Category: Palestinian politics

  By Daoud Kuttab The effects of decades-old occupation are often debated in public events in a cold and unemotional way. The reality for people living the occupation is a totally different story. Writing on her Facebook page this week, Suheir Farraj talks about the conviction of her son Ismail by an Israeli military judge for the…

  By Daoud Kuttab “We agreed that all relevant parties must work urgently for a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East. We support a two-state solution with an independent, democratic, contiguous and viable Palestinian state living side-by-side in peace and security with Israel and its other neighbors. We call for the necessary…

  By Daoud Kuttab Music and art festivals are common occurrences in the summer the world over. But the Bet Lahem Live festival held in Bethlehem this week had a higher calling: mixing music and entertainment with the need to strengthen the steadfastness of Palestinians and a special focus on Palestinian Christians. The Bet Lahem festival organized by the Holy Land Trust,…

  By Daoud Kuttab Amona Abed Rabo remembers the TV interview with Israeli President Shimon Peres quite well. Demonstrating with a photo of her son Issa Abed Rabo when US President Barack Obama visited Bethlehem, she repeated every question and answer of a TV interview with President Peres. She slows down and raises her voice when she gets…

  By Daoud Kuttab Ever since the creation of the first Palestinian government headed by Mahmoud Abbas, there has been tension between the presidency and the prime minister’s office. At the time of that first government, there was pressure on Palestinians to shift as much power as possible away from former President Yasser Arafat and…

  By Daoud Kuttab One of the most controversial Israeli laws that have been attacked as having a racist connotation was passed in the Israeli Knesset in 1950. The Absentee Law considered property belonging to Palestinians who left their lands and homes during the 1948 war to automatically belong to the Custodian of Absentee Property. This controversial…

  By Daoud Kuttab It is not clear what we can conclude from the appointment of Rami Hamdallah to head the Palestinian government following the resignation of Salam Fayyad. On the one hand, Hamdallah is known during his long term as the president of Palestine’s largest university as an efficient, centralized bureaucrat who gets the job done. On…

  By Daoud Kuttab Alaa from Beit Jala was surprised like many other Palestinian Christians this week when their local church leaders acquired three-month travel permits that will allow them to visit Jerusalem and Israel, and even stay overnight if they choose to. The permits, however, were not given to all Palestinian Christians. “As part of…