One of the most powerful lies of the current Palestinian crisis is the claim that “there is no partner for peace” – and that Hamas in particular is an irreconcilable fundamentalist force of destruction. The reality, successfully suppressed throughout the British media, is that Hamas has long offered a long-term truce with Israel on the basis of the 1967 borders.
In other words, Hamas (while pursuing many other objectionable policies) has for many years been in close proximity to…
Gaza desperately needs aid, but more than that it needs Israel to lift the near-total closure of Gaza’s borders, according to aid experts. Palestinian estimates of the cost of the first fortnight of the Israeli assault range from $976m to $1.7bn.
Even before the latest attack, Gaza was reeling from the effects of the Israeli blockade. Unemployment was nearly 50%, almost all of Gaza’s 3,900 manufacturers had been forced to shut down, 80% of drinking water was substandard,…
The new crimes that the US and Israel have been committing in Gaza in the past weeks do not fit easily into any standard category – except for the category of familiarity. Literally, the crimes fall under the official US government definition of “terrorism,” but that designation does not capture their enormity. They cannot be called “aggression,” because they are being conducted in occupied territory, as the US tacitly concedes.
In their comprehensive scholarly history of Israeli…
The Free Gaza Movement has broken the siege of Gaza twice since the last issue of PN.
On 29 October, the SS Dignity, carrying 27 people from 13 countries, including member of the Palestinian legislative council Mustapha Barghouti, Israeli peace activist Gideon Spiro and Nobel peace laureate Mairead Maguire, landed with 500kg of medicine.
Then on 8 November, the Dignity landed with 11 journalists, human rights and peace activists and 12 European parliamentarians, including…
Mike Marqusee has an amazing story to tell in If I Am Not For Myself. Although the book follows his own journey through life, it reaches well beyond this and becomes a fascinating hybrid of family autobiography and detailed history of the Jewish left during the 20th century. The book traces the threads of leftist radical thought and Zionism through three generations of his family.
As a young adult, Marqusee’s anti-Zionism put him at odds with his family and many other Jewish…
From Afghanistan to Palestine to Minnesota, video activism has been proving its value over the past few months.
It was video shot on a local doctor’s mobile phone that forced the Pentagon to drop its claim that only seven civilians died in Nawabad.
The footage, viewable on the web (see p2), shows dozens of bodies lying in the local mosque the morning after the massacre.
Point-blank
In July, in Palestine, video recorded by Salam Kanaan, 17, showed the world a…
The Israeli government has more than doubled the size of a dozen of its settlements on the West Bank, according to the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, by seizing Palestinian land for “special security areas” – by military order.
The justification is that these lands are needed as “warning areas” – but they are used by settlers, exposing their real purpose: the seizure of Palestinian land.
Figures compiled from official sources by Israeli peace group Peace Now indicate…
Jonathan Cook is a journalist of rare commitment and integrity. In 2001 he left his job as a staff-writer at The Guardian to work freelance from the Arab majority city of Nazareth in Israel, in the belief that such independence from the mainstream papers, coupled with geographical proximity, would allow him to more freely evaluate and reflect on both the Israel-Palestine conflict and the wider problems of the Middle East. This book is a shining example of this newfound freedom.
Short…
This book is a must for anyone interested in deepening his or her understanding of civil (nonviolent) resistance both in general and in the particular context of the first Palestinian Intifada.
That Intifada – literally “shaking off” – began in response to the death in December 1987 of four Palestinians at an Israeli checkpoint. However, as Mary King shows in this meticulously researched study, the groundwork was laid by the development of civil society organisations, including…
Following months of talks, Hamas and Israel finally agreed to an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire, which came into effect at dawn on 19 June.
Under the terms of the truce Hamas is to stop all attacks from Gaza, and Israel is to stop military strikes and gradually lift the debilitating blockade it has imposed on the impoverished territory. The ceasefire is supposed to hold for at least six months.
The agreement comes after a year that has seen the deaths of 400 Palestinians and…
When US president George W. Bush said on 15 June that Iran had “rejected this generous offer out of hand”, you could assume that (a) the offer was not generous and (b) Iran had not rejected it. You wouldn’t go wrong, either, assuming that the media would assist Bush by erasing memories of the recent breakthrough Iranian offer.
The proposal Bush was referring to came from the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (plus Germany), which was conveyed to Tehran by the European…
Israel continues to lay siege to Gaza, collapsing the Gazan economy and causing a rising death toll.
On 12 March Hamas leader, Ismail Haniya, set out conditions for a truce. “There must be a commitment by Israel to end all its aggression against our people, assassinations, killings and raids, and lift the siege,” he said, stipulating that a ceasefire deal must be “reciprocal, comprehensive and simultaneous”, and apply to both Gaza and the West Bank.
A delegation of Hamas and…
After months of a tightening siege by Israel in retaliation for Qassam rockets fired into Israel, Gaza was freed on 23 January by a major act of nonviolent direct action. Seven miles of wall dividing Gaza from Egypt was largely destroyed. Tens of thousands crossed, seeking supplies and medical treatment, while Egyptian border guards stood by. Egyptian troops closed the last breach after 11 days. On 18 February, after two weeks of struggle, 30 Israeli peace organizations coordinated by Gush…
Under the Bombs is a stunning and intensely moving film set amongst the physical and emotional devastation of Lebanon under the Israeli onslaught of 2006.
The storyline is simple yet powerful: Zeina arrives in Beirut on a desperate mission to find her son in the confusion and terror of war-ravaged southern Lebanon.
Taxi driver Tony, a Christian, whilst initially motivated by making a fast buck, is drawn into Zeina's odyssey. Taking strength from each other, they see the quest…
On 5 February, I was one of ten Members of the European Parliament who broke through the Israeli siege and travelled to Gaza to see the situation for ourselves.
The anger I feel following the visit could drive me to write several books. Here, I have focussed on what the occupation means for the children.
In the Al-Shifa Hospital I visited the ward where thirty premature babies lay in incubators. These tiny children are completely dependent on the electricity supply.
…
