Netanyahu on Gunter Grass and Iran
April 24, 2012 | Ahron Shapiro
The Iranian nuclear question, Yom Hashoah and the controversy surrounding a recent poem by Gunter Grass, were the backdrop for a recent long interview Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu gave to the German newspaper Welt am Sontag.
In the interview, published on April 22, Netanyahu explained to the German audience what offended Israel most about Grass’ poem “What Must be Said” – which depicted Israel as a potentially genocidal aggressor against Iran. Under questioning, the Prime Minister also defended his positions on the risks of a nuclear-armed Iran.
Later in the interview, he rebuffed claims that the continued existence of West Bank settlements are harming the prospects of peace with the Palestinians…
Old Sudanese habits live on despite peace accord
April 24, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
The nascent State of South Sudan was not given much of a chance. It declared independence only nine months ago — in what was hoped to be the end of a brutal, decades-long civil war. Nevertheless, the Sudanese regime seem intent on keeping the conflict going in perpetuity.
As the Sudan Tribune has been reporting, the regime in Khartoum has recently ramped-up its indiscriminate aerial bombardment of a contested border region and has been supporting…
ANZAC Day and Yom Ha-Zikaron
April 24, 2012 | Or Avi Guy
On the morning of April 25 people all around Australia will decorate their lapels with red poppies as they commemorate ANZAC Day. At the same time (give or take a few time zones) a much smaller nation, both demographically and geographically, will commemorate its own memorial day, as this year ANZAC Day falls on the same day as the Israeli Yom Ha-Zikaron (Israel’s “Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terrorism Remembrance Day”). In Israel, lapels will be decorated instead with red everlasting flowers (commonly known as ‘Blood of the Maccabees’ flowers).
Abbas’ letter to Netanyahu/ Netanyahu on Iran, settlements and other issues
April 24, 2012
This Update features some analysis of the aftermath of the meeting between Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu and Palestinian negotiators last week, where he was given a letter from Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas. Also included is a long but informative interview in which Netanyahu discusses several recent controversies in a German newspaper.
Greek extremists turn up in Australia
April 19, 2012 | Sharyn Mittelman
Greece is another European country that has recently seen the mainstreaming of the far-right and a resurgence of antisemitic rhetoric (see my earlier post on Hungary here).
Previous AIJAC blog posts have discussed how the far right LAOS political party in Greece, which has an antisemitic track record, last year secured ministerial positions in a unity coalition, and now these ministers are joining Greece’s mainstream conservative party ‘New Democracy’, in the lead up to an election scheduled for May 6.
There is also another example of this worrying trend, the Greek far-right nationalist, neo-Nazi group ‘Chrsi Avgi’ known in English as the ‘Golden Dawn’, which could enter Greek parliament at the upcoming election…
Exploiting the Holocaust and hanging homosexuals in Iran
April 19, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
Yesterday, the Jewish world was commemorating the annual Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom Ha’Shoah). Iran, however, decided to mark the day a little differently.
The Iranian regime is notorious for its persistent denial of the Holocaust — for example, a huge controversy erupted in Germany last month when an interview with the Iranian President was aired on public television in which he denied the Holocaust. (For more on Iran’s efforts to sponsor Holocaust denial internationally, see…
“Pro-Palestinian” in name only
April 18, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
Jerusalem Post Palestinian affairs correspondent Khaled Abu Toameh has recently been writing prolifically on the oppression of the Palestinian people. Unusually for an Arab writer broaching this subject matter, while he does have some criticisms of Israel, the Israelies are not the primary objects of his criticism. In fact, the oppression that he is exposing comes at the hands of the Jordanians, the Syrians and even fellow Palestinians.
One of these pieces noted the redoubled efforts by the Jordanian King to marginalise Jordan’s Palestinian population — which he sees as a threat to his hold on power:
In 2009, Amman quietly began revoking the Jordanian citizenship of thousands of Palestinians, triggering strong protests from human rights organizations and pro-Palestinian groups around the world. …
First Iran meeting/ Netanyahu and Fayyad meet to exchange letters
April 17, 2012
This Update deals with the “P5+1” talks with Iran that occurred on Saturday – with reports suggesting little diplomatic progress accomplished beyond agreement to another meeting in five weeks in Baghdad. On a separate issue, it also contains a look a the significance of the planned meeting tonight between Israeli PM Netanyahu and Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad to present a letter outlining the Palestinian position.
Incitement watch: Palestinian death penalty for selling land to Jews and Jordan expelling the “prophet killers” from Jerusalem
April 16, 2012 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
The recent controversy over a house in the West Bank city of Hebron is having severe consequences for one unfortunate Palestinian. There was an outcry when Israeli settlers purchased and moved into a house in the “Arab” section of Hebron, ending with their eviction in a controversial move by Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak. While the evicted settlers are unhappy about the result, the man who sold them the house is facing a far worse outcome.
[Muhammad Abu] Shahala reportedly was sentenced to death for his part in selling what has become known as the Machpela House to a group of Jews. He reportedly confessed to the sale after…
Another failed peace plan for Syria?/ Negotiating with Iran
April 12, 2012
This Update deals primarily with the apparent failure of the peace plan for Syria negotiated by UN envoy Kofi Annan, which appears to have failed after a promised pullout of Syrian forces from major towns by Tuesday appears to have largely not occurred (though relative quiet is reportedly currently in place across the country.)
First up is Syrian opposition figure and analyst Radwan Ziadeh who argues it was absurd to have expected Syrian President Assad to have complied with the Annan peace plan given his track record. He points particularly to repeated promises by Assad to both Turkey and the Arab League which were not kept, and seemed to be simply a diversion.
