Palestine, media, Jordan, community radio, online journalism
By Daoud Kuttab In order to predict who will replace the outgoing Palestinian prime minister, one needs to figure out the real reason for Mahmoud Abbas’ acceptance of his resignation. Did Abbas accept Salam Fayyad’s resignation because of his failure to fundraise, or was it because of internal pressure from Abbas’ Fatah movement? Three possible candidates’…
By Daoud Kuttab Something strange happened during the last Arab League summit meeting, held in March in the Qatari capital, Doha. The final announcement, which typically presents the points of agreement reached to by the participating heads of state, was possibly the longest communiqué drafted by an Arab summit. It went on and on, detailing the…
By Daoud Kuttab It is not clear why US Secretary of State John Kerry chose to visit Ramallah and meet with Palestinian leaders before meeting with the Israelis. Is it a gesture to the Palestinians, or does he think he needs to get more out of them this round than from the Israelis? Is…
By Daoud Kuttab Haifa University student Rabae Eid’s interruption of US President Barack Obama’s speech in Jerusalem was more than just an act of a radical heckler. The 24-year-old’s rejection of Obama’s demand that Palestinians must recognize Israel as a Jewish state echoed the feelings of more than 20% of the population of today’s Israel who are not…
By Daoud Kuttab When President Barack Obama visited Bethlehem, the loudest group of protesters were families of Palestinian prisoners, many of whom have husbands and sons locked up in Israeli jails. Some of the families were demanding that the Israelis honor promises made to release those held from before the Oslo agreements, other families complained…
By Daoud Kuttab The death of Maysara Abu Hamdieh is not the first time a Palestinian prisoner has passed away while behind bars. Less than two months earlier, 30-year-old Arafat Jaradat died while being held in the Megiddo prison. However, the circumstances of the death of Abu Hamdieh, 64, touched a nerve. The fact that he…
By Daoud Kuttab The agreement signed between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah regarding Jerusalem came at a highly sensitive time. Jerusalem’s holy places, and especially Al Aqsa Mosque, have been under an escalating threat from radical forces, some of whom are nowsenior members of the Knesset and government ministers in Israel. Ever since the…
By Daoud Kuttab The case of the hunger-striking Palestinian political prisoner Samer Issawi has returned to the spotlight one of the most notorious human rights violations by an occupying power: deportation. Israel has offered Issawi deportation rather than outright release, despite not being able to charge him or try him for a specific crime or…
By Daoud Kuttab Before the Arab League summit ended its one-day deliberations Tuesday, Palestinians were already publicly skeptical about the effectiveness of Arabs in as far as their ability to do anything about Jerusalem. Khalil Assali, a Jerusalemite, and one of the most consistent writers on Jerusalem, blasted Arab leaders for their repeated promises, but failures when…
In memory of the late Anthony Lewis of the New York Times. I reprint a column he wrote about me Lese Arafat’s Majeste By ANTHONY LEWIS Published: May 26, 1997 Imagine an American President having the head of C-Span thrown in jail because he broadcast sessions of Congress in which the President was criticized. That…