MetaFilter posts tagged with palestine and westbank

"If there is a third intifada, we want to be the ones who started it."

andoatnp — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:09:13 -0800

"Is This Where the Third Intifada Will Start?"
"One village in the West Bank tests the limits of unarmed resistance."

"An Uncovered Woman and Beatle-Haired Men Will Never Liberate Our Holy Places."

zarq — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 08:34:56 -0800

From the BBC blog of documentary filmmaker Adam Curtis: "Save Your Kisses For Me: How the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and the Israeli Right became co-dependents in an abusive relationship." Includes images / film clips from the BBC news archive. Curtis: Pre vio usly on Meta fil ter)

"He is no longer his own person."

zarq — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 07:32:52 -0800

The Checkpoint. An essay which looks inside the conflicted mind of an Israeli soldier, stationed at a West Bank checkpoint. By Oded Na'aman, currently a student in the Philosophy PhD program at Harvard University, who served in the Israeli Defense Forces from November 2000 to October 2003. Mr. Na'aman is also a member of Breaking the Silence, a website that gathers and publishes anonymous testimonials from IDF soldiers -- combat veterans -- about their experiences and the realities of life in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza.

“I had reached the point of no return. You finally get fed up … I finally wanted to speak the truth.”

zarq — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 10:47:40 -0800

Last year, the unofficial Dean of the White House Press Corps, Helen Thomas, spoke about the State of Israel on camera. (Previously) Her replies: "Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine," and that the Jews "can go home" to "Poland, Germany and America and everywhere else," sparked media outrage, prompted her to issue an apology and retire. After months of being out of the the public spotlight, she has now given her first long-form interview, which will appear in the April issue of Playboy Magazine. In it, she explains what she meant, tells us how she would like to be remembered and expands upon her positions regarding Israel, Jewish political influence, Presidents Bush and Obama, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Avatar Activism, The Harry Potter Alliance, and Pop Culture Fandom as the gateway to Social Activism

filthy light thief — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:04:09 -0800

Back in February 2010, Palestinian activists dressed up as Na'vi and Avatars to bring more attention to the weekly protests against the West Bank barrier. Video of the costumed protest was edited to blend with Avatar footage, to emphasize the protesters' message. In another pop-culture world, The Harry Potter Alliance have run campaigns that tie themes from the stories to real-world issues, in an effort to translate the energy of fans into energy to get active in civil engagement, including a a fundraiser in January that raise raised $34,000 to support Haiti relief efforts. These efforts have been labeled "Avatar Activism," as discussed in a a recent Le Monde diplomatique article and a related piece on NPR. The article from Le Monde diplomatique likened the current costumed and themed activism to the Native American disguises of the Boston Tea Party and the Mardi Gras Indians in New Orleans. Another campaign from The Harry Potter Alliance included collaboration with MassEqaulity, a Massachusetts LGBT group, to "Wrock 4 Equality." The groups put on a a Harry Potter-themed concert, and a "House Cup Competition" to get members active phone banks, to raise points for their chosen house. Avatar imagery and themes were used in a campaign not related to the Palestinian protest. In February, as an ad appealing to Avatar director James Cameron was published in the film industry magazine Variety, on behalf of the Dongria Kondh tribe in eastern India. In July, people dressed as Avatar characters to bring more attention to the actions of the major mining company, Vedanta Resources, against "the real Avatar tribe" of the Dongria Kondh. Then in August of this year, India blocked Vedanta's project to mine one of the tribe's sacred hills.

BBC interview with Hassan Yousef's son prior to his book launch

Neekee — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:40:09 -0800

'Son of Hamas' who spied for Israel

Globalization is Weird

cal71 — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:12:54 -0800

Avatar goes to the West Bank. What better way to express your peoples' long-standing grievances against military occupation than a little James Cameron inspired role playing? Every week for the past five years, Palestinian activists in the village of Bil'in have mounted a protest against what they call the Apartheid Fence and what Israel calls the Security Barrier. They are often joined by international activists and left-leaning Israelis. This week, they've decided to add the Na'avi to their list of allies. They aren't the first.

For Thirty Euros, A Palestinian Artist Will Tag The West Bank Wall For You

Fiasco da Gama — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 21:24:52 -0800

For €30, a Palestinian artist will tag the West Bank wall for you.

Hampshire Divests from Israel?

lunit — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 08:12:16 -0800

Did Hampshire College Become the First to Divest from Israel? It is being reported that Hampshire has divested from 6 corporations that provide Israel with military equipment and services in the Occupied West Bank and Gaza. Students for Justice in Palestine claim success. But the University claims that the decision had "nothing to do with Israel." This move is being hailed as a landmark victory by the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign which calls on "people of conscience all over the world to impose broad boycotts and implement divestment initiatives against Israel similar to those applied to South Africa in the apartheid era."

this body is a prison

Tryptophan-5ht — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 00:52:44 -0800

this body is a prison (google video link)
Go behind the scenes of media coverage of the West Bank and enter a world where terror is a daily reality. Against the backdrop of this politically tumultuous environment there emerges a deeply layered story of a nation fractured by walls both physical and internalized.

Professor of Psychology Khalil Issa discusses the existential dilemmas faced by Palestinian youth as they attempt to develop a sense of self in a land carved by war.

B'Tselem's Map of Jewish Settlements in the West Bank

y2karl — Fri, 03 Sep 2004 22:38:48 -0800

B'Tselem's Map of Jewish Settlements in the West Bank is an incredible graphic. It'sa 612 KB jpeg but the PDF, which is 1,609 KB has even more amazing detail. Here is the directory for all their images and maps. As you can see, it is quite comprehensive. Here is the Full Fence Mag in English, for instance. Again, the PDF is even more detailed. Here is the summary of B'Tselem's May 2002 report Land Grab: Israel's Settlement Policy in the West Bank. The report is to the summary as the PDF is to the jpeg.
B'Tselem is The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. Warning: While the pages linked are in English, the site itself is bi-lingual, so expect many a prompt for a Hebrew text download.

The Wall of Separation

Ty Webb — Tue, 24 Jun 2003 10:03:51 -0800

Israel calls it a Separation Fence. Others refer to it as the Apartheid Wall. Whatever one calls it, and however one justifies it, there is no doubt that this barrier swoops many kilometers into the West Bank, claiming valuable water sources and arable land for Israeli settlers, destroying Palestinian homes and communities in the process.

Israel weighs response to attacks

specialk420 — Sun, 04 Aug 2002 21:46:35 -0800

Israel weighs response to attacks after the strike on the hamas leader and the collateral damage caused in that attack - a friend of mine and i discussed that it seemed like the people who should be most upset were the relatives and friends of the as of yet undead/injured in the next retaliatory attack... when is the senselessness of the cycle of violence going become clear?

donkeyschlong — Fri, 05 Jul 2002 18:17:37 -0800

"When the Israeli army was asked to comment on the footage, it refused."

Zurishaddai — Fri, 28 Jun 2002 19:42:33 -0800

The far right's success in setting the national agenda is provoking an identity crisis for Israel. Radical settlers are effectively in the driver's seat and are redefining Zionism in terms that threaten the future of a Jewish state. Meanwhile, demographics is a hotter issue than ever in Israel, as Israelis on the right and left struggle with the questions "Can Israel be a Jewish and democratic state? Is there any such animal?" [More inside.]

Non-religious Israeli settlers are financially trapped,

mediareport — Tue, 25 Jun 2002 17:59:03 -0800

Non-religious Israeli settlers are financially trapped, argues a sympathetic Tel Aviv University professor. He slams Ha'aretz Daily for constantly urging Jewish settlers to just move out, "as if people who somehow managed to buy a cheap housing unit in a settlement could simply leave it behind and buy another house somewhere else." Seems that for a lot of settlers, financial benefits like reduced income taxes and generous loans are more important enticements than appeals to biblical righteousness. Too bad the "doubly cheated" and heavily villified settlers can't get any financial help when they decide to move back. The solution? "Jews in America and world-wide should therefore use their money to support settlers who wish to leave the occupied territories and return to Israel."

'Cambridge Students Beaten by Israeli Army'

chrismear — Sat, 27 Apr 2002 07:03:56 -0800

'Cambridge Students Beaten by Israeli Army' Three of my fellow students spent their Easter vacation on the West Bank as unofficial international observers. In the course of accompanying Palestinian medics to a refugee camp, with medical supplies and food, they were allegedly stopped and beaten by Israeli troops.
While their actions are undoubtedly noble and brave ("we are doing the job the UN should be doing"), the Israeli embassy suggests that "whilst the intentions were geniune, (their) actions have been misguided."
I can't decide what to think. (more inside)

"We're press! Don't shoot!"

ZachsMind — Wed, 03 Apr 2002 10:08:41 -0800

"We're press! Don't shoot!" Isn't PRESS on a flak jacket like painting bullseyes on your butt? The Israel Defense Forces have declared Bethlehem, Qalqiliya and Ramallah officially off-limits, and journalists will either be forcibly removed or in some cases shot on sight. The Committee to Protect Journalists is just one of many organizations speaking out against the unethical treatment of First Ammendment fighters throughout the world. Like this is gonna help. Should enemies of freedom be expected to 'play fair' or should we just accept that some journalists are going to die? Is it possible to investigate the truth right now in the West Bank, or are journalists needlessly putting their lives on the line for nothing?

A Good Summary,

ParisParamus — Mon, 18 Mar 2002 06:04:44 -0800

A Good Summary, albeit in the form of a NYPost Editorial, as to why Israel should ignore 95% of the criticism it gets regarding it's current policy towards negotiating withdrawal from the West Bank and Gaza. President Bush: are you listening?

What now? Fashion profiling?

semmi — Wed, 20 Feb 2002 08:49:29 -0800

What now? Fashion profiling? (NYT) For the third time in 48 hours, an alert Israeli foiled an attempted suicide bombing on Tuesday. Near the West Bank settlement of Mehola in the Jordan Valley, a bus driver, Shalom Drei, thought a man climbing onto the second step of the bus looked suspicious. "He wore an aviator's jacket, zipped all the way up," Mr. Drei told Israeli television. "It looked strange to me." Mr. Drei pushed the stranger back off the bus, then, as the bus pulled away, the man exploded.

The US dedication to blocking peace.

raaka — Sat, 15 Dec 2001 00:19:19 -0800

The US dedication to blocking peace. “It was the second time in less than a year that the United States had used its veto power to effectively kill a resolution that would create a monitoring mechanism for the protection of Palestinian civilians.”

A 10-year-old Palestinian girl was killed when Israel tanks fired at a school during a raid on the West Bank town of Jenin.

Mossy — Thu, 18 Oct 2001 10:36:12 -0800

A 10-year-old Palestinian girl was killed when Israel tanks fired at a school during a raid on the West Bank town of Jenin. ??? Wtf? Ok, so its the usual retaliatory attacks for the killing discussed yesterday, but this is just nasty, schools, hospitals, red cross compounds, things like those shouldn't be fired at.

m.polo — Mon, 14 May 2001 05:45:01 -0800

"Peace? Peace? We don' need no steenken' peace!" Israel rejects freeze on continued building of illegal settlements in West Bank and Gaza; Apocalypse at eleven...

Email romance led Israeli teenager to his death?

holgate — Thu, 18 Jan 2001 16:15:27 -0800

Email romance led Israeli teenager to his death? A classic honey-trap given a modern twist. Awful, just awful.

tiaka — Thu, 16 Nov 2000 06:05:48 -0800

When headlines go bad : Missiles Hit West Bank Towns (Reuters) - Israel launched overnight missile strikes on five West Bank towns, killing a German resident, and Prime Minister Ehud Barak.