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Double victory for Palestine in FIFA qualifying match
By Daoud Kuttab A scoreless soccer game can hardly be considered a victory, but for the Palestinian national team, tying the powerful team from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Palestinian soil was a double victory. Even the leading newspaper in the UAE, The National, described the match as such. On Sept. 8, the Abu Dhabi daily called the…
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Abbas big loser in Palestinian National Council postponement
By Daoud Kuttab The lead story Sept. 9 in the Ramallah-based pro-PLO daily Al-Ayyam summarized what had been happening since the unexpected Aug. 22 resignation of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization and nine members of the PLO’s Executive Committee. In short, the article detailed the increasing calls to postpone the planned Sept. 14 meeting of the Palestinian National Council,…
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Palestinian President Playing Musical Chairs
By Daoud Kuttab Mahmoud Abbas holds many titles. He is the head of the Fateh movement, chairman of the PLO’s executive committee and president of the state of Palestine. Technically and legally, the Palestine Liberation Organization is superior. The state of Palestine, declared a non-member state in the UN in 2003, is subservient to the…
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News stories one may have missed
By Daoud Kuttab Unless one is a news junky and follows all local news religiously, one probably missed three important issues related to the media freedoms in Jordan. They include the three main media stakeholders, the government, media owners and the public. I will leave the juiciest story last. The prime minister issued a memo…
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Christians demonstrate against wall in Beit Jala
By Daoud Kuttab The picture posted by Deacon Fadi Abu Sa’ada on his Facebook page Aug. 30 spoke volumes, and the image of medics helping a nun injured by Israeli tear gas raised anger among Palestinians. Demonstrations after Sunday mass have become the norm in this Bethlehem-area town. The anti-Israel rallies are a protest against…
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Palestinian National Council gets new life in Amman
By Daoud Kuttab AMMAN — The man sitting outside the plush villa in west Amman looks like an old fighter. Security does not appear to be of much concern in Deir Ghbar, a stable Amman suburb and location of several embassies and diplomatic residences. The chain-smoking guard waves visitors through, into the house of Salim Zanoun, speaker of the Palestinian…
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The status quo continues as the ‘two state’ solution collapses
By Daoud Kuttab A professional friend who teaches how to produce a highly entertaining TV talk show gives the following advice: begin with those who espouse the most extreme opinions and then conclude with the rational moderate centrist ones. This advice of the talk show trainer is no longer relevant in the Middle East. The…
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The not so independent Parliament
By Daoud Kuttab The independence of the three branches of the state is the bedrock of democracy. In Jordan, this independence, while guaranteed by the Constitution, one can still witness the inference of the executive branch. Simply following the Parliament deliberations, which are being broadcast by a local NGO live on YouTube and by Radio…
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How one West Bank mosque is reconnecting with local Palestinians
By Daoud Kuttab Azmi Shuokhi has been on a mission for some time now. As the head of the local popular committees for Hebron, he has been trying to convince fellow Hebronites not to abandon the Ibrahimi Mosque. His idea is simple and peaceful: He wants all the Palestinians of the city to hold their social events…
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The Iran Deal Appears to Have Eased Some of the Conflict in the Middle East
By Daoud Kuttab AMMAN — Contrary to the claims of Israel and U.S. Republicans, the P5+1 agreement with Iran has eased, not exacerbated, the boiling conflicts in the Middle East. Within a short period of time, a silver lining is appearing in the bloody Syrian civil war. The legitimate Yemeni powers are retaking large sections…