Montréal (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – The Jewish holiday of Purim, related in the Book of Esther, celebrates deliverance from a genocide. How to celebrate it when death and starvation kill thousands in Gaza, and the holiday’s rhetoric, namely the memory of the archenemy Amalek, is being used by Israeli politicians responsible for it? […]
Archives for March 2024
Jared Kushner’s Shameful Remarks on Gaza: “I would do my best to move the people out”
( Middle East Monitor ) – “It’s unfortunate that no one’s taking in the refugees,” lamented former White House advisor during the Trump administration Jared Kushner. He made his comment during an interview at Harvard University last month. The reason? Gaza is being eyed as potential space for valuable waterfront property, so why shouldn’t Israel […]
If America were a Trumpian Autocracy: The Lies we’d be Told about War (and so much Else)
( Tomdispatch.com ) – We should already be talking about what it would be like, if Donald Trump wins the 2024 election, to live under a developing autocracy. Beyond the publicized plans of those around him to gut the federal civil service system and consolidate power in the hands of You Know Who, under Trump […]
The Prospect of Mass Famine in Gaza is beginning to Change Minds in Washington
By Jonathan Este, The Conversation | – (The Conversation) – As the casualty count on the Gaza Strip approaches 32,000 people, in itself a terrible and distressing statistic, another number also stood out this week. It is reported that in the past week, more than 100 aid workers have been killed. Twenty-three on March 19 […]
Is Canada’s Decision to cut Arms Sales to Israel a Bellwether for NATO?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The vote in the Canadian parliament this week to halt new arms exports to Israel is of great symbolic importance in ways that may not be apparent on the surface. The measure called for no new arms and military technology transfers to Israel, for support for the International Court of […]
New Islands are being built at Sea – But they won’t Help Millions made Homeless by sea-level Rise
By Alastair Bonnett, Newcastle University | Dubai’s famous Palm Jumeirah is not the only man-made island to have emerged from the sea this century. Over the past 20 years, many islands have been built to accommodate both tourists and well-heeled residents – especially in the Arabian Gulf states and China. In an era of sea-level […]
Israeli Violations of Academic Freedom in the occupied Palestinian Territories
Committee on Academic Freedom | Middle East Studies Association Joseph R. Biden President of the United States Volker Türk UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Ambassador Omar Zniber President, UN Human Rights Council Francesca Albanese UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories Dear President Biden, High Commissioner Türk, Ambassador Zniber, and […]
In Zionist Academia there is No Room for Dissent
By Sonia Boulos and Lior Sternfeld | – Madrid and State College, Pa. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – In a statement from March 12, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem announced the suspension of Professor Nadera Shalhoub Kevorkian, an internationally renowned Palestinian scholar and a faculty member in the Law School and School of Social […]
The Man who Disproved Trump’s Election Fraud Claims Looks at the Problems with New York’s Voter Data
Barrington, RI (Special to Informed Comment) – If the oldest human alive is 116, how did 368 118-year-olds vote in New York in 2020? Election districts that do a terrible job identifying their voters expose their state to problems far beyond a few votes by individuals with impossible ages. Consider that in 2020 New York […]