PA goes from jailing Facebook critics to blocking critical websites
May 2, 2012 | Ahron Shapiro
As World Press Freedom Day approaches on Thursday, the Palestinian Authority (PA) looks to be headed in the other direction.
The PA has come under widening criticism of late for its worsening record on press freedom (as reported in a recent blog post by Or Avi-Guy). Part of that story centres on a number of Palestinians arrested after making critical comments about the PA or its leaders on Facebook. Now reports say the PA is also blocking off access to critical news websites.
According to the Palestinian Ma’an news agency, Palestinian internet providers have been instructed to block access to news web sites critical of Fatah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
From anti-Zionist to Zionist
May 2, 2012 | Sharyn Mittelman
It is often fascinating to hear true stories from people about how their once fierce hatred for the State of Israel came to be questioned for one reason or another – such as a trip to Israel, a book/research or a meeting with an Israeli – leading them re-evaluate their preconceived ideas.
A common theme among these personal accounts is that prior to their individual journey that led them to learn more about Israel, they had not been exposed to positive information about Israel or Jews, and felt a sense of betrayal when they learnt the ‘truth’ about Israel. Often their newly formed pro-Israel perspectives were not welcome in their home communities, and yet they are dedicated to speaking out in support of Israel.
Muslim stigma on visiting Jerusalem waning?
May 1, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
In what was was considered another sign of the rapidly deteriorating ties between Israel and Egypt, a visit to Jerusalem by Egyptian Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa — accompanying Jordanian officials — caused outrage in Egypt’s new Islamist-dominated Parliament last week. The Parliament demanded Gomaa’s resignation for behaviour that risked “normalising” relations with Israel.
Despite Gomaa’s statements that the visit was unofficial and that it took place under the supervision of the Jordanian authorities, the visit angered those opposed to normalizing relations with Israel.
Parliament Speaker Saad al-Katatny read out…
Conviction of Charles Taylor – A warning for Assad and Bashir?
May 1, 2012 | Sharyn Mittelman
The conviction of Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia and once powerful warlord, was a landmark ruling by an international tribunal – the Special Court for Sierra Leone. It was the first guilty verdict for a head of state in the history of UN war crimes courts.
Taylor’s verdict could ostensibly be a warning for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Sudan’s President Omar Al Bashir, who are both accused of committing atrocities.
Truth can be stranger than fiction in the effort to curtail women’s rights in Egypt
April 30, 2012 | Or Avi Guy
A new controversy has broken out regarding women’s rights in Egypt. It all started when al- Arabiya reported that the National Council for Women (NCW) appealed to the Egyptian parliament, requesting that two highly controversial laws, both affecting women’s status, not be approved. According to the report, the first law would lower the minimum age of marriage to 14; the other would allow a husband to engage in intercourse with his wife’s corps a few hours after her death. Al- Arabiya’s original report was based on an article by Egyptian columnist Amro Abdul Samea in the Egyptian newspaper al-Ahram, and has since been picked up by many other media outlets. The web went into a frenzy over the shocking possibility that, if the ‘farewell intercourse law’ were approved, Egyptian men would be granted a legal right to have sex with their dead wives up to 6 hours after their death (not surprisingly, the implication that Egyptian women would be granted the same right in regards to their dead husbands was of little comfort).
IDF chief’s views on Iran misrepresented
April 27, 2012 | Ahron Shapiro
A number of major news outlets, including ABC news here in Australia, have been reporting on the Yom Ha-atzmaut interview with Israeli Chief of General Staff Benny Gantz that appeared in Ha’aretz this week.
Unfortunately, most of these reports have taken the IDF chief’s words out of context and in doing so, changed their meaning as well as their significance.
The crisis of bad journalism: why Lateline guest is being ridiculed everywhere
April 27, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
Last night, ABC Lateline featured an interview by Emma Alberici of former New Republic editor Peter Beinart. Beinart has been a figure of much controversy lately due to his new book The Crisis of Zionism — an extension of his 2009 essay ‘The Failure of the American Jewish Establishment’ in the New York Review of Books — in which he makes the case that the Jewish community in America is taking an incorrect line on Israel and provides his own perspective on how the Israeli/Palestinian conflict ought to be addressed.
The book provoked a litany of responses from across the political spectrum, with almost every senior figure in the American foreign policy world deriding or distancing themselves from his contribution. As a result, there is a very substantial body of work from which to draw in order to evaluate every point that he makes. In general, most experts agree that Beinart is largely well-intentioned and does genuinely want the best for Israel, however he is at the same time hopelessly naive and heavily encumbered by a lack of serious research on the topic. His views are those of…
Hamas interview reveals no hint of moderation
April 27, 2012 | Ahron Shapiro
Give him credit for his candour. In an extensive interview with the Forward published on April 19, Mousa Abu Marzook, Deputy Director of Hamas’ political bureau and the group’s second-highest-ranking official, told the Jewish newspaper that Hamas would not respect a peace treaty with Israel signed by the Palestinian Authority, even if the agreement was endorsed by a referendum of all Palestinians, as Hamas has always demanded.
Moreover, Abu Marzook vowed that Hamas would never recognise Israel. The most Hamas would consider would be a ceasefire agreement, he said.
Sudanese President’s all-out call for genocide
April 26, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
Yesterday, this blog noted how serious the ongoing escalation in the conflict between Sudan and South Sudan could potentially be, pointing out some chilling sentiments coming from Sudanese President Omar Bashir — who has been flaunting an International Criminal Court indictment for Crimes Against Humanity since 2008.
MEMRI has translated a recent speech given by Bashir that was shown on Sudanese TV, in which he uses what appears to be explicitly genocidal language against the people of South Sudan and the Nuba Mountains:
Our lands in the Blue Nile Province and in South Kordofan continue to be defiled by their forces. Your role and your jurisdiction right now — we don’t want any vermin left in the Blue Nile Province. We don’t want any insects left in the Nuba Mountains. …
Yom Ha’atzmaut
April 24, 2012 | Sharyn Mittelman
On Thursday, Israel will turn 64. It therefore seems appropriate to reflect on some of the remarkable achievements this small country has racked up in that relatively short time.
Little Israel, a third the size of Tasmania, is now a global leader in technology, especially in cleantech. Without plentiful natural resources such as water and oil, from its humble beginnings Israel has been required to pursue creative ingenuity – and many believe this is the secret behind the incredible achievements of ‘Start Up’ Israel…
