Wilson Dizard reports from Cleveland, OH where the Republican convention is about to get underway. He writes, “This election is a battle between two of the most corrupt political ideologies. And they have voters jumping through rationalization hoops to justify voting for two of the most unpopular candidates a primary season has ever produced.”
“We regret to inform you that your application was not accepted.” This message has been received by almost every Palestinian from Gaza who has applied for what is called a “non-objection” letter from Jordan since last August. Such a letter is required before a Palestinian can cross into Jordan from the West Bank to fly out of Amman to other locations. With the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt closed most of the time, the Jordan route is about the only way for Gazans to travel out for university abroad and other opportunities.
Reflecting on life after neoconservatism, Scott McConnell says he demonstrated against the Iraq war with Code Pink but that the alliance between national interest types and leftwingers may be coming apart because fears of another US war have ebbed and the two groups split over immigration and identity politics.
From July 26th to 28th Palestinian physicists and the international group “Scientists for Palestine,” are organizing the first ever ‘Palestinian Advanced Physics School’ at the Arab American University in Jenin. Professor Stephen Hawking, a member of the project’s International Advisory Board, says “Physics does not respect borders and international collaborations are the engines of rapid scientific progress. I am delighted to see that physics education and research in Palestine continues to grow and strengthen its international connections. I wish the students the best of luck!”
Palestinian prisoner Bilal Kayid was rushed to a hospital in Ashkelon, Israel, after his health suddenly deteriorated, as he entered his 33rd day of hunger strike, according to the Palestinian Committee for Prisoners’ Affairs. Meanwhile, some 37 Palestinians prisoners have begun open hunger strikes in solidarity with Kayid.
The Iran deal is still assailed by US hardliners, who don’t even hide their efforts: Adam Szubin, Obama’s under secretary of the treasury for Iranian sanctions, parrots Netanyahu’s claim that Iran is the biggest sponsor of terror in the world and speaks at neoconservative thinktanks without any consequences.
Yahya Hisham Hijazi, 24, from Shu‘fat refugee camp in occupied Jerusalem, who was injured by nine Israeli army bullets [on Thursday 14 July], became the latest victim of Israel’s security obsession and paranoia, under allegations that became known to the Palestinians, claims of “carrying a knife,” that continue to be used as a direct justification of the military’s open fire orders.
The Israel lobby is alive and well. As the Republicans beg Sheldon Adelson to help pay for the convention, Hillary Clinton is said to be vetting retired admiral James Stavridis as a possible veep. Now a dean at Tufts, he opposed the Iran deal.
Relatives of four Israeli-Americans and one American tourists killed in Israel and the occupied West Bank between 2014 and June 2016 are suing Facebook for $1 billion in damages, claiming the social media site promotes “terrorism” and “knowingly and intentionally assisted” in the deaths.
A Palestinian computer engineer has put together a chilling game for smartphones, which shows the struggle of Gazan civilians to survive Israel’s 2014 onslaught. Rasheed Abueideh, creator of “Liyla and The Shadows of War” says he wants to provoke an emotional reaction from players. “[The purpose of the game is] to make people cry,” he says. “It’s to show the facts in the war and the effect of war on the civilians and on children.”