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The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil,    but because of the people who don't do anything about it    
Commentary

TitleDescriptionDate
Our absurd obsession with Israel is laid bareNick Cohen - The Guardian - The Middle East meant only Israel to many. Now the lives of millions of Arabs have been brought to Europe`s attention28/2/2011
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Till September - The Palestinian Authority`s Meaningless DeadlinesRamzy Baroud - CounterPunch - "The PA wants to stall until September. But will Palestinians wait that long?"28/2/2011
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A Crazy Prophet Uri Avnery - Gush Shalom - "But now the Palestinian youth, too, has seen that it is possible to face live fire, that Qaddafi’s fighter planes did not put an end to the uprising, that Pearl Square in Bahrain did not empty when the king’s soldiers opened fire. This lesson will not be forgotten. Perhaps this will not happen tomorrow or the day after. But it most certainly will happen – unless we make peace while we still can"28/2/2011
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In Netanyahu`s bunker Akiva Eldar - Haaretz - Rather than pursuing negotiations with the Palestinian national movement concerning territories in the West Bank, the prime minister keeps pointing to the precedent of the unilateral transfer of areas of Gaza to the `subsidiary` of the Muslim Brotherhood, without negotiations28/2/2011
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Amnesty International public statement - US veto effectively gives Israel “green light” to expand illegal settlementseastmed@amnesty.org --US veto effectively gives Israel “green light” to expand illegal settlements Amnesty International has condemned the US veto of a UN Security Council resolution reaffirming that Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) are illegal and demanding that Israel cease all settlement activities in the OPT, including East Jerusalem. 27/2/2011
The destiny of this pageant lies in the Kingdom of OilRobert Fisk--The Middle East earthquake of the past five weeks has been the most tumultuous, shattering, mind-numbing experience in the history of the region since the fall of the Ottoman empire. For once, "shock and awe" was the right description.27/2/2011
Toward Palestine`s `Mubarak moment` Ali Abunimah--New elections will not give Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas the credibility he needs, writer says [Reuters]27/2/2011
McEwan`s criticism appears hypocritical Comment is Free--After rejecting the Palestinian call to boycott the state-sponsored Jerusalem Prize, Ian McEwan has massaged his conscience by demonstrating against home demolitions in East Jerusalem, criticising Israel in his acceptance speech, and donating his prize money to an Israeli-Palestinian peace group (Report, February 20). Should his detractors, as your correspondent David Halpin (Letters, February 22) suggests, now "eat their words"? We think not. Had McEwan refused the prize, protested in Jerusalem at his own expense, and attacked not Israel`s "nihilism" but its colonialist zeal, his own words of condemnation would have had integrity and bite.27/2/2011
Did Al-Qaeda put Drugs in Ari Shavit`s Coffee?Yossi Gurvitz: "Shavit’s implicit conspiracy theory – that Obama can topple the Middle Eastern regimes, he just doesn’t want to – puts him on the same stand with American political entertainer Glenn Beck, who recently claimed that Google senior managers, who are in cahoots with the White House, are responsible for the fall of the Mubarak regime"26/2/2011
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Upheaval Jolts Israel and Raises New WorrySTEVEN ERLANGER - The New York Times - Arab analysts counter that new Arab realities and democracies should be welcomed by Israel, because the new Arab generation shares many of the same values as Israel and the West. They argue that there is no support among Egypt’s leaders for the abrogation of the 1979 peace treaty, though it is unpopular with the public, and that the Egyptian Army will not disrupt foreign policy. 24/2/2011
Is the West Bank next? MJ Rosenberg - Al Jazeera - As for the Palestinians themselves, they are watching the revolutions with a combination of joy and humiliation. Other Arabs are freeing themselves from local tyrants while they remain under a foreign occupation that grows more onerous every day -particularly in East Jerusalem. While other Arabs revel in what they have accomplished, the Palestinians remain, and are regarded as, victims. 24/2/2011
Let the generals rule - Forget about democracy; what Israelis really want is a Middle East ruled by generals Asaf Gefen - Ynetnews - It was not surprising to discover that the new international star for Israelis is Egyptian General Tantawi. Indeed, in a country ruled by generals such as our own, what’s more natural for us than to put our faith in an elderly general? After all, the number of medals and decorations on this guy is greater than the number of wars in the entire world in the whole 20th Century. 24/2/2011
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8 Most Commonly Held Misconceptions About the Israel-Palestine ConflictIra Chernus - Alternet - The biggest and most dangerous misconception of all: “Israel is a vulnerable nation surrounded by powerful enemies -- a little David, pure and innocent, bravely fighting back against Goliath-like Arabs bent on destroying it.” 24/2/2011
BART Riders say no to racist doublespeak in our subway stationsjamnation - Indymedia - Bay Area culture jammers targeted ads posted by the Israel advocacy group Stand With Us in Bay Area Rapid Transit stations in February. The new ads, which say "Tell the Palestinian leadership to stop promoting hate and violence" replaced ones that featured a partial face wrapped in a keffiyya. The original ads were taken down when community members protested that the keffiyya is an Arab cultural symbol and that its use in the ad constituted racial stereotyping and hate speech. The culture jamming activists say that the new ones are just as bad, but BART did not agree.24/2/2011
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Red Rag columnGideon Spiro - Israeli hypocrisy - Al `Araqib - IDF idolatry - Art, culture and Dimona24/2/2011
Israeli Media `Fears` The New Egypt Neve Gordon - Countercurrents - Channel Two`s expert on "Arab Affairs" explained that: "The fact that you do not see the Muslim Brotherhood does not mean they are not there," and another expert warned his viewers not to "be misled by ElBaradei`s Viennese spirit, behind him is the Muslim Brotherhood." 23/2/2011
Israel: 300 Palestinians in Libya can enter West BankMa`an News Agency - The Palestinian Authority asked Israel to allow Palestinians in Libya to enter the territories, officials said, as the regime of Moammar Gadhafi moved to crush an uprising23/2/2011
Welcome sobrietyHaaretz - Editorial - Monitoring and fearless criticism of government agencies are the heart and soul of democracy. Elected officials are not the proper people to investigate the funding sources of human-rights organizations. 23/2/2011
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In Israel, the revolution has already begunBradley Burston - Haaretz - This revolution has only now begun. It will be waged in cyberspace and in city streets, in occupied areas and in Israel proper, in American synagogues and, in the end, the entire Jewish world. This revolution aims not only at the end of occupation, but at the beginning of a new Israel. Not for settlers, this time. For Israelis. 23/2/2011
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Israeli Army Will Cash In On Egypt’s UpheavalsJonathan Cook - Countercurrents - Israel has been indulging in a sustained bout of fear-mongering since the Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak was toppled earlier this month. The ostensible aim has been to warn the international community that the lengthy “cold peace” between the two countries is on the verge of collapse. 23/2/2011
Why I tried to arrest Avigdor LiebermanDavid Cronin - Electronic Intifada - As the Israeli foreign minister was about to give a press conference in Brussels today, I stood in front of him and shouted: "Mr. Lieberman, this is a citizen`s arrest. You are charged with the crime of apartheid. Please come with me to the nearest police station." I was about to explain the charge further but two security guards had already whisked me away from Lieberman and his inscrutable glare.23/2/2011
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Israeli military demolishes village of AmniyrCPTHebron - At 5 AM this morning the Israeli army, accompanied by members of the Israeli District Coordinating Office, arrived at the village of Amniyr and demolished five tent-houses, two cisterns and the village`s olive trees. The demolitions effectively destroyed the entire village and left its three families homeless. All that remained unharmed after the military left was a cave and a small taboun oven. 23/2/2011
Israel’s road to a warm peace with EgyptMichael Felsen - Common Ground News - We’ve learned in recent weeks that Israel and the Palestinian people came remarkably close to reaching that long-elusive peace. First the Palestine Papers, leaked to Al Jazeera, revealed that the Palestinian Authority (PA) was prepared to make significant concessions for a negotiated peace. And now we learn, from interviews conducted by author and business professor Bernard Avishai and reported in The New York Times, that then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA President Mahmoud Abbas came within feet of the goal-line during their talks in 2008. 23/2/2011
Recalling our Past to Reshape our Future Joharah Baker - MIFTAH - I remember youths, not much older than my son today, standing with their faces wrapped, symbolic stones in hand and determination in their eyes as Israeli army jeeps rushed towards them. And they, just like those fearless youths in Tahreer Square, in Benghazi and in Tripoli, did not hesitate or falter even if it meant they would pay with their lives. 23/2/2011
The UN is ripe for advancing the Palestinian agendaShlomo Shamir - Haaretz - The settlements have been irreversibly and categorically defined as the number-one problem impeding peace between Israel and the Palestinians. No Israeli attempt to blame the stalemate on the Palestinians will be accepted at the UN. And the fact that 130 member states affixed their signatures in support of the pro-Palestinian draft resolution was seen in New York as a dress rehearsal for the declaration of a Palestinian state at the next General Assembly session in September. 22/2/2011
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Mideast can go to hell Alex Fishman [Yediot`s military commentator] - The American veto in the United Nations Security Council over the weekend is prompting Israel’s leaders to shut off their ears and mind. They insist on not understanding the message arriving from Washington.22/2/2011
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Candidly Speaking: Avoiding euphoria over Obama
- a right-winger`s worry -
Isi Leibler - Jerusalem Post - Normal procedure after such a vote would have been a simple US statement that the resolution was one-sided and that the Security Council was not the venue to engage in this issue. 22/2/2011
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The sinking US empireYaron London - Ynet - The result of the UN Security Council vote on condemning Jewish settlements in the occupied territories highlights the diplomatic weakness of our patron, the United States. 22/2/2011
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Netanyahu should view U.S. veto at the UN as a warningHaaretz Editorial - The Palestinians lost the vote, but achieved their goal: They exposed for all to see the international isolation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu`s administration and embarrassed the U.S. administration by revealing it as two-faced. 22/2/2011
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Fallen Figleaf- the US veto of its own policyThe world’s rapidly attenuating super power was reduced to covering for a coalition of deranged rabbis, likudnik-inclined millionaires, Neocons and evangelical Christian Zionists in the UN Security Council.19/2/2011
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Egypt: A teaching moment? It is time for Palestinians to humbly acknowledge that moral leadership in combating injustice has moved from Palestine to Egypt and Tunisia and perhaps elsewhere. When you see leadership, and when you can`t provide it yourself, the least you can do is to follow it. ao19/2/2011
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The World RemadeFrom Pambazooka News: "one thing is for sure. Whatever pompous claims to the contrary come out of Washington and Brussels, these are not revolts for American or European values. On the contrary they are a direct challenge to those values. They are revolts against a global power structure that is formed by an international alliance of elites with one of its key principles being the idea, the racist idea, that Arabs are ‘not yet ready’ for democracy...the plain fact of the matter is that anyone who says that anyone else isn’t yet ready for democracy is no democrat."26/2/2011
Palestinians: Veto would prove US support for Israel`s `illegal` movesby Elior Levy - Ynet "Just hours before Abbas convenes meeting following US pressure over UN settlement condemnation vote, Palestinian foreign minister sends clear message to Washington calling for it to let proposal go ahead as planned." 18/2/2011
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`Israel wants to be joined in this region by democracies` by David Horovitz - Jerusalem Post "David Horovitz explains the duel feelings in Israel towards the regime change in Egypt."18/2/2011
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Three weeks in Egypt show the power of brutality – and its limitsRobert Fisk - The Independant - It`s an instructive lesson. Bahrain, Algeria and Yemen are all following the identical policies of brutality that failed Messrs Ben Ali and Mubarak. That`s not the only strange parallel between the overthrow of these two titans. Mubarak really thought on Thursday night that the people would suffer another five months of his rule. Ben Ali apparently thought much the same. 17/2/2011
The refugee issue in the API: contradictory or complementary?Matti Steinberg - Bitterlemons - The Arab Peace Initiative comprises two main references to the Palestinian refugee issue that seem to be mutually contradictory. On the one hand, the API stipulates the need for "a just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem to be agreed upon in accordance with United National General Assembly Resolution 194". On the other, it indicates "the rejection of all forms of Palestinian patriation ["tawtin"] which conflict with the special circumstances of the Arab host countries". 17/2/2011
Overcoming Israel`s attempts to discredit protestIsmail Patel - The Electronic Intifada - While continuing to build illegal colonies on Palestinian land; evicting Palestinians from Jerusalem; subjugating millions through routine, brutal violence and killing; and corraling Palestinians in elaborate systems of movement control, such as the illegal West Bank wall and the blockade of Gaza, Israel insists that it always be presented as peaceful, reasonable, humane, compassionate and magnanimous. These virtues are extolled and celebrated in Judaism, as in many other religions, but they are not ones that have ever been practiced by Israel toward Palestinians. 17/2/2011
Naomi Klein: Did Goldstone single Israel out?Philip Weiss - Mondoweiss - For decades, Israeli officials have deflected any and all human rights criticisms by claiming that Israel was being unfairly “singled out” by those who claim to care about international law but who look the other way when equally serious crimes are committed by other states. The problem posed by Goldstone was that his record as a judge on the world stage made it impossible for Israel to make this claim with any credibility. 17/2/2011
Egypt: A teaching moment?Amjad Atallah - Al Jazeerah - the denial of Palestinian freedom has been an iconic issue of concern not only for Arabs and the larger Muslim world, but also for the Global South and persons of conscience around the world. And once upon a time, the Palestinian struggle for their rights did symbolise the heroism of a people demanding justice for themselves. But today that mantle lies with the Egyptian and Tunisian peoples. Today, they are the teachers and the rest of us are the pupils.17/2/2011
How school trips to Hebron resemble visits to AuschwitzGideon Levy - Haaretz - Now Education Minister Gideon Sa`ar wants to add a tour to the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron. Thousands of teens will be taken in armored buses to the danger zone, accompanied by soldiers and armed bodyguards. A safari in Hebron. During the visit, a curfew will be imposed on the last Palestinians left in the neighborhood. The students will be hurried into the ancient site that is believed to be the Cave of Machpelah - the tombs of the patriarchs and matriarchs who are probably not buried there. No one will show them what is around them. No one will tell them what happened to the thousands of people who lived near the tomb. 17/2/2011
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Utterly Wrong: U.S. Will Veto The UN Resolution Condemning SettlementsMJ Rosenberg - Political Correction - We oppose settlements. We consider them illegal. We have repeatedly demanded that the Israelis stop expanding them (although the Israeli government repeatedly ignores us). The administration feels so strongly about settlements that it recently offered Israel an extra $3.5 billion in U.S. aid to freeze settlements for 90 days. So why will we veto a resolution that expresses our own views? 15/2/2011
Israel`s options after Mubarak Daniel Levy - Al Jazeera - Despite claims to the contrary, Mubarak`s Egypt was far from being a regional linchpin for security and stability, for moderate governance, or even for economic success. The country`s harsh security regime produced terrorists and a rallying cry for extremists. (...) But Mubarak`s Egypt was a lynchpin for something else – namely Israel`s ability to pursue a hard-line regional policy with near impunity. 15/2/2011
Israeli news covers Bil’in, Palestinians are nowhere to be seenHaggai Matar - MySay [Translation for +972: Shir Harel] - this is not the first time that mainstream media chooses to portray the conflict this way – without the Palestinians. Only two Jews, one right and one left, or one religious and one secular, or one demonstrator and one soldier. It’s much easier to talk about the occupation as our own internal political problem, an argument that’s almost theoretical. This is, for example, the logic behind the opposition to a boycott of settlement products. After all, if you think there’s only two Jewish groups, one that boycotts, and the other that’s innocent, then it really doesn’t look too good. 15/2/2011
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Can Egypt trigger a regional change?The Guardian, Editorial - Shockwaves of the revolution are being felt throughout the Middle East14/2/2011
The revolution continues after Mubarak`s fall Ali Abunimah - EI - "The revolutions […] have lifted our horizons. More people can now see that the liberation of Palestine from Zionist colonialism and US- and EU-funded oppression, to make it a safe, humane place for all who live in it to exist in equality, is not just a utopian slogan but is in our hands if we struggle for it and stick to our principles"14/2/2011
The law to scare the citizen Avirama Golan - Haaretz - The parliamentary investigative panel to examine organizations` funding sources actually have no interest in questions of legality and constitutionality. All they want is to delegitimize protest and political opinions, and to scare us14/2/2011
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Egypt`s lessons for Palestine Ahmed Moor --Will the pan-Arab intifada reignite Palestinian streets or is the challenge facing Palestinians just too great?13/2/2011
Gaza bloggers build bridges to outside worldCatriona Davies for CNN--Gazan bloggers come from wide range of backgrounds and experiences. Some say their blogs provide a link with the rest of the world 13/2/2011
The people have WON! Congratulations Egypt and everyone! Huwaida Arraf--As soon as the announcement was made that Hosni Mubarak had resigned, tens of thousands of Palestinians spontaneously took to the streets all throughout Gaza to rejoice with their Egyptian brothers and sisters, and with all who support freedom, democracy, and human rights. In other areas of Palestine people were also celebrating in the streets -- Hebron, Nablus, Nazareth, Ramallah. I was chanting, cheering and dancing with the hundreds that spontaneously gathered in the Manara - the center of Ramallah. Families brought their children, even sleeping infants to share in the joy of a people`s victory. The energy was high; the spirit of the youth, unmistakeable. We filled the center square with the voices of a new generation that refuses to accept subjugation; that dares to dream of a life with dignity.13/2/2011
Tsunami in Egypt Uri Avnery--UNTIL THE very last moment, the Israeli leadership tried to keep Hosni Mubarak in power. It was hopeless. Even the mighty United States was impotent when faced with this tsunami of popular outrage. In the end it settled for second best: a pro-Western military dictatorship. But will this really be the outcome? 13/2/2011
CARTOON: Letter from America to the People of Egypt"My idiot husband, who for thirty long years backed the authoritarian dictator who suppressed you, promises not to do it again." Here`s hoping - ao12/2/2011
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The Resurrection of Pan-ArabismLamis Andoni: neither the American occupation of Iraq nor the Israeli occupation galvanised the Arab people in the way that a single act by a young Tunisian who chose to set himself alight rather than live in humiliation and poverty has. ...The era of using the Palestinian cause as a pretext for maintaining martial laws and silencing dissent is over. The Palestinians have been betrayed...12/2/2011
CARTOON: Successfully RemovedBy Emad Hajjaj, Palestinian cartoonist in Jordan. ao12/2/2011
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Why Egypt`s progressives win In-depth analysis of the rising forces in Egyptian politics, written a few days before Mubarak`s resignation.12/2/2011
Unlike Egyptians, Israelis support restricting expressionAkiva Eldar - Haaretz - Bar-Tal, who researched the obstructions to peace, says that the authorities and the army have, for years, flooded the public, with the help of conscripted media, with information that fits the narrative they want to pass on ("there is no partner," "unified Jerusalem," "the fate of Ariel is that of Tel Aviv" ). He says that from this point of view our situation is much worse than that in "closed societies" like the eastern bloc of the 1970s. In those countries the citizens knew that the regime was giving them false information, sought other sources of information and worked for reforms that would bring change. 10/2/2011
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Why Israel fears a free EgyptAaron David Miller - The Washington Post - The irony is that the challenges a new Egypt will pose to America and Israel won`t come from the worst-case scenarios imagined by frantic policymakers and intelligence analysts - an extremist Muslim takeover, an abrogation of peace treaties, the closing of the Suez Canal - but from the very values of participatory government and free speech that free societies so cherish. In a more open Egypt, diverse voices reflecting Islamist currents and secular nationalists will be louder. And by definition, these voices will be more critical of America and Israel.10/2/2011
The Middle East does not need stabilityGideon Levy - Haaretz - But let us remember that when Israel was established, this signified a huge disturbance to the region - one that greatly undermined its stability and posed the greatest danger; but it was a just disturbance, to us and to the West. Now the time has come to disturb the peace some more, to undermine the worthless stability in which the Middle East is living. 10/2/2011
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Looking Before You Leap Joharah Baker - MIFTAH - Of course, in the end, only the Egyptians can decide for themselves what is best for their future. Whatever path they choose, they can definitely say they paved it with their own blood, sweat and tears. There is nothing wrong with diplomacy or with negotiating with your opponent. The trick is in getting the timing right. Hence, a word of warning to the wise – we Palestinians have felt the sting of caving too soon. 10/2/2011
Palestine is the key to Arab democracy Protesters in Egypt and Tunisia can learn from events in Palestine, the region`s barometer for reformSam Bahour - The Guardian - Egyptians would be well advised to learn from the Palestinians that the window of opportunity for real change comes all too infrequently. They should therefore be very clear on what they desire from this historic episode. I`d guess that the US state department already has more than a few scenarios in place and dealing with these is what the Egyptian people will really be up against in the coming weeks. 10/2/2011
Obama`s ChoiceHenry Siegman - London Review of Books - At this historic turning point, a president who honestly and fully informs the American people of the likely consequences of US leadership being abandoned in a part of the world so critical to America’s national security will have their support – even if he goes so far as to put forward a framework for a two-state accord that ends the conflict between Israel and Palestine. 10/2/2011
US envoy`s business link to EgyptRobert Fisk - Indedpendent - "Oddly, not a single journalist raised this extraordinary connection with US government officials – nor the blatant conflict of interest it appears to represent.` 9/2/2011
Pollard Espionage Ring Still UnfoldingGrant Smith - Antiwar - "Although Israel promised cooperation in the aftermath of Pollard’s treason, it stonewalled U.S. investigators sent to Israel and never returned the stolen classified U.S. documents."9/2/2011
The village and the forest - and a bit about GodAdam Keller - Crazy Country - "A forest? Is it really possible to let a forest grow in this arid area, even if a lot of water is pumped there from other regions. Possibly the JNF might manage a little grove, should the police ever manage to rid them of the stubborn villagers. Maybe." 9/2/2011
Netanyahu must advance peace if he wants a stable MideastHaaretz Editorial - Instead of clinging to yesterday, Netanyahu must support the Arab League peace initiative, which he has so far ignored. That would be Israel`s contribution to creating a new Middle East, one that is democratic and stable. 8/2/2011
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Red Rag columnGideon Spiro - Tsunami in Egypt - The land thief - a story of Israeli democracy8/2/2011
Why Is Israel So Blind?MJ Rosenberg - Political Correction - "Those of us in the pro-Israel, pro-peace camp do not enjoy being proven right — although we invariably are. Our standard recommendation to Israel is that it should move quickly to achieve agreements with the Arab states and the stateless Palestinians before it is too late. And the Israeli response is that there is no urgency to make peace — except on Israeli terms — because Israel is strong and the Arabs are weak"7/2/2011
Visit Palestine Paula Rosine Long--[After you read this item, please check out the links to the UN map and the Israel road map, neither of which shows Palestine. dn]6/2/2011
It`s not radical Islam that worries the US – it`s independenceNoam Chomsky--`The Arab world is on fire," al-Jazeera reported last week, while throughout the region, western allies "are quickly losing their influence". The shock wave was set in motion by the dramatic uprising in Tunisia that drove out a western-backed dictator, with reverberations especially in Egypt, where demonstrators overwhelmed a dictator`s brutal police.6/2/2011
2 book reviews--Israel & Palestine: Breaking the Silence February 24, 2011David Shulman--Yet the first thing I saw in al-Nabi Salih was a huge sign in Arabic and English: “We Believe in Non-Violence. Do You?” It was World Peace Day, and speaker after speaker reaffirmed a commitment to peace and to nonviolent resistance to the occupation. Particularly eloquent was Ali Abu Awwad, a young activist who runs a new organization, the Palestinian Movement for Non-Violent Resistance, with its offices in Bethlehem and growing influence throughout the occupied territories. “Peace itself is the way to peace,” he said, “and there is no peace without freedom.”16/2/2011
Exhausted, scared and trapped, protesters put forward plan for futureRobert Fisk--Caged yesterday inside a new army cordon of riot-visored troops and coils of barbed wire – the very protection which Washington had demanded for the protesters of Tahrir Square – the tens of thousands of young Egyptians demanding Hosni Mubarak`s overthrow have taken the first concrete political steps to create a new nation to replace the corrupt government which has ruled them for 30 years.6/2/2011
COMICS Stuart the Jewish TurtleGoddamn Anti-Semites! ao5/2/2011
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The Egyptian Uprising Is a Direct Response to Ruthless Global CapitalismAnyone seeing a relation to Israel? "From 2004 to 2009, Egypt attracted $42 billion worth of foreign capital into its borders, as one of the top investment destinations... Hot money entry was made easy, with no restrictions on foreign investment or repatriation of profits, and no taxes on dividends, capital gains or corporate bond interest. As a result, volume on the Egyptian stock market swelled more than twelve-fold between 2004 and the first half of 2009."5/2/2011
Analysis: The Quartet’s changing perspective By HERB KEINON - Jerusalem Post "With the Arab world now preoccupied with its own turmoil, “bolder steps” to foster positive relations with Israel seems... like a pipe dream." 4/2/2011
Why Fear The Arab Revolutionary Spirit?Slavoj ˇi˛ek - The Guardian - What cannot but strike the eye in the revolts in Tunisia and Egypt is the conspicuous absence of Muslim fundamentalism. In the best secular democratic tradition, people simply revolted against an oppressive regime, its corruption and poverty, and demanded freedom and economic hope. The cynical wisdom of western liberals, according to which, in Arab countries, genuine democratic sense is limited to narrow liberal elites while the vast majority can only be mobilised through religious fundamentalism or nationalism, has been proven wrong. 3/2/2011
Israel, Thy Name is Arrogance Joharah Baker - MIFTAH - The fear that the Muslim Brotherhood or any other opposition in Egypt will come to power and cancel out all previous agreements with Israel has brought the latter`s unabashed arrogance to the surface. Why should Israel have any say in how Egypt is ruled or by whom, post-Mubarak? And how audacious is Netanyahu that he feels he can make demands on the international community concerning another sovereign country? 3/2/2011
Palestinian Authority: End Violence Against Egypt Demonstrators Human Rights Watch - The Palestinian Authority should end police violence against peaceful demonstrators, the latest instance being an attack against demonstrators at an evening rally on February 2, 2011, in Ramallah in support of the Egypt protests, Human Rights Watch said today. Police punched, kicked, and detained participants in the demonstration, as well as at least two journalists and a Human Rights Watch research assistant. 3/2/2011
Blood and fear in Cairo`s streets as Mubarak`s men crack down on protestsRobert Fisk - The Independent - "President" Hosni Mubarak`s counter-revolution smashed into his opponents yesterday in a barrage of stones, cudgels, iron bars and clubs, an all-day battle in the very centre of the capital he claims to rule between tens of thousands of young men, both – and here lies the most dangerous of all weapons – brandishing in each other`s faces the banner of Egypt3/2/2011
Suddenly peace is an asset?Gideon Levy - Haaretz - It is the same sort of peace that would have no chance of being accepted by the current government or Knesset. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would have never signed it, and the Knesset would never have approved it. It`s not difficult to imagine what would happen today if Egypt would offer peace for land: endless negotiation over security arrangements, interim agreements, water arrangements and air arrangements - and no peace. 3/2/2011
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Why isn`t the PA supporting the Egypt uprising?Amira Hass - Haaretz - What is that Palestinian Authority afraid of when it bans solidarity demonstrations? There are two reasons. Due to the close relations with the Mubarak regime, the leadership is perplexed by expressions of support for the opponents of a friend. The second reason - when a regime is insufficiently democratic, it fears that popular demonstrations might spin out of control. 3/2/2011
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Exit the Israel AlibiROGER COHEN - NYT - "One way to measure the immense distance traveled by Arabs over the past month is to note the one big subject they are not talking about: Israel." 2/2/2011
After the Palestine Papers, can the PA survive? Jonathan Cook - EI - ""It is now much clearer to Palestinians that they are living in a prison and that the PA leaders are there only to negotiate the terms of our imprisonment."" 2/2/2011
Bad news for IsraelRAY HANANIA - J-Post - "The biggest losers will be the dictators, Western foreign policy and, likely, Israel." 2/2/2011
Israel’s apartheid imageGadi Taub - Ynet - "All the brochures in the world will not repair one percent of the damage caused by Israel’s foreign minister in a week." 2/2/2011
From darkness to lightAdam Keller - Crazy Country - "And still, with all the faults and difficulties, Winston Churchill said of Democracy: It is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried."" 2/2/2011
A fresh take on the Palestine Papers - Mya GuarnieriMa`an - Why would the PA take the risk of alienating the Palestinian public? To gain international support for a declaration of a Palestinian state along 1967 borders. 1/2/2011
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Seeing the Unseen: The Forgotten Palestinian-Israeli ProblemDevorah Brous - Jerusalem Report - The first step in truly transforming Blueprint Negev is to stop the nearly 200 Bedouin home demolitions a year, which the Netanyahu government has promised to triple. The second step requires seeing the forest through the trees. The JNF and government bodies must work with local communities to develop the Negev in a way that is equitable, sustainable and culturally appropriate. bz1/2/2011
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Encountering Peace: Encountering revolutions Gershon Baskin - Jerusalem Post - The future of Israel is not linked to the corrupt, nondemocratic regimes we call "moderate," but to the masses of people who take to the streets demanding rights. When we understand that correctly, we will make peace with Palestine, we will have real democracy and we will be a lot more secure. 1/2/2011
Concerns about Israel mean getting on the right side of historyLara Friedman - +972 - The Obama Administration and the world – including those of us care deeply about Israel – must stand, squarely, with the people of Egypt (...) and take dramatic, decisive action to re-accredit the peace process. bz 1/2/2011
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From the Gulf to the Ocean - The Middle East is ChangingRamzy Baroud - CounterPunch - "Mubarak`s importance to Israel and the US stemmed from the fact that he guarded Israeli gains for the pitiful price of $1.8 billion a year. Most of this went to fulfill military contracts, upgrade military hardware and subsidize US military expertise aimed at `modernizing` the Egyptian army. Israel, of course, was given almost double that amount and was promised, through a separate agreement with the US, a military edge against its foes, Egypt included"21/2/2011
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The righteousness of our ways Yitzhak Laor - Haaretz - The tremors in this region pose a threat, among other things, to a years-long effort to obscure the connection between the exposed and secret identities of Israel`s community of Middle Eastern experts21/2/2011
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Israeli education: Molding fascists, one student at a time Zvi Bar`el--The call to oppose the visit to the Tomb of the Patriarchs is a blatant expression of the public`s frustration with the galloping takeover by racist and fascist ideas, thought up by right-wing politicians. 20/2/2011
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A Pyrrhic Victory in the UN Security CouncilAdam Keller--Israel is becoming a liability to the United States, bringing US into the same international isolation into which Israel itself was cast.20/2/2011
Knesset goes after artists who didn’t serve in the IDFYossi Gurvitz--The Ministerial Legislation Committee is scheduled to debate tomorrow (Sunday) a bill by MK Moshe Matalon (Yisrael Beitenu), which prohibits government support of “shirker” (Mishtamtim, in Hebrew) artists. In explaining why the bill is essential (Hebrew document), Matalon says: “The spreading of the phenomenon of shirking of the duty of serving in the IDF is critically supported by celebrities, particularly of the arts and sports fields, who undoubtedly serve as a role model for the youth, and who are unwilling to let a contribution to the State harm their own career advancement. This sends a severe message to the youth, according to which the worship of the celebrities and the love they receive do not necessarily derive from a contribution to the existence of the State and society and sharing the [common – YZG] burden”.20/2/2011
Ian McEwan to accept book prize but criticize occupationHarriet Sherwood--The novelist Ian McEwan will criticise Israel`s occupation of Palestinian land in his speech accepting the Jerusalem Prize for literature on Sunday evening, saying that the open and democratic nature of novels is antithetical to the government`s settlement policies in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.20/2/2011
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