June 8, 2012

Israel on Wednesday announced the new homes after upholding a High Court ruling to evacuate five families from the illegal Ulpana outpost.

"The decision to move settlers from an illegal outpost by creating housing units in settlements elsewhere across the Green Line sets a dangerous precedent," UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement.

UN envoy: All settlements contrary to international law

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process on Thursday reiterated the international community's view that settlements in occupied Palestinian territory are illegitimate.

In a statement, Robert Serry said that Israel's settlements were contrary to international law "whether on private Palestinian land or elsewhere in occupied Palestinian territory."

Rashid: Corruption conviction is political

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A former aide to the late President Yasser Arafat convicted of corruption on Thursday dismissed the charge as politically-motivated.

A Palestinian Authority corruption court on Thursday sentenced Mohammad Rashid and two other businessmen in absentia to 15 years in jail and ordered them to return $33.5 million in funds stolen during Arafat's rule.

Majority of Israeli Arabs Prefer to Live in Israel

The vast majority of Israeli Arabs are reconciled with the existence of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state and even exhibit a degree of patriotism, according to a poll released Thursday.

The survey by Haifa University found that nearly one in seven (68.3%) preferred to live in Israel than anywhere else, even a future Palestinian state. It found that 57.7% are reconciled with Israel as a Jewish democratic state whose day of rest is the Sabbath on Saturday and Hebrew is the main language.

West must recognize peaceful Palestinian resistance movement

Some ask why the Palestinians seem to have been left behind in the so-called Arab Spring. In fact, they have not.

Will the coming weeks spell the end of Lieberman's career?

In the weeks ahead, barring unforeseen developments, the attorney general will file an indictment against Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. This will launch a new chapter in one of the most talked-about white-collar-crime investigations in recent years, about which Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein delayed making a decision for two and a half years.

An ongoing addiction

At the beginning of every June, Israelis mark the anniversaries of the outbreaks of two major wars: the Six-Day War and the first Lebanon war. The 30th anniversary of the latter was marked this week. The three-decade mark shunts aside somewhat the memory of the earlier war, but the two - like the Yom Kippur War that fell between them - are intertwined.

'Celebrations' that miss the point

The idea of demolishing the houses in Beit El's Ulpana neighborhood reminds me of a Jewish joke about the "wisdom" of the people of Chelm. Early in the morning the sexton used to walk through the streets of Chelm to remind people that it was time for the Shaharit morning prayer. One day the weatherman announced that snow was expected the following day. The locals didn't want the sexton's footprints to spoil the beauty of the blanket of snow, so the city's wise men convened for an urgent meeting to find a solution.

Netanyahu 1, settlers 0

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s [18] victory in the vote on the settlement regularization bill [19] is not just a numerical win. It was also a moral win, because he taught the settlers [20] an important lesson on the limits of power.

Those who ignore the past are doomed to repeat it

Invariably, it seems that Defense Minister Ehud Barak says one thing and the US State Department immediately contradicts him.

At the end of his latest visit to Washington, where he conferred with his American counterpart, Leon Panetta, and other senior US officials, the former IDF chief of staff and prime minister raised the possibility of a unilateral withdrawal from the West Bank.

Ulpana, shmulpana – get real!

This week, 45 years ago, Israel won the Six Day War and with it the territories.

Segregating Gazans has made them easier to demonise

A stout sense of humour and self-irony is the least most Israelis expect of Gazans. It is certainly true today, when they are spoken of almost solely through the hyperbole of military commentators who jump frantically from discussing the Iranian threat to the danger that the tiny, overcrowded, impoverished and besieged enclave poses to the state of Israel, a global military power.

Time for American Jews to shun racist Israeli legislators

NEW YORK (JTA) -- Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s foreign minister, is no one’s idea of a soft touch. Hawkish on Israel’s settlement policy and a practitioner of a muscular, even bullying brand of diplomacy, Lieberman has a well-earned reputation as a hard-liner, no mean feat in Israel’s current rightist government. So when Lieberman becomes the voice of moderation on an issue, it’s worth a closer look.

Camp David Pact May Be Revised No Matter Who Wins Egypt Vote

Egyptians are a domestically-obsessed population right now. It’s understandable given the state of the country 15 months after Hosni Mubarak was ousted from power.

Facing the Lords of the Land

A young committed man brimming with public courage stands today almost alone against the settlers, mainly those who reside on private Palestinian lands in illegal settlement outposts. His name is Yariv Oppenheimer, and he drives the settlers mad because he has succeeded time and again in placing a few boundaries for this band of people, who are certain that the entire area beyond the Green Line is their private domain, and they can do with it as they please without interference.

The Time for a Palestinian State Is Now

This week marks the 45th anniversary of the Arab-Israeli War, when Palestinians living in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip fell under Israel's occupation. Since 1967, the power relationship that ensued has had deep and wide ramifications. What is remarkable is how each side has observed the anniversary.

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