-
Palestine should not be collateral damage of Iran deal
By Daoud Kuttab An important question has yet to be answered. Will Arabs and especially Palestinians be the biggest losers in the game being played between Iran, the White House, Capitol Hill and Israel?Arab thinker Azmi Bishara believes that if Arabs stay neutral over the P5+1 framework deal they will become collateral damage. In other…
-
UNESCO resolutions raise Palestinian hopes
By Daoud Kuttab The United Nations Education Science and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has finally produced resolutions “with teeth.” Elias Sanbar, the permanent Palestinian representative to UNESCO told Al-Monitor that the resolutions adopted April 20 in Paris attempts to address the usual Israeli apathy to UNESCO decisions in a practical way. Sanbar, who has been the…
-
Facebook group shares checkpoint wait in real time
By Daoud Kuttab The first thing that Tanya George does when she wakes up in her Ramallah home is to check the Facebook group “ Status of the Road, Qalandia and Hizma.†She scrolls to the latest entry checks and reads the status of Palestine’s worst checkpoint. If it is crowded, she would take the…
-
Time to put an end to the occupation altogether
Following appeared in the Jordan Times newspaper By Daoud Kuttab Out of nowhere, this week, two prominent individuals came out in support of the two-state solution as the best way to move forward the dormant Palestinian-Israeli conflict. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, whose organisation is part of the comatose Quartet, spoke at a special session…
-
New Arab MK jockeys for influence on women’s issues, budget
By Daoud Kuttab The strong showing by Palestinian citizens of Israel in the March 17 Knesset elections, winning an unprecedented 13 seats, has revived hope that the 20% Arab population in Israel can have a strong influence on the workings of the state. Aida Tuma, one of two Arab women elected to the Knesset, told Al-Monitor that the 13-member Joint List…
-
Bob Simon, My Hero
By Daoud Kuttab As a journalist who must stay neutral on all issues, I make it a habit not to sign any petitions or political statements. However, in 1991 when I got a call from Francoise, the wife of Bob Simon to organize a petition on behalf of Simon, who was imprisoned by the Iraqi…
-
Not 2015 Easter Yet
By Daoud Kuttab The Holy Family Latin Catholic Church in Ramallah was packed. Palm Sunday usually brings out the entire family and this year was no different. Children in their Sunday best were clutching on beautifully intertwined palm arrangements as they packed into the church compound that also includes the Ahliya School. But while mass…
-
West Bank boycotts six Israeli companies
By Daoud Kuttab A boycott declared by Palestinian organizations of six Israeli companies and fruits imported from Israel that have a Palestinian alternative appears to be holding despite some challenges. The decision issued Feb. 9 by a coalition of the main PLO factions called for theboycott of six major Israeli companies: Tnuva, Strauss, Osem, Elite,…
-
Working against a link
Following appeared in the Jordan Times newspaper By Daoud Kuttab Israel is heavily engaged in two international cases. The international efforts to curtail Iran’s nuclear program, and world’s desire to end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands. While the nuclear issue appears to be on its way to being resolved, there is concern that a…
-
Will PA focus on settlements at ICC?
By Daoud Kuttab No one is saying it out loud, but it appears that the Palestinian leadership is choosing to pursue the settlement track rather than the Gaza track in the war crimes efforts against Israel. Palestinians have publicly talked about pursuing in the International Criminal Court (ICC) war crime cases against Israel for the deaths…