Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Anjuman Rahman
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UAE, Morocco to take part in Miss Universe in Israel amid calls for boycott
Candidates from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Morocco will take part in the Miss Universe pageant in Israel in December, ignoring calls for a boycott. The 70th Miss Universe competition will be held in the Israeli Red Sea resort of Eilat on 12 December, confirmed the Israeli Ministry...
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MEMO in conversation with Jason Sherman
Watch our live interview of Jewish Canadian Playwright and Film Director Jason Sherman...
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Cyclists travelled 2,400km to spell out ‘Refugees Welcome’ in the UK
Breaking a Guinness World Record for the largest GPS drawing ever created, the pair also raised money for charity projects which support asylum seekers ...
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Know Your Rights and Claim Them: A Guide for Youth
Whether it is Israeli soldiers assualting and detaining groups of Palestinian schoolchildren, Syrian refugee children stranded in camps in sub zero temperatures without protection and food, or Uyghur minors separated from their parents and forced into state orphanages, there is plenty of evidence that the rights of children are...
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We Are Not Here to Be Bystanders: A Memoir of Love and Resistance
“Walking through the town square in El-Bireh, I’d noticed a little Palestinian boy selling Wrigleys — they call it taxi gum — five shekels for five pieces. The child was maybe ten years old and not well kept. His red shirt was too small for him, and was torn...
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The Gilboa Prison escape meant a lot for our freedom struggle, says Gaza sand sculptor
Using one of the world’s most abundant and renewable elements, Palestinian sand artist Rana Al-Ramlawi highlights the Palestinian cause and Israel’s siege of the Gaza Strip in her work. Based in Tel Al-Hawa, an area of Gaza devastated by Israel’s bombardment in May, the 26 year old creates ephemeral...
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‘The air we breathe is being weaponised to attack people on multiple scales,’ says Prof Eyal Weizman
Death, destruction and endless streams of refugees have become a common theme in the documentation of war, to the point of becoming almost numbing in their repetitiveness. However, another deadly killer dominates those areas of conflict; one which doesn’t immediately meet the eye. Forensic Architecture’s Director, Professor Eyal Weizman,...
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‘Western media has worked overtime to demonise the valiant people of Afghanistan,’ says Taliban leader
In the early hours of Tuesday, the Taliban celebrated the departure of the last US plane of soldiers and their ambassador from Afghanistan, after a 20-year US-led occupation of the country. Jubilant members of the Taliban paraded the streets of Kabul, as their leaders marked what they called Afghanistan’s...
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The PA is an obstacle to freedom
Last weekend, 24 Palestinian activists demanding accountability for the death of fellow campaigner Nizar Banat were arrested, detained and brutally beaten in custody by members of the Palestinian Authority security services. The activists had gathered for a peaceful demonstration in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah; the violent...
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‘Arabs couldn’t believe there is a Jewish Israeli criticising Israel in Arabic’, comedienne Noam Shuster says
Before pursuing a career in comedy, Noam worked as the co-director of Interpeace, an organisation founded by the UN...
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Military checkpoints must be watched, insists Israeli activist
Day after day, Palestinians wait for long hours at chaotic Israeli military checkpoints intended to break their morale, destroy their dignity and inject fear into them. It’s a heartbreaking sight. The checkpoints are scattered across the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem. They are a potent symbol of the occupation,...
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The people of Beita will use every means to keep their land free,’ says Palestinian activist
Beita is the only village around southern Nablus that does not have an illegal Israeli settlement built on its land. The Palestinians are determined to keep it that way. “The people of Beita completely reject the presence or even the idea of settlements,” activist and photographer Baraa Hussein told...
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Israel isn’t fooling anyone by speaking up for Uyghur Muslims; its self-interest is obvious
Last month, Israel called out China over human-rights abuses against more than one million ethnic Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. This was reportedly after US pressure to do so. Ironically, Israel’s sudden interest in human rights followed its 11 day military offensive against Palestinians in the blockaded Gaza Strip. Israeli...
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Israel’s siege and violence are damaging Palestinian children’s minds
Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip are being psychologically tortured. Growing up with periods of prolonged fear and abuse has devastating physical and mental consequences, and young people are suffering as a result. Israel’s latest military offensive against the Palestinians in Gaza inflicted lasting trauma on children, with noticeable...
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Coca-Cola faces backlash for banning Palestine on customised bottles
Beverage giant Coca-Cola is being criticised for a new tool that fails to let customers personalise their own bottles of coke with ‘Palestine’ and ‘Black Lives Matter’ while allowing offensive phrases like ‘White pride’, ‘fascism,’ and ‘Nazis rule’. Troubled customers took to Twitter to share their findings after discovering...
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‘The track doesn’t know gender, the car doesn’t know gender, so gender is irrelevant’
Female racing drivers are rare, but they do exist. This is disappointing, said Toni Breidinger, who has broken through in the male-dominated sport. “My first reaction to being the first Arab-American female driver to race in the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) series was honestly disappointing,”...
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'They cry all night and can't sleep,' says Palestinian mother waiting to reunite with her traumatised daughters
Having waited since July 2019 to see her children, the first thing that she plans to do when she's reunited is hug them tight...
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Louis Vuitton, Fendi slammed for exploiting traditional Palestinian keffiyeh
One of the world’s leading fashion brands, Louis Vuitton, has come under fire for the sale of a luxury designer scarf heavily influenced by the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh, a symbol of Palestinian nationalism. People took to social media to accuse the designer of cultural appropriation and slammed it for...
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It’s hard to imagine what it’s like to lose your home, but Palestinians know, says rights official
A stench hangs over Sheikh Jarrah today as its residents continue to be harassed by the occupation authorities. Palestinians in the tiny neighbourhood of occupied East Jerusalem are being beaten brutally and arrested by armed, combat-ready Israeli soldiers, some on horseback. Rubber-coated steel bullets have also been fired. The...
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Meet the Palestinian building preschools to help children to survive and thrive
The fundamental right to education is enshrined in international law. For decades, though, the education sector in Palestine has had to contend with the oppressive and violent imposition of Israel’s illegal occupation. It has undoubtedly had a negative effect. Schools have been damaged and demolished, and equipment has been...
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Celebrities in solidarity with Sheikh Jarrah
Social media users from around the world are sharing videos of Israeli soldiers and settlers attacking Palestinian families facing forcible evictions in the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, in which their families have lived for generations. While many have criticised the silence of celebrities and influencers on the crisis against Palestinians,...
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Israel and its illegal settlers demonstrate the reality and brutality of the occupation
Violence has become a permanent feature of Ramadan for the people of occupied Palestine. The first day of the fasting month this year began with the Israeli army breaking locks and cutting the wires to the loudspeakers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem to silence the evening calls to prayer....
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Cookery lessons highlight the difficulties facing refugees in the UK
No one is born a migrant. Such status depends on many factors, including the way people are treated by society, and the opportunities and possibilities they have for the future. Human rights activist and Syrian refugee Majeda Khoury made this clear to me when we spoke this week. “When...
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How one particular charity is improving the lives of Gaza amputees
Tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip have been wounded during Israel’s military offensives and incursions. Many of them have been left with life-changing injuries. For the two million Palestinians living in Gaza under an Israeli-led and Egyptian-backed siege, life is already difficult enough. With limited...
