Committee on Academic Freedom | Middle East Studies Association of North America | – Abdelkader Sinno Indiana University Samia Halaby Rahul Shrivastav, Provost and Executive Vice President provost@indiana.edu Rick Van Kooten, Executive Dean, College of Arts and Sciences rvankoot@indiana.edu . . . Dear Provost Shrivastav and colleagues: We write on behalf of the […]
Archives for January 2024
Food as a Weapon of War: The Crime of Starvation in Gaza
Istanbul (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – On October 7, 2023, the day after Hamas’ attack on Israeli civilians, the Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, announced a “complete siege” on already besieged Gaza that often described as the “largest open-air prison” with 2.2 million people squeezed into a small tract of land that had been […]
Iran: Chokehold on Dissent
Human Rights Watch – (Beirut) – Iranian authorities show no signs of ending their brutal repression of peaceful dissent across the country one year after nationwide protests that erupted after the death in morality police custody of Mahsa Jina Amini in September 2022, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2024. The authorities […]
Artists Bring Human Richness at Times of Strife – and must be allowed to Speak about the Israel and Gaza
By Lowell Gasoi, Carleton University | – The current Israel-Hamas war has dominated the news for the past few months. As reports of military machinations and diplomatic efforts have gained attention, the art world has struggled with responses to the horrors of this war. For example, controversy and calls for transparency and accountability followed the […]
Israeli-Made Famine: Denial of Food Aid could Kill 22,000 Palestinians this Month, Half of them Children
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that Israeli airstrikes and ground operations continued over the weekend in Gaza and says, “Between the afternoons of 12 and 14 January, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, 260 Palestinians were reportedly killed, and another 577 people […]
Setting the Record Straight: Weaponizing Antisemitism to Cancel Academic Free Speech
( Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette) – As someone who believes deeply in human rights for all, who has spent a great deal of time in Palestine and Israel and cares a great deal about the people there, and who is very concerned and grieved about the loss of life in Israel on Oct. 7 and […]
Trump and the End of the American Century
( Tomdispatch.com ) – With recent polls giving Donald Trump a reasonable chance of defeating President Biden in the November elections, commentators have begun predicting what his second presidency might mean for domestic politics. In a dismally detailed Washington Post analysis, historian Robert Kagan argued that a second Trump term would feature his “deep thirst […]
Gaza: 400K Rally in DC against “Genocide Joe;” Massive Protests in Johannesburg, London, other Capitals
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Millions of protesters came out around the world on Saturday, answering the call of Palestinian activists to rally against the ongoing Israeli attack on Gaza on a “Global Day of Action for Palestine.” Close to home, an estimated 400,000 demonstrated in Washington, D.C., and scattered what looked like bloodied dolls […]
What enforcement power does the International Court of Justice have in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel?
By Victor Peskin, Arizona State University | – South Africa says that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and has asked the International Court of Justice to intervene and stop Israeli military action in Gaza. Israel issued its initial defense to South Africa’s charges on Jan. 12, 2024, at the International Court of […]
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