinema, the Rotterdam International Film Festival in the Netherlands. Moreover, ‘Divine Intervention’ is nominated for the Amnesty International -DOEN Award, a prize for films about human rights. Read more about 'Divine Intervention' features at Rotterdam International Film Festival
The wheels of war roll on and it appears the world is getting closer to some type of armed conflict in the Middle East. In this environment, Israel’s nuclear, chemical and biological weapons present a real but often overlooked threat to the region. In this contribution to EI, Karen Asfour assesses Israel’s weapons of mass destruction programs and argues that Israel’s refusal to join the Non-Proliferation Treaty is a key obstacle fuelling instability in the region, and preventing movement towards a nuclear-free Middle East. Read more about For a nuclear-free Middle East
The duty of reporters is to alert readers to the inadequacies of the information available, to emphasize that Israeli army reports, which
are often false and self-serving, are unverified, and avoid reporting
such claims as uncontested fact. Reporting an incident in Gaza on January 13th, several media organisations once again failed to
maintain clarity about the quality of their information source. Ali
Abunimah reports. Read more about Mystery surrounds killing of two Palestinians in Occupied Gaza
“Hi everybody. I’m writing this personal update from the local internet joint at the Peanut Plaza, just near my mom’s place in Toronto. I was deported back to Toronto from Israel, and arrived early this morning.” Jaggi Singh writes after his deportation. Read more about Jaggi Singh: Free after deportation
Routine and empty condemnations of violence serve a moral purpose, but do nothing to end the carnage of innocent Israeli and Palestinian lives. In this contribution to EI, Hasan Abu Nimah argues that such condemnations are the politically easy alternative to recognizing the roots causes of the violence and taking the action necessary to end it. Read more about Empty statements won't stop the violence
Following the January 5 suicide attacks, which killed over twenty people in Tel Aviv, Ariel Sharon’s spokesman, Raanan Gissin announced that Israel would shut down three Palestinian universities. Meanwhile, a mere statement by the administrative council of the prestigious University of Paris-VI has caused an uproar in Europe over alleged “boycotts” of Israeli academics. EI’s Ali Abunimah examines the controversy. Read more about Israel's academic freedom defended, while Palestine's is destroyed
Canadian activist Jaggi Singh traveled to Palestine on December 14th to write about the realities of the Israeli occupation and participate in the activities of the International Solidarity Movement. On his arrival he was banned by an Israeli court from entering the occupied territories, an edict he defied on the grounds that it “normalized Israel’s occupation” of these lands. On January 8th, while arriving for a pre-arranged meeting with a friend in West Jerusalem, Singh was bundled into a car by three Israelis in plain clothes. Nigel Parry reports. Read more about Israeli security forces kidnap Jaggi Singh
The double suicide bombing at the Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv yesterday evening is dominating headlines internationally. The attack resulted in at least 23 deaths, and over 100 injured, many very seriously. Israel’s predictable response is to tighten the military occupation over Palestinians. Jaggi Singh reports. Read more about The Tel Aviv suicide bombing and illegal foreign workers
“Make January 17th a day to express solidarity with the women of Iraq, Palestine/Israel, Colombia, and other war-torn areas of the world, and call for a shift of national priorities away from war and militarism and toward a national agenda that affirms life. ” A new initiative is announced by members of the International Solidarity Movement. Read more about Women Rising for Peace and Justice announce campaign and activities
“It is amazing that the U.S. invests effort and political capital in establishing an objective — an end to the occupation so that two states, Israel and Palestine, can live side by side — and then invests extra efforts into diluting, undermining and avoiding anything that could bring this closer.” Occasional EI commentator Hasan Abu Nimah writes about the diplomacy of buying time. Read more about The futile diplomacy of buying time
