Vigil for Peace in Yemen, a New Norm
For the past three years, several dozen New Yorkers have gathered each Saturday at Union Square, at 11:00 a.m. to vigil for peace in Yemen. Now, however, due to the coronavirus, the vigil for peace […]
Commentary
Our Leaders are Terrified. Not of the Virus – of Us
You can almost smell the fear-laden sweat oozing from the pores of television broadcasts and social media posts as it finally dawns on our political and media establishments what the coronavirus actually means. And I […]
Technology of Death: The Not-so-Shocking Report on Israeli Weapons Exports
The Middle East region, battered by wars and adjoining humanitarian crises that have left millions of people stateless, hungry and diseased, is in urgent need for peace, security, and reconstruction. Thanks to the US, Russian, […]
BJP and Israel: Hindu Nationalism is Ravaging India’s Democracy
It was only a matter of time before the anti-Muslim sentiment in India turned violent. A country that has historically prided itself on its diversity and tolerance, and for being ‘the largest democracy in the world’ […]
Iran and Palestine Face Double Whammy: Sanctions and Covid-19
While the world is on tenterhooks as it confronts the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, Iran is among the countries hardest hit. Although the epicenter seems to have shifted to Western Europe, Iran’s 80million plus […]
House of Mirrors: Justin Trudeau’s Foreign Policy – Book Review
(House of Mirrors – Justin Trudeau’s Foreign Policy. Yves Engler. RED Publishing, Saskatoon/Black Rose Books, Montreal. 2020) Some book covers are better than others, and that of Yves Engler’s House of Mirrors is beautifully expressive […]
There are Precedents for America’s Eradication of Palestinian Identity
The international community has stated repeatedly that it will not accept any changes to issues related to Palestine upon which global consensus has been reached. The unilateral decision taken by the US to recognize Jerusalem […]
‘Dear World, How is the Lockdown?’ Gaza: Takeaways From the Coronavirus
During the early days of Covid-19 lockdowns, a variety of social media posts from Gaza, such as the one above, appeared from the blockaded Gaza Strip. Ranging from satire to “schadenfreude,” as Zainah El-Haroun observes, […]
Death at the Greek Border: Syrian Refugees Should not Be Used as Political Pawns
In a surprising move, Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, announced on February 29 that he will be re-opening his country’s border to Europe, thus allowing tens of thousands of mostly Syrian refugees into Greece and other European […]
A Lesson Coronavirus is about to Teach the World
If a disease can teach wisdom beyond our understanding of how precarious and precious life is, the coronavirus has offered two lessons. The first is that in a globalized world our lives are so intertwined […]
US Sanctions against Iran: Stop Tightening the Thumb Screws, A Humanitarian Message
US sanctions against Iran, cruelly strengthened in March of 2018, continue a collective punishment of extremely vulnerable people. Presently, the US “maximum pressure” policy severely undermines Iranian efforts to cope with the ravages of COVID-19, […]
‘Zionist’ Biden in His Own Words: ‘My Name is Joe Biden, and Everybody Knows I Love Israel’
“I am a Zionist. You don’t have to be a Jew to be a Zionist,” current Democratic Presidential candidate, Joe Biden, said in April 2007, soon before he was chosen to be Barack Obama’s running […]
Circle in the Darkness: Memoir of a World Watcher – Book Review
(Circle in the Darkness – Memoir of a World Watcher. Diana Johnstone. Clarity Press, Atlanta Georgia. 2020) Diana Johnstone has done a masterful job of writing her autobiography, Circle in the Darkness, that provides many […]
International Complicity Aids US-Israel Efforts against the ICC
Aside from lobbying governments to oppose the International Criminal Court’s investigation and possible war crimes charges, Israel is planning a joint response with the US to counter the process. The plan, according to Israeli media […]
‘One Bright Shining Moment’: Lessons from another Kind of History
If voters in America had the benefit of political education, the kind that Lectores de Tabaqueres provided at the turn of the century to cigar factory workers in cities like Tampa Florida, would they have […]
How ‘Bernie Bros’ Were Invented, then Smeared as Sexist, Racist and UnAmerican as Borscht
The Democratic presidential nomination race is a fascinating case study in how power works – not least, because the Democratic party leaders are visibly contriving to impose one candidate, Joe Biden, as the party’s nominee, […]
‘A Policeman, A Pastor and A Palestinian’: The ‘Chilestinians’ as a Model for Palestinian Unity
I was only introduced to the term ‘Chilestinians’ last February at a conference in Istanbul, during a presentation by the Director of the Palestinian Federation of Chile, Anuar Majluf. When Majluf referred to the well-rooted […]
Maiming Palestinians for Sport is a War Crime
The new Haaretz report entitled “42 Knees in One Day” is a difficult and painful read, and many people of conscience have responded with disgust and rage. For those few who have not seen the […]
Brazil is Adopting Israel’s Terror Narrative, which is Anything but Democratic
Brazilian federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of right-wing dictatorship fanatic President Jair Bolsonaro, announced recently that the country will be moving to designate Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. “Inside the government, we are debating […]
India Today: Modi’s Road to Anarchy
Has India under the leadership of Narendra Modi adopted a disastrous route in sharp contrast from a proud tradition of anti-colonialism to neo-nazism? Historians familiar with the era of British colonialism in the sub-continent, and […]
There Will Be no Sustainability for the Palestinians without their Legitimate Right of Return
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) remains in perpetual financial crisis. Spokesman Adnan Abu Hasna has warned that apart from a possible cessation of services by May, there are no funds for emergency […]
‘Where Do We Go from Here?’: On the Future of Arab Futurism
The title quote is taken from Martin Luther King’s Speech in 1967 on August 16, 1967, at the Eleventh Annual Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Atlanta. Summing up past achievements, he noted that the movement […]
Abuse, Oppression and Murder: The PA Does Israel’s Dirty Work in the West Bank
Merely two weeks after Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, declared that the PA will suspend all ‘security coordination’ with Israel, Palestinian security forces in the West Bank killed unarmed teenager, Salah Zakareneh. Zakareneh is not the first […]
A Terrifying Scenario: Coronavirus in ‘Quarantined’ Gaza
What if the Coronavirus reaches the besieged Gaza Strip? While the question carries great urgency for all Palestinians living under Israel’s military occupation, the Gaza situation is particularly complex and extremely worrying. Nearly 50 countries […]
On the ICC and Canadian Government Hypocrisy
Just when you think Canadian government hypocrisy could hit no greater heights, the Liberals launch a double standards rocket to the stars. The Trudeau government recently pressed the International Criminal Court to stop investigating Israeli […]
US Hostility towards Iran is Counterproductive
Nearly a thousand of us were gathered in Chicago beneath the alarming edifice of Chicago’s “Trump Tower.” Iran’s General Qassem Soleimani had been brutally murdered the day before in Iraq, with several of his associates; and […]
The PA is Blindly Accepting International Impositions on Palestinians
Israel and the Palestinian Authority have been trading the same rhetoric about not having a suitable partner for diplomatic negotiations. The senior adviser and spokesman for Mahmoud Abbas, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, recently took the statement […]
Speaking against Settlement Expansion is just a Chore for the EU
The European Union’s fluctuations on Israel’s colonial settlement expansion are more prominent since the bloc’s refusal to issue a statement regarding US President Donald Trump’s so-called deal of the century. In response to Israel’s announcement […]
On Hanging from the Blades of a Bulldozer: Al-Naem is Every Palestinian
How is one to apply rational political analysis to what is inherently irrational? What kind of political theory must one consult to formulate and test hypotheses when the information at hand is so grizzly, sadistic, […]
Beyond Israeli Elections: Israel at the Cusp of a Bleak Era
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, must be channeling the spirit of Houdini as he continues to plot his escape from one of the most convoluted political dilemmas in Israel’s history. It is no secret that […]
