Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in danger of being brought down, possibly soon, over what initially appears to be little more than an imprudent taste for Cuban cigars and pink champagne. In truth, however, the allegations ensnaring Netanyahu reveal far more than his personal flaws or an infatuation with the high life. They shine a rare light on the corrupt nexus between Israel’s business, political and media worlds, compounded by the perverse influence of overseas Jewish money.
Longtime White House mediator Dennis Ross wants to restore “a sense of belief, which has been lost,” in two state solution. But his and David Makovsky’s proposal would authorize Israeli seizure of East Jerusalem and end any possibility of Palestinian state.
The White House has dismissed the use of the term “Muslim ban” to describe the executive order signed by President Trump Friday that temporarily suspended the entry of travelers and refugees with origins from seven Muslim majority nations. But then why is the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv telling non-Muslims from those same countries they can still travel to the U.S.?
The owner of al-Nour Publishing House in Ramallah, Khaled Musaffar, said Israeli forces ransacked the office the night of Jan. 30, and confiscated four printers as well as a computer. All of the equipment that remains in al-Nour was irreparably damaged during the raid.
On Saturday, February 4, New Yorkers will protest Batsheva Dance Company’s evening performance at Brooklyn Academy of Music due to their role as a cultural ambassador for the Israeli government. The protest will call for a boycott of Israeli cultural institutions like Batsheva that are complicit in Israel’s human rights violations.
Once again the NYT covers up the illegal nature of Israeli settlements, suggesting the world has it out for Israel. ‘World leaders have denounced the settlements in the West Bank.” The Times should say that the settlements are considered a flagrant violation of international law– or tell us why that’s not the case.
Many Jewish groups slamming Trump for his anti-refugee stance have a similar view of Palestinian refugees: they would undermine Israel “as a homeland for the Jewish people”
Little is known about the “Global Coalition for Israel,” an effort by the Israeli government to bring together pro-Israel organizations from 25 countries to fight BDS. But despite the project’s semi-covert nature, it is possible to understand its aims.
The Palestine Philharmonie aims to create a cultural entity, a “City of Music”, that will offer a variety of intercultural music-related activities and events, not least by establishing Palestine’s first permanent professional orchestra in Bethlehem.