2019

Why Hunger Strikes? Most of the 800,000 Palestinians who have cycled through Israeli Jails haven’t Committed a Crime

One of the many ways in which Israel seeks to oppress and control the Palestinian population is by imprisoning those who lead the resistance to its occupation and settler colonialist project. In Palestine, a Palestinian prisoner in an Israeli jail is referred to as “aseer“, or captive, because he or she is not a criminal. […]

Democratic Party

The Democrats can Crush unpopular Trump in 2020, but only if they Run to the Left

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – A new CNN/SSRS poll of about 1,000 people shows that among a random sample of registered voters, Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden each crush Trump by 6 to 7 points, even at this very early point in the campaign. Kamala Harris also wins, but by a smaller margin. This poll […]

Democratic Socialism

The GOP is Demonizing the Left in New Red Scare, but US Public wants . . . Socialism

Jim Hightower

(Otherwords) – The policies Republicans smear as Stalinist are a good deal more popular than their own. By Jim Hightower | May 1, 2019 “Socialism,” snarled Donald Trump at a recent pep rally of far-right Republicans. The obedient crowd of Trumpistas snarled back in unison: So-sh’ll-izz-ummm! There you have the entire intellectual content of the […]

Arab Spring

How the Mideast Officer Corps and Trump derailed the Arab Spring– and Hope

Rebecca Gordon

( Tomdispatch.com ) – “Al-Shebab,” said my student Jerry early in the fall 2010 semester. “We’re calling our small group al-Shebab. It means ‘The Youth.’” From his name alone, I wouldn’t have guessed his background, but he was proud of his family’s Egyptian roots and had convinced his classmates to give their group an Arabic […]

Israel/ Palestine

Did Saudi Arabia offer Palestine Pres. Mahmoud Abbas Billions to bow to Kushner ‘Deal of Century’?

Maan News Agency

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Saudi Arabia offered Palestinian Authority (PA) $10 billion to accept the United States’ so-called “Deal of the Century,” according to Lebanon’s Al-Akhbar news outlet, on Thursday. Sources said that during a meeting, on Wednesday, between Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Salman briefed Abbas about the details […]

Featured

Super-Majority of Arab Youth in New Poll say Religion too Important in Public Life

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – A just-released survey of youth (aged 18-24) in 16 Arab countries has found that 66% of them say there is too much religion in public life. Further, fully 79%, almost 4 in 5, say that the Arab world desperately needs to reform its religious institutions. Fully half said that religion […]

Yemen

The Yemen War is one of the Most Destructive since the Cold War: UN

Middle East Monitor

A recent UN report sheds light on the devastating humanitarian and economic impact of the war in Yemen and how it sets back human development there more than 20 years, Anadolu reports. The report by the organization’s development program (UNDP) highlights the humanitarian situation there, which was one of the worst in the world even […]

Bill of Rights

Why the Assange indictment is a Threat to the US First Amendment

The Conversation

By Ofer Raban | – A British court on Wednesday sentenced Julian Assange to almost a year in prison for jumping bail. That’s not the end of Assange’s legal problems: On May 2, Assange, the co-founder of WikiLeaks, will appear at a London court in relation to his requested extradition to the U.S. The American […]

Israel/ Palestine

Slo-Mo Ethnic Cleansing: Israel has forced 3,000 Palestinians from their Jerusalem Homes in 15 Years

Maan News Agency

JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem revealed that Israeli authorities forced around 3,000 Palestinians from their homes in occupied East Jerusalem between 2004 and 2019. B’Tselem published a report, stating, “The Jerusalem Municipality demolished 830 residential units, and 120 more were demolished by their owners on the municipality’s orders.” B’Tselem stressed, “The municipality […]

Archives for 2019