Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Ramona Wadi
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Among the Almond Trees: A Palestinian Memoir
The Palestinian return is never as envisaged. For Palestinian poet and author Hussein Barghouthi, his struggle with cancer prompted a return to Palestine from his “voluntary exile” after 30 years, as he describes his absence due to studies and work. Among the Almond Trees: A Palestinian Memoir (Seagull Books,...
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Ben Gvir’s efforts in the erasure of Palestinian identity
Tying in to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement that “the Jewish people have an exclusive and unquestionable right to all areas of the land of Israel” is the recent order by Israel’s Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir to remove Palestinian flags that are publicly displayed. At face value,...
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The PA should face criminal and political charges for Banat’s killing
The brother of murdered Palestinian activist Nizar Banat explained the family’s approach to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in December. “For those of us who live in corrupt countries where genuine justice is out of reach, the ICC remains our hope for an un-politicised investigation and prosecution of criminals,”...
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The Palestinian Authority’s privilege and freedom of movement
The Israeli government’s new sanctions against Palestinians include punitive measures for Palestinian Authority officials related to their freedom of movement. In response to the UN General Assembly resolution titled “Israeli practices and settlement activities affecting the rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories,” which...
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How the EU constructs Israel impunity
The EU could have availed itself of an opportunity to hold Israel accountable for its violations but, instead. it opted for the lesser value of requesting financial reparation for the structures funded by the bloc in the Occupied West Bank and destroyed by the settler-colonial enterprise. Neither is the...
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The PA upholds the international community’s double standards
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is building upon the international community’s strong support for the apartheid state’s colonial expansion, as well as the international indifference to the legitimate political rights of the Palestinian people. The Palestinian Authority, on the other hand, is only prepared to continue sounding a death...
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Away from the rhetoric, where is European support for Palestine?
In keeping with his new government’s policy statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the UN General Assembly vote on a resolution about “Israeli practices and settlement activities affecting the rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories”. According to Netanyahu, “The Jewish nation...
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Netanyahu returns to the suspended annexation plans
When former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman insisted that annexation of the occupied West Bank was merely suspended, not cancelled, much emphasis was made on how the Abraham Accords would usher in a new chapter with benefits for Palestinians. The diversion from the looming annexation provided the international...
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Palestinians’ peaceful resistance should not be conflated with the PA’s diplomatic failures
The Palestinian Authority has often intruded into the Palestinian anti-colonial resistance for the sole purpose of garnering some media visibility, as it does with Khan al-Ahmar and the Palestinian political prisoners collective hunger strikes, for example. Christmas and New Year have proved to be no exception for the PA...
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Zionism During the Holocaust: The Weaponisation of Memory in the Service of the State and Nation
Tony Greenstein’s well researched book, Zionism During the Holocaust: The Weaponisation of Memory in the Service of the State and Nation will not sit well with proponents of the propaganda that sustains Israeli colonisation of Palestine. While several Israeli authors have touched upon the links between Zionism and Nazism,...
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The PA and UN invalidate the Palestinians’ legitimate resistance
The Palestinian Authority is reluctant to move away from the narrative which the international community constructed for Palestinians through the humanitarian paradigm which serves Israeli interests first and foremost. As Israeli state and settler violence against Palestinian civilians increased, with several instances of extrajudicial killings of Palestinians including minors, the PA’s Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh called upon...
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Does anyone actually believe what Mahmoud Abbas says?
In a recent interview with Al-Arabiya.net, Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas gave further proof of his fluctuating thought patterns and lack of credibility when it comes to Palestinian political rights. While attempting a harsher tone, as in his UN General Assembly speech this year, Abbas has nothing to offer...
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Israel’s opposition to criticism exposes its colonial violence
The Times of Israel ran a lengthy article this week pinpointing the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese’s criticisms of Israel, notably her use of the term “Jewish lobby” – a reference from 2014, years prior to her appointment by the UN. Yet, what stands out in the...
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The UN tramples over human rights for Israel’s benefit
Rhetoric about alleged anti-Israel bias at the UN, despite how unfounded the allegations are, will never cease to reverberate. The US recently reignited its disapproval of the possibility of updating the UN’s Israeli settlement business blacklist, which it said could be detrimental to businesses. That, of course, is the...
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The PA’s official news agency works against Palestinian interests
If a reader has to rely on the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency, the best one can hope for is distortion. A recent news brief published by Wafa, summarised from Agence France-Presse, selected a sliver of US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken’s speech to J Street – the liberal...
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The IDF’s violent origins and Israel impunity
Outgoing Israeli Prime Minister, Yair Lapid’s assessment of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) completely eliminated its paramilitary origins and violence prior to the establishment of Israel’s colonial enterprise. Israel needs a “strong, disciplined military with a clear chain-of-command that operates only by the law,” Lapid declared, after the situational...
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Lapid exploits UN resolutions to further Israel’s security narrative
The Israeli government is portraying itself as being worried about international delegitimisation at the UN. As the UN General Assembly Fourth Committee on Decolonisation passed the resolution “Israeli practices and settlement activities affecting the rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories including East Jerusalem”...
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Observations invalidate the two-state compromise
The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process continues to speak from a vacuum that denies Israel’s colonial existence as the main violation Palestinians encounter daily. In his latest monthly briefing to the UN Security Council, Wennesland gratified his audience by maintaining the international consensus over the...
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US concessions to Palestine always work in Israel’s favour
Further proof of US President Joe Biden reneging on his electoral promises with regard to Palestine is the ongoing refusal to reopen the US Consulate in occupied Jerusalem for use by Palestinians, and opting instead for creating a new role of Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs, which has been...
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The PA’s failure in protecting Palestinians
The Palestinian anti-colonial resistance has provided ample proof it will no longer take its cues from political factions, leaving both the Palestinian Authority and Israel facing a changing political dynamic among the people. The PA has been rendered irrelevant both by its own collaboration with Israel and acquiescence to...
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Only Abu Akleh’s US citizenship is of concern to Washington
Israel is once again, albeit temporarily, under the spotlight for the targeted killing in May of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. This follows the revelation that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is conducting an investigation into the crime. In September, after many denials, Israel conceded there...
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Abbas is already submitting quietly to Netanyahu
Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas continues to demonstrate that he has no political standing. In a recent interview, for example, he described Israeli Prime Minister-elect Benjamin Netanyahu as “not a man who believes in peace.” Given that Netanyahu will once again be at the helm of a decades-old colonial...
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US complicity with Israel will enhance any future annexation plans
The US will push back against annexation, according to US Ambassador to Israel, Tom Nides, as the Abraham Accords are set to feature as a continuation of an internationally approved US policy. “Our position is quite clear: We do not support annexation. We will fight any attempt to do...
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Palestinians need more than Blinken’s empty words
With Likud’s Benjamin Netanyahu set to return as Israeli prime minister, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas, spouting yet another round of futile rhetoric about improving the quality of life for Palestinians and, of course, reaffirming Washington’s adherence to the — surely...