Reciprocation could help
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ political honeymoon is almost over. And the results are worrisome. Palestinians gave Arafat’s heir a huge boost in the January presidential elections in which he ran against a number of serious contenders. The victory was followed by a few more important accomplishments, including the tahdi’a (quiet) that all Palestinian factions (included […]
Palestinian Christians and Israel
The trials and tribulations of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem continue to attract the attention of Palestinians, Jordanians and Greeks alike. The decision by more than two thirds of the Holy Synod of the Church to expel Patriarch Irineos I from his position is the first in the church’s 2,000 year history. No one […]
A humiliating US gift
The demand by the US Congress to divert $50 million of President George W. Bush’s $200-million pledge of aid to the Palestinian Authority for Israeli checkpoints is something like requiring the Vatican to contribute air-conditioners to abortion clinics or divorce lawyers’ fees as part of its policy of easing the plight of Catholic women.
Election fever
The corridors of the normally quiet Institute of Modern Media at Al Quds University were crowded on Tuesday as students and their supporters from various political groups were busy worrying about elections. After a five-year hiatus, students at Al Quds University were given the chance to cast their votes for the 51-seat student council. Students […]
A special donor, Allenby Bridge, VIP service and bureaucrats
Today was a special day for me. For the first time since I began my media work, one of the main donors to my various projects was coming to visit. Aryeh Neir the president of the Open Society Institute. Anthony Richter, OSI’s man in the region, and a good friend, wanted me to set up […]