Palestinians reject ISIL claim of Jerusalem attacks
Palestinian groups have rejected ISIL’s claim of responsibility for Friday’s attacks in Jerusalem, which left one Israeli police officer killed and resulted in Israeli soldiers killing three Palestinians. It is the first attack in Israeli-occupied territory claimed by ISIL, or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group. But the statement it released on […]
Gaza under siege: Seeking solace in religion
Occupied Gaza Strip – “I revise the Quran before I speak,” explained 48-year-old Kareema Abu Shahma, surrounded by young students in the Jafer mosque in Khan Younis . “If I need to go somewhere, I revise first and then I leave my house. If I’m feeling ill, I revise.” Abu Shahma starts and ends her […]
Liberman at ToI event: Israel is coordinating settlement building with the US
In rare English-language appearance, defense minister pins Gazan humanitarian crisis on Hamas-PA row, denies Israeli responsibility By Judah Ari Gross Israel is coordinating its settlement construction with the White House, including the approval for building the largest number of homes in the West Bank since 1992, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman told the crowd at a […]
Palestinian factions compete in Birzeit elections
Occupied West Bank – In a crowded auditorium on the Birzeit University campus in the West Bank, students pack the aisles to catch a glimpse of an election campaign launch. The hall is filled with green flags, while a video shows images of the Islamist group Hamas’ political and military leaders in Gaza, bringing loud […]
BDS activists defy US moves to curb Palestine advocacy
Washington, DC – In the United States, far away from Israel, there is a related storm a-brewing. In recent months, state legislatures have been passing bills that target supporters of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS) that seeks to pressure Israel into ending its occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories, and to grant its […]
Israeli army ‘among world’s child rights violators’
Occupied East Jerusalem – Flanked by his mother and aunt, Ahmed Mahmoud strolled up the narrow street that leads to the main road in Issawiya in occupied East Jerusalem. It was mid-afternoon in early December 2016, and the 15-year-old had recently earned good grades at school. As a reward, the trio were on an outing […]
How I conquered my fear in the Old City
Sarah Tuttle-Singer I want to tell you about the time I got stoned at Damascus Gate. (And I don’t mean in the way most people get stoned — with some really dank weed and Bob Marley on the stereo) I was 18 — the summer before my last year of high school. I had spent […]
Israel: The house of hate
“Collective fear stimulates herd instinct, and tends to produce ferocity toward those who are not regarded as members of the herd” – Bertrand Russell, Unpopular Essays I remember as a young boy sitting and watching my father’s blank stare as he watched a documentary about World War II and concentration camps. He seemed to travel […]
Muting mosque bill gets initial thumbs up in Israel
A law to muffle mosques’ amplified calls to prayer in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem won preliminary approval on Wednesday in a charged parliamentary session where Arab legislators denounced the measure as racist. Supporters of the bill say it is aimed at improving the quality of life for people living near mosques who have been […]
US Envoy Blasts UN Rights Council for ‘Unfair’ Treatment of Israel
A United States envoy to the U.N. Human Rights Council called out the panel for what she called “unfair” treatment of Israel, which has been targeted by the council’s resolutions more than any other country. In a speech during the council’s main general session in Geneva Wednesday, U.S. envoy Erin Barclay accused the HRC of […]