On June 14, fifty international organizations marked the fifth anniversary of the Israeli siege on Gaza by calling on Israel to end its blockade of the small, impoverished strip. Continue reading
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Author Archives: Ramzy Baroud
Off the agenda: The unresolved question of Egypt’s economy
A new Egypt demands a new constitution and president. Many pressing questions also need to be addressed, including the religious-secular divide, the value of Sharia in the making of law, citizenship, minority rights, the rule of civil society, foreign policy, and much more. Continue reading
The war on Palestinian soccer: Free Mahmoud Sarsak
On June 3, Palestinian national soccer team member Mahmoud Sarsak completed 80 days of a grueling hunger strike. He had sustained the strike despite the fact that nearly 2,000 Palestinian inmates had called off their own 28-day hunger strike weeks ago. Continue reading
Starving and broke: Yemen’s renewed ‘War on Terror’
Yemeni forces continue to push against fighters affiliated with al-Qaeda. Their major victories come on the heels of the inauguration of Abd Rabbuh Mansur al-Hadi, who is now entrusted with the task of leading the country through a peaceful transition. A new constitution and presidential elections are expected by 2014. Continue reading
Redefining the ‘Arab Spring’: Is chaos overtaking revolution?
The age of revolutionary romance is over. Various Arab countries are now facing hard truths. Millions of Arabs merely want to live with a semblance of dignity, free from tyranny and continuous anxiety over the future. This unromantic reality also includes outside ‘players,’ whose presence is of no positive value to genuine revolutionary movements, whether in Egypt, Syria, or anywhere else. Continue reading
The Palestinian Nakba: The resolve of memory
Many Palestinians remember and reference al-Nakba, also known as the Catastrophe, on May 15 every year. The event marks the expulsion of nearly a million Palestinians, while their villages were destroyed. The destruction of Palestine in 1947–48 ushered in the birth of Israel. Older generations relay the harsh and oppressive memory of their collective experience to younger Palestinians, many of whom live their own Nakbas today. Continue reading
Struggle over Iran: Tumultuous Israeli politics will not usher peace
Israel is currently experiencing the kind of turmoil that may or may not affect its political hierarchy following the next general election. However, there is little reason to believe that any major transformations in the Israeli political landscape could be of benefit to Palestinians. Continue reading
Illegal settlements bonanza: Israel plots an endgame
Israel’s colonization policies are entering an alarming new phase, comparable in historic magnitude to the original plans to colonize Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem following the war of 1967. Continue reading
East Africa at the brink: Hidden hands behind Sudan’s oil war
Once again Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir waved his walking stick in the air. Once again he spoke of splendid victories over his enemies as thousands of jubilant supporters danced and cheered. But this time around the stakes are too high. Continue reading
The rest is hasbara: Jenny Tonge’s victory over the lobby
“My Lords, I was in Gaza six weeks ago,” began Baroness Tonge, when she spoke at the House of Lords in January 2009. “Now, as a result of the impotence of the international community, not just in Gaza, but . . . over 40 years of occupation of Palestine by Israel, those institutions that I visited are rubble and many of the children with whom I played are dead.” Continue reading
The logic of unintended consequences: The ‘mess in Mali’
The intentional misreading of UN security council resolution 1973 resulted in NATO’s predictably violent Operation Odyssey in Libya last year. Continue reading
What Marwan Barghouti really means to Palestinians
Last week Marwan Barghouti, the prominent Palestinian political prisoner and Fatah leader, called on Palestinians to launch a “large-scale popular resistance” which would “serve the cause of our people.” Continue reading
Computing intifada: When will Palestinians revolt?
When will the Palestinians revolt? Continue reading
Why Israel attacked Gaza: Bibi stirring trouble
The first Israeli missile sped down to its target, scorching the Gaza earth and everything in between. Palestinians collected the body parts of two new martyrs, while Israeli media celebrated the demise of two terrorists. Continue reading
Costly ‘freedom’ in Afghanistan: On morbid wars and logic
The Afghans are a proud people with a long and formidable history of resistance to foreign occupation. The fact that they have always prevailed, however, should not distract from the horror they still routinely experience. The latest atrocious episode against Afghans took place on March 11 in the village of Balandi, when accused US Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales killed 16 innocent people while they were sleeping peacefully. Continue reading
Back to basics in Palestine: Redefining our relationship to a people’s struggle
The Winter 2012 edition of Palestine News features a photograph of an old man. His white beard and traditional jalabiya give him the appearance of any Palestinian grandfather. His name is not given; he could be a Muslim or a Christian. We know that he comes from the West Bank village of Qusra, and that he is holding the broken branches of his olive trees. Continue reading
Between politics and principles: Hamas’ perilous maneuvers
Despite all of Hamas’ assurances to the contrary, a defining struggle is taking place within the Palestinian Islamic movement. The outcome of this struggle—which is still confined to polite political disagreements and occasional intellectual tussle—is likely to change Hamas’ outlook, if not fundamentally alter its position within a quickly changing Arab political landscape. Continue reading
Cold war in warm waters: US-China’s dangerous contest for Asia-Pacific
On two occasions in my life, I found myself living close to the South China Sea. The sea became my escape from life’s pressing responsibilities. But there is no escaping the fact that the deceptively serene waters are now also grounds for a nascent but real new cold war. Continue reading
BDS: Power of the people at work
The issue is not about hummus, chocolate bars or Dead Sea vacations. It is about civil society taking full responsibility for its own action (or lack of). The issue is not exactly about Israeli products either, but rather about how even a seemingly innocent decision like buying Israeli dates may enable the continued subjugation of the Palestinian people. Continue reading
Israel vying for war: Attacking Iran will not repeat history
On April 10, 2002, then British Prime Minister Tony Blair told the House of Commons, “Saddam Hussein’s regime is . . . developing weapons of mass destruction, and we cannot leave him doing so unchecked.” Continue reading
Anti-Semitism and Israel’s inherent contradictions
In a recent article, columnist Yaniv Halili described British author Ben White as ‘anti-Semitic.’ He also denounced Arab Knesset member Hanin Zoabi for writing a forward to White’s latest book, Palestinians in Israel: Segregation, Discrimination and Democracy. Continue reading
The struggle continues: US vs. genuine reforms at the United Nations
The country that has long been known to abuse its powers and privileges in the United Nations is now leading a campaign to reform the same organization. While UN reforms are welcomed, if not demanded, by many of its member states, there is little reason to believe the recent US crusade is actually genuine. Rather, it seems a clear attempt to stifle any semblance of democracy in the world’s leading international institution. Continue reading
Waiting for false prophets: The puzzling matter of the Israeli liberals
Regardless of who may rule Israel, little change ever occurs in the country’s foreign policy. Winning parties remain obsessed with demographics and retaining absolute military dominance. They also remain unfailingly focused on their quest to initiate racist laws against non-Jewish residents of the state, and continue to hone the art of speaking of peace, while actually maintaining a permanent state of war. Continue reading
Aljazeera coverage: The revolution will be televised and also manipulated
In the final days of the Libyan conflict, as NATO conducted a nonstop bombing campaign, an Aljazeera Arabic television correspondent’s actions raised more than eyebrows. They also raised serious questions regarding the journalistic responsibility of Arab media—or in fact any media—during times of conflict. Continue reading
Hamas and the Brotherhood: reanimating history
There was an unmistakable hint of triumph in the comments made by Ismail Haniyeh, prime minister of the elected Hamas government in Gaza, when he was hosted by Mohammed Badie, Supreme Guide of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood. Continue reading
Palestine: Those who inspired us in 2011
Mustafa Tamimi was a 28-year-old resident of the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh. His meticulously trimmed beard served as the centerpiece of his handsome face. Continue reading
Embellishing the Iraq War: Moral victory, and selective body counts
Someone ought to let mainstream news producers know that the nearly 4,500 US soldiers killed in the Iraq war were not the only victims. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have also been killed as a result of the unwarranted US invasion, and many more have been wounded and/or forever maimed. Continue reading
Masked in Gaza: The untold history of Palestinian ‘militancy’
Essam Al-Batsh and his nephew, Sobhi Al-Batsh, are the latest in a long line of reported Palestinian ‘militants’ killed by Israel. The civilians were both targeted while driving in a car in downtown Gaza on December 8. According to an Israeli army statement, “(They) were affiliated with a terrorist squad that intended to attack Israeli civilians and soldiers via the western border” (Reuters, December 8). Continue reading
Towards a true paradigm shift in Palestine
The Palestinian Uprising or Intifada of 1987 remains the single most significant triumph of popular mobilization in Palestinian history. Continue reading
On freedom and imperialism: Arab Spring and the intellectual divide
The so-called ‘Arab Spring’ is creating an intellectual divide that threatens any sensible understanding of the turmoil engulfing several Arab countries. Continue reading
‘Zero-problems’ foreign policy no more: Turkey and the Syrian ‘abyss’
When Recep Tayyip Erdogan became Turkey’s prime minister in 2003, he seemed to be certain of the new direction his country would take. It would maintain cordial ties with Turkey’s old friends, Israel included, but also reach out to its Arab and Muslim neighbors, Syria in particular. The friendly relations between Ankara and Damascus soon morphed from rhetorical emphasis on cultural ties into trade deals and economic exchanges worth billions of dollars. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s vision of a ‘zero-problems’ foreign policy seemed like a truly achievable feat, even in a region marred by conflict, foreign occupations and ‘great game’ rivalry. Continue reading
The predicament of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon
Posted on June 29, 2012 by Ramzy Baroud
When Lebanese security reportedly killed 18-year-old Ahmad al-Qasim over a documentation dispute in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp, the camp’s Palestinian refugee population erupted in anger and dismay. Continue reading →