West Bank Unrest
February 27, 2013
This Update features three pieces providing background to the growing – though still limited – West Bank demonstrations. While presented by Australian media as primarily the result of the death in Israeli custody of Arafat Jaradat on Saturday, and Palestinian claims he was tortured, this ignores the fact that demonstrations were already escalating last week, amid PA calls for the release of prisoners and threats of a new “Intifada”. As all three of the pieces in this Update make clear, the death of Arafat Jaradat has simply become the latest justification for a campaign of demonstrations already being encouraged by the Palestinian Authority.
Israel’s Oscar nominees tell us something about Israeli society
February 22, 2013 | Or Avi Guy
There are two Israeli films among the nominees for the 2013 Academy Award for best Documentary; Dror Moreh’s “The Gatekeepers” and Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi’s “5 Broken Cameras”.
There is more to this story than the success of a small and modestly-resourced Israeli film industry, and that is its role in the public discourse about Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and how this role reflects the pluralistic nature of Israeli society, and its democratic institutions.
Preparing for the Next Round of Iran Talks
February 22, 2013
A new round of P5+1 (meaning the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany) nuclear talks with Iran, the first since July of last year, is scheduled for next Tuesday, Feb. 26, in Kazakhstan. There are reports that Iran will be presented with a “substantial and serious offer” from the P5+1 to halt the more worrying enrichment activity – but expectations seems generally modest. Meanwhile, the International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran this week began installing much quicker second generation centrifuges. This Update offers some background to the talks and explores some of the reasons few expect a significant breakthrough.
North Korea and Iran/ The PA’s democracy deficit
February 18, 2013
Following the North Korean nuclear bomb test earlier this week, and the failure of the latest International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) meeting with Iran, this Update discusses the potential implications for the ongoing problems of preventing Iran from gaining nuclear weapons capabilities.
First up is an editorial on the subject from the Jerusalem Post, which notes that at the very least, the North Korean test was a morale-booster for Teheran.
Hamas’ housing demolitions met with deafening silence
February 18, 2013 | Ahron Shapiro
Are NGOs imposing a double standard when it comes the demolition of Palestinian houses?
That is the question that Elliott Abrams asked Wednesday on his blog on the Council of Foreign Relations’ website.
On Tuesday, the Palestinian news website Ma’an reported that Hamas was moving ahead with plans to demolish 75 homes belonging to the Abu Amrah clan in the al-Rimal neighbourhood of Gaza. The Hamas government claims the homes were built illegally. The family is protesting the move, and resisting relocation.
Israel’s official statement on “Prisoner X”
February 15, 2013
AIJAC has obviously been following closely the reporting and speculation – both in Australia and Israel – concerning the case of “Prisoner X” who died in 2010 in an Israeli prison, and is alleged to have been Melbourne-born Australian-Israeli dual citizen Ben Zygier.
While we can add little to what is already in the media, and have no wish to further burden the bereaved Zygier family, below in full is the translation prepared by Haaretz of the Israeli government statement on Prisoner X released on Wednesday, which has not yet been published here, and we believe sheds some light on aspects of the case which have not gotten sufficient attention.
Egypt’s chaos/ West Bank realities
February 14, 2013
This Update features two pieces related to the increasing street violence in Egypt, and the Muslim Brotherhood-led government’s response to it, plus an important piece on the sad reality behind the Palestinian Authority’s state building efforts in the West Bank, led by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
Palestinian Activist: Gaza’s real problem is too much high quality food
February 13, 2013 | Talia Katz
Gaza is under siege and Gazans are struggling to get in basic items to feed their families, right? You might think so if you follow most of the coverage and comment and you see on the Gaza situation, but it is actually far from the reality. Don’t take my word for it – read the Al-Monitor article by Rana Baker, who lives and studies in Gaza and writes for the vehemently and violently anti-Israel website Electronic Intifada.
The Truth about Iraq WMD “Lies”
February 11, 2013 | Talia Katz
The release of The Art of Betrayal, by Gordon Corera, the highly-regarded veteran BBC journalist, should, if our media indeed has the commitment to truth which it constantly proclaims, rightfully see the last decade of often conspiratorial rhetoric about the 2003 war in Iraq fade to reveal a different and more complex and nuanced reality.
Israel’s crop of fresh political faces
February 10, 2013 | Or Avi Guy
This past Tuesday, February 5, the 19th Knesset, Israel’s parliament, convened for its inaugural session in Jerusalem, and all 120 members pledged their allegiance to the State. The composition of the new Knesset can reveal, and for some affirm, a change in priorities in the national agenda among the Israeli public.
