By Daoud Kuttab The bustling town of al-Ram, with a population of over 25,000, is strategically located between Jerusalem and Ramallah. For a long time, the town’s geography was its blessing. Today, it has become its curse. Al-Ram’s main entrance was once the Jerusalem-Ramallah road just past the suburbs of Shufat, Beit Hanina and Dahiyat…

  By Daoud Kuttab France has always been a country that cares first and foremost about itself, which is normal, but sometimes it is so calculating that it comes across as not caring and spineless. France is a huge economic exporter to the Arab world. Its wheat and military exports to Saudi Arabia and the Arab world are…

  By Daoud Kuttab For years, France has been a source of fascination for Palestinians and Arabs for its courage to take positions that run contrary to those of many in Europe and the United States. Palestinians still vividly remember the 1996 visit by former French President Jacques Chirac, when Israeli soldiers insisted on accompanying him to one…

  By Daoud Kuttab Once again, the fate of Gaza is gaining importance as the failure of Palestinian reconciliation, coupled with the deep rift between Hamas and the new Egyptian rulers, is being felt by every Palestinian in the Gaza Strip. The high-profile military parade by Islamists in Gaza on Nov. 14 shows that Hamas continues…

  B y Daoud Kuttab Ever since the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks began this summer, Palestinian negotiators have found themselves without one of their strongest negotiating weapons: the ability to walk out of the talks. The current peace talks began without the Israelis agreeing on two basic conditions: the suspension of settlement building in Palestinian areas…