This is what summoud looks like
Posted on 10 July 2012 | No responses
Khirbet Zakaria is a small and sprawling Palestinian village in the West Bank. What makes it stand out from so many others is its location. It sits in the heart of the Etzion settlement bloc. As the settlements in this area south of Bethlehem were established and grew, Zakaria became encircled. Read more
Red’s not dead
Posted on 10 July 2012 | 1 response
On Sunday we moved to Deheishe. Sitting on the roof of Muna and Abu Sa’id’s home is always a pleasure. The rhythm of life in the camp is different to Doha. Doha is calmer, quieter, greener. Dehieshe is a-buzz with almost constant noise and activity. But the roof is a place of sanctuary from which we can observe what’s going on, but not necessarily be involved in it. Read more
We are not all Palestinian
Posted on 9 July 2012 | 2 responses
Al-Ma’sara is a small village south-east of Bethlehem. Like so many parts of the West Bank, its lands are being taken by Israel: for expanding settlements and for “security”, which is either for the wall or a euphemism for providing a no-man’s land between settlements and Palestinian villages or towns. Read more
A bitter-sweet release
Posted on 18 October 2011 | No responses
I cried this morning. I am a mother. I am a human being.
Today, after more than five years held by Hamas, Gilad Shalit was released. I have no doubt of the joy his family must feel. To see the son they thought they’d lost. To hold him close, to finally feel him alive again in their arms. And I am glad that their anguish is over: we are all human, after all. Read more
The first 477 Palestinians released in Shalit deal
Posted on 18 October 2011 | No responses
The prisoners released today. Read more
Darker days ahead
Posted on 3 October 2011 | No responses
On Sunday night, the mosque in the small village of Tuba suffered an arson attack. Unknown agitators entered the building and set the fire, causing damage to carpets and the structure itself. Before leaving, they sprayed messages on the walls outside: “price tag” and “revenge”, in Hebrew. Until this weekend, these attacks seemed to be confined to the West Bank. And it isn’t just mosques that are targets. Olive groves, villagers, solidarity actions: all are “fair game” to the wild West Bank settlers. Read more
The people’s nation of Palestine?
Posted on 5 September 2011 | No responses
The internet is awash with opinions about the looming Palestinian Authority bid for statehood at the United Nations in a few weeks. There are some interesting and well-argued articles supporting both the pro- and anti-statehood position. Read more
Palestine’s Nakba continues
Posted on 18 May 2011 | No responses
Published in Labour Briefing, May 2011
Al Nakba was not the random result of the chaos of war but the deliberately planned ethnic cleansing of Palestine.
OVER THE past week, Israel celebrated its 63rd birthday. On May 14th 1948, David Ben Gurion announced the creation of the Israel. And while Zionists laud their colonialist success, for Palestinians, this day marks the tragedy of their dispossession. Al Nakba — the literal translation means catastrophe — started before 1948 and has continued relentlessly ever since. Read more
5777
Posted on 17 April 2011 | 1 response
Today is Palestinian prisoners’ day. Statistics from Addameer, the prisoners’ support and human rights organisation, show that there are 5777 Palestinian political prisoners held by Israel (as of March 2011). In commemoration, detainees have called a day-long hunger strike. Read more
Juliano Mer Khamis
Posted on 10 April 2011 | No responses
On Monday April 4th, the world went dark in Palestine, in Israel and across the globe. A Palestinian shot to death Juliano Mer Khamis in Jenin. There are no words to describe the feelings of so many people as the news broke: shock, outrage, horror, anguish and the most terrible feeling of loss. This attack on Juliano is more than the killing of one man: it’s an attack on humanity, peace, justice and on all who believe a better future is possible.
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