Activism

Bjork, cancel your Tel Aviv concert!



You uttered one word [“Tibet”] in a concert in Shanghai that sent ripples across many disapproving seas. This time, say it louder, and support another just cause: that of the Palestinian people. Do not sing in Israel, so that your silence will prove to be more deafening. The concert you plan to give in July in Israel will coincide with the celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of this state over the ruins of another country, Palestine. 

New Yorkers protest Leviev's Israeli settlements on Land Day



Forty New Yorkers commemorated the Palestinian national holiday Land Day today with the eighth protest at the Madison Avenue jewelry store of Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev. The protest included songs, theater and testimonials from villages threatened by Leviev’s settlements. Land Day marks Palestinians’ ties to their land, in defiance of Israeli efforts to displace them. 

Palestinian orgs: Israel's anniversary nothing to celebrate



How can you celebrate? The establishment of the state of Israel 60 years ago was a settler- colonial project that systematically and violently uprooted more than 750,000 Palestinian Arabs from their lands and homes. Sixty years ago, Zionist militias and gangs ransacked Palestinian properties and destroyed hundreds of Palestinian villages. How can people of conscience celebrate this catastrophe? 

Towards a viable academic boycott campaign



For the past few years student and academic groups in North America and Europe have been openly campaigning for the boycott of Israeli academia. Some actions produced results (even if not long lasting) and some were unsuccessful. It is important for us working towards the defense of Palestinians’ human rights to learn from these experiences so we may meet our goals in the future. Laith Marouf comments for EI

Activists to Waldorf-Astoria: Cancel Friends of IDF fundraiser



As 13 organizations working for human rights, social justice, and peace, we demand that The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan rescind its agreement to host the 18 March fundraiser for Friends of the Israel Defense Forces. The Israeli military has historically been a flagrant violator of human rights and international law as demonstrated by the recent attacks on Gaza that killed over 100 Palestinians, the 2006 attack on Lebanon, and the 60-year assault on and dispossession of the Palestinian people. 

Interview with single-state activist Dr. Haider Eid



“The establishment of a sovereign, independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders is unfeasible. A Bantustan-based system does not guarantee a comprehensive peace. It never did in Apartheid South Africa. Ironically, therefore, what the Oslo Accords, signed in 1993 between Israel and the PLO, have led to is a situation that was not envisaged by its signatories, that is the impossibility of establishing a sovereign independent Palestinian state on 22 percent of historic Palestine.” Dr. Haider Eid speaks with Anna Weekes. 

Al-Khader village protests the wall



For the last two months the residents of al-Khader have demonstrated every week against the illegal construction of the Israeli wall on their land. The demonstrations are organized by the al-Khader Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements, with the support of al-Khader institutions, residents as well as Israeli and international activists. Adri Nieuwhof and Samer Jaber report. 

Activists to Bono: Don't honor Israel!



The following is an open letter from the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel to musician and activist Bono, issued on 22 February: PACBI has learned that you have been invited by Israeli President Shimon Peres to take part in a conference designed to mark Israel’s contributions to medicine, science and conservation. We urge you, as a prominent activist on issues of global inequality and a campaigner for basic human rights, to say no to Israel, especially since the invitation coincides with celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the state. 

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