4 nov 2015
Abdul Rahman Abu Nahal, the coordinator of the National Committee for Boycott of Israeli Products - Gaza Strip, confirmed that boycotting Israel is one of the leading forms of resistance against Israel that have a lasting impact on the solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinian people.
In an interview with the Palestinian Information Center, Abu Nahal pointed that, Israel views the Boycott, Divest, and Sanction (BDS) movement as a strategic threat.
He added that the Palestinian society is leading the boycott campaign that is active on the local, Arab and international levels. The campaign aims to isolate the Israeli occupation.
He said that the boycott campaign has supported occupied Jerusalem through activities and statements in backing of the heroic mass protests of the Palestinian people across Palestine.
Abu Nahal pointed out that the expansion of the protests, to include most parts of Palestine, confirms the failure of the Israeli occupation policy of separation and division of the Palestinian people.
Public Resistance
Abu Nahal clarified that the BDS urges peoples of the world to hit the streets in marches in support of the public resistance and for the escalation of the boycott of the Israeli occupation, withdrawing investments from Israel, and increasing efforts to enforce arms embargo on it.
He added that actions are taken to boycott the international companies which deal with the Israeli occupation such as the campaign that succeeded against Veolia, and the sustained campaign against G4S, HP, and Elbit, which manufacture weapons such as unmanned aircraft.
Regarding whether there is response to the demands of the BDS, especially after the situation in Jerusalem, Abu Nahal commented: "thousands around the world have gone out in marches in more than 70 cities in support of the struggle of the Palestinian people for freedom, justice and equality."
He noted that the BDS movement is not a political party or an ideological movement; but a global human rights movement with Palestinian leadership. The movement relies on voluntary and creative individuals and organizations in support of human rights, noting that it is seeking a boycott of Israel, withdrawing investments from it and finally imposing sanctions on it until it is completely isolated.
Boycott fields
Abu Nahal said that the BDS is working on boycotting Israel in the academic, cultural, sports, military, political and economic fields. On the sports field, for example, the boycott movement contributed in preventing Israel from hosting the Europe Football Championship in 2020.
He added: "The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) was launched in (2004). The campaign has succeeded in the academic and cultural boycott in a number of countries around the world, including the United States, and prompted universities and students' association to adopt the boycott."
He continued: "The boycott movement is also working on the economic boycott and coordinates efforts in this regard for local boycott (in the West Bank and Gaza Strip) of the Israeli products."
Strategic threat
On the possibility that the boycott movement would succeed in becoming a deterrent to the occupation and its practices, Abu Nahal said: "It is too early to say now that the BDS deters the Israeli occupation from continuing to commit crimes against Palestinian people, which is due to the big amount of financial and military support, especially from the Western governments, mainly the US government."
He opined that the BDS movement was causing increased concern on the part of the Israeli officials, adding that Israel’s isolation at the international arena was “imminent”.
He cited in this respect a statement by Israeli war criminal and former premier Ehud Barak warning that Israel may encounter growing isolation, such as the one against the (previous regime of) apartheid in South Africa.
He elaborated: "The BDS is one of the most important threats to the Israeli project as a whole, especially when considering the big achievements and victories the campaign has achieved, which make us confident that we are approaching the moment of fully isolating the occupation and subjecting it to accountability."
Boycott achievements
Speaking of the achievements of the boycott, Abu Nahal said that the of the most important achievements is the withdrawal of Veolia from all its projects in Israel, which was the fruit of the boycott campaign against the company since 2008, by which it has lost global contracts worth more than $ 23 billion.
He also referred to the renewal of the Federation of Students of the United Kingdom, which is constituted of millions of members, its adoption and full support for the BDS boycott movement of the Israeli occupation, as well as the adoption of nine major academic associations in North America to the appeal of academic and cultural boycott of the occupation, such as the American Studies Association and the American Association of Asian Studies.
He pointed out that the Government of Kuwait issued a decision to stop dealing with 50 international companies because of its activity in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Gaza blockade
Regarding the role of the boycott campaigns to break the siege of Gaza, Abu Nahal stressed that "the lifting of the siege on Gaza is among the most important demands sought by the boycott campaigns."
He said that during the aggression on Gaza in 2014 and after it, several calls came from Palestinian civil society in the Gaza Strip supported by the National Committee for Boycott called for an escalation of the boycott and a day of anger for Gaza which was on 9 August 2014; where millions of people around the world came out in support of the move.
He continued: "We at the BDS believe that all the campaigns to break the Israeli siege on Gaza should adopt the boycott call in order to be effective and do not fall within the framework of charity that relieves the suffering of the Gazans for a while but does not terminate it."
He pointed out that the National Committee for Boycott with the Palestinian civil society are working to expose the complicity of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) in the perpetuation of the blockade, and its failure to bring to account the Israeli occupation.
He explained that the anti-apartheid week, which is held each year concurrently in Gaza and hundreds of cities around the world, contributes to the delivery of the message from the Gaza Strip and revealing the amount of the Israeli violations of the international law against the Palestinian people in Gaza and other places of Palestine in which the Israeli occupation is present.
The World Bank report
With regard to the World Bank report in which it emphasized the decline of the Israeli occupation exports in the occupied Palestinian territories in 1967 by 24%, Abu Nahal commented saying: “These recent data are clear evidence of the effectiveness of the local boycott of the "Israeli State", although the Israeli occupation had already destroyed the Palestinian economy, and made it subordinate to the Israeli economy."
He also pointed out: "The siege imposed on Gaza for the past eight consecutive years and the destruction of its infrastructure explain this large decline in the Israeli exports to the Palestinian market."
He concluded by stressing, "We trust the ability of the boycott, mainly as a form of public resistance, to inflict losses of hundreds of millions of dollars on the Israeli economy which will contribute, in parallel with other forms of boycott locally and internationally, in isolating Israel completely."
In an interview with the Palestinian Information Center, Abu Nahal pointed that, Israel views the Boycott, Divest, and Sanction (BDS) movement as a strategic threat.
He added that the Palestinian society is leading the boycott campaign that is active on the local, Arab and international levels. The campaign aims to isolate the Israeli occupation.
He said that the boycott campaign has supported occupied Jerusalem through activities and statements in backing of the heroic mass protests of the Palestinian people across Palestine.
Abu Nahal pointed out that the expansion of the protests, to include most parts of Palestine, confirms the failure of the Israeli occupation policy of separation and division of the Palestinian people.
Public Resistance
Abu Nahal clarified that the BDS urges peoples of the world to hit the streets in marches in support of the public resistance and for the escalation of the boycott of the Israeli occupation, withdrawing investments from Israel, and increasing efforts to enforce arms embargo on it.
He added that actions are taken to boycott the international companies which deal with the Israeli occupation such as the campaign that succeeded against Veolia, and the sustained campaign against G4S, HP, and Elbit, which manufacture weapons such as unmanned aircraft.
Regarding whether there is response to the demands of the BDS, especially after the situation in Jerusalem, Abu Nahal commented: "thousands around the world have gone out in marches in more than 70 cities in support of the struggle of the Palestinian people for freedom, justice and equality."
He noted that the BDS movement is not a political party or an ideological movement; but a global human rights movement with Palestinian leadership. The movement relies on voluntary and creative individuals and organizations in support of human rights, noting that it is seeking a boycott of Israel, withdrawing investments from it and finally imposing sanctions on it until it is completely isolated.
Boycott fields
Abu Nahal said that the BDS is working on boycotting Israel in the academic, cultural, sports, military, political and economic fields. On the sports field, for example, the boycott movement contributed in preventing Israel from hosting the Europe Football Championship in 2020.
He added: "The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) was launched in (2004). The campaign has succeeded in the academic and cultural boycott in a number of countries around the world, including the United States, and prompted universities and students' association to adopt the boycott."
He continued: "The boycott movement is also working on the economic boycott and coordinates efforts in this regard for local boycott (in the West Bank and Gaza Strip) of the Israeli products."
Strategic threat
On the possibility that the boycott movement would succeed in becoming a deterrent to the occupation and its practices, Abu Nahal said: "It is too early to say now that the BDS deters the Israeli occupation from continuing to commit crimes against Palestinian people, which is due to the big amount of financial and military support, especially from the Western governments, mainly the US government."
He opined that the BDS movement was causing increased concern on the part of the Israeli officials, adding that Israel’s isolation at the international arena was “imminent”.
He cited in this respect a statement by Israeli war criminal and former premier Ehud Barak warning that Israel may encounter growing isolation, such as the one against the (previous regime of) apartheid in South Africa.
He elaborated: "The BDS is one of the most important threats to the Israeli project as a whole, especially when considering the big achievements and victories the campaign has achieved, which make us confident that we are approaching the moment of fully isolating the occupation and subjecting it to accountability."
Boycott achievements
Speaking of the achievements of the boycott, Abu Nahal said that the of the most important achievements is the withdrawal of Veolia from all its projects in Israel, which was the fruit of the boycott campaign against the company since 2008, by which it has lost global contracts worth more than $ 23 billion.
He also referred to the renewal of the Federation of Students of the United Kingdom, which is constituted of millions of members, its adoption and full support for the BDS boycott movement of the Israeli occupation, as well as the adoption of nine major academic associations in North America to the appeal of academic and cultural boycott of the occupation, such as the American Studies Association and the American Association of Asian Studies.
He pointed out that the Government of Kuwait issued a decision to stop dealing with 50 international companies because of its activity in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Gaza blockade
Regarding the role of the boycott campaigns to break the siege of Gaza, Abu Nahal stressed that "the lifting of the siege on Gaza is among the most important demands sought by the boycott campaigns."
He said that during the aggression on Gaza in 2014 and after it, several calls came from Palestinian civil society in the Gaza Strip supported by the National Committee for Boycott called for an escalation of the boycott and a day of anger for Gaza which was on 9 August 2014; where millions of people around the world came out in support of the move.
He continued: "We at the BDS believe that all the campaigns to break the Israeli siege on Gaza should adopt the boycott call in order to be effective and do not fall within the framework of charity that relieves the suffering of the Gazans for a while but does not terminate it."
He pointed out that the National Committee for Boycott with the Palestinian civil society are working to expose the complicity of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) in the perpetuation of the blockade, and its failure to bring to account the Israeli occupation.
He explained that the anti-apartheid week, which is held each year concurrently in Gaza and hundreds of cities around the world, contributes to the delivery of the message from the Gaza Strip and revealing the amount of the Israeli violations of the international law against the Palestinian people in Gaza and other places of Palestine in which the Israeli occupation is present.
The World Bank report
With regard to the World Bank report in which it emphasized the decline of the Israeli occupation exports in the occupied Palestinian territories in 1967 by 24%, Abu Nahal commented saying: “These recent data are clear evidence of the effectiveness of the local boycott of the "Israeli State", although the Israeli occupation had already destroyed the Palestinian economy, and made it subordinate to the Israeli economy."
He also pointed out: "The siege imposed on Gaza for the past eight consecutive years and the destruction of its infrastructure explain this large decline in the Israeli exports to the Palestinian market."
He concluded by stressing, "We trust the ability of the boycott, mainly as a form of public resistance, to inflict losses of hundreds of millions of dollars on the Israeli economy which will contribute, in parallel with other forms of boycott locally and internationally, in isolating Israel completely."
2 nov 2015
Palestinian children play amid the rubble of their house, on May 11, 2015, which was destroyed during the 50-day Gaza war the summer before.
Ramzy Baroud is an internationally-syndicated columnist, author and the founder of PalestineChronicle.com. His latest book is My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza's Untold Story.
There is a possibility that you have heard of the famed British author, J.K. Rowling, writer of the popular fantasy series ‘Harry Potter’. While I knew of her books -- through my teenage kids -- I knew little about the author herself, until recently.
Under an oblique title, “Israel needs cultural bridges, not boycotts”, Rowling, along with a few celebrity writers, argued against growing calls for an academic boycott of Israel.
Using generalized, ambiguous terminology that offered little by way of compelling Israel to end its ongoing Occupation in Jerusalem and the West Bank, genocide and siege in Gaza and protracted institutional discrimination against Arabs and other minorities in Israel, she argued for ‘cultural engagement’, instead. Such engagement, her letter reads, “builds bridges, nurtures freedom and positive movement for change. We wholly endorse encouraging such a powerful tool for change, rather than boycotting its use.”
The author seems disconnected from the reality of life under Israeli Occupation. On the day of writing this article, I spoke to Ismail Abu Aitah, a young man from Gaza who lost both his parents, his brothers, and one of his nephews when Israel blew up their house in the 2014 summer war. He, too, was badly injured, together with almost every surviving member of his family.
“I am sorry Ramzy, I cannot give you exact dates and times to what has befallen my family,” he messaged me on Skype. “After July 24, 2014, I lost interest in life and stopped paying attention to the passing of time.”
How is one to console Ismail? How is one to console the families of over 2,200 Palestinians killed in the last war; the over 400 in the previous war and over 1,430 in the one before that, in addition to the tens of thousands of wounded and maimed? Not forgetting the many killed in the West Bank this October alone, some executed point blank?
Will J.K. Rowling’s call for engagement suffice?
For her, even non-violent acts of encountering Israel’s ongoing massacres in Gaza and the military occupation in the West Bank are excessive. “Cultural boycotts singling out Israel are divisive and discriminatory, and will not further peace,” reads the letter she signed.
Amnesty International said Israel’s violent response to a burgeoning uprising in Occupied Palestine appears to have “ripped up the rulebook and resorted to extreme and unlawful measures.” But with scores of UN resolutions never respected, Geneva Conventions never honored, and humanitarian laws never valued, Israel has never followed a rulebook, to begin with.
Racism in Israel is so rife that being dark skinned in that country can be a terrifying experience. When a mainstream American newspaper like the Washington Post headlines a news report with “Israeli government to refugees: Go back to Africa or go to prison”, this is an indicator that Israel has a serious problem.
If J.K. Rowling and her peers do not see an urgency in standing up for millions of Palestinians who are enduring daily deaths and discrimination (as they have for 67 years), what is their reaction to the violence against Africans and dark-skinned people, who are beaten by mobs, and abused by police and discriminated against by the government itself?
Imagine life being a thousand-fold worse for Palestinians, a nation that is forced to choose between two terrible fates: permanent destitution and exile on the one hand, or a perpetual war and occupation on the other.
“We will be seeking to inform and encourage dialogue about Israel and the Palestinians in the wider cultural and creative community,” J.K. Rowling’s letter reads. Can those ‘creative’ elites possibly be any more disconnected from reality to the extent that they perceive a nation that stands accused of violating human rights with such impunity for nearly seven decades as one that simply needs a nudge to dialogue?
To expect dialogue with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who has just dehumanized Palestinians further by accusing them of concocting the Holocaust is not just impractical, but is the very definition of insanity -- seeking dialogue with a belligerent occupier, over and over again, and expecting different results.
Fortunately, J.K. Rowling’s last-minute intervention and her barely concealed defense of Israel arrives belatedly. A defining moment is imminent, as hundreds of scholars in her own country have just enlisted their support for the academic boycott, to be added to the 100 artists who joined the cultural boycott last February and hundreds of universities and academicians in the US who did so last August. These are just a few examples of a massive, non-violent campaign that targets Israeli academic and cultural institutions -- not individuals -- who contribute directly, or otherwise, to the injustice that is meted out against Palestinians daily.
The scholars from the UK, exceeding 300 and the last to join the boycott campaign were, like thousands more, guided by the spirit of the struggle against the former Apartheid South African government. The latter was overcome largely because of the struggle and steadfastness of the South African people and also aided by morally-guided actions of boycotters all around the world, which included J.K. Rowling’s country.
Had the famed author achieved her current status during the height of South Africa’s Apartheid, would she have issued a similar call, declaring her “support for the launch and aims of Culture for Co-existence”, rather than demanding an end to Apartheid, even if it meant severing ties with Apartheid government institutions? At this point, the answer is uncertain.
Last February, the letter from the British artistes read, in part: “During South African apartheid, musicians announced they weren’t going to ‘play Sun City’. Now we are saying, in Tel Aviv, Netanya, Ashkelon or Ariel, we won’t play music, accept awards, attend exhibitions, festivals or conferences, run masterclasses or workshops, until Israel respects international law and ends its colonial oppression of the Palestinians.”
What is appropriate for South Africa should be appropriate for Palestine, too, even if J.K. Rowling and her respected peers find that too objectionable.
The views expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily reflect Ma'an News Agency's editorial policy.
Ramzy Baroud is an internationally-syndicated columnist, author and the founder of PalestineChronicle.com. His latest book is My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza's Untold Story.
There is a possibility that you have heard of the famed British author, J.K. Rowling, writer of the popular fantasy series ‘Harry Potter’. While I knew of her books -- through my teenage kids -- I knew little about the author herself, until recently.
Under an oblique title, “Israel needs cultural bridges, not boycotts”, Rowling, along with a few celebrity writers, argued against growing calls for an academic boycott of Israel.
Using generalized, ambiguous terminology that offered little by way of compelling Israel to end its ongoing Occupation in Jerusalem and the West Bank, genocide and siege in Gaza and protracted institutional discrimination against Arabs and other minorities in Israel, she argued for ‘cultural engagement’, instead. Such engagement, her letter reads, “builds bridges, nurtures freedom and positive movement for change. We wholly endorse encouraging such a powerful tool for change, rather than boycotting its use.”
The author seems disconnected from the reality of life under Israeli Occupation. On the day of writing this article, I spoke to Ismail Abu Aitah, a young man from Gaza who lost both his parents, his brothers, and one of his nephews when Israel blew up their house in the 2014 summer war. He, too, was badly injured, together with almost every surviving member of his family.
“I am sorry Ramzy, I cannot give you exact dates and times to what has befallen my family,” he messaged me on Skype. “After July 24, 2014, I lost interest in life and stopped paying attention to the passing of time.”
How is one to console Ismail? How is one to console the families of over 2,200 Palestinians killed in the last war; the over 400 in the previous war and over 1,430 in the one before that, in addition to the tens of thousands of wounded and maimed? Not forgetting the many killed in the West Bank this October alone, some executed point blank?
Will J.K. Rowling’s call for engagement suffice?
For her, even non-violent acts of encountering Israel’s ongoing massacres in Gaza and the military occupation in the West Bank are excessive. “Cultural boycotts singling out Israel are divisive and discriminatory, and will not further peace,” reads the letter she signed.
Amnesty International said Israel’s violent response to a burgeoning uprising in Occupied Palestine appears to have “ripped up the rulebook and resorted to extreme and unlawful measures.” But with scores of UN resolutions never respected, Geneva Conventions never honored, and humanitarian laws never valued, Israel has never followed a rulebook, to begin with.
Racism in Israel is so rife that being dark skinned in that country can be a terrifying experience. When a mainstream American newspaper like the Washington Post headlines a news report with “Israeli government to refugees: Go back to Africa or go to prison”, this is an indicator that Israel has a serious problem.
If J.K. Rowling and her peers do not see an urgency in standing up for millions of Palestinians who are enduring daily deaths and discrimination (as they have for 67 years), what is their reaction to the violence against Africans and dark-skinned people, who are beaten by mobs, and abused by police and discriminated against by the government itself?
Imagine life being a thousand-fold worse for Palestinians, a nation that is forced to choose between two terrible fates: permanent destitution and exile on the one hand, or a perpetual war and occupation on the other.
“We will be seeking to inform and encourage dialogue about Israel and the Palestinians in the wider cultural and creative community,” J.K. Rowling’s letter reads. Can those ‘creative’ elites possibly be any more disconnected from reality to the extent that they perceive a nation that stands accused of violating human rights with such impunity for nearly seven decades as one that simply needs a nudge to dialogue?
To expect dialogue with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who has just dehumanized Palestinians further by accusing them of concocting the Holocaust is not just impractical, but is the very definition of insanity -- seeking dialogue with a belligerent occupier, over and over again, and expecting different results.
Fortunately, J.K. Rowling’s last-minute intervention and her barely concealed defense of Israel arrives belatedly. A defining moment is imminent, as hundreds of scholars in her own country have just enlisted their support for the academic boycott, to be added to the 100 artists who joined the cultural boycott last February and hundreds of universities and academicians in the US who did so last August. These are just a few examples of a massive, non-violent campaign that targets Israeli academic and cultural institutions -- not individuals -- who contribute directly, or otherwise, to the injustice that is meted out against Palestinians daily.
The scholars from the UK, exceeding 300 and the last to join the boycott campaign were, like thousands more, guided by the spirit of the struggle against the former Apartheid South African government. The latter was overcome largely because of the struggle and steadfastness of the South African people and also aided by morally-guided actions of boycotters all around the world, which included J.K. Rowling’s country.
Had the famed author achieved her current status during the height of South Africa’s Apartheid, would she have issued a similar call, declaring her “support for the launch and aims of Culture for Co-existence”, rather than demanding an end to Apartheid, even if it meant severing ties with Apartheid government institutions? At this point, the answer is uncertain.
Last February, the letter from the British artistes read, in part: “During South African apartheid, musicians announced they weren’t going to ‘play Sun City’. Now we are saying, in Tel Aviv, Netanya, Ashkelon or Ariel, we won’t play music, accept awards, attend exhibitions, festivals or conferences, run masterclasses or workshops, until Israel respects international law and ends its colonial oppression of the Palestinians.”
What is appropriate for South Africa should be appropriate for Palestine, too, even if J.K. Rowling and her respected peers find that too objectionable.
The views expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily reflect Ma'an News Agency's editorial policy.
Israeli foreign ministry building
Responding to the success of BDS, Israel updates foreign ministry cadets course.
Under direction of Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely and Director-General Dore Gold, Israel has updated its foreign ministry cadets training course to better meet the serious challenges posed by global Palestinian solidarity and the BDS movement in particular.
New additions to the six-month training course include a tour of the Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem's Silwan neighbourhood. The Israeli press reports that the tour will be led by David Be'eri, founder of the Elad Association which drives settlement in the heart of this occupied Palestinian neighbourhood located just outside Jerusalem's Old City and adjacent to the al Aqsa mosque.
A tour will also be given of the Israeli settlements situated in the northern West Bank area of Nablus. The tour will be conducted by settler leader Benny Katzover, chairperson of the Samaria Citizens' Committee and founder of the Nablus-area settlement of Elon Moreh.
Katzover has stated in the past that “We didn't come here to establish a democratic state. We came here to return the Jewish people to their land."
Israeli foreign ministry cadets will further tour the West Bank's Jordan Valley area and its Barkan Industrial Zone to “learn about” Palestinians working in this settlement industrial zone. A central point of Israeli hasbara is that boycotting settlement products harms Palestinian workers, even though the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) fully supports the 2005 Palestinian civil society call for BDS.
An additional new element in the cadets training course is a course on international law, with an emphasis on defending the legality of Israeli settlements. International humanitarian law will further be reviewed to provide justification for Israel's ongoing military attack on the Palestinian people under occupation and advance Israel's contention of fielding the most moral army in the world.
Finally, Israel's foreign ministry will present its take on Judaism's concept of tikkun olam (repair of the world) and its relation to Israeli diplomacy, for example in Israel's contributions to disaster relief.
Deputy Ministery Hotovely told the settler-affiliated media outlet Arutz 7 that “It is important that ambassadors can cope with the challenges of boycotting Israel, and the de-legitimsation of our right to self defense through a connection to fundamental questions of the connection of the people of Israel to their land, through an emphasis on the branding of Israel in the world as a groundbreaking country in which the technological initiatives and solutions are a contribution to all of humanity.”
Responding to the success of BDS, Israel updates foreign ministry cadets course.
Under direction of Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely and Director-General Dore Gold, Israel has updated its foreign ministry cadets training course to better meet the serious challenges posed by global Palestinian solidarity and the BDS movement in particular.
New additions to the six-month training course include a tour of the Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem's Silwan neighbourhood. The Israeli press reports that the tour will be led by David Be'eri, founder of the Elad Association which drives settlement in the heart of this occupied Palestinian neighbourhood located just outside Jerusalem's Old City and adjacent to the al Aqsa mosque.
A tour will also be given of the Israeli settlements situated in the northern West Bank area of Nablus. The tour will be conducted by settler leader Benny Katzover, chairperson of the Samaria Citizens' Committee and founder of the Nablus-area settlement of Elon Moreh.
Katzover has stated in the past that “We didn't come here to establish a democratic state. We came here to return the Jewish people to their land."
Israeli foreign ministry cadets will further tour the West Bank's Jordan Valley area and its Barkan Industrial Zone to “learn about” Palestinians working in this settlement industrial zone. A central point of Israeli hasbara is that boycotting settlement products harms Palestinian workers, even though the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) fully supports the 2005 Palestinian civil society call for BDS.
An additional new element in the cadets training course is a course on international law, with an emphasis on defending the legality of Israeli settlements. International humanitarian law will further be reviewed to provide justification for Israel's ongoing military attack on the Palestinian people under occupation and advance Israel's contention of fielding the most moral army in the world.
Finally, Israel's foreign ministry will present its take on Judaism's concept of tikkun olam (repair of the world) and its relation to Israeli diplomacy, for example in Israel's contributions to disaster relief.
Deputy Ministery Hotovely told the settler-affiliated media outlet Arutz 7 that “It is important that ambassadors can cope with the challenges of boycotting Israel, and the de-legitimsation of our right to self defense through a connection to fundamental questions of the connection of the people of Israel to their land, through an emphasis on the branding of Israel in the world as a groundbreaking country in which the technological initiatives and solutions are a contribution to all of humanity.”
1 nov 2015
The Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman, Mahmoud Abbas, said that he neither intends to abandon the Oslo Accord nor insist on the absorption of millions of Palestinians into the occupied territories.
“We never said we were going to cancel the Oslo Accord,” Abbas said during a meeting near The Hague with members of Dutch pro-Israel advocacy organs.
“We are not going to cancel, we will not cancel anything,” he added, as long as “Israel respects its obligations.”
On Sept. 30, at UN headquarters in New York, Abbas said: “We cannot continue to be bound by these signed agreements with Israel because “the status quo cannot continue.”
At the meeting, Abbas also claimed that he and the Palestinian Authority “never asked anyone to boycott Israel,” only products produced in the settlements.
Asked about the right of return of several million Palestinians to the occupied territories, he said: “I am not asking for a right of return for six million Palestinians; I want a solution for them.”
CIDI Director Hanna Luden told Abbas of “serious concern about incitement, including by yourself, in saying that Israel wants to build a third temple” on the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
Abbas answered that he was willing to address incitement “both by Israel and by Palestinians” under U.S. brokerage, but that Israel was unwilling to.
Abbas also said that Israel and Hamas were conducting direct negotiations in Europe, in a country which he refused to name.
“We never said we were going to cancel the Oslo Accord,” Abbas said during a meeting near The Hague with members of Dutch pro-Israel advocacy organs.
“We are not going to cancel, we will not cancel anything,” he added, as long as “Israel respects its obligations.”
On Sept. 30, at UN headquarters in New York, Abbas said: “We cannot continue to be bound by these signed agreements with Israel because “the status quo cannot continue.”
At the meeting, Abbas also claimed that he and the Palestinian Authority “never asked anyone to boycott Israel,” only products produced in the settlements.
Asked about the right of return of several million Palestinians to the occupied territories, he said: “I am not asking for a right of return for six million Palestinians; I want a solution for them.”
CIDI Director Hanna Luden told Abbas of “serious concern about incitement, including by yourself, in saying that Israel wants to build a third temple” on the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
Abbas answered that he was willing to address incitement “both by Israel and by Palestinians” under U.S. brokerage, but that Israel was unwilling to.
Abbas also said that Israel and Hamas were conducting direct negotiations in Europe, in a country which he refused to name.
30 oct 2015
Belgian organizations called for banning arms deals and cancelling the EU-Israel partnership agreement due to Israel’s continuing violations of Palestinians’ human rights.
In a statement posted on the Belgian trade union’s website, a consortium of human rights groups voiced their deep concern over the tide of violence rocking the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly Occupied Jerusalem city.
The statement attributed simmering tension to the mounting terrorism and violence perpetrated by the Israeli settlers and occupation army in the plazas of the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
The Belgian organizations condemned Israel’s ongoing persecution of Palestinians, citing the notorious 2014 offensive on the blockaded Gaza Strip as one of its ugly images.
They further called on the Belgian government and the European Union to take all necessary measures to halt Israeli misappropriation of Palestinian territories and ban any cooperation with the Israeli illegal settlements.
The organizations that signed the statement also called on the Belgian government to urge the Israeli government to cease administrative detention of Palestinians (with neither charge nor trial) and bring its oppressive policies to a halt.
In a statement posted on the Belgian trade union’s website, a consortium of human rights groups voiced their deep concern over the tide of violence rocking the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly Occupied Jerusalem city.
The statement attributed simmering tension to the mounting terrorism and violence perpetrated by the Israeli settlers and occupation army in the plazas of the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
The Belgian organizations condemned Israel’s ongoing persecution of Palestinians, citing the notorious 2014 offensive on the blockaded Gaza Strip as one of its ugly images.
They further called on the Belgian government and the European Union to take all necessary measures to halt Israeli misappropriation of Palestinian territories and ban any cooperation with the Israeli illegal settlements.
The organizations that signed the statement also called on the Belgian government to urge the Israeli government to cease administrative detention of Palestinians (with neither charge nor trial) and bring its oppressive policies to a halt.
28 oct 2015
By Nada Elia
Two articles in the Washington Post went viral last week, as social media reposted and retweeted them, expressing delight at the fact that a staunchly conservative newspaper would publish not one, but two, back to back articles that were both critical of Israel. Generally, American readers expect every article that shows some sympathy for Palestinians to be followed the very next day by one (or more) that exonerates Israel of any responsibility for its killings.
Such “rebuttals” of the pro-Palestinian perspective blame the latest developments on the failure of the Palestinian Authority to properly subcontract the occupation, or they elaborate on the supposed Palestinian “culture of death”. And Hamas of course always proves a perfect boogeyman. But not this time. This time, the Washington Post published two articles critical of Israel back to back. Commentators suggested that Israel's latest actions are so horrific that even the conservative US media was now willing to publish something about it.
What is noteworthy about the first article in the Washington Post is that it is written by two self-identified “lifelong Zionists,” Professors Steven Levitsky of Harvard University and Glen Weyl of the University of Chicago who strongly denounce the occupation and used their OpEd to announce that they will henceforth boycott Israel.
Distortion of BDS goals
However, in a complete distortion of the goals of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, Levitsky and Weyl endorsed BDS not for the sake of improving the circumstances of oppressed Palestinians, but rather to improve the circumstances of Israel.
The authors write that they are deeply disturbed by the “undemocratic measures” undertaken by Israel; measures they equate with the Occupation of the West Bank - which were presumed temporary, but seem to have “become permanent”.
As such, these “undemocratic measures” are tarnishing Israel’s image, and may lead to its isolation. There is no mention in their OpEd of the impact of these “undemocratic measures” on the Palestinian people, and certainly no suggestion that they started long before 1967.
No concern for the oppressed
Levitsky and Weyl do not mention the 50 Palestinians killed in the past month alone, the thousands kidnapped, the Israeli terrorism unleashed onto the streets as Israeli military forces as well as individual vigilante and lynch mobs are given permission to kill first, with no questions asked later. They show little to no sympathy for the oppressed, the occupied, the unfree, those living under occupation.
Their concern is with the impact of the occupation on Israel. Thus they clarify, lest someone should doubt their loyalty to Israel:
“We recognize that some boycott advocates are driven by opposition to (and even hatred of) Israel. Our motivation is precisely the opposite: love for Israel and a desire to save it.”
BDS activists and organisers repeatedly point out that since BDS is an attempt to make Israel a more just country, it can only work for its benefit, but Levitsky and Weyl seem not to appreciate this argument. Their concern is not even “Israel first,” but “Israel only”.
Therefore they continue: “It is thus, reluctantly but resolutely, that we are refusing to travel to Israel, boycotting products produced there and calling on our universities to divest and our elected representatives to withdraw aid to Israel. Until Israel seriously engages with a peace process that either establishes a sovereign Palestinian state or grants full democratic citizenship to Palestinians living in a single state, we cannot continue to subsidize governments whose actions threaten Israel’s long-term survival.”
The next day, an Israeli writer, novelist Assaf Gavron, also penned a letter that is highly critical of Israel, and its culture of racist violence.
Where is humanity?
Unlike Levitsky and Weyl, Gavron views himself as a “traitor”. Where, one wonders, does his loyalty now lie? Apparently, still with Israel…
“We seem to be in a fast and alarming downward swirl into a savage, unrepairable society,” Gavron writes. “There is only one way to respond to what’s happening in Israel today: we must stop the occupation. Not for peace with the Palestinians or for their sake (though they have surely suffered at our hands for too long). Not for some vision of an idyllic Middle East - those arguments will never end, because neither side will ever budge, or ever be proved wrong by anything. No, we must stop the occupation for ourselves. So that we can look ourselves in the eyes. So that we can legitimately ask for, and receive, support from the world. So that we can return to being human.”
Sadly, these two articles illustrate the very failure of Zionism to recognize the humanity and suffering of the Palestinian people. There is little difference between the “lifelong Zionists” and the self-proclaimed “Israeli traitor” who seeks to preserve Israel so they can still ask for help from the rest of the world for their beloved “undemocratic” and no longer “human” society; and the myopia of blaming Israel’s crimes on the Occupation is way past its expiration date.
Nakba denial
Seeking to salvage “pre-67 Israel” is tantamount to Nakba denial because it conveniently disregards the amply documented fact that most Palestinians were dispossessed in 1948, and that our rights have been violated since 1948. Palestinians lived under military rule within Israel before the occupation, all displaced refugees are denied the Right of Return into pre-occupation Israel, and over 50 laws discriminate against non-Jews in pre-occupation Israel. Pre-occupation Israel was not a democracy, and it is high time everyone stopped romanticizing it as such. Because so long as one blames “The Occupation” for the misery of the Palestinian people, one is denying the history of our dispossession.
And we absolutely must denounce the use of BDS to save Israel. BDS is a strategy to restore the human rights of the Palestinians. Yes, Israel will be redeemed through this restoration, but this should be a collateral victory because BDS is a win-win situation, while Zionism is a zero-sum ideology, as evidenced from its utter disregard, from the very creation of the state of Israel, for the Palestinian experience.
- Nada Elia serves on the steering collective of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel.
The article was published in the Middle East Eye website.
Two articles in the Washington Post went viral last week, as social media reposted and retweeted them, expressing delight at the fact that a staunchly conservative newspaper would publish not one, but two, back to back articles that were both critical of Israel. Generally, American readers expect every article that shows some sympathy for Palestinians to be followed the very next day by one (or more) that exonerates Israel of any responsibility for its killings.
Such “rebuttals” of the pro-Palestinian perspective blame the latest developments on the failure of the Palestinian Authority to properly subcontract the occupation, or they elaborate on the supposed Palestinian “culture of death”. And Hamas of course always proves a perfect boogeyman. But not this time. This time, the Washington Post published two articles critical of Israel back to back. Commentators suggested that Israel's latest actions are so horrific that even the conservative US media was now willing to publish something about it.
What is noteworthy about the first article in the Washington Post is that it is written by two self-identified “lifelong Zionists,” Professors Steven Levitsky of Harvard University and Glen Weyl of the University of Chicago who strongly denounce the occupation and used their OpEd to announce that they will henceforth boycott Israel.
Distortion of BDS goals
However, in a complete distortion of the goals of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, Levitsky and Weyl endorsed BDS not for the sake of improving the circumstances of oppressed Palestinians, but rather to improve the circumstances of Israel.
The authors write that they are deeply disturbed by the “undemocratic measures” undertaken by Israel; measures they equate with the Occupation of the West Bank - which were presumed temporary, but seem to have “become permanent”.
As such, these “undemocratic measures” are tarnishing Israel’s image, and may lead to its isolation. There is no mention in their OpEd of the impact of these “undemocratic measures” on the Palestinian people, and certainly no suggestion that they started long before 1967.
No concern for the oppressed
Levitsky and Weyl do not mention the 50 Palestinians killed in the past month alone, the thousands kidnapped, the Israeli terrorism unleashed onto the streets as Israeli military forces as well as individual vigilante and lynch mobs are given permission to kill first, with no questions asked later. They show little to no sympathy for the oppressed, the occupied, the unfree, those living under occupation.
Their concern is with the impact of the occupation on Israel. Thus they clarify, lest someone should doubt their loyalty to Israel:
“We recognize that some boycott advocates are driven by opposition to (and even hatred of) Israel. Our motivation is precisely the opposite: love for Israel and a desire to save it.”
BDS activists and organisers repeatedly point out that since BDS is an attempt to make Israel a more just country, it can only work for its benefit, but Levitsky and Weyl seem not to appreciate this argument. Their concern is not even “Israel first,” but “Israel only”.
Therefore they continue: “It is thus, reluctantly but resolutely, that we are refusing to travel to Israel, boycotting products produced there and calling on our universities to divest and our elected representatives to withdraw aid to Israel. Until Israel seriously engages with a peace process that either establishes a sovereign Palestinian state or grants full democratic citizenship to Palestinians living in a single state, we cannot continue to subsidize governments whose actions threaten Israel’s long-term survival.”
The next day, an Israeli writer, novelist Assaf Gavron, also penned a letter that is highly critical of Israel, and its culture of racist violence.
Where is humanity?
Unlike Levitsky and Weyl, Gavron views himself as a “traitor”. Where, one wonders, does his loyalty now lie? Apparently, still with Israel…
“We seem to be in a fast and alarming downward swirl into a savage, unrepairable society,” Gavron writes. “There is only one way to respond to what’s happening in Israel today: we must stop the occupation. Not for peace with the Palestinians or for their sake (though they have surely suffered at our hands for too long). Not for some vision of an idyllic Middle East - those arguments will never end, because neither side will ever budge, or ever be proved wrong by anything. No, we must stop the occupation for ourselves. So that we can look ourselves in the eyes. So that we can legitimately ask for, and receive, support from the world. So that we can return to being human.”
Sadly, these two articles illustrate the very failure of Zionism to recognize the humanity and suffering of the Palestinian people. There is little difference between the “lifelong Zionists” and the self-proclaimed “Israeli traitor” who seeks to preserve Israel so they can still ask for help from the rest of the world for their beloved “undemocratic” and no longer “human” society; and the myopia of blaming Israel’s crimes on the Occupation is way past its expiration date.
Nakba denial
Seeking to salvage “pre-67 Israel” is tantamount to Nakba denial because it conveniently disregards the amply documented fact that most Palestinians were dispossessed in 1948, and that our rights have been violated since 1948. Palestinians lived under military rule within Israel before the occupation, all displaced refugees are denied the Right of Return into pre-occupation Israel, and over 50 laws discriminate against non-Jews in pre-occupation Israel. Pre-occupation Israel was not a democracy, and it is high time everyone stopped romanticizing it as such. Because so long as one blames “The Occupation” for the misery of the Palestinian people, one is denying the history of our dispossession.
And we absolutely must denounce the use of BDS to save Israel. BDS is a strategy to restore the human rights of the Palestinians. Yes, Israel will be redeemed through this restoration, but this should be a collateral victory because BDS is a win-win situation, while Zionism is a zero-sum ideology, as evidenced from its utter disregard, from the very creation of the state of Israel, for the Palestinian experience.
- Nada Elia serves on the steering collective of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel.
The article was published in the Middle East Eye website.