Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Ramona Wadi
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Normalisation and exploitation efforts are thwarted by Hamas
Mainstream media has created a furore out of Hamas’ decision to prevent Palestinian children bereaved in Israel’s colonial massacre from visiting Israel and the West Bank. The trip which is said to have been organised by a Fatah-affiliated group in Gaza, the Kibbutz Movement as well as the charity Candle…
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PA’s draft resolution provokes criticism from Palestinian factions
In what is evidently further proof of acquiescence to imperialist oppression, the US has once again rejected the Palestinian draft resolution proposing Palestinian statehood and an end to the Israeli “occupation”. The diplomatic endeavours which have led to condemnations from Hamas, as well as the Popular Front for the Liberation…
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Israel’s maintenance of conditions to prevent Gaza’s reconstruction
At a conference organised by the financial publication Calcalist, IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz made a series of statements indicating further possible aggression against Palestinians. The “significant trend of instability” – deemed a threat to Israel’s security despite the imperialist agenda that creates turmoil to safeguard its base, was…
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Palestinian workers in Israel protest dehumanising conditions at checkpoints
A protest by Palestinians over deteriorating work conditions has been manipulated into a construction delay by Israel. On Sunday, Palestinians working inside Israel decided to go on strike indefinitely, protesting the daily humiliations inflicted upon them at checkpoints and border crossings in Tulkarem by the Israeli authorities. The language used…
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Charting dependency through the PA’s draft resolution to the UNSC
“The Palestinians made sure to remove any mention of Israel’s status as a Jewish state from the draft, which means this is not a peace process, it’s a declaration of war.” The comment by Yuval Steinitz, Israel’s minister of intelligence, international relations and strategic affairs, was a prelude to further…
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Palestinian demands may be thwarted by “mutual recognition”
As the Palestinians’ UN Security Council bid and the EU vote on statehood loom closer, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has raised the tone of his defiant rhetoric by rejecting what he calls “coercion” by the EU and Palestinian Authority. Prior to meeting US Secretary of State John Kerry, Netanyahu…
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Amnesty report angers Israeli government, but impunity persists
Amnesty International’s latest report on Israel’s colonial massacre in Gaza has angered the Israeli government. Called “Nothing is immune: Israel’s destruction of landmark buildings in Gaza”, the report calls for war crimes committed during Operation Protective Edge to be investigated. Focusing in particular upon the destruction of four landmark buildings…
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Netanyahu’s comments persisting in the physical destruction of Palestine
The 11th annual Saban Forum was characterised by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recurring expectations of Palestinian compliance. Held from December 5-7, the forum was hailed as “a platform for unparalleled dialogue between American and Israeli officials”. Prioritising negotiations while simultaneously declaring the Palestinian leadership incapable of dialogue, Netanyahu’s speech…
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Defining resistance away from diplomatic overtures
“Hamas is a part of the Palestinian people, and it behaves as a main element of its people, it doesn’t have an independent vision from its people.” These words, uttered by Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in a recent interview that provided insightful commentary about Palestine from within a historical and…
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Putin calls for resumption of negotiations
Beyond mere symbolism, Palestine’s struggle for liberation, already thwarted by its leaders, is becoming an abstract endeavour. Several countries have embarked upon symbolic recognition of Palestinian statehood, which is now serving as the euphemism for approval of territorial loss and a resumption of negotiations, thus promoting further political deconstruction of…
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Fatah and Hamas discord over unity government mandate
Recent statements by Fatah and Hamas concerning the validity of the Palestinian unity government now that its interim period is over provided an initial contrast with regard to the factions’ political discord. Accusations of retraction and collaboration by Fatah and Hamas respectively have framed a discussion about a government built…
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US rhetoric and international support for Israel’s colonialism
While the EU parliament decided to postpone a vote on Palestinian statehood following pressure from Israeli diplomats, Israel’s colonial rule was being defended at the UN General Assembly by US Ambassador Samantha Power. She described the resolutions that were issued this year condemning Israel as “repetitive and disproportionate”. “All parties…
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EU Parliament to vote on Palestinian statehood
Following symbolic recognition of a Palestinian state by several European countries, the European Parliament is set to debate statehood recognition on November 27. According to the EU Observer’s paraphrasing of a senior EU diplomat, “the pro-recognition feeling reflects ‘frustration’ that Israel is ignoring Europe on settlement expansion”. Frustration has also…
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Israel’s need to reinvent its illegal existence
Two particular recurring frameworks emerge from the latest Israeli violence against Palestinians in Jerusalem – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s continuation of home demolitions in alleged retaliation against “terror” and demands that the international community condemn “Palestinian terror against Israel”. In reference to the recent killings of Israelis while at…
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Israeli letter to Security Council repeats canard of victimhood
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Prosor, has once again utilised the platform offered by the imperialist organisation to incite against Palestinian resistance. His brief letter addressed to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the president of the Security Council obliterated the entire context of current violence initiated by…
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Latin America commemorates Yasser Arafat and Palestinian resistance
Ten years after Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was poisoned by polonium, probably murdered, several Latin American countries have joined Palestinians in commemorating both the anniversary of his death and the ongoing Palestinian resistance. Unsurprisingly, three of the countries participating in the remembrance were Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, all of which…
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UN Fourth Committee’s elimination of anti-colonial discourse
A report by the UN Fourth Committee dealing with decolonisation has determined the hypocrisy of those who dismiss the high number of Palestinian civilian casualties during Israel’s colonial massacre as “collateral damage”. However, while discourse clearly conveyed the unsustainability in Gaza exacerbated by the destruction wrought during Operation Protective Edge,…
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US lauds Israel’s colonial violence within a compromised human rights framework
Reports in The Times of Israel and Haaretz have once again covered the narrative relating to Operation Protective Edge, this time by US Joint Chief of Staff General Martin Dempsey. Speaking at a forum organised by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Dempsey reiterated Israel’s propaganda disseminated tirelessly by the…
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Draft resolution to recognise Palestine fails to challenge Zionist colonisation
“We don’t intend to confront the US, so if we can agree on a formula that accepts the 1967 lines as the basis for any agreement, I think the Palestinian team will be able to compromise on the time table.” This statement, quoted in Haaretz and attributed to an unnamed…
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Ambiguity in Hamas’ refuting of UN interference
As the United Nations, in accordance with the Palestinian Authority and Israel, embark upon their infiltration plan for Gaza, Hamas has expressed opposition to the organisation’s involvement, claiming that the resistance movement was not informed of UN Special Coordinator Robert Serry’s plan for the enclave’s reconstruction. Hamas has repeatedly stated…
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UNRWA and displacing ‘inspiration’
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai has declared her intention to donate her winnings from the World Children’s Prize to UNRWA. The $50,000, according to statements on the UNRWA website, will be utilised to rebuild a school ruined during “Operation Protective Edge”. Through rhetoric replete with symbolism detracting from reality,…
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EU prioritises two-state conspiracy within alleged criticism of settlement construction
The EU is about to embark upon a continuation of contradictions that criticise settlement expansion while reiterating its support for the two-state conspiracy. The recent appropriation of land and further settlement construction prompted a series of alleged concerns which, according to Haaretz, EU Ambassador to Israel Lars Faaborg-Andersen is expected…
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UN insistence on Palestinian acquiescence
“The international community cannot be expected to continually pick up the pieces of another war and then pick up the bill.” Uttered by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during the Security Council Briefing on the Middle East, the comment is a reflection of the constant impunity generated by imperialism. As…
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‘International legitimacy’ and alienation from Palestinian history
Talk of “full rights” and “international legitimacy” by Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat was once again prominent within its usual inconsistency. Speaking at a meeting with various diplomatic representatives, including EU representative John Gatt-Rutter, Erekat insisted upon Palestine’s right to participate fully in international institutions, including recourse to the International…