|
|
By Jay Cables, on May 5, 2013, at 11:52 pm
Google has changed the tagline on its homepage in the occupied territories from “Palestinian Territories” to “Palestine.” A Google spokesperson informed BBC that the company had consulted sources and authorities and was “…following the lead of the UN, Icann [Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers], ISO [International Organisation for Standardisation] and other international organisations.”
It’s hard to get overly enthused about a word above a Google search bar so long as actual Palestinians are under occupation, apartheid and treated like pariahs in their own land. Given the recent UN vote in favor of Palestine non-member observer (Read more…)
By Jay Cables, on May 4, 2013, at 2:10 pm Ilan Pappé is an Israeli historian – born in Haifa, son of German-Jewish parents who fled Nazi persecution. He is a professor with the College of Social Sciences and International Studies at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom – director of the university’s European Centre for Palestine Studies and co-director of the Exeter Centre for Ethno-Political Studies.
Professor Pappé is the author of The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine (2006), The Modern Middle East (2005), A History of Modern Palestine: One Land, Two Peoples (2003), and Britain and the Arab-Israeli Conflict (1988).
In the above Press Club address Pappé (Read more…)
By Obert Madondo, on March 16, 2013, at 4:10 pm By: Obert Madondo | The Canadian Progressive: Rachel Corrie, a US peace activist, was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in the Gaza Strip as she tried to block the demolition of a Palestinian home. Her parents, Craig and Cindy, speak on the 10th anniversary of the killing of their daughter. WATCH: This [...]
By Song of the Watermelon, on March 15, 2013, at 3:56 pm On the same day that the world erupted in joyous, teary-eyed celebration following the selection of a new pope, a slightly less climactic breakthrough was reached thousands of kilometres away as four Israeli political parties, nearly two months after elections, quietly decided to form a coalition government. Right away, the deal seemed like it might fall apart over a last-minute dispute regarding deputy prime ministerial appointments, but two days later, all differences have been ironed out and the coalition agreement signed.
The chances were never exactly high that Israel would bend far enough to conclude a successful peace agreement (Read more…)
By laura k, on March 14, 2013, at 2:30 pm This week in The Nation, Dave Zirin reports on some disturbing – and disgusting – behaviour from Israeli soccer fans. Not even in the earliest days of Jackie Robinson’s 1947 historic debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers did Brooklyn’s white fans walk out after number 42 stole a base or hit a home run. The Brooklyn faithful’s love of “Dem Bums” trumped any racism that simmered in the stands. What does it say that sixty-six years later, Israeli fans of the soccer club Beitar Jerusalem have not evolved to postwar-Brooklyn standards of human decency?
Earlier this season, Beitar Jersulam broke
. . . → Read More: wmtc: how can we condemn bigotry on the soccer field yet support racist israeli policies?
By Jay Cables, on February 9, 2013, at 4:41 am
Standing for Free Speech: Students for Justice in Palestine at Brooklyn College in the run-up to the BDS event
The BDS panel discussion at Brooklyn College went ahead Thursday. It proceeded as planned despite efforts to discredit the event and intimidate the College in what really amounted to an attack on academic freedom. The detractors as mentioned in my previous post included NYC politicos and even a few Democratic members of Congress.
The backlash by Israel supporters to the event was over-the-top – driven in more than a few cases by a hardline pro-Israel mindset that brooks little or no
. . . → Read More: drive-by planet: BDS event at Brooklyn College goes as planned despite backlash by Israel supporters
By Song of the Watermelon, on January 23, 2013, at 2:45 am Yair Lapid
Well, that wasn’t quite as bad as I thought.
Sadly, Benjamin Netanyahu will almost certainly remain prime minister of Israel after his Likud party and its electoral partner Yisrael Beiteinu won a plurality of seats in Knesset elections today. But their share has gone down sharply since the last election. Even Habayit Hayehudi, an extreme right ultra-nationalist party that was widely expected to come in third or perhaps even second, suffered an upset with a fifth-place finish.
The Knesset now appears to be split clean in half between the right wing on one side and the centre, left,
. . . → Read More: Song of the Watermelon: Israel’s Election Results and the Prospects for Peace
By Guest Blog, on January 21, 2013, at 12:39 am by Adbusters | Jan 17, 2013 “The time has come for all of us to get involved.” He ditched the Kyoto Protocol, voted against Palestine, violated human rights, passed unconstitutional laws, changed the Indian Act illegally, passed several sneaky and sinister omnibus bills . . . he continues to destroy everything in the way of READ MORE
By Jay Cables, on January 20, 2013, at 5:17 am Ramallah Underground is a musical collective based in Ramallah, Palestine. The artists Stormtrap, Boikutt and Aswatt are co-founders of the collective. The style of music includes hip-hop, trip-hop, electronica, downtempo and also more traditional Arabic styles.
An In These Times article “Rap the Casbah” quotes Stormtrap as saying: “We consider our music to be very political, simply because our lives are very political… Just the mere fact that we know what’s happening puts a huge weight and responsibility on us to do something about it.” The collective delivers with music that inspires resistance and hope – a voice against
. . . → Read More: drive-by planet: Ramallah Underground: a voice against oppression
By Song of the Watermelon, on January 15, 2013, at 2:16 am Haneen Zoabi
Due perhaps to my Jewish identity and my family’s history, Israel tends to be the country whose politics I follow most closely apart from Canada’s and the United States’. Nevertheless, there is a giant gulf separating numbers one and two from number three. My understanding of Israeli parties, personalities, and issues is far from perfect, and when I observe the campaign leading up to the January 22 elections to Israel’s Knesset, I do so as an outsider.
There is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, something that I feel very passionately about, as I strongly believe in Palestinian national aspirations, equal
. . . → Read More: Song of the Watermelon: Fanatics, Zealots, Warmongers, and Peaceniks: Israel’s Crowded Electoral Landscape
By Jay Cables, on December 31, 2012, at 8:43 pm At its 53rd National Conference, South Africa’s ruling ANC affirmed support for the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel. It is now part of official ANC policy.
Mbuyiseni Ndlozi of BDS South Africa welcomed the ANC move:
“This reaffirmation by the ANC’s National Conference, its highest decision making body, is by far the most authoritative endorsement of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel campaign. The ANC has now taken its international conference resolutions, and officially made it the policy of the ANC. We look forward to working with the ANC and
. . . → Read More: drive-by planet: South Africa’s ANC makes support for BDS part of official policy: ‘Roadmap to Apartheid’ released
By LeDaro, on December 10, 2012, at 4:38 pm Gwynne Dyer is great at looking behind the headlines, providing in-depth analysis of issues in international politics. This column by Dyer provides excellent insight into the motives behind Netanyahu’s newest wave of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Settlements, the idea of which, are not so new, but rather part of a longer-term plan designed to cripple the potential for a Palestinian state by dividing the West Bank into two.
There is a widespread consensus in the international community that a two-state solution – one state for Israel and one for Palestine – is what is needed. This was what
. . . → Read More: LeDaro: Gwynne Dyer – on Netanyahu
By The Mound of Sound, on December 9, 2012, at 2:17 pm There’s a new name being given to Benjamin Netanyahu’s newest illegal settlement crime. It’s being called the “Doomsday Settlement,” a term coined by the Israeli founder of Terrestrial Jerusalem, Daniel Seidemann.
Nicola Nasser, an Arab journalist based in the West Bank, or at least what remains of it after years of Israeli predations, warns that this settlement is unlike all of the others.
The international outcry is not against the Israeli policy of settlements on Palestinian occupied land per se, but against this one particular settlement, known as East One (E-1), and Netanyahu’s answer to the overwhelming
. . . → Read More: The Disaffected Lib: Taking the Real Measure of Netanyahu, An Arab Woman Speaks Up
By Song of the Watermelon, on December 6, 2012, at 7:41 pm For many years, I have felt that, to paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the death of the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict were an exaggeration. Yes, Israel has been unyielding in its expansion of settlements in the West Bank in clear violation of international law, effectively dividing the already-slight territory into several isolated segments and making the creation of a viable Palestinian state nearly impossible. But Israel has withdrawn settlers from occupied territory before, in the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip. Unlikely as it may now appear, it could always happen again.
The above represents the
. . . → Read More: Song of the Watermelon: Two-State Twilight
By AppalledBC, on December 5, 2012, at 5:33 pm A short quiz on the US, Israel, and ‘rogue nation’ status | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
“…So essentially, it’s the entire planet on one side, versus the US, its new right-wing poodle to the north, Israel, and three tiny, bribed islands on the other side. If you’re a member in good standing of the Washington-based US foreign policy community, then the way you describe these matters is as follows: “the international community stands by Israel and supports its position” – because, in that warped, self-affirming world, “international community” is a synonym for “US (Read more…)
By AppalledBC, on December 5, 2012, at 1:01 pm “…Israel’s announcement on the settlements was widely criticized by Canada’s European allies, and even the United States, which voted with Canada and Israel against the motion to grant non-voting observer state status to the Palestinians, urged Israel to “reconsider” its decision on the settlements on Monday. Baird did not comment when asked Tuesday morning about the move. Roth also said Fantino would review Canada’s funding to the Palestinians for humanitarian and security projects. “We intend to, by and large, see these projects through. The relevant minister will, as a matter of course, as they do on all matters, review (Read more…)
By AppalledBC, on December 4, 2012, at 7:18 pm Palestine | Israel to advance east Jerusalem building plans
Why? Because for Israel, suffering from cognitive dissonance, as Shir Hever has said, the rest of the world does not matter. Because it knows it can pretty well do what it wants with impunity other than the occasional verbal scolding and a few diplomatic recalls. Viewing Israel fundamentally as the last colonial outpost of western civilization in the Middle East, the western world, (the Anglo-sphere in reality) – Europe, Australia, Canada and, in particular, the U.S. – have too many economic and political interests invested in Israel to take a stand beyond the perfunctory. What kind of . . . → Read More: Politics and Entertainment: #Palestine| #Israel to advance east Jerusalem building plans
By Obert Madondo, on December 4, 2012, at 1:53 pm Israel’s Haaretz newspaper is one of my favorite global publications. That’s because, on both domestic and global issues, it’s editorial policy is centre-left and refreshingly progressive. Haaretz is the place to go for an Israeli voice that’s against the apartheid-style occupation of Palestinian land and inhuman treatment of Arab citizens. Consider this title for an [...] . . . → Read More: Canadian Progressive: “Israel is demolishing hope”
By The Mound of Sound, on December 4, 2012, at 11:29 am Apparently forty years of peace has been too much of a good thing for Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel has enjoyed peace with its Arab neighbours since 1973.Don’t blame yourself if you didn’t realize that the Middle East has enjoyed four decades o… . . . → Read More: The Disaffected Lib: 40-Years of Peace Tossed in the Garbage
By Guest Blog, on December 3, 2012, at 11:52 pm by Independent Jewish Voices | December 3, 2012 A Canadian Jewish human rights group is condemning the Harper government’s opposition to giving Palestine non-member observer state status at the United Nations. In a vote taken this week by the General Assembly, 138 countries voted to grant Palestine this status. “Once again the Harper government has embarrassed [...] . . . → Read More: Canadian Progressive: Jewish human rights group condemns Harper government’s UN vote on Palestine
By Simon, on December 3, 2012, at 10:39 pm Three days ago he was the mouth that roared. Lecturing U.N. delegates like some crazed televangelist, as if they were children.Blasting the Palestinians for daring to ask for humble observer status, claiming it was an "impediment to peace."… . . . → Read More: Montreal Simon: Why John Baird Should Be Fired
By The Mound of Sound, on December 3, 2012, at 12:58 pm When it came right down to it, Germany balked at voting “no” on Palestinian recognition in the UN General Assembly and, instead, merely abstained. Netanyahu was not amused.What transpired between Angie Merkel and Benny Netanyahu may shed so… . . . → Read More: The Disaffected Lib: Germany Shines a Light on the Harp of Darkness
By laura k, on December 3, 2012, at 9:00 am There are always at least two sides to every story. Long ago, in the American West, some pioneers and cowboys were killed by “Indians”. More recently, Iraqi “insurgents” have killed US soldiers. When I was growing up, Vietnamese “guerillas” – I believe… . . . → Read More: wmtc: greenwald on "both sides are wrong", hedges on the world as gaza
By Shawn Whitney, on December 3, 2012, at 8:25 am I wrote less than two weeks ago that Israel was in an accelerating decline as a result of changed geopolitical realities in the Middle East, most recently and acutely the Arab Spring. That Arab Spring is now in the throes of a 2.0 reawakening and reconstitution of last year’s settlements, as events in Egypt in the last two weeks have made clear, not to mention the momentum of Syrian rebels,
By Simon, on December 3, 2012, at 5:03 am Oh no. How could I have been so wrong?This is no mere bromance, no sordid one or fifty-night stand.This the real thing. Harper tweeted on Saturday that he spoke to Netanyahu and that he "thanked Canada for its friendship and principled position … . . . → Read More: Montreal Simon: The Day Benny and Steve Got Hitched
|
|
