Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Dr Ramzy Baroud
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Normalisation under occupation: How Israel understands the Arab Peace Initiative
Once more, the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002 is taking centre stage. Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas insisted during his speech before the recently-concluded Arab League Summit in Jordan that the initiative is the only solution on the table; asserting that it will not be changed or even...
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The next phase in the war on BDS: Why Israel detained Omar Barghouti
The Israeli state has violated international law more than any other country, yet has rarely, if ever, been held accountable for its crimes and misconduct. Israel’s successful public relations campaigns through its ever-willing western media partners, coupled with the relentless work and pressure carried out by its powerful backers in...
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‘Decolonising the mind’: Using Hollywood celebrities to validate Islam
When Terry Holdbrooks Jr. converted to Islam in 2003 he was inundated with death threats and labelled a “race traitor”. If a religious conversion ever deserves to be admired, Holdbrooks’ conversion does, and not because Islam has “won” yet another convert, but because the new convert was assigned the very...
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‘Web of Weirdness’: US and Israeli Codependent Relationship is Not Just about Money
“We must look back 25 years to realise how far Israel has fallen in world support,” wrote famed Jewish scholar, Harvard sociologist, Nathan Glazer in 1976. In the last 40 years since Glazer wrote his piece, which was uncovered and publicised by Philip Weiss, Israel’s global support has fallen much...
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Only the Israeli dead matter: Israel's failure at investigating its bloody wars
At a glance, Israel appears a true democracy. Take a closer look and that facade of democracy will soon dissipate, turning into something else entirely. Tuesday 28 February was one of those moments. The chain of events was as follows: An official Israeli State Comptroller issued another report on the Israeli...
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Descendants of slaves, forerunners of justice: American Muslims must stop apologising
I have recently been asked to give a talk about “Being an American Muslim in the United States”. Although wary of the uses and abuses of the term, I obliged. Islam is a religion propelled by values, not race nor, theoretically, by blind tribal allegiances, I explained. The “American Muslim” identity...
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The Trump-Netanyahu Circus: Now, no one can save Israel from itself
The President of the United States can hardly be taken seriously, saying much but doing little. His words, often offensive, carry no substance, and it is impossible to summarise his complex political outlook about important issues. This is precisely the type of American presidency that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu...
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Israel’s vision for the future is terrifying
Empirical historical evidence combined with little common-sense are enough to tell us the type of future options that Israel has in store for the Palestinian people: perpetual apartheid or ethnic cleansing, or a mix of both. The passing of the “Regularisation Bill” on 6 February is all we need to...
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The uncomfortable truth: Are we hating Donald Trump for the wrong reasons?
I fear that many of us are hating Donald Trump for the wrong reasons. Multitudes are being swayed by mainstream media-inspired demonization of the new US president, based on selective assumptions and half-truths. US mainstream media, which rarely deviates from supporting the American government’s conduct, however reckless, is now presenting Trump...
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Clamoring for Israeli Approval: Trump’s Election Promises Will Haunt Him
US President Donald Trump promises to be pro-Israel in every aspect. ‘I’m the best thing that could ever happen to Israel,’ he boasted at the Republican Jewish Coalition’s Presidential Forum in Washington DC, in December, 2015. For a brief moment, Trump appeared as if rethinking his unconditional support for Israel, when...
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The Paris Peace Conference: Signaling an end to a Western-dominated era?
No, it was not just ‘another Middle East peace conference,’ as a columnist in Israeli ‘Jerusalem Post’ attempted to depict the Paris Peace Conference held on January 15, with top official representations from 70 countries attending. If it was, indeed, just ‘another peace conference’, representatives from the Israeli government...
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The Balancing Act is Over: What Elor Azaria Taught Us about Israel
For some, the ‘manslaughter’ conviction – following the murder by Israeli army medic, Elor Azaria, of already incapacitated Palestinian man, Fattah al-Sharif – is finally settling a protracted debate regarding where Israelis stand on Palestinian human rights. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFkq4wJ9yn8 Nearly 70 percent of the Israeli public supports calls to pardon the convicted...
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Enough Fear-mongering: Only One Democratic State is Possible in Palestine and Israel
Long before 28 December, when Secretary of State, John Kerry took the podium at the Dean Acheson Auditorium in Washington DC to pontificate on the uncertain future of the two-state solution and the need to save Israel from itself, the subject of a Palestinian state has been paramount. In fact,...
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A blessing in disguise? The Trump presidency may be better for Palestine
Israel is dizzy. January 20th has been like another Christmas Day and Donald Trump is jolly old Santa Claus bearing gifts. The writing is already on the wall as President-elect Trump has appointed an extremist, David Friedman, as the next US Ambassador to Israel who intends to relocate the...
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Palestine 2017: Time to bid Farewell to Washington and embrace the globe
There is no doubt that the UN Security Council condemnation of Israel on Friday was an important and noteworthy event. True, the United Nations’ main chambers (the Security Council and the General Assembly) and its various institutions, ranging from the International Court of Justice to the UN cultural agency, UNESCO,...
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Stifling the debate on Israel: For Palestinians, Zionism only means one thing
On 12 December, the British government officially adopted a new definition of anti-Semitism that includes legitimate criticism of Israel. The definition was adopted earlier in the year by pro-Israeli group IHRA, although it was considered but abandoned by the European anti-racism agency in 2005. It is a rather dangerous move which...
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Navigating War: Has the War in Syria also Destroyed Journalism?
When a veteran war reporter like Robert Fisk constructs his argument regarding the siege of Aleppo based on ‘watching’ video footage, then one can truly comprehend the near impossibility of adequate media coverage on the war in Syria. In a recent article in the British Independent, Fisk reflects on the...
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Hold your applause, Fatah, the Palestinian body politic is rotten to the core
In July 2003, the then Palestinian Authority Chairman, Yasser Arafat, described Mahmoud Abbas as a “traitor” who “betrayed the interests of the Palestinian People.” Arafat loathed Abbas to the very end. This particular outburst was made during a meeting with United Nations envoy Terje Larsen. The meeting took place...
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Less symbolism, more action: Towards meaningful solidarity with Palestine
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (BDS) has designated the week, November 25 to December 3, as the ‘Biggest-Ever Campaign’ aimed at boycotting Israeli products and those of companies that contribute to the Israeli military occupation of Palestine. In a recently issued press release, the civil society-led group highlighted “99...
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What Should Palestinians Expect – Can Trump Be Any Worse?
Fear and trepidation are slowly building up, as US President-elect, Donald Trump, is fortifying his transitional team with people capable of bringing about a nightmare scenario, not only for Americans but for the rest of the world, as well. For Palestinians, however, the signs are even more ominous. From former...
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Praying for Freedom: Why Is Israel silencing the call for prayer in Jerusalem?
As I was growing up, I was always reassured by the sound of the ‘Muadhin’ making the call for prayer in our refugee camp’s main mosque in Gaza. Whenever I heard the call very early in the morning, announcing in a melodic voice that the time for the ‘Fajr’...
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The infamy of the Palestinian elites: An imminent split within Fatah?
The Fatah movement is involved in a massive tug-of-war that will ultimately define its future. Though the conflict is between current Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and once Gaza strongman Mohammed Dahlan is in no way motivated by ending the Israeli occupation, their war will likely determine the future...
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Why Palestinians want to sue Britain
On the 99th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, Ramzy Baroud looks at the continuing impact of that letter...
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The War on UNESCO: Al-Aqsa Mosque is Palestinian and East Jerusalem is illegally occupied
Did Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, actually read the full text of the UNESCO resolution on Palestine and Israel, before he raved with anger? “I think this is a mistaken, inconceivable resolution,” he said. “It is not possible to continue with these resolutions at the UN and UNESCO that aim to...
