Moshe Arens argues that it is “wrong to push out Israeli settlers”, relating this “gross miscarriage of justice” to the expulsion of Japanese citizens of the United States from their homes during World War II.
Moreover, Arens fails to make any mention of the Palestinians forced from their homes. He also fails to discuss international law, claiming that the legal status of the Palestinian territories is “ill-defined”.
All in all, Arens’s opinion piece, published in Haaretz on May 1, is truly one of the most backwards things I’ve read. I challenge Arens to respond.
It is blaringly obvious that Aren’s analogy between Israeli settlers and U.S. citizens of Japanese descents just doesn’t make sense. We’re dealing with two entirely different situations. During World War II, Japanese Americans were forced from their homes and, in most cases, caged in internment camps. These individuals held U.S. citizenship and lived within U.S. borders. It was a time of egregious chaos in which the rights of American citizens were viciously denied. [Read more...]
This is the year of the prisoner, a year that has already seen and accomplished much more than any year of “negotiations”. The Palestinian people have chosen to work against the system of occupation and apartheid, not with it. As the Palestinian Authority just moments ago submitted yet another series of ‘delegatory demands’ to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, Khader Adnan addressed a crowd in his hometown of Jenin, pledging his full support to the 4,700 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails and specifically to the thousands starving themselves for the rest to remain.
Forcing a C-section in prison: Israel’s systematic abuse of Palestinian women
The world has taken a keen interest lately in the status of women in the Middle East. Initially, the emphasis seems to have followed the Western narrative that Arab men inherently hate Arab women. The discourse, however, is shifting rapidly as more and more people are beginning to identify the sources—overwhelmingly institutional and political rather than religious—of gender inequity. So why aren’t people calling into question Israel’s treatment of Arab women? Does this flagrant dismissal of the female agency not qualify for anything? Samah Isbeh’s disturbing experience in the pit of an Israeli jail forces open these questions once and for all.
Samah Isbeh, now 28, was arrested and detained six years ago by Israeli authorities for participating in student protests at the Islamic University. She was sentenced to two and a half years in prison and her husband, who played no role in the protests, was arrested two days later and sentenced to nine months behind bars.
Samah and her Tulkarm-based husband married just three months before their incarcerations. Samah was a few weeks into her first pregnancy when Israeli soldiers entered her husband’s home and carried her away.
For 66 days, Samah was held in an underground cell in solitary confinement. According to her interview with RT News, she was tortured and humiliated in a variety of ways. At times, the cell was made unbearably cold, posing a severe health risk to Samah and her unborn child. Israeli prison guards also forced her to “balance” on a children’s chair. Although “balance” is unspecified, it is logical to assume it was uncomfortable and dehumanizing. Maybe it was a sick joke, having a pregnant woman interact with children’s toys that her unborn child might never get a chance to play with if her abusers continued unchecked. [Read more...]