Posted on March 13th, 2010 by Marian Houk
A very interesting post by Max Blumenthal: “As the anti-Goldstone, human rights-bashing Lawfare Project’s opening event on March 11 wrapped up, I asked its chairman, Columbia University Law School Dean David Schizer, for an interview. Schizer, who had just attacked the Goldstone Report from the podium, pointedly refused to speak to me and looked for [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Blogging, Gaza, International Humanitarian Law, International Law, Israel, Palestine & Palestinians
Posted on March 13th, 2010 by Marian Houk
In Ramallah, the truth is, one does not feel the worst effects of the Israeli military occupation — most of the time.
But, those who lived here during the re-invasion of Palestinian cities in the West Bank still see the ghosts of the huge Israeli tanks tearing up the pavement and rolling through the streets, turrets [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Palestine & Palestinians
Posted on March 12th, 2010 by Marian Houk
It was a lovely, sunny, warm spring-like morning in Ramallah. It was Friday — the day off work, the day of the Friday prayer for Muslims, who would prefer to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of East Jerusalem, if they could…if they could get a permit.
Friday is also the day of [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Boundaries & Borders, Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Palestine & Palestinians
Posted on March 11th, 2010 by Marian Houk
Fallout continues on Thursday, days after serial Israeli government announcements of settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
Israel’s Kadima Party, led by former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is considering calling a no-confidence vote against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
Kadima won the February 2009 elections by a narrow popular vote, but Livni was [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Boundaries & Borders, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Middle East Peace Process, Negotiators and negotiations, Palestine & Palestinians, USA
Posted on March 9th, 2010 by Marian Houk
In a sharp statement, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, currently on a visit to Israel in which there has been a lot of schmoozing going on (but tomorrow he visits Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah), said tonight that “I condemn the decision by the government of Israel to advance planning for new housing units [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Boundaries & Borders, Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Middle East Peace Process, Negotiators and negotiations, Palestine & Palestinians, USA
Posted on March 9th, 2010 by Marian Houk
A shocking story: Ma’an News Agency reported from Chicago today that “Richard Falk, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, said on Monday the Palestinian Authority (PA) urged him to step down after he criticized the PA’s treatment of a UN war crimes report”.
Ma’an added that Falk “said [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Gaza, Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Palestine & Palestinians, United Nations Agencies and Programmes
Posted on March 9th, 2010 by Marian Houk
According to a report compiled by three senior Haaretz correspondents (Barak Ravid, Akiva Eldar, Avi Issacharoff) published today, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell, who met with the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah yesterday after two days of talks in Israel, “told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Boundaries & Borders, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Middle East Peace Process, Negotiators and negotiations, Palestine & Palestinians, USA
Posted on March 7th, 2010 by Marian Houk
Is that the whole point?
Are these proposed U.S.-led “indirect” talks between Israelis and Palestinians intended only to keep a holding pattern until the Palestinian local and municipal elections scheduled for 17 July?
Voter registration for these Palestinian elections began on Saturday 6 March, and will continue until 16 March.
UPDATE: The P.L.O. Executive Committee has [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Middle East Peace Process, Palestine & Palestinians, USA
Posted on March 6th, 2010 by Marian Houk
Palestinian officials are saying that they were under too much pressure from the Europeans and the Arabs to resist any longer accepting an American proposal to undertake “indirect” or “proximity” talks with Israel after more than a year of no negotiations. “It’s only for four months”, Palestinian officials say, apologetically, with a shrug of [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Boundaries & Borders, Gaza, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Middle East Peace Process, Negotiators and negotiations, Palestine & Palestinians, UN General Assembly, UN Secretary-General, UN Security Council, USA
Posted on February 28th, 2010 by Marian Houk
Where to begin?
Israel’s YNet news website is reporting today that Israel’s State President Shimon Peres “is unpleased by the government’s decision to renovate a selected list of heritage sites – which includes the Cave of the Patriarchs [which is also, for Palestinians and Muslims worldwide, the Ibrahimi or Abraham Mosque in Hebron] and Rachel’s Tomb [...]
No Comments »
Filed under: Boundaries & Borders, Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law, Israel, Palestine & Palestinians
