vjp-global

https://972mag.com/palestinian-struggle-civil-rights-movement-gaza/139624/ The Great Return March signals a shift for the Palestinian people, says scholar Tareq Baconi. Palestinians are no longer fighting for a state, and are increasingly demanding their full rights — primarily the right of return. Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article224093610.html   Rabbis, politicians, activists and others gathered Tuesday night to find common ground in the aftermath of a Durham City Council statement on policing that some saw as anti-Semitic.   Some are still disappointed at the outcome.   The council approved a policy statement in April 2018 that put the city on record opposing military-style police training with foreign countries. The statement, which mentioned only Israel by name, has drawn criticism, international attention and two lawsuits. The city's Human Relations Commission has now weighed in, too, with a report on the statement it says caused tension in the community.   But after months of discussions and a final three-hour meeting and vote on their report, commission members stopped short of asking the council to remove the reference to Israel, even though an earlier version of their report did…[The commission made a number of recommendations affir...

https://therealnews.com/stories/durham-nc-becomes-first-city-to-ban-training-by-israeli-police-and-then-be-forced-to-reconsider-it Jazmynne Williams [of Demilitarize Durham2Palestine and others in the coalition] discuss the organizing efforts underway to ensure the ban remains.   Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

https://mondoweiss.net/2018/12/killing-paramedic-forward/   …This time, the Times came right out and said its inquiry showed that ". . . the shooting [of Rouzan al-Najjar] appears to have been reckless at best, and possibly a war crime, for which no one has yet been punished." The paper waited until the 9th paragraph to say this, but better late than never.   This improved Times coverage is no accident. The paper understands that its reading public is growing steadily more informed about Israel/Palestine, partly due to alternative news sources like this site. Public comments sections that follow some Times reports show that readers will no longer accept one-sided pro-Israel coverage.   Back to Rouzan al-Najjar, the murdered young Gazan health worker. Despite the considerable improvement, the Times investigation had major flaws….   Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

https://972mag.com/dont-believe-the-hype-the-israeli-right-is-weaker-than-it-seems/139413/ The right had a decade to annex the West Bank, quash Palestinian aspirations, and thwart Hamas in Gaza. Yet today, more than ever, its invincibility is anything but certain… Even the most hardline right wingers understand that the Palestinians have not and will not give in, despite their political weakness…This doesn't mean that the right will not form the next government. It is still the most viable political option. But it does mean that, despite having every opportunity to do so, the Israeli right has not been able to change the political reality vis-à-vis the Palestinians. That is its weakness, not its strength. Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

  https://972mag.com/israels-upcoming-elections-will-have-plenty-of-surprises-in-store/139368/ Israeli voters will head to the polls in three-and-a-half months to elect a new government. Here's what that means, and where the elections may go... First, the current government has essentially maxed out its four-year term, and Netanyahu will be credited with generating relative stability in Israel's notorious political jungle. .. Second,  Currently, the portion of all Israelis who call themselves right wing stands at around 46 percent — among the Jewish population, that's just over half... The number of self-defined centrists is roughly one-quarter, and the portion of left-wingers is stable at about one-fifth (about 14 to 15 percent of the Jewish population). Overall, most polls show a slight plurality of right-wingers, versus the center-left bloc. Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/12/24/the-pernicious-walls-in-bethlehem-palestine-and-around-the-world/ ...The little Drummer Boy has morphed into a brutal perpetual war mongering adult; Joy has been robbed from the world, especially from the weak, oppressed, and the 65+ million refugees around the world; the many faithful are flocking to the shopping centers; climate change is creeping on a midnight not so clear; there are no Wise Men in the East or, for that matter, anywhere around the world; and the Little Town of Beit Lahem, even under dire circumstances, is beckoning us, on this Silent Night, to come together as faithful citizens of this world, women and men of good will and peace on earth... Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member