Israel had its worst week in a long time in the US discourse. The two-state consensus is now in a complete shambles, with many Americans on both right and left beginning to advocate for one democratic state in Israel and Palestine, which of course would mean the end of what Benjamin Netanyahu calls “the one and only Jewish state.”
Haider Eid says the rise of the BDS movement, the eruption of the Great March of Return, and the outpouring of demonstrations against Israel are in complete contradiction to the Palestinian leadership who still hold up the Oslo peace process and the two state solution at Palestinian’s ultimate goal. Eid says there is a strong need for an alternative program that makes the De-Osloization of Palestine its first priority.
The New York University Student Government Assembly passed a resolution calling for the university to divest from corporations that violate Palestinian human rights and for NYU to adopt a socially responsible investment policy that upholds human rights for all. “I co-authored this resolution because I have a role and stake in the Palestinian struggle for liberation and justice,” Bayan Abubakr, a Senator-at-Large and Students for Justice in Palestine NYU member explained. “I want NYU to reckon with the fact that it profits off of the destruction of Palestinian livelihoods, communities, and homes.”
When activists learned that the Northampton, MA, police chief had accepted an invitation from the Anti-Defamation League to train with Israeli “counter-terrorism” experts, they mobilized and the chief decided not to go. The ADL is seeking to enforce a highly-politicized mission of supporting Israel on law enforcement agencies that are supposed to be above partisanship. More and more police forces in the Northeast are declining to go.
Nada Elia says that one of the more encouraging aspects of the BDS victories over 2018 was that most were accomplished by local individuals, groups, and coalitions with no direct involvement from the “leaders” of the BDS movement. These victories illustrate that the years of political discussion that were catalyzed by the 2005 Palestinian call for BDS against Israel are bearing fruit.
Airbnb’s decision to pull listings in Israeli settlements has shed light on another service that offers listing in illegal colonies in the West Bank – Booking.com, which does not seem inclined to act similarly. It seeks to avoid a storm, which is surely coming anyway.
Airbnb’s pulling of listings in Israeli illegal settlements in the West Bank is highly selective. But Israeli leaders are viewing it as a total attack on Israel, and have plans to punish Airbnb. They are making the case for a comprehensive boycott of Israel as a whole, per the BDS campaign; for the government is utterly dedicated to the settlement enterprise.
Airbnb will no longer host rentals for stays in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The company said it will “evaluate whether the existence of listings is contributing to existing human suffering.” The announcement came one day before Human Rights Watch is schedule to release a lengthy report on vacation rentals in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Academics and activists say anti-Semitism conference at University of Vienna is promoting speakers who are “an embarrassing mistake, or as an attempt to promote the broadest possible academic discussion, but the co-sponsorship of the event by the Israeli Embassy, and the choice of an embassy official for the opening address are simply unacceptable.”
“In light of the white supremacist violence in Pittsburg, I feel more compelled to pursue this resolution in the name of justice. I understand that my liberation, as a Jewish person, is tied up with the liberation of Palestinians. Our only safety is through solidarity.” – Rose Asaf, Senator at-Large and Jewish Voice for Peace-NYU