Politics

Amnesty International: Whitewashing Another Massacre

Amnesty International: Whitewashing Another Massacre

Counterpunch. WEEKEND EDITION MAY 8-10, 2015 Criminalizing Palestinian Resistance by PAUL de ROOIJ Amnesty International has issued four reports on the Massacre in Gaza in 2014 [1]. Given the scale of the destruction and the number of fatalities, any attempt to document the crimes committed should be welcomed. But these reports are problematic, and raise questions about this organization [2], including why they were written at all. It also raises questions about the broader human rights industry that are worth considering.
Talal Asad: Why do I support the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement?

Talal Asad: Why do I support the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement?

April 10, 2015 Carole McGranahan [Savage Minds is honored to publish this essay by Talal Asad. He teaches anthropology at the CUNY Graduate Center and specializes on religion and politics in the Middle East and Europe.] I have never visited Israel, or the occupied West Bank and Gaza, but I have several friends, Jews and Palestinians, who teach in universities there and joining the BDS movement does not entail breaking my friendship with them.

SOAS call for BDS Academic Boycott

Published on Feb 12, 2015 On February 23rd - 27th, 2015 SOAS will vote in a school-wide referendum on the BDS call for the Academic Boycott of Israeli Institutions. Join the Movement & VOTE YES in the Referendum!
Palestine: A Nation of Translators

Palestine: A Nation of Translators

Monday, 26 January 2015 by Mahmoud Al-Hirthani One field in which Palestinian intellectuals and writers have invested heavily, particularly since the Nakba in 1948, is translation. Interestingly, translating from Russian preceded translation from English due to the early exposure of Palestinian intellectuals to Russian literature, disseminated in Palestine via Russian schools and missionaries during the 19th century. Translation from English started to flourish in the 1920s. While translating from Russian focused on fiction, with translators such as Khalil Baidas as pioneers, translation from English focused more on political works during the British Mandate (1920-1948), influenced by the Pan-Arab awakening against British rule throughout the region.
Educational Toll of Gaza War: At Least 3 Universities, 148 Schools

Educational Toll of Gaza War: At Least 3 Universities, 148 Schools

A man inspects the damage at the Islamic University of Gaza (AP Images) Rasha Faek, Yousef Al-Helou and Thaer Thabet / 03 Aug 2014 GAZA—At least three universities, seven United Nations schools and an estimated 141 locally-run schools have suffered severe damage in the month-long war between Israel and Hamas. Israeli missiles hit the Islamic University of Gaza early on Saturday, destroying a major building on the campus but apparently not killing anyone.
Israel Kills People Like Me, Israel Exploits Queers Like Me

Israel Kills People Like Me, Israel Exploits Queers Like Me

Posted by Leil-Zahra on 12/29/14 • Categorized as English * In response to a full-page ad running this week in The New York Times funded by Rabbi Shmuley, Stand with Us, and This World (Shmuley’s own); featuring political campaigner Rennick Remely. My name is Leil-Zahra Mortada. I’m an Arab Queer person. And I support justice. If I lived in Gaza or “Israel’s neighboring states”, I would be thrown in jail, mutilated or killed.
As the Arabs see the Jews

As the Arabs see the Jews

A fascinating declaration made in November 1947 by the late King Abdullah bin al-Hussein on the issue of Palestine. With thanks to Farhad Diba "As the Arabs see the Jews" His Majesty King Abdullah, The American Magazine November, 1947 Summary This fascinating essay, written by King Hussein’s grandfather King Abdullah, appeared in the United States six months before the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. In the article, King Abdullah disputes the mistaken view that Arab opposition to Zionism (and later the state of Israel) is because of longstanding religious or ethnic hatred.
Middle East Studies Scholars and Librarians Call for the Boycott of Israeli Academic Institutions

Middle East Studies Scholars and Librarians Call for the Boycott of Israeli Academic Institutions

by Jadaliyya Reports Aug 06 2014 [The following letter calling on scholars and librarians within Middle East studies to boycott Israeli academic institutions was submitted in the name of the below signatories to Jadaliyya on 6 August 2014.] We, the undersigned scholars and librarians working on the Middle East, hold that silence about the latest humanitarian catastrophe caused by Israel’s new military assault on the Gaza Strip—the third and most devastating in six years—constitutes complicity.
Breaking the last taboo - Gaza and the threat of world war

Breaking the last taboo - Gaza and the threat of world war

by John Pilger 11 September 2014 Editor's note: The following article is adapted from John Pilger's Edward Said Memorial Lecture, delivered in Adelaide, Australia, on 11 September 2014. "There is a taboo," said the visionary Edward Said, "on telling the truth about Palestine and the great destructive force behind Israel. Only when this truth is out can any of us be free." For many people, the truth is out now.
After the Ceasefire

After the Ceasefire

Omar Robert Hamilton 12 September 2014 On 26 August a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was agreed, bringing a fragile end to a war that killed 2150 Palestinians (mostly civilians) and 73 Israelis (mostly soldiers). Since then Hamas has not fired a single rocket, attacked an Israeli target, or done anything to break the terms of the ceasefire. Israel has done the following: 1. Annexed another 1500 acres of West Bank land 2.