Israel prevents Christian pilgrims from visiting Bethlehem
In a response to a totally nonviolent protest by Palestinian Christians and Muslims demanding their freedom of movement the Israeli army has effectively banned entry of Christian pilgrims and tourists from visiting the birth place of Christ.
In danger for another year?
During discussions in Washington between US officials and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, an important revelation surfaced. Under US and international pressure to stop Jewish settlement activities in Arab East Jerusalem Netanyahu argued that peace talks might be delayed another year. “The Palestinians are now raising a new demand,” the Israeli leader claimed. “If this […]
Letter to Gary Bauer regarding the truth about Jerusalem (his reply and my response)
dear Mr. Bauer, I noticed in your reply to Mr. Wright in the NY times that you make two false pieces of information. For the record I wish to set the record straight. 1. You state in reference to Ramat Shlomo that ” Palestinians have never had any intention of taking control of until the […]
Citizen Journalism Defended Despite a Tough Challenge in a Berlin International Conference
The challenge wasn’t easy. Werner D’Inka, a member of the editorial board of one of Germany’s most prestigious newspapers, Frankfurt’s Allgemeine Zeitung, emphatically proclaimed, “We don’t deal with citizen journalism and we see no reason why we should.” The statement followed two key note addresses in favor of citizen journalism by Solan Larsen, managing editor […]
A Palestinian view of the role of Jerusalem in negotiations
This is not how the peace process was supposed to work. Architects of negotiations have forever talked about leaving difficult issues until last, and in the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations, nothing fits the bill of “difficult” as much as Jerusalem. Israeli behavior towards the US has its own truism. You don’t pick a fight in the beginning […]
Biden’s Amman Meeting
It began with a short press release issued by the US embassy in Amman late last Thursday and has since mushroomed. The 20 words given about the topic were: “Vice President Biden met with civil society representatives to discuss preparations for the upcoming Jordanian elections and ongoing domestic reforms.”
All that is needed at this time is public Arab support
For all the theatrics and histrionics within the Arab League’s Cairo headquarters, Arab governments are unlikely to have any influence on Palestinian-Israeli negotiations. Like all regional organizations, the League of Arab States is inefficient as a collective body, and individual countries such as Saudi Arabia or Egypt wield more power than the 22-member league. In […]
An Indirect Route to a Palestinian State?
RAMALLAH – Palestinians and Israelis have different and possibly contradictory expectations from the indirect negotiations that the United States has pushed both sides into beginning. Israel was among the first parties to welcome the Arab League’s reluctant decision to back Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s call for Arabs to give their blessing to the talks. It […]
Americans have themselves to blame for the Biden slap in the face
The embarrassment the US vice president faced this week when, during his visit to Israel, the creation of a new settlement was announced should not have surprised him. The list of Israeli slaps in the face of US officials is endless. The situation has become such that many believe calls for a freeze of settlement […]
The People of Gaza and a Reporter: Victims of the NY Times’ Stubbornness
The people of Gaza appear to have been the recent victims of the arrogance (or what some believe to be the bias) of the NY Times. The stubbornness of Bill Keller, the executive editor of the NY Times, in refusing to relocate his Jerusalem reporter has caused a considerable drop in the paper’s coverage of […]