Egypt on the Edge/Qatar’s New Emir
June 27, 2013
This Update features two pieces on the increasingly volatile situation in Muslim Brotherhood-ruled Egypt, with a breakdown of state authority, a worsening economic crisis, and a major uptick in mass opposition protests scheduled for June 30 – and perhaps the possibility of military intervention looming. And it also includes some analysis of the succession of a new Emir in Qatar – a country which has played an increasingly important role in much of the Middle East upheaval of the past two and a half years.
Media Week – Hamas’ press agent?; Pander bared
June 27, 2013 | Allon Lee
It is unlikely Paul McGeough receives a commission from Hamas, but Fairfax’s chief correspondent sometimes seems to view it as his job to advocate on behalf of the unreconstructed terrorist organisation…
Return to sender
June 27, 2013 | Ahron Shapiro
A kerfuffle raised by Australian Palestinian activists over Australia Post’s recent joint issue stamp with Israel offers a teachable moment about the nature of Palestinian activism Down Under.
The incident offers yet more evidence that there is nothing pro-peace about these activists, who often claim to be acting in support of Palestinian self-determination, but place far more importance on fulfilling their fantasy of delegitimising Israel and erasing the country politically in a way their armed comrades in the Middle East have never succeeded in doing so on a battlefield.
Palestinian prisoners and the betrayal of the Human Rights regime
June 26, 2013 | Or Avi Guy
On May 27, during the 23rd session of the Un Human Rights Council in Geneva, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay delivered her opening statement. While counting what she views as the most severe human rights abuses in the world she predictably listed Israel, this time for its treatment of Palestinian prisoners. It seems that no speech before the Human Rights Council would be complete without mentioning Israel.
Iranian President-elect Hassan Rouhani
June 19, 2013
This Update is devoted to analyses of the impact of the surprise election of Hassan Rouhani (spellings in English are currently varying widely across international media), the most “moderate” of the eight candidates permitted to run in the Iranian Presidential election.
UNHRC’s Richard Falk in hot water again – this time for using his official position to attack an NGO critical of him
June 14, 2013 | Jeni Willenzik
In the latest controversy at the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC), UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk used an official UN report meant to highlight injustices in the Palestinian territories to condemn an NGO critical of him. In the report, Falk blamed UN Watch, an NGO founded to monitor the performance of the UN against its charter, for discrediting his arguments and issuing criticism to UN diplomats and officials.
Austria goes off the Golan
June 14, 2013 | Ahron Shapiro
In an update to my recent blog on the deteriorating situation facing UN peacekeepers in Syria and Egypt, the latest development is the fallout of the short-lived seizure of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force’s (UNDOF) Quneitra border crossing by Syrian rebels on June 6.
Recent events only re-emphasise the precariousness of all Mideast peacekeeping.
The Iranian Presidential poll
June 14, 2013
With Iranians going to the polls today to “choose” a new president (though of course only one from among the small minority of candidates approved by the clerical establishment – and even then, vote-rigging may well occur) this Update is our guide to the candidates, the significance of the election, and its possible effects on the crisis over Iran’s illegal nuclear efforts.
Media Week – Moaning Mona
June 13, 2013 | Allon Lee
Speaking to SBS Radio‘s Ron Sutton (June 5), Dr Mona El Farra, head of the health committee for the Red Crescent for Gaza Strip, blamed Israel and to a lesser extent, Egypt, for a litany of health problems in Gaza.
SBS‘s website noted that El Farra held a meeting with Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr and no doubt plied him with her propaganda.
Which is a pity, because she would do better to demand the world hold Hamas and the Palestinian Authority to account for their woeful and negligent governance…
Incitement watch: BDS group harasses synagogue-goers in the US while Arabic media sees Jewish plots everywhere
June 13, 2013 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
Speaking at the annual Global Forum of the American Jewish Committee earlier this month, the US State Department’s Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, Ira Forman, noted the worrying global rise in anti-Jewish sentiment around the world…
The latest incident to be exposed internationally comes from CU-Divest, a pro-BDS group at the University of Colorado in the US…
Whilst Western anti-Israel extremists frequently dabble with various anti-Jewish slogans and themes, there is one particularly vicious Arabic chant that is heard with an alarming regularity at anti-Israel protests with a more Islamist bent…
